It's a kind thought, Jessy, but the bakery is in Melbourne, Australia (the other side of my country :-) ) so it would be easier and cheaper for me to call them myself if I needed to know if they were open for Pesach. It was more of a curiosity thing, since as I explained, I have already been there. It was just that while we were in Melbourne I suddenly realised it was almost Pesach but wasn't sure of the actual dates. Then it occured to me that if it WAS Pesach the bakery would almost certainly be closed and we would have a forty minute tram ride for nothing. I don't really need Passover products, I just like Jewish bakery products :-). I also don't really have anyone handier than you guys to ask these questions, since this being Western Australia, the nearest (and only) local synagogue is 100km away :-) We have few Jewish people here, it's a different demographic.

Thanks for all of the info and great tips!!! Sheila, I had known about the shoes thing but forgot - thanks for the reminder, and for the tape tips. Goodness Linda, that's *exactly* what I'm trying to avoid, you poor thing I can only imagine how embarrassed you were - I was at the dollar store this evening buying the ziplocs chanting "quart sized, NOT gallon" just to make sure, lol. Gazania and OK, thanks for the smiles :-)Things here have been interesting but tolerable. I'm taking steps though, towards a better future. House is back on the market, as soon as it sells I can make those big decisions and some further steps towards independence :-) Thanks to everyone else for all of the rest of the tips - ya'll made some good points I hadn't thought about. I think I'll pack my (powder) makeup in the carry on and put the rest (mascara, perfume, shampoos, etc) into the checked bag. I have a fairly small carry on that should fit right under the seat, but that was a great idea about being among the first on if I can help it - I think I'll do that anyway. Since my carry on is so small, I'll need to check my luggage, but thankfully it's a straight flight with no layovers. Another great idea about the meds - I probably would have packed them into the checked luggage since I have sooo many different bottles, but I'll rearrange the packing and keep them in my purse. Thanks for the well-wishes too :-) I'm going to visit a dear friend that I used to work with - she and her family moved away several years ago but we've kept in touch. We've been each others' cheerleaders along the way, and she knows how badly I've needed a hug. It'll be nice to let them be my Calgon and "take me away from it all" for a weekend :-)

I was 9 when I got my first (used) bike - I thought that it was related to birthday, but got it in spring. Maybe for passing a grade? If we had small bikes in those days, I don't remember them: the only ones that I remember are the 26" ones (frame? wheel? I think wheel). Just single-speed ones, with regular tires. Arranged a box atop a small grade ... but even then, some grazed shins, elbows and hands. Rode in our yard and on the gravel sideroad alongside our house and farm, later along the highway to school. When grad into High School, Grade 9 - I got a new bike! If there were three-speed ones, I didn't know of them (till Univ.): the only ones that we knew of in those days were single-speed ones, and a few fellows had balloon-tired ones but most didn't and I didn't have a generator light on mine. Brother nearly 4 years younger inherited the old used one that was my first one. I don't remember when the third brother, a year and a half younger than the one who inherited my old one, got a bike - it would have been a year or two later, most likely. He's very mechanically-minded: as a retired farmer, he now has a ball refurbishing old tractors. Some fellows (maybe those from a small nearby community?) called them a "wheel" ... in recent years, when talking of the time of my mother's death, my cousin said that when I came around the corner of their house on my wheel that day, he knew that something was wrong. When my Mom became ill, she asked his Mom, her brother's wife, to take care of her boys ... and she took that task seriously. Youngest brother (about 6 mos. old) stayed there till ready for school ... he regards those two children almost like brother and sister. I haven't had a bike in many years - don't think that I've ever had one since going to Univ. Maybe I'd better get one of those electric ones ... looking to the day when I lose licence to drive a car. ole joyful P.S. Do you think that they have bikes in heaven? Cars? Or do they travel by levitation? Using wings? Any bumping against others? Or does one just pass right through them? That wouldn't be much fun for the body-shop types! o j

In fairness here, you probably antagonized them too. You drew a line in the sand when you stated for personal and religious beliefs you wanted to opt out. Why say that? I cringed when I read that and they likely hear all the "constitutional rights" arguments and otherwise so in reality you would have probably been better off by saying you preferred the other search. I don't understand bringing religion into it. And also in fairness, some people screech. Did she "screech" just because it was you? I don't think so. And let's be honest here, when you say "I kept thinking to myself, 'this is what happens when you opt out. You lose your wallet and your laptop. Very, very effective.'", you really weren't going into it with a positive attitude and it probably was very apparent. There is a certain amount, though not enough IMO, training and you said you nearly threw up with fear of the gunpowder residue. It's well known that they look for abnormal fear and nervousness, since many people exhibit this when they plan something. Now for the public search, that was inappropriate from what I have seen and heard. My understanding is that it's supposed to be in a separate room. As far as your belongings in the meantime, well, it's not really unlike being arrested. You don't have the right to keep your possessions with you unfortunately. Nevertheless, I do think you have a legitimate complaint here and should pursue it. To say "this was intended to be misery" is a bit of a stretch, especially since you at least unconsciously egged them on. I feel bad that you felt embarrassed, humiliated or otherwise. It's sad that the situation happened. But there are security measures that most people feel are necessary for safe flight these days. You have to be living under a rock to not know about them. It's well known you *don't* take knives knitting needles or any other items that can be perceived as weapons on board a plane. If you recall a few years back, a simple razor blade brought down four airliners so yes, that "little" knife *is* a concern and you can't even bring water or shampoo onboard these days either! And common sense, and publicity tell you don't mention bombs, hijacking or otherwise unless you want "special attention". That's just begging for trouble. I've been searched before and yes it can be upsetting if you make it worse than it is. While I'm sorry you were upset, you really need to give this some thought with a more unbiased view. Again, I'd do some checking on why the search was not done in private. It's even possible that you were making such a big deal out of your phone and stuff that they did it there so you could be near it, IDK. Hope you're feeling better.