I buy a cup of half caf, half decaf and a bagel at the usual counter, out near the end of the B Concourse. Not many people make it all the way out here, so the coffee line is shorter than at Starbucks.
It's another early Sunday morning at San Francisco International Airport.
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I buy a cup of half caf, half decaf and a bagel at the usual counter, out near the end of the B Concourse. Not many people make it all the way out here, so the coffee line is shorter than at Starbucks. |
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I usually grab a seat across the moving walkway from gate 87A, because I like to watch the looks on people's faces when the agent announces, "Ladies and gentlemen, remember, this is not a gateway to your aircraft. Gate 87A will bring your to a shuttle bus which will deliver you to your aircraft." Then the crowd looks confused, as if wondering, "Why are we at SFO? To catch a bus?" |
I enjoy looking out the big windows next to 87A, up at the scrubby hills with the water tower. That's Sweeney Ridge, and I often hiked up there when I had more free time. The ridge usually looks great in the early morning. And right on time, I finish my coffee as they announce my flight, at Gate 90 on the very end of the concourse. Suddenly I realized I was spending way too much time around airplanes.
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I once worked for a really cheap and manipulative non-profit company which told me that business travel is a perk, and I was lucky I got to do it. That was a lie. Business travel is work.
Even so, I need to remember not to take it for granted, either. It's a blessing to be able to see the earth from above. |
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I like being able to see the plane I'll be on, and I like seeing professionals working on it.
If the pilot gets back on board after his inspection, I'll get on, too. |
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I don't enjoy flying.
It's so boring, sitting for hours inside a machine. |
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Flights into and out of Las Vegas are always packed. |
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Finally it's time for the ritual Closing of the Bins. Now we're getting somewhere! |
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Out on the taxiway, we get in line for a runway. The Captain cheerfully announces how many planes are ahead of us. I can see how many are waiting behind us. |
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The plane ahead of us rolls.
I've been on this plane three-quarters of an hour. I'm about 400 yards closer to Las Vegas.
In another minute or two, that's going to change, in a big way. |
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