The first week of February we finally got snow in St. Louis. Snow not only fell in St. Louis, it fell all across the Midwest. To celebrate, myself and my fellow Skytresses and Skyters had an impromptu crew slumber party in the crew lounge. I’ll admit. It wasn’t much of a party. I’m pretty sure no one really slumbered, either. I know I didn’t. But, saying we had a party, instead of saying we got stuck in Atlanta, sounds so much fancier. Yessiree. It does indeed.

Fortunately, it’s been years since I had to spend the night in the crew lounge. That time my Skytress commuter friend, Regina, and I missed our flight home because of thunderstorms. We enjoyed flying together. But, we decided having a layover at home on Father’s Day was not worth the crazy trip. However, if I had to stay in the crew lounge with anyone, I was blessed to have Regina there with me. I knew this time when I spent the evening in the crew lounge I wouldn’t be alone. I had seen enough flight cancellations on the flight board to know the lounge would be humming with activity.

Earlier in the day I had great hopes that my flight to St. Louis would go as scheduled. I had been monitoring the flights into and out of St. Louis for the previous two days. Several flights had canceled. Other flights had departed and landed on time. Despite the ugly weather updates I was getting from the St. Louis weathermen, I was encouraged that my flight status was still showing on time. My First Officer on our flight from Phoenix to Atlanta also commuted from St. Louis. We both had to fly a turn before our flight home. First Officer Craig had an Orlando turn. I had to fly to Milwaukee and back. Needless to say, we were both counting down the time until our flight home. I did have a two-hour sit in Atlanta before I flew to Milwaukee. I used this time to call home and get the latest weather update from my sister.

My sister Patti explained the weathermen had been wrong with their forecast. They had predicted the heavy snow would end at noon. Now they were predicting the snow would end in the evening. I was concerned with this latest forecast. I would be landing at midnight. The thought of digging out my Suburban this late at night was not appealing to me. Yes. Me. The one who always proclaims my love for snow. Ironic, eh?!

I was chitchatting with several Skyters in the lounge when my sister Patti called me back. She asked me if I had an extra car key at home. I told her I did. She then asked me where the employee parking lot was at the airport. She explained that she and my brother-in-law, Pat, were going to go to the parking lot and clean off my Suburban while it was still daylight. She didn’t want me cleaning the ice and snow off my car at midnight in a desolate parking lot. I admit. I do have the best sister in the world. I tried my best to describe where the parking lot was and how to enter it. Fortunately, I got an excellent parking space for someone trying to find my car. After I hung up with my sister I decided to draw a picture of the parking lot and text it to her. It was a very crude drawing. But, I think it explained things much better than my verbal explanation. After I sent my text, I checked my flight home. It was still departing on time. Yessiree. I was very hopeful.

We were heading to Milwaukee when I found out my flight home had canceled. Initially I was shocked and disappointed. I really wanted to get home. I only had one day off and then I would be heading back to Atlanta to start another trip. But, as I always tell people. I have never not gotten home. Sometimes it’s just later than planned. This would be one of those times. I, also, know that God delays us to protect us. Knowing this, I couldn’t be mad and upset with the cancellation. I called my sister when we landed in Milwaukee. She and my brother-in-law were in the process of cleaning the snow and thick ice off my car. She wasn’t surprised my flight had canceled. However, she knew I was looking forward to coming home that evening. Patti lifted my spirits by telling me my car would be in excellent shape when I arrived in the morning. I was eternally grateful for this fact. Yessiree. Patti definitely is the best sister in the world.

My crew couldn’t ave been nicer when I told them my flight was canceled. They had been rooting for my flight to depart as scheduled. The sweet, young Skytress on my crew offered for me to come spend the night at her home. I graciously declined. I would only be in the crew lounge for eight or so hours. Heck. Some days I sit four hours in the lounge before I sign in for my trip. What was an extra four hours? Plus, I knew I wouldn’t be alone in the lounge. And I wasn’t.

When I arrived in the crew lounge I immediately saw Skytresses and Skytress that commute to Atlanta. I sat down at the computer next to a Skytress I flew with several times in the last few weeks. She told me she had landed at 3pm. She had watched all her flights to Cleveland canceled for the rest of the day. She, like me, would be staying in the lounge until our 8am flights. Skytress Kim was fortunate in one aspect. Since she had been hanging out at the airport all afternoon, she was able to score one of the few recliners in the crew lounge. Yes. We do have a crew sleep room in the lounge. However, this room gets locked during the night. It doesn’t matter if inclement weather causes the crew lounge to be filled with sleepy Skytresses and Skytrers. A supervisor always locks the room at night. I looked around the lounge at my makeshift bed options. I grabbed a seat in the corner of the lounge. It was near a coveted outlet. Yessiree. I felt like a inclement weather winner. I plugged my iPad charger into the outlet. My slumber party plan was to catch up on some Instagram viewing and watch a few things on YouTube and Netflix.

A fellow St. Louis Skytress came over to talk to me. She had hoped to go home and then come back the next day to fly another trip. The flight cancellations got her, too. A few minutes after she left to go sleep in her chair another Skytress friend arrived in the lounge. Skytress Lou missed her flight home because they had a mechanical in Wichita. She knew my flight was departing at the gate upstairs from our lounge. She told me a passenger on her flight was supposed to be on the 11pm flight to St. Louis. Skytress Lou had befriended the woman. The woman was leaving an abusive husband. The story Skytress Lou told me about the passenger made my predicament of staying in the lounge pale in comparison.

I did try to close my eyes several times during the night. I just couldn’t fall asleep. I thought about heading over to one of the pilot lounges or our international lounge. However, I figured those lounges would be packed with people, too. I finally gave up on trying to sleep. I decided I would go into the restroom and wash my face and reapply my makeup. I figured it would make me feel more human on my flight home. Yes. We do have showers in the crew lounge. Admittedly, I wasn’t gung-ho to take one to make myself feel more human.

Skytress Lou decided she would accompany me to my gate to check on the woman passenger from her flight. Lou had a little time before her flight to Knoxville. As I collected my things, I saw a penny on the floor. Ah, another penny from Heaven! I put it in my left pocket and we headed up to my gate. I checked in with the agent for the Skytress jumpseat. Then I went over to talk to the passenger from Lou’s flight. As I was talking to her, I reached into my pocket to take my phone out. It wasn’t there. I checked my flight bags. It wasn’t in there, either. I had an awful feeling I left it on the chair in the crew lounge. The agents were minutes away from starting to board the plane. I apologized to the woman passenger from Lou’s flight. I told her I had to run back to the crew lounge for my phone. The jumpseating pilot could see the panicked look on my face. I told him I had to run to the lounge to look for my phone. I was walked briskly back down the concourse. My commuting First Officer, Craig, called out my name. He saw me walking quickly. He asked me if there had been a gate change. I quickly told him I had to run back to the lounge to get my phone. I’ll admit. I was in powerful prayer mode. I decided to forgot the train. I dragged my bags from one concourse to the other concourse. My penny in my pocket gave me confidence that I would make it back to my flight on time. Still I made haste. I left my flight bags near the elevator when I walked into the lounge. I quickly went to the chair I had been sitting in for hours prior. It wasn’t there. I walked over to the duty desk and asked the supervisor if anyone had turned in a phone. He said someone had. As he pulled out my phone from a drawer, he told me he made an announcement in the lounge asking if anyone had lost the phone. I smiled and told him I didn’t hear his announcement because I was on another concourse. He laughed. I reversed course and I headed back to my gate. I merged in with the passengers boarding my flight. I checked in with the pilots and Skytress In-Charge. Then I headed to the back galley. First Officer Craig was sitting in an exit row seat. He was happy to see me as I made my way to the back of the plane. After introducing myself to the Skytresses in the back, I stepped into the aft lavatory to try to dab the sweat that was on my face. So much for redoing my makeup. Thank goodness for my face mask. The crew working the flight couldn’t have been nicer. The Skytress In-Charge called the Skytresses in the back of the plane. She informed them there would be an open aisle seat in the last row for me. I was blessed to get a seat on an oversold flight. Many of the passengers had flights cancel the previous day. I sat in my seat and gave thanks to God. Then I watched the Olympic Opening Ceremonies on the in-seat tv monitor. Yessiree. Life was great.

I talked to one of my commuting pilots when I stepped off the employee shuttle. He filled me in on the road conditions. I filled him in on my sister and brother-in-law cleaning off my car. He was impressed. My Suburban did slide a wee bit as I pulled out of my parking spot. I said a quick prayer that I didn’t hit the shuttle shelter or the pilot. The drive home was not what I expected. The roads were still snowpacked. Thankfully I made it home safely.

I didn’t go to sleep until later that night. Nope. I was too busy getting my things ready to fly back to Atlanta the next day on the 6am flight. When I placed my head on my pillow I had been up 38 hours. I was exhausted. But, I was also excited. I had one more trip to fly before I went on vacation. I needed a vacation after my last trip. Crew slumber parties are simply exhausting!

Prisoners on a plane. No. I’m not talking about dramatic passengers talking about their ordeal of being on the airplane longer than they wanted. I’m not talking about the movie Conair, where the prisoners take over the plane, either. Nope. I’m talking about actual prisoners on our airplanes. Say, what?! Yes. Every once in awhile we have prisoners travel on our airplanes. Don’t worry. They aren’t traveling alone. They have law enforcement escorts. You will most likely never know you have a prisoner on board your flight. But, your crew will know. We are informed about these things. Even if we weren’t informed about these things we would figure it out. Yessiree. Skytresses and Skyters can pick prisoners out on the airport concourses from a mile away. Heck. It’s just another one of our super powers.

Let me reassure everyone that the prisoners on our airplanes are nonviolent. You, also, aren’t going to have a prisoner as your seat mate. Well, unless of course you are the law enforcement officer escorting them. For security purposes I can’t divulge the protocols that take place when a prisoner is on board. I will, however, disclose some of my favorite stories of having prisoners on my flights. After all, they are pretty good stories. I thought about some of these stories the other day as we headed to West Palm Beach. You see, we had a prisoner on board with his escorts. They all were watching the basketball game on their respective screens chitchatting away with one another. I must say, the prisoner had the best smelling food I’ve smelled on an airplane in months. If this was his last meal for awhile on the outside, he sure picked a good one. Yessiree. It’s not often that I am envious of a prisoner on our airplane.

A prisoner on the plane story that always stands out in my mind happened when I was a Skytress based in Cincinnati. My boyfriend at the time, Captain Pilot, and I were heading to Louisville. He was flying the plane. I had just finished my trip and was heading to Louisville to spend the layover with him. Since I was still in my Skytress uniform, I asked the agents if they would like me to help them pull tickets as the passengers boarded the airplane. They were very appreciative for the help. Most passengers handed me their tickets individually. Every once in awhile a family or couple would board together and one person in the group would hand me all the tickets. The last three passengers came to the boarding podium. They were three adult men. The one gentleman handed me three tickets. I thought it was a bit odd that they didn’t hand me their own tickets. But, odd is pretty much normal when you are a Skytress. So, I didn’t think too much after they walked past me to get on the plane. The agents thanked me for the help and then I, too, went down the jetway to board the plane. I was the last passenger on the plane. The row in front of the three gentlemen that boarded last was completely vacant. So, I sat down to have a row to myself. It was then I started to put the pieces together. Three unlikely men boarded the plane together. One handed me all the tickets. He handed me all the tickets because the guy in the middle couldn’t. The last guy had his hands on the guy in the middle. The agents had moved passengers forward of the row the gentlemen were sitting in. Duh!! I was sitting in front of a prisoner and his escorts. I chuckled on the inside. When Captain Pilot and I got off the airplane he asked me if I knew that we had a prisoner on the flight. Since I wasn’t working the flight I wasn’t privy to this information. I told Captain Pilot I had figured it all out AFTER I sat down in the row ahead of them. Captain Pilot teasingly asked me if I asked the prisoner what he had done to get himself into his predicament. I told Captain Pilot I was too scared to ask. But, I was dying to know. This is typical when we have a prisoner on board. Everyone is curious to know the details. However, no one is ever brave enough to ask. Well, except for my Skytress friend Darlene . Darlene was brave enough.

Skytress Darlene, Skyter Robin and I were flying from Cincinnati to Phoenix. The gate agent informed us we would have an escorted prisoner on our flight. I was overly curious when the escorted prisoner boarded the plane. The escorted prisoner appeared to be a weathered, old gentleman. I immediately felt sad for the guy. Ah, heck. I always feel sad for the prisoners. After all, they are heading to prison. I wondered about the prisoner throughout the boarding process. I wondered about him as we set out to start our in-flight service. Skytress Darlene was on the backside of our beverage cart. I knew she would be the one to serve the prisoner and the law enforcement officers. As I served the passengers on my side of the cart, I could see Skytress Darlene talking with the law enforcement guys while she was pouring their drinks. They were laughing with her. Yessiree. Skytress Darlene has a beautiful knack for making everyone feel at ease. It’s one of her amazing Skytress powers. When we returned to the galley, Skytress Darlene told Skyter Robin and me that the law enforcement officers were really cool. She told us she had a great rapport going with them. Skyter Robin jokingly asked Darlene if she had found out what crime the prisoner had committed. Darlene told Robin that she hadn’t. But, she was going to ask when she went to pick up the trash. Robin and I laughed. We thought she was just kidding. No siree. Darlene was serious. We knew by the way Darlene turned to the main cabin with a pep in her step that she was going to ask the million-dollar question, “What did you do?” Robin and I eagerly waited in the first-class galley for Darlene to return. Skytress Darlene had a huge smile on her face when she returned. Holy moly! Darlene did what no Skytress or Skyter was ever brave enough to do. At least not any Skytress or Skyter I’ve flown with. Darlene actually asked the prisoner what crime he committed. Robin and I were gobsmacked. The prisoner told Darlene he got caught selling drugs. Skytress Darlene joked with the prisoner that he was old enough to know better. The prisoner agreed. He told Darlene he was in his fifties. He was definitely old enough to know better than to sell drugs. Robin and I were dumbstruck by this revelation. Well, I should clarify this. We could believe the gentleman got caught selling drugs. However, we couldn’t believe he was in his fifties. The gentleman was the spitting image of the cartoon character Popeye the sailor man. Only a seventy- year old, missing teeth, gray haired Popeye. The three of us stood in the galley laughed at our preconceived ideas about the prisoner. We were also in complete agreement that this man’s mugshot should be used as a deterrent for using drugs. No one, I mean no one, wants to look like an over-aged Popeye.

I sure wish I was brave enough as Skytress Darlene when I had another escorted prisoner on my flight. The curiosity of what crime this gentleman committed still haunts me. I was the Skytress In-Charge on this particular flight. We were flying from Pensacola to Dallas. I was informed by the gate agent that we would have an escorted prisoner. I took this information in stride. That is until the prisoner and his escorts sat down in first class. I was baffled. Never have I had a prisoner and his escorts sit in first class. I know I told you for security reasons I wouldn’t divulge security protocol. But, I will divulge this. Prisoners don’t sit in first class. I observed the gentleman when he sat down. I immediately concocted an explanation for his first class seat. I decided the prisoner had committed a white collar crime. He looked like a proper businessman. I was convinced he used his frequent flyer miles to upgrade himself and his escorts. Obviously, he wasn’t going to be able to use them for awhile.

I still think about several incidents that occurred on my flights that involved juvenile delinquents. Unlike the prisoners, these young men where not escorted on our airplane. Heck. We didn’t even know they were on board until after the fact. Fortunately for you all, this makes these stories that more interesting. At least I hope it does. The first story happened after we arrived at the gate in Atlanta. I was the Skytress-In Charge. During deplaning, I noticed a gentleman had walked down the jetway and was patiently waiting a few feet from the airplane door . Even though it was prior to 9-11 and airport security was much different, I questioned the gentleman. Yessiree folks. That’s good Skytress training kicking in. The gentleman informed me he was there to pick up a juvenile delinquent. I immediately wondered why I wasn’t privy to this information before we landed in Atlanta. I apologized to the man. I told the gentleman I wasn’t aware we had a juvenile on board that was to be met on deplaning. The gentleman didn’t seem too upset by this information. In fact, he nonchalantly told me the juvenile he was waiting for would be wearing a red shirt. Thus, it would be easy to identify the young man. Our deplaning was almost complete and I could tell there wasn’t a young man on the aircraft. I went back to ask my crew if there was a young man in the bathroom. I explained to my crew that a gentleman was in the jetway waiting for a juvenile delinquent in a red shirt. The one Skytress on my crew had an “ah-ha” moment. She told me during the beverage service a young man reached under his seat and pulled out a shirt from a black Hefty garbage bag. While she took his beverage order, he changed his shirt. She thought it was extremely odd that he changed his shirt while he sat in his seat instead of going to the bathroom to change. But, oddity is pretty normal in the airline world. So she poured his drink and moved on to serve the next passenger. She told me the young man changed from a red shirt to a blue shirt. She said he was sitting towards the front of the main cabin. I turned to head back to the jetway to relay this information to the the gentleman. As I was walking up the aisle, I noticed a black trash bag under a seat. Under normal circumstances I would have decided this bag was just leftover trash from a passenger. I opened the bag. Inside the bag was clothing. There on the top of several items of clothing was a red shirt. I smiled at the cleverness of the young man. He was well aware a man would be looking for him in his red shirt. He outsmarted everyone. I disclosed my discovery to the gentleman in the jetway. I retold him the story my Skytress told me about the young man changing his shirt on the plane. I told him the young man was now wearing a blue shirt. The gentleman took in all this information in stride. He didn’t seem alarmed or surprised. I apologized again for not knowing we had a juvenile delinquent on board. Heck. I could have detained him during deplaning. Amazingly, the gentleman was not alarmed that the young man had evaded him. Instead, he calmly looked me in the eyes and told me not to worry. He said he would find him in the airport. Part of me believed him. The other part of me cheered for the clever young man. The gentleman in the jetway may not have been aware that Atlanta is the world’s busiest airport. Something in my gut told me the juvenile delinquent knew this information and was going to use it to his advantage. Something in my gut also told me if this young man didn’t turn his life around, he could easily end up being an escorted prisoner on one of our planes in a few years.

Another juvenile on one of my flights wasn’t as lucky as the young man in Atlanta. No siree. He was apprehended before the passengers deplaned. I was completely shocked when it happened, too. We had just landed in Cincinnati. The Captain called the crew to inform us we had a runaway juvenile delinquent on our plane. The authorities were waiting to apprehend him when we arrived at our gate. The Captain explained he was going to make an announcement for all the passengers to remain seated when we arrived at the gate. He would inform the passengers we had a passenger that needed assistance on our arrival. As we slowly taxied to our gate, the Captain made his announcement. I wondered which passenger from Phoenix was our runaway. I was flabbergasted when two gentleman walked on our plane and escorted a young man off. I had served the young man during our flight. He was extremely polite. I had multiple questions swirling around my head. I wondered how he purchased his ticket. I wondered how he got to the airport and through security. Mostly, though, I wondered what he was running away from. Instead of being relieved the authorities had caught him, I felt sad for the young man. I was convinced a polite young man, such as this young man, couldn’t be a bad seed. The whole situation confused me. I had so many questions I needed to be answered. I had more questions after a passenger told me the authorities put shackles around the young man’s legs. The passenger could see the shackles as the juvenile walked down the outside stairs to the awaiting car. I prayed this young man would eventually have a better life. I didn’t want to ever see him end up as an escorted prisoner on one of our planes.

Yes. We Skytresses and Skyters may speculate why a prisoner ends up on one of our airplanes. Sometimes we get silly when we try to figure out the predicament. However, we always circle back how sad we feel for them. Heck. We are flying off somewhere to either enjoy our layover, or head home. They are going off to be booked and placed in jail. I’m sure these prisoner passengers are scared. I’m sure they are questioning the bad decisions they’ve made. Heck. I question their decisions. Even though these prisoners are nonviolent, they are still being escorted by law enforcement agents. I’ll admit. I am always impressed with the agents. They always treat the prisoners with dignity and care. I know my fellow Skytresses, Skyters and I do the same. I’m proud to say, other passengers never know we are serving an escorted prisoner. We offer them hospitality with a smile. After all, it may just be the last friendly smile they encounter in awhile. I know I find myself praying for these individuals all through the flight. I think and pray for them even after the flight. I know it is by the grace of God that I am not in their situation. I’ll admit. I much prefer a Skytress uniform to a prisoner’s uniform. Hopefully, God always prefers it this way for me, too.