I had to fly commercial to go pick up my new-to-me purchase (Arrow II) some 1140NM (1162 actual flown) away. First I had to drive 3 freggin' hours at O dark thirty in order to be at the cattle port a good 1.5-2 hours prior to takeoff. Then the circus that is security ensues. It's 0530 and it's a zoo in there. It's literally an out of body experience. Most of civilization is still snoozing, but in this terminal the level of anxiety over missing flights due to TSA is just overbearing. Everybody is freaking out, nobody is having a good time. It's just miserable, or numbing, depending on how frequently a commercial passenger you are for the year.
Then you share the most personal 24 inches of shoulder room with your favorite stranger you'll never see again, and pay $650 dollars (after bag fees) one-way for the privilege.
Get to my destination. Buy Arrow. Go to sleep; too tired to even think about starting the flight back on the same day (good ADM). Next day, spend an amazing 9.4 flying hours split over three sorties (4.1,3.8,1.5) crossing this great Country of ours from Canadian border to Mexican border and land 2 miles from my house.
The messed up part? It was the same block hour day as going commercial, but literally landed more rested flying 9.4 on my own, even behind a crappo piper autocontrol AP (worked beautifully btw), than having spent the same block hours in a combination of driving, dodging 0500 drunk driver sleepy traffic, fondled by TSA and sweating out of one armpit (courtesy of airline shoulder room posture) for a 2.7 hour Delta flight.
The airline thing is out of control. I do it to see my parents once a year because I can't drive to the Caribbean. Other than that, if I can't fly the Arrow, you live too far and I just stay home. No level of airline discount pricing is worth that pain to me.
P.S. Arrow fuel bill was $415 for that day. Commercial adventure in contrast set me back $188 in one way car rental plus $655 one way ticket... for the same block day, and to end up more rested by actually flying myself the whole way.