Those lyrics by Green Day should be playing on the PA system when you get off the airplane.
Yesterday started early... 5:45am in Atlanta. I got up showered and was ready to go to the airport (albeit early) by 6:30. Dad got me there, and I navigated the airport pretty easily, but still that place has to be a nightmare when there's a lot of flights coming in. I got to my gate and camped out for a couple hours, reading "The Catcher in the Rye" as part of my lofty goal to read while on vacation from school. I got through six chapters when they boarded first class passengers.
I like to get on the plane early, get settled in a position and just sit there. I don't like to be the guy climbing over other people because I have huge feet, and inevitably someone's getting stomped on. So, naturally I was the first one on. I get on and am directed to my seat in the front of the plane, and before I can have my backpack up in the stowaway bin, There's a flight attendant with a Mai-Tai in hand for me. "Does that have rum in it?" The flight attendant, also named Scott, looked a little stunned and said "No sir, none at all." "Well then it's just fruit juice, get me some rum and it'll be a Mai-Tai worth drinking!" So I had two of those before takeoff.
Now let me say this about first class on this 747. I haven't flown first class in a long time, and the last time I did was on an upgrade flight to San Francisco on AirTran probably 10+ years ago. The seats basically were the same as coach, except a little wider and had leather headrests. These seats were like bubble-pods from the back, and were soft and had multiple sections of cloth and leather. Each seat was outfitted with a lumbar massager (which i discovered accidentally), and a button that transformed the seat into a fully reclined bed. I had enough legroom to stick my feet all the way out and people could still easily walk in front of me. The only downside to the seat is that it was located next to the lavatory, however even that had a hidden benefit, as well timed flatulence went undetected! LOL. Speaking of Lavatories, the doors on them plainly state "PUSH" in 72 point red arial font. However, the 747 is a relic and still has ashtrays int the walls next to the lavatory doors and I saw about 20 people pull on the ashtrays in order to open the lavatory door. A few people were so confused by how to open this door, they just stood there and waited because they thought someone was in there, but nobody was.
The other thing about flying this way that is interesting... The last few times I flew first class, everyone dressed up and it was generally a bunch of well-to-do business type people. As Scott the flight attendant told me. "Man, I remember when there were no kids up here, now it's a damn nursery." He was totally right, there were so many children up in first class it was ridiculous. They were crawling all around and under the seats, yelling at each other, laughing very loud at the personal entertainment units, etc... I shouldn't bitch because I didn't pay for anything, but seriously, who can afford 4-5 first class tickets? Seats were like $1500+ when I looked. Hopefully on the way home, being on the 2nd deck of the plane will be a little less crowded.
3 movies (I Love You Man, Benjamin Button, and Gran Torino), 4-5 Mai-Tais, 2 Gin & Tonics, and a beer later, the plane landed in Honolulu. I got off the plane and was immediately assaulted by hot, humid air. "Well, so far this is like Atlanta," I thought. The airport concourse is neat, there are no windows, its just open to the jetway as you walk to the baggage claim. I quickly found the Carvers there waiting for me, and I was appropriately Lei'd four times. :D I grabbed my suitcase and we were off to meet up with Quinn. I grabbed a tall coffee at Starbucks, and went upstairs to Quinn's office where I found some awesome workstations! Reminds me of another place I worked at, but slightly less privacy. Sue had to head to her work, so Quinn, the kids and I headed to Ewa Beach to unwind. I desperately needed to wash the flight off of me, and lubricate my liver some more.
There was a decent amount of traffic on the way there, but unlike DC or Atlanta traffic, this actually moved most of the time. Also, I noticed gas is still well above $3.00 a gallon here. Considering it was $2.10 when I left Roanoke, I really would have hated to see it here last summer when the culture of fear had boosted gas prices up near $5 at home.
I had an extremely strong Mai-Tai when I got cleaned up, and spent the afternoon just relaxing on the back patio, which puts mine to shame! Ewa is much drier than the airport, so the 80+ degrees doesn't hit you at all. It was very pleasant. Quinn made us a local dish called Loco-Moco. It's essentially steamed rice, topped with hamburger patty (ours was teriyaki style), egg, and gravy. The mixture was really good, and somehow I will have to figure out how to make a Loco Moco burger with rice when I get back.
After putting a sizable dent in the Captain Morgan, shooting the bull for a few hours, and watching some awesome family videos, I poured myself up the steps to bed at about 11pm local time (5am back home).
And that ended my first day. I am posting this at 730am local time, having just made Jet Lag my total bitch. 6 hour difference, 9 hour flight? Who cares when you have Insomnia??
Signing off from the Island,
Scott
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