Surprises

The stress of life

Is brought to you

Free of charge.

Everything else

Is extra.

-BW ’16

There’s nothing quite like arriving at an airport, trying to check in and being immediately directed to a “special services” desk. The silent panic in that queue was palpable. From what we could tell, it was a place for travelers trying to check bags big enough to transport livestock, frazzled folks who missed flights, and clueless people like us who booked their tickets on third-party websites that only kind of exist…

Long story short, we stood at the counter for a short eternity while an incredibly patient desk person made several phone calls. We were both just about finished internally evaluating our life choices when she smiled and handed us our boarding passes. Phew! We can laugh about it now!

The next surprise was a pleasant one. We were just about to enter security when Ben leaned down to untie a shoe and a four-sided die fell out of his viola case! He has no memory of intentionally packing any dice, so we must conclude that this cute little stowaway joined us of her own accord. She has been named Dee Four. Expect further tales of this brave polyhedral!

We made it into Toronto without a hitch and through customs. The many colored arrows pointing us down a long series of hallways had the affect of a cattle chute. It wasn’t unwelcome, though! We are both dragging from lack of sleep. (Cheers to those who celebrated our departure with us!)

Then we flew to Halifax. As we boarded the plane we got to chatting with some very friendly Minnesotans also Faxing to Hal. They were brandishing a Ukulele and looking forward to their first busking experience. I hope they won’t be insulted if I quote them. “We’re shooting for two dollars!” Their enthusiasm was infectious and we had a great time laughing and joking. Cheers, you two!

Once on the plane I saw there were adorable tiny monitors in front of our seats that let us track our flight on a little map. (Top speed 585 mph and a cruising altitude of 40,000 feet if you were wondering.) I’ve never watched my little GPS blip float over rivers and lakes. Pretty surreal 🙂

Now we are relaxing in the Halifax airport and trying to pretend that it is 10:30pm when our bodies think it is 4:30pm. Our flight leaves in 4.5 hours. This should be interesting! Here’s a picture of Ben striving to be restful :p