The Flight Home

I flew home for the weekend to join Tam for his friends' wedding. I dug out of work early to catch a flight home.

Let me tell you; catching an Uber from Redmond to SeaTac is no joke during rush hour. It didn't help that it was raining, and I arrived with 45 minutes left to spare to get to my gate. Fortunately, I have TSA pre-check, and had enough time to get some chocolate for my parents.

The flight home was alright. It was one of the first flights in a while that I had to sit next to a child. That was mostly fine, except the kid kept kicking me. THAT was annoying. In fairness to him, he seemed younger than he looked. It's like when you see Great Danes that still think they're puppies.

At the end of the flight, he kicked me one more time. I was annoyed at this point, and asked him, "Can you not?"

He apologized and stopped. My bad, but I really was a little peeved at that point. Anyway, Tam picked me up, and I went home to sleep. Travel days are hard, and I was tired.

37 Minutes

The next day, we woke up and were looking on our phones, passing time. He got the missile alert; I didn't. I turned those types of notifications on. We analyzed the text message in seconds, wondering about the authenticity of the message. Looking at each other, we made weak references about times when we've joked about dying together.

Except... In this moment it was our reality. We counted down the 15 minutes from receiving the alert; the same amount of time it supposedly takes for us to get hit. I thought about my parents downstairs ambling through their day like normal. In that moment, I was happy that my parents wouldn't have to live a day without each other, and happy that we were together.

But time counted down to zero, and up from there. Reports stated that it took 37 minutes for the governor to make a statement. Within those 37 minutes, I became very at peace with my imminent death. There's a gentle calm in embracing your mortality. The days succeeding the false warning uncovered people angry about the inconveniences and fear it caused. I know people made some dangerous choices so that they would make it home to their families. Some people even had to choose between family members to go home to. That does suck.

Some people quickly blamed the state, adding this occurrence to their ever growing list of woes. It's just unfortunate that the takeaway wasn't that we need to be better at preparing ourselves. Whether it's with supplies or plans or even the reality of life's impermanence. Maybe it's weird, but I often reflect on my mortality to help me savor the seconds that seep away with every single day.

Wedding at the Kahala Hotel

We joked about not getting ready for the wedding, since the false missile was a sign. Of course, we went anyway. All the guests were in good spirits, and even the officiant joked, "Not even a missile alert can get in the way of their love." In case I've never said it before, I like open bar weddings. It makes it last a lot shorter. I don't even remember what I ate, but at least I recall the food was awesome! I napped after anyway.

For dinner, Tam and I went to Tonkatsu Tamafuji, which I've talked about several times in my Someone I Met blogs. I think that last visit finally broke my binging on it, which basically lasted a year. Anyone who knows and loves me, knows that I can binge on the same food for weeks... And then I'll turn, and won't want it anymore. That's what happened this time, but I still see it as a positive. I'll be able to savor it just like the first time, whenever I go next.

A Pleasant Return Flight

The Sunday was mostly me flying home. Funny thing is, I sat next to a fellow who worked for Microsoft in the 1990s. He told me about how he was able to sell his shares and retire in Hawaii, but he would work for them again if the opportunity was right. He also told me that the campus only used to be buildings 1 through 10; 12 at most.

It made for a pleasant flight back to Seattle, and this was where my adventure would continue without intermissions home.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

I had belatedly learned that I was off on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, so I took to Facebook to ask for food recommendations. My friends did not disappoint... Also, I was relying on them to dictate the rest of my day so via their favorite places. If there's anything I like to do, it's eat, and I'm always excited to try new things. I decided to head into the city, and because I hadn't figured out how tolls work with rental cars, so I went the long way around.

I had Manao Thai food on Capitol Hill for lunch. I don't really know what it is about traveling, but I always seem to crave panang curry after a flight. It all started on my trip to NZ, and it's been something unshakeable since.

Since I was blessed with a sunny winter day, I walked a couple of blocks to try a salted cheese bubble tea drink. It's supposed to make it savory, but... It tasted like a dessert I would have rather eaten than sipped. The Moo Bar also has the cutest logo, and while I didn't like the drink much, I could at least peep the cute cow.

On my walk back to my car, I also checked out Molly Moon's, a popular Seattle ice cream shop. Their seasonal flavor this time around was Meyer Lemon, and I am a sucker for citrus. I know I already had dessert, but no one said I couldn't have second dessert.

To Bellevue and Home

I went home the same way I came, the long way around, and the view worth it. I'm so used to seeing choppy water because of the constant beating of the ocean waves. When I sailed in high school, it was rare to see glassy water stretch so far.

After a quick pitstop in Bellevue, I called the end of my weekend adventure.