Who, What, and Where Am I?

After spending three nice days at home, the poop hit the fan.

I have been flying, driving, sleeping and crying during the last five days. Fortunately, not all at the same time. I am exhausted, as are my fellow reserve flight attendants. Normally, we have 106 reserves and we usually work an average of 75 duty hours each month. Due to flight attendant retirements, maternity leaves, and OJIs, we have 76 reserves. As of yesterday, my fifth day on duty, I have 51 DUTY HOURS. Of those hours, 35 have been FLYING.

Fortunately, the crews have been great. Everyone has worked well as a team, we're keeping the atmosphere light and happy, and things have been going well. My flights/destinations have been too numerous to mention, but there have been some memorable moments.

On our flight from Denver to Tampa yesterday, we were delayed due to a broken airplane. So we were moved to a new gate and a different airplane. During boarding, the CPT got all excited and told me that he just saw a celebrity get on the plane! Woo hoo! I couldn't figure out how I missed seeing Dwayne Johnson or Sandra Bullock boarding the plane! When I asked who it was, passengers coming onboard told me that it was Edgar Hansen! Who? The deckboss of the Northwestern, from the Discovery Channel's show, "The Deadliest Catch." Who? He slept the entire way, and was traveling with his wife and son.

I told the CPT that I would get him a celebrity "meet and greet" at the end of the flight. And I did! First, I asked his son if it'd be okay, and then later I asked his wife. Edgar slept through the ENTIRE flight, so I never could ask him directly. However, as he was walking up the aisle, I asked him if the CPT could have a picture with him. He was very gracious, shook the CPT's hand, and posed for a cellphone picture. The CPT about peed his pants! Unfortunately, the picture is in the CPT's phone, and I didn't ask him to send it to me. But here's a picture of Edgar on his boat...

Edgar Hansen from the Discovery Channel's "The Deadliest Catch"

Our return flight to DEN, we experienced bad weather - a common occurrence in the summer. The CPT had us clean up the cabin early, and then made an announcement for the flight attendants to be seated IMMEDIATELY. Well...Gloria and I were in mid-cabin as the plane dropped. I had been holding onto the overhead bin railing, so my feet stayed on the floor, but I went down onto the floor to prevent getting thrown around. The passenger to my right was freaking out. She grabbed my arm and was rubbing it. I softly talked to her as we rode this "roller coaster." Unlike anything I had ever experienced. People were screaming, but it was strangely fascinating to me. I really wasn't scared. After about 5 minutes, all was clear and we made it up to the forward galley and sat down.

 And...of course, instead of being released from duty, I got sent on another trip - this time to Houston. We got in after midnight and I went straight to bed! We'll leave the hotel in an hour, so I guess I'd better get out of bed and get ready to go back to work. I know that they can't work me tomorrow, because that'd make 7 days in a row, and the FAA allows only 6 days at a time. But, there is a chance that they'll send me on another turn that gets back before midnight.

Keep your fingers crossed that I get to enjoy my day off.