Tuesday, June 23, 2015

MORE THAN A TICKET book signing on the 3rd of July

Good Morning,
It will be fun and I am looking forward to July 3rd, 2015. And where it will be? at the Salt Lake International airport from 9:00 AM until 12:00 noon.  I am honored to have a book signing for my book: More Than a Ticket   Memoirs Flying with American Airlines from Props to Jet.  I would enjoy you dropping by to say "Hi." 
WELLER    BOOK WORKS

If you are traveling and have a ticket, I will be at Terminal 1. As you go through Security and see the escalator in front of you, to your right on the same level is the Weller bookstore.  I will be at a table in front of the store. And yes! I will have a smile on my face.  Thanks to the bookstore's generous offer, I will be there!

OUR BOEING 707 JET PASSENGER MARGARET by Argie Hoskins

Good Morning Memories!
As I start my day with pondering, seems like I find myself wandering from one emotional thought to another. Wandering in the morning is like trying to wake up and find the best road to journey through a forest. And then it happens!

Boeing 707 Jet which was on the Inaugural Flight
 Yes, today I am thinking of Margaret, my former passenger and now a devoted friend who was on that historical flight of January 25,1959, American Airlines Boeing 707 jet service from Los Angeles to New York. It has been an honor to know Margaret both as a passenger and as a friend. This inaugural flight was exciting and there was Margaret a passenger who was so ecstatic to be on board. This morning I find in my mind the words from her niece who wrote the following:
June 4th, 2015
Auntie Update... Auntie passed away last night. I had the pleasure of being with her, holding her hand, and watching her last peaceful breaths.
Today the world is a different place! It’s missing one of the greatest pioneers that have ever lived! In the last 98 years, Auntie has gone from…
- Horse and buggy on a ranch,
- To the glamour, glitz, and fanfare of a boyfriend on the Swedish Ski team at the 1960 Olympics,
- To traveling with famous movie stars, the world’s top CEOs, and other dignitaries on the first transcontinental jet flight,
- To a reserved spot with the first and most adventurous civilians heading to the moon
- To the center of attention in a book signing party that truly became her celebration of LIFE,
- To a room surrounded with plants, cards, photos, drawings, and heartfelt notes from so many of you.

Her last weeks were an adventure by themselves. So much humor and planning. I will never forget “Saint Fire Extinguisher” and her absolute determination to take a journey on a bus, plane, or train to Acapulco where she planned to sleep in a tent on the beach to save on hotel costs, or to China where she planned to visit my brother Steve and see the magic show, or to the moon for her 100th birthday following flight school, a special suit made by Playtex, and a few modifications to the space capsule so all the people who wanted to could join her. She loved family and friends, and couldn’t wait to be in a 5 generations photo as the matriarch of the family (Auntie, Sr. B, me, Jeff, and his coming daughter). I wanted that photo as much as she did.
Tuesday, Auntie ate ice cream ALL day. She had previously told us “you can’t go to heaven on an empty stomach!!” And there you have that. Last night as Auntie lay there with slower breathing and a visible calmness, the staff at the house and the on-call hospice nurse asked me about Auntie. I told them some stories. It was the perfect tribute, and I had the opportunity to share Auntie with a few more people. They LOVED it, and her!
I’m thinking we all need to eat ice cream and wear yellow and/or blue in Auntie’s honor. Don’t forget the flower in your hair, the matching fingernail polish, and outfit. Please send me your photos!! We’ll put them all up at the memorial. We have not yet planned that, but I promise to share when I know more.
Thanks for allowing me to share Auntie with you, and for taking the journey with us the last few weeks. You are all loved and appreciated. And she did what we all want… she lived life on HER terms, followed her own rules, and went out with class, grace, and style but only when she was good and ready. I will miss her very, very much.




Thank you dear friend and Margaret's niece Lorraine for sharing your love and expressions of tender caring.


 I love you Margaret, my passenger and than more importantly, my friend!  I am missing your interesting and weekly letters with tender thoughts and special articles. Until we meet again, from your stewardess Argie