Friends and foes

Wrote this out last week, but didn't have time to finish and post until now-

The other night we finally met up with another local pilot A knows and went out. It was so nice to be with another pilot wife to commiserate with in person. Although I have several internet friends, there's nothing like being able to knock back a couple beers (or pear ciders as it were), drowning your sorrows with live friends. A has met several local company pilots while commuting and recently even flew with an entire crew that all lived here. I think half the battle is just actually calling someone after you met them and inviting them out. It's like dating- scary to make the initial move, but fun when it all works out well.

A is on a trip right now with his most favoritist FA ever- a middle aged, swishy, latino man. Every night I get calls about what fun he and FA are having hanging out in the local bars, going out to the steakhouse, riding in the hotel van, waiting at the airport... It's not that I don't want A to have fun and enjoy himself on his time off, but I hate to have to hear about it when I'm standing in the frozen foods aisle at the local Publix trying to clean up all the bags of frozen veggies that Kidzilla accidently pulled out onto the floor while trying to help shop or while sitting in traffic on the bridge because everyone insists on slamming on their brakes the moment a single raindrop hits their windshield. I think I'm jealous. A's friends probably think he's attached to me with a cell phone umbilical cord b/c he calls me so much- b/c he's afraid I'm mad at him for having fun.

I finally had to whip out the "well, he's an airline pilot so he needs special treatment" card yesterday. We're still working on getting a diagnosis on the cancer issue and an office scheduled him for testing without consulting us. I got a call that he needed to pre-register for a procedure scheduled for 2 days later. Of course, he's off on a trip and can't make it. So I had to call back, be put on hold several times and explaing the problem to several different people. I gave them his schedule with limited weekday in town availabilty (actually got a good feb schedule with some weekend time off...) and they acted like they had to move heaven and earth to get him rescheduled. They tell me, we can schedule him for a saturday, how's that? Well, um no, just because it's a weekend, it doesn't mean he'll be home.

On one of A's very first flights, his Captain told him- never surpise your wife by coming home unexpectedly; you never know what you might come home to. Sad advice, but good advice as well. A nearly came home and suprised me, but then thought better of it when he realized I'd probably be asleep and have the inside only lock on our front door done. If I woke up to the sound of someone trying to open the door at 10:30pm when I wasn't expecting it, I would have flipped out. so he called at the last minute to let me know he was coming. It dulled the suprise, but was probably better in the long run. It's not always cheating spouses you have to watch out for, sometimes it's also a visit from the police for attemped breaking and entering.