Wednesday morning, I will be taking flight, heading to a men’s conference in Maine. I have been looking forward to the event for the past year, signing up the day after the prior one ended. I will be meeting with some men that I have gotten close to over the past couple of years since joining my men’s group. It will be great to get to meet them in person finally, enjoy a drink and perhaps a bit of pipe tobacco.

I am no stranger to flying, my father being a pilot by hobby and for myself, by proxy. I learned to fly as I was learning how to ride my bike and would often take to the controls of that small Cessna 172 while growing up. Hell, my first official lesson the instructor had us doing stalls I was so comfortable with the yoke. But taking to a commercial flight has always been a different story for me. Long distance travel has never been as comfortable nor felt near as safe. It might be the lack of control, or the fact that I am in pain the entire time (I am 6’3” and the seats are not designed for someone my height). It will be a 4-hour flight give or take, though there will be a layover which adds its own level of anxiety.

The event itself is also a mystery. Little has been spoke about regarding what we will be doing there. A meal Thursday for IC members (the event is not limited to just the men’s group though of the 96 attending, only 1 is not) followed by…. Something for the next few days. At the end there will be a tour of a factory (Origin Maine) which will be interesting, might even pick up a pair of boots or the like. But the rest of the event is a large unknown… yet here I am not feeling all that anxious. I won’t know the majority of men there by name, the events planned are unknown, and I will be meeting a man that has helped shaped my life for the better for the past 3 years. God, it is hard to believe that it has already been 3 years since I joined the IC…

It is the flight that is driving the anxiety though… and the layover in Chicago. I will have an hour to find my connection which I hope is enough time. Weather wise we should be good so as long as there are no malfunctions I should make it to Boston in time for my ride to pick me up.

For now I need to try and get some sleep. It will be an early flight out of here and I don’t want to be late.