So I am on Standby in Atlanta for flights for the next 4 hours and I don't think I will go anywhere... but you can't say that out loud because just when you say it then they send you somewhere horrible. :)
They have already put a trip on my schedule for tomorrow and I'm heading to Bogota. Yes, Colombia. Here is the deal with Bogota. I am not really excited about flying there for a few reasons.
1) the obvious situations in Colombia... drug lords, gangs, rebels, politics, etc.
2) they escort crew in an armored car with machine gunned men... (so I've heard)
3) it's a short layover. I hate short layovers...
4) I heard the passengers where very needy. boo.
5) 49 cases of swine flu here so far. crap.
Here's why I'm not too mad about having Bogota on my schedule...
1) I've never been there so I can add a new country to my list... this makes 18 countries that I have been to in 1 year. :)
2) Juanes and Shakira are from here... I dunno why that makes me happy.
So it's only an 11 hour layover so I cannot possibly get into too much trouble... but you know me... I'm sure I will find some sort of adventure to run into on accident.
As far as other things in my life... My schedule for May is horrible. I'm just glad right now that there haven't been any layoffs... but I am planning for just in case. I'm interviewing with Cosmetology schools next week and applied for financial aid and I'm applying for jobs for that time when I have to take a leave to finish school... I need a plan B. So I'm working on my back up plans to be smart.
If you know me you also know I love lists. So here are a few lists to keep you entertained.
List of Podcasts on iTunes that I am addicted to:
1) Etsy podcast.
2) Ford Models How- To
3) Apple Quick Tips
4) Threadbangers
5) Hebrew Podcast
6) LEARN Hebrew Podcast
7) Daily Audio Bible Podcast
8) YogAmazing Podcast
9) 2 Minute Photoshop Tricks
(I am ADDICTED to podcasts. It's FREE education... and for a person on the go I fill my mind, body, and soul's every day needs with my podcasts.) :)
Websites I am ADDICTED to:
1) the obvious... Facebook
2) Myspace (even though it's dying.. I still make money off it)
3) Twitter.
4) ETSY
5) Neopets... yes, it's a deep dark secret that I have a neopet and I feed it and clothe it. I've had it for 3 years. I mostly just play games on there when I'm REALLY bored.
6) youtube.com
7) threadbanger.com
8) http://poppytalk.blogspot.com/
9) http://www.designspongeonline.com/
10) http://www.re-nest.com/
11) http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/
12) http://modgreenpod.com/item/2/
13) http://shop.marketpublique.com/
14) wikipedia.com
so you are welcome... cause most of those websites will change your life. :)
also as a simple little inevitable plug to ... who else but... ME...
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6516594
You gotta check out my site. I handmake scarves. I think they are cute.... personally. :) I know it's summer in most places but buy them now for fall... Plan ahead for Christmas! :)
and last plug, I swear...
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/the-lone-heart-state/1049665
My book. If you order from the website you can either order the paperback and have it printed straight from the company or you can order the ebook for a little cheaper.
List of my favorite books:
1) The Biography of Pablo Neruda
2) Mandela
3) The Biography of Che Guevara
4) Stairway to Heaven
5) Clapton
So great. If you don't like to read... Listen to Audiobooks in the morning when you are getting ready. You will feel so much better about yourself and have so much more to talk to people about. I have to keep my conversations pretty broad with all my passengers... but the greatest secret is to just pretend like you know what you are talking about... if its something political and your subject in question looks confused... abort. end it quickly and tell them that it is just your personal view but you perfer not to talk about politics. haha it works! :) then I wikipedia whatever I was talking about later to see what a fool I was. :)
Ok. I will stop with the lists... I could go on all day long with the lists. Anyways... I'm bored. I still have 3 more hours to go on standby. woo hoo.
More adventures later. Peace out, JulieKristine
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Being on Call...
This last week has been interesting. I've told you about the murderer, Colonel Sanders, Ricky Schroeder, and the alcohol testing. All that happened in 2 days. I'm on day 7 away from home. I was expecting to only be gone for 5 days. So I have 5 days of food and clothes packed with me. I'm trying so hard to eat healthy and on a budget and working out of an airport makes that very difficult. After I got back from Panama I had a trip that I thought would be SO easy. I thought I'd just take one flight to Detroit, layover for 17 hours, One flight back to Atlanta, sit, one flight to San Diego sleep for 13 hours and boom back to Atlanta where I would then hop on a flight to San Antonio, do my laundry, kiss my boyfriend, grab more food and head back to work. Of course in my life nothing ever goes as planned.
Here's what really went down. I got back from Panama and headed to the training center where when available there are rooms for free for flight attendants. It's first come first serve and you get a bed and a shower for FREE. Score. So I got a room and didn't even have to check out early since it was the weekend. So I slept in until about 11 am which was just what my body needed. Little did I know I should have stayed in bed a few more hours. That morning there was tornado warnings for Georgia and some snow alerts for the next day. When I get to work they had already started canceling flights before the first snowflake was even formed.
Our schedule was showing our flight back from Detroit the next day was cancelled. So we didn't know if we were going to get stuck in Detroit or not go at all. As we go into briefing we get our re-route. It says that INSTEAD of our nice long 17 hour layover in a very nice hotel you get to sit in the airport for 5 hours and 50 minutes and deadhead on the first and only plane leaving Detroit that day. We don't have a lounge in Detroit and 5 hours and 50 minutes happened to be overnight which happens to be really annoying. So our Flight Leader called scheduling and begged for a hotel for us. Luckily they gave us one. It was going to be a very short stay but better to be warm and out of the airport than cold in the airport. So we were grateful at least for that. Well the night was already going to be long or short depending on your perspective. Immigration decides to put a 2 hour hold on the line so no one can leave and we unfortunately have 60 passengers that are supposed to be on our flight coming in from Aruba and St. Thomas. If they don't get on this plane then they don't fly home for a couple of days. So we wait for awhile. Slowly but surely they trickled on the airplane. It was finally decided that we couldn't wait anymore and we took off. This delayed us enough that now we only get 3 hours at our hotel room in Detroit. I know that I cannot sleep for such little time when I am exhausted already so I planned to stay awake until we got back to Atlanta where I would then sleep like a baby during the day at our domicile layover before our San Diego turn. I felt like death.
I made it to the Atlanta hotel at 9am and finally went to sleep around 10am. This was 23 hours that I had not slept. Maybe if I had the stamina of a 16 year old I could do this... but this old lady requires sleep. You'd think that I slept like a baby... no. I slept about 5 hours and my body just wouldn't let me stay down. I opened the curtains and it was snowing like crazy outside. So pretty. Pretty from far away. :) I hate snow... it hurts my body... I told you I was old. So I worked online and watched old movies and watched my podcasts and headed to the airport for my next flight to San Diego. It was delayed about an hour and a half. We were crossing out fingers for it to be cancelled. No such luck.
When we got to San Diego we were all tired and grouchy. We got in around midnight California time which would be 3am Atlanta time. Yuck! We got our rooms and I popped 2 melatonins so I could have a nice uninterrupted sleep...
As soon as I had finally nodded off the ice machine that neighbored my room started rumbling and it scared me so I sat straight up and I swear I saw a shadow of a person in my room. (I learned later that melatonin can give you horrible vivd nightmares.) I finally convinced myself no one was in the room with me and passed out.
8am I hear housekeeping banging on the door. Before I could even figure out where I was or what my name was they came busting in and broke the chain off the door. I guess they realized someone was in there by then and closed the door. I could NOT fall asleep after that. Around 11 I am getting dressed to go to work and they bang on the door again. I was so annoyed so I complained to the front desk so that would never happen again to a flight attendant and also they wouldn't charge me for the broken lock on the door. I head to work and we are delayed again. It takes a few days to get back on schedule after snow.
On the flight I got put to sit up front with the flight leader to work first class. Little did I know that he would make this the longest 4 hour flight. Before we even take off he starts looking at me weird. He tells me in Spanish, "Si supieras cuanto te amo." (If only you knew how much I love you). I said, "Umm... You don't know me." He said, "Oh you speak Spanish!" "yea." So then he starts talking to me in French. I told him that I didn't understand french but if what he was saying had anything to do with his previous statement that he was crazy because he didn't know me. So he's already a creeper. I mentioned later on that I was cold and he rushed over to try and warm me up. I get up and move. I try not to make this situation even more awkward because I know he is a co-worker and I know that I will have to see him again later. I tried to keep busy and moving around him at all times so that he couldn't try to touch me. He kept trying to rub my back and shoulders. As I was standing in front of the cockpit door blocking for the pilots to come out to use the bathrooms he grabs my hand to hold it. I was in such shock. Luckily the cockpit door opened and I quickly got inside. The rest of the flight I stayed in the back of the plane. I mentioned to the other flight attendant what had happened and how I just kept talking about my boyfriend and tried not to make things awkward. She said he had done the same thing last night on the way down to her. She said he had done the same as me and talked about her boyfriend and kept moving around so he couldn't catch her. haha So I was nervous to be up there alone with him. When we landed he kept trying to hug me. All the first class passengers had exited and so had the pilots so I just had a feeling that this guy was bold enough to try and kiss me or something in there so I quickly moved to the middle of the plane and said goodbye to all the passengers... (more witnesses, right?) I turned around and he was right there and he tried to grab my hand again in front of everyone. I just pretended it didn't happen and told him I needed to get my bags. He told me that he would wait for me to see if I got on my flight. I told him no thank you. He said he wanted to take me to dinner and that he would pay for my hotel. Yea, right. No thanks! So I made it off the plane before him and hid behind some passengers and waited for him to pass. whew!
I was crossing my fingers that I could get on a flight back to San Antonio that night but there was only one very small plane left to go home and it was so full. So I got stuck in Atlanta and again headed over to the Training Center. Tuesday was my day off (the next day) so I wasn't too happy about being stuck in Atlanta. Luckily I can do my laundry at the Training Center. I had to wait to see what was put on my schedule for Wednesday since I was on-call. If I got a late sign in there was still a chance I could go home for the day and even the night.... no such luck. Posted on my schedule was a 5:30 am standby. Oh Joy. So check out at the training Center is 9AM and check in time is at 4PM. So for those few hours I was lost on what to do. I found a little lobby in the training center with comfy couches and a tv with cable but no internet connection. boo. It was so cold in there and I didn't bring my jacket since I figured I'd just be in Panama and San Diego anyways... So I had my hoodie on over my head and my hands tucked in the sleeves, it was so cold. I fell asleep on the couch and was awakened by a maintenance man who handed me a blanket. I was so grateful! I wondered if they even thought I belonged there or if I was just some homeless girl. When I woke up again there was another flight attendant waiting for a room too. Finally it was 4pm and we got our rooms again. Oh Joy. By 4:30 pm I took my chances again with the melatonin, put in my earplugs and put on my eye mask and set my alarm for 3am.
At 5PM, my phone rang and I shouldn't have answered but I did. It was a sneaky, rude, arrogant bill collector who was bullying me and telling me that he was going to wage garnish my paychecks and how I had to pay him all this money up front. I offered him what I had and he told me no. I got so nervous that they were really going to start taking 25% out of my paychecks to pay this bill from so many years ago. So, being the tired, emotional girl that I am I started crying. Luckily I have he best support system. I texted my boyfriend and he assured me that the guy was just trying to scare me. I called my sister and she knows all the rules and told me that he cannot do that and that it is illegal for him not to take the money that I offered to him to pay my debt. So she called him as my representation and let him have it. He totally lied to her and to me and she cornered him and told him to never contact me again. Awesome! I'm glad I know someone who knows the law and knows how to fight.
At 6PM I had calmed down enough to realize that I hadn't eaten in almost 24 hours and that sick feeling in my stomach was more than just an uneasy feeling about an unpaid bill. So I ate yet another peanut butter and honey sandwich. I'm not quite sure how many more of those I can eat. I attempted sleep again and passed out until about 10:30PM. I couldn't fall back asleep again. So I watched old shows and just relaxed until the alarm went off at 3AM. I think I dozed off again around 2AM which made 3AM even worse. I called a cab and bared the cold and headed to work.
This is where I am right now. On standby. I'm stuck here until 9:30 I think. If I don't get called then I have to wait again until 4pm to get yet ANOTHER training Center room and hope that they don't call me out early. I have 11 hours from the time I get released until the time that they can call me again. I HATE being on call. HATE it. So I'm watching the flight attendants slowly trickle in and listening to my nemesis snore on the couch. I swear I've contemplated punching her to get her to shut up, putting food in her mouth, putting an alarm by her head... anything. It's so annoying. All the flight attendants are just looking around for who it is. I don't even have to look. I already know who it is ... I've named her the orgasmic farter. She's crazy.
Anyways... I have 3 more on call days, then I am going to head down to Nashville for my friend Jess' wedding and then restock on food and head BACK to atlanta for SIX more on call days... I miss my boyfriend so much. I'm so over being on call.
And oh dang, the creeper flight leader just showed up. Well wish me luck. I'm grumpy enough today for some confrontation. Should be interesting
Here's what really went down. I got back from Panama and headed to the training center where when available there are rooms for free for flight attendants. It's first come first serve and you get a bed and a shower for FREE. Score. So I got a room and didn't even have to check out early since it was the weekend. So I slept in until about 11 am which was just what my body needed. Little did I know I should have stayed in bed a few more hours. That morning there was tornado warnings for Georgia and some snow alerts for the next day. When I get to work they had already started canceling flights before the first snowflake was even formed.
Our schedule was showing our flight back from Detroit the next day was cancelled. So we didn't know if we were going to get stuck in Detroit or not go at all. As we go into briefing we get our re-route. It says that INSTEAD of our nice long 17 hour layover in a very nice hotel you get to sit in the airport for 5 hours and 50 minutes and deadhead on the first and only plane leaving Detroit that day. We don't have a lounge in Detroit and 5 hours and 50 minutes happened to be overnight which happens to be really annoying. So our Flight Leader called scheduling and begged for a hotel for us. Luckily they gave us one. It was going to be a very short stay but better to be warm and out of the airport than cold in the airport. So we were grateful at least for that. Well the night was already going to be long or short depending on your perspective. Immigration decides to put a 2 hour hold on the line so no one can leave and we unfortunately have 60 passengers that are supposed to be on our flight coming in from Aruba and St. Thomas. If they don't get on this plane then they don't fly home for a couple of days. So we wait for awhile. Slowly but surely they trickled on the airplane. It was finally decided that we couldn't wait anymore and we took off. This delayed us enough that now we only get 3 hours at our hotel room in Detroit. I know that I cannot sleep for such little time when I am exhausted already so I planned to stay awake until we got back to Atlanta where I would then sleep like a baby during the day at our domicile layover before our San Diego turn. I felt like death.
I made it to the Atlanta hotel at 9am and finally went to sleep around 10am. This was 23 hours that I had not slept. Maybe if I had the stamina of a 16 year old I could do this... but this old lady requires sleep. You'd think that I slept like a baby... no. I slept about 5 hours and my body just wouldn't let me stay down. I opened the curtains and it was snowing like crazy outside. So pretty. Pretty from far away. :) I hate snow... it hurts my body... I told you I was old. So I worked online and watched old movies and watched my podcasts and headed to the airport for my next flight to San Diego. It was delayed about an hour and a half. We were crossing out fingers for it to be cancelled. No such luck.
When we got to San Diego we were all tired and grouchy. We got in around midnight California time which would be 3am Atlanta time. Yuck! We got our rooms and I popped 2 melatonins so I could have a nice uninterrupted sleep...
As soon as I had finally nodded off the ice machine that neighbored my room started rumbling and it scared me so I sat straight up and I swear I saw a shadow of a person in my room. (I learned later that melatonin can give you horrible vivd nightmares.) I finally convinced myself no one was in the room with me and passed out.
8am I hear housekeeping banging on the door. Before I could even figure out where I was or what my name was they came busting in and broke the chain off the door. I guess they realized someone was in there by then and closed the door. I could NOT fall asleep after that. Around 11 I am getting dressed to go to work and they bang on the door again. I was so annoyed so I complained to the front desk so that would never happen again to a flight attendant and also they wouldn't charge me for the broken lock on the door. I head to work and we are delayed again. It takes a few days to get back on schedule after snow.
On the flight I got put to sit up front with the flight leader to work first class. Little did I know that he would make this the longest 4 hour flight. Before we even take off he starts looking at me weird. He tells me in Spanish, "Si supieras cuanto te amo." (If only you knew how much I love you). I said, "Umm... You don't know me." He said, "Oh you speak Spanish!" "yea." So then he starts talking to me in French. I told him that I didn't understand french but if what he was saying had anything to do with his previous statement that he was crazy because he didn't know me. So he's already a creeper. I mentioned later on that I was cold and he rushed over to try and warm me up. I get up and move. I try not to make this situation even more awkward because I know he is a co-worker and I know that I will have to see him again later. I tried to keep busy and moving around him at all times so that he couldn't try to touch me. He kept trying to rub my back and shoulders. As I was standing in front of the cockpit door blocking for the pilots to come out to use the bathrooms he grabs my hand to hold it. I was in such shock. Luckily the cockpit door opened and I quickly got inside. The rest of the flight I stayed in the back of the plane. I mentioned to the other flight attendant what had happened and how I just kept talking about my boyfriend and tried not to make things awkward. She said he had done the same thing last night on the way down to her. She said he had done the same as me and talked about her boyfriend and kept moving around so he couldn't catch her. haha So I was nervous to be up there alone with him. When we landed he kept trying to hug me. All the first class passengers had exited and so had the pilots so I just had a feeling that this guy was bold enough to try and kiss me or something in there so I quickly moved to the middle of the plane and said goodbye to all the passengers... (more witnesses, right?) I turned around and he was right there and he tried to grab my hand again in front of everyone. I just pretended it didn't happen and told him I needed to get my bags. He told me that he would wait for me to see if I got on my flight. I told him no thank you. He said he wanted to take me to dinner and that he would pay for my hotel. Yea, right. No thanks! So I made it off the plane before him and hid behind some passengers and waited for him to pass. whew!
I was crossing my fingers that I could get on a flight back to San Antonio that night but there was only one very small plane left to go home and it was so full. So I got stuck in Atlanta and again headed over to the Training Center. Tuesday was my day off (the next day) so I wasn't too happy about being stuck in Atlanta. Luckily I can do my laundry at the Training Center. I had to wait to see what was put on my schedule for Wednesday since I was on-call. If I got a late sign in there was still a chance I could go home for the day and even the night.... no such luck. Posted on my schedule was a 5:30 am standby. Oh Joy. So check out at the training Center is 9AM and check in time is at 4PM. So for those few hours I was lost on what to do. I found a little lobby in the training center with comfy couches and a tv with cable but no internet connection. boo. It was so cold in there and I didn't bring my jacket since I figured I'd just be in Panama and San Diego anyways... So I had my hoodie on over my head and my hands tucked in the sleeves, it was so cold. I fell asleep on the couch and was awakened by a maintenance man who handed me a blanket. I was so grateful! I wondered if they even thought I belonged there or if I was just some homeless girl. When I woke up again there was another flight attendant waiting for a room too. Finally it was 4pm and we got our rooms again. Oh Joy. By 4:30 pm I took my chances again with the melatonin, put in my earplugs and put on my eye mask and set my alarm for 3am.
At 5PM, my phone rang and I shouldn't have answered but I did. It was a sneaky, rude, arrogant bill collector who was bullying me and telling me that he was going to wage garnish my paychecks and how I had to pay him all this money up front. I offered him what I had and he told me no. I got so nervous that they were really going to start taking 25% out of my paychecks to pay this bill from so many years ago. So, being the tired, emotional girl that I am I started crying. Luckily I have he best support system. I texted my boyfriend and he assured me that the guy was just trying to scare me. I called my sister and she knows all the rules and told me that he cannot do that and that it is illegal for him not to take the money that I offered to him to pay my debt. So she called him as my representation and let him have it. He totally lied to her and to me and she cornered him and told him to never contact me again. Awesome! I'm glad I know someone who knows the law and knows how to fight.
At 6PM I had calmed down enough to realize that I hadn't eaten in almost 24 hours and that sick feeling in my stomach was more than just an uneasy feeling about an unpaid bill. So I ate yet another peanut butter and honey sandwich. I'm not quite sure how many more of those I can eat. I attempted sleep again and passed out until about 10:30PM. I couldn't fall back asleep again. So I watched old shows and just relaxed until the alarm went off at 3AM. I think I dozed off again around 2AM which made 3AM even worse. I called a cab and bared the cold and headed to work.
This is where I am right now. On standby. I'm stuck here until 9:30 I think. If I don't get called then I have to wait again until 4pm to get yet ANOTHER training Center room and hope that they don't call me out early. I have 11 hours from the time I get released until the time that they can call me again. I HATE being on call. HATE it. So I'm watching the flight attendants slowly trickle in and listening to my nemesis snore on the couch. I swear I've contemplated punching her to get her to shut up, putting food in her mouth, putting an alarm by her head... anything. It's so annoying. All the flight attendants are just looking around for who it is. I don't even have to look. I already know who it is ... I've named her the orgasmic farter. She's crazy.
Anyways... I have 3 more on call days, then I am going to head down to Nashville for my friend Jess' wedding and then restock on food and head BACK to atlanta for SIX more on call days... I miss my boyfriend so much. I'm so over being on call.
And oh dang, the creeper flight leader just showed up. Well wish me luck. I'm grumpy enough today for some confrontation. Should be interesting
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Yesterday
Current mood: adventurous
I was twittering most of what happened yesterday but I thought I
might connect the dots for you. It was quite eventful. So I was flying
in from Panama. The flight itself was pretty uneventful. When we landed
I had this super strong feeling that I was going to be chosen for the
random drug testing. I don't know why. I just had this feeling.
So we land and as soon as the plane door opens there were customs
people and apparently fbi guys waiting on the jetway to check
everyone's passports. That never happens.... or at least I've never
seen it happen. So I was at the back of the plane just chilling and
waiting for the longest deplaning in history and missed most of the
action. Apparently they were searching for a specific gender and race
and letting everyone else pass. The girls picked the next "passport
suspect" in line and he didn't look nervous because he couldn't see
what was going on. Once they found him they threw him against the
jetway wall took his coat off him and handcuffed him and took him away.
Everyone was so confused. Even us. We had no idea what was going on. So
we all go to clear customs and immigration ourselves but the one flight
attendant stayed behind to help a passenger get her cellphone back that
she had left on the plane.
After I clear customs and immigration there is a Delta person waiting
for me to be random alcohol tested. So crazy. I think I have ESPN. :)
So I head to the A concourse to go blow in a machine to prove I hadn't
been drinking before 10am. haha As I'm waiting for the elevator I see
Colonel Sanders... I am not joking. He was wearing the suit, the tie,
the glasses, the cane, and the KFC pin. His wife was in a wheelchair
and he was walking slow with her down the concourse. Everyone was
shouting, "Colonel Sanders!" And he was waving. Now my mouth was
dropped open and I just stared. I had thought he died. I wiki-ed it on
my phone and he did die. So who is this old man walking around the
airport impersonating the KFC guy? It was like seeing the ghost of
Elvis. :)
I get into the elevator with one flight attendant and I was telling her
how this had been the weirdest day of my life and it was just starting.
She laughed. Now when we get into the elevator to take us to our Flight
Attendant lounge, we have to swipe our badges and punch in a code to
take us there. Well I thought there were only 3 levels to the
airport... um no. The elevator this time opened to some part of the
airport abyss with pipes and a worker singing "Welcome to the jungle"
to us. So crazy.
I finally make it to the drug testing area and I blow in the machine
and told the lady of all my events of the day. She was laughing so
hard. Obviously I passed the test. I went to grab some food but the
flight attendant who had stayed behind to help the cellphone lady found
me in the lounge and told me she has asked the customs guys what had
happened and why that guy was arrested. He told her that the man was
wanted for murder. woah.
Anyways... my day was pretty much uneventful after that. I was going to
try and go to TX before my flight the next day but all the planes were
back up due to weather so I stayed the night in Atlanta at the Delta
dorms. Not bad because now they have wi-fi. I wish they had that when I
was in training, would have saved me a lot of money. Tonight I'm
heading to Detroit then to San Diego. Nice long layover... enough to
work out and sleep a lot. Hopefully they won't be as action packed.
Ps. the day before yesterday I had Ricky Schroder on my flight from San
Antonio to Atlanta. The one flight attendant went crazy over him. Guess
she grew up watching Silver Spoons. :)
I was twittering most of what happened yesterday but I thought I
might connect the dots for you. It was quite eventful. So I was flying
in from Panama. The flight itself was pretty uneventful. When we landed
I had this super strong feeling that I was going to be chosen for the
random drug testing. I don't know why. I just had this feeling.
So we land and as soon as the plane door opens there were customs
people and apparently fbi guys waiting on the jetway to check
everyone's passports. That never happens.... or at least I've never
seen it happen. So I was at the back of the plane just chilling and
waiting for the longest deplaning in history and missed most of the
action. Apparently they were searching for a specific gender and race
and letting everyone else pass. The girls picked the next "passport
suspect" in line and he didn't look nervous because he couldn't see
what was going on. Once they found him they threw him against the
jetway wall took his coat off him and handcuffed him and took him away.
Everyone was so confused. Even us. We had no idea what was going on. So
we all go to clear customs and immigration ourselves but the one flight
attendant stayed behind to help a passenger get her cellphone back that
she had left on the plane.
After I clear customs and immigration there is a Delta person waiting
for me to be random alcohol tested. So crazy. I think I have ESPN. :)
So I head to the A concourse to go blow in a machine to prove I hadn't
been drinking before 10am. haha As I'm waiting for the elevator I see
Colonel Sanders... I am not joking. He was wearing the suit, the tie,
the glasses, the cane, and the KFC pin. His wife was in a wheelchair
and he was walking slow with her down the concourse. Everyone was
shouting, "Colonel Sanders!" And he was waving. Now my mouth was
dropped open and I just stared. I had thought he died. I wiki-ed it on
my phone and he did die. So who is this old man walking around the
airport impersonating the KFC guy? It was like seeing the ghost of
Elvis. :)
I get into the elevator with one flight attendant and I was telling her
how this had been the weirdest day of my life and it was just starting.
She laughed. Now when we get into the elevator to take us to our Flight
Attendant lounge, we have to swipe our badges and punch in a code to
take us there. Well I thought there were only 3 levels to the
airport... um no. The elevator this time opened to some part of the
airport abyss with pipes and a worker singing "Welcome to the jungle"
to us. So crazy.
I finally make it to the drug testing area and I blow in the machine
and told the lady of all my events of the day. She was laughing so
hard. Obviously I passed the test. I went to grab some food but the
flight attendant who had stayed behind to help the cellphone lady found
me in the lounge and told me she has asked the customs guys what had
happened and why that guy was arrested. He told her that the man was
wanted for murder. woah.
Anyways... my day was pretty much uneventful after that. I was going to
try and go to TX before my flight the next day but all the planes were
back up due to weather so I stayed the night in Atlanta at the Delta
dorms. Not bad because now they have wi-fi. I wish they had that when I
was in training, would have saved me a lot of money. Tonight I'm
heading to Detroit then to San Diego. Nice long layover... enough to
work out and sleep a lot. Hopefully they won't be as action packed.
Ps. the day before yesterday I had Ricky Schroder on my flight from San
Antonio to Atlanta. The one flight attendant went crazy over him. Guess
she grew up watching Silver Spoons. :)
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Scam company of the year goes to: T-MOBILE!
Current mood: aggravated
So I work as a flight attendant for the very few of you that
didn't know... and as a side gig I run myspaces for people. I design
them and keep them up so I need constant internet connection. While I
am in Atlanta I can work by picking up an internet hotspot. So this
story goes back to May of 2008. I was based in New York at the time and
we fly out of 3 airports. Each airport has a different hotspot. So I
signed up for Boingo which was 9.99 I believe a month with NO CONTRACTS
and I signed up (reluctantly, I might add) to T-Mobile for 19.99 a
month. Now I have to admit that I have not always had the tightest
reign on my money and I can be a little absent minded about signing up
for contracts such as this T-Mobile incident.
In June I got transferred to Atlanta and the Hartsfield Intl Airport
supports both Boingo and T-Mobile. So I called and tried to cancel the
more expensive service... that being of T-Mobile. This is where I
discovered I was on a contract for a year. If I canceled this service I
would be charged $200. So I kept T-Mobile and being that I preferred
Boingo I kept Boingo until about November.
In November I thought well I need to start taking better care of the
money that I barely have so I canceled Boingo and started using my
T-Mobile account. Little knowing that it would have been cheaper to
keep paying full price for both services. In my head it made sense to
pay one account for $19.99 and use it rather than pay for both. Simple
math, right? Wrong.
In December I notice a withdraw from my account of $44.95 for a
T-Mobile hotspot. I thought that was peculiar and made note that it was
probably some scammy fee that was hidden in the contract for the new
year or something stupid like that. I made a mental note to call them
and ask them about it but I forgot as I usually do.
Today, In February I notice another $44.95 withdraw from my account for
a T-Mobile hotspot. This time it affects the rest of my bills being
that I alloted (like any normal person) a certain amount to each bill
and just like the rest of America and the world right now I am on a
tight budget. So the $300 that was set aside for my car payment has now
been tampered with because someone took more than was budgeted. Yay for
overdraft fees!
So I call up T-Mobile. If you have a customer service number you
probably want it to be a very clear number to prove you have good
service. Well I could barely hear them through the static so we were
off to a good start. I got transferred 3 times until I got connected to
the right guy. I tell him the situation and he tries to figure out what
was going on. He seemed completely baffled at first just as I was. He
tells me that I acquired roaming fees.
"Roaming fees?!", I said.
"Yes."
"Sir, I go to work at the Atlanta Airport every time and log into my
account in the same way every time on the same Airport web page every
time. Sometimes I get a $44.95 bill sometimes I get a $19.95 bill.", I
said.
He says, "Do you sit in different places of the airport? Like outside
the airport or in a different concourse or a crown room or a starbucks?"
"No. I go into the A concourse, I go downstairs to the flight attendant
lounge and I even sit on the same couch every time. It's yellow so I
know its the same couch. And I have never been to a crown room and I
cannot afford starbucks when you are withdrawing $44.95", I said.
"Do you notice a different screen when you log in?", He said.
"No, sir, I've never seen any other page besides the airport page that
has a T-Mobile button on it which I proceed to click every time where I
log in and do my work."
"Well you've been roaming."
"What? Seriously? Same yellow couch every time. I don't even roam from that couch."
So we proceed to fight back and forth for 30 minutes relentlessly.
I ask him if perhaps he could admit that it did seem weird and that
maybe there was some sort of kink in his system. He said that there was
no way that his system would be wrong. I asked him if he had 100%
confidence that his company didn't make a mistake. He said yes. He said
he believes ONE HUNDRED PERCENT in his company. I said "Wow, I don't
even believe that much in my company. That's amazing!" (I kinda said
that a little sarcastically though). :)
Finally when I realized he was getting me no where I asked to be transferred to his supervisor. I waited about 5-10 minutes.
The supervisor gets on and tells me go to the hotspot web page where it
clearly tells me all the roaming locations. Sure enough. It did. But do
you think I was surprised that they covered their own butts? Of course
not. I'm growing accustomed to fine print backstabbing me months down
the road. I tell him that I think that what they are doing is shady. I
told him that his customer service is also shady. I told him that for
future reference that T-Mobile should talk to the Atlanta Airport and
have a place where when you login it tells you that you are roaming...
whether it's a click box or whatever. But in my understanding if I see
a T-Mobile button for wireless internet hotspot, I think. HEY! I pay
$19.99 for that service I must be able to login here. And sure enough
it logs me in with no problems. I don't think about roaming fees in the
biggest airport ever. In fact I haven't thought of roaming fees since
the late 90's and early 00's when I used to have a T-Mobile phone which
I canceled over 7 years ago and have been a faithful and happy
Cingular/ AT&T customer since.
So I told him all that and I also asked him when my exact sign up date
was because it doesn't tell me on the website when I login. It just
tells me that I have been paying them for nothing for 9 months. He
muttered and stuttered around and said "... Um... I think it might be
in May." I said, "You THINK? no. Not good enough. I need an exact date
so I don't get charged any shady $200 cancellation fees." He told me to
cancel my account before May 17 and that he would also give me a free
month of service in March. I told him that would be fine especially
considering that I will never logon to my T-Mobile Hotspot again. I
will be going back to simple Boingo that has no roaming fees for half
the price.
As usual I do my civic duty to share with you about the corporations
who are ripping off the little people and the crazy things that get
made up as you reason with these poor saps. Don't use T-Mobile. If you
google T-Mobile Customer Service you get a LOT of threads of unhappy
people talking about that specific corporation being a scam. They
haven't heard the last from me... and neither have you. :)
So I work as a flight attendant for the very few of you that
didn't know... and as a side gig I run myspaces for people. I design
them and keep them up so I need constant internet connection. While I
am in Atlanta I can work by picking up an internet hotspot. So this
story goes back to May of 2008. I was based in New York at the time and
we fly out of 3 airports. Each airport has a different hotspot. So I
signed up for Boingo which was 9.99 I believe a month with NO CONTRACTS
and I signed up (reluctantly, I might add) to T-Mobile for 19.99 a
month. Now I have to admit that I have not always had the tightest
reign on my money and I can be a little absent minded about signing up
for contracts such as this T-Mobile incident.
In June I got transferred to Atlanta and the Hartsfield Intl Airport
supports both Boingo and T-Mobile. So I called and tried to cancel the
more expensive service... that being of T-Mobile. This is where I
discovered I was on a contract for a year. If I canceled this service I
would be charged $200. So I kept T-Mobile and being that I preferred
Boingo I kept Boingo until about November.
In November I thought well I need to start taking better care of the
money that I barely have so I canceled Boingo and started using my
T-Mobile account. Little knowing that it would have been cheaper to
keep paying full price for both services. In my head it made sense to
pay one account for $19.99 and use it rather than pay for both. Simple
math, right? Wrong.
In December I notice a withdraw from my account of $44.95 for a
T-Mobile hotspot. I thought that was peculiar and made note that it was
probably some scammy fee that was hidden in the contract for the new
year or something stupid like that. I made a mental note to call them
and ask them about it but I forgot as I usually do.
Today, In February I notice another $44.95 withdraw from my account for
a T-Mobile hotspot. This time it affects the rest of my bills being
that I alloted (like any normal person) a certain amount to each bill
and just like the rest of America and the world right now I am on a
tight budget. So the $300 that was set aside for my car payment has now
been tampered with because someone took more than was budgeted. Yay for
overdraft fees!
So I call up T-Mobile. If you have a customer service number you
probably want it to be a very clear number to prove you have good
service. Well I could barely hear them through the static so we were
off to a good start. I got transferred 3 times until I got connected to
the right guy. I tell him the situation and he tries to figure out what
was going on. He seemed completely baffled at first just as I was. He
tells me that I acquired roaming fees.
"Roaming fees?!", I said.
"Yes."
"Sir, I go to work at the Atlanta Airport every time and log into my
account in the same way every time on the same Airport web page every
time. Sometimes I get a $44.95 bill sometimes I get a $19.95 bill.", I
said.
He says, "Do you sit in different places of the airport? Like outside
the airport or in a different concourse or a crown room or a starbucks?"
"No. I go into the A concourse, I go downstairs to the flight attendant
lounge and I even sit on the same couch every time. It's yellow so I
know its the same couch. And I have never been to a crown room and I
cannot afford starbucks when you are withdrawing $44.95", I said.
"Do you notice a different screen when you log in?", He said.
"No, sir, I've never seen any other page besides the airport page that
has a T-Mobile button on it which I proceed to click every time where I
log in and do my work."
"Well you've been roaming."
"What? Seriously? Same yellow couch every time. I don't even roam from that couch."
So we proceed to fight back and forth for 30 minutes relentlessly.
I ask him if perhaps he could admit that it did seem weird and that
maybe there was some sort of kink in his system. He said that there was
no way that his system would be wrong. I asked him if he had 100%
confidence that his company didn't make a mistake. He said yes. He said
he believes ONE HUNDRED PERCENT in his company. I said "Wow, I don't
even believe that much in my company. That's amazing!" (I kinda said
that a little sarcastically though). :)
Finally when I realized he was getting me no where I asked to be transferred to his supervisor. I waited about 5-10 minutes.
The supervisor gets on and tells me go to the hotspot web page where it
clearly tells me all the roaming locations. Sure enough. It did. But do
you think I was surprised that they covered their own butts? Of course
not. I'm growing accustomed to fine print backstabbing me months down
the road. I tell him that I think that what they are doing is shady. I
told him that his customer service is also shady. I told him that for
future reference that T-Mobile should talk to the Atlanta Airport and
have a place where when you login it tells you that you are roaming...
whether it's a click box or whatever. But in my understanding if I see
a T-Mobile button for wireless internet hotspot, I think. HEY! I pay
$19.99 for that service I must be able to login here. And sure enough
it logs me in with no problems. I don't think about roaming fees in the
biggest airport ever. In fact I haven't thought of roaming fees since
the late 90's and early 00's when I used to have a T-Mobile phone which
I canceled over 7 years ago and have been a faithful and happy
Cingular/ AT&T customer since.
So I told him all that and I also asked him when my exact sign up date
was because it doesn't tell me on the website when I login. It just
tells me that I have been paying them for nothing for 9 months. He
muttered and stuttered around and said "... Um... I think it might be
in May." I said, "You THINK? no. Not good enough. I need an exact date
so I don't get charged any shady $200 cancellation fees." He told me to
cancel my account before May 17 and that he would also give me a free
month of service in March. I told him that would be fine especially
considering that I will never logon to my T-Mobile Hotspot again. I
will be going back to simple Boingo that has no roaming fees for half
the price.
As usual I do my civic duty to share with you about the corporations
who are ripping off the little people and the crazy things that get
made up as you reason with these poor saps. Don't use T-Mobile. If you
google T-Mobile Customer Service you get a LOT of threads of unhappy
people talking about that specific corporation being a scam. They
haven't heard the last from me... and neither have you. :)
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Important travel tips from an Insider
Current mood: awake
Things you must know and prepare for when flying:
Whether you are flying to the ends of the earth or just a 30 minute flight, I'd like to give you some tips to help your travel life be more enjoyable.
1) First things first. Just common knowledge that sodas make you more dehydrated. When traveling you must stay hydrated. This is not a joking matter. My water intake is probably 4-5 liters a day. (your bladder does grow, don't worry)
So skip the cokes and ask for water. Also, just plan on not gorging yourself on peanuts and biscoff cookies... so throw a couple of trail mixes or granola bars in your bag. Definitely splurge and buy a bottle of water once you get through security. Don't depend on my cokes and peanuts to fill you up. Prepare your bags as if this were a road trip... pack snacks, buy waters, bring entertainment!
2) Remember those little metal skeletons that outlines what size our carry-on items should be back in the day? Let's get back to that. You are allowed ONE carry-on item... (something that fits in that metal skeletal briefcase) and one personal item. A personal item would be your purse, manbag, laptop bag or diaper bag.... something you can't live without. Keep your coats on your lap until everyone has put their bags away... this makes sure there are no delays due to bags having to be checked since your coat took up space. Actually use that space under the seat in front of you. It's there for a reason and I know your feet don't actually stretch that far.
3) When you get on an airplane... you MUST not be territorial. You have to share this metal tube with anywhere from 100 people to 250 people. Keyword SHARE! That overhead compartment above your seat... guess what? It DOES NOT belong to you.
4) Don't think your flight attendants are very friendly? Did you say hi to them or smile, or even acknowledge them? You'd be surprised how frequently we get ignored... people won't even make eye contact with us... which leads me to number five.
5) The engine is very loud and when you are looking down at your book, playing a game or whatever and you order a drink... guess what? I cannot hear you. I have learned to become a very good lip reader for beverage selections. If you mumble or don't look at me, I can't help you. Will it kill you to take your earphones out for a second to make a 1 minute conversation with me?
6) Be polite... not just to your flight attendants but to other passengers. I promise I had to give a lady some courtesy lessons the other day. It's sad when a mother had to be taught how to say 'please' & 'thank you'. She just straight up told a passenger to move out of his seat to accommodate her baby. I told her that a "please" and asking instead of demanding would get her a lot farther.
7) Let's talk about complaining to your flight attendant. I understand you have had a very long day and you probably didn't get where you wanted to go as fast as you thought... or maybe TSA took some of your stuff coming through security, or maybe a gate agent didn't book you next to your friend or parent... but we have no control over that. I swear! We don't have secret powers that the gate agents don't... we don't have control to give you any free flights if you cry loud enough. Our primary purpose is your safety... then we hydrate you (preferably with water) :) It is most likely that we have had a much longer day than you on much less sleep and food.... and we really didn't get paid for the entire work day either... so let's think about that. Our maximum duty day is 16 hours. That's a lot. That does not include the time before sign in that we had to do our hair and make-up, get dressed, eat, commute... some flight attendants commute from the east coast, west coast, europe or even japan... it could be that your flight attendant hasn't slept in 24 hours or eaten in 16 hours.
8) So far this may all seem negative to you, but here is something you didn't know... we like to talk to passengers... especially nice ones. We'd prefer to talk to you after our work is done though... We have a mission to accomplish and once it's accomplished we like to talk to people... We meet some of the most interesting people on flights. We like to talk about things that don't involve flying or the merger. Most flight attendants are extremely well educated. Most of them have degrees, speak various languages and some work real jobs, like real estate agents, lawyers... they work as flight attendants for fun on the weekends.
9) We like to laugh. We need to laugh to stay sane. If you joke with us... most of the time we get it... if you are actually funny of course. We also like tips. I know $7 domestic beer is ridiculous... But $7 liquor or wine isn't too bad... considering the quantity you get... and tipping is customary anywhere else on alcohol... why stop on the plane? We didn't have to add the special lime/lemon twists to it. :)
examples of starting your flight out on the wrong foot:
- walking up to a flight attendants without so much as a smile or hello and handing her your trash.
- complaining that you haven't eaten since lunch/breakfast/dinner.
- ringing your flight attendant button before the seatbelt sign is off... that sign is for us too, you know.
- ringing your button to ask us what's for dinner.
- walking out of the bathroom and informing your flight attendant that someone really made a mess in there or that you couldn't find the button to flush the toilet, then just walking off. that is disgusting.
- ordering hot tea on an hour long flight.
- setting your body bag of a luggage on the floor when you are a big strong man/woman and asking the very small petite flight attendant to put the bag away and just walk away. this isn't valet and you didn't tip me. we also don't get paid during boarding... and that is the hardest part of our flight.
examples of a smooth flight:
- load in, drop your nice small bags under your seat or in the bins.
- sit down. read your book.
- turn off your electronic devices. not a joke.
- take your earphones out when talking to the flight attendant.
- make eye contact.
- listen to the PA's so you know your snack and drink selection.
- actually have a snack/drink selection in mind when the flight attendants asks. We have 150 more people to serve after you in 30 minutes. IMPORTANT NOTE: DO NOT ORDER MORE THAN ONE DRINK ON A FLIGHT UNDER AN HOUR WHEN THERE ARE PEOPLE BEHIND YOU THAT MIGHT NOT GET SERVED IN TIME. So rude.
- talk to your flight attendant... we are people too. Ask them about their cats... haha
I think that about wraps it up... I'm sure there is way more... but just fly smart. Flight attendants and passengers will thank you.
sincerely, your insider ;)
Things you must know and prepare for when flying:
Whether you are flying to the ends of the earth or just a 30 minute flight, I'd like to give you some tips to help your travel life be more enjoyable.
1) First things first. Just common knowledge that sodas make you more dehydrated. When traveling you must stay hydrated. This is not a joking matter. My water intake is probably 4-5 liters a day. (your bladder does grow, don't worry)
So skip the cokes and ask for water. Also, just plan on not gorging yourself on peanuts and biscoff cookies... so throw a couple of trail mixes or granola bars in your bag. Definitely splurge and buy a bottle of water once you get through security. Don't depend on my cokes and peanuts to fill you up. Prepare your bags as if this were a road trip... pack snacks, buy waters, bring entertainment!
2) Remember those little metal skeletons that outlines what size our carry-on items should be back in the day? Let's get back to that. You are allowed ONE carry-on item... (something that fits in that metal skeletal briefcase) and one personal item. A personal item would be your purse, manbag, laptop bag or diaper bag.... something you can't live without. Keep your coats on your lap until everyone has put their bags away... this makes sure there are no delays due to bags having to be checked since your coat took up space. Actually use that space under the seat in front of you. It's there for a reason and I know your feet don't actually stretch that far.
3) When you get on an airplane... you MUST not be territorial. You have to share this metal tube with anywhere from 100 people to 250 people. Keyword SHARE! That overhead compartment above your seat... guess what? It DOES NOT belong to you.
4) Don't think your flight attendants are very friendly? Did you say hi to them or smile, or even acknowledge them? You'd be surprised how frequently we get ignored... people won't even make eye contact with us... which leads me to number five.
5) The engine is very loud and when you are looking down at your book, playing a game or whatever and you order a drink... guess what? I cannot hear you. I have learned to become a very good lip reader for beverage selections. If you mumble or don't look at me, I can't help you. Will it kill you to take your earphones out for a second to make a 1 minute conversation with me?
6) Be polite... not just to your flight attendants but to other passengers. I promise I had to give a lady some courtesy lessons the other day. It's sad when a mother had to be taught how to say 'please' & 'thank you'. She just straight up told a passenger to move out of his seat to accommodate her baby. I told her that a "please" and asking instead of demanding would get her a lot farther.
7) Let's talk about complaining to your flight attendant. I understand you have had a very long day and you probably didn't get where you wanted to go as fast as you thought... or maybe TSA took some of your stuff coming through security, or maybe a gate agent didn't book you next to your friend or parent... but we have no control over that. I swear! We don't have secret powers that the gate agents don't... we don't have control to give you any free flights if you cry loud enough. Our primary purpose is your safety... then we hydrate you (preferably with water) :) It is most likely that we have had a much longer day than you on much less sleep and food.... and we really didn't get paid for the entire work day either... so let's think about that. Our maximum duty day is 16 hours. That's a lot. That does not include the time before sign in that we had to do our hair and make-up, get dressed, eat, commute... some flight attendants commute from the east coast, west coast, europe or even japan... it could be that your flight attendant hasn't slept in 24 hours or eaten in 16 hours.
8) So far this may all seem negative to you, but here is something you didn't know... we like to talk to passengers... especially nice ones. We'd prefer to talk to you after our work is done though... We have a mission to accomplish and once it's accomplished we like to talk to people... We meet some of the most interesting people on flights. We like to talk about things that don't involve flying or the merger. Most flight attendants are extremely well educated. Most of them have degrees, speak various languages and some work real jobs, like real estate agents, lawyers... they work as flight attendants for fun on the weekends.
9) We like to laugh. We need to laugh to stay sane. If you joke with us... most of the time we get it... if you are actually funny of course. We also like tips. I know $7 domestic beer is ridiculous... But $7 liquor or wine isn't too bad... considering the quantity you get... and tipping is customary anywhere else on alcohol... why stop on the plane? We didn't have to add the special lime/lemon twists to it. :)
examples of starting your flight out on the wrong foot:
- walking up to a flight attendants without so much as a smile or hello and handing her your trash.
- complaining that you haven't eaten since lunch/breakfast/dinner.
- ringing your flight attendant button before the seatbelt sign is off... that sign is for us too, you know.
- ringing your button to ask us what's for dinner.
- walking out of the bathroom and informing your flight attendant that someone really made a mess in there or that you couldn't find the button to flush the toilet, then just walking off. that is disgusting.
- ordering hot tea on an hour long flight.
- setting your body bag of a luggage on the floor when you are a big strong man/woman and asking the very small petite flight attendant to put the bag away and just walk away. this isn't valet and you didn't tip me. we also don't get paid during boarding... and that is the hardest part of our flight.
examples of a smooth flight:
- load in, drop your nice small bags under your seat or in the bins.
- sit down. read your book.
- turn off your electronic devices. not a joke.
- take your earphones out when talking to the flight attendant.
- make eye contact.
- listen to the PA's so you know your snack and drink selection.
- actually have a snack/drink selection in mind when the flight attendants asks. We have 150 more people to serve after you in 30 minutes. IMPORTANT NOTE: DO NOT ORDER MORE THAN ONE DRINK ON A FLIGHT UNDER AN HOUR WHEN THERE ARE PEOPLE BEHIND YOU THAT MIGHT NOT GET SERVED IN TIME. So rude.
- talk to your flight attendant... we are people too. Ask them about their cats... haha
I think that about wraps it up... I'm sure there is way more... but just fly smart. Flight attendants and passengers will thank you.
sincerely, your insider ;)
Sunday, January 4, 2009
T.G.L.F.A.B.
Current mood: cooky/wacky
(The Glamorous Life of a Flight Attendant Blog)
So starting on Christmas day...
(first things first... you must know that as an Atlanta flight attendant we have 6 "A days".. which is on call days... they can send you anywhere at any time for 6 days)
... So ok, Christmas Day. I was on my first A day and I got scheduled standby for 4 hours until 11pm. So I got there in the morning from TX and chilled all day... I watched movies on Netflix, crocheted some scarves, finished my Mandela biography, and chatted with friends. I didn't get called out for anything. So day one was over and I checked my schedule for the next day and it said I had standby again for day 2. I was irritated but whatever. So I slept in the lounge in a smelly little room... by little I mean maybe 5 ft x 5 ft with 2 small plastic reclining chairs in them. They smell weird and they are creepy. But I slept in there until about 9 or 10 am... not very comfortably... but better than the couch. I wake up, do my airport beauty routine put on some jeans and check my schedule again. It tells me I have standby on day 2 and day 3. I check open time (which tells us which trips need to be covered for the day) and it shows all these amazing trips. I called scheduling and asked them for one of those good trips. The guy tells me I can't have any of those trips because I am the only flight attendant in the lounge that can be used for more than 4 days... I kinda didn't believe him... and I let him know that I was on to him. I told him I commuted from Texas so I needed a bed and shower at the hotels... he asked me if I had considered moving to Atlanta... I told him I had a family. haha whatever. It is not his business where I live. So then I told him that if I was on standby for one more day then I would start to smell soon because I needed a shower and I cannot afford a hotel every night I have A days. He didn't care about my body odor.
So I'm sitting around in my jeans and t-shirt watching Netflix... and the Hartsfield Jackson International Airport kicks me off the internet. I call them. I pay for that internet... I should be able to use it anyway I want. Here is basically my conversation with the internet tech guy after we established introductions.
Me: "So I have a boingo account and your internet keeps kicking me off, and I pay for it and I need to have it urgently."
Guy: "ok lemme check a couple things... ok here you are, I see your screenname"
Me: "Listen, I really need y'all to stop kicking me off. I'm here all the time and the internet is the only thing that keeps me sane... for the safety of my passengers, I need the internet back."
Guy: "Where are you?"
Me: "Downstairs"
Guy: "um... why? where?"
Me: "A concourse, Flight attendant lounge. I am a flight attendant sitting on stand by and my only contact with the outside world is your internet. I need it. Please give it back."
Guy: "ok, lemme see what I can do"
Me: "Listen, I don't have windows down here, I don't even know if the suns out... I need the weather bug back, I need my netflix back. I am going crazy."
Guy: "hahaha ok, your back on, reboot and your good to go"
Me: "Thank you so much sir, my future passengers thank you too."
So then around 1pm (3 hours before sign in) I hear over the loud speaker that scheduling has already used all of their standbys and are asking for volunteers. I walk to the front desk to see what I can do. They tell me that I might need to put on my uniform cause things are a little crazy... understatement of the day.
3 hours before sign in scheduling started to call me to help them board airplanes because some flight attendants hadnt come in yet. So I walk in 3 inch heals with al my bags to the other side of the airport. Do you think anyone called me to let me know that the Flight attendant had shown up already before I had gotten there? No. So I trekked across the airport just to go straight back down to the lounge. Then they call me to send me a on a crappy domestic rotation for 3 days. I told the guy (with a little bit of attitude) that I was told earlier that I was the ONLY person in atlanta that could fly for more than 4 days, and I was sure that they could find someone for a 3 day trip. :) They said they couldnt and I fought some more but he told me I was definitely going to Indianapolis... sigh... so I go to find my crew... then I hear my name on the loud speaker... scheduling wants me to call them... they say that they changed their minds and want me back on standby. I snort out a laugh and try not to say 'I told you so'.... but I go back to my couch to not loose my place in the lounge.
Now to save you the reading and exhaustion I will tell you that over the next 8 house I was sent out on over 5 different assignments and taken off these assignments. I was being put through phsycological testing and I lost. I was so tired and fought for my rights. I probably spend one solid hour on the phone just with scheduling alone off and on. Ridiculous! To make a long story short, I ended up with a long layover in San Diego that night. I slept for about 15 out of 22 hours. I needed it after that day.
This is a VERY long story... so I'm trying to cut it short...
We had a medical emergency on the red eye from san diego to atlanta... got in at 5:30 am and then slept for about 2 hours in the lounge then got sent out on a 3 day domestic trip.... with a short layover in new orleans and a short layover in raleigh, nc... unfortunately i'd never been to any of those places and I didn't have enough time there to go explore... so I will have to go back. Finally after all my 6 days were up and scheduling couldn't physically use me any more I got to go to TX.
On the plane back to TX, I was sitting in the back of the airplane on the jumpseat... just tired as anything.... and a passenger in the last row looks at me and tells me... "I dunno who's bag this is, but its in my spot." I told her it was my bag. She said oh. Then muttered something about supposing she'd just put her bag under her chair. Note to YOU as future flyers... the compartment over your head does not have your name on it... You can put your bag anywhere past first class if your flying coach... just as long as the bins close... but really someone should be enforcing the bag size... it used to be only the size of a briefcase... people are bringing on body bags... and 2 or 3 of them. So that spot in front of your legs... yea that is yours for luggage... you can fight for that spot... but the overhead... its supposed to only be for overflowing luggage... in a perfect world. :)
I was so happy to be over with it all and to have new years off! I got to spend New years with my man in san antonio and with some good friends. Definitely a good way to start off the year... and with rockband 2. :)
So my next set of A days started on the 3rd... and my birthday is the 4th. I had International standby on the 3rd but didn't get called anywhere... They already assigned me a trip on the 4th... which is now... to Managua, Nicaragua... so we shall see what is to come... I still have 3 more days after that to come... who knows what will happen.
(The Glamorous Life of a Flight Attendant Blog)
So starting on Christmas day...
(first things first... you must know that as an Atlanta flight attendant we have 6 "A days".. which is on call days... they can send you anywhere at any time for 6 days)
... So ok, Christmas Day. I was on my first A day and I got scheduled standby for 4 hours until 11pm. So I got there in the morning from TX and chilled all day... I watched movies on Netflix, crocheted some scarves, finished my Mandela biography, and chatted with friends. I didn't get called out for anything. So day one was over and I checked my schedule for the next day and it said I had standby again for day 2. I was irritated but whatever. So I slept in the lounge in a smelly little room... by little I mean maybe 5 ft x 5 ft with 2 small plastic reclining chairs in them. They smell weird and they are creepy. But I slept in there until about 9 or 10 am... not very comfortably... but better than the couch. I wake up, do my airport beauty routine put on some jeans and check my schedule again. It tells me I have standby on day 2 and day 3. I check open time (which tells us which trips need to be covered for the day) and it shows all these amazing trips. I called scheduling and asked them for one of those good trips. The guy tells me I can't have any of those trips because I am the only flight attendant in the lounge that can be used for more than 4 days... I kinda didn't believe him... and I let him know that I was on to him. I told him I commuted from Texas so I needed a bed and shower at the hotels... he asked me if I had considered moving to Atlanta... I told him I had a family. haha whatever. It is not his business where I live. So then I told him that if I was on standby for one more day then I would start to smell soon because I needed a shower and I cannot afford a hotel every night I have A days. He didn't care about my body odor.
So I'm sitting around in my jeans and t-shirt watching Netflix... and the Hartsfield Jackson International Airport kicks me off the internet. I call them. I pay for that internet... I should be able to use it anyway I want. Here is basically my conversation with the internet tech guy after we established introductions.
Me: "So I have a boingo account and your internet keeps kicking me off, and I pay for it and I need to have it urgently."
Guy: "ok lemme check a couple things... ok here you are, I see your screenname"
Me: "Listen, I really need y'all to stop kicking me off. I'm here all the time and the internet is the only thing that keeps me sane... for the safety of my passengers, I need the internet back."
Guy: "Where are you?"
Me: "Downstairs"
Guy: "um... why? where?"
Me: "A concourse, Flight attendant lounge. I am a flight attendant sitting on stand by and my only contact with the outside world is your internet. I need it. Please give it back."
Guy: "ok, lemme see what I can do"
Me: "Listen, I don't have windows down here, I don't even know if the suns out... I need the weather bug back, I need my netflix back. I am going crazy."
Guy: "hahaha ok, your back on, reboot and your good to go"
Me: "Thank you so much sir, my future passengers thank you too."
So then around 1pm (3 hours before sign in) I hear over the loud speaker that scheduling has already used all of their standbys and are asking for volunteers. I walk to the front desk to see what I can do. They tell me that I might need to put on my uniform cause things are a little crazy... understatement of the day.
3 hours before sign in scheduling started to call me to help them board airplanes because some flight attendants hadnt come in yet. So I walk in 3 inch heals with al my bags to the other side of the airport. Do you think anyone called me to let me know that the Flight attendant had shown up already before I had gotten there? No. So I trekked across the airport just to go straight back down to the lounge. Then they call me to send me a on a crappy domestic rotation for 3 days. I told the guy (with a little bit of attitude) that I was told earlier that I was the ONLY person in atlanta that could fly for more than 4 days, and I was sure that they could find someone for a 3 day trip. :) They said they couldnt and I fought some more but he told me I was definitely going to Indianapolis... sigh... so I go to find my crew... then I hear my name on the loud speaker... scheduling wants me to call them... they say that they changed their minds and want me back on standby. I snort out a laugh and try not to say 'I told you so'.... but I go back to my couch to not loose my place in the lounge.
Now to save you the reading and exhaustion I will tell you that over the next 8 house I was sent out on over 5 different assignments and taken off these assignments. I was being put through phsycological testing and I lost. I was so tired and fought for my rights. I probably spend one solid hour on the phone just with scheduling alone off and on. Ridiculous! To make a long story short, I ended up with a long layover in San Diego that night. I slept for about 15 out of 22 hours. I needed it after that day.
This is a VERY long story... so I'm trying to cut it short...
We had a medical emergency on the red eye from san diego to atlanta... got in at 5:30 am and then slept for about 2 hours in the lounge then got sent out on a 3 day domestic trip.... with a short layover in new orleans and a short layover in raleigh, nc... unfortunately i'd never been to any of those places and I didn't have enough time there to go explore... so I will have to go back. Finally after all my 6 days were up and scheduling couldn't physically use me any more I got to go to TX.
On the plane back to TX, I was sitting in the back of the airplane on the jumpseat... just tired as anything.... and a passenger in the last row looks at me and tells me... "I dunno who's bag this is, but its in my spot." I told her it was my bag. She said oh. Then muttered something about supposing she'd just put her bag under her chair. Note to YOU as future flyers... the compartment over your head does not have your name on it... You can put your bag anywhere past first class if your flying coach... just as long as the bins close... but really someone should be enforcing the bag size... it used to be only the size of a briefcase... people are bringing on body bags... and 2 or 3 of them. So that spot in front of your legs... yea that is yours for luggage... you can fight for that spot... but the overhead... its supposed to only be for overflowing luggage... in a perfect world. :)
I was so happy to be over with it all and to have new years off! I got to spend New years with my man in san antonio and with some good friends. Definitely a good way to start off the year... and with rockband 2. :)
So my next set of A days started on the 3rd... and my birthday is the 4th. I had International standby on the 3rd but didn't get called anywhere... They already assigned me a trip on the 4th... which is now... to Managua, Nicaragua... so we shall see what is to come... I still have 3 more days after that to come... who knows what will happen.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
my run in with apple... and what you can do to protect yourself.
Current mood: betrayed
So if you didn't know, the window of my mustang was smashed in and my macbook stolen. If you know me then you know 2 things: 1) all of my belongings are in my car & 2) my macbook is my single most important material belonging.
I made a police report. They need the serial number. This is very informative to owners of all electronic devices to pay attention. I don't have my serial numbers being as I live in the air and on the road. All of my other belongings are in a storage unit in Nashville. So yea. This story is filled with a lot of bitterness but I promise you that it is an informative blog and also serves the purpose of entertaining.
I called the famous 1-800-MY-APPLE to retrieve my serial number. I was told and have always been under the understanding that MAC is very customer service minded. Today my opinion has been changed. The following is the non-quoted dialogue that went on between me and my apple service care agent.
MAC: Thank you for calling My Apple, Technical Support. How can I help you?
ME: Yes, my macbook was purchased online about 2 years ago and was recently stolen out of my car and the police officers are asking for the serial number on it so they can look for it. How do I go about getting that?
(She verifies my name)
MAC: One moment please...
(static music)
MAC: Ma'am? Apple policy states that we cannot give out any customer information. So there is no way I can help you.
ME: What? Um... I have to get the serial number. The police are asking for it. Do I need to get a warrant for it? I am here, I can verify who I am. I paid almost $2,000 for that serial number. I want it. It's mine.
MAC: Apple Policy says we cannot give out customer information. There is nothing I can do.
ME: Can I speak to your supervisor?
MAC: One moment please...
(static music)
MAC: Ma'am. There is nothing I can do. I'm sorry for your loss.
ME: I understand customer privacy, but your policy doesn't make sense. When I worked at a bank we had very strict policies as well but if a person can verify who they are then that information is theirs. Now I paid $2,000 for my serial number. I am not asking for someone else's serial number. I am asking for the one I paid for. I don't know if you go home and write your serial numbers down for your tv and computer but I don't... and you have it. I want it.
MAC: Maybe the police officer can call on your behalf and get the information?
ME: The officer didn't pay $2,000 for the number. I did.
MAC: Just have the officer call our security number.
ME: Is there a specific number I should give him to call?
MAC: No ma'am. Just have him call this number you called and he will be connected to the proper people.
ME: So, you are telling me to have SAPD call a 1-800 number and go through all the automated options to get a serial number that I paid for?!
MAC: Yes ma'am.
ME: Unbelievable. I feel like I'm dealing with a third world country.
MAC: Again, I am sorry for your loss. Have a good day.
So, I called the detective on my case. He was as flabbergasted as I was about the whole conversation. He called them and then called me back. He told me that they directed him to an automated response giving him an e-mail address to contact. So he e-mailed it and no lie it told him that they would get back to him in SEVERAL days!
This isn't even a joke. So I urge you to take pictures of everything you own and write the serial numbers on it and put it in a very safe place. Get renters insurance.
My own personal theory is that Apple just wants everyone to have the newest of everything. I had just been eyeballing the new eco-friendly mac. It's so beautiful. and BAM my computer is gone... that's a little ironic, don't you think?
I'm attaching 3 cartoons that prove my theory. Yes, a cartoon can prove my theory
So if you didn't know, the window of my mustang was smashed in and my macbook stolen. If you know me then you know 2 things: 1) all of my belongings are in my car & 2) my macbook is my single most important material belonging.
I made a police report. They need the serial number. This is very informative to owners of all electronic devices to pay attention. I don't have my serial numbers being as I live in the air and on the road. All of my other belongings are in a storage unit in Nashville. So yea. This story is filled with a lot of bitterness but I promise you that it is an informative blog and also serves the purpose of entertaining.
I called the famous 1-800-MY-APPLE to retrieve my serial number. I was told and have always been under the understanding that MAC is very customer service minded. Today my opinion has been changed. The following is the non-quoted dialogue that went on between me and my apple service care agent.
MAC: Thank you for calling My Apple, Technical Support. How can I help you?
ME: Yes, my macbook was purchased online about 2 years ago and was recently stolen out of my car and the police officers are asking for the serial number on it so they can look for it. How do I go about getting that?
(She verifies my name)
MAC: One moment please...
(static music)
MAC: Ma'am? Apple policy states that we cannot give out any customer information. So there is no way I can help you.
ME: What? Um... I have to get the serial number. The police are asking for it. Do I need to get a warrant for it? I am here, I can verify who I am. I paid almost $2,000 for that serial number. I want it. It's mine.
MAC: Apple Policy says we cannot give out customer information. There is nothing I can do.
ME: Can I speak to your supervisor?
MAC: One moment please...
(static music)
MAC: Ma'am. There is nothing I can do. I'm sorry for your loss.
ME: I understand customer privacy, but your policy doesn't make sense. When I worked at a bank we had very strict policies as well but if a person can verify who they are then that information is theirs. Now I paid $2,000 for my serial number. I am not asking for someone else's serial number. I am asking for the one I paid for. I don't know if you go home and write your serial numbers down for your tv and computer but I don't... and you have it. I want it.
MAC: Maybe the police officer can call on your behalf and get the information?
ME: The officer didn't pay $2,000 for the number. I did.
MAC: Just have the officer call our security number.
ME: Is there a specific number I should give him to call?
MAC: No ma'am. Just have him call this number you called and he will be connected to the proper people.
ME: So, you are telling me to have SAPD call a 1-800 number and go through all the automated options to get a serial number that I paid for?!
MAC: Yes ma'am.
ME: Unbelievable. I feel like I'm dealing with a third world country.
MAC: Again, I am sorry for your loss. Have a good day.
So, I called the detective on my case. He was as flabbergasted as I was about the whole conversation. He called them and then called me back. He told me that they directed him to an automated response giving him an e-mail address to contact. So he e-mailed it and no lie it told him that they would get back to him in SEVERAL days!
This isn't even a joke. So I urge you to take pictures of everything you own and write the serial numbers on it and put it in a very safe place. Get renters insurance.
My own personal theory is that Apple just wants everyone to have the newest of everything. I had just been eyeballing the new eco-friendly mac. It's so beautiful. and BAM my computer is gone... that's a little ironic, don't you think?
I'm attaching 3 cartoons that prove my theory. Yes, a cartoon can prove my theory
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