My View For Awhile – Creepy Airport – The Sequel

I’m still trying to get home from Denver.

We zipped quickly past the creepy killer demon-eyed death horse. Apparently it is some sort of spirit horse. Blech.

Worst check in process anywhere. It was not good on Sunday either. Today, a very senior, almost bilingual desk clerk couldn’t get the machine to print luggage tags. After clicking and typing again and again, she asked for help. The machine was out of tags. Thus began the process of changing them. Let’s just say that it is a good thing that I came really early for my flight.

This shot is especially for Fr. J.  Enjoy!

I am back (for a much shorter time I hope) at exactly the same table in the still hard to find club.   I had wanted to get at least a little work done here, but the blazing Delta WiFi wouldn’t cough up data.  So,… I’ll content myself with working from my phone.

Now the big question is…WILL WE FLY TODAY?

I charged my Kindle and my ear buds.  I’m ready for another interminable day with Delta.

Delta… “Isn’t Ready When You Are!”

UPDATE:

One more for Fr. J:

A familiar gate.  Lots of people spent lots of time here on Sunday.

img_0473

Oh, the opulence.

UPDATE:

Just as we departed from the farthest possible gate in the concourse, so too we arrived in MSP at the farthest possible gate in the concourse.  This happens to me quite often, as a matter of fact.

UPDATE:

Ah the joy of travel.

UPDATE

There is a super high maintenance person next to me sharing her phone conversation with our fellow passengers. So far she hasn’t started doing her nails … okay… the coughing just started.

UPDATE

The flight attendant just loaded something on VHS tape into a deck of hard to identify purpose.

How old is this airplane?

UPDATE

Unbelievable.

We taxied out. We taxied back to the gate. The taxi time alone would have gotten us to MSN.

“Something is broken.”

We have no idea how long we will be on the ground.

For now we are staying on the plane.

Will I NEVER get home?

The devil hates this trip.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
This entry was posted in Lighter fare, On the road, What Fr. Z is up to and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

44 Comments

  1. Gregg the Obscure says:

    Sorry you’re having such difficulty leaving my hometown.

    That creepy blue horse killed its designer.

  2. JennyU says:

    We call the horse Blucifer. [Outstanding!] He did kill his creator, which is why they let him live on as a permanent feature instead of the installation art he was designed to be.

    Hope you didn’t happen upon the even more disturbing murals inside near departures. DIA has a rich backstory involving lots of conspiracy theories and downright creepy stuff. A priest friend we know has prayed exorcism prayers on the property there, and has been called upon at various times for inexplicable phenomena. Not a nice place to spend the night. (but usually the security lines aren’t bad, especially compared with anything on the East Coast!)

    Fr. Z's Gold Star Award

  3. Friends of Mr. Cairo says:

    Father Z, I am so sorry you are having this much trouble with Delta at the creepy airport DIA. Especially after the blessing our parish received by having your presence at our parish this past week. Prayers are headed your way for a speedy and safe journey home, from the widow of “Sursum Corda”.

  4. Mary Jane says:

    Saint Anthony, help Fr Z “find” his way home quickly!

    Saint Christopher, ora pro nobis!

  5. Amy MEV says:

    If you get stuck, I’d be happy to come and get you and bring you out for some AMAZING Chinese food. Even if I do have to drive two hours to get there. :-)

  6. acardnal says:

    The Glock cap is a nice touch.

    [Ain’t it though? A lot of the TSA guys comment on it favorably and I have had some LEOs remark as well. Once at DTW a rep for Sig came up to me and engaged me. I asked him for a hat, but he didn’t have one. One’s head can belong to Glock, but one’s heart can belong to Sig.]

  7. frahobbit says:

    The architecture reminds me of Mordor orcs.

    [Not Orthanc orcs?]

  8. Phil_NL says:

    “Today, a very senior, almost bilingual desk clerk”

    In this situation, I hope he/she is bilingual in English and binary, then someone could talk to the system. Given your luck at Denver, I reckon it was Estonian and Maltese.

  9. Absit invidia says:

    Maybe Denver can join their buddies in CA and “exit the plane” of America to join in on their lethargic liberalism.

  10. This will be what President Trump is talking about when he says our airports are an embarrassment.

  11. iamlucky13 says:

    If you were hoping to work on your laptop, have you looked into whether your phone allows tethering so you can use its internet connection for your laptop?

    I’ve never been enamored by the giant hub airports that get all the praise and attention. Long walks, long taxi times, lots of crowds, lots of advertising, something is always under construction, etc. Better travels next time, I hope.

  12. hwriggles4 says:

    The last few days- Fr. John Zuhlsdorf’s Excellent Adventure.

  13. benedetta says:

    Perhaps that roller coaster/”sculpture” piece is intended as a bit of social engineering on the part of the airport authorities — you know, if you compare what your experience could be like — you begin to feel relief, even gratitude for the indignities you are paying for…?

  14. MissBee says:

    There used to be a check-in option on Facebook for the “Denver International Airport of Doom”.
    It would have been nice if Delta would have rebooked you on another airline. In all seriousness, it was wonderful to see you at OLMC, we hope you come back.

    FWIW, the drive across the plains is actually quite nice.

  15. tgarcia2 says:

    Shameless plug

    Give WN (Southwest) a try.

  16. aviva meriam says:

    Hope VW was reasonable about rescheduling your buyback appointment. You and this particular issue are in my prayer intentions. (Our buyback appointment is Thursday AM and this whole process has been miserable….) Beyond that, if Art is meant to be social commentary (or a reflection on the culture of our era) when will people realize exactly what they’re communicating with this “stuff”?

    Safe Travels

    [As a matter of fact, after lots of phone calls, I got a slot TOMORROW! Otherwise, I’d have to wait a month. So, tomorrow I see the last of my diesel Passat. Sniff. I get my new car, however. Oorah. Thanks for lying to me VW! Please do it again.]

    Fr. Z's Gold Star Award

  17. Augustine Thompson O.P. says:

    Ahh, for the days of regulated air travel. I remember it well.

    No hubs, mostly direct fights, all the airlines competing to give you great service because they couldn’t dupe you into taking the flight by under cutting the others by ONE DOLLAR.

    And, strangely, they didn’t go bankrupt. And flights were not all that more expensive than now: and mostly cheaper on the out of the way places.

    And there were agents galore and now lines to check in or get on the plane. If you are over 60 your remember the glory days of air travel. I am a traditionalist, bring back real air travel. And have all the men wear ties and the women dress up. We really did . . . And no one made you strip.

    Stupidest government action of all time: ending deregulation of a public service.

  18. Mary Jane says:

    When driving ends up being faster than flying, you know something’s wrong!

  19. wanda says:

    Ugh, my prayers for your timely departure and safe arrival at home. You’ve been tested in the Delta furnace, for sure.

  20. MaryW says:

    Hmm those sculptures look like something Torquemada (sp?) might have had in his dungeon. Creepy, indeed.

    [That’s dreadfully unfair to the deeply maligned Torquemada!]

  21. Charivari Rob says:

    Father Z, is it just me, or does that DIA terminal art look like it’s based on the kinetic sculpture at Port Authority Bus Terminal in NYC?

    https://i.ytimg.com/vi/w_UaWaZYjcE/maxresdefault.jpg

  22. MrsMacD says:

    If it affords you any consolation, it’s worth noting that Bishop Sheen often suffered some gross inconvenience like this one that you’re suffering, in order to pay for the conversion of some poor sinner.

  23. AnnTherese says:

    http://fortune.com/2017/01/30/donald-trump-muslim-ban-delta-protests/

    I guess you get to share in the fun. Airport chaos ensued because there wasn’t a plan or communication. Just a guy signing an order.

    I agree about the gates– especially at MSP –the shorter the layover, the farther away the gate is! Hope you get home safely.

  24. Semper Gumby says:

    Safe travels Fr. Z. A colleague tells me you have a headline over at Canon212: Fr. Z Trapped in Denver Airport.

    [I’m finally famous! It only took 79.7 million page views!]

    Fr. Z's Gold Star Award

  25. Elizabeth M says:

    Oatmeal raisin cookie, Father. That should be a clue that Delta has joined the Dark Side.

    [What was it? Waltzing Squirrel? Swinging Hedgehog? It was pretty good, though.]

  26. Cafea Fruor says:

    Oy. This makes me glad that the only time I’ve been in DIA was a one way – I landed only (took Amtrak on the way out of Denver), so I didn’t have to deal with waiting around in the airport or going through security there, etc.

    I do have a friend who flies through there every time he flies home to El Paso for Christmas, and he gets snowed in for at least a few hours every single time.

  27. Rod Halvorsen says:

    Father Z;;;; Do you wear a cassock…?

    If you do do I’ll tell you great airport story. Priceless.

  28. Rod Halvorsen says:

    …about 2 FSSP seminarians and a novus ordo diocesan priest and about one of your favorite topics {mine, too}…ie…confession……

  29. Rod Halvorsen says:

    OK, I can’t wait…

    So two cassock-wearing seminarians are standing there talking about the weather or the Superbowl or something when a guy from the waiting crowd walks up and introduces himself as…”Father O’Malley”. Now they get to yapping and it turns out he’s actually a Catholic priest, but since he’s wearing something like sandals, shorts and a polo shirt, who would know?

    Indeed.

    Moments later, as they are discussing Church news and the FSSP seminary in Nebraska and what not, fidgety fellow off in the corner gets up from his seat and walks over. He immediately collars the FSSP seminarians and says…”Fathers…I have sinned and I need to confess right now. I don’t want to get on that plane before I do”.

    Naturally, the two seminarians look at each other, smile and at the same time say…”Well…we can’t help you…but this guy can…”.

    The confession-needing passenger shoots a glance at the novus ordo golf player and then back at the seminarians and says, “Well, if you say so…”

    Moral of the story: If you are a priest, don’t hesitate to make it known because one of these days a plane is going to go down and it is going to matter.

  30. MariaKap says:

    I dunno, those sculptures speak to me. They say “Take the train.”

  31. Sword40 says:

    Been through Denver once; never again. Almost as bad as SFO. Flying out of SeaTac is bad enough, but going to fly one more time this April. SeaTac to Atlanta nonstop on Alaska Air. My son retires after 26 years in the Marines. Going back for the ceremony. Returning on United with one stop at Dulles (IAD) then back to SeaTac. I hate Seattle traffic.

    Going to take the son to his first EF Mass in Mableton, GA (FSSP parish) on April 23, which is also my wife’s and my 51st Anniversary.

    I hate flying. Seen too much crumpled aluminum on mountain sides.

    Cheers

  32. VexillaRegis says:

    How many hours have you been at the airport now? Awful situation.

  33. jflare says:

    “Just as we departed from the farthest possible gate in the concourse, so too we arrived in MSP at the farthest possible gate in the concourse. This happens to me quite often, as a matter of fact.”

    Maybe Delta needs to ‘fess up a bit more cash for landing fees?

    I recall going through DIA a few times on military orders. I recall having the distinct impression that they aimed for … um, “modern” art depictions of the Old West. As you’ve noticed, it didn’t work out so well. More like ghastly.

    That horse would make much more sense if they had colored it properly. I can’t think of any occasion I’ve heard of a blue horse. Certainly not one with red eyes.
    “Blucifer” does seem rather apt.

  34. asburyfox says:

    Fr. Z,
    You should look up rule 240. Rule 240 is an FAA rule mandating that a carrier has to transfer a passenger to a second carrier if that second carrier can get them to their destination faster than the original carrier for delayed or canceled flights. I believe the rule excludes weather as a reason though.

  35. graytown says:

    Fr Z,

    Speaking of Glocks.
    Just picked up a nice little BUG ( back-up gun ).
    Glock 42 – single stack .380 acp. It’s less than an inch thick.
    If you feel the need for 9mm – Glock 43.
    And Father, you gotta stop flying Deltoid.

  36. John Grammaticus says:

    If you think you have it bad Father I was once stranded in Portugal for 8 days by an Icelandic volcano, fortunately though Fatima was just up the Road :)

  37. JonPatrick says:

    Wow, for all the waiting time you had, you could have taken Amtrak and seen something of the country in the process. Although the quickest routing looks to be Denver – Sacramento – Portland OR – MSP at around 51 hours.

  38. Prayerful says:

    VHS? Maybe the demon horse teleported Fr to the 1990s.

  39. hwriggles4 says:

    Why the VHS?

    Delta is hanging on to quite a few of the old Boeing 757s, which are 20 to 25 years old. American and United are doing the same. It’s a good plane and that’s why Boeing has on the drawing board a stretched 737 with larger engines, because Airlines want a replacement for the 757.

  40. Charles E Flynn says:

    From Blucifer, the Murderous Mustang of Denver Airport, by Ella Morton, for Slate:

    Denver airport itself has attracted some wild conspiracy theories over the years. When it opened in 1995 — 16 months behind schedule and way, way over budget — a few of the more paranoid citizenry began asking questions. Why was it so expensive? Why the plethora of unmarked buildings? Could they have been built atop secret subterranean command bunkers for the New World Order? Why are the runways shaped like a swastika, sort of, if you look at them from above and cover some other buildings with your hand and squint a little?

  41. majuscule says:

    Did Father ever make it home?

  42. Mary Jane says:

    I’ve been wondering too!

  43. stuartal79 says:

    I cracked up when I saw the “Fr. Z Stuck at Airport” headline on Canon212 this morning.

  44. pelerin says:

    stuartal 79 – I did a double take this morning when I saw the headline in my newspaper:-
    ‘Jesus Quick To Convert’
    Reading further it is about a footballer who plays for Manchester City by the name of Gabriel Jesus.

Comments are closed.