Sunday, July 12, 2009

Come Fly With Me!


Down here in the hot Central Valley, I've noticed a certain phenomenon, Vapor Trails! ...commercial jets that fly back and forth, to and fro, north, south, east and west...they are all over the sky! Also military jets from nearby Lemoore Naval Air Station. It's funny how I've become such a sky watcher lately...maybe because not much happens down around here on the ground as in the sky, and it IS interesting to watch! It's 'planespotting'....
Because of the hot air down here, there seems to be a constant inversion layer of cold freezing air up above 30,000 feet, so when planes fly through it, the CO2 from their jet exhaust immediately freezes upon hitting the atmosphere, literally leaving a trail of ice...their vapor trails
Then they dissipate into basically clouds.
On some days, it's amazing to watch as many as 4 or 5 planes at any given time. Mostly they fly north/south, on the SF to LA corridor, one of the most busy air traffic corridors in the world, and I have a 'front row seat' from the ground anyway...
Other flights are in a southeasterly direction, the ones right overhead are probably bound for Las Vegas or Phoenix.
I have a dear friend Shawn who flies to Dallas, and I say, "I'll watch for you!" and indeed, her plane's trajectory takes her over Yosemite, and I swear I've seen her vapor trail...and I wave...
I should wave at all of them, because in each of those vapor trails, there's a plane that's carrying 100 to 300 souls on board, each with their own story. Not just the story of where they're going, but an entire life story, part of which is why they are on that plane at that moment.
Many fly on business, of course, some are off on a fun vacation, some may be flying to a funeral...or a wedding...each passenger's story is different. And they're all up there, in a vapor trail...
I'll never forget being at the Oakland Airport in 1987, my friend Mike was getting married, and me and Rory were flying down for the wedding, we were all college friends.
So we were at the bar and Rory said, "hey, look over there!"
A couple was arguing, a woman was holding a 2 year old kid and her husband (or boyfriend) were in a heated discussion. We couldn't hear anything because of the glass walls that surround the bar at the oakland airport...but we stared...it was obvious the couple was separating and the woman was leaving with the kid, and the man was arguing, pleading...begging! that they not go...passersby would stare and they retreated to a less visible place as they continued their debate/argument...Rory and I watched as if riveted to a soap opera.


Soon all three were crying, then the man wanted to hug his son for the last time, and as he did, the look on his face was heartbreaking...loss, regret, mostly grief...the wife was crying too, it was obvious this was not something she would have wanted.
As they left, the argument became heated again, and they were shouting at each other, pointing fingers, as security guys approached she just left for gate, and the man stood and watched them leave, the look on his face... just despair.
We watched this whole thing speechless, then Rory said, "Jeeezus, that's a bummer!"
and I felt sorry for those folks, she was getting on her plane, a vapor trail to who knows where...


That was just one plane, but there's a ton of other flights that carry more joyful passengers, like the flight I would take to Phoenix every March, during Spring Training in Arizona...nearly every passenger in line wore a baseball cap, whether it be Giants, A's, Angels, Cubs, Padres, Dodgers, it's almost like a party plane, where fans swap stories of baseball as long as the drink coupons they can use on a 90 minute flight hold out...I loved those flights, ours was a vapor trail of fun...


And then there's the long distance flights, the vapor trails that cross over oceans and continents, the ones that bring us to foreign shores and vice versa...
Those occur each day, and no one can forget the disaster of 9/11...the audacity of such a terrorist attack will never be forgotten...
In that sense, I'll never forget the flight from SFO to London, on British Airways in 1982...I had just graduated from college and was on my way to Europe for an extended vacation/tour/life education...my hair was long at the time and I had a certain 'swarthy' appearance.
In the long 11 hour flight I got up to go to the bathroom...as I returned to my seat in the darkness, a steward stepped right in front of me, blocking my way "Where do you wish to go, sir?"
I immediately understood...the British are good about being on the lookout for terrorists...the IRA and all that, and probably, to their eyes, I Looked like one of those damn arab terrorists!

So in my best American News Anchor accent, I said, "oh, sorry I'm seated at row 22, Seat number 4"
"ah! this way sir."

And all of that happened when we were vapor trails in the air...don't get me started on the flight from Tulsa, when I was sandwiched in the middle seat...
I look up and I can't wait to leave a vapor trail again...and I will...
All of us, just vapor trails in the air, anyone at any time.




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