At the airport

See how happy Ella was to see her aunt Sarah and her grammy at the airport when they came Christmas Eve? I'm sure that she was glad to be off the airplane and on terra firma once again. She and her parents arrived at the airport in Tampa on Christmas Eve. Whenever I meet anyone at the airport, I always park in the parking garage and take my time window shopping inside the airport. The airport at Tampa is really quite a user-friendly place. You don't have to walk far at all to get anywhere.
When it was time for the family to leave, I drove them back to Tampa. Because I didn't want to just drop them off, I said that we would park in the garage and then go down. When you approach the terminal, there are signs that show you where to go for whatever airline you're traveling on. As we approached, the signs indicated to go in the red area for Southwest, so we did, or so I thought. We went to the ticket counter, got them checked in, and then since Sabrina hadn't eaten, we went to the food court and got some breakfast. After visiting for a little while, they decided it was time to go to their gate and go through security.

I left them there and took the red elevator up to the fourth level where we had parked the car. I walked out of the elevator, turned left to where my car should have been, but it wasn't there. I walked back to the elevator, again turned left. The car still wasn't there. "This can't be," I thought. Someone has taken my car. I walked around for a little, still looking, and a gentleman said to me, "There is another red elevator." I went to that one, but when I turned, it just wasn't right.
I know how I have looked at little old ladies coming out of Wal-Mart, or the parking lot at Publix, looking in dismay, wondering where on earth their cars are, and I used to think, "Poor things." Well, they had nothing on me that day. I called David on my cell phone and asked him if we had indeed parked on the fourth level. "Yes, mom, and when you come out of the elevator, you turn left, and the car is right there." But it wasn't. I can't begin to describe the sick feeling I had. I've never had a panic attack, but I think I was about to have one.

I finally thought to myself, "Maybe we parked by the blue elevators", so I took a walk down that way, and sure enough, there it was, right where I had left it. As I got in and drove through the lane to pay, the gentleman told me that it would be $1.25. I thanked him and told him that if I had found my car, it would have been free. (The first hour is free.) He said to me, "Well, one more minute, and it would have been $2.50."

I was so glad to drive away, cross the Sunshine Skyway and arrive safely at home.

If you want to read an interesting story about picking people up at the Tampa airport, go to Vicki's blog, and read her account with the Keystone Kops who patrol outside of baggage claim. Warning: Strong language, but hilarious. I'm going to meet this lady on Thursday, and I am so excited!!!