I had finished breakfast early Thanksgiving morning when the phone rang. A Quantas pilot at the Hilton in Anaheim was suffering a respiratory infection. This was a great call in many ways.

The Anaheim Hilton is forty miles away, but I don't mind long drives provided traffic moves smoothly. A holiday morning is a good time, and I could take the Santa Ana freeway which is two miles shorter than my usual route. I avoid the Santa Ana because it's often jammed, but it was fine at 7 a.m. on Thanksgiving.

Leaving the freeway, I drove past Disneyland where sidewalks overflowed with crowds streaming toward the entrance. Disneyland opens at 8 a.m.

Unlike most patients with a respiratory infection, airline crew give priority to getting home, not to getting medicine, so they're not at all demanding.

The drive back was easy. Faxing the agency's invoice, I happily checked boxes for "distance," "after hours," and "sat/sun/holiday," all of which get me extra money. I have no objection to working on any of the three and actually prefer the last two because traffic is light. I'm perfect for this job.

Mike Oppenheim