Month: January 2016

  • "Today is my Birthday and I get one every year"

    - one of my favorite No Doubt quotes from "6 feet underground," which I get stuck in my head every year around this time.

    It is true. Today- right now, its my birthday. I am 35. This is a special birthday in the sense that it is icing on the cake to a 25-year-old me. 34 was the number that they gave me, so I guess its all just bonus from here on out, right? I'm not sure I could have handled the information of all that would happen in the next decade back then. God, I hope I get a 45.

    "And someday hard to believe but I'll be buried six feet underground, I'll be dead and gone no longer around"

    It is not without a sense of loss that I approach this 35th triumph. For the past two weekends I've wanted to go back to Gainesville and the reason I didn't was primarily because I haven't got a place to stay any more. Not a set place like I had with B. I never took that for granted, I knew all along it was almost too good to be true. Now there is no real set place for me and the choices I have are all smoker's houses. Strangely, sometimes I can be around smoking with no problems, while other times seem to set me back for days. There's no reason to it, which makes it all the more threatening. Why do I have the cruel irony of having so many smoker friends? Its akin to me having the privilege of always living near a football stadium--when that team is good. There is nothing in American culture I detest as much as football, yet I'm starting to feel like some sort of good luck charm in spite of myself. Besides that though, I feel too much like I'm putting someone out, being troublesome, asking too much. Alas.

    "Subconsciously motivated natural instinct, alter nature for the pleasure Orthocycline"

    35 is also the dreaded cut-off year for a good level of fertility. Even if I had a partner and the situation even made sense, even getting pregnant tomorrow would be... risky? foolish? impracticable. impossible? So I guess that's it. I'm not going to have a baby. I'm not going to have a family. I'm going to be an old maid. When I was married I never got to the point where I really wanted to have a baby (probably a huge blessing now in hindsight), but I also never clearly thought, "I never want to be a mother." It is like I always say- "if you wait long enough a decision will be made for you." Usually though, I was referring to the choice to go out or not or what to eat, not for a big life changing event that will eventually leave me feeling a)left out b)alone c)like a loser or a failure d)full of regret e)missing out on the happiest most meaningful part of life f)abysmally depressed every August when everyone else is posting their offspring's back to school photos g)pressed to come up with a creative answer when asked- 'what was the most important/special/happiest moment of your life?' h)happy and free to do whatever I want while my poor friends deal with their horrific pre-teens who have been raised in the age of facebook and cell phones?? Who knows.

    I have to be happy for what I have though. My parents, though in terrible health and both in and out of the hospital this week are still alive (barely though it seems at times). I'm also going to a pub for my birthday and with any luck some of my flight attendant friends will be around. Then I head for the warm sun for 4 days with my heart throb for a birthday cruise. Hooray! My broken finger is healing. And I have a life where I can and do fly to London just to see my favorite ballet company. I tell almost no one I'm going. I am entranced by the performance, wash it all down with some duck and brew, navigate around London at night and fly back with some interesting looking gin in my suitcase. I love this.

    Alright! I'll Drink, Cruise, Heal my way through the rest of the month and do my best to let the sun bake away all these dark thoughts.

  • New Year's Goals and Accidents

    The New Year was off to a great start. I managed to commute back to Charlotte from Cleveland (just like last year, but this time I was actually off work and not frantically trying to report back to base). Despite feeling super low energy, I made it downtown with two friends and got pretty toasted only to walk home and painfully check in for work the next day at noon. I had a lovely time with ironman in FLL on Jan 1 and then started another work trip on the 3rd only to smash my finger in the cockpit door on the first leg. I flew back to Charlotte to sit in the ER for four hours and found it was broken. Workman's comp no joke. Its been about a part time job filling out forms, talking to any number of supervisors, going to doctor appointments, etc etc. I actually have my little aluminum finger brace off right now to type this and it is sending little shock waves up my hand every time I need the left middle finger-- which is, let's face it- ALWAYS. Typing or Driving it is a very useful appendage. The same goes for washing your hair and your hands... I'm looking forward to getting back to normal. I have another appointment with the company doctor on Monday so then I will know if I'm to be released back to work or not. I'm undecided on what I'm hoping for.

    During my little two-week hiatus, I made it down to the keys and up to Buffalo to hang out with ironman again on two separate occasions. I spent another day in Gainesville. I applied for my visa to enter Brazil as a tourist and I got a big chunk of my 2015 scrapbook done. Hooray! Right now, though, I'm flying to PIT for the day to visit my dad in the hospital. He is undergoing some pretty intense chemo this week. Hopefully I can surprise him and make the day go faster for him.

    2016 GOALS

    1) Learn how to drive a standard
    2) Learn how to do a back walkover
    3) Learn how to do a couple of those cool braids that go across your head
    4) Take the Japanese language test for flight attendants, if they will let me, otherwise study for it
    5) Ride on 2 new airlines

    So, I'm not curing AIDS or anything, but its a pretty good path to a good year and self improvement. I'm very happy that I was able to accomplish all five of last years goals. Very, very pleased indeed.

January 2016
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