yyzvoyageur

How would one go about checking in four sheets of paper?

At which point those dangerous sheets of paper were suddenly rendered harmless?

We have officially crossed the line into the truly absurd.

KathrynInCanada

Is there somewhere near the airport at MCO that you can have the dress shipped to and then just pick it up as you leave the airport area? (i.e. in YOW the Fed Ex depot is right by the airport.)

I'd expect your chances is nil for carry-on. Remember, the explosives that 'triggered' all this were sewn into clothing. And pawing over a wedding dress to make sure there is nothing suspicious would probably do more to crumple it than shipping or packing in a suitcase would. You could make a note of the largest allowed suitcase, buy a super cheap one from Walmart and then check it in that if you don't want to pay the price to ship it.

Don't forget, she won't just be carrying a wallet inside that purse. She'll need to be carrying her jewelry somewhere (most brides I know where jewelry as well as the dress.) Have her check out the size of the purse and everything she really needs to be carrying in it.

I had no idea how small a purse it had to be until I actually measured a 'tiny' nylon drawstring bookbag/backpack that I was planning on using. I had cut the ties so that it could be a 'shoulder bag' before measuring and discovering it is 17x12x 0. Usually I just use a 4"x8"x1" travel purse that holds just my money, cell phone, passport and boarding pass because I wear it across my chest, under my outer jacket and it keeps things handy but in zip compartments. The rest of the things I need (kippy bag, eye mask, inflatable back pillow, meds, reading material) are in my laptop case.

But under the new rules, it appears I have to move up to a regular style purse since I can't put my feminine supplies, kippy bag and reading material in my laptop case until after security. Assuming they'll allow a purse and laptop which seems to depend on which airport and which screener you get.

I've found an ugly old purse of mine that fits the rules and will take it for my feminine supplies, meds and kippy bag. If they say I can't have it and the laptop case, I'll proudly carry my feminine supplies through the airport, waving them as a badge of honour ("I'm fertile, I'm fertile!!!!" or "Look out she's hormonal!!!!) and let CATSA keep the ugly purse. Seriously this is ugly enough a purse that I'm considering trashing it when I get to my destination rather than carrying it on to the other two continents on my trip.

mevlannen

In principle, would be nice; in practice, though, I don't get to choose who comes on shift when and where, and about all that lies within my choice is my expressed mood when I meet them. Not all smurfs or dragons are immune to kind words; some, however, must be chronically starting their days off with sore feet or somesuch, to just by their expressed affect.

CdnTraveller

I love it! When is your trip again Kathryn? I'll be on the edge of my computer chair waiting to hear your CATSA trip report.

KathrynInCanada

I'm flying out tomorrow morning. Which means ya'll won't know how it went until tomorrow night because there's no free internet at YOW US departures and we have a tight connection in IAD.

It suddenly occurs to me that I need to attach my flyertalk luggage tag to my ugly purse. It is possible that I'm not the only person out there with an ugly purse but I'm sure I'll be the only FT member with one! So anyone FTer flying out of YOW tomorrow morning (my flight is at 9:30) can be on the lookout for me. (Either to say hi, or run in the other direction!)

RCyyz

The paper in the bra thing is unbelieveable! (I believe it happened, I just have trouble beliving that CATSA is that stupid.)

I'd feel better if there were a way to criticize, constructively or otherwise even, but somehow I think people will cower behind the veil of "security".

RCyyz

The Theatre of Modern "Security"
(with apologies to Billy S)

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

getaround

Not only will you have an ugly purse you'll have an ugly flyertalk luggage tag to boot.

That tag is so cheap and tacky I bought some but I don't want them handing from my briefcase ^

mevlannen

[QUOTE=RCyyz;13166157]The paper in the bra thing is unbelieveable! (I believe it happened, I just have trouble beliving that CATSA is that stupid.)

Well, it would have floored me, too, especially considering that it was my left bra-cup that became the filing-cabinet. Ordinarily, I would never dream of doing this in public, but I'd just sleep-walked my way off the five-hour YVR>YYZ leg, and could only think of finding a nice quiet corner to relax in.

I really don't want to slam CATSA as a whole, because in my experience, most of the CATSA workers do a decent job under admittedly-indecent circumstances; this one pre-screener in particular must have been having a bad hair day or something. I'm willing to be charitable given the situation.

In the end, the question lurking in the back of my head was 'do I really want to fly today?' And by that stage in the journey, BOS was a lot closer than was the little podunk airport in rural BC where I had started out that morning.

I am flying back to Canada with the bare irreducible minimum of luggage, this weekend, and that'll be that. No histrionics are warranted on my part, just the clear recognition that I do have options, and most of those options involve neither CATSA nor Air Canada.

margarita girl

Hmmm, maybe it's time to take out the "mansiere" to go with your "murse"!

threepoint

This is exactly the attitude that will rouse the airlines into action, and in turn have the best chance of producing a positive change or return to some level of sanity. I don't think our good Minister is in any rush to alter things as they stand - in his weekend interview with Evan Soloman of the CBC, he very deftly dodged the pointed question regarding why we enforce a no carry-on policy as that isn't a US requirement.

Best of luck mevlannan with your future travel arrangements. And with permission, my wife has nudged me to ask if it would be alright if she adopted your 'park it in the left bank' phrase.

Steverino

I'm in the YYZ MLL now on the way to Minneapolis. There was virtually no line at the baggage drop, or US immigration or the first security checkpoint, where one guy took a cursory glance at my messenger-style laptop bag and waved me on.

A few other people were being turned around before entering the immigration hall with inappropriate bags, but all in all, no delays, but then again it's 2:00 PM, not exactly a peak period. Not looking forward to future 7 AM flights. Of course the real annoying line hasn't happened to me yet. The MLL people are suggesting heading for the gate one hour before departure to go through the dehumanizing phase.

There's at least one person in the lounge here with a large wheeled laptop bag with extendable handle. I should probably tackle him.

mevlannen

Thanks!

It just dawned on me, these past few days, that I have indeed reached the point in my working life where I get to decide where/when/how things happen, and that paying handsomely to stand in line to be felt-up, no matter how im/politely, was something I need not do.

I am reasonably sure that the Canadian economy will not collapse simply because I choose to stop 'consuming' an ill-delivered 'service'; au contraire, I should expect that my productivity will increase, should I choose to park myself on a trans-continental Amtrak train for a few days and get caught up with all my strategy paperwork while travelling in reasonable comfort.

More's the pity that the Canadian rail-transport system has been utterly gutted, but that's a tale for another discussion in another venue.

So, all day Sunday, I shall be privileged to pretend that I am a spawning salmon, swimming my way upstream back to Canada through the rapids and over the waterfalls of the transborder air-travel network. Like those spawning salmon, I shall not be eating while travelling (since even the peanut packs are now sub judice), but my landing spot in YVR will at least be somewhat more comfortable than a pile of rocks on the side of a mountain stream.

On the way through YYZ, I'll be the one with the blue patchwork cap and the black stompy shoes, whistling Die Gedanken Sind Frei in the CATSA corral. Flyertalkers have to do something creative while waiting for Things To Happen.

<more> Of course, your wife is more than welcome to use 'park it in the left bank' as a turn of phrase. I learned it from one of my teachers at Strathcona Lodge School lo these many years ago, and who knows where she first heard it in her day?

Enjoy the day as found,

Mevlannen,
one of the Old Girls

KathrynInCanada

I had forgotten about furoshukis but have now laid out a scarf to wear with my outfit tomorrow (btw, it matches not my outfit, nor the ugly purse & FT tag so now I'll really stand out!)

If they do make me abandon the purse, I'll take off my scarf after security and turn it into a purse.

How to tie a furoshuki: http://community.livejournal.com/nat...g/3904866.html

My scarf isn't the 105 cm squared that these are but it is big enough to make a purse that will hold my feminine supplies and my kippy bag. The rest of the purse contents will go into pockets.


(DUHHHHHH!!!! Once I'm through security I can put all that stuff in my laptop case - I'm already losing brain cells because of CATSA and they haven't even started sucking them out of me with the new scanners!)

CdnTraveller

Very cool video however! Thanks for sharing it.