Traveling...

So it begins:

The always amusing attempt to use US air travel to go anywhere in a timely and orderly fashioned failed once again today. I arrived at DC's National airport at 5:30 am for a 6:45 flight. I should have known something was wrong when it took all of 15 minutes to check-in, get boarding passes, check luggage,--that somehow made it past the 50lb rule--and get through security. The plane was at the gate but at 6:10 am they told us that due to a maintenance issue the flight was delayed and there was no estimate as to when, or if, it would depart. That might have been alright except for the fact that I had a 9am departure from Newark. No way would I make that flight. Then begins the panic, the fear, the feeling of losing control of one's destiny: after watching 8 people approach the Continental desk for flights to the Caribbean, I decided to be assertive and, remarkably, managed to be heard. A new ticket materialized but...

The next flight to London would not leave until 6:40 pm. Thus, here I am, parked at Newark Liberty International Airport going on hour 10 of my day and hour 3 of my layover. While the counter staff at Continental supplied meal vouchers, they are remarkably stingy--$6 for breakfast got me a coffee and danish at the starbucks ($5.77) and a reminder that they keep the change--which I find repulsive. Most frustratingly, there is no where within security to leave baggage unless you are a member of the Presidential Club--I do enjoy those reminders that some of us are more equal than others. Who ever thought that reading Animal Farm would have so many applications for real life. Anyway, after conversations with very unhelpful and rude Continental supposed "customer service" staff, I retreated to a power station to plug in.

Keep tuned to see how the story unfolds.