I arrived home from the Disney cruise, still heavy with "after vacation-itis". But unfortunately, I didn't have time to dawdle. I needed to prepare for my trip to audition for a Disney character position. I knew I would have to travel alone. That was enough to give me butterflies. But I was excited too. I would get to embark on yet another adventure! I decided that the AmTrack would be my best mode of transportation, so I got online, booked my train ticket and hotel room, and started unpacking. If you're anything like me, unpacking usually takes at least two weeks. Ugh. But it was crunch time. So I became a tornado of clothes, launching them from the suitcase into the washing machine.
After unpacking, I realized that I would need transportation from the train station to my hotel. I have never, ever been in a taxi before. Why, you ask? Uh, have you seen Taken? No thank you. No taxis for me. So I hired a concierge service. I had to giggle. I mean concierge... it sounds so fancy! I was still skeptical about letting a stranger drive me around in an unfamiliar city. But it would have to do.
My departure date arrived quickly, and my mom was gracious enough to get up early to drive me to Oklahoma City. Thanks to GPS, we managed to navigate Brick Town. That's a small miracle. We arrived at the train station, and it was nothing like I expected. I was expecting a scene from Little House on the Prairie, but it was nothing like that. In fact, we were greeted by a man with exactly two teeth. I clutched my duffle bag. This was not the sort of place to let my guard down.
Once I got on the train, I relaxed a little. The seats reclined, and there was plenty of seats, so I didn't have to sit next to a stranger. I like to have my personal space. Respect the bubble! Anyways, I was traveling to Fort Worth, Texas before boarding another train that would take me to Austin.Upon arriving at the Fort Worth train station, the first thing a person said to me was, "What the *(rhymes with duck)*? Watch it!" Welcome to Texas, y'all! That rubbed me the wrong way. But I was determined to have a good experience. I straightened my back, held my head high, and marched right inside. I was starving, so I made my way to the Subway inside. I ordered and went to an empty table. Behind me was a table with two suitcases, I assumed saving someone's spot. Sure enough, soon a young man and his lady friend slipped in behind me. They were very loud. Soon, these two old ladies came up to the table behind me, and said that those were their suitcases and their table. I just knew that the man and woman would be kind and move immediately. WRONGO. They both stared at the ladies (who were wearing the most precious old-lady hats.. how could you be rude to these women?), and told them to buzz off... in a much less civilized way. I was appalled, disgusted, shocked, you name it.
Finally, it was time to board my train to Austin. It was a pleasant trip; I got to read and listen to my tunes the whole time. But I was getting nervous.. soon I would have to get in a car with a stranger. I concocted a plan. I would keep my headphones in my phone and pretend to be talking to someone. But I would really have the GPS on with the hotel address plugged into the phone, so I could watch and make sure he was taking me the correct way. Genius!
When I arrived in Austin, I found Anthony, the man driving me, and sized him up. He looked nice enough. He didn't smile. At all. But he seemed very business like, despite his short gym shorts. Ok, I was a little worried at this point. I must say, I put on a performance worthy of some sort of award. I was talking to my friend, Stephanie, and we were discussing her troubled love life. It was very convincing. But the whole time I had my eyes glued to my phone screen. Our little arrow stayed on the blue line. Ok, so far so good. Wait. Wait. WAIT. We are going the opposite way now. We are off the blue line. So I thought fast. "Stephanie" asked me something about the auditions, and I told her "Oh I'm so impressed with how thorough Disney is! Well they know who is going to be there because we had to sign up. They had us provide an emergency contact, so if we don't arrive at the auditions, they will call them to let them know we are missing." None of that is true. I don't know what happened, but immediately we got back on that blue road. Take note, lone travelers! Nothing is too embarrassing when it comes to keeping yourself safe. Including having a fake phone conversation.
I arrived at my hotel. I was exhausted from 12 hours of traveling, so I immediately went to my room. I felt like Mia Thermopalis from Princess Diaries. The room was amazing! Two beds and a huge bathroom. I, being a mature adult, jumped from bed to bed for about 10 minutes. Then I readied myself for bed, and passed out beneath the plush comforter. I had to be up early for the auditions in the morning.
To be continued!
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