This is when traveling begins to wear on you!

So, the coming home story. A little bit of background 1st - 2 weeks ago I found fraudulent charges on my credit card when I got online to see if I had anything to pay for my bill. They immediately cancelled my card (and fedexed me a new one). I then couldn't see my online bill so I called again and they told me that I did not have any amount on my current billing period and I could just wait until the next billing period. So I got my new card, and activated it on Monday before I left. Tuesday through Friday I used it without problems. Saturday, I went to use it and it was denied...3 times. That's ok. I had a debit card. But I knew I would have to contact the credit card company Sunday morning because I needed to use this card to check out of my hotel. I figured this was happening because, although I told them I needed the card fedexed because I was going to Boston, I hadn't specifically told them I'd need it noted that I'd be travelling and they had put a hold on my card.

Sunday morning comes and I give them a call at 10:00am (I figured it could be taken care of in 10-15 min, I could shower and make it down to the lobby before breakfast ended at 11am). Well, the credit card lady tells me that apparently I did have a balance on my last statement and because I was overdue by 14 days they put a hold on my card and she couldn't remove it because it had been sent to the collections department. I was furious! She was the only person who was around (because it was a Sunday) and she had no emergency contact number for any supervisor or anyone else who could help me fix this situation! I was livid! But there was absolutely nothing that I could do, or she would do and I was stuck. So I called my mom to have her check my checking account which had more than enough to pay for the hotel, gratefully!

By the time this is all over it is 10:45. I still have to shower and gather my things for check-out at noon. So, I decide to shower first, and end up finishing by 2 min to 11. Missed breakfast. So, still wrapped in my towel, I call the concierge service to arrange for my shuttle to the airport. 5 min...10min...15min...I start getting dressed while on hold. This is tricky because there is no speaker phone option on the hotel phone. After I have my clothes on and make-up done, I decide to use the other phone to call concierge again.

Conceirge: Ms McCollaum, do you mind holding please?

Me: actually, yes! I do! I am already still on hold on the other line and have been for 20 min!

At that point of course they put aside other things and decided to help me with my request. I was told the shuttle will leave the hotel at 12:15, be there no later than 12:10. Ok. I can handle that. I gathered my things, checked out of the hotel, and printed off my boarding pass and receipt for my checked bag.

Of course, the shuttle ran 15 min late and I had to get on the phone with the person for the shuttle company before it showed up. Of course!

I got to the airport with little problem. Went to the baggage check desk and the lady scanned my ticket.

lady at desk: You don't have a checked bag apparently

me: (whipping out my receipt) Yes I do! I printed the receipt on line!

lady at desk: (repeats the scan...still rejected...looks at ticket) Oh! I know why! (cheerily smiling as she hand me back my ticket and drivers license) This flight has been cancelled! You will have to get in that line over there and talk to someone about rearranging your flight!

Me: (inside: BAAAHHH!)

Just then (~1pm), Delta airlines calls me: Your flight from Logan International to JFK has been cancelled. You have been rerouted through US airways flight #### leaving at 2pm arriving at Laguardia at 3:30pm.

I talk with the lady at the tickets counter and I learn that indeed I have been rerouted. I have to get over to the US airways line and to make things even more exciting, I get to catch a bus from Laguardia to JFK once I make it to NY.

So I quickly walk to the US airways counter and have to pay a stupid $25 fee for my bag (which Delta will not refund me, or my bus from Laguardia to JFK because my flight was cancelled due to weather conditions). Then I proceed to the security. Of course, I am randomly selected to do special screening and of course, the screening is positive. Apparently my new leather bag had traces of chemicals that could be mistaken for explosive materials...requiring a pat down. Bah!

After making it through security I did make it on my flight, and even to NY. From there I got on a bus to JFK and made it without complaint. At JFK I went directly to the baggage check counter. Where I handed her my ticket and license. She proceeded to scan it and...

lady: There is no baggage to check associated with this ticket!

me: (inside: Nooo! Not again!) No, I'm sorry. I have a receipt (whipping out my receipt).

lady: this means nothing! You could have cancelled it after you printed this!

me: (frustrated) Let me tell you what has happened today. (and I proceeded to tell her about the drama). I am not going to pay another $15 because I already have. This is ridiculous...work it out!

So she called her super over and they worked through it. At one point they told me I still owed $5 (because when you pay online it is $15 but at the airport it is $20), but they took care of that for me and I was on my way to security.

At security the line was sooo long that it was blocking entry into the terminal, so 5 people in front of me they cut the line and sent the rest of us over to the 1st class check in terminal. Not so bad but I had to walk outside, in the cold and threatening rainy weather...not so bad but I was in my leather coat! The whole time I was praying "please don't rain! Please Don't Rain!" Luckily, no rain.

Got to the terminal and had another problem at security. They saw my calipers and got alarmed and had to search me again. Funny thing is these calipers made it through 3 other security screens without raising alarm. Finally made it through security and to my gate. Hallelujah, but wait, there's still more.

Because of the glorious way that IHC works, I had to book my ticket through their travel agency. Well, when they booked my flights they didn't request seats for me. So my ticket had the "seat request" mark on it instead of my seat number and then a little box at the top that said "confirmed" so I know I was not on standby status. But in the ever glorious ways of the airlines, they of course had overbooked the flight I was on by 10+ people. I talked to the people at the counter (again) and showed them my ticket. They told me not to worry, I was confirmed so definitely had a seat on the plane, but the flight wasn't opened for boarding so I couldn't be assigned a seat yet. They told me to just board when zone 3 was called and I'd be fine.

Boarding starts. First class. Zones 1-2. Then Zone 3. I make my way to the gate. They scan by ticket...not cleared. The man tells me to watch the board for my name. I look at the board and my name is not on the cleared, not on the standby, not on the upgrade. So I step back and wait. Zone 4 is called. I once again go to scan and...not cleared! "Just wait, you do have a seat on this plane, we just have to wait to get others seated" This makes no sense to me. If I definitely have a seat why does it matter where everyone else is sitting! Give me a seat! They are waiting on 21 people from Bulgaria who finally arrive at the gate and get scanned through.

There are 4 of us with "seat request" cards, 1 of the Bulgarians. 2 other girls get to go through first. The people at the gate say "I'll do a walk through to see what seats are left" as I think to myself "WHAT!?". The guy comes back and talks to the girl at the gate. They point at the computer screen and talk and converse. They ask the girl from Bulgaria to come up and scan her ticket. She has a seat and gets on the plane. At this point I am about to cry! The next flight out of JFK is not until the following afternoon.

Finally, the woman looks up from her computer screen and motions for me to approach. I walk toward her expecting to hear "I'm sorry, this flight is full and YOU ARE SCREWED!" however, I hear "because that other woman was with a group I gave her the ticket in coach with her friends and we are giving you the last seat we have which is in first class". I looked up at her in disbelief, smiled and said thank you, and with shaking hands took the ticket she handed me and walked through the door toward the airplane. I tried to text someone at this point, but I was so shaky I couldn't hit any of the right buttons.

I missed the hot towel experience of first class because I was late getting on board. But there are a lot of perks that I got to take part in. Free food served on a domestic flight. Free snacks served every hour. Free alcohol...well, I didn't partake of that, but free drinks whenever I wanted. A nice big seat with maybe 5% more recline. Ahhh! The life! hehe It was the saving grace for me that day. Also, before getting on the plane they were giving away cards for free wifi trials on the plane so I got to check my e-mail and facebook at 30,000 feet in the air. And then the plane got in 30 min early. Yay! An upgrade to first class was a nice way to end this hellacious day!