by Judy Kundert
“Hi, Katherine! You look like you’re ready for something exciting today.”
Katherine walked through the open door and smiled. “Thanks.” She wanted to shout out; This is my liberation today. “Oh, I have a few new things happening.” She turned and smiled. “Have a great trip.”
He waved and smiled.
Katherine peeked at the crew desk and smiled at stewardesses checking out their flight reports. Her mind zipped back to her first check-in two and half years ago. She’d been leaving her books, classes, and small-town life to travel the world and live in a city, Chicago. When she’d told her dad her plan to go back and study, she’d been trying to decide if she should be a cultural anthropologist or a social anthropologist. She hadn’t believed in herself. It was a fantasy. But her journeys as a stewardess had led her through the stages of social anthropology in its way. As a stewardess, she’d seen people from different places and ways. She’d gotten a snapshot of what they think, how they organize their lives. Now she wanted to help people learn the wonders of the Chippewa. But now, she had to move on to her happy stewardess ending.
With a fixed smile, she strutted toward her supervisor’s office. She passed the dreaded scale as an ashen-faced stewardess stepped onto it. Now I can get fat and sassy.
She stood outside her supervisor’s office, grabbed at one more chunk of courage, and entered. Her supervisor looked up from her papers and screamed, “Katherine! What are you wearing? Where’s your uniform?”
“My uniform is at home. I won’t be wearing it anymore.” She paused, breathed in strength, and continued. “I’m here to resign.”
“Resign?” The supervisor looked away and shuffled papers on her desk. “You have a good record with lots of passenger orchid letters. All you needed to do was not wear that necklace.” She raised her voice. “Did you misunderstand me?”
Katherine leaned forward and pulled out her Thunderbird. “This necklace means more to me than being a stewardess. I understand. You gave me an ultimatum: the necklace or the job. I chose the necklace. How do I resign?”
The supervisor wrinkled her brow and waved her hand to the door. She pointed to a woman at the desk outside her office. “Oh, just go to Betty, and she’ll give you the details.”
Katherine reached to shake her hand. “Thank you.”
The supervisor gave her a limp handshake and a half smile.
Walking away from the supervisor’s office, Katherine covered her lips to suppress her squeal. With her new wings, she floated above the clouds and gave a wink to Hanging Cloud. The drumbeat rhythm of her heart raised and lowered her treasured Thunderbird charm. What’s next?
45
FRED, THE DOORMAN, smiled and waved at Katherine, “Hi, Miss Katherine, I hear that you’re leaving us soon. Where are you going?”
Katherine appreciated Fred as her palace guard; he’d always been kind and protective of her. “I’m moving to Washington D.C.”
“Are you transferring there?”
Katherine wanted to tell him she’d be working at the Smithsonian, but her Beloit College professor had not responded to her letter yet. It was still just a dream. “No, I quit my stewardess job, and I will find a job that’s entirely different.”
“Different? Like how?” He paused and rushed to the lobby cabinet and pulled out a large oversized envelope. “Golly, I forgot this. The mailman left it with me.”
Katherine’s eyes widened when she saw the large manila envelope. Its Beloit College logo raised her expectation and her heartbeat. An envelope this large can’t be a “Sorry, no thank you” letter from Professor Kingsley. She must have accepted me to work on the project, probably with a pittance for pay. She crossed her fingers. Thank you, Dad, for offering to give me an allowance and believing in me. “Oh, thanks, Fred, I better go.”
Fred grinned and pointed to the Beloit College logo on the envelope. “Are you going to that college?”
“Well, I’ll be working for them. I hope. I’ll tell you later.”
Katherine dashed to her mailbox, still clutching the manila envelope. It tumbled from her hand when she reached for her mailbox key. Like a bird reaching for its morsel of food, she bent to retrieve it. She hoped there was a letter from her mom and dad with Dad’s promised check. Now I need my parents help for a few months. What a joke. I’m trying to be independent, and here I am with my arms outstretched for a brace from Mom and Dad.
Katherine sighed and reached inside her mailbox. One piece of mail drifted into her hand, a soft pink envelope with camellias engraved around the corner. It looked like a perfect Southern belle envelope. Emma Jean’s wedding invitation ! I wish that I’d said yes when she asked me to be one of her bridesmaids. Katherine’s eye overflowed with teardrops. My life is in flux. I wish I could attend the wedding. Emma Jean, I’ll miss you. When I get settled, I’ll take a trip to Charleston sometime. Katherine exhaled and swished her hands across her face. While she waited for her elevator, she opened Emma Jean’s wedding invitation.
Emma Jean’s note, enclosed with the request, enticed her to smile.
Dear Katherine,
I wish you could be in my wedding. Could you come for one night, or come the night before for the rehearsal dinner at the Charleston Harbor Club and attend our wedding the next day at the South Carolina Society Hall? Mama and Papa have an extra room for you. Please come.
Love, Emma Jean
The elevator began its slow ascent, and Katherine looked at her watch and tapped her fingers on the elevator door. With each floor, she made a list. Call Emma Jean. Call Mom and Dad. Find a place to live in Washington D.C. Call Angelos and thank him. Call Charlotte. At the fifteenth floor, the elevator door opened, and Katherine ran out like a racehorse out of the gate.
Katherine jammed her keys into her apartment door lock. Inside, she dropped her purse and keys in the entryway hall and dashed into the living room. Her palms sweat, and her heart pounded as she tore open the big manila envelope. A stack of paper two inches thick flew onto her lap. On top was the letter from her professor. She clutched the letter and skimmed to the lines that said, yes, she was part of the program. The more she read, the more green-lights of acceptance dashed off the page. Katherine’s finger ran over the names of the people on the team, which included her professor, another Beloit College faculty member, a doctoral candidate, and her.
Katherine squealed, “I did it!”
Katherine wanted to burst her pride buttons since her professor told her that the idea of interns was new and not many people know how to use them. According to her instructor, her internship chances had been almost nil. Katherine raised her fisted arm in the air. I’m a trailblazer.
Her hand hit Betty Friedan’s book The Feminine Mystique; it crashed to the floor and opened to an underlined quote: “The only way for a woman, as for a man, to find herself, to know herself as a person, is by creative work of her own.”
Katherine clapped her hands. I have to call Mom and Dad.
Katherine’s index finger reached to dial her parents when the phone rang.
“Hi, Katherine. Thanks for the note with your apartment details. Do you still want to sublease it?” Carol asked.
Katherine fought the urge to shout, Come on over and move in tonight. Lucky stars sparkled around her. “Why, yes, are you still interested?”
“I sure am. I’d like to move in as soon as possible.”
Katherine looked at the start date in the letter: August 15. She looked around her bedroom stuffed with boxes addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Roebling, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Many of these possessions had journeyed with her when she left home and now returned full circle. She smiled and touched her Thunderbird. I already have all my real belongings with me. “Well, how about the end of next week?”
Carol cheered, “Yes, I can come over tomorrow to pay you and sign the sublease. And look around the apartment. I can’t wait to get downtown. My boyfriend works in the recording studio a few blocks from your apartment.”
“Sure, the morning is better. I’m so glad that this works out for you.”
“Oh, golly wally, I nearly forgot. I ran into one of my friends who transferred to Washington D.C. a month ago. She’s looking for a roommate. Are you interested in finding a roommate?” She paused and giggled. “She lives in a neighborhood called Foggy Bottom. Can you beat that?”
Katherine needed a place to live, and Foggy Bottom was either her ship coming in or a port in a storm. “Sure. I could talk with her. So please have her call me.”
“Okay. See you tomorrow.”
Katherine’s stomach danced to the rhythm of her heart beating. “Sure thing.”
She clutched the handset of the pink princess phone and laughed. Katherine’s chest tightened. She gasped. She was leaving her familiar sites—Lincoln Park and the zoo, Oak Street Beach, her Gold Coast neighborhood, and the cozy feeling of Greek Town—to live in a place called Foggy Bottom. Would she enjoy the new community?
She shrugged her shoulders and release a breath. And a new roommate! She’d never had a stranger as a roommate. She hoped the new roommate agreed with William Butler Yeats: “There are no strangers here; only friends you haven’t yet met.”
46
KATHERINE’S FIRST-CLASS FLIGHT to Washington’s National Airport, her last crew pass, was the final remnant of her high-flying stewardess life. After this trip, she’d need to pay full price for her airplane tickets. Thoughts of her new life as an intern in one of the world’s best museums replaced any regrets with visions of personal inspiration. I am a trailblazer. And I’m no longer a jet model moving on a conveyor of uniformity.
Katherine flipped through the pages of the visitor’s guide to Washington D.C. She fanned herself and giggled at the descriptions of the White House, Capitol Hill, and the Smithsonian. All the new places to see and things to do caused her back to twitch with new visions sprouting from her heart to her mind.
A stewardess turned to Katherine and asked, “Excuse me, what’s your lunch choice, chicken or beef?”
Katherine dropped her book and rubbed her eyes and looked up at the stewardess and smiled. “Hey, didn’t we work together on a Las Vegas junket last month?”
The stewardess’ face glowed with a broad smile. “Oh, yes. I thought I recognized you. Say what happened to you and those jerks with the offensive Indian shot glass?”
“Oh, nothing. Wasn’t that a riot?”
The stewardess smiled. “I sympathized with you.” She glanced at her book. “Hey, are you going on vacation?”
Katherine held up her book. “Oh, no, I’m moving to D.C.”
“You’re lucky to get a transfer to D.C. I have lots of friends who are based in D.C. Do you need help searching for a roommate?”
Katherine smiled. “I resigned for a new job in D.C. Thanks, but I have a roommate. She’s a friend of a Chicago-based stew.”
The stewardess put her palms over her face and furrowed her brow. “I know most of the Chicago stews with D.C. friends. If it’s Carol and she referred a D.C. friend to you, you may want my friend’s name. Just as a backup.”
Katherine’s stomach turned, and her mind filled with warning. “Oh, well, thanks, I’ll keep them in reserve.”
The stewardess nodded and smiled. “Sure, I’ll give them to you before we land. You may have flown with them. They’re former Chicago-based stews.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Hey, I have to finish up in the galley.”
Katherine smiled. Wow, I won’t have to do that again. Katherine reached for her Thunderbird and placed it on the outside of her blouse. Freedom. Freedom must continue to grow, or it flows away. Yes, when she began as a stewardess, she’d had freedom. But freedom isn’t stagnant. It’s like a body that loses mature cells to grow new cells. Katherine wrapped her arms around her shoulders, leaned back in her chair, and dreamed.
The Washington D.C. humidity swarmed around Katherine. Her clothes stuck to her as she paced around her suitcases in the baggage pickup line. Katherine reread the letter from her new roommate to confirm the time and place for her pickup at the airport. Every ten minutes, she tried to call the new roommate’s phone number with no luck. Thirty minutes and then forty-five minutes passed, but no blue Chevy Camaro with a red-haired woman driver appeared. Katherine put her hands on her hips and clenched her fists. She stroked the back of her neck to pad down the bristles. The crowd of passengers zoomed past her. Still no sign of her new roommate. Her veins pumped blood like a hot coffee percolator.
“Hey, Katherine.” The stewardess from her flight motioned from the crew car.
Katherine nodded. “Hi.”
The stewardess turned to the other crew members, whispered to them, and walked over to Katherine. “Are your still waiting for your new roommate?”
Katherine’s face felt hot. I’m not a little kid on my first day of school. “Yeah. She’s an hour late, and I tried calling her, but no luck.”
The stewardess wrinkled her brow. “I bet she got called out on the flight and didn’t know how to reach you. Let’s check at the crew desk. I’ll tell the team to go on to the hotel.”
Katherine wanted to hide. She thinks I’m a stupid idiot who got myself in a mess. I could hear that thought in her voice. Now, I’m a lost orphan, but it isn’t the real me. I am a free, independent, in-charge-of-my-life person. I do need help right now, though. “Thank you. I’ll wait here.”
“Okay, you can watch for her while I check with the D.C. crew desk.” She paused and gave Katherine a look like a lost puppy that she wanted to help find a good home. “Okay?”
Katherine’s stomach didn’t send a message, but her thumping heart delivered warning signs. “Sure. I appreciate your help, but what about your crew at the hotel? Please let me give you money for your taxi when you come back.”
“It’s nothing. We stews are an exclusive club. I’ll be a clipped wing someday, and you may give me a hand. See you soon.”
Katherine laughed. “I’ll be here.” The stewardess disappeared through the terminal doors. It was a symbolic image for Katherine; her closing one door while her other hand reached for the new door. Her mind drifted over her flight into Washington National Airport and the view of Washington from the air: National Mall and the Potomac River. All those times she’d flown into O’Hare International Airport with thousands and thousands of sparkling lights glowing from Chicago suburbs: Arlington Heights, Des Plaines, and Schaumburg. What a different a world she was entering. Remember, relax and enjoy the ride. The Smithsonian was a beginning of something on a bigger scale with more tests and trials. If she’d learned anything from her stewardess career, it was to expect the unexpected. Flight delays, canceled flights, and unexpected charter flights. And now I have a new roommate who’s missing in action.
Katherine waved at the taxi drivers who called out to her. “Taxi?”
She released a breath and took in the air of Washington D.C. She wrinkled her nose and nodded. Yep. Enjoy the fresh air. Soon, my daily work life will be full of stuffy air from old papers and old books, like my dad’s old law books in the attic.
A fat, lecherous man in a dark blue suit cleared his throat and smiled at Katherine. “Excuse me, miss; you look lost. Are you a new girl in town?” He paused and surveyed every part of Katherine from her mod shoes to her perfect face, which was framed by wavy blonde hair. He winked and pointed to the taxi. “I can give you a ride to a hotel downtown. I’m going to the Willard. It’s a grand hotel.”
Geez, I’m not even in uniform and lechers lurk from dark corners. Katherine put her hands on her hips and glared at the ruddy man with cigar stains on his fingers. “No, thanks. I work on Capitol Hill and know my way around the city.” She turned her back and saw her new stewardess friend trotting toward her.
The stewardess with her proper training shouted, “Oh, Miss Roebling, your limo driver called, and he ran into traffic problems.” She motioned for her to come with her. “He wants you to wait in the terminal, and he’ll have you paged when he arrives out front.
”
Katherine seized her suitcases and glided into the terminal.
The stewardess motioned for her to join her. “Katherine, sit here.” She motioned to a chair next to her.
The stewardess’s face reminded her of her mother’s face when she’d told Katherine that her favorite rabbit died. Katherine gulped. “Thanks. What’s the news?”
The stewardess sat up and sighed. “Your new roommate got fired. She is a married woman. Two supervisors met her flight early this morning.” She paused and looked at Katherine. Katherine nodded and motioned for her to continue. “Her husband met her flight and took her away somewhere.”
Well, it could be worse. This stewardess could be a pilot telling me to prepare for an emergency landing. I can handle this. I’m jinxed. First Anita and now this woman. Hm, this must be a message for me. “Hm. I guess I can call Carol and see if she knows anything about this and where I can get in touch with her friend. I’d like my first month’s rent back.” Katherine wrinkled her brow. “If she was married, why did she want a roommate?”
“As a cover. Supervisors check the names of suspicious stewardesses’ apartment listings. With two women listed, it looks right. Carol didn’t tell me anything else. She gave me lots of details on how nice she is and that she’s from Wyoming. You’re lucky that this happened. Not because of the roommate. The location is terrible. Foggy Bottom is a bummer for commuting. You need a car. Do you have a place to stay? Maybe you could stay in my room at the hotel.”
Katherine appreciated her kindness but staying in a crew hotel room with a stewardess was a move back to the door she’d closed. “You’re super, but you’ve done more than enough for me. I’ll get a hotel downtown and make a new plan tomorrow.” She reached into her handbag and handed the stewardess a twenty-dollar bill. “Is this enough for the taxi to your hotel?” Katherine paused and laughed. “I can’t give you my telephone number or address, but I’d like yours. When I get settled, I’ll send my information to you. If you get Washington, D.C. layovers, we can have dinner or drinks. Okay?”
