7:20 pm

Well, here I am. On a British Airways Boeing 747-400 -- a massive aircraft! There's even an upper level! There's an empty seat between me and a Greek man who was visiting a cousin in Detroit. I think he said he owns a hotel on a Greek island. Hmmmm. Suzanne drove me to the airport. We managed not to cry. Just choked back those tears when we said good-bye. I still can't believe this is happening! Today was so damn hectic! I didn't get to clean the house or buy a pair of jeans that I wanted. Oh well. Just stay focused on the future. Here we go -- taking off! Heavy cloud cover tonight. Can't see anything. We're stopping over in Montreal. I hope no one sits here on the way to London. Unless he's cute, of course! Back to my day. It was so crazed. I still didn't have time to dwell on what I'm doing. But as Suzanne says, I've never done this before, so how should I know how I should feel? Enjoy the experience!


8:15 pm

Wow. I'm listening to "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen. Free headsets, y'know. I used to fantasize acting out this song. Ooh. How annoying. The pilot just broke in saying we're about to land in Montreal. I hope it's not a long stop-over. I'm pretty tired. I hope I can get some sleep. Stereo headphones. "Galileo, Galileo" in alternating ears. "Let me go," too. What a fun song. This is how I write when I'm high. Well, I am at 38,000 feet. What an adventure life can be! If you choose it to be. I have! There's a group of obnoxious guys on the plane who must be on a hockey weekend to Montreal. "Bohemian Rhapsody" is No. 17 on this week's International Top 20. So many stimuli. So much going on. "Black and White" by Michael Jackson is "The world's number one!" Arrgh! An hour lay-over in Montreal!


8:55 pm

I should describe my frantic packing. I can't believe I've been planning this move for months and still I was so disorganized! I was throwing things into boxes to be stored at Steve and Bettie's. And my bags ended up being packed to the gills. I found my class ring and put it on my finger at the last minute. I was emptying out the refrigerator even after Suzanne had arrived. Then the mail came. A package I had sent to Alyssa came back. I don't know why. So I called her toll-free number from the airport. Hectic, hectic. I still haven't relaxed. On to other news. There's a really cute guy sitting across the plane from me. I don't suppose he'd be going on to Málaga from London! We're on the ground in Montreal now. I have $1500 in travelers checks and 60,000 pesetas cash. Not a lot of money, really. Maybe three months worth. Guess I'll have to meet a rich man within that time! Lots of snow here in Montreal. Didn't see the city lights at all. Heavy clouds. All those people out there in their trucks, doing their jobs at the Montreal airport. Just like anyone else anywhere else. What a cool world we live in! Travel is so mind-expanding. I wonder if that cute guy and the Greek man are wondering what I'm writing. An airline worker just said, "Excusez-moi." Wow. We're in a foreign country!