I mentioned why being an international air hostess was the best thing ever, but it also can be the worst. There’s no middle ground with this crazy, odd flight attendant life. There are those situations when you think, “I can’t even…”
Get ready to juggle your life.
- You forget what day it is all the time.
- Jet lag
- You caffeine addiction is becoming a serious problem.
- Your entire life is flying.
- Your list of “normal friends” becomes shorter and shorter, and list of airline friends becomes is longer and longer
- You know what’s on and NOT on Netflix in about five different countries
- Your wardrobe is limited to the size of your suitcase.
- Your suitcase is bigger than you are.
- Airplane food.
- Airplane coffee.
- Redeyes
- Non-redeyes
- Short layovers
- Delays
- Scheduling
- Dating is so difficult.
- If your crew is bad, it’s a really long flight.
- Your definition of a turn is a five-day.
- You clearly understand, “The flight attendant 15,” cause all your clothes fit a little more snug 6-months post-graduation. It’s something similar to that college, “Freshman 15.”
- Your schedule never makes any sense.
- International airlines don’t appreciate “flair.” Nails must be natural, hair must be set in perfect place.
- Insomnia hits at the worst times
- Narcolepsy catches you in the moments when you must be wide awake.
- Everyone thinks you have the best life, but most of the time you feel like you have no life
- Just when you recover from jet-lag, you are sent into another time-zone. Or really, you probably never recover.
Editor’s note
Honestly, I somewhat struggled to come up with reasons why international cabin crew life is NO fun. I do love my job, but also feel like it encroaches on my entire life. Every other aspect of my existence is affected by flying whether that be my relationships or potential relationships, my freelance writing contracts, the blog, my health, weight, mood, energy levels, plans, etc. Nothing I do is separate from what I do for a paycheck. Is that ok? Most of the time, but it’s also hard. Especially with where I am at in my life currently. I will admit that I would love to introduce someone as, “my boyfriend,” but the logistics of getting to exclusive are so hard when I’m not in any location for more than one week. And dating a pilot? Well, I’m not opposed, but at my company, I can see a pilot this week and possibly not cross paths again until four or five months later if not more. I juggle the blogging and other writing with the flying element in a way that is closer to disastrous than grace. I just find that when operating on the drug of jet lag, creativity is extremely muted. It’s hard. All of it is hard, but then, I love it. I love this flying life so much and specifically, this international one. I don’t know anything I would rather be doing with my time or anything or anyone I would rather devote my heart to. I’ve fallen for flying. It’s that simple.
