Text 9590, 93 rader
Skriven 2014-02-05 21:30:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: out again - reunion 160
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I had to activate my GE card, so I got my brother to turn on
the wireless, which meant also that I could return from an
enforced retreat from the world and do various treatlike
things such as do my e-mail, the Fido, and so forth. Turn
out the Dodger sent me an e-mail that said "hope to see you
at the reunion," which sort of saddened me as, alas for my
failing powers, I had forgotten about a reunion at all and
had just flown back from there and had made weekend plans
in Washington. So I sent the Dodge my regrets and told him
to transmit them to our mutual friends, especially my old
buddy Donna the radical feminist reformist lawyer from
Texas and my old buddy Ellen C. the radical reformist
social worker in Chiapas.

One of which plans was lunch with this kid from the next
class Alan; we met at Friendship Heights, which has a wide
variety of eating options - a decent Indian, decent sushi,
decent Chinese, Lia's, Clyde's, Maggiano's, Cheesecake
Factory, Chadwick's (now known as Chad's, probably because
the real Chadwick's in Georgetown finally got tired of this
one pulling on its reputation for decades - I am not clear
on whether there was ever a connection between them). Alan
was inclined towards a burger, so Chad's it was.

Chad's is pretty much the same as it used to be under its
old name, as is the staff and as is the food. Alan's burger
looked pretty good, and my Philly cheesesteak hold the
cheese was made with reasonably real beef, authenticated by
a substantial amount of gristly bits. I'd eat here again
but would probably return to my usual order of the calamari
appetizer with extra hot peppers.

Alan's own reunion is coming up, and his class has done
better with the nag letters, so he was thinking of actually
showing up, interesting as he has missed all 7 of his
previous ones. So his unwonted enthusiasm shamed me into
promising I would look into plane fares.

Which were ridiculous, so I looked into award tickets, of
which none were offered. The claim is made that if one logs
in as a high-tier elite, more award space opens up, and so
it was - for 50000 miles I could ride in the back of the bus
on a pair of 412-mile flights. I e-mailed the Dodger back
saying I might make it after all and to recant my regrets,
but I'd miss his presentation (on the challenges and
opportunities of spreading democracy in the world, not that
a bunch of sexagenarians can do much about it anyway). Turns
out he had already transmitted my good wishes to most of my
colleagues already - he does do things efficiently. And I
waited for better award space to open up.

In an hour (I keep ExpertFlyer working on this; a bargain at
$100 a year) a couple 10000 mile flights opened up, the
outbound in three or four hours, so I snapped them up and
hustled right to the airport, forgoing a much-needed nap and
getting there in time to watch Ripert and Bourdain on the TV
chowing down on shellfish in Peru.

UA3878 DCA EWR 1944 2110 Q40 4B

These craft have been reconfigured with rows 1-3 a sort of
first class; clearly 4A had been upgraded, as the seat was
empty, so I settled in there. Row 4, especially with no
seatmate, is more than adequate.

As usual, the blender of Newark kept our plane bouncing
around, and I was pretty queasy as I hustled to the next
gate, arriving toward the end of boarding.

UA 523 EWR BOS 2156 2308 319 7F

The bulkhead seats had plenty of room owing in part to an
unadvertised little foot cutout big enough to nestle my
computer bag into. Service was unexceptionable but almost
nonexistent at this hour and for this length of flight.
I must admit that the Airbuses are less uncomfy than the
737s they replaced. We landed about on time.

Every hotel in town was over $200 (the ones near the event
$400 and up if available at all), but I discovered I could
get the Crowne Plaza in Newton for half that, but I'd have
to brave 80 minutes (if on schedule) of public trans
starting around midnight. I decided to hang around the
airport instead for free.

Researching my future trips and making stray remedial hotel
reservations actually kept me up, and I ended up doing an
all-nighter without thinking much about it. Result: not good,
but I didn't have anything to actually do, so no great loss.

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