Make Yourself at Home

Putting It Together

Why Didn't You Think of That?

OUT AND ABOUT

Getting your sea legs when taking to the air can be a bit daunting. I learned how the professionals do it with Bill Cornick, former airliner pilot for United Airlines. First and formost, he says that nobody's really afraid of flying - they're afraid of crashing. He says losing your self in an activity you're in control of - reading, playing a game, or in my case embroidery helps distract you and before you know it, there you are! He demonstrated the principle by taking me up in his little stunt plane. It was quite a ride, we did barrel rolls and loop de loops, and darned if he wasn't right, the embroidery took my mind right off the aerial acrobatics!

HELP ME BRINI!

When flying or even on a train, who controls the armrest that resides between seats? There's no reason you and your seatmate can't share. The first thing to do is size up the competition - If your neighbor is larger then you, then scoot your arms back and let them have the forward portion of the armrest. If the opposite is true, the opposite will apply. Negotiating the ins and outs of travel diplomacy can be a great conversational icebreaker!

RANDOM THOUGHTS

I was joined at the end of the episode for a slide show of my Scandinavian journey by my friends Robert Richards, Eric Snyder, Jennifer Lea Cohan and John Tedeschi - you'll recognize them from the cocktail party episode (#107) - they were some of the party guests. We shot both segments on the same day.

The cold open of the show was shot at a place called Idlewild. (Idlewild is the original name of Kennedy International airport in New York.) It was a bar on the lower east side of Manhattan that had an airport theme with old airline seats and other great interior decoration details. It's no longer there - when we shot the scene they had just closed to be remodeled with an Asian theme

Bonus segment: ON BOARD SMORGASBORD

Start with a plastic art box with movable partitions - this kind of container is perfect for a portable packable meal because it's easy to separate the various foods you bring and is flat enough to fit in a suitcase. You can include anything that strikes your fancy. I included some traditional smorgasbord items in mine: