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11/13/06 Auspicious Beginnings

Today began with a call to Jim Toman, a member of what some call Morganton’s “core.” He’s a rough dude, but kindly enough, and without having seen him in months, Jim agreed to take me to the Charlotte Airport. We had a nice drive, and talked about chilling out and other Western North Carolina outdoor activities. After stopping at a store to buy myself a digital camera, Jim dropped me off at the airport around noon.

I arrived very early. There was plenty of time to spare. I checked in and was immediately informed that my flight to Philadelphia (from which I was to fly to Milan, Italy) ain’t gonna make it in time to catch the Milan flight. Feeling creative, my US Airways representative booked me on a new route through Frankfurt, Germany. The good thing was that this flight was direct from Charlotte, avoiding all the pitfalls of Philadelphia. Even better was the fact that the flight was leaving 5 hours later than the one I originally scheduled. This gave me plenty of time to just hang out in the Charlotte airport—and I love airports. The architecture is so refreshing, so humane. Only slightly less invigorating was the plane ride to Frankfurt. But that felt really good too.