![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
And here we are again...
...very nearly a year to the day, and I get to type those immortal words again and mean them --
It's stupid o'clock, I've had about five hours' sleep after a straight 30-ish hours' consciousnss and I'm wide awake.
Well, I made it :-) And yesterday was an awfully big adventure! Up at five, at the airport by 7.30 or thereby, first flight (to London) at 10.15. Longish layover at Heathrow, about four hours, flight out to Seattle non-stop at 3.05.
That was the theory.
All went swimmingly until 3.05, when we all cheerfully loaded onto the plane - then sat on the tarmac for an hour and a half. Apparently some *cough*arsehole*cough* couldn't get his shit together and catch the samn plane on time and we had to *wait* for him! I'm thinking whoever he was had to be at least the head of some small, obscure Baltic state or something 'cos they sure as hell wouldn't have done that for *me* :-{ Much muttering and grumbling and mention of tar and feathers and rails in one sentence from the peanut gallery at the back, but it all resolved itself once the plane got actually moving. Made the non-smoking time a little unacceptably long though :-(
Mostly the flight was okay :-) For once the food wasn't bad, and I was busy chatting with my new best friends, Tony and Audrey :-) Only downside was my rear neighbour. Things started off on a less than bright note: I got lucky, got a window seat and was happily enjoying the sunshsine and the view when suddenly this *claw* appeared in the space between the seat and the window and yanked the shutter down. Damn near took my nose off in the process - and it was my window to boot. So I did what any self-respecting non-doormat would do, I opened it right back up again - but compromised by only opening it about half way so that the actual sun was obscured and not shining straight in. There was a series of explosive 'tsk' sounds, which I paid no mind to, from behind, but that was that.
All serene for the next wee while - then I decided to try at least and get *some* sleep, if only to pass the time because it was getting a little, you know, dull, so I got my wee pillow organised, set the seat to recline and snuggled in. For about five seconds before I got this terrific shove forward into the bolt upright position and a voice from behind said, "I can't sit like this. Put that forward again. That's better." Note the complete absence of any kind of civility there - I wasn't terribly impressed. So I squinted round, and Jesus God! It was Ma Clampett! It seriously was! This 202 year old skinny little crone with wispy scraped back white hair in a bun and skin that was about two sizes too big for her face. Glaring at me for having the temerity to put my seat back.
No way can anyone even as much as doze bolt upright, so again with the compromise and I tipped the chair back only half way. Well - this was war :-( She had skinny, bony Ma Clampett knees as well and the old bag delighted into shoving them into my back and wriggling as much as she damn well could. Miserable old hag. And when I eventually got tired of this (having had a short and refreshing nap despite her *g*) and put my seat back up again, I thought that was the end of it. But noooo. This time, just for variety, I was sitting upright when the chair was violently yanked *backwards*, much to my surprise. I think the old bat must have heard my muttering this time because the voice came again, "I have to use your chair to get up." Again in that irritating, whiney, "I'm old and therefore have a perfect right to be as rude as I please" voice.
I'd love to be able to tell you there was a happy ending to this story and her catheter bag burst at an embarrassing and inopportune moment in front of someone very special and important, but alas I can't :-( I can hope though *g*
Customs and Immigration was its usual - umm, tryig desperately hard to be diplomatic here - thorough self. This year, for a change, I seriously considered ticking the 'yes' box for 'are you now, or have you ever been, involved in espionage', but dismissed that on the grounds that I was late enough already. So I waited in line for ever with two flights' worth of non-US citizens (and that was a lot of assorted citizenry) to see one of the two available customs officials who were fingerprinting, interviewing etc. And joy of joys, when they finally decided to allow more than two customs officials to deal with the large queues, I got the one that didn't speak English :-) Or at least not any form of English that I recognise. I think he may have been Puerto Rican or something, but it doesn't matter because I asked him to repeat himself so often he mentally pegged me as 'probably mentally defective, but essentially harmless' and waved me through quite quickly *g*
So, here I am. Got the hero's welcome from Milly rather than the horrified 'wtf?' looks that she treated me to last year, and she's spent the night on my bed :-) Abby is following me around again this year, but more in the happy, "Hey, whatcha doin'? Can I do it too?' way rather than the 'Hey! Whatcha doin'? Mom, hide the spooons' way that she did last year *g* Del-boy (Cocky One) to his friends *g*) got the light of blood lust in his eyes when he saw me come through the door and is looking forward to his first really good protein meal in a year LOL. And Thumper (Cocky Too) told me she loved me :-) So - all good :-)
And now that it's light, I'm going back to sleep for an hour or two :-) </lj-cut/
It's stupid o'clock, I've had about five hours' sleep after a straight 30-ish hours' consciousnss and I'm wide awake.
Well, I made it :-) And yesterday was an awfully big adventure! Up at five, at the airport by 7.30 or thereby, first flight (to London) at 10.15. Longish layover at Heathrow, about four hours, flight out to Seattle non-stop at 3.05.
That was the theory.
All went swimmingly until 3.05, when we all cheerfully loaded onto the plane - then sat on the tarmac for an hour and a half. Apparently some *cough*arsehole*cough* couldn't get his shit together and catch the samn plane on time and we had to *wait* for him! I'm thinking whoever he was had to be at least the head of some small, obscure Baltic state or something 'cos they sure as hell wouldn't have done that for *me* :-{ Much muttering and grumbling and mention of tar and feathers and rails in one sentence from the peanut gallery at the back, but it all resolved itself once the plane got actually moving. Made the non-smoking time a little unacceptably long though :-(
Mostly the flight was okay :-) For once the food wasn't bad, and I was busy chatting with my new best friends, Tony and Audrey :-) Only downside was my rear neighbour. Things started off on a less than bright note: I got lucky, got a window seat and was happily enjoying the sunshsine and the view when suddenly this *claw* appeared in the space between the seat and the window and yanked the shutter down. Damn near took my nose off in the process - and it was my window to boot. So I did what any self-respecting non-doormat would do, I opened it right back up again - but compromised by only opening it about half way so that the actual sun was obscured and not shining straight in. There was a series of explosive 'tsk' sounds, which I paid no mind to, from behind, but that was that.
All serene for the next wee while - then I decided to try at least and get *some* sleep, if only to pass the time because it was getting a little, you know, dull, so I got my wee pillow organised, set the seat to recline and snuggled in. For about five seconds before I got this terrific shove forward into the bolt upright position and a voice from behind said, "I can't sit like this. Put that forward again. That's better." Note the complete absence of any kind of civility there - I wasn't terribly impressed. So I squinted round, and Jesus God! It was Ma Clampett! It seriously was! This 202 year old skinny little crone with wispy scraped back white hair in a bun and skin that was about two sizes too big for her face. Glaring at me for having the temerity to put my seat back.
No way can anyone even as much as doze bolt upright, so again with the compromise and I tipped the chair back only half way. Well - this was war :-( She had skinny, bony Ma Clampett knees as well and the old bag delighted into shoving them into my back and wriggling as much as she damn well could. Miserable old hag. And when I eventually got tired of this (having had a short and refreshing nap despite her *g*) and put my seat back up again, I thought that was the end of it. But noooo. This time, just for variety, I was sitting upright when the chair was violently yanked *backwards*, much to my surprise. I think the old bat must have heard my muttering this time because the voice came again, "I have to use your chair to get up." Again in that irritating, whiney, "I'm old and therefore have a perfect right to be as rude as I please" voice.
I'd love to be able to tell you there was a happy ending to this story and her catheter bag burst at an embarrassing and inopportune moment in front of someone very special and important, but alas I can't :-( I can hope though *g*
Customs and Immigration was its usual - umm, tryig desperately hard to be diplomatic here - thorough self. This year, for a change, I seriously considered ticking the 'yes' box for 'are you now, or have you ever been, involved in espionage', but dismissed that on the grounds that I was late enough already. So I waited in line for ever with two flights' worth of non-US citizens (and that was a lot of assorted citizenry) to see one of the two available customs officials who were fingerprinting, interviewing etc. And joy of joys, when they finally decided to allow more than two customs officials to deal with the large queues, I got the one that didn't speak English :-) Or at least not any form of English that I recognise. I think he may have been Puerto Rican or something, but it doesn't matter because I asked him to repeat himself so often he mentally pegged me as 'probably mentally defective, but essentially harmless' and waved me through quite quickly *g*
So, here I am. Got the hero's welcome from Milly rather than the horrified 'wtf?' looks that she treated me to last year, and she's spent the night on my bed :-) Abby is following me around again this year, but more in the happy, "Hey, whatcha doin'? Can I do it too?' way rather than the 'Hey! Whatcha doin'? Mom, hide the spooons' way that she did last year *g* Del-boy (Cocky One) to his friends *g*) got the light of blood lust in his eyes when he saw me come through the door and is looking forward to his first really good protein meal in a year LOL. And Thumper (Cocky Too) told me she loved me :-) So - all good :-)
And now that it's light, I'm going back to sleep for an hour or two :-) </lj-cut/