Sponsors, friends, and family,
It is with great disappointment that we have cancelled this year's event. With 400,000 customers of Alabama Power without power and over 100 deaths statewide, we did not feel it was appropriate to continue the event. We do not want to be disrespectful to communities affected, and we do not want to hinder emergency crews or storm crews due to our slow speeds.
Thank you for your support. We will update the blog with our final fundraising numbers soon. We truly appreciate your support.
Thank you,
Bryan Coley
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Cash Flows
I'm not a financial blogger, and I don't recommend following my investment strategies (if you can call them strategies). However, I have spent the greater part of the last few years learning about money. The fundamentals are pretty basic, but it is apparent most people don't know them. So, in the spirit of "My Thoughts" the following is a few thoughts I have on money:
Due to my business school affiliation, I receive a copy of Business Week every week and a copy of the Wall Street Journal every day. Both are invaluable to a business student (and I assume business execs). Every now and again, I run across something worth sharing. For example, this week Business Week released their "Year in Reveiew." One of the sections is on U.S. Currency or the dollar. To our eyes, the prices of some commodities have gone up (coffee, gasoline, etc.). However, currency is merely a piece of paper that serves an economy for trade. We trade currency every day based on macro- and micro- economic principles that make us 'value' things a certain way. This is why bread in the 1940s cost only a few cents while now it is a few dollars. Bread itself has not changed. Actually, if bread was not perishable, one could have saved bread from the 1940s until today and sold it for a hefty profit (according to the value of the currency). This fundamental idea is shared in a more real sense by Business Week. Last year, one could have bought a gallon of gasoline for a mere 0.85 lb of bacon. This year, that same gallon of gasoline only cost you 0.75 lb of bacon. So, if you bought your gasoline in bacon, it is cheaper this year than last year. Bacon, like bread, isn't a sustainable form of currency (unless you are a pig farmer I suppose). So, we resort to other forms of currency. How then do you protect yourself from inflation of commodities with a deflating form of currency (a dollar)?
The bottom line... Cash flow is the way to go. It is very simple on paper. Invest your money (current value of your cash) in things that provide a return that is greater than inflation at a later date. If you buy a stock today at $10.00, in a year from now if inflation is 2.5% you want that stock to be valued a least at $12.50. If the stock is valued at more than $12.50, then you have wisely invested your money. If not, then it would have been more valuable in another investment. There are a multitude of vehicles that one can use for investing: common stock, stock options, preferred stock, bonds, bonds with warrants, convertible bonds, mutual funds, hedge funds, exchange traded funds, 401k, IRAs, etc. Each of these has unique risk versus return criterion that make them lucrative in their own right. So, how do you choose, what is best. I try to think of it in a different way...
Think of investing as an exercise in value maximization. In the study of Finance, one learns how to value a company, an asset, a purchase decision, etc. through a series of cash flows. Cash flows are an interesting animal. Cash is currency. Value is what something is worth (its risk versus return). How does cash translate to value? The answer is cash flows. For example, a company that buys a machine to make widgets will evaluate this asset in a series of cash flows. The company purchases the machine with capital dollars, operates it with O&M dollars, and receives revenues from the sales of the widgets. Very basically, the cash flow is a combination of the amortized capital, O&M, and revenues from widgets in a period of time (usually per month). Using the cash flows a net present value (NPV) can be calculated based on today's dollars. If NPV is positive, then the company should purchase the equipment, make the widgets, and sell them. The whole process is many times more complex, but the basic idea of cash flows is what we're going for here.
Now, translate that to investing. Invest in things that provide positive cash flows. A real-estate investor will purchase a property and rent it out to receive revenues from the rental. That monthly revenue is a cash flow. No matter what the value of the dollar in the short term (duration of the lease) the cash flows are set. Most people are education investors. They invest in a degree from a college or university and use their expertise to get a job that provides them a salary. That salary is a series of cash flows based on an employment contract. Hopefully, the company that provides the salary will increase the salary greater than or equal to inflation. Lately, this has not been the case.
Therefore, in order to make up the difference, one must use other vehicles of investment. That sounds easy... if you have extra cash laying around. Most people do not. I had a conversation recently with a neighbor of mine who said some of her family buys a lot of their Christmas presents with debt. They buy their house with debt, their car with debt, debt, debt, debt... it adds up with credit cards, car leases or loans, mortgages, student loans (to finance that education), etc. These all add up to what I like to call negative cash flows. Debt in itself is not bad and is sometimes inevitable/necessary. However, too much debt is bad. When the salary that pays you positive cash flows is all used up by negative cash flows and necessities, there is no room left for investments. Most if not all financial problems are due to debt. Companies file bankruptcy because they can not cover interest payments. Marriages turn into divorce due to stress from debt. I could go on for pages.
I know exactly what you are thinking. Wow, being debt free sounds nice but that Dave Ramsey stuff doesn't work for real people. (Actually, I've never read Dave, but I hear he does write good stuff.) What I'm saying is don't get caught up in the "gotta have it" American mindset and buy things you can not afford. In most cases, I reccommend not buying anything unless you have the cash to cover the purchase. Credit cards are fine but pay them off each month. Mortgages provide tax incentives, auto loans are sometimes unavoidable. I understand. Just don't buy "stuff" for the sake of having it. I'm reminded of the song Daddy Never Was the Caddilac Kind by Confederate Railroad. The song is dated but the lyrics still stand "Daddy'd say you can't judge a book by looking at its cover/ It's what's inside that really matters/ Daddy never was the Cadillac kind/ He said some things just glitter and shine/ He taught us that love was the one thing money couldn't buy."
Money is a powerful thing, but it is what we make it to be. If we allow it to compel us only to get more of it, money will control us. However, if we use money in a way that is beneficial to us with the right investments and spending decisions, we will prosper. The bottom line is that you control your money, don't let it control you.
Due to my business school affiliation, I receive a copy of Business Week every week and a copy of the Wall Street Journal every day. Both are invaluable to a business student (and I assume business execs). Every now and again, I run across something worth sharing. For example, this week Business Week released their "Year in Reveiew." One of the sections is on U.S. Currency or the dollar. To our eyes, the prices of some commodities have gone up (coffee, gasoline, etc.). However, currency is merely a piece of paper that serves an economy for trade. We trade currency every day based on macro- and micro- economic principles that make us 'value' things a certain way. This is why bread in the 1940s cost only a few cents while now it is a few dollars. Bread itself has not changed. Actually, if bread was not perishable, one could have saved bread from the 1940s until today and sold it for a hefty profit (according to the value of the currency). This fundamental idea is shared in a more real sense by Business Week. Last year, one could have bought a gallon of gasoline for a mere 0.85 lb of bacon. This year, that same gallon of gasoline only cost you 0.75 lb of bacon. So, if you bought your gasoline in bacon, it is cheaper this year than last year. Bacon, like bread, isn't a sustainable form of currency (unless you are a pig farmer I suppose). So, we resort to other forms of currency. How then do you protect yourself from inflation of commodities with a deflating form of currency (a dollar)?
The bottom line... Cash flow is the way to go. It is very simple on paper. Invest your money (current value of your cash) in things that provide a return that is greater than inflation at a later date. If you buy a stock today at $10.00, in a year from now if inflation is 2.5% you want that stock to be valued a least at $12.50. If the stock is valued at more than $12.50, then you have wisely invested your money. If not, then it would have been more valuable in another investment. There are a multitude of vehicles that one can use for investing: common stock, stock options, preferred stock, bonds, bonds with warrants, convertible bonds, mutual funds, hedge funds, exchange traded funds, 401k, IRAs, etc. Each of these has unique risk versus return criterion that make them lucrative in their own right. So, how do you choose, what is best. I try to think of it in a different way...
Think of investing as an exercise in value maximization. In the study of Finance, one learns how to value a company, an asset, a purchase decision, etc. through a series of cash flows. Cash flows are an interesting animal. Cash is currency. Value is what something is worth (its risk versus return). How does cash translate to value? The answer is cash flows. For example, a company that buys a machine to make widgets will evaluate this asset in a series of cash flows. The company purchases the machine with capital dollars, operates it with O&M dollars, and receives revenues from the sales of the widgets. Very basically, the cash flow is a combination of the amortized capital, O&M, and revenues from widgets in a period of time (usually per month). Using the cash flows a net present value (NPV) can be calculated based on today's dollars. If NPV is positive, then the company should purchase the equipment, make the widgets, and sell them. The whole process is many times more complex, but the basic idea of cash flows is what we're going for here.
Now, translate that to investing. Invest in things that provide positive cash flows. A real-estate investor will purchase a property and rent it out to receive revenues from the rental. That monthly revenue is a cash flow. No matter what the value of the dollar in the short term (duration of the lease) the cash flows are set. Most people are education investors. They invest in a degree from a college or university and use their expertise to get a job that provides them a salary. That salary is a series of cash flows based on an employment contract. Hopefully, the company that provides the salary will increase the salary greater than or equal to inflation. Lately, this has not been the case.
Therefore, in order to make up the difference, one must use other vehicles of investment. That sounds easy... if you have extra cash laying around. Most people do not. I had a conversation recently with a neighbor of mine who said some of her family buys a lot of their Christmas presents with debt. They buy their house with debt, their car with debt, debt, debt, debt... it adds up with credit cards, car leases or loans, mortgages, student loans (to finance that education), etc. These all add up to what I like to call negative cash flows. Debt in itself is not bad and is sometimes inevitable/necessary. However, too much debt is bad. When the salary that pays you positive cash flows is all used up by negative cash flows and necessities, there is no room left for investments. Most if not all financial problems are due to debt. Companies file bankruptcy because they can not cover interest payments. Marriages turn into divorce due to stress from debt. I could go on for pages.
I know exactly what you are thinking. Wow, being debt free sounds nice but that Dave Ramsey stuff doesn't work for real people. (Actually, I've never read Dave, but I hear he does write good stuff.) What I'm saying is don't get caught up in the "gotta have it" American mindset and buy things you can not afford. In most cases, I reccommend not buying anything unless you have the cash to cover the purchase. Credit cards are fine but pay them off each month. Mortgages provide tax incentives, auto loans are sometimes unavoidable. I understand. Just don't buy "stuff" for the sake of having it. I'm reminded of the song Daddy Never Was the Caddilac Kind by Confederate Railroad. The song is dated but the lyrics still stand "Daddy'd say you can't judge a book by looking at its cover/ It's what's inside that really matters/ Daddy never was the Cadillac kind/ He said some things just glitter and shine/ He taught us that love was the one thing money couldn't buy."
Money is a powerful thing, but it is what we make it to be. If we allow it to compel us only to get more of it, money will control us. However, if we use money in a way that is beneficial to us with the right investments and spending decisions, we will prosper. The bottom line is that you control your money, don't let it control you.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
I only got 3!!!
Harm and I love giving out candy to the kids at Halloween. This year we went waaay overboard and bought too much. There was a discrepancy between Saturday and Sunday... whatever. Anyway, we ended up with too much candy. So, that brings me to this post. One of the first kids that came to the house was super excited to be trick-or-treating. We were his first stop, and it was obvious he was looking forward to getting tons of candy that night. He looked like he was 4 or 5, and he was really excited (did I mention that?). Anyway, we gave him and the two other kids with him three pieces each and sent them on their way. Promptly upon receiving three pieces of candy, he looked in his bag, looked back at us, then looked towards his parents at the road. He then proceeded to scream back to them "I only got three!!!"
Now, your initial reaction may be the same as my initial reaction. Spoiled brat. However, in reality, I think a lot of us act this way all the time. Why do people play the lottery? It's just a get-rich-quick scheme. The lottery is an excuse not to work for getting rich. Unfortunately, many people dream of having riches beyond their wildest dreams without having to put in the work to get it. The sad truth to this is that there are people who are fortunate to have made millions in short periods of time. However, (with the exception of the lottery), the vast majority of those cases have years of hard work behind them, but the only thing that is published is the quick profit.
In reality, many businesses and individuals make profits each and every day one customer and sale at a time. What we have to realize is just like the kid with the candy these profits may come few at a time, but at the end of the day (quarter, year, ..., life), we will have a bag-full of profits to use. Unfortunately, we are a "now" society and don't want to wait for accumulation of wealth. We just want it now.
Patience is a virtue. Money is not everything. Enjoy life while you can no matter how much money you have.
What do you struggle with being patient and waiting for? What helps?
Leave a comment and let me know...
B
Now, your initial reaction may be the same as my initial reaction. Spoiled brat. However, in reality, I think a lot of us act this way all the time. Why do people play the lottery? It's just a get-rich-quick scheme. The lottery is an excuse not to work for getting rich. Unfortunately, many people dream of having riches beyond their wildest dreams without having to put in the work to get it. The sad truth to this is that there are people who are fortunate to have made millions in short periods of time. However, (with the exception of the lottery), the vast majority of those cases have years of hard work behind them, but the only thing that is published is the quick profit.
In reality, many businesses and individuals make profits each and every day one customer and sale at a time. What we have to realize is just like the kid with the candy these profits may come few at a time, but at the end of the day (quarter, year, ..., life), we will have a bag-full of profits to use. Unfortunately, we are a "now" society and don't want to wait for accumulation of wealth. We just want it now.
Patience is a virtue. Money is not everything. Enjoy life while you can no matter how much money you have.
What do you struggle with being patient and waiting for? What helps?
Leave a comment and let me know...
B
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Bike MS 2010
Two Days...
150 miles...
All for a good cause:
Multiple Sclerosis
Please join me in supporting the National Multiple Sclerosis Society as I Bike to the Battlefield. I will ride 150 miles in two days if you will donate to the cause. I'm asking that donors give in multiples of 25. That is you can give $2.50, $5.00, $10.00, or $25.00 (or more!). This is a Twitter and Facebook only drive. I am not raising money any other way. I hope you will help me raise $250 in the next two weeks! I can only do it with your help.
I will update my Twitter and Facebook accounts along the way. I will post to my blog after each days ride. You can keep up with all of it online from anywhere.
I am excited about this event. I hope that I am in shape! Please donate if you can:
DONATE NOW
Why We Fight MS
Having multiple sclerosis means that you may suddenly have blurry vision. Or that your memory will fail you for no apparent reason. Or that you may not always be able to walk, let alone ride a bike. The symptoms of MS are different, and devastating, for everyone - the only certainty is that it will affect yet another person every hour of every day.
Why I Ride
I've registered for Bike MS because I want to do something for the people who have been diagnosed - and because I want to do everything to prevent more people from learning what it means to live with this disease. Today, there is no cure for multiple sclerosis, and with diagnosis occurring most frequently between the ages of 20 and 50, many individuals face a lifetime filled with unpredictability.
Why You Should Sponsor Me
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society will use funds collected from Bike MS to not only support research for a cure tomorrow, but also to provide programs which address the needs of people living with MS today. Because we can fight this disease by simply riding a bike, because we have chosen to help thousands of people through a contribution to Bike MS, we are now getting closer to the hour when no one will have to hear the words, "You have MS."
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
The worst travel day of my life…
July 30, 2010
4:00 AM PDT: Alarm goes off
I arise at 4:00 AM Pacific in blissfully beautiful San Jose, California. The weather has been perfect for the past week (I arrived Sunday, July 25th). It has been a long week away from home, and I am ready to get back to my wife, dog, house, own bed, and the rest that makes home, home. I have meticulously, as is my nature, packed my bags and they are sitting waiting for the last few items to be used and put away.
4:30 AM PDT: Ready
I am packed and ready to head to the airport for my 6:20 AM flight. It takes all of 15 minutes to get to the airport, and I don’t mind being a little early. I have some books to keep me company until I board the plane. As I walk out the door (literally), I get a text message that my flight is cancelled… Great! Not only, have I left my room key, inside my room, but the door locked behind me. Luckily, I remember that I requested two keys, and I find the other in my wallet. Crisis averted… for now.
I promptly call the number listed in the text message, painfully navigate through the voice prompts, and finally get in touch with a real person. As I am talking to the airline representative, she indicates that her computer isn’t working and has to reboot. Not only this, but she can not transfer me to another rep. I either have to call back or wait five minutes. So I wait for what feels like an eternity, and she comes back. She indicates that there are no flights out of San Jose today and that I will have to wait until tomorrow for a flight. I ask her to check other airlines… Still not flights except a red-eye on Delta. I then ask if there are any flights out of nearby airports like San Francisco. Yes! one flight leaves at 6:00 AM and the other at 11:30 AM. Perfect, I say I’ll take the 11:30 AM, because I am more than an hour away from SFO.
I proceed to do some work from the room, get breakfast, etc. because I now have some time before I need to leave.
9:00 AM PDT: Leaving the room… Again.
…This time no text messages. I proceed to the lobby to check out and print out my boarding passes. I check out of my room, but I can’t print my boarding pass. The computer says I must wait until 24 hours before my flight to check-in. I’m thinking “It’s 3 hours before what’s going on?” Then I realize, they booked me on a flight from SFO, TOMORROW! Now, I’m irate. I get the airline back on the phone immediately after painfully navigating the voice prompts, mind you, and proceed to indicate my disdain with as much care as possible.
The attendant puts me on hold to check another airline’s flight for today. I wait for what feels like another eternity with constantly increasing blood pressure. She comes back on the line to tell me that a 10:30 AM flight is available on another airline. Thanks, it takes me an hour to get to SFO; so, that really doesn’t help me. She then checks another flight, puts me on hold for anther eternity, and books me on a 12:30 PM flight from SFO. Whew… finally some relief.
10:00 AM PDT: Cab Ride
Normally, I don’t like to take cab rides more than $50, but this was an exception. I counted the cash I had in my wallet $139. Surely it won’t be more than that, or so I thought… I hop in the cab and make the driver’s day by requesting a drive to SFO. We scurry off down the highway as I watch the meter go ever higher. I start doing the math with the meter and realize I might not have enough cash to cover this drive! We get closer and closer and the number approaches $130. As we enter the airport property, it tops $140. I’m ok, I think and pray. Surely he will take a credit card… eh, no…
So now I’m thinking, ok what can I barter to get him his money? I start looking in my wallet (sometimes I rat-hole a $20 or $50 just in case), and there in its shining glory was a Ulysses Grant! Prayer answered! I give the driver a decent tip (10% was $15!) and am off to check-in. Surely this can’t get any worse… or can it.
11:00 AM PDT: Check-in and Security
I like to check-in before I get to the airport because of days like this. I had to wait in line, a considerable line, to check-in. I never check my bags so it’s just annoying to wait to get my boarding pass. I finally get checked-in and head to security… to wait yet again. I have done airport security so many times, I can’t even count. It’s routine for me at this point. I have the slip-off shoes, laptop removal, fluids, etc. all ready to go and set when the time comes. I do the final “pocket check” before the metal detector then proceed to reassemble all of my goods.
11:20 AM PDT: Check the Gate
I really needed some lunch at this point, but every seasoned traveler knows that it is a good idea to check the gate before doing anything else when you are in a time crunch. So I proceed to the end of the terminal (my gate is always at the end it seems), to find my flight delayed two hours from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM. No big deal… or so I thought. I check with the gate agent, because I have a connecting flight in Houston and want to make sure I can still make it. Not so much… My delayed flight will now land at 8:05 PM CDT which is the same time that my connection (the last flight of the day to BHM) leaves Houston.
Expletive!
So now, I’m back in scramble mode. The gate agent starts looking for other flights, other possibilities, opportunities for me to get home today. His answer, “It looks like you will be spending the night either here or in Houston, which do you prefer?” Me: “Houston… Wait, what about Atlanta, can you get me to Atlanta?” My trying all possible options. After a minute of searching, there is a Delta flight at 1:00 PM PDT into Atlanta with two seats. He reserves my seat, books my ticket, and sends me on my way… back to the terminal… to check in with Delta… and go through security… again… joy.
11:45 AM PDT: Check-in and Security… Again.
Sooooo, I now proceed from the end of the terminal all the way back through security to the Delta counter. Luckily there is no line! I waltz right up to the agent, present him my stub from the other airline, and he shatters my hopes and dreams yet again. Evidently, I’m in the wrong line. Hope is then restored, because he didn’t make me wait to get in the correct line. At this point, everything is frustrating.
So he gets me checked-in with a “seat-request” ticket. This means, I now have to get to the gate agent to get a seat assignment… yet another happy moment for me. I go to wait in the long security line, again, do the security line dance, again, and end up in the terminal to find my gate… which is of course at the end of the terminal. I get to the gate, no gate agent in sight, so I call Delta to check on connections to BHM from ATL. At this point, I’m only getting to ATL. So, I’m exploring options. Can someone pick me up? One-way rental car? taxi… oh no not again… Luckily there is a connection I can get. I pay the fee and have to wait to get checked-in until I reach ATL (for whatever reason).
Mind you, I’m still hungry, and don’t have a seat assignment. Now, I turn to check the gate, and there is a line a mile long waiting on the gate agent. Perfect! So I get in it and wait. For whatever reason, Mr. Murphy wasn’t paying attention and I got a free pass for once that day. I had somehow been booked twice on the flight and got called to the front of the line! So, I cut all of the other people and got my seat assignment first. Exit row by the window… not perfect, but I’ll take it.
12:30 PM PDT: On the Plane… Finally!
After a long (8 hours at this point) day of travel frustration, I am finally on a plane that will get me back to the Southeast. Now, I still have not had any food, am tired, and could really use a nap. So that’s what I did. I don’t even remember take-off. All I remember is waking up when the flight attendant started bringing food and beverages down the aisle. I proceed to order a sandwich and a snack to give me a boost. No, I’m not thinking about that article at all. I’m hungry. I eat, am filled, and start reading my book again. Four miserably long hours later, we are on the ground in Atlanta!
8:15 PM EDT: Hotlanta
Now on the ground, I proceed to change from B terminal to D terminal where my next flight is. Yes, again, the gate was at the far end of B terminal and D terminal. So, I walk my way to D terminal, find a check-in location, get my boarding pass, check the gate (as always), then proceed to find caffeine. Now caffeinated and almost home, I can relax enough to start a new book: Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. So far it is excellent. After four chapters, we begin boarding.
9:45 PM EDT: Takeoff
Our departure was as close to on-time as it gets. The 28 minute flight is nothing after the previous flight, and before I could blink, we were on the ground at BHM.
9:45 PM CDT: BHM
After a long day, there is nothing like landing in Sweet Home Alabama. The heat and humidity engulfed me as I departed the plane, and I knew I was home. After waiting to get my plane-side checked luggage, I was off to the parking deck to get in my car and go home!
10:15 PM CDT: HOME at last!
Arriving home after a long week away is completely rewarding. 16 hours and 15 minutes is the longest travel day of my life, and most definitely the most stressful. Without, prayer and patience it would have been excruciating and unbearable. I learned several valuable lessons:
4:00 AM PDT: Alarm goes off
I arise at 4:00 AM Pacific in blissfully beautiful San Jose, California. The weather has been perfect for the past week (I arrived Sunday, July 25th). It has been a long week away from home, and I am ready to get back to my wife, dog, house, own bed, and the rest that makes home, home. I have meticulously, as is my nature, packed my bags and they are sitting waiting for the last few items to be used and put away.
4:30 AM PDT: Ready
I am packed and ready to head to the airport for my 6:20 AM flight. It takes all of 15 minutes to get to the airport, and I don’t mind being a little early. I have some books to keep me company until I board the plane. As I walk out the door (literally), I get a text message that my flight is cancelled… Great! Not only, have I left my room key, inside my room, but the door locked behind me. Luckily, I remember that I requested two keys, and I find the other in my wallet. Crisis averted… for now.
I promptly call the number listed in the text message, painfully navigate through the voice prompts, and finally get in touch with a real person. As I am talking to the airline representative, she indicates that her computer isn’t working and has to reboot. Not only this, but she can not transfer me to another rep. I either have to call back or wait five minutes. So I wait for what feels like an eternity, and she comes back. She indicates that there are no flights out of San Jose today and that I will have to wait until tomorrow for a flight. I ask her to check other airlines… Still not flights except a red-eye on Delta. I then ask if there are any flights out of nearby airports like San Francisco. Yes! one flight leaves at 6:00 AM and the other at 11:30 AM. Perfect, I say I’ll take the 11:30 AM, because I am more than an hour away from SFO.
I proceed to do some work from the room, get breakfast, etc. because I now have some time before I need to leave.
9:00 AM PDT: Leaving the room… Again.
…This time no text messages. I proceed to the lobby to check out and print out my boarding passes. I check out of my room, but I can’t print my boarding pass. The computer says I must wait until 24 hours before my flight to check-in. I’m thinking “It’s 3 hours before what’s going on?” Then I realize, they booked me on a flight from SFO, TOMORROW! Now, I’m irate. I get the airline back on the phone immediately after painfully navigating the voice prompts, mind you, and proceed to indicate my disdain with as much care as possible.
The attendant puts me on hold to check another airline’s flight for today. I wait for what feels like another eternity with constantly increasing blood pressure. She comes back on the line to tell me that a 10:30 AM flight is available on another airline. Thanks, it takes me an hour to get to SFO; so, that really doesn’t help me. She then checks another flight, puts me on hold for anther eternity, and books me on a 12:30 PM flight from SFO. Whew… finally some relief.
10:00 AM PDT: Cab Ride
Normally, I don’t like to take cab rides more than $50, but this was an exception. I counted the cash I had in my wallet $139. Surely it won’t be more than that, or so I thought… I hop in the cab and make the driver’s day by requesting a drive to SFO. We scurry off down the highway as I watch the meter go ever higher. I start doing the math with the meter and realize I might not have enough cash to cover this drive! We get closer and closer and the number approaches $130. As we enter the airport property, it tops $140. I’m ok, I think and pray. Surely he will take a credit card… eh, no…
So now I’m thinking, ok what can I barter to get him his money? I start looking in my wallet (sometimes I rat-hole a $20 or $50 just in case), and there in its shining glory was a Ulysses Grant! Prayer answered! I give the driver a decent tip (10% was $15!) and am off to check-in. Surely this can’t get any worse… or can it.
11:00 AM PDT: Check-in and Security
I like to check-in before I get to the airport because of days like this. I had to wait in line, a considerable line, to check-in. I never check my bags so it’s just annoying to wait to get my boarding pass. I finally get checked-in and head to security… to wait yet again. I have done airport security so many times, I can’t even count. It’s routine for me at this point. I have the slip-off shoes, laptop removal, fluids, etc. all ready to go and set when the time comes. I do the final “pocket check” before the metal detector then proceed to reassemble all of my goods.
11:20 AM PDT: Check the Gate
I really needed some lunch at this point, but every seasoned traveler knows that it is a good idea to check the gate before doing anything else when you are in a time crunch. So I proceed to the end of the terminal (my gate is always at the end it seems), to find my flight delayed two hours from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM. No big deal… or so I thought. I check with the gate agent, because I have a connecting flight in Houston and want to make sure I can still make it. Not so much… My delayed flight will now land at 8:05 PM CDT which is the same time that my connection (the last flight of the day to BHM) leaves Houston.
Expletive!
So now, I’m back in scramble mode. The gate agent starts looking for other flights, other possibilities, opportunities for me to get home today. His answer, “It looks like you will be spending the night either here or in Houston, which do you prefer?” Me: “Houston… Wait, what about Atlanta, can you get me to Atlanta?” My trying all possible options. After a minute of searching, there is a Delta flight at 1:00 PM PDT into Atlanta with two seats. He reserves my seat, books my ticket, and sends me on my way… back to the terminal… to check in with Delta… and go through security… again… joy.
11:45 AM PDT: Check-in and Security… Again.
Sooooo, I now proceed from the end of the terminal all the way back through security to the Delta counter. Luckily there is no line! I waltz right up to the agent, present him my stub from the other airline, and he shatters my hopes and dreams yet again. Evidently, I’m in the wrong line. Hope is then restored, because he didn’t make me wait to get in the correct line. At this point, everything is frustrating.
So he gets me checked-in with a “seat-request” ticket. This means, I now have to get to the gate agent to get a seat assignment… yet another happy moment for me. I go to wait in the long security line, again, do the security line dance, again, and end up in the terminal to find my gate… which is of course at the end of the terminal. I get to the gate, no gate agent in sight, so I call Delta to check on connections to BHM from ATL. At this point, I’m only getting to ATL. So, I’m exploring options. Can someone pick me up? One-way rental car? taxi… oh no not again… Luckily there is a connection I can get. I pay the fee and have to wait to get checked-in until I reach ATL (for whatever reason).
Mind you, I’m still hungry, and don’t have a seat assignment. Now, I turn to check the gate, and there is a line a mile long waiting on the gate agent. Perfect! So I get in it and wait. For whatever reason, Mr. Murphy wasn’t paying attention and I got a free pass for once that day. I had somehow been booked twice on the flight and got called to the front of the line! So, I cut all of the other people and got my seat assignment first. Exit row by the window… not perfect, but I’ll take it.
12:30 PM PDT: On the Plane… Finally!
After a long (8 hours at this point) day of travel frustration, I am finally on a plane that will get me back to the Southeast. Now, I still have not had any food, am tired, and could really use a nap. So that’s what I did. I don’t even remember take-off. All I remember is waking up when the flight attendant started bringing food and beverages down the aisle. I proceed to order a sandwich and a snack to give me a boost. No, I’m not thinking about that article at all. I’m hungry. I eat, am filled, and start reading my book again. Four miserably long hours later, we are on the ground in Atlanta!
8:15 PM EDT: Hotlanta
Now on the ground, I proceed to change from B terminal to D terminal where my next flight is. Yes, again, the gate was at the far end of B terminal and D terminal. So, I walk my way to D terminal, find a check-in location, get my boarding pass, check the gate (as always), then proceed to find caffeine. Now caffeinated and almost home, I can relax enough to start a new book: Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. So far it is excellent. After four chapters, we begin boarding.
9:45 PM EDT: Takeoff
Our departure was as close to on-time as it gets. The 28 minute flight is nothing after the previous flight, and before I could blink, we were on the ground at BHM.
9:45 PM CDT: BHM
After a long day, there is nothing like landing in Sweet Home Alabama. The heat and humidity engulfed me as I departed the plane, and I knew I was home. After waiting to get my plane-side checked luggage, I was off to the parking deck to get in my car and go home!
10:15 PM CDT: HOME at last!
Arriving home after a long week away is completely rewarding. 16 hours and 15 minutes is the longest travel day of my life, and most definitely the most stressful. Without, prayer and patience it would have been excruciating and unbearable. I learned several valuable lessons:
- There is a reason for travel rewards programs. Airlines treat their loyal customers better than the rest, and they attend to them first when exceptions occur. This means, had I flown Delta in the first place, I would have been re-scheduled immediately on the next flight before I called the airline.
- Persistence pays off. Without my prodding, the airline I started with would not have transferred me to another airport or airline. I wasn’t giving up without a fight and that persistence paid off.
- There is truly no place like home. I didn’t realize how much I like being home until I was faced with not being able to be there when I wanted to. It is a sickening feeling. I take for granted the freedoms that I have and this experience was enlightening for me.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Picnic
the... Um... oil?... come in.
Final Run!!
thank all of my sponsors for donating over $1,500 to the American
Cancer Society on my behalf. I am truly thankful for your donations to
such a worthy cause.
The team is in high spirits! We are excited to be almost done. We
didn't get wasted by our first run this year and we ran decent times
(7am & 7pm) which means we kept roughly normal hours.
All that is left now is for the picnic at the end. We are looking
forward to the celebration and a shower.
Until then...
--
B
Friday, April 30, 2010
Run 2 Start!
run. Chesley (pictured above) is a crazy fast runner. He busts out 6-7
minute miles consistently.
Team B is hanging in there and running strong! I had a rough 3rd run
with almost an entire mile uphill. I made it with relief from Waymon
at the summit. I got back on the road later to finish out my miles.
Now off to dinner at Trey's Bar & Grill in Thomasville.
--
Bryan
Run #2!!
My playlist keeps me going. It consists of Metallica, Kenny Loggins,
Nickelback, Van Halen, AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, and more.
I was looking forward to handing Team C the peanut butter covered
baton, but they decided to leave their hotel when I was finishing.
Seeing as I was running anchor tonight, we had to make up the slack
for Team C. Kathleen, Lee, and Nicole ran 2 miles of Team C's miles.
Go Team B!
The picture above shows the Clanton Police showing interest in our
event. We were probably the most interesting thing he had seen all week!
We are on our way to the hotel now to get some rest. The whole group
is ahead of schedule about 30 minutes. We might finish early on
Saturday!
Until next time...
--
B
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Run For The Reason!! Starting Today
an hour! I'm on Team B this year. We have the same set of runners and
we added one, yes! Kathleen, Jennifer, Waymon, Holley, Lee, Nicole,
and I will be running. Cherie, Denise, Rosa, and Ben are our drivers.
We are psyched and ready.
Wish us luck!
B
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