Welcome to Toronto!

Well my last trip to Toronto is what started my writing of the blog. It was my experience with the Mini-Cooper, Hertz and Cold, Cold weather. It was one of the posts I enjoyed writing the most. And once I was able to look back and laugh I was really glad I wrote it down.

This trip has had some similarities and many differences.

The differences…
1) I got a SUV (GMC Envoy) instead of a roller-skate (Mini-Cooper)
2) I could see the ground (NO SNOW)

The similarities…
1) The Immigration process is still nerve wracking. I entered and some familiar questions are asked…

a) What’s the purpose of your trip? Business
b) What company do you work for?
c) Who are you working with?
d) Do you have work papers?
e) Are you here as a consultant? NO
f) What are you here doing? Supporting a go-live

For those not familiar with going back and forth between the US and Canada for work. It’s frowned upon to use the word Consultant. He tried to trick me this week into saying that’s what I was here for and I knew better. I was so grateful I made it through without any hassle. Again, it’s one of my worst fears traveling on business – Immigrations. It never bothers me for pleasure.

2) I sail through customs since I have nothing to declare.

3) Hertz still has no cars ready when I get here. I have to wait for them to bring me a car. What a pain – they never have enough cars at Hertz in Toronto. If you travel to this area consider this a warning, if you don’t want to wait choose another rental car agency.

4) Traffic - Very Heavy Traffic...

My drive takes me out of the Toronto Pearson Airport on 409 East to 401 East to 404 North. If you have ever been to this area you know how big these interstates are. If you are not from the area these roads are HUGE and CONGESTED.

They have what they call collectors and express lanes. Every three exits there is an entrance and exit from the express lanes. There are signs that tell you if the collector or express lanes are moving good or slow. The answer today in Five O'Clock traffic was... Slow, Very Slow.

I am always amazed at how much traffic there is here. Where the 401 and 400 cross there were 8 lanes going both directions. It reminds me of Atlanta where I-75 & I-85 join to go downtown.

I thought with all this traffic I’d look-up some statistics about Toronto and post them.

Toronto Stats:

Greater Toronto Area – 5,555,912 (2006)

Toronto is part of what they call the “Golden Horseshoe” which wraps around the end of Lake Ontario. This area has an inner and outer ring, but the population in this surrounding area is 8.1 million people roughly 25% of the population of Canada.

Toronto is the 5th most populous municipality in North America.

The diversity of the people is shown with 49% of the population being born outside Canada.

I hope I get time this week to get out and get some pictures. I really want to go downtown and see the CN tower.

I was not kidnapped, or abducted by aliens…

I know it’s been a while since I have written. I know several people have asked if I was abducted by aliens or kidnapped. I hate to report those are just vicious rumors. Now that I’m back on the road I’ll try to dream up something to write about. .

I had a great two weeks working from home office. It was a very nice break to get off the road and get some of the tasks off my plate that I never have time to do when I’m on the road.

This week I am headed NORTH to Toronto, Ontario. The weather is not going to be the balmy 70’s I’ve had at home but it won’t be like it was last time I was there. The coldest they predicted was for today with 30 degrees and the warmest on Thursday of 51 degrees. Hopefully the 30 was this morning and I’ll miss that all the other lows are mid to upper 30’s.

The past few weeks we did get some things done around the house (YEE HAW). Our new bedroom has the drywall installed, finished and painted as of this weekend. We put the door up and it will be ready for carpet next week. I’ll be glad to see that room finished where we can move the bed from the old room to the new room. Then we take on that room.

Spring Fever

Hey there everyone. Sorry I haven’t written much this week. I have had a raging case of Spring Fever the past two weeks. I have been working from home and when it’s time to get off work I am outta here.

The past two days I’ve taken a walk with my neighbor. Last night we walked around the neighborhood and today we walked about 2 miles through the park that backs up to my house. The trees are in bloom and I have the doors open at the house.

Next week I’m heading north again – Toronto, Ontario. I hope the weather is nice there next week. Other than my trip in January I have not been there to visit. I hope to get out and about next week in the evenings. If any of you have suggestions send them along.

Saturday Ramblings

I don’t have anything to say, so why am I here? I just wanted to give you a few warnings.

If you ever want to have a flood of traffic to your blog from countries around the world make a post like I made on the Pennsylvania town I made the other day. It was so funny I went from readers in 4 countries to 9 within a few minutes. I assume a few of them did not get what they were looking for, but if they did I’d have to say Welcome.

The next thing is beware of Facebook. It’s addictive. I was sent a link by a friend from South Texas and I finally broke down and created a profile. Within a few hours people started finding me and inviting me to their Facebook pages. In roughly a week I have connected with people I have not heard from in years (some as many as 27 years).

It’s been great seeing pictures of old friends on Facebook. But know once you sign up it’s as bad as E-Bay and you will spend days in front of your computer and all of a sudden wake up and wonder what happened to your week.

I guess now that it’s Mid-Day on Saturday I might want to go do something fun like take a shower.

Intercourse, PA

I have a ton of funny stories from my travels over the years. It’s not uncommon that I will work with people for a long time and never see them face to face. It’s the beauty of being able to work from home office.

Years back I was assigned an account in Amish area in Pennsylvania. I was meeting a project manager I had never met before named Jennifer. We actually met in the Cincinnati airport and flew into Harrisburg, PA together. That was our first meeting although we had worked with each other for months on e-mail and phone calls.

I had heard so much about Amish cooking and quilts. When I go to a new area I like to get out and see things, and Jennifer was game for about anything too.

So that night when we checked into the Hilton Garden Inn in Lancaster, PA we asked for suggestions for places to eat Amish food. They kindly told us about a place called “Good and Plenty”. The place was “family style” meaning when enough people show up to fill a table you are all seated together. The only decision you make is your drink.

Jennifer was a good 10 years younger than me and I was just under 40 at the time. She was reading the directions as I was driving. Jennifer started chuckling and saying this must be a typo. I asked her what she meant and she said we were to drive to the exit for “Bird in Hand” and “Intercourse”.

I agreed with her and that we needed to let the hotel know about this typo when we got back. How embarrassing not to catch a typo like this. About five miles later there was the sign as big as could be - Bird in Hand / Intercourse. Of course we both thought what a strange name for a street. Someone had a warped sense of humor.

We had our dinner and it was really good down home cooking. After dinner I wanted to go look at some of the quilts I had heard so much about. The lady behind the cash register was in her late 70’s or maybe even early 80’s. I thought who better to tell me where to find good quilts. Right?

Jennifer was standing behind me when I asked and this little old lady for help. The lady replied that she had a “brochure on intercourse” she could give me. Jennifer could not contain herself all I heard was the clicking of her high heel shoes on the tile floor heading out the door. As the door was closing I heard her roaring laughing. I’m surprised she could keep herself standing when she was laughing that hard.

Of course she left me there to hold a straight face and try to have a conversation with this little old lady. All that kept crossing my mind was “lady I don’t need a brochure on intercourse, I have that one figured out”.

Come to find out there is a town named “Intercourse, PA”. If you have ever seen the movie “Witness” with Harrison Ford you have seen the town on the big screen. It’s a quaint little town and yes they had some really good quilts.

It’s one thing to have a good friend with you when you have these type conversations. But to have someone you barely know with you it just makes it quite a challenge to maintain your composure. Least to say Jennifer and I became fast friends after this since we had about the funniest story from the road that year.

I really enjoyed my time there in the Amish country. I learned a lot about the Amish and since our implementation lasted 9 months. I got to see the area in all the seasons. It was fun to see the horse and buggies and the people working the fields. The farms were so beautiful and the houses were always kept in perfect condition.

I took my mom there on one of my visits and we took a hot air balloon ride over the Amish farms. It was the first time I had been in a hot air balloon and the view from above was spectacular. I would highly recommend a hot air balloon ride to anyone and a visit to this area of the country. It was a most wonderful place to visit.

What’s this? A Life…

This week I am working from home office and I even lucked out enough to get next week home too. It’s really strange being home since I am generally out running cross country every week.

Look at what I missed this week.

1) Packing my suitcase (twice)
2) Getting up at 2:45 AM to leave for the airport (twice)
3) Change time zones (body and watch)
4) Short connections at the Atlanta Airport
5) Sleeping in a strange bed
6) Working out of my laptop bag
7) Putting on a Shirt and Tie
8) Ironing my shirts that got wrinked on the trip
9) Waking up early and staying up late to do normal office work

I forgot how nice it was to work at my desk. The girls (cat and dog) are so glad to have me here. They are right back in the swing with the cat sleeping in the inbox and the dog watching my feet to be sure they don’t go somewhere without her.

I couldn’t pick a better few weeks to be home. The spring season is my favorite in the Carolinas. The trees start blooming in the following order Bradford Pear, Cherry then Dogwoods. The flowers start with Daffodils, Tulips, Azaleas, Jasmine and Wisteria. Over the next month anyone with allergies will have a tough time, but the smell in the air will be so sweet.

So if I don’t write as much this week… It’s because I found a life at home!

What’s in the iPod?

Today the song playing in my iPod is “American Soldier” by Toby Keith. If you want to hear the song and see the video you can find it on youtube.

The reason this song is playing is because I have a cousin and a friend heading to the Middle East today. It doesn’t matter if you are for or against the wars when you have someone that close to you heading to a war zone you experience a little pride and a lot of fear.

Both of these young men are a lot younger than I am (one is young enough to be a son). When I see these young men and women in the airport in Atlanta I am reminded many of the soldiers in the fields are the children of my generation. I know how hard it is to see a relative or friend go, I can’t imagine what it’s like to be a mother or father of one of these young men or women.

Today is not going to be as Happy of a St. Patrick’s Day as next year when I hope to report they are home safe and sound.

What’s in the iPod?

If you have been following my blog you can tell my music selections are all over the board from pop to country. I like just about anything that’s pleasant or that the words mean something. I have well over 4 days worth of music in the iPod and I just put it on songs and let it randomize them. Over the weekend I heard a song that took me way back to the summer between my 2nd and 3rd grade years.

This song was popular in 1972. Charlie Pride was just starting to make it big in Country music. It was a big deal because he was a black man and other than Ray Charles no black man had success in country music.

He had several songs on the charts that year “Kiss an Angel Good Morning” and “Is Anybody Going to San Antonio or Phoenix Arizona”. It was the latter of the songs that brought back these memories for me. I remember we had this 8-Track tape and we played it on our trip from Newport, ARK to Los Angeles, CA. And our route took us through Texas and Arizona.

I can’t recall if we made one or two trips that summer. I know that we left Newport and moved to California that summer. My Aunt Jeanette had just had her second child (Chad) that April. She brought my cousin David who was a few months older than me and he went with us on our trip to California. We saw so much going through the desert southwest including my first memories of the Grand Canyon. We collected rocks along the way and when we got to California we took those rocks and built a wishing well in my grandmother’s back yard.

We had a lot of fun in a camper on a Ford pick-up. It was the kind that had the bed over the cab so we could sit above the drivers and watch where we were going while laying in bed.

While we were in California we got to go to Disneyland. We got to buy fresh cherries and were warned not to eat too many at a time because they would give you the runs. I think that diarrhea threat was to keep us from eating them all at one sitting and let me tell you it didn’t work. David and I ate them all (probably several pounds) and we did not get diarrhea. So much for trying to scare a child, that one didn’t work.

We went from there up to Northern California (Sacramento area) to see my Great Uncle Clarence and Great Aunt Mandy. We got to go fishing on the Sacramento River. We left there to go through the Sequoia’s where the trees are so big you can drive a car through them and the age is measured in thousands of years.

We continued on to Reno, NV. I remember that we couldn’t go in the casinos but we could go through them to get to the restaurants. The slot machines were using real coins and the silver dollars had pictures of the moon on the back of them. I found one of those silver dollars this year that I figure my grandmother gave me.

I remember when we left Newport for the last time. There was a bridge over the White River and my dad told me to look back and remember it because I might never see it again. He was right 37 years have passed and I’ve never been back to that town. And I can’t say I’d have a reason to since it was just one of the many stops in our life.

Some of my memories of our house in Newport are of a levy behind our house. On the other side was a huge cotton field. I had a small mini-bike and I’d go ride all over those fields. I would play on the levy in the backyard for hours.

We didn’t have a lot of money but I never knew it. As far as I was concerned we had everything anyone could want. I find it amazing how rich I thought we were. We may not have had a ton of money but I was rich in the experiences my parents gave me. I could not have asked for more than what we had. We didn’t have Cable TV, DVD Players, Internet, Gameboy’s, etc.. Other than cable TV the rest were not available. I had to go outside and play and make my own fun. It was great!

The Job

I’ve been a business traveler for over 10 years now. Sometimes it seems more like 20 and other times it seems like I just started. When I started traveling I had no clue this would be the perfect career for me. It was one of those just landing in the right place and the realization of “Wow this is what I was meant to do”.

I have landed in my spot and realized it several times in my 30 years of working. My first job was at 14 in a factory making 5 gallon plastic buckets. It was a great way to keep me off the streets and out of trouble (except for the starting to smoke cigarettes part).

I have had some great mentors along the way. Finding the right job is only part of what it takes. Recognizing and utilizing a mentor is what really makes things happen. I have been fortunate enough to have many mentors in my life personally and professionally. The belief they have shown in my abilities and the doors they have opened for me will never be forgotten.

The thing about the consultant role is you go places you would have never picked to visit. You meet people that become friends you didn’t expect. I have been to places I never knew existed and I’ve been to places I would not have picked to visit that became fast favorites. And best of all I have friends all over the place that I’ve made along the way.

Each of the places holds a special place in my heart now. Many of the places I would have never went to had it not been assigned to me. In the future I’ll write about these favorite places and my trips to them.

I have been writing primarily about the Portland area over the past few weeks. The places will change up a little the next few months. I will be going to Canada, California and even better working from home a few weeks. I’m sure I’ll dig up old war stories during the weeks from home.

5 Days in Portland/Vancouver

This week I have had Stefan with me on my trip to Portland. As I’ve said in a past blog he goes out touring and then tells me about all the great things he has seen. A lot of times he will take me to the best spots of the day after I get off work.

This week we hiked to the top of Multnomah Falls just east of Portland. That was our Sunday trip. The falls are beautiful and I have posted pictures of it before but I never get tired of seeing the falls.

Some times the things Stefan sees I don’t get to see because they are so far away. He went to the Oregon Coast on Tuesday. He was telling me how beautiful the drive was and I’m so glad he got pictures. The trees are so beautiful with the snow on them.

When he got to the coast he went to Cannon Beach. Haystack rock is located here and back in the late 80’s I would go camping on the beach there with some friends of mine that lived in Seattle. He was amazed at the beauty of the Oregon Coast. I told him he has only seen a sliver of what Oregon Coast has to offer. Other areas are the Sand Dunes that are a must see.

I got some great ideas from someone I don’t even know that is following my blog. Beck told me that we needed to go to Pittock Mansion in Portland. Stefan went during the day when he could tour the house and he said its “Move in Ready”. He really loved it and told me about the view. He knew I could not tour the mansion but wanted me to see the view. I have pictures of the Mansion and the view of Portland and Mt. Hood from the Mansion grounds.

Pittock Mansion

View from Pittock Mansion

You could also see Mt. St. Helens from the mansion.

Beck - Thank you for such great ideas what to see this week.

**IT Happens 2

I thought everyone would like to know the outcome from my post yesterday.

The Hilton has bent over backwards trying to make up for our little event. I think they have taken it more serious than I did. Yesterday when I got home from work there was a nice basket of snacks and an ice bucket full of beer in the room. Of course I don’t drink so the beer did me no good but Stefan had one.

There was a card apologizing for the event and telling me they had credited me the nights stay. A very nice gesture, but since my expenses are paid it didn’t help me other than make me loose a few Hilton Points for this week.

There was a coupon for a free meal for two at the restaurant in the lobby (which is in the category of Ruth Chris). The meal we had for two was over $125.00. My meals are paid for since I’m here on business and the tip alone was what I generally spend on a meal.

I told Stefan that I needed to remember this trick. If you need a free meal toss some dog poop in your room and report it. Of course that conversation went downhill really fast with a bunch of laughing along the way. His only concerns included how do you collect the specimen, get it through security at the airport, etc.. As you can tell we gave it way more thought than it deserved…

Again, it’s one of those events you just have to laugh off and move on.

**IT Happens

Well this week I have another one of those funny experiences from the road that I will forget in time.

I’m staying at my favorite Hilton, in my favorite corner room overlooking the park this week. I was very happy to find they had assigned me to my room when I arrived.

We had a long flight from the east coast and we went to Multnomah Falls and hiked to the top of the falls (1 mile hike going 700 feet to the top). We were pretty tired when we got here and just crashed.

Yesterday morning I woke up at my normal 5AM and started my day reading e-mails and getting ready. I ran down to get breakfast (to-go) and came back to the room. The chair was not close enough to the table so I moved it a little bit for comfort.

Stefan was at the desk on the computer and he looked at me and asked if that was a leaf on the floor next to me or a turd? Now mind you neither of those really look alike to me, and sure enough I look down and there is a present someone’s little animal left us.

Well I will spare everyone reading this the picture I took. But I did not spare the person at the front desk from seeing it. I certainly didn’t want to be hit with a pet cleaning fee when my pets are at home in South Carolina. Of course the front desk person was mortified. I wasn’t pitching a fit, just stating facts. They know I’m a good customer since I have stayed here 7-8 times since September.

Last night when I got home from touring Portland with Stefan there as a voice mail that they had drinks and snacks they wanted to deliver to our room. Of course at that time of night I am not interested in room service.

Really they should clean the carpets (that’s what the pet fee’s are supposed to be for). It reminds me why I wear socks in my hotel rooms.

I had to laugh it off. When we got home Stefan said I should report to the front desk that someone stole my turd from my room. Or even better report another one that was left overnight. I had a good laugh and decided “It Happens” and just let go of it.

Sunday Ramblings

I’m back on the road to Portland today. This week will be different since I am bringing Stefan along with me. Today he is getting to experience the long journey from South Carolina to Oregon that I’ve been doing almost weekly the past few months.

So far I have watched a movie “Blood Diamond” which is 2 ¼ hours (great movie); taken a nap for 1 ½ hours; I’ve been listening to music over half an hour. This trip just seems to get longer each week. This week I will be on the plane a total of 5 ¾ hours. I am looking at the moving map and we are still over Montana and 1 ½ hours from touch down.

I have brought my scout “Stefan” to find new areas of the Portland area for me to explore. As I wrote last week he goes out and finds all the neatest things and then takes me to see them. This is his first trip to the Pacific Northwest. The weather is going to be chilly and wet the first few days and clear the last few days. So he’ll get the whole Portland experience. I hope he gets to go see some of the cool bridges from Jackie’s blog.

I let him have my favorite seat (1A) I talked about in a past blog. He will be on the side of the plane that has the best view of Mount Hood when we arrive in Portland. I took his seat (my second favorite – Exit Row Window). There is nobody in the middle seat so I have been able to sprawl out more than in a first class seat and with fewer distractions from the flight attendants offering me another beverage. I know they mean well but my bladder is only so big.

This week will be one of the few weeks that I don’t go home to see some new project completed at the house. A few weeks back I came home to see the new fireplace that Stefan built in the downstairs den area.

The remodel really started as moving a door and has morphed into a complete updating of the house (kitchen, floors, bathrooms, laundry room, pouring a concrete driveway, moving walls in the basement to make more rooms). Least to say the cost and time under construction has exceeded what the initial plans were. I know it’s going to be worth it when it’s over. Right now I’m just wondering if it will ever be over. I figure we will be under construction at least another 6-9 months because I’m on the pay as you go plan.

Time Change

My weekends at home are short enough without having to take an hour away from me for a time change. I just got home last night from California and I fly out tomorrow morning at 6AM heading to Portland. Needless to say with this time change my 6AM flight just became a 5AM flight to my body.

I know they started the time change years back for the farmers so they would have more daylight to work in the fields.

The time changes get confusing for those of us who travel. There are several states (Indiana, Arizona and Hawaii) that don’t change times. So if you fly through Phoenix you might be on Mountain Time or Pacific depending on the time of year. And to make it even better Europe, Mexico and the United States can’t even agree on a set date that everyone changes the clocks. So Cancun can be on Central Time except a few short weeks when they end up on Mountain or Eastern time.

I just wish they would split the difference and keep us on the same time all year. Move our clocks 30 minutes between the two and call it quits. I know the programming changes and updates to computer systems would be huge to do this. But it would be done and over with.

Oh well I guess my simple mind doesn’t grasp the real need for this. So I’m going to go enjoy what’s left of my shorter weekend.

What’s in the iPod

I have decided to have a standing “What’s in the iPod” blog. Since the songs prompt me of things to write about or remind me of things from the past. This week I was listening to “Old Dogs, Children and Watermelon Wine” by Tom T Hall.

The song talks about advice he got from an older gentleman in a bar. The old man says there are only three things in the world worth a solitary dime (Old Dogs, Children and Watermelon Wine). I really like the line “Old dog’s care about you even when you make mistakes”. This certainly describes a good dog (old or young).

We have a wonderful dog named Sheeot. Of course she does not think of herself as a dog so much as a princess.

She will be 12 years old this summer and she is still as active as a puppy. She may only weigh 11-12 pounds but she fills the house with laughter, love and playfulness. We are glad that she let’s us share the house with her (she’s kind in that way). She even let us bring home a cat and didn’t kick us out.


I really miss my home office days when I had the cat on my desk in the inbox and Sheeot keeping my feet warm under the desk. They both know when to speak and when to be quiet. For some reason they always sense when I’m on the phone (often better than humans do). Sheeot has been my co-worker for 5 years now. She has supported many conference calls in her days.

No matter what time I come home, or leave she is at the door to greet me or see me off. She is so happy to see me when I walk in the door, she wags her nub of a tail so much it the whole body shakes. Who could ask for a better greeting than that?

She loves playing ball and heaven forbid you have a water hose she is game to catch the water in her mouth. One of her favorite things is to go for a ride in the car. She doesn’t like long distance trips as much as a short one to the store and back.

When I take her with me she always gets special attention. At the drive-thru Cash & Dash gas station she gets a doggy biscuit, at the bank drive-thru she gets a treat. And if you dare take her to Burger King, Hardees or McDonalds she always finds a way to get a freebie.

I guess when you’re that cute life has special advantages. She’s such a special animal we wish we could clone her, but we know there will never be another like her.

Sweet Scents

This week I am in California for my last visit at the client site here. I really enjoy California because of the mild winters. The climate here in Southern California is so mild things that bloom once a year back home will bloom 4-6 times a year here.

I can tell California has had rain since I was last here. Generally the hills are covered with dry grasses. This week every mountain is covered with beautiful green grasses.

The flowers are in bloom and one of my favorite scents is in the air… Citrus trees in bloom.

In the parking lot where I park there are several varieties of citrus trees from lemons, limes, grapefruit and several types of oranges. It’s so nice to be greeted in the morning with the sweet smell of these trees on my way in from the parking lot.

This will be one of the things I will miss about my trips to this area. I’m sure I’ll be back in California again for another client sometime. Until then I’ll have to just depend on my memories. Or hope for a Florida account!

Hidden Jewels…

Sometimes on my trips I find hidden jewels. This year I have been traveling to the Riverside/Ontario California area. During the summer I brought Stefan out while I was working and he does the touring and then comes back and tells me all the neat things he saw. It’s like having a scout go out and then take you to only the best.

On his trip he found a beautiful old motel in downtown Riverside and he wanted to be sure I saw it. The hotel is called “The Mission Inn” and it’s just beautiful. It has great restaurants and they decorated up beautifully at Christmas. They have original oil paintings in the lobby. It’s one of the old style motels.

I couldn’t afford to stay there and our corporate policy keeps us in the Marriott or Hilton chains mostly. I really wish I’d have stayed at this place at least once. I’ve heard it’s fantastic. Maybe I’ll come out and stay on a vacation someday.

Here are some pics I found on the internet of this place. I have a few in my camera but they just are not as good as the ones below.

Remember when...

My trip this week takes me from Myrtle Beach, SC to Ontario, California. It’s one of those weeks where you bounce across the country stopping in multiple cities. Today’s route will take me from Myrtle Beach to Atlanta to Salt Lake City to Ontario California. I could have done a direct flight and arrived at 9:45 PM tonight or take three flights and get to the destination by mid-day.

I’m writing this blog on the flight from Atlanta to Salt Lake City. I was watching the safety video and one of the items they mentioned was that Smoking was not allowed on this flight. It’s been so long since smoking was allowed I wondered why they even felt it necessary to mention it anymore. It made me think about the topic for this blog – remember when.

I have been traveling for business for over 10 years. Long before I traveled for work I was fortunate enough to travel for pleasure. My family has always been scattered across the country so I have been boarding planes since I was a small child. And it must be in my blood because I can’t imagine not traveling.

I remember years back when I was a kid flying was something you would dress up for. You would not consider going on an airplane in flip flops and shorts (not that I haven’t done it since). You actually dressed up for the occasion. Some people today dress up too much for the occasion with all the bracelets, metal belts, jewelry, boots and all the things that make security a joy.

I remember when they implemented and stopped asking the two security questions:
1) Did you pack your own bags?
2) Have your bags been out of your control since you packed them?

I always wondered what they would do if I said “No – my mom packed my bags” or that my bags had only been out of my possession while the airlines had them. Those questions were just stupid and why they ever thought they were a good idea just boggles my mind. Of course it's the FAA and the folks that run the airlines that came up with this brilliant security measure.

I do remember when there were smoking sections on airplanes. They were always in the back rows of First Class and the back of the airplane, generally the last 2-3 rows. And for a part of my life I was a smoker and was darn glad they had them. I remember when they stopped allowing smoking on flights less than 2 hours. I’d book my flights to make sure I had that my flight was 2:05 in duration or longer.

They even announced the cost of the fine if you tampered with the smoke detectors in the bathroom. I often thought about just writing a check so I could have my cigarette. I’m sure there were other smokers on the plane that would have pooled money with me. Heck there were times I’d have considered hanging on to the wing outside if I could have had a smoke.

Eventually the government forced the airlines to stop allowing smoking all together on airplanes (which was a good move). I would book my flights through airports that allowed smoking so I could smoke between flights. I knew all airports and if they allowed smoking. Funny the things addictions will make us do. I am proud to say it’s been 7.5 years since I quit smoking.

I remember when the meals on the planes were free. The options were “Beef or Chicken” and they were actually decent meals served with silverware. Now the options are limited and unless you are in First Class you pay for the meals. And even if you pay for them they are not that good anyway.

Our travel agent sends out a newsletter and it has a humor section. Last month this one stood out because I could see me having this conversation.

“Overheard on a Flight”
The flight attendant was asking the passenger in front of me would you like to have breakfast with us this morning.
The passenger asked what are my choices?
The flight attendant replied: “Yes or No”

Some airlines are charging for everything from baggage, pillows, blankets, water and cokes. Ryan Air (Europe’s Southwest) is said to be looking into charging to use the toilet (loo as they call it). Please don’t let US Airways hear this they might start.

I stopped flying US Airways because they started charging for any and everything. They recently announced they were going to stop charging for beverages. Last year they also decided to start awarding actual mileage credit for frequent flyer miles flown and omit the 500 mile minimum. They rescinded that decision a few months later and credited all these folks with the minimum credit the other airlines give.

It’s too bad because they have already lost my business and I had over a million miles with them at one point. I’ll use up my points but unless I absolutely have to I won’t purchase a ticket from them again. It’s really sad because at one time I thought US Airways was the best airline in the industry. That changed with the America West Merger, and I can't say for the better.

I just have to realize things change.

The pictures below are from my trip today...

Leaving Salt Lake City, UT

Flying in over Big Bear & Lake Arrowhead area in California.

Remodel

Well everyone... Today's blog has nothing to do with travel. Instead it has to do with what's going on at the house while I'm gone traveling and on occasions when I'm home. It's the remodel of the house.

Stefan is doing 99% the work. He has rebuilt my kitchen including creating a pantry out of space that was not well used before. He has resurfaced the counters, built custom cabinets and is currently adding the backsplash. He will be re-building my stovetop island and we will insert a new oven.

The remodel project started with simply enclosing a door and has transformed in to framing in new rooms in the house. I will be glad when it’s over. It seems to take so long while you are in the middle of the project.

Over the weekend we hung sheetrock in a room. It was amazing in a few hours how much a room can be transformed. I didn’t get good pictures to share with you today but maybe in the next week or so I can post some of those.

Until then, here are a few of the kitchen.

Kitchen Cabinets and counter:

Kitchen

The pantry is well stocked. I love it, it's a walk in with shevling from floor to ceiling. There is a window so it's not so enclosed you feel like your in a box. I think we figured it at 50 sq feet. It's huge.