Wednesday at Orange County Airport & Westin

Wednesday 6/13

On Thursday, I was having a meeting in SF with my new partners at which I was to present a proposed process to cure all ills (or a stop gap measure to lessen the hurt) -- this is the series of monthly meetings that has thrown my travel schedule awry. I have been going to SF to work almost every week for the past 2 months -- I am a little cranky about it. This time I decided to be smart and fly in the day before because there is nothing more brutal than trying to make it for a 6am flight especially when the airport with such flights is about 3/4ths of an hour away! I timed everything just right. Flight was at 7:20pm. Earlier in the day I packed 2 sets of clothes -- you never know when you might have a bad clothes meltdown especially when then those are the only things keeping your confidence in check.

The thing is on my last trip to SF I visited Ross (my favorite thing!) and Marshalls (my favorite thing!) and bought 3-5 blouses a pair of trousers (is trousers a man thing?) and a skirt that I just had to add to my collection. I am into to black and white contrast lately so all of these items were either solid white or black and white patterned in some way. I have this dream of the perfect summer outfit that is all white but I am chicken to wear all white so I am working my way up to it -- have progressed to barely off white and patterns with mostly white. Maybe when the summer is just about over I will be ready. Anyway, when I came home I came to my senses that 2 of them were overkill so they are going back sometime in the next 30 days. I took 2 of those blouses with me with the tags still on just in case I had another change of heart.

Back to the airport. At quarter to 5pm I was done with my day. Showered, dressed, and fully packed by 5:20pm with 10 minutes to spare for last minute OMGs. I even remembered to pack my inhaler which I never use and that heaven-in-a-ziplock-baggie to take care of all your personal needs (if only life were so simple!).

John was already off to school to teach so I was doing this solo so during the blur of activity to get ready I called up the airport to check on the parking status (Yuki will be so proud of me for advanced planning). All terminal parking was full except for the off airport parking which 5 minutes away from the airport and cost only $12. Ahhh, I get to have another adventure -- parking at the remote structure for the first time.

Getting to the airport was a breeze. The one thing I like about our current house is we are only 15 minutes away from SNA which is about 8 minutes of surface street time and 7 minutes of highway. It is wooonderful. Even with some traffic you have to try really hard to be late. I was so anxious to see the new parking I turned down the wrong street and started my normal exploring routine and chided myself in to sticking to the plan I had plane to catch.

Well, the operator was true to her work I was at the airport about 10 minutes later which included waiting for the bus and it was 6pm. All checked in and waiting in security line and would you know this is one thing that does not move quickly since this is not rush hour at the airport there is only on id checker and one security line open. So we wait and wait and wait to get processed. Thank goodness I built in time.

Finally, I am on the plane in my usual window seat and getting ready to snore for the rest of the flight. I get up and we are landing in Oakland and life is good. An Air BART and BART ride and a 3 block walk later I am at the Westin checking in. Already thinking about rehearsing my presentation which I reworked on the rides. I get to my room and guess what there are a couple of newspapers on the floor, used robe draped over a chair, empty golf box on the bed, used soap in the shower and used hand towel by the sink, and some leftover knickknacks on the table and TV dresser. I call up the front desk and tell them the situation and the lady asks me if I want housekeeping to be sent up! Heck no! I want a new room! Even the bed looks slept in! We all know people have used those rooms before us but we really do not need the reminder when we walk in!

I get shipped off to a new room on a higher floor which I like. I walk in and I am hit in the face with the smell of smoke --the window of the room is open so someone was trying to air out the room. I have become somewhat of a detective in my old age. Now, I am weary, annoyed, and glad that by some fluke I remembered to bring my inhaler. I called up the front desk and asked if the room was a non-smoking, an emphatic yes sailed through the headset. I complained that in my unique circumstance that was not the case and said since it was already 10pm with already one room change behind me, I was not willing to do another but was very disappointed.

With the stand-by-me help of my trusted inhaler, the rest of my stay went swimmingly. Even with all the prep I practiced till about 2 am in the morning. Left messages with the project manager at said time of the night with changes and tried to nod off to sleep at about 2:30am for exactly 5 hours.

Thursday morning went great almost anti-climatic considering the preparation. I wore white pinstriped black pants with a white and black patterned blouse -- I looked good -- did not have any outfit meltdowns. Even my hair behaved -- it is in dire need to a touch up though.

Dashed off to catch the 6:38pm flight home and soon enough I was enjoying my house again.