Am I crazy, or maybe just a sucker for punishment?

I’ve booked flights to take Bubble (2), Foghorn (3) and the Woo (5) to the Gold Coast at the end of January…solo.  Hubbster will be staying in good old Melbs to work his butt off…and…bask in the glory of an empty peaceful house.  He says he will miss us, but I know he will be ‘basking,’ at least for a day or two!

Those of you who read my ‘fictional’ story titled ‘The Flying Tigress’ last September may have also guessed that it was the airline staff’s behavior, rather than my children’s that was most challenging and confronting.

This time we will be flying Jetstar.

So it was with excitement that I found that they just so happened to have a sale on flights, at the very same time that I was planning on visiting my parents.  Providing we fly mid-week, $69 flights each way (per person sounded fantastic!)

I was suckered in, and was soon on my Merry way to booking flights online for 4 of us, since Bubble has now reached the magically inconvenient age of two where she is required to purchase a seat, even though she will still sit on my lap!

It wasn’t long before that magnificently low price of $69 crept up though as I was led through pages and pages of screens trying to squeeze as much money out of me as possible.

Do you want to take luggage?

Um, with three children, on a week’s holiday, um..yes.

Good!  We can charge you for that.  Do you want to pick your seats, so you can all sit together?

What, there is a chance you will split me up from the children?  Just try it!

So you don’t want to pay extra, just so you know exactly where we will be seating you?

No, thanks.

Damn! Insurance?  You know you can pay us…just in case we lose the luggage that you paid us extra to be able to take ?

No, thanks…I’ll take my chances.

Would you like to pay for carbon offset.

What the..?  No…thank you.  I just want to pay for the flight…and the luggage.

Okay, how will you be paying?

Mastercard.

Oh goodie!

Pardon?

Nothing.  That’ll be an additional $60 service charge.

What?  In that case then I’ll use Visa.

Okay.  That’ll be…let me see…an additional $60 service charge too!

$60 extra for the privilege of paying by sodding credit card!  Are you kidding me?

Anyway – it reminded me of this hilarious video I saw a while ago.  (Make sure you watch it to the end…it gets better and better!)