Unfortunately, this is the time of year when it often happens. The best way to avoid missing a flight because of clogged traffic is to anticipate clogged traffic. The best way to avoid a slow security line is to anticipate a slow security line.

Everyone who buys an airline ticket is warned many times to arrive at the airport one hour before a domestic flight and two hours before an overseas flight. That means precisely that you should be entering the security line at those times, not dashing through the airport parking lot nor fuming in a taxi stuck in drive-time traffic.

There are many ocean voyage choices for sailing into those long-awaited sunset years. Options range from a $200 weekend cruise, on up to ownership of an on-board $4 million condo at sea. Of course, there are endless possibilities in between.

A super luxurious condo afloat would be a wonderful home for a retired oil executive or rock star. However, most new retirees would be content to celebrate the occasion with a cruise that goes beyond a few weekend nights.

If it will be your first sailing ever, make it less intimidating by signing up with a group cruise organized by your church, club, college alumni or veterans association. In that way, the unfamiliar experience will be easier to take. Surrounded by friendly faces, you’ll enjoy both the cruise experience and compatible companions.

In-flight entertainment is advancing rapidly. From squinty tiny TV screens 10 rows in front of you to individual seat-back displays of everything from old sitcoms to new movies to breaking news.

Now, according to scientific predictions, virtual reality head-worn devices are soon to become a ... well ... reality. You’ll be able to strap on a magic helmet that takes you away from your cramped airline seat to a Hawaiian beach, Medieval battle game or front-row seat of a Broadway show. And, in the future, even that will be surpassed by making the experience a full three-dimensional immersion, where you’ll be IN the Broadway show.

Consider what the imaginative senior will be able to do, in flight and at home. Dance with Fred Astaire, romance Marilyn, rock with Elvis, run the bases with Jackie Robinson and storm San Juan Hill with Teddy Roosevelt. For the more patriotic, join the wigged guys and sign the Declaration of Independence on a hot July day in Philly.

Guest Frequent Traveler PJJ, Windsor CN: When you visit a foreign country, there’s a great advantage if you can speak with the people there. You really don’t have to be a great conversationalist in Spanish, French, German or Italian. The basic needs are a dozen words and phrases to get quick directions and other information.

I had two years of high school French studies and a year of Italian in college. They’ve served me well through the years when I’ve traveled. More than just book learning, I absorbed the languages in classrooms where many of students were second-generation kids who who spoke them at home. That gave me some of the slang and everyday speech you don’t get in language textbooks.