Jelly Fish, Sea Otter & Seals....OH MY!

Yes, I am still alive.  Though no thanks to my endodontist!  Had a root canal this week & let's just say I am still too sore to send him a Christmas card this year.  Or ever.

Anyways, back to chatting about flying.  Guess who FINALLY made it to Seattle!?

Ok, if you didn't guess it was me, then I feel you should probably just stop reading because you're brain could start bleeding from all of the stimulation.  Seriously.

The trip started off as a 3 day that I was looking forward to until I walked into the briefing room and noticed the flight leader was this guy I had flown with before and he was a *tad* bit of a moody person.  Sigh.  Then I looked over at this super pretty red head and I was like "I have to stand by HER for 3 days!?"  It was pretty intimidating.  Finally, our 4th member of the crew busted in with just his tshirt on with coffee sloshing around and started rambling.  Okkkkaaayyy......

You know how they say to not judge a book by it's cover?  Perfect example!  Lucy, the gorgeous red head, wound up being one of my FAVORITE FA's to work with to date - she is so sweet she could give you a cavity & completely and totally unassuming.  Kirk, the little spazz, is just that (he said his partner compares him to one of the minions in "Despicable Me" lol)...but so beyond lovable and hilarious and best of all...a total prankster.  We all know I love a good prank.  Even if he did pull a few on me.  it took working 1 leg for the 3 of us to realize this was going to be an awesome trip & immediately we were thick as thieves.  Day #1 was our long day & by the time we got to Seattle that night, we were zombies.  Which is always fun when you have to wait to check in at the hotel with the super models from Icelandic Air...seriously, I think that they hire robots or something!  NO ONE looks that put together after a 16 hour day!  Ok, I am getting off track...so anyways, off to bed we went with the plans to get up and explore the next day.

Morning rolled around & I pulled myself from bed to find a note under my door from Kirk telling me he had been up since 4AM (your body never adjusting to a certain time zone is an occupational hazard) & was ready to do "brekkie".  Lucy, Kirk & I fueled up on coffee and pineapple juice (and one of us might have overdone it on the all you can eat bacon) & off we went!

First stop on the agenda was Pike's...it's iconic & I had to say I visited it!  Yes, I am that much of a nerd that I still enjoy acting like a total tourist on layovers.  It's fine & I don't care if my "I don't belong here" banner is flying high here & there.

After watching people throw & catch fish and Kirk attempt to eat an entire bottle of oysters (yes, I gagged just watching), we decided to take the adventure to the streets.  Then we saw it...THE FERRY.  Kirk threw the idea out there that we were all thinking - let's take the ferry!  Somewhere!  Wherever it goes!  We hightailed it over to where we needed to catch it, just in time to get tickets and jump on board.  Honestly, I can say it was the best $7.70 I have spent in a hot second.  We spent the next 2 hours laughing, hanging out & just looking at the beauty around us.  The air was crisp & slightly cool with a strong wind while we stood out on the deck of the ferry and watched the sights and took a million pictures.

We even spotted a sea otter in the water & some jelly fish.  Just when we didn't think it could get any better, we noticed that there were a bunch of seals playing in the water & jumping on and off the buoy.  How cool is that!?!?!  We don't have that kind of stuff here in Michigan!  All in all, it was such a fun day...I didn't want it to end, but we had to slap our uniforms back on because someone needs to schlep snacks & drinks to passengers.  It's a day I probably won't forget not only because it was my first time ever to Seattle, or that I saw some seal playing, but because I spent it with 2 very fun people. In fact, I was actually sad (mostly) when the 3 day trip came to an end because I enjoyed both of their company so much.  Who is sad when work is done!?  Days & trips like this are the reason that this job & the sacrifices made to do it are totally worth it.  Until next time!

When it's time to leave your home and your loved ones

It's the hardest thing a boy can ever do

An' you pray that you will find

someone warm an' sweet an' kind

But you're not sure what's waiting there for you! - "Seattle" by Perry Como

The Tough Choices In Life: Peanuts, Pretzels, Cookies

While all of you are coming down from your BBQ with family & friends food coma's and weekend boat party hangovers, I am sitting in a hotel in Baltimore on my 4th of 6 consecutive days of flying.  I'm exhausted.

Let me stop for a second and make a disclaimer: I like passengers.  Honestly.  Some of them can be seriously cool people.  Please remember this if you decide to read on!!!!!!!

That being said....good gracious I hate holiday flying!  Flying brings out the worst in people, even on a good day, and holiday flying brings out something I dread: the rookie flyer. That person who only suffers airports once a year to make a holiday visit with loved ones. No, this doesn't mean that those of you who rarely fly should start looking at train tickets or else suffer the wrath of the flight attendant your next trip.  This just means that it is very clear & evident that you don't fly often because you have zero "jetiquette" and you should probably print out what I am about to write and take it with you the next time you fly.  Please.  I beg of you on behalf of FA's everywhere.  See, I can't legit get mad at rookie flyers for not knowing the ropes...not everyone can be a Diamond member that knows the workings of specific routes they take constantly better than I do...but I can ask that you use common sense & understand the basics.  Especially since I am taking it upon myself to crusade for rookie flyers everywhere!  Here goes....

JETIQUETTE BASICS:

1. Let's start with boarding...if I am in the aisle, this doesn't mean you have to stand there and stare at me blankly until I wave you through.  I've got bags to move & bins to fill!  While I am doing my job, your sole purpose is to quickly get your bum to your seat without me telling you to do so, so here is your permission to just squeeze past me.  Throw in an "excuse me" while passing and we just became best friends.  Oh, and please make sure you put your small stuff under the seat in front of you.  I need that bin space for the giant puzzle of roller bags that is my life every boarding process.  
2. You pack it, you rack it.  You have a bad back?  Ok, I don't want to make that 2 of us.  I will lend you a hand, but I am for sure not lifting your giant suitcase filled with cinder blocks all by my lonesome while you stand by and watch.  
3. Don't ask me for water.  At least not while boarding, during my demo (in fact, if you interrupt my demo at all I am not going to be your friend anymore), or while we are taxiing.  You have meds to take?  Pretty sure you knew that those meds had to be taken at that time an hour ago...which is just about the time you were sitting up at the gate doing nothing probably while 100 feet from a store you could have purchased water from.  It's not that I am lazy or don't want you to have the water; I just don't have the time just then.  Something you DID have before you walked on my plane.  Now, FA's also know "stuff happens", so if you genuinely need that water please don't let this blog stop you from asking.  All I am asking you to do is THINK about it first.  
4. Airplane mode is NOT off.  Enough said.  
5. Peanuts, pretzels or cookies?  I promise you, this isn't a trick question and there is no wrong answer to it.  Just choose one!!!!  Or choose none!  Or be a greedy little piggy and choose them all!  Whatever you decide, I beg of you to please just don't make me ask you 4 times while you get more and more overwhelmed by the clearly too many options I have just given you in life.  Obviously this is the toughest choice you have had to make all day.  
6. I am not a waitress in the sky.  What I am is a flight attendant - someone who spent weeks being trained to save your butt should something happen on the plane.  Since I am such a considerate hostess, I serve you snacks and drinks while you are guest on said plane, but the main reason I am there is in case an emergency rears it's ugly head.  Now please remember to be a courteous guest and don't insult me by treating me poorly, putting your feet up on the walls & furniture, or using poor manners...and for goodness sake please make sure you flush the toilet!
7. Do I come to your office while you are at work and stand over your desk with a screaming baby or do yoga poses while you are trying to get things done?  No???  Ok, let's try and extend me the same courtesy.  The galley is my little office.  If you need to come stretch your legs for a minute or 2, I understand.  Can we at least come to a compromise and please try not to do it while I am eating my lunch or putting away a giant beverage cart?  Thanks.  
8. If you booked your own ticket & left yourself with some impossibly tight connection that you are never going to make unless we were passengers on the Starship Enterprise and had the power to teleport you to your next gate (which would be so cool...just sayin'), I have no sympathy for you.  None.  Next time, be realistic about how much time you need in between 2 flights.  Hint:  it's more than 30 minutes.  
9. If you are a hot, single guy it's expected you give me your number before walking off of the plane.  Ok. Fine...I made that one up.  Can't blame a gal for trying, right?  

Those are the basics.  Or at least the ones I could think of that really, realllly bugged me today during my 13 hour work day.  Let's just say this scratched the surface on Jetiquette.  Don't get overwhelmed...baby steps.  Rome wasn't built in a day & I don't expect all of you nonairport dwellers to know or understand all of the rules just like that.  Just try and learn what you can for your next journey.  Trust me when I say that your FA will appreciate you.  Heck, she might even hand you peanuts, pretzels AND cookies without even asking you what you prefer just because you are such a rockstar passenger!

I Love You...I Love You Not...I Love You...

3 days of flying down, 3 more to go.  Man, this summer has been a crazy one.  First, let's start with the good news:

I GOT MY BASE TRANSFER TO DTW!!!!!!!!!!


!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


This is even more exciting than the time I discovered that bars in Wisconsin serve free sides of bacon to go with your beer!  It's been a rough summer, to say the least.  It just feels like I have not had a moment to breathe, really just breathe and relax, since I went away to training back in April.  Commuting to NYC for work & getting the hang of all of that, having a sick sister who is on the double lung transplant list out in WI (and going through a "false alarm" back in July), not having time to see my friends because I just want to sleep all day,feeling homesick, attempting to start a relationship with someone (which inevitably failed), and just recently a Grandmother that was placed into hospice.  To top it off, we were short staffed at work all summer and our schedules were overloaded.  To give you an example - the typical FA schedule is about 75-80 flight hours a month.  Mine have been topping out at over 100.  Yeah...like I said...rough summer.  This gal is BURNT OUT.

So the other night I was laying in bed, saying my prayers and feeling rather overwhelmed (which has been a theme lately) & had a little chat with God.  During said chat I asked him for some relief from all of this because I am burning the candle from both ends and the middle.  Something has GOT to give.  The very next day I opened up my work email and saw the message "Base Transfer Award".  Crossing my fingers (like I do every month when I see this email come through, only to be disappointed), I opened the email.  The first thing I saw was: CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!  Wait, what?  OMG!  OMG!  OMG!!!!!!!  I got my base transfer!  If that's not the Lord answering some prayers right there, I don't know what is.

So, why do I do it?  Why do I put myself through the 15 hour days?  Deal with some of the worlds most horrible human beings and have to be nice to them just because they've stepped on my plane?  Suffer from insomnia because my body doesn't have a clue 89% of the time if the sun is coming up or going down?  Miss holidays with family and weekends with friends?  Simply put: because I can't imagine myself doing anything else.  When I step on that airplane, even on the worst days when I really, realllly don't want to be there, I come alive.  Yes, though I am pretty sure this job is going to cause me to age prematurely (wrinkles - gack) and ultimately put me in an early grave due to all of the stress...I love it.  I love being part of a legacy.  I love not being micro managed.  I love being able to cross paths with such diverse and interesting coworkers and passengers.  I love pushing my body to it's limits and proving time and again I can do it (you try working 16 hours on your feet in heels after 4 hours of sleep).  I love the independence of walking away from my every day life and getting away from all of the things that weigh heavily on my mind on the ground and jumping on a plane and leaving it all behind while I am up in the clouds..even if it is a temporary reprieve.  I love watching the sunrises and sunsets & marveling at God's creations.  I love going to places that most people will only ever dream of.  I love that at any time, I have the luxury of being to just jump on a plane and GO.  I just love the adventure of it all...

Now that I have my base transfer, I feel like I have fully stepped into my "dream job".  No, I never knew that this would be it, but now that I have found it I can't see myself doing anything else.  Well, except for being a kept woman who eats bacon while sipping Chardonnay all day and owns 20 cats.  This transfer to DTW means more nights at home...more chances to see my friends & sister...no worrying about weather in 2 different states & if I will be able to make my commute to NYC...that days off are just that - days OFF where I am not using them up getting to and from work.  Ahh...just to be able to be done with a trip to get into my car and drive HOME as opposed to getting in too late to commute home that night, having to wait on a crew runner or cab (then paying for it), to walk a few blocks in heels to get to a crash pad to wake up early to commute home.  One more month and I am DONE with that - I was based in DTW with my other airline so I know how this can change the job completely.  You have no idea how totally giddy I am!  It makes me love this job again, just thinking of being at my new base, as opposed to resenting it like I was starting to do.  So that nights like tonight as I sit in NYC in between two 3 day trips, with a roller bag packed with a week's worth of crap that I need to cart around, I could be cuddling in bed with Archie after I drove myself home to the place where I belong and was able to unload the dirty laundry and 20 lbs of luggage.  DTW, here I come...ready or not!  I think this is the beginning of something beautiful.  :)

View from my office...

"For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return." - Leonardo dda Vinci