I took my first Jet Blue flight on the evening of 5/20 -- from Oakland to DC. I've heard several people ooze Jet Blue and one of the attorneys I worked with told me I'd never fly another airline again. So maybe I entered with an already high expectation, I don't know.

Booking the ticket was easy and the price was good (a little over 300 round trip). But I found the long flight anything but comfortable. I'm 6'2" and a fit 190 pounds. Sitting in a seat that doesn't recline for 4.5 hours made it one of the most uncomfortable flights I recall ever being on. I would have gladly given up the "extra" leg room (I was in row 20) for a seat that would recline. My back was killing me and the pillow I found on the floor didn't do much to alleviate the pressure. I'm not one who can sleep sitting straight up either so it was a LONG night flight.

I had a window seat and there was no one in the middle. There was a kid that was taller than me on the aisle seat. He was asleep the majority of the flight -- there was no way to get around him without him getting up. It's hard to imagine what it would have been like if someone was sitting in the middle too.

A bag of cashews didn't really qualify as "generous snacks" in my opinion. The 1/2 pint of bottled water was lukewarm and no glass of ice was offered. I knew ahead of time they didn't serve meals, but on a 4.5 hour flight, a couple selections of snacks would have been nice. Maybe because it was a night flight they thought everyone would be sleeping and not wanting another snack?

My TV screen had a big scratch across it which made watching it annoying. I practically had to use a hammer to change the channels and volume on the arm control -- and I'm not a weakling.

I got on a United Express flight to Harrisburg, PA after the Jet Blue flight and I swear I was more comfortable on it (it was a small regional jet) because I could recline my seat.

Ok, so now I change my flight back from Saturday to the following Tuesday. I went online to do it because the charge is $25 versus $30 -- plus the difference in fare. The change cost me $175 which is alot more than I've ever paid to change dates with other airlines. But the kicker is as I'm making the change online, I find I can't make a seating assignment. So after I'm done making the change and paying the $175, I call Jet Blue to tell them I couldn't make my seating assignment -- THEN I find out that the only seats that are available on my flight are MIDDLE SEATS. In all honesty, if I had known that I would have to sit in a middle seat when I was making the change, I would have kept my original flight back. I suppose if I would have called to make the change, I would have found out how full the flight was, but in my attempt to save $5.00 I screwed myself over (to the tune of $175.00 and a middle seat).

I kept thinking about how uncomfortable I was on the trip back east and the thought of that -- plus, being sandwiched inbetween two people on the trip back was more than I could take, so I called US Air and made a first class reservation from my destination (Harrisburg, PA) through to San Francisco -- $674.00. No, I'm not rich, but I don't fly that much to put myself through 4.5 hours of being uncomfortable, hungry, thirsty for something COLD, and have a pillow that feels like there's more inside it that two rolled up kleenix. Since I'll be flying the same carrier, I'll be relieved of having to go outside of the security section to get my bag from the United baggage claim to take to Jet Blue ticketing to check in (and stand in the ever-so-long security line at Dulles airport -- the one I missed my connecting flight to Harrisburg on the way out on -- my Jet Blue flight arrived at 6 a.m. and my United Express flight departed at 8:15 a.m. and between the United ticketing line and the security line, I didn't get to the gate until 8:17 and the plane was gone -- I had to wait until 1 p.m. to get on the next United Express flight).

I guess I'll just have to chalk up the $$$ I wasted on the return Jet Blue flight and the additional $175 to "live and learn." If you're a happy Jet Blue flyer, my hat is off to you. I would have been curious to know if my return flight might have been better but now I won't have the chance.