I got home from Spokane late in the evening on Tuesday, and upon waking up on Wednesday morning I was met with a hard slap of “post vacation blues”. I know scheduling to see a doctor at 1PM the day after I got home at 10PM probably wasn’t smart, but I needed that appointment. Pairing the two together, my last three days of rest have been filled with the overwhelming feeling that my long term plans need to take off…so to speak.

Back some time ago I decided I wanted to truly pursue my dream of being a flight attendant, and I tried to break down in a post for y’all. Funny enough, that was right around the time B entered the picture.

Seeing that I’m now dating a Flight Attendant (affectionately dubbed an “FA”), I have seen firsthand the ins and outs of FA life. Knowing what that’s like and utilizing the benefits of the job itself, I wouldn’t recommend it for myself or someone hoping for the glamorous life the movie industry projects.

There’s a lot of uncertainty in the beginning, location specific promotion caps based on seniority, odd hours on and terribly timed breaks for rest, and trips so unexpected they put you in a tailspin every time someone jokes about them. No, no more trips to Delhi please.

COVID-19 had massive changes on the airline industry and I jokingly refer to FAs as bus help in the sky, or zookeepers at 30,000ft. The effort and time given to the airlines is not reflected in each paycheck. However, using the flight benefits, and seeing how useful the medical benefits can be in comparison to my 5 month journey to secure coverage is pretty convincing when it comes to applying for the job.

B was one of many flight attendants furloughed during the pandemic, and that was another huge reason I knew I had to pivot my career path away from the airlines. COVID-19 had impacted everything so significantly even multibillion dollar industries were failing.

I had ultimately decided to make my dream a reality with animals and I decided on a whole new industry. Ultimately, in a perfect world, I would love to study Zoology with a focus in behavior & training. I hope that leads to a zoo job, veterinarian position or a movie production gig. Sometimes, I would love to show dogs for breed standards, conformation, and obedience. Other times I would settle for basic boarding, or companion training in pet shops or as a workshop with travel options. And a huge part of me yearns to build a sales barn for horses of all shapes and sizes, training them to a tee and rehoming them forever.

As a side to the behavioral aspects, I would LOVE to dive into a rounded diet for certain animals to also provide guidance to any of the above job options I mentioned.

Going to Spokane really ignited my need for change and I hope to see my long term goals school wise come to fruition. I am currently waiting on B to hear from some programs for flight training as a pilot, but we are making small steps towards the big things in life. I know I can support B in his PPL journey, having gone through it myself mostly, but I know that will make me finish my own PPL. I just swore to myself school comes first haha.

Until then, enjoy all the leisurely activities I get to do before I sell my soul for an education again.