Flying and Me (a sad but at times funny story)

(photo credit)

As you may or may not know, we took a trip to Britain last month.  We went by plane and I thought I would share with you how it went.  I suffer from motion sickness; I am NOT afraid of flying,.....well other than flying anywhere over Asia........they are having a lot of bad luck over there, I just feel ill from the minute the plane takes off until it lands.  Gravol doesn't work, so I just put up with it.

We flew with Air Transat which is who we usually use.  Cheap and cheerful and gets us from A to B without any detours.  It is generally a 6 to 6 1/2 hour flight from Toronto to Glasgow depending on the tail wind.  This time we did it in 6 hours straight.  We generally set off between 7 pm to 9 pm Toronto time and land first thing in the morning Glasgow time.  There is a five hour time difference so we are landing middle of the night Toronto time.  So it is a night flight, and they turn the lights down in the plane so people can have a nap middle of the flight if they want; this information is important!!!

For anyone who has flown Air Transat and I guess lots of other cheap and cheerful airlines, there is not a lot of seat room, but I know in our case going from "cattle class" to "club class" the flights were double; and in my case it wouldn't matter where I sat I would still feel as sick as a dog.  When we booked the flights there were only two seats left that were together and they were right at the back next to the bathrooms.  They got terrible reviews, but it meant me and dh could stretch out and put out seats back.

WE WILL NEVER EVER BOOK THOSE SEATS AGAIN!!!

One our flight we had numerous people with bladder infections as all they seemed to do is go back and forward to the bathroom all night.  Oh and every time they had to hold onto the back of my seat; I had the aisle seat.

We had the "Scottish Stretching Team," on board it seems.  Half way through the night, three of them got up to stretch, but instead of stretching by their seats at the front of the plane, they decided there was more room by the bathrooms.  While they were doing their stretching and hanging onto our seats while doing it, they thought they should make sure the pilot could hear what they were talking about.  I turned around and gave them "the look," to my surprise they did not shrivel up and die but carried on with what they were doing.  I finally got up to go to the bathroom and said to them, "some people are trying to sleep."

We had numerous little children on the flight the youngest being a 5 week old baby; who by the way we never heard a peep out of.  There were two toddlers amongst the kids; a 17 month old who wouldn't go to sleep.  Anyone with a child that age knows children get cranky when they don't get their sleep.  So the mother walked him up and down and stood behind our seats trying to rock him to sleep.  The other toddler was closer to 2 years of age and I am not sure if it was his ears or what but he was NOT a happy camper and screamed on and off throughout the flight.  She had another child around 5 years of age with her, who was as good as gold, but she must have been exhausted by the time she got home.

As we got closer to Glasgow the more turbulence we encountered and the sicker I felt.  They were having 90 mph winds in Glasgow and lets just say those winds pushed the plane around a lot.  Obviously our seat belts were on way before we landed, mine probably even sooner.  The landing was that bad all the passengers clapped when we landed as we were all glad to be alive.  One of the staff said she had never had experienced such a landing in all her 26 years of being a Stewardess.  I did not have a speck of colour in my face dh said until we got through the customs.  I did not vomit though, so that's a positive.  I did not even speak to anyone until we got through customs as I honestly just wanted to lay down in the middle of the floor and either die or go to sleep I didn't really care either way....LOL  

The flight back was a bit better, hardly any turbulence and a half empty flight so everyone got to stretch out.  What children that were on the plane we all happy.  I still felt as sick as a dog from it taking off until it landed and I was starving for some strange reason.  I even asked when they were serving lunch as despite feeling sick to my stomach I had to have something to eat.  

First thing we did when we left the airport was find a Tim Hortons for something to eat.  Oh and another thing, I have bad ears.  I am very familiar with ear infections, so of course my ears pop in the plane.  This time however dh was the one who suffered with a bad ear.  He went for a couple of days when we got home with reduced hearing in one ear.  He is fine now.

I have told anyone who wants to listen, that if I never have to set foot in a plane ever again it will not bother me.  I will have to fly again though, as the majority of our families are in Britain, but it is something I am NOT looking forward too.  I also get motion sickness in cars, but not to the same degree.

Do you like to fly?

(By the way my stomach is heaving just writing this...LOL)

Book Review and a neat photo.........

Promises to Keep - Ann Tatlock

Eleven-year-old Roz (Rosalind) Anthony and her family have just moved to Mills River, Illinois, to escape an abusive situation. Only days after settling into their new home, they are surprised to find the previous owner, Tillie Monroe, on their front porch reading the newspaper. Though her sons have sold the house and sent her to a facility for the aged, she is determined to die in the place she lived her life and somehow manages to find her way "home" day after day. Feeling sympathy for the elderly woman, Roz's mother allows Tillie to move back in.


Mara Nightingale becomes Roz's first friend in Mills River. In spite of their many differences, the girls discover they have something in common that binds them together--both are hiding secrets. So they make a promise--cross my heart and hope to die"--never to tell anyone else.

When danger stalks the Anthonys, Tillie exhibits unimaginable courage and selfless love in her determination to protect the family she has adopted as her own.

I loved this book, the story was so easy to relate too and to immerse yourself into.  I wanted to turn the page just to see what was going to happen next.  For anyone who has ever been an 11 year old girl you can so relate to what Roz and Mara feel.  Their total innocence in believing the best in people despite what other people tell you.

I didn't know what was going to happen to the very end; you had an idea but what did happen was still a bit of a surprise.  I have never read any of Ann Tatlock's books before, but I am now a huge fan she is a super writer.  I would really recommend you buying this book or requesting it from your local library as it is a winner.

Stars out of 5: 5 I just loved this book...........

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group".
Where I work is very close to the Toronto airport.  The planes take off and land over the shop area.  When we first moved there I used to duck when the airplanes came over now I never here them.  It's funny now to watch customers duck if they are new to the place.  By the way you only really hear them when the big doors are open in the warehouse in the Summer or if you are standing outside.  Anyhow Alan took this photo of a KLM 747 coming in to land on Monday.  I never saw it as I think he said it came into land just after I left.

It's neat how close they come isn't it, and you can see the landing wheels already down ready to land.  Thank you Alan for letting me use your photo.

It's a snow day for me today so no work.......we are in for a big dumping of snow, so I get the day off from work to snow plow the driveway...............not sure which I would prefer to do?????    Only another 47 days until Spring.............