AT LAST

...I'm revealing the first pictures of my trip to New York City. I know, it's hard to believe since it's been almost two months...AND since these photos don't show a shred of the city itself! That's because they were taken on our way there. I figured I ought to explain why my glasses look so ridiculous in all the pictures I'm in beforehand, so you're prepared. It is with some chagrin that I share all of these photos with me looking like some kind of blonde, female version of Erkel, but I had to quickly come to terms with it, seeing (intentional, yes) as how I wanted to experience NYC to the fullest, and that required my glasses.

So, here's the story...me and my friend Karyn had eaten some Burger King at the food court area of the Salt Lake City airport and were settling in by the gate for the remaining 15-20 (I think--I don't remember well, partly because it's been so long, but mostly because once the following occurred, time seemed to morph into this twisted 'speed up, slow way down' mode for me) minutes left before boarding began. I was standing in front of my chair, cleaning my glasses as I often do, when SNAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The frames busted in two!!!!! I was stunned. Shocked. Frozen with disbelief and fear. What in the world was I going to do??? For those of you who don't know, my prescription is slight. Just enough to help me see things in the distance more crisply. Just enough to give me a headache if I don't wear them for several hours and/or if I try to focus on things at a distance (which happened to me by the time I got to New York, 'course it didn't help that I watched Mama Mia--for the first time--on the plane and the drop-down screen closest to us was hindered by the sun's reflection through someone's window on the other side of the plane). I don't own more than one pair of glasses with my current prescription. I started to panic. I kinda laughed to Karyn and said something like, "Oh NOOOOOO!! What am I going to doooo??" I figured I should try tape. The counter at the gate just had packaging tape with the word PACKAGE or DELTA written in bold, red letters on it. So, they told me to try the gift shop kiddy-corner to our gate. All she had there was Scotch tape, but I was hopeful. My heart was pounding and I was in a freaked out, surreal state of being, but I went to work. I taped it as best I could. It was barely holding. And the way my glasses slumped to the sides from the broken center distorted my ability to see clearly. I decided to try reinforcing the hold by attaching my magnetized sunglasses clip. That kinda helped. Karyn texted her friend we'd be staying with/hanging with to alert her of the emergency, asking her to have glues standing by for us at her apartment. Though I was so distraught about my situation, I knew I had done what I could for the time being, and I was grateful that I didn't really need my glasses for the flights there. I was trying to deal with it as well as I could. And I have to say, I did well. Ask Karyn. Those of you who know me well know that I would've likely had a complete meltdown into hysterics about a similar occurrence in the past. But I did not. In fact, I laughed a lot about it. I have to thank Karyn though; if it had not been for her calm attitude and her positivity, I don't think I would've behaved as well as I did. Though it DIDN'T help that that she would glance at me and then turn away quickly, stifling a smile and giggle...! Can't even remember how many times that happened, not only on the way there, but once we got there and even got them semi-repaired! By then though, she was comfortable to just laugh out loud, right at me. GEESH!! :)

here i am, in line on the jet-way, tolerating Karyn's smothered snickers...i decided i might as well get a picture to document this craziness!! (12-4-08)

i had to get a picture of Karyn too, after we got to our seats and while we waited to pull away from the gate. she was so happy about having her pic taken, can you tell?!?

i think this was when i put my glasses back on, so that perhaps i could see something out the window as we circled (for 20 minutes!) before landing at La Guardia...this is what happened a few minutes later. see the right part of my glasses dangling from my ear??

By the time we got to New York, my trying-to-be-upbeat spirit was fizzling out. I was tired and I was worried that I wasn't going to be able to get my glasses sufficiently working again. I went to work almost immediately after arriving at Andy's place. I wasn't having any luck, and by that point, I was pretty close to breaking down and/or throwing them across the room. Karyn and Andy spent some time trying their luck. Karyn got them kinda-sorta together and we decided to see how sturdy they'd be after sitting all night. I'd purchased them at a Target Optical, so we looked online if there was one close by...not so. Though I was clinging to hope they'd be better in the morning, they weren't. Not even with glue AND electrical tape. And we'd tried at least two different kinds of glue and tape. Karyn had kept saying we needed to get some Gorilla Glue, since SLC even. Since Andy didn't have any, we decided our first stop would be Sid's Hardware right by Andy's office building. We brought the black tape along with us as a reinforcer. Then we headed up to Andy's office. By that point, I could hardly DEAL with this seriously unfortunate dilemma. I did try my hand with the super glue for plastics, but that didn't work, even after letting it set for longer than the package said it would take to dry and be effective. Karyn took over and went to work with the Gorilla Glue. Then we wrapped some tape around it. Then we let it set for a while. During this time, we got our first look at the city out Andy's office windows. It felt so surreal to be there, to FINALLY be in New York City, and it was now daylight, and I couldn't see very well at all unless I held my two pieces of glasses up to my eyes, and even then it wasn't that well...!!! I still did my best to be pleasant; I was excited to see the Statue of Liberty (she has a great view) and I could feel all that anticipatory excitement about going to NYC and being in NYC starting to slowly bubble to the surface. Glasses or no glasses, I was determined to have a fantastic experience! (But, oh how I prayed that it could be with glasses...! We three were ready to glue them to my face! Which, I should say, actually kinda happened...) What RELIEF I felt when the glasses seemed to be holding with the final surgery that was performed!!!! I had a very hard time not touching them throughout the day, but I survived. Yay!! At some point in the day, when I was scrunching my face because it itched a little and I thought the glasses might be part of the problem, I discovered--ever so carefully--that they were in fact glued to the top of the bridge of my nose! I didn't do anymore face contortions to loosen the grip any more, I was too afraid. Then, later that night when I went to take them off, it felt like I was pulling a band-aid off, and I saw where the glue had leaked out of the tape and where it had been on my nose, because I had a slight red spot. We had a good laugh at that, and decided that the next day, we would purposely put a teeny-tiny bit of glue on the outside of the tape in order to keep my glasses in place. Who needs skin on that part of their face when you're in NEW YORK CITY, right?!?!?!!! I suppose I should go ahead and tell you here that the glasses held the rest of the trip--I was OH SO GRATEFUL. They weakened slightly, but not enough to incur another operation. We continued to 'glue' them to my face each day and I continued to touch them as little as possible. I didn't use my sunglasses clip because that was just too heavy more than it helped keep them together. And some of you know how addicted to sunglasses I am; I HAVE to wear them. I get such headaches if I don't. But, I sacrificed. I even dealt with the tiny smudges and the moisture drops from the rain and snow. (That's a big, BIG deal for me, in case you didn't know. Hey, that' s probably why my glasses broke; I probably clean them too much, but because I hardly need them prescription-wise, I can see any little fleck of lint, etc. so it became 2nd nature to clean them so often. And they did last me two years, so...) And I carried extra black electrical tape and Gorilla Glue in my purse all over New York City. I wonder how many others out of the oh-so-many others we crossed paths with while there could say the same thing!! :)

P.S. For the sake of documenting more of my experience, I'll say here that we almost missed our flight from Cincinnati to La Guardia. When we arrived to OHIO!, we saw that our original 30 minute layover was going to be an hour at least. We were both disappointed, as we were ready to just get there already. We walked up and down the terminal--I have a hard time sitting in such cramped quarters for so long, so I wanted to walk--and I talked to my kids. Then after debating whether or not to get something to eat since we weren't really that hungry, we ended up at the food court, getting some food anyway. I was excited to have Chick-Fil-A (the closest one here is 30 miles away), but was disappointed by the lukewarm fries. We sat and talked--a lot about what it was like for Karyn to be in and out of that same airport to visit her dad back in the day--and I was periodically looking at the time on my cell phone. When there would be an announcement over the intercom, I'd kinda-sorta-but-not really listen to it. Next thing we hear, "Final boarding call for flight [blah-dee-blah] to La Guardia"...!! We looked at each other wide-eyed, laughed, quickly dumped our trash and then bolted to the gate. We don't know what happened! Lost in our own little world at the food court, I guess. As we came running up to the gate, the workers said, "you must be Karyn and April!" (I've never had that happen to me ever.) They teased us about being at the bar--I didn't realize it was a bar at the time because I didn't recognize the name of the place--and I said "no, Chick-Fil-A actually"...Karyn told me that the one lady who checked our boarding passes made a funny face, like 'why would you admit to to THAT?!' Well, that's me for ya...gullible and still innocent in some ways. :) It made me feel like I might just be from Utah. Gag. (No offense to my Utahn relatives & friends...!) Anyway, I thought we'd pull away immediately, but no. Still had to wait for something. ......Wonder how many stares Karyn and I got during our flights there...once from SLC to Cincinnati, we were talking loudly ('cause we had our headphones in) about something (can't remember now--probably something "girl talk"-like) that those within earshot probably wondered if we were crazy! ...And along the lines of silly, laughable moments, we had SUCH a big, long laugh one night after lights were out and we were trying to get settled on the air mattress (her) or the couch (me)...we just could NOT stop laughing; it actually felt quite good, though I think I might've peed my pants a tad bit...we thought for sure we were waking up poor Andy!! Though we were SO exhausted each night, we still wound up talking for about an hour on average. Needless to say, by the time we were flying home, we were much quieter--we were totally wiped out...yet extremely content.

P.P.S. Perhaps here is a good place to confess that I, like Oprah, fell off the wagon. The Weight Watchers group here in my town dissolved because we didn't have enough sign up. And I couldn't go to the next city for the first couple of times right after in mid-October. And then I didn't go to the next city when I could go. And so, I not only gained back all the 25 pounds I'd lost on WW, I've since gained even more. I HATE IT. Then, when they did have enough sign up in January here for a new session, I couldn't afford it. ...Why am I telling you all this?? So when you look at me in these NYC pics and you quietly think, "hmmm, looks like she's put weight back on", you know that indeed I have, and I also KNOW it and am not DENYING it. :)

P.P.P.S. This is the last thing, I promise! Just wanted to say I have no idea when I'll get around to posting more about my trip, but don't give up on me...