I was in London at Heathrow Airport when I learned that my flight back to Newark, New Jersey was canceled. More than that, they explained that Newark and all the surrounding airports in the New York City area had been closed because of Hurricane Irene, and that there was no possibility of getting a trans-Atlantic flight for a couple of days.
Bummer.
To make matters worse, the hotels in London were filled because of an annual carnival in the city. There were no rooms.
Double bummer.
The airport staff was stressed because, well, weary travelers were stressed, which made for some unpleasant encounters. A woman was spewing at the counter in front of me.