oo7

Please fasten your seatbelts

WARNING: This entry is ridiculously longwinded, just like every story I tell. You've been warned

So this weekend I went to Vegas for a little family reunion with my mom and brother (My bro lives there and my mom flew in from SF). I had a nice run of good luck that started Saturday morning with my flight to Sin City. The story, however, starts Friday night...

I had been planning on driving to Vegas early Saturday, so I was going to take it easy on Friday night. After all, it was a 5 hour drive and I haven't been sleeping well so far in SD anyway. However, after examining the cost of gas for the trip, I decided that it would be so much better to just fly out there. And since I wasn't driving on Saturday morning, why not have a little fun on Friday night???

Friday night a friend of mine was in town and she was taking off on Sunday. And for all of you cynics and suspicious folks out there, she's JUST A FRIEND. In fact, she was out with a guy at a club and was going to have some of her friends meet up with her. I wanted to see her before she took off, so I went out. Ended up partying it up pretty hard. The people I was out with were great and Drunk Dave made an appearance. Afterwards I go grab some food with one of my new friends. Cool guy who's a liberal and likes to talk drunk politics over late night burritos. Sweet.

I get back to my apartment complex and when I walk through the gate to the courtyard there's a hottie sitting with some friends and she asks if I have a light. I tell her that I have a Zippo and matches back at my apartment. She follows me to my apartment and I'm in a drunken and exhausted (from the lack of sleep) state and wondering if anything could happen with this woman. She helps me look through my stuff and she finds some matches before I find the Zippo. I follow her back out to the courtyard, but I can't remember now if I was invited. She offers me a clove when we sit down with her friends and we begin chatting. She seems mildly amused and has an air about her that seems as if all I am is some late night entertainment via drunken conversation with a random stranger. Once I pick up on that, I think oh well and keep chatting because I'm enjoying the clove, actually, and she's still some good scenery and friendly enough.

Finally we finish smoking (my first clove ever, btw) and she takes off. I marvel at her as she's getting ready to go and I'm 99% certain that I'm being a bit to obvious, but she once again seems mildly entertained. We part ways and while I watch her and her friends take off (she said she used to live in my apartment complex) she never looks back. Nice random moment.

I get back into my apartment and remember to print out my boarding pass because my flight is on Southwest and you can do that starting at 12:01am the day of your flight. My flight is at 7:20am and it's currently 3:30am. My alarms are set for 5:40am and 5:45am. And did I mention that I'm exhausted from lack of sleep? I lay down and try to get a couple hours sleep before heading to Vegas.

I vaguely remember turning off my first alarm at 5:40am and thinking ugh! I'll get up with the second alarm. Next thing I remember was waking up and seeing the clock showing 6:48am. FUCK! Apparently I turned off my other alarm without getting up. I have 32 minutes until my flight leaves the airport and I'm wearing boxers in my own bed and I haven't packed. I'm not even really thinking about the possibility of making my flight, but rather what I'm going to tell my mom and brother when they ask why I missed my flight. And whether I can get another one. And what's the number for a cab company in the area? And what the hell clothes do I need to take?

So turn my computer on, brush my teeth, realize I don't have time to look for another flight or call a cab so I turn my computer off, call my mom and leave a voicemail letting her know that I'm probably going to miss my flight, but then I realize that I'll have to call again to let her know if I actually do miss it, so I tell her to check the next voicemail. I'm coming out of my sleepy haze now. I throw a sportsbag on the bed and toss a pair of shorts, two pair of underwear and socks, two t-shirts and one dress shirt in. I throw on some clean jeans and a clean shirt and as I'm on my way out the door I grab toiletries, my phone charger, and my boarding pass. Amazingly, I forgot fewer things than when I've spent hours packing.

- 7:01am -
I'm running through the streets of downtown trying to find a cab. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the streets are basically empty at 7am on a Saturday. I decide that a hotel would be my best bet and start jogging towards the nearest one. I keep glancing at my watch and willing time to slow down. I get to the nearest hotel and there's a tour group in front waiting for a bus, but no cabs. I'm a little frustrated when I see one halfway down the block and rush over to him and jump in. That's when I remember that I spent all my cash at the bar last night.

OK, we're going to Bank of America first, then the airport. Please hurry. And we're off. This cabbie was great and it turns out the BofA was on our way. I set a personal best for fastest ATM transaction and I'm back in the cab, racing towards the airport, but on city streets rather than the freeway. I trust his judgment, though, even as we're stuck at a red light for around 40 seconds, which feels more like an hour.

- 7:13am -
I glance again at my watch and think that I'm cooked, but the competitive voice in me starts whispering you might actually make it!

The airport is just about deserted. Bonus. I get change from the cabbie and I'm off into the airport, checking for my gate and running around like one of the guys in those movies. I like it when I get to be one of those guys running through an airport. It's even better when there are few people there because it means I'm not quite as reckless with my behavior.

- 7:17am -
Line is short at security. I kick off my shoes, empty my pockets, and pray that they don't waive me over to secondary search. The moment of truth comes and I get through the metal detector without event and I'm not sent to secondary. Score! I think that I'll probably get a great view of my plane pulling away from my gate.

- 7:18am -
As I'm getting all my belongings together and putting my shoes back on, a voice calls over the PA system, requesting me to get to my gate. HOLY CRAP I CAN MAKE IT! The security guy sees my hurried reaction and he asks Is that you? I tell him yes while filling my pockets and he responds with Well I'd be running if I were you. Oh really, pal? You think that might help? Well maybe if you let me keep my shoes on while going through security I could do a better Michael Johnson impression for you.

I sling my bag over my shoulder and sprint up the stairs like a madman. I tear down the hallway with very little regard for anyone's safety. People are looking at me like I'm crazy, but it doesn't matter because finally I can see my gate. However, the strap is pulled across the entrance to the gate and there's nobody around except for one Southwest guy just shuffling a couple boarding passes.

- 7:20am -
I'm walking onto the plane. I actually made it! Sure, they probably held the gate an extra 5 minutes for me, but I made it. 32 minutes before takeoff I woke up at home and I made the flight. Unbelievable.

As I settle into my own row at the back of the plane and ask a very nice flight attendant for a lot of water and OJ (which she very pleasantly provided), I think to myself that this is the perfect way to start a trip to Vegas. Talk about lucky. I just don't ever want to try to do it again. But it definitely was a lucky weekend. The blackjack tables were good to me. And so was fantasy baseball. But I'll always remember the sprint for the airport and the feeling of euphoria as my flight departed the gate on time (ok, maybe 5 min late), with me aboard.

Vegas, baby. Vegas.