Family life

[bobs98tlr]

How about secrets from lead sled then...you too HMR..you always have a smile on your face and a great view..any tips that will help the normal guy other then luck?

 

[Lead Sled]

How about secrets from lead sled then...you too HMR..you always have a smile on your face and a great view..any tips that will help the normal guy other then luck?

I've got no real secrets to share. I think the key to a happy family life is to simply follow the golden rule - treat others as you would wish to be treated. Unfortunately, once the "novelty" of married life dissappears, too many people return to thinking interms of me and mine instead of ours. That's when the problems start.

Things in life always seem to go better if you have a plan. Formulate a master plan, set intermediate goals, prioritize, then see how things evolve. You're going to have to make certain choices that will have long term effects. Make sure that those choices don't have negative effects on your higher priority items. In my case, my marriage and family was number 1. My aviation career was number 4 on my list of priorities. At this point in my career I could have been quite senior at either Delta, American, United, or JetBlue. The fact that I am not is as a result of consciencious choices that my wife and I made. Do I regret it? Not for a minute. I've had a very fulfilling career so far and other than getting to fly a 747, I've pretty much been able to do everything and go everywhere I've ever wanted.

'Sled

 

[Av8rPHX]

She changed into the devil about 30 seconds after I said, "I Do." She started yelling at the photographer, telling him that he was doing his job wrong. I knew right then and there that I had died and gone to hell.:angryfire

For some reason that sounds eerily familiar...

 

[norskman2]

For some reason that sounds eerily familiar...

Me three!

Did we all marry the same Lucifer-ette?

 

[Skyline]

Put the family first

Family Life

How can you be doing right by your family while flying for a living? Even if you live at your base then most likely that means that the family must move away from friends and family to live in a strange city to be near you. The wages are so low at the regionals that you will have to cram everyone into a getto 2 bedroom apartment. Sure you are at home and have 14 days off a month, but what about the rest of the picture? It takes money family and friends to properly raise a family. You might get lucky and have a good set up for a while but things change.

Skyline

 

[DwayneWorthless]

Family Life

Any of you Regional Guys want to send your kids over to my house to do some yard work? I'll pay'em $10.00 for all day. If you want a piece of the action, you can demand 2% from them for doing nothing. Ha, kind a like ALPA..... Oh I crack myself up sometimes

 

[rodgerdodger]

I've found it useful to have a good handy-man or (VERY) trusted friend commit to being willing to let her call if there's a fire that needs putting out while I'm gone. It's great to know that someone is there when the sink starts to leak or a tire goes flat. When small problems don't escalate, she's a lot less likely to feel abandoned while you're on a trip.

Be careful though- sometimes you can trust a guy with your life but not your money or your wife!

 

[414Flyer]

I dont think any pilots were on their death bed wishing they had spent more time in the air or flown a bigger plane.

But i am sure there have been many who wished they had spent more time with their familes.

 

[AGuyThatFlys]

<Looking at ALPA mag mug shot.>

DuaneWorthless: Your avatar looks more like Dr. Phil than DW.

 

[whaleroast]

Any advice on balancing a career in aviation and a family. Such as how do you seperate the two or give both priority without hurting the other?

No advice about balancing a career and a family, but only this tidbit that I learned the hard way:
If you're gonna pee in the kitchen sink, make sure the dirty dishes aren't sitting in there. And don't try explaining that there dirty anyway. She won't care.

 

[WhiteCloud]

Any job that involves leaving home for any length of time is hard on everyone. We are basically doing shift work....we just don't know what shift we'll be doing until 10 days ahead of the month. We don't know when the shift will end due to delays, cancellations and weather. Some of us don't even know when our shift will start from day to day or how long it will last. We can't even pick up the phone on days off withour risking some kind of company intrusion into our personal lives and time. All this can be managed but it's not always easy. It comes with the territory. It's a shame we have to lie to our employers about having had a drink or not feeling well on our days off when we really just want to go out to dinner with our wives or play with the kids. Airlines and corporations with airplanes like to think they own you. If you're not careful they will.