Bookends - From sunset to fireworks

When I first scheduled a return flight on July 4th I was excited. Leaving at dusk heading west I figured I'd have the best fireworks view I've ever had.

This would indeed prove to be a memorable flight...but not for the reasons I expected. It started with an hour delay in a dirty crowded and very loud airport. Hungry I searched for something to eat and settled for an overpriced "sandwich?" that I have no idea what the ingredients were. After this somewhat suspect purchase I looked for a place to sit and eat - and wait. To my surprise I saw a few empty seats near a gentleman, I thought it strange that people would choose to sit on a hard floor when there were perfectly good seats open. As I got closer it became very clear why no one was sitting in these seats. The "gentleman", a young man from another culture, evidently was clueless - or did not care - that his body odor was so pungent that no one could sit near him. Including me.

Once I found a place to sit I called my husband to update him on my status only to discover my temperamental phone was going to keep shutting itself down. Eventually after numerous gate changes the boarding began. To call it chaotic would be an understatement. FINALLY in my cherished window seat I smell something that caused me to fight back my gag reflex and made my eyes water. Yes, the "gentleman" in the airport was in the seat right behind. With a full plane there was no hope of finding another seat. I opened the air vent as wide as it would go and blew it back hoping it would reduce the thickness of the scent finding its way toward me.

The sun had started to go down and as we waited to take off I decided to work on my crossword puzzle. I reached up to turn on my reading light only to discover it didn't work. The one for the middle seat did not work either. I noticed others having the same problem. After mentioning the problem to the flight attendant she pushed the button herself just to confirm it was not user error. She said "that's funny they worked on the way here". Somehow I didn't find that comment comforting and wondered what else might not be working.

Finally air born I looked out the window. The sky was orange due to the setting sun and the wispy clouds. The orange glow enhanced the beauty of the New York City silhouette it was the backdrop for. WOW - it was spectacular. However, it was during that moment that I realized if I leaned in to close to the window the odor from behind became much stronger. I've flown a lot and have never had to use an airsick bag. I began to wonder if that record would be broken on this trip. I thought, "at least I'll see some fireworks" only to discover that we were about to go through a cloud bank.

The plane had TV screens on the back of each seat. For $6 you can rent a movie and for $8 you can use headphones. REALLY? I don't think so. Plus if there is any turbulence watching that screen will give me motion sickness. Why would I pay for that? However I found that they don't go off even if you aren't using them. The screen stays on and with the low light the constant flicker concerned me. Having just gotten rid of a 3 day headache I had no interest in letting this screen cause me to get a migraine. After looking all over I found no off switch. The brightness control worked just as good as the switch to turn on my reading light. So I asked the flight attendant how to turn it off. She explained they don't go off but suggested I turn down the brightness. At this point I'm starting to wonder if the guy in the seat next to me is wearing a t-shirt that says "I'm with stupid" since she seems to find it necessary to ask me to try the obvious. I explained it doesn't work so she reached over two seats and tried it herself. Then she said, "sometimes they don't work". I spent the next two hours holding a magazine over the screen. When my arm would go numb, I'd switch to the other arm. I decided sore arms and shoulders would be better than a migraine.

Just when I'd given up all hope of surviving this flight the clouds cleared. FIREWORKS! Fireworks? I hadn't really factored in the thought that at 38,000 feet in the air they just aren't quite that impressive. Have you ever had that test in the eye doctor's office where you sit in front of something and wait for these little quick flashes of light and then push a button? Well looking out the plane window at the "fireworks" below reminded me of that. Occasionally when we passed populated areas there would be perhaps hundreds of flashes. The pilot announced the various cities as we flew over: Fort Wayne Indiana, Chicago Illinois, St. Louis Missouri. Bigger displays had a longer flash but the ability to see a distinct firework shape was rare. Yet I began to admire the view. I was reminded of twinkling lights on a Christmas tree. Ninety minutes into the flight as I watched out the window there was this very large flash. I waited for it to happen again. When it did I saw that it was not coming from the ground but rather from storm clouds miles away. Each flash lit up the entire cloud making it visible in the night sky. Then a streak of lightening raced across the entire cloud bank. WOW! God's fireworks dwarfed man's fireworks even more. I was mesmerized by the view. My favorite Christian tunes played in my ears (thankfully I had my mp3 player with me) which briefly allowed me to forget how trapped I was feeling.

Then my eyes began to water and I realized I had stayed to long so close to the window and the odor from behind me began to overtake me. I leaned back in my chair content to listen to my tunes and look out the window from a distance.

It was now almost 9:45 PM the fireworks twinkling below were fewer and fewer. The plane began its descent. As we got lower I was able to see hundreds of fireworks displays. The lower we got the more I could see. Now the entire explosion was recognizable and the colors vivid. WOW! Very cool. It was impressive and worth waiting to see. In the distance I could still see the storms clouds putting on their own display as well. And above those clouds were more stars than anyone is able to count.

Yes this turned out to be memorable flight.

Written 7/4/2011 on flight from New York City to Kansas City.