Florida was great. It was wonderful to see Grandmother and the weather couldn’t have been better. However, despite arriving at the airport an hour early, we are currently in purgatory as we missed our flight due to JetBlue’s incompetence at the check-in desk. Now we are bumped to standby on a flight that is full and we will likely be living out the remainder of our days at the scenic Orlando airport. Awesome. Please have our mail forwarded.

I’d like to thank JetBlue for all their stunning inability to do anything competently.

***Update 1***
It is now 1:20est and we arrived this morning at 9:30est. Our original flight left at 10:40est and we were unable to get standby on a flight that just left at 1:10est. Our next attempt is at 3:05. We’ll see how well that works out.

***Update 2***
Well, it is 3:05pm and no standby passengers made it on to that flight. So we are still sitting at MCO with no end in sight. The next flight leaves at 5:00pm and we continue to be on the top of the list. However, we were informed that all the flights to Boston are already booked for today and tomorrow. The gate agent stated that we may be stuck until Wednesday. Yes, Wednesday. Hmmm.

***Update 3***
Alright. This isn’t going well. It is 5:00pm and I have been at the airport for the past 7.5 hours. There was one standby seat on the last flight and it went to Gretchen. We figured that it was better that one of us made it and since she has her final day of school and a corresponding presentation tomorrow, I volunteered to stick around Orlando. So now I wait. I wait to see if I can get a seat on the final flight of the evening at 9:20pm. If I don’t get that, then I either sit at the airport all night, or go pay ridiculous airport Hilton prices to sleep on a bed. Tough call. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to such a decision. At this point I feel a bit like Tom Hanks in that one movie. You know, the one where he is stuck in an airport terminal. And he can’t leave the terminal. Cause if he leaves the terminal, then he gets into trouble. But while in the terminal he falls in love with Catherine Zeta-Jones. I think the movie was called “Blue Chips”. Help.

***Update 4***
So. How about that Orlando airport eh? I am rounding the bend on my 11th hour in this place and let me tell you a few things:

1). There is little to no vegan food here.
2). Beer is expensive. $6.91 for a pint of Sam Adams.
3). I hope I make this 9:20pm flight.
4). Did I mention that beer is $6.91?
5). Really hope I make this flight.

If you get another update from me, it means I will be bedding down on the lovely and stained pastel carpet of MCO. If you don’t hear from me again, it means that the airlines gods have decided that I’ve been punished enough and allowed me to return to my home. We shall see.

***Update 5***
It is now 12:35am and I AM HOME. A mere 12 hours after arriving at Orlando International I managed to get the one (and only) seat on the final plane of the evening. I truly feel for the other two MCO warriors whom I left behind, still fighting to find their way out of the seven levels of JetBlue hell. Stay strong my friends. Stay strong. …and on that note, I am going to bed.