At a layover in Austin, waiting for the next flight out to
Tampa. Last time I was in Austin
airport, it was October of 2001. I had
just finished USMC Infantry School (0311, Alpha Company). I flew into Austin and had a friend pick me up. I had intended to fly into Lubbock, but the
best laid of plans of mice and men often go awry. And those who don’t ask, don’t know. And that’s very true of those who join the
USMC without asking too many questions.
I joined the USMC without asking too many questions. I can make implications as to why, but those
are all numerology type inferences.
Maybe politician inferences. I’m
joking about the effect before cause inferences. A failing of cause and effect makes 99% of
numerology inferences fail. All those
inferences are based on tying two things together. And tying those two things together often
results in tenuous connections.
But tenuous connections are often the best kinds. Because the person’s floor I crashed in after
visiting Austin airport was a good friend that I liked a lot. And I wish something would have happened out
of it, but nothing did. A decade later,
and everyone is different. Still the
same, but different in ways that are hard to describe other than “older”. Some I haven’t talked to in years, but that’s okay. There are still tenuous connections made more
than a decade ago that cause memories to come flaring back, and hopes and
dreams and fears to become something different.
I find it hard to think about myself a decade ago. I don’t even know where I was mentally at
that time. I can draw pictures and dates
and tie things together chronologically, but that’s been a while. The younger me would probably try to beat the
older me up, but would lose because the older me is more cunning.
Still, it’s a different time and place. The connections exist, but it has been so
long that the logic behind all of it has been lost. Such a different life.
Is it the mindlessly long waits at airports that cause us to
remember vague things? Or is it the lack
of entertainment and overpriced beer?
Seriously. What better way to
kill a three hour layover than three or four beers. But not at $7 a beer. I realize airports have a monopoly on your
traffic, but this is just insane. Maybe
the airports of the world just don’t want customers completely loaded while we
wait on a five hour layover to save a buck or tow. Or is it simply that the airport/airplane
business model has colossal holes in it that no one wants to fill.
In hunting down my $7 beer, I found a $12 cheeseburger, a $6
slice of pizza, and an $8 sandwich. The
McDonalds dollar menu has nothing on airport travel, and they know it. Next time you see a McDonalds commercial, pay
attention to the message about “at participating restarunts only”. What they really mean is “anywhere but the
airport”. I think they’ve roped the TSA
into enforcing their monopoly as well.
There are size limitations on what you can carry on at an airport, so
you are limited by what you can make it through security with.
I would guess that you couldn’t make a decent lunch out of
what you can carry on at the airport.
The airport knows that there isn’t a thing within walking distance so it
is isolated and separated. Secondly,
you’d have to go through the security checkpoints in order to make it to
anything around. And they make going
through security all together so pleasant.
“Okay buddy, take off your belt and empty your bags while we treat a law
abiding citizen like a criminal”. Once
you’re done being shoved through security and treated like a terrorist, it’s
time to cram into an uncomfortable bus with tiny seats and ride that for hours
on end. Because the air travel model is
really well designed… for a monopoly.
The airport model really makes me think about what you can
do with enough fear mongering and political clout. I guess the real question is this: how much
of those dollars that go into an airport make it to the city coffers? I’m guessing a decent amount. Otherwise, you might have a competitive
business model happening. And what
you’ve got right now just isn’t it.
No comments:
Post a Comment