I flew to Sydney today and had the fun experience of sitting next to a pilot. No, not the pilot. There were a few pilots sitting with us plebs hitching a ride, and I was lucky enough to sit beside one. As he was settling in, I was about to make the obvious joke.
Can you guess?
That’s right, “Are you sure you’re in the right seat? “
I refrained. A few years ago I made a commitment to try not to make obvious jokes or comments. So instead I said:
“I can’t wait to tell my 3 year old son that I sat next to a pilot on the plane.“
He appreciated that. I did say I thought I’d refrain from the obvious joke of “are you in the right seat”. He agreed that it does wear a little thin. Does it still count as my not making the obvious joke? I think so…
So as we were landing, I looked to my left and saw another plane. It looked as though it was at a similar height to us, and preparing for landing.
I must say that I freaked out a little. I’ve never flown so close to another plane before and I didn’t think it was “the norm”. I turned to my new pilot friend (who had slept pretty much the whole flight) and said as much. His response was “Yeah it’s pretty cool Hey.” I took this to mean that all was right in the skies. Not long after, this other plane and ours performed a perfectly synchronised landing.
It was a beautiful thing. I have been on dozens of flights in my life and this was a first. It’s nice to know that life can still make mundane things a bit extraordinary sometimes.
Something worth remembering.
What’s the original joke? Don’t think I know it.
It’s more that everyone would say “are you sure you’re in the right seat?” if a pilot say next to them in a plane. And I didn’t want to be just another annoying passenger who thought they were being funny and original.
I’m trying to think of another example…. Like saying to a really tall person “How’s the weather up there?” Or meeting an Irish person and saying “Ah to be sure to be sure”.
Hope you’re doing well! If you have a minute drop us an email update?