She found it!
When designing the back of our holiday card, we chose some photos with kids in them and wanted to make sure their parents were okay with it before ordering. Both said it was fine, but when I sent my snis the photo below, she said “Ella says ‘wtf?’ tho.”
Sigh. I know. Ella is not in that photo.
So I fixed it!
Buah ha ha. I was dying with how clever and funny I am.
It’s so miniscule though, I wondered if my snis would even notice?!
Then I got this text on Sunday:
Buah ha ha. Made my freaking day.
And I am just, like, super impressed she could see that!
Seattle Day 3
I’ve been extremely adverse to schedules on vacation lately. Likely because my day-to-day life is so scheduled and I want a freaking break from it. On Sunday night Carrie W (not the Carrie we spent Sunday with but the Carrie we spent Saturday night with… confusing, I know) text to coordinate our plans for Monday, because she was spending the day with us. We knew we were riding the ferry to Bainbridge Island to see the Thomas Dambo troll there, but had no idea when we’d be going. Carrie asked if she should aim for around 10:00 and I said sure – but to check in with us before she left her house in case we got involved with something. 10:00 is late in the morning, especially when your body is still kind of on central time in you’re in pacific time, but I just didn’t want to be held to any schedule! Maybe that’s something to unpack in therapy. Anyway. I’m grateful everyone was accommodating to me on this.
All that to say, we sat around a bit Monday morning painting, then decided to get breakfast at Wayward Vegan. Their coffee options were lacking, so we went to (local) Turtle Coffee first, then ubered to Wayward Vegan. Carrie met us there for breakfast, and was our driver for the day. So kind of her! (And for her to take the day off work to hang with us.)
I get super overwhelmed when an entire menu is vegan! I’m used to scanning for a few options, not every item being an option. My go-to for breakfast is almost always a skillet, but when I saw Wayward Vegan had a vegan eggs benedict, I had to try it and see if it was anything like the real thing.
Not super close, but still tasty!
So our main goal for the day was to see the Dambo troll on Bainbridge Island, but we saw there was another troll nearby in Ballard, so we visited that one before making our way to the ferry (there are actually 5 trolls in the Seattle area!).
We also realized we were nearby the vegan donut place my snis had found, but it was closed. But then she found another so we stopped there and got some donuts to try!
Then we made our way to the ferry. Ha. I’m not sure how to explain this adventure. The ferry entrance is just south of Pike Place Market. It’s pretty busy on a Monday. We were either going to make the 12:25 ferry or have to wait until 1:10. We were so close to the ferry – like we could see it – but we weren’t allowed to turn right to get to it. GPS wanted us to go many blocks past it, then come back, and make a left turn to go there, well past the 12:25 time. Silly, right? Did I mention it was like 12:22?
So we followed that then said screw it and did a legal u-turn and cut a ton of time off and made the ferry. Woo hoo!
I’ve taken cars on ferries twice before (Madeline Island, WI & Cassville, IA) and it’s always such a fun adventure. We parked, took in the view, then sampled a bunch of the donuts. The raspberry and twist were my favorite!
When we got to the island, we went right to the troll. They’re always so cool to see in person!
Then we went back downtown to spend time browsing and shopping. My snis had heard how cute this town was, with great shops, from several people, and we were excited to check it out! I bought several gifts, and had a delicious vanilla chai!
We went to a bookstore and Snis and I learned Kristin Hannah is a (parttime) local resident! That was fun. We sent a pic to mom since we recently read The Women together.
I think we took the 5:45 ferry back? Leaving the area around the ferry was just as silly but we did the U-turn trick again to get out of there.
Carrie dropped us all off, and Tiff hung out at the house while Snis, Val, and I went to get ramen then to Neko Cat Cafe! Because for all I said at the beginning of this about being anti-schedule, I remembered there was a Neko Cat Cafe (OMG THEIR INSTA IS HILARIOUS) in Seattle and when Val and Snis said they’d go with me at breakfast I immediately booked three slots for 8:00 pm then spent most of the afternoon worrying about schedule. Good job, Kim.
THE CAFE WAS SO CUTE. I think I squealed when I walked in and immediately saw a sweatshirt I HAD TO BUY. We loved our 45 minutes of cat time with those sweet bebes!
After the cafe it was back to the Airbnb for a bit of chatting and painting before bed!
Folks, these posts are so transactional in the interest of trying to keep them short. I’m leaving out so many little details and stories. Like:
- Val braiding my hair Sunday and Monday morning
- All the fun conversations and jokes and just in general what an amazing time it was
- Us not knowing where TF to go once we paid for the ferry and the workers not being particularly helpful
- Me saying how Val lives “so much closer to the sun” (and that is why she felt so cold in Seattle (Tiff did too – she’s from LA)) and then being teased for it the rest of the trip (loved it, ha)
- The parking lot to the park by the second troll being under construction and Carrie worrying very much about where she could legally park and me realizing I am not as big of a rule follower as I thought when it’s someone else’s car, ha
- Me asking a store owner if a romance by a local author is “open door” then them asking what that means and me telling Val to explain it because Steven called right at that time and I wanted to take his call. Ha ha ha ha ha. I wonder what she told him!
- A hilarious encounter at the book store on Bainbridge Island that will get its own blog post
- Snis saying how she had such a hard time driving at night in the rain Saturday night then me struggling with it big time Monday night (I drove us to dinner/the cat cafe) and realizing it was (mostly) the horrendous windshield wipers. I can’t believe Snis drove in that for FOUR hours.
- Snis getting vegan ramen she didn’t order. Oops! (they fixed it, but they did ask “did you touch it?” and she said no, then the waiter walked away saying “we aren’t going to reserve it” and we were all wondering WHAT they were going to do with it then?)
- The person who completely bit it and hurt their back and head when they walked into the cat cafe 🙁 So, so horrible.
- AHH! I almost forgot the most hilarious thing! When we were walking to get ramen, Snis goes “it smells like Taco Bell” then someone nearby said “You look like Taco Bell!” She said “rude!” (while laughing)
There were just so many laughs and “wtfs?” and good memories on this trip!
Reading Update (2024 #76-78)
[76] Because Fat Girl by Lauren Marie Fleming
Fiction / Romance / Romantic Comedy, saw at airport bookstore, Kindle
Synopsis: Diana moved to LA to support her sister and pursue her dreams of acting, writing, and directing. After making a name for herself as a film festival darling, her world spiraled with the unexpected death of her brother. The past few years have found her working as a personal shopper, with only a tenuous connection to the film industry – dressing the stars instead of being one. But when an unexpected opportunity arises to share her latest script with a major star looking to branch into producing, Diana finds herself torn – not only by the career chance, but by developing feelings for him, even though she’s always identified as 100% queer and only interested in women.
Review: This cover and story intrigued me at the airport bookstore and I was excited to see it immediately available on Libby, but it was a let down. Diana seemed like such an interesting character – a fat queer woman fighting for more representation of people like herself in film – but there wasn’t enough depth to her. She writes a brilliant (???) script based on her and her sister’s experiences, yet we get very little detail about it. We hear about her brother dying from cancer, her parents’ struggles with alcoholism, and how Diana feels her sister, Cecily, had it easier because she’s thin and straight, but I wanted more of the backstory. What was this movie they were making? It was a disservice not to share more of her past. I also struggled to connect with Diana and Drew’s (the major star/producer) relationship – it felt rushed, and I didn’t fully understand why they were so in love.
Recommend? No
[77] All by My Elf (Under The Mistletoe Collection #3) by Olivia Dade
Holiday / Romance, saw collection on Kindle Unlimited, Kindle
Synopsis: Three adjunct professors (or something like that) are spending the month driving a refurbished wienermobile around, selling mincemeat pies. Two of them are crushing on each other, though neither seems to realize it (gasp!). When the third is away for the night, the other two get caught in a snowstorm, and you can guess what happens in the WIENERMOBILE.
Review: Do you ever finish a book (in this instance, short story) then go onto Goodreads to see if anyone else thought it was as bad as you? This one is not even worth writing up. Don’t read it. Or do, so we can talk about how bad it is! That sounds fun.
Recommend? Hell no
[78] The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren
Fiction / Romance / Romantic Comedy, saw in “Available Now” on Libby, audio
Synopsis: Anna and West got married in college – not for love, but to qualify for subsidized family housing. Four years have passed and Anna has all but forgotten about the arrangement. That is, until West’s ultra-wealthy grocery empire family insist she attend a family wedding on a remote island. To her shock, she discovers they’re still technically married. Now, Anna must play the role of (ultrarich) devoted wife to help West avoid losing his inheritance.
Review: I enjoyed this book right from the start – Anna’s humor made her instantly endearing, and West is incredibly likable, sincere, and just a genuinely good guy. The story gave Crazy Rich Asians vibes (the movie—I haven’t read the book), and I was all in for the over-the-top family dynamics and watching Anna and West truly get to know each other and fall in love.
Recommend? Yes!
Seattle Day 2
I was going to start this post saying how day 2 in Seattle (Sunday 11/24) started out so leisurely, which I LOVE on vacation, but then I was like… “wait, but weren’t we like… out the door for our day by 9:00?!”
Then I remembered. I was on central time and up before 6:00. I went downstairs to start painting then Val showed up and she did too. Then Christina and I went to the local grocery store (it’s so fun to check out grocery stores in a new town!) then we went back, and we all went for coffee at a place recommended by the Airbnb owner, then we left, by 9:00 for our big day.
Phew.
Oh! As I am writing this, I’m remembering a conversation Snis and I had with a local the night before when we were parking the car and the local was walking her horse (maybe a Newfoundland? so big!). She was telling us which grocery stores to go to, and which to avoid, and she recommended a Mexican place to us (which we walked by, but never made it to). We talked to several locals and got recs from them (including the place we’d go to for lunch later in the day). Anyway. Not sure why I had to share that. For my memory’s sake. Moving on.
We decided to walk down to Pike Place Market and walk back (35 mins each way). I love seeing famous places like this that I’ve seen in movies and heard people talk about visiting. I never realize it until I’m there, but I’ve always created some image of the famous place in my head that never matches up! Not that I’m disappointed, but that it’s not what my brain created. For example, I was expecting the market to have higher ceilings. Random, right?
We enjoyed the shops around it, and the shops in it. We were all grossed out by the gum wall (which had recently been cleaned, but people were starting up again, ew). For lunch we went to a place with fresh pasta – Pasta Casalinga – that a local had recommended to us in line at Starbucks the day before. I’m usually not a red sauce girlie, but the simple flavors and homemade pasta hit the spot!
We walked around a bit more, a little down the pier, then back up to Pike Place to hit up the Original Starbucks. On the way there I gasped when I walked by an open bakery that had vegan snickerdoodles – my favorite! I HAD to get one! Another person getting a cookie laughed at how excited I was – but nicely – we passed him later and he was all “did you get your cookie?” I SURE DID! I had it later in the day and it was amazing.
What can I say. I get REALLY excited about food.
Back to Starbucks – we’d heard the lines were better in the afternoon and they were! We waited less than 20 minutes then were let in. Let me tell you, this Starbucks has it DOWN! It’s a tiny space (hence the line and multiple staff directing you) but it didn’t feel nutso in there – you’re directed to the counter to order drinks and merch from a barista (I got the almond milk sugar cookie latte with their special Pike Place blend coffee and a Pike Place Been There mug) then you go to another side to wait for your order. The staff were super friendly, and there is even someone walking around to take photos. A+ experience!
After that we walked back to our Airbnb and I lost my shit when I saw a döner kabob place! I’ve been dreaming about the one we had in Germany and knew I’d be back to try this one!
When we got back to our place a local rock painting friend, also named Carrie (ha!), was there to hang out with us and paint! We hadn’t met her in person before and had such a nice time chatting and painting together.
After she took off, Tiff, Val, and I went to the top of the Space Needle. What a trip that was! The night views were super cool, but the moving floor on the lower level made me feel dizzy and drunk!
After that I got my döner kabob (5/10, eh), Snis picked up Thai, and Tiff and Val got burgers from a local place. Then we hung out and painted. A full, fun day!
Seattle Day 1
Seattle trip recap! Let’s do this!
I was in Seattle Saturday November 23rd – Tuesday November 26th with Tiff and Val AND MY SNIS! Tiff, Val, and I scheduled this trip right after we saw each other in August and I mentioned it later to my snis and she told me how she’d love to see Seattle and I was like “why don’t you join us?” I was so excited when she said yes! It was even more fun having her there. We rarely get time together without the family so it’s extra special when we do.
Funny thing though, I hardly saw her at all on our first day there! She got in hours before us and took a rental car to Forks and La Push since she’s a Twilight fan and these locations are featured in the books. She loved it – the beautiful drive, seeing the towns, and accidentally taking the ferry back (ha, more on that below). I was so happy she got to do that! It was high on her bucket list.
The morning of the flight, my snis text me that she had a cat in her security line, then I did, then Val did too! We knew that was the sign it was going to be a great trip!
This was my flight I splurged on first class for and I was pretty excited! I left around 10:00 am CT and landed just after 12:00 PT – a comfortable four hour flight that I spent all of reading. One downer – American Airlines put a fish meal instead of a vegan meal on the plane for me (?????) so I didn’t get a meal. The flight attendant was super apologetic and it’s not her fault (which I kept telling her) but I did feel sad I didn’t eat anything they were offering me. Womp womp. I had been excited about that! But you know me, I had snacks! And was VERY excited about our dinner plans!
Tiff met up with me when I landed, we got my bag, met with Val, then ubered to our Airbnb. It was this cute townhouse in the Queen Anne neighborhood, within walking distance to the Space Needle.
We dropped our bags and checked out the area, and the sun actually came out. That was the only time on our entire trip!
I was surprised by all the cool things around the Space Needle. Not because I didn’t think there would be any, but because I had done very little research and planning for this trip. That’s my MO when I travel lately – focus on my “must do things,” and figure out the rest when I get there.
All that to say, there was the Space Needle, the Chihuly Garden and Glass, the Seattle Center, the Museum of Pop Culture, the Pacific Science Center, a playground, a children’s museum, and more! We enjoyed walking around and chatting, and made our way over to the Olympic Sculpture Park (which had a Calder) then back to our Airbnb, where our friend (and my coworker) Carrie was picking us up for dinner! (This was me and Val’s second time hanging out with Carrie in person!)
So, dinner. My friend from the salon recommended this place called Din Tai Fung. We drove to it and it was on the top level of a mall and I was kind of like… er, is this place going to be good?
Folks, it was probably the best Asian food I’ve ever had! It was family style, and we shared dumplings, buns, wontons, string beans, bok choy, noodles, and rice cakes. Hands down the best string beans I’ve ever had. And I will be dreaming about those chewy rice cakes for years. Please go if you can!
After that we got cookies, walked around some more, then Carrie drove us back (so nice of her to come all the way to the city from the house outside of town where she lives).
When we were getting back my snis called to tell me she was following GPS and was surprised it lead her to the ferry, and wasn’t sure what to do or if it would make her arrive later. It actually saved time though and was a fun experience for her and inspired us to try it later in our trip.
When she arrived (around 8:40) we talked about her and our days, and maybe even painted a little? It was a great first day!
I was sharing a room with my snis and every night ended with us giggling about something in bed. I loved it!
Reading Update (2024 #73-75)
[73] The Housemaid’s Secret (The Housemaid, #2) by Freida McFadden
Fiction / Thrillers / Psychological, next in series/buddy read with Sandra, Kindle
Synopsis: It’s been a few years since the events of the first book, and Millie is now juggling school and work as a maid. Her latest job lands her in the home of an ultra-wealthy client, but something feels off – the client’s wife remains hidden behind closed doors, and Millie is strictly warned never to disturb her.
Review: This fast-paced, twisty read captures the same energy as the first book. While I found some of the repeated plot devices a bit frustrating, the story still kept me hooked – I just had to see how it all played out. Overall, a fun and easy read!
Recommend? Sure
[74] One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery
Fiction / Romance / Holiday, book club with Mom & Snis, paperback
Synopsis: Julie had planned for a quiet Christmas with her boyfriend, but her two grown children have other ideas. They ask to spend the holiday together as a family to honor their father, who passed away in January (even though he and Julie had been divorced for many years). Suddenly, a quiet Christmas turns into a bustling family gathering.
Review: This book… where do I even start? First off, I love reading books with my mom and snis, and I don’t mind if they’re cheesy or over-the-top. It’ll be entertaining to share my thoughts with them when we catch up. But this book was just so cheesy. It felt like a Hallmark movie in book form, and I was not here for it.
The only interesting character was Julie’s daughter-in-law’s bitchy mother – she brought some spice to an otherwise bland cast. The rest felt more like caricatures than actual people. I could list all the little things that bugged me, but what’s the point? I’ll just share the one that drove me the most nuts: Julie’s daughter-in-law has IBS, and the adults in the family keep asking her, “How’s your tummy?” Tummy. For an adult. Do people actually say that? So odd.
Recommend? Um, no
[75] Merry Ever After (Under The Mistletoe Collection #2) by Tessa Bailey
Holiday / Romance, saw collection on Kindle Unlimited, Kindle
Synopsis: A single mother working at a thrift shop finds herself drawn to a farmer who keeps coming in, searching for jeans that are always too small. So she makes him a custom pair.
Review: What is going on with this series? This one was bad, and the next one is even worse. The dialogue is painfully cringy, and the lightning-fast romance makes absolutely no sense. Just… no.
Recommend? Not at all
Random Thoughts Thursday 475
I am behind on blog posts, so I am back posting this!
- First of all, we had a lovely Thanksgiving and I hope you did too! We woke up early* then went back to bed and I slept until 9:30!!! I didn’t get much sleep in Seattle and was grateful for that extra time. Then we watched movies all day long, while I painted. We did one productive thing (below) and since we’d made most of the food Wednesday*, we didn’t even have to spend that much time in the kitchen. SO CHILL! AMAZING!
- We hung our new USA map (which involved moving a bunch of other prints, and bookcases, etc.) and put pins in for locations we’ve flown to and done something at (not just airports we’ve landed at). I told Steven we should put a string with distance markings on it on our home airport so we can use it to estimate how far away something is (ha, like we can’t just easily do that on the computer but this is more fun).
- Speaking of maps, I did a run in Seattle so I got to update my states run in map!
- Here’s a bad picture of the mani I got last week:
- Ugh, I also got my hair cut and colored Friday and I hate how short it is. I don’t understand how to keep my hair healthy as it grows out so they don’t have to cut it off. Also not planning to research it or looking for advice, just whining. I like the color at least!
*We had weather dependent travel plans that didn’t work out**, hence the early wake up and making food the day before.
**Do you struggle when you tell someone plans that don’t work out then they are all “sorry it didn’t work out” or is that just me? I know it’s genuine and not pity but I have such an aversion to pity that it makes me feel ick even though people are being kind and it was my big mouth that spread all my plans anyway.
Surprise above the clouds
On yesterday’s flight home from Seattle, as we emerged through the layers of clouds above the city, I saw something strange poking out into the sky and thought “WHAT THE HECK.” You just don’t expect to see things above the clouds!
It’s Mount Rainier!
It’s flat where I live, so seeing mountains is always exciting, but especially one of the tallest ones (14,411′) in the lower 48, poking up above the clouds.
The photos obviously don’t do it justice, but it was majestic to see in person, and I had my face even more plastered to the window than normal.
Eventually, I could see Mount Rainier, Mount Adams, and Mount Hood way off in the distance (the three stars on the image). I’ll have to make it back to the PNW someday to see these mountains up close (from the base, obviously)!
Random Thoughts Thursday 474
- Last November when my parents visited they brought a holiday cardboard scratcher for the cats that was an absolute hit and stayed out for about 10 months until I recycled it. I was going to jokingly ask my mom if she was bringing another for the cats last weekend, but didn’t want to be a brat. Then she showed up with this one! It’s so festive and the cats love it! Thanks Mom!
- Steven and I got tickets to see Love Actually in Concert – so basically, the movie with a live orchestra! It’s one of our “must watch” holiday movies each year and I’m excited to experience it this way.
- We have a world map where we mark the places we’ve traveled with pins. We also starting using it to track locations we flew to with Steven as the pilot. The scale is too small though, and the Midwest has become a bit cluttered. Fortunately, the map set came with a USA map as well, so I’m having a frame made for that one to dedicate it to our flying pins instead. I’m excited for it to be ready by the end of the month!
- This spam comment in response to my last book post made me laugh. Maybe carpet cleaning IS what I need?!?!?!?!?!? “Vibey”? Ha ha ha. This is how you can tell when something is a bot or used AI and didn’t edit it.
- I am moody and very much need a vacation and escape from adulting. Soooooon.
Weekend with Mom & Dad
My parents visited this weekend, yay! We always have a fun time with them.
They got in late Thursday. So late that they let themselves in and I slept right through it.
On Friday we:
- Did an early flight with Dad (more on that below), which included a stop then driving to get breakfast/pastries
- Picked up some tires Dad had bought online
- Had lunch at El Famous
- Visited Steven at work (he went to work when we got back from our flight around 11:00)
- Hung out at home and did puzzles
- Made lasagna for dinner (and ate some pumpkin pie)
- Did face masks (Mom and I only)
On Saturday we:
- Had breakfast
- Went on a run/walk/ride
- Did another puzzle
- Had leftover lasagna for lunch and finished the pumpkin pie
- Went shopping (me & Mom only – the boys hung out and watched movies)
- Had chili & cornbread for dinner
- Hung out and asked each other questions from a Table Topics Questions set (Mom wrapped a few of my holiday gifts for me – thanks, Mom!)
On Sunday we:
- Had breakfast sandwiches and hung out
- Went to the beach
- Had Burger King for lunch
- Tried another pumpkin pie I made (long story short it didn’t set because of the coconut cream I used)
- Said goodbye around 1:00. Sad!
We love having visitors, especially my parents! We’re so glad they came and we got to hang out so much. It’s nice to just sit and catch up (and work on an easy puzzle or two or three).
Alright let’s talk about this flight! My dad really loves to fly so we wanted to take him up (Mom doesn’t like to fly so it was just the three of us).
I really wondered if this flight was going to happen at all because the cloud ceiling looked really low both days we had a plane booked (Friday and Saturday). But we did a briefing and even though it was MVFR (marginal visual flight rules) Steven said we should be okay. Sounds good to me!
And it was fine on the way there (we won’t talk about the missing voltmeter in the plane…)! We stayed low (below 3,000 feet) but it was clear and quiet – hardly any other planes out. A nice simple flight! Edited to add (for my memory only): It was quiet out that we kept hearing all the pilots announce they were doing 7, 5, 3 etc. mile finals. Steven and I laughed about that and explained traffic patterns to Dad and why a long final doesn’t usually work.
We went to Watertown Airport (KRYV), borrowed their courtesy car, and drove to the Pine Cone Restaurant in Johnson Creek to get breakfast and giant pastries. We originally chose Watertown because several people told Steven they have cookies and we thought it would be fun to fly there for cookies then go get breakfast.
When we went there Tuesday night we saw the cookie jar had a few store bought sandwich cookies in it, surrounded by crumbs. Steven and I laughed about how we had both assumed they were somehow making fresh cookies for people… because why else would they talk about it? We’ve been to FBOs (Fixed Base Operators) with much nicer perks than this one! Ha.
But the ladies who work at this FBO are super nice. They’re known for being very welcoming on the radio frequency. It’s kind of funny to fly there and hear the way they talk – just like normal convo on the radio. We are so used to hearing people talking in aviation code.
ANYWAY. When we went there Tuesday the lady working recommended the Pine Cone (we found out later she works there), so we went. It was fun to check it out and see the giant pastries. Steven got eggs and a cinnamon roll, I got hashbrowns and toast, Dad got a glazed donut, and we got an apple fritter to take back for mom, and cookies for the people at the airport.
The weather looked like it was going to be the same on the flight back, but the clouds were lower and foggier so we didn’t do a direct route – we flew a bit west to try to get away from the clouds. Dad said he liked flying so low and looking at everything below – I’ve liked that in the past too, when I am sitting in the back staring out the window. Now I’m sitting in the front and thinking about how high we need to stay above the ground and that if we encounter traffic we can’t go much higher because of clouds. And I’m thinking we have way less of a glide distance if there is engine failure. Anyway! It was obviously all good.
Because we went a different route we got on a different CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory Frequency – a radio frequency used by pilots to communicate with each other and announce their intentions while operating to or from an airport without a control tower) and heard a heated discussion between two pilots. One was warning the other that they were in an IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) approach path or something and the other basically told them they knew and didn’t care. The other pilot advised changing course and got a response of “mind your f*cking business.” Whoa.
Hearing that kind of worked me up! And Steven said (to me only) what I was thinking “the weather kind of sucks, let’s all focus on flying.” (Those people were at an airport south of us (Galt), so it didn’t affect us, thankfully.)
But there was a lot more traffic. Gah. As we were descending and getting close to Waukegan Airport, two planes were aimed right at us from different directions and at different altitudes and that kind of sucked because we needed to descend but didn’t want to get closer to them. Then we got into the traffic pattern at Waukegan and an airplane departing was headed straight for us and I was like “ATC (air traffic control) should be controlling traffic right? We have departing traffic pointed at us at minus 500.” I usually don’t talk to Steven when he’s landing but I was concerned ATC hadn’t said anything about the traffic yet.
Steven confirmed they should be, turned a bit, then ATC came on and told that person departing to immediately turn. Er, thanks.
Flying is exciting, guys! (I made this sound kind of scary – it’s not, just illustrating that a big part of flying is being observant and knowing what’s going on around you all the time.)
Then Steven buttered the landing and that part of our adventure was done! Dad said he loved it. I think we could fly him anywhere and he’d be happy as long as he can see out the window and check out what’s going on below. Same, same.
Hi! I’m Kim, a 40-something-year-old living in northeastern Illinois with my husband Steven, and our cats, Khaleesi, Apollo, Starbuck, and Eddard aka Ned. My current main hobbies are running, painting rocks, flying, reading, and eating. I follow a vegan lifestyle and work in an account management role. I write about a variety of topics and consider this a “life” blog – a place I can share anything that’s on my mind. Please visit the “About” page to get a better idea of who I am! 🙂
