I'm driving to the Anaheim Amtrak/Metrolink station in my overdressed hobo outfit complete with tangled gold chains. Typically, I would be taking Audrey to either the Tustin or the Irvine station to catch a train to L.A., but today I'm supposed to meet her friend, Anais, to ask her to turn in Audrey's assignment for Fashion Design class, so whichever station worked better for Anais was the one I'm going to.
The online directions from Wikipedia said the station was located on the north side of the Angel Stadium parking lot. I've just heard the train horn faintly, so I'm sure I'm in its vicinity... it's just that I can't see the station anywhere! I'm starting to panic since I've made so many U-turns on Katella Avenue I'd totally lost count. Audrey had worked so hard on her project... if I missed Anais I'm going to have to figure out a way to get to the L.A. FIDM campus myself. I've never been there and I have a zillion other errands to run, including getting Audrey's laptop repaired, before I head off to Vegas with my family. I'm so stressed out!
Retracing my way on Katella, I spotted a small sign pointing to "Amtrak Station." It turned out the station could not be seen from the street; to find it you actually had to turn into sort of a private alley, which Mapquest failed to mention. If I hurried, maybe I could still make it!
Zigzagging inside the Angel Stadium parking lot, I brazenly ignored "DO NOT CROSS" and "DO NOT ENTER" signs in order to speed to the north side in the few minutes I had left. I finally got to the station, but had no time to park properly! Leaving my car on a random sidewalk near the train station's entrance, I rushed toward where I hoped the train tracks would be. Oh no! This station was much bigger than the one in Tustin and I just realized I'd have to look at the direction board to find out which track Anais' train would be leaving from.
I figured it might be faster to just run into the terminal and ask the first person I met where to go if you wanted to catch the next train to L.A. The first person that bumped into me took a second look and asked if I'm Audrey's mom. Thank God it's Anais and she was nice enough to leave the track to look for me one last time! Anais took Audrey's finished dress from me and rushed back where she came from. I ran out to my car, praying I didn't get ticketed by some overzealous cops.
The car was still where I left it and there was no ticket. I suddenly felt bad about Anais. Maybe she'd missed the train because of me. Turning my car into the first available parking space, I exited it again to go looking for Anais, with no sense of urgency this time. Amazing how things go much better when you're not in panic mode! I headed toward the busiest looking track and immediately spotted Anais. She was trying to attach Audrey's dress onto her project hanger, struggling along with her heavy FIDM tote bag full of design tools and supplies. Poor girl! Anais caught my eye and I mouthed a heartfelt "Thank You!" from afar. Then she was swallowed up with the other commuters inside the train which had just arrived.
So my morning had turned out better than I thought. Time to meet the Best Buy Geek Squad to fix Audrey's laptop. She would need it to submit her homework via email from Vegas. My "geek" told me he could have the laptop ready by tomorrow. I love geeks! Wish I could have one on loan at my house all the times!
Back home, I called Audrey to report the good news. Audrey said she already knew since Anais had texted her. She couldn't talk much since all the girls were getting ready to leave their suite for an orientation meeting. Audrey promised to call and give me an update later.
Yesterday I learned that Audrey was assigned a suite at Planet Hollywood with three other pageant contestants. One was a 28 year-old real estate agent from our hometown, Tustin. The other two were an actress from Vietnam and a student from Houston, Texas. They all spoke better Vietnamese than Audrey and her limited vocabulary was a source of bemusement to her friends. At one point, a pageant coordinator came into the suite to confirm when Audrey expected her ao dai to be in Vegas, and Audrey stammered "thu bon" (the fourth day of the week), instead of "thu tu" (Wednesday)! She knew it sounded wrong but didn't realize she'd made an elementary gaffe until everyone in the room broke out laughing. Apart from that, her roommates and the pageant crew were friendly and accommodating and Audrey definitely felt in her element, although it was a time of many firsts for her – first plane ride by herself, first out-of-town stay unaccompanied by family, and her first time entering an organized competition.
Audrey's roommate from Texas, Thao Phan
Audrey's roommate from Vietnam, Hang Tra, on the left
Photo Credits: Duc Pham
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