Southwest Airlines Community

I love learning new words and any "fun" twists that make conversation interesting. According to the Merriam-Webster online poll, the winner of 20 terms that best summed up 2007 was "W00t". Now apart from being the name of my favorite web site, besides southwest.com :), it is defined as " a hybrid of letters and numbers used by gamers as an exclamation of happiness or triumph". One word though? In the past, when we'd receive a memo from Herb Kelleher, I'd often find myself with the dictionary to translate several terms. I loved this. So, in the spirit of Herb and my personal learnings from 2007, here are a few "words of the day" to sum up my 2007. I started the year joining the gym because my body was falling into desuetude after quite some time of poor eating habits and no regular exercise. It took a while for me to cotton to the new exercise routine. Another 2007 goal included a desire to learn new things and expand my horizons. After several guitar lessons, my lack of rhythm and sporadic practice left me as a guitarist manqué. I will not be a fungible guitarist, even for the Ramones. However, I was able to confabulate with the kids in the lobby of the music store before my lessons. The Jacuzzi had a lenitive effect on my body after a couple of attempts with a surf board on my San Diego vacation. Alas, my surfing dreams were only a fata morgana. A week at a beach did do wonders to mollify stress and a long summer of Phoenix heat. Stella, an Airedale puppy, joined our family in October. I had forgotten how rambunctious puppies can be. After a few weeks, we found Stella's constant energy to have a soporific effect on us. Her escapades are entertaining and have made me laugh. So looking back, I guess I have triumphed and have enjoyed a lot of happiness. It was a very 'w00t' year! Was yours? ... View more

Here are the top 10 things I enjoy most about the Holiday Season.... 10. No traffic on my way to work. - OK, a little cheesy, but I can't get to work any faster than the time right before the Holidays. 9. White Christmases - Yes, I know I live in Phoenix, but the snow still gets me on Christmas. 8. How The Grinch Stole Christmas - Best holiday movie ever. "Given the choice between the two of you, I'd take the uh...seasick crocodile!" 7. Christmas cookies - Sugar cookies and candy cane cookies. OK and just about any other Christmas treat. 6. Lighting a fire in the fireplace - In Phoenix, it sometimes requires you to leave the doors open, but I take it when I can get it. 5. The tree - I don't think I ever stop and sit quietly unless I'm in front of the Christmas tree. How very cool. (This may be my husband's favorite thing about the Holiday) 4. Taking a day off in December to go shopping with my three siblings. It includes a lunch-time beer. 3. Christmas music - The Waitresses 'Christmas Wrapping' and Frank Sinatra's rockin' version of 'Jingle Bells'. 2. Hiding the baby Jesus in the nativity scene until December 25 - A tradition started when I was young at my grandmother's house and now continued thanks to my sister, Danell, at my house. 1. Family - The good and the bad. They're all still mine and here to enjoy. ... View more

I was inspired by an article I read recently on Motley Fool by Selena Maranjian titled, Go Ahead and Buy Happiness. In it she talks about whether money can bring you happiness and references Gretchen Rubin's www.happiness-project.com website with things you might do to spend money by creating an environment to make or keep you happy. Now this gets interesting. Can money buy you happiness? Some of the examples used in the article that help create happiness reminded me of the Culture that we try to keep at Southwest Airlines that maybe has become a part of me as well. These examples included: • Spending time with family--You've read in various posts in the blog how we try to create an environment of family at Southwest. The photos of people and their families that line the walls of our Headquarters is another example of creating a family environment. Travel also allows families to stay in touch. I appreciate this with my family and friends across the country. I've realized that once-annoying parents, siblings and cousins are fun and important to me. • Experiences rather than things --Travel, by nature, is a means that provides memorable experiences, and I have been very fortunate to use my benefits to connect with my family and friends as well as see the world and try my hand at new experiences, like surfing! Fortunately or unfortunately, I will not be leaving Southwest to pursue the surfing tour. • Exercise (OK, maybe a stretch here at Southwest)--Now that I'm a little older, my health has become more important to me, and exercise is a part of my routine. OK, and buying an iPod Shuffle has definitely made it more enjoyable. I think I'm actually enjoying running listening to my killer list of songs (Special thanks go to The Fratelli's!) on my Shuffle. • Making someone else happy--Our various Culture activities that have been written about show how rewarding it is when you do things to thank others and remember them. The Adopt-A-Pilot program, LUV Rations, and other activities I've been involved with at Southwest have definitely shown how great you feel when you do things for others. Selena talks about creating a happiness index that included Southwest Airlines and other companies that fit in with the examples above. What about buying stock in companies that fit these goals? Interesting. Why not? If you enjoy these activities, you'd consume the services or products of these companies and, hopefully, they'd be profitable. Maybe I'll create my own happiness index. It's an interesting perspective on how we view money and I think she has some very valid points. I'm happy. So what do you think? Can you buy happiness by spending money on these types of stocks/activities/things? ... View more

How could I have let this one slip? It's college football season folks! Where's the smack talk? No random college football comments on any of the posts yet? Should USC be number 1? What about Florida? Can they do it again? Is West Virginia for real? Is anyone going to a game? I'm headed to Madison, Wisconsin to watch the Badgers take on Michigan in November. Can't wait to go back and get a blueberry muffin from Mickey's Dairy Bar, swing by the Union and get some chocolate milk, and top everything else off with sauerkraut. Of course the best is watching a game at Camp Randall. How can anyone argue it's not the best time of year? ... View more

OK. I'm addicted. Twitter. Facebook. They got me. Have you heard of them? They're all part of the 'social media' sites that allow people to communicate with friends and family. Twitter is a site that people use to post a quick note on their current status. So, you'll see people post things like 'Headed to my favorite pizza place' or 'Attending the marketing conference. Who will be there?' Maybe a little much, but I have found it interesting to see what people post. Facebook is like your own web page with photos, messaging, video postings, a graffiti wall for people to draw on, band tracking of your favorite band and more. Of course, it's all random and you know how much I love this. One random bit of fun for me was to have a couple of friends (Brian and Becs) who my husband and I met at a bar in Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic, 'friend me' in Facebook. Out of the blue! Haven't talked with them in a year and a half. (They live in Scotland). We're now planning a trip to see them again in September. What do you think? Have you checked these things out? We have a group in Facebook--if you're a member and want to check it out, it is "Southwest Airlines Freedom 101." We also have a Twitter account - http://twitter.com/SouthwestAir. Anyone in Second Life? Others we haven't mentioned? ... View more

Two Bats One evening two vampire bats were hanging out in their cave. One said, "Man, I'm starving! I need to get some blood!" And he flew out of the cave. He returned about three hours later with blood dripping from his mouth. "Where'd you get the blood?" the other bat asked. "Well, you fly out of the cave, and you see the first tree on the left?" "Yes," the other bat replied. "Well, I didn't." Farmer Joke What did the farmer say when he couldn't find his tractor? Where's my tractor? Glowworm Q. How do you make a glowworm happy? A. Cut off it's tail. It'll be delighted. ... View more

Back in December, we asked if anyone had, or witnessed a Wanna Get Away moment. You know, those awkward and humiliating moments when you'd rather be anywhere else? We then asked you to recreate the moments on video and you did! A panel of judges selected Brian Cates' "Out on a Limb" as the Grand Prize Winner out of approximately 140 entries. There were other winning videos as well as honorable mentions for you to check out at www.southwestwannagetaway.com But, starting today (April 24) through May 3, be on the lookout for our latest Wanna Get Away commercial by Brian Cates as you cheer for your favorite NBA playoff team! ... View more

Spring break is a distant memory and summer vacation is still far away. How do I get through this work week? I have the answer right here for you...... What's a French name for throwing a grenade into a kitchen? Linoleum Blownapart. Fish never drop out of school, but sometimes they take debate. A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion. When the smog lifts in Los Angeles, U C L A. Prison walls are never built to scale. Don't get offended by atheism, look at it as just another non-prophet organization. OK, back to work..... ... View more

12 is the atomic number for magnesium and on March 17, southwest.com celebrates 12 years! Well almost. It was actually www.iflyswa.com back in 1995. Can that much really happen in 12 years? Well, we now have almost 73% of our revenues generated from southwest.com and lead the airline industry in online revenue. Each month southwest.com has on average 10 million unique visitors according to Nielson Net Ratings (06) and generates over 6 million Click 'n Save e-mails weekly. We've added the ability to book cars, hotels, cruises, shuttles, theme park tickets, and gift cards! Customers are able to checkin online 24 hours in advance, check their flight status and even checkin through web-enabled mobile devices. Not bad. In 12 years, I've gotten married and bought a house. OK and probably gained a few pounds. ... View more

I'm actually more of a fan of David Letterman, so I missed this skit on Conan the other day. The airline industry is a small industry, and we all have friends and family at the various airlines. I think everyone was feeling for the employees and passengers of JetBlue this past week. Of course, I am in Marketing and did appreciate the promotion of our ontime efforts. http://video.nbc.com/v/?linkId=64190&sender=meghan@jetcrew.com&name=meghan ... View more

I've posted before about how I like the randomness of my job. After reading some of the posts and comments, it appears that lots of people appreciate randomness as well. It doesn't necessarily matter what the blog post is, if someone wants to ask about a future city they just ask. Or maybe they just want to let us know about a nice Flight Attendant. So, in celebration of all that is random, this is another random post. Anything you've got. I'll start. Boise State and their two-point conversion??? Wow! Would have never put money on Florida. Can't believe March Madness is right around the corner (Go Badgers!). Love all of Malcom Gladwell's books and would love to have a beer with him. Best Mexican restaurant is Los Dos Molinos--specifically the salsas and the enchilada dinner. Why doesn't Southwest fly to Missoula, Montana? (That was for my parents and Bill) Woot.com starts may day off with a laugh and is my second favorite web site, after southwest.com. Need to find a place to take my once-a-year ski trip. Is it Friday yet? Thanks. It was great to get that all off of my mind. Now, go away you kiniggets or I shall taunt you a second time. ... View more

In honor of Belly Laugh Day, I submit the following: Two guys walk into a bar.  You would have thought the second guy would have seen the bar.  (One of my favs) This string walks into an ice cream shop and the clerk looks at him suspiciously. He says "Sorry, kid,  we don't serve your kind here." So the string walks out. He's walking down the street feeling really sad because it's a hot day and he was looking forward to his ice cream when the string sees a really large man coming down the road.  He asks the man, 'Would you tie me into a knot?'  The man looks at him and says 'Sure'. So he twists and turns the string into a big dusty, sweaty knot. Then the string walks back into the ice cream shop. The clerk looks at him a little suspiciously again and says,  "Hey, you're not that string that was just in here, are you?" The string replies "No, I'm a frayed knot."   Why didn't the mother potato want her daughter to marry Tom Brokaw? Because he was a commontater.     ... View more

One of the reasons I love watching the Super Bowl is to see the advertising.  The ads are usually pretty funny and show me a little bit about the personalities behind the companies.  The "Wanna Get Away" Southwest commercials, I think, have done a great job in capturing the fun side of our Company. I think we can all relate to the awkward and embarrassing moments, and these commercials have even worked their way into everyday conversation used to describe real life situations such as this entry in a blog by the Chicago Tribune: "His life could become a real-life version of the Southwest Airlines 'Want to get away?' ad." I've also noticed quite a few "Wanna Get Away" videos that folks have produced on various Internet video sharing sites. Very funny and very well done!  In the spirit of showing off our Customers' creativity and for all of those "Wanna Get Away" moments that need to be told, we have a site and contest for everyone to submit and share their own video stories. Starting today, show us what you've got!  Create your own version of our "Wanna Get Away" commercial and maybe even have your moment make it to TV as a real Southwest commercial! Heck, even if you don't make it, you still might have a chance to win a vacation or airline tickets.  Check out http://www.southwestwannagetaway.com/ for details! ... View more

Owl What do you call a baby owl in a leaky barn? A 'moist owlette'! Newt A man walks into a bar with a newt on his shoulder. The barman looks at the creature and asks the man what he calls it. "Tiny" replies the man. "Why's that?" asks the bartender. "Because he's my newt!" Wave Two fisherman are out sailing when suddenly a hand appears in the sea. "What's this?" asked the first fisherman, "It looks as if someone is drowning!" "No," explained the second fisherman, "It's just a little wave." ... View more

Running weather. Here in Phoenix, it usually corresponds with the time shortly after school starts. I've never been a runner, but I did run in the PF Changs Rock 'n Roll Arizona 1/2 Marathon a couple of years ago. It's 13.2 miles, and I don't have that long of an attention span, so my husband caved into the marketing pressure and bought me an iPod. Although I thought it was a waste of money at the time, I have to admit I've had fun with it - particularly with the playlist function. I've made a few lists, and I always wonder what other people are listening to when I see them run by with their little white earbuds. Not being particularly motivated to run, I need a big push...music that makes me want to run. So, I'm sharing a list of mine with you, at the risk of maybe allowing too much insight into my brain. What are your playlists? I'm training for the half marathon again. This time I'm walking with my sisters. Suggestions? Growing Up – Peter Gabriel Stickshifts and Safetybelts – Cake Rockaway Beach – The Ramones Keep it Up – Boomtown Rats Hang Onto Yourself - David Bowie, Ziggy Stardust version Down Love – Replacements Los Angeles – X Do You In – Boomtown Rats IOU - The Replacements Till My Head Falls Off – They Might Be Giants Hateful – The Clash Touch and Go – Cars Indie Hair – The Heads This Must Be the Place – Talking Heads ... View more

Edward wrote about life after traveling without liquids. I would agree and even say my travel experience has actually improved. Security has been easier now that the word is out on acceptable carry on items. As a commuter, you find little things that make the travel experience go a little smoother. Since I travel primarily to one location, I make things easier by keeping a bag with my make up, hairspray and tennis shoes at my desk in Dallas. That makes packing easier and lighter. Automation has also helped keep the necessary travel stuff quick and easy like flight status messaging, flight status online, 24 hour online checkin and wireless checkin. I did find a list of potentially helpful "accepted forms" of items that wouldn't make it past security in their normal liquid state. Heck, I think I'm buying the cake mascara to check it out. Anyone have alternatives for hairspray other than flat hair? Any other helpful travel tips that you've found? Hotels that provide hair gel, contact solution, toothpaste amenities? Meetings without hairspray? Fellow Road Warriors, share your ingenuity, resourcefulness, and stories. ... View more

College football. It has to be the best time of the year. Summer ending, cooler weather, the trees changing color. OK, maybe I'm rushing things a bit, but that's what college football makes me think about. It's a common language and a bond. Ask anyone about his or her alma mater and football and you have an instant conversation. As a matter of fact, we have a group that gets together monthly to discuss college football. Shunned by the "boys" group to talk football, I started a college football chicks group (we included the guys as well). We meet monthly to talk college football at our local hamburger place, Club Schmitz. You might have guessed we're loaded with Texas fans. Reservations, Advertising, Promotions, Loyalty, Online and Sports Marketing actually have people that wear burnt orange. There is one lone OU fan in our group who did support her conference for the championship game last year. Or was it to see those USC guys go down? A&M has fans in Advertising and in one of our other "blog gals." One of our Technology Leads is a Texas Tech fan along with another Sports Marketing Manager. We have an LSU Tiger fan in QA and an Auburn fan that was kind enough to donate $10 to me after the loss to Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl. A Florida guy in Technology and a Tennessee fan in our Dallas Field Office. It's more than the Big 12 and SEC here, we actually let a Buckeye fan run some of our Revenue Management Department and a couple of Michigan guys run loose on technical projects. Our VP of Marketing is an Illini alum, but he won't talk to us until basketball season. Whatever. Me? I'm a Badger fan myself. Predictions? Ponderings? Smack? ... View more

TGIF! It's been a rough week, so I'm in need of some additional material. I'm hopeful that this will spark some of you to help add to my collection.   A sandwich came into a bar one night. The bartender stepped up and saw plainly that the new customer was a sandwich and shouted, "Hey get outta here we don't serve food in here!" A number twelve walks into a bar and asks the bartender for a pint of beer.  "Sorry, I can't serve you," states the bartender.  "Why not?!" asks the number twelve with anger showing in its voice.  "You're under 21, " replies the bartender. Enjoy! ... View more

Summer's winding down. I can almost hear those back to school ads. Most importantly, I am anxiously awaiting the start of college football season. So what do you do before the season really kicks in? Let me reminisce about how I've spent my summer.... Getting out of the Phoenix heat by escaping to cooler Northern Arizona. A Howard family reunion in Rome! OK it was Rome, Wisconsin, but I still had a blast with my freaky family. Catching up with friends I can't seem to hook up with the rest of the year for lunch and dinner. Enjoying better rush hour traffic in Phoenix. Believe it or not, it makes a big difference when school starts and the cooler weather sets in and all of our winter visitors come back. Enjoying my brother-in-law's famous "Moscow Mules". (It is a requirement to drink this in a copper mug.) Watched quite a few World Cup games and actually enjoyed it. Congrats to the Italian team. What about you? What did you do this summer? ... View more

A guy is flying on a Southwest Airlines flight. He's sitting in his seat, enjoying his drink when he hears, "You look great!" He looks around - there's nobody near him (it was a late night flight). He hears the voice again, "No really, you look terrific." The guy looks around again. Nobody. He hears, "Is that a new shirt or something? Because you are absolutely glowing!" He then realizes that the voice is coming from the bag of peanuts. "Hey," the guy calls to the Flight Attendant, "What's with the peanuts?" "Oh," the flight attendant answers, "They're complimentary." ... View more

Wow. It's like I can hear my college professors as if it were yesterday. The laws of supply and demand. Somewhere, someone is willing to pay for something in short supply. Like our "A" boarding passes. It's the first group to board our flights, and it gets all the glory that goes along with it. "A" means I get that window or aisle seat or even the first row. I can even avoid that dreaded (gasp!) middle seat. So let's take a closer look at this. Now I appreciate the fact that not everyone agrees with our seating policy or may even take issue with our "first-come, first-served" operation, but we offer boarding passes on southwest.com for free. Everyone has the same shot at checking in–24 hours in advance.  (Customers can also use web-enabled mobile devices to check in.) Many of you know there are web sites that promise "A" boarding passes, for a price. Hey, marketing professor, I hear you again. Find a Customer's need, fulfill it and make some cash to boot. Nothing wrong with that. I like money, and I even like the creativity of these folks. Unfortunately, what has been happening is these sites are taking away our ability to provide the coveted "A" inventory. So what? Is it every flight every day? No. However, there have been several sites already and more are popping up daily. And I mean daily. We don't want our Customers to mistake the services as one supported by Southwest and to transact with companies that may not provide the level of Customer Service we hope to provide - thus potentially putting their personal information in the wrong hands. There are security issues as well, such as providing e-mail addresses that can be bought as well as be used for spamming. OK, now I feel a little like my mom and dad when they told me I could only ride my bike up and down my street because the kids around the block may push me down and take it away. A little protective? Maybe. But all we are in the end is a brand. And we've tried to make the Southwest Airlines brand mean something you could trust as someone that would provide great service, so it's important to us to do everything that we can to uphold that promise. You're all #1 in our book, even if we can't give all of you an "A" boarding pass. ... View more

Alrighty then. I feel like when you're on a first date and you don't know what else to say and there is this awkward silence. Ever since I can remember I have used, what I'd like to think of as humor, to break things up. Seems to work in a lot of situations. You know, sensitive meetings, elevators, times when I'm feeling crabby, or funerals. My favorite are what most people call "dumb jokes". Around my office they have become known as "Jill Jokes". (I haven't been able to figure out why though). Ok, so it doesn't contain fowl language, but these are far from dumb. For example let's look at a chemistry joke: One sodium atom says "Oh no! I think I lost an electron", another atom asks "Are you sure?" "Yeah!" the other atom says. "I'm positive." Or my favorite, bar jokes: A grasshopper walks into a bar and the bartender looks at him and says "Hey I have a drink named after you!" and the grasshopper replies "You have a drink named Steve?!!" There. Aren't you feeling better already? Way more fun to laugh than be crabby, right? ... View more

Is this thing on? Where do I start this? Do I tell you about me? I love college football, Joey Ramone, dumb jokes and …… Write something huh? Writing makes me sweat. I'm confined. I can't breathe. Give me a room full of people and I can talk all day. All day. About anything. Writing means I have to follow some sort of order and structure. I hate that. However, the lack of structure is why I love my job. There's a lot of different areas that I play in at Southwest Airlines. I work in our Interactive Marketing department and have responsibilities with our online marketing and distribution as well as anything random that comes along . I like that. Randomness. You see, I've been at Southwest Airlines for over 14 years now. When you've been at a place that long, I think you get to know so many people and so much of the company's history that it allows you to be involved in a lot of random things. Like this blog. As we like to say "I know a couple of guys", and they asked if I might give this a shot. So here we go. Somewhere along the line, Southwest was crazy enough to let me commute from Phoenix to Dallas. So while my position is based in Dallas, my house, my husband (Tom) and Elsie the Wonder Dog are all in Phoenix. I usually spend 2-3 days a week in Dallas and then fly back to Phoenix. So I'm a commuter. I do a lot of sleeping on the plane, but I have been known to talk to folks along the way. I love talking (see above paragraph) and there are some pretty interesting people out there. So far, I've encountered a 34-year-old grandmother, a 10-year-old girl who flies between parents in Albuquerque and Phoenix, and an old Wisconsin college friend who ended up buying a house in our neighborhood (talk about random). I've been a sounding board for a father working out his response to his 12-year-old daughter who wanted to wear thong underwear, was so touched to have an 80-year-old woman share her experiences about her life, children and her deceased husband, talked with two young boys about Xbox (I think), and watched two linebacker-sized guys help the flight attendants decorate the plane with streamers and balloons in flight for the pilot that was retiring. So now you probably understand how online advertising, distribution and blogs all fit my job here at Southwest Airlines. It might also give some insight into my life. It's all random. If you're on a flight somewhere between Dallas and Phoenix, look for me. I'd love to hear your story, especially if it's random. ... View more