I got one of these in the Fuko, I do believe. It works pretty well - it hasn't fallen apart. That saying, I've only used it twice, for clothes. (It holds two pairs of jeans, two polo shirts and a pair of socks, and it's completely full to the zipper breaking point..)
Whenever I am now notified by my company that I will have to fly I cringe. It is no longer a fun thing. Can anyone else remember the days when it wasn't a cattle call? When you would get on a flight and it would be half full? You could pick any seat with out a $25 upgrade? And also find room for a carry on, instead of everyone trying to stuff their entire trip into the overhead bin? I hate flying now! (rant over)
@mfladd I'm with you. People put their whole damn trip into the overhead, so my laptop carry-on has to go under the seat every time. And the company only pays for a seat in steerage. I keep expecting to get an oar.
@mfladd I fly business class now, but back in the 70's and 80's (yes I'm old), coach (in terms of room and comfort) was about the equivalent of domestic business class today.
I had the trip from Hell last time I flew. Missed the check-in by <5 min. for the first flight of the day. It was a 3-segment flight across the country. Had to spend the day begging, praying, and waiting on standby. Ended up missing the last flight from LAX to SJC that day. Instead of sleeping at the terminal and getting put on standby next day, I changed my car rental to pick up LAX, drop off SJC. Somehow, it was cheaper that way.
@PocketBrain So that's about a five-hour drive...did you just nap as you drove?
I used to have to travel to San Jose on business way too often. Man, I hated that airport...endless walking from your gate to get outside, then you had to wait for a bus that that took you to the rental car lots that seemed to be about 20 miles away. Oh, and the restaurants/bars were all outside security, so you couldn't sit and drink beer until your flight was called. (This was shortly after 9/11, I'm sure they eventually got that fixed.)
Eventually I started booking all my flights into Oakland. Sure, the airport was in total disrepair...there were water-damaged ceiling tiles swaying in the breeze, and I think the carpet was installed in the 20's...but I could get off the plane and be in my rental car in about five minutes (the rental cars were parked right in front of the terminal), then just fly down the freeway to San Jose. It took about the same amount of time, but I didn't feel trapped and frustrated the entire time. Also, for some unknown reason, they always gave me premium cars instead of the econoboxes that the company paid for. I never told my coworkers...it was my secret. Oh yeah, that was the other nice thing: My coworkers were on different flights, so I didn't have to talk shop the whole way to SJC.
By the way, it's been 10 years since I had to do this stuff, so the airports may well have changed. I figure by this point they must have either renovated OAK or condemned it.
@ChunkyBitz I drove until I was out of the metro then napped two hours at a rest area. Not to worry, I was wired from coffee and aggravation prior to that.
I miss pre-9/11 flights. Watch Dogma. That's how shit used to be. Airport security isn't going to stop anyone that's truly determined. Oh, and considering we have normal citizens flying drones near airports and near-misses all the time at JFK - just a matter of time before some US-hating MFer does that too.
@Donborvio The planes fighting wildfires out here keep reporting that they are having to abort runs because of drones flying in their path. I think the government should equip those planes with experimental anti-drone weapon systems. If the technology works out, give the stuff to the airlines too. An added bonus would be if the same weapons could also follow laser pointers back to their source.
I love flying. I probably only fly 8 to 10 times a year but there is always something new. For example, the same flight from SLC to ATL is always different. Sometimes it's annoying or entertaining or relaxing or a combination of all of them. Even the view out of the windows on the plane is different whether it's raining or sunny, day or night, left window or right window. I guess I just love the unpredictability of it. The only part I don't like is how the people always seem so surprised that the plane landed. They have to put their laptops away in their bag that they need to find in one of the overhead bins 14 rows away from them and then stand in the aisle until they get their coat on and their bag situated just so before slowly exiting the plane like gawking tourists who've never been on a plane before and haven't just spent the last three hours inside of one.
@Gaijin I hate the part where everybody stands up the instant the plane stops moving and starts grabbing their bags and then they just stand there for five minutes until they finally open the door and let off all the people in front of them. It's like a big race to nowhere. I always book window seats so I can just sit and read through that whole process. I won't step into the aisle until I know I won't be holding anybody up for five seconds while I grab my bag. Sometimes I'm the last one off the plane, but at least I'm the most relaxed. Also, I usually pass a lot of them while I'm walking through the terminal. Most of them are quick jumpers, but slow walkers.
@brhfl you know, I have never been on a train. I think the best way to travel is in your own motor home with your own bathroom.. I wish I had a motor home.
@brhfl I like the train concept but when we've checked prices to go where we wanted to go for vacation or whatever, it was generally more expensive than flying, and of course much slower...
I was a travel agent for many, many years and I'm terrified of flying. So much so that I'd been a travel agent for a few months before working up to having my boss take me on a flight. Love to travel, hate to fly.
@ozzallos New layout or old? I usually end up with Kayak or some similar website open to plan my flights, then go through the pain of finding those segments in Concur.
I spent most of my life in the airline business. But now, I hate to fly. Between the TSA and the cattle car boarding, as well as the no frill planes, I avoid flying at all costs. I retired when they asked me to fly out alternate weeks for my job. Driving my car for two days to get somewhere is worth not going through the lines again.
The only part of flying that I hate is the boarding and taxiing process. Boarding sucks because people are so inconsiderate of other people nowadays and also usually have no clue that the faster they board the plane, put their shit away, sit the fuck down and put their seatbelt on, the faster we can depart. Taxiing sucks because you never know if it's going to be a 5 minute or 5 hour taxi to the runway. There are so many factors going on, it's a miracle anyone gets off the ground within 15 minutes of departure time.
The rest of it I don't mind. But, I have preferred status on US Air (American, now) and TSA Pre-Check. So, I zip through security, board first, and sometimes get upgraded to first class.
@jsh139 "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others". Occasional fliers get screwed. Guilty until proven innocent. Second class citizens.
(PS not your USAir membership or upgrades, its the preferential treatment by government that burns...)
We have CLEAR at my airport, so I get to skip the entire security line and get dumped right at the x-ray machine. Then I found out there's a parking garage right on top of the terminal that not many people know of so I can get good parking and take an elevator right down to security. Then I had enough travel for business to always get business class upgrades and free flights for family members. I was in Traveler's Nerdvana.
Then Southwest bought Airtran and fucked everything up. :(
If you manage to get randomly selected for TSA Pre-Check, your trip will start out well- if not, you'll have the same dreadful experience that everyone knows well.
If the police put a suspect in an uncomfortable, cramped chair, subjected them to to loud background noise for hours, and limited access to the bathroom, the ACLU would have a fit.
Airports are worse than the cramped tin can of an economy flight.
Apathy
I don 't travel for work, so airports and airplanes mean vacation. IOW : Yay ! Happiness for flying ! : )
@ceagee Same here. I actually negotiated a no-travel clause into my work agreement because I love to travel and want to continue to love to travel.
I got one of these in the Fuko, I do believe. It works pretty well - it hasn't fallen apart. That saying, I've only used it twice, for clothes. (It holds two pairs of jeans, two polo shirts and a pair of socks, and it's completely full to the zipper breaking point..)
Whee! I'm going to fly my quadcopters again today.
Or isn't that what you're asking about.
@sligett Oooo, good idea! Just don't menace any airline flights.
Whenever I am now notified by my company that I will have to fly I cringe. It is no longer a fun thing. Can anyone else remember the days when it wasn't a cattle call? When you would get on a flight and it would be half full? You could pick any seat with out a $25 upgrade? And also find room for a carry on, instead of everyone trying to stuff their entire trip into the overhead bin? I hate flying now! (rant over)
@mfladd I'm with you. People put their whole damn trip into the overhead, so my laptop carry-on has to go under the seat every time. And the company only pays for a seat in steerage. I keep expecting to get an oar.
@mfladd I fly business class now, but back in the 70's and 80's (yes I'm old), coach (in terms of room and comfort) was about the equivalent of domestic business class today.
I had the trip from Hell last time I flew. Missed the check-in by <5 min. for the first flight of the day. It was a 3-segment flight across the country. Had to spend the day begging, praying, and waiting on standby. Ended up missing the last flight from LAX to SJC that day. Instead of sleeping at the terminal and getting put on standby next day, I changed my car rental to pick up LAX, drop off SJC. Somehow, it was cheaper that way.
@PocketBrain So that's about a five-hour drive...did you just nap as you drove?
I used to have to travel to San Jose on business way too often. Man, I hated that airport...endless walking from your gate to get outside, then you had to wait for a bus that that took you to the rental car lots that seemed to be about 20 miles away. Oh, and the restaurants/bars were all outside security, so you couldn't sit and drink beer until your flight was called. (This was shortly after 9/11, I'm sure they eventually got that fixed.)
Eventually I started booking all my flights into Oakland. Sure, the airport was in total disrepair...there were water-damaged ceiling tiles swaying in the breeze, and I think the carpet was installed in the 20's...but I could get off the plane and be in my rental car in about five minutes (the rental cars were parked right in front of the terminal), then just fly down the freeway to San Jose. It took about the same amount of time, but I didn't feel trapped and frustrated the entire time. Also, for some unknown reason, they always gave me premium cars instead of the econoboxes that the company paid for. I never told my coworkers...it was my secret. Oh yeah, that was the other nice thing: My coworkers were on different flights, so I didn't have to talk shop the whole way to SJC.
By the way, it's been 10 years since I had to do this stuff, so the airports may well have changed. I figure by this point they must have either renovated OAK or condemned it.
@ChunkyBitz I drove until I was out of the metro then napped two hours at a rest area. Not to worry, I was wired from coffee and aggravation prior to that.
I miss pre-9/11 flights. Watch Dogma. That's how shit used to be. Airport security isn't going to stop anyone that's truly determined. Oh, and considering we have normal citizens flying drones near airports and near-misses all the time at JFK - just a matter of time before some US-hating MFer does that too.
@Donborvio The planes fighting wildfires out here keep reporting that they are having to abort runs because of drones flying in their path. I think the government should equip those planes with experimental anti-drone weapon systems. If the technology works out, give the stuff to the airlines too. An added bonus would be if the same weapons could also follow laser pointers back to their source.
@ChunkyBitz corner reflector ftw
I love flying. I probably only fly 8 to 10 times a year but there is always something new. For example, the same flight from SLC to ATL is always different. Sometimes it's annoying or entertaining or relaxing or a combination of all of them. Even the view out of the windows on the plane is different whether it's raining or sunny, day or night, left window or right window. I guess I just love the unpredictability of it. The only part I don't like is how the people always seem so surprised that the plane landed. They have to put their laptops away in their bag that they need to find in one of the overhead bins 14 rows away from them and then stand in the aisle until they get their coat on and their bag situated just so before slowly exiting the plane like gawking tourists who've never been on a plane before and haven't just spent the last three hours inside of one.
@Gaijin I hate the part where everybody stands up the instant the plane stops moving and starts grabbing their bags and then they just stand there for five minutes until they finally open the door and let off all the people in front of them. It's like a big race to nowhere. I always book window seats so I can just sit and read through that whole process. I won't step into the aisle until I know I won't be holding anybody up for five seconds while I grab my bag. Sometimes I'm the last one off the plane, but at least I'm the most relaxed. Also, I usually pass a lot of them while I'm walking through the terminal. Most of them are quick jumpers, but slow walkers.
Aggravation, Annoyance, Anxiety, Avoidance.
I like the planes that fly on the ground, kinda slowly, on those thick steel tracks… what are those called again?
@brhfl the great plains?
@brhfl you know, I have never been on a train. I think the best way to travel is in your own motor home with your own bathroom.. I wish I had a motor home.
@brhfl I like the train concept but when we've checked prices to go where we wanted to go for vacation or whatever, it was generally more expensive than flying, and of course much slower...
@duodec Very true. Also far less miserable, in my opinion/experience at least.
I was a travel agent for many, many years and I'm terrified of flying. So much so that I'd been a travel agent for a few months before working up to having my boss take me on a flight. Love to travel, hate to fly.
It's not the flight itself that I dread, it's concur.
@ozzallos New layout or old? I usually end up with Kayak or some similar website open to plan my flights, then go through the pain of finding those segments in Concur.
I spent most of my life in the airline business. But now, I hate to fly. Between the TSA and the cattle car boarding, as well as the no frill planes, I avoid flying at all costs. I retired when they asked me to fly out alternate weeks for my job. Driving my car for two days to get somewhere is worth not going through the lines again.
The only part of flying that I hate is the boarding and taxiing process. Boarding sucks because people are so inconsiderate of other people nowadays and also usually have no clue that the faster they board the plane, put their shit away, sit the fuck down and put their seatbelt on, the faster we can depart. Taxiing sucks because you never know if it's going to be a 5 minute or 5 hour taxi to the runway. There are so many factors going on, it's a miracle anyone gets off the ground within 15 minutes of departure time.
The rest of it I don't mind. But, I have preferred status on US Air (American, now) and TSA Pre-Check. So, I zip through security, board first, and sometimes get upgraded to first class.
@jsh139 "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others". Occasional fliers get screwed. Guilty until proven innocent. Second class citizens.
(PS not your USAir membership or upgrades, its the preferential treatment by government that burns...)
We have CLEAR at my airport, so I get to skip the entire security line and get dumped right at the x-ray machine. Then I found out there's a parking garage right on top of the terminal that not many people know of so I can get good parking and take an elevator right down to security. Then I had enough travel for business to always get business class upgrades and free flights for family members. I was in Traveler's Nerdvana.
Then Southwest bought Airtran and fucked everything up. :(
If you manage to get randomly selected for TSA Pre-Check, your trip will start out well- if not, you'll have the same dreadful experience that everyone knows well.
Feeling relief of not having to drive 12 hours.
If the police put a suspect in an uncomfortable, cramped chair, subjected them to to loud background noise for hours, and limited access to the bathroom, the ACLU would have a fit.
@BigBalzac Last I checked, you didn't pay the police to do that to you.