do you ever have those times when there’s too much to say that you don’t know where to start or what to write about? it’s almost the anti-writer’s block. i have so much information – usually a weekend with my family will do that – fill me with quotes and stories and little bits – i could write 14 posts, not only one.
i could fill an entire post about how New York City is, well, like its own planet. i could fill an entire post about the reception i got from my bunnies when i got home. (two words: a – mazing). i could fill an entire post with stories about my mother (like the one where she tried to convince us that she bought her jean skirt at anthropologie. whatever. there’s no way.) i could fill an entire post about the new york subway system (rats!crazy people!) and how i completely take the Toronto subway for granted.
you see what i mean? it’s endless.
don’t worry…i will manage to get to them all. you’ll get all the funny family hijinks (now there’s a word that’s not used enough anymore.) what i AM going to write about today is this little thing called luck.
last night, as we were landing in Toronto (i must say, i DO love the personal on demand tv’s on air canada now…but on an hour flight i got to watch about 40 minutes of Last Kiss – the last kiss? – i’m not sure) i started stressing. we were WAY over out limit of $200 each. way, way, way over. but, we declared it…because that’s what we do. we forgot my canadian citizenship card at home. which means, essentially, that i had NO proof that i was a Canadian citizen. they weren’t going to let me in the country!
the guy just let us through. no questions. no problems. "you should carry that card with you. don’t forget it next time." nothing about the fact that we were hundreds over our limit.
let me just say that i’m thankful. oh, so thankful. it could have been a catasrophe. but instead, we were out of the airport in minutes. our bags were the first 2 off the carousel. cha-ching. doesn’t get much better than that.
but, i ask you, why is it when i’m traveling alone with my husband, and i have no legal documents of any kind, and i have spent too much money in the states…am i shuffled right on through…but when it’s midnight and i’m traveling with my three screaming kids and have all the right documents…and have not declared more than i’m allowed…am i given the third degree and pulled over for questioning? seriously?
what about all of you? do you have any horrible crossing the border/customs/traveling with kids stories? i’d love to hear them!
song of the day: Nothing Left to Lose by Mat Kearney. because i saw him play it on Letterman. and i already like him 🙂
video of the day: El Nino visiting the (freezing cold) Ed Sullivan theater. and i was there!!!
come on over and say hi at Cheaper Than Therapy today where we discuss what i did and didn’t do in NYC 😉
when i was about 15 or 16, we went to montreal for a bar mitzvah. on the way back to ny, my brother and i were commenting about how cool it would be if we were pulled over at customs. no sooner do we pull up to the booth, we are ushered off to the side into a garage. a number of male and female officers were approaching the car with their hands on their sidearms. yup. a family of four is quite threatening. as we get out of the car, they inform us that the car is stolen. yes, stolen. see, we borrowed my grandfather’s car. which had in fact been stolen at one time. the dmv issued my grandfather a new plate that was exactly the same as the old one. the problem was that some stupid idiot forgot to alter the records to reflect that. so we pull through customs and our car shows up as stolen. after some convincing, we were on our merry way. bureaucracy!
Hey Ali! Writing from Panorama BC…here with lovely Kath of Losing It! fame. We are having a grand old time (read our posts!) but wanted to share our travel HORROR STORY!!!
My fam and I left T.O. on Saturday. Our flight was to leave at 6:50am…we got to the airport at 6:20am. By the time we got to security (and after my Starbucks…shame) we were being paged – FINAL BOARDING CALL! Of course, at that exact moment, I was being harrassed by a mean looking security agent who took issue with me trying to move my family along in the line (little did I know she was the chick in charge…argh). I was desperate…then I got searched. My hubby and my son ran ahead to try and hold the plane and my daughter and I were stuck…being searched…in security. I almost cried so I think they took pity on me!
We ran…my little 4 year old and I with ALL of the carry on luggage…we ran like the F’n wind! But, the plane had already been secured by the time we reached the gate. We missed it!!! But, not really. That’s what they said but with a crying 7 year old miracles can occur! We got on the plane…10 minutes late and a lot of dirty looks from fellow passengers but we made it!
And then, in Calgary, almost to spite us, our skis didn’t arrive! But that’s a whole notha story! 😉
Have a great week!
I don’t have any horrendous travel stories…’Cept that one where the monkey twisted her tooth and we ended up at ER and the dentist….But, nothing nightmarish about the traveling itself.
You got way lucky, girl. Now, do share what you bought! Tell us! With pictures!
in 2001 we went to Gautamala,via Texas(houston,i think)it was hell!they even went so far as to make us take off our shoes.EVEN THE ONE YEAR OLDS!they double searched every bag,suitcase,carry-on,purse ,video-cam etc.it was unbeleivable.i mean i understand being extra-cautious but would i seriously plant explosives in my baby girls shoes?of course the socks came off too.for that matter what size of weapon would fit in a tiny toddlers shoe?