Let me start by saying: I am not built for winter.
Thirty years in Florida has softened me like a Publix sub left in a warm car. I enjoy the sun. I enjoy knowing my windshield won’t betray me with a sheet of ice each morning. And I absolutely enjoy not having to scrape frozen sadness off my car just to get to work.
So after three “fun-filled” days of windshield warfare and layering like I live in a Patagonia catalog, I’m beyond ready to head home.
Then it happens.
✨My flight gets moved EARLIER.✨
Yes, earlier. Not delayed. Not rescheduled. Not canceled. E-A-R-L-Y.
I’ve flown enough to know this is the rarest form of aviation magic. It’s like spotting Bigfoot at baggage claim. I nearly cried into my airport coffee. Merry Christmas to me.
But of course, because this is ATWC, joy doesn’t travel alone. Enter: tragedy and the PSA portion of today’s episode.
It’s 6:30 a.m.
I’m on the airport shuttle, half-conscious, hoping for a quiet 37-second ride from the rental car center to the terminal.
Instead…
The man across from me answers his phone on speaker.
🫠
PSA #1: If you take a call in public—especially a shuttle full of strangers before dawn—take it off speaker.
But no. He doesn’t.
So now I—and everyone else onboard—am forced to hear:
“She’s back in the hospital.”
“Was it an overdose again?”
“Yeah. It’s not looking good.”
“You need to get here soon. She’s probably not going to make it this time.”
All of this. On speaker. In surround sound. Before sunrise.
PSA #2: When a call takes a tragic, personal turn… seriously. TAKE. IT. OFF. SPEAKER.
But what really gut-punched me was the guy’s response:
“Oh well. I’m at the airport and don’t feel like changing my flight.”
Let that sink in.
His sister is possibly dying. And his biggest concern is not wanting to be mildly inconvenienced. The kind of apathy that makes the frost on my rental car seem downright warm.
So yes:
I got a Christmas travel miracle.
I witnessed a deeply tragic real-life moment.
And I now gift to you this holiday PSA:
Just. Use. Your. Headphones.
You never know who’s listening—or how deeply your words might hit.
Stay warm, stay kind, and as always… try not to sit next to me. Bad things tend to happen when you do.
