Actually to Seattle first to change planes…Then we go…

In the last post, we were at the Kansas City International Airport getting ready to leave. Moving along,  we then boarded an Alaska Airline 737 and took our seats.  Somehow in all our travels, we have never flown with Alaska.  I would best describe them as “laidback”.   I’m expecting to get grief over bringing my backpack and my carry-on suitcase on the plane. The problem is my “personal carry-on item”, the backpack, is huge compared to my suitcase.  They see me stumbling down the aisle and don’t even bat an eye.   I probably could have brought my favorite recliner on board and they would have just smiled and made room.  I learned three things during this flight. 1.  The old story of the screaming child on an airplane is real.  2. Sailors really do cuss like Sailors, and 3.  Alaska has a credit card which they are quite proud of and will gladly tell you all about it.  To expand…

1. So in wanders a Mother and her 15 month (ish) daughter, who clearly wanted absolutely nothing to do with this plane.  They land in the row in front of us and to the right.  She howled from take-off until 20 minutes before the plane landed and this was a four hour flight.  Her mother did her best but to no avail  and the little lady finally went to sleep…after 3 1/2 hours.  The kid has stamina, I’ll give her that.

2.  A young sailor was sitting just behind me and to my right.  He was quite frustrated with the crying situation and was speaking loudly to his friends expressing, in a most colorful way, his thoughts on the matter.   Over the 14 hour flight (felt like), he covered so many topics and at 22 years old, he apparently, had single-handedly solved most of the worlds problems and was anxious to tell the back of the plane how he did it.  I received an internal update to my brain’s hard-drive on the modern vernacular of the 20 something male.   I learned that I was Way out of date on today’s current “salty” language and I learned how to seamlessly mesh them into a conversation that I am certain would not end well.  I am now updated.  iMichael version 7.1.

3. About 30 minutes before landing, an announcement from the cockpit…a landing report perhaps, weather update?  No, a commercial for the Alaska Air Credit card.  I hoped it wasn’t the pilot and was relieved when I saw that it was one of our flight attendants who actually did an excellent job.  It lasted about 5-7 minutes and most of the people seemed completely annoyed at the commercial interruption.  I thought it was hysterical.  Lilly just hung her head and commented that she just can’t seem to escape the Points and Miles thing.  Then, to complete her hell,  the attendants began  walking down the aisle handing out credit card applications and making sure you didn’t miss any of the details.  Talk about a captive audience.   Alaska definitely has a “set of balls”, the sailor mumbled as he declined the offer.

My intentions are to really talk about the trip and how it relates to the use of Points and Miles…But, the PEOPLE you meet along the way.   Wow!  Remember, it’s not about the destination, its about the journey.