On TC's recent United flight from Phoenix to Denver, one flight attendant was especially diligent about getting bags stowed and passengers seated. With departure time fast approaching, he made one last plea over the P.A. system for passengers to get settled: "We've got a reputation to uphold." Pause. Then he came back on. "Granted, it's a bad reputation ..." The plane erupted in laughter and shortly thereafter left the gate.

TC was on hand in Orlando for a big day in Hilton history: the opening of the first Waldorf-Astoria outside of New York. The ribbon-cutting event on the second Waldorf (and a sister property, a Hilton) attracted many bigwigs, including Florida Gov. Charlie Crist. In fact, Peter Kacheris, the properties' managing director, remarked on the large crowd, saying the event had gone from plans for 50 people, to 75, to some 300 attendees. "Let's just hope our forecasts go like that on the occupancy of the hotel," he mused.

Now that Capt. Chesley Sullenberger has returned to active duty, TC wonders what sort of ancillary fee US Airways can charge passengers who are willing to pay to ensure that Captain "Sully" is their pilot?

This summer, singer James Taylor and his band were passengers on a Queen Mary 2 eastbound transatlantic, where they performed two shows in exchange for being able to rehearse for their summer tour that kicked off in Europe. TC hears that J.T. was a gracious guest: He did a meet-and-greet with passengers for an hour over the allotted time. And apparently, Taylor is very famous in the Philippines, so he spent two hours in crew quarters signing autographs, as well.