Five Hours with Gate A12: A Prelude
Mmmmmmm sourdough sandwich...
Today’s story starts how many of my favorite stories start: with a bacon, egg, and cheese on sourdough in an airport of a city I’ve never been to.
It also starts with my second favorite part of storytelling: intentionally lying, painting me as an unreliable narrator. Because I’m not actually starting with the sandwich and now I’m gonna go back a few months.
I’m headed back to Japan! But why? And how? And will you go broke trying?
Allow me to answer one of those questions: yes. But I’m not telling which question that’s an answer to.
About a year ago I was doing my evening Instagram Reels scroll session and came across a post saying something along the lines of “Do YOU want to volunteer at a summer camp in Japan? For sort-of FREE?” To which I likely responded “Oh man, sure. Sounds fun.”
Following this, I did what I’ve rarely ever done: I actually acted on a reel instead of just throwing it into one of many folders I have in my favorites.
Long story short: I applied, they interviewed me within 12 hours, they liked me but the position was already filled, I was waitlisted and was never needed that last summer, I reapplied in December, April rolled around and they said “We want you!”
The camp is an English immersion summer camp for kids ages 6-14. Same age group of kids I’ve been substitute teaching for this past spring. I feel equipped to help out. Imagine any western-style summer camp: swimming, canoeing, tie-dyeing, campfires, the whole john. But all, in English.
My job? Waterfront Master. Which is great and fun and definitely means lifeguard. I hadn’t used the term “lifeguard” to describe it to my mom until the other day. She laughed. I laughed. The camp pond is mine.
I did all the prep, packed, blah blah. Back to today.
Me and half of the US Army pulled up to Will Rogers International* Airport at 3:30am, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and sleepy and not bright eyed at all really. But I was excited. (*changed from “World” to “International” recently)
My first flight took off at 5am from the great city of Oklahoma City, and landed in Dallas (gross) less than an hour later. My feet and the Skylink swept me away to my next gate, at which I nearly immediately boarded a plane again.
The 3 hour flight to San Francisco was decently pleasant. I fell into a very light sleep in the World’s Most Uncomfortable Position then watched the Jim Carrey version of A Series of Unfortunate Events. I totally never knew that the cast was insane. Jude Law, Meryl Streep, Catherine O’Hara, Jennifer Coolidge (playing a character that had no name except “White-Faced Woman”), Luis Guzman (as “Bald Man”), and Dustin Hoffman? And it was a Nickelodeon movie?
3.5/5 stars.
I landed, I deplaned, I walked, bringing us back to this sandwich.
Boudin Bakery, est. sometime a while ago. Apparently the original San Francisco sourdough. And you know what? That sourdough was pretty good man. the place definitely wasn't the original San Francisco Restaurant with a Sandwich with Bacon On It cause that bacon sucked. But the sandwich as a whole was decent. The vanilla latte was decent too.
That’s where I’ll leave it. I’ve got 3.5 hours ahead of me before I board and a whole airport to walk around for fun. I’ll keep trying to keep these short.
Until next time soon, cheers, ciao, and toodle-oo!