The Long Day

Note the time...

I flew out of Austin at 11:50 a.m. today, and arrived in Newark about 4:30 p.m. I had some hopes of finding an earlier connecting flight out of Newark to BWI - something not involving a 4-hour layover, than which it would have been quicker to just rent a car there and drive, actually - but it was not meant to be.

I could have done without a few of my fellow passengers. Let me tell you, the woman on my right did not put up her tray table until several minutes after the flight attendant announced that she should; and the guy on my left kept listening to his iPod until well into our descent. What should you, as a responsible passenger, do? Are you your fellow passengers' keeper? Are you expected to rat them out to the fuzz?!

The one that really bothered me was the guy in the row ahead of me, who kept making "weeeeeeeoooooooooo" bomb noises. So not cool.

Newark is technically not a part of New York City, but who are they trying to fool here? Taking off from that airport after nightfall makes it pretty clear; the ground is one solid glowing mass, and tall buildings are everywhere. The last leg of the flight from EWR to BWI was delayed. I was supposed to arrive at 9:53 p.m. and ended up not getting in until past 11, something of a hassle, as I had a two-hour drive ahead of me. Still I made it in and the drive was really nice. It's pitch-black out and there were no other cars on the road, if you don't count Mr. Hot Rod, who seemed genuinely befuddled for several moments when I moved onto the shoulder to let him pass. What? That's what you do.

Wisps of fog across the highway witness the proximity of the bay and the ocean, and I drove through several very small, but very closely spaced, cute, picturesque, historical towns... and also past a Maryland State Travel Information Center, which I will definitely take time to visit on my way home Monday, when it's open. I'll bring a notepad.

I got in at 1:30 a.m. and my cousin, the bride-to-be, promptly offered me whiskey. We are not the same as our parents. My cousins and I sat up talking and giggling over wine until past three.

I assumed there would be no internet here, but there is! Surprise! So here I am, checking in quickly before dissolving into an exhausted puddle for the night. Perhaps tomorrow there will be pictures. It's beautiful here!