Thanks, Volcano!

We are stranded.  Not "Lost" stranded, nor even "Gilligan's Island" stranded, but stranded on holiday stranded.  This is really not a bad way to be stranded.  It beats being stranded in, say, Thailand with the tanks rolling in.  But it's still an odd thing to live through.

We were meant to fly back last night.  As you may be aware, Mother Nature, or God, or Fate had other plans.  The volcano with the utterly unpronounceable name (AY-yah-fyah-lah-YOH-kuul) continues to spew ashes and, apparently, random phonemes, into the upper atmosphere, causing untold chaos for travellers and American television journalists.


Many people don't understand why a volcano in Iceland would have such a devastating effect on international air travel.  After all, what's a bit of smoke to a jet?  Isn't this just another example of the nanny society trying to overprotect us?  


Actually, it turns out that it isn't.  Volcanic ash is basically full of glass particles.  When that glass gets sucked into a jet engine, it melts and oozes through it.  The cold air being sucked into the engine then cools the glass, hardening it and causing the engine to stop working.  


A jet without an engine is like a, well, like a jet without an engine.  I flew a glider once.  It was fun, and you can fly around for hours if you have enough money.  But it was also very light and had a tremendous wingspan.  It carried two people and had no upper class section.  It was made of Fiberglas.  In short, it was made to fly without an engine.  A 777, well-designed though it may be, is not.


So it's with good reason that we're stranded.  And actually, I'm grateful.  Being stuck here allows me to spend more time with people that really matter to me - family and friends, people I haven't seen in ages.  On this trip, I've been able to catch up with a few of those who I really missed while in London, and doing so has made me realize just how important it is to stay in touch with those people.  It's also made me realize, though, that relationships, the really good ones, are stronger than time and distance.


Thanks to everyone who's carved the time out of their busy lives to spend time catching up.  And thanks to YOU, Eyjafjallajokull.  Long may we mispronounce your name.