This time tomorrow, I will be in the sky. I can't tell you for sure where I'll be flying over, heck for all I know I'll be sat at an airport anxiously awaiting the chance to hop on another plane to get back into the sky, but I can tell you where I'm going - America!
That's right, I'm off to the wedding of a good friend and no doubt getting into all kinds of trouble inbetween. Typically I'm heading over there right as a second Cold War is brewing, but I figure if the bombs look set to drop while I'm over there at least I'll be in a much, much more spread out target that isn't likely to be turned to radioactive glass in one hit? Of course, it'll be a much more prominent target that's likely to get hit first... Hm, just can't win it seems!
Thanks to this development, the blog will be taking a slightly different turn this month. From Cover to Cover will be returning as planned (and is, in fact, already written out and ready to go!) but for the most part we're re-purposing as a travel blog, reporting anything interesting that's happened to me while on my travels and perhaps a few more run of the mill posts if I feel particularly inspired by anything. This will probably be the last post I'm writing on an actual, honest to God keyboard for awhile - With the rest going to be tapped out on a tablet, so please, forgive me if things are rougher than usual this month.
This has been a long time coming and I can't believe it's here. That's the thing when you make big plans, you spend so long preparing for them that when they come they still manage to take you by surprise, because you've sculpted them into something bigger than they are and it doesn't feel like they can fit into an actual, real event any more. But this one is a-comin', and to be frank, I'm a bag of nerves.
I shouldn't be really, I'm going to be staying with some wonderful people, and attending some wonderful events - I can tell you off the top of my head that as well as the wedding, we will be doing a version of our fledgling podcast Now Playing Now over there and towards the end of my trip I'll be going to Emerald City Comic Con. If you want a taste of the kind of thing you might be able to expect over the coming month, here's some pretty pictures I took in Arizona from 2012.
And of course, the obligatory cactus shaped like a penis.
Then of course, there's the getting there. Now I'm not one of these people who hate flying - I love flying. I think it's one of humanities greatest accomplishments and something we take very much for granted. True the actual experience is akin to being on a train that wobbles more than it should, but the act of propelling ourselves into the sky by pure science and engineering alone? That's impressive, and almost makes up for our many other failings as a species. My problem is not with flying, it's with airports. The change over flights, the constant walking, the feeling that you haven't actually managed to get anywhere because almost every airport, no matter the city, is too near identical to make out where you are. I'm catching a connecting flight in Amsterdam, never having set foot in that part of Europe before, but the best I can hope for is a view of it from the sky and then a never ending view of parking lots and runways and the usual trappings of the international stopping station inside.
There's also the various checks and searches, which I don't mind for the most part. Everyone likes to give the TSA a hard time, but they were incredibly nice and understanding the last time I flew over. Yes the searches can be absurd, but at least the people were nice about it. My main problem last time was immigration. For some reason the man behind the counter took an instant dislike to me, and I had to justify every single part of my visit to him in minute detail with him trying to trip me up at every turn. With this venture being longer and altogether more eclectic, I can't help but wonder if they're even going to let me in - Even though they really have no rational grounds to stop me. Everything is wonderful and above board, all my papers are in order, and I definitely have passage booked home. Yet still the irrational fear that they will prove to be a barrier in my way remains. I'm sure, in reality, I'll breeze through the part I'm dreading most and there'll be some fresh hell in a process that I had no issue with last time, but we'll see! Fingers crossed there'll be no issues at all. Fingers very much crossed!
These are the worries that plague me, these and a dozen more, and if I'm perfectly honest the words 'I don't want to go!' have crossed my mind like it's a Tumblr blog subscribed to nothing but gifs of David Tennant's face. They're in my mind right now, in fact, but I thought the same about Ireland. And I had an absolute blast. So I'm sure, once my feet hit the ground on the other side, and I see some friendly faces, all will be well. But you can see how all that works out tomorrow!
I'll see you all the other side of the pond! Gud Blass AAA-MURIKA!
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