My Second Plane-Ride Adventure

 

So, if you haven’t read my first adventure on an airplane yet, it might make a little more sense if you read that one first, so if you haven’t, go here.  If you already have read it though, then good for you! You’re ahead of the game!

So, my last plane-ride sucked majorly, if you couldn’t gather that from the previous blog.

This time, things were a lot different because my dad wasn’t there to guide me through the process.  So, you could say I was pretty nervous flying on a plane by myself for the first time.

My friend Chelsie drove me to the airport with Nathan in the back seat, and it was pretty quiet during the whole time.  I mean, it wasn’t dead silent or anything; there was music playing and we did talk occasionally, but there wasn’t a party going down or anything.  And as we got closer to the airport, I got more and more nervous about the whole process, and sad.

Why was I sad? This was going to be the first substantial amount of time that I would be away from Nathan since we first met.  We were apart for 4 days for Thanksgiving, but this was going to be over three weeks apart (which doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, but two a couple that is pretty much inseparable it seems like a lot).
Anyways, I was sad that I’d have to leave him, but extremely happy that I was going home.

So we got to the airport, and I was looking for the place where you can drop off your luggage outside the airport, but I couldn’t find it. So we ended up driving through the airport drop off twice.  Which wasn’t so bad, but it was a lot of confusion.
We loop around back to the beginning place, and Nathan gets out to help me take my bags to the dropoff place.  I was getting more and more sad and when we got to the place, I ended up crying.  And I kept crying after Nathan hugged and kissed me.  I could tell it broke his heart to see me like that, but it was the way it was.  After that I didn’t cry and I got through handling the checked bags.

The guy was really nice and after he checked the bags, he told me where to go and asked if I needed anything else.  I didn’t, so I went into the airport. 

When I got inside, I was very confused.  I didn’t know exactly where I was going, and my mind was blank as to what I did when I went to the airport with my dad.  Then it hit me that I needed to go through security, and so I headed the direction of the security checkpoint.  They were nice, until I was going to go through the detector and they told me I had to go back and take off my flip flops.
…my flip flops? Seriously, what could be hidden in there?  I dealt with it though, took off them, and went through the detector.

I grabbed my stuff on the other side, put my shoes back on, and then began the search for my terminal. 

…it turned out that my terminal was all the way down to the end of one of the places.  So needless to say it was a very, very long walk to get there.  Once I got there though, I felt a little better than I had felt before.  Except for the fact that there was another place to take off at that place before mine, so the area was packed with people.  Once they all got on though I was fine.

I was there like two hours early though and had to sit and wait, getting more and more anxious as time went by.

My first plane ride, I felt as though I was going to throw up the entire time, so this time I was prepared; I had Dramamine with me. (That’s an anti-motion sickness drug)  So I killed like…four seconds during my waiting time taking my pre-dose of that stuff.

The rest of the time I spent calling my parents and telling them I got to the airport and everything okay…
…and playing Sudoku. 
I was extremely bored.

Eventually boarding started and I was the 6th or 7th person on the plane, and when I got to the plane, as soon as I got on I asked for a seatbelt extender, and the lady was extremely nice about it. 
I got to my seat, sat down, and buckled up.

Then it was informed that the plane was only half-full, which meant that I wouldn’t have to sit next to someone.  Which made me feel even better about everything.

So takeoff was fine; I got a window seat and was looking outside the whole time.
I was pretty bored until they told us we could use electronics, and then I got my laptop out and watched Elf.

They went around offering food and drinks (which was very nice) and then I watched It’s a Wonderful Life.
…I only got halfway through that movie though, because I got sleepy and decided to take a nap.

I woke up what felt like minutes later, but was actually a few hours later, and was told that we would be landing soon.

I was thinking ‘okay I slept for a long time but that’s cool’

…and then we hit major turbulence.
I got pretty damn scared after the plane started to shake like crazy. I thought we were going to fall out of the sky.

Eventually that calmed down and we landed, and I got off the plane and went to the bathroom.

Then I made my way to baggage claim, where my dad and younger sister Lizah was waiting for me.

From there, everything was a breeze, and I was just happy to be back on the east coast.

And now I get to make the wonderful trip back to Utah in two days, and I’m not looking forward to it.
Don’t get me wrong—now I don’t mind flying because of my Dramamine (by the way, that stuff worked extremely well. I had a headache the whole planeride, but I didn’t feel sick)—but I just don’t want to go back to Utah.
I’m going to miss being home…and driving…and not having to wear shoes in the shower…

but it’s something that needs to be done, and as I said in my last blog, it won’t last forever, and I’ll be back in Blue Ridge Summit before I know it.

Summary of My First College Semester and the Holidays (…and a random rant)

Merry Christmas, Kwanza, Hanukah, Happy Holidays, etc. etc. etc. You know how it goes.
Yes, I know I’m posting this blog two days after Christmas, but I get distracted, start the blog, and then take forever to finish it. But I knew I’d finish it eventually.

So I’m back home for the holidays (well, one of the holidays, I go back to college on the 30th so I’ll be in Ogden for New Year’s. oh well) And it’s been…interesting.  Well, not interesting, but moreso…stressful.  A lot of things have changed at my parents house…mainly I lost my room…and my TV…and my furniture…but I do have my king-sized bed so it isn’t too bad I guess.  But there’s been a lot of drama that…eh, doesn’t need talked about. It is good to be home though.

It’s settled down a lot though and everyone is getting a long fairly well.  I’m actually extremely happy to be home and really don’t want to go back to Utah.  But, apparently it’s important to get an education, so I feel the need to go back to school.  Plus, I paid for this upcoming semester and I don’t want all that money to go down the toilet.

So, let me talk about my holiday experience before I get to the topic of this blog.

So, as always, on Christmas Eve we went over to my Uncle Jeff’s house for the Coyle family get-together.  I drove me and my younger sister Amanda over, and the plan was for my mom, dad, and youngest sister Lizah to come over later.
I drove our little Chrysler convertible over, and I thought it would be easier to pull into his field and drive up next to the road, so I wouldn’t have to back out into the road at like 11:00 at night.  Logical right?
…it didn’t turn out so well.
I was half-way turned around and going up the field when the car stopped moving.
I was like okay, that’s weird.
I tried pressing the gas and the car didn’t go anywhere.
I put the car in reverse, and it didn’t go anywhere, and flung mud on the windshield.

It was then that I realized that the car was stuck in the mud.  I was mad at myself for getting it stuck like that.

But me and my sister got out of the car anyways…
…but as I got out, my feet landed ankle-deep in mud.
and I was wearing flip flops.
If there was EVER a bad time to wear flip flops, THEN would have been the worst time.

It took me going down the length of the car and losing my flip flops a couple times over to realize that I would not make it the 50 feet to the house wearing those shoes.

So yes, I took off my flip flops in 30-some-degree weather to walk in the mud to my uncle’s house, and my feet were numb by the time I got there.
Even though it only took a minute or so to get there.

Oh, it’s not over yet.

I get inside and everyone’s greeting me, and my little sister keeps speaking up and telling everyone that I had issues with the mud.  So everyone is either staring at me, or telling me it’s okay. 
My cousin gets a towel and tells me to walk on it to the bathroom, where I end up washing off my feet.  It was not the highlight of my night.

The car is now unstuck, but everyone kept joking about it getting stuck in the mud the WHOLE night.  It was still fun though.

The next day was Christmas, and the only thing I have to say about that is that I got a black and red snuggie, and it is the most amazing present EVER! It’s so soft and warm and comfy, and it’s everything that I’ve ever wanted.

 

Okay, now, onto our topic.
So my first semester of college was pretty awesome; I met a lot of awesome people, but a lot of not-so-awesome people as well.  That’s how it goes.  I’m not going to lie; I feel like a third wheel a lot of the time when I’m hanging out with my friends, but that’s how it’s always been with me.
At least when I hang out with Nathan he treats me like an equal…but then again, it’s usually just the two of us.

Things between Nathan and I are still going amazingly well; meeting him was…wonderful (I should write a blog about all that) and everything since then has just felt like…a dream.  We had our 1-year Anniversary on November 29th, and that was a lot of fun.  He’s back in Idaho Falls for the holidays while I’m in Pennsylvania, but we’ll see each other soon enough.

As for classes…eh.  I hates my Intro to Anthro class and am so glad it’s over.  The professor was completely horrible and didn’t know what she was doing.  She always went off topic and never gave us any indication as to what would be on her tests.  I ended up getting a C in her class—which is passing—but I was still extremely mad about.  My American Civilizations class was okay as well; I love history, but doing essay exams are killer. I ended up with a B+ in that class.  I got an A- in my Intro to Criminal Justice class, which I thought was a little low, but still fairly reasonable, and I got an A in my Human Biology class.  So, overall, my first semester of college landed me with a 3.25 GPA.

If I can do better next semester and bring that GPA up to a 3.5, I can qualify for an academic scholarship, and we won’t have to borrow as much money.  Which would really help me out.

Wow, that summary took a lot less space up than I thought it would.  Now, let me rant about a few things.

 

The first thing involves giving the proper credit to those who deserve it.
I don’t give a shit if it’s on facebook or twitter or face-to-face or in an essay, book, whatever.  Proper credit needs to be given to the right source.  It’s only fair.
I mean, if I wrote something and someone else took the credit for it, I would be super effin’ pissed.  And I’m sure other people would too!
I don’t care if it was lyrics and they were sung better by another musician; if the other musician didn’t write the lyrics, they shouldn’t get credited for them. 
For example, the song I Won’t Back Down was written by Tom Petty, but Johnny Cash did a cover for it.
Yes, Johnny Cash’s version was good, but he didn’t write the lyrics, and therefore shouldn’t be credited if you use the lyrics in a status or whatever.  Why? Because Tom Petty was the one who actually wrote the lyrics.  And it’s the same no matter who wrote what song.  If THEY are not the songwriter, than THEY don’t deserve to get the credit for the lyrics.
And it pisses me off to no end; especially when you get the asshole douchebags who think they’re right and can justify crediting lyrics to other artists.  Because there is no way to justify it.  And even attempting to makes you a bigger asshole than you already were.

Can you tell this situation happened in person and set me off?  Haha, I thought so.  It did happen, and even when I put the person in their place, they came back at me with a lame comeback, and I just blocked them from my life.  But I still think it’s good knowledge for everyone to have.  For future reference to quoting things on social networks.

Well, I don’t really have anything else to say.

I leave to go back to Utah on Friday, and I’m not excited to go back.  I love being home.  But I’ll be right back here in mid-April, so I think time will just fly right by.

I’ll try not to be so…spastic about when I write my next blog. I know it’s been a long time, but sometimes college just gets the better of you.  Anyways, until next time, Happy holidays!