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Three Letters To My U.S. Passports

Dear First Passport,

I wish I had a picture of you to include in this letter. You’re in a drawer or a box somewhere, but when I come across you, I will be sure to scan you and update this entry. I want to take this opportunity to thank you for having been a wonderful part of my life. You first came to me back in 2007, when one of my best friends, Marcus, and I auditioned, and were ultimately selected to spend an autumn and winter in Taiwan, singing and entertaining tourists at an American-themed amusement park.

I remember the park directors coming to Eastern Arizona College to hold the auditions and asking us if we knew how to rollerblade (for you see, roller-blading Santa Clauses were all the rage in Taiwan back then, and that was part of the gig). I answered, ‘Yes’, but at the time I had never even put on a pair of rollerblades. It’s true I lied, but it got me the job (well, that and all my other awesome talents). How hard can roller-blading be? I remember being sad when I learned that the amusement park had gone bankrupt and this particular adventure was canceled. I now had you, my first passport. At that time, however, I had no place to go.

The first time I actually got to use you was after I’d moved up to Logan, Utah and was attending classes at Utah State University. This was the trip when my roommates James (a family member and another bestie), Paul, and Matt got together with our neighbors, Christy (Paul’s sister) and Marie and drove up to go camping at Banff National Park in Canada. I was disappointed that the Canadian border patrol didn’t stamp you. This trip, however, gave me a taste for the beautiful north and left me hungry, wanting more.

James had told me how awesome his trip Germany had been and then I got to meet Stefan, a boy from Germany who had once lived with James’ family as part of a foreign exchange student program. Stefan was so kind and told us we should plan a visit to visit his home. One night I was surfing the net, and what started out as simply checking how much it would cost to fly to western Europe, suddenly turned into purchasing two non-refundable, roundtrip tickets from Los Angeles to Paris.

That was an amazing adventure (and another excuse to use you, my first passport). As you no doubt remember, our roommate Jason joined us for that incredible trip! By this point, the love of travel was fast becoming part of my D.N.A. That seed had been planted and I desperately hoped to nourish it.

I used you when another James (a.k.a Zuka), Dave, Dave’s friend Jessica and another roommate, Jeremy, went on a road trip to see Dave’s parents’ who were serving as LDS mission presidents in Monterrey, Mexico. This was yet another trip where you weren’t stamped. If border patrol agents would only stamp you, this world would be a happier place!

I used you, yet again when I went with some dear friends to the United Kingdom in 2002. This was the trip with my dear friends’ James (Zuka), Julie, Colee, Dave, Dominoe and Makaylee. We spend just over a week visiting this land of some of my [and some of their] forefathers. Finally, another stamp! A few years later, you would be well used when I’d become a flight attendant. Even though at the time, the airline was only domestic flights, you came in quite handy for all of those T.S.A. lines and security checks.

I miss you and hope you show up one of these days! I am blessed that you helped me to discover this love I now possess.

Love, Dav

Dear Second Passport,

I apologize that you got so worn out! A few of your security features had even started to fade, resulting in additional questioning- but wow! We’ve had a blast! You have taken me back to the United Kingdom on a few different vacation trips, in and out of Iceland, you’ve allowed me to spend two amazing weeks in Ireland, in and out of Mexico and Canada a few times, all over the United States and even let me spend five weeks exploring some of western and southern Australia, in part to visit my dear friends, Arron and Brendan! I already had this growing love of travel, but with you, I really learned how to travel. I’m grateful to have known you!

Love, Dav

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Dear Third Passport,

Since you just arrived in my mailbox this past week, I really haven’t gotten to know you yet, but am looking forward to the opportunity. Now, If you’ll go over and take a look at my bucket list, you’ll agree that this is going to be a blast! I look forward to using you at the end of this month on our first adventure together! I even had them add extra pages to you!

Love, Dav

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Tonight I am extremely tired!

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I think I got about 20 minutes of sleep last night, but somehow I could fake it through my workday. Last night, my roommate Kyle and I decided to go see the movie The Fifth Wave. I thought it was a pretty good film, but it did lean a bit heavy on the teen-drama spectrum. While at the cinema, I had Kyle get me a large Coke Zero. This is a huge mistake, as I have recently discovered that caffeine gives me energy like it does the rest of the world.

Even though I’m already lying in bed in my hotel room in Oklahoma City, I do have a tiny bit of energy left. I think I’ll use up said power by writing about three more items on my bucket list:

  1. I’m embarrassed to admit that of the 59 U.S. National Parks, I’ve only visited 7. This is horrible, I know. So here’s bucket list item number 70: To see every U.S. National Park. I found a list of all the parks on Wikipedia. How many have you visited?
  2. Coming in at number 80 is to ride on 50 different roller coasters (starting now). This is one that I had to really decide if I wanted to do. I just know that all that jostling of my brain will give me some kind of brain aneurysm.
  3. I have only been to downtown Seattle one time so far, and that was a few months ago, while I was on a work overnight. It is a beautiful city, and I have so much to learn. Number 90 on my list is to go up the space needle.
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This will be the entry where I issue the needed apology. I went back and reread my entry from yesterday and realized that’s not where I wanted the story to go. You know how some people should never go grocery shopping on an empty stomach? Well, I think I just proved that I should probably never blog after working a long-haul out of Los Angeles. Lesson learned. My goal with this is blog after all, is to uplift and hopefully inspire others, not tear others down- not even those from southern California.

I know of a flight attendant blog that is very pessimistic in nature. The guy loves to write about all the things that passengers are doing and saying in such a negative light. He shares the things he wished he would have said to the passenger in different situations. Usually, his comments are rude, demeaning and very cutting. He brings himself across as very egotistical and tries to lift himself only. Needless to say, I stopped reading his page years ago.

As the passengers were deplaning at the end of our flight this morning, I was actually quite touched by the nice things they had to say. My crew was particularly fun and enthusiastic, which makes every bit of difference. Many of our passengers commented that they thought I was funny, that we were great, and many of them complimented us on how we handled one passenger’s situation or another. It made me really happy!

This may not be the best job in the world, but I feel like it’s one of the best jobs for me. I happen to be with a company that often recognizes those who rise above. Even though it is the aviation industry, I do feel like I’m in a safe and secure workplace. I’m going to try my best, from here-on-out to focus on the good. Sure, I’ll share the upsets too, but I hope I can share these experiences in a better light. I hope I learn from my mistakes.

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Time to vent a little bit. Tonight I’m trying not to hold a grudge against needy passengers. I’d say 99% of our passengers today were incredibly nice and considerate, but there was that small, 1% that sort of make you want to punch a hole into his or her jaw. Thank goodness I can control my temper, but there were moments today that I really wanted to say something… I did say what needed to be said, but at times I totally understand why Steven Slater flipped out, about 6 years ago. Remember that incident?

The rules to not make me want to smack you on my flight are really quite simple:

  1. Don’t snap your fingers at me like I’m a dog.
  2. I’m not “the help”, so don’t treat me like I am, and don’t talk to me as if I am.
  3. Just because you live in the Los Angeles area, doesn’t mean that the rules don’t apply to you.
  4. Put your [choose your favorite cuss word] phone in airplane mode. If you don’t like the laws or federal regulations, maybe you should go march on Washington and get the law changed. But for now, turn it off or put it in airplane mode.
  5. Five bags are more than the allowed two carry-on bags. If you can’t combine/ consolidate, I will take them from you and you will see them when you get to your final destination at baggage claim.
  6. You’re not the only passenger on the plane. I may have to divide my attention. If I’m already assisting another passenger, don’t bother me with your little insignificant cocktail request. I’ll be back in a moment.

Don’t get me wrong- I do love my job, and I’ve been really lucky to have some awesome, awesome passengers… almost all of the time. Like any customer service job, it has it’s moments where you just know that a full moon is coming soon or something in the universe is out-of-whack.

I do work for the absolute best airline in the world. No exaggeration needed. I’m very blessed to have the best coworkers in the aviation industry! I also feel very safe and secure in my chosen profession, and I know so many friends who can’t say that.

Ok- rant over. I’ve been doing this for just about 11 ½ years and this is as negative as it’s going to get for me. I bounce back fast. I’m going to sleep better tonight, knowing I just got this all off my shoulders. Tomorrow is going to be awesome!

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Today I have been enjoying my second day off of work. It’s been a good one and I’ve spent at least part of it working on future blog entries, and some bucket list organization. I also managed to watch the movie Stranger Than Fiction. Interesting film but took me a little while to get lost in. It was pretty good, I guess.

I just got back from having dinner with Harrison and Kyle. It was Chinese food tonight and I had the kung pao chicken. It was quite delicious! I am proud of myself for sticking with my food budget this month. I even have $20 left for tomorrow to stay in!

I thought I’d write about a few more items on the bucket list tonight:

  1. There’s been a time or two when I’ve commuted home on Delta and since they happened to have an empty business class seat, they were more than willing to upgrade me, knowing that I am a flight attendant. I have found myself in full Southwest uniform, sitting in a Delta first-class. I guess that would make a good commercial for Delta, huh? The dream is to fly first class on purpose… this is bucket list item number 40: To pay full price for the seat and just pretend like I’m used to it. haha! I won’t show my crew badge and I won’t tell any working crew that I’m a flight attendant.
  2. Item number 54 is to go to Jerusalem. I think this could be an incredible experience! I wonder if BYU has a course I can take to learn about it, but not have to be a student at BYU- I was never smart enough to even apply for BYU. I really need to do some research on that. Is anyone aware of this?
  3. I’m told there is a place on a mountain or hill on the coast of Maine that is the very first place that you can witness a sunrise within the United States. How cool would it be to do this on New Years’ day? To be one of the first people to witness this at the start of a new year?! This is the fodder that bucket lists are made of, and is number 65 on my own list.
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Thanks to winter storm Kayla, I’ll be spending the next two days hanging out in Thornton. Nothing against Thornton- I have a great crashpad here and some great roommates, but I was so looking forward to two nights in my own bed. As you probably know, I’ve been working a lot lately for my upcoming vacation and that means that even two nights in my own bed is a blessing! Oh well. Tonight there will be food, a movie, talking a roommate into making a snow angel and hopefully, some hot tub marinating.

I’m reminded of another snow storm here in Thornton, back in April 0f 2013. Jeff has this trike thingy (I’m not sure what it’s for) and for some reason, he decided that it would be fun to be dragged around the snowy neighborhood streets. Thought I’d upload that video. I managed to cut it down to just over 3 minutes. Here you go:

Today I ended up, once again, in SeaTac, Washington.

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I know I say this often- I love the northwest so much! I could totally live up here again! Not sure what my problem is- it’s not that I’m not happy in Utah. Maybe it is some kind of grass-is-greener complex (by the way, the grass really is greener in Washington). My mom told me that I needed to wait until she dies before I move away from Utah. If I decide to go to Washington, she would forgive, support me, and she’d still love me. It just seems like even though I live in the same state as the folks’, I see them about as often as I did when I lived in Kentucky. Maybe I work too much. For now, I’ll stay where I am.

I thought I’d write about three more things on my bucket list. After that, I’m going to sit back and watch the film Enough. Remember that movie? I decided to buy it on iTunes the other day.

  1. When I was planning my trip to Australia back in 2014 xxxUPDATE LINKxxx (see post), the initial idea was to spend part of the time there and part of my time in New Zealand. I soon realized, however, that I didn’t want to spread myself too thin. There is just too much I wanted to see and do in Australia, and the same goes for New Zealand. Number 73 on the bucket list is to go to New Zealand.
  2. I love a good road trip! Number 81 on the list is to drive the historic Route 66. Maybe on a motorcycle (bucket list item number 69)? We’ll have to see about that. I guess I need to get a motorcycle first.
  3. Number 9 is to go to Brazil. Since the Olympics is approaching, I heard that they are going to change the rules so they will no longer require a visa to visit, but just a passport. That will make things easier (and a bit cheaper)!
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Today is a crashpad day. Aft working for six days in a row, the F.A.A. requires a flight attendant to take at least 24 hours off. I have, however, just finished working eight days in a row. This is possible because after getting back early on the sixth day, there was a 24-hour break, and then I started a P.M. trip on day number seven. This means that today’s plan is to hang out here, not cheat on my Herbalife diet, pick up one of my roommates at the airport, and hopefully get some cardio in. I have yet to emerge from the warm basement this morning. Also, it’s time to talk about a few items on the bucket list.

  1. I feel like I have been neglecting my neighbor to the north. Coming in at number 12 on the bucket list is to visit every province in Canada. So far, my exposure to Canada has been a couple of visits to the north side of Niagara Falls and a camping/road trip with friends up to Banff National Park and Calgary. I know that Canada has so much to offer too. I’m not sure when this trip will happen, but it needs to happen nonetheless.
  2. Speaking of Canada, number 38 on the list would be to stay at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. This is a fantastic hotel in a fantastic setting. I visited the lake on the trip as mentioned above, but we didn’t stay there. The hotel looks so wonderful!
  3. Number 23 on my list is to go on a cruise. The closest I’ve come to a cruise is an overnight ferry crossing from Aberdeen, Scotland, up to Shetland in 2011. This was a 12 hour overnight passage (if my memory is working), and even though there was a dining room, bar, and cinema, it didn’t have all the thrills of an actual cruise. I have never been on a cruise because I think the person or people I go with are going to be what makes the trip for me, not so much the cruise itself. There’d better be karaoke!
  4. Have you heard about the most expensive coffee in the world? It’ll cost you somewhere around $50 for a single cup. It’s brewed from coffee beans that are fed to elephants. The un-chewed beans that pass through Dumbo are pooped out and collected. Then they brew those beans. You may think drinking this overpriced crap-coffee is on my bucket list- not so! If you know me, you know that I don’t drink coffee, but I do LOVE the smell of coffee! Number 35 on the bucket list is to ride on an elephant (the poop/coffee talk was just to throw you off the scent).

I prefer a.m. over p.m. shifts at work.

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I think I’m just hard-wired to be up in the morning. Even on my days off, I tend to wake up pretty early- I was even born in the morning. Last week I was planning on going home to Utah for a couple days, but I saw a really easy-looking two-day trip available to pick up. Even though it’s was a p.m. trip, I decided to grab it before someone else did. I’m glad I did!

I may have blogged about this fact before, but I have this little philosophy that I like to live by. Simply, I try to assume that everybody I meet in life wants to be my friend until they show me that they don’t want to be. That may sound conceited, but it’s really not. I try to treat others as if we’re old friends and that we just haven’t seen each other in a while. I have had so many incredible adventures because of this.

On my flight last night, I met a passenger named Jared. We started chatting when I came through to bring him a beverage. He is a singer/songwriter who grew up in Reno but spent years in Nashville. Now he’s come back to live in the northwest. After my crew and I finished our service, we hung out in the back of the plane talking. Jared actually came to the back to have a chat with us.

We had a very long conversation. I liked the way he listened and seemed to be interested in what I was saying. He asked me about the nickname ‘Dav’ and told me all about his family and that he’s the only one who goes by his given name. We talked about singing, music, travel, dreams, and a thousand other things. It was a great chat! I asked about his music, and he let me hear a couple songs that he’d written and recorded. He is really talented!

Once the plane landed, I grabbed his album off of iTunes, and he told me to learn the songs so he could call me up to sing backup vocals with him someday. How awesome would that be?! I’m about ¾ of the way through the album, and I have to say I’m really impressed! It’s great to make new friends! Trust me- I don’t throw out music compliments unless I feel like they’re really deserved.

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I love the ocean. It is Magical!

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When I stand or swim in it, that is so much proof that God loves me. I think I appreciate it more now than I ever did growing up. There were occasional trips to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, or various beaches in North Carolina, and even though I enjoyed the ocean back then, I love it so much more now.

I have never been one of those who would just sit there on the beach, like an unemployed whale (remember that line from The Simpsons?). I hate to sit in the sun and tan. Bronzed skin is pretty ugly on any Caucasian. It makes you look like you’re from New Jersey. Thankfully, my Scottish and Irish genes won’t allow me to stay out very long before it’s time to go inside. I start to burn in about 25 minutes usually.

I have enjoyed this last three-day work trip. It had a double SJU overnight, and on the second night, I had plenty of time to swim in the ocean. I have some new swimming shorts that I needed to break in. Just as I suspected, they make me look pretty darn sexy, if I do say so. That was the idea when I bought them at Fort Lauderdale beach last week. It has been a nice break from the brutally low temperatures of Utah and Colorado.

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My sister Melanie tells me that I have my dad’s feet. Whatever. At least my friend Brian says I have sexy feet for a dude (except he says that the second toe on my right foot looks like I tried to pull it off).