Cookies

We got up soon after reveille sounded. Chris took a shower while I drank water and checked e-mail. Then I took a shower. We started packing. There were leftover bananas and oatmeal so I made cookies. Chris put the unopened coconut out in the forest. I rolled my clothing and put it in plastic bags so it wouldn't fly all over. Chris washed the dishes. We left some food in the fridge because the maid said they sometimes eat leftovers for lunch. I shut down my laptop. I finished packing the suitcase, carry-on and purse. Chris put the luggage in the car. It was raining. The table was telling us directions even before we left the hotel room. We drove to the nearest gas station to fill the tank. Then we proceeded to the airport. By then the sun was shining and the sky was blue. We found the car rental parking lot, took out all our luggage, locked the car and walked to the airport. We found a place for me to sit while Chris turned in the keys. The lady said she needed to inspect the car first. So we waited. When she came back, she said the back of the car was damaged. Chris walked out there to inspect it. I remembered that we backed into something, but Chris said it looked like someone ran into our car. So he had to file a police report. Since the car was in our possession, we are responsible for the repairs. It took a long time. Then we put all our luggage together and took the elevator to the second floor. We checked in at the Jinair desk, then dropped the suitcases at a conveyor belt off to the side. Then we followed the signs to the departure section. We walked through the duty-free section. We looked all over for the honey produced by Hamamoto Fruit Farm, but we couldn't find any. Passing through that section, we came to a seating section. We asked if we could wait in the prestige lounge, but there was no cross-over there with Delta Air. We tried to find the departure gate, but there was only wall. We went back to ask and the man said he would open the wall closer to departure time. So we sat near one of the pillars which had outlets. We got on our laptops to read e-mail while we waited almost 90 minutes. I had just listened to a 30 minute audio when some announcement was made about our flight. So we packed up and headed to the gate. We waited there for a short time before lining up to board. Chris and I were both in an aisle seat, across from each other in the exit row. There was a Korean couple beside me and another beside him. The stewardess made me put my purse in the overhead bin. Nothing was allowed under the seat for take-off. I put in my ear plugs as we took off, then took them out when the drink cart started. We were served a box of treats and a cup of water. The box contained a muffin, a croissant, and a cup of jello. I gave it all to Chris. I ate two hardboiled eggs and some raisins. Chris had given me two wing beans, also. I leaned back and tried to sleep. I think I actually did for a bit. Then I got my purse down and had some cookies. I offered some to my seat mates and they took a really small one. Chris took one, too. I did some imagination tapping. My seatmates were sniffling and coughing, which made me wonder if they had taken cold meds before take off and the meds had worn off. I was bored and I wanted to get up. Later I got out my tablet and played a game of Sudoku. But then they announced the descent. So I shut it down and packed it away in my purse which then went back in the overhead bin. I rubbed and pulled at my ears to equalize pressure all the way down. It worked pretty well, this time. As we descended, I looked out the window. It was a solid faint blue. Figuring we were in a cloud, I wondered if I could see my data lol. I was wearing a short sleeved shirt and was comfortable on the plane. We landed, everyone stood up and Chris got our carry-ons from the overhead. When the line finally moved, I thought we'd be walking off the plane, onto a raised, covered walkway into a warm airport. But instead, we walked down uncovered steps to a bus. But the bus filled up before Chris and I got there. So we waited in the cold. I reached into my carry-on and pulled out a jacket. Others were not so lucky. It seemed too long before the shuttle came back for more of us. Then we were taken to the warm airport. We had to wait in line at immigration. The Korean passport lines moved quickly, but the foreign passport lines moved slowly. Eventually we were waved over to the now-empty Korean lines. Chris and I went through different lines. He had to place his finger on a scanner and have his picture taken, but I did not. Then we went to baggage claim. Our suitcases were almost at the end of the conveyor belt. We rescued them and showed our baggage claim tickets to prove they were ours. Then we walked through customs with no search. Our cab driver was waiting outside the doors. He and Chris stood with the luggage while I visited the ladies room. Then we followed the driver out the door and into the parking garage to his car. He wound his way through the lanes of the airport to get to the main road. I asked him if he'd like a cookie. He accepted, saying he was really hungry. So when he finished, I gave him another. That was the last cookie, so then I offered him a chocolate. He accepted that, too. Then he remarked at length that it was not sweet. I almost thought he was disappointed, but then he said something about being diabetic. So I gave him the last one. When we got to the base, The guards checked our ID, then gave the driver a breathalyzer test. Chris said later that it was a random check, but I thought I smelled something fruity. I wondered if the cookies and chocolate, though sugarless, were a good idea. He dropped us off at the sidewalk. Chris paid him and we carried our luggage to our place. I pulled a bag of cookies out of my suitcase and took them to the kitchen where I slathered them with butter. Oh, they were so good! Chris made himself a cheese tortilla. I ate the ham that was left from before we left. I found a layer of coconut oil on top of water in the kettle. I took the solid coconut oil out, then filled the pot with water and boiled it. I poured the water over a handful of nuts for tomorrow. The rest of the boiling water got poured outside. I checked e-mail then started writing up my blog post for today. I thought about how nice it was to come home to a clean house. Chris and I sat down to watch two episodes of Terra Nova. Then he had to sit in on a conference call on his computer. I handed him my watch and a new band. My old band had come unglued weeks ago and I tried taping it but it did not stay. I lived through our vacation without a watch on. But the new band would not fit. It was just a bit too wide for the watch itself. I offered to sand the ends down, but Chris said it would compromise the stitching. Then he suggested I stitch the old band where the glue let go. I did not think it would work. I thought the needle holes would rip the band. But there was nothing to lose. So I put black thread on my machine and, very carefully, stitched a box right in front of the buckle. I used a hand needle to bring the top threads to the bottom so I could tie them off. Then I stitched the other end of the band because it was glued, too. I tied off the thread ends, then returned the band segment to Chris. He attached it to the watch face, and I was able to wear it just fine. I was tired so I just finished my blog post and went to bed. Or would have, but the bed had suitcases on it. So I unpacked mine and put most of the items away. Then I washed my footies and left them in the sink to soak. Then I posted to my blog and went to bed.
* These are the cookies I made last Friday. The ones for today were a little crispier. *