As much as most people look forward to seeing their friends and relatives over the holidays, almost no one looks forward to holiday air travel. The combination of full planes, unpredictable fall weather and more than the usual number of occasional travelers, can make for a rougher than usual airport experience.

The most helpful tip, as I have written before, is probably a sense of humor. Some of the things that go on in airports and on planes are the kinds of stories you couldn’t make up. (In fact, I am convinced that television and movie writers use some of these incidents verbatim in their scripts, not to mention late-night comics.)

But on a practical level, there are some things you should do differently this week. Here are five easy ones, which may or may not seem obvious.

1. If you park at the airport, call the garage you are planning to use first. The time to find out that the garage is full is not when you pull up to the ticket machine. (This is unfortunately from the voice of experience.) Some private lots take reservations, and worst case, if every place is full and you haven’t left home yet, there is still the option of a taxi or maybe a last-minute plea to a friend.
2. Leave for the airport early. As early as possible. While normally I don’t worry enough to get to the airport any more than the recommended minimum advance time, holiday rules are different. It’s not just that lines are longer and there are more families traveling, it’s that there is a lot less “give” in the system. If you miss a plane, or a flight is delayed so that you will miss a connection, there are far fewer backup options.
3. When there are no windows or aisles available, accept a middle seat rather than waiting for a seat assignment at the gate. This doesn’t mean you can’t still ask at the gate for something better. But in case of serious overbooking and a lack of volunteers, if you really need to be on the plane, it’s safer to have a boarding pass.
4. Take advantage of online check-in. If you have a boarding pass, even with checked luggage you can use the curbside check-in for a fee and avoid the basic lines. While kiosks have generally speeded up this process a bit, during holiday times this is less true, as infrequent travelers often get confused by the machines, and staff cutbacks mean less airline employees available to help them.
5. Consider packing a lunch if you have time. This might sound trivial, but on more than a few occasions around the holidays, I have seen lines that rival security lines at food service outlets. Which means the choice can be go hungry, take a chance that the overpriced selections on the planes will still be available, or risk missing your plane. Besides, even splurging on an expensive deli sandwich or salad in advance will probably be cheaper than airport food anyway.

Finally, if despite all your best intentions and planning, you still ending up with the travel day from hell, remember this — If you are flying somewhere for the holidays, at least you probably won’t have to worry about cooking.

Have i missed out anything ? Mail me at dejoe@dide3d.com

Get Crafty
Get together with family and friends for an afternoon to make your own soaps, potpourri, cards, baked goods, decorations, jewelry, or other crafts. You don’t need to be Martha Stewart. Some activities, like soap-making, can be as easy as using a microwave to melt glycerin and letting it harden in a mold; or with jewelry making, stringing beads on a nylon thread and adding a clasp. Kids can express their creative side, then give the finished products as gifts.

The experience of doing projects together can also be a gift in itself. “Last year my wife and kids gave me a big box of edible decorations (fruit, nuts, seeds, peanut butter) which we hung on a tree in our back yard for the birds and animals,” says New American Dream member Mike Giles of Amherst, Massachusetts. “We have a tradition of making edible bird feeders and hanging them on trees to mark the winter solstice as well.”

Plan an Event
Instead of giving a material gift, take a loved one to a concert, cultural performance, museum, or sports game. Or create a new tradition by organizing an event such as a sports game at home. Get together a group of neighbors, family, or friends for a football match or reserve an indoor basketball court for an evening. (Or, if you’re less athletically inclined, try a night of Scrabble, karaoke, or ping pong.)

“One year we took our family to see A Christmas Carol instead of just buying presents,” said New American Dream Director of Operations Nancy Smith. “The kids really enjoyed it and remembered it more than anything they opened Christmas morning.”

Take a Trip in Nature
Think the winter weather means you need to stay bundled indoors? Think again!

“We take an annual trip to Mt. Hood at Christmas with our son and granddaughters,” said former New American Dream Board Member and Northwest Earth Institute founder Dick Roy. “The girls and I spend a great deal of time ‘tracking’ in the snow and trying to figure out what animals left the tracks and what the critters were doing at the time. The girls really get into it! When we started this tradition in 2001, I thought young girls (now 5 and 7) would get cabin fever being with us for five days. In fact, this is as much fun for them as our week each summer on the Oregon coast where the weather is warm and they have free rein to run without being dragged down by heavy clothing.”

Being in nature doesn’t have to mean traveling far or renting a cabin, either; it can just mean appreciating what’s nearby. “When I’m with my parents, we walk on the beach,” said New American Dream member Kim Robinson of Brooklyn, New York. “We love discovering the tidal pools full of urchins and other creatures.”

Redecorate
Sure, it’s fun to decorate for the holidays and make popcorn and cranberry garlands or homemade menorahs with the kids. But what about offering to redecorate a child’s room as a gift in itself?

Let your child pick out his or her favorite color of paint or choose a new decorative trim for the walls. Go to thrift stores together for new end tables, a wacky vintage lamp, shelving, or overstuffed armchairs. Look for interesting pieces of potential art, like old record covers to frame and hang. Have your child help with the hands-on work, too, like painting and moving the furniture.

Marketers are always telling us to spend, spend, spend during the holidays season. Why not find more ways to spend time instead of just money? After all, it’s not money that makes lasting memories. For additional suggestions on nontraditional gifts and ways to spend more time with family, send me an email to dejoe@dide3d.com

Faithful readers know I’ve been raving about rechargeable NiMH batteries for years. Having enough spare NiMH rechargeables tucked in a kitchen drawer will see you through the darkest night … literally.

Truth be told, no one is ever excited to rip the gift wrap off a battery charger and set of rechargeable batteries (even if you’ve made the gift wrap yourself).

Just give ‘em time.

With enough in the proverbial drawer, you’ll never have to endure the inevitable post-holiday question: “Brother can you spare … a battery?”

I bought my last batch of spare batteries (Sanyo Eneloop NiMH AAs) last winter. They’ve held up well and I’ll be adding more of the same to the collection this month.

No one’s ever been fired for buying too many spare batteries.

Or have they?