Open All Night

This is absolute torture. I am sitting here at my desk while 1,000 plus of my brethren are partaking in events at the “Big Show.” Luckily, in this age of the Internet, I am able to follow along (at least somewhat anyway). However, this advancement seriously undermines my ability to get things done.

As Nick alluded to in his blog, Sunday was a debacle from start to finish. All I can say is thank goodness we did the practise event, so that we could discover some of the bugs ahead of time. But it was definitely the day from hell. As such, I wasn’t exactly in the best mood for traveling that evening. It was the first time I had flown Southwest, and partook in their “seating free for all.” Basically, you get assigned one of three seating groups, board with that group, and get to pick whatever seat is left. It creates some interesting strategy. I saw people sitting in their line, at the gate, over an hour before boarding! Is it really that important to get your coveted aisle or window seat;for a one hour flight? That fact alone meant I was able to relax and not be forced to throw any forearm shivers in a quest for seating. Because I boarded near the end (with the lowly “C” group, or as I call it “steerage”) there was an announcement to remind us to, and I quote, “just point at the seat you want, regardless of whether the people are avoiding making eye contact with you.” Talk about instilling confidence. So, I proceed down the incorrectly termed “jetway” where the logjam always occurs to get on the plane. I stop, when I notice that the lady two in front of me has one of those see through purses. Those aggravate me to no end. What makes these women think that we want to see what is in their purse? It is so incredibly pompous and arrogant. It is the equivalent of wearing a sheer blouse. Well, maybe not. Feel free to do that. Anyway, I was standing there thinking about writing this very entry, transfixed by it (as you can’t help but look at its contents), when I noticed that she had very little in it but she did have some *ahem* Pearls. She didn’t just have one or two of these devices in there; she had an entire box! Talk about being loaded for bear. Needless to say, she would have still been safe in the event of a water landing, even if her flotation device did not work. Well, the first heat of day 1 of the 2006 Nationals should be very close to ending so it is time for me to vamoose…