Tuesday, June 15, 2004
Madison, Wisconsin: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Take life as it comes to you.
My new motto is Take life as it comes to you. It’s not the equivalent of “Take no prisoners” but its darn close. So what inspires this new found creed? Ahh, yes my adventures with planes, trains, and automobiles or more apatly plans, buses and taxi cabs, all while with a cat carrier.
We start our scheduled trip in San Francisco (my former home). As I complete final move preparations, I go outside and notice that Abdul, one of the many very nice cab drives at Citywide is outside my door. Why? Because he knows I’m moving and thought he’d give me a ride to the airport. Very, very sweet of him, but unfortunetely, unknowing to him, my friend Alison has offered to take me to the airport. So I end up sending him off after giving him a handshake and a its been nice knowing you. I’ll have to send the guys at Citywide a card or a fruit basket, especially the Big Dog crew (or Red Bull crew, as I use to call them).
So my friend Alison arrives directly from her Emergency Room shift over at San Francisco General Hospital. Tires ablazing she pulls in, takes a look around the empty house, then helps me pack myself, my cat, and some stray packages into her car. She makes incredible time to the airport. Sshh, I’m certain she broke some speed limits, but its like that tree falling in the forest question. Can you break the speed laws if no one is around to catch at it?
So, I rush into SFO, stand patiently in the absurdly long e-tickets line that has been badly design to combine both those who are checking bags (who really need an attendants assistance) with those of us, pretty much just running through as we are. Josie, the kitty-kat, is being amazingly quiet. Undoubtly due to intense fear, but at this stage I’m just thankful, so yeah fear.
Finally, I’m on the plane. The pilot is talking about arriving into Chicago early. I sigh and relief, lay back and promptly fall to sleep. When I awake, we are on the ground. My first thought is, “Wow, I slept all the way to Chicago?” Then reasoning kicks in, and I identify that we are still in San Francisco. I look at my clock, and sure enough I’ve been asleep for over an hour, and the plan has gone no where.
And so it starts… The captain is in full denial mode, “With the current winds, and a speed increase, I think we can still arrive in Chicago ontime...”. My scepticism is transparent, because I’m trying on this optimisim hat, but really it just a hat laid over the head of a pragmatistic. I’m not overly pestimistic or optimistic, I tend to see things as they are. As it stands, my mind is trying its damnedest not to scoff at the overly optimistic statement of said pilot.
I manage not to scoff all they way to Chicago, and even while the stewardest groups flights to over six different destinations to the same terminal, A10 at Chicago-Midway. Of course once Josie and I hit the terminal, I’m in full blown scoff, “Sure the planes there waiting for us, because we were ONLY an hour late.” So that optimistic baseball cap is lying on the terminal floor somewhere, and I’m back in full pragmatic mode, “How can I get to where I’m going quickly, despite the rash of delays?”
I speak with the counter clerk, “We’re sorry that you and apparently hundreds of others missed your flights. Honestly we are really and truly sorry, because now it means that we have to deal with you, and its not going to be pleasant.” So acknowledging that the counter clerks were woefully under prepared to handle a very large plane of myriad missed connections. I called up my veneer of “civility” and quietly explained, how I waiting on stand-by for the massively overbooked 5:20pm flight, and then waiting again on standby for the also overbooked 10:40pm flights to Madison, were not suitable options for me and my cat, who had at this point been in her little carry case for about 6hrs.
So as they ponder this, I start thinking of buses, Greyhound and Van Galder that go to Madison, and what would it take to get on one. As it stands Van Galder leaves from Chicago-Midway and goes to the Memorial Union, at the UW Madison, in Madison, WI. Go Van Galder. Josie, by this time has identified her carrying case, as a protective shield against all the strange noises, massive number of people, and strange little hands of children as they try to pet her. She wont budge as I try to let her out for some fresh air and a stretch. My little baby may be a fraidy-kat, but she’s a darn smart one.
So I persuade ATA that they want to place me on the Van Galder, so I don’t hold them liable for missed flight, or the fac t that no hotel will accept me and cat, or that getting in on Monday would cost me telephone and DSL services, etc., etc. All this for a $24 complimentary ticket on Van Galder, with me new found acquitance who is also going to Madison for an intensive language course. So we are off to the bus.
I sleep on the bus. Josie sleeps on the bus. The bus travels from Chicago to Rockford, from Rockford to Janesville, from Janesville to Madison. Somewhere around Rockville, Josie has realized that she can almost recognize the bus motion as similar to a car, so she wants to explore a little. I open the hood of her cage, erhh, ummhh, carrying case, and she’s curious, until she sees the other people on the bus. Then she’s less curious and more determined to be protected by her super duper cargo sheild. She dives head first back into her case, gives me a dirty look, then curls up for another bout of intense sleeping. I’m right there with her, in fact, I’d give me a dirty look, if it was possible, but I settle for some more sleep as well.
Finally, we hit Madison, and the fireworks flair, welcoming us to town. Well, so it probably wasn’t a welcome home Alnisa celebration, but their were fireworks. Pretty fireworks. So there! Next stop is a cab so that we can pick-up some cat food and liter for Josie, and get home. All toll, not including cab ride, the trip started at 6am, and it was 10:30pm in Madison, and we still had a half hour before we got home.
Madison is hot. Is there a better word? No, I’m going with hot. Its like 80 degrees in the evening, and its sticky and muggy. People complain about the winters not me, I forgot that I use to complain about the summers (sigh). So now, I tired (go figure after all that sleep), hot, and damp from sweat, but happily located in Madison, WI.
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Categories: Personal •
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Permalink: http://www.wide-eyed.org/main/article/madison_wi_4/
Comments
- On 06/17/2004, Laura says:
Hey my friend,
Glad to see you made it in one piece. I gor your message but wasn’t sure how best to reach you. Thanks for the info… Austin still looks good, and from what I understand playwrights make it up to Minn. when it gets too hot.
- On 06/18/2004, Alnisa Allgood says:
Hey Laura:
Ahhh, the little discussed Austin to Minneapolis transit. I can see it. Madison has the: Madison to San Francisco, Madison to Seattle, and Madison to Austin transits. They’re almost like corridors, the wind can sweep you either way.
So if Austin looking good, when do you arrive? My friend Mary lives there. Well actually, she lives in Madison but her family lives there, and she’s there this summer, so if you were moving this summer, I could introduce you to so she could show you around.
Anyway, my email address is still good. I’m without DSL til Tuesday, 6/22 (how do people use dial-in, its horrible?).