Two days ago I got on the subway to head to work and noticed these two guys sizing me up, saying “oh, she’s a flight attendant.” Somehow, I knew I was going to be approached. The short scrawny guy eventually made his way over to me, and says:
“TWA?” and I replied with a bit of a smirk – “No, TWA hasn’t been around for a long time.” His response – “ya, I’ve been gone for a long time.” And that’s when I notice the scar from his mouth to his ear. I’m thinking…hmmm?….how come the crazies always gravitate towards me on the subway? and how do I be pleasant while in uniform but stay out of this developing conversation without being rude?
And then he asks – “have you seen the new show “Fly Girls?” and I explain to him that -“no, flight attendants don’t live in a gorgeous million dollar house in between trips, and no, all flight attendants don’t party like that” and I’m thinking – “for being in the slammer for a while, you sure are caught up on your reality TV!”
“Aren’t you afraid to fly?” he asks? and without hearing my response, he says “they had to shoot me with a gun to get me on a plane, and they sliced up my back” as he proceeds to lift his shirt and show me a knife scar across his back. “you see that? I hate flying!”
What do you say next when you’re in that awkward situation? I responded “I’m sorry.” And then he got off at the next stop.
I honestly think he just wanted to talk. I realized that he didn’t even know the guy he’d been conversing with previous to me.
Since this incident, though, I’ve been thinking about whether it would be wise to go to work in regular clothes, and change into my uniform at the airport… what do you think?
Maybe I should write a book?
Notes From Around The Globe 