5 years.

i am celebrating my five year anniversary as a flight attendant with Skywest Airlines.
FIVE YEARS.
i mean, that is straight up commitment. i have never done anything for five years. and when i started this job at age 22 i planned on being a flight attendant for one year. travel a few places and then go back to school or africa. i remember when i first started i met a girl who had been there for two years and i thought she was crazy. But...i was lucky. i got on at a time when they were hiring a lot of flight attendants, which means i moved up in seniority fast. only one month of reserve. i didnt have to work christmas. i was visiting evie in Des Moines, hannah in LA, michelle in Springfield, Missouri. i was eating fish tacos in Santa Barbara and hiking in Missoula, Montana. within the first year i had backpacked eastern Europe for two weeks, zip lined through Costa Rica and smoked cigars in the DR. i have learned more about myself and the world through my experiences and traveling then i ever could in a classroom.

this is the best. job. ever.

I could be home to watch my nephews grow up. but also travel the world. it's hard to quit something you enjoy and im not saying im going to be a flight attendant forever. but i definitely cant quit right now. it has sucked me in.

and so this week, we were in Medford, Oregon. eating burgers with a couple crews. the other flight attendants were older but had been at skywest for only about a year. they asked how long i had been here - i said five years. one of them asks, "oh, are you still on reserve?"
no, five years. five.
"oh...i see."

the next morning we had an early show. like we have to be at the airport at 5am early. i came down to the hotel lobby a couple minutes early to grab some coffee in the secret break room down this hallway...turn left, then right. and its through a doorway on the right. the captain was in there...."hey! how did you know about this coffee??"
five years.
"oh...right."

"....it's been a pleasure having you on board this morning. on behalf of united and this Denver based flight crew we would like to thank you for choosing us and wish you a wonderful time in Grand Junction or where ever your travels may take you."
the guy in 1B says surprisingly, "how do you know all of the announcements word for word?"
five years.

five years.