I go to school 7 hours away in a different state. Oh, and I also can't drive. So that complicates the situation just a bit. Obviously I can't expect my parents to take off work to drive 7 hours to get me and then 7 hours back. So, when I go home for breaks off school, I fly.
And I hate it.
I should preface, it's not the actual flying part that I hate. The flight itself is about an hour and a half long and I spend the entire time sleeping. It's the airport part I hate. The second I step foot into an airport, I'm instantly in an awful mood. I don't want to be talked to, I don't want to be looked at, I don't even want you breathing too close to me.
First of all, my flights always end up being early in the morning. When I'm on a break from school, I can easily stay up until 3am every night and not end up waking up until 2 in the afternoon. A bad habit, I know, but I'm a night owl. So when I drag myself to the airport at 9am, bleary eyed and yawning ever five seconds, I look less like a college student and more like a troll that dragged myself out from under a bridge somewhere in the Florida swamplands.
Not a good look.
I know what you're probably thinking: "It's an airport. Everyone's minding their own business. Who cares what you look like?"
Apparently, the TSA agents do.
I look much younger than I am. It's a fact I'm constantly being reminded of. I'm small and terminally baby faced. Without makeup, I could easily be mistaken for 14 instead of 20. So every time I go through security, I have TSA agents asking me if I'm an unaccompanied minor or if the random adult behind me in line is my parent. There have been a few instances where a TSA agent has stopped me from going through the full body scanner and informed me in their most parental tone that there was a different one meant for kids 12 and under.
12 and under??? I know I look kinda young, but 12? That's pushing it.
Second of all, I hate the people at airports. Not everyone, of course. Some people, like me, just want to get to their flight on time and with the least amount of hassle possible. But it seems that even in airports, some people can't keep their inner 40-year-old-"I wanna speak to the manager"-white-mom contained.
The amount of times I've seen grown adults throw hissy fits in the security line is astounding. It's always over the most ridiculous things. Some people refuse to accept the 3 oz. of liquid rule, some find a problem with the way the TSA handles their belongings, the list goes on. The only thing they accomplish by complaining is holding the line up.
Seriously, you're gonna risk missing your own flight just to cause a scene? Can you at least let me cut in front of you?
The final reason why I hate airports (or at least the final reason I'm gonna list here) is the moments after you board the plane but before it takes off. Everyone who has ever travelled alone can relate to that brief hope you have that no one will sit next to you, or at least if someone does, that they'll leave you alone.
I don't know why the universe deems it fit to punish me in this way, but I almost always get a talkative person sitting next to me. I always try to be polite, but clear on the fact that I don't wanna talk. I stick to one word answers and try to signal with my body language that I want to end the conversation. Some people just don't seem to pick up on these cues, or if they do, they choose to ignore them.
Bro. I have my earbuds in, my seat leaned back, and I just popped two Dramamine. I wanna sleep, not listen to you talk about your trip to DC.
If you're in Washington Dulles airport anytime soon and you see a girl who looks to be about 12 years old with a bad case of bedhead and a UNC Asheville t-shirt on, please leave her alone. She's having a bad day.
