We left the motel on time and headed to the airport to complete what was the most time sensitive part of our journey. We pulled up to the United curb and I had a bad feeling that something was not quite right. I jumped out of the car to run in and alert someone that we had many bags to check in. Well guess what - the airport was totally deserted. I had not anticipated that no one would be there at night. I walked until I found a TSA guard and asked her when the United people would arrive. She said around 3:30 or 4:00 am. Holy cow not good. I walked back out and broke the news to Dale. I felt remiss that I had not double checked what time the check in counters would be open. I had just assumed that someone would be there 24 hours. Of course we could have used the extra sleep as well. Dale suggested that we find a Denny's to hang out in and the GPS obliged me so we were able to sit and have something to eat while we waited it out. By this point, I was starting to break down into tears periodically. I had cried when we left Sedona but now I was just feeling the pressure and the stress of everything.
So enough it was time to leave for the airport yet again. This time when we got there, there were travelers already in line but still no agents. I got in line and left Dale outside with the U-haul and the rental car. Finally around 4:15 am they started to show up and open the check in kiosks. About the same time, Dale managed to tip/bribe some Skycaps to start unloading our bags onto carts to bring in. About the same time as all that, the security guard came in and started yelling about someone with a red Toyota left parked out front, which of course was me. She also noticed the U-haul truck parked at the curb, which was a huge red flag. There was literally no way we could get everything done that we needed to without parking at the curb. Well I just started to cry because I had no idea what to do. We were under a huge time pressure and if she had the rental car towed I didn't know what would happen. Anyway, once again when it seems like we were on the brink of disaster, things turned around. Dale told her what the situation was and she ended up saying she would let the parking pass and even gave us an escort part way to the U-haul drop off place. Well, first I should tell you that we ended up with 28 bags to check. We were truly a sight to behold and one I don't think the people at United will forget for some time. Dale's weighing was perfect and there wasn't a single bag over-weight. So after checking everything in and getting our boarding passes, we tore out of there to return both the U-haul and the rental car. We were in such a frazzle by the time we got to the rental car drop, I turned in the rental car key with my personal keys still on it. Dale didn't turn his key in at all and it came with us to Costa Rica. Sheesh.
By now we were at a dead run to try and make the plane. We each had the maximum carry-ons of course but we also had a bag of stuff that we had forgotten to put into storage. Our bags were already huge and over-stuffed and a good amount of it was our electronics, as Dale felt it was safer to carry them on with us. Well, of course security wanted all electronics to be removed and placed in a separate bin. We ended up using about 8 bins but of course you knew we were going to get pulled aside for a physical inspection. Dale had everything packed just right so it was very difficult to re-pack and get the bags closed after TSA had rummaged through them. But there was no time for a bathroom break or to get water. We had to run to the gate and were the very last people on the plane. They said "Oh are you the Athy's?" as we approached. I guess we were getting somewhat famous by now. I had to give the agent the bag of our things meant for storage because there was no way to fit in anything more onto our carry-ons and we didn't want to check such a small amount of things for $150.
Once on the plane to Houston, we were once again plagued by the terrible thirst. I was able to beg some water from one of the attendants for Jack straight away and when they did the beverage service, we were able get a bottle of water for all of us to share. It was weird but it was like all of three of us had never been so thirsty. At our stop in Houston, I ran to Starbucks to get drinks, snacks and bottles of water to try and tide us over. I thought I was pretty fast but as I was coming back Dale ran up frantically saying we needed to board the plane right now. Yup - we were the very last people to get on the place again. At least I had some provisions for us as we were all beginning to feel the strain of no sleep, near misses and all the frantic rushing. We all wanted to nap desperately but these seats seemed even smaller than the last and there was no possible way to get in a comfortable position. I was do fried to read, knit or even watch the TV. By this time, I was just checking off all the hurdles that we had gone through and hoping that we would be successful in the final challenges of our journey. I was feeling like Job, forced to do a Sysphusian task and then sent on the Odyssey. How's that for an epic adventure?
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