It was like a breath of fresh air to sit aboard my flight on my way to California. Two seats remained vacant beside me, which meant I could stretch my legs across them and enjoy my flight. I got out my Dean Koontz novel, set my earphones in place, adjusted them over my ears for optimum comfort and listening pleasure, pushed the on button and immediately I was transported into the world of classical music. Nothing like being 25,000 feet in the air, flying across blue skies, listening to melancholy music while reading a thrilling novel and yes, I was stretched out across three seats. Such luxury and I was in economy class.
Being a frequent flier who uses different airlines, I did not qualify for frequent flier points, which, in one respect, was to my disadvantage. Nevertheless, I have not changed my habit. I continue to fly, by randomly selecting airlines because I watch fares closely. It surprises me that the air-fare from Dulles Airport to Los Angeles varies so greatly depending on the airline one chooses. Naturally, I surf the web weeks, sometimes months, prior to my flight date. I browse through Travelocity, Yahoo flight.com, Jet Blue, Price line, Lowest fares .com, to name a few. Yet as far as my pocket book is concerned, the cheapest fare is still exorbitant. Another observation I made was that regardless of how expensive the fare or how cheap, the trip was the same. The airlines charging the highest fares did not offer any added bonus in the way of comfort or meals. So why not choose the cheapest. One comfort I like is more leg room and as an added benefit on this day I had two vacant seats beside me.
I was on my way to California, to visit friends and to get away for a few days from my busy work schedule. I arrived at Dulles International Airport promptly at 8am. My flight departure time was 10 am. Therefore, I had given myself the required two hours for checking in my luggage, going through security and still have a few minutes extra to relax before boarding. On my arrival at the terminal, my first impression was that too many people were flying that day. The place was crowded. Then I realized that they might have been fleeing from the hurricane that was expected to touch down in Maryland within the next in three hours. That probably explained the crowd. Although I was not fleeing, the thought did enter my mind that I was fortunate to be leaving Maryland. I am no lover of hurricanes. Having grown up in the West Indies, I know the havoc a hurricane reeks regardless of the the wind velocity.
Finally, I checked in my luggage, although I could have taken it with me on board, but I am the type of person who does not like to be burdened with much luggage neither do I appreciate having to battle with other bags in an effort to retrieve my luggage from overhead bins. A handbag is quite enough and perhaps my earphones, a favorite CD and a good novel. I had already obtained my boarding pass online, so my preliminary passage from passenger lounge to the respective Gate should have been express. Instead, after checking my luggage, I had to take it to the security check counter.
Is your suitcase locked?" A security officer asked. "No sir." I replied.
"Do you have any firearms or dangerous weapons in your suitcase?" he continued. I found that question redundant. If I had any such weapon in my suitcase, would I tell? Come on.
"No sir." I forced myself to respond in a polite tone.I then headed off to the second phase of security checkpoint. Naturally, the machine went off. It beeped furiously. Here the simulation of a body check took place. A female officer.. thank goodness.. patted me down as I stood with legs modestly spread apart, minus shoes. This she followed up with the use of a scanner which scanned even the soles of my feet. The search revealed a sachet of decaffeinated coffee in my jeans pocket. How was I to know that the sachet was lined with foil? The sight of this innocent screwed up sachet of decaffeinated coffee set everyone laughing. Therefore, the body search turned out to be fun for everyone including myself. By this time I needed a good laugh. Thankfully, my decaf packet was returned to me.
I looked at my watch and discovered that I had spent one and a half hours just getting through security. Exiting security, I had to sprint to gate 22B because I had exactly one minute left in which to board my flight. Moreover, I must say that the distance from security to Gate 22B was no short trip. On my way, I could hear my name called on the overhead speaker, which did nothing to allay my state of anxiety. I really did not want to miss my flight. That would mean being on standby and on a day like today, with a hurricane on its way, I knew they would soon be canceling flights. Needless to say, I missed my flight and so I remained on standby. Fortunately, I only had to wait another hour before I boarded another flight. Sheer luck. I have no idea who missed his flight but I was glad to be on my way. I settled in my seat waiting for take off. In spite of the crowd waiting to board, two seats were left vacant beside me as the airplane took off. I later learned that the flight could not be delayed further because of impending bad weather.
Resting my head on the headrest of my seat I tried to catch my breath. When I next opened my eyes, we were airborne. Looking out of my window I could see angry clouds accumulating below, a definite harbinger of the fierce storm to come. Before long, there was a slight disturbance in the aisle. A very obese passenger tried to make himself comfortable in his seat two rows ahead of mine. Already there was not much leg room, even for me, but since I had no intention of flying first class, I was prepared to deal with this minor inconvenience. The very obese gentleman was too overweight and his abdominal girth too wide to allow him to fasten his seat belt. The ends of the seat belt could not connect. He struggled for a while and then on seeing his struggle, a steward offered to assist him, but to no avail. Eventually they gave up. He would have to fly without the added safety of his seat belt. Next, he tried to settle into his seat, which was another feat to be accomplished. His rear end did not reach the seat cushion as it could not squeeze through the two armrests and lifting the armrests made no difference. Regardless of how he shuffled, he could not fit into the single seat.
I felt a pang of sorrow for him as he stood repeatedly and tried sitting. For a few seconds he sat more on the armrests than in his seat. The two passengers beside him seemed embarrassed. Then he stood up and went into the aisle. I had no alternative but to suggest he try to fit into the two vacant sets beside me. I could not imagine this dear gentleman standing all the way to Los Angeles. I stepped out into the aisle to allow him to enter. Finally, he was able to get comfortable by occupying both seats, but the seat belts still did not fit since he sat on half of one, and half of the other. However, he sat using both armrests. I traveled with my arms pinned to my sides. At least someone was comfortable. I had done my good deed for the day.
As with all unpleasant experiences, they come to an end, and so we flew into Los Angeles without any further incidence. My obese companion did not even bother to show any signs of appreciation for my kindness, but I forgave him. Perhaps he was much too embarrassed by the whole episode. As the scriptures state," if you receive your reward on earth you will have no need to be rewarded in Heaven." So I took comfort from those words. I learned lllater that the flight I took was the last one to depart from Dulles international airport that day. My sympathies went out to those left behind but I know it would have been unsafe for them to fly .The hurricane struck two hours after we departed and it was a fierce one that was followed by a tornado.
