Nice So Far ...

So far, so good. 8:25 am, waiting for take-off. Thus far, my morning has been spectacular. Out of the house on time at 6, dark and rainy. Arrive at the parking place and smile nicely when the attendant asks if I need help.It works, all three of my bags (1 is all David, 1 is me, 1 large carry on) are carried directly to the shuttle bus and lifted on board. Next stop, Delta terminal, more smiles and thank you's to the driver and my bags are brought all the way to the curbside check-in. Nice again, and bags don't even go on the scale. House to security line: 30 minutes. Heavy lifting: none. Cost: $9 in tips, a few pleases & thank you's and a lot of smiling, worth every penny. I've always been a tipper, learned from my dad and followed suit with Jeffrey, nice to know my kids do it too. The few dollars necessary to thank someone for the extra effort is so inconsequential in the big picture, not sure why everyone doesn't participate. Most people are used to tipping at a restaurant, but not everyone makes the gesture in other venues when a service provider goes the extra step to make an experience more pleasant. The first half-hour of my day could have been much more difficult (I usually have Jeffrey, my personal luggage handler), if it had not been for the assistance of these 3 men. Now I am feeling a little guilty that I went with the $1 a bag rule, I may have to adjust that for inflation.

Joy continues in the security line. I choose the "expert traveler" line; I have an airport system and it works. I wear slip on Puma's, no belt or major jewelry, my lotions and liquids are in their zip-lock bag and they are all under 2-ounces. When I get to the scanner station I am ready to go; shoes off, iPad in the bucket, sweat shirt off, carry on next, walk through, no beeping and done. Shoes are back on before the carry on exits the X-ray and I am at the gate in less than 20 minutes, including a stop at Dunkin for a large black coffee. What happens next was the crowning moment of the trip thus far. When I booked this trip I was unable to get a seat assignment for the Hartford-Tucson portion, which includes two, 3-hour segments, with a stop in Minneapolis. As of a few days ago, I tried again and was able to secure seats, both middle and both in the back of the plane. Not pleased would be an understatement. I don't bother to call, I know the answer, check with the gate agent when you arrive at the airport. Settling in at the gate much earlier than expected, I don't bother the man at the desk just yet. He seems busy, so I relax, drink my coffee and check my email. I seem to be one of the few passengers here this early and "gate agent man" walks by a few times, smiles and says good morning. I return the favor, still basking in the power of nice from my early morning. I do notice that he seems to be very interested in my iPad with each pass by my chair. Shortly thereafter I approach, he greets me warmly and asks if he can help me with anything. The door has been opened and I take my best shot. "Hi Jim (name tags help me make it personal) , I'm Jill. It looks like this flight is pretty full , but I have a middle seat in the back of the plane, anything better available? " Big grin back from my blue-vested Delta friend, "Well Jill, let me take a look, we always hold a few at the airport. Oh, I think you are going to be very happy, but I need a favor." I am momentarily perplexed, what could he possibly want from me? Not sure if I should ask what kind of seat we are talking about or what kind of favor, have to make sure the trade-off is worth it. I throw caution to the wind, been a good morning so far, "Sure, what do you need?" He happily responds, could you help me with the iPad, I just got one and I have some questions. Just like that and I am currently flying high in the bulk head aisle seat with no one next to me, and he relocated me on all other legs as well. In actuality, I am sitting directly behind first class and will confirm that I have far more leg room then my high end neighbors and no seat mate. Would have been pissed if I paid to upgrade, which did cross my mind when I was stuck in the middle. All it took was a few quality minutes with my new best friend and my iPad; he took notes, he thanked me and I have the best seat on this flight. I would also like to point out that in the waiting area for this flight there was a crying baby, a carry on dog, 3 loud tattooed guys that could have come directly from the casino and a lot of people who are obviously native to Minnesota on the way home. Another day, a different attitude and I could have been sitting in front of the restroom with any or all of the above. Thank you nice Jill, and thank you Jim.

Easy flight so far, wi-fi completes the experience, and did I mention that I have two arm rests at my disposal, my legs are crossed and fully extended with plenty of room to spare. Oh Jim, you have made me such a happy woman. Only one issue to speak of so far. As a family we have a tradition of take off and landing hand-holding. whenever we fly, as the plane lifts off or approaches the runway, we reach across the row so that all five of us are touching. I will admit that as the boys got older, even our recent trip to Mexico, we have loosened the ritual to allow hand-touching to replace actual holding. If you were traveling with us now, you may not even notice that we are all "skin to skin" as the wheels lift off. If all 5 are not on board, it adjusts to the number of available hands, even in adjacent rows we have made contact when necessary. With no genetic hand to hold, I did the next best thing, and I doubt anyone even noticed; I held my own hand and made it safely above the clouds. Not as warm and cozy, but effective in a pinch.

I believe we are close to my first stop, thanks for keeping me company the entire way. I'm not sure how the timing is going to work for posting the rest of the day, so this may be part 1 for today and if I am so inclined to write about the rest of my day later (I do get 3 hours of it back in Arizona) then that will be part 2. These first few hours of my trip have confirmed for me, that most of the time, nice begets nice; not always, but I'm going to stick with it for now.