Originally Posted by
Willy
I'm a relatively new (2.5 yrs) MD-11 F/O at FDX and mostly fly international. I work about half the month. I'm happily married to my wife (just one) and have a couple of kids. I know many of you are in the same situation and have to deal with trip recovery time (jet lag), catching up with the family situation, and easing your way back into the lives of your spouse and kids without causing too much distress to them. I find it takes me about five days if I've been gone on a long trip (5-14 days).
For those of you who have been doing this a long time and have successfully kept your family happy, what are some techniques, rituals, habits, priorities, etc. that have worked for you?
These work for me;
1. Either arrive home in the evening totally destroyed or in the early morning fully rested. You may have to give up a day to do the later.
2. Have a few hours to yourself after arriving home to get caught up.
3. Print out your schedule and teach your bride how to convert to GMT. It's a bear to be awakened at 0415 in Narita to "Hi, what's going on". On the same note, try to call home every other evening or so, to talk to your kids before they go to bed and then to your bride, so that she can vent.
4. Don't tell me about any BS bad news (ie., the water heater is broken, your office is flooding, ect., ect.) I can't do anything about it from here. Take care of the problem and don't even mention it to me.
5. Occasionally bring home gifts from foreign lands. Stop immediately when they ask, "did you bring me a gift, papa?"
The most important thing to remember is that your wife is the full-time "Captain" of your home, only dig your heals in when there is absolutely no room for compromise.
These shoud be enough to get you started. Welcome to the MadDog!
fbh