Leaving Iowa

Sunday, August 19- Mom, Dad and I were rushing around the house, struggling to get ready. Dad was upset because I was taking too long. I didn’t know why there was such a rush, because I’d been sure I had plenty of time. I hugged and kissed Grandpa goodbye. I gave all the pets last pats. We drove to the airport, and I discovered once again that one bag was too heavy.

As I was redistributing things, Mom and Dad kept trying to help, but…not so much. Mom would grab a purse, for example, and say, “Do you need this?” “Yes,” I would reply, “I do.” “But it feels heavy, and you need to remove some weight.” “Mom, it’s full of my underwear. I need my underwear. It would cost less to pay the fee for a heavy bag than to buy all new underwear.”

Luckily, I managed to juggle things enough to make the limit. YAY! But I was cutting it close. I was booking it to the security area. I hugged and kissed Mom and Dad over and over. Once I got through security, I realized the flight wasn’t leaving until an hour after we’d thought. Heh. I knew I’d had plenty of time to finish packing! But then there was a delay…and another…and another. Finally I got to Chicago, and they said I might not be able to fly because of a “weight restriction.” (Not my weight. When it's stormy, I guess they have to have extra fuel in case they have to circle the runway for a long time of be diverted to a different airport, etc., and the plane can't handle the weight of the extra fuel and a full load of passengers.) They said I was one of the last people to book a flight, so I might be bumped and not get a flight until the next day. At the very last second, I was cleared to be on the flight. They slammed the door behind me. Phew.

Before I knew it, we were landing in Virginia. I collected my luggage. For the first time, I had so much luggage that I had to rent a little cart. Then I realized I couldn’t find the form saying which company had my rental car reservation and I sure couldn’t remember…after all, I’d checked prices from all of them. I went from line to line, company to company. I found the right one on the sixth or seventh try. Oops. The guy was so nice, though. When he heard I was trying to move, he upgraded me to a minivan for free!

Then I went to a Kmart I spotted along the road to buy the essentials. I bought some home goods (such as toilet paper) and paper plates, pillows and a blanket to sleep on for the night since it was too late to get into the storage facility. When I got to the apartment, I was happy to find the electricity and water were working. Three rooms were still open, and I picked one. I made a little bed for myself on the floor. I was so sad and lonely, lying there, but I tried to remind myself that every major adventure in my life has started just this way: with a deep foreboding feeling of doom. Only in all those adventures (going to New York the first time, moving to Spain, going to New York the second time) the doom never came. I started over again and again. It wasn't perfect, but it was always for the best.