When traveling with your small child or grandchild, there can be a problem when the strain and lack of rest gets to be too much. Your distress and that of other passengers can happen when there’s uncontrolled crying.

When a similar incident occurred recently on a JetBlue plane awaiting take-off, the captain decided to kick the baby’s family off the plane. Whether you agree with that or not, it has happened before and will again. If you fear it may involve your crying child on a future flight, what can you do to prevent it?

Here are a few suggestions.

Try to keep the child’s eating and sleeping times as close to usual as possible. By booking a red eye flight, find ways to let the child sleep through it. Take alon comfortable kid night clothes and a familiar blanket.

Bring playthings, such as favorite dolls, toys, simple sound and sight electronics with earphones. Try to keep the activities as similar as possible to the child’s normal routine.

Be considerate of other passengers, especially if you’re in the crowded main cabin on your flight. When changing diapers, do it as soon as necessary, and if possible, in a bathroom. When your child cries and fussing continue for more than a few moments, go to a bathroom or rear of the plane until there is quiet.

A recently published list cites the 10 most dangerous cities for pedestrians crossing busy streets. Of course, for those of us who are slowing down in our senior years, the danger can be considerably higher on any city street.

Remember the scene in Urban Cowboy when Ratso Rizzo was almost hit by a NYC taxi? He yelled, “Hey, I’m walkin’ here!” That’s what happened to this writer when crossing a busy street recently in Las Vegas.

I was in a marked crosswalk and walking legally with the red light, but was hit by a taxi. For some reason, the already-stopped driver decided to back away from the crosswalk, and the taxi’s rear end slammed into me and knocked me down.

Fortunately, it was just a bump, resulting only in a bruised butt, elbow and arm. The lesson of this story is that pedestrians crossing busy city streets, especially slowed-down seniors, should be totally aware of what’s happening in all directions. They should stay in marked crossing lanes, and if wandering at night, wear brightly-colored or reflective clothing.

According to a report by Transportation for America, four of the top 10 most dangerous cities for pedestrians are all in Florida. Inattention by both drivers and walkers is the main cause, and with cell phone talk and texting now part of normal behavior, the problem has escalated.

The worst cities, according to the report, are:    Orlando/Kissimmee, Tampa/St. Pete, Jacksonville, Miami/Fort Lauderdale/Pompano, all in Florida. The others include: Riverside/San Bernardino CA, Las Vegas NV, Memphis TN, Phoenix AZ, and Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth TX.

When you see members of the Armed Forces during your travels, take a moment to offer a few words of thanks for their service to our nation. It’ll help them know they’re appreciated, and you’ll feel happy that you brightened their day.

Hey, youse guys! When in Sin City, you just gotta go there! Will it make you an offer you can’t refuse? Located in the former Federal Building in downtown Las Vegas, the Mob Museum recently held opening ceremonies in typical Sin City fashion.

Former Las Vegas mayor and Mob attorney Oscar Goodman conducted several quickie weddings and declared the museum ready for visitors. The central section of the building is the old courtroom where anti-Mob hearings were conducted by the Congressional Kefauver Committee in the 1950s. Of course, every mobster who testified was totally innocent and pleaded the Fifth Amendment.

Local mobsters and popular Vegas entertainers of the time there were required to testify about Mob financing of the city’s explosive growth following World War II. After the guys from New York City arrived, the little desert town suddenly grew to become one of the world’s premier gambling and entertainments destinations. 

Among the exhibits are stories and personal items about famed Mob figures, including Al Capone, Bugsy Siegel, John Gotti and many more.

There’s also the infamous Chicago garage wall from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, and the barber chair where Mob big shot Albert Anastasia was murdered.

Admission prices are $18 for adults, $12 for children, $14 for seniors, military, teachers and police, and $10 for Nevada residents. For more information, go to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .