Friends...

I have the best friends in the world. There, I said it. Sure, I have over "1,000" friends on Facebook, but seriously, they are awesome.

Some of these friends go to the next level, however. This is the story of one particular friend...

When deciding upon the Trekinetic, I realized I'd have to pay $800 for shipping. Mike, of Trekinetic fame, (seen standing with my chair) suggested flying over to pick up the chair or if I knew someone who would be in the London area around the end of June/beginning of July, I could have them retrieve the chair.

I haven't flown in like forever, and if I did fly there, what would I do with my old chair (which I'd have to travel with...). Not to mention the expenses of travel, room and board. I decided to not fly to London and retrieve my chair.

The other opportunity was to call in a major favor. My friend, Sarah, was going to Ireland and England during that time because her daughter was competing in the world championship Irish step dancing competition. I asked, no, pleaded on my knees to see if she would go out of her way and stop by the company and gather my new wheelchair and brelly (umbrella for people on this side of the pond). She originally said no, her itinerary was already booked solid. I bribed her with some decent IPAs and she eventually said yes. Actually she almost had to plead with me because i didn't want to put her out...she is the best.

While in London, she hired a car and went to the shop/factory. She met the one and only, Mike Spindle, creator of the wonder-beast! She then forced her daughter to wheel herself through the airport so that the chair would be put in the airplane's hold for free instead of me paying a shipping fee. Although, because the chair is so AWESOME, Hannah had a blast! Everyone kept asking Sarah and Hannah about the chair and thought it was so cool, from security to other passengers, to the customs people, even!

And they wheeled it empty most of the time (through the airport) and people wondered where the person for it was!