I got a nice apology letter from United and 10K miles deposited into my account after battling with a FA over my window shade on a daytime flight across the Atlantic. I wanted the light in to more quickly adapt to the time change at my destination, to see the Iceland (particularly clear day) and to read since both my reading lights were broken.

I made sure there was no light streaming directly in my window that would have disturbed other passengers across the aisle. It basically became a battle of wills between me and the FAs who all got in on the act of closing my shade each time I left my seat to use the lav. It was clearly personal for them and nothing more.

The letter I received told me policy was to ask passengers to close shades, but never to insist and never do what these FAs did. I was told they would be "retrained" on this issue. Oh, and incidentally, I actually had purchased the seat across the aisle for my son with miles, but he didn't use it at the last minute and no refund on that. So if that person now in that seat did want to complain (which he didn't), I suppose I could have laid claim to it for my invisible cello and he could have been back in coach.