W J Seidl on tue 24 jan 06
I have reached a point in my life where I am no longer willing to be put =
out
by others laziness. Call it stubbornness, call it what you will. I =
just
refuse to be inconvenienced because others can't or won't do their jobs, =
or
exercise common courtesy.
For example; walking down a busy crowded sidewalk, I will no longer get =
out
of the way for a gaggle of 20-somethings who decide (in typical herd
mentality so common to the young these days) to group together as they =
move
and force everyone else to the side. I just stop where I am, and force =
THEM
to move around ME. Of course I still move for those older than I am, =
and
the physically handicapped etc. but I have as much right to the =
sidewalk as
everyone else. I've paid those dues.
To that end, a few years back I decided to apply this to the airlines as
well.
If my flight is delayed, which means that on reaching a connecting =
terminal
I must run at top speed to the next gate to make a connection, I do not. =
I
refuse. I go to the nearest counter, explain that I am going to miss my
connection because their airline delayed the flight, and tell them that =
I am
"not physically capable" of running to make it (no, it's not a lie). =
THEY
call a cart, and see to it that I make that flight, sometimes calling =
ahead
to hold the plane. After all, it's their fault, not mine. Why should I =
be
inconvenienced because THEY can't keep to a schedule?
With connecting flights, there is also now a commonly expected "chance" =
that
your luggage is no longer going to make the connection, even if by some
miracle you DO. BAH!=20
I am not going to schlep luggage like a demented sherpa on speed through =
an
unfamiliar airport, scurrying from one gate to another like a cow led to
slaughter (and you KNOW we're all treated like cattle, don't you?) =
Instead,
I have adopted the practice of sending my luggage on ahead, via FEDEX. =
Pack
it as you normally would, put the suitcase in a box, and send it a day =
ahead
of time, so that it is waiting for you on your arrival. (Just call the =
hotel
and let them know it is coming, and ask that it be held for you.) I did =
it
for Baltimore, I'm doing it for Portland, I've done it dozens of times =
all
over the planet. It has always arrived on time, and in better shape =
than if
the airline gorillas were to handle it. I send it home the same way. =
No,
it's not as cheap as letting the airlines do it, but it IS more secure, =
and
I have never had one "lost", leaving me without so much as a toothbrush =
in a
city on the other side of the continent.
Now, with that inconvenience out of my way, I'm free to meander through =
the
airport with only my fanny pack, my book and tickets.
My next trick is going to be to find a way to eliminate (circumvent) the
demeaning practice of having us remove our shoes for "security". I'm
thinking that those diving slip-ons that are worn under water would =
work.
All silicone, no metal to trigger the detectors, and you won't have to
expose your clean socks to those FILTHY germ-ridden airport carpets, =
soiled
with "god-only-knows what was pressed into it" from thousands of =
people's
fungi-ridden hooves trotting over them. What goes through my mind =
during
the shoe removal and replacement was that it only took ONE deranged =
person,
trying to do something STUPID and light his shoe in an airplane to
inconvenience hundreds of thousands of the rest of us.
If I throw a cheap pair of white socks on OVER them, the idiots in TSA =
won't
even look twice. Perhaps wear SOCKS ONLY, and just throw them away
afterward.
But don't get me started ...you should see how they look at boas!
Best,
Wayne Seidl
Snip main message
Joyce
in the Mojave preparing for NCECA....... I have plane reservations and
think that is the best way to go in March crossing the mountains..... =
but
I'd sure like to drive and have room for all the "stuff" I've =
accumulated
to take along. Wonder if mailing a box to myself at the Red Lion would
work?
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