Gearing up

[ksmith]

I'll be going to NYC for the Novelists Inc conference at the end of the month. Denver in August. Possibly a flight around the holidays. So, I decided to dig into the on-signing money and buy a year's membership in the United Red Carpet Club. I get a price break thanks to the day job, and well, just want to see if it's worth it.

Honestly, one thing the basement cleaning has made abundantly clear is that I don't need to buy another piece of luggage ever. I think I know which piece I'll be using for NYC--it's a rolling garment bag with room for other stuff. Nice for slacks and jackets, which is what I'll be taking along. I dragged it upstairs and vacuumed off the storage dust. Wheels work. Zippers work. No stains or rips.

Just once, I would like to be the passenger who walks easily through the airport. i would like my wheeled luggage to be well-behaved, with no twisting or torqueing or falling over. The large purse that functions as the carry-on isn't overpacked, and I can find what I need easily, without dumping the contents of the damned thing atop the check-in desk. No extraneous bags or boxes or cartons. The shoes and clothing I'm wearing are comfortable. I don't trip over anything. I actually look as though I have my act together. Just once. Please?

Now, how many clothes do I really need for a six-day trip...

Comments

Re: United RCC

[mindyklasky.livejournal.com]

I'll be very interested to hear what you think about the Club - I thought about joining when I started the new job (travel to Chicago once a month and some other domestic location once a month), but I concluded that it wasn't worth it (especially since the non-CH travel is often on random airlines, and the CH travel can be United or American, if the American airfare is its usual half the United price, with full seat selection).

I'd love to be proven wrong, though, as I embark on Year Two :-)

As for the conference - I agree with Catie - pack half of what you think you need. And report back early and often on the conference!

Re: United RCC

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I'll be very interested to hear what you think about the Club - I thought about joining when I started the new job (travel to Chicago once a month and some other domestic location once a month), but I concluded that it wasn't worth it (especially since the non-CH travel is often on random airlines, and the CH travel can be United or American, if the American airfare is its usual half the United price, with full seat selection).

Again, thanks to the dayjob I'm a step up in the frequent flyer ranking. I bought the NY ticket with accrued miles, and according to the seating plans as I interpreted them, the seats were in the Economy Plus area with the inch or two more of legroom.

The two main reasons I'm going through all this is 1) a shot at better seats and 2) peace and quiet, which is a pretty sad commentary on the state of air travel.

Ticket prices didn't matter because I used miles, but I did notice that the NY to CHI flight I wanted to take, which left late morning, would have jacked up my ticket price by $200 if I'd been paying, and wasn't available as the return leg of the freebie ticket.


I'd love to be proven wrong, though, as I embark on Year Two :-)

I think the reason I was avoiding American was the fact that they used more Airbuses than United, and I didn't like Airbuses. Now I think they've worked out the issues with the composites they use in construction. Hope hope.

Those are the things I think about. In a way, I like to fly, but in a way, I don't.

As for the conference - I agree with Catie - pack half of what you think you need. And report back early and often on the conference!

I'm already having second thoughts about the evening wear.

And I'm hoping the hotel charges for wireless aren't exorbitant.

Re: United RCC

[elmunadi.livejournal.com]

errr...

American's one venture into using Airbus (the twin aisle A300s) was a bit of a mess for them the rest of their mainline fleet is all Boeing (or former McDonnell).

United has a ton of Airbus single-aisle A319s & A320s, but has *no* non-Boeing widebodies flying in the mainline.

The A300s are almost all used strictly on the routes to/from the Caribbean and Miami to JFK... Do you recall where you encountered them (and when)?

I'd be less concerned about composite construction on a per airline basis, especially with the new Boeing 787 (which is a mostly plastic (ok, Carbon Fiber) airplane, then I would about pilot training and flight management systems. Both major mfrs have their issues - Airbus planes are sure the're smarted than the pilots, and will "do the correct thing" to get you out of trouble, even if the correct thing isn't. Boeing planes will do what you tell them to... even if it's a really bad idea. Both are pretty uncommon occurrences, but I am in the biz, so I probably worry about it more than average (the sad result of knowing too much about how an airline functions).

BTW ... you mention FreqFlyer status... did you travel enough to make Premier? PE? If the latter, I'm terribly sorry. that's too much travel no matter how you slice it.

A good source for info & opinions on travel, and airline travel in general, is: http:\\www.flyertalk.com. It's a goldmine, with occasional cave-ins.

Cheers.

Re: United RCC

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

BTW ... you mention FreqFlyer status... did you travel enough to make Premier? PE? If the latter, I'm terribly sorry. that's too much travel no matter how you slice it.


I've got Premier as a day job perk. I haven't flown since '03, and I still have it. I do have a co-worker who's a member of 1K. She's never in the office.

I'm thinking of the crash over NY several years ago, when the tail assembly fell off that American jet. I know it's a one-in-a-million lightning strike whatever, but things like that tend to stick in my head. I just checked my flights, and both planes are Boeings. maybe it doesn't matter anymore, but I still think twice before booking on an Airbus. The ones I've flown on look nice and spiff inside, but they seem noisier. But then all planes are noisier now since they removed so much stuff to make them lighter.

I can't win.

Re: United RCC

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

As for the conference - I agree with Catie - pack half of what you think you need. And report back early and often on the conference!

And according to the hotel website, high-speed internet service is $9.95/day, but I need an ethernet cable. Which means I can't take the iBook because the port doesn't work. Unless I comb the area for wireless access.

Thinking...

Re: United RCC

[mindyklasky.livejournal.com]

In New York, I'm almost always to find a wireless network, outside the hotel's exorb-o-rate. Obviously, though, you don't want to chance that, for a full trip...

Re: United RCC

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I did buy a hard plastic skin for the MacBook, to stave off scratches. Maybe I'll take it along anyway.

::still thinking::