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Lift

I have what I like to call an inherited fear of heights. Which means I close my eyes on roller coasters and stay away from the edge of balconies.

I love plane tickets and getting my passport stamped and new places.
"Going on a 'venture" as Tess would say.
But that usually means finding myself at 18000 feet in the air.

I like airports for people watching. And the trapped feeling. That you really can't be doing much productive...so you might as well plug in your headphones and read a book. Or five. Or take a nap on those ushaped pillows that aren't really comfortable anyways.

I do most of my flying alone so there is the topic of seatmates.....
But on this particular flight...my kids are on board and fascinated by everything. The tray tables. The sky mall magazine. The teeny tiny bathrooms. The beverage carts that keep running over my feet. And my son is staring out the window at the wings asking how it works. How it gets in the air and doesn't fall back down. ( did I mention my fear of heights. I wish he hadn't asked that last question!)

The physics behind flight is essentially this.
A difference in pressure. The top of the wing is shaped so that air moves faster over it than the bottom. A greater speed causes a change in pressure. The slower air under the wing has a higher pressure than then air on top. So it pushes up.

Try it. Blow over the top of a strip of paper. Even though you are blowing on the top, the paper will rise.
Lift.
And you can thank Bernoulli.

Lately I've felt my share of pressure. Of pushing.
And I've let it have the exact wrong effect.
Just the slightest alteration in how I let it hit me, can make the difference in pushing me up. Or pulling me down.


And I think I'd rather fly.



(P.S. these guys were awesome the other night, ben folds five not the fraggles. P.P.S. ben folds five is really just three)

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