Day Off

In my job it is important to have the day off. When I get home I have usually been gone for three days. I need to clean around the house, do laundry, and I am involved with quite a few organizations that require attention too. I am a member of Women in Aviation, International Society of Women Airline Pilots, Bear Creek Community Church, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, Air Line Pilots Association to name a few. I also play tennis in three different leagues (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday mornings), bowl on Thursday night, rock climb, fly our Cessna 172, and try to stay active in my Church. At some point I need to be a good wife, friend, and family member too. With all of these things to do it can be difficult to have an actual day off. Saturday, I didn't even leave the house. I stayed in my pajamas and Mike cooked a fantastic dinner and we watched a UK game. My job requires quite a bit of energy so sometimes I need to take a break from packing and going constantly. Today, I am home and I don't have anything planned until later tonight. I am meeting a young girl from Japan who is flying freight into DFW from Abilene every night during the week. She is trying to get a type rating scholarship from International Society of Women Airline Pilots. She is my age and is working very hard to further her career. I was fortunate to have some awesome women help me when I was looking to advance to the majors. Now it is my turn to mentor. I was doing exactly the same job as her in 1998. I can relate to her situation. Unfortunately, for Keiko there aren't many major Airline jobs to be had at this time. She is smart to be applying for these great scholarships. It helps to be prepared for the time when the airlines start to hire again. I was blessed with great timing. Because of the fact when I was qualified for the jump to the majors most of the Airlines were hiring and I did get hired by a good company that is still in business. I wish it was skill or forethought that made me successful. That would mean that I could tell these young ladies that they will definitely be working for a great company if they do XYZ. In some ways this career is like hitting the lottery or becoming a celebrity. For every one that achieves their dreams, there are many others that will not. It is a worthy career goal. But it will not end up exactly as planned. I was sure that I would work for Delta or UPS and live close to Kentucky. But I have lived in some of the most fascinating places like San Antonio, Miami and Dallas. And overall I wouldn't change a thing.