Photo by Thomas Park
Most of us are looking for anything to feel good about these days. One thing I do to feel good is to look for and appreciate high quality. Here are three “quality” observations this week involving planes, parachutes, and Jerry Seinfeld that all make me smile.
A Tip of My Hat to American Airlines. On Saturday my wife, Patti, returned home from New Orleans where she had gone with a few high school friends. Even though the weather on this end was a little rough, all went well on her non-stop return flight to Boston on JetBlue.
One high school friend from Maine, however, had to fly home on American Airlines with a stop in Washington, DC. After arriving in DC she learned the flight from DC to Maine got cancelled Saturday, likely due to weather, and she would need to spend more than a day waiting for the next flight near midnight on Sunday.
This friend has several limitations and requires wheelchair and other assistance. Not only did American Airlines book her into a nice hotel, they provided transportation supports, and meals and got her safely onto the Sunday night flight.
There are so many negative stories about airlines, I wanted to share how American Airlines in this case provided high-quality service.
Jim in Wingsuit
Parachutes. Speaking of quality, I have become more intrigued with the quality of parachutes since our nephew, Jim, became a serious skydiver. To date he has over 1,000 jumps to his credit and in recent years has become a huge fan of diving with wingsuits.
Jim also skydives in groups and has been involved in several, near record, synchronized jumps with dozens of jumpers linked together like you might see on popular Team Building posters.
It takes great “quality control” to successfully jump, especially in groups. Not only do you need high quality chutes and wingsuits, you need organizers and jumpers who pay close attention to the myriad of details it takes to make these jumps safe for everyone. And Jim is the kind of bright and detailed-oriented person you would want on your team.
Jim in Group Jump
I know my sister and her husband are nervous when he jumps, which brings me to my third story.
Jerry Seinfeld on Skydiving. Last year I received a wonderful gift that gives me a laugh every day – Jerry Seinfeld’s book Is This Anything? This book contains the text of his actual comedy routines since the 1970s. As I read these routines, which were carefully crafted with high quality to fit his gifted timing and delivery, I can see Jerry in my mind’s eye delivering each as a stand-up comedian, and I laugh hard.
Here is the text from two of his routines on skydiving – picture Jerry standing-up now delivering these lines.
Skydive at 19 (From Is This Anything)
I went skydiving once.
I was 19.
Horrible thing to do to your parents.
They’ve just spent 19 years trying to protect me from harm, injury, disease.
I turn around,
“Mom, dad, it’s a pretty nice day…
What do you say we risk the whole ball of wax right now?
My idea is this,
I go up in a plane thousands of feet in the air.
Hurl myself out.
Attempt to operate the parachute correctly.
And avoid plummeting to an almost certain death.
… can you lend me the 75 bucks?”
Skydiving Helmet (From Is This Anything)
Skydiving is definitely the scariest thing I’ve done.
My question,
What exactly is the point of the helmet?
Can you “kind of” make it?
I think if you jump out of a plane,
And that chute doesn’t open,
the helmet is now wearing you for protection.
Later on, the helmet’s talking with the other helmets going,
“It’s a good thing he was there or I would have hit the ground directly.
You never jump out of a plane unless you have got a human being strapped underneath you.
That’s basic safety.”
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
If you need another smile today, even if you have seen this before, watch this Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee Seinfeld segment with President Obama at the White House.
Remember to watch for the high quality around you and your own performance will step-up even if you have to jump-out.
