By Jay Whipple
Trend Magazine Online™
On Time!
Trend Magazine Online™
On Time!
I must admit, it has been quite some time that I have
actually stepped foot or flown on an airplane anywhere. My first experience
with one of those giant metal birds came as a result of a field trip to the Miami
International Airport while in grade school. I can remember thinking to
myself -- while sitting on the Eastern Airline plane while on the tarmac
-- I′m okay as long as this baby stays on the ground! It did and I was okay
until about a decade later when the church band that I was playing in had a scheduled
gig in Nassau, Bahamas. I can remember thinking to myself -- Lord
you know why this plane needs take off and land safely -- while on the tarmac
again preparing for our 55 minute flight.
Several years later I found myself once again in flight to Ft. Jackson, South Carolina, headed to Army Basic Training shortly after graduating from high school. Little did I know at the time those experiences would be trivial as compared to my pending career as a United States Army Paratrooper where I completed nearly two dozen jumps from a perfectly good aircraft while in flight. My conversations with the man upstairs of course were a bit more intense during that era. My late Uncle Herman also comes to mind as he would be able to impressively identify every commercial airline that flew over or near my childhood home off Northwest 74th Street and 17th Avenue in Miami; Florida. That feat is even more impressive today because it is my understanding that he had never stepped foot on any aircraft during his lifetime. Keep in mind also that the Internet -- as we know it today -- simply did not exist back in the 1970′s.
Several years later I found myself once again in flight to Ft. Jackson, South Carolina, headed to Army Basic Training shortly after graduating from high school. Little did I know at the time those experiences would be trivial as compared to my pending career as a United States Army Paratrooper where I completed nearly two dozen jumps from a perfectly good aircraft while in flight. My conversations with the man upstairs of course were a bit more intense during that era. My late Uncle Herman also comes to mind as he would be able to impressively identify every commercial airline that flew over or near my childhood home off Northwest 74th Street and 17th Avenue in Miami; Florida. That feat is even more impressive today because it is my understanding that he had never stepped foot on any aircraft during his lifetime. Keep in mind also that the Internet -- as we know it today -- simply did not exist back in the 1970′s.
Back to the matter at hand; my long-term hiatus from flying came to a screeching halt after my tour services were required back in Charlotte, North Carolina, ala our QCT Charlotte Pilgrimage Toursm and Queen City Ghost Tourssm. The fact that I was about to board another airplane was not as nearly daunting as the more than 40 degree difference in temperature from South Florida to North Carolina. It was once again time to break out the coat, ski cap, gloves, and long johns. I arrived to my gate security area approximately one hour and twenty minutes early for my 6:25 A.M. (Eastern Standard Time) departure from Miami International Airport. I then proceeded to the boarding area which was relatively clean except for a discarded brown paper bag and slightly worn carpet.
