Steve Slater, American Folk Hero or Troubled man?

We have all read the accounts of Steve Slaters' incident with a passenger in which Mr. Slater was struck on the head by the overhead bin when a passenger refused to kindly return to their seat. 

Mr. Slater was injured, and a cut can be seen on his head in some of the footage that the news has shown us. 

According to all of the reports, Mr. Slater then began a very ugly rant, using profanity, slamming profanities out to everyone via the PA system on the airplane. 

Amazing is what happened next. Steven Slater became a folk hero overnight. There is a fan page that has nearly 200,000 members in less than 24 hours since his release from jail. 

What is it about the event that has everyone talking? Well, there was his grand exit. He threw his bags down the emergency slide that he deployed, grabbed a beer, and then slid down after his luggage, took the crew van to the car, threw down the company tie from his neck, and rode home, where he was arrested soon after.  How many of us have had the fantasy of "getting even with the boss"? How many of us have thought of some grand and dramatic way to make that exit in a way that would demean the person or the company, and build up our ego? Of course, most of us have thought about it. 

I once held a temp job where my employer would block all of us until their chime on their watch went off, not allowing us to exit until then. Persons who clocked in late at the same place were told to come and talk to the boss about the tardiness, even if it was within 5 seconds of on time. No matter that you had to wait behind others to clock in, you better be on time. 

Another boss made us clock in at a time clock near our computer, and clock out at the time, but the computers had keystroke monitors, so, there would be notes on the computer for "idle" time. (Such as when I would be away from my desk to get a fax or make copies) "idle" time of more than 3 minutes came out of your check. When I left, I made a flip show using post-its from the office. Childish? Sure. Wasteful? Sure. Harmful? Not really. 

Steve Slater deployed the emergency slide during a highly emotionally charged moment. He was up to his eyeballs, frustrated, and could not deal with it. So, he made the announcement, deployed the slide, and down he went....after grabbing a beer. Which is startling, because on two of his social networking sites, he mentions 12 step programs. I certainly hope that Steve did not drink, but the indications seem to be that he did. 

People are coming unglued wanting to know the identity of the mystery woman that struck Steven in the head. She is being vilified as an indecent, rude, pig of a woman. (and that is being nice. You should read some of the descriptions of her, and what people are saying about her elsewhere.)

Personally, I do not think that the woman who struck him in the head intended to do so. I think that it was a genuine accident that injured someone. Was she wrong for getting her bag before she was supposed to? Sure. Wrong for failing to comply with the directions of cabin crew? Sure.

Was she in violation of the law for not giving Steve an apology? No. Rude, yes, but breaking the law, not really.

When I was in a tug of war a long time ago, the person in front of me was pulling the rope so hard that their hand slipped and they bonked me in the face, giving me a black eye. They were unaware that they had done it. We finished the tug of war, and afterwards, I got ice. When the person saw what happened, they asked how it happened. I said that it was during the tug of war, honest accident, no harm, no foul. 

For Mr. Slater to DEMAND an apology, as has been reported elsewhere was a little over the top. I agree, she sounds rude, but it is not his place to teach someone manners. I know, I know, I seem harsh right now, too. 

For him to grab the PA, make an announcement to the entire plane using extremely crude language was, although dramatic and memorable, completely uncalled for. 

Finally, for him to grab an alcoholic beverage from the galley cart, open the emergency exit and deploy the slide, was completely reckless in regards to the crew, the passengers, the ground crew, and the safety of the airplane.

Had I been on board the plane, I would have been amused and concerned at the same time. 

JetBlue suspending this man pending an investigation is completely understandable. 

Much attention has been brought forward to show the amount of stress load that a typical flight attendant endures in a day. It can be heartbreaking to read some of the stories that the men and woman who work in the cabin endure on a daily basis. On the other hand, a quick search on any search engine will show equal amounts of articles that are given over to rude flight attendants. 

I have read over and over about flight attendants who nearly fall over when they are thanked for pouring a beverage. I always say Thank you when I am served, and sometimes it is noticed, and sometimes, it is not. 

I have read accounts of people who bring screaming children on board a plane, and scream the entire time that they are in the air. 

I think that there is a place we all as air travelers need to return to. That place is civility. Treat every person as though they were you. With Mr. Slater, I hope that he will find happiness in whichever direction his life leads him, and that this very published story will lead to a lot more courtesy in the air for a while.....from both the passengers and the crew.

 

Wonderful HOT summer in Arizona!

It has been a wonderful, but HOT summer for my nieces and I, who came to see me while I was in Arizona, which is why I did not get a lot of posting done while they were here. 

We went to Tombstone, where one of the things that we did was to have our fortunes told by Pappy, the animatronic fortune teller, who, told a little joke and dispensed a fortune card at the end of his fortune telling.


The reason I mention this is that both of my nieces loved this machine. I told them about the movie "Big", starring Tom Hanks, and about some of the other fortune telling machines that are out there.  


Pappy only cost us $1.00 per fortune, so, for $3.00, we all had fortunes told. It was fun, it was cheap, and the girls talked about Pappy for days after we were gone from him, elaborating on their fortunes, and how they were coming true. 


If you are traveling with children, sometimes, it is the BIG things that will garner their time and attention. Other times, it is the unexpected and simple that will bring some calm and happiness into your and their day. 


During the time that we were in Arizona, my nieces and I did a lot of things that I was really happy to take them to see. We went to Tombstone, saw some ghost towns, made a really good time happen. Pappy was not part of the plans, as I did not know that he even existed.  For a head start on their homework, I had them interview a lot of the characters in Tombstone who portray people from Tombstones' boom days. We talked about it on the night before, they did a lot of research, and they were happy to finally get there and meet the people that they had read about, seen in movies, and that their aunt (me) talked about. 


An interview by my younger niece with one of the stage coach drivers got her some great knowledge about the town, but he also gave her a silver nail used for driving the horseshoes into the hoofs of those big beasts. 


At the Rose Garden in Tombstone, where the Worlds' Biggest Rose resides, the owners kindly let us have pears, crab apples and pomegranates when they learned that we were making jelly.  


A reminder to the kids that we were not going to rush through anything, and making them find things in each room of places and ask them about things was a great deal of fun, because it made them still themselves and enjoy where we were, not where we were headed to. The girls would ask me about things as well. 


Well behaved children who were very hot got a treat of ice cream in the morning. They really liked it, and it was a perfect stop to cool down. 


Tombstone, if done right, without running from one end of the town to the other is assuredly a place that would take 2-3 days to see, especially if you ventured off the main streets, like we did. 
We saw the Good Enough mine tour, took a US Mail stage coach around town, saw the Bird Cage theater, went to many gunfights, and we had a really good time. In fact, we had a good enough time that we went to Tombstone 4 times! 


I write this to tell you that with children, sometimes it is not the video games, the computer games, the fastest rides, but instead, spending time with those you cherish in a casual and relaxed setting. 


Have a great time on your travels!

Some amazing travel essentials to take on your next trip

I love to travel. But there are things that I like to take with me when I go. Here are some of my amazing finds: 

1. Yoga gloves and socks! Workout rooms don't always exist, but it is nice to know that I can get a nice, safe stretch in with these. When I first saw them, I thought that they were goofy, but they take up so little space, and they are a nice addition. Don't just use them on the road, use them at home, too. For people without a yoga mat, these are especially nice. 
2. A stain stick . Tide is the only one that I have used. This is NOT a laundry pre-treater. This is a WHEN IT HAPPENS USE IT product. It got out red wine from a cuff on a friends' blouse. It removed spaghetti sauce from my skirt, and, it is incredible for ink marks. Don't leave home without it! 
3. Can't take nail polish remover and fit it in your carry on? You can take nail polish remover pads! Incredible product. I once tried to saturate some cotton pads with nail polish remover onto some cotton pads, triple bagged it, and it was a horrible mess. This was much more affordable in more ways than one. I lost a really great cardigan in order to save some money. 
4. Most hotels and motels have irons in the room, and that is great. What about when they do not? This travel iron is a really awesome one. It weighs just around a pound, the design is nice in that it allows the cord to be reeled around the iron when through. The reviews on Amazon are really good, and there are some user shots as well. This is a really well thought out product. Make sure you allow for time for this product to cool down before you pack it into your suitcase, or purchase a thermal case for it, even though I would still let it cool down before I packed it away a little. This iron also has a voltage converter! 
5. Address book with all of the numbers in my cell phone, in case something horrible were to happen to my cell phone and laptop. This DID happen to me once in a foreign country, and I needed the number for a contact in Moscow. Luckily, I had my old school address book with me, and I was able to complete the call. If not, it would have been a disaster. 
6. Medical Alert bracelet necklace or something. If you are not able to speak for yourself, this can save your life. Make sure that yours details the medical condition or allergy that you are affected with. Otherwise, it is merely a clue, not a solution. 
7. Ever been in a hotel that either does not have internet, or is having problems with their internet? I have been in both. It is very frustrating as a traveler to be in a place that does not have internet access, especially when you need it to check in with work and turn things in via email. Just as important is when you would like to unwind with a movie online, or check in with friends. A cell phone modem /hotspot may be an option for you if you travel enough. 
8. Your skin becomes really dry when you fly, the air on the plane is much less humid than the air that we normally breathe. Great moisturizers are all over the place, but how about something that is not a liquid or a gel, and does not take up a large amount of room? I use a skin stick when I travel. This one smells like tangerine, but the smell is not obnoxious. They have other scents, too, and the price is very reasonable. 
9. I like to bring a couple of snacks with me, the food on airplanes, although can be really tasty, is not always respectful of a waistline. Dehydrated snacks like strawberries are actually really GOOD! I found myself adding these to my cereal when I got back home, and they were really nice. 
10. I only use a couple of toothpastes, which is fine, but when I am on the plane, I like to have gum or mints to keep my mouth moist and cut down on bad breath. These particular mints are flavored with cinnamon and peppermint, so they have a very nice flavor to them that is unique. When I want a dessert type mint, I choose this chocolate mint version. 

These are only a few of the things that I use, I would love to hear from you about the things that you use to make your travels better. I will be covering luxury items and fun items soon!

American Airlines makes unplanned stop in Wyoming

American Airlines made an emergency stop in Wyoming when it was noticed that there was a smoky smell on board the aircraft. Mechanics came on board and found a defective panel, disabled it, and the flight was back in the sky. 

Frontier Airlines ads St. Louis and Puerto Vallarta to its' routes

Frontier Airlines added news today when they announced that they will be adding Puerto Vallarta and St. Louis to its' growing route list. 
Puerto Vallarta is one of the prettiest places on the planet, and the trip there is one that every person should make it a point to accomplish in this life. I personally can refer you to friends of mine that have been, and it is a wonderful place. There are a growing number of baby boomers that are going to Puerto Vallarta the first time to scope it out as a place to retire.