It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Scary Hours II)

It wasn’t too long ago that I was wondering how I was going to escape Los Angeles…

So hello, and Merry Christmas from PHILADELPHIA!  Seriously, it might be cold here, but who would have thought that I’d have to actually come to Philly to see sunshine after six straight days of waterfalls in LA??

I guess it really is always sunny...

So here’s what went down since I released “Scary Hours” on my way here:

-I had some ribs I cooked the night before (at 1 in the morning) left over, so I conveniently finished that rack by 2am.  It was around this time that I pretty much determined I was pulling that good all-nighter.

-I got lucky with the printer.  I’m still not sure how I am getting any ink printed, but this night was not about wondering about things.  It was about getting things done and sleeping later.  Once I printed my boarding pass, I figured I would try and pack…

-…But it was 3am and I hadn’t packed anything yet.  Again, proof that I’m a natural procrastinator.  I spent a couple of hours packing, and I didn’t really feel tired at all.  I just about finished by time I heard my alarm go off.  It was 5am.  If I went to sleep, I would have been getting up at this time.  So to coronate the occasion, I took a shower and pretended like I had just gotten up and had somewhere to go.  Oh wait… I did.

-Of course I took too long to get out of the place, but in my hazy morning haste, the only casualty (RE: thing that I would have done differently if I would have slept or not otherwise wasted time) was leaving my power strip behind.  I can live with that.  I could also live with the fact that I missed my 5:45am bus going downtown.  I made it out of the place at 5:50am, and with only one luggage bag, my backpack that I am NOT supposed to wear in LA, and my laptop, I had more mobility than I usually have when travelling.  I was also Philadelphia/airport conscious, wearing sleeves, a bomber jacket, and my spider hoodie with sweatpants instead of jeans.  All for you, Transportation Security Administration.

-I decided not to take the Gold Line up to Union Station, just a pair of buses.  I got to Union Station at about 6:30am, which was great.  What was not so great is that I am pretty sure I fell asleep on not just the buses, but the bus stops as well.  So much for upgrading my safety!  Fortunately, I gathered up enough awareness to get off the bus both times at the right stops.  But I felt like I was getting electrocuted trying to wait on the Flyaway bus to LAX.  When that bus finally came at 6:50am, I got on and happily embraced the opportunity to drop consciousness for half an hour.

-I should mention that the Flyaway makes multiple stops at different terminals at LAX.  But you already know that I woke up at the perfect time.  I shook off the cobwebs and dragged my bag through the terminal, and it was PACKED.  But I got there at 7:20am, and my flight was on time for 9:15am, so I was fine on time.  But I was still struggling mightily to stay awake and alert…

-…That is, until co-CEA Sofia called!  She was just coming home from overseas and returning a Thanksgiving call that I had made, and it was the best timing EVER.  I like phone calls, I really like favorably random phone calls, and I especially like phone calls that kill time and serve a necessary purpose.  All of the above with this one.  I got through an incredibly long line of luggage check-in, which was about thirty minutes long by itself, and it felt like five minutes.  After getting through security (more on that in a moment), I called back until boarding time.  Stayed awake the entire time.  Clutch.

-As hyped up as airport security was, I did the job this time.  Didn’t even have to strip for them!  I knew I was going to have it easy when the older lady in front of me had to take her dressed-up dog out of its pet cage.  The TSA-gods smiled favorably on me, despite the fact that I needed about three of those travel bins.

-One thing I need to fix is getting “road snacks” at airports.  For one, they’re obnoxiously expensive.  Second of all, they’re limited.  Third of all, I have this trail mix that I spent wayyy too much money on that I didn’t open until I got to Philly.  Fourth of all, I did NOT buy gum.  Of all things to blow currency on, gum should have been no lower than number three on my priority list, and I paid for it.  The altitude adjustment made me wish my ears were bleeding, at least the pain would have been logical in that scenario.

-Finally, getting on the plane and taking off relatively on time was great.  The rest stop in Denver, CO added two people who were generally excited to be back in Philly… or, in their case, “outside of Philly”.  I’d tell you more, but I spent the majority of the flight sleeping on cloud nine.

-Big shoutout to Rob the Legend!  Rob (of Swagriculture and Reggae Surge fame) came through to pick me up and take me back to West Philly, and I saw all of the fam, including my brother Michael.  Stayed up until 3am.  Rob thought it was cold, and maybe I did feel the 32° in the air.  But after the LA rain, I loved the clear skies and saw actual sunshine the next morning.

Limited series edition.

-1SKILLZ