From Blizzard to Beautiful

Many of my non-singing friends think I lead such a “glamorous” life with travel, dinners, special events and performances all over the country. I do admit that every now and again, I marvel at some of the opportunities my voice has afforded me. But for every great singing engagement I get to do, there is always the “just getting there,” story that seems to balance it out. This is one of those stories.

The night before leaving Long Island (I just moved here for love), we were met with Blizzard Nemo that brought cold temperatures, gusting winds and tons of snow.

10:00 am I called to get a cab to take me to the LIRR (Long Island Railroad), but was greeted with a prompt “we’re closed.” Things weren’t starting off well. Luckily, I was able to find a ride to the train and only had to walk through knee-high snow to get to the car that picked me up.

The train was set to leave at 11:35 am which I had to take because the next train out was at 1:35 and I had a 3:00 flight to catch. While sitting on the train, I was able to capture another shot of the extraordinary amount of snow that fell.

I had a chance to snap this shot as I waited for an additional 25 minutes as the train was delayed because of weather conditions.

1:00 pm, I arrived at the Jamaica train station in order to take the E train.


Somewhere between the chill of the train, the chill of the subway station and the chill of waiting outside for the Q33 bus to take me to the airport, I caught a glimpse of the sun which reminded me that I was heading to sunny Florida. This helped warm the tips of my fingers which felt as though they were getting a little numb.

2:15 I arrived at the airport, checked-in, (very easy!) and got through security in plenty of time to board my first flight. I arrived in St. Louis and had just enough time to snap this pic of my connecting flight in mid-air. Just kidding, this was just to show that I was getting warmer (literally and figuratively) to being in Florida.

5:30 pm I took this photo of my cute boots which I would be happy to put away for a couple of weeks as I was about to enjoy 70-80 degree weather. Who knew this photo would later mock me once I arrived in Ft. Myers, FL.


9:20 pm We hit the ground from flight number 2 and I was excited to meet my driver (yes, they sent a car service). I got to baggage claim and was looking forward to my suitcase filled with my cute clothes, toiletries and many shoes. But alas, my baggage had other plans. Perhaps it went to Miami.

I arrived at my host’s house sans luggage, but with a nice toiletries bag courtesy of Southwest filled with useful things like a hairbrush and Lady Speed Stick.

My host was kind enough to give me some pasta and I got to bed in hopes of starting fresh today.

9:00 am I awoke and was glad to see this view from the backyard.

And here I am with one of my best friends: coffee.

So after a nearly 11 hour trip complete with a few adventures and a good night’s sleep, I am ready for a great rehearsal (and to quote Shelia E, “The Glamorous Life”).
Peace,

Eric