You enter the 210 freeway, and there may be a few people, but not many. As you head east, you meet the 605 and head south for many miles. Citrus farms, speedways, neighborhoods. The OC is very diverse. There’s still that orange glow.
You turn west onto the 105, this is the home stretch. It is wide, and in a few hours, the Metro will be running the Green Line right down the center. Orange. You pass shopping malls, and neighborhoods that look curiously like Duarte. Drive.
Overpasses. One, two, three cars. Everybody seems to be pretty awake, but in a haze. You reminisce about family memories, and sometimes sing show tunes, for some reason. You notice the power poles and signage for the Green Line have disappeared. The 105 is terminating. You exit on Sepulveda.
Wow. LAX is huge! The streets literally go under the runways, and between airfields. Some Delta 737s are being serviced, along with private jets. You get lost because you missed a lane, and end up in a giant loop that you do several times around these cold, dark, desolate buildings. Just small flood lights light up some planes and buildings, billboards, and streets.
Heh, a McDonalds. Didn’t expect one by the airport.
You pull in to World Way, that giant circle inside the airport. You’re still in the wrong place, but that’s OK. There’s two levels, one for departures, one for arrivals. They’re retro, built in the 1960s, restored in the 80s. In the center is the famous Theme Building, super retro. It was built in 1963, and looks like a giant, hovering, spacecraft. It’s a restaurant. In the dark, it is lit up purple and blue. Still, nobody is around.
You pull back on to Sepulveda, and past the In-N-Out, right next to The Parking Spot. You have come here before, where the jets land only 100 feet away, right over your head so close that you can see the screws. But you’re not spotting now. It’s just so familiar…
You self-park, it’s cheaper. The shuttle guy looks groggy as he drives you back to World Way, to your terminal. There’s a few more people now. You check your baggage, and get your boarding passes off the little machine. Then, you proceed either side to security, and you’re so early it’s not even open. In a few minutes, a line has collected. Still pitch black outside. After a while, you start moving. Stumble through the metal detector with no shoes on, while all your precious electronics get nuked in a big machine. You slip your shoes back on. You can’t see now, but it’s still dark outside.
Upstairs escalator. Trot down the terminal, all lined with marble. Your gate ends up being at the very end. Still dark, as you see through those giant windows that allow you to see all of the airport, Los Angeles, El Segundo, Westchester and LAX. Orange glow. No people.
5:00. Starbucks coffee, maybe a donut also. Or an apple from the stand. Hey, McDonalds has yogurt.
5:30. Boarding starts, you’re in group C. You eventually pile in, with your carry on above you and your little bag at your feet. More people squeeze in to the plane. Still dark. The old neon “UNITED AIR LINES” in red flashes up, there’s commotion with the baggage people. The planes are already ready to fly for the rest of the day. Their day starts the day before, prepping everything.
5:45. You got lucky, everybody else arrived early and is on board. You can leave early. The safety video starts playing, as the plane slowly backs up and then taxis. Still dark while the stewardess makes pointless announcements.
5:55. Dark takeoff. Whoosh, the worst, scariest part is over as you zoom over the airport, the runway, the ocean. You can see quite a bit as you turn back east over the land.
6:15. Climbing steadily. You watch the sunrise through your window…
