Denied Boarding

Plane lands.

Ping! Flight change.
Flight change? What? No!
Notification disappears.
Where did it go?
Ask child as child knows how to do phone better.
Sorry, Is gone, Mum. Not know where.

Wait!
Flight attendant saying something: “Listen.” Announcing! “Tight connection. Need first off these persons.”
Is us! We are first persons! Yay! Thank you flight attendant!
Sit patiently.
Wait more. Long time for deplane. Less patiently.
New announcing! “Passenger tight connection not first off. Now go direct to customer service.”
Not yay. Not thank you.
Hello flight attendant! Where customer service?
Flight attendant pointing. “Go there. Not sign, just go. Walk far. Walk to other end airport.”
Tell child: Not walk. Run! Find! Child sprints. Gone! Use Find Friend. Find child in line. Child frowning.
Hi customer service! Need go home!
Customer service happy: “Yes! Computer rebook already. Arrive home in forty-eight hours. Yay!”
Wait. What? No. Not yay. Not two days to home.
“Sorry! Computer do! Not helping agent here. Am telling agent.”
Wait, what? Why come here no helping?
“Don’t know! Sorry. Helping somewhere else! Ticket agent is for helping. Go to ticket agent!”
Why told go here? What point?
“Not know! Am customer service agent for telling, not for helping.”
Walk fast to other side of airport, realize must go different level entirely after confusion. Finally! Find helping agent. Miracle! No line!
Hi helping agent; thank you helping! Need go home please.
Helping agent is grouch. Empathize, as are also grouch. “Yes. Home two days.”
No! Go tomorrow. Is three flights leaving tomorrow to home!
“No. Not tomorrow.”
Yes go! Not sense. Can see online. Go tomorrow!
“No, sorry. Not go.”
Beside us is woman from same plane with different helping agent. Overhear her helping agent tell her “Yes home! Yes tomorrow!”
Wait. What?
Why her home, not us?
Her helping agent helps our unhelping-helping agent.
Whispering: “Yes, tomorrow is room. See?”
Unhelping-helping agent shaking head.
Not whispering: “No. Not.”
Helping agent: “Yes, room.” Points to screen. “See?”
Unhelping agent sighs loud. Unhelping agent types hard.
Wonder: Why not helping? Understand tired, certainly; not understand not caring. How not care? Miss flight twenty-four hours makes life difficult. Miss flight forty-eight hours makes life double difficult.

Unhelping agent smashing computer keys. Unhelping agent sullen. Try to make smile. Offer scratch & win ticket in wallet: If win, take day off! Ha ha! Say nice things, gratitude, etc. Have been helping person in life, know it’s a hard job. Know being a jerk does not make situation better. Is difficult now as tired and frustrated but try hard to be good person. Then think: Who will take dog to the groomer in the morning? No cancelling, still pay. Who hug at-home children? Wake in morning, “Yay! Mom home!” Dad tell: “No sorry, no mom, not home.” Arrange face so angry thinking not show.

Unhelping agent finally books next day home, last flight. Eyeballs rolling in head while gives: one hotel voucher + three food vouchers. Consider. Woman travelling solo next to us, new friend, from same plane, same problem, cheerfully handed one hotel voucher, three food voucher, plus one taxi. We are two people. Understand math not our strong suit but sense calculations incorrect. Also: No taxi for us? Why three food vouchers, two people? Why one hotel voucher, two people? Did not pay one flight price for two people. Why assume sleep in same room? Eighteen-year-old hiss, wake mother: “Do. Not. Snore.” Not share room at home. Do like therapist tell do when situation out of person’s control and think expensive, therapy thought: What change if accept this is how is? Do opposite therapy learning and shame self. Wasteful, want two hotel rooms for two people, food vouchers for each. Who think are? Greedy. Do belly breathing. Understand is not matter of two rooms. Is principle.

New friend offers to share taxi. Arrive at hotel after midnight.
Front desk clerk laughing. “Not food now! Is late. Ha! Funny. In morning will be food!” Front desk says use voucher for pantry items, gestures. “Look. Candy! Chips!”
No thank you; not candy, not chips. Uber delivers food at two am. Eat greasy food in bed. Not feel good. Not sleep nice. Not voucher for Uber food.
Wake ten am. Look at laptop. Two seats on early afternoon flight!
Wait what?
More seats late afternoon! Yay! Excited. Phone airplane. Hold. Email husband: Yay! Maybe home sooner!
Laptop goes to sleep. Wake laptop.
Seats all gone! Angry.
Go to lobby for coffee.
“No, sorry. Coffee closed!”
What? How closed?
“Sorry! Closed now. Open later. Four o’clock! By way, check out at eleven.”
No! Cannot check out! Just checked in! Arrive flight late in night!
“Sorry, too bad! Check out eleven.”
Is almost eleven! Beg. Teenager sleeping! Please leave sleeping? Grouch bear not sleep.
“Fine, leave sleeping. One o’clock. Must leave.”
Can walk to find coffee?
“Hahaha. No sorry, not walking. Too far. Make room coffee!”
Fine, make room coffee. Bring down. Sit in lounge?
“No, not open.”
Please sit? Please?
“Fine. Sit lounge. No serving. Don’t make mess.”

Husband and wife from plane come into lobby while establishing where not coffee.
Couple is happy: “Hi! Morning! On same flight last night! Going fast home now?”
No, not fast, try hard, not fast. Go late tonight.
Couple attempts to hide happy. “Go now fast home, book just minute ago, last two spots. Flight leaving now, sorry. Sorry you not fast home.” Couple wishes luck, etc., sprints away. Try to not hate couple.

Climb over rope, drink coffee in lounge. Determine: Make best of situation! Also, find food. Wake teenager. Tell plan. Shopping! Uber to mall. Live in moment like therapist frequently says.
Child lives gloriously in moment then checks phone. Missing chem lab! Angry. Checks more phone. Miss in-class essay! Madder.
How deal? Look! Aritizia! Child perks.
Follow as child gathers items to try. Sit in chair. Admire. Many items for admiring. Sales clerk senses precarious teenager mood, weak mother. “Fun times try this!” Think how reduce pile sneaky.
Sit. Thump music in skull. Check phone other children message: “When come home? What for supper? Not fair not home you said.” Done admire! Pay fee for not grump child, go supper nice place, eat wrong order food because no fixing capacity remaining.

Find taxi to go back to hotel to get stored luggage.
Taxi misses exit to hotel. Taxi upset. Taxi speed! Taxi not see speedbump. Taxi in air! Taxi wipes sweat from brow.
Say: Taxi, relax. Is okay!
“No, not okay.” Faster!
Speak firm as death imminent: No! Is okay taxi! Lots of time! Taxi, watch, is more speed bump! Taxi, slow down!
Taxi faster. Taxi find hotel. You and taxi wipe sweat off foreheads. Say is okay, taxi. Have missed exits self.
Taxi upset. Give taxi more money because: still alive.
Go hotel front desk. Hi here get bags, please!
“Sorry not now! One key only to storage room, not know where key!”
Wait, what? Must go. Plane home!
“Yes one key to room! Not have! Looking!”  
Hotel search, find key. Relieved makes legs weak. Take bags. Go hotel shuttle airport. Tip shuttle for helping lift bags even when say is fine, can do by self. Think: Not fair pay taxi more alive, pay shuttle service lift bags. Not fault taxi, not fault shuttle. Airline fault, airline pay.

Airport sign: Check in by self. Tap screen. Finish. Print bag tag. Confirm. Computer not print bag tag: Already print! Is lie. Start over. Many questions. Have knives? Have exploding? No no. Who is saying yes to these stupid questions? Screen happy. Is done! Printing! Not print. Not is done. Try more times. Not work ever. Ask man in uniform. Why not work?
“Not know. Not work all the time,” man say. Gestures: “Stand in problem line.”

Problem line is long. No agent working problem line. Wait. Why airline say go to airport early, then no agent working? Think this perhaps why people are mad all the time. Maybe mad all the time because makes no sense. “Come airport early! Not early, not fly!” Go airport early, not staff! Do things by self! Do things by self, not work! Contemplate people in line, wonder where they go in head when annoyed, why they wear ugly pants. No one tell them ugly pants ever in life? Or not care ugly pants? Think how this be. Problem line agent arrives! Problem agent says unhelping agent last night not do booking properly. Remember smashing keys, think duh. New helping agent will fix! New agent is shiny, rested. Feel cared for. Agent furrows brow. Not two screen working same time. Shut down. Restart. Agent talks on phone, says “Not working.” Pushing buttons. “Nope.” Agent much sighing. Less shiny. More agent come. Everyone shaking heads. Wonder if can sleep standing with eyes open? Attempt. Agent finally print bag tags! Everyone hurray!

Agent says instructions: “Go security, but not go to A. Is closed! Go far. Go C!” Walk, see A. Is closed like agent say. Keep going. Thank agent in head for telling to go far to C. Walk more, confident. Not C. Sign says all closed? Not C? Keep walking, not confident. Airport done, no more walking. Not C. Find uniform person. Where C? Uniform person point to sign that says Closed.
“There.”
What? Sign say closed?
“Yes. Looking at wrong sign. Must look around corner.”
Go around corner, tiny sign C open, arrow go. Not see C open sign unless go past closed sign. Is silly! Say nicely as not person’s fault. Why hard find?
“Not know, sorry.”
Say that think issue signage in general at airport but not time for discuss.

Arrive C. “Take off jacket!”
Not jacket! Is sweater.
“Not sweater, is jacket! Take off!”
Mad. Take off sweater. Wish not wore old tank top. Child who is legal adult wearing similar sweater. Not tell her take off sweater. Not like arbitrary rule.
More telling: “Stand tube! Wrong stand! Stand arms up!”
Stand in tube like specimen, arms up, no sweater. Wonder: armpits shave? Something wrong from tube.
“Stand here.” Scowl. Fine. Patting. Person patting is grouch everywhere. Pat cute messy bun. “What in hair?”
Is hairpin.
“Take out.” Pull hairpin, show. Hair mess.
“Fine. Go.”
Put sweater back on. Put on boots. Put laptop in case, put case in carry-on. Put lip gloss bag in purse. Stab hair with pin. Child eyeballs rolling. “Hurry up.”

Decide will use food voucher buy snack, water for plane. Maybe juice for morning breakfast since not home days! See open sign. Worker runs: “No sorry, closed, forgot change sign.”
Where spend voucher?
“No, not spend now. All closed.”
Walk to gate. Empty except three people. Tell angry child sit. Say plug in phone, watch videos, try not be grump. Choose chair next to man even though many empty chairs because only one plug-in tower: Sorry, not being weird. Haha. Need plug in phone. Make face, hope face show teenager needs to phone plug in phone for all concerned. Man nice, wants to tell story. All day at gate, says seats empty on plane not let him on. Wait. What? Plane going same place?
“Yes not let on.” Plane to same place, open seats. Not let man, not let you. Let couple? Not sense. Man agrees, not sense.

Inquire plane Twitter in DM on phone:
Why problem?
Plane Twitter reply: “Not tell! Here link, fill form.”
No, not link! Tell why!
“No, not tell.”
Why not get on plane? Why gate open, not allowed to board?
“Not tell.”
Why two days to go home?
“Sorry! Not know! Here link.”
Not link! Why not seat afternoon?
“Not know! Not know! Use link.”
No, not link! Say questions. Write feelings. Plane Twitter angry.
Plane Twitter yell: “Not write here more! Not question! Not feeling! Use link!”
Yell back plane Twitter: Not link. Link not story. Story matter!
“Not story. Not matter.”
Yes matter!
Twitter grump: “Here other link. Not story. Say fact.”
No. Story important.
“Not important. No. Want fact. No.”
Story important.
“No not lab story! Not essay. Not important.” Plane Twitter stop responding.

Feel bad plane Twitter mad. Maybe overreact? Think grand scheme of things thoughts; put in perspective. Not miss funeral, not miss wedding. Maybe lab not important? Think gratitude. Alive! Share thinking with child. Child rage: "Lab is important. Essay is important.” See point as purpose of trip choose university. Try hard. Hold two thoughts in head same time: Is important/is not important. Wonder: which more tired? Brain or body? Is tie.

Use link later. Tell story. Not done story, no room for more words. Erase. Condense; remove extra words. Erase more. Not working. Tell link: Not done, no room, but more to tell! How tell? Wait reply.

Ping.

Email! Excited. Will tell how!

Not reply. Is plane customer service survey.

Delete.