I read a very depressing opinion column this week in the New York Times by Charles Blow, who argued that there will be no post-COVID return to normal…that our lives are forever transformed: Covid has made us reconsider everything, the...
Martin Luther King Jr.’s Last Flight
Travel may be my main gig, but I am a student of U.S. history at heart. As Martin Luther King Jr. day is observed today, I recount an anecdote about his last commercial flight. J. Edgar Hoover, former director...
The Airplane Flight Of Life, Circa 2022
Our life is like an airplane flight, isn’t it? We take off, we climb, we cruise, and then we land, so to speak. Some people have remarkably smooth flights while others encounter turbulence along the way. Some cruise at...
Born To Die. My 2021 Christmas Reflection
Death has stared us in the face in a particularly pernicious way during the pandemic. Not only has it made us value what we often take for granted, it has drawn our attention to the death of many things...
Ciao Bruno! Farewell To A Hairstyling Legend
Today marks the end of an era for a very dear friend. Renowned hairstylist Bruno Meglio is retiring and my life has been so richly blessed for knowing him. Bruno and I first met almost 25 years ago. He was...
Reflections + Photos From Bob Dole Funeral
I was thankful to attend the funeral for Senator Robert J. Dole at the Washington National Cathedral yesterday. His life was a testament of public service that we would all do well to emulate. Senator Dole Funeral Reflections Dole’s...
My Thanksgiving Blessing At New Orleans Airport
It was 2015 around Thanksgiving time. I was trying to get home from Chicago and routed through Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans. That turned out to be a big mistake, but led to a moment I will...
How United Airlines Thanked A Ramp Worker For His Service
It is Veterans Day in the United States and a day of remembrance marking the end of World War I in many nations the world. This day is also a reminder that public service is the lifeblood of a...
Traveling From Halloween To All Saints Day
Just a small break from our regularly scheduled travel programming to consider death on All Saints Day. It’s one of the most difficult subjects to face, but an important one. All Saints Day – We Are All Traveling Down...
A Day With My Son At LAX: Oh, How Time Flies…
My precious son Augustine turns five today. Rather than buy him a gift he does not need, I took him to Los Angeles International Airport on Saturday for a father-son day. It was a fabulous day and made me...
The Airport Chief Who Was Scapegoated For 9/11 Attacks Provides A Powerful Lesson For All Of Us
A friend of mine sent his reaction to a story that appeared over the weekend in the New York Times about the airport chief at Boston Logan Airport who literally scapegoated for the 9/11 attacks, a story I was...
My Coming Of Age: Reflecting On 9/11 20 Years Later
I had just turned fifteen years old and begun my sophomore year in high school. September 11, 2001 began like any other morning but it ended as a day which forever transformed my life. Each of my teachers handled...
The Privilege And Blessing Of Work
As we look back on the Labor Day holiday in the United States and look ahead to the busy fall season, I stop and reflect upon the profound blessing it is to work and what a privilege I have...
Fake News: Airline Crews Not Walking Off Job Over Vaccine Requirement
Someone forwarded me a Facebook post that asserted the airline operational meltdowns we have recently witnessed are because airline crews are “refusing the mandated jab.” Folks, this is false. Please don’t buy into the fake news. Airline Crews Are...
An Open Discussion On Airline Uniforms And Individualism
Yesterday, I shared about United Airlines’ decision to loosen dress and appearance standards for front-line employees like flight attendants and gate agents beginning this fall. While many have applauded the move, I do wonder if it reveals another dangerous...
My Scary Road Rage Incident In Los Angeles
Ok, this is only tangentially related to travel, but I want to reflect upon a road rage incident in Los Angeles that occurred over the weekend. Road Rage In Los Angeles Sunday afternoon I was driving through a two-lane...
Death At The Capitol On Good Friday
Christians around the world celebrate Good Friday today, the day on which Jesus died. It is a day of remembrance not just for God’s sacrifice, but for the injustice of those human agents who perpetrated it. Sadly, another death...
Abraham Lincoln, A Hero Through The Ages
Abraham Lincoln is an American hero and should be commemorated as one. As an avid traveler and student of U.S. history, few men have positively shaped history in the way in which Lincoln did. Let’s not forget that in...
My Untimely Return To Los Angeles…
Well, so much for that idea. After planning an extended trip to Germany until things calmed down in the United States, I’m back again in Los Angeles…right in the heart of the biggest COVID-19 hotpot in the world. A...
My One-Way Trip To Germany…
While I sense we are in that darkest hour before dawn, it is not totally inconceivable that 2021 may turn out even worse than 2020. With the healthcare system in Los Angeles descending into chaos, my family has booked...
