We both squeal, hug, shove my duffle bag in her back seat, and I hop in her car. I wait at curbside for a couple of minutes, and Stephie pulls up.

We hang up, and I briskly walk the mile out of the airport, so excited to finally meet my friend. But no worries, I still need to walk through the airport, so you can circle around and I’ll let you know when I’m outside” Thank GOD Stephie swears! I don’t have to clean up my language for this trip, I think to myself. “So this bitch of an airport attendant told me I can’t wait at the curbside, so I don’t know what to do. I answer mid-squat, and here are the first words I ever hear out of Stephie’s mouth: My phone is in my hand, and it starts ringing with Stephie’s name all up on it. I go to the nearest bathroom, hang my purse on the hook on the side of the stall, which is clearly meant for giants, because it’s approximately 15 feet above my head. Now all’s I’ve got to do is collect my shiz, take a pit stop, and go find me some Stephie Swope.

The 3.5 hours fuh-ly by, and before you know it, I’m safe at Chicago O’Hare. Life’s jelly.įor my in-flight entertainment, I get a combination of screaming toddler and the movie, Maleficent. I will unbutton my pants, let it all hang out, and do the open-mouth ugly snooze to my heart’s delight without worrying about drooling on another passenger. End side note.ĭuring the flight from RNO to ORD, I luck out and get an ENTIRE row to myself. Side note: Before you judge me for having a condom in my purse, don’t. I walk the two steps to security, followed by the two steps to my gate, feverishly texting all my friends about the condom. The ticketing agent gives me zero response (or eye contact), and hands me my boarding pass and passport. Sorry!” I say, looking around to see if anyone else witnessed this delicious event. Note to self: condoms and passports should be stored in separate purse compartments. It must have gotten stuck in the passport and this sweet lady is simply returning the condom to its rightful owner because as it turns out, you don’t need a Trojan Thintensity Grey Packet condom to check people in. “Thaaaaank –“ I begin, thinking the airlines have now decided to start promoting safe sex and I’ve been given a party favor…and then I realize the condom is actually mine. Slaps it down on the eye-level counter in front of me, like here ya are.

She takes my passport, and immediately offers me a condom. So I mosey up to the counter, and I hand the lady my passport so that she can print my boarding pass. Normally I like checking in for my flights online, but I was just soooooooooooo busy that I couldn’t poooooooooossibly find the foooooooour seconds necessary to do so this time around. You can mosey up any ol’ time and feel confident you will get through security and walk two steps to your gate (which is one of like 4 gates in the whole airport) in less than half a second. My girl friend drops me off at the Reno Tahoe International Airport approximately 45 minutes before my flight, because that’s how awesome of an airport RNO is. The story starts the morning I leave for Chicago. Let me tell you, folks, getting to Stephie was a journey. You know what they say: it’s as much about the journey as it is the destination. We had been talking about visiting each other for a good long while, and it wasn’t until this trip that we finally met in person. I met Stephie several years ago through blogging. Here goes –Īs you know, I recently took a trip to Chicago to visit my friend, Stephie from Stephie Cooks. Onto Episiode 3! Phew! It’s been a while since we’ve FC-ed, but I recently had a travel experience that necessitated a good cozy-up. So from now on, you can enjoy these Fireside Chats with a signature brew! Bottoms up! While I have yet to try the beer myself, I’m of the opinion that anything named Fireside Chat must be gravy.

I spied it in the grocery store the other day and couldn’t believe my eyes. It ACTUALLY exists! It’s brewed by 21 st Amendment Brewery. Like one of these, for instance:įireside Chat beer. Hiya! Welcome to the third episode of Fireside Chats with Julia! This one’s a long one, so I recommend you pour yourself a big ol’ bevvie. Spoiler alert: There’s lots of profanity in this post. Fireside Chats with Julia are stories I share that are unrelated to my regular recipe posts.

Fireside bowl cash only