Long Day's Journey into Night

Jack and I spent the entire day traveling, first to the airport in Phoenix, where our 2 ½ hour layover turned into a 3 ½ hour layover, and then to the airport in Manchester, NH, an airport I have never flown into before.

We kept track of some of our unusual experiences, like driving through snow flurries on the way to the airport and seeing a group of veterans welcoming back soldiers while we waited in the security line.


We met lots of nice people, like a grandma who was flying home to Pittsburgh after visiting grandchildren in Orange County and a grandma who was flying from her home in Orange County to visit grandchildren in Massachusetts. The man we shared a row with from Salt Lake to Phoenix was a Southwest Airlines shareholder. He thanked us for flying Southwest and said, “full planes are very good for stock prices.” The woman we shared a row with from Phoenix to Manchester is married to a man who once worked as a brakeman for the Silverton-Durango railroad. While we waited at the gate in Salt Lake we chatted with UVU's long-distance track coach. He'd have been pleased to know that we later met several people who were heading to Boston to run the marathon on Monday.

We talked to a very nice shopkeeper in Phoenix who sold us an awesome present for Uncle John’s birthday tomorrow (shhh!). I will say this much: she told us she almost quit when they started stocking gigantic hairy tarantulas in the shop.

We took advantage of family restrooms at the airports. The family restroom is the best invention for moms traveling alone with their sons who are increasingly embarrassed about being dragged into ladies’ rooms.

By far the most amazing family/special needs restroom we used was in the Phoenix airport. Not shown in this photo was the chaise where Jack relaxed while he waited for me to use the facilities, which were hidden behind the privacy wall in the photo. And check out the shower!

The thought that kept Jack going all day was getting to meet his aunt Maryann's cat named Squirrel. We settled in well after midnight, and Squirrel made a point of sniffing him from head to toe. Welcome to my house, she said.