Aisle seats are great for folks who want the option to lean into the aisle. It does make for some ar

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I can clearly only speak for fatties of my similar shape/size or smaller so as to aid you in knowing in advance if this blog post has any relevance cheap hotels new orleans to your life, here is my general body situation.  I am 5 8 (172.5cm) cheap hotels new orleans and weigh around 342lbs (24.4 stone). I m sort of shaped like an oval. Round shoulders, bigger at the top than the bottom, with narrower hips and legs. My pant size varies between a UK26-28. My shirt size varies between UK28-30. I am not one for form-fitting clothing so, if you are, size that down a notch. Note that UK sizing is slightly inconsistent with US sizing. cheap hotels new orleans I ve heard that US sizes are one size larger but I find the whole thing confusing. I can t find my tape measure but my last recorded roundest bit measurement was 63 including the largest circumference of my belly and butt. Again, the narrower hips aid me a bit in fitting in to plane seats, though the larger upper body means contorting a bit to avoid constantly being banged on the arm by toilet-bound passengers and drink carts. Also, I am relatively able-bodied which means I m not able to speak first-hand for those whose mobility may differ.
There s no way around cheap hotels new orleans that fact. It sucks for everyone, not just the fatties. Even First Class flying sucks. It just sucks a little cheap hotels new orleans less and you get a little tiny hot towel that no one actually understands . This blog post does not promise to make flying not suck. There are no secrets you don t know that open magical cheap hotels new orleans doorways to private cheap hotels new orleans airplane compartments with overstuffed couches and big screen TVs replaying episodes of Roseanne. cheap hotels new orleans But I am hoping that sharing my personal experiences and the resultant tips hints will help give a realistic portrayal of flying that both acknowledges the whole sucking part while still presenting it as possible, tolerable and, I hope, worth it for the ways in which it opens up myriad possibilities for new life experiences.
I m not exactly sure (year-wise) when I stopped flying. I just know that, at some point, the anticipatory anxiety cheap hotels new orleans of air travel began to eclipse any/all perceived benefits of pushing through it.  Being a quadruple leo does me a lot of good as an activist but, personally, it means I tend to care far too much about what other people think. cheap hotels new orleans Getting over that will probably be a lifetime endeavor for me and it certainly played a large role in keeping me grounded.  The fear of people staring, saying cruel things, sighing cheap hotels new orleans or making a fuss when I sat next to them or, worse, being asked to leave a flight or purchase two seats all of this felt insurmountable to me.  My world became only as large as my free time and car travel allowed.
Then, A few years ago, I decided to try again. I was working hard and had a little extra money enough to buy a first class, cheap hotels new orleans domestic cheap hotels new orleans ticket. I flew from Portland, OR to New York for the annual NOLOSE conference.  It sucked, but I made it. Encouraged, I tried again the next year, this time with a coach ticket on Jet Blue, which I d heard good things about from fellow fatties. cheap hotels new orleans I lived!  Then, two years ago, I fell in love with my best friend cheap hotels new orleans who had, of course, up and moved back to London. Imagine my fatty chagrin. International air travel?!? ME?!? But I steeled myself, determined to not let fear dictate the terms of my love-life.  Fueled by lust and giddy with romance, I closed my eyes and jumped. I did the fatty unthinkable I booked a single, standard coach seat on an International flight. It was all I could afford. I decided to just get to the airport and let the cards fall where they may.
Imagine my surprise when I actually fit in the seat. And no one said a thing.  Granted, the guy next to me was a bit of a jerk. He actually took up more room than I did in an effort to put me in my place . Luckily I was so doe-eyed about my first trip to England and seeing that Girl o mine that I didn t have it in me to give a crap. I just rolled my eyes, popped a Tylenol-PM and went to sleep. When I woke up, I was in England! And my whole life changed. I ve clocked more fatty air miles in the last 2 years than in the rest of my entire life combined. And while it s never what I d call enjoyable, it s possible. Doable. and Tolerable. (for me.)
Boarding: If you re at the back of the plane, opt for the pre-boarding. They don t really argue at the gate and the boarding call is general: For our passengers with children or those who require extra time boarding the plane. Opting for early boarding will save you unintentionally hip-checking a hundred people as you pass down the aisle and will also give you time to ask the Stewards for a seatbelt extension without holding up the line. Granted, asking at the onset may mean they forget with all the hustle. If that happens, don t fret. Just catch their eye and raise a finger and they ll likely remember.
Pre-boarding will also allow you to raise the armrest next to you and get settled before your fellow passengers arrive. You can negotiate with them when they arrive about how they feel about leaving the armrest up and, if they are kind, that might afford you another inch or so of hip room.
You never know who has cancelled last-minute or if people have shifted around on the plane. Explain your situation and ask if there are any seats available next to an empty seat. If they can accommodate you, they will.  And if you somehow end up in a middle seat, ask them to check with any passenger traveling alone in an aisle or window seat to see if they will change places with you. It s a long-shot, but it never hurts to ask. While you re at it, ask if there are any empty seats in business or first class. The worst you ll hear is no.
If you do end up with a middle seat and no alternatives, wait until you are on the plane and ask the passenger next to you to switch. Explain that everyone cheap hotels new orleans will be happier if you can lean into the aisle or against the window. Most folks will be too polite to say no.
There s good and bad to both and what you choose is really up to your personal preference.  Window seats are great if you ve got a camel bladder like I do. I can hold it with the best of em.  The only risk to window seats is that, depending on the placement of the window, you may have more or less shoulder room. This is just a 50/50 risk, plain n simple. The curve of a well-placed window is great for leaning, but the hard wall between the curves can make for awkward sleeping. Still, it s nice to not have to jump up every time someone has to use the bathroom. I got stuck on a plane once with an increasingly manic rugby coach who kept jumping up to snort cocaine in the bathroom. I finally just made him switch seats with me and we were both much happier.
Aisle seats are great for folks who want the option to lean into the aisle. It does make for some arm-bumping if you re bigger in the upper body like me, but it s a reasonable trade-off if you don t mind interrupted snoozing.
Totally not fun. I m bendy, thankfully, so I can manage with some acrobatic maneuvering but I avoid drinking water for a couple of hours before any flight and I only drink soda while traveling. Not the healthiest option for hydration s sake so be careful of you are prone to dehydration and be sure to drink a LOT of water after any flight. Some International flights have accessible bathrooms which tend to be marginally larger. Ask the stewards as you are boarding if there are any on the plane. Best advice: PEE BEFORE YOU GET ON THE PLANE.
If you can wrangle it, traveling with a lover or a friend is SO MUCH NICER. My partner happens to be smaller than I am and that has some benefits cheap hotels new orleans when traveling. She also likes it when I squish up next to her and that s awful nice, too.  Traveling with other rad fatties is nice as well. You don t have to argue about the armrest going up. It s just a given! The distraction and comfort of traveling with someone you like is really wonderful and a huge stress-reliever.
Feel free to stand up when the fasten seatbelt signs are off. There s generally a bit of standing room at the back and/or front of the plane near the restrooms, especially on International flights.  Being wedged into an airplane cheap hotels new orleans seat sucks and it s terrible for your circulation. Standing for even just a few minutes at a time, even just stretching in the aisle next to your seat, offers some welcome relief and helps thwart the potential for flight-induced thrombosis. If standing isn t an option, be sure you stretch your legs out where possible.
In 2006 a fellow fatty and I hopped a plane from Portland to Vegas.  It was one of those tiny little propeller planes with two seats to either side of the aisle. cheap hotels new orleans Whooboy, that sucked.  We liked each other a whole lot and that, combined with the merciful brevity of the flight, was really the only saving grace. We basically just wedged together, cheap hotels new orleans took turns being each other s armrests, and cracked sardine jokes for the duration. But we got there. And that s the important thing.
I avoid these like hipsters avoid self-actualization. If I can drive, take a train, bus or ferry, I will opt for that instead. If I can fly with a smaller friend, I will. But pretty much it s an emphatic NO wherever possible. If you find yourself with no other options, buy two seats if you re my size or larger.
Also, bear in mind that, for even smaller planes such as those which fly folks across to the Aran Islands from the Irish mainland, you may be required to physically step on a scale in order to aid in load balancing. For the most part, they weigh everyone. They also weigh luggage/cargo.  Do not take this personally. You re just part of the equation. You w