Ripples of Circumstance

There was, as you may have heard, an horrific plane crash at SFO yesterday. Two dead, 180 with some sort of injury from critical to treat-and-release.  The photos are seriously sobering.  And of course all the flights in and out are in chaos. Including the flight Becca and Danny were supposed to be on this morning at 6am.  They were automagically rebooked for Tuesday midday, which was so unsatisfactory as to be more or less useless.  Danny spent three hours on the phone waiting to talk to someone, gave up at 1:30 in the morning, then rose at 5:30 and drove down to SFO to talk to a live human, where he discovered that United had nothing until...Tuesday, midday.  He got me on the phone, I checked Southwest, and got two hideously expensive tickets that will get them out of here tomorrow morning and into Newark at 6pm on Monday evening, thence to pick up a car and drive to Vermont (having lost the Monday Vassar-and-Bard loop of the college tours).

The car rental agency wanted him to pay an extra $200 for the privilege of picking up the car a day late.  Cancelled that, arranged for a new rental which was only $40 more.

The hotel for Monday night could not refund the pre-paid reservation because it was made through Orbitz, and: policy, man.  Orbitz, fortunately, was more forgiving.  So that got done.  He's trying to get hold of the Vermont hotel to make sure they're okay with a midnight check-in.

Then there was some confusion about returning flights and it looked like Bec's flight back had been changed to the same day as Danny's (rather than in August, after her Georgetown program lets out).  This seems to be okay.

United needs to update their hold music.  Dear God, between the cool-jazz guitar loop of "Rhapsody in Blue" heard over and over for hours, and the fact that the tape was warped unto warbling, George Gershwin should sue.

But it's done.  I think.  And I hope that all the people on the Asiana flight recover and are home with their loved ones soon.