May1, 2012, Off to Korea

It’s 8:35am on Tues., May 1, 2012, and I’m sitting in the observation lounge of the Vancouver Airport, one West Jet flight behind me and Korean Air flight #072 to wait six hours for.  I checked out the location of the Korean Air departure desk before asking an information officer where the best place would be to while away about four hours.  They don’t even open the Korean Air desk until 11:00, so I’ve even surpassed my Grandma Liddle for being ready and waiting long before departure time.  She used to sit in hat and gloves on the bench in our front hall for over an hour before we had to drive her to catch the train to Winnipeg.  The distance between Kelowna and Incheon is about six times what it is between Thunder Bay and Winnipeg, so a six- hour wait is relatively equal to her hour- long one, I guess. 

Mela’s visit was perfect.  By coming when she did, she forced me to pack and write lists of last minute things to do before she arrived on Thursday afternoon.  Consequently, we were both in a holiday mood for three days and I didn’t have time to fret about unnecessary details.  I wasn’t the best prepared hostess, but we worked together in the kitchen and car and managed to eat well ourselves, have Mo for dinner on Saturday and visit some sites and wineries with a modicum of missed roads.  We also managed to eat most of the perishable food in the house, so I only had about three potatoes, an apple and some bits of vegetable to take to Bert and Peggy’s.  We had a glass of wine with Jules and Carol and then went to a pub for dinner.  We were early to bed.  After the wine and some beer and an Asprin with lots of water to wash it all down, I slept well.  When the alarm shocked me from a warm sleep, I had a moment of inertia.  I didn’t want to leave all the comfort of my bed in the Okanagan and head into the unknown.  Even as I pushed off the covers and moved my legs toward the floor, everything seemed to be happening in slow motion.  I felt a strong urge not to move at all.  When I finally got to the bathroom, I washed my face slowly and didn’t really feel alert until the cold- water rinse splashed into my eyes.  That gave me the jolt it always does, and I continued preparations at an almost normal speed.  Leaving Bert at the airport was not easy, but as soon as I began to pull the baggage cart over the bumpy tiles of the airport floor, I was jolted into life.  The excitement of the trip ahead gave me a lift.  Now I’m alert, taking in details and eager to see May and the girls at the airport in Incheon, and then, the thrill of seeing Jay again and giving him a big hug for the first time in almost two years.  Yahoo!  No more sleeps and no more Skype.