While you were teaching...

So your vacation is over, and it's back to the grind. While you are hanging your annual show and dealing with asseessment etc, what is this retired art teacher (me) doing? Well, hubby and I thought "how wonderful! We no longer need to take vacations on school breaks! We can travel at other times for better rates and no 'spring break' crowd!" So, only a month or so ago, we impulsively booked a nice little trip for a few days of fun and sun in the Bahamas. Which is where I was supposed to be landing, RIGHT NOW. Except I'm sitting in a rocking chair in the Philadelphia airport, writing this post, killing time. I've been here since 8:30am (it's now about 2:00pm). And I didn't expect to be in Philly at all.

So we left our home this morning at - get this - 3:00am for the hour drive to the airport for a 5:30am flight, concerned about the driving rain and freezing temperature, but we got there no problemo. Our plane left Albany NY about a 1/2 hour late, because we had to wait our turn at de-icing. The airport evidently has only one de-icer. We were connecting in Washington DC to Charlotte NC, to fly to Freeport, to be there early afternoon (like I said, RIGHT NOW).

But as we approached Washington, the ride got bumpy, and I swear, we were struck by lightning 3 times. No kidding. Very scary. I started worrying about my son and my cat, and how they'd manage without us. Again, no kidding. The weather was so bad that we weren't allowed to land, circled and circled for more than 1/2 hour, and finally turned tail and set down in Philly. Wrong city, missed connections.... In my head - a crappy TV movie based on a Stephen King book - The Langoliers; or perhaps an episode of Lost. Or anything else I'd seen with an airline 'problem'. I started reciting to myself the 'fear litany' from the book Dune. ("Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear...."). Seriously.

So we'll fly out of here to Charlotte this evening (the sky appears to be brightening), and to Freeport TOMORROW MORNING. Our mini-vacay just got a day shorter. My thanks and appreciation go out to the sweet agent who, on the phone with me while we sat waiting in the plane at the gate here in Philly, managed to get our tickets changed so we are guaranteed seats on our flights to Charlotte and Freeport. Now, I'd probably better post this and find us a place to spend the night in Charlotte or we'll be sleeping on an airport bench.

At this moment, rocking away, with hubby rocking in a chair next to me munching m&m's, I'm mostly thankful to be alive. Cheerio! I'll keep you posted!