Friday
For those of you who don't know me well may not know that I am a privileged Delta "brat," a term some have dubbed those of us who are the children of Delta employees who are lucky enough to receive flight benefits and fly standby (quite an adventure in and of itself) for free. During my last internship with Caterpillar I was quite surprised to find out that Peoria is an international airport, and I got ahead of myself thinking that any airport that is an international airport would surely have a nonstop flight from the world's busiest airport, Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson. Little did I know, the only reason Peoria is an international airport is because my beloved Caterpillar Inc. is able to ship cargo internationally as well as host customers from international origins. However, it was just my luck that earlier this year in April, Delta came to their senses and recognized the great demand for people, such as myself, to fly directly to Peoria, and they re-opened the route.
While this "direct flight" detail may seem superfluous to some, it is definitely a factor in where I live in the future. If a city doesn't have a flight that goes directly to Atlanta, then it is one of two things:
1. Too disconnected
2. Too far away from my friends and family
So, needless to say, I was extremely happy to find out Peoria re-opened the route, and on Friday, I had the opportunity to experience the delightful 1.5 hour flight in the cramped confines of seat 1A. Per usual, I was knocked out and dead asleep before the flight took off...a common theme of my flying experiences.
As soon as I landed, I headed to MARTA where I proceeded to wait approximately 30 minutes for one train to show up (train transportation is one of my biggest problems I have with Atlanta), and by the time I reached the Midtown station, the band that my friends and I were going to see had already been playing for about 30 minutes.
Just sittin' around here watchin' airplanes...take off and fly.
Airtran flight about to land at Hartsfield-Jackson
From Left to Right:
Vivian, Natalie, Summer, and myself.
Hopping around the bars throughout Buckhead, we quickly realized we should have gotten to the bars sooner than midnight as Atlanta has not caught on to the trend of keeping bars open past 2 AM; however, we managed to have a fantastic time despite Summer's failed efforts to make friends with the policeman blocking our entry at Johnny's Hideaway at 2:45.
"Sir, if you were taking your wife out right now, where would you take her?" - Summer
Saturday
Well, spending time with my best friends was not the reason I made the trip to Atlanta this time. On Saturday, I joined my family in celebrating my little sister's high school graduation which marked the end of an amazing, 14-year long chapter of Carlsons attending Marist School. Fortunately, the end of her time at Marist also marks the beginning of her time contributing to the Carlson legacy at Georgia Tech! Jennifer was able to end her time at Marist with a 4.0 GPA during her last term (which I told her to cherish because it may be her last...) and aced her three AP exams, so I would venture to say she is definitely ready to take on GT.
Lil' J making it happen
From Left to Right:
Nikki, myself, Dad, Derek, Jennifer, Mom
Ramblin' Wrecks from Georgia Tech
Sunday
Waking up bright and early on a Sunday is only worth it when...you get to see your best friend from high school who you haven't seen in WAY too long!!! Jen and I go back to seventh grade volleyball tryouts at Marist. From the beginning, she has always been my voice of reason and logic, a role model, a pusher, and my bestie. So, I cannot attempt to convey to y'all how excited I am not only to have her back in Atlanta this Fall but also with me in the gym coaching Pace Academy's seventh grade volleyball team! Similar to our 6 AM workouts before school throughout high school, we made our way out to Kennesaw Mountain (really a mole hill for anyone who is serious into hiking, but for being about 25 minutes from downtown Atlanta, it rightfully earns the title of "mountain"). Two hours, countless stories, and an ab workout from great laughs later, we were back in the car jamming out to some Carly Rae Jepsen with the windows down and livin' the dream.
Clearly ignoring the "Please Keep Off Cannon" sign...
Familial graduation celebrations ensued later in the evening at an adorable, French restaurant in Buckhead called Anis. It puts a smile on my face just thinking about writing about the evening from the notes we all wrote to Jennifer on her picture frame to the poem-writing contest to the near-attack of our waitress at the slightest hope there were still the infamous crepes available, the night was absolutely perfect!
Derek
Derek's poem...
Nikki
Nikki's poem to me (graves referring to the opportunity I have to attend the National Gravediggers training with Caterpillar equipment..."Oh the places you'll go")
Jennifer and Brooks: the two GT bound graduates
The Family: we aren't all that strange...
Monday, Memorial Day
Well, one mountain simply isn't enough...so we woke up early this morning and went after Stone Mountain this time! Joined by two other great friends from high school, Lindsey and Lindsay, Jen and I were at it again. Today was a beautiful day for Stone Mountain because it was overcast and not too hot (providing the melanin-lacking best friend a "sneaky sunburn"), and when we reached the top, there were two hawks simply soaring with the winds. Getting to catch up with these girls makes me realize just how much I have missed them. They played integral parts in my fondest Marist memories, and I hope that as we go forward that we are able to recreate adventures such as our ski/snowboard senior spring break with our vacation days (from what jobs...we aren't quite sure yet), our Emmaus retreats, and who could forget the countless hours spent in the volleyball gym?
From Left to Right:
Jen, Lindsay, Lindsey, and myself
If you look close you should be able to see one of the hawks...
View from the top of Stone Mountain
A home-cooked dinner was just the cherry on top, and being able to share it with Summer and Natalie was such a treat!
To finish my perfect weekend, I arrived at the airport about an hour and twenty minutes early. Mind you, this is about 40 minutes more than the time I allotted before I departed for Beijing, so clearly I was worried about the Memorial Day security traffic...but, as always, Hartsfield-Jackson was on top of its game and got me through in no time. I was able to walk off my mom's delicious dinner as I walked to Concourse C. I got on the flight from Atlanta to Peoria in a seat which lies in the "hillbilly first class" as Derek likes to call it or the "Exit Row" as the FAA prefers to call it. On the flight were the other two GT-Caterpillar interns who had both returned home for their siblings' high school graduations. In keeping with tradition, I was asleep as soon as I heard the pilot announce "there is a waxy substance on the Left wing and we will have to wait for maintenance to remove it before we depart," and I awoke when the wheels were released under the wing to prepare for landing. As we descended, I was able to look out and watch, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful things ever: a lightning storm from the sky.
I grabbed my bags and headed to my car where I found that I had left my car unlocked the entire weekend (you can't do that in Atlanta and expect to find your security badge and running iPod still on your dash...).
It was truly the perfect weekend, and I can't wait for it to carry me through this week!
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