Diet Help From Continental

Just another service of the airlines!

Continental Airlines really wants to help folks like me lose some weight. Maybe it's so the planes use less fuel when they fly...or maybe the flight attendants are just too busy selling $5.00 beer...or maybe it's part of a concerted effort to make America thinner by eliminating the need to have a 35-calorie snack EVERY time folks board a plane ( a choice I happen to believe!...though I would be more convinced if Michelle Obama were touting the praises of the new plan).
Fact is, this week, Continental Airlines joined United, American and U.S. Airways in eliminating free pretzels on its domestic flights. According to a spokesperson, it was a matter of economics: a savings of about 2.5 million dollars per year.
The new plan calls for a more aggressive hawking of the snack packs, priced at $3.95 and up, a trend that seems to have taken over the industry.
Why am I concerned about Continental Airlines all of a sudden? I fly it a lot. since one of our children works for Continental, we get flight benefits which allow us to make short flights to either Chicago or Cleveland to visit grandchildren at little cost. Granted, short flights don't famish me to the point that I NEED pretzels, but sometimes on a less-than-full-flight, I get two packages! That's 70 calories that I really don't need.
Thanks, Continental, for thinking of my wandering waistline. I'm sticking with you, despite the fact that Delta, Southwest, JetBlue and Air Tran still give free snacks and Southwest takes two bags free. Of course, I never check bags any time so that part is a moot point.
However, now that I will drop a few pounds by avoiding plane snacks, I will have to be extra careful going through security without a belt!