I recently had the travel day (literally 24 hours long) from hell and it got me thinking a lot about rule breaking. As soon as our flight was delayed, I was crushed. We were trying to get to Lansing, Michigan. I figured it would never work, given the time frame and the smallness of the city. I collapsed in my uncomfortable lobby chair and felt sorry for myself.

But my travel partner became this powerhouse of maneuvering past all boundaries, “no’s”, red velvet ropes, security lines etc. She learned about the FAA, asked the Delta staff their names, made them smile even while she was telling them that their policies were horse shit. She was totally optimistic that we would still get to Lansing that very night (despite all signs point to no). (See after the break for what really happened.)

So what makes some of us feel like giving up and following the rules and others of us search for creative solutions and butter up the man with his finger on the button? Is it personality? Upbringing? Class? Do the rule breakers really get farther, faster? Did we get to Lansing that night?
Debbie and my insane travel adventure starts at 11am in Boston, ends at 6:30am in Lansing the next morning. In between:

Taxi

Train

Gut-busting laughter with two other writer ladies; convince train conductor Mr. Dickerson to find us a New York Times when we tell him how cute he is

Train to Newark

Airtrain to Terminal

Wildly understaffed pub-burgers, salad, and fries hit the spot

Flight delayed for totally unknown reasons-sky is a beautiful, clear blue

Sit at counter and argue/coddle/flatter Delta staff until they get us on a flight to Chicago on American; I learn the ways of the Siegel slip (rules do not apply to this woman); team up with Mary Ellen, our friend from Jersey who is also doomed in trying to get to Lansing

Go back to baggage claim to get bags

Convince grumpy American staff to give us tickets

Go through security again, this time we are marked as possible terrorists and asked to go through a special screening; we set off the special alarm and it says EXPLOSIVES in huge red letters; machine is broken; we are not terrorists

American flight is delayed

Receive call from Orbitz TLC that flight from Cincinnati to Lansing was also delayed so we could have just taken that

Fly with the violent taste of warm chocolate chip cookies wafting back from first class

Get to Chicago, see every other hotel shuttle but ours

Get to hotel, go to bed

Get up at 4:45 am, Debbie and I put on the exact same outfit (black dress, tights, black boots)

Barely make the shuttle, airport is mobbed; commence Siegel slip again

United staff spends twenty minutes trying to find us a staple for our tickets

Go through rigorous security again; this time the woman asks us if we would like a private room to be patted down; we consider it, but decide she’s not our type

Get on tiny plane; passengers are rearranged to balance out the aircraft (that tiny)

Get to Lansing and meet Kevin who drives us the hour to Mt. Pleasant

8 moving vehicles, 2 rigorous pat downs, 5 grumpy airline workers, and almost 24 hours later, we arrive