…and really messes with your p(e)ace.
I have recovered enough to now share the WORST travel day of my life and how it made me realize sometimes you have to work really hard to keep your p(e)ace when things are out of your control.
On Friday, July 4th I set out to the Tucson International Airport at 2:00 pm; arriving well before my flight took off. All was going according to plan – I had my airport cocktail, got my airport candy, and boarded the plane. Once all people were boarded they come over the intercom and announce that there is a ground delay in Denver for an hour due to weather but don’t worry nothing is leaving either so you wont miss your connection. OK, nothing to do about that and at least I downloaded season 3 of Victoria. An hour passes and they come on again – delayed another hour this time affecting only connections going to San Diego and Orange County (greeeeeat that’s me).
*Side note: I ABSOLUTELY had to be to work by 8:30 am the next day in Dana Point – no other option.
So I grab all of my stuff, abandon my whole row I had to myself, and head up the gangway to make other arrangements. So I am the first in line at the customer service counter and politely ask what the options are to get me near Orange County that night or VERY early the next morning. I am told that I can get a connecting flight to LAX (a huge PITA airport). It’s the 4th of July so I am not about to ask someone to come get at LAX at 11:45 pm (when the plane is scheduled to land). So it’s either Amtrak or SuperShuttle but those will take time to look up and book so I get out of line to make way for my fellow stranded passengers.
Amtrak doesn’t have a late enough train that will get me back and I am not spending the night in a n unknown LA hotel by myself so SuperShuttle it is. The website isn’t working on my phone – no biggie I will call to see if I can book one. I call and miraculously I can book it – I am back in business! I give her my address she mixes up the numbers of them…4 times…ok it’s holiday and she’s busy cut her some slack. we go through all the rest of the reservation ($75 later ouch – but on a holiday Uber would cost me kidney so I do it) and she repeats my address and it’s wrong again. I repeat it another 3 times before it’s correct – really annoyed by this point. Finally, I am done with the SuperShuttle person and I reboard the plan. Naturally someone had taken my row but it was only their stuff so I moved it to the window seat (turned out he was a super nice guy and we talked about comicon).
We finally make it to Denver and end up flying around the airport for 40 minutes because of another ground stop – again not anyone’s fault but the weathers but I am frustrated and the bumps are making me queasy so I am pretty not happy at this point. We finally land and I have just enough time for the bathroom and to catch my connection to LAX. We board the flight…and wait…and wait for over an hour on the tarmac. By the point my head is in my hands because I am going to LAX and likely missing my ride. I arrive in LAX just before 1:00 am. Grab my bag and check in for the shuttle praying one comes…and it DOES! YES!
So it’s 1:00 am and I think well there can’t be that many people using SuperShuttle this late on the now 5th of July. I. was. wrong. I had 5 other passengers and I was last on the list because I am so far away.
So I arrive home at 3:30 am and have to get up for work at 7:00 am. Suffice it to say I made it but that whole day is a bit of a blur. Moral of the story is do NOT book afternoon flights through or to Denver this time of year. I later learned these delays have been happening every day for two weeks.
The point of this story is sometimes circumstances are just out of your control but you can control you reactions. Mine weren’t the worst but I was definitely frustrated and really the only person to suffer from my frustration was me. So I am still working on setting my own p(e)ace with extenuating circumstances that’s don’t fit my control.
While seeing my family and nephew was completely worth this travel day from hell I hope I don’t repeat the experience. Tell us about your worst travel day and how you kept your p(e)ace through the frustration in the comments section.
Set My Own P(e)ace 