Dear Diary ...

I’m going to try to keep a running diary through my travels from Chicago to Sydney – 21 ½ hours of screaming kids, old sweating men and “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” on the movie screen – yippee! I’m not promising anything exciting or scandalous … more than likely it’ll be pretty boring.

3:55pm (all times CST): I made it through the baggage check-in and security with ease, but leave it to good ol’ Mayor Daley to try and squeeze every last penny out of you. There’s a nice little banner after you get through security stating easy access to the internet. Of course it doesn’t mention that it costs $7 just to access the internet. Nothing like shooting down ones dreams. I was hoping to do a little gate surfing, but I’m going to Jake It and not pay the money. At least not now.

4:15pm: OK, maybe I have a slight internet dependency. It took me all of 5 minutes to cave in and spend the money for internet access.

5:15pm: Just found out that that we are being delayed 40 min. New departure is 6:20pm

5:20pm: It’s nice to see that the only place that has power outlet is on the floor next to the men’s bathroom. Classy.

6:15pm: On the plane … more bad weather to come …may be sitting on the tarmac for another 45-60 min. Being told that our flight will probably arrive at LAX at 10:00 with my flight to Sydney taking off at 10:30. Nothing like cutting it close on your first international flight.

6:25pm: Getting ready for takeoff and there’s an empty seat next to me!!

6:30pm: Not to rip-off Tyler Durden, but it’s amazing how calm & serene the passengers are during the oxygen mask deployment portion of the safety video.

6:40pm: There is no freakin’ way I’m going to be able to sit in coach for 14+ hours to Sydney. I’m already antsy and I’ve only been on the plane for 30 minutes.

7:03pm: And we’re off the ground.

7:30pm: The in flight move is “Blades of Glory.”

11:02pm: The smoothest landing the flight attendant has ever experienced in L.A.

11:17pm: Just found out that my flight to Sydney has been cancelled because the connecting plane’s engine got struck by lightning. I’ll post more of this later after I have a little room service dinner.