Ho Hi, Ho Hi, I'm off again Me-Oh-My!

It's Friday again, and I am dashing around trying to get it together in time to make my flight. Yes, off to work I go.

This time it's a red-eye to Oakland-connecting to Boston. Tomorrow I'll spend the day in lovely downtown Boston, a half block from the Commons. I like our hotel there...it's old and historic, with the tiniest little bathrooms and barely enough space to walk around the bed. But it's classy and beautiful, and there's a fabulous grand piano in the lobby that you might just find me banging away on in the middle of the night...when no one is around but the reception desk personnel. Last time I was there I ran in the park on a misty, drissly morning and it was fabulous. That was before the fractured toe...which hasn't caused me pain in a few weeks as I've taken a break from street running and switched to the elliptical and stair master machines in the gym. Perhaps tomorrow I'll give real running another try. I just wish I had a friend there to chill with...what's the point of a 24 hour layover without a buddy?

Sunday I return to Salt Lake City and layover here (yay!), and Monday I fly to Chicago. I'll be home Tuesday.

I apologize for not posting in the past few days. It's been a terrific week, but I've had a lot going on. I can't wait to share all the details of our T5 event on Monday. I'll write as soon as I can next week. Maybe I'll even post tomorrow from Boston!

Either way, it's a great day out there everyone. Enjoy the weekend!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho...

...it's off to work I go!

So later this afternoon I will get on a plane and fly to CA where I will start work tomorrow morning. I had hoped when I picked this trip that I'd be able to find another flight attendant who willing to work tomorrow morning's flight to SLC. One thing we can do in our jobs is get out of either the 1st or last leg of a trip if we have someone else willing to work it for us. If I'd succeeded, I'd be able to just meet the crew here in SLC tomorrow when they land, and continue the trip from here. As it is, I have to commute out tonight for my 6:00 a.m. report time tomorrow. Alas.

This will be the first time since Doc started rotations in the hospital that I'm out of town while the kids are in school. Last summer they were thrilled every time I left town because they were able to go to their cousin's house and just stay the whole time. Their aunt and uncle are complete rock stars. But school renders that option less feasible because of the distance.

So I've rigged up a combination of solutions for their care this weekend, and am crossing my fingers that everything will work out. Then I get to lather rinse repeat next weekend when I do this same trip.

I love my job. I really do. And we all really love the benefits (including my buddy pass recipients. BTW, still haven't heard from the winner of this past week's Give-Away. Ern?? Ern, you there?). But every time I fly, it's a bit of a workout to arrange and prepare everything in advance. For the past seven years it's always turned out fine. But having Doc gone at 4ish in the morning certainly adds a little twist 'o lime to the complexity of child care.

This Monday I have a few hours in NYC which is really exciting because I'll get to experience history in the making (isn't that happening with every passing moment?) as my airline open the doors on one of the world's most innovative new air terminals! There's a crew member event and luncheon, followed by a press event and formal ribbon cutting ceremony with the media & "local dignitaries", and then a cocktail party with some mystery singer who had "one of the summer's top 10 hits". I have to fly out before it's over, but how fun to have a layover during this! A layover when I should be sleeping mind you (I land at dawn after flying all night and leave again at 5 pm), but I'm just going to suck it up and go into deep hibernation when I get home. At least till 4pm when the kids get out of school.

So that's my weekend plan. What are you doing?

Miraculous (An Introspection)

They are miraculous, these children of mine.

Each arrived with a unique personality, special gifts and abilities, and challenges.
Sometimes I look at them and marvel at their lives,
wonder at what is in store for them,
just like myriad other parents who love their miraculous kids do.

As parents we try so hard to teach our children,
and arm them with skills and knowledge,
to help them avoid all the heartache, pain, suffering and disappointment possible.
But we can’t prevent these things from touching their lives.
There is no such thing as a life without hard times.

So I wonder, always, what challenges will my sweet children experience?
What will they endure down the road?
What are they enduring right now,
and how can I help them?

There is no way to stop the onslaught.
Hearts will ache, bonds will break, chances and opportunities will come and go.
Then there are the vices.
Will the gripping hold of addiction be their plague?
…whether it be alcohol, illegal drugs, prescription drugs, pornography, immorality, or some other hellacious pit that relentlessly clings to its captives.
Will mental, eating, or other disorders
infiltrate their minds and color their perceptions?
How about relationship issues?
Will they marry and live (essentially) happily ever after?
Struggle to find their soul mate
Wade through the impact of divorce?
Will children come to them easily,
or not at all?
Will poverty follow them, will they have difficulty making their way in the world?
Will they be victims of crime, or serious accidents, illness or injuries?
Will they suffer abuse of any sort?
What about materialism? Will they be able to resist the lure and allure of things?
Will life be essentially peaceful?
Or will war, invasion and terror
be the hallmark of their days ~
like it is for so many.

With the list of possible challenges stretching off into the horizon,
it would be easy to just focus on this moment,
and react to the demands of today
(Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof).
Or to feel hopeless,
unequal to the task of successfully raising
these children ‘o mine.

But I’m not.

I'm optimistic.
And like countless other committed parents,
I am trying to arm them with the tools and skills they’ll need
in order to navigate the challenges that will come,
the ones that are here today,
and those just around the bend.
Trying to teach them to handle the ebb and flow of life
with faith, honesty, steadiness, and humility
to keep their wits about them
as they continue achieving, excelling and finding joy
in daily life,
even while dealing with problems.

It’s not easy.
Sometimes I feel like I’m walking in a dark tunnel,
with no light shining up ahead,
and only the faint glow of past experience glimmering behind me,
reminding me that there is further light to be found.

But every now and then, I lift my sights and see another parent,
who has traveled this route before.
Whose children are just a little bit further down the road of life.
And I notice how they’re doing it, how they’ve handled things.
Things I haven’t even begun to experience yet.

I observe the wisdom they’ve incorporated into their parenting journey,
and take notes to file away for when I am in a similar situation.

Wise parents seem to have mastered the patience needed
to allow the chrysalis-esque process
of transforming from child to teen to adult
to happen,
without meddling in a way that would damage
the fragile new creature about to spread it's wings.

It’s a fine line, this meddling or interfering.
But when the process is complete, do they sit in awe
and wonder
at the remarkable creature before them?
So different yet so familiar to the one they brought into the world
seemingly yesterday?

We try our best to arm our sweet children.
Teach them who they are, why they’re special, why they’re here.
I know no matter what I do,
I’ll never prevent them from learning things through hard experiences.
And it almost seems like an ironic twist
that sometimes the things we try hardest to prevent
or most want to avoid,
find a way to affect our lives.

So more than anything else,
I hope my sweet children learn
that no matter what
I love them.
No matter the mistake, heartache, failing, or problem,
I love them.
No matter what
I’m on their team.

And they can get through anything.
And they’ll be better, stronger, more imitable and happier people
for enduring well.
They can lean on me,
they can lean on their dad,
they can lean on each other
and their friends and loved ones,
but most of all I hope they lean on their God.

I know He’ll lead them back to Him if they’ll let Him,
and I hope I’m there when they arrive.

We Have a Winner!

So at 9 pm PST tonight, I logged on and went through the "Got Travel" post and manually deleted all the duplicate entries, questions, etc. that had been submitted.

Once that was completed, there were a grand whoppin' total of 22 comments in the running, which I have to say is a lot better odds than most contests.

Perhaps I scared people off with my standby travel stories or something, because according to my stats, there have been over 300 unique IP addresses visiting my blog since the contest opened. Maybe my readers have more money than time (lucky), maybe they don't have an Uncle Fester they need to visit. Who knows what motivates people. Not me, that's who.

So anyway, I went to my impartial, highly neutral friend, random.org, because after reading all your stories there is NO WAY I could possibly pick a winner without some personal feelings playing into the decision. And that wouldn't be fair at all now would it? Do I choose the person worthy of the most pity? Best writing? Longest? Shortest? Most enthusiastic? See the conundrum I'd have been in?

So I plugged in the range 1-22, and clicked "Get Numbers" and here is the result:

On my honor this was the VERY FIRST number it generated. So I looked up and discovered that the winner of this extremely competitive activity is "ern". If you read ern's post, you'll quickly discover that "ern" probably isn't short for Ernie, as the poster is a cute young mom living in Malaysia with her family. Ex Pats! Now they've GOT to have some good travel stories, doncha think?

Having a winner in another country on the opposite side of the earth may make coordinating a trip a little bit tricky. Hopefully Ern has Skype, or an Uncle Fester that she'd like to gift her prize over to. Ern, if you're reading this, please email me (link in my profile) with your info to claim your prize. And be willing to swear an oath of confidentiality about the TRUE IDENTITY of your new favorite blogger. And be ready to promise to behave on your flight so I don't get booted from my job because you caused an inflight ruckus. (No smoking in the lavs!)

On the off chance that I never hear from Ern in the next couple weeks, I did click the "Again" button to generate one back-up number. StrumpMan, you were the slightly less-lucky second place winner as submission #19. So if Ern doesn't come through, I'll let you know. And I advice you not go to Vegas anytime soon.

As for the rest of you, it's been really great to hear about the good, the bad and the vomit, to say nothing of the blow-outs, delays, fantastic vistas, turbulence, sleep deprivation, emotions and memories you created in your journeys. You guys are awesome. Thanks for participating, it's been a lot of fun. ♥

Being Part of The Industry

One of the questions people (naturally) ask me most often is how they, their daughter, niece, spouse, best friend, etc. would also go about becoming a flight attendant.

While I would love nothing more than to bring a fresh slew of fab BFFs on board to share the joy, the fact is it's a pretty zany industry to break into these days.

As I mentioned in my previous post, when I started I was hired as a job share with my friend M. We both had to work at least one flight a month, but we had to fly 70 hours between us. That's air time. As also mentioned previously, air time hours are counted when the aircraft door closes. So when we're on the ground, delayed for any reason with the door open, or during boarding/deplaning etc., that doesn't count towards our minimum hours.

But sometimes you meet fun people, or famous people, and it can be very rewarding. Knowing this bit about me makes my job look pretty sweet. And it is. I can totally understand why people are interested in following suit.

For the first 3 years, M and I were partners. Then one day the company let us know that they were doing away with the job share program, and that from then on we job share partners would all be part-time FA's, and that we'd now have to work a minimum of 35 hours each, per month. So with much sadness M and I were separated from each other and no longer had to coordinate our schedules and lives. They don't hire part-timers off the street now. You have to be hired full-time, and then (again, based on seniority) you may have the chance to fly part-time in the future.

But getting hired is the kicker. While the ratio of applicants to positions available when I got hired was about 60/1 (which seemed incredibly tough), things are different now. It's about 1000/1 at my company, and I'm sure it's similar elsewhere. In recent months there have been countless thousands of layoffs at other airlines. Seems like every day we are informed about another round of pilots or flight attendants being let go somewhere. While my own company has never yet had to lay anyone off, we definitely feel the impact of the turbulent times in air travel. And my heart just aches for the stress this has put on families and individuals just trying to keep afloat out there.

For the applicant who actually DOES manage to land the much-coveted position, their experience will be vastly different from mine. They will be on reserve for eons. Reserve flight attendants are guaranteed 10 days off each month, but those 10 days aren't necessarily consecutive. In fact it's probably more like one day here, one day there. Which may be fine for them, if they live in their base. But if, like me, they are commuting from home to get to their base to start work, that would be a nightmare. They wouldn't ever get to go home. If you work Monday, have Tuesday off but have to be back first thing Wednesday, you really just can't go. You're stuck. So that's a trick.

Also a new hire today wouldn't get to pick which city they were based in. My company has 4 different crew bases in four different states, and you could be required to start/end work in any one of them. Again, it's all determined by seniority. So when you first start and you're the bottom of the totem pole, you go where the need is, and work whatever trips no one else wanted out of that base. Which means every holiday and weekend and bummer trip (except for when another flight attendant calls in sick on a sweet trip and it's assigned to you). And you learn how to manage your time pretty efficiently. Living out of a suitcase better appeal, because that puppy will never ever be put away!

You also probably shouldn't have any personal life. Spouse and kids? It would be very difficult to have a family as a new flight attendant unless you live where you're based. But on the other hand, it'd be good to have a spouse, especially one who can keep you afloat for a while till you are off reserve and can pick up more hours, because even though new flight attendants start making $20 an hour where I work, you're only guaranteed 75 hours of pay per month (or more if you happen to fly more than that). Doing the math you can see that $18,000 a year isn't a whole lot to survive on.

Want to know something sad? 1st officers, you know the pilot in the right seat? Well I've met 1st officers from some other airlines who were making only slightly more than me when I met them! Which was really kind of sad, since they actually put a lot of effort into preparing for their job compared to me. Anywho, I digress.

So it would be handy to have a spouse who was supporting the family's financial needs during the early years while you are flying a ton, making peanuts and climbing in seniority.

Unless your airline is on a hiring freeze. Which mine currently is. Which most currently are. Because if you just got hired and are smack dab at the bottom of that totem pole waiting for them to hire the next batch of flight attendants who will bump you up a bit, there is nothing worse than a hiring freeze.

So becoming a flight attendant today is a grand idea if you

• love to serve others
• love living out of a suitcase
• don't mind cleaning up vomit, urine, blood and other biohazzards
• can handle wacky hours (red-eye flights, long days, etc)
• like sitting around a lot
• are a quick study (after all, you do have to get through the training to even start...which is pretty intense. Learning the aircraft(s), Medical, Safety etc...to say nothing of the rules and regulations governing your work as set forth by the FAA. Every new class has a few who just can't hack it and fail out.)
• don't have any restrictions on where you can live
• have a sugardaddy or sugarmomma who can keep you in yer drawers and supply you with your monthly pallet of chocolate (for medicinal purposes only of course!) while you creep slowly upward in the ranks
• love travel

If any of the following describe your situation, perhaps another career would be a better fit:

• "I ain't touching that" is something you might utter (referring to any substance that could possibly be found in a lavatory, galley, seat back pocket, or seating area)
• Old people annoy me
• Young people annoy me
• Babies shouldn't be allowed to fly
• I turn into a pumpkin at midnight
• I can't wake up before 8 a.m.
• I hate instant oatmeal
• I personally believe that US Americans shouldn't be allowed to have carry on luggage
• I can't live on less than $50 a day
• There's no place like home
• Sudoku makes me insane
  
• Someone sneezes and I'm down for the count with pneumonia
• "Mouth-to-mouth? Not on your life!"

Just a few things to consider if you've been wondering about getting into the airline industry. It's still possible to do so, and after the first while it can be an enormously rewarding field to be part of. There are other positions beyond being a flight attendant (airport crew, reservations, etc) that I can't personally speak on, but who also enjoy the perks of the industry without being gone so much.

Just remember, If it's your dream, there will be a way for you to make it your reality! That applies to any facet of life!
♥

The 1st-Ever Blue Jeuls Give-Away

Just wanted to mention that I'm enjoying all the responses that people are sending in on my Give-Away post (Got Travel?) I answered a few questions in the comments section, but thought it would be good to clarify here.

The prize is for ONE free round trip (which could technically be used by two people to travel one way) for STANDBY travel to any of these destinations.

You only have to share a best, worst, OR most memorable travel experience. Course you're welcome to share all three if you like.

If you haven't got a travel experience, I pity you. Enter anyway. Talk about walking to elementary school 27 miles up a snowy mountain or something. People need to go places!

The rest of the details are in the very long, wordy post, but if you have any questions email me or leave a comment. I promise to explain all the ins&outs to the winner (Oooh...now there's an idea: In & Out! The winner could head west and visit that fine eating establishment. Yummy!)

♥

Got Travel?

As most of you reading this know, I'm a flight attendant. I've been flying since the beginning of 2001 and I totally ♥ it. Love it! There just isn't anything like climbing onboard with 150 of my favorite people and walking the aisles handing out snacks and smiles. And a drink here and there ;-)

I also love to travel. When I started working as a flight attendant, I was living in Vermont where Doc had a regular job teaching medicine at UVM, and our kids were one and four years old. My girlfriend, M, and I were hired as a job share team, two people filling one full-time position. The agreement was we both had to fly at least one trip a month, but we had to fly full time between the two of us. So we'd get our schedule and divvy up the trips between us.

This arrangement is the main reason being a flight attendant has worked for me. This, and the fact that we started working for our airline when it was only a year old. Which means we're considered to be "senior mommas"...a perk not even money can buy. The entire airline industry is a seniority-based system...schedules and trips are determined based on your seniority. So you could hire on with a start-up and be very senior, but the majority of new airlines go bankrupt within a very short time. It's a gamble that has paid off for a relatively few number of flight attendants. M and I just got lucky.

When we started, M was single and this job was her livelihood. So she naturally wanted to work more of the hours than me...which was just fine with me. There were actually a few months when I'd fly one day and then I was done till the next month. I could work the first day of May and the last day of June, and be home with the kids the rest of the time. It was amazing.

Notice I said could. I could be home the rest of the time...but I wasn't.

Since we were a brand new airline when I started, it was relatively easy to fly standby...which, let's face it, is the BIGGEST PERK EVER! I've had a lot of different jobs in my life, but none of them come anywhere close to having the perks that being a flight attendant does. It was absolutely the perfect match for the wanderlust-riddled gypsy in me. Since Bunch & Gator weren't in school yet, a typical scenario would be I fly my trip for the month, come home, collect the kids, and then take off for a week or two to visit family and friends strewn all over the country.

It was the perfect stand-by flying situation. New airline = at least a few empty seats on nearly every flight, no school or work conflicts to constrain our flexibility, kids who travel well, lots of fab friends to visit.

And visit we did! That first couple years before Bunch started kindergarten, we went on a trip somewhere every single month. I owe a debt of gratitude to the wonderful people who would drive out to pick us up from airports at random hours and host us for our stay. Good times, good times.

That was 7 years ago. Since then we've grown a lot. Our network of cities has increased dramatically, and the number of people in this country who are aware of our feisty little start-up has increased exponentially.

Through the years I've learned that the best time to fly standby to any city is right when we begin service to it...before the local residents really catch on and start buying up all the seats. I've also learned that if you're interested in flying to or from Salt Lake City, it's next to impossible to do so, because we have a few thousand crewmembers here...and there just aren't that many flights to/from this city to accommodate all the people hoping to use their flight benefits. And to top it off, SLC flights are sold out more often than not.

This has truly been the SINGLE BIGGEST DRAWBACK about moving to Utah for me...we have almost forfeited our flight benefits by coming here for medical school. It takes being extremely flexible, patient, and lucky to get to or from this town as a stand-by customer. And you'd better hope you're trying to fly on the second Tuesday of an odd-month ending in the letter Y when a transit of Venus is occurring! It's just that hard these days.

We've had loads of botched attempts. The kind where you check on Friday to see how the flights look for a quick weekend get-away, and there are 85 unsold seats on the return flight. So you head out only to find out on Sunday that there are 2 seats left and 518,397 other people also listed standby hoping to get on. So you bite the bullet and purchase one of those last two seats because you HAVE to get back for work. Such are the breaks.

But still, I can't complain. Most people don't get even ONE free trip in their lifetime. We've had dozens. And I'm just endlessly grateful for the many ways this job has blessed my life.

I've never actually mentioned my airline specifically by name on this site before, though there's enough info scattered about that your average toddler could have figured out by now that I'm not at one of the Big Six, nor am I at Northwest, Southwest, Eastwest, or Westwest.

That leaves about one other option. We're a newish airline, only 8 years old, but we've won lots of awards, prestigious ones too, for our outstanding customer service, in-flight amenities, and even our classy designer uniforms (ha!). We've had our share of tough moments and growing pains, but overall, we've kind of been the darling of the airline industry from our inception, and our crewmembers really are committed to doing the best job possible. We like our company, and we want it to be around for a long time. A very long time.

My airline doesn't fly as many places as some of the older, more established airlines, so perhaps you haven't heard of us. And I recognize that there's a good chance we don't fly to your city. But maybe we do fly between cities that someone you care about would like to visit.

So with that, I'd like to announce the first-ever BLUE JEULS GIVE AWAY! (queue the herald angels singing)

Since I've had the joyous life-experience of trying to travel standby, one lucky reader here is going to have the chance to experience it too. I have a Round Trip Buddy Pass that I'm going to give to the winner of this contest. This pass is good for travel between any two cities in our network. Buddy passes are for STANDBY TRAVEL, so if this doesn't appeal to you, please don't feel the need to participate!

For the uninitiated, standby travel means that you are NOT guaranteed to get on the flight of your choice. It means that after all the full-fare customers and employees have gotten on the flight, if there's still a seat available, you can get on too! And then you can enjoy jetting across the country (or just across the state) to any of our 50+ destinations. Surly you or someone you know lives in one of these areas...and you could be on a trip to visit them. Or have them visit you. Or have them visit their Uncle Fester...

Standby travel isn't a good idea for any of the following situations:

• Attending your best friend's wedding
• Getting to the interview for your dream job
• Visiting a loved one on their deathbed
• A quick trip between inflexible commitments
• When flying during the holidays or other high-traffic times.
  
• etc.

Standby by travel IS good if:

• You have more time than money
• You're planning to visit friends or family who are flexible with your arrival/departure dates
• You don't need to be back for any significant events
• You have a few days of flexibility on both ends of your trip
• Any needed car rental and/or hotel accommodations are flexible/refundable
• You're interested in going somewhere during low-demand months (eg. September and January)
• You can behave yourself and go with the flow when/if things don't work out. Like you're sitting on the aircraft already, just getting settled in, when the agent calls your name and asks you to bring your things and come to the front of the plane. It could happen.
  

Buddy pass users are responsible for the fuel surcharge and any taxes associated with their trip. For example:

$15 plus taxes each-way for a short-haul route
examples: SLC-LGB-SMF, PWM-JFK, or CLT-JFK

$30 plus taxes each-way for medium-haul routes
examples: SYR-MCO, JFK-FLL, or MSY-JFK-BNA

$45 plus taxes each-way for long-haul routes
such as FLL-OAK, JFK-SEA, or SLC-LGB-BOS

Last time I checked, it was between $400 - $500 for a round trip flight from CA to the east coast. So it's a pretty good deal if standby is something you're up for.

SO! To participate, leave a comment on this post sharing your BEST, WORST, or MOST MEMORABLE travel experience ever.

Entries must be submitted by 9:00 pm Pacific Time on Wednesday, September 17th. Only one entry per person, and the winner will be selected and posted here. So dig deep. Give me your stories. I can't wait to read them!

What a beautiful way to end this day

September 11, 2008

Where were you?

Seven years ago today, I had just returned home to my babies a few hours before from New York City, where I was based as a flight attendant.

My phone rang and my MIL was on the line, relief palpable in her voice when I answered. "You're Home!" she said. "Have you heard the news?"

I hadn't, but turned on the TV just in time to witness an aircraft plow into the second tower of the World Trade Center. Like the rest of the country, I stared in horror, riveted in front of the set.

Then the towers started to implode. Who could have foreseen that? Commentators started throwing out numbers of victims--seems like they were predicting upwards of 35,000-50,000 deaths.

Thankfully they were way off in their estimates. Almost 3,000 people died that day, and in the aftermath who can calculate how many people's lives have been decimated because of the events put in motion by the attacks. It's changed much in our world, especially for those in the military, and the airline industry.

So where were you when you found out about the attacks? Have those events changed your life in any way?
♥

So no one likes winter best? (and other news)

I thought it was just me...but apparently I'm in good company in that so far no one taking my random poll of the week has selected winter as their favorite season. Just proves that my Kid Brother hasn't been reading my blog (yo Mountain Man~Prove me wrong!).

Anyway, speaking of my readers. There has been a sudden spike this week in my daily readership. And I mean SPIKE. I've also had a spike in the number of people who have emailed me from my blog. It's been so fun to get these comments and messages. To show my appreciation, dear readers, I did some investigating to see if it's okay for me to proceed with an idea I've had rolling around in my head, and have gotten the All Clear Roger from the powers that be, so I'm really excited to announce that shortly I'll be having the first ever Blue Jeuls Giveaway!

In the next couple of days I will be posting the details, so be sure to check back.

But that's all for tonight. I'm enjoying autumn! Even though it's still technically summer for another 12 days and all...it's noticeably cooler and cloudier today than a week ago. No more air conditioner. No more watering the lawn. Ahh, fresh, crisp autumn. LOVE IT!
♥