One Tired Tug

I reckon I am doomed to always have something stupid happen when I take a business trip. This time was no exception. Along with my previous post, let me tell you about my return trip home...

I was up till almost 4:00 AM the night before I had to fly out of Newark and I got up at 8:30 and headed to the airport. My flight wasn't scheduled until 12:59 but with typical New York traffic and going through security at the airport, I left early enough to make sure all went smooth. Good thing I did... 

The traffic was light for New York and I got to the airport in 25 minutes as opposed to the usual hour it takes (according to the taxi driver.) I guess I wasn't thinking real clear that morning. First I went through the first security point and realized I hadn't checked my bag so I had to go back through, check it and then go through again. Then after passing through the last security point and x-ray, I was walking down the aisle toward my gate and realized my boarding pass and passport was missing. I walked backwards through the security line which caused a major interruption in the airport. "You need to go back the other way sir!!!" the TSA agents yelled at me. I held up my hands and said, "but, but, I don't have my passport or boarding pass!" They questioned me thoroughly, made me take off my shoes, shirt, empty my laptop bag, etc.. They kept asking, "are you sure you had it with you?" Duh, I had to have it or I wouldn't have gotten as far as I did through security already. So, then they made me wait outside of a security office while they reviewed security tapes of the airport. I sat out there while a TSA agent stared at me like I was some kind of criminal or crazed lunatic, which I probably looked like one because I was really freaking out at that point. After a few minutes passed by, an agent came out of the office and asked me to come into the office. There they had the whole ordeal on tape. I stood and watched myself go through the security line holding my passport and boarding pass in my hand and then I saw something I couldn't believe. Stupid me, placed my boarding pass and passport into the empty bin that once held my shoes and then place another bin on top of it and just walked off. I felt so stupid!

So, the TSA folks had to go through all of the plastic bins in the area that I had went through. They found it! Praise the Lord! I tell you what. I had all of these news headlines flashing through my mind of how some idiot shut down Newark airport and delayed thousands of passengers for hours. I'm just thankful that it all ended okay, well, except for my pride.

I guess the lesson I learned was not to trust my judgment when I am really tired. I don't reckon I've ever had anything like that happen to me before in my 43-years on this earth. It was a tough lesson. You can't imagine how good it felt to get home and have my wonderful family greet me at the door with hugs and kisses. It just made everything better.