Wrestling With My Emotions...

Ok, ok...so I have a mildly amusing story for those of you that know & love me (or for those of you that just love to hear a good story of a flight attendant acting a hot mess)...

So last Sunday, I was finishing up my workday with a deadhead (I already explained what this is once, so go ahead and Google it at this point as punishment for not reading every singly one of my blogs thus far) from ATL-BNA.  There I was just chilling in my seat, eating my chocolate covered gummy bears and reading the latest InStyle (fell in love with an amazing pair of gold D&G sunglasses by the way) when I looked up to see this VERY tall and VERY built guy taking up pretty much the entire aisle.  Now, for those of you that don't know me...I am *slightly* boy crazy...and my weakness is tall.  Especially tall with big muscly arms!  Mr. Tall Muscly Arm Man sat down in the seat across the aisle from me & since I wasn't feeling very witty (or pretty due to the fact I had to get up at 4AM for work) I went back to reading my magazine & figured I would just sneak glances of him here & there during the flight to give my eyes something fun to do.  Then I noticed a theme...there were a plethora of tall, muscly men getting onto the plane.  I looked down & noticed I was still clad in wool & polyester, so immediately ruled out that I had died & gone to heaven, therefore decided something must be up.  After staring at each of the tall, good looking guys as they walked past me (it was a tough job, but someone had to do it), I realized some of them had WWE zip up's on.  In the meantime, the flight attendant next to me in the window seat was giving my tall neighbor (Mr. Tall Muscly Arm Man to you) a good ribbing in her cheeky British accent (UGH...like I can compete with THAT) and somehow she ended up getting me involved in the convo too; so of course we asked him what was up.  Apparently they are all WWE wrestlers & were headed back from London over to Nashville for Monday Night Raw (or Smackdown...or whatever that Monday night show is...clearly I am not a fan).  

Long story short, we got in flight and cheeky British accent FA got busy doing something else & I went back to coveting the D&G sunglasses that I will never own, when hot wrestler & I started a convo.  Can you blame a gal for taking a once in a lifetime chance to ask how people actually get started in such an industry, how the lifestyle works & what the travel schedule is like???  Usually the shoe is on the other foot & I am the one fielding questions about my weird job/lifestyle, so it was a nice change.  We chatted about how he used to play football, his story about how he got into wrestling, if the gold D&G sunglasses were amazing or not (he passed that test), & the trials of trying to meet someone and date when you are never, ever home.  He was actually a really cool guy & towards the end of the flight gave me his contact info & told me to text him sometime.  

So, I went back to reading my magazine (and flipping back and forth to the page with those damn D&G sunglasses...I consider them one of my many great lost loves since I know I will never own them) until we touched down in Nashville.  First thing I always do is turn my phone off of airplane mode so I can get the multitude or text messages from friends who love me (hint), and this instance was no different.  My phone indicated I had a voicemail:

"Hey Ang!  It's Cass.  I got the call & am heading to Madison for my double lung transplant."

OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMMMMMMMMGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No, really....OHHHHHHH MYYYYYY GOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My natural response?  I looked over at him with my mouth open, looked at my phone, looked back at him and started to cry.  Then get excited while crying (and the mascara started running down my face).  Then blurt out that my sister is getting a double lung transplant while smiling and crying (some people don't get that this is actually a good thing...though scary). Then continued to try and call my sister & parents but was so flustered I couldn't even figure out how to do that. 

Yeaahhh....so guess who isn't going to be pursing that avenue???  Well, unless I get really bored and then you never know what type of things I will do to entertain myself on an overnight.  Even text a WWE wrestler who probably thinks I am insane.  Really though, I've sort of had my fill of guys who have jobs that require them to be in the public eye though - been there, done that & honestly I just want to find a nice guy & settle down into some form of normalcy.  You know, more normal than having a day where you visit 4 different states in 12 hours, get a WWE wrestler's digits & then find out your younger sister is going through a double lung transplant.

For those of you wondering about my sister, I suggest you check out our Team Cassie FB page (and YES, this is a shameless plug to get you to our page so we can increase awareness about cystic fibrosis and NO I don't feel bad about it):

https://www.facebook.com/TeamCassie

There, I hope you enjoyed the hot mess story of where I was when I found out about Cass & how I totally looked like a spazz in front of one of the hottest guys I have ever talked to.  Enjoy the laugh at my expense! 

I'm Sorry...

Hello from the world's most sporadic blogger!  Oops...

So, I just got home from 6 days of flying (2 back-to-back 3 day trips) & let me tell you, I feel like road kill. Let's just say that if I were to cut myself right now I would bleed coffee...aka the life force of flight crews.

Thanks for being there for me during the rough times, love...

 On this last trip, I noticed a bad habit I have developed during my years as an FA.  I SAY SORRY TOO MUCH.  I noticed it when Kim, another FA, dropped some coats and said sorry...then I said sorry for not noticing ASAP...then she said sorry because I crouched down to help her pick them up...then I said sorry for grabbing the same hanger that she did.  I SAY SORRY TOO MUCH!!!!

How did this happen???  I couldn't help but wonder.  Granted, I have always been raised to show respect & display lady like manners (stop laughing some of you...I am a lady when push comes to shove), so "sorry", "please" and "thank you" have been a part of my daily vocab since childhood...but this is overboard.  After mulling it over I realized that this habit came from my line of work.  All day I apologize for things...over and over again.

* "Sorry, the flight is delayed for maintenance."
* "Sorry, due to severe weather your flight is cancelled."
* "Sorry, we weren't catered with peanuts on this flight."
* "Sorry I bumped into you with the cart."
* "Sorry, we can only serve one drink at a time per person."

Then I noticed another theme...I say sorry ALOT for things that I really have NO CONTROL over, but I can't say what I really want to say sometimes, so I just say SORRY.  It's my way of biting my tongue. There are days, days where I have been away from home for almost a week & have been up since 3AM, that I would LOVE to say the following...

* "Yes, our flight is delayed for maintenance and maybe you should thank your lucky stars for that so       we don't end up as flaming rubble at the end of the runway."
* "Dude, I am not God & really can't control the weather...but I sure am happy we aren't going to try       to fly through Blizzard 2013 because though I know I can evacuate a plane if we crash,  I don't           really want to prove it the hard way."
* "It's a 39 minute flight, if you are THAT hungry (and picky) then why didn't you grab something on       the way to the gate???"
* "That sucks that you got hit by my cart, but since you have seen it in the aisle for the last 20                 minutes & knew we were coming, maybe you could have removed your outstretched legs from said     aisle.  I don't have eyes in the back of my head, so I didn't see them there until it was too late."
 * "If you get trashed off of the 5 beers you would like to order right this second & slam all at            once during this 1.5 hour flight, I am going to get in a ton of trouble per the FAA (who are the ones      who say only 1 drink at  a time).  Though it might be mildly amusing to see you rip your shirt off         & run down the aisle yelling about how you just want to be free to be yourself, I can't run the risk       that you will be the other type of drunk who gets hostile after a few & will require the police               officers and paperwork that must be completed before I am allowed to go to sleep."

How I look...

How I feel...

How I cope...

It's kind of taken over in my "real life" though.  The last guy I dated during the summer would tell me all the time "you don't need to always say you are sorry.  You say it about 20 times a day for stuff that doesn't even matter."  I just figured he was trying to be sweet and blew it off.  Oopsie.  As a flight attendant it's part of the territory...you just smile and say sorry because that's what you are paid to do.  You train yourself to grin & bear it so that the customer leaves happy (or happy-ish...some people there is just no pleasing, try as you might). Even when you wish people would say sorry for things like making you repeat yourself 4 times because they refuse to take their earbuds out (don't get me started on this topic, that's a blog for a different day), or when they elbow you right in the hip or thigh when you are in the aisle (I have perma bruises all over my upper legs from this).  Even then, I apologize to them because clearly the customer is always right & I am a good FA who likes to stay out of my manager's office.

Yeah, I mean I am human too and sometimes I do legit need to say sorry.  You know, like for dropping tomato juice on someone's freshly pressed khaki's.  Or there was the time I accidentally elbowed some guy right in the temple because I lost my balance during taxi. Ironically, those people who really do deserve the billion sorry's I heap upon them are usually (granted, I said usually) the ones who are the most chill & brush it off with a simple "it was an accident' it's ok".  This gal needs to learn how to put value back into that single word in my daily life, so I am vowing here in the world of the internet (and we all know if it is on the internet, it MUST be true) that I am going to stop using "sorry" as my instant "go to".

Sorry I am not sorry for quitting this constant being sorry business...  :)



:Oh I had a lot to say, was thinking on my time away
I missed you and things weren't the same
'Cause everything inside it never comes out right." 
~ "Sorry" by Buckcherry

Hey Seoul Sister...

It's me again!

I bet you're wondering why I am standing in front of a staircase with a nerdy cheeser grin on my face, aren't you?  Well....that isn't any staircase!  That is a staircase on a Boeing 747!  I finally got to work on one!  Yep, this was a pretty cool "first" for me.

Why you ask was I on a 747?  Another "first" - I was sent to ICN (Seoul, South Korea) on my Adays.  Told you those adays come in handy sometimes (wink).  To date, this is the longest flight I have worked; over 13 hours going there.  I was so tired when we got in - after working for those 13 hours we then had to walk through the world's largest airport, go through customs & make an hour long drive to the hotel.  Somehow I made it into bed, but don't ask me how.  There was also the 13 hour time difference to contend with...which means I was up at 3AM ready to start the day.

Bigger planes don't mean bigger crew rest facilities.  Damn.

Exploring Seoul was fun.  It was no Europe, but it was such a cool experience nonetheless.  This was by far the most difficult city for me to navigate - in other countries I can make out pieces of the language & read where to go on the Subway and what not.  Korean symbols on the other hand...ummm...I'm dum.

The things I noticed were that hygiene out there isn't what I would like...people do alot of ear digging, nose picking, loogie spitting right in the open (and without sanitizing afterwards).  Gack!  I did manage to go to this little area of town know for it's shopping & got some good deals on little gifts for some loved ones.  Oh, and a silk robe for myself. The cute old woman who sold it to me talked me out of the aqua one: "old ladies here in Korea only ones wear bright. You no want to look old."  Alrighty then...dark green it is!  At least I managed to get a good price out of her because she thought I was pretty haha.

Pretty much love this robe

I was told that I HAD to try Bibimbap, so that was my day's mission.  FINALLY found a little place & sat down for my meal.  The little Korean man next to me thought I was so nice he actually even shared his Kimchi with me as well, just to make sure I got to try everything.  Thanks buddy!

Due to the rain & cold weather (squishy shoes are not a good look), I was back in my room by 5PM, fighting the urge to go to sleep.  The next day was going to bring another 13 hour flight back home.  Ugh...the flight home.  MEH!  First off, the airport security in Korea was CONVINCED I was packing a knife in my flight bag.  3 times they rifled through my bag, pulled more crap out, then sent it back through the scanner.  3 TIMES!!!  Do you know how annoying that is!?  Especially since that bag is put together like a puzzle of crap I need - it all goes in "just so".  Not happy.  I also sliced my mouth open while eating.  Yes, with a spoon.  The world's most evil spoon that was more like a knife than anything I had in my flight bag!  The irony of this was too much for me.

 I also had some VERY rude nonrevenue passengers to contend with.  My thought regarding them is that if you are lucky enough to have benefits where you don't pay for your seat, you should probably mind your manners.  Like, don't argue with me over the fact that we only have 2 reds to choose from.  Or send your meal back 3 separate times because you don't like any of them.  Not making any friends that way!  It's a good way to piss off a flight attendant & lose those benefits when she writes the company (no, I didn't do it but I REALLY wanted to).

While we are on passengers, this also reminds me of some jetiquette that needs to be addressed.  PLEASE oh PLEASE, if you need to get your flight attendant's attention, don't poke her/him.  It's like people intentionally find the spots you are the softest and jab that finger right on in there.  To be fair, I don't like when strangers touch me in general, but when their touch leaves me feeling like the Pillsbury dough boy...just, let's not go there.  Try raising your arm while I pass & say "excuse me you very lovely & charming flight attendant, I am sorry to trouble you with my neediness but is there any way I can get (insert object of desire here) when you have a free moment.  Even if that moment isn't right now.  By the way, did I mention how utterly gorgeous you are?"  If that is too much for you to recall, you try a simple "miss" (sans attitude) with your hand up so I can tell who needs me.  Works like a charm.  

Anyways, I am back in the states now & trying to get over this jet lag.  I've got it BAD.  I was hoping to go for a "first's" hat trick & not take a nap when I got home...but apparently that didn't happen because I woke up face down in a pillow 3 hours after the fact.  At least I made it up the stairs...they may not be on a fabulous 747 but they do lead to my bed in my own room & that is alright by me. 

"You see, I can be myself now finally

In fact, there's nothing I can't be

I want the world to see" ~ Hey Soul Sister by Train

Where You Invest Your Love, You Invest Your Life...

What a whirlwind the last 2 weeks have been.  Oy.

Last Friday, my Grandma Ma passed away.  Though I am so happy for her because she is in heaven now, where she so longed to be, I am really going to miss her.  She was probably the most excited person in my whole family when I started flying.  Back in her day, Flight Attendants (or stewardesses, if you will) were pretty legit & THE job to have.  She especially loved when I sent postcards from my travels; Ma lived in assisted living and loved showing off those postcards to pretty much anyone who would listen for a minute.  At one point she even told me people gathered around her mailbox "to see where Angie has been today".  Pretty sure that one might have been a bit of an exaggeration...for those of you that knew & loved her, you know she was good at spinning a tiny little tale.  In any case, she always loved to have a reason to show off her grandkids.  Each time she would get a new postcard, she would call & want to chat about it. Just like when I would have a few weeks off (so that meant no postcards) she would also call to let me know she hadn't received one in awhile & was wondering what happened to me (hint, hint). Doing this little thing made her so happy, that I found it made me happy too.  It was fun picking out the perfect postcard in between flights.  Sometimes I would have the rest of my crew write "hello" to her on them  as well just so she felt extra special.  One of my best friends, Katie, even started sending them to her from time to time.  She loved this gesture so much that she saved every one of those postcards.  When she passed, it was one of the 3 things I asked for - I wanted those postcards back.  You know what? Reading over all of them was like going through a little journal of all of my travels & brought smiles to my face.  The really fun ones are when I first started flying & everything was so new still & such an adventure.  I am so happy she kept them, that she loved them so much, that is was something special between the 2 of us & that something that took so little on my end brought her so much joy.

This crazy little job also allowed for Cassie (my sister) & Laila (my niece) to make it home for the funeral.  For those of you who don't know, Cassie has Cystic Fibrosis & is currently on the double lung transplant list in Wisconsin.  This means Cass doesn't really get to leave the state - unless she removes herself from the list (so clearly we encourage her to not leave the state).  Plus, a 6 hour car ride would probably be too much on her right now; especially with Laila.  Thanks to the perks at work, Cassie is already listed as my travel companion & is able to fly standby.  Thanks to Lucy (remember that gorgeous redhead I was super intimidated by in my last blog but ended up totally adoring), we were able to get Laila home on one of her Buddy Passes as well.  Last minute we threw them on a plane & 45 minutes later both of my favorite gals were in DTW where they both so badly wanted to be!  THANK YOU again , Lucy!!

Laila has been asking me for months now when she can "ride on one of Aunt Ang's planes".  Apparently from the moment Cass & Jer told her she was going to do just that, she wouldn't stop talking and was super geeked out.  From what I hear, she was also pretty taken with flying - Cass said she was happy to just sit in her window seat, eat crackers & watch the view.  At one point she did look down at the clouds and ask if they were in heaven...oh childlike faith.  It makes my heart happy that because of where I work & what I do, these 2 are able to have easier access to get home when they need to.  What a blessing!

To finish off my blog, I just got home last night from my first DTW based trip!!!!!  It is SO GOOD to be back in "The D"!  It was a nice, easy trip with a super laid back crew that all got along & worked well together. Maybe my emotions were still a bit raw with it being my first trip back since Ma passed, because there were a few little old ladies that made me nostalgic for a minute and a bit weepy eyed...and I got sad when I habitually went to grab a postcard & realized I don't have her to send them to anymore; so I was very happy there was no commuting to & from NYC (stressful) & that my crew were all grown adults that acted professionally & were easy to get along with.

Ahhh....the feeling of not having to worry about a commute home, but to just finish a trip, get in my car & drive to my bestie's for frozen yogurt.  Here's hoping the whirlwind subsides for a bit...but anyone in this industry knows that the only consistency about flying is there is NO consistency.  Time will tell what life is going to throw at me next - until then, keeping my eyes to the sky & trying to stay grounded.

"In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die
And where you invest your love, you invest your life."
- "Awake My Soul" by Mumford & Sons

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