Airport Security

Today was my first experience with Airport Security in awhile. Today was the first time that I was asked to remove my shoes. Apparently that's standard procedure for everyone, now. I thought I had flown since Richard Ried, but perhaps not.

I think they've adjusted the sensitivity on the metal detectors since the last time I flew, too. I took everything out of my pockets that I thought might cause a problem, and still ended up setting off the alarm. Fortunately, I had gotten to the airport well in advance, like they tell you to. I don't usually. The first time I flew after 9-11 I get there way in advance and ended up sitting at the gate for what seemed like an eternity. For a long time after that I pretty much gaffed off the be there two hours before flight time rule. This time I didn't, and I still wound up sitting at the gate for a long time, but at least I wasn't anxious that I was going to miss my flight having to go through all that rigmarole at security.

The airplane had XM satellite radio. I'm not sure if that's a promotional deal (hey, we'll let you have XM radio on airplanes for a reduced rate, because a lot of people will try it and decide to buy it for themselves); if it isn't, it should be. I visited a website once that was supposed to let you try out XM radio--get a sense of what XM had to offer--I was completely and totally underwhelmed. Being able to actually listen to it on the plane was much better. To be honest, I'm still not really inclined to spring for it, but I'm closer to it than I was.

In a way, it's ironic. One of the reasons that I was considering XM radio is because I do occasionally drive cross-country, and I hate having to find a new radio station every so often. With satellite radio, you can tune in to a station at your front door, and still be listening to that station 800 miles down the road. Of course, I got to try out XM radio because this time I flew instead of making the long drive.