Flying Circus Acts: The Flight from Hawaii to New York, June 30-July 1, 2014

Hooray! There's the Freedom Tower in New York City! Getting here was not half-the-fun it usually is. 

“Stop it! Stop it! You need a change of scenery! The conference was a success. It’s all going to be fine!” 

I was treated to these and other words of admonishment by a friend who was driving me to Honolulu International Airport. It was June 30, around 4:00 p.m. I was due to fly out at 8:15 p.m. and land the next day at Liberty International Airport, Newark, New Jersey, one of three airports serving New York City. 

As the day approached in which I was due to fly out of Hawaii something did not seem right. No matter how many times I was admonished verbally or by kind-and-gentle emails I felt something unsettling. 

When I think of flying domestically in the USA I think of what a nightmare it often is for people. It was not always this way. Some guardian angel has been watching over me all these past few years. The worst flight I ever recall being on was a non-stop from Chicago to Honolulu in 2008. True, I had not been feeling well prior to departure. A low fever and dehydration did not help. But that was all in the past. 

I am not the superstitious type. Really, I’m not. However, I do believe in the existence of the unknown. I felt that the unknown was going to spring a big surprise. 

Guess what? I got more than I bargained for on this journey to my ancestral homeland in North America. 

After concluding a very successful history education conference in Honolulu just two weeks prior, I really felt a need for a change of scenery. 

Nothing personal, Greenwich, Connecticut USA, but my first choice was a return to Singapore. 

A return to Singapore was at the top of my list. Many of you know of my love affair with the Lion City and its people. I was anxious for laksa, shophouses and meeting up with friends -and a special one close to my heart in particular. Summer monsoon rains and haze alerts be damned. 

Well, not quite. Reluctantly, I postponed my return there. It was not an easy decision, but it was necessary. 

This turned out to be wise. If you are a business owner and entrepreneur like me then you’ll understand that the call to business sometimes supersedes most other things. I had to return to my home in Connecticut to take care of some family business. I was supposed to be there this past Spring anyway. 

My non-stop, round trip flights on United were booked. I was going home to decompress, savor the sights and aromas of my early years, work and take care of some family business. It’s in my blood. What can I say?

Who ever said, “getting there is half to fun” was obviously not on my journey. I checked in after being dropped off at Honolulu International Airport. After going through priority security I headed over to Gate 8, sat and waited. I was also steamed that my water bottle was confiscated. 

My flight was due to depart for an overnight journey to Liberty International Airport, Newark, outside New York City. I anticipated a three-hour wait upon my arrival. My cousin Bob Keeler was driving down after work to pick me up and bring me to Connecticut. 

Everything -and everyone- seem synchronized. 

We also live in an imperfect world. 

We were boarded by United Airlines on time. That would be the last time anything on this journey would go as planned. 

After everyone was seated, overhead bins were closed and we taxied towards take-off the captain made an announcement that caused everyone to cringe. A generator in one the engines had malfunctioned. A repair crew from the terminal was brought out. There was no estimated time for resolution. 

We sat. We waited. My fellow passengers and I made due with what we had. Patience is a virtue, right? 

A half-hour turned into 45 minutes. An hour passed. The repair crew did what it could. Then some paperwork needed to be signed to authorize the flight to depart. We continued on waiting.

Then came the announcement. The prognosis for the generator was not good. We were to return to the terminal and disembark. 

Lo and behold, we heard that United had a spare plane available! It’s nice to have a spare! A groan reverberated throughout the cabin. 

Upon disembarking a few of the flight crew came and sat with me. One asked me, “Do you believe this?” I thought that was supposed to be our (paying passenger) question to them. 

We waited about an hour more.

Our replacement plane arrived. We were instructed to gather our things -and walk two gates over. 

At least this time boarding would be from the rear of the cabin forward. I was in the back and seated along the aisle. Those of you who fly United know that aisle seat passengers are boarded last. This means that if space for your carry-on exists in the overhead compartment you should be congratulated. So, me and my fellow passengers in the back smiled at each other. We got in line as quickly as we could. 

The flight eventually departed at 11:30 p.m., or over three hours late. By now we were stoically resigned to the situation. There’s no sense in complaining, especially with over 250 people going through the same thing. 

I would not sleep very much. One of the annoying things about the TV monitors on the back headrests was that you could not turn them off. Even with my eyes closed I could detect the lights. 

The flight attendants came around with water and soft drinks only twice throughout ten hours. They seemed more expressively annoyed than we were. That was disappointing. 

What a contrast this was to my March flights to and from Japan and Singapore. Flying internationally is such a better experience than flying domestically in the USA. What a letdown! 

About midway through the flight the captain came on the speaker system. A doctor was requested. A medical emergency involving a passenger in the front of the cabin had occurred. To their credit the flight crew handled this well. 

I noticed that we seemed to be heading much closer to Los Angeles, causing me to wonder if we would land there. Instead, we continued onward, non-stop all the way. 

Our landing at Liberty International/Newark was a hard one. The plane seemed to drop and roll forward on the runway with a noticeable thud. It was quite a jolt. But at least we arrived.

The first thing I noted about the terminal was how incredibly bright and hectic everything was. I had to wear my sunglasses. 

People of all walks of life seemed to be scurrying everywhere without any pattern or outcome. It was chaos. The floors and white-colored walls were bright and clean. The skies above were hazy. 

An old familiar friend! But unlike other Starbucks establishments in the civilize world this one did not come with complimentary online access. Oh, and 'airport rates' are what coffee is charged here. Be prepared to mortgage a few years off your life or body parts. Never mind...

My first step home was completed. But there was more to come!

Smart Water was one of my dumbest purchases. I picked this up at Baggage Claim for US$3.75. After going almost fourteen hours with hardly anything to drink a lot of us were desperate. There are no water fountains anywhere. (See my previous comment about living in an imperfect world.) 

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"I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning." J.B. Priestley. Try that on this Newark, New Jersey crowd and see what happens. 

Repeat after me: “I love the New Jersey Turnpike! I love the New Jersey Turnpike! Yes I do! Yes I do!”

Nope, it did not work for me either. At least we tried. 

Bob Keeler is my cousin on my late-father’s side of the family. He works for the City of Stamford, Connecticut. Bob is a member of the 'Swamp Yankee' portion of our far-flung multitude. For the past two years or so he's always there to pick me up and drop me off. 

One of the positive outcomes of my belated flight schedule was that I would not be waiting several hours for him to arrive at Terminal C of Liberty International Airport, Newark. 

My wait was not long, perhaps 30-45 minutes. Bob arrived in his new/used pickup truck. I warned him by mobile phone that the police were cracking down on passenger pickups who decided to park instead of pick up. We had this procedure choreographed from past experience. 

So, when Bob arrived in flew my duffle bag, followed by me and my computer bag. The whole procedure was less than a minute. Off we went into the afternoon traffic. We congratulated each other for a pick-up well-done. 

This is me arriving in my ancestral home town, Greenwich, Connecticut, three days before Hurricane Sandy hit. On this 2014 trip the famous 'Hilly-Billy' Limo was nowhere to be seen. R.I.P. 

We were cruising quite nicely on the north-bound side of the New Jersey Turnpike. Swamplands surrounded us on both sides, and the mighty skyline of Manhattan was off in the distance to my right. 

We laughed. The music blared Bob’s favorite country western tunes. His cigar was triumphantly lit. I was describing our United Airlines Flying Circus experience when the engine abruptly off. So we glided along until we came to a stop on the side of the turnpike. 

After a few tries we made a discovery: the dashboard gas gauge was off by a quarter of a tank of gas. 

Sure, I love to learn new things. But the setting and the timing was not quite part of the plan. All I could do was burst out laughing and drink my  not-so-SmartWater. 

Bobby collects rubber duckies. When they are not on the dashboard they parade around in the hot tub at his mother's house in Springdale, Connecticut. 

These slippers were given to me by friends who brought them back from China, along with some fresh teas they urged me to bring along. While we waited for assistance to arrive I decided to deep breathe, relax, put my feet up and enjoy the natural beauty offered by the New Jersey Turnpike. I also called some friends in Hawaii to share my descriptions of the natural beauty around us. Zen moments like these are rare indeed. Ohmmmmmmmm....

If this ever happens to you call the New Jersey Turnpike Authority. For far less than AAA they sent someone to rescue us with a small tank of diesel fuel and a smile to go along with it. 

With a few gallons of diesel fuel to get us going and boost our spirits we arrived at the world-famous Vince Lombardi Service Area in Ridgefield, New Jersey USA.

I had a dream that some omnipotent power had teleported me to the armpit of the State of New Jersey. After we passed several truckers urinating in the bushes and coming up to this scene it dawned on me that this was no dream. It was all too real. I thought Tina Turner's 'Barter Town' on 'Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome' starring Mel Gibsen had much tastier decor, don't you agree? 

Did you know that New Jersey state law prohibits drivers form pumping their own gas? It's true. 

They say this is expensive. Try finding a gallon of gas for this price in Hawaii. 

This is the George Washington Bridge. It is a double-decked suspension bridge that spans the Hudson River. The borough of Manhattan in New York City is directly in front of us. Fort Lee in Bergen County is behind. 

There's Manhattan!

New Haven? Yup, we are heading for Connecticut and did so without incident. 

When I arrived in Connecticut I felt a deep sense of relief. While I am glad to have my readers and followers along for my journeys thither and yon, I am cognizant of the fact that most all of you would be chasing me with sharpened pitch-forks if you were with me on this flight. Would I blame you? Hell, no.

Later that night I received an apology email from United Airlines. I had a choice of accepting a cash award that would take weeks to process, or frequent flyer miles right away. I went for the latter of the two. No regrets.

It is still good to be home!