So remember how I said yesterday that February was interesting? Well, maybe insane would be a better word to describe it. It’s not that many things happened this month which were crazy, just that the few things that DID happen, were absolutely preposterous. And really? It wasn’t so much of a crazy month, but a crazy three days. If you are friends with me (or my husband) on Facebook, then you’ve already gotten the Cliff’s Notes version. If not, here you go.
Last Friday, I posted our day in the life post because Josh was scheduled to fly home from NYC and I could finally mention that we’d delivered him to the airport the Monday before. I don’t know why I knew it, but when I typed that it was like there was a sense of uneasiness, like something wasn’t quite going to work out the way it should.
He called me at 3 o’clock to check on the status of his flight. He was on the interstate driving from Connecticut to NYC and the fog was so thick he couldn’t see the city. He literally could not see the massive skyscrapers on the side of the road, it was so foggy. As far as I could tell (according to both Delta and LaGuardia airport), he was a go. Fast forward 45 minutes, he returned his rental car and checked in to find that his flight had been delayed two hours. That puts him flying into Birmingham at 11:30 at night, far too late for the girls to assist in retrieving their daddy. I called around and eventually we decided that my mom would come and stay at my house for a few hours so that the girls could sleep and I could pick him up. Ella was not happy at all. The plan had been for us to have a girls’ night and eat at Panera Bread, do some shopping, and then put the girls in their pajamas before we picked him up. Not happening.
This isn’t going to be an exact representation of what happened, but this is as close to an accurate timeline as I can piece together from text messages and telephone calls.
6:40 pm:Flight is delayed again. Now he’s leaving NYC at 11:10, arriving in BHM sometime after 1 in the morning. We decide the girls will spend the night with my mom so that we can sleep in on Saturday.
7:48 pm: On a whim, I check Delta’s website and see that Josh’s flight is cancelled. I call to tell him and we realize that our weekend has been hijacked.
7:51 pm: I call Josh to confirm his flight has, in fact, been cancelled.
7:52 pm: I call mom to tell her we’ve changed plans again and the girls will be staying with me.
8:01 pm: Josh calls back to say that the flight has been cancelled and he’s in line to reschedule the flight. He’ll be on a 7:30 am flight from NYC to Memphis and then to Birmingham. We’ll pick him up at the airport at lunch.
8:07 pm: Josh is waiting on his luggage at the airport and I’m suggesting he find a free shuttle to the hotel. He asks me to find him a hotel and I start looking at those surrounding the airport. I text him a few options and wait to hear back.
8:34 pm: He has booked (and paid for) his hotel room and they are sending him a shuttle. He jokes with me about heading into the city to have fun without me. Not cool. Sometime later, he tells me that a sketchy man tried to give him a ride to the hotel and when Josh asked if he was a taxi he said he was a car servicio. No thank you.
8:45 pm: He text messages Ella to say hello.
9:01 pm: He’s waiting on the hotel shuttle. Still.
9:05 pm: He’s on the shuttle, headed to the hotel, and complaining that it’s too late to head into the city (10:05 in NYC).
9:12 pm: Josh calls to say that he’s still on the shuttle, but he’s pretty sure he’s lost his wallet or it’s been stolen. That means no money, no credit cards, and no identification. My meltdown begins. He asks me to call LGA and see if there is a lost and found. He’s hoping the hotel will let him check in without an ID and we’re thanking God he has already reserved (and paid for) a room!
9:16 pm: I call my mom to freak out a little and ask her to pray that I don’t spontaneously combust.
9:17 pm: He texts me to tell me where he was when he last saw the wallet.
9:19 pm: I call LGA’s lost and found and leave a message. I leave great details about how it is an EMERGENCY and I need someone to call me back. That was one week ago and I haven’t heard back yet!
9:22 pm: I call TSA’s lost and found and they don’t even have an answering service?!
9:25 pm: I call Delta and I’m forced to leave another message. They do say they’ll call back in 5-10 minutes, so I’m a little less freaked out.
9:28 pm: I try another number on LGA’s website to no avail.
9:29 pm: I call Josh to tell him that I’ve made no progress, but I’m still trying. He still isn’t freaked out, but I am.
9:34 pm: Josh calls from the hotel to say he’s checked into his room. He had a boarding pass with his name on it and remembered the last four digits of his card number, so thankfully he has a warm bed to sleep in.
9:35 pm: Bob from Delta calls and talks me down from the ledge. He recommends calling the police to file a report, saying that Delta will accept the boarding pass, and police report together in lieu of identification. Thank you, Bob!
9:38 pm: I call Josh and recount my conversation with Bob. He starts looking for the precinct phone numbers and I start looking for his passport and birth certificate to fax to him, just in case.
9:40 pm: I call my mom to update her and try to calm down. Again.
10:02 pm: Josh calls back and hasn’t reached the police. I tell him to call 911. I think this clearly qualifies as an emergency situation!
10:05 pm — I call my mom. Again.
10:19 pm: I post on the Facebook wall of my Bible study and ask for prayers for my sanity, Josh’s safety, and much help from the proper channels.
10:23 pm: I talk to Josh again and the police thought he was insane. No police report forthcoming.
10:31 pm: I call Delta again and talk to another very helpful person. After this evening, I might never use another carrier! They suggest he arrive two hours early for his flight and turn himself over to TSA. After reviewing their website we see there are protocols for traveling with no identification and we’re finally a little hopeful.
10:47 pm: I try LGA lost and found again to no avail.
10:52 pm: I text Josh and tell him all about what Delta/TSA said.
10:52 pm: My last text from Josh before bed. It’s a picture of a Dr. Pepper and the caption reads “This is all I have to eat. I wonder if bodywash will kill me?” My response? “At least you didn’t give up Dr. Pepper for lent!”
10:55 pm: I call mom again to update her. Finally calm.
3:01 am: My alarm goes off and I text Josh to make sure he’s awake. It is 4 o’clock there and he needs to catch the 4:30 shuttle to the hotel. He cannot pay for a cab and he needs to be SUPER early. I fall back asleep, praying.
4:33 am: I get a text from Josh saying he’s at the gate. He says it was a hassle, but he made it.
5:30 am: I get a text from mom saying she saw on Facebook that he was at the gate. I check my messages and see the one above. I’m so relieved.
5:31 am: I call my mom to confirm that he’s safely at the gate.
5:36 am: I call Josh and he tells me that he was submitted to a background check and had to answer a trillion questions about himself and relatives to confirm his identity through available public records. He was subjected to additional screening, including a full body scan in a plexiglass booth and being wiped down with some rags that detect gunpowder and bomb residue?! He’s starving, but headed home and I can finally rest a little bit.
6:01 pm: The girls wake up. I fix donuts and instruct Ella that she is in charge. Fall asleep.
8:43 am: I’m awake and call my mom again to commiserate.
9:23 am: Josh’s plane lands in Memphis.
10:05 am: He boards his plane to Birmingham.
11:06 am: His plane touches down and we are exiting the interstate.
11:21 am: We pick up our sweet daddy at baggage claim in Birmingham. He’s exhausted, starving, and looks a little worse for wear. Fortunately, he has three VERY happy girls in the car ready to see him. After a pit stop at Chick-fil-A to fill him up and the shoe store to pick up a second pair of shoes, we are finally on our way home. At least you know what to do if you ever lose your identification and need to fly home. It’s a hassle, but it can be done!
All I know to say is thank goodness it is March.
