Tales from a Seafaring Citizen
If you don’t already know I am currently on a Caribbean cruise, I’ll keep you updated as the trip progresses. Here are some episodes from my first day away from home.Before I left I learned that I would have to endure a five hour layover in the Minneapolis airport. Initially the prospect of having an extended time to myself pleased me. I say initially because the deal quickly turned sour. The night before I left Brainerd I was only able to get four hours of sleep, the candy cane excitement of holiday ball kept me dancing like a sugarplum late into the next the next morning. Functioning on three hours of sleep isn’t difficult, yet keeping entertained in an airport is. Armed with an array of literature-- C.S. Lewis “Surprised by Joy,” Joseph Heller “Catch 22,” George Orwell “Animal farm,” and Howard Zinn “Voices of a People’s History” (thanks Josh, I read some and loved it so I bought it for my brother)-- I assumed that boredom could be kept at bay. Other than a portable DVD player I forgot to pack any mindless activities to keep a tired mind occupied. Soon my batteries died halfway through Reservoir Dogs and reading was becoming arduous. I won’t bore you with the mundane things I did to kill time for the next couple of hours, here is the highlight of my layover.
So here I am kickin’ it in the quietest place I could find, disturbed only be a couple of football jerks watching a game. In my zombie stupor I was still attempting to read, yet in reality I was listening to music. So I’m sitting here, minding my own business, no one sitting near me, when some guy comes and sits across from me. His presence alone didn’t bother me, yet what he did next did. He pulled out a porno magazine and started gawking at it while holding it out in front of his face; it was like he was flaunting it at me. The sick part is that he would assume that I would want to participate in his perverted habits, and ever worse he frequently had to adjust his pants. The man didn’t stop, so I had to take action, and I wasn’t about to walk away. I doubt he expected to cross a youth who cares about morality, and I was armed. Quietly I snuck into my backpack and removed my rosary. Unassumingly I prayed over his soul, the man was rather dumbfounded, and so was I. It felt good to stick up for my beliefs; I fear that I stand on the sidelines too often.
Once on the plane I slept most of the time; I was blessed with three seats to myself. Here are my hastily scribbled notes before landing.
My present thoughts are much different from the child in front of me, he exclaimed “Florida,” and then resumed playing with his dolls saying that he was sad whether it was Milwaukee or Fort Myers. Florida is beautiful from a plane window; even the manufactured homes take on new meaning from above. However, when my ears are taken out of context the result is not a favorable experience. Nevertheless I have no trouble yawning to relieve the pressure, yet still tightness builds within me as I approach the landing.
Talk to you later with today’s news, I’m on the ship now, have been all day.
posted by driller. @ 9:36 PM
3 Comments:
You picked some good books. Very, very good books.
What cruise line are you on davey?
carnival
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