I Gradumacated!

This week's big event was my graduation ceremony. After successfully completing six months within the Emirates company, flight attendants are no longer considered to be on probationary status, and are promoted just one level above the very bottom of the totem pole.

As a result of some unforeseen circumstances (thanks, mom), I was unable to graduate with the group of friends I had been with since day one of Kelsey's life in Dubai. So, I was partially unexcited about the graduation ceremony because I only knew about 10 of the 150 people who were graduating with me. I also felt like the big "to do" was a bit unnecessary for a simple degree in tea and coffee.

The big day finally came this week, and it was actually nice to catch up the group I had finished my last week of training with. The best part of the day, however, was when my friend Rajeev surprised me by showing up at the graduation ceremony, even after I had assured all of my friends that their presence at the ceremony was 100% unnecessary. Despite my best attempts at not being super emotional, I legit almost teared up when I saw his happy self snapping pictures in the audience, just like a proud little parent!

As per usual, I have no idea what my future holds...career wise, relationship wise, living location, where I will eat dinner tonight, etc. And even though I think the whole graduation process was a bit silly,  I couldn't help but feel a little proud as my name was called and I strutted across the stage for my five seconds of glory. I felt proud that in just a little six months I was able to move overseas knowing no one, start a new job, make new friends, mourn the loss of my mom, and travel all over the globe without completely letting my cheese slip off the cracker. So call me crazy, but I think that is something to celebrate, at least a little bit. And we did....with cake :)





Yours Truly,

Kelsey Schutz, Bachelors of Tea and Coffee

And It's Been A Month...

Karim Ramadan!

For most of my adult life I've probably glanced at my Hallmark calendar and noticed that printed on a specific date during one of the summer months were three simple words, First Of Ramadan. Never in my life had I paid those words attention, mostly because I had no idea what Ramadan was. This year, however, as I'm living in a Muslim country, July 20th rolled around and sh** got real! They took away my Starbucks during daylight hours!

Ok, ok so it's a little bit more meaningful than that. Ramadan is the 30 days each year in which Muslims observe strict fasting from sunrise to sunset. It is supposed to make them better understand suffering and become more peaceful. Personally it makes me grouchy, as NO ONE is allowed to drink or eat in public during daylight hours. Restaurants, such as my beloved Starbucks, located next door to my building, are open for take away only. People watching while sipping my Starbucks is the whole reason I pay for their overpriced coffee in the first place!

The upside to Ramadan is Iftar, the evening meal where Muslims break their fast. Obviously I'm not fasting, but it's kind of like a huge party when all the restaurants open and everyone is out on the streets again. It's been interesting to experience, and once again I'm learning something new about the Arab culture.

LA Layover Take 20

The week before my leave started I went to Los Angeles for yet another layover. Two of my friends from Spirit flew out to spend the two days with me. We had a great time catching up, eating too much, and biking the 40 mile route to Santa Monica.

The Journey Home

As soon as my flight landed from LA, I rushed to my apartment where I unpacked, repacked, showered and headed back to the airport. From Dubai I flew to Kuwait City, a place I was very thankful I did not get stranded! After Kuwait I flew to Washington DC in business class on United (flat bed seats, ahhhh). Once I landed in DC, I was slightly panicked as the sole United flight to STL was oversold. The gate agent was even bargaining with passengers to give up their seat in exchange for future flight vouchers. Just as I had pretty much decided I was stuck in DC for the day, my name was called for the approved standby list. Still NOT sure how that happened! When you find a penny, heads up on the sidewalk, do you ask why it's there or take it and run? Exactly!

10 Days, Illinois Style 

From the moment my dad picked me up from the airport, my visit home was jam packed. I had planned it that way, as there were so many people I wanted to see and things I wanted to do, I didn't want to waste a single minute! I had a huge cookout with family and friends (complete with a hayride and fireworks), watched Ice Age III at the drive in with my crazy nieces and friends, ate an amazing homemade spaghetti meal at my Aunt Traci's, went on bike rides and runs, cooked a ton (for my party of one standards at least), ran in a 10k race, attended Allison's baccalaureate party in Chicago, went boating, and tried to soak up as much family and friend time as possible in between. It was a GREAT visit home, just unlike any other visit home that I had ever had before.

I've been living away from home for the past six years, so I would pretty much say I have the whole coming back home for visits routine down pat. Big meals will be had, friends will be over, and a week long party will commence.

My mom's been gone five and a half months. As Forest Gump would say, "She's on vacation!" I miss our Skype conversations, waking up to her morning emails, and receiving random pieces of mail from her terribly, but I have had five months to get used to the sucky sucky truth that those things are no longer a part of my life here in Dubai.

What I have not had time to get used to is walking into my mom's dream house...and her not being there. Waking up every morning, and not hearing her cheery, "Mornin', Princess." No one cackling loudly as Dad and I watch late night reruns of King of Queens. Pulling into the driveway after midnight and all the lights in the house being turned off, as she is no longer up late working on one of her many miscellaneous projects. I've not had five months to adjust to her no longer being in the house, the house that she always made my home.

It was awesome to be surrounded by family and friends, and it was wonderful to be back for over a week, but it was hard. Really, really hard. I have faith that next time will be a little bit easier, and the time after that, just a little bit easier than the time before. This time though, I just really missed my mom. And I'm not quite sure how Heaven works, but I'm almost certain, she missed me too.

Mom and I Boating-Summer of 1990

"A child on a farm sees a plane fly overhead and dreams of a faraway place. A traveler on the plane sees the farmhouse, and dreams of home." -Carl Burns

My mom, an avid newspaper clipper, had this quote taped to the inside cover of her 1999 planner.

Meanwhile In Dubai

I've been back in Dubai for four days now, and as nice as it was to be home, it's honestly nice to be back...which is a good sign, I think. So far I have done one flight to Cairo, Egypt, three loads of laundry, lots of sleeping, caught up with friends, and today I crossed a big one off the ol Dubai Bucket List....indoor snow skiing! Tis good to get back to a normal routine :)

Since I Last Wrote I....

Watched my very first Euro Cup! Go Spain...or was it Italy that won???

Traveled to the Island of Seychelles, and despite the rainy weather, enjoyed my own private porch that was just steps away from the ocean.

Took part in Monday Night Madness, all you can eat and drink, at one of our favorite Irish pub's in Dubai, Fibber McGee's!

Went boating with my friend Georgina and two Emirates pilots, and actually skied for the first time. I've probably tried skiing at least 10 times before, so I was beyond excited to finally stand up. I think the buoyancy of the sea water definitely worked in my favor!

Traveled back to the land of tea and crumpets and watched one of my very favorite musicals, Chicago, on London's West End (the Broadway of London). It was SOOOO good! My mom and I both loved theatre, and had actually gone to see this show in Springfield several years ago. I did not tear up during the opening number of All That Jazz....ok fine I did.  

After that week of fun, I'm now lying in the comfort of my own bed, with no plans of getting up anytime soon. I vaguely remember signing up to run a 10k, that is now just a little over two weeks away. Maybe if I think real hard about running, I'll be mentally training, which is supposedly half the battle...right? 

RIGHT!!!!

This past week I traveled, yet again, to the great state of California. Although I love the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Hollywood sign, and Grauman's Chinese Theatre as much as the next gal, I figured my past three visits would tide me over for quite sometime. The one thing on my Los Angeles layovers that I never tire of is this....

the bike path along the Pacific Ocean. So for much of my 50 hour layover, this is where I was. During my first day, three fellow flight attendants went along with me as we peddled 30 miles round trip to Marina Del Rey. Once we reached Marina Del Rey, we earned back every single calorie we had burnt, and devoured massive amounts of Mexican food! Yum!

As I am currently training for a 10k in August, I woke up early the next morning and completed a four mile run in the area surrounding my hotel. It felt so good to be able to run outside, and skip the hamster wheel AKA treadmill I'm forced to run on in Dubai, where the current temperature is in fact hotter than hell.

After my run I had planned to meet up with some other crew members and embark on yet another day of sightseeing in Hollywood. I am a big believer in the old saying, "Everything happens for a reason." So when the hotel elevator jammed, and caused me to miss the departure time for day-o-sightseeing, I was honestly fine with it. I had my rented bicycle, (complete with a basket and a bell), beautiful weather, and over forty miles of paved, beachside bicycle path.

Not that I'm a huge fan of spending extended period of time alone all the time, but I seriously LOVED my day...party of one style and all. I biked twenty miles to the Santa Monica Pier, where I ate some fish and chips for lunch. Naturally, I wanted some ice cream while on the pier, so I sat next to the carosol filled with kids and enjoyed my cone. It wasn't until I was down to the last lick of cookies 'n creame that it dawned on me that, perhaps, being a full grown adult, hanging out at the carosol, kidless is probably considered to be semi creepy. Alas, I gathered up my backpack, and saddled up on the ol bike for my 20 mile ride back to my hotel.

Six hours and 40 miles solo leaves a person with a lot of time to think. As I rode next to the ocean, quite simply, I thought about life. I thought about how thankful I am to be young and healthy. I thought about how much I genuinly miss my girlfriends from home. Occasionaly, I'd think about how sore my buttocks was going to be in the morning. I thought about my mom, and how flat out pissed I am that she died, and how much my heart just aches for her sometimes. I thought about the things that I still hope to achieve in my life like, write a book, open a coffee shop, have a family, have a dog. And then, to be completely honest, I spent a lot of time thinking about how good tanned, muscular, male, beach volleyball players look!

So, there you have it, another recap of Los Angeles. Feel like you just can't get enough of reading about these LA layovers? Well, you're in luck my friend, you can read all about it in just three short weeks when I go back for yet another trip to LA!

"You cannot be lonely if you like the person you're alone with." -Wayne Dyer

Texas and The Top

This past week's adventure led me to the great state of Texas, Dallas to be exact. Thanks to my best good friend Drea, I was able to meet up with her cousin Tyler, who lives in the area, and he graciously served as my Dallas tour guide for the two days I was in town. While in Texas I saw the JFK memorial, viewed the area where JFK was assassinated, ate some good ol fashioned pork barbecue (a delicacy after living in a Muslim country), did a little shopping at Wally World (oh how I miss that place), and had a great run outside in shorts and a tank top without feeling condemned (again, it's the little things I miss)!



Dinner At Sonny's BBQ

My trip to Texas was quickly followed by two same day return flights, and now I've been blessed with a full week off, insert choir of angels singing here. Thus far the highlight of my week was finally going to the top of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building. I'm becoming quite the discount finder, and last night was no exception. Wednesday night is ladies night at Atmosphere, the club housed on the 123rd floor of the building, so my friend Sara and I were not only given free admission, but also two free drinks! It's always fun to find free ways to enjoy activities that are normally expensive! It was a slightly cloudy day, so the view wasn't quite as great as I was expecting, but none the less it was still an awesome sight.

View From Nearly 2,717 Feet Above The Ground

Sara and I Pretending We're Members Of The Rich And Famous Club

And now a riddle for you.... Who has a scar on her right thumb, is currently still in bed at noon, will be home in ONE month and ONE week from today, and is really, really excited about it????

Give up?

THIS GIRL!!!!!

Happy Birthday, Mama

June 8^th, my mom’s birthday, was a day I had been dreading for quite some time. According to the grief books I have been reading, birthdays, anniversaries, and other special holidays following a loved one’s  kicking of the bucket death can be extremely difficult. So far the experts were spot on with Easter. My feelings during Mother’s Day were indifferent. The good Lord decided to throw me a bone, and I flew over 15 different time zones that day, inadvertently skipping the majority of that stupid holiday.  And yesterday, well it wasn’t so bad after all!

Lavish celebrations for my mom’s birthday were never really a tradition in our family. Throughout the years my dad would sometimes take her out to see a play, us kids, and in more recent years her grandkids, would make her cards covered in glitter and macaroni, my Aunt Nancy would send her flowers, my Grandma Strang gave her cookbooks, and her friends would remember her with calls and cards. Low key birthday were just fine with her. She was never one to make a fuss over herself, and she most certainly was not the diamond demanding kind of lady.

Simple gestures of love were always what my mom appreciated most. So with what would have been her 56th birthday approaching, I knew I wanted to do something in memory of her, something that was just a simple gesture of love.

I contemplated making my mom’s famous butterscotch oatmeal cookies, and giving them away to a poverty stricken taxi drivers, but I feared my random act of kindness might be mistaken as me wanting something more than a car ride. Visions of me being loaded up on the next camel outta Dubai, as the blushing bride to Mr. Pak McPakistan quickly came to my mind. Alas, I (butter) scratched that idea. Pun intended.  

So in the days leading up to her birthday I purposely made one of her favorite soups, White Chile, and froze all the leftover, just like she always did. I bought and burnt her favorite brand of candles, and enjoyed my apartment having the same lavender scent as the after shower body spray she always used. Thankfully, unlike the apartment I share with my Chinese roommate, my mom never smelled like half lavender and half mystery meat cooked in soy sauce.

On the topic of Ethnic food, several nights ago my friend Rajeev and I were having dinner at an authentic Indian restaurant (my first experience of this sort, food was delicious, but perhaps a bit on the spicy side for this Midwesterner), when he told me that the next day he was planning to volunteer at a local school for autistic children, and that I was welcome to join him. Knowing the words “volunteer” and “Gail Schutz” are basically synonyms, I jumped at the opportunity to give of my time, the day before her birthday, in her memory.

My day of volunteering was a really cool experience, but very different than any type of volunteering I had done with schools and other social services in the USA. Unlike the extensive background checks I normally undergo to volunteer, I literally just walked right into the school and was assigned a classroom to assist. Within five minutes of being inside the classroom, the teacher informed Rajeev and me that she was going to escort a child to therapy, and asked that we keep an eye on the remaining students. While I was flattered by her trust, in my puzzled mind I was thinking, “YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW ME!”

After spending several hours assisting children with word comprehension, handwriting exercises, and math worksheets, we bid farewell to the students. I wouldn’t go out on a limb and say I’m the next Mother Theresa, or Gail Schutz for that matter, but I was happy to have volunteered in my mom’s memory, and I knew she would have been so proud.  

Yesterday was the big Kahuna, her actual birthday. I floated in the pool, went for a run, met up with friends later that evening for cocktails, and overall spent a lot of time thinking about my mom. It was a nice birthday.

I’ve always loved birthdays, not just for the cake, ice cream, and presents (although I am a big fan of all those things), but because it represents life. I’m not a genius, I don’t understand the whole purpose of it, but I do know that it’s short and it’s precious. Life is something to be enjoyed and lived vibrantly. My mom got that. In her 55 years she didn’t just make a slight difference on Earth; I think she changed the course of humanity. That may sound a bit dramatic, but, without ever knowing it, she served as such an influential person in so many people’s lives. I truly believe that her legacy of service, generosity, kindness, and love will impact generations to come!

In the card she slipped into my suitcase upon my departure to Dubai, she wrote to me, “There are some people that come and go from a room- from a life- and no one seems to notice one way or another, but not you! Everyone knows when you are present, and there is a black hole when you are gone.”

And as I reflect on her life, on what would have been her 56^th birthday, the only phrase that seems adequate is this, “Ditto, Birthday Girl, ditto!”

Photo Courtesy of Warmowki Photography

Two Years

Two years ago today my silver Corolla was packed from the floor to the roof and everywhere in between. I had just graduated college two weeks prior, and was ready and eager to start off my new life. Pulling out of my parent's driveway, with my best friend in tow, I knew no one in Florida, I had very little knowledge about what my job at Disney would entail, and I most certainly had no idea that the next two years would include meeting such amazing friends, experiencing so many blessings, seeing mind blowingly beautiful places, and dealing with such a devastating loss.  

In the entire span of my lifetime, which I'm hoping is quite long and prosperous, two years is nothing! However, looking back, these two years have been nothing short of eventful. For those of you who haven't been faithfully following Schutz and Scores (shame, shame), here's a few of the highlights. In the past 24 months I ...

 -moved to Orlanda, Florida and had an awesome time working at Disney for 7 months
-went on one of my best vacations yet; a cruise to the Bahamas with 20 friends
-hosted lots of visitors

-trained for, but never actually ran, a half marathon
-jumped out of an airplane from 15,000 feet

-was hired to work on airplanes with Sprit Airlines

-lost ten pounds (if found, please do not return)
-moved to Boca Raton
-continued my relationship with my four year on and off again, semi, kinda, boyfriend
-traveled to nearly every major US city

-visited lots of family and friends all over the country, including the great state of Alaska

-became an aunt cubed to Joseph Benjamin Six

-wrecked the silver Corolla (thanks for the memories, Silver Bullet)

-packed up a year and a half of life into my new car and drove from Fort Lauderdale to White Hall
-enjoyed an unforgettable month at home celebrating the holidays with family and friends

-moved across the world to Dubai and began working for Emirates Airline

-became about two shades lighter of a blond (solely from the desert sun...)
-lost my mom (we're talking 100% unexpected, out of the blue, 3 months later and I'm still waiting for someone to announce it was just a bad, very bad, joke)
-stuck a fork in previously mentioned four year relationship
-returned to Dubai and am attempting to return to life as normal (whatever the heck that means)

-have experienced some cool layovers with Emirates, including an especially fun one in LA

and lastly...
-traveled to 10+ countries, and counting.

Looking back on the past two years, there honestly isn't much I would change (with of course the exception of loosing my mom, but unfortunitly I didn't have much of a say in that one.) One of my her token phrases was, "Enjoy right where you are."

And for the most part, I think I am.
 :)