# Airport hacks - share 'em here **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 19, 2010, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618 "2010-10-19T02:38:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/41 "2010-10-20T15:14:59Z")
Usually, I don’t bother with a magazine when I’m waiting at the gate. Instead, I find a seat that lets me watch everyone at my gate and the surrounding ones and the people-watching is usually enough to keep me entertained. And with the “passenger boarding bridges” (i.e., the Jetway), you could easily fly somewhere without ever seeing the outside of the plane. That’s wrong, which is why I always try to get a look at it from the terminal building. ---
**Author:** ![Lare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Lare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lare)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/42 "2010-10-20T15:27:04Z")
Regarding all the chargers: If you visit [www.igo.com](http://www.igo.com) you can buy a single charger (transformer) and multiple tips for all your devices. You can also get the tips at most RadioShacks and sometimes on eBay. This allowed me to cut the weight of my baggage by a not-inconsiderable amount as I now only have the single transformer–which is the heaviest part of a recharger–to lug around. The downside is that you can’t plug in everything to charge at one time, but a little planning takes care of that for me. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/43 "2010-10-20T15:37:47Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > Heh. On a recent 2-hour flight, the family of four sitting in front of me had enough provisions for a 2-week camping trip, and spent the entire time passing around bags of snacks, swapping pillows, getting out and putting away various electronic devices, toys, books, etc., to help them accomplish the amazing feat of basically sitting in a chair for a couple hours. They amused me. Once, on a Paris–Chicago flight, a family of (forgive me, but they were, they were speaking Arabic) Arabs were sitting across the aisle from me. There was a mother and a teenage daughter in the mix. In the last hour before we landed, they beautified themselves with tons of makeup (lipstick way outside the lines of their lips, thick eyeshadow up to their eyebrows), manicure kits, _nail polish_, multiple perfumes, plastic pearls (like, the kind little kids play with), and _tinsel tiaras_. ??? I wonder to this day who they were and what their story was. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/44 "2010-10-20T16:25:45Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > My contribution here has to do with what I call “airport mindset.” > I used to be a cranky and impatient flier, until I realized that such an attitude was doing me no good. > > Traveling is a much less stressful experience now that I make a conscious effort to remind myself that more likely than not, there _will_ be people slowly bumbling their way through security in front of me; there _will_ be people blocking the escalator; there _will_ be people suddenly stopping and changing direction without looking as I walk to my gate; when boarding, there _will_ be people blocking the aisle while messing with numerous oversized carry-ons; the flight may _not_ take off on time… and most importantly, _none of this matters_. > > I always get to the airport early, and I’m not in danger of missing my flight. The plane will go where I want to go, and it will leave when it leaves. Lots of deep breaths and the right midset can make situations beyond my control a lot easier to handle. Lots of good tips here, but this one is great. This makes all the difference. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/45 "2010-10-20T16:52:29Z")
Yeah, I totally forgot to comment on that great point. Keep in mind that the concept of being able to jet hundreds to thousands of miles in tens of minutes to several hours is something that is no less than magical. Getting all huffy that your San Francisco-New York flight is going to be 40 minutes late is unacceptable, given that such a trip would take days by any other mode of transportation. If you start to feel all huffy about how the stewardess didn’t have a big enough smile on, get a grip and realize how lucky you are that there are airplanes at all. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/46 "2010-10-20T18:28:10Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Wash all your clothes BEFORE you bring them into the house, including those you’re wearing. Uhhh… How exactly do you do that? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/47 "2010-10-20T18:29:51Z")
Naked, silly. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/48 "2010-10-20T18:42:07Z")
But then you’re still bringing the clothes into the house! If you stand around naked in your local laundromat that’s open 24/7 so you can use it no matter when your plane comes in, I wanna know where it is! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/49 "2010-10-20T19:08:35Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > With bed bugs becomins so common, remember to never use the hotel drawers or closets. Never put your suitcases on the luggage rack. Luggage racks are ideal for bed bugs to hide in. > > After you get home, immediately wrap your luggage in a garbage bag. Wash all your clothes BEFORE you bring them into the house, including those you’re wearing. Wash in hot water and dry for at least an hour on hot. If you can’t wash you can dry clean them. > > Then you can decontaminate your luggage with Bedlam or by using a few other chemicals. You can use a steamer on the luggage as long as it gets above 120ºF. Go slowly and steam each area for at least 15 seconds. I travel a _lot_ and I am _soooo_ thankful I’m not married to you. Nothing personal, but… :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/50 "2010-10-20T19:25:49Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > I travel a _lot_ and I am _soooo_ thankful I’m not married to you. > > Nothing personal, but… :eek: That’s nothing! Did you see the advice **mozchron**"[routinely gives in his professional capacity"?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12993245&postcount=2) 😃 They might well ask you why you’re not at all concerned! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/51 "2010-10-20T20:36:46Z")
As mentioned, I fly quite a bit (within the continental US) but don’t have any routines down for dealing with the airport. I just get there, check my bags, go through TSA and wait. A few things that I do, however: 1. Put anything metal (coins, cell phone) in my carry on prior to going through TSA. My carry on is always my laptop, so it’s not a big deal to grab them when I need them. 2. Toss my car keys in my luggage. 3. Fvck travelling light - I’ve got 50 pounds to play with and books to read. 😉 4. I got yelled at here for mentioning this in an earlier thread, but the reasoning was so specious I couldn’t help but roll my eyes… As far as seat selection on the plane goes, I always do my damndest to be the last person to board… “This is the final call for flight 815 to Los Angeles, we will be closing the door soon”… that’s my signal to board the plane. And the reason is simple - I have my choice of empty seats to choose from. On the off chance that my assigned seat is the best of those remaining, I can still sit in it, but if I’m assigned seat 34D (right next to the engine) and there’s an empty seat at 7B (right next to the exit), I’m taking 7B every time. Since my carry on always fits under the seat in front of me, not having any space in the bins is not a concern. ---
**Author:** ![goldmund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a4c791/32.png) [@goldmund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goldmund)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/52 "2010-10-20T23:39:24Z")
> [@Sattua](#): > > Once, on a Paris–Chicago flight, a family of (forgive me, but they were, they were speaking Arabic) Arabs were sitting across the aisle from me. There was a mother and a teenage daughter in the mix. In the last hour before we landed, they beautified themselves with tons of makeup (lipstick way outside the lines of their lips, thick eyeshadow up to their eyebrows), manicure kits, _nail polish_, multiple perfumes, plastic pearls (like, the kind little kids play with), and _tinsel tiaras_. ??? > > I wonder to this day who they were and what their story was. Just a WAG obviously, as I don’t know these people, but… possibly they were from a country where women aren’t normally permitted to make themselves up, and they saw this as a big moment of freedom? ---
**Author:** ![yanceylebeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yanceylebeef/32/12290_2.png) [@yanceylebeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yanceylebeef)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2010, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618/53 "2010-10-21T14:45:54Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Usually there’s no room for knitting! 🙂 > > Knitting on an airplane topics are so done to death on the LiveJournal knitting discussion group that threads are shut down and the poster is referred to their FAQ for reference. Plus many international flights forbid it. > > I only knit on a plane when I’m snuggled up to my husband, and if I’m in the middle seat, if the person on the other side isn’t crowding me. (I was between two men on a business flight where I literally spent part of the flight squeezing my arms and shoulders together as much as I could, and at times nearly had an elbowing fight with one guy, trying to claim one armrest, while the other guy kept flopping onto my seat while sleeping. I think I should have pulled out knitting with some slim metal needles for that flight.) I know after September 11th, knitting was looked at as a problem. But it was mostly because they were afraid someone would knit an Afghan. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/airport-hacks-share-em-here/557618.md?page=2)