I have always loved the electricity of Manhattan since the first time I laid eyes on her. It makes me think of the saying in “Pretty Woman”, “What’s your dream?”, because anything feels possible.

Then, it’s time to leave and the dreams are crushed single handedly by the first few employees that I encounter at the La Guardia airport. I have to wonder, “Why?” I know that people, especially around the holidays can be less than easy to deal with. It’s their first time going through security since the attacks and they have no idea how to follow the procedures. I get it. I see the bins filled with water bottles and face lotion, peanut butter and jars of treats that was planned to be someones Christmas gift. This however, is not new for this airport in particular and hopefully other passengers visiting New York City know that it’s no reflection on the residents.

I am ignored by security and left in the penalty box waited my turn to be checked as the metal in my knee sets off the alarms at least a couple times a week. Then, while standing in line for coffee, I have to get the woman’s attention and ask if she would like to take the orders of the five of us waiting. At least I know that it’s not just me. And again I ask, “Why?” At least the gate agent is as sweet as can possibly be at 0600.

For such a lovely city filled with brilliant lights and people, how could an airport so close to the action be so cold and distant?

Let’s start with the Pancakes & Bacon…

The cookie fell apart before it even broke free from the bag. Once opened, I could slightly smell bacon and an almost chemical smell that hit my nose. Don’t be quite turned off yet though because I was the only one out of four tasters. My first bite didn’t actually leave much of an impression at all. With the second bite, I allowed the piece to linger carefully releasing each flavor. Pancake, maybe. Maple syrup is possible with a sweet but not overly so taste appearing with the ending note being that of the bacon. My tasting tray was covered in large moist crumbs after looking for bacon and only finding specks, which was quite disappointing considering bacon is one of the main title ingredients and I paid almost $3 for one cookie. With 3 out of 4 not terribly impressed, I would stick to the real thing.

Lemon Cherry Basil, in a cookie?

I love basil and with it’s earthy flavor, the thought of mixing it with citrus and tart cherries was too curious to leave behind. How would it pair in a cookie though remained to be seen. The ingredient list is nicely uncomplicated choosing “all natural ingredients” with words such as fresh and pure. So when I read to the part where it said, “green food color”, I admit that I was disappointed. The cookie is not particularly green so why is coloring a necessity? Flecks of green from the basil would have sufficed.

This generous sized cookie had a nice moist crumb that didn’t fall apart before I was able to try it. Visible basil with a perfectly fresh smell wafted from the package the moment that I was able to pry open the bag. The scent of sweet citrus reminds me of the first cut into a fresh lemon as the whole large tart cherries add texture that my teeth sink into willingly.

Although pancakes remind me more of a desert than basil would, this cookie was certainly my favorite and one that I would buy again. Three out of the four of us tasting the two cookies agreed upon this so good job to The Cravory for taking something that most people wouldn’t even think of and making it great.

“When the DOT ruled, they essentially said that they agree with us that the deal will increase competition in both markets without increasing congestion, and acknowledged important benefits to the traveling public,” said Richard in Right from Richard. “I want to thank Randy Babbitt and Sec. Ray LaHood for their leadership on this. When you think about how vital the U.S. airline industry is to our economy, it’s important that these kinds of pro-consumer, pro-competitive transactions be allowed to occur.

I wonder how building up yet another New York City airport will help the airline grow it’s business while they completely neglect other cities like Cincinnati, Ohio. At this point, there are flights from Cincinnati to Detroit almost every hour of the day and the passengers are not thrilled with this. Sorry Delta, but I am ON those flights and listen to the passengers who absolutely hate the thought of flying into a city where everything is always late or cancelled and the employees working there seem to care less if the passengers are happy or not. Cincinnati is down to 151 flights compared to Detroit’s 437, mostly to Atlanta or Detroit. Both of those are not a favorite with passengers and there’s only so much that I can do to help.

With major businesses, like Proctor and Gamble and Chiquita Brands International, located right in Cincinnati, I would think that more destinations would be available out of the CVG airport located in Northern KY. “It’s just not right that I am forced to fly to Detroit or New York to get a non stop flight to Frankfurt or London for business!”, exclaims Mrs. Saunders. “What happened to this airport?” A lot of people in Cincinnati have depended on Delta to get them to their destinations quicker and with Cincinnati being a failing hub, more people may be forced to chose who ever is cheaper instead of being loyal. I can only hope that with more flights out of LGA, will come more opportunity that will be felt as far away as Cincinnati and for the better.

With the progress of picking up more than a hundred new slots there in New York City’s La Guardia airport, comes the arrival of a better than ever Sky Club Lounge.

“Customers will appreciate the club’s new, welcoming entrance and the spacious lobby with a service desk that provides personalized flight assistance,” Kelley said. “There’s also satellite TV and a work zone with complimentary Wi-Fi, desktop computers, wireless printer and more, so that customers can relax or stay connected and get some work done if they need to.”

I can tell you from experience that when weather hits the NYC area, as well as most other places, the flight delays and cancellations can become a huge hassle and the changes both inside the Sky Club Lounge and throughout the terminal are amazing for the travelers that pass through. More food options from a gourmet salad and entree bar to hamburgers that make even the practically a vegetarian drool, candies and sweets from around the world and sit down areas that are both elegant and even some times like a party. Time is sure to pass more smoothly and you may even meet a future business or life partner in the midst of it all.

As a result of this action, the US government implemented an airport security measure requiring all passengers to remove their shoes to go through the X-ray machines looking for any further explosives. Almost 10 years later and the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, Homeland Security is planning to phase out the program and once again allow passengers to leave their shoes on.

On December 28, 2009, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian, attempted to blow up a NorthWest aircraft over Detroit when he lit his underwear (containing a poorly crafted bomb) on fire. Although Al Qaeda, who took credit  for the attempted bombing, boasted their “ability to overcome U.S. intelligence and airport security”, why are we not required to take off our underwear to go through security?

I have traveled to various countries and cities around the world and I do believe that there are better ways to handle the situation, without compromising our security. The latest options being reviewed include one based on the Israeli-Style Beheviour Detecting Technique. Basically, that means that you will be asked a lot of questions possibly based on where you are going and why. They are going to ask why you are going/coming to and from the city/country? How long you plan to stay, is it for business or pleasure, did you pack your own bags, has any one given you anything to carry on and the list goes on.

I guarantee you that this new procedure should it come about will anger a lot of people since these days everyone is sensitive to “racial profiling”. If you are an innocent person and have nothing to hide, then even if you are from a country where problems exist, you really shouldn’t have a problem. Unfortunately, this is nothing more that the “one person who ruins things for everyone”. Nothing more and nothing less.

I can give you a great example:

I had a couple of passengers on board that were of Middle Eastern decent. Did I watch them more carefully than I would a passenger from say, Little Country Boy Town, USA? Perhaps and I don’t apologize for that. It is my responsibility to protect my passengers and I do pay more attention to every passenger, especially those who are from an area of conflict and concern. Did I think that they were there to harm us? NO. 

What actually concerned me more was the guy in row 2 that kept looking back at them and asking me every 30 seconds what they were doing! He was staring to making me angry and I finally had to tell him in so many words to shut up. I told him ever so politely that they were not “doing” anything and that his behavior was way more suspicious that theirs, especially since they slept the whole time!

Turn around and mind your own business. It’s one thing to be aware of your surroundings and a whole other story to persecute someone just because they wear a turban on their head. 

This morning, I read on an industry website that ” TSA Administrator John Pistole has announced the expenditure of about $44.8 million for the purchase of 300 millimeter wave Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) machines for deployment to airports nationwide. TSA says the machines will further strengthen security at US airports. The new machines have automated target recognition software. These so-called “stick figure” scanners are designed to eliminate revealing, passenger-specific images.”

So, what you are telling me is that a country that is already in trouble financially is going to spend MILLIONS of dollars on new software so that someone’s feeling don’t get hurt! What about Medicare and Social Security so that people can feed themselves? Who cares about health care and nutrition as long as no one sees me “naked” on some X-ray just to see that I really do just have my knee replaced! Argh!