The day began with some great worship at Holy Cross this morning, and right after the last service it was time to head out to the airport. I opted to Fly on Sunday so I could get out to Anaheim and get acclimated and scope things out for you. The rest of our South Carolina delegation will arrive tomorrow. The Bishop will join us on Tuesday. We’re flying into John Wayne International. Really.

If you are not old enough to appreciate John Wayne, let me put it this way – we goin’ to da OC.

Les Allred took me to the airport in 2000, 20003 and 2006.  He couldn’t this time. Oh well, everything changes, doesn’t it.  My wife Sylvia played the Les Allred role of chauffeur for me today.
I decided to get a new camera for this trip – It’s the smallest one made by Canon, the PowerShot SD780is. It’s smaller and weighs less than most cell phones but it has some really refined features. I mention this because as we got to CHS, Syl said, “Give me your camera – I need to take a picture of you as you get your luggage out of the car.” I gave it to her, and this was the result.
I suppose the camera was a bit smaller than she expected. I believe the tanish blur is her finger.  Here’s one I took of her:

Those of you who travel - Have you noticed the full size-luggage people are now taking onto planes with them? I am amazed at what people classify as the “one bag and a personal item” they are allowed to take on the plane!  The guy in the boarding line in front of me struggled for several minutes to cram a bag that was bigger around then I am into the overhead compartment. It wouldn’t go. Oh, and he wasn’t the only one!  The lead flight attendant finally came on the intercom and announced that we had been cleared for our flight to Atlanta and she asked the passengers to please try to speed up the process of stowing their carry-on’s so that we could take off as soon as possible to allow ample time for people to catch connecting fights.  I checked my bag that was bigger around than I am. Delta charged me $18.00 for a single checked bag. Sigh.

I remember with flying used to be fun.

The trip from Atlanta to Anaheim was completely uneventful full plane, not an empty seat anywhere.

Landed at the John Wayne at 12:15 Diocese of SC time.

Took a shuttle to the Hilton where we are staying. The shuttle driver’s name was Ali, and had just become a US citizen a month ago after waiting in line for 15 years. The guy was an incredible storehouse of trivia on American cities. For instance, name the five American capital cities that begin with the letter “a.”  Ali knew. He entertained our shuttle full of folks for the whole hour ride.

The Anaheim Hilton is h-u-g-e. I’ll have some more on this tomorrow.

I have a very nice room – king bed, overlooking the courtyard. And if I look to the right – there it is – Disneyland! No pictures tonight, because the park closes at 11:00 It’s now 12:15 – or 3:15 home time. I’m going to bed.

Thanks for all your prayers and do keep ‘em up. I’ll have a report (God willing) before midnight EDT.
Goodnight from Anaheim!