Jeff California
02-08-2005, 02:18 AM
Saturday-
Andrea and I stayed in a hotel down the street from Marks work. We were to meet Mark there at 9:30 AM the following day and leave our car to save money.
I was pretty nervous about flying as it had been over a year...
We met Mark and headed off to the airport. Part of the problem with flying anxiety is getting to the airport and figuring out where you need to be. Mark had asked the night before "are you checking any bags" to which I responded "yes". I realized he was not and decided to eliminate this task. We took only what we had to have and left the rest in the car. The Ontario airport was dead and everything went smoothly. Before I knew it, we were waiting to pre-board. The flight was a full one, so the boarding staff was busy busy busy. We chatted with the crew and took our seats. I sat and thought about a full flight being hard to lift off the ground...
I was nervous. I think Mark was a little nervous, but having just met him, I am not sure. I wanted to get in the air and it seemed like forever before we taxied.. Mark got the window and my wife sat in the aisle seat. It worked out good for me. My best friend to my right and a new friend to my left.
Mark took pictures and pointed out different things which really helped me take my mind off anxiety. He also told me "Jeff, pretend it's Ray flying" and I was able to do that, which helped.
We had very little turbulence and between Mark pointing out scenery and using his dvd player, everything went fast. After 15 minutes into the flight we both marveled at how calm we were and how we could keep flying for hours now that the anxiety was dealt with.
Another ironic comparison regarding safety. We got picked up by the shuttle van for Inn Suites. Once we arrived, Mark asked if they would accept some cash to take us over to the Roost later in the eve. We were told that the shuttle van had bald tires and the steel belts were poking out, so they could not do that. This is the same van they had just driven us 5 miles in....:rolling:
It was a great flight and my wife did not get bruised knees from me squeezing due to anxiety.
Thanks Mark and everyone here who has helped make this easier for all of us nervous flyers.
Flight Fest Phx was a great success in many ways.
Andrea and I stayed in a hotel down the street from Marks work. We were to meet Mark there at 9:30 AM the following day and leave our car to save money.
I was pretty nervous about flying as it had been over a year...
We met Mark and headed off to the airport. Part of the problem with flying anxiety is getting to the airport and figuring out where you need to be. Mark had asked the night before "are you checking any bags" to which I responded "yes". I realized he was not and decided to eliminate this task. We took only what we had to have and left the rest in the car. The Ontario airport was dead and everything went smoothly. Before I knew it, we were waiting to pre-board. The flight was a full one, so the boarding staff was busy busy busy. We chatted with the crew and took our seats. I sat and thought about a full flight being hard to lift off the ground...
I was nervous. I think Mark was a little nervous, but having just met him, I am not sure. I wanted to get in the air and it seemed like forever before we taxied.. Mark got the window and my wife sat in the aisle seat. It worked out good for me. My best friend to my right and a new friend to my left.
Mark took pictures and pointed out different things which really helped me take my mind off anxiety. He also told me "Jeff, pretend it's Ray flying" and I was able to do that, which helped.
We had very little turbulence and between Mark pointing out scenery and using his dvd player, everything went fast. After 15 minutes into the flight we both marveled at how calm we were and how we could keep flying for hours now that the anxiety was dealt with.
Another ironic comparison regarding safety. We got picked up by the shuttle van for Inn Suites. Once we arrived, Mark asked if they would accept some cash to take us over to the Roost later in the eve. We were told that the shuttle van had bald tires and the steel belts were poking out, so they could not do that. This is the same van they had just driven us 5 miles in....:rolling:
It was a great flight and my wife did not get bruised knees from me squeezing due to anxiety.
Thanks Mark and everyone here who has helped make this easier for all of us nervous flyers.
Flight Fest Phx was a great success in many ways.