Departure Day

I still hadn’t packed the morning of my flight from New York. When my best friend Pam texted me that she was coming by the apartment I was still practicing my Japanese, screaming “Sameemasen, ay-goga wakareemaska???” to the computer. Excuse me, do you understand English?-- a good phrase to know when I arrive in Japan.
But it was time to get up and pack! They say to get to the airport early, but in reality, it hardly ever happens.
It was sheer chaos at JFK. So many people were missing their flights that it didn’t faze the airline attendants anymore.
“I got here on time, I’ve been waiting for two hours and I am still about to miss my flight! Can I come to the front?” someone in front of me asked. The attendant didn’t look up because she was busy.
“Go to the counter to the left and tell them you missed your flight. Tomorrow standby is your best option.”
It seems that all the basic rules of humanity go out the window at the airport. There was a woman in a wheelchair on the security line in front of me, and although I am usually a patient person, I considered jumping in front of her to have a better chance of catching my flight. Another woman with a prosthetic leg asked a worker if she had to take off her shoes like everyone else, despite her condition, and displayed her metal ankle.
“All shoes off!!” the woman repeated.
My bro was waiting for me at LAX for about two hours when I arrived because the trade winds were flying into my already delayed flight.
We drove over to my clan, with lots of new baby additions.