Everyone’s Worst Nightmare
I debated at length about whether I should log my own personal experience in Departures traveling to the UK recently because I was so incredibly upset and embarrassed. I never told anyone about it, but I can add value by sharing what I went through. It can happen to anyone, but a White Hatter should know better. I have seen what others have gone through and therefore knew not to let it happen to me. I would like to think that my age had something to do with it, but maybe not. I do know that attention to detail is not my strong suit. Not helping is the fact that my mind can get distracted by others or I can become lost in thought.
My plan for getting ready was fool proof, so I thought. I carry a particular handbag because I am used to it. Consistency of procedure reduces any risk. My handbag contains our passports, foreign currency, Nexus cards, backup copies of bank and credit cards and other forms of ID. All is contained within a clear zipped up pouch that gets kept in a particular location inside the handbag, and I can see the contents in the pouch as a double check. Other items in the handbag include personal toiletry items, cords for electronic devices, vitamins, and travel documentation, including printouts of reservation confirmations, flight itineraries, and travel insurance details.
We packed smartly and lightly, well under the threshold for weight despite bringing some goods for our son living in London. We completed the check in process the day before as soon as we could before departure. We had a printed copy of our boarding passes in our handbag. Westjet wants you to be at the airport three hours before departure for an international flight, regardless of time of day. We know the airport is not as busy in the evening, but we still aimed to leave the house in time to arrive three hours before. We chose to take Uber even though I can park at the airport in an economy lot for free. There is less hassle getting dropped off right by the door that leads us to the priority check in counter and besides, I did not know what the weather was going to do to our relatively new vehicle. We booked premium seats for comfort and luxury, but also for quicker turnaround of service if needed.
I checked the handbag several times before leaving the house to make sure anything critical was still in place. I had one last item to place in the handbag just before leaving, being a neck supporter to help with sleeping on the plane and I told myself to not disturb what was already in place. We had made a reservation for Uber and they arrived even a few minutes early. The weather was perfect. It was the afternoon rush hour, but the traffic would be backed up coming to our city, not in the other direction towards the airport.
Driving to the airport, I always place my watch, cell phone, and wallet in the handbag so that I will not have to deal with it once we try to go through security. With this step completed, I had absolutely no metal on me whatsoever as I was also wearing running shoes and a plastic belt. This routine gets completed automatically based on previous experience. We arrived even earlier than three hours before and we noticed no one was in line at the priority check in counter. Westjet personnel there looked bored. I felt that maybe we were too organized. We knew that once we went through security, we could go to the Aspire Lounge for comfort and have a drink or two with some tasty food. We might as well wait at the airport versus waiting at home since certain steps along the way will have already been completed, and we just need to relax, then walk onto the plane once ready to load.
I pulled up to the counter and opened up my handbag to pull out my clear zipped up pouch, but it was not in the location that I normally keep it. I figured it must have moved when I put in my wallet, watch, and cell phone and so I stirred things up from within looking for it and I could not find my pouch. My mind started searching for an obvious answer as to why it was not there. I noticed Carol looking at me and I got more self conscious. I took more things out of the handbag as the Westjet representative waited patiently for my delivery. Still nothing! What is going on?
I started to panic! My procedures were so fool proof and yet I did not have my critical identification and currency for traveling! How could I have screwed up? I was being so careful and yet I did not have my pouch? What did I do with it? I know it’s not in my suitcase as I would never put it there. Did my wife Carol take it? No, she claimed. She was being very calm and going with things, but I started to get embarrassed for not being on top of my game and having the pouch handy. My mind started racing to figure out what I possibly could have done with it?
I did open my handbag when I was in the car with Uber and so maybe it fell out and is in the car. I remembered I did have an incident while on vacation in Portugal at a railway station to catch a train to Faro when I noticed I did not have my cell phone with all the lovely pictures I took. I remembered having used the cell during the taxi ride. Fortunately, I was able to get it back after phoning the hotel who knew the cab driver, who found that my cell had fallen out of my pocket in the back seat of his car, wedged between the cushion seats. He was able to bring it back to me at the train station before our train departed! Maybe my luck had run out this time?
Carol asked me several times if I left it at home? Did I recall taking it out of my handbag to put something in or to adjust what was there? No, I did not recall anything! I was so flabbergasted that something went wrong with my routine. My hands started shaking! I was losing it! What should I do? Our son will be expecting us! We made all these plans for where we were staying for our trip around Wales, making train reservations and will everything need to be changed? What if our identification and British Pound cash is lost for good? How could I possibly let this happen? How could I possibly have made such a bonehead mistake? We could go back home to look for my pouch, but we should check the Uber driver first to see if he can find it in his vehicle. Carol thought of this, not me, as she was more into crisis management.
The Uber application will allow you to contact the driver as I had his name and cell number on my ticket for the ride. I could not for the life of me figure out how to use the app to phone him, as I was too stressed. Carol was not that computer literate and so she could not help. I froze. I did not know what to do anymore! The driver and his car will probably be long gone from the airport by now! The Westjet agent who was to serve us took pity on my plight and had some previous experience with Uber; therefore, he came over to look at the app on my cell and was able to make the call to the driver for me. Time was moving on.
The driver did not pick up his phone after dialing him several times. Eventually he figured out why his phone kept ringing as there must be some urgency behind it. When he called me back, he had already picked up his next traveler, but he said he would stop his car right away to have a look at the back seats along with his new client looking for a pouch. After a thorough search, he texted me that they were unable to find anything belonging to us! At least he had a look and therefore unless fallen out after getting out of the car, maybe I left it at home. I reviewed in my mind every time I opened the handbag at home to make sure things were in place or to place something else in the bag. I did recall placing the neck supporter in the bag and I may have moved stuff around to make it fit. I did recall I was thinking about other matters at the time.
We needed to go home quickly to search for my pouch and if found, take Uber back to the airport. We were two hours fifteen minutes before departure and our luggage needed to be on the carousel 75 minutes before! We had one hour to get our act together! We were going to be in rush hour traffic going home and this was going to cause further delay! We hurried to Door 12 and I used the app to page a car with specific instructions to come to the Departures level to pick us up as it would not be as busy. He chose to drive down to the Arrivals level as that is where they are normally supposed to pick up their passengers. What I thought would be a quicker turnaround to getting on our way, turned out to be a mistake and it took a while for us to find one another. We took the escalator down to the Arrivals level with our suitcases and out the door. I saw an Uber car of the correct make and model and color starting to drive away from the pick-up location and figured maybe it was for us. I ran after the car with my suitcase and fortunately it was going quite slowly. After 100 yards, he saw me waving frantically at him in his rear-view mirror and so stopped. Meanwhile, Carol could not move that fast and her suitcase was very heavy. She was walking as fast as she could to catch up.
Fortunately, the Uber car was ours and we had to wait for Carol to make it. We loaded the car while I was telling the driver our "little" situation and what we were up against as to time. The driver saw that I was a mental wreck with my forehead all scrunched up and he kept trying to calm me down and give me reassuring words. He was doing the job that I often do at the airport to calm travelers down! I was so upset because I was letting family down! Carol did not let her emotions show as this is something she learned when she was a practicing registered nurse. I honestly do not know how any traveler can stay so calm and relaxed when something does not go right. I certainly cannot take it. Rush hour was still on, but fortunately traffic was moving quite freely and our driver was in the faster inside lane. He did speed a bit when the “coast was clear” and I did say a little prayer to help me find my pouch.
Once home, I went in first once Carol had turned off the security system. No sense causing the alarm to go off during my state of anxiety! I went in at a very fast pace and I searched three or four places where I thought it could be, but nothing. Going to the very last place, my very last hope, no pouch! But when I glanced up surveying the room, there was my pouch sitting on a chair! Whew, what a relief! When I placed the neck warmer in my bag, I must have taken the pouch out with some other things so I could fit it in and then I placed the other items on top of it, but not the pouch. I thought I had everything back in the bag, but I obviously did not because I now remember placing the pouch in a different location! I had opened my bag a few times afterwards while at home, but I must not have looked closely enough and just going through the motions having confidence and assumed everything was in place.
We need to get going! Back into Uber we went. Just as long as traffic flowed properly, we should make it to the airport about 85 minutes before departure. We settled with the driver while enroute… well, sort of, as it was more complicated since this was a return trip and he had not set up the trip in his app. My settlement with him was after he left us at the airport trusting that I would pay eventually to avoid any further delay in the now. After receiving his email showing price of the original trip, I ended up paying him a tip that was big enough to cover the normal size of a tip plus the fare for the return trip. Uber drove us to Door 16 as instructed, being the quickest entry point to the priority line. Fortunately, no one was in line and we walked right up to the counter and had our bags on the carousel about 82 minutes before departure. We were able to get through security right away, go into the Aspire lounge to have a drink of alcohol to relax!
I did not need this experience to know what other travelers go through when something goes wrong, but I had it anyway! I have dealt with a dozen people during my time when they have lost it. Some were crying, some angry, only about three who had their hands shaking. I never have experienced having hands that shake before in my entire life, and yet it happened to me with this experience. I thought I was good at stress management, but I obviously was not in this particular situation. I guess I will be even more supportive of others who have a problem and are under pressure to get through the system.
Thanks, No Thanks
A lady needed help at a kiosk when Westjet was not available. Her husband was busy parking their car. She needed to know how to use the kiosk and was surprised to learn that she could also print off her husband's boarding pass and bag tag once she put in her reservation code, since they were on the same itinerary. I chose to mess with her a little and said: "Well, sometimes you may not want to print off your husband's boarding pass and bag tag so you can leave him stranded here and you can go off on your own and have a good time." She said emphatically: "Well no, I want him to come so he can help me with my carry-on luggage." Fair enough, but that was the only reason she came up with!
Luggage Issues
On Arrivals, there were three flights all using the same carousel ten for pickup of luggage: one flight from Vancouver and then two big flights from Toronto. This was being done when carousel nine was not being used at all and sitting empty! Vancouver's luggage came first and got picked up and then came Air Canada from Toronto when people from both Air Canada and Westjet were still arriving. Both sets of travelers were looking for their luggage when only the luggage from Air Canada was arriving. The screen did not show which luggage was coming, but questioning some travelers gave me the answer. Some people had to wait a long time for their luggage as it is the luck of the draw.
One fellow showed me that his luggage was damaged enroute. I escorted him to where baggage claim services were for Air Canada so he could put in a claim. When Westjet's luggage started to come there were still people waiting for their Air Canada luggage. I didn't think they would load some Air Canada luggage and then switch to Westjet, only to go back to Air Canada again! Surely, they do not do this. I concluded I was right, yet two fellows and a family of four who had flown Air Canada had not received all their luggage. Westjetters meanwhile were indeed picking up their bags. The mother of the family noticed that she got an email from Air Canada on her cell stating that her third piece of luggage never made it on the plane. I sent her over to Air Canada's counter just after sending another couple needing help to Westjet's baggage claim. This left the two fellows looking for their luggage from Air Canada.
I told them where they should go if their luggage did not come soon, which was behind carousel ten. Once they gave up, I escorted the one fellow around the carousel and lo and behold his duffle bag was sitting outside the office waiting for pickup, not on the carousel! I saw a second blue case just inside the door of the baggage claim services and so I waved over the other fellow and sure enough, that was his case! I concluded what happened was an Air Canada baggage claim agent hastily picked up the remaining baggage on the carousel before Westjet's luggage started to arrive so that they would not get mixed up. The two fellows must have missed noticing their luggage on the carousel and never saw it getting pulled off behind their backs. It is possible that their luggage came on another flight before they arrived. One of the fellows said he was connecting through Toronto and that was probably why his suitcase was inside the door of the baggage claim services.
There definitely is a lack of communication either by way of screen update or intercom to inform the travelers of current status for baggage. Some kind of announcement should be made as to which luggage is getting delivered (with reference to flight #). Some airports show this information on a screen. Calgary’s screen needs to be upgraded to show this information. The family of four and two fellows were most appreciative of my help and were just glad to eventually get their luggage issues resolved.
FlixBus Woes
An old fashioned gentleman connecting through Calgary was told that if he wanted to get to Medicine Hat that day, he needed to take the FlixBus and to book his ticket online. He came with a cell phone but was not computer literate. There never is a FlixBus agent at their counter and FlixBus does not provide any phone number for customer support. He really needed help! I could not find any schedule at the counter as to when a bus was coming to pick up passengers and take them to the Hat. Using the airport's cell, I booked his ticket for him, having a complicated foreign name which was difficult to spell, using his credit card, etc. When booking we found out the bus was coming within 15 minutes on the Arrivals level outside Door 14! Good timing! He was most appreciative of my help as he would have really struggled to have booked on his own, and even if successful, it would have taken longer and he would have missed his bus.
I Broke the Law…And I Won
In Arrivals, there was a flood of planes coming in all at once and the carousels were busy. It was rush hour. I ended up talking to very nice Canadian families from Winnipeg while they waited for their luggage on carousel nine. They were experiencing bad luck as their flight came in behind other planes and they had to wait a very long time to get their luggage. Westjet staff must have been busy with the other flights. Once the luggage started coming down the belt, they sighed in relief but soon were disappointed again when a bag got stuck on the belt at the entrance way to the carousel. One father could see his family's prioritized luggage on the belt but it was not reachable. This was most frustrating and travelers immediately brought it to my attention.
I am sure Westjet and the airport saw on a security camera that they had a problem and so they shut off the belt to prevent a further luggage jam. There were many signs posted around the carousel that no one was to go on the carousel and the travelers did not want to get into trouble. Airport staff were probably coming to fix the jam but it was going to take a few more minutes for them to walk around from the back. While staring at the jam, I felt for the travelers and their long wait and said: "Now I am not supposed to do this, but what the heck!" I stepped onto the carousel to walk over to the belt. Walking was difficult as it was on a bit of a slant and I had slippery leather shoes on. I suppose I could have gotten fired for breaking the rules due to liability risk but I was not about to sue the airport if I got hurt. I was proceeding at my own risk and Westjet and security probably knew that. I was to be the brave hero, all dressed up in a hat and flashy red vest. Westjet and airport security would have seen me in action.
The problematic big bag's wheel was really stuck. I had to lift the bag straight up with some force to free up the wheel. Once freed, passengers expressed their appreciation for my work by clapping. I told the passengers as I was coming off the carousel, "Now don't tell anyone. This is our little secret." They all laughed and one fellow commented that I was a volunteer, noticing the lettering on my back. I said, “What are they going to do, fire me?" They laughed and thanked me again. Westjet must have seen that the jam was fixed and they started up the carousel again once I was off. At least what I did was not a security breach. My job was done. No further issues.
All In Fun
Two husbands needed to drop off two golf club bags as they were heading to Kelowna. The two ladies looking bored were off to the side while the guys waited in line at the oversized baggage counter. They confirmed with me that they were not going golfing, only the guys.
I said, "Well, that's too bad, but at least you can go shopping."
"Yeah, yeah, and we could do a wine tour."
"Yeah, and have a few glasses of wine in their absence".
"Oh for sure, good idea."
"You will have fun, and I am sure It will be good to get rid of the men for a few hours too."
"Without a doubt", was their response with smiles as I noticed the guys were listening into the conversation.
Guardian Angel
Sometimes synchronicity takes over a situation and you know it was meant to be.
I was with Tracey and a charming young responsible lady was wanting to catch the Flixbus to Saskatoon at 6:50 AM. She was on the Departures level and should have been on Arrivals. She probably thought she should be on the Departures level because she was departing! She knew she needed to go to Door 14, Pillar 31. Tracey took her down to Arrivals as a courtesy even though she could have figured it out on her own. I went to the International in the meantime and within seconds, a quiet, soft spoken young lad with a crude drawstring bag with little in it came up to me. He was probably nine years of age. He wanted to catch the bus to Saskatoon. He did not know the name of the bus, what door and pillar number he should go to. He knew he was to catch the bus at 6:50 AM. He showed me the bus boarding pass but there was no indication on the pass that it was Flixbus. I was 90 percent sure it was, but could not confirm.
I took him outside to where he could catch the bus which was coming in about 20 minutes, but a long time to stand outside by himself and what if this was not the right bus was a question on my mind. Should I remain with him? Of course, as he was very much a minor. Tracey saw me standing outside with the boy and she came back to me and said the other young lady was sitting inside waiting for a while to limit the amount of time standing outside, as it was chilly. We took him over to her and I showed her his boarding pass. She said it was definitely a Flixbus boarding pass as it was the same as her own and they were both leaving at the same time, both going to Saskatoon. We asked her to make sure he went with her to catch the bus. She said she would be happy to do this for him, and she became his big sister for the moment.
He was going to Saskatoon for the summer, so he said. His parents should have made sure he got on the bus properly, as he was too young. After further discussion, my conclusion for what happened was that his parents were separated or divorced and were not communicating that well with one another. One parent lived in Saskatoon, the other in Calgary. The boy normally went to school in Calgary but was off to Saskatoon for the summer. One parent bought the ticket and placed the boarding pass on his cell phone, a scarred "hand me down,” from a parent, but a necessity in this day and age, especially in a separated family. Each parent assumed the other would take responsibility and make sure he got on the bus properly. He was dropped off at the airport. The boy probably did not want to be a nuisance to his parents and assured them he could handle getting on the bus by himself without needing any assistance. He might have stated that he knew where to catch the bus even though he did not. The parent who dropped him off was probably heading to work to make ends meet financially.
I am sure I got this story straight. The boy was caught in the middle, between a rock and a hard place and abandoned to fend for himself and just wanted someone to love him for who he was. You might think that Tracey and I became part of his life at the right time, and maybe so. The guardian angel in this case in my mind was the young lady. I have never to this day have seen anyone traveling to Saskatoon by Flixbus ever from the airport, let alone two of them. Flixbus would have had more than one stop in Calgary for pickup before heading off.
Sometimes life can be tough for the unfortunate and if we have been spared this fate, we need to be thankful.
Learning Life’s Lessons
A young man noticed me and gladly came over for help as he was looking for Air North for a flight to Edmonton and then to Whitehorse. He seemed like a friendly wholesome lad in his early 20’s. Air North does not fly to Edmonton at this time of the morning based on experience. The flight number provided was what was normally used for the flight from Whitehorse to Calgary, not the other way around. I noticed he had a split cheek that was healing which suggested that he was hit on his cheek bone by a fist. This probably occurred in a bar setting, maybe at the Stampede. Boys will be boys. I phoned Air North and got a computer and I always chose the option for customer service when I was given choices. The computer eventually instructed me to send them our question via email.
During this call of futility, I noticed a pretty young lady showing up of similar age as the man, but obviously more mature and intelligent and probably better at giving more attention to detail. She was standing in line for Air North. There were no scars on her face. She was also looking for Air North to check a bag for her direct flight to Whitehorse, not through Edmonton. She showed me her boarding pass with the flight number that I concluded should have been the number for the young man. In her case, she was just too early as her plane was boarding at 12:05, leaving at 12:40 and she arrived at 9:15. I explained that Westjet recommends people be at the airport three hours before departure for an international flight because there are so many flights they manage out of Calgary, but because Air North only has two planes at most flying from Calgary, arriving two hours before departure, or 10:40 AM is plenty early. She understood and will adjust her timing on future trips.
Comparing her boarding pass with the travel itinerary of the young man (with no boarding pass), the flight details were completely different. We eventually found out that the young man was flying out tomorrow and he arrived at the airport on the wrong day! He was quite embarrassed. I should have told him before leaving that maybe he could switch his ticket to fly out that day as surely his flight would not be that full and he was already at the airport. This would save him from having to explain to those from where he came what happened and avoid further embarrassment. It is possible that on a day that I do not normally volunteer, the flight schedule for Air North is different. Although he came across as being a nice genuine person, he was not someone whom anyone could rely upon at much of anything at this time in his life. He was needing to learn some lessons the hard way and become more mature.
Sleep Over
I had never seen such a tiny framed fragile young lady before. There was not much to her, 75 pounds soaking wet at best, probably in her late teens. She was sleeping on her coat with fur fringes on the floor off to the side in a corner by a door that never opens, and she was all scrunched up almost in a ball, like a cat, and therefore took very little floor space. Her head was jammed into the corner while she slept, like an animal would do if experiencing a headache. You might think she was just a pile of clothes until you looked closer. Hopefully no one steps on her! Walking up to her, she looked like a drug addict passed out, but she was not. When she stirred, I did talk to her to get her story. She knew who I was as a White Hatter and was okay with me. She apparently had nothing better to do and did not need anything. She tried to explain her story, but was a bit groggy from sleeping and so just gave me her cell phone to read up on her plight, closing her eyes, trusting me to give it back. I wanted some answers and the easiest thing for her to do was to let me read up on her.
She kept getting these emails from Porter Airlines throughout the day showing her flight to Windsor was delayed. The departure time changed about four times, due to mechanical failure of the plane, and now she had to wait hours for her flight. Porter kept emailing her apologizing for the delay, but she was already at the airport and had to wait it out. I said she should find a more comfortable place to sleep such as two chairs side by side, but she said she was young and sleeping on the floor was perfectly fine. She knew I was not as flexible as her! She did not need much of anything!
Porter kept telling her to collect food coupons from their counter, but she was not hungry and just wanted this ordeal to be over with. If she did eat, she would only eat like a bird anyways as there was no meat on her whatsoever. However, she had false eyelashes flickering which looked too big for her face and body. She had no tattoos or metal either that I could see as there really was no room to put any on her arms or face, and so other than having eyelashes, she was just who she was. I accepted her that way and told her to take care. What more could I do?
Communication Barrier
A Mexican lady who could speak little English was running around Domestic looking for Westjet. She had picked up her luggage from Arrivals and was connecting through Calgary. Whoever she had talked to did not really understand what she was saying and therefore directed her to Westjet Domestic, not International. It was 38 minutes before Departure for the Westjet flight to Puerto Vallarta and therefore she easily missed her flight, with a cutoff at 75 minutes. I could not explain to her that she missed her flight as she did not understand what I was saying. Once she learned she had to go to Westjet International, she wanted me to “run” with her, wanting me to direct her where to go once there.
I kept trying to explain that she missed her flight by 37 minutes already but she did not understand my English. I also told her to go to Door 16 for Westjet but she did not understand. If only I knew how to speak Spanish! I had a language translator on my cell, but she was too wound up in a hurry and did not want to take the time to allow me to figure out how to use the app effectively. On her trip to International, I did not want to abandon her and tried to keep up by walking fast, which was a mistake. She would run and then stop waiting for me to catch up, as she needed my direction. It did not help that what we were doing was a complete waste of time, and I was not about to start running at the airport even if I could. She finally did understand what I was saying at Door 12 and therefore took off running on her own, all in vain. She was in a bit of trouble getting back to Mexico anytime soon as chances were Westjet was not flying to Puerto Vallarta the next day due to the pending strike by the flight attendants.
There was also a really nice Mexican couple who spoke perfect English whom I had talked to earlier who missed their Puerto Vallarta flight by two minutes. You would think they would have been upset or mad but I have never seen a couple take missing their flight so well. Maybe they were happy living in the moment staying longer in Canada with a valid excuse. He was on the phone with Westjet to see what they could do for them. I think they had a cheap flight and probably never got a credit for their missed flight.
I should have told all Mexicans who missed their flight to get out of Canada on that day such as flying to Mexico City that evening with Westjet as otherwise they might have to use another airline to get home. Mexico City no doubt had a connecting flight to Puerto Vallarta.
Oh Sh*t
On my next shift, one young man was going to New York to catch a connecting flight to Florida where he was to attend a symposium for his work for the business week. (Notice how I always refer to travelers as being young). It was going to be a company expense. When he arrived at the airport, I caught him in line at the Delta counter when they would not be there for the next two hours. He had originally booked his flight with Westjet, but when they threatened to be on strike last week, he did what he thought was a smart thing to do and cancelled his flight. When you cancel a flight ahead of an airline threatening to go on strike, you get much less benefit than you would if it was the airline who canceled the flight. It sure sounded like Westjet flight attendants were going on strike and sure enough they did on the day he was to fly out.
He found that Delta was also flying to New York at the same time as Westjet and so he decided to book with Delta instead in order to be “safe”. Unfortunately, he did not realize until he got to the airport that Delta's flight to New York was operated by Westjet and was the same flight that he had booked previously! He was screwed and not going anywhere anytime soon. I gave him a faint hope that maybe United could get him on a plane heading south of the border and surely there would be a connecting flight to Florida from there. Talking to a United representative, all flights to all US destinations had been oversold for the next five days. Fortunately, he was laughing about it all, took the whole experience in stride and knew he was “SOL”.
Back and Forth
A lady getting on in years and not a frequent flyer was a bit nervous and unsure of herself when approaching me at ABC Security, not knowing what to do. She was not the best when it came to cell phone technology. So many people struggle with this. She did have her boarding pass once she found it but did not know her gate until we looked at her boarding pass. She was flying to Hamilton out of gate D78. She said she got the boarding pass yesterday when checking in, probably with the aid of her daughter. When I asked whether she received any email stating there was a gate change, she did not notice anything. The way she answered made me feel she was not that reassuring in her answer. I chose to look up her flight on my cell using the website YYC Departures. Her gate was A15! Considering I was just about to send her on the long journey to go through D Security, I saved her 20 - 30 minutes of time going through ABC Security instead! She no longer had to go to one end of the airport, only to come all the way back again after going through D Security. She was most appreciative of my help.
Father Knows Best – Not Always
A Chinese family of four who spoke broken English were flying to Vancouver and beyond after their vacation in Canada. They had checked in with Westjet prior to arriving and knew their gate number. They had figured out the correlation between gate number and concourse. Arriving at ABC Security, the father started scanning the boarding passes for his wife and two kids at the turnstile so they could enter the security area. His entry was last but he had with him a full sized suitcase and holding other personal items for the family. He was told by security he could not enter because of the suitcase. With his family off to the side, he started passing the personal items to his family through the ropes speaking Chinese and then he started to pass through the full sized suitcase under the ropes! Oh, oh.
I came over and told him he could not do that and he needed to get a bag tag and place it on the belt with Westjet once I learned this was the airline being used. A security officer came over to confirm. What would normally happen is the father would have gone back to Westjet to tag the suitcase with his family continuing on and the father would have to catch up with them later. But being foreigners, his family did not want to separate from the father as he was their security blanket. The security officer pulled out her notebook to "deboard" the family members so they could go with the father back to the Westjet counter and then they could all scan their boarding passes again to go through the turnstiles. I concluded the father was being a bit naughty, trying to bypass the turnstile with his suitcase. But he did not know what else to do and he may not have understood the reason behind his initial rejection. He would not have gotten too far regardless once he had gone through the ropes to the MRI luggage scanner.
Big Bad John
I have met him! He was a monster. He stood six feet eight, kind of broad in the shoulders, but not that narrow in the hips. It would be impossible to get around him in a doorway as he would fill up the opening. This very big mountain of a man was in International Departures and on his way with Westjet to Denver with three others. I simply had to go up and ask: "Do you play football or something?" as I looked up to him. John Bender was an offensive lineman for the Calgary Stampeders, but now is retired. His playing weight was 325 pounds and my guess was he is now probably about 340 pounds, but he still looked physically fit at 39 years of age. Based on discussion, we both came from a farm in the country, he from Three Hills, I from Duchess. I shared my high school experience once trying to get around a big offensive lineman, almost as big as John, and I did not do that well. There was no way I would ever get past John if he wanted to stop me. He was a really nice guy though. He now is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) living in Cochrane. They were going to the next Broncos game to be held on Sunday and will be cheering on former Stampeder middle linebacker Alex Singleton that he knows very well and who is a good friend of his, as they used to play together in Calgary before Alex went to the NFL. I imagine he will be meeting up with Alex before the game to catch up. I should have found out where he was going to sit on the plane because I don’t think he would fit that well in an economy seat. His weight is also that of two people in one body.
Miscellaneous
- My favorite Westjet agent had to deal with a young lady slightly overweight with body bulging out in a few places. So much so that if she sneezed, something could pop out. The Westjet agent was so disgusted with her that she told her the next time she came to the airport to make sure she had more clothes on. Good for her! Talking to another agent later, this is a Westjet policy to make sure travellers are appropriately dressed, because each flight is for family and not for “parental guidance (PG)”.
- I was really ticked at this selfish fellow who was requesting special assistance to get on the plane sooner. He was walking fine. Right behind him was an elderly lady who was walking slowly with a walker and cane. In her case, she was independent and going to her gate at her own pace. Good for her!
- Someone abandoned bear spray in the parking lot and a White Hatter as instructed took it to the police to be deregistered. As bear spray is now a registered firearm, the owner of that container could get fined for abandoning it, as it could be picked up and used by anyone and the police will not be able to readily identify the user.
- Those from Los Angeles via LAX really, really enjoyed their visit to Banff and Lake Louise. For them, it was their trip of a lifetime for scenery, weather, temperature, fresh air, family adventure, and to top it off the friendly people, and I suppose I was icing on the cake as a White Hatter at the airport. What they were going back to has been the story of their life lately: hot and dry with a smog alert. They received a warning upon arrival to stay inside for both the heat and for the smog.
- Some young ladies flying to LAX were quite color coordinated. One lady in pink sweats had a pink suitcase. Another had a grey top, black pants and a black suitcase. Okay, that works. Two other ladies in light blue and light yellow were busy using a kiosk. They had a light blue and a light yellow suitcase behind them. I came up to the lady in light blue and said the light blue suitcase must be hers. She said no, hers was light yellow. Go figure. I asked her how could they get it so wrong? She agreed with me.
- The Calgary Surge basketball team were going to Winnipeg for a game. I swear this one young fellow must have been at least one foot taller than me. He just towered over me and therefore at least seven feet two inches tall. He of course wanted to take his career as far as he could go as there was money to be made in the NBA. But few make it that far even if you have the height.
- A traveler nearing retirement said he does not travel much and he does not have a clue what he needs to do or where to go. I told him that makes two of us. He knew I was kidding, of course.
- Two ladies heading home to Ottawa after a visit in Calgary were looking for Porter Airlines. I chose to walk with them for a hundred steps to help them along the way for they were ultra friendly, relaxed, warm, and smiling happily. I was just shooting some breeze and commented that it was unfortunate they were heading home now because they were helping out our economy while being here. When asked, they had a great time here visiting and they enjoyed having three days at the Calgary Stampede. Very busy grounds and hot though. No, they were not planning to have tea with the Prime Minister once back in Ottawa, although they would like to. Just a light easy chat before they got to the check in counter.
- A person dropping another off at the airport to catch a flight found a cell phone on a cart with a message on the back of it, that if found please phone a 1 -855 number. He phoned this number and Enterprise Car Rental answered. Therefore, the phone was from an employee of theirs. He gave me the phone in the terminal and I told him I would take it to Enterprise and I thanked him very much for doing something with what he found. Since it was going to take ten minutes to do this, I asked him to take my place as a White Hatter and greet travelers coming through the door by saying "Good Morning. Have a nice flight." He just smiled at me, gave me a funny look, and said no thanks as he did not want his car to be towed outside.
- A pilot was by himself going through ABC Security. I asked him where was the rest of his crew? He said he does not need them as he can fly a plane all by himself Yeah, right.
- A traveler found a glass clip-on earring on the floor. As I was busy, I hung on to it until coffee time before delivering it to Lost & Found. I decided to have some fun with it in the meantime. I waited for the perfect macho man from an older generation to come along. I went up to him and asked if he wanted the earring to wear as it would look good on him. He thought it was very funny to suggest this idea while wrinkling up his nose. He said his generation does not wear them, and, nah, he was just not into it.
- We carry two cell phones when on a shift, one belonging to YYC. It is configured with some helpful features and can be borrowed by a traveler on occasion to make a call. After my shift, I went all the way home to Airdrie before realizing I brought the YYC phone home, not my own. My phone was plugged into the compartment in our lounge where the YYC phone is normally stored in between use. Oh bother. I had to drive all the way back to swap phones and explain to other White Hatters the folly of my ways.
- A construction worker wanted to know where to catch the city bus to downtown. He commented that he did not have any money, and since I was a friendly White Hatter, he thought that I might be willing to help him out. I did not have any cash on me regardless. What he had done was come to the airport to start his new job doing casual labor. What he found out upon arrival was the airport did a security check on his past and found out he had committed a criminal offence in the US 20 years ago and therefore they could not hire him, as this is standard protocol, regardless of what he has done since. He wanted the airport to pay his fare back downtown again, but they refused. I had no idea how he was going to get back from where he came. Going downtown suggested to me he must not have a place to stay for the night. Getting a criminal record when you did not know any better can ruin your life. Too bad, so sad.
- We had an incident that nobody really knew how to handle initially. If travelers buy duty free for their international flight and then find out that their flight has been canceled once at the gate, what are their options for what they purchased if they choose to get escorted out of security by the airline? They may want to do this if the next scheduled flight will not happen for a few hours if not the next day. They will not be able to bring back through security any liquor purchased previously. They should return the liquor to the duty free shop to get their money back before leaving security. They will then have to repurchase it when coming back in for their next flight.
- There is no place like the airport to experience multi racial people and multi culturalism. As I came in to start my shift, there is always a taxi cab by Door 9 Arrivals with the driver normally sitting inside the airport where it is warm, waiting for some business. On this day, I saw a cab driver with brown skin and a dingy wool plaid jacket to keep warm opening the trunk of his taxi to grab what looked like a “magic carpet”, a colorful but soiled chunk of rug. He then carried it over to an inconspicuous corner beside the entrance door and set it down on the cement sidewalk. I concluded he was about to say his morning prayers. Would he do that if it was minus 20 outside? The temperature does not get that cold from where he came originally.