word!

Having the honor of picking up my sister and friend from the MSP Aiport over the weekend was quite a joke.

I’ve been to the airport a few times, so I guess nothing should have suprised me, but everytime you go the whole place appears different. First thing to notice is that they have a new eTicket option, basically pay with credit card for savings of $1. Looks good. Park and head into baggage claim. Hm… where is sister’s flight and information as to where and when they would be coming in. Search giant panel of 9 screens to learn they’re just Northwest and/or KLM.

WTF? With all the damned money that place brings in, you’d think they could post all the flight info or at least scroll through it. No such luck. Then we have to hunt down where United Air would deposit their baggage and or flight information. Walk to one end of terminal to learn that we had passed it on our stroll. Seems United is not a major player at MSP, so they get a small shingle to post along with a few other airlines sharing same baggage carousel. Retarded.

Finally find the little carousel and then see flight information on a small screen only located there, not next to exit gates, which might make sense. Check time and proceed to wait. And wait some more….. check time/flight info again to be sure all is well.

While waiting for people to come down to baggage, wouldn’t it be helpful to have a display screen of information on current flights are arriving? I’m not sure if security wise this would work, but they could announce arrivals, etc. there too.

Sister and friends finally arrive and we find their baggage. Wait a few minutes and say goodbyes to friend that is leaving with family. As we were leaving parking lot, notice that time is REAL close to 1hr , that magical point when they charge you more for being there.

Weave through parking lot like a race car driver hoping to make payment gates. What’s this? Oh, they moved payment gates to end of airport road, thus wasting more time. Make a break for seemingly functioning toll machine to realize that it’s out of order! Out of order? They have these big old flashing signs above all light up and seeming to beg you towards them. Fine, change spots behind someone else that is actually leaving and promptly swipe credit card.

As luck would have it, we were two minutes over one hour. Thus getting bumped up to next time/payment schedule. Stupid. I honestly think those people at the airport are out to fleece you. No handy information and always a constantly changing maze one most manuever to exit the premises.

As much as airports are grand to take you to distant lands and excursions, they’re just a trap for your average joe.

Was trolling the Internet, searching for things on the new MSN search site and put in a search for good ol’ Gaylord,Mn. Somewhat suprised to see the city’s website at the top of the ranking, but hey that’s good for them.

The listing even had current news of new mayor, so I clicked through to the site. First thing to notice is new site design. The first and most humorous image you see is a folksy image of a couple guys out in a fishing boat. Hilarious! If anyone knows a little something of Gaylord, it’s a fact that fishing like that does not take place anywhere near here. Even more amusing is the fact that the town’s gem Lake Titloe is a joke, similar to a toxic cesspool, even though there seems to be some constructive talk about changing things.

I realize the folksy photos were probably stock with the setup, but it may be of better interest to include something that better fits the town. I also like the tagline ‘Community, Agriculture, Industry’. It reminds me of the SimCity line of games where your main concerns were the Commerical, Residental and Industry segments of your town. Ah yes, innovativation reigns supreme.

Had a issue today that got me thinking about Capitalism if you could call it that.

Since when is acceptable for someone to get something from you for nothing while maintaining that everything they have is intrinsically more valuable. Is that some awful kind of double standard or is just a inherent flaw of capitalism? Buy low, sell high? I’d beg to differ.

I’m sure most people you could find would give you a decent price on an object taken at random and well known to them. Almost everyone will tell you a small bottle of pop (not soda, mind you) is priced about a $1, give or take. It’s only when you get charged a $5 for same bottle or heaven forbid maybe just a nickel. I’m sure most people would have no issue with a nickel for a pop if it was lawfully sold that way. But at $5 a pop, it would seem a line would be crossed, albeit that it may viewed as sensible at a sporting event / middle of parched desert, but I think you see the point.

But how do you draw the line at something less common yet similar in pricing? I think when you barter or trade, the price is usually agreed upon between the two parties with both giving something in order to make the deal worthwhile and agreeable to all involved. Maybe it’s when one party assumes a value that is out of line with common value and the other fails to realize that they are being robbed blind.

Maybe it’s just things are ALWAYS costing more, but when is enough enough? I hate getting robbed for what I own, while the next guy can get away with highway robbery for same thing they own.

Why is it so easy for cell phone companys to always give you a new cell phone when you start up a plan with them, but so difficult to get rid of the old cell phone that’s put out of commision by newer and fancier technology?

You have a prefectly good cell phone that worked up to the minute you switched phones, but now begs to have something useful done with it. Sure you can donate or even sell it through some places online, but why can’t you just buy a cellular phone card and use it as an emergency or backup phone? That irks me.

Maybe it’s better to give it out to someone in a needy location but it’d be easier to keep it as a spare. It kinda worries you too that almost every family in America has one or two of these phones and it seems like they constantly need to be upgrading, posing a huge environmental burden on things as well. I just don’t get the reasoning of the industry.

I suppose it would be easy to just go into someplace like Midwest Wireless, but after all the shoddy personal customer service we’ve recieved from them, I could hardly see why they’d care. Stupidity reigns supreme.

Once again, Lynnea is off to Europe for her ‘spring break’ as I type. And once again she has forgotten to take her brother along. I have always liked traveling but it’s fun to do it with people you know, just not family I guess. Even though she promises to take just Mom(?) with her sometime after she graduates college. Dah, once again foiled!

She always goes with a bunch of girlfriends from college and always insists that it would be boring for a male to join in this entourage, even though this year she’ll be visiting some guy friends that are over there. Go figure.

I was kind enough to invite her along on big ‘spring break’ trip that I took in college. But we only got as far as Michigan and we endured a very interesting Greyhound bus ride there.

She always likes to rub the salt into the wounds as well. I always get the joyful task of dragging her back home after the plane arrives get back to the Cities. And then she goes on and on about all the things that were seen and how neat and great it all was for her.

I think it’s kinda selfish to brag about something like that to people that you tell can’t come along for one reason or another. Or I’m just bitter. Nah, it’s not me.