Surprise!

This was written on Friday, February 9, 2007. I couldn't post it then in case it would ruin a surprise I had in the works:

Today I’m flying to Salt Lake City, Utah to visit a friend for the weekend. Due to some rather rough turns of events, this very old (the friendship is old, not the friend, despite both our salt & pepper hair) and dear friend needs some cheering up. His partner and I planned a last-minute surprise visit by me. The surprise on his face will be fun to see.

I’m writing this on board a Delta Airlines Boeing 737 jet. Despite having flown many, many times in my life, I still never get over the thrill of a jet taking off. Even though I understand the physics of it, it still amazes me that a big multi-ton metal tube can be lifted off the ground thousands of feet in the air, hurtling hundreds of miles per hour. I have always wondered what it would be like to go back in time and pluck a person, like my great-great-grandfather who fought in the Civil War, and bring him forward to witness flying machines like this. Maybe he’d think it was some sort of wicked sorcery, cowering in the bathroom in fear! Or, maybe he’d have his nose glued to the window in wonder, watching the scenery go by miles below, tiny mountains and lakes looking like a toy railroad panorama.

If my vision and hearing had been better, I’m sure I would have been a pilot. Traveling anywhere, especially by air, makes me feel like a giddy little kid. Today in the airport waiting area, there was a dad and two kids about 9 and 10. The youngest, a little girl, was so excited to get on board. Every time the gate agents announced a new section boarding, she would jump to her feet and her dad would have to tell her to sit down, it wasn’t time yet. I know that feeling and still have it, though I probably appear to be jaded about the whole thing. Perhaps it’s just as well I can’t be a pilot. I don’t ever want the excitement of travel to go away.

This flight is a puddle jump to me. Now that I’ve gone overseas on 13 hour flights, 2 hours seems like nothing. I remember once flying to Oakland, California and the flight actually had a stop just across the bay in San Francisco. The flight over the bay was less than a 5 minutes and the plane never reached a cruising altitude of more than a few thousand feet. It was odd, but a great way to see San Francisco Bay.

Even if I’ve been somewhere before, I still like to travel there. It’s great to see how other people live and what is changing. I remember the first time I went to Europe, it was amazing to me that life goes on in other places, speaking different languages and experiencing a completely different culture. I suppose that sounds silly. But, until I really experienced a different part of the world, it was easy to get caught up in the idea, that your particular space and time is the only world that exists. You don’t imagine the billions of other people out there, living simultaneously on one planet traveling through Sol’s solar system. I think for insular Americans, it is especially hard to imagine.

Salt Lake City is not one of my favorite destinations. I’d never live there again. I’ve had enough of living in red states. I won’t be making that mistake again. Some of my favorite people in the world live there though. I’ll get to see a few of them this weekend. It will be good to see people I haven’t seen in a few years. I’ve never surprised somebody like this. Some surprises are not much fun, but I think this one will be.

Update 2/12/07: The surprise went off very well. My friend was completely flabbergasted when I walked in the door! I wish I'd had my camera out at the time. It's been a great trip and I got to see a few other friends as well. It was very nice to visit people I haven't seen in a long while.