Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Technical Difficulties

I was going to post some pictures from my trip to California to see Jules, but I can't find the cord that links from my camera to my laptop so I can download pictures. I know the minute I post this it will pop up.

The trip was awesome, but I had every conceivable problem getting back to Austin.

1) Jules and I each paid $5 for a train ticket to the airport at a automated machine on the platform. As soon as the machine spit out my ticket we ran for the train, but it left without us. (It left another guy as well who was also running and waving his arms. The security guard even tried to flag it down, but it left anyway.)

If we're lucky, we may get a refund in 4-6 weeks if we fill out some paperwork. The next train didn't leave until 3 p.m., so we had to catch a cab.

(BTW- Jules told me that "catch a cab" is a metaphor for death, like "kick the bucket" or "bought the farm.")

2) I fell asleep at the gate and the flight attendant woke me up after everyone else had boarded. I was thoroughly embarrassed, and he made some condescending remarks about how I could nap on the plane. (You'd think I was the only sleep-deprived person who had to catch a flight.)

3) I thought I held up the plane, but it turns out I didn't. There was a long delay. And as if I wasn't embarrassed enough, I desperately had to go to the bathroom, but they weren't letting people out of their seats. I called the flight attendant. Fortunately, she got special permission for me to get up and use it.

4) I dozed some more, so I lost track of time, but I think we spent at least an hour in the plane on the ground. They said something about redistributing the weight of the luggage.

5) I barely made my connection in Phoenix, but again, we had to wait a while on the ground. This time it wasn't so bad. The flight was less crowded, so I had an empty seat next to me. And having slept, I was up for some knitting.

6) When I got to Austin, they mislabeled the baggage carousels and we probably spent 15 or 20 minutes waiting at the wrong carousel for my luggage. This was just long enough so that my parents and I had to pay for parking.

7) I missed my exit and had to take the long was to my apartment.

8) I couldn't find a parking spot near my apartment. (At least I didn't have to park in the grass behind the dumpsters again.)

Seriously, I did have a good trip, despite the journey home. Later on I'll have pictures of the beach, the Hollywood walk of fame, me and Jules together and some yarn store pr0n. For now, I'm still trying to catch up on sleep.

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