"My plans went askew!" Topic

My wife was supposed to fly out of here (Albany, NY, area) at 6AM this morning to attend a family wedding in Houston. This left me home alone, so I had planned a day of playing games!

But last night, we found out her flight was delayed until almost 10AM. Then this morning, we found out she was re-routed to a 5PM flight.

We didn't initially know why, but my wife later found out from other passengers that American Airlines had some kind of flight disruption in Europe, which led to a lot of international travelers being stranded overnight in Albany, and then some planes not being available the next day.

My wife was supposed to get to Houston in time for an early Thanksgiving dinner today with her sisters and family, but now she will arrive at 1AM (they are saving leftovers for her).

My game day ended up cancelled, as I helped my wife run some errands and then dropped her at the airport. She's now sitting in the airport in Charlotte, North Carolina – not a very efficient way to get to Houston! – waiting for the next leg of her flight.

American Airlines charges 'seat fees' on top of ticket prices, with the fee going up for the more desirable seats. My wife is supposed to get a refund now, as she didn't get the window seats she paid for…

Hopefully, her return flight in a few days goes according to schedule.

So, is this an example of the "friction" Von Clausewitz talked about, or does that just apply to war?

How interconnected our modern world is?

Or does American Airlines just suck?

I had a 5 hour delay in Charlotte because the smoke alarm in the "restroom" wouldn't turn off, and changing the battery didn't work. Yeah. That's what we were told. They made us wait for a new plane to be brought around, and I assume a new crew. 🙄🤷
Some passengers got irate. I just laughed. What good would shouting do? Shouting at my dice doesn't make them roll a 6.

is this an example of the "friction"

Nah, it sounds like a Monday. Some weeks are full of them.

Sorry to hear about the missed game day, Bill. Hopefully her return works out better.

Hopefully, she will be able to enjoy the wedding.

Mad Anthony, are you sure that shouting at dice doesn't work? I might try it anyway.

Oh, American Airlines just sucks. I could tell you a couple of stories. The just burn my a$$.

I'm sorry. "Plans went askew" is not news. "Everything worked as intended" is news.

Advocate, yelling at the dice does not make them roll as needed and is not intended to. It's a wargaming stress-relief technique. Dice, while not precisely inanimate--you can watch them try to escape and hide--have very small high-impact plastic brains. At best, you can teach them to mostly roll high or roll low, not vary depending on rules and situations, and even then, they tend to forget under stress.

Threatening cardboard counters with burning did work the only time I know it to be tried, but it was a small sample size, and I'd about given up board gaming by the time I heard of it.

It's traditionally a bad time of year to fly.

Get used to it. It is the shape of things to come. Our highly connected modern world, and Western Civilization in particular, is slowly collapsing into chaos and ruin.

"Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair."

Happy thoughts!

Bill, if you're an optimist, schedule a game day for the day she's supposed to come back. That way, if she's delayed again, you're gaming.

Andrew, the good time to fly was c. 1972.

It's American Airlines, they're awful. I started flying Delta (I know it's more expensive but I get where I'm going on time) a while back and I can't remember the last time they had a disruptive scheduling issue.