> This is where all the FREE stuff comes in. I got a FREE hotel room at the Drawbridge Inn, which, as I heard, was one of the nicest hotels in the area. Delta Airlines also gave me this FREE overnight bag that had a toothbrush, toothpaste, comb/brush, etc. in it. I didn't really need it, but it was FREE, so I took it. It was cool. I got to the hotel at 12:00 a.m. and fell asleep around 1:00 or so. I got up the next morning at 6:00 a.m. and then went to the airport, and here I am.

You're pretty lucky! It's fairly common practice for airlines to *not* put you up for the night if the reason you missed your flight was weather-related. (Perhaps the runway problem helped you out.) As far as I can tell, you can never tell whether you're going to be put up, or whether you're about to generate another horror story.

I was stranded in Chicago overnight once, because of weather. (I will leave you to guess which airline it was.) Not only did they not put us up, but they announced quite matter-of-factly that all the hotels remotely near the airport were already completely full. And the airport's cots were full too. A lot of people settled down to sleep on the floor of the baggage claim area. I was fortunate to have a friend in the area, who I called up begging for help at 11 PM.

As these things go, my story isn't particularly horrific, for which I am quite thankful.

ahmo"it was hot and humid and my luggage was all checked"acah