One of These Days I'm Actually Going to Miss the Plane

My god, I get worse every time. My trip to New York? The one that's been planned since January? The one for which I've had a plane ticket since January? Yeah, um, that plane leaves at midnight tonight, which means the nice people at SuperShuttle will be here in 23 minutes! I booked my hotel in plenty of time (last week), but that's the extent of my planning so far. Oh, and tomorrow night's dinner plans. Yup, pinned those down at about five tonight. Totally ahead of time.

I debated about bringing the laptop with me, but when I remembered that I have no plans, no travel guide and no idea what kind of overly-helpful/not-at-all-helpful concierge I'll have access to, I decided it was a good idea. And I can't imagine being away from you for five days. Awwwww.

Here's what the past few hours looked like:

7:45 Leave work. Attempt to not run over other cars on the freeway, most of which are, for some crazy reason, choosing to go less than 85 mph.

8:12 Walk in house. Throw work stuff in corner. Grab carry-on-able suitcase and start tossing clothes in it.

8:15 Set alarm clock for 9:00 to remind me to wrap this shit up so I'm on time for the SuperShuttle people. Plug in every electronic device known to man - work cell, personal cell, digital camera battery charger, laptop so I can charge the iPod without draining the laptop battery, iPod.

8:19 Continue gathering clothes. How many days am I going to be gone again? What does fifty degrees feel like?

8:20 Worry that I'm not packing stylish enough clothes. This is New York! I can't be looking like *gasp* some girl from the Midwest!

8:21-8:49 Gym clothes, jeans, bronze going out shirt, black and white going out shirt, blue going out shirt, black pants, 4 sweaters, 2 camis, pajamas, and as many clean socks as I can find.

8:50 Done packing! Go to bank for cash.

8:58 Ok, only sort of done packing. By which I mean I still need underwear, toiletries, and everything that doesn't fit in my suitcase and therefore goes in my tote.

9:14 Really, did I pack cute enough stuff? I can't go without a skirt, can I? What if we go out someplace trendy? Are black pants good enough? How can I not bring a skirt?

9:15 Pack skirt. No, not the gold jacquard skirt, the gold raw silk skirt.

9:16 Do I have fun shoes?

9:17 Doesn't matter, there's only room for one pair of shoes. Sigh.

9:22 Really done packing this time. Except for the tote. And anything I need to add to my purse.

9:23 Check e-mail and read blogs. Because it's likely the world has changed dramatically in the last two hours.

9:37 What are the chances I'll finish this post by the time my driver arrives? Oh right, zero. Shut down the computer and pack tote.

9:40 Where's my black pashmina? I always take it with me when I travel. Tear through mostly-full suitcase from DC trip in search of pashmina.

9:45 No, really, where the fuck is my black pashmina????

9:51 Touch every single black item visible in my room. None of them are the pashmina.

9:53 Maybe it's in the car. You know, cuz that's where I keep all my random articles of clothing.

9:54 Retrieve black pashmina from backseat of car. Vaguely remember it ending up there, but can't recall the circumstances that led to it.

9:59 SuperShuttle isn't here yet. Damn them! Go wash dishes so I'll come home to a halfway clean kitchen.

10:01 Crap, I didn't send that other work e-mail. Oh well, too late now. I'll write it up on the plane and send it from the hotel tomorrow.

10:08 Doorbell rings as I'm draining the icky water from the sink. Perfect.

10:25 Arrive at Terminal B, for Northwest Airlines. Approach the lights-off-no-one-behind-the-counter Northwest check-in. The self-check computer tells me it's closed, but open between 4:15 am and 12:30 am. Um, guys? That would be NOW.

10:26 Very nice (and nice looking) guy at Mexicana Airlines counter next door offers assistance. I might fly to Mexico just for the customer service. He suggests I might have a code-share flight, in which case I need to be at the Continental check-in counter. In Terminal A.

10:27 - 10:36 Walk half a mile to Terminal A. No, I'm not kidding, the two terminals really are a half a mile apart.

10:37 Check in. Curse this code-share thing that means I can't see my seat for the Northwest flight I'm connecting to. Desperately hope that it's not a middle seat in row 26 or something.

10:42 Holy mother of all that is holy, there is WIRELESS ACCESS at the Sacramento Airport. Or at least in Terminal A. Woo-hoo! I love this place.

10:43 Oooh, Starbucks is still open! NO. No caffeine; you need to sleep on the plane.

10:47 Damn. That wireless access sign was missing the operative word "free." Hmmm. Maybe if I'm done writing this by the time I get to Houston, I'll spring for it.

11:35 Have successfully entertained myself at the gate. Five minutes until we begin boarding and I can go to sleep. Now if you'll excuse me, my iPod and I have some quality time to spend together. But first, I must proofread this post.

11:39 Are you fucking kidding me? Stevie Wonder's I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever) is playing on the terminal music soundtrack and I managed to hear it in the two seconds between songs being piped into my ears from iTunes and my headphones. Sonofabitch. I have one and only one association with that song, as I'd never heard it until someone put it on a CD he made for me. Back when we still spoke to each other. And provided each other with important information like, "I'm currently dating someone so maybe this spending the night thing isn't the world's best idea." Clearly we will not be falling in love and this time it will not last forever. FUCK, UNIVERSE, WHY DO YOU DO SUCH THINGS TO ME????

(Even more ironic is that on the way to the airport, I thought I heard a different song on the radio from that same CD, and I was relieved to discover I was wrong. Payback is a bitch.)

11:44 Yeah, great, I'm no longer ready to fall asleep, as my heart rate is approximately 160 bpm. "Fight or flight" adrenaline rush, I hate you! Because there's currently no one to fight with and nowhere to run. Damn it.

11:55 Boarding now. Will fall asleep, even if it kills me.