Vacation, Day 7

(subtitled: Homeward Bound)

I thought Vicky told me I had to wake up at 3:00 a.m. So, I set the alarm on the phone. But, just before it went off, Evy called through the door to see if I was ready yet and woke me up. . Apparently Vicky has said we had to leave at 3:00!

The alarm clock then went off.

I hurriedly got dressed, brushed my teeth and grabbed my gear. Mundy asked me if I wanted coffee, but I declined, not wanting to need a bathroom on the long ride. I bent down to kiss Iris goodbye and hugged and kissed Mundy. I had Vicky translate and told her thank you for letting me stay in her lovely home. She told me (through Vicky) that I was welcome any time.

Good to know!!!

Vicky used Mayla’s direction to get back to the San Juan airport and we only got a little lost (she missed the exit off the expressway). But we quickly got back on track. We dropped the rental car off and then lugged all the luggage (now I know why they call it that) over to the terminal.

That’s when all the ticket problems resurfaced!

For some reason, they had Vicky, Evy and Myla under Vicky’s confirmation and Yanessa and I under mine (?) Then Vicky’s suitcase was overweight, so we redistributed some of it into our carry-ons. We eventually straightened it out. I left them working on that and went through security alone (because I always take so long with the pat down thing). But, I was finished and they were still held up. It seemed that Evy thought it would be a good idea to bring along some extra water bottles.

We raced to the terminal and they were still boarding the last few people (thank God!) We grabbed our seats and this time they all sat together, with me in the same row but across the aisle.

We took off and they all settled in to sleep. I was dozing off, but I was kitty-corner from the bathroom (they had one in the middle of the plane and two in the back). So, every time somebody would use it, the door made enough noise to wake me up.

When they brought refreshments, they stopped right in front of me. The stewardess asked me what I would like, so I said coffee (I needed it). The couple next to me asked for humus, so the other stewardess went to get it. Mandy (we introduced ourselves) noticed I had finished my coffee so she asked if I wanted more. I said sure. She said if I wanted any later, to just ask her. I thought that was nice.

Meanwhile, the rest of the gang slept on…

About an hour later, they went through with bottled water and glasses and offered it to us. When Mandy got to me, she gave me a glass of water and asked if I wanted that coffee now. I said, sure.

She came back a little while later and said it would be a few minutes as they were brewing a fresh pot! I said she didn’t have to go to all that trouble and she said it was no trouble at all.

She brought me my third cup and warned me it was hot. So, I drank it. I spent the rest of the flight going to the bathroom!!!

Note to self: Quit smiling at stewardesses!!!

We got to Charlotte and Vicky went to get her car seat (i went to the bathroom again). That’s when she found out that, despite all the calls back and forth, they had shipped it to our hotel San Juan on Friday (the day we checked out).

We boarded the flight for the “D” without incident. I was beat, but Yanessa was now wide awake. Keeping her interested in anything was a problem, but coloring seemed to satisfy her the most. That and me giving her the occasional breath mint.

We landed on time and we all went to get the luggage while Vicky went to talk to the US Airways about the car seat. It ended up with them lending her another car seat so she could get home and promising to ship hers back to Detroit and delivering it to her house in the next few days.

Her brother was waiting outside with the car, so we said our goodbyes and I thanked Vicky for letting me tag along.

I will miss them all!

I went and fetched the truck, then bailed it out. I remembered that I didn’t get gas on the way to the airport when the warning light came on. So, I stopped and filled it up

I got home about 2:30 p.m. The cat was overjoyed that I was home and wouldn’t leave me alone. I was overjoyed that she hadn’t made any mess, so I put up with it.

I took out one of the leftover burgers and some bacon to thaw for supper. I watered the hanging plants on the porch (they were still moist, thank God). Then I did the normal Sunday chores.

I went out back and refilled the feeders. Then I came inside and started to unpack my suitcase. I put a load of whites in the washer and turned it on. Then I sat on the bed to unpack the rest of the suitcase stuff and I started to. But the bed felt good and I thought I would just stretch out to rest my legs.

I crashed like a rock.

I woke up at 9:30 p.m. I warmed up the burger and cooked frozen French fries in the oven. I finished unpacking the suitcase and then ate dinner. I cleaned up the mess, put the whites in the dryer and the darks in the washing machine.

I was asleep again before either of them finished their cycles.