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I did the thing. Finally. Today, after 11 years of obsessively saving money, 9 instructors, 5 plane swaps, 4 rescheduled checkrides, 2 sexual harassment reports, and 1 plane trying to kill me with carbon monoxide... IM FINALLY A LICENSED PILOT #aviatrix
(moral of the story. When you finally save up the $$, spend the extra $10/hr for a flight school that isn't sketchy as all hell, can retain instructors for more than a month, and has CO detectors in the aircraft)
I've known I wanted to fly for as long as I can remember. As a kid I was obsessed with birds and understanding how wings worked. At some point an adult in my life must have pointed out planes were a thing. Eventually I went to a @EAA Young Eagles event, where kids get to fly free
Got my first job scrubbing tables and bathrooms at a Chinese restaurant at 13. Obvi under the table, less than minimum wage, bleach and no gloves. By 16 I had 3 formal (&legal!) part time jobs, plus I started a tutoring side hustle and a gardening business that made BANK
Eventually I got a summer job as a ramp rat at an airport 1.5 hours from home. 20 hours of line crew for each flight lesson (1hour). I did 60hrs/week while maintaining 2 of the part time paid jobs. It was the summer I turned 17. I made it my goal to solo by the end of the year
I soloed on New Years Eve of that year because even though I work really hard I'm still a massive procrastinator 
My CFI/boss/FBO owner at that job was amazing. Only guy in the area who would hire a teenage girl to be a ramp rat. AND teach her to fly.
My CFI/boss/FBO owner at that job was amazing. Only guy in the area who would hire a teenage girl to be a ramp rat. AND teach her to fly.
He was awesome, but there were some SKETCHY (&disgusting) and generally sexist characters at that airport that he could not protect me from and of which I'll save you the deets. I'll just say, nothing prepares you for a degree in a male dominated field like working in aviation.
(but honestly it's way better. It's easier to shrug off "no fucking way a chick is touching my airplane" as sexism than it is to shrug off all the microaggressions in engineering)
Anyway I went off to college and didn't fly for 5 years & also burned through most of my pilot fund
Anyway I went off to college and didn't fly for 5 years & also burned through most of my pilot fund
But I got super lucky. That entrepreneurship thing I learned working on my pilot fund kicked in and I started a tech company which was cause for me to star in an international @Microsoft @surface commercial which rescued my financial situation. https://vimeo.com/228124212
Anyway last year I became an @IfThenSheCan ambassador and decided to set aside my fellowship $ to use as my flying money. I'm finishing overbudget and 3 months late (read that first tweet about my garbage flight school) and pretty burned out, but here's my first flight as a PPL!
Not sure where I'm going with this. I've literally spent the majority of my life working towards this one goal. I used to beat myself up over it taking so long but honestly, everyone's path, privilege, and situation is different. I'm SO fortunate to have had these opportunities.
I guess I'm sayin' don't be afraid to haul ass for things. But more importantly it didn't take you too long, you did it in the way you had to do it. And if I've learned anything it's to not compare your journey to others who had different obstacles than you. Blue skies everyone!
Also random aside haha. My DPE (flight examiner) was a curmudgeonly old guy who didn't even say congrats when I passed. (3.5 hour oral & 2 hour flight mind you!)
Shout out to the poor A&P I badgered into taking pics for me before I flew home, he really struggled but we got 'em!
Shout out to the poor A&P I badgered into taking pics for me before I flew home, he really struggled but we got 'em!
