Quick Weekend Trip Gone Crazy

I had a really easy trip planned for this past weekend. I took extra measures to make it so, even…

I booked direct flights for easy traveling, and at ideal times to avoid rush hour traffic going to and from the airport. I packed light, had everything ready for a quick walk through security – you name it.

No amount of planning and preparation can prevent unexpected travel kinks, though – LOL.

First, a little backtracking…
I recently went “deer hunting” in my Infiniti. Quite by accident, of course! 😛 No big deal really. She wasn’t injured, and there was only minor body work needed to get my favorite little road trip crossover back like new. I picked it up from the shop just a few days before my trip, so happy to have it back! 😀

The next morning I ran a few last minute errands before my trip. Just simple stuff – nails done, bank deposit, that kind of thing. A few miles into my errands I heard a “pop” or a thud of some sort under the hood… and smoke rolled out from under it. I parked it and called the shop and they looked at it right away. After a good once-over they determined it was just oil and antifreeze and such spilled down in there and hosed it out, and said I was good to go.

Less than a mile down the road it hesitated a bit, and the “check engine” light came on. Hmm? He’d said it was fine. I figured maybe he got water in something and it would dry out. I was only a few miles from home, so I went on and then parked it – and finished packing.

I had a super early flight, so I had to leave at 3:30am the next morning. Way to beat rush hour traffic, right? 😉 LOL. Yeah, or so I thought. Halfway to the airport the car starting acting all crazy, and then just quit altogether – right there on the Interstate.

(This was the beginning of what would ultimately be a domino effect that lasted through the entire trip.)

Fortunately I have great insurance through 21st Century. They handled my “deer hunting claim” super fast. It was really impressive. Anyway, my policy also comes with Roadside Assistance so I just gave them a call. They answered immediately, came and towed my car to the city, and called a cab to take me to the airport.

All good, right? I figured I could deal with the car issue when I got back…

The cabby was awesome. He made it a personal mission to get me to my flight on time. Only one problem – he only took cash. Which I did not have on me, LOL. So we had to make a pit stop at an ATM on the way. That few minutes was precious time, it turned out. He did get me there though, and I tipped him $20 for the effort.

Southwest all but laughed at me at check-in, but took my bag at curbside and handed me a boarding pass and wished me luck. Nashville International Airport is generally very quiet and a breeze to get through. Ohhh… but not on this particular morning, of course, LOL. 😛 Security was backed up like a line to a Katy Perry concert!

Everyone was super nice and I ended up getting to cut line about a dozen times and whizzed through security. I can get my shoes and belt off quicker than you can say “TRIP” and always have everything sorted and ready to go through. Awesome! But as I was making my way through security in record time, I noticed I’d gotten a text from Southwest Airlines. “Gate Change” – oh no. And changed to the very, very, very far end of the airport.

I ran to the gate, which might as well have been a 5K marathon – lol. Especially at that time of morning, and after such a hectic trip already. I arrived at the gate all out of breath but still hopeful, but the lady was already nodding her head and looking up alternate flights.

At that point I just laughed. And caught my breath for a second. Good grief. 😛 LOL.

The next flight out wasn’t for three hours, but fortunately it was also a direct flight. No worries – I was hungry and had some work I *really* needed to do, so I took the opportunity to find a good place for a nice low carb breakfast and pulled out my laptop. I went to connect to Boingo, but it was a “no-go”. I tried 1400 times. (Yes, I’m exaggerating.) *sigh* Breakfast was good, at least.

I’m still calm and collected at this point, just going with the flow. I’m not the type to stress out over details. The car was towed and sitting safely at the dealership, I made it to the airport, enjoyed a nice breakfast, and ultimately had a safe flight to my destination.

I got a front row seat on that flight, by the way. Right between two older gentlemen. I told them straight up I was planning to have a much needed nap, and I did – I was out before we even took off, LOL. I woke up as we landed in Baltimore and the guy on my left said “man, you weren’t kidding” and laughed. I just smiled. This girl can nap ANYwhere. 😉

Yay, finally there! I grabbed my stuff, hit the ladies room, and headed to baggage claim – hoping my bag made it too. And it did – score! Except… that’s when I realized I’d left my cell phone in the ladies room. 😐

I had to go back through ticketing, then back through security, and back to the gate. In line at security the day finally started catching up with me and I broke out in a sweat (and hives) and felt all fidgety. I was fanning myself with my freshly printed “you’re a moron” ticket when the security guy started eyeballing me. He walked over to pull me out of line and said “feeling a little nervous, ma’am?” and I thought “ohhh man…” LOL.

Fortunately it only took two words to keep my place in line: “Hormone Therapy” I said with an apologetic smile. He let me go through. Thank God.

My phone wasn’t where I left it. *sigh* I walked out into the hallway and scanned the area for a Southwest rep to ask where Lost & Found was. Ever hopeful, I know. Just then they called my name over the loudspeaker, and I spotted a lady in Southwest uniform at the exact same moment – and she was holding my Droid Razr in her hand. YAY! I actually did a Happy Dance right there at the A-Gate and gave her a big hug, LOL.

Kudos to all the cool people out there who do kind things in this world, and would turn in a lost item instead of keeping it! 😀 Whoever the lady was, I truly hope she was blessed for the act of kindness.

I had a nice relaxing weekend, thank goodness, and had a chance to wind down and enjoy my time there. The trip home turned out to be just as challenging though. Multiple delays had me at the airport for more than four hours, and getting in super late. Every new delay meant coordinating with my ride home on the other end again, of course. My daughter and her handsome boyfriend were right there when I finally did arrive though – hungry, exhausted, and so ready to get home and curl up in my own bed.

I did treat them to dinner first though, in appreciation for the ride. A wrong turn took us back into the city, and multiple interstate exchanges, where we did finally find a place to enjoy a nice dinner – but that detour made getting home a total of three very long hours. 😛

Can I just say, I am SO happy to be home! LOL.

Hopefully my next trip will go a little smoother. Oh – and by the way, it looks like my engine blew and the Infiniti may be totaled. I’m off to pick up a rental car in the morning (covered by my insurance company, which is nice) and thanks to the holiday this week… it will be next week before the adjuster can do an assessment on my car. So there’s that to deal with still. What a weekend.

Meanwhile, I’m surfing holiday travel deals this week and planning my next trip. 😀