Boarding my plane mere hours ago I was suffering from that American Mentality of “It can’t happen to me.”  The previous day dozens of departing BlogHer 2012 attendees all simulaneously participated in what was coined #BlogHerTarmac due to so many planes being delayed or grounded.  That day while I hoofed it all over NYC sight seeing I checked every few hours on the chaos via Twitter and the #BlogHerTarmac hasthtag and was sympathetic but also grateful that by staying an extra day I avoided that nightmare.

Several bloggers began a second leg of BlogHer with sessions on “How To Tweet from Grounded Plane Like a Boss” a panel moderated by @Schmutzie.  Other invaluable events included a Q&A with @HowtobeaDad and a #swagcandy fest where lucky attendees raided their conference bags and swag bags for anything edible.  Others huddled together for warmth around crowded electrical outlets in the airports to charge their gadgets according to @AureliaCotta.

“Thank God that won’t happen to me” was the sentence uttered in my head while I happily handed over my ticket to be scanned by a JetBlue employee at JFK this afternoon at 2 PM.  The skies were clear and blue.  I had already downed four advil- two this morning and two right before taking off- because a wisdom tooth has decided to come out and play.

I slept for the first hour on and off and once I woke up I pulled out my fresh new copy of “Plastic Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and You Can Too” by Beth Terry.  I was thoroughly enjoying the useful information I was reading about plastics in our lives.  Then it started.  Turbulence.  The seatbelt sign beeped and the pilot delivered the news.  Read it to yourself as Quagmire:

“Ummmmmm….. This is your captain speaking.  We are encountering a bit of weather and have been instructed to ummmm…. go into a holding pattern for half an hour or so until a storm over Tampa passes.  Ummm…. we’ll keep you updated as we learn more.”

I imagined my babies and husband waiting for me at the airport and their frustration as my plane doesn’t land on time.  But 30 minutes wasn’t too bad.

“Ummmm.  We are going to have to land in our back up airport in West Palm Beach.  We can’t cirle any longer and need to re-fuel.”  And so we journeyed about 30 minutes farther by plane from Tampa skies to West Palm Beach.  The turbelence was pretty frightening and I was white knuckling my seat and holding in a lot of pee.  Then we landed.

“Ummm…….. “We won’t know when we can get back in the air for another 30-45 minutes.  Umm…… seat belt fasten sign has been turned off.”

Soon enough they did allow us to de-plane and I called my husband with the bad news.  No one had informed them of our re-route, only that we were waiting for the skies to clear.

As I sit in the West Palm Beach airport and contemplate hand expressing breastmilk before the pain gets much worse and what kind of food I can eat because my tooth makes it hard to open my mouth/paintful to chew all the while my husband is playing it by ear and entertaining my two boys in Tampa who are currently trotting around the Tampa Airtport waiting for mommy I’m holding back my tears and wondering why BlogHer 12 was cursed.  {This is your run on sentence for the day.  You are welcome.}

Little food or water.  Ill prepared accomodations in the Session Halls and eating areas.  And then dozens of people were either stranded on planes on the tarmac living off of free Expo Hall Swag for sustenance or seeking food in airports.  Some bloggers had to leave the airports and stay in hotels another night.  I was so sad to hear of moms with babies stuck in airports or moms missing their babies at home while playing the waiting game.

I’m so ready to hug my boys I can’t stand it.  My husband is sending me photos of my smiling boys who should be in my arms right now and that makes it that much harder.