propstm.net

So… Got to Chicago after a 45 minute delay in Grand Rapids. Ok, this is where the stress starts. I knew i was on a waiting list, so I decided to walk over to the United Service Center and ask if a clerk could check if there were any open
spots on the flight. The clerk’s response “Um… It’s full.” It all went down hill from there.

I was in O’Hare by 6:45 CST and my cancelled flight was supposed to leave at 8pm. No big deal, but this second flight that I was standby on was set to leave at 10:05 CST. There were about a dozen or so people from my cancelled flight that were waiting to hopefully get on the flight. Once I’d realized my chances of getting on looked slim, the flight was announced to be overbooked and people we asked to give up their seats.

So maybe a dozen of us or so went down to customer service to try to get a place for the night. I’m typing this out from the very nice Wyndham O’Hare Hotel (Thanks United!). It’s looking like i’ve got a place on standby for a flight from Chicago to Seattle leaving Chicago at 9:25am, if that falls through, I’ve got a ticket for a flight leaving Chicago at 11:55am, estimated time of arrival in Seattle 2:15pm PST.

PS-Eric you were right, my lesson will be expressed programatically for your amusement.

using System.PublicTransportation.Airlines;
using System.Airlines.United;
publicTrans = airline(typeof(United));
If (publicTrans == airline(typeof(United))) {
system.writeline("You will be delayed};
me.getHotel(Wyndham);
me.getRebooked(typeOf(tomorrow))
}
else {
system.writeline("You are now at your destination. Have a nice day. Thank you for flying " + airline);
}
If(me.stillBlogging == True)
system.writeline("Go to bed!");

So originally I was supposed to be going to Seattle two weeks ago. The flight was cancelled due to bad weather in Chicago. So my ticket was changed to this weekend, and I should have two flights to get to Seattle; Grand Rapids to Chicago, then Chicago to Seattle. The flight to Chicago leaves at 6:30EST and gets in Chicago at 7:30EST. From there I was supposed to have a flight from Chicago to Seattle which was to leave at 11:20EST and get into Seattle at 2:30EST. BUT, my initial flight to Seattle was cancelled. I found out today at about 3:00pm that my flight to Seattle was cancelled however I was rescheduled for 10:30am tomorrow morning. Before I start pissing and moaning about not having anywhere to sleep in Chicago, I went to the ticket counter for United and asked to see if there were any other flights from Chicago to Seattle and to be put on any of those flights.

So here’s where we are now: I’m on my way out of Grand Rapids at 6:36pm, and right now i’m waiting on a flight which would leave Chicago for seattle at 11:05pm EST. I would be flying stand by. This is the best they can do for now.

Hugh’s putting in his two cents about “A-List Gatekeepers” over at gapingvoid. Basic premise (unless i’m missing something) is that every blogger is a gatekeeper and your blogroll and links are what make you a gatekeeper. Do I care, is this relevant, well yes and no.

I started blogging in January of 2002 while still in high school. At that point in time I had no idea of a hierarchy of blogs, there was no A-Listers or Z-Listers in my mind, only those who I had on my “Friends List” as LiveJournal refers to it. This which i’ve come to realize is effectively my blogroll usually ran about 60 to 80 people during my time using LiveJournal. I’d say at any given time I knew, and had met face to face, about 80% of those people. My posts would average 3-4 Comments.

Now nearly 4 years later i’ve moved on (or up depending on your view) and with WordPress i’ve included my “Daily Reads” into my blogroll, the Scobles, Gapingvoids, the Ben Hammersleys. Stuff that I find interesting, and wouldn’t mind passing along for the next guy who happens upon my blog and sees the blogroll.

Now that I realize I get 1 comment on a good day if i’m lucky with propstm.net, I can’t help but ask at what point do those “A-Listers” look down at the little guy and take a chance reading our content? I promise (I hope) my stuff doesn’t entirely suck. Technorati says i’ve got 3 blogs linking to me, and sad to say one is simply this same blog at a my original address, before I had this domain (Argh! technorati can’t fix that!). The gates are there, the feeds exist, now if I could just get confirmation that the world sees and maybe cares what I write then I would know i’ve made it to the Blogosphere and not made a wrong turn somewhere.