Time to Resume Doing What We Do Best

[Paul Farkas]

We will never forget the horror of September 11, 2001. Our thoughts are with those who were lost or injured and their families and friends.

The way to honor them is to return to the pursuits that we do best. We must trust our elected officials and those brave indivduals who will follow the direction of our leaders to do the right thing.

As ODs we must rededicate ourselves to be as good as we can be. In that way we can show the terrorists and world that their evil cannot win.

One immediate result of the events of the past week is the cancellation of Vision Expo West. If other national and regional meeting that depend on ODs and exhibitors to travel long distances, lose participants there will be a gap in C/E education, as well as in person information and professional interchange, that is so important.

The profession at least for the short term will be more dependant on the Optometric Print and Internet Media to make up for the inability to travel easily. Seniordoc.org will do every thing possible to help.

Our web site membership is blessed with a significant number of educators and experts in all aspects of Optometric Practice. I'm certain they will respond when questions arise requiring their expertise.

If needed, Docwolf our Web master and the architect of this site has volunteered his time to design and build additional Forums if needed. At present there are several important subjects underway, that we can resume discussing.

The Seniordoc.org mission of Information, Education and on occasion Entertainment has not changed . The new reality has made our reason for being more important than ever.

As always your participation and suggestions are welcome.

 

[Paul Farkas]

Airport Status

I have just returned from Ft. Lauderdale Airport. It was necessary to hand in unused Airline tickets in person to receive full credit. To the best of my knowledge any flight through September 25 can receive full credit if you elect not to use them. Tickets for flights after that time I assume have the usual restrictions. Check with your carrier if you can get through.

The airport was quite empty with only a few passengers checking in. Unusual for mid day but understandable.

Arriving at the entrance to the parking garage the county Police were checking the engine and trunk of every car. Only a 5 minute delay because of the lack of autos. When it is business as usual, the car check line will be very long.

Of course no curb side check in. At least at US Air every bit of luggage was checked before it was put through. This too will add time to your check in.

I was told at American Trans Air, where I received my other refund due to a Chicago Airport closure last week, that they may severely limit carry on luggage. Again, a good idea to check with your carrier before deciding on how to pack.

So for those of you who will be using the airlines leave yourself plenty of time. Pack very carefully since every thing is being inspected. ie nail clippers, scissors and metal nail file might be confiscated.

I made my apologies to the Maine Optometric Association and declined addressing them this weekend. I have never done that before. The flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Boston and transfer to a Portland flight ( The route some of the terrorists used) and then a car rental to Bethel is tiring under normal circumstances. With the flight restrictions just described combined with cancellations due to service cutbacks, I anticipated travel nightmares.

So for now I will spout my thoughts to my fellow ODs, on our web site from the comfort of my office. How are some of the other C/E presenters handling our new reality?

 

[Paul Farkas]

A Report on Personal Experience With Domestic Air Travel

Five weeks after the 9/11 disaster, I took a flight on ATA from Chicago Midway to
Ft. Lauderdale International Airport. I hope my experience will assist you on your next domestic flight.

I used a one way electronic ticket with a reservation made only 3 days prior to departure. A pleasant surprise the ticket had no added penalties for being one way or purchased on short notice. ATA at least has cut out fare gouging for these 2 situations.

I was instructed that only one carry on would be permitted and to arrive 2 hours prior to departure. Much to my surprise there was curbside checking. When the porter checked my ticket he escorted my luggage and me to the inside counter where I was notified that my 2 bags that I wished to check through must be opened and inspected.

Every item in my bags were opened and thoroughly searched. Why me? Perhaps one way tickets are flagged or the fact that I arrived early and the inspectors had the available time to search my belongings. I hate to think I have a suspicious appearance.

After the inspection my only carry on was a lap top computer. It was inspected thoroughly going through the metal detector and again before I boarded the airplane. Why me again? Any one carrying baggage through the metal detector had the carry on items searched. My additional check prior to boarding I imagine was based on the one way ticket.

My ticket and photo ID were carefully inspected at least 4 times during my sojourn from the ticket counter to the boarding area. I felt all these procedures were most comforting. The nice part upon boarding was that passengers having very few carry on items meant no delay in the aisle and the plane took off and landed on time.

My report was going to be 100% positive. The baggage check was not embarrassing since my compulsive nature forced me to pack my soiled laundry in bags in the event I was singled out for inspection. Arriving early allowed me to sample the new food court at Midway and I’m pleased to report the Chinese Fast food was very good.

Then last night Dateline NBC had a report that only 10% of the checked bags are inspected by X- ray for bombs. This can make you a bit uneasy since these terrorists don’t mind blowing themselves up.

I will continue to fly when necessary. Driving long distances is time consuming, expensive and per passenger mile far more dangerous than flying. Being a Seniordoc I’m too old to change my habits because some lunatic zealots are attempting to change our way of life.

It would be helpful if other members who have used Airplanes, Trains and Buses could share their experiences.

 

[Paul Farkas]

Fight Depression

It has been over 7 weeks since the events that changed our lives. Daily reports at home and overseas continue to create anxiety.

Like it or not you have a leadership role and are head cheer leader in your practice. Your staff and ultimately your patients will follow your lead. It is time to cheer up and be optimistic.

Depression is far more contageous and much more likely to be dangerous to the well being of you and those around you than Anthrax . What can you do ?

You can take the advice of our national leaders and make it your patriotic duty to shop to help the economy. If you wish to cheer up the staff and help the local restaurant economy that has been suffering, why not take your staff out to lunch or dinner. Keep the topics on pleasant subjects. You will be amazed how quickly things can take an upbeat mode. Joy is also infectious.

Avoid spending most of your leisure hours watching CNN that has become fixated on one topic and one topic only. " The Crisis!".

With your added free hours away from CNN read or re-read some of our web site "Articles". Many are quite light hearted. Join in the conversations with our members. You will spend time with old friends and maybe even make a few new ones.

Life is too short to keep brooding. I will not let Zealots contol my life. I will travel when and where I wish as I have in the past.

One thing I will add to my knowledge is an attempt to better understand the Middle East, its Society, Politics and Religion. My C/E extends beyond Optometry,so I will attend Liberal Arts courses. Can you share any interesting courses you would recommend to our members?

Paul

 

[Fred Von Gunten O. D.]

Optimists are always winners!

Paul:

I just returned from a week's trip to Casper, WY. My son moved out there almost a year ago,and it sure was great to see him and his wife,AND my almost 2 year old grandson.

Being around youth and children always makes Life wounderful.

Our flights were long, going from Detroit to Cincinnati to Salt Lake City and lastly to Casper,Wy. More direct flights were changed for us because of flight personel layoffs and aircrafts put on hold.

However, every Pilot,flight personel,and ticket represenitive was always smiling and very willing to help at any time. (I'm sure that their additude and optimism was needed for their own mental health,but don't we all try to be positive when our life's needs are at risk?)

Optimism leads to Good in people!
Depression leads to degeneration in people.(and evental death)

Our members need to share their feeling. You have provided the only 3 posts to this Thread!

Come on Everybody,It Time to Resume Doing What We Do Best!

Can we here from you?

Fred

 

[Paul Farkas]

Thank you for the uplifting words Fred. I received this item from a friend and it was so clever, I felt times being what they are, we would make an exception and have a funny on the site.

I hope our friends at DIVA and our women OD members do not take exception. Here goes...


Send the Women!!

> Take all American women who are within five years of menopause - train
> us
> for a few weeks, outfit us with automatic weapons, grenades, gas masks,
> moisturizer with SPF15, Prozac, hormones, chocolate, and canned tuna -
> drop us (parachuted, preferably) across the landscape of Afghanistan,
> and let us do what comes naturally.
> Think about it. Our anger quotient alone, even when doing standard
> stuff like grocery shopping and paying bills, is formidable enough to
> make even armed men in turbans tremble. We've had our children,
> we would gladly suffer or die to protect them and their future. We'd
> like to get away from our husbands, if they haven't left already.
> And for those of us who are single, the prospect of finding a good man
> with
> whom to share life is about as likely as being struck by lightning. We
> have
> nothing to lose. We've survived the water diet, the protein diet, the
> carbohydrate diet, and the grapefruit diet in gyms and saunas across
> America
> and never lost a pound. We can easily survive months in the hostile
> terrain
> of Afghanistan with no food at all! We've spent years tracking down our
> husbands or lovers in bars, hardware stores, or sporting
> events...finding
> bin Laden in some cave will be no problem. Uniting all the warring
> tribes
> of Afghanistan in a new government? Oh, please ... we've planned the
> seating arrangements for in-laws and extended families at Thanksgiving
> dinners for years ... we understand tribal warfare. Between us, we've
> divorced enough husbands to know every trick there is for how they hide,
> launder, or cover up bank accounts and money sources. We know how to
> find that money and we know how to seize it ... with or without the
> government's help! Let us go and fight. The Taliban hates women.
> Imagine their terror as we crawl like ants with hot-flashes over their
> godforsaken terrain. I'm going to write my Congresswoman.
> You should, too!


Have a Great Day !!

 

[Ted Kassalow]

Ted Kassalow--reporting from Manhattan--Today for the first time in a month, I did not have to open my trunk for inspection before parking in a office building near the office. Also, only one police car stationed at a small bridge I take coming to the city.

Despite some concern on my wife's part re:a scheduled trip to France, 2 weeks after the Event, it was therapeutic with the change of scenery--we did buy a European cell phone which we kept on 24 hours a day. Coming back from Paris, as I was just entering the plane, they requested that my carryon be checked in with regular luggage. On arriving at JFK, the bag was not there. It arrived at home a day later minus the lock--nothing was missing but my tootpaste tube had been emptied--were they looking for plastic explosives, foie gras, who knows?

 

[Paul Farkas]

An Interesting Article

Our primary mission at Seniordoc.org is to discuss Optometric issues. However, we are part of a larger society. With this in mind I copied an article that came to me by e mail. It is so appropriate to our times, that I took the liberty of adding it to our topic.

The author wrote...

By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN -- NYTiimes

"So let me see if I've got this all straight now: Pakistan
will allow us to use its bases Mondays, Wednesdays and
Fridays - provided we bomb only Taliban whose names begin
with Omar and who don't have cousins in the Pakistani
secret service. India is with us on Tuesdays and Fridays,
provided it can shell Pakistani forces around Kashmir all
other days. Egypt is with us on Sundays, provided we don't
tell anyone and provided we never mention that we give the
Egyptians $2 billion a year in aid. Yasir Arafat is with us
only after 10 p.m. on weekdays, when Palestinians who have
been dancing in the streets over the World Trade Center
attack have gone to bed. The Northern Alliance is with us,
provided we buy all its troops new sandals and give U.S.
passports to the first 1,000 to reach Kabul.

Israel is with us provided we never question the lunacy of
7,000 Israeli colonial settlers living in the middle of a
million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Kuwait would like
to be with us, it really would, since we saved Kuwait from
Iraq, but two Islamists in the Kuwaiti Parliament spoke out
against the war, so the emir just doesn't want to take any
chances. You understand. The Saudis, of course, want to be
with us, but Saudis are not into war-fighting. That's for
the household help. Don't worry. Prince Alwaleed has
promised to rent us some Bangladeshi soldiers through a
Saudi temp agency - at only a small markup.

The Saudi ruling family would love to cooperate by handing
over its police files on the 15 Saudis involved in the
hijackings, but that would be a violation of its
sovereignty, and, well, you know how much the Saudis
respect sovereignty - like when the Saudi Embassy in
Washington rushed all of Osama bin Laden's relatives out of
America after Sept. 11 on a private Saudi jet, before they
could be properly questioned by the F.B.I.

And then there's my personal favorite: All our Arab-Muslim
allies would love us to get bin Laden quickly, but the
Muslim holy month of Ramadan is coming soon and the Muslim
"street" will not tolerate fighting during Ramadan. Say, do
you remember the 1973 Middle East war, launched by Egypt
and Syria against Israel? Remember what that war was called
in the Arab world? "The Ramadan war" - because that's when
it was started. Oh, well. I guess the Arab world can launch
wars on Ramadan, but not receive them.

My fellow Americans, I hate to say this, but except for the
good old Brits, we're all alone. And at the end of the day,
it's U.S. and British troops who will have to go in, on the
ground, and eliminate bin Laden.

Ah, you ask, but why did we have so many allies in the gulf
war against Iraq? Because the Saudis and Kuwaitis bought
that alliance. They bought the Syrian Army with billions of
dollars for Damascus. They bought us and the Europeans with
promises of huge reconstruction contracts and by covering
all our costs. Indeed, with the money Japan paid, we
actually made a profit on the gulf war; Coalitions "R" Us.

This time we'll have to pay our own way, and for others.
Unfortunately, killing 5,000 innocent Americans in New York
just doesn't get the rest of the world that exercised. In
part we're to blame. The unilateralist message the Bush
team sent from its first day in office - get rid of the
Kyoto climate treaty, forget the biological treaty, forget
arms control, and if the world doesn't like it that's tough
- has now come back to haunt us.

And who can blame other countries for wanting to shake down
U.S. taxpayers when Dick Armey and his greedy band of House
Republicans are doing the same thing - pushing a stimulus
bill with more tax breaks for the rich, lobbyists and
corporations, and virtually nothing for the working
Americans who will fight this war?

My advice: Try not to focus on any of this. Focus instead
on the firemen who rushed into the trade center towers
without asking, "How much?" Focus on the thousands of U.S.
reservists who have left their jobs and families to go
fight in Afghanistan without asking, "What's in it for me?"
Unlike the free-riders in our coalition, these young
Americans know that Sept. 11 is our holy day - the first
day in a just war to preserve our free, multi-religious,
democratic society. And I don't really care if that war
coincides with Ramadan, Christmas, Hanukkah or the Buddha's
birthday - the most respectful and spiritual thing we can
do now is fight it until justice is done. "


Any comments from our overseas Optometrists. The viewpoints from their countries around the world, would be most interesting.

 

[Paul Farkas]

More on Travel

At last the evening news anchor people have a smile on their face. Even CNN changed the subject for at least a moment to ask the same question they asked until September 11. "What happened to Chandra Levy?".

So the media and at least for the short term, the Stock Market has felt some optimism as we approach the Holiday Season. Holiday Season for many of us means travel. This is especially true for our members who will be attending the AAO conference in Philadelphia.

Here is an update on my air travel experiences compared to Adam, our webmaster who travels as part of his MD/MBA day job.
Adam travels with only carry on and very early or very late flights. He reported no delays when passing through security.

My experience travelling mid-day with luggage to check , has been totally different. There was a long line to check baggage that was not accepted curbside. There was a second incredibly slow line through security. On one security line I was forced to go to the executive type supervisor and go to the head of the line or I would have missed my flight.

Other weird rules. Some time every thing is checked carefully and at other airports only cursory inspections. After passing through securityat Midway Airport, Chicago I had lunch in restaurant with table service. The silverware consisted of a regular fork but a plastic knife. Is a fork less of a weapon than than a knife?

This rule must have been designed by the same person that makes you raise your window shade when taking off or landing. I have never received an explanation why this is necessary that makes sense. Any ideas?

The obvious solution to the air travel quandry is arrive two hours early, bring a book and be pleasantly surprised if there is no long wait. Then enjoy a meal at the airport restaurant and let someone else eat the airline fare.

If you plan on using the train to Philadelphia, there are less lines but beware of limited seating. I'm flying to the AAO meeting. First Florida to New York for some meetings, then Bullet Train, NYC to downtown Philadelphia and then back to Florida by Air. As I said in a previous post above, if terrorists can change our life, they have won.

I for one will not let that happen.

See you in Philadelphia.

Paul

 

[Paul Farkas]

A Three Month Progress Report

Today is the 3-month anniversary marking the events of September 11, 2001. That Date will be remembered by all of us. In future years we shall recall what we were doing at the moment the plane smashed into the WTC.

Those of us really seniordocs can remember what we were doing when the news came that Pearl Harbor was being attacked. Another vivid memory was when FDR died suddenly. To us kids he was “ The President”, the only one we ever knew.

I imagine more of our members remember where they were when JFK, Martin Luther King and JFK were assassinated. Perhaps the killing of the Student Protestors at Kent State is ingrained in your memory. It might be of interest to our younger members if some of our more seasoned ODs would share their memories of the WW2 and Kennedy Years.

However life goes on. I’m pleased to report that at least from a visitor’s vantage; New York appears to be getting back to whatever normal is for that pressure cooker environment.

The AAO meeting was well run as usual. The highlight for Adam and myself was being present to see Susan Resnick our Clinical and Research Moderator, achieve passing all parts of an extremely difficult exam to become a Diplomate in the Cornea/ Contact Lens Section. A great honor indeed.

For those interested in learning more about why you should become an AAO member, read the article “FAAO Curious” in the State of Optometry Forum. It is definitely worth the effort.

Travel has become a bit easier but still confusing. We arrived at Ft. Lauderdale Airport 2 hours early as requested. No baggage inspection of checked through items on Delta. Cursory inspection of carry on luggage and a full 2 hours to wait for the flight.

The high-speed train down town New York to down town Philadelphia required only a driver’s license ID. No luggage inspection at all. A comfortable convenient way to travel under 500 miles.

The Air Trans Trip Philadelphia to Ft. Lauderdale was a different story. We again arrived 2 hours early. All luggages had to be opened and were carefully inspected. Carry on luggage also received careful scrutiny. Fortunately the airport on Monday noon was half-empty so check in went smoothly.

It would be useful for others to share their travel experiences so that our members become more comfortable with the idea of getting back on an airplane.


A Happy Holiday Season to all.

 

[Paul Farkas]

Air Travel with Young Children

New safety measures at airports were added on January 18, 2002. In theory all baggage must be inspected by various means before being placed on the airplane. This added measure could create further delays in the boarding process.

This is a report based on a single airport and an individual flight on a single airline. Your experience might be somewhat different. With those cautions in place here is the story…

My daughter Erika decided to take a break from the sunny upper 70s weather in South Florida to return to her home in suburban Chicago for a few weeks to enjoy the overcast weather and the temperature hovering in the teens. Her husband returned to work several weeks earlier, so my wife Carol, accompanied Erika back to Chicago to help on the plane with Maddy, age 29 months and Max age 7 months.

This is a report Carol related to me as a cautionary tale with those of you who plan on air travel with young kids. I dropped them off at Ft.Lauderdale Airport at the United Airline's location.

The first pleasant surprise was that curb side checking was still available and the security line moved rapidly so that I was able say my farewells at that point in less than 15 minutes. Was it really necessary to be there two hours before the scheduled departure with two young children?

So my wife and daughter decide to use the extra time to feed the kids and hope that they would sleep on the plane. Tickets for individual seats were purchased for the childeren as well. The 7-month-old required a heavy car seat to attach to the Airplane seat. (A real safety measure if the plane would crash.) Imagine a Mom travelling alone with 2 babies and a heavy car seat with no help.

There was no pre-boarding for handicapped and people with children. Delays for other passengers while the children were seated. My wife’s seat which was supposed to be across the aisle from the kids disappeared. No help from the airline personnel during boarding or during the flight for that matter. Is this the new airline culture?

My wife finally managed to get her originally planned seat and was able to help during the three-hour flight. It was probably not much fun for the passengers seated near the kids either.

Why can’t the airlines set up a section for those flying with young children? It would make parents happier and would make cranky passengers like me who fly frequently and want peace and quiet not have a look of panic when the kids come on board, fearingthey will be in the next seat.

Happily the plane arrived on time at O’Hare Airport. My son-in-law, Sean took his family in tow. My wife rented her own car and drove to our apartment with strict instructions… “No calls and no grandchildren for a few days”.

Erika will be returning in three weeks to Florida to defrost herself and the kids. She has scheduled this flight with no adult help. It should be very interesting.

The moral of this story is really planning your flights with young children. Carry on board as little as possible. Check your specific airport for security delays and arrive accordingly.

Any other travel stories you wish to share with members are appreciated.

 

[susan resnick]

since you asked...

Two more quick stories of our recent air travel pleasures:

The first incident occurred when my husband and son were returning from the World Series in Phoenix to Islip airport here on Long Island. My husband being compulsively super-punctual arrived more than two hours before the scheduled flight. The lines to check in were fairly long but moved at a steady pace. The lines through security, however were not moving at all. There were no airline personnel pulling people out of order to get the people whose flights were leaving first, through security faster. When Cliff and Marc finally arrived at the gate, they were told the plane had already left! There were four other passengers in the same situation. Then an amazing thing happened (after my husband virtually lost it) - the plane was called back to the gate to get them after it had already taxied down the runway! But that part of the experience was NOT the most stressful part - it was the daggers shooting out of the eyes of the passengers as Cliff, Marc, and the others made their way down the aisle of the plane!!

The second "disappointment" again occurred on a trip to Arizona during the Christmas holidays. We had booked a flight on Delta. It was a midafternoon flight with a change-over in Philadelphia. The ticket stated that dinner would be provided. Apparently due to recent economic problems, the airlines have pretty much stopped serving "meals".. The only problem is that they have not adjusted their ticketing information to reflect this. Needless to say a five hour flight, two teenagers and a bag of chex mix do not a party make!! When we got to the Hertz bus we were dizzy from starvation and proceeded to call our family (11 p.m.) to warn them that we would be raiding their refrigerator upon setting foot in the house. The Hertz bus driver got a good laugh when he heard this cell phone converstation.