Happy Halloween! 🎃I’m a chicken Chick when it comes to spooky things. But I like surviving exploits and mildly scary happenings. Take, for example, my recent Fairbanks, Alaska trip. (Spoiler: I did not see the aurora, which would have featured amazingly spooky spectacular lights.)
Scary Airplane Experiences ✈️
If I didn’t know before that I would be an #AmazingRaceFail, I know now. On the way to Alaska, we had a stopover in Seattle. We got there early (yay!) but were stuck on the tarmac (boo!) for forty-five minutes. When we finally got to a gate, it was not near where the connecting flight was departing. The three of us (hubby, younger daughter, and I) sprinted—ok, they sprinted while I did sprint intervals—to the correct gate. We technically made it right at departure time, but the gate was already closed.
On the way back to L.A., our airplane suddenly rolled. Like, it dipped to the side! Apparently, the pilot had to make a quick maneuver to dodge both turbulence and the passing of a nearby plane!
Ice-Cold Temps 🥶
I’ve gotten SoCal acclimated, even though I loved going to college in upstate NY. The snow is so pretty, and I’m mesmerized whenever I watch it fall and blanket the ground. But freezing temps are still a scary shock to my body!
Nervous Firsts 🥇
I actually like trying out new things, but there’s a part right before the experience when I get anxious. My firsts in Alaska were feeding carrots to horses, strolling with reindeers, and learning (awkwardly) how to curl.
Creepy Photos 📷
I’m not a great photographer and accidentally took these eerie pics while chasing the northern lights. They’re untouched, by the way:
Wanna share your recent pseudo-scary adventures and stories?
Chicks on the Case 
My life’s very uneventful and mild. The scariest thing to happen lately was nodding off at the computer (at home) and waking up to think it was a different day and that I’d overslept and was late for school (I’m a school substitute teacher).
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Ha! I’ve had times where I’ve napped, woken up, and thought–wait, is it morning or evening??
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Jen, those photos from Alaska are gorgeous! Breathtaking! Thank you so much for sharing them with us. Wow!
My knees are still shaking from reading the part about your pilot having to make evasive maneuvers to avoid colliding with another plane. Good grief! Thank goodness – and the pilot – that you’re OK. I’m still screaming.
I don’t like driving to places with which I’m unfamiliar. Abhor would be a good word. A few years ago, I was driving to a new-to-me book event and I got SO lost. Yeah, even with the GPS. I was driving through fog. When the fog lifted a bit, I realized I was this close to driving into a river. I’m still screaming.
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Thanks, Patricia! Yeah, that flight back was unreal. So glad everything worked out.
I hear ya about driving. I’m pretty bad at directions myself. (But I’m glad for online step-by-step directions since I was terrible with Thomas Guides.) Eek about the river! I’m still screaming for you! (To be fair, though, I do love the ocean out here–and have never driven into it–because when I reach it, I at least know I’m heading west.)
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Patricia, I once came *this* close to our car going into the Cape Fear River (I was in the passenger seat, kids in back.) It was super foggy and just after the movie came out.
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Jen, are the trees red or is that caused by a reflection of light?
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Reflection of our tail lights and my bad photography skills–ha!
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The scariest thing that’s happened to me recently was The Hubby sending a video of water pouring into the basement at our old house. That was yesterday. We’re still not sure where it’s coming from, but at least it’s going straight into the sump pump.
Those pictures are amazing!
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Yikes, Liz! That is not a video I’d like to see! Good thing you have that sump pump.
One of our relatives had flooding in their basement years ago, and it was such a trial drying everything out.
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I love your photos!! And OMG! On one of my flights recently, the plane also dipped to the side! I’ve literally clocked well over a million miles on American Airlines alone and never had that happen. It was scary. Although not quite as scary as when a plane I was on suddenly dropped at least a hundred feet or more after taking off. That set off people screaming. And I almost threw up.
But this sounds like a wonderful trip. You’ve really gotten around the last few months, lol!
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Thank you about the pics! But eeeeek about your dip (same, I’ve never had this happen before) and the drop!
We had a great time. I think it’s my year of short trips…maybe because I feel like I need to de-stress more?
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Yikes–that plane ride does sound scary, indeed. But I love your photos–especially the accidental spooky ones. And I’m jealous that you got to curl for yourself–we merely got to watch others do it.
My most recent scare was last week, when Ziggy got a case of colitis. She was shaking and had a fever, and it took several days after we got her on meds for her to get better. (But she’s totally back to normal now, thank goodness, chasing geckos, playing tug with her stuffed toys, and lazing in the sun.)
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I’m hoping you get to curl next time, Leslie! It was a lot of fun, even though I’m not the most athletic. (Also highly recommend the reindeer walk.)
Oh no about Ziggy! I’m glad she got the right meds and is back to her beautiful self.
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I visited Fairbanks fifty years ago, driving from NJ, up the Alaska Highway with my best friend. We stayed a coup
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What?! NJ all the way to AK–talk about a drive! Way to go, Tom!
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I have had a couple of scary airplane trips, almost skidding off the runway in a snowstorm on one arrival in Denver and one where we did a huge drop during a massive storm coming out of Minneapolis. And as far as I am concerned driving in Anaheim, near the convention center and Disney is as scary as it gets. Between all the cars, not being exactly sure where I’m going and worst of all, the pedestrians, so many people just walking without looking! No thank you!
Jen, those pictures are amazing, most especially the 3 accidental ones. They are incredible.
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Wowie, glad you were safe during those airplane trips!
I hear you about the convention center and Disney. I’ve been near there a few times, and it’s tough!
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My scary moment was sending out an email just before I logged off work tonight telling someone I can’t do his request. And my boss, who believes you say yes to everyone at all times, was on the email chain. It’s not going to go well. But that’s next week’s problem.
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Uh oh. But here’s to a great weekend!
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Good luck, Mark!
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Jen, I loved this post so much! My dream is to see the Northern Lights, full-force (not the ones we see here in NH when we look back at our cell phone photos). But your pix–wow, so beautiful! They look professional to me. Are reindeer…friendly? I had no idea. I can’t even comment on the plane roll (and the other scary in-flight stories) because I am too terrified!
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I had one of those sprint-to-the-gate moments last summer going to Scotland. Luckily I skidded in right before the closed the gate. I was the last passenger on board.
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