just as uncertain and now with an aching back VI

With my new developments, I had been given a second chance to live, to explore. So began my

SUNDAY AFTERNOON.

I unpacked my essentials from my bag and crashed on the bed I had become accustomed to; the heater right next to the open window was on at full power, but the room was moderately lukewarm. I had noticed that my host had a Super Nintendo in his room, but it was hard to see in plain view. Since he wasn't around, I figured it wouldn't be too bad to just peer in to see what games he had.

So the next thing I know I've been playing Super MArio RPG for 4 hours. Nick, Andrew's roommate, was mildly surprised at how good looking the graphics were on the Super Nintendo. Lots of people had come in and out, looking for Nick and Andrew while they were watching my mad super skillz.

Nick asked me if I had any money left on the cash card they gave me. I think I still had nine bucks on it, but I tought it expired Saturday at midnight, so when they asked me for it i surrendered it at will. They said they were gonna buy ice cream to make smoothies, but I didn't want any part in it because, frankly, I had no idea what they put in there.

Andrew came back around 4 and asked me when I was gonna leave. He hadn't heard my message yet, but he was cool about it which calmed my nerves a lot since the admissions people porbably picked up their bags and left promptly at 12. They were there when we needed them, granted as long as it was on their schedule.

As night gre dark, Mom and I talked about how I was gonna get to the airport. The MIT booklet said you should arrive at your airport 3 hours before departure, so I figured I should leave at around 7 to get to my 10:05 flight. She arranged a taxicab to pick me up promptly at 7 at the main education building. I had tried to call a taxi comp. earlier, but they were rude like you might expect. He said it would cost 200 bucks and take 2 hours. after which he promptly hung up. "Asshole," I said unfilteredly without flinching. Well, he was. Reminds me of the highway patrol guy who said, "Too bad." after hearing of an accident late at night.

As the sun set, I realized I hadn't eaten anything since my lame heaping of rolls and chocolate milk that morning, so I headed back to Anna's taqueria to buy me a quesadilla. It was allright, like I thought it would be, and I drank my troubles away with another Jarrito's. Wait. No I didn't. j/k. I went to the pizza place 20 feet away. So I had a calzone, mixed up orange fanta and dr pepper, and watched FOX in vivid color. SImpsons was a rerun. As I headed back, I saw two stars in the sky, but they were both rather dim and outshined by the manmade lights across the river.

I headed back to BC and played Super Mario World until about 11. Then I tried to adjust the tv set with no cable or antenna to see what I could get. All there was were soccer and PAX, and, really, what American wants to watch that?

So I went to bed, nervous about what the next day would bring, trying to make myself confident thatv everything would be ok, but everything that could go wrong went thru my mind. After all, the terrorists went thru Logan. I played with my Rubik's Cube until I got sleepy.

Suddenly I heard a phone going off. As I came to my senses, I realized that it was Andrew's cell phone. Glancing over at my own phone, I saw that it was

MONDAY

at 2 in the morning. frustrated but high on adrenaline, I did my best to get back to sleep, as my alarm would go off at 5:30 because I didn't want to forget anything. It hadn't hit me that no one had claimed the top bunk. SO my last night there (hopefully) would be alone.

My alarm went off at 5:30, like I had hoped. The sun was starting to rise, but I tried my best to be quiet because who knows when the other dorm people went to sleep, or even if they were still awake. I peered to the top bunk, and no one had come to sleep.

I must mention, because it is a matter of serious gravity, there were rumours that my host slept with a female prefrosh. Whether this was true, I have no idea nor did I really want to know.

Everyone called me within a period of 10 minutes around 6 AM just to make sure that I was up. I assured them I was, and they wished me the best to get home. Slowly, quietly, I made my way downstairs with my luggage in tow. At the main lobby the tenant apparently thought I was an undergrad. After telling him I was the last prefrosh, he was amused cause he didn't think I looked like a prefrosh. he thought I was like a senior undergrad, but maybe that was because I hadn't shaved. Regardless, he wished me the best and I left BC for the last time.

I called the cab company ust to make sure they would be there to pick me up. After the lady informed me that they would call when the cabbie was close, I said thank you and hung up.

6:57, I see a cab pull up. It was the same company that I had called earlier, so I thought this was my ride. The guy's name was Jafta, I believe. We talked about how expensive colleges had become, and he commented that MIT was more expensive than Harvard. 25 minutes and 25 dollars later, and after going thru the undeground tunnel, I arrived at Logan and bid him adieu.

As I stood in line at the ticket counter, my cell phone rang. The number was from Boston, but unfamiliar. As I picked it up, it was a cabbie calling to say that he was running a little late. "Um, I already got picked up by you guys." "Who?" "jafta, I believe." "Oh. Jafta (grumble grumble)" and then he said good bye. So I was on the wrong taxi. Maybe I took sombody else's cab! I would normally be guilty but I just wanted to get home.

Wlaking up to the counter attendant, I told her of my itinerary to ead back to Tucson.

"Um, that flight's scheduled for tomorrow."
"OH SHIT" I thought. I explained to her my promblems that Denver screwed up my plans, and so I called the hotline and they gave me this flight. She sincerely apologized and I saw the first real sincere smile I had seen all day.
"Um, so is there any way I could get to Tucson today?"
"Let's see, I could get you from here to LAX leaving at 10:05"
"Um, anything else?" (I can't explain it, but I just didn't want to go to LAX)
"Well we have a plane leaving for Chicago in about 20 minutes. There is one open seat."

And after a few sighs and thank you's, I had my ticket for Chicago and then from there to Tucson. Had I taken my original cab, I would've had to go thru LA, maybe. My CA aversion perhaps paid off or something, somehow.

But now for the fun part: getting thru Boston's security in 20 MINUTES!

Somehow, with a lot of praying and wishing, I got through intact and with all my stuff. As I hurried to my ate, they had already begun boarding. Amazingly, I wasn't the last passenger. But thru a little luck and some help from somewhere, I was heading back home.

Up in the plane, I had one fo those out-of-body experiences. For a minute I thought I was back at BC. I could visualize walking down the gray mile perfectly vivid, but then I remembered I was in an airplane, in the air, heading towards Chicago. For a while I was joking to myself that I left my soul or something over there by accidentally, but that would be silly.

I got in at Chicago around 10 in the morning. I had noted that the plane for Tucson wouldn't leave until 2:40, but it hadn't dawned me taht I would have to spend over 4 freaking hours at an airport.

Fortunately, O'Hare is not the worst airport to be stuck in. I had loads of fun riding the escalators and the moving sidewalks. I was fascinated by the stoies on CNN. I bought a book. Thoughts crossed my mind to call one of my buds or even the school, but I figured I should wait 'til I get home and on the ground to say anything. They have the AWESOMEST! LIGHTING! DISPLAY!

At last it was 2:15 and they started to board. Then I got home.

I almost forgot. I had a cheese pretzel at O'Hare, but this was the weirdest looking cheese sauce I had ever seen. I couldn't quite determine its state of matter. It was too still to be a liquid. Hot, but not steamy enough to be a gas. Still, but jiggly enough to not be a solid. So I ate some cheese plasma, and I was rather unimpressed.

But the ride back home was the scariest, coolest ride ever. The plane was a little old, and the lightingg was a little shoddy to say the least. The part that freaked me out the most was that when they turned on the seat belt light, the coincinding beep was not your average beep. It was a PUTONYOURSEATBELTCUZWEAREGONNACRASH sounding type of beep. It scared me to death. Over Colorado (or maybe NM), I swear, the snow that was over the Rockies looked like Dairy Queen soft serve ice cream. I so wanted to just grab a spoon and scoop out that yumy goodness. Apparenty cheese plasma has bizarre side effects.

But at last I got home at about 4:30 Tucson time and was ready to tell all of my adventures. Then I got sick for a week.

THE END