Houston, we have a problem

Here's another picture from the El Paso airport. I knew before I left El Paso that it wasn't going to be a good day. To begin with, they were asking people to give up their seats in exchange for a cash voucher and a later flight. By the time they boarded the plane, we were about 20 minutes late taking off. This wouldn't have been a problem, except that I only had 30 minutes to change planes in Houston. Even if the gate you are going to is right beside the gate where you land, you can't change planes in Houston in less than 10 minutes. I landed at gate C84 and needed to be at gate B76 in less than five minutes. I informed the Continental agent who met our plane of my problem and he advised me to get there as fast as I could. As fast as I could, considering I had to wait for their shuttle bus to take me to the other terminal, was about 20 minutes. Surprise, surprise when I arrived at gate B76 my plane had left without me.

At this point, I had a new understanding of Bailey and being 2 years old. He doesn't throw things and fall to the floor crying because he expects to get anything by doing it. He does it because it FEELS GOOD. I wanted nothing more than to knock the phone and computer monitor of the Continental agent to the floor, then fall down screaming and kicking in the middle of gate B76. I knew it wouldn't bring back the plane I had missed, or get me a cookie, but it just seems like it would have felt good.

Continental booked me on a Northwest flight to Detroit, where I was able to make a connection to Charleston, WV, on a propeller plane!!!! I didn't know they still had propeller planes. The stewardess was at least 65 years old, so maybe nobody has told this crew that they are no longer in service. FYI, the airport in Detroit is very nice, but they have this weird tunnel you have to walk through to get from terminal A to terminal B where the walls change color and lights flash to some kind of oriental music and you feel like you are underwater. They also have this really neat fountain in the main terminal that shoots water out of holes at different times and makes pretty patterns and splashes. So go through Detroit sometime if you get a chance.

Finally, I arrived in WV at about 10:30 pm and guess what??? My luggage didn't make it. So I filled out a missing luggage form and drove home. I was actually sort of surprised that my luggage didn't make the flight from Houston that I missed. I figured that would have been the greatest irony. My luggage did arrive today, so alls well that ends well, I suppose.