Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Good news I like to hear....

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Now this is the kind of news I would like to see on tv...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070627/ap_on_fe_st/odd_pickpocket_pummeled;_ylt=ApS4kgX1tBfAWBs7W20HoMR34T0D

Not all the bring you down stuff!
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The day after the last day of our vacation...

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So, here we are after the 5 hour flight to Chicago!!! It was 2 am when I took these pics. I tried to sleep but there were a couple of "visitors' scoping out the area and specifically our baggage!!! So, needless to say, I couldn't sleep at all. I kept watch and felt more safe not sleeping. We boarded the plane around 5:45 am and were finally on our way home...or were we?!!!
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After boarding the plane and having the cabin door shut, an employee came on the intercom to say that we would be delayed for 10 minutes or so with a technical difficulty. Then he came back to say that it would be a few minutes more, they were checking on something that happened to the plane (yeah, that makes me feel like getting this thing off the ground!!!) Then the flight attendant came on and said that it would be another 15 minutes as they had to write up a "report". A few minutes later, the captain came on and told us that there had been a mishap with the cabin door and the terminal walkway. It had "bent" the cabin door and they had to take measurements and decide whether or not the plane was fit to fly!!! AGH!!! Not what the passengers want to hear. But, it gets better...he went on to say that a plane is like a balloon with pressure and when you try to get it off the ground, any flaw in the balloon (a dent in the cabin door) can cause the balloon to explode!!! WTH...was he thinking? So, we nervously sat for about 5 more minutes and the first guy (who happened to work at the terminal) said that they measured everything and wrote up an incident report and we were free to go. Oh sure, free to go where?!!! He wasn't going to be on the plane!!! I never did get to see the actual dent because they have the door opened before you ever get off of the plane and it is positioned so that you can't see it. But, it was a nerve-racking take-off and landing for everyone on board. The guy on the other side in our row was really having problems. He had his head down towards his knees before we ever got off the ground and then he was walking, pacing and had to be asked to sit down....Note to self, once again, never miss your flight!!!!!
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What to do when you are waiting at an airport....

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Since we had to wait in line for close to an hour and then talked to the representative for half an hour, we left the United check-in around noon (our plane had left at 10:45 am). So, we took a shuttle to the International area of the airport where we were told there were more eating choices and shopping. Of course, we had McDonald's to eat and then after sitting for a while, decided to buy a deck of cards and make good use of the time. Our flight was to leave around 6 pm. (Notice the "International" passengers behind Kent.)
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We finally left the international terminal area at 3:30 and shuttled over to the United terminal to wait some more.... (note to self...don't ever miss your flight!)
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