On Sunday, March 14th my 6:05 AM flight in Ithaca took off without me. I awoke at 6:45 AM in complete disarray. How did I oversleep? Who misses their flight? Those questions and many more filtered my brain as I began to panic. I had plans to fly from Ithaca to Chicago for spring break with a connection in Detroit. All these plans disappeared as I recognized my stupidity for missing my flight.
The thing is, I fully prepared myself for this flight. I went to sleep at a reasonable hour, packed up the car the night before, and I was aware of daylight saving time. No matter how well or how poorly you plan for a trip or anything of the sort, things cannot always fall to place. My 4:00 AM alarm clock may or may have not gone off. I’ll never know. Darn you, daylight saving time. But should I really blame that?
When I first woke up, I was too confused. I kept looking at the clock for some form of reassurrance that the time was wrong, that I hadn’t actually missed my flight. But I did and I needed to figure out what I was going to do. First, I called the airline I was traveling on, ready to explain my situation in hopes of sympathy and any kind of help. I was on hold for about 15 minutes when I realized that there was no hope for my travel plans.
Before I got too dramatic, I searched other forms of transportation. There was a 13 hour bus ride from Syracuse to Chicago and an 11 hour train ride from Rochester to Chicago. Phew, I had options. Unfortunately they all entailed over 10 hours of travel time. Yikes, it was going to be a long day.
But you know what, it was my fault. I missed my flight and now I had to deal with less desirable travel arrangements. I decided that I was going to take a bus to Rochester and take the Amtrak to Chicago. There was so much thinking that had crossed my mind and it was only 7:30 AM. It was going to be a long day for sure.
Before purchasing my bus and train ticket, I called the airline one last time. “Thank you for calling. Your call is important to us. However, today our phone lines have received heavy volume, but we will be with you as soon as we can” said the message. I then decided to take matters in my own hands and pay the Ithaca airport a visit. When I got there, I hurriedly ran inside looking absolutely pathetic. someone had to help me right? If that meant paying for an entirely new flight, then the 13 hour train ride was looking pretty good to me.
I scanned the small airport and instantly spotted my airline’s kiosk. As I began to open my mouth, I realized no one was there to listen to me. I read a sign, “Will Return at Noon” and all my hopes once again faded. I asked a kind security fellow what to do and he assured me to come back at noon in order to figure out my situation.
It was 8 AM now and I was wide awake and entirely too perky. Even I was annoyed with myself for how alert I was. I decided to listen to the security fellow and come back at noon. Somehow when I returned home, I fell back asleep. It was nice but when I woke up I remembered my messed up travel plans and became upset again. Not ready to throw in the towel and just buy my train ticket, I went back to the Ithaca airport. I even unpacked the car because I was that certain no one and nothing could help me. Pretty depressing, but hey that’s how I was feeling.
When I got back to Ithaca’s airport, I slowly walked inside sulking. There was someone at the kiosk though, which brought somewhat of a smile to my face. I looked up at the man behind the counter and said it to him bluntly, “I missed my flight this morning. Do I have any options?” Before he could respond, he was already typing away. One click here, one click there and then he looked up. “Looks like there’s nothing today. Would you be alright with flying out tomorrow” he asked me.
It took me awhile to process this because I completely surprised that there was hope for me. I was preparing myself to suffer for missing my flight. Again, who does that!? I nodded back to him expressing my gratitude and that anything at all works. Several more clicks on the computer and he handed me an itinerary. I was good to go. I kept asking myself if this was real life and that I wasn’t sleeping, again.
I was so thrilled there was an option for me that involved me up in the air. When I asked him about an extra fee for the new ticket, he shook his head. I didn’t have to pay extra for my stupidity? What a gift this was to me! I literally left the airport skipping.
What’s wonderful about flying out of a smaller airport is that you’re not just a seat number on a plane or a potential subject to be searched at security. You mean much much than that and I truly felt that way by how much effort the man was making to ensure me an enjoyable spring break. Cheers Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport!
What's Happenin'? An Inside Look at the Ithaca, NY Community. 