Monday Weigh In: Back to 209.5 pounds this week, down a pound from last week. I didn’t workout quite as much as I would have liked but after I tell the story about what happened last night I’m surprised that I somehow didn’t gain five pounds last night alone. It was a night filled with unhealthy options that is for sure.
As everyone knows I fly an awful lot. It is just what my life has now brought me to: in order to enjoy life to its fullest I have to deal with planes and airports and events that make you go more than slightly insane. Last night was one of those nights as I was stuck dealing with the flight that would never take off.
I was connecting in Orlando and originally had a really quick layover scheduled. 50 minutes, not even enough to get a bite to eat. I knew I was in trouble when I picked up my boarding passes and instead of a departure time from Orlando it said “Will advise”. That is pretty much industry shorthand to let you know that you are going to be screwed. Well, once I get to Orlando I see that it is going to be a two hour delay.
I can deal with a two hour delay pretty easily. Find a spot to settle down, read my Kindle and even make my way to McDonald’s for a late evening snack. As it gets time to get ready to board the plane I look outside and see that the sky is turning a not very happy color. Even inside the terminal you could feel the weather changing. Sure enough a massive thunderstorm whipped through the area, shutting down the airport and delaying my flight by another forty minutes. Which meant, time to pick up some Twizzlers and something to drink.
Well, that forty minute delay was then switched to two hours as the plane that I was supposed to get on had been diverted to Fort Myers due to the storm over Orlando. Given that I had left Fort Myers several hours earlier it dawned on me that if I had known all this ahead of time I could have saved myself a hell of a lot of heartache. But finally we have a plane and we have pilots and yet we’re still not boarding.
Yep, while the weather in Orlando had improved to the point where we could fly the weather in Philly was bad enough that they weren’t going to let us land. This went on for another 90 minutes during which they cancelled a flight to Baltimore, which was not a good sign. Finally, five hours late, I was able to board the plane at midnight along with a group of very tired and grumpy passengers. Adding to the fun because of all of the storms it was the bumpiest flight I can recall and as a whole I really don’t like looking out a plane window and seeing lightning. It was not fun at all.
I finally made it home at three in the morning. I remember back from my KC days many a night where I would come home from shows in Lawrence at two or three in the morning and still be fine at work. Sure, I might have needed to take a slight nap in my cube, or my car, or in one memorable instance one of the office’s decorative fountains, but I was able to function. I’m older now though and I have to say that it was just brutal today. All I want to do now is crawl into bed and sleep for the next day. And then look forward to my next trip.
The five random CDs for the week:
1) Gomez “A New Tide”
2) Carbon Leaf “Love Loss Hope Repeat”
3) Arc Angels “Arc Angels”
4) Star 69 “Eating February”
5) Aimee Mann “Lost in Space”
Showing posts with label Flying. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Flying. Show all posts
Monday, April 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
The view from seat 8B
While flying Southwest over the weekend I heard the person sitting directly behind me ask for a seatbelt extension. He was incredibly polite about it and asked the attendant well before takeoff and even though we were on a full flight no one seemed to bother. I didn’t even turn around to look at the guy, which was a little odd just because I can’t recall hearing anyone ask for an extension before.
I mention this only because later in the weekend the director Kevin Smith was taken off a Southwest flight because he was too fat for the seat and made a great deal of online outrage in the aftermath. Ignoring the more important questions of when is Kevin Smith going to start making films that are actually funny again or why in the world is a Hollywood director flying Southwest this raises the point of obesity in America, air travel and where the two intersect.
I fly a lot. By my count I have been on fourteen flights so far this year and we are only seven weeks into the year. Life and work just have me on the road all of the time. I am also, as of this evening, six foot one and 208 pounds. Officially, I am not obese though I am medically defined as “a fat slob.” I could probably stand to lose twenty pounds especially since most of my weight is fat and not muscle. I don’t need a seat belt extender but there isn’t much slack especially if I am wearing a coat. So this is a pretty significant issue to me.
Here is my first point; no one is comfortable in a plane seat. It doesn’t matter who is seated next to me or if the seat is empty; it is just impossible for someone of my size to feel at ease. The best I can do is get a window seat and use the little bit of the window to give me some space. Stretching in the aisle typically results in my getting beaned by the beverage cart. It has gotten to the point where I will regularly take the middle seat because I know I will be uncomfortable no matter where I sit so I might as well take a middle seat at the front of the plane and least get out of there a little quicker.
Still, I have sat next to some rather large people and while I suffer through it it certainly isn’t very pleasant. I’m not entirely behind the forcing them to purchase a second ticket that some airlines make them do if only because I know of no way to enforce it. Who is too fat? Where is the cutoff and do we need to be weighed before we fly? That is what got Southwest in trouble. I’m betting the guy behind me was larger than Kevin Smith but he stayed while Kevin didn’t. The easiest solution would be for all of us to lose weight but until then the airlines will need to work on some solution.
In reality, my pet peeve is not large seatmates or those who bring smelly food on the plane or even the screaming infant flights (though those can be pure torture.) It is the war for overhead bin space especially since they started charging for checked bags. Just once I would like to see the airlines enforce the size of the bag rule. I have a regulation overhead bag that I place in the bin precisely to use the minimum space. Others seem to bring steamer trunks with them and will take up a whole bin on their own and don’t even get me started on the people who put coats and purses up there and get all upset when you move their stuff out of the way. It is a war on US Air to get your bag in the bin and it is the least enjoyable part of flying for me. Charging for bags is asinine to begin with but to have near fights over bin space is just annoying.
I mention this only because later in the weekend the director Kevin Smith was taken off a Southwest flight because he was too fat for the seat and made a great deal of online outrage in the aftermath. Ignoring the more important questions of when is Kevin Smith going to start making films that are actually funny again or why in the world is a Hollywood director flying Southwest this raises the point of obesity in America, air travel and where the two intersect.
I fly a lot. By my count I have been on fourteen flights so far this year and we are only seven weeks into the year. Life and work just have me on the road all of the time. I am also, as of this evening, six foot one and 208 pounds. Officially, I am not obese though I am medically defined as “a fat slob.” I could probably stand to lose twenty pounds especially since most of my weight is fat and not muscle. I don’t need a seat belt extender but there isn’t much slack especially if I am wearing a coat. So this is a pretty significant issue to me.
Here is my first point; no one is comfortable in a plane seat. It doesn’t matter who is seated next to me or if the seat is empty; it is just impossible for someone of my size to feel at ease. The best I can do is get a window seat and use the little bit of the window to give me some space. Stretching in the aisle typically results in my getting beaned by the beverage cart. It has gotten to the point where I will regularly take the middle seat because I know I will be uncomfortable no matter where I sit so I might as well take a middle seat at the front of the plane and least get out of there a little quicker.
Still, I have sat next to some rather large people and while I suffer through it it certainly isn’t very pleasant. I’m not entirely behind the forcing them to purchase a second ticket that some airlines make them do if only because I know of no way to enforce it. Who is too fat? Where is the cutoff and do we need to be weighed before we fly? That is what got Southwest in trouble. I’m betting the guy behind me was larger than Kevin Smith but he stayed while Kevin didn’t. The easiest solution would be for all of us to lose weight but until then the airlines will need to work on some solution.
In reality, my pet peeve is not large seatmates or those who bring smelly food on the plane or even the screaming infant flights (though those can be pure torture.) It is the war for overhead bin space especially since they started charging for checked bags. Just once I would like to see the airlines enforce the size of the bag rule. I have a regulation overhead bag that I place in the bin precisely to use the minimum space. Others seem to bring steamer trunks with them and will take up a whole bin on their own and don’t even get me started on the people who put coats and purses up there and get all upset when you move their stuff out of the way. It is a war on US Air to get your bag in the bin and it is the least enjoyable part of flying for me. Charging for bags is asinine to begin with but to have near fights over bin space is just annoying.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Now boarding group 26
Technical note: Still dealing with laptop issues as Natalie may have gone to a better place. Well, given that she has lived in Kansas City and Delaware that really isn't saying much but let's say I now have less hope for a quick and easy solution. I have gotten Julie back up and running but as an eight year old laptop she has a few quirks. Such as I am not sure how to hook her up to my cable modem so I am on dial up at the moment. I knew I kept that AOL account for a reason. Again, posts may be short and sporadic for the near future. I'll make up for it, I promise.
Now that I live in Philadelphia...well, I don't actually live in Philadelphia. Don't really live anywhere near Philadelphia. More like, "Now that I regularly fly out of Philadelphia I have had to learn to live with the wonders that is the Philadelphia airport and U.S. Airways."
On the surface the Philly airport has a lot going for it. Right off the expressway, on the right side of the city for me, a large parking garage connected to the terminal, and even a Chick-Fil-A inside. However, it still seems to annoy me to no end. First off, can anyone explain to me how the parking works there? There is a remote lot that I a) can't ever seem to find and b) the wait for the buses always seems to resemble the line for the last copter out of Saigon. As a result I pay more to park in the main garage. Every time I go I get a ticket and when I leave to pay I a) hand the cashier my ticket, b) they then ask what state my plates are from (for a reason that baffles me), c) am told that the machine can't read my ticket even though my time is clearly printed on it, and d) that they need to call in a supervisor. This happens every single trip. I was accused of trying to cheat the system this time around. Quite annoying given how freaking expensive it is.
U.S. Airways is the main airline in Philly and as a result is the one I use whenever I need to get anywhere directly. However you should really be careful of any airline where landing in a river is not an uncommon experience. That doesn't bother me (in fact, the actual flying of the planes has been the least of my worries). No, it is the cost cutting measures that are driving me insane.
First off, they charge to check bags. That is not a big deal for me because I just consider that a cost of doing business. It sucks and is horrible but I either need to check a bag or don't and that is never dependent on a company's policy. However that puts me in the minority as now on any flight you have people who have gone beyond bringing on a carry on and have now brought on luggage. This makes getting oberhead bin space a freaking war of attrition and people like me with our wee little overnight bags suffer for it.
This is also an airline that at one point started charging you for that half cup of soda that is three quarters ice. They've cancelled that policy now but I still spend a portion of my pre-flight routine buying gummi bears and Vitamin Water for the flight. (Don't ask why I now drink Vitamin Water. I've been brainwashed by the concept that flavored water is somehow healthy for me.) While they have assigned seats for some reason this makes boarding the plane more difficult than Southwest's Oklahoma Land Rush method. I even think their seats are three inches too short. But they are the one airline I can use to get where I need to go so I use them.
Do I have a point to this rant? Not really. But it makes me wish I had a few more options to get me where I needed to be. Either that or I must really start to work the bugs out of my teleporter.
Now that I live in Philadelphia...well, I don't actually live in Philadelphia. Don't really live anywhere near Philadelphia. More like, "Now that I regularly fly out of Philadelphia I have had to learn to live with the wonders that is the Philadelphia airport and U.S. Airways."
On the surface the Philly airport has a lot going for it. Right off the expressway, on the right side of the city for me, a large parking garage connected to the terminal, and even a Chick-Fil-A inside. However, it still seems to annoy me to no end. First off, can anyone explain to me how the parking works there? There is a remote lot that I a) can't ever seem to find and b) the wait for the buses always seems to resemble the line for the last copter out of Saigon. As a result I pay more to park in the main garage. Every time I go I get a ticket and when I leave to pay I a) hand the cashier my ticket, b) they then ask what state my plates are from (for a reason that baffles me), c) am told that the machine can't read my ticket even though my time is clearly printed on it, and d) that they need to call in a supervisor. This happens every single trip. I was accused of trying to cheat the system this time around. Quite annoying given how freaking expensive it is.
U.S. Airways is the main airline in Philly and as a result is the one I use whenever I need to get anywhere directly. However you should really be careful of any airline where landing in a river is not an uncommon experience. That doesn't bother me (in fact, the actual flying of the planes has been the least of my worries). No, it is the cost cutting measures that are driving me insane.
First off, they charge to check bags. That is not a big deal for me because I just consider that a cost of doing business. It sucks and is horrible but I either need to check a bag or don't and that is never dependent on a company's policy. However that puts me in the minority as now on any flight you have people who have gone beyond bringing on a carry on and have now brought on luggage. This makes getting oberhead bin space a freaking war of attrition and people like me with our wee little overnight bags suffer for it.
This is also an airline that at one point started charging you for that half cup of soda that is three quarters ice. They've cancelled that policy now but I still spend a portion of my pre-flight routine buying gummi bears and Vitamin Water for the flight. (Don't ask why I now drink Vitamin Water. I've been brainwashed by the concept that flavored water is somehow healthy for me.) While they have assigned seats for some reason this makes boarding the plane more difficult than Southwest's Oklahoma Land Rush method. I even think their seats are three inches too short. But they are the one airline I can use to get where I need to go so I use them.
Do I have a point to this rant? Not really. But it makes me wish I had a few more options to get me where I needed to be. Either that or I must really start to work the bugs out of my teleporter.
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