This nursy plays dirty and does it with pain...

Sunday, August 12, 2007

How women easily forget!!!

I don't know about you, but I think flying has a lot of similarities with pregnancy. Okayyy, I have to explain so you can see the parallel in them. You know how some women would have difficulties with their pregnancies. For one thing, the morning sickness where the first trimester is "anorexic/bulimic period" throwing their guts inside out and unable to eat anything. Or some of them develop many "sicknesses" along the way like high blood pressure and diabetes and swelling and weight gain, etc.... right???

Some of them stay "sick" althrough the pregnancy. I personally had minimal problems with my only pregnancy. I did ballooned from 109 pounds to a whopper of 170 pounds but that was it, no medical problems with that weight gain. Well, except the baby inside me would not let me have any caffeine. He literally went berserk inside me, kicking and what have you whenever I consumed anything with caffeine. So I just didn't have anymore after discovering that.

So as I was saying, women easily forget all those "sickness" and anomalies during pregnancy. In about 10-11 months post-partal period their motherly clock is ticking away again and yearning for another child... duh!!!

I fly quite a bit - more than I would like to. It is very rare that my flying venture goes smoothly... usually... it goes from worse, to worst, to worst(er) and to disaster. And still I fly, like pregnancy, I would always say, this is the last time I fly until that next time comes around... then the cycle goes on. This last trip was one of the worst(er), almost a disaster. I am now thinking really hard on the other options of travelling.With this trip, I got sick 4 days prior. I had sore throat, felt like my hunky beat me up (but I don't have a hunky so I can not claim that excuse), just the rundown-I-know-it-is-the-flu-bug-virus. So I was fighting the bug with all my might.

While still fighting the virus, I literally dragged myself to my Park and Fly hotel ... later than I was planning. When I got there I was told that I was not on their reservation list until I showed a confirmation number. Amazingly, my name popped up in the system but then she claimed she did not have a choice but to put me in a smoking room... the hotel was full. To which I sternly said... in my good, healthy condition, I would not mind that deal but I am having some respiratory problems so I better not. So she got busy tapping her confuser keys and yelped out a room number in my direction then got on her walkie-talkie and talked Spanish to the housekeeper to check the "cleaning" status of that room she just yelped out. As I was understanding the walkie-talkie conversation (of course she did not know I understand Spanish ... "that room is occupied so no need to clean".)

And so there she was tapping the confuser keys back and looked up and told me that she needed to put me up in a smoking room.For a minute there I thought I was having a deja vu episode. So I had to answer her the same way I answered her the first time when she asked me the same question.At last I was given the very last non-smoking room after waiting for it to get cleaned... it was 10 at night. And my flight the next morning .... 8 AM. So I got ready as much as I can that night so that I don't have to hurry the following day. Wake-up call was late, instead of 5:30, it was received at 5:45. Already up and almost out the door.

Flight was at 8 AM, arrived at the airport shortly before 6. I was dismayed to see the endless lines to check-in. I got in line and in about an hour in it, I started telling the airlines' workers that I had an 8 o'clock flight to which I kept being told, "it's okay, just get back in line". Half an hour before flight, again I announced to the airlines' personnel about the time of my flight. Again I was told that they will have instructions for me if ever I get late for my flight... did not sound right to me but ... So, of course I was late for my flight when I finally checked-in. One thing that got me was when she said... because I checked-in late that they can't guarantee about my luggage being in the same flight and not even sure when I can have them back in my possession. I decided to bite my tounge so as not to say anything mean.

Not only that I waited for over an hour to check-in but the security lines to the gates were endless... The lines went around the building. And I was even frisked because I had the alarm go off, my belt. I was searched and my purse had to be held because of questionable "liquid". The only liquid in there was an unopened bottle of water so I asked if they can just throw that out. That surely cleared the "suspicions".

I finally reached the gate and because I was late, I became a standby. No one was interested to hear about why I was late. I waited for the next flight, only to be told that I should have been at another gate when that flight time came around. I took some deep breaths and asked for exact instructions for the next standby flight.I flopped myself down close by where I was told to wait and started watching a movie with my laptop.

Then came the time of the next flight, I was not called. So I approached the podium again and asked. I was told I was called and I did not answer. Alright that did it!!!! My other hidden personality came out ... and gave them my piece of mind. But then that was all I can do. She must have whispered my name because I have a 20/20 hearing function and I was right next to her. I was really upset. I wanted to just go home and forget the whole trip.

Another set of instructions and this time I was determined not to give them any more excuses why I was still there at the airport at 1:30 PM when my flight was at 8 AM. Come 2:45 I was standing right next to the podium and ready to explode... hehehe!!! Then the clerk called the young lady that I have been talking to that missed her 9:40 flight because of oversleeping. I spoke up (loud and sternly) and asked why she was called first and blabbered out my exact story. So after paper shuffling and whatever else they do, I was handed a boarding pass. In that entire time, not one and this I pointed out to them too, that not one employee of the airline apologized for the "inconvenience". Whatever happened to customer service??? I'm sorry would have appeased me at least a bit.

I boarded the plane and to the luggage claim area in Vegas. Only to see that my suitcase was wrapped in a big plastic bag and my belongings were gaping out of it... undies and lingeries. To which I was coldly told that it was the government's doing and not the airlines. The government can just open up whichever luggage they feel is a "threat". I managed to zip back up my suitcase. The government apparently haphazardly handled my suitcase that caused the zipper to get derailed.

So I taxied to my hotel and bell hopped my luggage. I was physically and mentally challenged at that point... I was ready to have fun!!!So I did the necessary checking-ins and set up my programs and gathered necessary tickets and vouchers, etc... I was so ready to play!!! And much needed fun!!! I needed to erase the scrowl that had been on my face all day.

I got up to my very nice suite overlooking the swimming pools and all of the Las Vegas strip. My remote controlled blinds were raised up. My laptop connected to the internet. My complimentary orchid flower arrangement was gorgeous and my bottle of champagne icy cold ... Now we are talking!!!No luggage in the room to which I was told would be there even before I got there... so I waited... I flopped myself in front of the big window and enjoyed the view... while waiting for my luggage to show up.

An hour and a half later, no luggage... So I called again to find out the reason. "They're suppose to be there by now"... I declared that I was going downstairs and to just leave my luggage in the room pretty please... "No problems, Ms. M"And so I started playing the slot... First jackpot!!! Yesss!!! And second jackpot!!! Neat!!!

Around 7:30 I wanted to freshen up so I went back up and no luggage... hhhhhhmmmmm??? I was told that en route, one of my two suitcases fell off the cart and the zipper broke. I can only guess which one. I waited for them to be delivered and saw the suitcase was in worst(er) condition than it was at the airport. The manager offered to have it repaired. And yes, I did share with him the suitcase' airport story. So I emptied that suitcase to be taken to the repair shop. I should get it back the following day, I was told.

That was my Thursday adventure. Friday late afternoon I was in the hotel's cashier's window to cash in some voucher that required my id. From there I went to pick up my tickets for the Phantom of the Opera... to where they asked for my id which I could not provide because it was no where to be found. Yep, my brain pointed me to the cashier window being the last place I had to use it.And it was nowhere to be found ... the manager would have the surveillance tape played when I insisted that I needed it back. And off I went to the play. A wonderful play, I must say.

When I came out of the play I headed to the security to where the same person was still on duty and the one that told me earlier that my id was not there. He made me upset because when I was there the first time I was asking if there was another place like in the backroom for these "lost items" and he told me "no". This time around, he told me that he should have looked at the log book in front of him because it was written there that my id was in the back room.... DOUBLE DUH!!! All those things I wanted to tell him... but I maintained my composure but sarcastically commented... I am sorry, Ms. M for being lazy and egotistical and sarcastic the first time you were here... He sure did not like that!!! Oh well...

The rest of my stay was pleasant... And whatever happened in Vegas, stay in Vegas... hehehe!!!

4 comments:

Elyani said...

I call that "kapok lombok" which does mean even though you know the chilli pepper is hot and can burn your tongue, that wont stop you for using chilli in your foods. Lesson learned : one can never be too prepared while traveling far from home, because sometimes during your exciting adventure you need all your wits about you to cope. Well, glad to see you made it home, E, and thank you for sharing!

Anonymous said...

what a day! I'm amazed how you kept your cool (well, almost hehe). Sounds like fun at the end eh?

NursyE said...

It was fun!!! I had fun!!! One funny (later on, after the fact) was when I was playing the slot machine. A hunky sat beside me that was empty at that time. And he was just watching me and cheering whenever I would win. And he started conversing and later on was touching me whenever I would win. And that machine was paying big time.

That touching a couple times were not welcome... hehehe.I didn't give a darn if he was delicious looking ... hehehe. He was a stranger!!! So in the third attempt, I had to tell him this "I would appreciate it if you would not touch me because I have a derangely jealous boyfriend and he is a lawyer... hehehe!!! He got up and left.It worked!!!

Anonymous said...

how much money did you win? your winning made up for the lousy flight, thank goodness.

that hunky went too far, tsk, tsk, tsk. kasi naman you are irresisitible looking.