On second thought, I'd like to be a 'stewardess'

Sometimes I wish I were a stewardess. It's true that for work I put on a navy blue uniform, making sure that my silver wings are pinned on straight. I roll my suitcase through airports and board planes and serve passengers with a smile. Most Americans, our president included, still refer to my position as "stewardess," but when I was hired, we were proudly calling ourselves "flight attendants." The term "stewardess" was antiquated and conjured up images antithetical to our professionalism. I personally found the reference condescending, but that was before Sept. 11.

Human nature dictates that the past be tinged with a rosy hue. Thus, stories from the early days of air travel generally speak of a more genteel time, when passengers had impeccable manners and dressed to travel as if for an important dinner party. Young stewardesses wore little hats and gloves and even had uniform changes on the plane. It seems like such an innocent time.

When I was hired, in the 1980s, I was chosen for my smile and personality (so I've been told). I am sure I also projected an underlying subservient quality, coaxed out with personality tests I cannot recall. My college degree was a nice addition, but I doubt it was considered necessary. I went into the job with a part-time mentality, never imagining it would evolve into a career.

As the years passed and my airline expanded, the hiring criteria changed. They began looking for men and women with second- and third-language capabilities and a more businesslike demeanor than that of the girl next door. I doubt I would have been hired in the past 10 years, my winning smile and college cheerleading experience notwithstanding.

Sept. 11 has radically changed my workplace and my career. I have had my shoes swept for explosive residue and been respectfully patted down as thoroughly as a perp on Cops. My inch-long nail clipper was confiscated. In training, now we talk about potential assailants and self-defense. I wonder if hiring these days will favor ex-police officers and people trained in the martial arts. I certainly wouldn't mind flying with them.

My first flight after Sept. 11, I was so afraid to go to work that I broke out in hives -- me, a person who previously had no fear of flying and who laughed when people asked about it. I considered smuggling pepper spray in my suitcase; the thought of losing my job and perhaps being arrested was less worrisome than the idea of being caught defenseless. Common sense prevailed.

When a passenger on that first flight complained about his meal selection, I wanted to scream, "Where are your priorities?" Another passenger referred to a co-worker as "that waitress" who forgot to bring him water. I found out quickly that it was back to business.

I am still having trouble figuring out what is expected of me. I'm no waitress, but I'm no warrior, either. The cockpit doors are sealed shut, and it's you and me, buddy, until we land safely. Our new roles in these troubled times are nebulous and evolving. I know my job is to get you that glass of water and console you over your lost meal selection. It is also, somehow, to be alert to previously unimaginable dangers. Trust me, we're working

But please forgive me while I wish, for just a moment, for a job I never had; for little white gloves and a jaunty pillbox hat. For the days when air travel meant glamour and adventure, and safety was about helping you buckle your seat belt so that you wouldn't spill any champagne on your silk suit.

You could call me a stewardess then, but it just doesn't have the same ring to it these days.

I wonder if she would want to be an armed stewardess or have armed passengers.

"An armed society is a polite society."

Her desire to return to people being polite might return with the un-infringed RKBA for all.

Your comment is interesting in that the golden days she is pining for are those when there were no restrictions whatsoever about carrying arms on board a plane.

Personally, I doubt I'll ever meet the lady as I will not fly again until they do away with the insanity of confiscating people's crochet needles, swiss-army knives, and toenail clippers.

Would she like some cheese with her whine?

She is there to serve a planeload of people that, on a transcontinental business flight, might be pumping $300,000-$400,000 in revenue into the airline for less than 5 hours of wheels-up time. Getting bitchy about the customer helps nobody and contributes to nothing. What an empty victimological rant. It tells us more about the paper it was published in than about anything else.

well said!

my grandfather said there were just TWO TYPES of people: those with enough brains to carry a gun and those withOUT.

we should encourage those WITH to carry everywhere, including airplanes,and where possible, screen out those who are unsuitable to carry anywhere.

a good first step for airline security would be to license EVERY sworn LEO to carry aboard. if USC title 18 requires it, license the LEOs as SDUSM. this one small change would accomplish MUCH to solve the flying security problem & would cost NOTHING!

for dixie,sw

Bitchy? I think she is scared stiff because the gov. rules have made her workplace an exaggerated danger for her and all others on the plane.

She must undergo the same pre flight humiliating searches and she knows that a real terrorist would easily be able to circumvent the system.

It is just a matter of time untill more planes lose their tail assemblies or have center fuel tanks explode.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.