Air Mail
The entertainer and activist reveals her travel routine
By Air Mail Staff
July 27, 2024
Half a century into her career, Bette Midler continues to prove that anything you can do, she can do better. At 78, she’s won four Golden Globes, three Grammys, three Emmys, two Tonys, and a BAFTA—and she’s still working. Now she’s starring as a bride-to-be in the new comedy The Fabulous Four, which sees college best friends, played by Susan Sarandon, Sheryl Lee Ralph, and Megan Mullally, make a journey to Key West, Florida, for the big day. Midler shares her unfiltered thoughts on traveling.
But first, a note from the woman herself: “Let me just say, for the record, that I hate the stress that accompanies air travel. There must be a committee somewhere that meets regularly to decide what new thing they can do to the public that will make them even more miserable than they already are. No matter who you are, you’re going to feel the crush of humanity, and it’s just crazy how many of us are all at the airport at the same time, all in line struggling to board and run away or run to. In the best movie I ever made, The Rose, I uttered the immortal line ‘Where’s everybody going?’ And a more trenchant question was never howled fruitlessly at the sky.”
What do you wear to the airport?
The chic-est sweats I can find and slip-on shoes. I bitterly resent having to find a place to sit to tie my shoes again.
Check bags, or carry-on only?
Both, depending on how many public appearances are needed for the trip. For me, getting into an elevator is a public appearance. I often have a carry-on, but I prefer to check it because I am not strong enough to get the bag in the overhead, and I’m always afraid no one will help me, although someone invariably does. I needed a cheap carry-on recently for a flight, and my assistant got one for me. She told me it was their most popular model. When I got to the carousel, it was the first one off the plane. I grabbed it and took it home only to find it wasn’t mine!
What do you bring in your carry-on?
The bare necessities, just in case my luggage gets lost—underwear, toothbrush, shampoo, makeup, etc. But of course there’s always the purse, too, which holds books, glasses, eyeshades, earplugs, socks, makeup, and meds.
What do you buy in the airport terminal?
Absolutely nothing.
What do you do while waiting to board?
Read and people-watch.
Item you can’t fly without?
Socks.
Window, middle, or aisle seat?
Call me selfish, I like the window, although lately I’m happier to be nearer the loo.
How do you pass the time on the plane?
Reading.
Do you buy Wi-Fi?
Nope.
Do you eat plane food?
I do, but never heavy food or sweets. I don’t drink alcohol on a plane ever—that’s deadly.
Best plane food you’ve ever had?
Plane food can be so-so, but on JetBlue Mint, the food used to be really great. They even gave you little tins of Maldon salt, which I found thrilling. I still have my tin and re-fill it regularly. They don’t do that anymore.
Keep shoes on or off on the plane?
Shoes and bra off immediately and socks on.
What do you do when turbulence hits?
Hyperventilate and make frightened-trapped-animal sounds.
Worst part of the flight?
Takeoff. It’s only through my psychic exertions that the plane makes it off the ground in the first place!
First thing you do when the plane lands?
Thank the Lord that I landed safely and give myself a standing ovation. I did it again.
The shoes I can see be taken immediately in the plane…NOW, the bra part got me thinking LOL
Taking other people’s luggage thinking it is yours – done that! LOL. Gladly I didn’t take it home, my husband was faster and realized it wasn’t ours, but he never allowed me to get our luggage again hahahaha
I’m telling you…she’s got undiagnosed ADHD. Major H LOL
I’m positive she has ADHD. I know my mom has it, and she knows but she won’t do anything about it. Yet she was very successful.
Bette is a successful case of self awareness and using her hyperfocus profitably LOL
She is such a genious, that she diagnoses herself without even knowing it LOL.
The following I have gathered lately from her interviews and matches all of mine LOL
. Impulsiveness
. Hypersensitivity (sensorial and emotional). The ear plugs, the socks…I also wear sleeping masks. I have many bc I loose them frequently around the house LOL
. Highly creative people (I have to do things in different ways at school simply bc I get bored if I do things the same way all the time and people say I’m creative LOL)
. Highly intuitive people (once we trust something and someone we go for it and it works. Even though there’s always a part of us privately doubting of everything. But we fake it and do it anyways. That’s why some of us develop what experts call “impostor syndrome”. Part of us just knows it’s something we have to do and part of us say “do I really deserve this? Did it happen to me, seriously?”. I know. Sounds crazy, but ask a self aware ADHD person and they will tell you just that.
. Sleeps too much or not at all; or has trouble to wake up early in general.
. Not a a good driver (gets too distracted). That’s why I myself have never driven in a highway, bc our highways here are INSANE and I feel that if something pops up and distracted I’ll get myself and everyone killed instantly LOL
. Reads compulsively. This is one practice that works almost as meditative state for racing thoughts. We can read and read till our head hurts and it still feels good. Reading and writing organize our thoughts in a unique way. It doesn’t work for all ADHD plp, but reading can be a strategy of preference intuitively. I didn’t have anything else when I was a kid, so I picked the books LOL)
. Impacience of all sorts. It’s not that we are mean, it’s just that we have lower tolerance for things that take took long and we usually have a knack for getting things done faster than most ppl simply bc we can’t wait ?
. Hyperactive women tend to express their mental activity in talking. We talk too fast, link one subject to another way too fast and think to ourselves out-loud (and come out as totally nuts for coworkers who witness the moment) We interrupt people, but it’s not that we are not polite or badly mannered; it’s just that the brain is already a few miles ahead of the interlocutor and we don’t have enough dopamine to control ourselves.
. Eventual mental distress or burn outs. We put so much energy and in everything that eventually we wear our system out. It’s not depression, it’s just our brains trying to recover from such levels of adrenaline and activity. The more energetic we are in our activities, the more time we need to recover.
And there is one more I thought of, but I just lost it, bc I had coffee before my meds and my mind is racing with thoughts, which are embodied in this looooong message LOL
Love you
Xoxo
This was fun LOL