Pay to Play - One of the Ways to Fly

After decades of standing in lines for security checks when I need to fly somewhere, I bit the proverbial bullet two weeks ago and signed up for an appointment to get a TSA Pre-Check number. I drove up to Toledo this afternoon for my appointment.

Things have changed when it comes to flying. A whole lot since my first trip on a commercial airline back in 1988.

When it comes to safety issues, I don't have a problem with most airlines. I'd rather sit patiently while the Detroit Airport personnel de-ice our wings a second time, rather than plunge into the frigid waters of Lake St. Clair in the middle of January. Or divert to Austin when a violent thunderstorm rattles the Bush Airport in Houston.

What I had a problem with was paying to skip the security line. It's awesome for people who can afford the fee, but it sucks for those who can't. Frankly, I've been on both sides of the equation.

So what changed my mind about paying the fee? I turn the big 6-0 soon. It's sinking into my pea-brain that my time is more valuable to me because, let's face it, I'm on the downhill slide to oblivion. And there's people I want to visit and places I want to see (again in some cases) before I lose them.

Over the next year and a half alone, four trips are already lined up, including a class I really want to go to in Las Vegas. If I can breeze through lines with my tiny overnight bag and my backpack, that's more time I can spend with my friends, check out places on my bucket list that I want to see, and revisit my old haunts.

Yep, I know I'm damn lucky to be privileged enough to have these experiences. But like Neil Gaiman's Death say, "You get what everyone gets. You get a lifetime."

And I want to make the most of mine.