Travel day finally arrives

Woken early by Ottawacker Jr. who wanted to (a) remind me that I hadn’t yet finished packing (and that I was leaving today) and (b) see if there was any chance of me finishing reading our book before he left to school. We’ve been working our way through There’s No Escape by Ian Serraillier, which is another of the books I had as a child and had kept in the hope of one day reading. Never throw books away, you never know when a newly minted 11-year-old might prefer it to Xbox. So he crawled under the quilt and we read the last three chapters while Mrs Ottawacker made her way downstairs to get breakfast ready.

After he’d headed out to school, I got up and did some of the Massey University editing for RM, and then got down to packing. Part of the problem is going to two distinct climates on this trip: Lyon and the Drôme, which are in wintery climates, and Malaga, which is much warmer. The other part of the problem is that I refuse to plan/think ahead before I do things – so what should be a simple 30-minute job has been put off so many times that it becomes a rushed panic, during which I realize I should have bought new underwear, refilled prescriptions, looked for my passport, etc. I like to think Mrs Ottawacker sees this as being part of my quirky nature – yet, in reality, I imagine she just thinks I’m an idiot, as does my son.

Nonetheless, it got done, and I managed to beat the 23kg trap with some ease. It also got me out of taking Ottawacker Jr. for a doctor’s visit.

Airport at 4:30 for my 18:20 flight to Montreal, flowed by a quick burger at the micro brasserie Archibald ($24 for a burger and a handful of fries? Who cooked, it, Salt Bae?) and then the 21:30, which became the 22:30, to Lyon.

Do any flights leave on time any more?