Holiday Travel

(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Peter D. Blair/Released)

As you may recall (if not, read this), I had the "privilege" of traveling over the Thanksgiving festivities. Though the two aircraft I was aboard were about as crowded as shown in the photo above (not really, but it felt like it), the whole airport "experience" wasn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be.

The Nuke had made all of the necessary travel arrangements about a week ahead of time. (To include paying for the tickets, it's nice to have successful kids.) She had booked me on Southwest (my preferred airline) using the Early Bird Check-in feature (which while not free, does save time on checking in, it happens automagically, I used to do the whole 24 hours ahead of time and get stuck near the ass-end of Group B). She also recommended that I do the carry on thing, don't check any bags. (Which Southwest, unlike other airlines, does not charge you for the bag. A pessimist might say "Southwest will lose your bags for free." Which is exactly the situation I was trying to avoid.)

So, There I was ...¹

The week of Thanksgiving I only had to work Monday and Tuesday, at my place of employment it's a two-day holiday, as I only work four days a week, I had Wednesday off. That was the day I was flying.

"What!?!?! Are you crazy, flying the day before Thanksgiving?"

Probably, but I decided that the potential hassle was worth spending the day with family. So I bit the bullet.

Now I had decided which carry on to use on Monday night, we have a couple. Then I began to wonder if the one I had chosen was actually the right size. Before going to bed, I began to fret, then (even in my exhausted state) I realized: I have a cell phone to look stuff up on and a tape measure to measure things.

Using the tools available to me, I decided that I had chosen poorly in terms of a carry on bag. While it met FAA requirements in general, it might not meet the specifications of whatever aircraft I might be flying on. Fortunately, we have a smaller bag which works just about anywhere.

Now I'm going for five days (four nights, two of the days are travel days, but it's a short flight, less than 90 minutes) so I don't need to pack a lot. Everything I wanted/needed to take all fit in the carry on and the under the seat backpack. Until ...

Tuesday night, in the midst of packing, I get a text from The Missus Herself: "Bring all of my medicine."

Ah, sure. I go to the medicine chest (I realize that she had planned for a two week stay, T-Day would make it a three week stay, she was running out of meds!) and there discover that she has quite a few meds! Enough so that my carefully packed bag will require some "arranging."

Eventually I decided that one pair of jeans in the bag and one draped about my person should be sufficient for a five day trip. So The Missus Herself's meds were stowed, extra jeans put back in the dresser, NOW I'm packed!

Go time was 12:30, so I figured, it being Thanksgiving week, that I would arrive three hours before my flight, not my usual two. I awakened at 0800 local to hear the wind howling and the rain falling in sheets. Well, it was expected and the airline assured me that the flight was on time. So I got up, showered, shaved, and got dressed. Jumped in Blue and headed to T.F. Green.

Hhmm, not much traffic, this is good.

Lots of cars in long term parking, hhmm, maybe not so good. (Note that when I entered the lot I had to open my window to scan my credit card, guess which way the rain was coming from?  Yup, my second shower of the day.)

Parked the car, grabbed my bags and jumped into the shuttle.

Which was waiting for me, right behind my car. Bus was empty except for me and the driver.

"Where is everybody?" I asked the driver.

"Beats me, this is quieter than a normal Wednesday."

Strange.

It was quiet.

Too quiet.

Now I'm a modern guy, I've got my boarding pass on my phone. But I'm also a practical guy, so a paper "back up" is always nice. Curbside check in provided me with that, entered the terminal and went through security. Place was damned near empty.

Had to discard my shaving cream, forgot all about that, can was twice the size allowable. (So of course they dump it at the screening area, if it was something nasty, now they have it. Well, at least it won't get on the plane!) But security was a breeze for all that.

Now Dunkin Donuts at T.F. Green is always mobbed.

Always.

Except the day before Thanksgiving. Four people. Four. Count 'em ...

Yup, four.

I turn to the fellow next to me, "Where is everyone?"

Dude shrugged, "This is freaking me out, the place is empty."

Anyhoo, went through the line, got my breakfast, had a reminder, once again, that I am old.

The kid ringing people up was telling people the number on their tickets (for when they would be called). He said to one guy, "You're number ten."

To which I had to reply "You Numbah Ten, G.I." (A phrase which old Asia hands might recognize.)

Four blank looks (from the other people in line and the kid at the register) and one suppressed guffaw from an older gent walking past.

I looked at him, got a nod, saw the "Vietnam Vet" hat and nodded in reply.

Man, don't they teach anything in school these days?

The flight down to BWI was uneventful, the aircraft, though full, had less than the normal complement of idiots, so things were smooth as regards boarding and disembarking. Not checking a bag worked well, I headed past baggage claim and went straight to ground transportation, there to await The Nuke. What I saw was chaos.

BWI has four lanes of traffic for pickup, two were intended for moving vehicles, two were intended for folks stopping to pick people up. Now at many (most?) airports in my experience, the local constabulary discourages people from parking there to await passengers. They have what I believe is generally called a "cell phone lot." You park your ass there and wait for a call to head into the LZ² and pick folks up.

At BWI (and later at T.F. Green when I returned home), there were tons of Uber and Lyft drivers parked curbside, empty. waiting for people. At T.F. Green I did see signs designating an Uber/Lyft pickup area, didn't see them at BWI. What I did see was police barking at those guys to keep moving, the pickup area was totally packed and was complete chaos.

The time I saved not having to go through baggage claim was completely squandered due to the Uber/Lyft guys jamming the LZ. Had the same issue on my return home, though on a much smaller scale.

Now don't get me wrong, I really like the Uber/Lyft concept. But at least with taxis, they stick to the designated areas at airports, the Uber/Lyft guys seem rather out of control on that front. Which, for normal travel, isn't much of a problem.

Bottom line: I was expecting a nightmare travel scenario, on both ends. Speculating with my fellow travelers (the non-Communist type, mind you), it seems that most folks traveling the day before Thanksgiving also have to work that day, so they leave later than I did. I also left somewhat earlier (I suppose) than normal holiday travelers for the return home. Which is why I seemed to have "dodged a bullet" vis-à-vis holiday travel.

And I really don't have a problem with that.

¹ SJC.

² Landing Zone.