"What Would Molly Do?" -- (an unsolicited compliment by a fellow flight attendant)

This is not a post about photography but about excellent customer service.  Most people are quick to complain when they receive bad service, but what if someone provides excellent service?  Do you write a letter or note, tell their manager or boss, compliment the person or say anything at all?  I always make it a point to tell a manager and compliment the person who has helped me if he or she has given excellent service.  This is a story about one of my closest friends with whom I worked on a 3-day trip last week.

Her name is Molly, and she was recognized in the top 1% of Delta Airlines' employees for excellent customer service.  When she told me this some time ago, I wanted to know what her secret was.  She was constantly receiving customer comment cards or letters from passengers telling her what a great job she did.  She told me that among other things, she uses the passengers names and recognizes their status as premium passengers.  I started trying what she suggested and am always asking myself, "What Would Molly Do?".

So, back to our trip.  In over 11 years with Delta, I have never seen anyone go above and beyond like Molly did.  Actually, I don't know whether I have ever seen such service in any situation.  She was incredible!  She greeted every passenger with a smile, knew every passenger's name in first class and addressed them by name throughout the flight.  She was very sincere and had such positive energy that one could not help but smile.  At one point, during a boarding process, it was pouring rain and the overhead cover from the jetway did not quite reach the plane.  There was about a 24 inch gap and water was coming into the plane.  She stood next to the doorway with an umbrella keeping each passenger dry while she got wet.  

I definitely learned a lot from her during those three days and decided to try using her skills.  The more that I practiced, the better I got.  I actually memorized first class passengers names on almost every flight.  At the end of one of my flights, a passenger came up to me and told me that I did an excellent job.  He gave me five excellent service customer comment cards!  The reason that is such a huge deal to me is that the premium passengers only get five per year and he gave them all to me!

Especially during these financial times and not so positive news, it is so refreshing to see something positive.  Molly helped me remember one of the reasons why I wanted to become a flight attendant.  She really inspires me to be my best at my job even if it is only for a 45 minute flight.  I am so happy that I had the opportunity to fly with her.  Why not try the "Molly" attitude and see what happens?

Fall Colors in Hope Valley

I decided to take a drive up to Hope Valley to check out what remained of the fall color.  The weather was supposed to be around 70 degrees and it was a beautiful day.  I had a goal in mind and it was to find the "cabin" that many photographers have captured as the subject of their images. I know, it seems so cliché, but I just had to find it. 


It was such a beautiful drive the entire way.  As I turned off of highway 50 onto 89, I started seeing Aspens with their golden leaves dancing in the slight breeze.  I had to get out of my car just to feel the warmth of the sun and the fresh mountain air on my face.  The sky was different shades of blue with wisps of white clouds painted throughout.  I felt so at peace as I often do when I am in nature.  


As much as I wanted to stay in the spot I had found, I had to get back in the car to find that cabin.  I turned onto highway 88 and Hope Valley opened up.  There were a few trees that had already lost their leaves but what remained were clusters of vibrant yellow amongst the evergreens.  I got out and took a few shots but I had to move on.  I drove a few more miles and there it was...the cabin!  The sun raked across the scenery and brought a feeling of warmth to the landscape.  While I was photographing, I envisioned this in a sepia tone as well as color so I have included both.  Let me know what you think!


Please be sure to check out more of my photography at www.DigitalWonderlandPhotography.com or like my page on Facebook.

Fleet Week

I have always loved planes...airshows, fighter jets, vintage planes, anything that has to do with flying, so when my sister invited me to San Francisco for Fleet Week, I was totally excited! Not only did I get to see my family, I was going to see the Blue Angels in one of my favorite cities. My family was staying at Cavallo Point, a former military base known as Fort Baker which is located in Sausalito.

The views from Cavallo Point were incredible. The city was spread out before us just across the bay and the Golden Gate Bridge was off to our right. The Blue Angels played and danced gracefully above the water and I thought that it must be such a rush being able to pilot an F/A-18 Hornet.  It was such an incredible site watching them stay together as a unit, split off and then come back together...what precision!  Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a fighter pilot and imagined what it must feel like having power and control over such a beautiful piece of machinery.

I was talking about the show and my love of the Angels with a fellow crew member this week when he casually said that his father used to be Blue Angel #5 in the 90s for a couple of years. "Wait, what?" was my response, followed by "That is sooooo freaking awesome!"  I asked him about a billion questions after that. 

I know I will never pilot a fighter jet, but someday, I will have command of a small plane. Watching them makes me want to hurry and finish getting my private pilot's certificate!

Please be sure to check out more of my photography at www.DigitalWonderlandPhotography.com.