Sorry for the brief hiatus. I finally made it to California! It's BEAUTIFUL here and I am in love. I have been here almost a week and still have another eleven days to enjoy. Blessed.
I will write a post about my actual trip and share pictures later on. But first, I wanted to share the experience of my flight. It's definitely one in which I can laugh about for years to come, although it wasn't very funny at the time.
This wasn't my first experience flying alone, but the first time flying alone and changing planes. I have to admit, I was a little nervous about it. My layover was in Las Vegas so I was anticipating a ginormous airport and a plethora of
outright strange "unique" people. Surprisingly, the airport is actually pretty small. It was easy to navigate and I found my new gate in no time. I passed tons of slot machines, which I expected. I spent a whole dollar and couldn't even figure out how to work the thing before I decided that wasn't for me. I love to people watch, so I grabbed a frappe from Starbucks and assumed my seat while I waited to board. For the most part, people there looked pretty normal. Until.....I caught a glimpse of a lady walking up to look for a seat. When I say she looked weird, I mean she looked weird... Gold teeth, earrings in her face (yes, FACE), fake eyelashes, bandana around her head, stripes shaven into her head, a black dress, and what looked like a towel draped around her shoulders as if she had just escaped from the salon to make her flight. I never saw where she sat before we were called to board.
My fingers were crossed as the passengers passed my aisle. I was so hoping that no one would take the seat between the girl on my row and me. Then, I heard the airline stewerdess announce, "Attention passengers, this flight is completely full. If you are expecting to have a seat beside you open, it will be taken. Make your preparations now." I then decided to try and make eye contact with anyone looking somewhat normal and encourage them to come on in and sit. My attempts failed. You have probably guessed the rest of the story. The salon escapee came on and asked for the seat beside me.
We actually had a very pleasant conversation before take-off, as I was beginning to feel guilty for judging this lady by her appearance. As the plane taxied down the runway, I was beginning to feel a little uneasy for some reason. I had never gotten motion sickness on a plane, although it is a very common occurance in the car. I laid my head back and just tried to relax. When we took off, I can't describe the turbulence we experienced. The pilot asked that we keep our seatbelts buckled because air traffic control said the winds were really bad. I knew I was in trouble when I was forced to make sure there was a barf bag in the seat in front of me. I started having some major hot flashes, tingling, and flat out signs that the worst was coming. As I was trying to decide if I should attempt to make it to the bathroom or just "let her rip" right there in my seat, it happened. I grabbed the bag and..... let's just say.... I didn't have to worry about the calories I consumed in that frappe. Or the dinner I had before that. Or for that matter, anything else I had eaten the previous eight to ten hours. It was THAT bad. As I tried to apologize to my new friend as I was completely and utterly embarrassed, she interrupted me by saying, "Guuuuuuuurl, let it out!." How hilarious is this???
That flight definitely goes down as the most memorable. Thankfully, I arrived in California safely around ten o'clock Sunday evening. Now, what lessons did I learn? One, never judge a book by it's cover.
This lady, despite her appearance, was helpful and kind. I couldn't have asked for a more cooperative passenger during my time of "need." Lesson two, always...ALWAYS take dramamine before a flight.
Happy Saturday from California! I can't wait to see the Golden Gate Bridge, ride a cable car, view Alcatraz, and have a picnic like DJ Tanner on the grounds in front of the pretty houses in San Francisco!
