Terrible, terrible story about a woman who was on a flight from Houston to McAllen, Texas on Saturday when the plane encountered severe turbulence – and the woman broke her neck.

Yes, the seatbelt sign was on – but she was in the restroom.

Two others were sent to the hospital – a crew member and a passenger – they were treated and released. The unidentified woman underwent six hours of surgery -it’s not known at this point if her paralysis will be permanent.

Two things: When you’re in your seat, always keep your seatbelt buckled. And stay in your seat. Seriously. Use the restroom before you board – use it after you land.

Great article by travel expert Christopher Elliott here – he warns, there are more and more trip insurance scams out there.

Elliott has some excellent tips. The bummer is, you have to do some work — a fair amount of research just to figure out if you are or aren’t being scammed. But it could save you thousands.

For example, is the policy you’re being sold “insurance” or “protection”? As Elliott points out, insurance is regulated by your state, while protection is not. And even if your trip insurance is legit, does it cover what you want it to? Beware those “existing medical condition” clauses.

Above all – don’t take anyone’s word for anything – read the policy yourself. Every word. And if you don’t understand it, give it to someone who does. Someone you trust.

Yes, this sounds nutty – but what the heck.

Once again, I bring you a Hint from Heloise, courtesy of a woman who doesn’t own a bathroom scale…

“Dear Heloise: Where can I weigh my bags before going to the airport? My vet’s office! It has front-door parking, with the scale a few feet inside the front door and at floor level, thus no high lifting.” –Carolyn in Va.

Heloise’s response was to call the vet first to get permission. Such a nice lady!

My response? Buy a scale.

I know I’m going to take some flak for this, but – when perusing the latest “Hints from Heloise”, I came across this tip:

“Dear Heloise: My husband and I each wear something like the military DOG TAGS. We have our name, city, state, date of birth, blood type, spouse’s name and phone number on one side, and on the other side we have the names of our daughter and son and sister, with the states and phone numbers. We wear these when traveling on vacation – almost every time we leave the house.” – Bonnie, Irvine, Calif.

Heloise seemed to think it was a good idea (“Maybe we should call them ‘people tags’!”) – but my first thought was – with all the info she put on them, Bonnie’s dog tags must hang down to her knees.

My second thought was – kind of macabre, no? I mean it’s perfect if you anticipate disaster. On the other hand, you might as well. I guess.

We’ve all seen those cheery posts – “Top Ten Tips 4 Not Croaking in a Crash” – or something like that.

But here’s the real deal: a nuanced, practical guide to surviving a plane crash – written by an intelligent and imaginative reporter named Tim Jepson of Canada’s Daily Telegraph. Don’t do anything else today, until you read this. Really. It could save your life.

Among Jepson’s findings:

• Protect your legs: a lot of people die in crashes simply because their legs or ankles have been broken and they cannot get out of the plane. DO THIS: “Hold your legs and/or place feet flat on the floor, preferably farther back than your knees, and place hand luggage under the seat in front of you to act as a cushion.”

• Brace yourself carefully: but that’s very tricky in coach – sometimes there’s just not enough room to do what the flight attendants say. DO THIS: “Get your torso as low as possible to reduce the jackknife effect at impact.”

• Avoid smoke: fire and smoke are deadly, and you’ve got to cover your nose and mouth with something wet. DO THIS: Use a handkerchief or rip up some of your clothing for a cloth – and “if no water is available, use urine. This is a matter of life and death – it’s no time to be fastidious.”

• Move: typically, you have 2 minutes or less to get out of a crashed plane alive – but something called “negative panic” may affect you, causing you to sit and wait for orders. DO THIS: Move – force yourself to move, and order those around you to do the same.

There is so much more, so –read it. I’m sure you will never use any of this information. But I’m sure no one ever expected to be standing on the wings of a plane in the Hudson, either…

Just finished reading a stomach-wrenching article on one of “the world’s greatest hitchhikers” — bed bugs. Yes, they are popping up everywhere, according to a company that “bug proofs” mattresses — and you want to leave home without ‘em — and return that way, too.

TIP: When you get into your hotel room, whip out that flashlight you always carry (okay, start carrying one) and examine the edges of the mattress for “dark brownish to black spots or stains that could indicate bed bugs” and if you see that, run screaming through the night. Actually the article doesn’t say what to do if that’s the case, but I’d opt for screaming.

TIP: Never put your suitcase on the floor or the bed of your room — always use the luggage rack.

TIP: When you bring your suitcase home, don’t empty it in the house — empty it in your garage (I’m not kidding, that’s what they say).

See more bed bug tips, right here.

Okay, Christmas is coming — and you need a gift for that “aviation or travel enthusiast”.

Here’s the solution: a book called “Jetliner Cabins” by Jennifer Coutts Clay. It’s about — jetliner cabins. According to the press release, “readers will find in the 16 chapters information about everything from safety, seat design, and fabric selection to meal service, accessibility and maintenance in first-, business- and economy-class cabins.”

Fabric selection — fabulousity! I will leave you with some final thoughts from the author:

“What do passengers get for their money? How are new products, such as sleeper seats and lounge bars, integrated into existing floor plans? Why do some cabin environments feel more welcoming than others? This book is where readers will find answers to some of these difficult questions.” –Jennifer Coutts Clay, “Jetliner Cabins”

I can answer one difficult question — according to the press release, the book goes for $55.

I didn’t even know that silver-haired minx was still writing that “Hints from Heloise” column, but clearly she is, and here is a good one (from the Erie-Times News):

“I’ve seen many uses for cell-phone cameras, but here’s one we use when we travel. Take a few quick photos of your rental car, the license plate and the brand/model logo. It might help you prove the car’s condition upon returning it.” –Hints from Heloise

This is also a great way to FIND your car – ever been in a parking lot populated with rentals that all look like yours? And of course, who can remember the color (my spouse did once suggest that I simply look at the tag attached to the car keys which has a description and license plate number, but Mr. Know-It-All didn’t realize I’d, ah, misplaced those keys…)

BONUS: Heloise’s real name is Ponce Kiah Marchelle Heloise Cruse Evans.

If you like baby animals, your heart will stop when you see the inspired “travel tip” on how-to-pack-a-puppy.

THERE IS A PICTURE! And, step-by-step directions.

This super tip comes to you courtesy of Cute Overload and if you don’t like this site, your heart has already stopped because clearly you quit breathing long ago.

What can I say? This – is cute.

I’m sure you heard the news: starting this summer, if you refuse to give the TSA identification, you will be “denied access to the secure area of airports.” Am assuming these “secure areas” include those “secure ramps” that allow you to get on “secure planes”.

Fine with me.

Now it’s a different matter if you’ve lost your ID (or were a total nutcake and forgot it). You could be subjected to all kinds of “enhanced screening” and maybe “interviews with behavior detection or other law enforcement officers”.

So what’ll they ask you? We turn to our pals at Consumerist.com who tell us that the TSA accesses all kinds of info on you, everything from old addresses to wedding anniversary dates, etc., etc., so you might want to study up on your past and present life.

Personally, I can remember my childhood home phone number — but the rest — pretty blurry.

Saw that Newsday had an article on travel stuff for women so you can keep up your “beauty” regimen on the road without breaking the ol’ 3-ounce liquid rule.

This includes some “sleek” and “elegant” shatter-proof/leak-proof bottles “created by a former flight attendant”.

And she sells 6 of these bottles for just $51.95. Now is that a bargain or what?

ANNE’S ALTERNATIVE: Go to Rite-Aid or CVS; buy cheap plastic bottles (probably can get 6 for less than 2-bucks). Fill them up with your gunk, then place in Zip-loc bag in case these inelegant containers are not leak-proof. Savings: $50.

Just tell me where to pick up my Nobel.

You can’t walk through a check-out line without learning which celebrities are pregnant, which celebrities might be pregnant, which ones are lying about not-being pregnant, and who might be hiding the always elusive “baby bump.” Luckily, the folks at Jaunted have taken the celebrity pregnancy craze and used it for Good instead of Evil.

They break down Nicole Kidman’s and Nicole Richie’s pregnancies and give a lesson in safe air travel. Check out the Jaunted post to find good tips and sources for information on healthy air travel for mothers-to-be.

Was looking up a friend’s flight on Southwest Airlines, checking to see if there were any delays, and saw these Words ‘O Wisdom from the management (and I quote):

“A flight currently shown as delayed may, depending on the circumstances, depart on-time. Therefore, we strongly advise you to check in for the flight one hour prior to its originally scheduled departure time.”

It is a wee bit Alice-in-Wonderland, but the point is, just because a website SEZ your flight’s delayed, dont start dawdling.

Our CEO took this question on a few months ago from a reader and had some pretty darn good advice.

If they get the problem fixed before they thought they could, the plane WILL take off…with you, or without you.

And I suspect this is true for ALL airlines. What do they say, better safe than sorry? Or is it, a stitch in time save nine? Just obey all cliches.