I DON’T KNOW WHEN I’LL GET THERE, BUT I’M ON MY WAY

The Sports Diva was all ready for her newest 30 Plus Teams Tour that was supposed to take place May 31st to June 6.

My flight on American Airlines was leaving at 8:10am from the airport that’s basically in my backyard, JFK Terminal 8, which meant that rather than spend money on a Lyft, I could spend $1.45 with my senior pass from the good old MTA bus Q3 and go right to Terminal 8.

I was going to leave my house at 5:40 am and be there by 6:30am to check my bag.

Or at least I thought I was until I read my email and saw the email from American Airlines.

“Your flight from JFK to DFW has been cancelled. We rebooked you from JFK to Miami International Airport and then from Miami to Las Vegas.”

Ok, I knew the weather was really bad throughout the state of Texas due to tornadoes.

Being a former airline employee for 13 years, I knew things happen but I wasn’t ready for how American rebooked me.

Instead of leaving in the morning, I would be leaving JFK at 6:45pm that night getting to Miami at 9:50pm. I would be staying in Miami overnight and leaving Miami the next morning at 8:50am getting into Vegas at noon.

Now since June 1st was one of my Circle of Sisters birthday and that was the reason to go to Sin City in the first place, the Sports Diva was NOT a happy camper.

I lost all religion that I had when I tried calling not only the reservation line of American but because I’m a member of their frequent flyer program, I tried calling them also to fix this very unacceptable way to get to Vegas.

Going through Miami? I don’t think so and the fact that you’re going to pay for my hotel in Miami means nada, ninguna, zilch to me.

I have a hotel all ready and it’s in my final destination, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Now find a way to get me there on May 31st, American Airlines, okay?

So since I don’t live that far from JFK, me and my suitcases headed for the airport anyway and waited in line with the other passengers whose flights to Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin and even Phoenix,had been cancelled.

The American airport agent, Mr. Wendell, was trying all sorts of routes to get me to my destination.

It reminded me of the days that I was an airline employee and I had to get back to Los Angeles or Boston quickly or lose my job.

The flight from Chicago was at the gate and was going to be leaving in 30 minutes.

At age 71, sorry not sorry, I’m not trying out for the United States Olympic track team.

Ain’t no body got time to be running through airports .

He came up with another idea that worked for me.

Leaving JFK at 3pm getting into Los Angeles at around 6pm, then an hour layover, and gets me to Vegas around 9pm that same evening.

Now we’re talking American.

It took almost all day and after I was given my flight and boarding passes, it was time for some good old chicken tenders and fries from one of airport restaurants.

In a few hours I would FINALLY be where I was supposed to be.

WHAT’S IN MY SUITCASE?

It’s been a long time since the Sports Diva and one of her Circle of Sisters took ourselves up to The Great White North for the Hockey All Star Weekend in February for our 30 Plus Teams Tour.

Since then, no 30 Plus Teams Tour of anywhere which means I can’t tell you what’s in my suitcase.

Here comes summer, almost, and the Sports Diva is about to go to a really fun place, which means there will be lots of people acting the fool,  but that’s okay because acting like you’ve lost your rabbit ass mind is not only acceptable here, it’s highly encouraged.

Can you guess where the Sports Diva is going this time?

You’re going to have to wait a day to find out but in the meantime, check out what’s in my suitcase this time.

BACK TO NEW YORK, BUT FIRST HELLO CHARLOTTE.

I hadn’t been to Charlotte Douglas Airport in years, and not for nothing, the Sports Diva really isn’t a fan of this airport.

There is wifi in the airport but does it work?

No not really.

Are we kidding right now Charlotte Douglas airport?

The Sports Diva has a Stanley Cup playoff game to watch and the wifi on my phone isn’t working.

Charlotte airport is bigger than I remember but it was many years ago that I went through this airport and I didn’t remember changing terminals like I did this time.

I was in Terminal B and my flight was supposed to leave from Terminal D Gate 5.

This should have given me an idea of how the flight was going to go.

My flight was supposed to leave from Gate 5 but when I looked at the flight that was leaving from Gate 5, it wasn’t going to LGA, it was going to Columbus, Ohio .

My flight was going to leave at 9:56pm and get into LaGuardia around 11:45pm.

I said supposed to because due to mechanical problems, plane coming in at 10pm and thunderstorms and lightning, my flight didn’t leave until almost 11 and it was now from Gate 5 again, not Gate 11 which I was at.

My flight as with most flights coming and going out of the three New York area airports, was packed.

I had an aisle but someone was sitting in the middle seat.

I didn’t get to LaGuardia until almost 1:15am and because the Sports Diva lives closer to JFK, than I do to LaGuardia, I finally arrived home at around 2:30am.

Thank you to my Lyft driver for being there when he said he would and for being at the right pick up location.

I had fun on my 30 Plus Teams Tour of Las Vegas, it was the leaving New York and coming back to New York that wasn’t so much fun.

MAY TRAVEL QUOTES

In two days or so, we’re going to be going into the month of June, which actually is the start of summer.

The month of May seemed to go by wicked fast as has this whole year if the Sports Diva is keeping it real as always.

Here in the United States, the Memorial Day weekend saw the biggest three days of travel, especially at the airports, since the coronavirus happened.

You know what, people are STILL going to make those 30 Plus Teams Tours and it doesn’t matter if your tour takes you to Mexico, Africa,the Caribbean, Europe, Asia or even Las Vegas, where the Sports Diva is right now.

But what about you?

Are you ready for your own 30 Plus Teams Tour of somewhere?

Let these quotes inspire you as usual and happy and safe travels no matter where your 30 Plus Teams Tour takes you.

FRONTIER AIRLINES REALLY CAN WE GET TO VEGAS?

I hadn’t taken Frontier Airlines since I worked for Malaysia Airlines and that was only from Los Angeles to their hub, Denver in the early 2000s.

I decided since the fare from LGA to LAS with a stop in Orlando,was so inexpensive, why not?

After the flight, I can see why I haven’t flown this carrier in awhile.

The flight attendants from LGA to Orlando and Orlando to Las Vegas are friendly enough, Customer Service left a lot to be desired.

My flight, which was supposed to leave Orlando at 11:04pm didn’t leave until 1:35am.

It’s never a good sign when the gate agents announce that flight is full and they’re asking for volunteers to go on another flight.

I would have done it, if the next available flight that was available,wasn’t 11pm the next evening!

When we got on the plane at 10:45 or so, it would have been nice to tell us about the mechanical problem that the plane was having and why we had to change gates and sit on the plane for two and a half hours.

That’s some important need to know stuff and I didn’t need to see text messages from Frontier telling me what time my flight was going to take off.

It’s bad enough there’s no wifi on the plane and no outlets to plug your charger in, but people, give us some information on the flight.

I should have figured things were gonna go left when my trip started by leaving my phone in the TSA bin during security or even before that when the Sports Diva couldn’t pull up her ticket on her phone.

Shout-out btw to the nice passenger from Orlando who texted me my mobile ticket so I could get on the LGA to Orlando flight.

We won’t even mention the fact that every kid and their parents were going to Orlando to see Mickey and his crew.

These darlings were screaming and yelling more than the Sports Diva and her friends at a sporting event.

Now would I take Frontier Airlines again to do a 30 Plus Teams Tour if the price was right?

That would be no for 200, Alex.

BEFORE YOU TRAVEL, HAVE A BACKUP CITY

Among the advice I tell people who are thinking of traveling, whether they are going on a 30 Plus Teams Tour or not, is always do your research before you travel so there won’t be any surprises when you get to your destination.

I have another piece of travel advice for you.

Don’t only have a backup plan if your travel plans don’t work out, but have a backup CITY in case you can’t go to the city you want to go to.

Now you may be saying to yourselves, just what is the Sports Diva talking about?

Okay, let me try to explain it the best way I can.

I’ll give you an example, and this doesn’t just work for cities in the United States and Canada, this little travel tidbit works everywhere.

Let’s say you or your friend had your heart set on going to London.

Both of you asked for and got your vacation time approved from work, you looked at flights, etc.

But then all of a sudden, plans changed and one of you couldn’t go, but you had your heart set on going to London.

What do you or your friend do in this case?

You can still go although it’s by yourself, or you just don’t go, you stay at home wishing you could have gone SOMEWHERE, ANYWHERE.

Sorry, not sorry, wrong answer.

Remember, staying at home is NOT an option.

This is where having a backup city comes into play.

Yes, you could go to London by yourself, but why not do the next best thing?

Go to another city, one that is close by, and maybe not as expensive.

It could even be a city that you’ve been to fifty million times and NEVER get tired of visiting.

Hello Barcelona, Toronto, Berlin, Boston or Las Vegas!

Whenever or wherever you decide to travel to, remember this one thing.

Travel plans don’t always work out the way we want.

Life happens.

Don’t only have a backup plan for when you travel, have a backup city as well.

COMING INTO THE “NEW” LAGUARDIA AIRPORT

Many years ago when now President Joe Biden was the Vice President, he didn’t win many friends in New York by comparing New York City’s other airport, LaGuardia, or LGA, to a “Third World ” airport.

This didn’t sit well with many New York politicians, including then governor Andrew Cuomo, who grew up in the borough of Queens where LaGuardia is located.

JFK is located in Queens as well, but they’re ALWAYS adding more terminals to it and there’s even a hotel right near the runway.

LaGuardia is different.

Nothing has happened to that airport in years, so those of us who have flown out of LaGuardia, agreed with Vice President Biden.

Not only does it look like a Third World airport, not for nothing and sorry not sorry, LaGuardia looked like a dump compared to JFK and even the other New York area airport, Newark Liberty over in New Jersey.

When I returned from my 30 Plus Teams Tour of Las Vegas, I flew into the “new LaGuardia” at Terminal B, which looks NOTHING like a Third World airport.

It’s a beautiful terminal and it reminds me of a lot of United States airports that I’ve been to, especially BWI, the other Washington DC area airport.

If JFK wasn’t close by my house, (basically in my backyard) I’d fly out of LaGuardia a lot more.

There’s a lot more work that needs to be done at LaGuardia but in the words of many a preacher, “We’re not where we wanna be, but Thank God, we’re not where we used to be!”

LEAVING ON A JET BLUE PLANE AGAIN

The last time I rode on Jet Blue was March 2019.

I was going from Los Angeles back home to JFK.

This time, and screw you, Covid, I’m taking Jet Blue again.

This time from Terminal 5 at JFK to Terminal 3 at Las Vegas McCarran Airport.

That’s right, for her first trip post the virus from hell, the Sports Diva is making an appearance back to where all the craziness and mayhem always starts and ends , Lost Wages, Sin City, Nevada.

Of course being the Sports Diva is going to be taking in some live sports as the local hockey team, Vegas Golden Knights are in the Stanley Cup semifinals.

But enough about that, let’s talk about my Jet Blue flight.

I was able to check in early and I had all ready picked and paid for my seat, an aisle seat.

The $10 that I paid for a seat, wasn’t bad. Way to go, Jet Blue.

As usual, though, the flight to Vegas was packed, so much for social distancing.

But I didn’t care if the middle seats weren’t blocked off.

I still had a lot of legroom and after a year, it was so good to be on a flight period that I didn’t mind or care that we were packed like sardines but with masks on.

The only thing that hasn’t changed since 2020 on Jet Blue is that they always seem to change the gate that you’re departing from.

My trip was no exception.

I was supposed to leave from Gate 29 and I look down on my phone and there’s a message from Jet Blue.

Your gate has changed.

If you’ve ever been to JFK, you KNOW that some of the gates aren’t close to each other.

It’s not like Chicago O’Hare or Atlanta Hartsfield- Jackson, but it is spread out.

WHAT’S IN MY SUITCASE?

It’s back my 30 Plus Teams Tour people!

It’s the post all of you seem to love.

It’s the ever popular, what’s in my suitcase.

The Sports Diva hasn’t gone anywhere since my last trip in April to beautiful Uniondale, NY.

I’m ready for this five day, six night trip for some sun, lots of water and being the Sports Diva, you know a sporting event or two will be thrown in there.

I might even do something on my bucket list.

Where am I going?

As usual, you gotta guess.

While you’re thinking about it, here’s what’s in my suitcase.

My suitcase at the bottom, which is getting checked in, along with my carry on bag that I took to Uniondale and my personal item at the top.

My airport outfits for going and coming

My Mickey Mouse luggage tag from Amazon

Hats, hats and more hats

Scarves and headbands

Shoes for days

Yes I am carrying all of these handbags

Bathing suits, bathing suit cover ups and a beach Bag

Sunglasses and my wigs are special. They have their own suitcase also.

3 caftans/robes

Shirts, a black pair of pants and lots of shorts

Dresses

My travel scale from Amazon and yes my checked in bag is under 50 pounds. Plus making the trip are my stuffed animals, Brady and Posh Spice.

There you have what’s in my suitcase.

All of this isn’t going, but it might, just saying.

I also have some suddenly important stuff to go in my personal item,hand sanitizers, masks, travel Wipes and my Covid Vaccine card.

Have you guessed yet?

You’ll just have to wait until my next post to find out.

MY FIRST TIME FLYING WITH ALASKA AIRLINES .

I have flown on many airlines in the United States and Canada , but on my trip to San Francisco back to Las Vegas , I flew on an airline that I have never been on before , Alaska Airlines .

The Seattle , Washington based airline does fly out of all three New York City airports that I fly out of.

I never thought of taking Alaska out of JFK or Newark Liberty , because I’m not going to find a $49 one way fare like I did for San Francisco to Las Vegas .

For a flight to a destination like Las Vegas , which is always crowded , the plane was surprisingly empty.

If you happen to fly to Las Vegas on Alaska , you’ll be more than likely arriving in Terminal 3, where you have to get a shuttle to take you to terminal , where you can get Lyft, Uber, hotel shuttles, taxis, or good old public transportation like I always do if I get to Vegas at a decent hour, like before 9pm.

The seats are very comfortable and this time, I had a whole row to myself.

I was also able to sleep on the plane and not be disturbed by anyone , except the flight attendants passing out snacks , water or Orange juice as this was a very short flight .

Once again, with just my drawstring bag , I got out of the terminal very fast .

If I happen to get an inexpensive flight on Alaska out of Newark Liberty or JFK , you’d better believe I’m taking it, and because I just had to be “that Sports Diva who loves collecting air miles” , you just know that I signed up for Alaska Airlines Frequent Flyer Program.

Besides, you never know.

God willing, I may be doing a 30 Plus Teams Tour of the Emerald City, aka Seattle, Washington.