I’m currently writing on my phone from the AISLE seat on a flight from Dallas to Seattle working with RACE Charities which I am super excited about… What I am not excited about is this aisle seat.
I’ve always chosen window seat but this time I re-booked my flight last minute and was unable to get a window after re-booking.
I’ve always kind of wondering about these seats… Am I missing out on something amazing? Maybe some hidden pleasure would be revealed if i just tried it out… Well now that I have been forced to experience the dark side , I have a few thoughts…
Photo ops
Window you get to take pictures whenever you want, aisle you don’t.
Control
Window you have control of the shade meaning full control of light or lack thereof, also can check elevation whenever you want.
Visual Enjoyment
Window offers a a view with scenic entertainment instead of just the back of a chair (though it offers that too.)
Faster drinks…barely
Window usually gets served their drink / snack first… Not a big deal, but just sayin.
The Great Wall
Window you have a wall to sleep against, lean on and love.
Temperature
It’s generally cooler against the exterior of the aircraft… I’d way rather be a little too cool in the tight quarters on an airplane… You can always put on another layer if needed. Nothin worse than being sweaty and hot and unable to cool down!
Peace
Aisle you constantly get bumped by flight attendants and people walking up and down the aisle. Sleep seems almost impossible sitting here.
Potential Disaster
Aisle seat every time drinks are served they must pass over your laptop to get to the window/middle… Thus every time
they are served, you put the risk frying your computer (literally) in the of hands of the flight attendants and your co-passengers.
Even if they are careful with sure hands, one bit of unexpected turbulence could result in disaster. Aisle you have to get up as often as the people sitting next to you want to.
Security
Window seat is more secure… If you leave your iPad or iPhone in the seat while going to the bathroom, it’s way less likely to get picked up by a would-be thief walking the aisle.
Privacy
Window seat is way more private. When you are working on your laptop in the aisle seat, it seems that it automatically draws eyes from those around/behind you and they watch you edit photos or write emails… Not a big deal but sometimes feels a touch invasive. Window is more secluded.
I realize the aisle seats allows you to get up whenever you want but I’m learning from this experience that people get up whenever, regardless of where they are sitting…
These are all thoughts off the top of my head and I’m sure there is more to consider… But the good news is… The In-flight WiFi I am writing and posting this from is equally available in both windows and aisle seats!
Who is out there that prefers aisle? Am I missing something?
Today is day 1 of 9 of a project I am working on with The Paradigm Project. Today we walked about 11 miles… starting at Sea World and ending on the beautiful UCSD campus. The idea behind this event is to raise awareness about what over a billion people are doing all over the world just to collect firewood. 12 hour hikes, 3 times a week, just to collect firewood and cook are not uncommon.
On top of that, most families are cooking inside a hut which quickly fills with smoke. We are in the middle of a cooking demonstration inside a custom built hut to share with people what it’s like during cooking… These demonstrations are happening RIGHT NOW!
Check out my Twitter for the most recent updates…
UPDATE: Thanks for all your responses! After hearing from everyone from fellow fotogs to meteorologists… we’ve concluded this is a prime example of a Circumhorizontal Arc. Wikipedia explains it’s an ice-halo formed by plate shaped ice crystals in high level cirrus clouds. Apparently, a circumhorizontal arc can sometimes be an indicator of an earthquake in the very near future… one was seen just minutes before the Sichuan earthquake in Central China in 2008: Earthquake Lights.
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A couple of days ago, Esther Havens and I were working in Gondar in Northern Ethiopia… we got out of the car and looked up to see
this incredible cloud structure overhead…
Time stood still as we sat there with eyes fixed upward, watching this irridescent orb slowly transform from one beauty to the next and
I remain in awe at this display of the mystique of His Splendor.
The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
Psalm Nineteen
A few images from an afternoon hiking around Gertrude Saddle…one of my favorite days in all my time in that beautiful country. On my way up there, I shot a handful of different B&Ws… the sheer magnitude of these rocks & mountains is just impossible to capture. It may look like it’s a 10 minute walk away but it ends up being 1-2 hours, unreal.
After I finally got to the top, it was completely foggy. I had been told the top was a great vantage point to see the Milford Sound, so I decided to wait a bit, have a snack, and see if it cleared up. Fortunately about 45 minutes later, they did.
July’s desktop comes from a six hour day hike I took near the southern tip of the south island in New Zealand. It was a super rewarding day photographically and emotionally. So great to just get out and hike completely alone for hours. I ended up hiking around the hill you see on the left, and up around the top ridge where there were alpine lakes and waterfalls. More images from this day following shortly…
Enjoy!
- July 2010 Desktop – Click image to preview
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