I posted this to my blog on January 26th:
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I experienced the worst business trip of my life this week.

I plan my trips out quite far in advance, in order to avoid stress and higher costs. I wanted to go from my home in SE Washington State to just above the New Jersey line in New York State. I planned to leave the Pasco airport at 6 a.m. Sunday morning, with an hour and a half connection time in Seattle, in case the morning fog was slowing traffic into SeaTac. From there I booked a non-stop flight to Newark airport in New Jersey. Arriving about 4 in the afternoon, I would have plenty of time to rent a car and drive up the freeways to my destination. I might have even had some time to stop along the way to look acrosss the Hudson river over to Manhattan. It should have been an enjoyable journey.

The day started off fine. I awoke, brushed my teeth, petted the cats, then drove the 15 minutes to our small airport in Pasco. Since I had my boarding pass already, I went directly to security screening, then onto the airplane.

The temperature was slightly less than freezing, so the airline crew needed to de-ice the airplane. In their hurry to complete their task, they hit the airplane tail with the de-icing cart!

Just a week ago, there was an airplane that depressurized shortly after takeoff. That was caused by a baggage cart hitting the airplane to create a crack. The cart drive was too ashamed to tell anyone and hoped nobody would notice his little dent in the airplane. Well, they did. He no longer works for them. The Pasco people knew they had to tell someone.

The pilot explained what happened and said a maintenance man would come right over to look at what was expected to be cosmetic damage. It probably wouldn't take more than 15 minutes to get the OK to leave for Seattle. That was no problem for me. After all, I had a 90 minute cushion in Seattle.

Half an hour later, the pilot asked us all to leave the airplane, as the flight was cancelled.

Bummer.

The Dash 8 airplane holds 35 people and it was completely full. That meant the 3 Horizon Air gate agents needed to reschedule us all. Needless to say, the line was long. I was nearly at the end. But there really was no rush, as the next flights on some other carriers didn't leave Pasco for about two hours.

While standing in line, I called the Alaska central reservations desk. (Horizon Air is a part of the Alaska Air Gropup.) No, they didn't show the flight as cancelled. There was nothing they could do.

So I called the Horizon Air number. Yes, they heard about the "unfortunate incident" in Pasco. So, what were my options?

The only way I could get from Pasco to Newark would be to take an evening flight over to Seattle, then fly the Alaska red-eye night flight to Newark. I would arrive at 6:30 Monday morning! So much for my advance planning. Not only would I arrive dead tired, but there was no way I could get up to New York in time for the 8 a.m. training class. He explained that I had additional options, but they involved rerouting onto other carriers. Only the gate agents could do that.

So I stood in line.

When my turn came, she said, "Oh. You're the one going to New York." I could tell it was not going to be easy.

It wasn't.

We finally settled on a reasonable route. I would get on the taxi they hired and ride up to Yakima with four others. (It was a comfortable van, so there was plenty of room.) From Yakima, I would stand by for a mid-morning Horizon Air flight to Seattle and possibly get on the second Alaska Air SEA-EWR direct flight, arriving at 9 p.m. If I couldn't get on the first Yakima flight, I had a booked seat on the next flight to Seattle. Then I would get on a Continental flight to Newark.

Well, the first Yakima flight was full.

So I waited. And waited some more. It seems the plane from Seattle was still on the ground. An hour later, it was released and made the 30 minute trip over the mountains to Yakima. If they unloaded, loaded, and left in a hurry, I could make my Continental Air connection just as they started boarding. Hmmm. We actually made it to Seattle sooner than expected.

I rushed over to the B gates and made it on the Continental airplane. Whew! They closed the door and prepared to leave the gate. Then the pilot announced a small maintenance problem that was detected on the flight in. It would only take another half hour to "complete the repairs and do the paperwork." 45 minutes later, he announced another problem that was found while fixing the first one. Then they unloaded the passengers and said it would take another two hours to fix the second problem. They had to get a part from Boeing, about 20 minutes away.

We finally left Seattle at 7 p.m. Pacific time. It was now 10 p.m. in New Jersey. Looks like I was going to ride the red-eye after all. Did I mention my pinched neck nerve? I got very little sleep.

I landed in Newark at 3 a.m. Eastern time. After getting off the plane, I walked to the shuttle train station and discovered they were on a "reduced schedule." Finally a train came and took me to terminal C, where I had to get off and take the next shuttle train to the rental car station. About 50 feet from the station, the train stopped! Station personnel were walking around talking to one another on the radio to see what was causing the delay. After about 10 minutes, we finally made the last 50 feet. The door opened and I got off -- quickly.

By now, it was raining quite hard. The short walk to Hertz was under cover, and my name was up on the board. I found my car, adjusted the seat and mirrors, checked my maps, and headed out into the rain storm.

Getting onto I-95 North and the New Jersey Turnpike was fairly easy and well marked. I'm cruising up the road, with the turnpike to myself. It was nice not having big trucks riding my back bumper. About the time I got to the end of the Jersey Turnpike, it was snowing. Big fat snowflakes. I had to go through a major intersection of roads and bridges and construction and snow. I missed my turn.

Now I'm going down a different freeway and I think I'm heading towards Pennsylvania. Sure enough, after I stopped and checked my maps, I concluded I was heading West. (At least I didn't take the George Washington Bridge the other way into Manhattan.) After a few U-turns and side roads, I finally got onto the Palisades Parkway, heading north up to New York.

The snow was really coming down now and the road was covered with white stuff. The visibility was very limited in places. The road edge was hard to see. With only two or three cars going down the road, there weren't tire tracks to follow. I basically relied on the rumble strips on the edge of the roadway to keep my car on the pavement. Occasionally, I came up to a car going down the road at 20 mph with all flashers going. They presented a challenge for passing.

I got to my hotel at 5 a.m., woke up the nite clerk, went to my room and crashed for two hours. I left the hotel for my class at 8 a.m.


So goes life on the road.

It's **** when you have one of those trips.

10 years ago I decided to stop being a road warrior. I had done it for 12 years and finally wound down by shutting down my consultancy business and taking a regular job 4 years ago. It was time. I remember one trip that really fried me as well. I got tired of going on two week trips and coming back and having to re-bond with my baby daughter. She is now 16.

I sympathize with all road warriors. I have double sympathy for the family left at home that has to cope with all the problems of running a home short one member.

It must be really tough to come home and have the dog bite you, thinking you are a stranger attacking the family!;)


My road warrior days were all pre-9/11. Even when weather or mechanical delays fouled the system, you could pretty much count on the airline to find a way to get you and your baggage where you were headed, even if it meant putting you on a competitor's aircraft. I think those days are gone forever. No wonder so many top executives fly corporate planes versus commercial aircraft. I've done corporate flights about 15 times over ten years and it's just wonderful.

Thank's for the tale, Dennis.

I suppose many of us have had similar trips, but I have to say that you seem to have had rather a lot of bad luck in one go. I guess that's what happens when things start going wrong: They have a nasty tendency to keep going wrong. What really amazes me is that you actually made it to the class.

/Claes

Auditguy,

From a fellow (possibly all) Road Warriors we can certainly share in your frustration, exhaustion and similar experiences. You didn't share if you were the instructor or a participant in the class... (makes a HUGE difference if one has to "perform" before an audience or if one can try and "blend" in...). It still does not lessen the tale of your trip.

While on the road, I generally read to pass the time, if not sleeping. I have perfected the art of sleeping in chairs, planes, cars, couches and even standing up leaning against a shovel -- only got 45 minute nap there... not quite a "good rest"... Anyway, several months ago I picked up some light reading about life on the road by Robert Jolles, a trainer and consultant. If you really want a quick read and a laugh -- take a look for:


The Way of the Road Warrior : Lessons in Business and Life from the Road Most Traveled (Hardcover)
by Robert L. Jolles

I tend to journal to "exciting" events of my trips.... like the best places to sleep in airports... Cincinnati, Terminal B, Starbucks - best chairs, overstuffed, pull 2 together and you have a "virtual bed" and the alarm clock is the sound of freshly brewed coffee... does get any better than that!

Best airport sinks - Evansville, Indiana,... have handles that are NOT motion activated -- better for washing your hair in a pinch... it does take a while to keep the hand/hair dryers on though...

Oh, the tales we could tell....

Ahhh..Road Warrior stories. One passtime I personally enjoy is listening to them on the airport shuttles and while waiting in a line somewhere. Hopefully I'll never have an experience likethe tale above. Wait a minute! Been there, done that.

Whatever your frequent airline is, if they have a club..JOIN! I've found that delays and layovers are more comfy in a nice chair and quiet atmosphere. I just cash in a few airmiles every year and keep my membership up.

Oh yes, the answer is American Airlines if anyone is curious and over 140K total miles last year.

I always love the comments I get from friends who think it must be great to get to fly for work all the time.

Some hints I have learned:

1. Always know backup flight options. I took a quick look at the website for Pasco airport and see that Delta and United offer service there also. Airlines don't like to send you to competitors since they have to give up the revenue, but will if you ask and the issue is their fault. If you went to the desk with the request, "could you put me on DL9999 to SLC, then DL123 to EWR" you may have just done the ticket agent's search for them. If you don't ask, they will be inclined to make you wait until their next flight to SEA. I keep current flight schedules for Northwest and Delta on my laptop so I can look up options quickly.

2. Keep the number of your airline in you cell phone and call immediatly instead of standing in line. It really helps if you have elite status and can jump ahead of other callers.

3. Clubs are nice, but may not help at small airports. I have not joined yet since my flying patterns have not justified it in the past - I tend to frequent airports that don't have them. I probably will join the Northwest Worldclub since my international trips will be up this year, meaning more connections in airports with clubs.

4. Go to www.flyertalk.com and absorb everything you can. There you could learn how to turn this headache into tons of frequent flier miles, vouchers for future travel and possibly even a first class upgrade.

Another option for knowing what flights are scheduled on which airlines is to subscribe to OAG, the "Official Airline Guide". You can try the guide for free at http://www.oag.com/oag/website/com/en/Home/

It includes all flight schedules on every airline... I began using it several years ago when required to book my own travel. Just beware that after the trial option has ended, the sales folks there are very persistent about getting you to subscribe. The guide does not include pricing information, only scheduling.

I want to echo Randy's comment about airline "clubs" - back "in the day" I held memberships in both United Airlines Red Carpet and American Airlines Admiral's Club. My business partner also had ones to clubs for Continental and Northwest. If you are flying into and out of major airports on a regular basis, it really is the ONLY way to go. In my case, the free coffee, soda, and snacks nearly offset my membership costs. The privilege of taking a nap and knowing someone would wake you and see you got to your flight on time is almost priceless! Do the clubs still have showers and masseurs?

Don't know about masseurs, but the main Northwest world club in Detroit has showers, as does at least one KLM lounge in Amsterdam. DTW also has one of the commercial spas that offers massages and has showers available. I'm sure several airports do now.

I'll probably join on my outbound trip to Germany next month. A few $12 airport drinks plus snacks will offset the $300 membership fee in no time.

Don't know about masseurs, but the main Northwest world club in Detroit has showers, as does at least one KLM lounge in Amsterdam. DTW also has one of the commercial spas that offers massages and has showers available. I'm sure several airports do now.

I'll probably join on my outbound trip to Germany next month. A few $12 airport drinks plus snacks will offset the $300 membership fee in no time.


I believe if you have a Platinum Amex card, NWA will let you enter the club. I know that Delta and Continental does. United does not.

I believe if you have a Platinum Amex card, NWA will let you enter the club. I know that Delta and Continental does. United does not.

NW also participates, but the annual fee is $395. I don't really need the card, and can get the Worldclubs access for $300 with my NW Gold status. I dont' think the Amex option would work in Europe or on some of the other alliance partners of NW such as Alaska or AeroMexico.

www.prioritypass.com is another option, but more restricted. It might be good for some depending on their flying patterns.

$300!!:mg: Cash in airmiles...American only needs 35000 miles for an Admirals Club membership

$300!!:mg: Cash in airmiles...American only needs 35000 miles for an Admirals Club membership


yeah, but airmiles are generally regarded as worth .01-.02 cents per mile. 35,000 miles is worth about $450+, at least on paper.

Course, as Jay Leno says, go ahead and eat em...we'll make more...

NW does not allow purchasing with miles. I don't know that I'd cash in 35K miles anyway. Miles are typically valued anywhere from $.01 to $.02 - I use $.015, so 35K miles = $525. For 30K I can get a business class upgrade to Europe worth $500 to $1000.

Since NW gives 2500 bonus miles for a new membership, that is a "discount" of $37.50, I'll bill it to my NW Visa for another 300 miles ($4.50), plus it gives me bonus points in their current 100K miles promotion that will probably earn me another 2000 miles ($30), so my net cost is around $228.

NW does not allow purchasing with miles. I don't know that I'd cash in 35K miles anyway. Miles are typically valued anywhere from $.01 to $.02 - I use $.015, so 35K miles = $525. For 30K I can get a business class upgrade to Europe worth $500 to $1000.

Since NW gives 2500 bonus miles for a new membership, that is a "discount" of $37.50, I'll bill it to my NW Visa for another 300 miles ($4.50), plus it gives me bonus points in their current 100K miles promotion that will probably earn me another 2000 miles ($30), so my net cost is around $228.
The reason miles are so hard to cash in for free flights is that so many road warriors are smart like tomvehoski in accumulating those miles. I recall some business executive bought some expensive car on his credit card for $100,000 + and with other credit card purchases made on behalf of family and company, accumulated one million miles in credits in less than three months.

Airlines are also reducing the number of award seats available, or making you use double miles to eliminate restrictions. If you book early enough (or at the last minute) and can be flexible with your dates and routing you may be able to find what you want. Also look at partners - If you have NW miles, you can also spend them for flights on Delta, Continental, and any other skyteam partner. Same for the other alliances out there.

This seemed like the most appropriate thread to post this in...

After several terrible, rotten, horrible business trips I vowed not to use certain airlines and airports again. Has anyone else done this? A few road warriors I know have mentioned that they will never fly through O'Hare if they can avoid it. Part of the point in my question is to find out what airlines and airports to avoid.

The other part is to wonder why aviation, which is such a regulated industry, seems to have no systems in place for continuous improvement. I know there are measurments obtained (on time departure, lost luggage), but what is done with the data?

Having said that, I will huddle in the corner while people throw things at me and explain how much better things are than they seem.

Thanks,
Linda

This seemed like the most appropriate thread to post this in...

After several terrible, rotten, horrible business trips I vowed not to use certain airlines and airports again. Has anyone else done this? A few road warriors I know have mentioned that they will never fly through O'Hare if they can avoid it. Part of the point in my question is to find out what airlines and airports to avoid.

The other part is to wonder why aviation, which is such a regulated industry, seems to have no systems in place for continuous improvement. I know there are measurments obtained (on time departure, lost luggage), but what is done with the data?

Having said that, I will huddle in the corner while people throw things at me and explain how much better things are than they seem.

Thanks,
Linda

Avoid ASA out of Augusta (and Macon), GA if you really need to get where you are going on the day you plan to be there. Trust me.

This seemed like the most appropriate thread to post this in...

After several terrible, rotten, horrible business trips I vowed not to use certain airlines and airports again. Has anyone else done this? A few road warriors I know have mentioned that they will never fly through O'Hare if they can avoid it. Part of the point in my question is to find out what airlines and airports to avoid.

The other part is to wonder why aviation, which is such a regulated industry, seems to have no systems in place for continuous improvement. I know there are measurments obtained (on time departure, lost luggage), but what is done with the data?

Having said that, I will huddle in the corner while people throw things at me and explain how much better things are than they seem.

Thanks,
Linda


I assume every road warrior has a few horrible experiences. I have a few airports and airlines I avoid at all costs (US Air, American Airlines, Newark airport). Problem is, my worst list is what other travelers think are just fine. We each have our own war stories. But there are few consensus opinions...other than maybe Newark...

As for avoiding individual airlines, every one of them has its good and bad points. The thing to remember is that any individual experience is statistically insignificant in the overall scheme of things. You can't draw the conclusion that airline X is bad because my flight last week was delayed, but airline Y is great because I got bumped up to first class three years ago. With millions of flights a year the 50-60 I take are still too small a sample to evaluate anything on a global basis.

Your airline of choice will often have more to do with where you live, where you fly and how much they charge. I do recommend you look at www.flyertalk.com where the pool of frequent travelers is large so you can start to draw some conclusions, but again what is good for me may be bad for someone else, so you have to form your own opinion.

You also can't rely on articles, statistics and so on. Jet Blue got blasted in the press because of their performace during the snowstorms earlier this year, but still ended up first in customer satisfaction in a recent survey.

Airports are a little easier to predict. I don't have much reason to go through O'hare, but I do hear it is one of the worst for delays. I personally avoid Atlanta - especially during the summer since a 20 minute thunderstorm can cause rolling delays for hours. Note these are two of the busiest airports in the country and are maxed out at capacity, so when something goes wrong it is tough to recover.

As for continuous improvement, the airline industry is mainly drivin by the cost of a ticket. Most travelers will pick whatever flight is $2 cheaper without regards to if, or where, they have to connect, are there pillows on board, what are the on-time numbers, etc. This has pushed airlines to cut amenities, staffing and anything else they can (pretty much anything but safety) to get their price to show as the lowest when you check for a flight online.

Simple advice is to get elite status with whatever airline works best with your routings and stick with them. This lets you line jump security, phone agents and other hassles. Join the club/lounge if their locations fit your travel so you have a calm place to relax in airports. Always expect things will be go wrong and plan accordingly. My rule of thumb is to expect to be two hours late domestic and a day late international. If one of those delays means I miss something of major importance, I pick an earlier flight.

Tom, while I agree with what you are saying for most airlines/flights, my "airline to avoid" has earned their clipped wings. It used to be an open secret that folks around here could drive 1 hour to Augusta and catch a small Delta jet to their connection in ATL. The walks, check in times, and general hassle were much less of a problem, and often there was little difference in ticket price. The service was very dependable.

Then, Delta gave the gates to ASA. They fly Brazilias and the like.

A couple of years ago I had a meeting in Baton Rouge. I had an ASA flight that was supposed to depart at 12:10PM. We got to AUG at around 11:00, and the flight was listed as delayed. That was all the info I could get out of the ticket counter. The plane for the 3:00 flight to ATL arrived, and those passengers were allowed to load, as the 12:10 passengers were made to leave the gate area. After the plane was loaded and the door closed (less than 30 seconds later) my flight was suddenly listed as canceled.

I could have driven to ATL in time to make my connection if I had been told at 12:00 that the plane was still in Macon, broken down, and would not be fixed until parts arrived the next day.

I had to scramble to rearrange my schedule. They lied to me for 4 hours, when the truth would have saved my trip.

So, yeah it was just one flight, and was my flight, but as far as I am concerned they can take their planes and........

I've had the opposite experience with irregular operations with Delta, Northwest and KLM in the last year. I don't think that gate agents always intentionally lie about situations - I think it is more poor communication between dispatch, gate agents and maintenance. Not to mention the hope that the situation will be resolved and things can move on. How many people here have had a machine in the shop break down, plan an hour to fix it, then it turns to two hours, four and so on?

I had a gate agent with Delta in Huntsville, AL check all kinds of reroutes for me when I was delayed to ATL, then home to Detroit. It was weather that had caused ATL to have a meltdown, so I inquired about going via Cincinnati. He checked and said he could do it, but he advised against it since CVG was also having problems and there was no guarantee of my connection happening. ATL at least has more options, so I agreed to stick with my planned route. It was a not so fun Friday night eating dinner on the floor in ATL, but that is life. I will say that the Delta phone system is beyond useless with their voice activated system that never works with airport background noise.

Northwest sent me a text message last week that my flight was delayed an hour - about three hours before departure. I did some searching online and found the plane was late leaving Corning NY for Detroit, which then delayed the inbound to HSV, therefore delaying my flight. It was only an hour so I did not search for other options. NW did at least keep updating their website with estimated departure time, and it really turned into a 45 minute delay.

No matter what, business travel is not much fun.

Let's see....12 hours to go from Houston Bush to Fort Smith, Arkansas by jet last Friday (about 500 airmiles). T'was a bit long that day.

Let's see....12 hours to go from Houston Bush to Fort Smith, Arkansas by jet last Friday (about 500 airmiles). T'was a bit long that day.


...I think you could have hitchhiked that one, amigo...:D

I've had the opposite experience with irregular operations with Delta, Northwest and KLM in the last year. I don't think that gate agents always intentionally lie about situations - I think it is more poor communication between dispatch, gate agents and maintenance. Not to mention the hope that the situation will be resolved and things can move on. How many people here have had a machine in the shop break down, plan an hour to fix it, then it turns to two hours, four and so on?

... I will say that the Delta phone system is beyond useless with their voice activated system that never works with airport background noise.

....No matter what, business travel is not much fun.


I don't think Delta and other airlines TELL their gate agents very much. The probably consider it "plausible deniability." I call it telling the truth slowly, and it causes a lot of hassles and difficulty. However, I use Delta as my main airline, and have learned how to manage it.

Delta's voice activated system has a keypad option. The first series of command options should tell you which key to press for the keypad option(#9?).

Thank you all for the great information and support! It is very helpful. After hearing all these stories I realized that I'm less of a road "warrior" and more of a road "camp follower".

...I think you could have hitchhiked that one, amigo...:D


Yeah, doesn't happen often, but it does happen. I wound up eating twice at DFW and talking with some real nice folks heading back to Iraq. (Their flight was delayed as well)

One of my worst experieces with travel happened in a Detriot Hotel. My wife warned me about the crime rate in Detriot before I left.

I checked in around 11:00pm after getting a delayed flight. Around 2:00 am I heard a scratching sound barely awake I noticed that someone was trying to open the door to my room. I had put the safety bolt on. I Jumped up and ran down the small corridor and put my weight into the door (Im a big guy). whoever was on the otherside of the door went stumbling backwards. I quickly opened the door and jumped out on top of him. As my sleepy eyes noticed he was in a suit and possed little threat value. The terrified man explained that he was booked into my room. I grabbed his key card and tried it in the door keeping an eye on him and it lit green (this was a good thing cause in my haste I was standing locked outside my room in my underwear). I apologized and went back to the room.

I called down to the desk clerk and they had no record of my checking in Grrrr. The desk clerk quickly fixed the error. The next morning I spoke to the manager who gave me two free nights stay. Needless to say I never stay in economy hotels anymore while on business. The guy I knocked down was very nice about it at the breakfast buffet the next morning. He also got two free nights stay.

One of my worst experieces with travel happened in a Detriot Hotel. My wife warned me about the crime rate in Detriot before I left.

I checked in around 11:00pm after getting a delayed flight. Around 2:00 am I heard a scratching sound barely awake I noticed that someone was trying to open the door to my room. I had put the safety bolt on. I Jumped up and ran down the small corridor and put my weight into the door (Im a big guy). whoever was on the otherside of the door went stumbling backwards. I quickly opened the door and jumped out on top of him. As my sleepy eyes noticed he was in a suit and possed little threat value. The terrified man explained that he was booked into my room. I grabbed his key card and tried it in the door keeping an eye on him and it lit green (this was a good thing cause in my haste I was standing locked outside my room in my underwear). I apologized and went back to the room.

I called down to the desk clerk and they had no record of my checking in Grrrr. The desk clerk quickly fixed the error. The next morning I spoke to the manager who gave me two free nights stay. Needless to say I never stay in economy hotels anymore while on business. The guy I knocked down was very nice about it at the breakfast buffet the next morning. He also got two free nights stay.

You think you had a bad experience, what about the other guy? Imagine a long day, and finally getting to YOUR room, unlocking the door and being "rejected" onto the floor by some crazy guy in his underwear. Yikes, Detroit is a tough place.:lmao:

I had a similar experience, except I was the one on the outside. The desk gave me a key card for the room. I was about 6:00PM. I went to the 2nd floor, found the room and opened the door. BUT...there was a black sheer nightie laying across the bed, and I heard the shower running. So I slowly and quietly back out and gingerly shut the door. The back down to the front desk to get it resolved. I'm sure glad she was in the shower.

It has become one of my wifes favorite stories. Believe me the next day I was embrassed when I meet the man on the way down to the breakfast buffet. He was great about the whole thing and we had breakfast together and talked about all our work, families and mis-adventures of traveling.

The simple solution to all of this is to immediately put out the Do Not Disturb sign, deadbolt and chain your door as soon as you enter your room - even if you are not in Detroit.

After going to Puerto Rico last year for an audit I realized I was highly allergic to squid (just putting it my mouth causes a reaction) swallowing it caused vomiting and dizziness (no hives for some reason). I went to Japan this year and made it clear to all people involved in the audit that I was allergic to squid. Sure enough we had sushi and even though there was no squid in it, the food was prepared on the same board using the same knives and was presented right next to the squid on the same serving board, enough to give me another reaction of the exact same type as in Puerto Rico...Some people may frown upon seeing a Burger King in a foreign country and see it as culturally deficient, I say...let them eat squid! :lol:

I learned a long, long, long time ago, whilst traveling in distant lands, as a young Marine, to never, never, never ask what kind of meat was on the ever present "meat-on-a-stick".

It still holds true to this day....just savor the flavor:lol: