into the wild blue yonder yet again, this time sans hair product

September 3rd, 2006 | Uncategorized

I’m leaving shortly for Seattle, for my Bumbershoot appearance tomorrow night. I’m really dreading the cross-country flight without water. Since you can’t bring any liquids in your carry-on luggage, here’s my plan: instead of checking my suitcase and risking it ending up in Borneo, I’ll just check my toilet kit, which is where all the liquids reside. That way I might arrive in Seattle without my toothpaste or hair stuff, but at least I’ll have my clothes.

The bigger question, though, is whether I will arrive in Seattle at all. I just discovered that I have a fucking half-hour to make my connection in Philadelphia. And that’s the last flight of the day to Seattle. 90% of the last twenty flights I’ve been on have been at least a half-hour late, so the likelihood that I’ll be spending the night in Philly seems disturbingly high.

It helped to vent like this, however. Thanks for listening.

18 Responses to “into the wild blue yonder yet again, this time sans hair product”

  1. susansinclair says:

    tell me they didn’t book you on usair out of philly? Because usair’s desk in SeaTac is waaaaay the hell out in nowhere, and you’re right, it’s hard to make their connections.

    On the other hand, maybe a gate agent will be a big fan, and help you through!

  2. Anonymous says:

    Let’s hope you can get through quickly! SeaTac is not as bad as Portland though, at least in my experience! Good luck with the flight. I hope you get a chance to see the mountains when you fly into Seattle. It would really piss me off if I had to fly without any water too. The recycled air is sooooooooooo dehydrating on a long flight! Hope your welcome to the west coast is a good one after the long flight! Have a great time at the Bumbershoot! Lots of my friends will be there!

  3. brynn says:

    If they restrict you bringing water onto the flight, they should sell water during. You may pay exorbitantly, but you won’t dehydrate!

    Better yet, maybe they’ll lift the restrictions for domestic flights by then.

    Good luck! And enjoy Seattle, one of the greatest cities in the world!

  4. water on a plane says:

    My guess is that you are in-flight or stuck at an airport at the moment, but during my last two flights they were giving out extra water (for free) on board. (United and Continental).

    I inadvertently brought a soy milk box and eyeglass cleaner through security at Denver. A wing and a prayer indeed.

  5. Anonymous says:

    Just take an empty water bottle through security and fill it in a fountain before boarding.

  6. Anonymous says:

    Using Anonymous’ advice is a sure way to cause a scene on the plane. Absolutely no liquid may be brought on board whether it originates inside the terminal or outside of security. The gate attendants are too busy checking tickets to see what you’re carrying on, but the flight attendants are required to notify the captain if anyone is caught with extra-plane liquid. I carried on a bottle of apple juice purchased at the gate and nearly caused an emergency landing. Once you’ve boarded, your hydration unfortunately rests solely with the flight attendants.

  7. Straight Girl Fan says:

    I’m re-reading Fun Home, and really appreciating just how brilliantly it is constructed.

    A couple of questions, if you’re stuck in Philly or wherever and feel like answering them:

    1) “Mom, how come you never go outside?” “I told you, I’m a vampire.” Did this really happen, or is this you putting Addams family words in your family’s mouths?

    2) Why would putting a kid in an old-fashioned cookstove be less macabre than a modern oven?

  8. amysue says:

    Just got back from Vancouver and free water was offered on the flight (as well as soda and juice). Oddly the ice pack that keeps my insulin cool was ok going to Vancouver, but not coming back. All in all it was pretty much fine.

  9. Jaibe says:

    Two things not everyone realizes:
    1) you can ask for two drinks during drinks service (e.g. one juice and one water). If you ask for two waters they will give it to you though they might glare. But they have been understanding since the bottle thing.
    2) you can go look for the attendants any time the seatbelt light is off (best if they are hiding in the kitchen!) and ask for more water — or other stuff. I actually learned this from an Austrailian who got us more beer that way on an international flight years ago. But I used it for more water on a very recent US flight.

  10. Jaibe says:

    PS I got stuck in Phili once during a blizzard — we were the last flight in and got the last hotel with rooms which was a drug hotel; fortunately the taxi driver told us to go straight to our rooms and not come out before 8am. There was bullet-proof glass in front of reception and they would only give you a phone for your room if you gave them a $10 *cash* deposit.

  11. tallie says:

    you are SO smart! i will now forever just check my toiletries. why did i not think of that? SO SMART!

  12. Ann says:

    I hope you’ll answer Straight Girl Fan’s questions; I’d be interested in the answers, too. I also wondered about the stove thing. Why did she put him in the stove? To get warm? Where was the fire? I would also like to know if the panels depicting your young father in his snowsuit were taken from family photos. If not, did you use some photos from that time period? Looks authentic.
    I hope they never make a movie of Fun Home (sorry, I just think it would ruin it), but if they do, don’t you think David Strathairn should play your father?

  13. Ann says:

    At least I think it was a snowsuit. At work. No book.

  14. Chloe says:

    I hope that by the time that this entry is posted you’ve already arrived at your destination, without having to spend the night in Philadelphia. Also hope you were able to rehydrate somewhere on your trajectory to Seattle. I sure hope they relax these measures on planes very soon. Flying can now be listed as a traumatic experience for some, especially if you depend on water for taking with medication and just dealing with the anxiety of being treated like a criminal if you drink some. All the while feeling anxious about missing a connecting flight. All ingredients for some level of trauma, depending on the person.

  15. sam uk says:

    the vampire thing? totlly a locigal answer,
    in our house the reason my son and i dont eat garlic is cos we are vampires… and that what we tell folk over for dinner.
    much to the disgust of my partner and our other son, who love the vile stuff.
    and its the reason i say why i dont sunbath.

  16. Kat says:

    on the plus side, 90% of flights from Philly to Seattle are probably also late….so maybe your odds are even 🙂

  17. sab says:

    omg. the one time i’m missing bumbershoot and you’ll (maybe) make an appearance. this is as bad as ani difranco cancelling last year. any chance you’ll be making an appearance in chicago? =D

  18. sab says:

    ugh the one time i’m missing bumbershoot and you’ll (maybe) make an appearance. this is as bad as ani difranco cancelling last year. any chance you’ll be making an appearance in chicago? =D