Locator: 49290TRAVEL.
DFW departure.
Pre-check: more than enough TSA folks. Walk right through.
General boarding:
- six ID stations
- six baggage x-ray conveyor belts
- four human scanners: some people have to remove shoes; some people don't
- not told until scanned
TSA staffing:
- only one ID station manned by TSA upon 6:40 a.m. arrival.
- two stations manned as of 7: 00 a.m.
- two baggage x-ray stations in use
- two human scanners.
Line very long; not as long as they will be at Christmas. Normally I get through TSA general screening within 15 minutes at American Airlines, DFW; today about 65 minutes. Line moved steadily; no big deal; read a book while walking through.
Can't imagine traveling with toddlers and standing in line for an hour. Almost worse than Disneyland. They should have separate line for those with toddlers. I don't think the rest of us would mind.
McDonald's right at my gate. Gate 34.
Wow, incredibly fast.
McDonald's never seems to miss a beat. US government -- not so much. Government shutdown enters its 30th day. So, no action on shutdown until next Tuesday. Congress has until that Friday to get something done, otherwise they leave for 9-day vacation starting Friday, COB, November 4, 2025.
Portland: arrived a few minutes ahead of schedule. Almost no turbulence which was a huge surprise. On -board wi-fi worked perfectly. Kudos to American Airlines all around. Portland looks beautiful.
Fire Department trunk or treat was awesome. It is impossible to describe the turnout -- the lines to come in were unbelievable.
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Montana Property Taxes
Incredibly good news. My Montana property taxes are less than half what they were last year, and I think about a quarter of what I paid in property taxes ten years ago. I have no idea what's going on, but I'm not going to ask.
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More
To be continued. Enjoying McDonald's hash browns and coffee.
