These are some of the most enjoyable films people of a certain age can view that feature world-wandering seniors. For your next flight, cruise or road trip, I suggest you load up one or more on your iPhone or take along DVDs and a player. They can help pass the long hours in the air, on the ocean or along the highway.

Out To Sea (1997) Two of the screen’s most talented comedians, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, teamed up for several films after they starred in the Broadway-to-film hit, “The Odd Couple” (1968). This comedy was their final one, and the least appreciated by critics. However, I believe it to be one of their best, and the pair’s fumbling at-sea cruise ship adventures are hilarious.

Charlie Gordon (Matthau) and Herb Sullivan (Lemmon) sign on for a free cruise to perform as onboard escorts and dance partners for the many senior single women who typically sail alone. The guys find adventure, romance, mishaps and plenty of laughs as they attempt to fulfill their challenging tasks. (http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/out-to-sea/)

The Straight Story (1999) How often does a senior get to ride a lawnmower cross country? Based on a true story, Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth), a World War II veteran, is considered too elderly and frail to have a driver’s license. However, he’s determined to visit his brother one last time, a stroke victim who isn’t expected to survive.

For traveling the 240 miles from his home in Laurens, Iowa, to Mount Zion, Wisconsin, he decides to do it on a six-mile-per-hour riding mower, because it doesn't require a driver's license. How he accomplishes his task and the adventures and people he experiences along the way make for an interesting and touching travel tale. (http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/the-straight-story)

Did you stay glassy-eyed and sitting straight-up awake all through your last cross-country flight? If you don’t want to repeat the ordeal, consider a few secrets from experts who can snooze almost anywhere at any time.

Book a red-eye: After a full eight hours at work or other heavy daytime schedule, you can crawl aboard exhausted. Then, curl up and sleep your way across the night skies.

Eat light: A big meal before your flight will cause your stomach to keep you awake while trying to digest it.

Shot of brandy: Best sleeping pill ever, but no beer. Suds will keep you running the aisles throughout the flight.

Loose clothing: Be totally comfy and slip off your shoes.

Eye mask and noise-cancelling earphones: Put yourself in your own cocoon, oblivious to external lights and sounds. If it helps, connect your earphones to soothing music.

Get more stretch space: Typically, red eye flights are the most likely to have unsold seats. If your fight isn’t fully booked, as soon as you board, ask the flight attendant to move you to a seat with an empty one next to it. If you’re lucky enough to be the only one in a three-across, you may be able to stretch out like the rich people up front.

While we mostly agree with 19 of them, we beg to differ with number 12, listed as fearing street food. CNN insists that’s a big mistake for timid travelers. (http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/02/travel/20-travel-mistakes/index.html?hpt=hp_bn10)

About avoiding street food, CNN says, “No one wants to get sick on vacation, but why travel all the way to Thailand or Mexico and not eat the local grub? The locals don't like food poisoning any more than you do. If they're in line, consider the place vetted and assume you're going to be fine”.

Maybe that advice applies to younger travelers, with iron tummies strengthened by growing up scarfing Big Macs and Taco Bells. Ask any senior about sensitivity to extra spicy dishes and exotic half-raw seafood, along with possible unsanitary conditions.

When on cruises and other travels, including in U.S. cities, we never eat street foods. It doesn’t matter how clean the stalls seem to be, or the fact that the items are dipped in boiling water or bubbling lard. It just isn’t worth the possible stomach churning sessions that may result.

Why take even a slim chance of spending every hour of the next days hopping around in agony while desperately seeking a nearby toilet (preferably a clean one)? Senior travel is to be enjoyed in good health, not a game of bowel-betting Russian roulette.

All frequent senior travelers have experienced cancelled flights, as well as those delayed long enough to make us miss our next connection. Unfortunately, we’ve often taken out out our alley cat frustration on the wrong people.

So, if anger isn’t the answer, what is? First, don’t get spitting angry at airline employees at the check-in desks. They have no control of weather and schedule glitches, nor whatever else happens to strand you in the airport. Always understand that in almost every case, even if you’re unpleasant, they’ll do everything possible to help you. But sometimes they become overwhelmed.

It happend to a furiously frustrated travel4seniors editor recently, and all he succeeded in doing was make a fool of himself. He and his spouse missed a connecting leg because the first flight was delayed, so they ran over to the airline desk. Ignoring the long line there of others who had also missed their flights, he began ranting, and when the agent told him to go to the back of the line, he griped even more.

Meanwhile, his spouse calmly called the airline troubleshooting number, and politely explained their problem. By phone, she was told to go directly to another gate, where they could immediately board another airline’s soon-to-depart flight to their destination.

One possible solution of missing flights or being stranded is to always have with you the phone number of the airline troubleshooter service. When you have problems with your flight, rather than spit and snarl at airline employees like an angry cat, call it immediately.

The moral of the story may be found in the Bible: A kind answer turneth away wrath. In other words, the editor’s wrathful rant got him "turnethed" away. Meanwhile the spouse’s calm kindness got them seats on another flight.