An empty airport feels so much freer than a full one. Somehow, you are suddenly outside the boundaries of normal travel. The rushing, the snacks, the bustling bathrooms, they do not belong to you. Instead you are in a world of silence, more seats than you could ever need, room for the carryons and the big stroller and the bottles of water and the computer, ipod, dvd player, novel, newspaper, cellphone, and even the kids. There is room for everything.

Right up until you board the plane.