Okay.. this might be getting way off topic, but I could not resist adding my two cents.

Anyone that has spent at least 5 minutes looking into what Jimmy Carter has done since he left office would agree without a doubt, he has done more for humankind than ALL of the past 5 or 10 or more Presidents COMBINED. And, one could probably argue he has done more than any recent president even incuding time in office.

They used to sponsor an annual ski trip to benefit the Carter Center that we went on, way back. We still get updates on what the Carter's are up to. Amazing, simply amazing.

What do you want to bet Jimmy Carter and his Secret Service entourage don't have to endure the security hassles the rest of us do? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif Can you see someone going through his underwear in front of dozens of people? I doubt it.

Well... I'm finding this thread pretty interesting so I might as well tell my own Jimmy Carter story...

I was flying BOS-LAX-TPE-MNL on UA / China Airlines (yes, I know... it was due to a very low group fare), to build a house in the Philippines for the 1999 Jimmy Carter Work Project. CAL switched the TPE-MNL leg to a 747 to accomodate the project, but the plane was still full (lots of free upgrades, I wasn't so lucky.)

Waiting for the plane to take off from TPE I was about half-conscious, not in very good shape after the LAX-TPE segment... when President Carter made the rounds, shaking every hand on the plane. I think I managed to mumble something slightly coherent before falling back asleep. Guess I could have done a better job meeting a world leader, but UA and China Airlines Y wasn't really the best way to stay rested. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

Next lesson was that flying across 11 time zones and starting to build a house the next day can be painful! Anyway, a few days later I came across Jimmy again on the work site... he was wandering around looking for somebody who could help him install a toilet (not the sort of request you'd expect from a former president!) He survived the 5 days of near-100 degree heat remarkably well, especially impressive for his age.

Anyway, just to keep this "on topic" (sure!), I'll have to recommend that everybody try to fit some home building into their next mileage run. Maybe BKK? Jimmy would be proud. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif