Comments on: Come fly with me

By: snopercod

snopercod — Wed, 25 May 2016 22:05:25 +0000

I recently flew across the Country, too…in my own 200 MPH airplane that I built myself. I didn’t wait in a single TSA line, either!

By: ligneus

ligneus — Wed, 25 May 2016 20:18:29 +0000

Why would you put a shop selling luggage in the departure lounge at an airport? I suppose some people might bring their clothing etc loose to the airport, buy a suitcase and pack it there but I really can’t imagine it.

By: Artfldgr

Artfldgr — Wed, 25 May 2016 18:23:54 +0000

by the way, as a child i met sanatra..
the man i mentioned before that was a family friend and such “Maurice Seymour” who took the photos for the Russian Balllet and was a great family friend… introduced my dad and i (late 1970s early 1980s)… as dad did photo touch up on 4×5 negatives decades before photoshop and computers existed… it was interesting to meet many of these people in passing… after all, most of them i met in the 70s when i was younger than 13… what a weird mix ranging from old time greats to what was then, up and coming porn stars of super fame, strippers, and even childrens shows… I used to hate it when dad had to do work for Tony Randall… his personality was much like the odd couple character… very much..

imagine the suprise when i grew up and found out the friend Herbert Streicher, was Peter Long aka Harry Reems of Deep Throat fame.. 🙂

Another person that was interesting in passing was Suzzan Landow… turns out she was a very famous stripper that Maurice did her shots for.

then i was lucky to get to know another famous man who has passed that maybe neo knows or knows of.

Charles Ponte… 🙂

Ponte ran a music store on the side on 48th street. he also started a double reed thing (oboe is a double reed insrument)

when i was to play clarinet and lincoln center, dads friend maurice said… cmon, lets get your son a new one… (maurice wife was an opera singer, his eldest daughter was my sisters age and played a strat (stratavarius)… they wanted us to date, etc)

well, we went… i remember going to the back and standing with these people.. charles was a nice guy to me… he and seymour would talk a bit.. .and we looked at instruments..

being the 1970s… they were expensive..
we ended up with something that he put together for us… a beautiful instrument… and we paid $300 for it.
(you could rent a nice apartment for under $50)

i still have that instrument..
i found out years later that in no way was it worth 300
in fact today, its worth over $15,000 given its a Buffet Crampon professional model from that long ago (you can get one for about 2-3 grand new today)

The R13 is a big favorite of some very famous players even today, and the old ones are treasured since the wood they are made from is not exactly common.

ah well
now i am a nothing waiting to die
and cant do a thing about it..
i made wrong choices and thats that…

By: Artfldgr

Artfldgr — Wed, 25 May 2016 16:53:03 +0000

you cant do crap about things like you describe
and in fact, i nearly got kicked off a plan last time in hong kong because the seats are now so small and compacted that they could not get the belt tightened to take off and were going to make a criminal out of me for being 6’3″.. (and i am NOT overweight either… )

By: Oldflyer

Oldflyer — Wed, 25 May 2016 16:30:07 +0000

I identify with JJ. Flying as a passenger used to be such a pleasant experience. But, as he noted, one reason for that was because it was expensive. Many of the issues that people find so onerous are a direct result of flying becoming so affordable.)

Given the whole frustrating package, including the time involved in getting to and through airports, I really don’t know why folks don’t just drive on trips of 300 miles or so. Neo, I love JB, and flew them for years between Virginia and California, but I don’t miss the experience..

I can tell those who chafe at flying in the cabin, that the pleasure of flying in the “best seat in the house” also eroded significantly. I would think twice about advising a youngster to go into an airline career at this point.

Beverly, our culture has become so coarse across the board. Dressing up a bit for an event, including flying, going to dinner, a show, or church used to highlight the occasion as special. I wonder how many people ever experience that now?

By: Ray

Ray — Wed, 25 May 2016 16:17:21 +0000

Flying is so unpleasant I avoid it. Last year I drove from Virginia to New Mexico because I didn’t want to put up with the hassle of flying. The last time I flew I arrived at Dulles airport at 6 AM, flew to Atlanta, spent all day in Atlanta and finally arrived in Albuquerque about 6 PM. It was an all day trip.

By: Roy

Roy — Wed, 25 May 2016 13:20:22 +0000

Like the rest of your commenters, if time allows and I can drive it, I will.

My problem with flying isn’t really the TSA, though they are annoying enough. It’s those airline seats. They are designed to to fit comfortably if you happen to be a petite ten year old girl. An adult male, not so much. I can put up with it for maybe an hour or so, but in that case, I would probably drive anyway.

Has anyone else besides me noticed that in Hollywood movies and television shows nearly everyone flies first class. Next time you see a scene in a movie or TV show that takes place on an airliner, take a gander at the seat they are sitting in. It’s certainly not your average coach seat.

By: expat

expat — Wed, 25 May 2016 08:07:21 +0000

I don’t have any option but flying since Elon Musk hasn’t come up with a car that I can drive over the Atlantic. But I must say that my trips from Frankfurt to Dulles aren’t too bad. Once we took a flight that had a stopover in Heathrow. That was horrible. I’ll never go near Heathrow again. Another time we had a stopover at Charles DeGaulle on the flight back. It’s not fun waiting for 2 hours when you are ready for bed.

The baggage restrictions are a pain, so I really pare down what I take. Sometimes there is a decent movie, but my Kindle is my life saver. The food is also terrible now. On the whole I guess things are better than when people had a couple of weeks of seasickness.

By: Sharon W

Sharon W — Wed, 25 May 2016 06:38:18 +0000

I’m a life-long poor sleeper so sleeping on a plane doesn’t happen, but I do my best to rest. I come prepared; layered clothing, my large cashmere scarf I can use as a blanket or roll for my neck, cashmere socks to keep my feet warm and water. My legs and feet swell on long trips so I start taking aspirin a few days before and continue til I get home. I bring surface, hand wipes and tissues. We fly home from Paris tomorrow. I check one bag and carry on another. The first leg my carry on has all my essential clothing; going home it has the gifts I’ve bought for family and friends. I don’t fear dying in a plane crash as I have a deep belief in God and figure I’ll be on this earth as long as is His plan for me. My father died in a helicopter crash 2 weeks after his 43rd birthday so I have personally experienced devastating loss. TSA is window dressing but how is that different than so many areas of our local, state and federal government? If possible, we would like to take one more trip to Paris at Christmas time (anytime in early December-it is extraordinary) with our 3 children and their families as our gift to them. After that, car travel for me in the USA and Canada.

By: Beverly

Beverly — Wed, 25 May 2016 05:34:25 +0000

One more thought: some of you remember that we used to “dress” to fly, or to travel in general, via any public conveyance. I would never have been allowed to board an airplane without wearing a dress and my Sunday shoes, and my brother would have his jacket and bowtie.

Now people wear pajamas and thongs, and even take Those off on the ride, showing their gnarly bare feet. Degoutant….