A I R M A L I
12 AMERICANWAY
NOVEMBER 1 2007
scolding tone, whichmy own sonhas down
to an art form, to the “you’re wrong, I’m
right”was familiar.
Ona trip toLondon,England(viaAmeri-
can),my sonpackedone small suitcase fora
one-week visit.Our conversationwas strik-
ingly similar to yours. I’m still trying to fi -
ure out how I got sodumb after 54 years of
life experiences,whileMikeJr. got so smart
after just 20. But that’s another story.
Despite my mention of dining out, the
theater, or that we might bump into the
Queen, hepackedvery light.However, I fi -
ured it out: T-shirts are light and take up
little space, and jeans that look20yearsold
are not going to look any different after a
week’swear. I’m told theygetbetter.Notmy
taste, but then, what do I know? I enjoyed
the column as well as the wholemagazine.
Thanks for the simpaticomoment.
MIChAElP. RhodEs, sANdIEgo, CAlIfoRNIA
dEAR MIChAEl:
Jim can definitely relate.
He says, “They say the child is father to the
man. Our sons have taught us a valuable
lesson:PackmoreT-shirts, fewer ties.”
lllll
shERRI’soWNChEERlEAdER
I can’t consider myself a frequent traveler,
but I do manage to get myself in an air-
plane several times a year.
I am not even a reader; I hardly read
in my everyday life. The limitation of not
being able to use any gadget between the
time the aircraft doors close and the time
we reach a certain altitudemakesme open
yourmagazine. The
fi
rst thing I look for is
your editor’snote. I
fi
nd it refreshing.
Don’t be disappointed by the adjective I
have used— to me, your note is the best.
ofshoPPINgANdTEllIEs
I am currently on anAmerican
fl
ight back
toDallas, reading through theJuly 15 issue
of
AmericanWay
.Asusual, youhave lotsof
great articles, but two in particular caught
my attention.
In the article on airport shopping (“Air-
port Shopping: Not So Terminal Any-
more”), I was surprised that you didn’t
mentionMinneapolis,atwhich,onceyou’ve
gone through security, you’dbe forgiven for
thinking you were in any big-city mall in
America. Plus, you can buy a lottery ticket
whilebrowsing theairport shops, somaybe
you’dbe able to afford to shop there.
Also, in the article on chillingout (“ALi-
cense to Chill”), one suggestionwas about
spending time in London and watching
DoctorWho
, and itwasnoted that thispro-
gram isn’t in America. I must have excel-
lent reception onmy telly (British for
TV
),
because I watch
DoctorWho
. It’s available
on BBC America and also on several PBS
stations.
sTEvEWIllIAMsoN, IRvINg, TExAs
dEARsTEvE:
Well, wemanaged to squeeze 11
airports into a list that was only supposed
to contain 10.
Something
had to give. But
thatwas a jolly good catch on
DoctorWho
,
oldboy. Cheerio.
lllll
fAThERKNoWsBEsT?
Jim, I always enjoy your articles in
Ameri-
can Way
— in fact, the fir t place I look
in each new issue is the back page, just to
seewhat part of theworldwe agree on this
month.Your thoughtsabout your son, Sam,
and packing light rang true for me. Every
word delivered in Sam’s sympathetic and
letterRip
We love letters.Maybe it’sbecauseour grandmas alwaysused to tapea
quarter toourbirthdaycardswhenwewere little, andwenowhave this
Pavlovian thing going on. Regardless, wewant tohear from you. Sing
ourpraises,bustourchops,or justtelluswhat’sonyourmind.Send itto
.
