Unless the International Olympic Committee acts fast and makes heaving overweight carry-on bags into overhead airplane bins an official Olympic sport, my chances of visiting Beijing this summer are nil.

But if committee members do finally come to their senses, I’m ready to go. I’ve been practicing my technique on plane trips with multiple connections. And I’ve been prepping for free time in Beijing by gathering advice on how to be a well-mannered traveler in China.

Find out what I learned about spitting, squat toilets, staying safe, and slurping soup in China in this week’s Well Mannered Traveler column on MSNBC.com.

(Column illustration by the very talented Duane Hoffmann / msnbc.com)

Do higher fares, new baggage check fees, and the inevitable long lines at the security checkpoints have you dreading your next trip to the airport?

Maybe I can help: here’s a link to the Well-Mannered Traveler summer refresher course posted today on MSNBC.com. There’s even a chance to earn extra credit.

Column illustration by Duane Hoffman at MSNBC.com

So you pay through the nose for an airline ticket, fly across country on an overstuffed airplane, and make your way into town hoping to spend a few hours viewing treasures in a quiet museum gallery. But when you arrive, the museum is filled with hordes of school kids on a year-end field trip.

Find out what to do about it in my Well-Mannered Traveler column posted today on MSNBC.com – complete with cool artwork by Duane hoffmann from msnbc.com.

New European Union (EU) rules make it likely that travelers will be able to place cell phone calls on flights in EU airspace as soon as this summer. Air France is already testing such a service on one “cell-phones-allowed” plane that I got to fly on yesterday between Paris and Geneva.

Technically, the service isn’t quite ready-for-prime-time, but passengers I spoke with were just fine with that. “No way do I want to listen to someone talking on their cell phone next to me on a plane,” one man told me, “I hope this never gets going.”

Will in-flight cell-phone service be offered in the United States anytime soon? Not if some lawmakers have their way. Read about their plan to ban in-flight cell-phone service forever in my Well-Mannered Traveler column on MSNBC.com.

Today, April 24th, is Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. Started by the Ms. Foundation for Women back in 1993 as a career day for young girls, the program is now on its own and has broadened its focus to include boys.

The goals for the day have expanded as well: parents and mentors are asked to expose girls and boys to the choices they have in the workplace and to offer lessons about the “family-work balance.”

But what if your work involves lots of travel? My Well-Mannered Traveler column today offers tips on taking kids along on a business trip.

Two young women escorted off a Southwest Airlines flight for causing a disruption on a flight from Tampa to Los Angeles are blaming the incident on jealousy over their good looks – rather than their truly rude and clueless manners.  

I had fun  writing about it this week in my Well  Mannered Traveler column on MSNBC.com.