Vino Volo anyone?

If you love wine, like I do, and you are a traveler through one of these 10 airports, I highly suggest you find the time to visit Vino Volo.

Oakland (OAK), Sacramento (SMF), Seattle (SEA), San Antonio (SAT), Detroit (DTW), Washington-Dulles (IAD), Baltimore/Washington (BWI), Newark (EWR), John F. Kennedy (JFK), and Philadelphia (PHL)

Vino Volo has a great warm woody tone and comfortable leather lounge chairs that welcomes travelers into a sophisticated yet approachable post-security retreat in the airport terminal. Every Vino Volo location has an integrated retail area showcasing the wines being poured and offers elegant small plates to pair with the wines. You can enjoy items such as locally-produced artisan cheeses, dry cured meats, and smoked salmon and crab meat crostini(my favorite). All of Vino Volo's dishes are available for customers to enjoy in the store or packaged to carry with them onto their flight.

I know the JFK store (that I often frequent) has extremely friendly, and knowledgeable staff. If you have a lengthy flight ahead of you, I would highly suggest to getting to the airport early to ensure a stop for a relaxing beverage and a bite so you can snooze on your flight with a satisfied appetite.

Looking for a gift for the holidays? If you are traveling through any of the above airports, then be sure to stop by and buy a bottle (or more) of wine for the holiday. It will surely be a welcome of your return home!

Carry-ons could clog holiday travel...Ya think?!?!

 I'm glad that Jim Kavanagh of CNN posted this on the CNN website, it will give travelers a 'heads-up' on what to expect on the plane. However, it's not going to alleviate the problem.

I find that many travelers will find their seat, put all bags into the bin, put their coat/jacket into the bin, then close it, not thinking about anyone else. Their thought "My stuff is stowed, I don't have to worry now".  Well, this is wrong.  Do think about everyone else because if you would just put your small bag under the seat (where your feet go) then that could create an extra space for another bag!

I will see the most frequent business traveler with only a laptop stop traffic, put his laptop in the bin, take off his coat, and place it next to his laptop and sit down, not thinking that the space he just took, could be for a large roll-aboard bag.  It's this mentality "But I followed the rules" is what really creates havoc during boarding, especially when it's time to close the aircraft door when we still have 15 people trying to find room for their carry-ons.

Rule of thumb? Small bag under the seat in front of you (where your feet go) large bag in the over head bin. Most airlines have expanded bin space, so try and place them wheels first (or wheels out and up on NWA) and hold onto your coat/jacket until everyone has found a place for their bags.

If you are seated in row 31 and you pass an open bin at row 5, do NOT put your bag there because now the person seated in that area won't have a place for their bag! Besides, would you want your carry-on so far away from you that you can't keep an eye on it?  You would be surprised at how often people walk off planes with someone else's bag. I even saw someone take my crew bag out of the bin and start rummaging through it in flight!  I asked them if I could help them, they said "no". I then informed them that they were looking in MY bag and then they got all mad and huffy at ME!  ME! because I caught them rummaging through my bag!

Here are some tips from CNNs website to consider when traveling this winter:

• Obey the government's and airline's rules on size and number of items; use the sizer at the gate.
• Don't attempt to bring prohibited items such as sharp objects or bottles of liquids.
• Stow your bag with the wheels in first.
• Don't put bags in lengthwise.
• Put your larger item up top, smaller item at your feet.
• Use the bin directly over your head. Using a bin up front when you're sitting farther back is cheating.
• Don't commandeer another passenger's under-seat space.
• Make sure your bag is light enough to lift over your head yourself .
• Remove from your bag beforehand any items you may need during the flight rather than sifting through it in the overhead bin.
• Wait until everyone's bags are stowed, then lay your coat on top.

Following these simple and easy guidelines will ensure that you will have a happy boarding. If your airline has 'group' boarding, then only go up to the line when your group is called, don't be gate lice and hover around blocking the passage to those who are called first.  Believe it or not, group boarding is done from the back of the airplane to the front.  (those people who are already in various seats when you board are Elites who just had to have their bags in the bins first and sit down)

Wow, has it truly been over 2wks since my last blog?

Sorry ladies and gentlemen, I have taken a little vacation without knowing it and got a little more involved with that darn Twitter account. I tell you, it's a full time job keeping up with all the airline folk out there twit-twit-twittering away about my love of aviation.

There have been lots of interesting news this past week:
British Airways and Iberia agreeing on a combined company 

London arrests a UAL Pilot for being drunk before a flight to Chicago.  
Iberia's Flight Attendants striking for better wages.
Delta Airlines engine fire in Atlanta grounded flight.
Flight Attendants get same FMLA as 9-5 jobs.
Couple jailed after stealing bags at PHX Sky Harbor Airport
US Airways Flight Attendants to picket  PHX airport for better wages
AA Flight Attendants to hold "Mock Strike" at select AA hub airports

I think the one that gets my vote for the worst is:
Woman drives into Aquarium at TPA

Just a crazy week around the world of aviation if you ask me. I think I'll have to start taking my camera with me again and take pictures of my endeavors and start posting about them. However, that just might not be a good idea, I'm often too critical of my passengers, especially when they don't act the way I would expect them to.

Another thing I'll have to start doing is writing down when either one of my fellow flight attendants act up, or when a passenger does something funny or weird so I can blog about it and let you know.  I know at some point I'll have to post a picture of a Business Class seat that was literally trashed by a Business Class passenger.  I truly amazes me how people leave their area messier than when they found it, yet are the same ones who complain that the airplanes are filthy. Alas, I'll have to leave that for another night.

Sean Penn - I am Sam

One of the great perks about being a flight attendant is meeting the different celebrities. It's hard to not get overwhelmed when you have them on-board, but you learn quickly that they are just regular people too.

If I have a celebrity on a flight, I try to feel them out if I could have the honor of getting my picture with them before the end of the flight.  I've had quite a few great celebrities that I couldn't ask, wouldn't ask, or have been denied, but the ones that I had the honor, it's been great.

One of those honors was with the great actor Sean Penn.  I'm currently watching I am Sam and I'm just amazed at how he has grown as an actor since Fast Times at Ridgemont High in 1982.  I had the chance to briefly meet him on one of my flights a few years ago and was very gracious to have my picture with him.

Even though this was at the end of the flight before landing, he was extremely nice and polite. It was amazing to watch him portray the late Harvey Milk in the movie Milk.

Anyone that can transform themselves from character to character and actually make you believe that who they are on screen is true, is an extremely great actor/actress in my opinion. The transformations that he has made over the years as a bad ass  punk, to bad ass cop, to recently playing a mentally challenged individual and an openly gay politician. He has been amazing.

One thing to think if you encounter a celebrity is if they don't want to give you their autograph or have their picture with you, then it's not worth having.

Paranormal Activity

After I finished watching Saw VI tonight, I then bought another ticket and watched Paranormal Activity. I got in about 15 minutes after the show started, but here is a quick synopsis.

After a young, middle class couple moves into a suburban 'starter' tract house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be somehow demonic but is certainly most active in the middle of the night. Especially when they sleep. Or try to.

About the only thing I really enjoyed about this movie was the house the young couple were living in.  I would LOVE to have a place that looked like this place did.  It was awesome. It was a 3 bedroom, 3bath home with a large living room leading into a kitchen and dining.  It even had a large attic, but you'll have to watch the movie to find out more.

This movie reminded me of the Blair Witch Project, Quarantine, and Cloverfield all combined together. Very shaky video work that could give you a headache. Stupidity of people who, after hearing things go bump in the night, don't turn on a light to see what's going on.  Fun movie, good movie for those people easily scared, but the ending is just another thing to be desired....it just ends, as shall I.

Saw VI

Tonight I watched the latest in the Saw series, Saw VI.  I must say that it did NOT let me down.  With great flashbacks to previous movies, and the possibility of another movie for the future, I highly enjoyed the movie.

Once again, the movie plays on the psychology of the mind.  It plays the mind of how much do you value life. Are you willing to sacrifice your life to possibly save another, or do you value yours too much and kill them? 

Special Agent Strahm is dead, and Detective Hoffman has emerged as the unchallenged successor to Jigsaw's legacy. However, when the FBI draws closer to Hoffman, he is forced to set a game into motion, and Jigsaw's grand scheme is finally understood

APFA - It's Our Turn

Reports from the APFA Negotiating Team indicate that substantial progress was made in recent discussions with the company over the cost-out of specific proposals and Article TAs. This followed meetings by members of both teams, their respective financial experts and our Federal Mediator. Through the end of this year, the teams have set an aggressive schedule to focus on issues surrounding agreed to changes in scheduling articles, the contractual language for the TAs thus far achieved, as well as the cost-out of these items. This lays a firmer foundation for the discussions over the final pay issues, now on the horizon.

As talks move forward, the last few weeks have seen APFA Negotiators and local reps holding council and InfoRep meetings in base cities to continue coordination of OUR TURN Around Campaign, which is now gearing up for a major membership action in the coming weeks. As part of this action, the APFA Team communications sub-committee has completed an informational pamphlet for the membership, detailing our positions in relationship to the company’s in several contractual areas of pay, benefits and work rules. It is important for members to know where we stand and how we plan on reaching our goal of a ratifiable contract that restores our standard of living and brings us the financial stability and security we need and deserve. Watch for the pamphlet arriving in mailboxes beginning next week.

Be sure you are armed with the facts and with your GOT UNION / GOT GUTS yellow and red disk for your union pin. Wear only your APFA pin—now with the yellow GOT UNION side of the disk behind it—and your Flight Attendant wings on your uniform.