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National Carousel Association Annual Convention, 2008Exploring the MississippiMargaret Franklin
 
 Monday, September, 2
2nd 
 , 2:15 p.m
My plane doesn't leave for at least another two hours but that's okay because I kid of like having thedeparture lounge to myself for the time being.It's been what I call a “Rube Goldberg” kind of day. Until I've made it here I feel like I've been bouncing through a veritable obstacle course of mazes, twists and turns.Getting ready to leave the house, I was rushing around like a chicken with its head cut off. It wasaround 9:15 when I took a cab to the bus terminal. At the bus terminal I was able to buy one ticket thatcovered both my bus to Yorkdale Station and the next bus to the airport. While I traveled, I listened tomy Walkman. I listened to Kenny Loggins and I also listened to this great band called TheHellacoptors. My batteries are running low. I hope I can find new ones. The journey so far has gonefast although it seemed slow while I was in the moment.I enjoyed most of the scenery, however we passed a rather nasty accident on the side of the road after the bus left York Mills. A car had its rear end totally smashed in!Traffic was slow from Yorkdale to the airport but I didn't mind as time was on my side. As the busneared the airport, I took notice of the names of the streets: Jetliner Road and Silver Dart Drive.The bus only went as far as Terminal One. I had to go up an elevator and cross the bridge to get toTerminal Three. The bridge had a moving sidewalk so I just stood still with my luggage. Then I took another elevator and soon boarded a monorail to the terminal.At the terminal there was a little gift shop where I was able to buy a padlock for my suitcase. Then Iwent to use the ladies' room. I HATE SELF-FLUSHING TOILETS! They always make me feel rushedso I didn't fully get to do my business. It didn't help either that I nearly got stuck on the way out because I'd taken my suitcase into the stall with me. NO WAY was I leaving it unattended. It was easier  bringing t in than out. Next came the ordeal of checking in my baggage and going through customs. I hate this part. It alwaysmakes me so nervous! I hate filling out those little blue forms because I'm always scared of filling themout incorrectly or saying the wrong thing. And my suitcase weighted 46 ½ pounds! 3 1?2 more and itwould have reached the limit. Any more and I'd have to pay extra. When I donate those gifts to theauction, it won't lighten my load very much.Going through security was very intimidating. I took my camera out of my bag, but I also had to takeoff my hat AND my shoes. It was lunch time when I got through but I was too excited to eat anythingmore than a yogurt and a bottled water. Shortly after I started eating I felt a twitch of panic and startedrummaging through my backpack. I'd LOST MY CAMERA! I left everything where it was and ran tothe security desk. Fortunately, they had it. I swear I've felt so nervous today I'd forget my headsomewhere if it wasn't attached! The lunch area was quite crowded and hectic and of course a babystarted to whimper. I bolted and left my food where it was but then I came back and finished it.After I ate, I proceeded to the next level. A shuttle bus took me and several others to the departurelounge.There were a lot of people here including a little girl who was watching “Shrek” on a portable DVD player. I tried to watch it over her shoulder, but eventually gave up because my neck was getting a little
 
uncomfortable, so I turned to my Archie comics.It will be less than two hours until we board the plane. I'm curious to see how many people show upand I'm even more curious to find out if anyone else is going to the NCA convention from here! Now that I'm relaxed I'm actually getting hungry.Planes departing from this area are few and far between. But I don't mind. I'm not bored. I'm enjoyingthe quiet and solitude. Okay, maybe 'm starting to get a tiny bit bored. An hour from now I will be onthe plane. I'm looking forward to seeing it pull in here, seeing my luggage being put on board andseeing the other people who will be on this plane. Wouldn't it be a scream if I were the only oneand...uh-oh..here they all come! And there they all go! I see three other people sitting here so far.
9:30 p.m
Here I am in my room. At least it's clean and quiet but the architect who designed this place is a warpedand demented lunatic with a twisted sense of humour! At least everyone agrees that this is the craziest,most complicated hotel we've ever stayed in.My flight itself was okay, but I hope I can lose a few tons by next year. My seat was so damneduncomfortable! I could barely get my seat belt done up and I couldn't get my tray to sit flat! At least Ihad nobody sitting next to me and there were no babies on the plane. I spent most of the flight enjoyingthe view while I listened to music. Corny tourist that I am, I took a picture of my plane and my luggage being loaded. My suitcase was the first one to go on the plane. Waiting for the plane to unload seemedto take a lot longer than for it to load. It was like a clown car! How can so much luggage fit on on plane, especially one so small.When I arrived in Memphis, instead of using the stairs like we did when we got onto the plane, wewent through one of those hallways that attaches to the door. The Memphis airport is an Aspienightmare! Noise, noise, noise everywhere and so much walking I was afraid I'd never find the baggageclaim. Northwest airlines baggage claim was even in an entirely different area beyond the rest anddown another hallway. I read the monitor that listed which planes had landed and the status of theluggage on each flight. One said “UNLOADING”, the rest said “At Gate” which was really confusing.I thought I'd be waiting forever for my suitcase, so you can imagine how pleasantly surprised I waswhen it came almost immediately!The next thing I had to do was phone for a hotel shuttle. I was feeling tired, hungry and irritable bythen and the airport was so noisy I could barely understand the lady on the other end of the phone, letalone understand her accent. Loudspeakers were blaring almost continuously and she sounded like afemale version of Boomhauer from “King of the Hill!” She told me where to go to catch the shuttle busand said it would be along soon. I could not see the “hotel” sign she had told me about and had to ask several people for directions before I could finally figure out what the hell anyone was talking about because the place was so noisy I felt like I was on the verge of a meltdown!Finally, a Holiday Inn van came along but it was a “University” van. Apparently, Memphis has at leastEIGHT Holiday Inns!! It felt like an eternity, but finally a second Holiday Inn van came and it WAS theright one! I'm glad the driver even helped me take my luggage to my room because the hotel was soconfusing I would have gotten lost trying to find it on my own!Finally, when I settled into my room, I started to unpack and enjoyed a nice, hot shower. I took my time
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