I check everything except for my backpack which always goes under the seat. I'm 6'2" but always in at least E+ so legroom isn't a problem.

I board with my zone (1 or 2 normally) and always have an aisle seat. Because the Clampetts drag everything on board the plane now I am happy to help speed up the boarding process by helping people shove their over-stuffed bags in the overheads for them if they're having trouble. If Capt. Oblivious puts his 1 bag in the overhead and closes the door, I'll get up and open it up again so others can see that it still has space.

The flight attendants normally won't lift a finger to help a short or elderly person stow their luggage so instead of having them stop and look helpless in the blocked aisle, it's just easier to do it for them. Many times other able-bodied guys will do the same thing and boarding goes so much smoother.

The checked bag fee has really made the flying experience horrible. Longer boarding and de-planing times, late pushbacks and generally frazzled gate agents checking bags in the jetbridge when they could be getting the flight closed up.