Me and the "Bird" vs. the Airline Industry


My long-awaited journey to London on Wednesday, August 13th, occurred with no frills whatsoever - oh, except the loss of my baggage. As I sat alone staring into a rainstorm from the Burger King at Waterloo station, I couldn't help but burst out in laughter. I then spoke out loud to myself: "I lost my baggage and don't give a SHIT!". I hadn't cared the least bit, even upon realizing the situation, which definitely puzzled the Virgin Airlines customer service agent at Heathrow. Thus my adventure began.

As I sat there with my double-cheeseburger, my sense of satisfaction that I have absolutely no place to be and nothing to do (for the rest of my life) immediately turned my grin into a look of terror - perhaps the face I made before being pounded in the face with the deer in November 2006. I then had a panic attack. "Jesus...I have no place to be and nothing to do."

After spending the night with a good friend from high school, Dave Moehrman, and his wife, I headed back out to Heathrow upon learning my "big green backpack" had been found. I then met up with Amish Majmundar, a close buddy of mine from college who works for Disney in L.A. and is on temporary assignment in London.

Amish and I arrived in Krakow, Poland via Ryanair late last night (8/15). 30 minutes after "first" take-off, the flight attendant informed us we would return to London and switch planes as a bird had been sucked into the engine. I'd love to know if anyone reading has experienced this? How the hell did they know that a bird was in the engine? The Polish flight attendant was glad to get rid of me (after a few beers at the airport I thought it hilarious to intermittently wave at her and smile while she stared at me shaking her head and frowning). I know Mom...and I do feel bad about that now.

More to come on Krakow, the deer, why I have no place to be and nothing to do, and my 14-day survival excursion. I'm still having a panic attack.

Comments

Unknown said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said…
congrats on your first step of your journey went well.
I was like 7 when I was at where you are right now, which is 20 years ago.
I was too young to remember any details of the airport (or even the city of London). love to see some pictures if you take any.

well, glad to hear from you and to leave the very first comment on your journey.

[Edit] I fixed the spelling
Nate said…
Brother, greet your brother ;-).

Man, when I got the email that you were starting this journey it blew my mind. I'm definitely going to be living vicariously through you. I hope you keep this site updated often as I'm sure I'm going to be checking in frequently to see what sort of WTF situations you get yourself in.

Take care and safe travels!

Nate
Mark Albee said…
Glad to see your on your way. In answer to your bird question they have sensors in the engine that will detect FOD (Foreign Object Damage) and during take off that usually means a bird. Hope this is the biggest problem you encounter. We will be expecting a full interactive media presentation at Mohecian next year.

Mark
Andrew_Mehlhorn said…
That happened once in queenstown. the bird thing i mean. the plane was forced to land immediately and, upon landing with a full fuel tank, the wheels all blew out and it was grounded for a week. a big deal in a town with only two hangars. they found the culprit's beak in the engine. said it was a magpie. glad you found your backpack. a clean change of clothes quickly becomes the first 'luxury' you realize youve been taking for granted when your bag's missing. im certain your travels will be littered with little 'problems' like this. make the most of them bro. "I wore the same clothes for three days, washed my clothes in a janitors closet while wearing a towel and got drunk off of vodka i distilled from dumpster potatoes" makes for a better story than, "I had a great time in Poland today. I ate some kielbasas and pierogies. They were good. i showered and went to bed and got a good nights sleep." And whats all this about having no place to be? How about any place you want to go? Pick and choose my friend. Just dont go any place with deer...
Eva C. said…
hello B!
if you find some time look to my pictures from Crete :)
www.flickr.com/photos/26662893@N02/
take care B!
Unknown said…
Hi Brandon! It's Liza Winkel. Pat, Joe, and I are in Chicago. I live here now and they are visiting. Just checking out your website, seeing how your journey is going, and we thought we would say hello. Take care!!! We'll be in touch.
Parkermac said…
Brandon - keep those posts coming and have fun in Invergarry!

Parker
Anonymous said…
BRANDON-i cannot believe all you have been up to!!! i love reading all about your journeys...i hope you are enjoying EVERY minute! i miss you and can't wait to talk sometime soon!!!