To all travelers, business or pleasure:
I got a peek behind the curtain yesterday during my flight to Dallas. Discovered something that can turn a cold, distant flight attendant into a friendly and engaged conversationalist.
Cookies
It’s as simple as that.
Two pilots were deadheading on my flight from New York City, and they were in the row in front of me. After we achieved a ‘comfortable cruising altitude,’ the flight attendants started coming. One by one. Big smiles on their faces. Gratitude on their lips.
All because one of the pilots brought the crew cookies when he boarded the plane.
With the rest of the passengers, the flight attendants were polite, but we didn’t get those genuine grins. Or the frequent check-ins to see if we needed anything else.
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. I’ve received a less effusive version of this treatment when I’ve given a flight attendant a magazine when I’m finished with it. But yesterday I learned an important nuance:
Do it at the start of the flight.
In good company
I made a new friend today in the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.
We had electricity.
I asked and offered some candy as a bargaining chip. He said that ‘being nice’ was reward enough.
So I took his seat and charged my phone for the next hour. And I learned that he worked in Dallas and lived in Boston — where we were both headed — making the flight home every two-to-three weeks. Today he was going home for Father’s Day. His daughter was picking him up at the airport.
And when we eventually parted company to find our respective seats on the plane, I couldn’t help but think…
She’s one lucky girl.
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Posted in Airplanes, Commentary, Family, Friends, Holiday, Humor, Life, Travel
Tagged airplane seat, airplanes, airport, airport gate area, Boston, commentary, Dallas, daughter, DFW, electrical outlet, electricity, family, father, Father's Day, friends, Humor, life, phone charger, Relationships, Travel