It turns out what ailed us could have been the c-virus. Maybe not. Who knows? The test was negative. The symptoms were consistent with “IT” though. We rode it out and live to blog another day, from a sunnier and warmer locale. Hello Florida! After a round of antibiotics, we are on the mend. My flight to Florida was wonderful on Delta Airlines. I kid you not. I was in First Class. No, this is NOT normal. It was a birthday gift, but Delta was amazing, as it always has been. Even the announcements at the departing airport from the attendants at the kiosk were, well, normal, compared to the announcements from American Airlines attendants over the loudspeakers. The AA announcements came across as more of threat laced instructions than helpful information. Theirs went something like this “American Airlines flight 666 to Hell will be boarding at gate H3 in 5 seconds. You are required to wear an approved mask. You cannot have one that is not approved by the government. It cannot have holes or vents. If you do wear one of these you will not be allowed onto the plane. If you need an approved mask, one can be picked up at no charge to you, from the kiosk by the jet way entrance. You will not be allowed on board if you do not have the required mask. Your flight to hell will be boarding shortly.” I am completely serious about everything except the destination…of course. But maybe not.
Delta went at it a little differently and a lot more humanely. “Welcome to Delta. We appreciate your business. We understand that wearing masks all the time is very difficult. We are hoping this mandate goes away within the next few weeks, but until then, know that your flight attendants have just come from ATL and have been in masks for a long day and we hate them as much as you do. So, to make our job easier and your trip more enjoyable, mask up even though we all hate it. Have a good flight.” They have a customer for life. I was loyal to Pan Am, which then became Delta and the few times when I have strayed onto United or American, I have been sorry. I have literally flown millions of miles and Delta has been top notch. Alaska Airlines used to be a close second, but they have fallen hard to tie for second to last place.
I did my part and took the survey after the flight. My response was heartfelt and grateful for the flight attendants and pilots. I appreciate the empathetic approach. It was just 2 short years ago that it was “15 Days to Slow the Spread.” Now, here we all are, still in it and deeper than we should have ever allowed.
So, here is a shout out to all those people who have kept on keeping on for the greater good. The ones who have kept on keeping their jobs so we can fly, shop, go out to eat or basically continue to live our lives. Especially if the federal government has anything to do with that life. Air travel, airports and the shops and restaurants in them, the airplanes, the baggage handlers, the airport staff, and the list goes on. Here is to the people that were forced to get vaccinated just to put food on the table. Thank you to all of you.
Now, if we are all truly “over this” as we all are saying, then we need to stand together. We are nothing alone, but if we are all on the same page, there is no beating us down. Again. Just say no. Civil disobedience? What is that? Can they really arrest all of us if we decide to NOT mask up at the airports?? I wonder what would happen?
Now, move along. Nothing to see here.