I’ve been sitting on this video for a while and finally got around to post it.

One of the first questions people ask me about Australia is whether the toilet water spins the opposite way.

It doesn’t really spin at all.  Here is a video I took at Hilton South Wharf.

*****Twidroid has since changed name to Twidroyd*****

Back when I had hacked Android running on my WinMo phone I loved how functional Twidroid was compared to whatever I was using with WinMo.  When I got my backflip for some reason I decided to go with AndroTweet instead.  It is functional, but this weekend when I needed to tweet a picture I realized just how “minimal” it is.

Hash tags: a lot of twitter is searching for hash tags to see what is going on.  I use Twitter on my laptop most of the time, but sometimes the phone is just more convenient.  I like following hash tags when I’m watching Idol alone in a hotel room because it makes me feel like I’m making fun of the contestants with people right next to me.  The same with hash tags at TBEX over the weekend.  If we had all been talking it would have been so loud so instead we all tweeted with the #TBEX hash tag.  Androtweet doesn’t have a way to easily click on tweets to follow hash tags, they must be searched in the search area.  Twidroid makes it easy to click on a tweet and follow a hash tag.

Links: Twidroid makes it all linkable.  AndroTweet only makes URLs linkable.

Sharing pictures: From the photo gallery it is easy to share a picture, but for some reason the AndroTweet application doesn’t add an easy way to tweet a picture.  Twidroid does.

For my needs Twidroid clearly wins.  Since they are both the wonderful price of FREE (although Twidroid does have a Pro version for a fee as well) I have decided to keep Twidroid.

Since I didn’t want to bother taking the bus/train at 9 pm on a Friday night I decided to take SuperShuttle from LGA again.  You may remember this post but since a lot of the SuperShuttle experience is from the driver and not the company I decided to try my luck again.

I landed in LGA, went to the Ground Transportation area in baggage claim and pressed the quick dial number for the Manhattan SuperShuttle.  This time the operator picked up relatively quickly so that was already much better.  I sat down and about 20 minutes (as the operator said) the driver came in and called my name.  I got into a van that already had 5 others and he added some other lady and me at the US Airways terminal.  The van stopped a couple more times and every legal seat on the van was full before leaving LGA.  This is the biggest difference I see between LGA and BWI.  BWI leaves with around 6-8 passengers but both times from LGA all seats have been full.

The first stop was just a couple blocks from my hotel so I thought I would be second, but instead the driver swung uptown and dropped people off up there instead.  One couple had dinner reservations at 10:15 pm so they just got off to get a cab due to all the stops.  It dawned on them why SuperShuttle is only $15+tip one way instead of the meter rate of a cab.

About an hour and 45 minutes after landing I was finally dropped off at my hotel.  Just like anything else there are opportunity costs.  I could have taken a cab and paid for a ton of waiting in traffic, but I would have gone directly from LGA to the Hilton Garden Inn Chelsea.  I could have taken the M60 to the N for $2.25 but I’d be lugging my luggage on public transit and that is a long trek.  I decided to balance safety with price and take SuperShuttle.  If I had been one of the first let off then time wouldn’t have been as much of an issue (and I’ll admit I’m BWI).

I’ll put SS from LGA back into the “you get what you pay for” category and depending on time/resources I’ll probably take them again.

Since  I didn’t bother to arrange a shuttle back since I wasn’t sure when I was going back and I had money on my MetroCard I took the subway to the bus.

The woman’s bathroom outside the TBEX theatre seems to not realize the purpose of hand dryers.  I’ve been to locker rooms that have high blow dryers due to some of them being used as hair dryers, but these just seemed awkwardly high.

I’m 5’7″ and the dryer was at my shoulder level.  This means I need to hold my hands much higher which leads to fatigue or if I hold them at normal level I am not getting much air flow.  I hate leaving with wet hands or wiping them on my clothes so this is important to me.

I guess the students of NYU are giants so they don’t notice stuff like this.  I guess I just need to carry my own paper towels when situations like this arise.

The other day I had a 121-mile flight on a Dash-8.  The flight was almost done boarding when a lady in the back got up and said “I can’t stay on this, I can’t stay on this!” over and over and ran off.  There was no jetbridge so the FA proceeded after he saying she can’t leave unescorted.  The FA was yelling from the plane and the lady was yelling from outside.  I guess eventually the gate agent joined the fray to escort her back to the terminal and we were able to proceed.

I started to wonder if this was like the movie “Final Destination”, but since my flight landed just fine obviously the lady just had issues with being on a 30-seat plane.

Although I like to sit on my high horse and make fun of infrequent flyers around me, I am not perfect either.  Yesterday after arriving in LGA I was trying to leave the terminal.  I went up the ramp and turned right at the spa where the sign indicated I would leave the sterile area.  I went to the doors in the middle that said “this door is locked” and attempted to exit, but I was confused by the sign so I turned around and was about to head up the concourse more but the spa employee said “It’s open.”  I approached the doors again and still couldn’t figure out how to go through the doors so I again was about to just head up the concourse.  Then finally someone else was leaving and I realized there is no glass on either side of the doors.  The doors are in the middle of a wide open area and I’m just an idiot.

I didn’t actually smack into the doors like the bird in the windex commercial, but it was close enough to me.

CNN

The Senate has finally confirmed a nomination to fill the vacancy after 2 other attempts from Obama.  Who knows what this will mean, but Obama’s appointments seem to want TSA to unionize.  Even though TSA has a wide margin to improve, I have a feeling that regardless of whether they unionize that things will only get worse for the traveling public.

The only thing TSA can actually find is drugs.  The body scanners are very good at picking up drugs, but there hasn’t been a bust for an actual terrorist.

The BDO program is a joke and again only busts people carrying drugs and illegal immigrants.  Apparently the people who act nervous are just afraid of any authority (due to possession of drugs or immigration status) and aren’t a threat to air safety.  I’m pretty sure that the people who would be a threat to air safety are busy practicing techniques to avoid whatever the BDOs are looking for.  They send people on test runs to weed out those who can’t keep together.

The best method is to find these people before they get to the airport, not when they are in the middle of the act.  Unions for TSA won’t make us any safer, it will just make more articles about corrupt TSA people because the bad eggs will fester more.

I will be at TBEX ’10 this weekend in NYC.  I look forward to meeting others so for all you bloggers out there who read my blog I can’t wait to meet you!

If you are going and would like to meet up drop me an e-mail flygracefully at live.com

I met up with many frequent flyers who thought it was very strange for someone my age so into technology would wear a watch.  The flyers’ justification was that since I had a cell phone and the cell phone tells time I have no need for a watch.  About a month ago the battery of my wristwatch died for the second time.  Since the face was also scratched up and I had the watch for 5 years I decided to part with it.

I guess I’m more impatient than others.  Since cell phones are not allowed during taxi/takeoff/landing I get in a time warp during flights now.  I can’t really tell how long we have been stuck on a taxiway or anything like that without a watch.  I thought I could survive without a new chronometer, but I will soon be purchasing a new one.  I’d like a watch with two timezones, but I like skinny watches.  The biggest issue I have is there is something about my sweat or skin that dissolves the bands of watches so I must purchase a watch with a stainless steel band.  There aren’t many skinny woman’s watches with stainless bands so my last watch was approaching the width of a man’s watch.

My last few watches have been fossil.  It is easier to stick with them, but really it doesn’t matter.  I do not, however, believe there is a reason to spend $5,000 on a watch just like I don’t believe in spending more than $140 for a pair of shoes (but I will not spend less than $80 either since comfort is very important to me). I guess expensive watches are mostly a guy thing anyway.  I know I’m not into fashion like the other BoardingArea women, but I don’t hear much about Rolexes as a main accessory like for men.  I’m sure there are watches out there that cost a couple thousand dollars, but I mainly just need something to entertain me during taxi and takeoff so that would be like killing a fly with a hatchet to me.

Suggestions for travel snacks.

I don’t do unsolicited guest blogs, but I solicited a blog post from my fellow blogger Erin from the WoRD on Fitness

If you have traveled by plane, you have probably noticed that food is very expensive and airports do not often offer the healthiest foods.  You may be surprised that you can really carry a lot of different foods on the plane; however, space is usually a premium and you obviously can’t refrigerate your foods.  Here are some tips for flying with yummy, healthy snacks!

1. Remember that you can’t get fluids past security.  This is one thing that you’ll have to buy once you are past that point.  Another idea is to bring an empty water bottle and fill it once you are in the terminal area.
2. Avoid foods that will get easily squished, such as bananas and grapes.  I have traveled with these, but it does take great care and you don’t want to find your snack demolished.
3. Aim for foods that will be filling and easy to eat.  Think trail mix!  This is a great snack because it can be packed with protein, carbohydrate, and fat.  Consider throwing peanuts and/or almonds, dried fruit, and pretzels in a bag.
4. Granola bars pack very easily as well.  Look for those that are high in protein and fiber to hold you over until you reach your destination.  Cliff bars are excellent for this!
5. If you want to bring fruit along, good for you!  Probably one of the easiest fruits to travel with, other than dried fruit, is a sliced apple in a bag.  Make sure you get all of the air out of the bag and your apple will not brown quickly.  Slices make it easy to eat a little here and there versus not knowing what to do with your half eaten apple.  Apples are also great because they are not easily smashed!
6. If you want to pack something such as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, consider packing it in Tupperware.  This will help you to avoid the squish factor!

Packing snacks really just takes a few minutes of your time before leaving your home.  Consider trying this as a way to save money and eat a little healthier on your flight.