Road Trip - Part 4 A Nice Ending

Beautiful, huge, pine trees

Oregon is a beautiful state.  The interstate scenery is quite majestic.  We finally made it to Oregon City, which is a suburb of Portland and is where Chuck and his wife live.  Our first stop was to his workshop to unload the big truck then on to his home decorated for Christmas.

Oregon City was also the end of the Oregon Trail, the trail that many settlers took across the country.  We had a couple of days to tour Portland and we thoroughly enjoyed the visit.  Chuck took us to a vibrant, bustling shopping area which reminded me of the way Ingleside Avenue used to be in Macon.  This busy area was several blocks long, filled with shops and restaurants.  We saw many sweet refurbished, older bungalow-style homes on the small streets surrounding it.

Portland, Oregon skyline

There were several antique shops and as we checked them out, I found my Christmas present.  In one of the shops, there was a salesman's sample of an Empire chest.  Sweetie and I collect Empire furniture and I immediately knew I had to have this. 

Sweetie agreed, but asked how was I going to get it back to Georgia.  No problem, I assured him, I'll carry it on the airplane.  Now, let me add, I had just spent fifty plus dollars at UPS to ship my books, pillow, and additional presents I had purchasedduring our trip, in a really big box to ship to Georgia. We planned to travel lighter on the flight home.  Really.

Sweetie paid for the chest and when we got back to Chucks, I gently wrapped bubble wrap around my little chest and slid it into a large Boston Market tote bag with handles that Chuck's wife found.  Perfect fit!  I was good to go! 

And ready to go.  I'm a home body and we had been away from home a long time.  Hello Delta, take me home.

Not so fast.  First thing, we were flying standby on a 6 AM flight from Portland to Atlanta.  Which meant we had to get to the airport by 4 AM.  Which meant I had to get up at 3 freaking AM.  We are not morning people.  Since we were running slightly late, I did not have a chance to get my coffee.  Yikes!

Chuck said not to worry, Portland's airport is not really large and usually is not so busy.  Well, he was wrong.  When he dumped us out at the Delta check-in, the line was out the door.  We finally made our way to the kiosk, figured out how to validate our tickets, checked our suitcases (thank goodness this was pre-bag fee), and rushed to go through security (pre-revealing x-ray and/or touchy-feely search).  As our coats and my pocketbook, briefcase, and Boston Market/Empire chest went through the x-ray and Sweetie and I stepped through the metal detector, they called our flight.

We grabbed our things, shoved our feet in our shoes, and headed for the gate.  Then Sweetie asked if I had his boarding pass.  No, I did not.  He had it when he went through security, but somehow had lost it.  Great.  We turned around and dashed toward the security desk.

Right when we arrived back there, someone had turned his boarding pass in.  Hallelujah!  We high-tailed it back to the gate.  Everyone had boarded except us and eight others flying stand-by.  The ten of us huddled around the gate agent while he perused his computer.  Then he told us to have to seat while they did a head count on the plane.  Very scientific, I must add.

By now, I'm fine with taking a later flight.  I knew the next flight left around noon.  I envisioned a big cup of coffee, maybe a Cinnabon or even a real breakfast. Sweetie paced around the waiting area.  He was really ready to get home.  Well, we were called and inched our way through the plane packed with people.  We found an empty overhead bin and stuffed the chest inside with our coats around it. 

A few minutes later, a flight attendant, looking for additional overhead space, pulled the Boston Market bag down and loudly asks who did it belong to.  I raised my hand and she handed it to me, nicely ordering me to slide it under the seat in front of me.  Well honey, it would not fit.  So it sat on my lap while they made their final walk-through.

"Ma'am, your bag will have to go under the seat," the flight attendant stopped at our row and frowned.

"It won't fit," I smiled nicely as the man sitting on the aisle rolled his eyes. 

"Let me take it," she demanded as I handed it over.  "What is it?" she asked, realizing it's not a bag of food.

"It's a salesman's sample of an Empire chest," Sweetie explained.  I knew he was thinking he might sell it before we touched down.  Wrong.

"It won't squish down," I added nicely, again.

"No problem," she whisked it away and I craned my neck to see it go into Business Class.  Damn, we're stuck in the back, packed in like sardines and my little chest is riding home in Business Class.  What's wrong with this picture?

We arrived in Atlanta, no worse for the wear, and we waited while the pack of other sardines made their mad dash off the plane.  We gathered our belongings and headed toward the exit where several flight attendants and one of the pilots anxiously waited for us to leave. 

"Bye-bye," one said blandly.

"These are the ones," another said as she handed Sweetie the Boston Market bag.  "The nice ones," she  said, "our best passengers today!"

"Thank you!" I smiled my most charming, Mama raised me right, smile. 

We finally made it home!

Mr. Itty Bitty posing next to salesman's sample Empire chest