The plan went haywire when JFK had a ground delayto JFK.  The FAA has a decent explanation of the Ground Delay/Stop program on their website.  So the plane was there, but we couldn’t get out.  To complicate things, the UN  General Assembly was ending and all the dignitaries were flying back on their planes, think Kazahkstan Air Force 1.  And when they’re moving around, all the other planes have to hold as they have clearance, so that’s another delay.  Ended up taking off 4 hours after we were supposed to.  I happens.  I knew I was going to miss my connection, so I ended up staying at a Hilton Garden Inn near the airport.  JFK hotels aren’t cheap.  But I had a wonderful view of South Conduit Ave. in Jamaica from the second floor.

And now my flight to IAD is delayed again, but this time only by 30 mins so it’s okay.  I do love Terminal 5 or T5 as JetBlue calls it.  It’s sprawling and has great amenities.  There are counters with stools all over the place with outlets as well as touch screens to order food and drink right to your work station.  There’s a credit card swipe on the screen, easing the process.  So I suppose if I have to be stuck somewhere for a little bit, I’ll take here. 

The place looked like Ellis Island last night due to all the delays and cancellations.  They probably had over 100 people sleep in the terminal overnight.  If my company hadn’t gotten the hotel, I would have cabbed in to my folks place in Manhattan.

I returned to the Hub for a 2 days and a night for work yesterday.  After having lived there for 5 years,  I have mixed feelings about returning.  I miss being there.  It took me at least 2 years to warm to Boston after I moved from New York City, so I understand that you don’t move and generally take to a new place.  It takes time.  It’s odd walking around a city and remembering various blocks for being the place you had that awesome falafel or driving by my brother’s old place.  I think Boston, while full of young people as well, seems to have more personality than DC.  The guy standing in front of me with the hard hat at Dunkin screamed Boston.  Whereas, DC is the city that it is because it has people bringing their cultures from all over. 

A few things I enjoyed back in Beantown this time:

• The cabs take credit cards , much like NYC.  The sign I was in said they had to pay a 6% fee, so I’m sure they’d rather take cash, but man is this convenient.  DC, get with the deal. 
• The US Air Club at Logan does not have a liquor license.  It hasn’t for almost 2 years.  This made me sad today as I really would have liked a beer or two waiting for my flight.  I would like to blame Boston, but this is really more about US Air.  Someone needs to get paid off consulted for this to get expedited.  Get it done.  Grease the wheels.  It’s embarassing.
• The T really is a weird subway system.  But the new Blue Line cars are sharp.  Much better than the old. 

New:

Old:

Goodnight from somewhere outside Pittsburgh….

I’ll be back with a road trip recap tomorrow methinks.  The air conditioner in my room sounds like a freight train.

I’m light headed because all the blood in my body is currently in my stomach and large intestine working to digest this thing.  I’ll write more tomorrow.  Promise.

• Stopped for lunch just over the river into Kentucky.  It was a good thought.  Have you ever had an italian sandwich on garlic bread?  No?  Then you haven’t lived. 
• The driving at or below the speed limit thing continues into Ohio and then into Kentucky. 
• God is big down here.  Don’t get me wrong.  My precinct in Harlem had over 80 churches in less than a square mile.  But it seems like in most of these towns, there’s only a church.  Not even a post office. 
• I’ve passed chains I thought no longer existed.  A small list includes Long John Silvers and Little Caesars and Chevron.

• Had the best baked beans of my life in Upperville, VA.   Had hot dogs and jalapenos in them.  So good. 
• West Virginia is one of the prettiest states I’ve been in.  US-50 through the state is incredible, and made me wish I had a sports car or motorcycle.  I was never happier driving slowly behind a dump truck.
• Drivers in West Virginia drive at or below the speed limit.  As a New York driver, this boggles my mind.  But it’s a good thing this is a road trip.  See above bullet. 
• This Hampton Inn is pretty crappy.  The gym is even worse.  And they did not recognize my High Supreme Diamond status. 

And we’ve been using maps and plan to keep away from my Garmin GPS.  This is helped by my unplugging of the Garmin as it was updating it’s maps, which erased them from the unit.  So it’s basically a paperweight.  But I have to say that maps are much more fun. 

Talk to you tomorrow.

So Law and Order is looming large in my life today.  First, on USA, they had the Wire episode today.  “Gunplay” It had Bunk, Wee-bey, and Clay Davis.  Awesome.  I still miss that show.  And then it was announced that the Netflix app was on the IPhone today, and so on the bus ride home today, I watched the first season of Law and Order: SVU. Which is pretty damned amazing to be watching not TV on a bus, but TV from years ago in perfect picture.  A great day for technology. And speaking of Netflix, how’d you like to work at a place like that?  Unlimited vacation time.

Until next time…

This is the Columbia Regional Airport, sitting equadistant between Columbia, MO and Jeff City (As the locals call their state capital) I got off the plane and there was a door, guarded by a local cop.  I saw why when I saw that it led to baggage claim which is right next to the “secure side” of the airport.  So you can either go through security, or just walk over to baggage claim and go out that door.  Very funny. 

Delta has three flights out of here a day, all of them to Memphis. If you wonder why, it’s because of the Essential Air Service Act which is covered here.    I’ve been sitting here for 2 hours.  They have free wifi though, even if they don’t have anything else.  You know thie airport is small when the Hertz rep says the car is outside to the right.  And I walked out expecting to see it in the parking lot.  Nope.  It was literally parked in front of the terminal to the right. 

Memphis, here I come.

I’m here for my cousin’s wedding.  I’m actually marrying them. And it’s hot.  The Weather Channel says it feels like 102 degrees and I’m inclined to believe them. I even have my in-room fridge open, which I know is killing seals and causing oil leaks in the Gulf, but I don’t care.  The room has all these louvered blinds that open up right onto the bay, so you literally look out onto the water and the foliage.  However my room looks like Howard Hughes’s guest room, with everything shut up tighter than a drum. 

There’s something odd about Jamaica.  The battle between Coke and the government has become an uneasy truce mostly because Dudus is still hiding.  But the disparity between the haves and have nots is somewhat startling.  And I suppose as a traveller you make your choice about whether you ignore it or accept it.  The drive in was a little jarring from the poverty near the airport to the guy calling me by name in the pressed white bellman’s outfit and pointing out where the robe was. 

Robe?  Seriously?  If there was ever a place to go commando, this is it.  I might even open up the screens for that.