Vindication for my opinions about various airlines

I haven’t talked TOOOOOOO much about my airline experiences, mostly because I haven’t been flying very much lately. Local (and driving distance) jobs have been keeping me at home, and I certainly won’t complain about that. That said:

The 2011 Airline Quality Ratings (AQR) were just released, andAirTran topped the list at number one. The Atlanta based air line got top marks in the study that accounts for on time arrivals, mishandled baggage, complaints, and other metrics.

Linked from: http://www.gadling.com/2011/04/05/2011-airline-quality-ratings-airtran-at-number-one/

9. Frontier
8. Continental
7. Delta
6. U.S. Airways
5. Southwest
4. Alaska
3. Jet Blue
2. Hawaiian
1. AirTran

I’m going on a boat!

It’s a cool, grey day in Galveston. We had an uneventful drive down, passing through a handful of towns I had heard of, but never visited. We even stopped at a Buc-ee’s for snacks and to use “the cleanest restrooms in Texas.” My son was a bit hesitant to stop at a place that had candied jalapenos.

We booked a hotel room at the Comfort Suites  (I’m Gold with Choice) near the dock. The price was very reasonable, and they upgraded our 2 queen bed suite to a balcony room with an ocean view. Plus, there’s a shuttle to the dock and free parking while we’re gone. Our ship leaves at 4pm, so we were planning to catch the noon shuttle. We got a call from the front desk saying that the ship would be delayed due to the fog, so the shuttle will leave at 1:30pm. I believe we’re about 15 minutes away.

The kids were a little disappointed that it’s so cloudy today, but it doesn’t really bother me. It’s a beautiful day, even with the clouds.

I wasn’t ready.

9:01

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9:03

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I thought I was prepared for it. I had seen the conceptual drawings. I remembered the news story about the construction. I saw the website. I knew it would be a lot to handle, but I thought I was ready.

I wasn’t ready.

I stood there, completely overwhelmed by it. My voice, gone. My hands, shaking. My eyes, stinging and tearing. A knot in my throat the size of my fist. Totally unable to speak. My new friend trying to comfort me. I tried to say something, but the words evaporated.

There was no sound. I couldn’t hear the water, the traffic, the wind, even the people walking around below us.

Later, when I could speak again, I didn’t really want to. I didn’t want to ruin it with my inanity.

I took a few photos. I may post them one day.

http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/

Lost and found power. And a work-around.

My memory is terrible. That’s one reason why I use a packing list. The problem is, sometimes I assume I have packed things when I haven’t. One of the worst things to leave at home is the power supply for my laptop or cell phone.

The first time I did this, I went to Best Buy and bought a third-party power supply for my Latitude D630. It was $80 well-spent. I was able to finish my job out with no problems. Despite a friend telling me to return it, I decided to hang on to it just in case. It’s been quite useful. I don’t always carry it with me, but I use it in another room at home from time to time.

The second time I did this, I left the original power supply AND the third-party one at home. A co-worker suggested that I ask to borrow one at the hotel front desk. They didn’t have one that they owned, but the very nice clerk suggested checking their lost and found box. Sure enough, they had the exact model power supply I needed. I borrowed it for the week and returned it when I checked out.

What a life-saver!

Ranty pants are fully cinched up!

American Airlines (AA), how do I hate thee: let me count the ways…

1. I have had more cancelled flights with you guys than anyone else. This is especially weird considering that you’re my third place airline in terms of flights and miles flown.
2. I have more unexplained delays with you than anyone else. Plus, your flight attendants tend to have the worst attitudes when we ask silly questions like, “Pardon me, but why are we sitting on the tarmac for an hour?”
3. You have old planes. Seriously. All of your MD-80s smell like restrooms.
4. I didn’t think it was possible, but you seem to have moved your coach seats EVEN CLOSER TOGETHER.
5. Your customer service (disservice?) agents are probably the worst in the industry.
6. Your overhead baggage regulations are, frankly, a joke. I’ve seen cowboy hats in the overheads. Seriously, cowboy hats. For the record, I have mashed them with my bag.
7. Finally, your telephone flight information system is seriously borked when a flight is delayed. Every time the departure estimate for my flight changes, I get a call telling me that my flight has been changed to the current time. It’s making me crazy. Please stop.

Please don’t ever buy Southwest or US Airways. In fact, don’t buy any more airlines. Fix what you have now. And seriously, retire the MD-80s.

“Do you have time for Jesus in your travels?”

This is the question a lady I was talking to at breakfast asked me. It gave me pause.

My spiritual life isn’t what it was before I started travelling like this. It’s not in the dumpster, but it’s definitely different. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still active in my church. I still work on the A/V team and treasury. I’m still a deacon. I’m still on our Bible Bowl team. In fact, the only thing I don’t really do at church anymore is to cook.

That’s not my point, though. My spiritual life has little, if anything, to do with church activities. I don’t study as much as I used to. Part of it is not having a concordance or study aids with me, but that’s no excuse. I can find anything I need online. The truth is, it’s easy to get caught up in the stereotypical hustle and bustle and forget the important things. I need to slow down. I’m starting that today. Today.

I believe it’s possible to do “church work” constantly and still wind up being told “I never knew you.” That would be the worst thing ever.

Useful Things I Carry

I think everyone has the usual stuff they carry when they travel: underwear, socks, pants, shoes, hairbrush, etc. Here are some other useful things I carry:

1. Motrin
2. Imodium AD (This may be your best friend at times. When I’ve needed it, I haven’t found it at airport shops)
3. Flossers
4. Alcohol prep swabs (In the drug store with the diabetic supplies. )
5. Individual hand sanitizing wipes (I keep some in my laptop bag)
6. Small (3 oz. or so) plastic bottles (Not flip-top. They will leak.)
7. Small notebooks, mechanical pencils, Pilot G-2 05 pens
8. Small mesh bag for all of my chargers and cables
9. A good mostly plastic watch (I carry a Casio G-Shock that I clean by wrapping it around a bar in the dishwasher.)

“At what point do you get bored of business travel?”

Someone asked me recently how I was holding up with the travel I do for work. I submit the following thread from flyertalk.com without comment.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-executive-club/1099965-what-point-do-you-get-bored-business-travel.html

BTW, flyertalk.com is an excellent resource. You should be reading it.

Q: Do you use a list when packing? What’s on it? How do you maintain it?

This question came from my good friend LB. She got me thinking about this after I showed her my main travel bag a few weeks ago.

The short answer is “Yes.” The medium answer is “Yes, I definitely use a packing list.” The long answer…

I believe that a packing list is one of the keys to fast, efficient packing.  There are a few caveats before I get rolling.

1. I hate checking bags. It’s almost pathological. My bag has to fit on the plane.
2. I hate bringing home things that I didn’t need in the first place.
3. I hate broken handles and wheels on rolling bags.
4. I’m trying to get where I’m going as quickly as possible.
5. This is for work-related travel. Leisure travel is different.

Here’s my list:

• Underwear – t-shirts (1 per day, max 4)
• Underwear – shorts (1 per day, max 4)
• Socks – work (1 pair per day, max 4)
• Socks – casual (usually 2 pair)
• Pants (2 pair)
• Shirts – work (2)
• Shirts – casual (1 or 2)
• T-shirts – casual/workout (2)
• Shorts – workout (2)
• Shoes – sneakers (1)
• Shoes – work (1)
• Shoe bags
• Inflatable pillow
• Shaving kit
• Watch
• Jacket – lightweight (1)
• Jacket – heavyweight, with or without liner
• Thermal underwear bottoms
• Knit hat
• Belt (1)
• Space bags (2)
• Monster Power Cables-to-go
• Bag of tricks (2)
• Wallet
• Cell phones
• iPod + earbuds
• Headphones
• Protein bars (2)
• Camera
• Mini-tripod
• Laptop (and other work stuff)
• Notebooks
• Backup eyeglasses
• Spork (YES)
• US Atlas
• Microfiber towel
• Sanitizing wipes
• Alcohol wipes
• Adhesive bandages (for hands/fingers)
• Ear plugs
• Boonie hat
• Bible
• Current book
• Blank index cards
• Membership cards (hotels, airlines, rental cars, restaurants, etc.)

I have developed this list over time with lots of ideas brazenly stolen from better writers. Here are a few of them:

• http://www.onebag.com/
• http://www.divainacarryon.com/
• http://onebagger.squarespace.com/

Song of the Week

This week’s song of the week is:

“China Grove” – The Doobie Brothers

Why? Because Wednesday night I saw an exit for “China Grove” somewhere between Charlotte and Greensboro.