Christmas Cheer and Travel Sneers

I debated over whether or not to post this entry. I figure everyone reading this has at least one, if not a dozen, stories about a flying experience that was less than pleasant. My encounters may not even compare to yours but there was a tipping point that brought me to follow through with writing this post. I will get to that later. On the flight home to Virginia, I was glad to be on a small plane. That meant less people, less noise, and an easier time getting off the plane. In terms of the person sitting beside me, I'm forever hopeful for a friendly person who says hello, puts on their headphones, and falls asleep. I've never been much of a Social Sally on planes. I've been lucky before with this exact description of my ideal neighbor, once or twice. However, Santa granted me a man who mumbled things to himself and giggled randomly throughout the entire plane ride. At first, I thought he was on his Bluetooth having a conversation with somebody on the other end. I thought it was a weird conversation to start with, but it became even stranger when he took out his earphones and continued to speak. He mumbled to me about the two of us being in the row with no window and no reclining seats followed by a sarcastic, "Happy Holidays". I responded awkwardly with, "Oh, lucky us!"and I guess that wasn't enough of a response as he continued to mumble to himself for the remainder of the 2 1/2 hour plane ride. Oh, lucky me.

The ride from Charlotte to Charlottesville was glorious - less than an hour and no one beside me. Santa was slowly making a comeback! I had a wonderful time at home. I celebrated my first "only child" Christmas. Nicole was in Long Island with the in-laws and Deirdre was in Ireland with her boyfriend and his family. We are growing up, it seems. I missed them both very much, especially on Christmas morning, but it was just good to be back home with Mom and Dad. I was surprised with many great gifts and was ecstatic to see meatloaf (my favorite) on the table for Christmas Eve dinner and snow on the ground Christmas morning. We headed to the Johnsons' home for their annual Christmas Day Open House, and I was so excited to see Meredith! We caught up on my previous life in Richmond that she picked up where I left off, and that makes me so happy. We enjoyed Mr. Johnson's famous clam chowder, Mrs. Johnson's delicious potato casserole, and as always, a lot of laughs. Mom, Dad, and I headed to D.C. the day after Christmas where I was so excited to see Nicole, Tony, Nana, and all of my aunts, uncles, and most of my cousins! I'm so thankful for an extended family that values time spent together. I remember being younger and friends asking me, "So you actually hang out with your cousins? You're friends with them?" I couldn't imagine it any other way, to be honest. We spent our entire vacations producing plays, swimming, writing musicals, seeking out adventure, and occasionally getting into trouble. I've always considered myself lucky in that regard. My favorite part of everybody getting together is the stories they share. My stomach was sore the next morning from laughing so hard. From feeding Kevin Dillon a dirt burger, to the "breaking into" their school gym, to the woman trying to return used underwear to Sears while my dad was working, to the infamous Stedge car stories... I hope I'm able to share even half the number of stories that my parents, aunts, and uncles do with my children, nieces, and nephews.

After exploring Old Town and grabbing lunch with Mom, Dad, and Nicole, it was time for me to go. Hard times, as always. It was a lonely wait in the airport and now, more than ever, I hoped for the silent type on the plane next to me. My wish was granted. However, the girl in the row

beside me was the scariest chick in the world. Not scary like villain-in-the-night scary. She was just a witch with a B. Forgive my fingers. The lady in front of her asked if that was her purse in the overhead compartment and if she could put it below her seat instead. The medium-sized purse was keeping the other passengers from fitting another carry-on suitcase in the compartment. Come ON! The girl quickly snapped back, "That IS my bag, and NO it does not need to go under my seat, and you do NOT need to tell me what to do!" Hold the phone. Hello, power trip, are you there? The woman seemed a bit taken aback, found another compartment for her bag, and sat down. When another passenger tried to fit her bag into the scary chick's compartment, the woman explained to her that the purse was blocking it. True statement. The girl shouted out, "You need to mind your D*MN business unless you want to get cursed out!" Merry Christmas. This girl wasn't as ghetto as she sounds. She was decked out in Ugg boots and a Northface jacket, with manicured nails and perfectly styled hair. Looks can be deceiving.

I know this story doesn't sound worth blogging about, but here's the straw that broke the blogger's back. The girl stood up from her seat when the plane landed, and on the side of her tote bag read this:

"Be the change you wish to see in the world."

Gandhi would be so proud.