Hey there. I'm back home! My trip to Boston was a short one, but certainly an eventful one. Here's what went down...
My alarm did NOT go off on Thursday morning. That's right. It decided to mess with me and simply not go off, even with the stupid thing CLEARLY saying that the alarm is on. It's 6:30 AM and my flight is set to take off at 7:15 AM! I grab my stuff, put on some clothes, kiss my wife good bye and speed off to LAX. I manage to get there at around 7:00AM. I got and punch in my confirmation code into the kiosk to get my boarding pass. I sigh a sigh of relief since I don't see anyone in line at security should it should be a breeze to get in. "Confirmation code not recognized" What the... I try it again. "Confirmation code not recognized" Oh man...
I head over to the desk while valuable seconds tick away and give the clerk my confirmation number. The guy punches it in the computer and says that I missed my flight. I point to the huge clock behind the guy and say, "It's 7:05. If you give me my pass now, I can still make my 7:15 flight." The dude persisted that I missed my flight, all the while getting me upset. After arguing with him, and the manager, I decided that I'm just wasting energy here and decided to get a standby pass on the next flight... 4+ hours later. I'm going to miss my appointment with our client! Ugh...
My flight taking off without me
I grab the pass, go through security, and when I reach the terminal of my flight, I hear "last call for flight blah blah blah from LAX to BOS" Damn it!!! If that guy would have given my pass when I asked for it, I would have sooooo made my flight! I see them shut the doors and minutes later, watch as my flight takes off without me. *Sigh* I go over to the attendant at the desk and ask her what are my chances on getting on the next flight since it is a standby ticket. She punches in the info... "It's 50/50 right now. There are only 2 seats available." Ugh... She sees my dejected look and assures me that I'll probably get on since there's always cancellations and people being late. I thank her and decide to have breakfast at the airport. I also called our client to let him know that I won't be able to make it and would have to be pushed to Friday. The meeting was rescheduled but it was a huge bummer for me since I wanted to use Friday afternoon as a means to check out the sites of the city.
Afterward, I continue to check in on my chances. "1 seat left" Oh man... I'm getting nervous at this point. I ask her, what if I don't get on this one? She then told me that the next flight to Boston is the red eye... Ugh! Not a good way to start the day. The plane pulls in and I ask again what are my chances. "Better than before," she says, "there are now 3 available seats." YES! I watch as passengers board the plane still waiting for them to give me a "confirmed" boarding pass. After just about everyone is on, they call my name. YES! I get my ticket and hop on the plane. Relieved. 7+ hour flight... COMMENCE!
Nothing too eventful on the plane. A lot of the "Boston vs Cleveland" game that could have been LeBron's last game as a Cavalier. I arrive at Boston close to 7 PM... oh man... The group that I was meeting was scheduled to have dinner at 7 PM! By the time I get in a cab, check in my hotel and start looking for the place, it's already closer to 8PM. I get to the restaurant and feel weird walking in while everybody else is enjoying their dinner. I go ahead and advise the head of the group that I made it and said my hellos to some familiar faces. I sit in an empty seat and menu and a wine glass is handed to me. No kidding... that was ONE EXPENSIVE MENU!!!! Nothing on there was under $40! Before the waiter decides to take off to "give me some time" I asked him what he recommended. He pointed to a prime rib steak and he claims is the best in the world. I don't believe it, since the restaurant's specialty seems to be seafood. I was starving, so I asked to be served the steak and wow... what a steak it was. It was one of the better tasting steaks I've ever had... and in case you don't know what a $40 steak looks like... here it is.
After a couple more glasses of wine (I needed them after the morning I had...) I went back to the room to catch the Boston - Cleveland game. I texted my bro while watching the game, giving our opinions on James' looking rather lethargic and once the game was over, I called my wife to chat for a bit. After we said our goodnights I tried to sleep. Not happening... Stupid time change really messed with my head. Clock said 1 AM but it's 10PM in LA. I don't usually go to sleep until midnight or so... 3AM... Still up, but managed to drift asleep. 5AM... I'm up... it's light out and I don't feel all that sleepy anymore. Hell with it. I got up and showered and went for a walk.
I took a stroll down the "Freedom Walk" path. It's basically a red line on the sidewalk that takes you to several of Boston's points of interest. That's a neat idea. So I walk and catch several glimpses of the city's statues and monuments. I snap some pictures and take a few videos. Boston definitely has some unique sights to see. Being one of America's first settlements definitely resounds across many of the cemeteries and buildings that are littered with plaques stating their historical importance. I missed out on seeing the Constitution (a ship... not the document. lol) and Paul Revere's statue. But here are some of the stuff I did get to see.
Once 7:30 AM rolls around, I head back to the hotel for my meeting. During our lunch break, I notice that the cemetery across from the hotel seems like a pretty lively place. I see several children storming in and even caught a glimpse of some people dressed as patriots... I need to see this. I excuse myself from the table and head over there. I managed to snap a pic of the patriot but he wasn't too happy that I did. I walked the other way and then saw another guy dressed up as Ben Franklin (I think) and listened in as he gave the small crowd some historical facts on John Hancock's grave. He then snapped at me for taking a pic of him and asked me if I knew that this was a paid tour. I smartly responded that I didn't know since I just walked up to him no more than 2 minutes ago. He didn't seem to happy so I decided that I best better go. Dude was carrying a gun (or replica... I didn't want to find out) so I told him that I'd just be "on my merry way". lol I was too upset to look for Paul Revere at this time so I headed back to the hotel.
We finished up our credit conference and I moved on to my meeting with our client. It being close to 2:30PM really set a damper on me since I would have had all this time (flight leaves at 8:25 PM) to check out the city, but instead I decide to walk to my meeting, a mere 1.5 miles away. Nothing too eventful on my way there other than I got to walk on a bridge. I had my meeting, discussed some business, made a good impression and I was off to the airport... all at around 5:30 PM...
Three hours from my flight. I could have gone back... But I was too tired to walk. I get to the airport and looked for food. I then grabbed some coffee and sat in a chair where I got to see planes come and go. I kicked off my shoes and enjoyed the view. Soon after, I'm on a plane, heading home. I get to LAX close to midnight and I'm not home, in bed, until about 1 AM.
Yup... condensed trip indeed. lol Later!
We all love story lines, the NBA is no different. Last year, the story of LeBron vs Kobe was derailed by Dwight "Superman" Howard and the Orlando Magic. The Lakers ended up beating Orlando for the championship. The year before that, the story was of the great rivalry of years past between the Lakers and the Boston Celtics, two of the NBA's most winningest teams. Boston embarrassed the Lakers and took home the crown. This year, no one is giving the Suns much of a chance against the Lakers, and as the Lakers have proven in two games, they are simply the superior team in the series so you might as well pencil them in for the finals. As for the Magic and Celtics, Boston has taken a surprising 2-0 lead in their series and the Magic are looking very vulnerable. Whether it be the Magic or Celtics to go up against the Lakers is yet to be determined, but either way, it will be a compelling series. Are the Lakers ready to avenge their NBA Finals defeat against the Celtics? Or will the new kid on the block, Dwight Howard and the Magic, come back to get another crack at the Lakers for a championship? 
