Everytime Atlanta

Packing was a nightmare. An absolute nightmare. I have a lot of stuff, stuff I like, stuff I wanted so I took it all. Well most of it. I finished tidying my office at 3.00am and went home and packed. Packing took forever and at 9.00am I was done. Like I said I had a lot of stuff, everything was weighed so as to not be overweight. I had two suitcases of 70lbs, a box of 50lbs. That was getting checked. My hand luggage is a 40lb suitcase, a back pack, my laptop, a little sport bag. Oh and a poster. A lot of stuff.

So at Atlanta my flight was delayed so they put me on a Delta flight which being Atlanta and the most hateful airport I’ve ever had the misfortune to be in was the in the complete other side of the airport, in the other terminal. So, cart with 230lb worth of my stuff and everything else in my hands had to ‘run’ over to get checked in there. The woman at check in told me she didn’t need the bit of paper with my details, she’d find it on the computer. However what she didn’t know was that the bit of paper had the all important word ‘Belfast’ on it. So my luggage was only checked through to Newark, NJ. So any advantage of getting in earlier than my original flight was instantly wipped as I’d have to go to baggage claim. Eventually they got my luggage tags reprinted with Belfast and said that they couldn’t give me my other boarding card. They told me to go back to the North terminal to get it, but to be quick or I’d miss my flight.

So back to Continental where they told me I didn’t need to be here, I could get the card at the gate. So I left, with all my stuff all over the place, I had ten minutes to get to the gate. At security I had a near meltdown which was actually funny…now. He told me to combine bags, fine I will. 'Do it here' pointing to a space. I moved to go where he told me, hitting him in the face with the poster. He thought this was me attacking him and shouted at me saying I needed to do it here. I cried. And shouted back and probably caused a scene. They marked me for an extra security check. Spiteful gits. Atlanta, as well as being utterly hateful is huge. I had to get the train and then run. I made it to the gate, plane delayed. Super.

On the plane I discovered that there were two other people trying to get the Belfast flight. We got moved up the plane so we could get off. Very handy. Not so handy was the fact we had to change terminal. Again other train. Because of the terminal change I had to go through security, but you’ll remember I didn’t have my boarding card. So there was no way I was getting through there.

I’m not sure I would have made it even if I had my card and arrived in the terminal but the fact I didn’t see the others makes me think they might have. At Atlanta I had been told that if I missed my connection I’d be on my own because it was weather delays, and not their fault. I decided to fly on because trying and failing is better than not to try at all. At Newark they changed their minds and I was put up in a hotel, because Belfast being the major international hub it is, there’s only one flight a day.

I know smart people who pack for just such an occasion where they are stranded. I don’t (plus remember packing was a nightmare). In fact you would be hard pressed to come up with a more useless list of things to have in your hand luggage. Clothes-wise I have no underwear, a pair of trousers that I nearly threw away, a white work shirt (which I would be more excited about if the bra of choice yesterday wasn’t black) and yesterday’s tank top. Security restrictions mean I have no toothbrush or paste, no make up remover and no make up. But what I do have is my jewellery box (no jewellery inside though), lanyards from the Conference and all my bank stuff. Marvellous.

Anyway I’m about to go into New York City for the afternoon. I’ll see you tomorrow. Hopefully.