Please evacuate the airport immediately; the airport is on fire

When I was in the States for a brief period in January 2009, I planned to take a trip to Chicago, Grand Rapids, and Detroit. I wanted to visit my friends the Hunefelds in Chicago, then fellow board members from the Association for a More Just Society in Grand Rapids, and then my college roommate Mark Hakim outside Detroit. Mark and I got tickets for a Michigan basketball game.

I postponed the departure date for the trip because of bad weater in the midwest. Bad weather in the midwest in January means temperatures of minus 38 degrees F with wind chills bringing the feel down to minus 60. The cold temperatures also bring on ice storms, and difficult driving conditions. My grandmother, aunt, uncle, and sister prevailed on me to leave later to avoid the worst of the storms. Meanwhile, the weather in Oklahoma was up into the 80s.

Driving a rental car from rural Oklahoma to Chicago is not easy. The nearest car rental agency to my grandmother's house is two hours away at the airport in Oklahoma City. As my grandmother was 89 at the time, she doesn't like to drive, and we don't like her to drive, that far by herself. When she drives to Norman (outside of Oklahoma City and home of my aunt and uncle), her neighbor Catherine, age 77, often accompanies her, on the theory that they will keep each other alert and aware. My grandmother used to drive up to Norman fairly often for doctor's appointments, but she has found doctors in Ardmore (it is debatable whether or not this is a good thing). So her trips to Norman now are for the used book store, the Golden Corral, Dillard's, and my aunt and uncle.

To get to Oklahoma City, I planned a trip up to Norman, where my grandmother would pass me off to my aunt and uncle. They, in turn, would drive me to the airport to pick up my rental car. From there I would drive fourteen hours to Chicago.

My grandmother, Catherine, and I drove up to Norman to eat at the Golden Corral, a favorite for both of them. It is a treat for Catherine and grams to get to eat at Golden Corral because there is none in Ardmore, and my aunt and uncle do not like eating there. Oklahoma is a fat state and the customers at Golden Corral can remind my aunt and uncle of that fact. Trying to eat healthily at the Corral can prove challenging, but it can be done. Notwithstanding their preferences against the Golden Corral, my aunt and uncle met us there to enjoy lunch and then my grandmother and Catherine made their way back to Ardmore.

The next morning my aunt and uncle took me to the Oklahoma City airport. I had made a reservation for unlimited miles for a bit over a week for about $250. Though I use this agency often, there were some unexpected charges and terms with the rental. The most significant change was that I was not permitted to take a rental car outside a state that bordered Oklahoma. While Missouri borders Oklahoma, and I could get to St. Louis, that still isn't close enough to Chicago. The consequences of driving out of the approved territory were paying 75 cents per mile and getting put on the "do not rent" list. Knowing that the odometer and the GPS in the car would make it abundantly clear if I went over the state lines, I started calculating the real cost of the rental. With the out-of-territory costs, and the additional fees, the rental would cost me about $1000, plus gas.

$1000 for a rental is not an option for someone who is unemployed and homeless, who was renting a car to save money on the trip. So I declined the rental and checked down the aisle at the other agencies. Because it was a same-day rental, none of the other agencies were able to give a much better rate.

I went upstairs to the airline counters. I stopped at American Airlines to ask if I could use miles to fly to Chicago.
"I don't know - can you use miles?"
"Can you check to see if I can book an awards ticket for me?"
"We can't do that here. You need to call the AAdvantage number."
"Can you call that number for me."
"We don't have that number. You'll have to find it yourself."
"Can you check to see how much the fare is to fly to Chicago today?"
"That's $313."
"Thanks. Have a good one."

After this representatively unsatisfactory encounter with American Airlines, I walked down the aisle to Southwest, the other airline with direct flights to Chicago. Southwest had similar prices for flights to Chicago. Representatives from both airlines seemed quite surprised that I was interested in buying a same-day ticket. Apparently it is uncommon in Oklahoma City.

I went downstairs to the baggage claim area and called my sister to check online about redeeming my miles. As I was giving my information to my sister, the following announcement came over the speakers: "Please evacuate the airport. The airport is on fire. Evacuate the airport immediately." I continued to speak with my ssiter and paid little mind to the announcement as no one else seemed to be minding it. As my sister looked through the listings, an alarm continued to sound and airport officials started streaming out. The car rental counters emptied. Passengers flowed out of the airport. There were no airport officials directing anyone where to go or asking anyone to leave. There were just the announcements directing people to leave: "The airport is on fire." I told my sister that I would need to leave the airport. Outside I found out from my sister that it would cost $200 plus 25,000 miles to book the ticket. I decided to pass . . .

Although there were never any announcements, the airport apparently re-opened because people flowed back into the airport. The airport did not burn down. I smelled no smoke. But the airport had been evacuated - I don't know what happened.

At this point I called my aunt and uncle to pick me up. I figured that these were signs that I was not supposed to go to Chicago. The ultimate sign to me was the announcement: "the airport is on fire."

My aunt rarely brings her cell phone with her. My uncle brings his with him, but doesn't always turn it on, and even when it is on, he doesn't always hear it. I left a message on my uncle's cell and at their house. Then I got on the phone to let my friends know I wasn't coming. I called my grandmother to let her know I would be back - she was so happy because she was worried about me traveling in the bad weather, and she would also miss me. I rang back my uncle, who answered the phone, probably the first and only time that he has answered the phone. He and my aunt came and picked me up. Otherwise I would have spent all day at the aiport, until they got home at 5 pm. So I spent the night in Norman - and did not go to Chicago.