I was supposed to work a trip that had me reporting in Cincinnati at 0530 that I was not looking forward to. I am not even sure if was a good trip because I couldn’t get past 0530. It’s not that I am too lazy to do it but my head hasn’t been too functional at that hour since the sinus issues started a month or so ago. Luckily, there was a great trip that didn’t report until 1230 and my scheduling department traded it for me.
Of course, the great report came with 4hour breaks each day in between flights. Even that doesn’t bother me anymore because I get to write on here! So my first day and first break comes and I whip out my computer to get some work done. Everything was going fantastic until I needed to charge it. I pulled out the charging cord and went to plug it in except one very important piece was missing. You know those two straight metal pieces that go into the wall to deliver the charge? They were gone. The wonderful people at Apple designed the plug so that you can take off the piece that plugs into the wall and attach an extension. The problem is that I never imagined that I would need to check to make sure that when I removed the plug from the wall the small removable piece was there. Unfortunately for me, it was still in the wall about 600 miles away.
There is a computer in the crew lounge so I just used that one while waiting for my 8:00pm flight to Houston, TX. It was 8:00pm until the aircraft was changed and wasn’t coming in until at least 9:00pm. Then of course the first officer found a small dent by the baggage belt so we had to wait for the mechanic to come and check it out. As the waiting game continued to play on, our time limit was running out. Flight crews can only work so many hours in one day and by then, we were going on over 13 hours.
I told the Captain that a lot of the passengers on board that night had already been stuck in places like Russia for 5 days so we had to get out of there. What happened next, made me so proud. He actually came out of the flight deck and went outside to hurry the ramp agents into getting us pushed back. Then he called on the radio to tell them that we only had 5 minutes before we couldn’t go anywhere. Those were the magic words!
By the time I made it to my room, it was 0130 in the morning. Central time.
Our day started off at 0930, which came way too early considering the time that we got in. The long haul back to New York City wasn’t actually that bad. I am seriously thankful to the aft flight attendant though who got me an Egg McMuffin while I went though security since it takes me longer with this man made knee. On board we had two passengers that were being deported back to their country for what reason I have no idea. I just know that they were really nice and yes, I did wonder why but would never have asked. When we landed, the guys from ICE started to come up the stairs to get them. I told them to go back down the stairs because the guys were in the back and I would let them know when they were coming. The funny part is that we use hand language a lot in this business do the noise so, when an elderly woman told me that she needed a wheelchair and I motioned for one, the two waiting at the bottom of the stairs perked up. Then someone else told me that they needed a wheelchair. I’m sure you know what happened. It didn’t take too long before the deportees were there to deplane. Not sure what to expect, those guys just walked right to the men waiting and introduced themselves making me even more curious. Oh well.
What I didn’t know was that the second passenger that requested the wheelchair was asking for it for his young daughter, possibly around 6 yrs old. They put their younger son in a stroller so I have a feeling they thought they could get away with not carrying one for the girl but they were sorely disappointed when that plan backfired. Of course, just because the child was bouncing around like a healthy little girl doesn’t mean anything. Have you ever read the spoon theory? I found it a little bothersome that they were more worried about not having to walk with her than her safety though.
The rest of the day went well and we even got to our overnight in Kansas City on early. That day went almost too well…
The next morning, I woke up and went to the gym after eating a package of oatmeal. I would usually have gone down for breakfast but it’s not free for crew members anymore and I refuse to pay $10 for a few bites of egg and a banana. That morning I decided to ride the stationary bike and actually made it to 20 minutes. My knees screamed at me in protest the entire walk back to the room.
A standard hotel phone sat conveniently next to the clock that showed ten minutes prior to my report time. Suddenly in rang over and over begging to be answered. Normally I wouldn’t have answered it, however, it was so close to the scheduled report time that I did. On the other end of the phone came the question from scheduling that would change the rest of my trip and plans I had made in Boston. “How do you like Kansas City”, he asked? Uh Oh. For some reason, my flight to New York City cancelled and I would have to stay in Kansas City until 0500 the next morning. Of course I didn’t bring anything but work out clothes, it was storming outside and the hotel didn’t offer anything except for the $10 breakfast.
My crew and I decided that since we were in Kansas City, we had to do barbecue. I have to admit that I didn’t even know that the state was well known for BBQ but it’s food so I was in. The woman at the front desk recommended a place called Smokehouse and the van driver could drive us there.The restaurant is located in the mega shopping area named Zona Rosa. Looks like it may be a nice place to go sometimes on a long overnight when it’s not pouring outside since the entire place is outdoor walking.
I didn’t know what to order so I asked the rib expert sitting to my left. I went with the baby back ribs, which was a good choice. The others chose the beef ribs that looked like human bones they were so big! The meat on the beef ribs was really tender and rich with the taste of prime rib. A little too rich for me which made me even more happy that I ordered the pork ribs. Very tender with good flavor. The coleslaw was so good that I had a hard time pushing it aside when I was already really full. I couldn’t even eat all of the ribs so I had lunch the next day. Not too bad for $14. A bit expensive for my budget but I really like to have at least one real meal, hot and filling during my trip and I didn’t spend any other money thus far since I brought food with me. Plus, that was lunch the next day also.
The next day [and the last day] was typical company crap. We worked the 0600 flight to New York City and then were expected to make it to a shuttle flight in 44 minutes! Let’s break it down. In that 44 minutes I had to deplane the aircraft (waiting on the gate agent to pull the jetbridge over), clean the airplane, get my bags out, get out of the airport and catch a bus that made at least 6 stops to get to some place called the Marine Terminal where the Delta Shuttle flights depart from. By the time we got there it was already 1045! The flight left at 1030. Okay, fine. Lunch!
This is what Marine Terminal looks like in case you ever need to take a Shuttle flight. It’s absolutely beautiful in it’s own right and reminds me of our Union Terminal here in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mural paintings on the walls and a statue set right in the middle of a large open space. The restaurant which actually looked like a cheap cafeteria stands on the right side as you walk in just past the store selling those last minute souvenirs. Since the next flight was not for almost an hour it was definitely time to eat. There had to be something in the restaurant, right? Oh my was I pleasantly surprised. Fifties style table and chairs held out bags while we went in search of something good. Although it was only almost 1100 lunch sounded really good. The choices: baked salmon or shrimp Parmesan with steamed rice and steamed vegetables. Fresh broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and snow peas steamed to perfection. I chose the shrimp that’s something I have never had. Absolutely fantastic! I recommend it over the lousy choices in the main terminal and you need to transfer over to the Marine Terminal.
We got on the 1130 flight to Boston just in time for me to get in a quick hug and hello from a friend that I haven’t seen in quite a while. She just happened to be in Boston on the same day. It’s only the second time and the first time was a total coincidence when work sent me to a different destination than originally scheduled. The flight home was uneventful as far as any trouble passengers except I haven’t had that much trash in a very long time!
So, a total of 5 flight attendants plus me (a different one for each overnight and every other flight), three pilots and a woman from the FAA and we made it through another 4 day trip!
