Perspectives
Two really funny threads from jetgirls.net, both about what it’s like to be married to a pilot and what funny things other people have to say about it.
This one is about how people think piloting is such a glamorous profession that they tend to completely ignore the accompanying partner at events.
This one is about stupid things that people who don’t know anything about the industry say.
Looking forward to having my own stories to recount one day.
Bringing home the bacon AND frying it up in the pan
It’s going to take us a few more days to get there, but we seem to be settling into a routine. M has stopped asking “who’s going to be my daddy if A is gone?”, I haven’t had any meltdowns b/c my man isn’t there to take care of me; we are doing fine. I was teary at the airport, but once M and I were outside, I was fine and I have been ever since.
Things I miss:
- being able to make A get up to let the cat in/out at 4am
- having someone to carry groceries up the stairs
- having someone to agree with me when I decide we should go out to dinner
- someone else being able to read a story, run a bath, pick out clothes when I am too busy
- having someone to discuss the days events with and bounce ideas off that seem too far fetched to try on anyone else
- knowing that someone else is responsible for taking care of that- whatever that happens to be at the moment
 Things I don’t miss:
- fighting over how high to set the AC
- someone stealing the covers
- someone having eaten the snack I was looking forward to having when I got home
- the seemingly constant fart jokes that my two “boys” make
Things I am looking forward to:
- when he is home, he is all mine- no worries that he’ll have to retrain someone who failed a checkride and infringe on our saturday
- two incomes and health insurance for all
- the uniform, hat included
So what’s it like to be the one left behind?
Well, yeah, it’s kinda lonely. But no more lonely than when I got separated. Actually, it’s probably better than that b/c at least I can talk to him and have him tell me what a good person I am and that he misses me instead of hearing the negative. And it’s ONLY for 6 weeks. I thank God every day that I’m not a military wife. Yeah, being a single parent is hard, but routine and good planning can alleviate some of that. Instead of boo-hooing that he is gone, I’m excited for him for having this opportunity. And jealous in some respects. Yeah, I’d love to be shacked up in a hotel with nothing to do but study instead of having to be home taking care of all the other crap. But I wouldn’t savor having a mystery roommate or wondering how I was going to get dinner that night. And I wouldn’t do well with the pressure to pass the tests. Will my tune change around week 5? Probably. But by then I’ll be able to look forward to him being home more.
This week’s helpful hint- when taking tests, you only have to get an 80% to pass. Anything more is just wasted effort. In flight training, it’s all pass or fail, there is no GPA to be proud of. A pass is a pass is a pass. A bad attitude? Maybe. But it’s the truth.
 Also, I want to say thanks to the people who have posted comments. I LOVE comments. I am a comment whore! I appreciate what everyone has to say- good or bad- and knowing that people are reading my blog, even if they don’t agree with what I have to say.
Taking the leap
Took A to the airport last night. Emotions won out over logic and I was teary. Did my best to keep it in check though. Not sure when he’ll get to come home again. Could be this weekend, could be three weeks. We are hopefull it will be this weekend so he can attend M’s 5th birthday party. Then we’ll be looking at about two more weeks until he returns home for the next visit. Curently, I’m feeling very dramatic- coming up with literary poetics like: Standing at the edge of a great precipice (taking the leap of going to the airlines).
M and I went camping with a cousin this weekend for M’s birthday. We had a really fun time. We returned home to a bed full of unpacked clothing an hour before we had to leave for the airport. Nothing like waiting until the last minute. Glad this man works well under pressure.
His entire class got sent to a different hotel than everyone prior due to some room scheduling conflicts. So A doesn’t get to see his friends too much and is staying at a crappy hotel instead of a nicer one. Again, this doesn’t inspire confidence in the airline as they failed to notify anyone in the class that they needed to report to a different hotel. They left it up to the overbooked hotel to tell them. Ummm, perhaps they could have sent out an email to the 16 or so pilots coming? Or called them? Just a thought…
I need to get my thoughts together before I can really write about what it feels like to be the one left behind.