Hasta La Vista, Texas!

Today marks my last Texas trip for work. It's likely I am jinxing myself by saying that, but technically, they have hired a replacement and that should mean my services are no longer necessary. It's also likely this will be my last trip since I will probably refuse to return. I started my Linear Algebra course this week and since that meets twice a week, traveling between offices is no longer feasible. ************************************************************************************* Since I started my traveling in June, I have spent 30 nights in Dallas. Over one month of my life this year was spent away from my home office, my husband and my dog. I know many people travel much more than that, but I am not built that way and am glad to be done. I've learned a few things along the way: ************************************************************************************* * 1. True torture is being close enough to a Chipotle to see it, but unable to partake. Damn the 114 highway and my lack of a rental car. ************************************************************************************* * 2. I don't really like my regular job. I enjoyed the last few months in this office under temporary assignment much more than I have enjoyed my real job in quite some time. Thankfully, grad school is almost upon me. ************************************************************************************* * 3. Women that don't wear makeup and/or highly stylize their hair are FREAKS in the state of Texas. I know that my minimalist approach to beauty was frightening to the other women in the office and I really got a kick out of their horror at my appearance some days. ************************************************************************************* * 4. Black swans are beautiful. The hotel I stayed at most has two black swans living next to their pool area... It's odd and I would visit the swans after each workout and converse with them via whistles... (Some nights were lonely, leave me alone.) ************************************************************************************* * 5. There are at least two Democrats in Texas. I met them both. ************************************************************************************* * 6. Preferred Guest Programs are the bomb when used well. As I type, I am enjoying a free glass of Chardonnay on behalf of the hotel. The free breakfast and chocolate dipped strawberries came earlier. ************************************************************************************* * 7. Texas drivers don’t have any qualms with running down pedestrians, it’s “walker beware” in the Big D. ************************************************************************************* * 8. Dallas Love Airport is awesome. It has a “backdoor” security area that most people don’t know about and you can carry open beers throughout the terminal. ************************************************************************************* * 9. I can pack a carry on suitcase in a way that will boggle most people's minds. While I am not quite a George Clooney's level in "Up in the Air," I am pretty close. Last week when I went through security, the TSA guy said, "Looks like you've done this a few times before." True praise! ************************************************************************************* * 10. The frequent flier miles were nice, the hotel perks and room service made life easier and I avoided my boss for over a month of this year, but none of the good stuff compares to how much I missed seeing Daniel and Riley each evening. I am ready to be home with them.