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Do You Feel You Have Had Enough... Sometimes ?

Honesty is an attribute we all aspire to but very few succeed .
Vanity comes always in the way of good intentions.

I am tired of people exposing themselves as perfect, the best there is, the " know-everything " kind of people.

Many write.
Blogs.
Books.
Words.
Posts.
Tweets.
Comments.

Always with the intention of portraying themselves as ... the one who got ALL the answers.

I am not.
I have waited.
Read.
Watched.
Felt.
Silenced myself with great attention...

This is MY - unedited - beginning of a new blog, sharing my humanity more than my performances.

It is up to you to digest ...

A Forcible Grounding...

A Forcible Grounding...

In the airline business, one of the most humiliating moments one can endure, as a flight attendant, is the threat of being grounded. In those days, my days, it was like that. It was a serious decision to arrive to, for any management personnel. Worse, I think, for the one who got that punishment.

It meant one had done something so against regulations that the only rightful consequence (according to management ...again) and its conclusion was forcing one to be and stay on ground.

In any other enterprise, an act of discipline may pass as a normal leave of absence. But up there, in the air, everyone knew. The information ball fired...

When that is said, a leave of absence can be also taken for oneself, personally.

In my case, I call it a forcible grounding because that is what it has been since June 2012.

Life had caught up with me in many odd ways. It made me horribly frustrated. And, in many ways, tore me apart. I believe you would feel the same if; at long last, you were doing a work or something you really enjoyed, and, on top of it, were getting an enormous amount of recognition, thus boosting up your self-confidence to its maximum. THAT is just so energizing to one’s mind and soul.

The first and main downer, the crash of my laptop, left me totally dispirited.  This could not have happened at a worst possible time. I was putting so much of my heart in the words, my truth, which I was tenderly laying down to be shared with you, and with so great generosity.

The technical chapter of an impossible digital world left me bare and lonely in my despair.

Impossible it is for me when such things happen because I feel helpless.

I couldn’t fix this issue and I wasn’t used to it. Those were the dangers of working alone, for me. I was no longer blessed with an array of expert support. As a matter of fact, I had gotten quite spoiled with it during my professional career in multiple management positions and working with and from a computer.

However I decided to let this be for awhile...and I had to, really, because at the same time, another issue in my life had appeared and distracted me even more.

It caught me still into an even more attentive mood!

The case of moving house, from Norway to France.

A new home.

A changed dimension.

Definitely very emotional.

Awesomely epic...

I shan’t write more details about it until later...but all these happenings in my life have had the sad effect of pinning me down to work with the then present multiple tasks at hand, on a daily basis.

I was forced to take a Sabbath year, a leave of absence, a stop away from my own self.

However the year of silence has ended!

Welcome back, Ô Faithful Passenger...and join me again through my airy wanderings.

Will you accept my invitation and fly with me?

A Star Is Born ?

A Star is Born...

Scary as it may have seemed, brave as I was, self-confident as I felt, I believe I mastered each and every one of the initial stages pertaining to my advancement as a Purser.

I must also ascertain my lovely reader that none of the above was exteriorized. I appeared calm and extraordinarily strong to anyone with whom I came in direct contact with.

Knowing I had all the qualities to perform, I went ahead as if I had done this all my life. I oozed with a wonderful energy that I was careful to hide.

From crew briefing to boarding to fullfilling my new duties, from one end, high above the Atlantic, either East or Westbound, to the final de-briefing, back at base.

Upon my first P/A announcements, I did follow the written instructions dutifully, in a quiet fashion, stressing on my diction so that I would be clear. The emergency drills are important and my voice had the necessary inflection. Not too dramatic but enough for people to catch their attention. 

I knew it was at that point I could really make a difference and , by God, I loved each second !

But quickly, it dawned on me that  half of the cabin paid absolutely no attention, no matter which tone my voice played...

Yes!  And with this sharp awakening to a sad reality , I , myself, felt that I had become bored by the mechanicality of it all... at the same time I had observed how desinterested a flight audience I had.

 I became afraid to appear too "stereotyped" thus lose the passion for it. 

Improvisation had begun its tickling and imagination had come to my rescue.

After a couple of flights, I had thrown away the book . I knew it by heart. After the usual life-saving announcements, which were given with the proper dramatic gravity, I had switched elegantly over to the ' free' text.

My own. 

The witty part.

In several languages depending upon our destination.

Listen to me.

Hear the reaction.

I had the passengers'attention.

Hello there! Are you with me ?

My Other Half...

So it happened that I had flown up to Boston. With the help of faithful friends with whom I had kept a warm communication prior to my departure for training and Kansas City, kind friends who were still struggling in their studies at Harvard, I had found a respite. Once more, I had been offered the breathing space I needed, thus postponing the making of an important decision.

As I had clearly exposed my present living situation, stressing upon this hopeless dilemma but, at the same time, offering a clear, logical and practical solution, it hadn’t been difficult to observe that my point had been made. I had argued strongly in my favour.

Hugs and smiles and excited responses sealed our agreement.

I had been accepted as a new lodger, even better a French female roommate at that.

 You see, my monthly runs were still too packed with a three-day round- trip schedule, five times a month, with three days off in between, to even contemplate the prospects of a totally independent life.

So for the moment, this would have to do.

However it had greater advantages than in New York.  Commuting to Boston on TWA was virtually so cheap to almost nothing that it had been a smart move, I thought, while accruing seniority which would allow me choose more attractive time table.

I had been given my own room, my little private corner, in a spacious four bedroom apartment, sharing with three male students.

There were rules of course and equal for all. However I had absolutely no obligations as far as housekeeping was concerned. And each had own shelf in the refrigerator, and responsible for own keep.

We were all deeply busy with either studies or job to think about anything else.

Social life was meeting friends at a coffee shop, a café, or around the vast campus of Harvard if time permitted it. And there were many places to choose from.

If the boys wanted a party, they could always arrange one while I was away. They probably did too but I never heard of them.

I had been flying some eight months now and the nagging feeling of wanting more of “something” was impatiently pulling at me. This urge or lust or ambition to be in charge was becoming powerfully dominant.

Applying for the Purser position was therefore the natural consequence. The easiest at that as well. To qualify, one needed two foreign languages in addition to English.

I already could speak French fluently. When I presented myself for the test in Spanish, and the instructor asked how I was in that language, I retorted directly and rapidly in the tongue of Cervantes without the slightest hesitation. He nodded his approval, admitting that he himself didn’t understand a word I had said but understood it was Spanish.

That was the strangest test I have ever taken though…

Reciting by heart Frederico Garcia Lorca‘s “ Antonio Torres Heredia “ in a fluent Spanish but miming the text with the appropriate interjections or stops as if I was demonstrating a totally different situation – by the way, my best performance ever !

I had joined the first class of TWA female pursers, with the lowest seniority in the flying club and of age the youngest of my group.

Boarding my first flight as a purser, not long after the completion of probation as a hostess, I had faced an experienced cabin crew with twenty years as hostesses.

My heart had pounded its invisible tune of excitement.

I was the Boss.

Second after the Captain!

Although there had been grumbling comments voiced by some macho cockpit crews at the very beginning, I had quickly mastered those to make them disappear. Realizing that, as a woman, in order to gain respect and achieve recognition, I had to work the double of what my male colleagues did.

On my uniform jacket, shining brightly, both wings had been one.

My Other Half had been born.

From there on, I knew I would reach new heights as leader of the bird flock…at the service of flight crews and for an exceptional travel experience to our passengers.

So stay tuned as the making of a world filled with delightful adventures is about to begin.

Get your wingy gear ready to fly with me.

Forget about your " carry-on " hand luggage as there is no room for it on my 707 Boeing aircraft...

                                                

                                                                     *  *  *  *

                                               

" A traveller without observation is a bird without wings.”

                                                          Moslih Eddin Saadi

My Bird's Nest ...

  

Next morning, as a new day had broken through the last images of darkness, stretching voluptuously in the white sheet, I had found myself so refreshed and alive.

Dawn had brought to me a sharp sense of purpose, given me its urgency as I had wakened up into a clearer reality.

The second chapter in the book of my American life was about to be written.

I had qualified from the demands of the job as the probation period had ended. Simultaneously I had been granted the stamp of approval from my French family. The power behind entertaining my own destiny felt like it had become my exclusive right.

Thus my heart had found tranquillity.

I had considered these moments of solitude in the apartment as pure luxury, whenever they were, during the whirlwinds of my first months living in Manhattan.

With precise movements, restoring order to the sofa-bed and finding the privacy of a long and warm bath as the most wonderful spot of heaven on earth, I had followed the train of my thoughts with a body freshly cleaned and delicately perfumed.

The morning rituals had cleared the leftovers of nocturnal clouds.

Propped up with self-confidence, I had realized that the contours of the coming months had materialized themselves through my accrued seniority.  As soon as I had reached that point, I knew I would be able to bid for a run.

Good bye to the long and frustrating hours of waiting and looking at the black telephone to ring!

Good bye to the agonies of insecurity, not knowing from day to day where I would be commanded to spread my wings!

I had now become the proud owner of the “little brown “book, the most important one at that in the even bigger book of my life in America.

My bible and faithful servant which was TWA’s own one hundred pages and into which all policies were clearly written, paragraphed, witnessed, signed under the following:

“ …Agreements  between Trans World Airlines, Inc. and the Flight Attendants in the service of Trans World Airlines , Inc. as represented by The Air Line Stewards And Stewardesses Association, and Transport Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO… “

I had deeply engrossed myself into its reading, to understand the language terminology based upon the American written law.

This was serious business.

Leafing through it, there were naturally some chapters that were more interesting than others as this one:

“5. Awarding of Run Selections:

(a)        Run selections shall be awarded in accordance with seniority and posted. Every effort shall be made to post the run selection awards within 48 hours after the time and date of the closing of bid preferences…”

With this information at hand, I had counted the days until the next month’s deadline which would allow me to place a bid. Those were the days when internet or mobile phones hadn’t made their dramatic entrance yet. Let alone a computer. Everything written by hand in huge logs and for me, it meant to move and travel to JFK airport.

There at the TWA operations offices in hangar 12, at the scheduling offices, was the strategic place to learn how to write a bid, to select and finally attest the international run I would be awarded.

Fully aware I needed more time as to be rewarded with my first choice, nonetheless I could envision the month ahead and depending upon its outcome, able to weigh between the several options on where to find my own lodgings – for later!

Oh…The joys of anticipation before the final moments when I could build my very own bird’s nest. At long last, my personal landing platform into which to find the peace, to brush the exhaustion out of my feathers!

Knowing where or when I would fly next month had given me the incentive I had been looking for and, with adrenaline kicking, I had followed the energy inhabiting me.

I was ready to make the next move, as soon as my next month’s selections had been confirmed.

A matter of time now…

I am waiting for the posting of run selection awards ...

Deep attention is required...

Patience...

"I'm youth, I'm joy, I'm a little bird that has broken out of the egg."

                                                                      - Sir James M. Barrie -

A Traveller's Appraisal...

 

Upon entering the Princes Square Apartments in Bayswater in London (UK), I noticed the scaffolds on its front facade and I began to worry.

After having shared my anxiety upon check-in, the lovely lady at the reception desk understood quickly that noise made by handymen hammering on concrete was not a friend of mine.

She listened to me while I calmly told her that I was totally unaware of this kind of work done at the front of the building. My hotel reservations were made on line and there was no mention about these ongoing works.

Without a word, she cleared my anxieties on the spot and upgraded my reservation without additional fee to a one-bedroom apartment at the back side of the hotel.

The efficient way she handled the situation, with poise and professionalism, impressed me. She even took the time to accompany me to the apartment, pulling my suitcase and holding the elevator door for me.

 I must admit that, during my regular trips to London, it’s been a long time since I have been treated in such an exclusive way at a any hotel and I felt the need to express my appraisal in writing.

This young woman whose name is Diana if I recall correctly, welcomes many guests in her line of work. It is therefore important to, not only observe but also, pass the word on to her employers that such a gem in their team will win them a crowd of returning guests.

The apartment was at the back of the hotel overlooking a small patch of sunny heaven, with green grass and some other botanic life.

Early next morning, I was greeted by the nearby Church bells and the singing of birds…

What an exceptional way to wake up, I thought happily, and an even greater experience as I reminded myself that I was in the deepest of London’s heart!

Feeling resourced after a peaceful night sleeping dreamlessly, I was getting ready for a morning bath.

Unfortunately a new challenge had been brought to my attention.

I realised that the “plug” in the tub wasn’t tight enough. The water was disappearing as fast as the tub was being filled and that disturbed me, knowing how costly water is.

I took a shower instead and finished my morning “beautification”, ready to go out and shop for refreshments at the nearby Marks & Spencer, but making a mental note about of the tub.

On my way out, past the reception desk, I thought I had to signal this matter of the tub. And I realized I would report another negative detail to Diana.

However my young lady had been replaced by a smiling young man, perfect in his business suit and attentive in his manner.

In few words , I expressed my concerns about the water and the tub and the defective plug, stressing upon the fact that, as I am a protector of our mother earth,  I know water is expensive and that I don’t  like when water is being abusively wasted in such a disrespectful fashion.

Something should be done, I politely added.

When my problem had been properly and dutifully exposed for reception manager Mr. Sam Karimi who hadn’t interrupted me once, I could see that my approach around my water concern had been successfully delivered.

With quiet deference, Sam reassured me that this would be fixed as soon as possible, and in the most beneficial way for me.

Although not a plumber myself but having watched enough handymen in my life, I knew this impediment couldn’t be fixed “in a jiffy “, of which both Sam and myself agreed. The plumber would need more than one jiffy to fix this.

Upon which Sam who was on duty at the reception desk for the day, wished me the best of days letting me know that he would have this repaired while I enjoyed London.

This was the second time I had turned to the hotel staff to present a problem and I felt it wouldn’t be long before I would be judged and fall in the category of the “typical grumbler”. However I have dealt with humans for so long, no matter in what capacity or line of work that I have learned to recognize, through the spoken word, the universal language of the body!

So through our two ways of communication, I could hear and observe I had been taken seriously and cared for with the utmost respect, and by both representatives of the Princes Square Apartments, Diana the day before and now Sam!

It is then given to me to write a few words about the positive impression they both made on me.

As a result, my appraisal which commends the quality of their performance at work , how they handle and take care of the guests, should make their gracious employers quite proud to have in their service team such young people representing them!

Without forgetting those who are behind the scene: housekeepers returning smiles, office managers friendly nod…those wonderful people who are indirectly responsible to maintain their guest’s wellbeing!

Simple acts of kindness along with the willingness to listen and treat a hotel guest as he or she was unique and respectful of their claims or queries represent the highest standards of any hospitality establishment.

Thank You For Making My Stay An Unforgettable Moment In Life !

                                                                                                         

                

“Treat everyone you meet as though they are the most important person you'll meet today.”

                                                       (  Roger Dawson )