In the meantime I'll remind folks that there are people like me who check my 22" bag (yes, even if I have to pay.) I bring a relatively light shoulder bag and an under seat roller on board. I'm always afraid I'll have to gate check the under seat roller because of lack of overhead space. That's got my "optics" - binoculars and camera, iPad, overnight stuff in case of delays and a couple of favorite travel garments that I could never replace. The shoulder bag has the extra food, money, passports etc. I pack as light as possible - those three bags can get me through six weeks of travel.

I won't describe here all my thoughts and feelings as I anxiously view all the giant roller boards and bulging totes lining up at the gate. The last time I actually lost a checked bag was in Budapest in the nineties. There was an hour waiting around they finally found that some bags had been unloaded and left on the tarmac. Since I'm just traveling on vacation the probabilities of losing are a bit less than for business travelers, but just sayin'! (A share of those negative thoughts, of course are reserved for the airlines that continue the ridiculous practice of charging for checking bags - even to the extent of exceeding inflation with the increase from $25 to $30.)