Hey guys. I hope you’re all doing well. I am sure most of you are now on summer break from school and I hope that you all have a very happy and safe summer. I am doing well myself. I just got home from Florida two days ago and I am happy to be back in Connecticut. Seeing as I haven’t been here since January, I will say that it still feels weird to be here. But, it is nice to see everyone and my house nonetheless.
When I pulled in the driveway, my dog immediately saw me and he was ecstatic. I have to say that I missed him a lot being away. If you have pets, you will experience the same thing, but they are always thrilled to see you when you do come home and that makes coming even more exciting. I had seen my family several times in Florida, but it was nice to see them as well of course.
Before I left Daytona, I spent my time working at the Daytona Beach International Airport in the Operations department. This allowed for some good excitement and a great deal of valuable experiences. I will surely miss this job and my coworkers over the summer, and I will look forward to returning to the job in August.
My day of travel started early on June 3. One of my coworkers drove me to the airport for a 6:40am US Airways departure to Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina. When we landed here, I had about an hour and a half before my next flight to Philadelphia International Airport in Pennsylvania. I was disappointed to learn that today the aircraft—normally a Boeing 767-200—had been swapped for a Boeing 757-200, but it was alright as I got a bit of a seat upgrade in the process. I then had 3 hours in Philadelphia before catching my last flight to Tweed New Haven Regional Airport in Connecticut. This was just enough time to allow me to explore the airport a bit and, of course, get an authentic Philly Cheesesteak for lunch.
When I arrived in New Haven—which, for those of you don’t know, is the airport I work at in Operations here in Connecticut—I was greeted by my good friend and co-worker. We caught up for a while and after I retrieved by bag from the baggage claim, I went to the administration building to catch up with them a bit. We got the paperwork rolling to get my ID badge re-issued and I will start work there again on Monday. I will have plenty of exciting stories from here to share with you throughout the summer.
Jumping back, though, for a minute to Florida, I had a nice experience on my last weekend there when I drove down to see my grandparents in the Stuart, FL area for Memorial Day. It was great to see them and catch up for a bit as I hadn’t spent much time with them for a while. They showed me around the area including Hutchinson Island, a beautiful resort-type area along the Atlantic Ocean there. We were even able to enjoy our cookout on Memorial Day at one of their friend’s condos right on the ocean. It was a great time and I look forward to visiting them again soon.
Packing up for home wasn’t that hard this year because I had my car with me in Florida. I was able to load it up with all of my clothing and items I wanted home before it got picked up by the transport company. This allowed me to drastically reduce what I had to carry in my suitcase. Even if you opt to drive your car home (if you decide to bring one), you can still load it up and save yourself from having to find storage for those items in Daytona. Having an apartment helped too, as I left many things there that I didn’t need over the summer.
The airport in Daytona recently acquired two busses from the county which will be used to transport passengers in the event of an emergency evacuation out on the airfield, as well as for tours around the airport. This has been fun for me as I have been able to learn the systems of the busses as well as how to operate them should the need arise. Experiences like these are what really make my job great. I think it is crucial to attempt to learn as much as you can from everything possible—it really pays off in the future.
Finally, a few weeks before I came home, my friend Kyle and I flew up to Jacksonville International Airport for lunch. As I have mentioned before, I really like flying into this airport for many reasons. For one thing, I enjoy being in the vicinity of a lot of commercial traffic. Secondly, the facilities—including the FBO (Sheltair) are in immaculate condition. Thirdly, there is a huge selection of places to eat right near the airport which makes it very convenient. I look forward to visiting many more times next semester.
Well, that’s all I have for you this time, guys. Stay tuned for stories as my summer here in Connecticut begins!
Talk to you soon and take care!
Pete
