Idaho and SLC

I sat on the stairs wait. The person on the phone said the van would arrive in about 10 minutes.  It's already 10 past 5 and I'm still waiting. I wonder if I'm going to be late for my flight. Probably not, considering my flight isn't until 6:45am, but I'm having second thoughts about why I changed the pickup time from 4:30am to 5:00am. Is the 30 minutes of extra sleep going to screw the entire plans for this trip. I hope not.

I've never been out at 5am in the morning. Well, that isn't entirely true. I've just never been outside at 5am sitting on the stairway leading up to my apartment. Everyone's light is off in the American apartment complex across the street. Except for the occasional car the passes by and the newspaper deliever guy, there isn't a sound in the city. From a lack of sleep, my mind starts to wonder why the stop light on this street always turns red. Why don't they just keep them green? It's not like there's tons of traffic. I look up to the sky to see if I can spot any stars. I've been trying for the last few weeks to find someone to go stargazing with me. Perferably a "female companion," but that hasn't worked out. The last time I decided to go stargazing, I went on the one night when the fog was so heavy, I couldn't see past the 8th floor of the math building.

It's almost 5:15am and still no van. In my mind, I'm playing out all the possibilities that are causing the shuttle van to be late. Maybe the driver is lost or there's traffic. What if he got into a car accident? Maybe he blew a tire on the way. What if he and a customer got into an argument. Suddenly, my cellphone rings.

"Hi dad," I say.
"Where are you?  Are you at the airport?"
"Waiting for my shuttle. It's suppose to be here any minute," I reply.
"You're not going to be late, are you?"
"I don't think so."

We had made plans for this trip quite a while ago. Well, that isn't exactly true either. We had discussed the idea to travel together, just the two of us, father and son, quite awhile ago. The actually planning only happened two weeks ago.

"I think you'll get there before me," he says
"Yea, I'll just wait for you. Call me once you land," I reply.
"Alright, have a safe trip."

I'm thinking about taking out my camera to take a picture of the van as it pulls up. But then, it sounds kind of lame. So instead, as the van pulls up, I walk into the front passenager seat. There's three people sitting in the back and I exchange short "G'mornings" with them. It's way too early for conversation.

As I settle into my seat, I'm calculating when I'll arrive. Google Maps told me it would take 22 minutes to drive from my apartment to the airport. Considering I'd already printed out my boarding pass and that I have no luguage to check in, it should only take 10 minutes to go through security and get to the gates. That means I need to arrive by 6:10am at the lastest. I glance at my cellphone clock and conclude thatI'm in the clear.

Early morning car rides area always somewhat sureal for me. The sun is just peaking over the horizon, casting a orangish glow over building, cars, and billboard signs. Cars on the highway seem less animated and more simplistic without all the color or detail. Besides the fact that the highway is pretty empty and the driver is zoom past everyone at probably 10 miles past the speed limit, everyone is good.

By the time I had finished paying and passed airport security, I still have at least half a hour to waste. Gazing past the food court and away from the luguage store, I run into the only place where I'm willing to shell out hard earned cash - a bookstore.  As I browse around, I find the book I was reading the last time I was in a Barnes and Noble. It's a hardcover which makes me wince because it'll probably cost over 20 and I don't want to pay that much. I look around for any softcover fiction to read, but nothing looks interesting. It seems the only weakness I have is for books.

As the books get's scanned, I'm wondering how much this book would cost at Amazon. Probably only 15 instead of the 23 I'm paying. Plus, Amazon has no tax. Damn!

I settle onto the seat by the gate and start. The book is called Marley and Me. I hope its good.