Houston, we have A PROBLEM
Jeremy’s flight plan hit some turbulence when his comforter was taken away
Recently a friend shared a photo of a beach crammed with surfers in Dubai. I presumed it was something he’d found online and was posting it for the surfer in the group.
My jaw dropped when he revealed he had taken the photo and was in Dubai, breathing Dubai air, doing Dubai stuff.
I’ve grown so accustomed to nobody travelling that the thought of someone being overseas was new, exciting and exotic.
Travel has regained its mystique, its mojo.
So, inspired by the idea of flying to an exhilarating foreign destination, our family recently took a trip to Blenheim!
The voyage had it all: parking, embarking, disembarking and everyone looking like ants.
I’ve always enjoyed flying, but there’s a new novelty to it.
To balance out my bragging, let me tell you about my headphones. You see, for me, the invention of noise-cancelling headphones changed travel forever. Like pillows for your ears, they have made flying
243 percent more comfortable. Being in an aircraft without them is like being bumped from business to economy – devastating.
They are the first thing I pack. And I did.
Then I considered someone else, possibly a child, would see me wearing them and request some of their own. I threw in my old pair as well.
Then I considered the fact I have two children and, upon seeing their sister get something, anything, the other sister would demand the same. I threw a third, even older, pair into my bag. These ones, shock horror, had a CORD. But they would do the trick.
As we sat in the lounge (yes, lounge, please be jealous – jealousy is the best reason to be in one), I donned my precious sound-eliminating ear pamperers. Sure enough, daughter one looked over expectantly. I smiled a prepared smile and handed her the second pair.
Daughter two, who, in spite of being three metres away with her back turned, sensed an imbalance and walked over to demand I rectify the injustice. I offered her the ones with the cord. She didn’t even extend her hand to take them. Instead, she pointed to the ones I was wearing.
I tried to resist, but her casual glance at the cord-free headphones her sister was wearing was an unmistakable threat of a tantrum. I gave her the good ones and put the corded pair over my sad ears, downcast.
When I cast up again, it was directly into the gaze of my wife, whose eyes had an expectant look: didn’t I always provide in-flight headphones for her?
The answer was yes, but only in the early days when
I was trying to impress her. Thinking better of making that particular argument out loud, I slowly handed over my third and final pair.
I spent the entire flight hearing the engines. Worst. Flight. Ever.
On the drive from the airport into Blenheim, we stopped at a large mart and bought two sets of cheap noise-cancelling headphones. Best money I have ever spent.
Being in an aircraft without them is like being bumped from business to economy – devastating