Nina In New York: The Most Magical Flight On Earth

A lighthearted look at news, events, culture and everyday life in New York. The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.
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By Nina Pajak

WestJet, a Canadian airline, has just debuted a commercial jet that has been custom-painted and decorated inside and out to reflect a very special theme. That's right, you guessed it! Or maybe you didn't. What am I, a mind reader? How should I know what you guessed? It's Disney's Frozen. Okay? Are you happy?

I certainly am. Or, wait. I mean, ugh. Eye roll. Oy vey. Just what every mother needs—yet another reason to feed into the Frozen bonanza and sing that darn song and that other song and that other song, you know the one with that part you sound so good singing . . . by yourself . . . in the shower? Yeah, it's the worst. And who needs to see that movie again? It's like, I've already tried to get my daughter to watch it like three times and she always makes me turn it off halfway through or fast forward and I'm all, "dude, you're missing all the best parts. Here, let me rewind so you can see it. Now pay attention." Ugh. Amirite?

Okay, I have a confession to make. I want to ride on the Frozen plane. I don't care if my child accompanies me. In fact, I'm actually a little disappointed that the inside isn't more tricked out and they didn't somehow figure out a way to make it snow inside. And I'll tell you right now, I would request my money back if they don't spend the whole flight piping in the soundtrack and serving Scandinavian-type snacks on glittering trays made of magic ice. As much as I want to raise my daughter to choose her own preferences and find her own path, I can't help but attempt to indoctrinate her into the cult of Disney princesses. I secretly leave the Songza princess playlist running hours after she's lost interest and left the room. I buy her the nightgowns and lunchboxes and backpacks and show her YouTube clips of mice sewing dresses and dancing dinnerware. If you ask her who mommy's favorite princess is, she'll tell you immediately that it's Ariel, the Little Mermaid.

Just as my mother couldn't wait to terrify me with viewings of Carrie and Rosemary's Baby, I can't wait to saddle my child with the emotional baggage imparted by the dead parents, heartbreak and impossible standards of beauty and romance of the Disney princess movies. It's gonna be such a special time to share with her.

For now, she has negligible interest, and she's just as happy pretending to be a princess with a dishrag on her head as she is with the whole, official getup. I suppose it's all I can do to buy a couple of tickets on WestJet straight to Arendelle and hope that my kid is ready before they paint over it.

Nina Pajak is a writer living with her husband, daughter and dog in Queens. Connect with Nina on Twitter!