Skycaps at LAX

work the curb v. perform the skycap’s job. “I’ve been working this curb since April 1964.”

irate n. angry traveler.

Mr. Woody n. passenger who tips well. ant. snake.

slice v. withhold a tip. rel. home run n. exceptionally generous tip. “That snake in the BMW sliced me, but I got a home run from that Mr. Woody.”

TWIP abbr. Trans World Important Persons. List of celebrities flying TWA that’s given to skycaps at beginning of their shifts. (George Benson was a recent TWIP.)

spider n. the Theme Restaurant building.

outside belt n. curbside conveyor that moves luggage into the terminal.

laser v. apply bar-coded destination stickers to luggage. “Laser those bags before you put them on the outside belt.”

camera gig n. assignment handling luggage for a film crew.

trolley n. rentable luggage cart. Term adopted by skycaps from British Airways passengers.

stupid shuttle n. derogatory variant of Super Shuttle.