This is part one of probably a two part series of posts about summer travel, specifically relating to airline travel.

As we head into the summer and people are getting out of school many are starting to think about their summer travel plans.  Some people will travel for summer jobs, some just for fun, and some for visiting friends and family.  Most people who are traveling more than across a state or two will probably make their journey by air.  However, this is getting harder and harder every day.  Sure, it is still cheaper and generally more convenient than driving long distance, but the airline industry is out of control.

What made me start to think about this?  It all started when I was talking to my dad about flying home the night before he left this weekend.  There are two direct flights from SLC to BOS every day on Delta.  My dad had originally booked his tickets on the evening flight but wanted to change to the morning.  For this, the airline wanted to charge not only a change fee but an additional $400.  Now, obviously they had seats available, one would think that it is more important to fill the seats.  What accounts for the $400 difference?  This just further illustrates the fact that when you get on a plane you could be sitting next to a person who paid double what you did and the person on your other side may have paid half of what you paid.

The major airlines are already changing ridiculous fees on tickets.  I want to know what the actual cost per passenger is on a full commercial flight.  If an airline like Delta has standard routes that they fly at the same time every day like the SLC to BOS route, why isn’t there a standard price?  The planes fly whether or not all the seats are sold and there is no way to know in advance if a flight will be full.  So why are ticket prices so variable?  The cost per person doesn’t really change on a day-to-day basis.

Then of course consider the fact that on the major airlines there is nothing that you are not charged for.  It is a wonder that you still get a free beverage!  Why are travelers penalized for bringing their luggage on the plane?  Why should we have to pay for every bag we take.  Some airlines have even started to charge for carry-on bags.  Why shouldn’t I be allowed to take my clothes on my trip with me?  Maybe the airlines just want everyone to fly naked?  I am sure that would make TSA’s job easier!

I just read that now the major airlines want to start charging a “Summer Flights” surcharge.  From the articles I have seen this charge could range from $10-$50 per ticket.  Like every other aspect of ticketing, this fee will be variable depending on your travel date, when you book your flight, what airline, where you are going, and how your ex-roommate’s second-cousin’s sister-in-law is feeling.  It doesn’t actually cost more to fly in the summer, in fact one would think that since more people travel in the summer the planes are more likely to be full so it should get cheaper to fly!

This is obviously the time when some of the “smaller/budget” airlines may get the chance to shine.  I will be flying this summer and I am booked on Southwest Airlines who still has pretty standard pricing, they let you take two checked bags for free, and they do a good job.  As far as I know they also won’t be adding on a summer surcharge.  Of course one of the best things about Southwest is the fact that they don’t have penalties for changing your flight beyond the difference in ticket price (if there is one).

It is really right that someone’s greed for money drives the airline industry?  Did anyone stop to think that people might be more inclined to fly more often if prices were more standard and not designed to screw over the travelers?  What about giving the traveler the freedoms and benefits that we used to get insted of charing us for every little thing on the flight?  Why does it have to be so damn difficult?

As my parent’s visit to Salt Lake City came to an end they did offer me some great things.  First off I finally got a new pair of ski pants.  I have been skiing in my old Spyder pants for a really long time and they are starting to show their age as well as not really fitting well.  I did have to go back to REI to exchange the pants as the first pair was a funny cut that didn’t quite fit right, but I think I have landed on something that I am happy with.

Additionally, my father found a photo workshop that looks like it should be interesting.  The workshop is down in Moab and it is run by the Nikonians Academy.  I was going to do a similar workshop last summer, but that one was cancelled due to conflicts that the hosting photographer had.  I was kind of bummed out about that.  At that point in time, the workshop was going to be birthday gift for me from my parents, so they made me the same offer on the upcoming one.  So, I am all signed up to go on a photo workshop this summer down in Moab, which should be a lot of fun.  I think that doing something lie this will be good for me as a photographer.  I will get to meet new people and learn something, and hopefully continue to develop my eye.

The big holiday party was lat night and it was a lot of fun.  Getting to see people who i don’t get to see very often is a treat.  It is an awful lot of work to pull off a party like that though.  We had twenty-some odd people at the house.  My mother and I made almost 20lbs of potatoes into latkes, we made 16-ish pounds of corned beef, a turkey and more.  I don’t remember what my father said was the count on number of bottles of wine drunk.

Seeing family and friends is fun, but it is mighty tiring.  People started to show up at 5 and the last guest left between 9 and 10, plus we did all the prep beforehand.  I think I got to tell the same stories over and over to different people, and it is hard to keep up with all of that.  Seeing my cousins Greg Weisman, and Sarah and Brian Swett was nice.  I have not seen them in a long time.  I don’t know if I can convince greg to come out to Utah this year, he has all kinds of other adventures planned.  Maybe SCUBA diving in Israel this spring, he sounded interested in that.

Then of course there are the gifts.  As much as I like getting money as a gift, sometimes I feel like it is a cop-out.  I do kinda need money to pay off all my bills, what with buying a washer and dryer and such, but then I feel like I didn’t really use the gifts that I was given.  There are things that I want to get, but then i feel like I could have used the money to be practical and pay the bills.  Worst of all, is that most of the gifts were in cash, and when i have cash I tend to spend it on things that really are not gifty, like dinner.  It is kind of a dilemma.

Over the course of this trip I did get to visit some friends of mine.  Best of all was getting to see Jesi, who, unfortunately is not working currently, thought that allowed her the time to visit.  We went out to see “Radium Girls” produced by the BU Theatre Department.  It was a great show and I got to finally tweetup with a couple more friends: @gizm770o, @jamisonkissh, and @lightingguru44.  The production was really great, a very interesting show.  I would recommend it to anyone who likes going to the theatre.  One of the other great things about the performance was the fact that they has a talkback after with the playwright, which was very interesting.  I enjoy hearing how good plays came to be.

What really bummed me out was not getting to see my good friend Molly who is currently working at Shakespeare and Company in Lennox, MA.  She had performances most of the days that I was home and then it started to snow on the night that she hoped to come visit.  To tell the truth, out of all the people that were at our party, if i had been able to see Molly, it would have made me a lot happier.  Another time I guess.

So, now thanks to Delta for free wifi on the airplane, I can post this entry.  Go figure that they would actually give something away.  I mean the fact that you have to pay to check bags now is totally ridiculous.  It is even more ridiculous that its costs you MORE to check your bags in the airport rather than online at home even though you still have to go see a real live person at the airport to actually check the bag!  It makes no sense.  More people would fly if it cost less to fly!

I think that is all I have, time to sit back and watch a movie to kill the time before we get in to Salt Lake City.  Then i have to go to work, huzzah for photo call!

Stage Manager’s Log
M.S. Prinsendam
Sunday, July 9, 2006
At Sea

Today is the last real day of the cruise. I got my debark information this morning and started to take care of some of the things I need to do. It is a sea day though, so there is a lot going on. As with the end of every cruise we had Sea Quest this morning. Exciting as usual. After that they announced Mr. and Mrs. Prinsendam, and then Peter gave his debark talk followed by Love in any Language.

After all of that in the morning we had a short break during Bingo which was spent mostly getting ready for rehearsal with String Fever. We are not ending the cruise with a variety show on account of the fact that Paul Romhany doesn’t have an act. We thought we might do a band show, but we decided to just have String Fever play a second show.

In the afternoon we had a music appreciation session with Barbara followed by the final Explorations Lecture with Gerry Lucas. After that, finally a little break which I used to relax a bit and start to pack.

After dinner we had showtime as usual. Both shows drew a huge standing ovation. String Fever was a great hit. it was a lot of fun to work with them as well. I also handed over the pager to Celina, and now, the showroom is hers. With that, I am signing off for tonight, to finish packing and try to get some sleep.

Stage Manager’s Log
M.S. Prinsendam
Saturday, July 8, 2006
Oslo, Norway

This morning started with some drama in rehearsal as we had problems getting the new tape to play, and then we couldn’t get the old tape to play right, and it was a mess. We finally got everything working again. it was a little strange. We also had a problem with Rachel’s mic, but we think that it might be an issue with the console. This theatre is falling apart. No matter what I try to do, I can’t get everything to work right.

After rehearsal I spent some time working with Celina on more lighting lessons. We started by making system flow diagrams for her of how things work. It isn’t quite as straight forward in that sense as sound ins, but I think that the analogy helps her. Then I showed her how to load and unload a scroller as well as take it apart and put it back together again. Then we took apart and went over the insides of the moving lights. it is too bad that the MLs are not so great, they are really a pain in the neck to work with. We went over addressing and dimmers and channels, sort of. Unless things go really crazy, she should be fine.

After that work we went up for lunch, and at that point I decided that I would just hang out the rest of the day. We had the last port lecture for this cruise this afternoon, and then a round of Bingo. Tonight was a formal night, so one last time to get dressed up before I leave. We sailed out of Oslo during dinner, and while we were sailing, the captain had to steer hard over because some little sailboat almost cut us off. the harbor pilot chased down the boat to get mad at it.

The shows went well. This was the final performance for this cast as a group, so they were kind of sad. They had some Champagne after the show, and Peter got flowers for all of them, so it was nice. After the shows I went up to the Crow’s Nest to listen to Buddy play, and then changed and went to the OB for a bit, to see people. I also did some laundry at some point. Then it was bedtime.