The Joy of Travel

Ah, The Joy of Travel....I have just returned from a wonderful trip to Southern California. It began about a week and a half ago getting up at a ridiculous hour to make a flight out of West Palm Beach to Los Angeles.  Oh, I forgot to mention the little two hour layover in Dallas/Ft. Worth.

It was wonderful finally boarding that 100% full flight and watching everyone fight for every square inch of space in the overhead bins.   I don't know what is worse. The fact that passengers would rather travel with bags and kill one another to find space to store them, or the airlines ripping off passengers with the stupid check baggage fees....I think they both suck.

Anyway, I made it to Dal/Ft.Worth right on time to wait 2 plus hours for my only connection to Los Angeles. And then I made that flight and arrived in LA right on time which was about 3PM, LA time. I was on a roll. I figured I would get my baggage and  whip right out of the airport. But a strange thing happened. 

 

I got one bag right away and was waiting anxiously for the other. ( I usually only travel with one bag, but I was taking some stuff there for my son and needed another bag.). I waited patiently for the other and the area seemed to have cleared out with only me waiting there for my bag. Your right. It did not come....Being a seasoned traveler, I went to the baggage office to report it. After all, this is 2012 and everything is scanned and nothing should ever get lost.  Well, after finally finding some not very bright person to help, I began to worry.  She looked in her computer and told me the bag was at the airport in a locker not too far. I followed her and we looked through about 30 lockers to no avail. She then went back to her computer and further checked and advised me it missed the flight and would arrive on the next flight.  She took the information from me, and said it would be delivered to the hotel and gave me a number to check it on line.  I couldn't do anything else, so I left the airport and began my next adventure with the idiots from the rent a car company.

The bus ride to the rent a car company....DA DA......Now I am at Dollar with my confirmation in hand to pickup the car I had reserved for the week.  One would think that would be an easy task....Wrong ???????????? 

These rent a car companies have one thing in common.  Their sole purpose in life is to make your life miserable.  It was worse than getting a massage at one of these Asian places where they constantly up-sell you.  (I am sure you know what I mean).  First it was for a bigger car, then for a navigation system, then for extra insurance, then comes the best which they save for last...Either purchase their gas plan or make sure the car is returned full of gas. That is fine, but it no longer works that way...You have to show them the gas receipt and it must be from a gas station within 10 miles from the airport..........................or.........................there will be a charge of something like $8.00 per gallon and they will assume the tank is completely empty......Enough already.

I finally get to the hotel, go and see my daughter and try to relax for a bit. It would have been nice to be able to brush my teeth, but alas no luggage and no tooth brush....I call the airline and of course they have no information.  We then look on line and also nothing.  Well, I am fuming by now, but am trying to act cool.  We have dinner and I am ready to go back to the hotel, when my daughter takes a final look to see if there is any change.  As she is looking I get a phone call from American Airlines telling me my bag has arrived and it will delivered in another hour or so.  My daughter sees the same information on line.  Crisis Averted.

Get to the hotel, walk into my room, and there is my bag with the little delivery tag similar to the one above....All in all, a long day...But the next week just flies by and it is already time to go home.
       Back to the airport again with the same thing in reverse.  I return the car and they tell me there is a chip on the windshield that is my responsibility. I never saw it, and deny it, but who knows. That will probably be another blog...Get to the airport and get ready to go through security.....Off goes the buzzer and I am now being patted down by some strange TSA guy.  (They have the new, good machines there, but I have been told they are not working ????)

     So my morning begins with this person playing with my thighs, balls, and any other private parts I may have. It is so fucking humiliating, but I did walk away with a slight erection. (only kidding). I then went to the Admirals Club where I was able to relax for a while before boarding the flight. I also knew it would be a long day going thru Dallas again with another layover. Well, the same crowded planes with the same idiots trying to jam everything into the overhead bin. The old bag flight attendants offer nothing to help the situation After all, they all seem to be a little too old to do anything. Lucky they can roll the drink cart.

   

The above clearly represents the youngest of the flight attendants on my flight.  When is this all going to change ? When is it ever going to be fun to travel again ?  9/11 just fucked up everything for any of us that travel... It's exhausting and it is no fun to get to a destination........

   

The above is what is needed to at least make travel somewhat tolerable.....So to any of you planning on taking a flight, renting a car, and staying in a hotel soon I say to you. Good Luck.