Tuesday, December 21, 2004
TRAVEL LOG 12/21/04 LAX to Tampa Intl Airport
LAX Intl Airport
10:30am pst
Ok, so here I am about to lose it completely. Mainly because I have just been treated as a terrorist. My guitar string cutters have just been confiscated and I have been informed that they have now become the property of the United States government. Now, what exacly I could have done with those on this flight, is anyone's guess, but the TSA agents at the security check-point seem to believe they pose some type of threat. Frankly, I think this is because they have no idea what they are in the first place. "They're a tool?" one woman exclaimed incredulously. I tried to explain as patiently as I could that they were for re-stringing a guitar. My explanation fell on deaf ears, however, and I had to surrender my "weapon." At this point I was pretty pissed off and frankly, too exhausted to argue. This is, of course, after I had stood in a line at security that was, literally, 1/2 a mile long and stretched as far as the eye could see down the sidewalk in front of the airport. This is also after I stood in a 30 minute line to dump off my checked luggage, even though I had already checked in on-line at home before leaving today (making me wonder what the point of the on-line check-in even is). This is also after I wandered madly around the airport for 15 minutes and could not find a single cold (or even cool) bottled beverage (even the bottled water was room-temp). Now, I am sitting waiting for this god-forsaken flight to take off to god only knows where. They keep saying Austin, TX on the intercom, but both the boarding pass and the itinerary purport this to be a direct flight to Tampa (where it is NOT snowing, contrary to what some might believe). The 12-year-old boy behind me is kicking my seat with no sign of stopping. The woman next to me is jabbering away on her cell phone even though people have repeatedly been told to put their cell phones away (God help us all if they actually make it permissable to use them throughout the duration of the flight as I have heard they are going to do at some future point). There is a woman across the aisle wearing snow boots though this plane is headed no where near anywhere that has any snow. The kid behind me is kicking the seat so hard and is well over the age of knowing better. This may be the flight to end all flights and the one where I really lose it.
10:50am pst
This flight has not yet pushed back from the gate and is now 15 minutes late. Why does it smell like burning rubber in here?
2:10pm cst
All of the seats on Southwest Airlines are made of leather. Now, I morally oppose the use of this much leather, especially when man-made seats are just as comfortable and probably a lot cheaper. As a vegetarian and animal rights activist, I feel that having no possible option but to sit on one of these leather seats is discriminatory. Does this mean that Southwest Airlines discriminates against vegetarians/vegans? I certainly don't want my bare skin touching this seat made out of animal flesh.
Austin Intl Airport
4:35pm cst
We are laid over here in Austin and are not allowed to leave the plane. At least that is what we are told. I think that they just didn't feel like printing out two sets of boarding passes. They are also saying that if you stand up during the head-count and move around the plane, you are going to miss being counted and lose your seat. Well, how is that possible? You are already booked and physically on this plane. They can't kick you off at this point. There was a short span of minutes where you were able to get up and change seats or use the restrooms, but both restrooms are flooded and passengers are not very happy about that. A man wearing a green vest says he cannot understand why we can't just open the emergency exit at the back of the plane and step out onto the jetway to have a quick cigarette.
Tampa Intl Airport
7:02pm est
Arriving in Tampa, I notice that it says, "Southwest Airlines: A Symbol of Freedom" on the side of one of the planes on the jetway. Now, how exactly are those two connected? I don't get it. Freedom to choose your own seats on Southwest? Is that what our founding fathers were talking about?
LAX Intl Airport
10:30am pst
Ok, so here I am about to lose it completely. Mainly because I have just been treated as a terrorist. My guitar string cutters have just been confiscated and I have been informed that they have now become the property of the United States government. Now, what exacly I could have done with those on this flight, is anyone's guess, but the TSA agents at the security check-point seem to believe they pose some type of threat. Frankly, I think this is because they have no idea what they are in the first place. "They're a tool?" one woman exclaimed incredulously. I tried to explain as patiently as I could that they were for re-stringing a guitar. My explanation fell on deaf ears, however, and I had to surrender my "weapon." At this point I was pretty pissed off and frankly, too exhausted to argue. This is, of course, after I had stood in a line at security that was, literally, 1/2 a mile long and stretched as far as the eye could see down the sidewalk in front of the airport. This is also after I stood in a 30 minute line to dump off my checked luggage, even though I had already checked in on-line at home before leaving today (making me wonder what the point of the on-line check-in even is). This is also after I wandered madly around the airport for 15 minutes and could not find a single cold (or even cool) bottled beverage (even the bottled water was room-temp). Now, I am sitting waiting for this god-forsaken flight to take off to god only knows where. They keep saying Austin, TX on the intercom, but both the boarding pass and the itinerary purport this to be a direct flight to Tampa (where it is NOT snowing, contrary to what some might believe). The 12-year-old boy behind me is kicking my seat with no sign of stopping. The woman next to me is jabbering away on her cell phone even though people have repeatedly been told to put their cell phones away (God help us all if they actually make it permissable to use them throughout the duration of the flight as I have heard they are going to do at some future point). There is a woman across the aisle wearing snow boots though this plane is headed no where near anywhere that has any snow. The kid behind me is kicking the seat so hard and is well over the age of knowing better. This may be the flight to end all flights and the one where I really lose it.
10:50am pst
This flight has not yet pushed back from the gate and is now 15 minutes late. Why does it smell like burning rubber in here?
2:10pm cst
All of the seats on Southwest Airlines are made of leather. Now, I morally oppose the use of this much leather, especially when man-made seats are just as comfortable and probably a lot cheaper. As a vegetarian and animal rights activist, I feel that having no possible option but to sit on one of these leather seats is discriminatory. Does this mean that Southwest Airlines discriminates against vegetarians/vegans? I certainly don't want my bare skin touching this seat made out of animal flesh.
Austin Intl Airport
4:35pm cst
We are laid over here in Austin and are not allowed to leave the plane. At least that is what we are told. I think that they just didn't feel like printing out two sets of boarding passes. They are also saying that if you stand up during the head-count and move around the plane, you are going to miss being counted and lose your seat. Well, how is that possible? You are already booked and physically on this plane. They can't kick you off at this point. There was a short span of minutes where you were able to get up and change seats or use the restrooms, but both restrooms are flooded and passengers are not very happy about that. A man wearing a green vest says he cannot understand why we can't just open the emergency exit at the back of the plane and step out onto the jetway to have a quick cigarette.
Tampa Intl Airport
7:02pm est
Arriving in Tampa, I notice that it says, "Southwest Airlines: A Symbol of Freedom" on the side of one of the planes on the jetway. Now, how exactly are those two connected? I don't get it. Freedom to choose your own seats on Southwest? Is that what our founding fathers were talking about?
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