Good morning! I thought I would spend the next couple of days keeping you up to date on what I’m doing down here in New Orleans during Mardis Gras. Don’t worry, I couldn’t care less about me either but this is the Internet and if the whole world doesn’t revolve around you, who’s it supposed to revolve around? Alex Trebek?
I’m going to keep it brief because I’m using my mother-in-law’s computer and it’s $40 for the first hour and than $5 for each 15 minutes after that. I know it sounds like a lot but she does love me. She charges my brother-in-law $55 an hour and $8 for each 15 minutes. It’s because I make my own bed in the morning and he doesn’t.
Had to get up at 4:00 a.m. to get to JFK for a 6:55 flight. I never fly out of there and driving across 278 and the Belt Parkway in the pitch black was quite the treat. There’s so much construction going on that they’re not even permitted by law to call the Belt or 287 a road any more. The official designation is “24 Mile Trench for People Who Can Suppress Terror”. At least that’s what the sign says when I took the on ramp.
Anyway, and for once I’m being completely serious, the TSA staff at JFK were undoubtedly the most polite and gregarious employees I’ve ever encountered at a U.S. airport. I know that sounds like the funniest line in this post, but they really were. I wish they could have sprinkled a few of them around other airports across the country. Too much to ask, I know.
Flew on JetBlue. They tried to sell so many things, from bigger seats, to more legroom, meals, movies, snacks and drinks that I was almost shocked when they didn’t start auctioning off parts of the engine. I did see one lady fork over $100 to be the co-pilot and then watched the pilot and the real co-pilot split the cash down the middle and stuff it into their wallets right in front of me.
Anyway, I am in New Orleans safe and sound and getting ready for this book signing today at the Catholic Bookstore. I don’t know who’s going to show up during Mardis Gras, but it’ll be fun just the same. Worse comes to worse, I’ll pick up a couple of laborers that hang outside the Home Depot down the street just to make it looked like somebody’s inside.
More to come!
© 2013 The Monkey Bellhop and John Hartnett
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