ANYTHING but the Middle Seat of an Airplane

Anything but the Middle Seat of an Airplane

Photo by David Lytle from San Francisco, CA, USA (L1090686.JPG)

Is there anything worse than sitting in the middle seat of an airplane?

When you’ve been forced to do it, have you ever had two people of normal size sit next to you on both sides?

Does anyone enjoy having the thighs,  hips and shoulder of a total stranger smashed up against them for hours? Or an elbow poking them for the same length of time?

Is it planned torture by the airlines — or just the booby prize for buying tickets at the last minute (since middle seats are, no doubt, the only seats left)?

I was having a happy day and not pondering the things above at all, until I received a (nearly) impossible-to-resist email offer from Huffington Post millionairess Arianna Huffington inviting me to sign up for $100 quarterly “surprise packages,” and went to the website to check out what was in them.  (You know how thrifty I am — of course I wasn’t going to buy them – but did want to know what you got for $100!)

The latest quarterly package contained a Nap Wrap, which is that started me thinking about this subject.

It turns out a product’s now being marketed to help fliers avoid being intrusive and allow them to nap at the same time.

That’s nice (and very creative), but why should anyone have to even think about purchasing an item like this to sit comfortably on an airplane, when they’ve paid hundreds of dollars for a ticket?

The whole airplane middle seat situation just seems wrong to me — on so many levels.

And the illustrations on the Nap Wrap website of “responsible passengers” being encouraged to tie their arms together to “relax” during a flight just tick me off.

I guess it’s because I feel as uncomfortable as the people with their arms tied together in the illustrations look every single time I have to fly in a middle seat and am trying to do the right thing.

Here’s an idea: What if all travelers buy one of these devices, stow it in their carry-on and ask the person sprawling all over them in the next seat to put it on?

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Daniel Nest, blogger at Nest Expressed, wrote a very funny follow-on about the Nap Wrap called WTF Report: “Napwrap—the arm trap.” Check it out!

This entry was posted in airplanes, middle seat of an airplane, nap wrap, perils of flying, uncomfortable airplane seat and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

11 Responses to ANYTHING but the Middle Seat of an Airplane

  1. During my peak career years, I flew enough cross-country, red-eye flights to really appreciate your story. Your marvelous idea should immediately become law. Thanks.

  2. Carolann says:

    Oh my that’s a lot on money to spend for sure…I’ve had some very uncomfortable seating experieces on places and busses too. What a nightmare. Once this overweight fellow sat in the window seat and I was literally hanging over the edge of the seat for the whole trip. He refused to take the end seat and hangover and let me instead. It was terrible for sure.
    Carolann recently posted…A Makeup Vanity Transformation Using Chalk PaintsMy Profile

  3. Jetgirl says:

    haha. So true. Come fly on my airplane. There are no middle seats!! Of course, there are only 50-70 seats, and everyone always complains about “oh, it’s a LITTLE plane” but there are no middle seats! I think they’re all “first class. ” 🙂
    Jetgirl recently posted…SoCS — Two sides of a coinMy Profile

  4. Really, what is the world coming to?! Completely with you on this lunacy! Now off to check out a nap wrap… 😉
    Glasgowdragonfly recently posted…Dance like nobody is watchingMy Profile

  5. Daniel Nest says:

    I agree. Middle seats on airplanes are the work of the Devil.

    Also, I think it’s unfair that NapWrap claims to be a new invention. Straight jackets have existed for years. All they’ve done is create a “lite” version.
    Daniel Nest recently posted…WTF Report: “The hidden wisdom of Sarah Palin”My Profile

  6. Kinley says:

    Ugh, this JUST happened to me. I missed a connecting flight due to a delay, so instead of the normal aisle seat I always choose, I got stuck in a middle seat between two very large men! I was wishing for an entire body wrap for them!

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