Here’s a first world problem for ya: how does one make it from their record-breaking tour’s stop in Tokyo on a Saturday night to cheer on one’s boyfriend playing in the Super Bowl in Las Vegas Sunday afternoon? Taylor Swift may be jet lagged, but none other than a resurfaced (and now viral) clip from The West Wing explains how this feat can be accomplished.
A 2001 snippet from the hit NBC show explains how Swift can make it all work—and yes, my friends, it is possible, as The West Wing figured out a full 23 years ago. Swift will resume her Eras Tour—which has been on pause since November—for a four-night run in Japan’s capital city from February 7 to February 10. (She’s actually the first international female act to schedule four consecutive shows, so look at Swift continue to innovate.) Right after her final show wraps at the Tokyo Dome, Swift is expected to hop on a plane in order to get to boyfriend Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl matchup, which kicks off at 3:30 p.m. Vegas time on February 11. (Kelce plays tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, who will square off against the San Francisco 49ers in the championship game.)
Now, let’s allow faux U.S. President Jed Bartlet from The West Wing to explain how the heck Swift is going to do this. Today sets the stage for the scene from the political drama, where Barlet’s “team [is] scrambling to figure out how the international date line could work in favor of someone traveling from Japan to the United States,” Today reports. “The international date line runs between the south pole and the north pole, serving as a boundary between one calendar day and the next. Crossing the date line going west increases the date by one day. Crossing the date line going east decreases the date by one day.”
Don’t say we didn’t teach you anything as a reader of Marie Claire, mmmkay?
Anyway, in the scene from The West Wing—tweeted on Sunday by writer and comedian Rohita Kadambi—Barlet must fly from Tokyo to Washington, D.C., which is on Eastern Time Zone. (Vegas is on Pacific Time Zone.) The time difference between Tokyo and D.C. is 14 hours. But Swift isn’t going to EST—she’s going to PST, which helps her case even further.
“When Swift finishes her final Tokyo concert, she will be 17 hours ahead of anything happening in Las Vegas thanks to Pacific time being three hours behind Eastern,” Today reports. “And the flight from Tokyo to Las Vegas is roughly 12 hours.”
This, plus Swift’s access to a private plane that will be ready at her command, will allow her to make the seemingly impossible happen and continue this made-for-the-big-screen love story with a casual jaunt around the world to see her boyfriend play in the biggest football game of the year. Seriously, does this Swift/Kelce love story not feel like it’s being written by a screenwriter? It’s chef’s kiss personified.
“It’s a brutal flight, but she’ll get on her plane right after the concert,” a source speaking to Page Six said.
Swift has been a consistent presence at Kelce’s games ever since their public debut as a couple back in September. And turnabout is fair play, as Kelce is also supportive of his partner, even flying to Argentina to catch an Eras Tour show there last year. And, of course, this whole shebang started after Kelce attended a Kansas City Eras show last July—and the rest is history.
By the way, Swift has never appeared at the Super Bowl in any capacity, either as a performer or as an attendee, Bustle reports. (She has, however, been asked to headline the halftime show, but has apparently declined all offers heretofore; she was apparently even asked to perform this year, but Usher will do the honors instead.)
Swift will have a few days after the February 11 Super Bowl to catch her breath before flying yet again across the world—this time to Australia—as her tour resumes February 16. And speaking of air travel, those of us not fortunate enough to have a private plane at our disposal can still channel Swift while in the friendly skies—American Airlines is adding multiple direct flights for Chiefs fans between Kansas City and Vegas over Super Bowl weekend. Two of these flights have been christened Flight 1989 in honor of the Chiefs’ newest—and biggest—fan.
