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$25 carry-on saved is $8 cocktail earned
(by Christine Thome - April 29, 2009)
BEYOND MY CONTROL, BY CHRISTINE THOME
$25 carry-on saved is $8 cocktail earned
The economy may be tanking, but you can't blame me. Just ask my husband. I have done more than my share to pump money into retailers throughout the country.
In fact, this year, instead of driving 20 hours to my in-laws in Florida for spring break, we finally accumulated enough mileage points on our credit card to purchase two plane tickets and a mini-van for when we arrived. Now, it took six years to accomplish this, and we still had to purchase four additional tickets, but let me tell you, arriving rested and relaxed to sunny, warm Florida just in time for lunch and a margarita, instead of showing up days later looking like a traffic-crazed, sleep-deprived zombie, is, well, priceless.
I may be exaggerating when I say we arrived rested and relaxed. Nothing is relaxing when you travel with my husband, John, and four teenagers.
To start, we realized the night before we left that the airline now charges for every single bag that we wanted to check. John was furious, and rightfully so. For six bags at $25 a pop, we could have purchased another ticket.
"Unpack your suitcases and throw everything you have in a duffel bag and carry it on the plane!" he yelled at the kids.
"What about the stuff we aren't allowed to carry on the airplane?" my oldest daughter and most experienced flier asked.
"Mom and I will still take two suitcases. You can put your toiletries and personal items in one of them," John replied.
As my three girls came into my bedroom with their bathroom items, I was reminded that teen body and hair care sales are a multibillion dollar industry and that my daughters are their prime target.
"What the heck is all this?" I asked.
"This is a hair straightener. This is a curling iron. This is a blow dryer. And these are the attachments for the blow dryer," one daughter stated.
"And these are our shampoos, conditioners, body washes, body lotions, perfumes, hair spray, mousse, deodorants and nail polishes and removers," another stated.
"You each brought me the same things. Can't the three of you share this stuff for one week?" I begged.
"No way!" they said in unison, hands on their hips.
My son walked in behind them and dropped deodorant and a toothbrush into the suitcase and walked out. You've got to love the simplicity of boys.
Because John was determined to pack only two suitcases, the one we needed for all our personal items was the size of Rhode Island and weighed as much too.
"This one is oversized and overweight," said the lady behind the airline check-in counter. "It's going to cost you an extra $25 for the weight and an extra $25 for the size."
At that point, we couldn't do anything about the size of the suitcase, but John was determined to not pay any more for weight.
"Get over here and bring your backpacks and duffel bags!" he yelled to the kids.
Please note that there was a line of about 200 agitated people behind us. And as I stated before, the large suitcase was for personal items -- meaning items you don't want the general public to see.
John whipped open the suitcase and began throwing out soft items like underwear, bras, and feminine products, demanding that the kids shove them into their backpacks.
"Ewww! I'm not touching Dad's underwear!" one girl screamed.
"I'm going home before I put that in my bag!" my son yelled as he pointed to the package of maxi pads lying on the floor.
After threats of bodily harm and possible death, we got enough of the personal items into the kids' carry-ons to bring the weight of the oversized suitcase down to the appropriate level.
After takeoff, the stewardess asked us if we would like a beverage. John, of course, decided he needed a stiff drink.
"That will be $8," she said with a smile.
"Are you kidding me?!" John said, looking at the tiny amount of liquid in a cheap plastic glass.
Checked luggage -- $75. One small drink -- $8. Arriving in Florida in less than three hours -- priceless.
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