Diane

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Sometimes the fact that I don’t live at my base (Denver) can get annoying. Instead of driving to work, like most people. My commute is a 50-minute drive to downtown Salt Lake City, then I have to wait for a shuttle (up to 30 minutes) to take me to the airport. Next, I make my way to the plane but mind you- if it’s a full flight I need to get there early because our non-revenue flying is on a first come/ first serve basis. If I know it’s going to be a full flight, I try to get to the gate at least two hours before the flight. Add to that an hour-and-fifteen-minute flight and that’s a commute that can often take me three and a half hours or more!

The only saving grace is the fact that I don’t have to make the commute every day. I usually work at least two trips in a row, so that leaves me away from home a minimum of six days (this is my own choice- a normal shift would be three days on and four days off). This is the reason I don’t own any animals or even plants. If I have to feed or water something to keep it alive, it’s probably going to die. I’m totally a dog lover, so this is a horrible fact of my life right now.

The good news, however, is that our union protects my commutes. If I get to the airport and find out there there’s no room on my flight, and no other flights to get me to Denver, I just have to call crew scheduling and tell them the situation. I may miss out on some of my trip pay, but at least I don’t have any attendance points against me.

There are two ways to look at a commute like this:

  1. It SUCKS that I don’t live at my base!
    or
  2. I’m so thankful that I work for a company that allows me to commute from anywhere in the world, as long as I’m willing to make that commute.

I try to focus on the latter.

So- why on earth do I live in Utah? Among the reasons if the fact that this is where my parents live. I was living in Kentucky for five years and when they opened up our Denver base, I decided that it was time to go live closer to the folks’ (close enough that I don’t have to board a plane to go visit them, but far enough that they won’t come over unannounced. I need to make sure my living room is clean, don’t forget). I figure that an hour-and-a-half warning should be plenty of time to clean up any house, right?

I’ve been traveling for about a week and a half, and I’m ready to get home and sleep in my own bed tonight. At the moment, I’m sitting on the floor at Denver International Airport. This is because I’m using the wall socket to charge my various devices and there’s no chair nearby. My plane should be here soon.

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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During the summer of 1993, like most summers, I found myself with my parents at our annual family reunion in Hartsville, South Carolina. I remember talking with some of my cousins about how difficult it was to find work in my hometown of Thatcher, Arizona. It seemed that all of the businesses owners didn’t want to hire anyone unless they were family. My aunt Debbie suggested that I try to get a job with her kids, Josh and Meg at The Dillard House in Dillard, Georgia.

Josh called up his manager and asked if I could come to work with them for the rest of the summer. His manager asked if I was a Mormon. When Josh answered in the affirmative, I got the job. The fact was that Josh, Meg, and some close family friends, like the Ben and Andrew Thornal were among the best, hardest, and most dedicated workers at The Dillard House at the time and had totally given Mormons’ a good name. I never even had to interview for the job.

For the rest of the summer, I lived with my cousins in Franklin, North Carolina. While I was there, Josh told me so many stories about growing up in the area. Once he told me that as a boy scout, his troop got to hike part of the Appalachian Trail. I love to hike! I’ve been fascinated by this trail ever since that time.

Years later, when I was living in Baltimore, Maryland, I had the opportunity to go camping and hiking in the beautiful Shenandoah mountains with my roommates Jeff and Nate. I saw that part of this famous Appalachian Trail made it’s way through this beautiful country. This is when I decided that I would love to someday hike the length of the trail. I have added this to my bucket list (item #3). Obviously, I’m not going to take the several months off of work that this hike would require. The trail is 2,184 miles long, and stretches from Mount Katahdin in Maine, all the way down to Springer Mountain in Georgia. Like so many others, my plan is to hike the trail in segments, eventually having hiked the entire thing.

Going back to what I was talking about before- the summer of 1993 was spent, in part, working at The Dillard House. It was truly an incredible experience. Someday I would like to go back to The Dillard House and eat and stay there. This time I’ll go as a guest, not an employee. It’s a great place for a getaway! I have added this to my bucket list as well.

http://www.DillardHouse.com

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Easter Sunday (yesterday) was a pretty fun day because I got to hang out with some family at my parents’ place up in Liberty, Utah. My sister Lori and her husband Scott happened to be in town so we had a great little reunion, even though so much of the family couldn’t be there. I snapped some pictures of my family.

img_3463My brother surprised us by bringing some “cookies” that he made for everyone. The joke was that he actually frosted some breakfast sausage patties as a joke. A few family member took a big bite, many spitting the treat out into the trash. My dad, however, liked the taste.

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My sister Melanie reminded me a couple weeks ago that I hadn’t updated the blog in awhile. Perhaps it’s time for me to check in. Today I worked with only half of a cylinder. This is what is also called zombie-mode. I am so tired that my head aches. Last night I was in Atlanta and was not able to fall asleep and then having my alarm wake me at 04:30. At first, I think I had too much on my mind- thinking about things I need to be doing and things I want to be doing. I have started to plan my next trip to Scotland and even though it’s about a year away. I’m already getting excited. You know when one of those lap dogs gets so excited that it has to pee? That is my current status.

Today I’m thankful for the gift of forgiveness and healing… I’m not focusing on myself being forgiven right now (which I’m also grateful for), but that I’ve been able to forgive a coworker for the most part after almost 8 months, I’m ready to move on. Many flight attendants have what we call a “No Fly List”. This is simply a list of crew members that we would rather avoid working with, if humanly possible. I worked with this certain person this past summer and at the end of that three-day trip, I really wanted NOTHING to do with him ever again. I won’t post any specific details, but just understand that I really thought he should have been committed to an insane asylum somewhere- I’m totally not exaggerating either.

We were recently assigned a work trip together, once again, and I feel that I am so blessed that we were both able to say hello, shake hands and work together without any problems or friction from our past. There’s so much more to this story and if I told you all of the details, you’d most likely agree with my original decision to avoid working with him ever again. No, he’s not my favorite person in the world, but now I know that I don’t have to give him the power to change my day.

Speaking of Atlanta, I had dinner last night at yet another Waffle House. It’s the small victories that feel so good. As you may (or may not) know, number 100 on my bucket list is to eat at 100 different Waffle Houses. Last night, I found one in College Park, Georgia, near our ATL overnight hotel. This is Waffle House #105, and the 11th location that I’ve visited so far. That’s 11 down and only 89 to go!

At the moment, I’m working a flight from New York City to Denver. Most of the passengers are fast asleep, so it’s nice and quiet! I’m looking forward to having 4 days off starting tomorrow. The plan is to be lazy, spend time with the old folks, watch General Conference, and get some things done around the house.