Friday, February 20, 2009, 5:04 am: Plantation, FL: Home
I’m exhausted, I tell you. I got a two-hour nap after not sleeping for more than that in the past two days. And yet here I am, packing the last items into my suitcase and dying to get on the plane so I can sleep the flight away. I’m so excited to see the members of my illustrious sorority, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. Ithaca, here I come!

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Friday, February 20, 2009, 4:22 pm: Philadelphia, PA: Airport

Okay, clearly Philly wasn’t my planned final destination. But oh, such drama has occurred since reaching this airport at 10 am this morning. Mom and I went to a nice sterling silver jewelry store and bought some items to wear to the Delta Ball tomorrow night. We wasted a good chunk of the wait time we had to kill before our connection flight at 12:17. So everything was going smoothly: we boarded the flight just minutes before its departure (we went a little overboard while admiring the silver), sat in our seats and bucked up our seatbelts as instructed. (“Window shade up, m’aam. Raise your seat to its full upright position, m’aam.” I was clearly the rebel passenger on this flight.) I was in a pretty good place. Window seat way in the back of the plane, just the way I like it.

We took off and things seemed normal, until my ears started revolting against me. I’m a pretty seasoned traveler and never have complaints on planes, but this time I really had a hard time sleeping because it felt like the air was forcing itself out of my ear canals. About 45 minutes into the flight, the flight attendant announced that we’d be turning back around to Philly because of air pressure problems. *Blank stare.* …Air pressure problems? We’re half way to Ithaca already, man. Just push this baby there, we can make it! But no. The pilot wasn’t cooperating; can’t blame him though. Safety first, kids!

So we turned back. And when we got off the plane, we had to wait hours for it to be fixed. But, alas, the problem was solved. So here I am now, back on the plane and sitting here idly waiting on some sort of action. The pilot soon announced himself on the intercom. “Apparently they are having some problems getting us our release paperwork…Faxing it to ramp tower…Apologize for this delay…” A few passengers mumbled unmentionables under their breath. What else could delay us, now?

Minutes later… Yay! The paperwork came through. Time to turn off all electronic devices. Laptop battery is crying for a charge anyway. I’ll meet you back here later when mom and I (hopefully) make it to the Holiday Inn in Ithaca. Crossing my fingers!

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Saturday, February 21, 2009, 6:24 am: Ithaca, NY: Holiday Inn
We made it!!!! We landed safely and even got all our luggage. I was so paranoid about them losing a checked bag or two. US Air is notorious for doing such things. By the time we got our rental car and headed to the hotel, it was about 6:30, and last night’s event started at 7:30 so I already knew I’d arrive late after eating dinner and getting ready to go. But I made it just in time for them to start since it was running a few minutes late. The event is called Jabberwock, which is a traditional Delta show that allows students to compete against each other in groups, performing themed skits that hope to earn the most laughs from the crowd. It was a fun event and I was so glad to see so many of my Sorors and friends I haven’t seen in months.

We had an after-party at one of the frat houses on campus, which was a huge success. The brothers of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated also came in large numbers to support. No party is the same without the bruhs present, lol. I had a good time at that party; it was my first real outing in quite some time.
It is now after 6 in the morning and I am going to take myself to bed because it’s about time I catch up on SLEEP! Gotta get my beauty rest for the ball…

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Sunday, February 22, 2009,2:27 am: Ithaca, NY: Holiday Inn
Okay, so I definitely slept the entiiiiire day away. I’m not even going to divulge what time I surfaced, but I sure felt refreshed. By the time mom and I were about to get ready for the ball, the hotel fire alarm went off and we were told to evacuate the building. Just as we were geared up to head out the door, the alarm stopped beeping. That delayed us a little bit but we still made it to the ball at a decent time (an hour late isn’t so bad). The ball, by the way, was GREAT! I had such a wonderful time and caught up with so many more people. Everyone looked beautiful, the entertainment was good and the dancing/strolling was much fun. I wore a black strapless pencil dress, well accessorized by my new jewelry. I love me some sterling silver. Mom wore a pretty black and silver dress and looked fly as usual. I’m glad she came with me. Everyone was so happy to see her. She actually strolled with us and got in the middle of a dance circle with some people too. Comedy and cuteness! Gotta love her. I saw someone who I had a crush on while at Cornell…but not mentioning any names! A lot of people came to town for the weekend, and he happened to be one of them. *Sigh.* He’s so adorable. But continuing… I’m back at the hotel now. Bedtime!

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Sunday, February 22, 2009, 11:53 pm: Ithaca, NY: Holiday Inn
Today was great! I slept in as usual and then mom and I went to campus to see the Sigma probate. They crossed 5 new members and their show was so good! It was very funny actually…but I won’t get into the jokes. After the show, a few of us went to get food and then went to the last Delta event of the week. It was a unity hour about conflict diamonds and brand consumption of African Americans. After that, we headed back to the hotel. I’m here winding down after a wonderful weekend. We have an 8 am flight though, so gotta get to bed soon. I’m just so glad I made this trip.

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Monday, February 23, 2009, 6:24 pm: Plantation, FL: Home
Home safe and sound! The flight back was good. We had a 2 hour layover so mom and I went to this Xpress Spa in the airport and got our nails done (black polish for me, yay!). They had these amazing massage chairs too…Mom and I fell in love with them! It massaged us all over. That thing actually grabbed my booty, too. I was offended the first time but didn’t complain afterward. That was a darn good massage chair. I added pictures from the week here so be sure to check em out!