The pacific northwest is facing inclement weather as an ice storm has taken over all of western Oregon. The typical bout of ice doesn't usually impact much in my day-to-day, excepting for the few chances when I have to haul water buckets out to my horses, but this year I've felt it more than normal.
You see, at 5:00 am on Saturday morning, I had a flight to Dallas-Fort Worth for a client's convention that we have been planning for the last ten months. We've spent 60-90 minutes a week discussing strategy, ensuring the event was completely ready to go, and creating an exciting experience for the members that would be attending.
That flight was delayed. Then cancelled and rescheduled.
So I got myself booked via a different airline for the next day.
On Sunday I went three times to the airport. Delayed. Delayed. Cancelled. Rescheduled for Monday. By Sunday night? Delayed.
Monday morning: Delayed. Delayed. Cancelled - both rescheduled flights.
You get the gist of it.
Outside of these travel issues, the ice has wrecked havoc on my small hobby farm. Packing water, blanketing horses, and feeding cows four times a day - this has been a crazy time! For the first time in my life of raising animals, I have a genuine fear that some of my calves might not make it as we battle the elements.
Where I'm going with this though, is the compassion everyone has expressed in helping each other. The ticketing agents were kind and a great resource at our small Eugene airport. A group of individuals who didn't have the grace I had to get out, all pooled their resources to rent a bus to take over a hundred people to the Portland Airport that had my resources and flight options. Unfortunately, the cold snap has affected them heavily today and I found out that they weren't able to get on any flights there.
I think something that we can't overlook in 2024 is the rise of the Human at the core of everything we do. While I may not make my trip to DFW, I am appreciative for the chance to watch human behavior as we navigate crisis to help curate behavior tabs that will impact my future event management and strategy.
Hope you enjoyed your holiday, Luke! Now... back to reality 👨💻