Memories of Dinah Shore

The summer is really flying by. Schools open next week and that’s when Laurae will really know that she has retired from the working for $$ life.

There was a time when schools opened in September and closed in June. The Labor Day weekend was the last holiday of the summer and school always started the following week. Of course school schedules were once determined by the harvest dates for local crops…but that’s ancient history.

And it seems to me that a return to that old September/June schedule would save the schools a ton of money. The days that a school would need air conditioning would be reduced by at least 10 days. And kids wouldn’t be half asleep because of the heat. One teacher we know of keeps her thermostat at 70 or below just to keep the kids awake.

But none of that is really a problem for us anymore. Laurae won’t be joining the crowds in the chilly classrooms this year. She has better things to do!

In the news: Regarding the British terrorist suspects and their plans; I am keeping most of my opinions to myself. I think it’s too early to have a valid opinion as the facts aren’t available yet and I don’t a good feeling as to the reliability of British intelligence. These are the same people who fired seven bullets into the head of an innocent electrician because the policeman who was supposed to be identifying suspects leaving an apartment building had decided it was more pressing to empty his bladder that morning. But of course I have an opinion about the airlines. There is talk about the possibility of many airlines failing and disappearing from the business scene. And there are stories about how this latest incident will change travel forever. Are any of those possibilities a bad thing?

Suppose business travelers finally decided that enough was enough and it was time to start using existing technology to turn their face to face business meetings into “virtual” meetings. No travel needed. And perhaps, with the world becoming a more dangerous place, vacationers might opt for a more leisurely form of travel; automobile. “See the USA in your Chevrolet.”

With fewer airlines and much fewer customers, life in the friendly skies would have to change. I would certainly welcome a return to flying as it once was. A time when the customer was “king” (or “queen”) and you were treated royally. Imagine, if you can, airline seating that is comfortable! It once was. But I’m dreaming. The air travel experience will never return to the good old days. But I can still dream of it.