Cancelled Again = Foilage & Flexibility

There I sat with the rest of the lemmings- waiting to board flight 4542 to Raleigh in our something less than comfortable airport chairs.

One passenger standing nearby answered his cell phone. His buddy who was supposed to be on the same flight was running late. In his mad dash to the ticket counter, he discovered that our flight had been cancelled.

A quick scan of the nearby departures screen failed to confirm this. A glance at the counter near our (and every other) gate showed a complete absence of any airline personnel.

Laptops whirred and cell phones snapped open. Dozens of passengers sought answers and found that indeed our flight had been cancelled. (By the way, no announcement of this fact was ever made in the boarding area.)

The airline agent I spoke to (on my iphone!) suggested that I return to the ticket counter. Not that I minded the walk, but there was something about walking back by the TSA personnel after I'd just done the security shuffle (you take your laptop out, you take your shoes off..) that fried my bacon.

After arriving at the ticket counter and waiting my turn behind a large group of friends with an even larger group of bags to check, I was told that there was good news.

I'd been rebooked.

For 5pm the next day.

I'm not sure if the groan was audible or not, but I felt it in my bones.

You see- this was my short trip. Out Friday am, back Sunday pm. And although I didn't want to leave my family, I took solace in the fact that I'd be flying.

Or maybe not.

Suddenly, the 6:30am commute to the airport seemed so unnecessary.

Time to get to the solution side of things.

I rallied and asked the ticketing agent to please retrieve my checked bag with as much kindness and charm as I could muster. Five minutes later I was at the Budget counter, laying claim to a gold Chevy SSR- their, more masculine version of a PT Cruiser. 5 minutes after that, I was racing the predicted arrival time in the right hand corner of my GPS.

Yes, it was disappointing.

Yes, I missed a lunch date with Connections leaders that I was really looking forward to.

Yes, it rained most of the way there- and hardest after it got dark.

Yes, I stopped at almost every rest area in West Virginy to pee.

As an aside to my KY friends- the fine folks of WVA make us look cultured! At least those who engage in conversations in the rest area men's rooms do anyway.

On the upside, I saw some beautiful stretches of fall leaves.

And I listened to another David Baldacci book on cd. Bless you Cracker Barrel.

And I'm sure God used the moment to remind me that I'm not in control and that the world doesn't end when my plans fall through.

And why was my flight cancelled?

Mechanical problemns made the aircraft unfit to fly.

Thanks again for the drive Lord.

Please Keep Praying

This weekend was my first of who knows how many commutes to Raleigh.

Although the trip went well, and the family did fine in my absence (with the in-laws help)- Jen and I began to realize how important it is to get our home in Lexington sold and start putting down roots in Raleigh.

Right now our residence is under contract to a great couple who needs to sell their home to buy ours. I hadn't heard from them in a couple of weeks and assumed they were losing steam.

On my way back from Raleigh, they called to say that they still really want to buy our house. They told us that they have 2 different folks interested in their place and may get an offer by the end of the week.

If you have a minute, please pray and ask God to bring this quickly to a close.

And...if you know someone who is looking for a good deal on a home in Chilesburg...have them call me. (263-8099)

My Muse

Lately I've been giving Colston his last feeding of the day and putting him to bed.

This routine includes singing a couple of classic songs (Jesus Loves Me & Twinkle Twinkle Little Star).

The other night, my boy inspired me to add a new verse to the latter.

Sing the lyrics below to get the full effect:

"Twinkle, twinkle litte one

Time to sleep, your day is done

Hope that you had lots of fun

With mommy, daddy & Addyson

Twinkle, twinkle little one

Rest until you see the sun."

I love being a dad.

It's Alive...My iphone Is ALIVE!!!

As a parting gift, Xroads gave me Apple's new golden fruit- the iphone. I activated it a few days ago.

Practically speaking, this is the perfect gift. I'll be commuting from Lexington to Raleigh for a couple of months and working (long term?) without a designated office space. The iphone gives me access to email and web wherever I get phone service.

There's also a bit of irony in this gift since I haven't carried a cell phone for pretty much the entire time I worked at Crossroads. I had an office with a phone, and lived just around the corner- where I also had a phone.

Now I'm back in the game...or carrying the ball and chain...however you choose to look at it.

So far, the iphone is by far the easiest cell phone I've ever used- even though it is the most feature-packed.

My greatest dilemma? Where to carry it? I refuse to do the belt clip/case thing. (Vanity, Vanity) I don't like to carry things in my front pocket. Is the back pocket a good choice?

So, looks like it will sit on the table or in my bag.

Or I'll be wearing A LOT of cargo pants.

A Little R & R

The family (Jen,me, Addy, Colston & the in-laws) got away for a few days to the Lake Lure/Chimney Rock region of North Carolina.

Not sure how it works for anyone else, but a log cabin, river in the back yard, tall trees, granite mountains, scenic vistas, rocking chairs and front porch swings, paddleboats, nightly desserts and walks in the woods refresh and recalibrate my soul and psyche.

Back home now for a few days before my first commute to Raleigh.

More on that later.

BBQ, Balloons & Fat Lips

The other night we headed to our favorite BBQ joint for some grub.

Addyson came to the counter with me to pay our bill and got the obligatory free balloon. (Remember when something so simple would make your day?)

Helium filled orb in hand, Addy ran to show off her new treasure to her mom and brother.

Three strides in, her toe caught my heel, she lost her balance and slammed face first into the tile floor.

Blood, tears, bruised lip and gum, a slightly loosened tooth, overinflated lip and one pediatric dentist visit ensued.

The good news is that everything should be fine. Worst case is that she may have some discoloration of one tooth. In fact, her lip is almost back to normal size.

The bad news is that we've realized that we can't protect our kids from everything we wish we could. This was Addy's first semi-serious injury.

It won't be her last.