11/24/08 Los Angeles to Richmond

This was it, the last day. Tonight I would be sleeping in my own bed, watching my own TV, in my own home. I had been looking forward to this day for several weeks. Now it was up to Delta!

I left a wake-up call for 4:15 am but was already up before it came. I was taking the shuttle to the airport at 5:00 am to catch a 7:15 am flight to Atlanta. A couple of hours layover and I would be back in Richmond by 6:00 pm. The shuttle was right on time and we were at LAX in maybe a half-hour. A few minutes at check-in and I had my boarding pass. Again, nothing to do but wait until flight time. I got some coffee (wow, what a surprise) and walked outside to smoke a cigarette. I went through the security checkpoint, found the gate and waited for the flight to be announced. Everything was right on time, a good thing about flying first thing in the morning. We boarded, buckled up and left on schedule. I was on my way home!

There’s really nothing much to say about the flights home. They were smooth, on time and totally uneventful. I’m still amazed that they can keep you on a plane for four hours and only serve peanuts, crackers and cookies. Welcome to the modern age of flying, I guess. But it didn’t really matter. I could grab something in Atlanta during my layover. Instead, I went into a bar where smoking was allowed and ordered a beer. That’s a healthy lunch, isn’t it?

The flight to Richmond left right on time and we landed just before six. It’s funny how you get this happy little feeling when you know you’re home. I just felt sort of warm and fuzzy all over. Laurie met me in the terminal, the first familiar face in two months! I gave her a big hug and she fussed about how long it took me to make it off the plane. Everything is back to normal, just like I never left! We got the luggage and caught the shuttle to the parking lot. Now all I had to do was survive the ride home. Not so fast. First we had to find Laurie’s car! She couldn’t remember where she had parked the thing. And it’s a big lot. The driver was pretty nice about it and drove up and down the rows, several times, until we finally spotted it.

Laurie’s going to hate me for telling that story but I don’t care. It’s my blog and I can say anything I want. On the way home, I stopped at the grocery store for just a couple of minutes. I had absolutely nothing to eat in my house. Everything was tossed before I left. I got some bread, milk, eggs and two bags of donuts. Breakfast of champions – coffee and donuts! That would hold me for a day or so.

Five minutes later, I was home. I honestly can’t tell you just how good that felt, even though it was a bit cold in the house. I had cut the heat back before I left also. But in a couple of days, it would be Thanksgiving and soon after that, Christmas. It was getting to be winter and the heat came back up. I had also turned off the ice maker so back on it came. Boot up the pc, make a pot of coffee. Lots of little things to do!

Laurie stayed and chatted for maybe an hour or more, then she had to get home. Tomorrow was a work day for both of us. She had a job. I had a life to put back together!