Auckland Bridge Bungee

Greetings from the Middle East! Currently taking place outside of my apartment is the world's loudest and longest call to prayer. Everything being broadcasted from the loudspeakers on top of my local mosque is said in Arabic, so I have no idea what this man with a horrible voice is even saying, but I'd be completely ok if he stopped....any....minute...now!

This morning I arrived home after working a six day trip to Brisbane, Australia and Auckland, New Zealand. I purposely chose to do this trip, as I have a list of places I want to visit before I throw in the Emirates towel, and New Zealand was definitely one of those places.

I also have an entire wall in my bedroom covered with Post Its that has my bucket list items scribbled down on them. The words, 'Bungee Jump' has been written on one such post it for over a year now. Always a fan of killing two birds with one stone (figuratively speaking here, people), I jumped on, rather off, this opportunity! After sharing my intentions for this trip with my sister in law, Stacy, she informed me that she isn't quite sure if I'm just a dare devil or have a sick death wish. Considering I'm a fairly happy go lucky kinda gal, I'm going to go with the first one!

Prior to this trip, I was completely ok with this whole notion of bungee jumping. I was even ok once I arrived at the bungee jumping office, and was signing my life away while being surrounded with bungee jumping memorabilia.

 It wasn't until I was walking across the bridge that I remembered just how afraid of heights I really am. It's not even the height that bothers me, as I do spend a signifigant amount of time high above the ground, it's more so the falling from heights that I'm concerned with...with was precisely what I had signed up for!

Much like the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb, I walked across the bridge wearing a harness and safety cables that attached me to the bridge at all times. Even as I was walking out over the water, I could feel my palms beginning to sweat, a classic Kelsey's Getting Really Nervous symptom.

Once I reached the jump pad, I was greeted by two punk tastic looking lads, who introduced themselves to me as Layton and Layton, the gentlemen who would be responsible for my safety as I hurled my body head first off the bridge. Cool.

 The entire process was actually very quick, which was great because I'm fairly certain if I had been given five more minutes to think, I would have talked myself out of this idiotic idea. Layton, not to be confused with the other Layton, quickly secured several bungee cords onto my harness, as well as weights and cords to my ankles. As casually and calmly as giving a stranger directions to the local grocery story, Layton instructed me to walk to the edge, stick my toes slightly over the edge, pause and smile for the camera, and jump!

With a 3-2-1 countdown, I sent my body flying off the bridge. I consider myself to be a bit of an extremeness, and I would hands down say this was THE SCARIEST thing I've ever done in my life! The only thing I can even slightly compare it to is dreams I've had where I've fallen off of something, but I usually jolt awake quickly. With bungee jumping, I didn't wake up, I just kept falling, until I finally reached the full length of the rope and bounced up and down a few times. Unlike skydiving, there really wasn't much a grace period to enjoy. It was just crazy falling! I'm getting all sweaty just thinking about it again!

You might have to zoom in, but it's me, I promise!

While I was bobbing over the water, I had to pull a yellow rip cord in order to release my feet. Having a past that involves putting diesel in the gas tank, laundry detergent in the dishwasher, showing up for work on days I don't actually work, etc., I think it's safe to say I don't always follow directions properly. Bearing this in mind, I said a little prayer that I was pulling the right strap, and tugged away, thankfully pulling the proper cord that released my feet and NOT my entire body!

As soon as I was pulled onto the safety of the platform, with my body quivering so badly that I could hardly stand, I declared that I would never do that again (there's even video proof of that). Now that I am three days post jump, I keep watching the video and critiquing myself and thinking of the different ways I should have jumped. I'm not going to beat myself up too badly, it was only my first jump and there's always next time.... ;)

Have a fantastic week everyone!

 

Bangkok, Scotland, and Missing My Mom

Good day friends, and welcome to another glorious day of April!

Since I last wrote I've once again visited the great country of Thailand. I'm not exactly sure how all of the legality issues work, but I'm fairly certain I will qualify for Thai citizenship on my next trip. Although Bangkok is becoming old news for me, the trip was extra special, as it was my first layover with one of my friends from Emirates. Working the seven hour flight with my favorite Scot, Paula, made the time literally and figuratively, fly by! For a large majority of the flight we sat gossiping and drinking cappuccinos from business class behind the closed curtains of one of the small galleys. Short of developing a secret password, we basically had our very own clubhouse at 37,000 feet.

I'm certainly not complaining about frequent trips to Bangkok, as I've had a blast every single time, and this last visit was no exception. During our short 24 hour stay we napped by the pool, enjoyed an hour long Thai massage for $10 USD, ate delicious food, and had drinks at the world's tallest open air bar, Sky Bar. Not only is Sky Bar famous for it's world record, but more importantly, it was featured in the movie The Hangover Part 2.

This past week, I was forced to go back to work flying solo. Although I missed my partner in crime, I was quickly cheered up by the next best thing; her entire family! Yes, that's right, I made my first visit to the land of bagpipes, plaid, and hunky men in kilts, also know as Glasgow, Scotland.

The flight to Glasgow was one of the best flights I've ever worked. The passengers drank us out of nearly every drop of alcohol on board, but they were SOOO polite and kind, an extreme rarity on most of my flights, that I actually didn't mind running up and down the isles delivering drinks for seven hours straight.

Knowing it was my first time visiting Scotland, Paula arranged for the Wilson family, whom I'd never met, to take me out for the evening. After a quick hotel room snooze, Paula's parents, Jill and Chris, picked me up and we went to a local pub, The Den where we met Paula's Nana June, brother Martin and his girfriend Nicole, neice Ellie, and Uncle David. I had heard so much about her family throughout the past year and a half, that I felt like I had known them for years. After having a couple of drinks and visiting at the pub, we headed to a  nearby Tapas restaurant.

Always one to at least try the local cuisine, Mr. Wilson ordered me a small plate of fried haggis, but refused to tell me what it was until after I took my first bite. Two bites later he informed me that haggis, a Scottish delicacy, is a mixture of onions, spices, and sheep's heart, liver, and lungs.

I don't think I would ever order it again, but it actually wasn't that bad! The rest of the meal consisted of delicious fish and chips, grilled prawns, stuffed mushrooms, several glasses of wine, and lots and lots of laughs. I loved her 80 something year old, high heal wearing Nana, who kept using the phrase, "When I get old...." and through her thick Liverpool accent would pause mid conversation and ask, "Love, can you understand me when I speak?"

Ellie's very mature for her age personality, combined with her love of dance, iPad's, and all things Disney Channel couldn't help but to remind me one of my favorite munchkins, Bridget. Her brother, like my own Brock, was the family joker and kept everyone in stitches the whole night. After he had consumed a few drinks, I loved Mr. Wilson's telling of how at age 17, the same age my dad was when he began dating my mom, he had drawn up the gumption to ask Jill out for a date. Paula's mom is absolutely beautiful! She sat next to her young granddaughter to assist her with choosing a meal, she continually checked that we all had enough to eat and drink, and she asked me thoughtful questions and genuinely listened and cared about the answer. Jill's own mom bragged about what a great daughter she is, and that she wouldn't know what to do if it weren't for Jill's amazing help. Paula's mom also served as the responsible driver after our night of dinner and drinks. I giggled from the back seat as she corrected her husband each time he'd casually let a swear word slip. Always the caretaker, the backbone of the family, the matriarch....

Spending the evening with the Wilson's just made my heart so happy, and at the exact same time, it also left me with just a little ping of sadness. Being surrounded by such a loving family felt so normal, and made me feel so thankful that I not only have great people, like the Wilson Family, in my life, but that I also have my very own wonderful family! And being with them reminded me of the vital role mother's play in these large, amazing families. Being with them reminded me of family times spent with my own mom.

Just a few short years ago, she was the one driving my dad, Eric, and myself home after a night of celebrating at Brock's wedding reception.  Always responsible, but slightly sassy, I remember her storming into the house yelling, "Oh just leave him there," as Eric attempted to assist the sleeping and newly nicknamed High Kicks Kenny out of the van and into the house. She was more than just a grandma to Lana and Bridget, she was their Ma. She was wrapped around her granddaughters fingers, and absolutely beamed in their presence.

A Typical Look On Ma's Face When She Was Surrounded By Her Granddaughters

She was the caretaker, head chef, family mediator, counselor, solicited and unsolicited advice giver, our seamstress, events manager, nurse, moral compass, and maker of everything better! She was the one who made us eat with both feet on the floor and our elbows off the table. She was....she was just our mom.

I feel so blessed to have so many moms in my life from Scotland, Ireland, Austrailia, England, Virginia, Monmouth, White Hall, and beyond, and am thankful for all the mother love they extend to me. I'm thankful to have spent 24 years with someone who loved her family unconditionally, served others whole heatedly  and lived life vigorously! And surprisingly enough, I'm thankful that our family has a huge hole in it, because I think it just means that once upon a time, we had somebody in our life who was important enough to leave it.

We just miss you, mom!

"Your family is not your enemy. They are human and make mistakes, as you will in your life. Give them a break once in a while, better yet, give them a hand, offer your thanks, and throw in a hug once in a while! Your Mom, or Grandmother and others that care for you won’t always be around, and you’ll MISS them!!! Tell special people in your life they are loved and appreciated, and be a good kid. That is the best way of honoring those that care for you." -Gail. M. Schutz, in a letter she wrote to one of her young Girl Scout Troops several years ago =)

I'm Engaged!!!

April Fools!

Hello and Welcome to the best day of the year! I started out my morning by sending my dad this photo, courtesy of Google Image....



accompanied by a sob story about how I had cut my leg open on the side of a metal cart during last night's flight. This is completely warranted, as several years I was fooled after he informed me he was experiencing symptoms of a heart attack. Obviously his April Fool's joke was prior to the events of February 29th, 2012. We tend to not joke about the whole heart attack situation anymore, cut legs, however, are completely fair game. Some would go as far as saying my family has a bit of a sick sense of humor. I wouldn't, but some may.

Besides my usual practical joking antics, I've been busy recovering from a week of pure mayhem. Last week three of my cabin crew friends and I went on an eight day backpacking adventure in Thailand. Besides having a few hostels booked, we had very little plans for the trip, including a concrete way to travel from Dubai to Thailand.

Playing the game of chance known as standby, our trip started out with only two seats being available on a non stop flight from Dubai to Thailand, so my friend Paula and I decided that we would stay behind and find another flight, and let the two other girls go on the first flight. After 24 hours, a pit stop in Malaysia, and several glasses of wine, Paula and I finally rolled up to our hostel in Bangkok and met Dom and Sarah. This was my first time staying in a hostel, and I was pleasantly surprised with how great of an experience it was. I mean, how can you not love a place that has a life size elephant's butt as it's front door decoration?

We spent two days in Bangkok, and had an amazing time! We got massages, ate delicious Pad Thai and fresh fruit, drank large quantities of liquid out of sand buckets (completely hygienic), and I even treated myself to a little fried scorpion. I think the liquid in the sand buckets may have influenced my decision to partake in the scorpion eating.

It tasted like burnt popcorn....

 

After Bangkok we decided to start making our way down to Koh Phangan, Thailand in order to make it for infamous Full Moon Party. After much discussion, we ended up taking a short flight to Surat Thani, and from there, a seven hour boat ride to Koh Phangan.

 

 

 

Now, I know what you're thinking, because it's probably what I WAS thinking, "Oh, a night boat, how lovely."

WRONG! Remember the pictures in our third grade history textbooks about the horrible conditions aboard the slave ships in the 1800's? We were actually on that exact ship! The first level of the boat was completely filled with cargo (fruits, vegetables, sugar, etc.), and the top was lined with wall to wall dirty mattress pads, where strangers were smashed together like canned sardines. I was very lucky and ended up sleeping next to a nice and respectful German guy. My friend Dom took one for the team and kept one eye open the entire night as she slept next to a gentleman who was proudly wearing a shirt with the words Me So Horny printed on the front.

After our l-o-n-g journey we finally reached our intended island. We spent our first afternoon jet skiing, soaking up the sun, and doing some much needed napping. That evening we attended the full moon party, an event that happens monthly on the island. Basically, everyone dresses up in ridiculous, fluorescent clothes, paints their bodies with colors as equally as bright as their clothes, and has a ridiculous time on the beach. If this sounds slightly similar to a college frat party, then you would be correct!

After our wild night, we spent our final day on the island relaxing! We took a ferry boat to a nearby secluded island that was absolutely gorgeous. I wonder if anyone would notice if I just moved there?

 I accidentally washed my bikini with a yellow highlighter

All four of  had a blast, but after six days we were out of energy and money, so it was time for the trip to come to a close. We had all vowed to never, ever, under any circumstances, enter a night boat again, so we journeyed back to Bangkok via a seven hour day boat ride, and a seven hour bus ride. We finally reached Bangkok, all with a lovely Pad Thai, alcohol, and body odor aroma, and were elated to find out all four us would be able to make it on a non stop flight from Bangkok to Abu Dhabi. Once we landed in Abu Dhabi, we endured an hour long bus ride back to Dubai, which was a piece of cake compared to some of the other modes of transportation we had endured.

 

It was an awesome trip, but I have never been so happy to see my own bed in all of my life!

 

Hope you all had a happy Easter! I spent the day working a flight to Doha, and once I returned to Dubai, enjoyed a Lebanese dinner with friends. If that doesn't scream traditional Easter, then I don't know what does!

 

Peace and Blessings!

 

Lisbon, Portugal

In case you are not aware, today is opposites day. So since I am tall and bitter, I'm going to make this post short and sweet.

This week I traveled to Lisbon, Portugal for the very first time. Right away I knew that if the gentlemen sitting in 17D was any representation of the city, then I was going to love Lisbon! I chatted with this beautiful specimen throughout the 8 hour flight, and we discovered that we both lived in Boca Raton, Florida at some point in our lives. To my delight, he left his contact information and a little note for me with another stewardess as he left the aircraft.

 

 

Now, in order to keep the size of my head in check, I must also add that despite my 12 emails and 25 missed calls, I never heard back from him. It's yet to be determined if there was a mass communication outage, that miraculously left my hotel unscathed, or if he was avoiding me like a telemarketer calling at dinner time. Either way, it looks like we're not getting married now.

 

I'm getting ready to leave for a week long vacation tonight, so I was fairly low key in Portugal, but I still enjoyed my time there. I just did the usual; slept, ate, ran, and explored! Something about Europe just makes my heart happy!

 

Rossio Square



BTW, I've actually been googling, 'How to pose for solo pictures.' I'm not even joking. I'm just so awkward in 80% of my pictures. For example, let's take a look at this fine picture above. Why is my hand on my hip? I mean really? I'm thinking the best thing would be to just have one standard, I'm flying solo, pose that I strike in every city. Bikram Yoga has 26 different ones, perhaps I could just steal one of those. Open to suggestions on this one, people! :)

 

Word to your mother!

 

 

 

The Hangover Part II...Minus Bradley Cooper

Sa-wat-dee Kah! For those of you who need to brush up on your Thai skills, that means hello! This week's adventure led me to my very first visit to the beautiful city of Bangkok, Thailand. This layover was quite special, as it was one that came with my very own tour guide!

During the 2007-2008 school year my sister hosted Mew, a then 16 year old girl from Thailand, through Rotary International's Youth Exchange. Although she primarily lived with my sister, she quickly integrated into the entire Schutz clan, spending weekends, holidays, and vacations with us. It was a pleasure to host Mew, and get to know her and her culture.


Christmas 2007

Although it's been nearly five year since Mew's original exchange program took place, our family has remained in close contact with her. Although I was always away climbing Mt. Rainer, selling tickets to see the Mouse, or flying to ten buck two, Mew, as well as several of her sisters, have been back to visit the farm. So when I found out that I'd be gracing Bangkok with my presence this month, I was beyond excited to reunite with my long lost little sister, Asian style!

 

The flight to Bangkok was nearly empty, (and that, my friends, is what I consider a beautiful day of work), so I was fully energized and ready to hit the town as soon as we arrived. Mew and her friend Buk (pronounced Book, and possibly spelled that way, as well), met me at my hotel and we headed to the China Town area for some amazing street food. Although I have eaten Thai food before, it didn't hold a candle to the real deal! We ate pad thai, muscles, several octopus dishes, jumbo shrimp, and a crab dip. FYI, I've decided the crab dip shall be included in the menu if ever I'm crucified and granted a last supper! It was that good!

 

 

 

After our feast we rode in a Tuk Tuk, a scooter isk, open aired taxi, to the night market and pub area of the city. Within a half mile stretch, I was offered everything from a bite of a fried scorpion to cheap copy sunglasses to offers on drink specials in one of the clubs. This place was crawling with interesting characters, mainly backpackers from the UK and Australia. By this point I was starting to feel the ol jet leg kick in, so we skipped the partying scene, but I was highly entertained by merely observing!

 

 

The next morning Mew and I woke up at the crack of nine, and began adventures in Bangkok, Day Two. Bangkok is home to tons of rivers, so we used boats as our main form of transportation for the day. We grabbed lunch at another outdoor market area and enjoyed a large dish of mixed seafood pad thai.

 

 

Although eating street food in any city makes me nervous, Mew informed me that she eats food served from locations like this on a daily basis, and chooses which on to dine at depending upon how clean it looks. I trusted Mew's advice that the food was safe, none the less, I said a little prayer of gratitude after 24 hours passed with no signs of explosive diaria from my end, my rear end to be exact.

 

After lunch we walked to the Golden Temple, a famous Buddist Temple, where we met Yok, one of Mew's sisters. With sweat dripping down our faces from the extreme heat and humidity, the three of us toured the ornate and beautiful temple, but first Mew and I had to rent appropriate, modest clothing to enter the holy grounds. I would not be surprised if Mew's pink button up shirt and my floor length wrap skirt lands us a spot on the cover of next month's Vogue. Eyes peeled for that one!

 

 

 

This was actually my first time inside of a Buddhist Temple, which is surprising considering how much time practicing Buddhists Orlando Bloom, Tina Turner, Richard Gere and I all spend hanging out! Several of the building on grounds were for V.I.M. (very important monks) only, but one temple was open for the public and it was actually quite peaceful to enter into the holy area and be still for a few moments. Before we entered into the building we had to remove our shoes, and cleanse ourselves by dipping a flower stem into blessed water and dropping it onto our heads. Like most things in life, I took this practice VERY serisouly!

 

 

 

After our temple visit, we visited another market area where we sampled more local food. Note to self: must keep running! We tried coconut ice cream, Thai sushi, Roti (a Thai pastry topped with sugar and condensed milk), and khao laam (sweet rice cooked inside of a bamboo stick). Aloi mak (very delicious)!

Mew with khao laam 

After an eventful 24 hours, Mew and I parted ways, but what a fun 24 hours they were! Til next time, Bangkok!

 

Full House, Rice A Roni, and Flowers In Your Hair

If you were able to put all the clues from the above title together and come up with the topic of this week's post, San Fransisco, then you are one smart cookie! Go you!

This was actually my very first time visiting San Fransisco, so I was super excited to check out the city!

I had plans to go out to dinner with the crew the first night we arrived, however, the ol common cold combined with working a 15 hour flight left me sounding like a drag-queen-a-licious version of myself, so I opted for room service and some 'Merican TV in my jamies! These are the kinds of things you can do when you're 25.

The next morning I headed out bright and early for a day full of sightseeing. After an interesting train and bus ride, complete with an elderly woman ramming her tennis ball covered walker into my shins while screaming at no one in particular, "You don't respect me, I don't respect you,"  I arrived at the Golden Gate Bridge. I felt like walking across the entire bridge would be monumental, and just something I should do, however, half way through the windy, two mile walk I started to think that the only thing I was going to do at the end of the bridge was turn around, so I might as well just go back now. Gail Schutz's ever present voice in my head reminded me that, just like the time I realized half way through my 5th grade school year that I was no Kenny G and wanted to quit the band, I should complete my intended goal, "If you start something, finish it!"

Onward I marched!

After my journey across the bridge, I caught another bus (no apparent crazy ladies this time), and headed to Fisherman's Wharf. This area that encompasses the northern waterfront area of San Fransisco was so cute! It was filled with lots street vendors, mom and pop stores, and cool restaurants.

After meandering around the area for awhile longer, I began to gnaw on my arm, and luckily found a local restaurant just in time! I devoured the lunch special of the legit best clam chowder and sour dough bowl I've ever eaten and a side salad. Yum and yum!

 

 

 

 



After lunch I finally spotted the famous San Fransisco cable cars! I was a bit confused about how to pay for them, and where they actually went, so I settled for a photo opp instead of an actual ride on this form of public transportation. My shins thanked me.

I 100% by accident, without even knowing it, swear I didn't mean to, ok I'm lying...headed to the famous Ghiradelli Square where I devoured some delicious chocolates, drank a coffee, and listened to a local dude play a live set of his new acoustic album. Perfection!

My next stop on Tour de San Fransisco is probably the most iconic place in town, the reason most people travel thousands of miles to visit the city by the bay: Fleet Feet Sports, an awesome running shoe store! The Saucony Hurricane 14 running shoes I wore for the half marathon were no longer cutting it, as I was still dealing with blisters from them after wearing them for nearly three months. I'll spare you the photos. You're welcome.

The guys at Fleet Feet were super knowledgeable about all things running, and properly measured my feet, watched me run, and even massaged my calluses and examined the blisters to determine where my current shoes were rubbing. He then received a purple heart for his act of bravery.

After his assessment he presented me with several shoes he recommended for my foot type. I surprisingly ended up with another pair of Saucony's, but a much lighter weight pair called the Cortana. As soon as I can take a deep breathe without my chest breaking in half, I'm definitely going to bust these bad boys out!

 

The next morning before the long flight back in the mother ship, I went to do some non Arabic grocery shopping. The grocery store across from my hotel was Trader Joe's. Although I've always heard great things about this chain, I've never actually been to one. I was beyond impressed by this place, and would go as far as saying I'm hooked! There is a ton of fresh and locally grown produce, as well as a huge variety of healthy pre packaged food I had never seen before. The kicker was that it was all insanely inexpensive, especially for California!

My Trader Joe's Loot...Minus the Items I Already Ravaged

That's about it folks! I'm off to the local Jazz Club to see if they have any lead singer vacancies....

Roadtrip! Errrr Skytrip???

February is officially OVA! Can we all just collectively let out a halle-freaking-lujah?! This past month was a rough one for me! I didn't anticipate the one year anniversary being the emotional equivalent of sticking a hot needle that had been dipped in dog poo into my eye, but man, was it! Why some holidays and anniversaries come and go like a breeze, yet other random Wednesdays can leave me alternating between the ugly cry and echoing the words of my five year old self, "I just want my mommy," is beyond me! Grief, you are a tricky little booger!

Grief hurts. Nutella can help.

A close family friend of ours has coined the phrase, "Sometimes you just need to be with the home folk."

With the one year anniversary lurking just around the corner, I decided that I just needed to do just that! Luckily, I have a pretty cool job that allows me to decide at 6 pm on a random Tuesday that I'd like to take a week and a half off from work, fly across the world that night, and why yes, I would like to do so using insanely discounted airline tickets, another pretty neat perk of the 'ol 9-5!

Eleven days of unplanned and unscheduled home time was seriously JUST what I needed!

While I was home I helped prepare lots of gourmet meals like...

s'mores over the fire!

Hung out with these crazies a ton, including a fun day of swimming!

Gave dis widdle bidy baby a million and five kisses...

Rang in my 25th with this cool cat...

And overall just had a boot scootin good time at home :)

25 years is a very long time for a born and raised farm girl to never have owned her very own cowgirl boots! Thanks, pa!

Though the visit home has come and gone, I feel beyond blessed to have been able to take just a little peice of home back with me in my heart...rather, my chest. Awww upper respiratory infection, truly the gift that keeps on giving!