airport adventures

so i frequently travel between the bay area and SoCal, and yesterday was one such trip. i arrived at the airport a bit earlier than usual because i had to check luggage (normally i prefer to get to the airport and literally walk right on to the plane, but you have to be there 45 minutes ahead to guarantee your luggage will make it on the plane). anyways, i did a bit of work (yay me!), and packed up my computer when the southwest gate agent announced it was time to board. i love flying southwest, and secretly adore lining up in perfect numbered order - it brings meaning to my otherwise chaotic boarding experience.

so i was in line, waiting my turn to board, and two people go through the doorway into what i affectionately refer to as the "tunnel of doom"... all of a sudden the fire alarm went off. the gate agent looked around and waited for about ten seconds to see if it would turn off... everyone just stood there, really hoping she would ignore it and let us all get on the plane. but when the alarm continued to ring she said, "sorry folks, you're going to have to evacuate."

naturally, we were at the very last gate in a very long terminal, and so we headed en masse back toward the entrance in search of an emergency exit. we found one and headed outside, only to realize that no one really knew what to do after that. do we stand there and wait around? do we head back to the ticket counters and security gates? do we move 100 yards away from the building just in case?

well, everyone started herding back toward the ticket counters, where we were reassured that it was a false alarm and that they were in the process of clearing the alarm. the airport staff were very calm under pressure, especially after they notified everyone that we would have to go back through security. this didn't bother me that much - i wore slip on shoes - but the woman behind me had a full cup of hot tea she had just purchased inside the terminal. oh, and an unopened bottle of water for her flight. both drinks had to be tossed. bummer!

eventually, i made it back through security and down the 3 mile terminal back to my gate. the gate agent boarded everyone as they arrived, which made the process much quicker, but i did miss the joy of boarding in perfect sequential order.