I've Managed the Impossible

Countdown: -20 hours until the travel clock starts ticking (step outside the apartment and into a taxi, and this was earilier in the day - as I type the countdown clock is sitting at right about -6)

Log into Qantas and start the Online Check In procedure. Halfway through it blows up and dies a horrible death.

Hmmmm. OK, lets start again. Halfway through it blows up AND DELETES MY SEAT ASSIGNMENT. An aisle seat. I'm gonna need it. Back spasms. Urinary tract infection complete with fever and chills (I know, I know ... TMI). I WILL be needing to access the aisle OFTEN. In fact, who knows if I will ever be sitting down ... my plans right now are to just lie down in the back hallway between the left and right set of lavatories ...

I call the help desk. She says I am checked in, but without a seat. Well, better than nothing ... right? She decides to reset it so I can assign a seat and re-check in. "OK - try it now" she says. It blows up in my face. Sorry, she tells me - you are no longer checked in and I cannot seem to fix the problem, or assign you a seat. Try again later, or you will have to check in at the airport.

I try every few hours. Call the help desk ... every few hours - no one can help. My ticket has decided to be pissy and no one can fix it. In fact, I don't know what is going to happen at the airport in, oh, about 6 hours. Maybe they won't be able to fix it and I will just decide to live at the Brisbane International Airport.

So - WITHOUT THE CLOCK EVEN TICKING my travel nightmares have begun. This does not instill me with confidence that my 28 hour travel adventure will be easy sailing. I have set my alarm for 2 hours earlier than needed. I have called a taxi to pick me up 1 and 1/2 hours earlier than needed in hopes that I will be the only one DUMB ENOUGH to arrive that early at the airport to check in to my flight and thus still have a shot at getting an aisle seat ... if there are any left ...

I am exhausted. I am sick. I am sick and tired of being sick and tired. I am sick and tired of travelling. I despise airports. I hate planes. I know, I know ... and I am spoiled. Whine, whine, whine, blah, blah, blah. Sorry ... lost it there for a sec ... just really, really, really tired ....

I can't sleep ... and why should I? In about an hour it will be time to check into my LA to Houston flight.



Let's see how badly I can mangle that ...