Hold on a sec... you can't relax when there's people crammed up close to you, yet you like flying? The buses of the sky? Planes are way more cramp than trains. And my problem isn't so much flying, but rather if I'm going to fly. I've sat in airports for 9 hours waiting for my flight to take off at times.
At least when I'm leaving NYC, I can walk home if my flight is cancelled, if I'm flying out of LaGuardia
Truth be told, I was sitting next to my sister and my mother the whole time I was on the plane. There were no strangers next to me, I wasn't interrupted by anyone and half the time I didn't even notice the people around me. I just reclined back and feel asleep while they had the in-flight movie playing.
I assume you flew by yourself? Perhaps that's why your experience was different from mine. I didn't feel cramped because I was already used to the people with me. And everyone else was in front, back, to the right, etc.
However, if I recall, a couple of times the guy behind me kicked the back of my seat for some reason. That's the only time I had any real discomfort.
As for the airport, yeah, the waiting can be hell.