On exiting the USA - August 2009

I was startled awake by a flash of bright lights and not the alarm on my cell phone. I wondered who was being so self-absorbed that they forgot I was sleeping on the couch. I sat up, turned toward the kitchen and saw a beautiful angel who looked surprisingly like my son, the new daddy, Adrian. I had spent the night at his house so he could drive me to my plane. Apparently I failed to hear the alarm I set. Gasp! I now had 5 minutes before we had to leave for Traverse City's airport! Talk about a jolt! I find it amazing that a person can just throw themselves immediately to task after being abruptly awakened!

We got to the airport and I got checked in without incident. My girl friend, Michelle, met us there to see me off as well. After a few tearful hugs and kisses I went through security as my flight was scheduled to leave shortly. I boarded. And then I waited. All of us inside the plane waited. There was a severe thunderstorm going on and the plane was not allowed to leave the runway. We actually taxied out a couple of times but were told to turn back to the terminal for safety's sake - because of the weather. In my dozing state I believe I heard reports from the captain regarding the weight of the plane being to heavy for the weather conditions. I think that is why we did some additional cruising around the runway - to use up fuel so the plane would weigh less so we could take off when the barometric pressure lessened. Whether that was fact or fiction I have no idea. Regardless, we remained on terra firma for at least two extra hours!

When we finally arrived above the Detroit airport we began our descent only to be told to resume our circling of the facility as the skies were too crowded with vessels wanting to land. Now we had to wait in the sky! But only for a few minutes! When I got into the terminal I inquired as to the location of my next gate, which was with a different airline, as my flight was scheduled for departure within 30 minutes. I was horrified to hear that the airline I was utilizing to deliver me to Costa Rica was in another terminal altogether and that it would take me a minimum of 30 minutes just to get there. I would have to exit the building I was in and take an airport terminal shuttle to get me there. I was going to miss my flight!

Well, I've never missed a flight in my life! New experience! Scarey experience actually! I had to wait in an incredibly slow moving line for an attendant to re-book my flight. During the wait I mentally calmed myself down and prepared myself to handle this alteration. At first, like I said, it felt scarey. Scarey because I've never had to deal with this kind of situation before. There were a lot of 'what-ifs' that wanted to insist that the process was impossible, expensive, and damned inconvenient! I had to focus on creating a peaceful scenario for myself and then assuring myself that I could 'be' there. It's one thing to tell yourself that there is nothing to worry about when you are not in a situation that might encourage it and quite another to be in a situation to which you have been conditioned to believe is 'awful' and then find peace there. I knew it was do-able and so ... I did it.

The next hiccup occurred when the Booking Attendant heard my request, checked her computer, displayed an expression of shock and exclaimed, "That's weird! There aren't any more flights out of Detroit today that have available seats!" Remember that it is by now only 8:30 in the morning. She told me I'd have to spend the day AND night in Detroit and fly out the following day!!! "No. Thanks not acceptable. There is something there for me - an upgrade, another airline, re-routing through another city, varying times of day... check again," I told her.
She kept checking and shaking her head. Every now and then she'd say, "How strange!" And I kept assuring her that there was no WAY I was spending the next 24 hours in Detroit and that I WOULD be arriving in Costa Rica today!! Somehow there was a way and she would find it! Eventually she did.

Originally I was flying to Detroit to Charlotte, NC arriving in San Jose at 1:00 p.m. The 'enhanced' (one can always choose to believe that all things happen for a beneficial purpose) itinerary became: waiting 4 more hours in Detroit & continuing to Charlotte, NC where I would need to get another boarding pass and then fly on to Atlanta, GA. In Atlanta I again change airlines and thus get, yet another boarding pass, for the flight to San Jose arriving at 9:30 p.m.
While still in Detroit I tried to get ahold of Otto to let him know of the changes. I had the number of the hotel he was staying at so I called them but was unable to reach Otto. Then I called Ot's best friend, Reinaldo, who lives in San Jose and asked him if he would try to contact Otto and have him call me. He said he would. Otto called me, but not because Reinaldo had reached him. He called because he thought I was waiting in the airport in Charlotte, NC and wanted to talk to me one last time before I landed in San Jose. Delightful! I arrived in San Jose without further interruption. But I wouldn't be allowed to leave Costa Rica for Holland without another 'flight-mare' experience (as my girl friend Evie so aptly described it). Details to follow on another day.