Two Weeks

A lot can happen in two weeks.  Over the course of the past two weeks, Dave and I filmed an episode of a TV show and I flew back and forth from one continent to another.  It all started last fall after a nudge from Dave’s sister.  We filled out an online application for House Hunters International on HGTV.  After that, we were asked to send in a video of our house wish list, and then had to wait for a while.  Next thing we knew, we were told that we would be filmed in April and I would get flown back to Michigan for additional filming.  After we overcame the shock of what was unfolding in front of us, we started getting really excited for what was to come.  Our film crew, hailing from Scotland, could not have been more supportive of us rookie actors.  Each scene over the course of Saturday, Sunday, and Monday felt relaxed because of the direction from the crew.  Tuesday we squeezed in a dentist appointment along with Sarah packing for Michigan.  On Wednesday morning, we both rose at 3:30 a.m. Belfast time (10:30 p.m. Tuesday night Michigan time) to get Sarah ready for the taxi to take her to the airport.  The next 24 hours were a blur…what was included was re-checking a bag in Manchester because there weren’t enough “spaces on the ticket” to check it through all the way – during which I nearly missed my flight to Newark; then, once in Newark, encountered a delayed and eventually cancelled flight due to weather in Chicago, during which we got to sit on the tarmac for two hours before getting hauled back to the gate; a customer service agent consoling me, which was contradicted by another customer service agent who berated me for stepping up to the desk instead of waiting for him to call me to him; and finally getting the last seat on the last flight to Grand Rapids that night.  I was so relieved and exhausted by the time I got to Grand Rapids literally 24 hours after I started my trip that I just hugged my mom and cried on her shoulder once I saw her in Grand Rapids.  After I collected myself, we went over to customer service and placed a claim on my checked bag that was still in Newark and started the hour drive home to East Lansing.  Thursday was a much needed day of rest, followed by Friday, the last day of filming for our episode.  There really must be something to the saying that time flies when you’re having fun, because the rest of the week really flew by, including a trip up to Cadillac to see family, a trip over to Rockford to see Dave’s parents, sister, and grandma, dinner with one of my uncles, and lots of lunches and coffees with old friends.  Tomorrow I will be flying back to Belfast without worrying about weather delaying flights but rather the furlough of FAA flight controllers.  My entire life, one of my weaknesses has been my tendency to worry.  Since hearing about the FAA furloughs on Monday, I have been worrying about how it will affect my flights.  However, I will also be flying on the anniversary of my dad’s death, so I am trying to tell myself that he will be flying with me and will help protect me tomorrow just as he did his entire life before he died.  It will be the perfect way to cap a very busy and eventful two weeks.