Back to Work

Yesterday, I went to the Tall Girl store and got a few of my favorite tops for dirt cheap!!! Then I went to Marymount Manhattan College and waited for Jen in the school coffee shop. We ate lunch at Vynl (grilled cheese with three kinds of cheese) and watched more Gilmore Girls.

Later in the day, I followed Jen around as she took photographs of different merchandise booths for her boss. Then while she worked her booth at "In the Heights," I hung out at Cafe Duke working Sudoku puzzles! Since she isn't feeling well, we skipped bowling (she is on the Broadway league). Instead, we settled in and watched a few additional episodes of Gilmore Girls.

And today, we did more of the same...you see, our goal was to finish the entire series of Gilmore Girls! And we finally did - we've been watching for quite awhile. What a great series...then I had to head back to the airport and fly back to Denver.

When I arrived at DIA, I checked my schedule to see if I had been assigned a trip for tomorrow, and the answer was yes! I start a three-day trip tomorrow at 7:25AM...I'll spend tomorrow night in Los Angeles, Sunday night in Chicago, and then I'll do a turn to Albuquerque on Monday before I get to go home.

I am spending tonight at my "crash pad" in Denver - doing a bit of laundry and unpacking/repacking my bags. It is a good thing that I have a very patient and understanding husband...because I haven't been home in 9 days! And when I do come home, it'll be our 24th Wedding Anniversary!!!

Spontaneity!!!

We had a fun time yesterday - just hung around the apartment most of the day watching "Gilmore Girls" and ventured out to have a bit of dinner. While out, we stopped at Jennifer Convertibles and bought a new sofa bed to replace the "futon" that the girls currently have. Let's just say that it has seen better times, and is ready for the junk heap. The new sofabed will be delivered in a couple weeks.

I titled this "Spontaneity!!!" because my little girl asked me to stay another day...I go back on duty on Saturday, and both the flights going home on Friday are wide open. but I had planned on going back tonight so that I could hand out toothbrushes and candy to the kiddos...but Greg is going to take over that duty for the first time in 16 years! His duty over the past years was to take Jen around...

So today I'll visit The Tall Girl Shop while Jen is in class, and just kind of hang around during the day...

Rainy Tuesday in NYC

What a great ending to a great day!

While Jen took a midterm exam, I helped out and did her laundry at a local laundromat (am I a great Mom, or what?!?!). Then we spent time in her apartment watching "Gilmore Girls"...nice.

The highlight of the evening was going to see "South Pacific" on Broadway. Wow. I had been listening to the Broadway cast recording almost every time that I drove to Denver...so it was ingrained in my brain. It was so awesome to see it on stage...

Afterwards, we met Jen's friend Matt (aka Aladdin), and his friends Andre and Beau, at a bar called "Vintage." We had a lot of laughs - what nice guys! Here are a few photos of Jen and Matt:

Too bad he's gay, huh?

Monday in NYC

Yesterday, Jen and I spent time in her apartment doing a bit of organizing to make the small space look a little bigger...then I accompanied her to her voice lesson with Bill in Brooklyn (the same guy who she took lessons from two summers ago). She actually let me watch! I held Bill's dog, Sadie, as Jen showed me how well she's doing.

After her lesson, we met one of her friends Katie, who goes to NYU, for a warm beverage at Starbucks. Then back to the apartment until it was time for dinner at "Scarlatta," an amazing Italian restaurant...I had delicious pumpkin ravioli and creme brulee. Ahhhh. Can I go again tonight?!?

We went to see a fantastic Broadway show called "Billy Elliott" - OMG. The 12 year old boy who played Billy was incredible. If you get the chance to see this show - GO! I surrepticiously took a photo of one of the chandeliers in the theatre...

On the way home, we stopped at the new TKTS booth in Times Square - it has red stairs...you have to see it to believe it...and we took a few pictures. It was a fun night.

I Get Around...

Today I flew over 4000 miles. Wow.

I started early in the morning in St. Louis and flew to Denver. Then I did a round-trip to Sacramento. And finally I flew (as a passenger) to NYC and am now sitting in Jen's apartment waiting for her to finish her job as the photographer of "Broadway After Dark."

We have fun things planned for the several days that I'll be here...but most of all, it'll be good to see my little girl again and spend some time with her.

St. Louis Zombie Convention

We are now in St. Louis, and there is a convention going on of zombie followers - it looks like these are the people who support and work in the horror movie industry! I called my sister, Diane, to tell her about it and she said that if George Romero is there, she's coming. Well, guess what? He was holding a panel discussion with the cast of the remake of "Night of the Living Dead" at that very moment. Diane missed her chance, and I was too freaked out to attend it for her.

I started out the day in a not-so-good way...I forgot my cell phone in the hotel room. Yikes. I realized it when we got to the airport. I asked the van driver to recover it for me (it was 4:45AM) and he did - he was back at the airport at 5:15AM. I couldn't wait for the van to come cause I had to be on the plane, but the CPT volunteered to wait. Not all CPTs would have done that...

This afternoon was low-key. Only three of us went out for dinner - Brenda and Marcus no-showed. We still had a good time, but a lot less laughter, drinks, and craziness.

That's the way these crews are - you take five complete strangers and throw them together. You've got your fun and crazy days and you've got your "I want to be alone" days. This is the first trip where I've done something with the crew every night - I think that's really unusual...but it has been a lot of fun. Then we'll all go our separate ways tomorrow at 2PM when we finish our Sacramento turn...it was fun while it lasted! I am scheduled to leave at 3PM on our flight to LaGuardia! I am planning on spending a few days with Jen in NYC. I am very, very excited!

Another Great Day!

We had a very early van ride to the San Diego airport this morning...and tomorrow morning's van here in Nashville will be even earlier, so I'm going to keep this short.

We had a lot of fun on our flight back to Denver, and then our flight to Nashville was "interesting." We were delayed because there was a "security breach" at DIA and the airport was shut down - our plane was already boarded - we were waiting for two unaccompanied minors and then we'd be on our way. We also had an FAA inspector who flew in the flightdeck. We also had a plane full of passengers that loved to drink alcohol!

When we were done for the day and at the hotel, we met for a BBQ dinner at a local restaurant. This time Suzanne came, too, and we had a fun time eating, talking, and LAUGHING! We ended the evening at a local convenience store where the Krispy Kreme delivery truck had just dropped off some delicious glazed donuts!!!

San Diego's Old Town

I received a call last night at around 9PM from Crew Scheduling - they assigned me a high-hour 4-day trip. I started out by doing an early morning turn to Dallas (I had to be at DIA at 6AM), and then we flew to San Diego. And boy...I have lucked out - I've got another great crew!

The flights were pretty uneventful - though we did spend a lot of time talking to a 17 year old girl who seemed to be pretty enamored with our job! And we had quite a few passengers with seat duplications - there was a last minute aircraft change, and the gate agent didn't do his job properly, leaving us to try and make everyone happy.

When we got to San Diego, the Captain - Jim, First Officer - Marcus (pictured below), "A" Flight Attendant - Brenda, and I (the "C" Flight Attendant - Suzanne decided not to join us tonight) walked to the Trolley Line that would take us to Old Town. We found a Mexican restaurant that Jim had visited on an earlier trip - and boy...was it fantastic!

After dinner, we walked around the area, saw some beautiful flowers...

...saw a couple homes that were for sale (and one that I wish were for sale),

...did a little bit of shopping (Brenda got a new hat and an opal ring), and enjoyed the beautiful evening.

New Hat Lady, Brenda

First Officer Marcus

El Capitan, Jim

However, as we were leaving the village it was getting dark - there were people dressed in period costume. It was eerie. One guy had a noose around his neck and looked as if he'd be hanging at any minute. And there were weird guys stiffly walking around carrying lanterns.

GET ME OUT OF THERE!

The Long Ride Home

I flew to Kansas City, MO last night in a full plane - everything went well, the crew was friendly, and the hotel was very, very nice. Today we didn't leave the hotel until 6:30PM, so I had lots of time to do a lot of nothing...

I slept late in the wonderful bed in my hotel room

I watched "Never Been Kissed" on HBO

I made oatmeal using my coffeemaker

I worked on my November schedule

I studied and filled out my ballot for the election

I went to the fitness center and walked on the treadmill for an hour

I ate lunch/dinner out of canned goods (and later found a microwave in the lobby...too late)

I showered and got ready to go back to the airport

I took a picture of the antique chandelier in the hotel lobby

The return flight tonight was interesting...there was a thunderstorm in the area, and as we were climbing, there was lightning everywhere. Then a fellow flight attendant asked, "Have you ever been in a plane that has been hit by lightning?" That did not make me feel good...

As I mentioned in the title, the drive back to Colorado Springs took longer than usual. At first, I thought it was snowplows spraying the roads with anti-freeze solution. But then I realized that there weren't plows in front of me, but a bunch of police cars. The closer I got, I realized that it was a motorcade - police cars were blocking both lanes and not allowing anyone to pass, a bunch of buses, and several limos - motorcycle cops were preventing people from entering the highway until the motorcade passed, and police cars were on every overpass making sure that everyone was behaving themselves. When I got home, I surfed the net and found out that Biden is making an appearance in Colorado Springs in the morning. I am disappointed that the cops didn't let me pull in front of Biden's limo - I wanted him to see my "Go Sarah Go" bumper sticker.

Neighborhood Sights....

Yesterday was a GLORIOUS day...so I whipped out the camera and found the following:

Around the corner from my house I found this nice fellow eating fruit that had fallen from the tree...

In my own yard, I found lots to photograph:

Today is overcast and chilly...not a speck of sun to be seen! So instead, I'll look at my photos and remember the beautiful day!

Pretty Leaves and Puppy Love

Fall here in Colorado is gorgeous. Not quite as multi-colored as the East, but the colors that we do have are brilliant...

The weather here has been perfect for the last couple of days - so I've taken the boys to their favorite place...the Dog Park! Here's a pic of part of the gang that was there yesterday. Kikko is in the front, and you can see Kodi's head on the far right.

Then when we get home, the boys are pooped. But inevitably, Kodi is raring to go again soon, and tries to get Kikko to get up and chase him.

Well, that didn't work, so I guess he decided to just kiss him...

New Photos

I am cleaning out my camera and cell phone, and have added photos to my previous post "What a Great Trip!"...

By the Skin of my Teeth!

I can't believe it...I was almost late this morning! I got the 6AM shift on the couch (I bid for it because I was already up in Denver for an annual training class yesterday - more about that in a minute), and I called in on the "official phone" at 5:58AM. OMG! I have NEVER cut it that close before - and I had even spent the night in Denver last night!!! Poor planning on my part. I stayed at the Geyer's house, went to bed a 9PM (it had been a long day), and got up at 5AM. I guess I should have made that 4:45AM. Oh well. It takes 20 minutes to drive, and then 10 minutes for the shuttle bus to the airport. Whew!

About yesterday - each year, we must attend a full day of training. The FAA has a large say in determining what we review, etc. and unfortunately, if I told you all that we did, I'd have to kill you. So I won't. I like my family and friends too much. Instead, I'll tell you that three of my classmates were there, too (there were 15 total students) so it made it fun to visit inbetween activities. I picked up the things that I had either forgotten or had never learned...so it was a great day. But I was sure tired!

I have five hours left on the couch...and then I get to go home and spend the rest of this beautiful fall day with my husband and two little stinky boys!

Hold your nose!

It happened again...my poor Kodi came into the house, and his normally white fur was yellow with skunk spray. Poor guy. Fortunately, Kikko avoided the confrontation.

Jen suggested that we invent a skunk repeller - does anyone have any ideas?

Oklahoma City...again!

I got a three-hour call-out to do a turn to OKC this afternoon - and what a great time I had! I flew with my classmate LuEllen and a flight attendant from the class held before mine - Fadia.

At first, I was worried that it was going to be a looooooooonnnnnnnnnngggggggg trip - Fadia was not happy about being on reserve, pay cuts, etc. and felt that we need a union (pardon me for swearing). I about jumped out of my skin. I won't go into details, but by the end of the flight, Fadia was laughing and happy - so was I, and LuEllen, too!

Our flight to OKC had a bunch of Germans from Bavaria - I spoke a bit of German with them, told them that I had lived in Stuttgart for four years, told them to behave themselves (they wanted Fadia to sit with them), said "bitte" when they said thank you, and told them "Tschuss!" when they left. One guy was in lederhosen and had a Bavarian shirt - it brought back a lot of memories.

The CPT Marik and the FO Jason were also very nice - we had an hour layover in OKC, so I went onto the concourse and brought back Eskimo Pies for everyone! The CPT and FO were like little boys, they were so excited!

Our flight home was FAST! We landed 38 minutes early...and I got home by 9:30PM and was able to see the boys before they all went to bed! Now I've got three days off...

What a Great Trip!

I flew with the same First Officer (Steve) and "B" Flight Attendant (Cindy) for the entire trip - fortunately, both were easy-going and laid back, as well as a lot of fun to hang around! Our first round-trip was to Oklahoma City, OK - our CPT (Dick) was a really nice guy and wished that he was coming with us for the entire trip, and our "A" Flight Attendant (Nicky) felt the same way.

But they were both replaced when we returned from OKC. That's when we met our new CPT (Rick) and our new "A" (Cara). What a great team we made! We started out flying to Salt Lake City, and the only excitement that I experienced on that trip was that there was a row of 20 somethings that were passing little plastic bags to each other - when I collected the trash, they deposited the empty bags into my trash bag. I looked at one, and it was a shot of VODKA! So I went to that row, leaned down to the girl on the end and told her that I could get her into A LOT of trouble...i.e. the police meeting the flight in SLC, but that I was going to pretend that I didn't see anything. She was completely freaked out and apologetic.

Next, we ferried the empty plane to Logan, UT. We had a couple hours to wait until the Utah State football team came on board - but Steve (who lives in Logan) told us we were getting lunch...! We went into the jet center's conference room, and there was Steve's wife, Janiel, their 3 year old daughter Shelby, and Janiel's Mom...setting up a spread of food! What a nice treat that was!!! And on top of all that, Janiel had a small loaf of zucchini bread for each of us! It is rare to be treated in such a nice way!

The football team and all their "hangers-on" were okay - it was really hard to walk up and down the aisles because of the size of these guys, and various body parts were spilling into the aisle!

They were polite, but were getting a bit impatient with all the "hurry up and wait" that was happening...We flew them to San Jose, CA where they played San Jose State yesterday (Utah State lost 30-7...ouch). The guys were staying at the same hotel that we were, so that cancelled any plans that I had to go to the hot tub!!! Instead, I took a nice walk around the area - Yahoo, McAfee, eBay, Paypal - we were surrounded by software companies and their buildings! Great America was right across the street, but it was probably closed during the week.

Yesterday was a hard day...I got a lot of sleep on Friday night, so I was rested and refreshed for our flight back to Denver that left at 6:30AM. What I wasn't prepared for was a drunk passenger! Unfortunately, I did not discover this until after we were on the taxiway. The guy smelled of alcohol, and his eyes were unfocused, and he was sitting in the exit row! So we called the CPT to let him know what we discovered, reseated the drunk so he wasn't a threat to safety, and the rest of the flight was uneventful. He slept almost the entire way, except when the drink cart was parked next to him - then he guzzled water like there was "no tomorrow." The CPT alerted the gate crew for the drunk's continuing flight, so they could make a determination as to whether or not he should be allowed on board. The drunk must have stayed up all night drinking so that he'd be sure not to miss his flight!

Back in Denver, we had a two hour sit during which I wrote up my report about the drunk. I also got to see a few of my classmates and chat for awhile. We got a new "A" flight attendant (Ron), also, and he was a doll. At first I was afraid he was a "senior papa" and would be aloof, but he and I had a really good time talking during our "victory lap" to Los Angeles. It turns out he's a former jazz/modern dancer (and he's straight), and he actually knew of the musical "In the Heights" where Jen works!

There was a passenger on the flight to Los Angeles that could be a double for Steve Carell (from The Office), if, in fact, it wasn't him. I don't think that it was.

The return flight from Los Angeles was the hardest - EVERYONE had too much stuff that they were bringing onboard. Row 1D was nasty to me when I told her and her seatmates that nothing could be on the floor during takeoff/landing, and at landing they all tried to "hide" their bags with their jackets - I made Ron deal with them and put their stuff in the overhead! I was whipping bags out of the overheads to make room for the roller bags, moving stuff around, shoving stuff back in...I'm good at it. And I feel a real sense of accomplishment when I don't have to gate check any bags! However, on 11/1/08 we start charging to check ANY bags...it is going to be A MESS.

All in all, it was a great trip! I'm still on duty today and tomorrow, but *knock on wood* no calls came today, and I hope that tomorrow is quiet, too! Cause I'm tired, in a very good kind of way!

Three Day Trip

I just got a call from crew scheduling...I have to be at the airport in three hours for a three-day trip. I'll fly to Oklahoma City tonight, then back to Denver in the morning. Then here's where it gets interesting...I'll fly from Denver to Salt Lake City, then it looks like I'll take an empty plane to Logan, UT and sit on the ground for a few hours, then fill the plane up with most likely football players (it's a charter) and take them to San Jose, CA - and that's where I'll spend Friday night. Then on Saturday, we'll return to Denver, sit for a couple hours and then do a turn to Los Angeles.

Weird thing is, when I get back at 5:30PM on Saturday, I still have two more days on...and the old question arises...should I drive home and hope that that's it? Or should I stay up in Denver, assuming that they'll be giving me another trip?!?

Now repeat after me..."I will be spontaneous! I will be flexible!"...and I will have fun!!!

Doing the Right Thing

I had a turn to Omaha yesterday afternoon/evening...after I "checked in" at the airport, my Inflight Manager, Mitch, came to see me in the crewroom. That's never happened before, so I was momentarily freaked out. But he was there to tell me that my dealings with the "disabled woman" from my Indianapolis flight was handled 100% correctly. Thank goodness. You know, it's a good feeling to know that using your common sense pays off.

I missed out on my monthly Church potluck dinner last night, but heard all about it at lunch today with the host and hostess - Fred & Mary Lou. It was a very fun meal at one of my favorite restaurants. It sounds like it was a very fun evening that I missed out on!

Tomorrow's schedule just came out, and I did not receive an assignment - tomorrow is the first day of six duty days...so I will have some time at home to catch up on paperwork!!!

Togetherness!

Guess what?!?! I have actually spent almost TWO ENTIRE DAYS with my husband! Incredible.

Yesterday was the AFA vs. Navy football game with his friends, and today I went to an "In Their Honor Air Show" with him - I was "on call," we took two cars, and my car was packed with all my stuff in it. But the call didn't come until I had already gotten home, and even then, they don't have me flying until tomorrow afternoon. Wow. Wonders never cease.

One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is that at the end of the game, both teams went and stood in front of the AFA section of the stands and stood at attention during the playing of the AFA school anthem. Then both teams went to the other side and stood at attention during th playing of the Navy school anthem. Afterwards, "I'm Proud to be An American" played on the sound system - I was definitely choking up.

Football!

I just had a great day off! Greg and I went to the Air Force vs. Navy football game (Navy won, but it was a good game!) We were the guests of one of Greg's high school friends, BJ and her hubby, Bill. Bill is a graduate of Annapolis, and their daughter is a senior there now and plays in the band. Bill works for Delta Airlines, so they're flying to all the Navy games this year.

I had met BJ once, a couple months before Greg & I married in 1984, and I had never met Bill. We had a great time together!

Just Not My Trip, I Guess...

It took me until 2AM (local time) to fall asleep on Thursday night after my unfortunate incident. Once I got up, I made breakfast (oatmeal - using my coffeemaker, a banana, peanut butter), and watched TV. Then I threw on my tennies and took a nice long walk around downtown Indianapolis. It was such a pretty day, the temp wasn't too hot, and there were lots of sights to see.

When I got back to my hotel room, my phone rang - Crew Scheduling was calling to tell me that when I returned to DEN, I would do a turn to Portland, OR. By then, it was time to get ready to fly back to DEN - I was fearful of another nasty passenger (the gate agent pointed out an old guy who gave her trouble - but he was a pussycat on board), but it was an uneventful flight.

But I think I pissed off the C flight attendant - as we were landing, she was moaning and groaning about how the company has screwed her so badly - I told her that maybe it was time that she took a break...she didn't talk to me for the rest of the flight. Oh well.

So then I proceeded to my next flight - I had a new crew (thank God), and they were happy, positive and laid back. I was C on the flight, and as we were boarding, a passenger mentioned that there was a guy who was very drunk - so I chatted with him as he was looking for his seat - he had the telltale watery eyes, alcohol odor - and he was cussing like a sailor. I went to the B flight attendant and told her what I thought, and she called the A flight attendant who notified the CPT. Long story short - he was removed from the plane. The other FAs were very impressed that I caught it - it saved us a possible big headache!

We worked out butts off on the flight to Portland - we started out almost an hour late due to weather/air traffic in Denver, we were almost full, everybody wanted 2 or 3 drinks, headphones, bathroom breaks, etc. As the passengers were deplaning, one woman stopped and told me that I was a GREAT flight attendant! What a boost that gave me! Our return flight was relatively empty, so we could relax a bit - but I found it hard to stay awake. We landed right at midnight and then I got to drive home...with "South Pacific" blasting on my car stereo!

Shame on Her!

I was all excited that I was getting to fly to Indianapolis tonight! UNTIL a certain nasty passenger set foot on the plane. She used her handicap as an excuse...and kept threatening that she was going to report us for our mistreatment of her and her handicap. It was shameful.

I have filed an Incident Report with the airline, and I hope that's the end of it. I hope I never meet such a nasty person ever again.

So now, I need to forget what happened, and enjoy my stay here in Indianapolis!

Wasps

Just a few minutes ago a Colorado Springs Utilities meter reader came to my door and asked me to lock up the dogs and unlock the back gate. I did so, and as he skirted the bushes to get at the meters on the side of the house, he let out a yell, "OWWWW!"

At first, I didn't know what the heck happened, and then we saw a bunch of wasps flying around, and in the bush there was a large nest! I have never seen anything like it in our yard before! In the past, Greg & I have taken care of the little nests we've found in the eaves, etc. But this one is too big to mess with! I've got a call in to a pest removal company to come out today!

This is a beautiful work of nature, but a very painful one, too. Just ask my Utilities guy who ran off without a backward glance...thank God he was not allergic to wasp stings!

The Crewroom

A little over a year ago, the Frontier flight attendants took over the British Airways lounge on the A Concourse at DIA - prior to that, our crewroom was in the basement, and was considered a dungeon. Fortunately, our new crewroom is bright, sunny, and usually busy!

But it's amazing to me that the very same people who complain about passengers being pigs on the airplanes, can create such a mess in the crewroom! So last night, the Vice President of Inflight Services - Cathy, several of the Inflight Managers - Toni, Mitch, Linda, and Tammy, the Director of Inflight Services - Rosie, and the GO Inflight Services Coordinator - Jerry, and a few other people I didn't recognize, attacked the crewroom with a vengence! The refrigerators were emptied and scrubbed clean, clutter was tossed, floors were vacuumed, swept and mopped, walls were painted, tape was scraped off, furniture was wiped down, fixed, and polished. It was amazing. My duty ended at 10PM, and they were still going at it.

So, to any and all Frontier crewmembers who happen to read this blog - please pick up after yourself, wipe up those spills, don't place things in the fridge never to be recovered...it's our little home away from home, and we should keep it neat!