Most of you have been watching the news and it looks a little something like this:
And I'm not saying that this weather event has not or will not cause damage, but I chose Central Florida as my destination for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that it is far enough inland to avoid much of what the coastal cities will experience from these storms.
So instead of this:
Lakeland is looking more like this:
And the local news reports only minimal power outages (only one house was without power in Lakeland) and no damage for the entirety of Polk County.
That said, I was all set to get on my airplane today, but that was all thwarted when I received notice yesterday that my flight to Orlando had been cancelled. You see, because Orlando is coastal, the Airport is closed as a precaution, as are all the theme parks (it's kind of a big deal when Disney World locks the gate). All flights in and out of Orlando are expected to resume tomorrow.
BUT
Being that my flight was cancelled, I had to reschedule the whole trip. So instead of SIT>SEA>MCO in 15 hours, now my flight plan is SIT>SEA>PHX>MCO in 23 hours. I'm now scheduled to leave Sitka on Sunday 10/9 at 11:40am AKT and land in Orlando on Monday 10/10 at 2:47pm ET, with two 5-hour layovers in between. I am not happy about this, primarily because this is not friendly for my cat, who will be travelling in the cargo hold, but also because I was really ready to leave and I have a mountain of work to overcome once we arrive.
Changing the flight itinerary around didn't cost me anything except time, but I had also reserved a rental car from the airport and prepaid insurance on it, so moving that around cost me $30. On top of that, I had an appointment already set up with the cable company for Saturday and the apartment complex was expecting me to me in immediately, but I can't even get a hold of those businesses to let them know my travel plans have changed until Monday, at which point I will already be there.
On a more positive note, this does mean I get to spend some bonus time with the kids.
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On Wednesday, we dropped off 10 boxes of all of our belongings to the post office for delivery to our new home. It cost over $600 to ship everything, but I'm not complaining. It cost Stephen & me $9000 to move to Alaska 6 years ago; this is a pittance in comparison. Aside from that, we each have two suitcases and one carry-on to bring onto the plane, but the luggage is mostly clothes and necessary incidentals.
It's liberating to own so little again. There used to be a time when I could fit everything I owned into the trunk of my Pontiac Sunfire. Of course I will spend the first couple of weeks in Florida furnishing our townhouse and stocking our kitchen, but it's nice to know I still have the ability to strip my life down to the essentials. A friend once told me that I have "gypsy feet." If this is true - and I have no reason to doubt it is - this will be a useful skill.
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Our dear friend Emma has been putting up with us for a week now. We've been living in her guest room and trying to be as clean and out-of-the-way as possible, but somehow, even though we've been eating her food, using her electricity, borrowing her car, and accidentally letting her dog slip out of the house all week, she has not set our luggage on fire and kicked us out. In fact, she is even allowing us to occupy her guest room for 2 additional days. She's a saint and we love her.
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| "Guests, like fish, begin to smell after 3 days." -Benjamin Franklin |
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Tonight we are having a second going away party, because my friends are insane and I'm pretty sure they still think they need an excuse to throw a party. It should be fun, but you wouldn't believe how exhausting this week has been. I just want Sunday to get here, so I can get on that plane and be that much closer to sleeping in a bed of my own.
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