Security Conveyer Belt
Some times I’m the tornado, sometimes I’m the trailer.
There were two conveyer belts working at the Delta Shuttle terminal security in NY late Friday afternoon. One security screen, but two belts. I got to the airport at 4:30PM, and since the 4:30 was delayed, I was told I could get on it. Nice.
I walked up to get through the painful process of security, with only my briefcase, and said to myself “great, two conveyer belts, this is going to be a breeze”.
Wrong.
I chose the one on the left. There were two ladies in front of me, moving kind of slow taking out all of their jewelry and toiletries and crap, but not painfully slow. Just as I got out my laptop and took my jacket and shoes off, the guy watching the x-ray TV left…to collect bins. UGHH. The other belt had THREE people working it, one watching the TV and two bringing bins. The one I chose, of course, had one guy doing everything.
So I sat there while he took his sweet ass time getting the bins back. Looking at the other side moving like a conga line.
He got back to his TV, viewed one bag, and left his TV to take a look at the 15 bottles of crap this lady had in her bag. SHE did not read the 3-1-1 instructions. WHY NOT did she read the instructions. All of our lives would get along much quicker if she only took what she was allowed. 311 my friends, 311.
So I sat there. The other line looked like the starting gate at a horserace. People who were behind me before were now getting off their plane at their final destination. I sat there collecting dust.
So I picked up all of my crap, asked the person at the other belt if I could cut in line, very nicely, she let me, and I put my stuff down.
The belt stopped. AAAHHHH. Oh no oh no oh no, why did it stop.
Apparently someone put his bag OVER his laptop in the bin and put it through. Violation…5 minute major.
So the belt had to back out everything, the guy had to come BACK through the scanner, and take it out.
And what was the belt I was previously at doing…YEP. Moving like a cashier at a grocery store checkout contest. My treadmill at home at 7 miles per hour. A UPS processing line two weeks before Christmas.
So I cursed myself for moving to the other lane, waited it out, and finally got through.
Oh well. I should just have waited it out on the first line, things will even out over time.
PS. There is a nice ending to this.
I got on the plane and the pilot said that it was delayed because right before take-off, the co pilot (or maybe it was the first officer, whatever) got sick and had to leave. There is a stomach virus going around the NY and Boston area, something that I have detailed knowledge of myself (got sick while on a business trip, ugh), more on that in another post, maybe. So the pilot was on the PA system, and this is what he said…
“Right before we were to pull back the first officer got sick and we are waiting on another pilot who is coming in from a flight from Boston…not sure when the plane is supposed to land but should be no more than 30 minutes…wait, the plane is pulling up to the gate next to us. We should be pulling back in a couple of minutes.”
I looked out the window and sure enough the plane was there.
Then as we were taxing out.
“Earlier today there was about a 50 minute wait to take off so…we are second in line, flight attendants please prepare the cabin for take off.”
AND I got the last open seat without someone next to me, a window seat and I got an amazing view of Manhattan just as the sun was below the horizon, with a bright red glow in the sky and lights in the building starting to come on. It was beautiful. I really should travel with a digital camera, pictures of the urban landscape can be amazing.
I got home in time to see all three kids before they went to bed.