Pacifica, California

 
     At the start of 2014, I was a brand ambassador doing marketing promotional gigs in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was towards the end of the month of January when I applied for a trainee flight attendant position for American Airlines. This was the start of happiness for me. Fast forward through the year long hiring process of waiting, waiting, waiting, video interview. Then waiting, waiting, face to face group interview. Then waiting, waiting, waiting... more waiting, waiting, waiting. Then finally, scheduled for training. Yay! The longest hiring process I have ever gone through, but well worth the wait.


     Onwards to January 05, 2015 when I had my very fist day of training at the headquarters of the American Airlines flight attendant training center in Fort Worth, TX. There I met a group amazing people from all over the US. We were strangers at first and now we are all good friends till this day. I see them as my extended family; my brothers and sisters from another mother and mister. It was a "short" 6.5 weeks of long training days from early mornings to late nights, however, it was the longest 6.5 weeks of our lives of late night studying and practicing drills, after drills, after pickles.

  Pickles=An empty diagram of an airplane model on paper in which trainee flight attendants must correctly identify and fill empty boxes of emergency equipment: first aid kits, fire extinguishers, flashlights, etc. for memorization purposes in preparation of exams using plastic sheet covers and dry erase markers.


     Even though we all almost lost our minds, we worked hard towards the very end together. We never gave up! We've bonded and became closer as friends after each high five given after every exam. Then became closer as family as the day drew near of when we all would part ways to our designated bases. It was crazy to think how fast 6.5 weeks went by. Now, I'm thinking of how quickly 1 year has passed as we approach our 1 year mark on February 18, 2016. We were warned of how quickly time flies as a flight attendant. Boy, they were right about that! What day is it again?



     It's only fitting for me to write about my journey from the day I've submitted my application to now. A San Francisco(SFO) based new hire flight attendant closing in on her 1 year anniversary in less than 3 weeks and I happen to be on my reserve month rotation this February. I wonder where I'm flying to next. Who knows? I'm just glad that I finally held a reserve line that I bid for. It was my 15th choice, but hey! Not bad for being based at one of the most senior bases--but without a doubt the best base--there is after only 9 months at SFO. I'll take what I can get.

     I honestly can't complain because I'm lucky to be based at home after only one month based at Dallas/Fort Worth(DFW). Mostly because that whole month I was commuting back and forth between SFO and DFW was definitely not easy. Red eyes to DFW only to work a 3 day trip with a 0700 sign in that morning. Let's just say, I am very thankful to be based at home. But at the time, I had to do what any new hire flight attendant on probation had to do; anything. I'm glad I've passed probation and now approaching my 1 year anniversary.

    Reaching my anniversary on the line only means one thing, recurrent training. Every year flight attendants have to re-qualify in order to remain active on the line. Is it weird for me to say that I'm excited for recurrent training? My favorite part about training were the drills. I had so much fun doing drills in training, but I hope and pray that I will never ever have to evacuate an airplane and execute those drills on a true occurrence. But if it ever comes down to it, I am properly trained by the best of the best to make sure every single passenger and myself evacuates safely, quickly, and efficiently.

    I must admit that my first year on the line was amazing. I've learned so much, met many great people, and had the opportunity to visit many beautiful destinations. Some places I've never thought of ever visiting, but because of my job and those crazy reserve months, I did. I never thought about visiting Norfolk, Virginia, nor did I think that I ever will. But because I was scheduled on a 3 day trip out of DFW with one layover in Norfolk(ORF), I was blessed to have seen one of the most beautiful east coast sunsets I have ever seen. It was a sunset that I will never forget and I was lucky enough to have witnessed it.

    As luck continued to be on my side, scheduling approved several of my requests to move around my duty free periods(DFP), in other words, days off. Thanks to scheduling, I was able to attend important gatherings with friends and family, and the opportunity to visit Tokyo with my best friend and Sydney celebrating my parents 32nd wedding anniversary with ample time to enjoy both international holidays. But I must admit, I wasn't always approved of my scheduling requests and have came across some rather interesting situations while on duty.

   These rather interesting situations I have encountered while on duty are stories that you just can't make up! Situations that make you title your head to the side in confusion, squint your eyes, and push your eyebrows together so hard you end up giving yourself a headache. The type of situations that make you want to cover your eyes or mouth in utter shock and disbelief. I've seen and heard the craziest things, you will not believe. But that's a whole other posting on its own. I'll get to those later down the line.

     Some situations even involve me on the state of fatigue causing me to greet every passenger, "Hi! Welcome Aboard! How are you?" while everyone was deplaning. It took me almost 1/2 of the plane to realize that we've already completed the boarding process 3 hours ago. Another occasion on the verge of exhaustion was when I completely forgot to take my apron off before putting my blazer on as we prepared for landing. As we get to the gate and passengers deplane, I greet them, "Goodbye! Thank you for flying with us! See you Soon!" not realizing that the reason why everyone was so cheerful with a huge smile on their face was because I failed to realize that I still had my apron on about 3/4 into deplaning. On the bright side, at least I was able to give my passengers a good laugh as they leave on a positive note. But rest assured, I do try to catch up on sleep when the opportunity arises. It's hard to adjust when you have early morning sign ins and 12 hour+ days on your feet on top of the different time zones you have to battle.

     I've also been blessed with occasional surprises of seeing old friends back from high school come on board my plane as I'm greeting passengers while breaking down ice in the galley and all I hear is, "OMG, Audrey?! Is that you?!" Even seeing flight attendant friends commuting home or back to base is always a great feeling. But the best feeling of all is the exchange of big, warm hugs and smiles. As corny as that sounds, it's still one of my favorite perks of my job. Just being able to make sure they have a pleasant and safe flight matters a lot to me. When frequent fliers who fly the usual routes come on board and recognize who you are and tell you how happy they are to see you as their flight attendant again is always a definite plus. I also can't forget the celebrity encounters I've had on my flights: Chris Rock, Reba McEntire, Alicia Keys, The Big Show, Wilmer Valderrama, Gloria Estefan, just to name a few.

    Overall, 2015 was the best year I've ever had filled with unforgettable memories that will last a lifetime. I've learned a great deal especially about myself. I definitely count on doing the same for 2016. I am excited to see what's in store for me this year and the many destinations that I may end up. The fact that I don't know excites me! This is one of the many reasons why I love my job. The fact that being a flight attendant is an adventure all on its own and the spontaneity of it suits me well. Adventures are what I live for and every day is different. I'd say I found my calling and I'll never let this go. Why let go of something that makes you happy when happiness is all we ever want in life? I've learned that if you're happy, then you are where you need to be. Happiness for me all started from one click of the 'Submit' button.


 
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