I mentioned preparing for my trip to Phoenix a week ago. Because I didn't get paid on the 1st (this is only the 3rd time in 2 years) and the direct deposited funds didn't appear until yesterday, I didn't pay for my airline ticket until yesterday. I couldn't get the actual ticket until today. Guess what? My ticket is for the only flight remaining for a date prior to my wife's surgery. I'm stuck with Continental Airlines, which will depart Manila on February 17th, stopping in Guam and Houston (Texas, USA), and arriving on the 18th in Phoenix. My return flight departs Phoenix on March 21st, the first available return flight.

In addition to the 2170-peso immigration fee, I also have a 550-peso terminal fee to pay, so I have to carry pesos with me as well as US dollars. Speaking of dollars, two of the $100 notes that I paid the ticket with were rejected by the same bank that gave them to me in the first place. If American currency has a tear or a missing piece, it won't be accepted by local banks, money exchanges, and shopping venues that accept American dollars. I'll never figure out the reasoning behind it. Anyway, I had to swap notes at the travel agency before I could get my ticket from them today. Cash is getting tight (I had to borrow $100 from my mother-in-law's savings) because I can't access my PayPal account from here.

Since I'll be arriving less than 24 hours before my wife's surgery, I'm going to be an extremely tired and irritable person after the long flight. I'll be arriving at about 11 am and have to go with my wife to the bank to convert her single account to a joint account, contact PayPal to fix my account (by getting rid of an old account) and lift the withdrawal limits, and some other tasks, all within a span of about 5 hours. It's definitely going to be a tight squeeze.