Flight out of JFK

Today, everything was going well.  We had just enough time between flights to check out the lounge for elite flyers.  So, instead of grabbing a carb rich, fast food option, we had a complimentary lunch of fresh fruit, salad, soup and an open bar with a selection of pretty much whatever we wanted.   All included with the first class ticket we earned by using our Visa for everything, and I do mean everything.  A gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, the dentist, doctor, phone bill, etc.   Up until a rental property we owned was vacated and required a huge infusion of funds for renovations, we were able to pay off the balance every month.  We hope to get back to that zero interest again soon.

I was especially glad we were flying first class, for the first time ever, on what was scheduled to be a 24 hour transcontinental flight from JFK to Mumbai, with a four hour layover in Amsterdam.  The only problem was that the waste lines were stopped up and 4 out of the 7 lavatories were not functioning.  With over 200 people on board, we couldn’t leave the ground until they had the issue resolved..   As the clock kept ticking, the pilot updated us sporadically with announcements about the progress or lack thereof.  After about 3.5 hours, he started breaking the bad news to us.   It looked like the flight might have to be cancelled.  But after another fifteen minutes  the good news came.  They had found the problem.  Despite written and pictorial warnings not to do so, someone had put a diaper down the toilet and it had clogged things up pretty badly.  The diaper was removed, the lines were flowing and we prepared for departure.  And then, because our flight’s departure had been pushed into a high traffic time, we taxied around the runway for another 30 minutes before we actually took off.

Sometimes when I am in heavy traffic in Vermont, which does occasionally happen, I am mindful of how well most people behave, even in difficult circumstances.  I seldom hear a horn honk or see anyone pull out into an intersection just as the light is about to change, causing gridlock.  It makes such a difference in terms of lowering stress.  The patience of the people packed into economy class, including a number of young children, who had waited in their cramped quarters for four hours, amazed me.