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Birthday Hockey, day 3 of 3
Jan. 15th, 2023 11:59 pmSUNDAY
I slept fitfully until the alarm went off at five. We were showered, dressed, and packed by six, and left the room about quarter after to check out. I called for a Lyft and we didn't have too long to wait for José. We made our way through the maze at Union Station drop-off and past the resident flock of pigeons to the LAX Flyaway boarding zone. On the way we used the elevator and joined in a rousing chorus of That Smell. (P.U.!) I sat with our bags while Gary took pictures. The bus arrived shortly after we did, and Gary presented our tickets on his phone and we stowed our luggage and boarded. There was far less traffic than when we arrived.
At LAX we left the bus, got some pictures, went inside and through security (where there was no line to speak of, and a cute cubby TSO in our lane), and soon found our way to the Alaska Lounge up an elevator right next to our gate. We were checked in and having breakfast by eight. Around 8:30 the lounge area was filling up and Gary suggested we head downstairs to the gate. I had another soda, we each used the restroom, and we left about nine, in time to watch the boarding process for the previous flight from our gate, departing at 9:30. The plane was headed for Loreto, Baja California, Mexico. A few people were searching in vain for a working power outlet for charging phones. Gary remarked while people-watching: Too many bears. In particular I noticed a younger brown bear with a thick, curly beard and a pear shape passing by; a long-legged dude with a trim brown beard in jeans and a Carhartt hoodie and wooly cap, sitting by the window with one foot propped up; and a big young bear with a thick neck covered by a trim, dark beard, wearing a printed casual dress shirt and black slacks and carrying a chunky pair of headphones atop his head until he tired of wearing them and stashed them in his pocket.
Our plane arrived about ten to ten, an hour before our scheduled departure. We began boarding about ten after and were soon seated on the aircraft. A large and very cute young bear with a tight haircut and trimmed beard sat in front of Gary, the Carhartt bear boarded shortly after us and was seated in coach, and the thick-necked bear in the printed shirt (blue with white anchors) was two rows forward and across the aisle from me. As we were informed at the gate, we had a long taxi to the runway, during which I noticed Gary snoozing and almost did so myself. We took off over the open ocean and then turned inland, overflying a few isolated wisps of clouds before encountering the thicker, uninterrupted cloud bank, at first below and then around us. The flight itself was fairly uneventful: we had our warm nuts, fruit and cheese plates with ginger ale, and gooey chocolate chip cookies. As we began our descent into Seattle, Gary and I discussed which NHL teams we'd seen and concluded we'd caught half of the 32 teams, none of the Original Six among them.
Once we landed, I checked in with Colleen via text. It was a short walk from our arrival gate to the terminal outside security, where we stopped for a bathroom break and proceeded directly to the light rail station about two. The train trip was uneventful but for the stop by Franz Bakery to change drivers. On the elevators down from Northgate platform and mezzanine, the buttons weren't lighting up, making people think they were broken. We caught the bus to Everett just before three. It rained steadily as usual. We were home by four and I called Colleen to catch up.
I slept fitfully until the alarm went off at five. We were showered, dressed, and packed by six, and left the room about quarter after to check out. I called for a Lyft and we didn't have too long to wait for José. We made our way through the maze at Union Station drop-off and past the resident flock of pigeons to the LAX Flyaway boarding zone. On the way we used the elevator and joined in a rousing chorus of That Smell. (P.U.!) I sat with our bags while Gary took pictures. The bus arrived shortly after we did, and Gary presented our tickets on his phone and we stowed our luggage and boarded. There was far less traffic than when we arrived.
At LAX we left the bus, got some pictures, went inside and through security (where there was no line to speak of, and a cute cubby TSO in our lane), and soon found our way to the Alaska Lounge up an elevator right next to our gate. We were checked in and having breakfast by eight. Around 8:30 the lounge area was filling up and Gary suggested we head downstairs to the gate. I had another soda, we each used the restroom, and we left about nine, in time to watch the boarding process for the previous flight from our gate, departing at 9:30. The plane was headed for Loreto, Baja California, Mexico. A few people were searching in vain for a working power outlet for charging phones. Gary remarked while people-watching: Too many bears. In particular I noticed a younger brown bear with a thick, curly beard and a pear shape passing by; a long-legged dude with a trim brown beard in jeans and a Carhartt hoodie and wooly cap, sitting by the window with one foot propped up; and a big young bear with a thick neck covered by a trim, dark beard, wearing a printed casual dress shirt and black slacks and carrying a chunky pair of headphones atop his head until he tired of wearing them and stashed them in his pocket.
Our plane arrived about ten to ten, an hour before our scheduled departure. We began boarding about ten after and were soon seated on the aircraft. A large and very cute young bear with a tight haircut and trimmed beard sat in front of Gary, the Carhartt bear boarded shortly after us and was seated in coach, and the thick-necked bear in the printed shirt (blue with white anchors) was two rows forward and across the aisle from me. As we were informed at the gate, we had a long taxi to the runway, during which I noticed Gary snoozing and almost did so myself. We took off over the open ocean and then turned inland, overflying a few isolated wisps of clouds before encountering the thicker, uninterrupted cloud bank, at first below and then around us. The flight itself was fairly uneventful: we had our warm nuts, fruit and cheese plates with ginger ale, and gooey chocolate chip cookies. As we began our descent into Seattle, Gary and I discussed which NHL teams we'd seen and concluded we'd caught half of the 32 teams, none of the Original Six among them.
Once we landed, I checked in with Colleen via text. It was a short walk from our arrival gate to the terminal outside security, where we stopped for a bathroom break and proceeded directly to the light rail station about two. The train trip was uneventful but for the stop by Franz Bakery to change drivers. On the elevators down from Northgate platform and mezzanine, the buttons weren't lighting up, making people think they were broken. We caught the bus to Everett just before three. It rained steadily as usual. We were home by four and I called Colleen to catch up.