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See? You've had good experiences too. I think it helps the screeners too. We've been in line and had our shoes off all ready to go and the people in front of us act like they are surprised when it comes to their turn when they are asked to please remove their shoes, place their bags in the bins, etc. If everyone would do that ahead of time the lines would move along smoothly.

Not only do we travel light...we make sure we are at the airport about 2 hours early. We'd rather be there early and get through security with just a few travelers than to wait and then have to stand in line for an hour or more. We get on the other side of security and then we can go have something to eat, visit the shops, walk around, use the restrooms, read, etc. Time goes by very quickly and before you know it we are boarding our flight. It all makes much more sense.

I have one bag that carries my cell phone, etc. We keep a few extra clothes, shoes and toiletries with our familes. That way they are there for us. I know it's a pain in the neck but...9-11 changed our world as we knew it and so for the price of our safety and the safety of my loved ones we are willing to be inconvenieced somewhat. The thing is to make sure you travel so light you can get through quickly.

I remember when I used to carry a HUGE carry on, purse and then a bag for under my seat. I didnt' need all that stuff. I remember one time prior to 9-11 some guys came in and carried on TIRES. Now that's a little much I would think and...you can't put much else in an overhead bin if there are tires in there. Besides...what if one of those bins opened? Wow. We've heard all these horror stories about security and have never once had anything like that happen to us nor have we seen it happen to others coming or going. The security people and screeners who do the bags etc. have been nothing but polite, nice, happy and smiling and doing a professional job. Maybe we have been lucky, who knows but from where we stand... but for our part, we think it is nice to be polite and return a happy smile and a thank you to them as well. They are only doing their job too.

Anyway, happy traveling. I STILL prefer to road trip. More fun, more to see, more relaxing, take what you want, buy what you want but...doesn't get us from point A to point B like air travel so...guess we need to make the wise decisions for our own comfort in the name of safety.

As for us...light is the keyword and flexibility is next. If you are gonna fly over the holidays EXPECT delays and crowds. If there is ice and snow on the ground and the planes won't take off I am NOT gonna complain. I'd rather they err on the side of safety than to endanger the lives of all those on board just to meet a deadline.

"We've been in line and had our shoes off all ready to go and the people in front of us act like they are surprised when it comes to their turn when they are asked to please remove their shoes, place their bags in the bins, etc. If everyone would do that ahead of time the lines would move along smoothly."

I travel well over 100K per year and I NEVER remove my shoes.

They can ask you to remove your shoes before you pass through the screener but you don't HAVE to. Most people don't know about that. . .they just line up and move along like sheep. . .never giving a thought that the portal is never cleaned and gawd knows what sorts of fungus has been deposited by thousands and thousands and thousands of travelers that have gone before you. Not healthy, and a neighbor of mine that works at TSA HQ in DC tells me they are looking at ways to clean the portal on a more regular basis.

You never would wander around a shopping mall in your sock feet. . .so what is the difference between a mall and a screening portal? The difference is the portal is more concentrated in its trail of unwashed and dirty feet than a shopping mall.

And here is something else. . .you don't want the fungus on my feet, a fungus that causes them to bleed sometimes and no medicine as yet has helped. How many others have such a condition and have no second thoughts about removing their shoes and walking through the portal and leaving their infectious spores behind?

Here what I do: I do not remove my shoes. The TSA screener says "remove your shoes." I say "no." They ask if the shoes will set off the alarm and I say "probably" (not always. . .which brings up other issues regarding metrics and calibration). They then again say they recommend I remove my shoes. I again say no and say I will go to secondary screening if the alarm goes off. They act surprised and some actually appear to get slightly angry that someone doesn't do what they say.

I pass through the portal and 50-50 it set's it off.

If it sets off the alarm I go to secondary screening and they zap my shoes and get an alarm. I remove my shoes and they take them to be screened. While the shoes are off they ask me to stand up. I refuse. I tell them I want to wait for my shoes. They then wait until my shoes are returned and I put them back on my feet before I stand up.