1) Delayed flights
I’ve been pretty lucky when it comes to plane travel. I’ve only had one delayed flight, if you can believe that. Well, not on Wednesday! It was hard to find a nonstop flight to New Orleans for some reason, so we were flying to Charlotte first and then catching a connecting flight to New Orleans. Our flight to Charlotte was scheduled for 2 p.m. and we’d have about an hour until our flight to New Orleans around 5:30 p.m. We’d get to New Orleans right around 8 p.m. Unfortunately, our flight to Charlotte was delayed by over two hours, which meant we’d completely miss our connecting flight. There were a lot of frustrated people at the airport that day! Thankfully, we got rebooked on a new flight automatically through the American Airlines app so we didn’t have to worry about anything. Unfortunately, the new flight was at 8 p.m. so we wouldn’t get into New Orleans until after 10 p.m. That connecting flight was then delayed by half an hour so it was closing in on 11:30 p.m. (after midnight to our bodies that were on Eastern time) when we finally got to our hotel. Whew, what a travel day! Thankfully, our flights home did not have any delays.
But the exciting part of our flights were that we didn’t have anyone in the third seat with us for three of the four flights! That meant we could stretch out with one of us at the window seat and one of us at the aisle seat for those flights, which was pretty sweet!
2) The saga of my house keys
I’m always worried about losing my house keys when I travel. I always put them in the same zippered part of my backpack, but still, I worry that somehow they will drop out of my bag. When we got back into town, my stepdad picked my mom and me up from the airport and then we went to dinner. Then, he drove us back to my place. Before I let them leave, I checked my backpack to make sure I had my keys. And I could not find them anywhere! I took everything out of my backpack, everything out of my purse, and even opened up my suitcase to see if I had somehow stuffed them in there. The keys were nowhere to be found. At this point, it was 9 p.m. so I called my apartment’s emergency line to see if they could help me out. When an hour went by without any word from them, I had to start calling locksmiths. The first locksmith I called didn’t have anyone available until the morning, the second locksmith said he could come out in an hour (but then there was an issue where he called my phone and I didn’t answer because my phone, for some reason, sent the calls right to voicemail, so when I realized he had called and called him back, he said he had taken two jobs in the 10 minutes he was waiting on me—felt suspicious, but whatever). Finally, I got ahold of a locksmith that was able to send someone out right away. He arrived within 20 minutes of my original call.
I thought getting into my house would be easier because my cat sitter only uses the knob lock (not the deadbolt) on her last visit, so that she can leave my spare key inside of my apartment (rather than putting it under the doormat). But I think it might have been harder? The locksmith had to really destroy my doorknob to get it to unlock, which meant I had to pay even more money for this service. In the end, it cost me $390, which made me want to throw up, but what could I do? I had to get into my apartment! I hadn’t realized we were getting back so late, so I hadn’t had the cat sitter come the day we were coming home. The girls don’t have automatic feeders, so they hadn’t had food all day! I was terrified they were hungry and sad. (True story: I started crying when the second locksmith told me he couldn’t come because I just wanted to be home and with my girls.)
Anyway, the fun part of this story is that I found my house keys as I was unpacking!!! They were in my backpack all along!!! Three of us completely unpacked this backpack and felt around, and none of us noticed the keys!!! I paid $400 for no reason!!!
The expensive lessons I learned were: a) always ask my cat sitter to put the key under the doormat, b) always make sure my mom has a spare key at her house, and c) make sure the next apartment I rent has a smart door lock.
3) Souvenirs!
Whenever I visit a new city, I try to find a handful of souvenirs to bring back home: a magnet for my fridge, a Christmas ornament for my tree, a t-shirt, a mug, and locally made art. Yes, it’s a lot but I’m not always successful at finding all of them. In New Orleans, I was! I had great luck finding all of my souvenirs—and then some.
We’ll start with the books. At Garden District Book Shop, I purchased three books and was excited when my mom pointed me in the direction of their Agatha Christie collection. I picked out all of the Christie books I hadn’t read and then looked up the Goodreads rating. Five Little Pigs had the highest rating (4.03 stars, if you’re curious), so I bought it. And I also got a beautiful new hardcover edition of Anne of Green Gables.
I also found a magnet, Christmas ornament, mug, and t-shirt. Yay!
I found this piece of art in a local shop, but then we stumbled onto the art fair later on that day and I was bummed I already bought my piece! Ah, well. I love the one I selected!
And lastly, at the art fair, I did purchase this really cute cat painting. I couldn’t pass it up! It’s a cat and my favorite color? It also has pre-drilled holes so I can nail it into a wall easily.
4) The flare of all flares
Leading up to my trip, my psoriasis was the worst it’s ever been. I had these big red patches on both sides of my scalp and they were so, so, so itchy. I tried everything: my steroid gels, apple cider vinegar, OTC psoriasis cream, specialized shampoo, etc. I was ready to call my dermatologist and demand an emergency appointment because things had gotten to such a bad state. On Wednesday, the day we were flying into New Orleans, the flare was still really bad. I was trying to keep things at bay by applying the steroid gels every few hours, which would help my scalp calm down for an hour or so. (I was so desperate for relief on one flight that I started rubbing an ice cube from my complimentary drink over the affected areas.) On the first day of our trip, before we did anything else, I found a CVS where I bought OTC cream (Exederm) as well as a numbing cream. (When I was scrolling the psoriasis Reddit forum late one night, someone mentioned numbing cream that would provide a bit of relief and I was willing to try anything at that moment.)
I felt so sorry for myself in the days leading up to the trip, thinking about dealing with this stupid flare and how it would affect how much I enjoyed my vacation. I applied the Exederm twice (on Thursday night and Friday morning) but starting on Friday, my psoriasis cleared up! It wasn’t itchy and the redness had lessened a bit. Was it the Exederm? Maybe. But I think this flare was 100% stress-related and that’s why I was in such a bad state. I think I was feeling a bit anxious about the vacation—leaving my cats, the logistics of flying, getting to New Orleans safe and sound, etc—and once we were there and enjoying ourselves, my psoriasis flare went away. It was such a relief. It’s been over a week since that really bad flare and I haven’t been putting any steroid gel or cream on my scalp (I wanted to give my scalp a break), and things are still doing good. I have an appointment with my dermatologist in a few weeks, and we will have a lot to chat about!
5) New shoes + new exercise routine = not being sore after walking all day!
One of the things I like least about vacation is all the walking, which always leads to me having sore feet and a sore body at the end of each day. After a few days of this, I am usually ready to chop off my feet and less likely to want to walk around and do things. The whole point of vacation is to walk around and do things! (And relax, but this wasn’t one of those vacations.) One of the things I noticed about this vacation was that I didn’t end each day with sore feet! I felt like I could walk farther without getting tired, and it was a truly eye-opening moment to realize that I am getting fitter from my new exercise routine. And also, it probably helped that I wasn’t walking around in four-year-old shoes that provided zero cushioning and support. There’s that, too.
What’s the last souvenir you bought? Have you ever needed the (expensive!) services of a locksmith?
Every year on Christmas Eve we all get a new ornament for the tree. The math is a bit alarming since there are four of us and a lot of years left before the kids leave home and take their ornaments…so this year my husband and I decided we will pick out an ornament together and get a single co-ornament moving forward (the kids will still each get a new ornament; I want them to have a nice collection to take into their adult homes). I’m a smidge sad because I LOVE ornaments but, also, it’s nice to have a say in what ornament I get. That is a long-winded way of saying the last souvenir I bought was a tree ornament from Barcelona which will be our shared ornament of the year. I’ve stashed it away in my gift bin and the kids didn’t see it so it will be a surprise to them anyway – we’ll open it Christmas Eve.
That locksmith story is THE WORST. I also live in absolute dread of losing my keys. I’ve never had to call a locksmith. I have two “key” stories though.
Last year we had a creepy contractor working on site (and by creepy, he is just very sullen and grumpy but did great work). Anyhoo, I managed to lock myself out of the house when he called me outside to talk about something and the only way I could get the spare key was to tell him where it was (there was a giant hole close to where I keep our spare key) and have him get it for me. My husband was out of town and I was SO STRESSED. I immediately re-hid the key in another location when he left for the day but it rattled me for sure.
My other key story is the time last December when I could not get my car to turn off. Not only could I not turn the key…but it was stuck in the “on” position. Again, my husband was out of town and my daughter broke a bracket on her braces while I was out in the freezing cold trying to get my car turned off for OVER AN HOUR. I had never heard of such a thing and it was STRESSFUL.
Gah. But, I’ve never had to get a locksmith. Could you upgrade your own door handle to the keyless entry kind? Would your landlord allow that? It might be great for peace of mind for you?
Oh, those locksmith stories sound awful! I hate dealing with maintenance people in my apartment but at least the majority of them are somewhat pleasant. Ack.
I would LOVE to do a keyless entry but my apartment wouldn’t allow it. One of the apartment communities I looked at last year has a keyless entry, and I am highly considering moving into one of their two-bedrooms simply for that upgrade!
I bought so much merch at my alma mater’s bookstore when I last visited! Does that count as souvenirs? If not, I got some postcards and stickers at a Frank Lloyd Wright tour when I went with Birchie.
Getting an ornament for your tree is such a smart idea. If my husband and I ever go someplace together, I’ll have to do that!
When we first moved into our house, we had friends over for a tour. They had a toddler and he wandered around the house doing toddler things and we didn’t pay him very much mind except to make sure he wasn’t in danger from the cat. He managed to lock our door (on the doorknob) and we didn’t notice and then we went to take out the garbage or something later that night and we had to call a locksmith. It wasn’t $400, though!
It’s fun to see my ornaments I’ve gotten through my travels!
I was SHOCKED when the locksmith told me the price. Oof. I think a combination of emergency visit + late at night + destroying my doorknob = hefty price. Ugh.
Ugh the key situation is a nightmare. I always put my keys in the exact same place when I travel so this doesn’t happen to me. But I am coming back to an occupied home so don’t have to worry about not getting in since Phi’s there to let me in! Instead of putting the key under your mat, could you buy a lock box instead? That is a much more secure way to approach this. Lock boxes are pretty inexpensive so it shouldn’t cost much!
Ugh your flight delay sounds awful. Connections are so terrible! I rarely have to take them since I live in a Delta hub!
I’m glad your flare got better fast! That sounds so uncomfortable! I can so relate to the pain of dealing with flares. Mine is bad again since I have tapered down my steroid dose. Bleh.
I’ll have to look into the lockbox idea! That’s a good thought.
I’ve been pretty good about not dealing with connections – they really are the worst! And just the idea of going through the boarding/deplaning process FOUR TIMES during one trip is annoying.
I love reading that all that walking didn’t feel horrible! Yay! I am proud of you! Your hard work IS paying off.
I would have been crying about my keys and seeing my babies too. I hate that that happened. And it won’t happen again!
Ugh. The delays. That is such a late and stressful start to the trip. Blah.
I am glad your skin cleared up!
And I love seeing all the souvenirs!
It felt good to be able to walk around without feeling worn out! My feet are usually destroyed by the end of a trip.
I just wanted to see the girls! It was such a long, awful night. 🙁
Ugh, so sorry about the delayed flights (but it happens) and even more the locksmith situation. Especially since your keys turned up as soon as you were in your apartment. Was the cat sitter too far away, so she could have come to let you in? I am sorry about the totally unnecessary $400 spent, but I am glad you already have a good plan for the next time you travel. It’s good to have a backup key somewhere!
The cat sitter leaves my key in the apartment on the last day she’s scheduled for a visit – she doesn’t keep the spare key unless she’s doing regular visits. So unfortunately, that was not an option. I can’t believe I didn’t have a backup key at my mom’s house. Such an expensive mistake!
Beides the key & flight situation your vacation sounds like a lot of fun. New Orleans must be so pretty and interesting. I am sure we will read a bit more, right?
We managed to look ourselves out a couple of years ago in the lakefront apartment. Shortly after going in so my parents didn’t have the key yet. It was the stupidest thing too. We were going to head out on a bike ride but beforehand I needed to go to the pharmacy to pick something up. Just when I wanted to leave the house I saw the mail man come. He usually takes return packages so I went after him to give them to him. At the same time the husband left the apartment to get his bike ready. Unfortunately he realized he forgot the keys the same minute the door shut. he asked me to open the door but I hadn’t yet grabbed the key because he was inside and I just wanted to catch the mail guy… Tada… there we were.
Luckily we both had our phones and I had my money/bank card too. The first calls we made they quoted a price of 780€. We were in shock… Eventually we found a guy who was able to be there in 15 minutes and only charged 130€. I wasn’t even able to run to the bank to get the money in time and he was done. Since we didn’t lock the door and it just fell shut it was an easy job. So easy that I was honestly scared how easy. Well, we did learn to always have a spare key somewhere else immediately.
I think the lesson I learned from the locksmith situation is that maybe I should be a locksmith?? Nearly $400 for 30 minutes of work – not a bad gig. I’m sorry you also had to deal with a situation like this. It’s not fun at all!
That locksmith story is a nightmare!!! It reminds me of something Gretchen Rubin says- when you “lose’ something, always look extra hard in the place you THINK it should be. For some strange reason this is a common thing- you’re searching frantically everywhere, and the lost item is actually right where it was supposed to be all along and you just overlooked it. Well- it could have been worse. Now you’ll have a system in place so this doesn’t happen again (like in the middle of the night or something.)
I love the souvenirs from your trip!!! I know I’ve read Five Little Pigs, but I don’t remember it. Maybe I’ll reread it. I just reread A Murder is Announced, and unfortunately I remembered who the murderer was halfway through. But I still read to the end and enjoyed it- I felt like I was getting a behind-the-scenes look at how she puts it all together.
Yay for being more comfortable with all the walking on your trip! That’s what all the trips to the gym are really for- so you can enjoy life to the fullest.
It was crazy because THREE of us tore apart that backpack to look for the keys but I think it got caught in the lining or something, and none of us noticed it. Ugh. What a mess!
Ooh, I think it would be really interesting to reread A Murder Is Announced knowing who the murderer was. It really is like getting that behind-the-scenes look!
Oh Stephany, that locksmith story had me on the edge of my seat. SO FRUSTRATING. What an awful way to end the trip! So glad your delays happened at the beginning of the trip instead of the end – that would have made it so much worse.
Yay for exercise routines working their magic!!!! I love walking but I also feel like cutting my feet off after a few days on a walking-heavy vacation, lol.
It put such a bad taste in my mouth for this trip, which isn’t great because we did have a good time! I just wish I had searched that damn backpack ONE MORE TIME and maybe I would have found the keys. Ugh.
YES – I relate to the cutting my feet off mentality so well. By the third day of a walking-heavy vacation, I’m just so DONE and it means I don’t get to see everything I wanted to see! So I’m glad that my feet felt a lot better this time around.
THE HOUSE KEYS. What an ordeal. How frustrating – I am so upset on your behalf!
I love your souvenirs, and I’m so happy you were able to walk without pain. I find there is always so much walking on vacation, and it’s so great you were able to do that without pain.
As for the psoriasis, ugh. It sure does sound like it could be stress/ anxiety induced, which is such a bother but at least you know. I hope that flare doesn’t happen again.
It was such an ordeal. And so stupid. Ah well. Sometimes we need to learn an expensive lesson, and I guess it was my turn to do that.
Oh man that locksmith story sounds like my friend K, who used to “lose” her ATM card all the time and then after ordering a new one, would find it right in her car, where she looked multiple times. She also has locked herself out of her house and car multiple times. She now has about 10 people who have a key to her house just in case!
I love the art you got in NOLA (and the books!) The style is so whimsical; I really like it.
So smart to have MULTIPLE people who have her house key. I don’t know WHY I don’t have my mom keep a spare at her house. Well, now I know that’s a requirement! Argh.
I worry about this, too, since I also live alone. That said, my apartment emergency line is staffed with people who are on our maintenance staff. So, hopefully, they’d be able to let me in. And my spare key is in a drawer…inside…but I also don’t know anyone local with whom I could leave it! It’s a conundrum, for sure. Sigh. The perils of being single. Seriously. (Also, I hope you went to your mom’s? Can you imagine if you Ubered and lived far away from them? YIKES!)
LOVE that the new shoes were so awesome AND that the OTC stuff worked. Honestly, sometimes that’s just the case. Sometimes generic OTC hydrocortisone >> the prescription strength stuff. I hope your dermatologist sorts it out.