March 25, 2015 - Wednesday!
I woke up before my alarm went off? Rise and shine. Well, not right away. Why? I could not get to sleep until after 2:30 a.m. Was it the coffee? Was it the excitement of travel. Good question. Coffee definitely required. I wandered down around 6:00 a.m. to get coffee. A sleep deprived walk through the renovations and windy hallway to my end destination. I found coffee as well as eggs, sausage and yogurt. One other woman was in the breakfast room. Her husband snores so her sleep was not great either. It is not the way to start the day but what can you do?
The airport shuttle was arriving around 6:30 a.m. so i had to eat and finish packing. After everything was packed, I checked out. Because I booked through AAA, they were not able to print out a receipt. Ok. Fine. The van driver was playing reggae music. I was hoping it would wake my senses. I could tell that it might take some time for the brain to function properly.
No problem checking in. I even got a TSA pre-check. However, I was randomly picked for a screening/walk through the machine, then a pat down and check my boots. All was good. Phew! I picked up my luggage and backpack and headed down to find coffee. Oh my. Coffee was definitely needed. I was walking in a sleep-deprived fog but found the Starbucks with no problem. Medium coffee with cream. Thank you very much. Boarding was to be around 7:30 a.m. so I waited until the time came. We boarded around 8:00 a.m. I waited until Zone 5 was boarded so there was not enough room for my luggage. Fine. Okay. My luggage was checked through to Chattanooga. It will be okay with no luggage to worry about in Charlotte. After I was walking through first class, I saw a former co-worker named Daryl sitting there. I have not seen him in years. It was a very cool and took me back around 5 years as to when I saw him last. Anyway, I found my seat at 7B. I had a middle seat. I prefer aisle seats but I will take what I got. I ha;sve a seat to see my friend Kelly. That is all that matters. I have a seat. I am traveling. I am on my way. My neighbor to the left had his headphones in so he was not in any mood for conversation. My neighbor on my right was reading so he was not talkative for awhile. I kept to myself and wanting to sleep but unable to sleep. After a good deal of time, I talked with my neighbor to my right. He was a retired gentleman who used to work at Chrysler and now lives in Huntsville, Alabama. His wife does not like to fly. He comes to Maine about 4 to 6 times per year to see his grandchildren. We had a nice conversation.
We arrived at Terminal C for US Airways. I took my time to walk to Terminal E and taking in the sights along the way. I walked into the Women's room and a woman was greeting everyone. "Welcome beautiful ladies. Clean restrooms here. Wait for next available opening. Come this way. Have a blessed day." She was making the most of her time doing her job with a pleasant voice and nice words to hear when you are traveling.
After I found my gate, I wandered back to find some place to eat lunch around 11:00 a.m. I found Whiskey River. It looked cool. Where did I put my reading glasses? I cannot read the little print on the menu. I had to ask the bartender what the menu said for allowable sides. I have not worn my contacts for awhile so I forgot to bring my reading glasses. Oh well. I am glad to have someone to ask. It is not like the time that I was in the Dominican Republic airport by myself and could not read the form and had to search for someone who spoke English. Anyway, I ordered a chicken sandwich with coleslaw. I drank water because I was so tired and dehydrated. I was having a better day than the man to my left. He missed his flight by a few minutes. He now had a 4 hour layover to get to Florida. I had a 3.5 hour layover but on purpose. Sort of. It is how I booked the flight. After having lunch and tons of water, I finally began to wake up. Wake up brain! Yay! I felt almost normal.
After having a leisurely lunch, I wandered down to my gate to find a nice place to hang out for a few hours. I found a seat next to the window. I put my coat and sweater against the arm near the window for cushion. I leaned back against the cushioned arm and slung my legs and feet up over the next seat to lean back and relax. I took out my Nook to find my blog page and wrote for the rest of the time until ready to board.
We boarded around 2:00 p.m., I found my seat at 13C. The plane had two seats on each side. I was seated in the back row next to a guy who watched The Hobbit and next to the restroom. Oh boy. No conversation. Just quiet. Sort of.
Around 3:30 p.m. we departed the airplane. I found my way to baggage claim just hoping that my luggage would be there. It was new Nautica bag for me in orange and dark gray but I spotted it right away. It was perfect. No time wasted. Hugh was outside waiting for me. I had not seen him in two years but he was still the same. It was comforting. It took us about 20 minutes to find our way home passed Harrison Bay that used to be the town but was flooded when they put the dam in. Another Harrison just sprung up later. Anyway, we arrived at the small subdivision and home. Lexi was a little intimidated to see me. I am new to her. She is rescue lab. It will take her awhile to get used to me. Kelly arrived home around 4:30 p.m. I was so excited to see her after all this time. It is like we had never been apart for so long.
Around 6:00 p.m., we decided to head to dinner in Chattanooga. We were going to go to the Boat House but could not find a parking space so we headed downtown in the Art District. We found Tony's to sit outside. It was nice to think that we could sit outside after the long cold snowy winter in Maine. Homemade pasta and bread with garlic inside with olive oil and cheese. Oh my. What more could I ask for? I had Spinach and roasted garlic homemade ravioli with sun dried tomato and artichoke cream sauce and chicken. I had the homemade ravioli in honor of my dad. I am sure it does not match Little Auntie's homemade ravioli but I can search for him. There was so much food so we had leftovers after we ate so much of the delicious bread. We discussed walking to the art museum and the walking bridge but I was too tired. Another day. Definitely. Another day. I love art museums.
We arrived back home after this lovely meal. Lexi was excited to see everyone but me. However, I won her over in no time. She eventually came to me and I could give her scratches. Around 10:00 p.m., I decided to hit the pillow for some much needed down time.
Good night all!
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