Rollin’ Rollin’ Rollin’

    It was one of those days that makes you want to apply for a job making burgers at McDonald’s.  I arrived at Kansas City International Airport about 90 minutes before my flight to Washington, DC, boarded in a timely manner, sat on the tarmac for about 90 minutes, only to learn that the flight had been canceled due to mechanical failure.

   And not just my flight, but about four others by the same airline within just a few minutes.  I could say which airline, but that would just be me being snarky.  It really could have been any out there in the skies, but why does it always happen every time I fly THIS particular airline?

    The line of hot, frustrated passengers snaked through Terminal A and the low battery signal began beeping on my cell phone while I tried to call those who had coordinated this research trip to Prince William County Virginia.

   So I spent almost an hour sitting on the floor near the women’s restroom with my cell phone plugged into the rare free outlet, trying to make alternate arrangements.

   That’s not just the life of a travel writer, but many business and leisure travelers these days.  It’s happening more and more often, and the frustration is growing with everyone.

   Except for one guy.  One guy in a business suit standing in line and talking to no one in particular.  As others tried to calm crying babies, call waiting family members, rearrange business plans, and simply cope, this guy spoke loud enough to be heard over all of the commotion about the need to “roll with the flow.”

   “If you travel as much as I do, you learn to roll with the flow.”  “There’s nothing you can do about it, just roll with the flow.”  “Just roll with the flow is my advice for these situations.”

   I wanted to roll him with the flow all right, right into the flow of on-coming traffic on I-29. Right into the flow of the Missouri River with concrete blocks tied to his tongue.

    Eventually, I was rebooked on another flight, went through security again, only to have my toothpaste confiscated, the same toothpaste that had safely made it past the scrutiny of TSA just a few hours earlier.  And my earrings that had beeped in the morning were no longer considered a national security threat.

    Now waiting at my new gate, I fired up my laptop to get some work done, only to learn that the wireless service in Terminal A at KCI was not working this day.   Fortunately, Mr. Roll-With-the-Flow had been rebooked on my flight and was now seated close enough to me so that I could continue to benefit from his free and unsolicited “roll with the flow” advice.

   Then came the announcement that really made my day – my flight was canceled again, this time due to weather conditions.

   So I gathered up everything, took the bus back to long term parking to my car that had now been basking in the 100 degree Kansas City heat all day and exited the airport, only to be charged the full 24-hour rate for the eight hours of pleasure I had just enjoyed.

    As I expressed my deepest satisfication with this situation, the young woman in the toll booth looked at me wistfully. 

   “You know, I’ve never been on an airplane.  I’ve never even been in one of the terminals over there,” she said.  “I sit here every day taking money and hearing people complain, but I would really just like to be able to go somewhere, anywhere.”

   That shut me up all right.

   Once again, I look at what I do for a living and thank my lucky stars, the Good Lord Above, and the winning lottery ticket that came with my education and gifts to be able to write, travel, and explore the world while getting paid for it.  Every job, every career, every life has its frustrations and disappointments, and freelance travel journalism is no different.

   But at least I’m not in a little booth all by myself making minimum wage for taking money from disgruntled travelers.  I smiled at her and expressed my support for her dreams to come true.

  I drove away knowing that I would be glad do it all again any day for the opportunity to see some of what that young woman and so many others can only dream of.  Then the song from the old TV show “Rawhide” popped into my head, you know the one the Blues Brothers made famous…

“Rollin’, rollin’ rolling’

Keep them doggies rollin’ Rawhide!

Through wind and rain and weather….”