19 October 2010 Sacramento

Task:  6h00 flight to Sacramento out of Washington’s Reagan airport, the metro opens at 5am, the train trip should be about 8 minutes.  It’s doable, if I’m on the first train out of the Gallery Place Chinatown metro station I’ll get there with time to spare.

I wake up at 4h30, bags packed the night before waiting at the door for me to pick them up and be on my way, clothes laid out and on a hanger in the bathroom, so that I can get dressed without having to think about it.

I set my alarm, and due to past experiences of my alarm clock not going off at the time I set it for, or as a result of me setting it for pm instead of am, I wake up every half-hour from midnight to 4h30.  Which is was to my benefit as my alarm clock did not go off, I don’t know why, although I want to blame the most un-user friendly phone Nokia has ever made.

I’m out of the door at 4h45 and at the station waiting for the metro man to open the gates at 4h50.  Standing at the bottom of the escalators with an interesting black man who without any shame loudly states “I don’t like white people.” 

Five o’clock rolls round, no metro man – okay thats fine, maybe my watch is fast.

Five ten, still no metro man – hmmm, I know metro opens at 5 am, where is this guy?

Five fifteen, Mr Metro where are you please hurry up!  This is clearly not running like clockwork.

Five twenty, loud round of applause the metro man is here!  Woohoo,

Down to the platform, the train arrives at 5h25, I’m not going to make my flight.  I arrive at Reagan and get bumped to the next flight 7h15 – clear security, show photo i.d. and boarding pass, shoes off, jackets off, scarf off, lap top out, liquids out, x-ray everything, brace yourself for the possibility of being felt up, I mean frisked, then take on the task of re-packing and dressing as quickly as possible like the pit crew of a formula one race.  Clearing airport security could be an Olympic sport.

First class to Dallas, the Captains golden moment “We’re on time just a little bit ahead of schedule.”  Sorry captain but the fact that we’re ahead of schedule denotes that we’re not on time but ahead of it... hmmm*

First class from Dallas to Sacramento at by the seat of my pants, thank you first class passenger for not checking in and allowing me to take your seat.  Finally enroute to Sacramenton, this flight arrived 45 minutes ahead of schedule, in the pilots words “Good news for you we’re ahead of schedule we’ll be landing 45 minutes early.”  Good news for who?  I still need to wait an hour to be picked up.