Mixed Emotions

I'm so full of feelings right now that I have to get them out! So to continue the airport saga from the last post, here's what ended up happening. I boarded the plane to go from Denver to Houston. My next flight was supposed to be from Houston to Austin. After a little bit of a rocky flight from turbulence, we found out that we had been in a holding pattern for awhile. Houston was completely shut down because of tornado activity and it seemed it would be, at the very least, another hour before it was open. So the captain announced we'd be landing in Austin, refueling, and waiting for Houston to open. Austin was where I was supposed to be! So now the dilemma is how to get them to let me off the plane there. No one was supposed to get off, we were on the farthest runway about a mile from the actual airport, and they were going to just take back off after Houston opened. So I snuck up to the front and explained my situation to the stewardess (Flight attendant? Do they really care that much? I don't know since I've never asked. I digress...). I told her this was my final destination and that my baggage was right inside that airport already since I'd missed my last flight. We were sitting on the runway only about an hour after I was supposed to have arrived if all had gone to plan. She was very compassionate and went into the cockpit to explain the situation. She came out and told me it would be a few minutes until she knew if they could help, but that the captain said if it was possible to get me off the plane, he'd work it out. Well within about 10 minutes, another stewardess came up to me and told me, under her breath, to grab my stuff and follow her. Meanwhile I'm listening to people around me talk about how they wished they could just get off in Austin, stay with friends that night, and find another way to Houston. Well she didn't have to tell me twice. I grabbed my bags and practically ran up the aisle. They scooted me off the plane, after hugging and profusely thanking the crew, and I was escorted to a van. The van took me back to the main airport where a supervisor took my Houston to Austin ticket so that he could make sure I had been taken care of in the computer for the rest of the flight. They used a lot of their resources and were so awesome! I ended up saving several hours since it was only a little after 5 right then. If things had continued as they were going, I wouldn't have been back to Austin until probably 9 or 10 if Houston didn't close again. Hooray! You can bet that I came home today, looked up their customer comment line, and got that experience documented. The operator said the crews' managers would be notified and my comments would be part of a regular customer service report. Having intimate experience in the customer service business, I believe in giving credit where credit is due. Those people did everything to help me out of a tough spot and they deserve props homies! So that's my happy emotion right now.

On the flip side, I'm crushed I had to leave. Coming back was monumentally faster since I only had 1 layover in Phoenix and everything was pretty well on time. We got to the airport about 2 hours before my flight and it was fairly slow so I got to spend some good playing time with the nieces. Every time I see those girls I love them more and more. Annie is girly like me so she always "helps" me with my makeup. Meli is so enthusiastic about everything and it's completely contagious. They have me wrapped around their tiny little fingers. I just wish I could stay and hang out with them all the time. I'm completely jealous of Celeste's friends. They have all the time in the world to spend with the girls and I just wish I did too!! So of course when I had to say goodbye, the tears I'd been holding in all morning just found their way out. My heart broke even more (if that's possible) when Annie asked if she could come too and cried when I started walk away. I just wanted to run back and say forget it to everything going on here. It was nice to get some good quality time with my sister too. We went to a killer aerobics class that she's been going to 3 times a week and I can testify this is not your grandma's aerobics. I'm glad to see she's found something fun to do that makes her feel really good about herself. It was also cool to see other people commenting on how good she is starting to look. I hope they move back to Arizona ASAP so I can visit more often. Wayne will be like "Dude, Celeste, does your sister live here now or something?" I'll post a couple of pictures once I get the ones Celeste took. I think some of those will be awesome. 

Oh and btw, the national anthem thing went ok. The day was cold and rainy and things did not go to my satisfaction so all video must be destroyed. lol I was still so proud to even have been a part of such a great fundraiser. I was inspired watching these cancer survivors related to each other and brave the elements to pay it forward. Ugh, there go my emotions again. I'd better stop this feeling-fest and rehydrate. Sheesh Shan!