"Change planes at ORD."
Also known as O'Hare Airport, located in wonderfully balmy Chicago. Changing planes there is exciting at the best of times, given that being delayed is the Platonic essence of O'Hare, but these instructions are particularly nerve-wracking when the ticket is for December. One always wonders if it will be necessary to dig out the plane. Or the airport.
As a one-time Chicago resident, I speak only with love, of course.
Hating on O'Hare is a great Chicago tradition. A friend of mine once advanced the theory that the problem with O'Hare was that the decisions to hold/delay planes weren't made by Chicagoans -- that traffic controllers were skittish of anything resembling bad weather near the Great Lakes and needlessly kept planes on the ground. A delightfully nativist solution to the problem!
Posted by: Tim | October 27, 2008 at 04:45 PM
I just spent an unexpected 5 extra hours at ORD because it was "too windy" for air travel. Chicago? Windy? Who knew? Since I live in Madison, it was particularly annoying--I could have rented a car and been home in half the time, had I known how long the delay would be.
Posted by: richard | October 30, 2008 at 02:48 PM