Essay 306

Traveling by ground and air with MultiCultClassics Minutes…

• Schools in Arizona and Massachusetts have discovered a new source of revenue — advertising on buses. Michigan and Colorado are poised to follow the trend. “This will spread across the nation, because there’s so much money that will come into schools as a result of doing this,” said an official at the Scottsdale Unified School District. Coming soon: Crossing guards with reflective sandwich boards hawking the local Wal-Mart.

• Airlines have discovered a new source of revenue — immigrant travelers. Traditionally taken for granted as a minor segment, carriers are now desperately seeking to woo the audience. From hiring multilingual staffers to revising carry-on restrictions to accommodate folks that often have extra luggage, the airlines are adapting to meet the needs. Coming soon: Dora The Explorer Frequent Flier Program.

• Oprah’s private jet collided with a bird, cracking the windshield and requiring an emergency landing. Oprah will probably refer to it as another “Crash” moment.