Tag Archives: SFO

Why I Don’t Fly

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I like to think of myself as a supporter of the local economy. There is one sector, however, in which I do not participate.  I do not fly.  I haven’t flown regularly since 2009, when I retired.  And I don’t miss it.

I used to fly a lot. Try living in Hawaii and working for the Navy if you want to  rack up airline miles.  For eleven years I was flying a couple of times a month to San Diego or Norfolk or DC.  I developed the invaluable skill of being able to sleep on a plane. Now, I actually can’t NOT sleep on a plane.  I’m usually snoozing before takeoff.

And thank God for that! The Friendly Skies aren’t so friendly any more. Better that you sleep through altercations with unruly passengers who actually expect the plane to take them to where their ticket said.  Better that you not have to see the Delta crew snatching a stroller from a mother traveling with three infants, or hear the horrified reactions of the  passengers. People on airliners these days act exactly how you would expect people or animals to behave without adequate space, or room to move around. Just like the rats they used to show us in college. Cramming people into a 12″ width seat may be legal but it’s not smart. The conditions on the typical airliner wouldn’t meet the standards of the Geneva Convention,  but we volunteer to put up with it, because we’re accustomed  to unrealistic airfares.

I especially don’t understand people who FLY to SFO. By the time you spend an hour getting to the airport, an hour checking in, a couple of hours in the air and circling to land  and an hour getting a rental car, that’s five hours and you’re still at SFO.  If you drove, you’d be checking into your hotel.  Or enjoying yourself.  

I know we’ll hear from Gregg Foster that things are’t that bad;  Gregg and the Fly Humboldt folks do a fine job considering what they have to work with.        

As for myself, except for going to China, or Hawaii or Europe – I still have a couple of bucket-list type trips in me-I will be traveling by car, bus or train.  Did you know that you can get to China without flying?  You have to get to Alaska, then take a freighter to Korea then a couple more boat trips,  but it can be done. Let me know how it goes. 

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The Consumers’ Guide to Summer 2014- Bring Money

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-To no one’s surprise, the courts have approved the merger of American and USAir, which creates the world’s largest airline. Meanwhile, United, our sole air carrier thru their sub, United Express,  was the ONLY major air carrier to lose money this past quarter. To add to UAL’s problems, two of the runways at SFO will be unavailable this summer, leading to lots and lots of delays and consumer unhappiness for the unprepared.

What to do, what to do? Driving to Redding won’t help.  They only offer three flights a day to the beleagered SFO, again thru United Express. Driving to Medford gives you access to Horizon, SkyWest, United Express and Allegeant which offer nonstops to Portland, Seattle, LAX, Denver, Salt Lake City and , seasonally to Las Vegas. Lots more choices, but a four-hour drive, which more and more people are doing from what I hear. Then there’s Sacramento, which offers many choices including direct flights to Mexico. Don’t forget your gas will cost $4.50 according to some predictions. Bargains will be hard to come by so be sure to share with us if you find any.

– According  to The Economist  China will overtake the US as the world’s biggest economy later this year, partly as a result of their relaxing the one-baby rule. Does this bother you?  I see it as an enormous opportunity for Americans in the baby businesses -baby clothes, cribs etc. Their disposable income is rising so fast that the cheap COSCO stuff sold at KMart won’t be good enough for them. Humboldt County has never had a garment industry to speak of but wouldn’t it be nice if someone figured out how to make baby or children’s clothes our of that nice soft hemp cloth?  Someone local?

-Greg Gehr an FOB -Friend of the Blog- shared a link to Titan TV as an alternative to whatever comes out in this week’s URGE. I was pretty impressed especially as it gives more info, like is the show new or a repeat. Definitely useful. Thanks, Greg!

-Another FOB shared this about Northern Redwood Federal Credit Union, an institution I have not dealt with but considering my recent travails with Coast Central I just might look into them. Their Visa Classic Credit Card offers a 1% cash back applied as a credit to your savings account. They’re at 1270 Giuntoli Lane in Arcata and the phone is 800-822-5903. Jenna Cardoza is their Operations Officer and you might want to check them out.

– Finally just a peek into the future. The Eureka Fair Wage initiative is felt by its backers to be a sure shot for qualifying for the ballot in November and you’ll be hearing plenty about it  before them because it is already a bone of contention between the two 4th District Supervisorial contenders, Kerrigan in favor and Bass against. This is an enormous issue for Eureka so pay attention!  There should be some lively debate and it may well affect YOUR pocketbook.

See you later. Gonna be a busy summer!