Tag: airplane

Posted in noticing, outdoors

Around and around

Posted on by William Douthwaite

We were almost home from a morning walk when I noticed a large circular contrail in the sky. I’m used to seeing the contrails of early morning flights crisscross the sky. I don’t remember ever seeing one that circled back on itself.

I took this photo facing east, so the jet would have been out over the ocean. We guessed the plane was in a holding pattern, waiting for clearance to land. As we looked, we could just see the plane at the front of the contrail, heading back north, most likely into Jacksonville.

When I looked up circular contrails, a conspiracy website said they were actually chemtrails. According to them, some sinister group was spraying toxins into the air to poison a population. That’s an imaginative idea to be sure.

Another person suggested it was a flight pattern for training. That’s possible. We’ve seen a lot of air national guard planes and helicopters overhead the past few weeks.

Anyway, it was a beautiful part of this morning’s sky.

Posted in Stories

The aisle seat

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Suhyeon Choi on Unsplash

With my boarding pass in hand, I kind of smiled and said, “I think you’re in my seat.”

The woman’s confused look turned into annoyance when I explained, “I’m in seat C; A is the window seat.”

“You mean I have to sit by the window?”

“You don’t like the window seat?”

When she shook her head, I said, “Okay, I’ll take the window seat.”

Once I settled into my seat, my wife mouthed, “I can’t believe you did that!”

A few days ago, I had used some of our accumulated airline miles to upgrade our seats to a comfort plus row where we were across the aisle from each other. After five hours from Hawaii to Los Angeles, a little extra room would be nice on the next flight home.

I shrugged and texted her, “I thought I should be nice.”

After takeoff, I folded down my tray table and did a little bit of journaling. I glanced up when a bump and an “Ow!” came from the aisle seat. The beverage cart had slammed her funny bone in just the right agonizing spot. I tried to keep a straight face as I got back to my writing.

The sound of pulled-back cellophane from the aisle seat was interrupted by a frantic, “Ew!” The fourteen dollar fruit and cheese plate wasn’t as fresh as advertised, featuring fuzzy blue mold and a little insect. Her sudden recoil soaked her lap with a diet soda. I was able to muffle a chuckle.

When my eyelids got heavy, I put my seat back and dozed off for a few minutes. Aisle-seat’s mother, in the center seat, jostled me, trying to adjust the reading lights and air blower. Neither one for the aisle seat worked. And for some reason, that seat wouldn’t recline.

I didn’t even try to hide my grin as I closed my eyes.

The first half of this story is true. The second half may have been a dream.

Posted in Life

Where are you?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

He hadn’t moved for hours.

He was already in the window seat when I slid into the center seat and stuffed my bag under the seat in front of me. He didn’t nod or look or even notice me. He just stared out the window, cell phone in hand. I don’t think he moved even once during boarding, the long wait for takeoff, and 150 minutes in the air.

As we were just about to land, his phone caught a cell signal and I spied on his oversized texts with someone on the ground.

[We’re landing head to the pickup area]

[Where are you]

[We’re landing go to the pickup area]

We were just about to touch down at DFW. The Dallas – Fort Worth airport has five terminals, and each terminal has multiple pickup areas for arriving flights. You need to let your ride know exactly where you will be.

[Which terminal are you in]

[I’m in the big yellow plane]

Spirit airlines has big yellow planes. Lots of them. And they seem to be everywhere.

[Where are you]

[I’ll find you when I get off the plane]

Infrequent fliers must be intimidated by air travel through some of the huge airports. Maybe I should have offered to help. Or, maybe I shouldn’t have been looking over his shoulder reading his texts.