Archive for 'Just…Traveling'
Spring in Air
Posted on 24. Feb, 2009 by Deb.
Long ago, I learned that it was better to take my cues as to the season from Mother Nature instead of the calendar. The earth has “broken the back” of winter when Greta, my almost 9-year old Bouvier begins sleeping on tile instead of carpet. There are the first flowers of spring, the daffodils, which I have seen at kid’s school. But the truest indicator is when I see the first robin. This morning, I saw not only the first beautiful red-breasted robin, but an entire flock of robins. Ah….knowing that Spring is around the corner really makes my heart joyous. Fall is my favorite season, but I love Spring as well. All that promise of newness and rebirth.
This week, I have chosen to take some of my workout outside. Most of what I need to do these days is stretching (which I am doing at home) and getting some cardio into my day. I’ve discovered that Miss Greta is aging and out of shape, so taking her with me is good for both of us. There are several really nice parks with walking paths to choose from in the immediate area. I really love the park we went to this morning. When I was a kid, it was a pecan orchard. Many of the old trees are still there, but there is also a small pond and the walking paths are wide. There are also paths that veer into the wooded area, under a bridge, and over to the neighborhood in which my parents reside. My parents still live in the same house that we moved to when I was six.
There is something comforting walking the woods that I ran in as a child.
But I digress. I’m thankful that Spring is in the air. I’m looking forward to some warmth and new growth. And though a part of me has kind of settled in and is nesting in my home, my gypsy side is looking forward to getting out and into the world. I travel into DC on Friday. I have meetings scheduled on Friday afternoon as well as plans for Saturday to visit the Lincoln Exhibit at the American History Museum as well as tickets to see “The Heavens are Hung in Black” at the Ford Theatre. Sunday is reserved to go to early morning Mass and have brunch with the Sunday Washington Post! I am also contemplating an invitation to go to Kansas next week. Do a little bit of work, do a lot of networking and visiting with old clients who are really friends as well. I typically fly for business travel, but since it would give me an opportunity to take my golf clubs… I am contemplating making the 5 hour drive instead.
I can’t believe it’s already time for lunch. Happy Fat Tuesday, folks. Hope you are having a lovely day.
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Where the World is Flat
Posted on 17. Nov, 2008 by Deb.
We are making the drive from West Texas (Midland) into New Mexico (Hobbs). I don’t know if it’s the endless visage of dead grass and flat road ahead or if it’s trying to work on the laptop while riding that is makng me feel a little naseous. Acually, we are in New Mexico now. Just crossed the border into the Land of Enchantment.
I wonder what the pioneers saw when they were traveling here? without the highway, just all this flat, open, dry prairie?
It does, at least, make you thoughtful……
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11/11: Veteran’s Day
Posted on 11. Nov, 2008 by Deb.
In thanks to all the men and women who have given so much of themselves to keep us free.
(This photo is from Arlington National Cemetery, Section 35)
PS – for those who are looking for more Arlington photos or my post from last year: History of Veteran’s Day | Some Personal Thoughts
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My Favorite
Posted on 09. Nov, 2008 by Deb.
Lincoln, I have to say, is my favorite President.
This coming year is the 200th anniversary of his birth and there are several events in DC – mostly exhibits at various Smithsonian Museums. But also, the re-opening of the Ford’s Theater with two shows about Lincoln.
I’ve been to all the Monuments here in DC – Lincoln, Jefferson, Washington, FDR…. the Lincoln is the one I can go back to time and time again. I can stand in awe of the marble statue and read the words of the Gettysburg Address as well as the words of his Second Inauguration Speech. Both were short speeches, but powerful. His Second Inauguration Speech ends with this:
With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.
When I can, I prefer to stay in the heart of downtown DC… The hotel I love is in what was once the General Post Office. Lincoln stood on these grounds and raised the flag here at the dedication May 22, 1861. Across the street is what is now the American Art Museum and Portraiture Gallery. It was the Patent Office in 1865…and is where the 2nd Inaugural Ball was held. Blocks away is the Ford’s Theater, where Lincoln was shot, as well as the Petersen house, which is where Lincoln died.
Today I visited the “Mask of Lincoln” exhibit. Photography was just really beginning to rise, and Lincoln took advantage of the technology and sat for photos often. There were both photos of Lincoln as well as sketches. The audio tour was unique, at least to me: use your cell phone to call a number and use prompts to learn more about particular pieces of the exhibit. Anyway, the exhibit was really amazing….Seeing the young statesman….the photos during the stress of war…and after the loss of a child…. Truly worth every moment of time I spent there.
If Lincoln were running for President during the media / television age of today, I don’t think he would have made it. Reporters would have dug around and discovered his bouts of “melancholia” as well as the hints of his wife’s mental instability. He wasn’t the most handsome man, and we are living in a time where looks tend to be important. In walking around other parts of the museum, I saw the paintings of Stephen Douglas, whom he was running against in 1860 as well as the painting of George McClellan. Both Douglas and McClellan were younger looking and more handsome than Lincoln.
I know I’ve rambled a bit. I have always been a lover of history and this city is really deep in my heart and visiting here reminds me why it’s important that we know our past as we live our lives in the present and plan for our futures….
Time for bed. Night, friends….
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Home Away From Home
Posted on 09. Nov, 2008 by Deb.
I am all checked into my hotel in DC. There are times when a hotel – especially this hotel I am in now – feels more like home than home does. A part of that, I think, has to do with how comfortable it feels here. But the other part is the “comfort rituals” that I perform.
When I can, I unpack. Being able to hang my suits and dresses, place underwear and shorts in a bureau and my toiletries in the bathroom is important for me to feel settled. I write about the gypsy part of my soul, but the “nester” in me wants to not dig in a suitcase. So, now I’m all unpacked, housekeeping has brought me my pet for the week – a teeny – and active – goldfish they have named Nemo. I have a book on my nightstand and my room smells like cinnamon.
That’s one of my personal travel hints, by the way, small air freshener sprays or air fresheners placed in your room can make you more relaxed, if you are a “scent” person. When I began bringing either an air freshener gel things – or a room spray – I began sleeping better in hotels.
Years ago, back when I was living that “white picket fence” life, I always burned candles and had fresh potpourri. Fall and the Holiday season always meant the smell of cinnamon and spice. It’s one of the rituals I miss, but I’m not home enough to buy candles, let alone enjoy burning them. Last month, I was in Bath and Body Works and smelled this amazing smell and it was a Cinnamon and Clove Bud candle. When I told the salesperson I loved it, but it just wasn’t practical for me, she found this wonderful travel sized spray. It’s really yummy and so wonderful. It’s also very potent, so two or three little sprays makes a 400 square foot room smell all warm and inviting for twelve hours or so. Pretty nifty, huh?
One of the other things I do is bring liquid hand soap. I guess it’s a little OCD of me, but I can’t stand to wash my hands with a bar of soap and then reuse it again, especially if I am washing make-up off my hands. Cause then the soap would be DIRTY. I watch sales and when either Softsoap or Dial goes on sale, I stock up. Because, trust me, it’s next to impossible to “re-seal” and keep it from oozing out all into your suitcase if you try to take it back home with you.
I’m worried about next week, though, because I am in 4 hotels over 5 nights as we travel across New Mexico for the public meetings on “the document” I have spent the last six months working on. That’s way too many bottles of soap for me to have to bring along. I will just pack in-expensive travel sized face wash, I guess. I guess those of us that travel a fair amount all have our little travel rituals…..
Now that I’m all checked in, I am going to run across the street and go see a couple of exhibits. I honestly didn’t travel in early to see an exhibit – I traveled in on Sunday because I have to be at the office for a 9 AM meeting and the first flight on Monday doesn’t arrive until 10:30, so it was today. But I have missed “seeing” DC so I am going to take advantage of my time. Besides, it’s an absolutely beautiful day out there and I want to enjoy it.
It’s fall. And I love fall – even more, I think, than I love spring.
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And from Connecticut….
Posted on 30. Oct, 2008 by Deb.
I did want to share a few of my photos. These first two are of the amazing foliage. I felt so blessed to be a part of those crisp days and glorious colors.
And this is Gillette Castle. Which, in some ways looks like Fred and Wilma should live there 
And my favorite of my photos. Mystic Seaport. My photos, by the way, don’t hold a candle to the photos my friend took.
I’m really in the mood to go back. I liked the quiet and the graceful beauty. I also found myself very comfortable…and with a gypsy soul, sometimes, it’s hard to feel comfort when you are still….
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Hartford: Mark Twain Home
Posted on 20. Oct, 2008 by Deb.
I am a woman of few words these days. But I do want to share a couple of photos from the first day of my visit to New England. This is the Mark Twain home – where Samuel Clemens wrote many of his most famous works…
The house was amazing. Decorated by Tiffany and crew. We couldn’t take photos inside, but we could outside. The tour guide had great stories. The first date he took his wife on was to hear Charles Dickens read some of his work. I really wish I could have taken a photo of the Billiard Room, where Clemens wrote. His desk faced the wall, by the way. n So he wouldn’t get distracted…
And Harriet Beecher Stowe’s home – who is just next door.
Fall in lovely here. It’s cool and crisp and the colors are so beautiful. My camera just doesn’t do it justice. today we are going to Gilette Castle and tomorrow to Mystic Seaport.
Happy Monday.
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Jackson Square: New Orleans
Posted on 30. Aug, 2008 by Deb.
It just turns my heart that New Orleans is evacuating due to Hurricane Gustav. I was in New Orleans earlier this year and have been wanting to take a weekend trip back. My thoughts are out to this wonderful city and it’s citizens….
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Never Ending Checklist
Posted on 30. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
The work with my newest client will be (mostly) out of the DC area and my next trip in will involve staying 12 nights in a row. In one way, I am really looking forward to it….because the thing that stresses me on the travel is all the back and forth part. Once I am in a city, I’m usually good.
Especially when I am in DC. I am always good when I am in DC.
But I digress.
I am working on a never ending checklist of things to do before I go. In the last few days I have:
- Bought several new suits (no time to lose enough weight to get into old ones)
- Got my Estrogen Shot
- Bought Pet stuff: dog food, guinea pig food
- Dog to Groomers
- Nails Done
- Hair Colored and Cut
- Cleaner’s
- Kid’s Meds Filled
I know there are still things I need to do….and I need to start packing since I am going for such a long stretch. Good thing I know a couple of folks in DC with washing machines
Now, the good thing about packing is, if I stay at the same hotel each trip, I can leave stuff there. You know, bathroom stuff, and suits that have been cleaned. Stuff like that.
I am hoping a little bit more structure to my work days will help me structure better some other things. For some reason, I find the more I need to do, the more I actually accomplish. We’ll see if it holds true. I am hoping that I will visit the gym at the hotel – and I know that I will do more than a little bit of walking. Part of the reason i chose the hotel I did was that it is in a place where I can walk to places for dinner – or hop the metro and go somewhere.
Tomorrow, I am heading to Dayton, OH and will be visiting the Wright Patterson Air Force Museum. Home Saturday and then back out Sunday evening.
gotta run. Dog is done being groomed. And I have kids to pick up from school in a bit…..
Happy Hump Day!
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Note to Fellow Travelers: Learn to Pack Better
Posted on 28. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
Other Airlines have started it, now American has joined in. Joined in on what? Charging $25 for a 2nd checked bag on Domestic Flights…..
We want to make sure you’re aware of the current checked baggage policies before you head to the airport. Customers who purchase domestic economy class tickets on or after May 12, 2008, may check one bag for free and check a second bag for $25 each way. Our carry-on policy of one personal item (such as a purse or laptop bag) plus one bag remains in place.
Check out the FAQ on AA.Com
I know its about fuel costs – as extra weight in the planes adds to the use of fuel….but I also think it’s a way for the airlines to simply make more money. I’m safe, because I have status with American – this will hurt, not the business travelers, but the leisure travelers……
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Heading Home
Posted on 26. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
Today has been a somewhat leisurely day….breakfast, out to Arlington Cemetery, and then for a nice brisk walk down King Street. I had a lunch that was kind of bad for me, but I figure the walk helped balance that out!
I didn’t realize how beautiful the cherry blossoms are after they have begin to fall. So very lovely…littering the sidewalk or scattered in the grass.
For some reason, I am tired now….but maybe because the airport is boring. not too many folks……the gate agent hasn’t even begun working the flight and we board in about 15 minutes.
My mind is kind of blank right now….as if the things in there are tucked away in the back. I’ll dig them out en flight….I tend to think well then…….
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Need to Visit the Man
Posted on 25. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
I have until tomorrow on this trip….and I am thinking that tonight, I need to visit this man….or at least his Memorial.
I really enjoyed my visit to the Jefferson Memorial earlier this month, but it isn’t in my heart like The Lincoln Memorial is. I think, tonight, after work, I will make a visit to Old Abe… Spring in DC is wonderful…not too hot, not cold….cherry blossoms litter the streets….
Work is going well. Yes, I am already at work. I spent the day in the office yesterday and am starting to begin to mentally settle in. The back and forth will be interesting, as it is with any contract, but I think the true test will be the first two weeks of May when I am up here for the long haul.
I tend to forget things when I pack, so I am beginning a checklist. Clothes and such for 2 solid weeks is different than packing for a weekend.
Time to run so I can head into the office…I have a meeting at 9 AM.
YOU have a truly wonderful and fabulous day!!
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Morning Travels
Posted on 21. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
I am waiting for my flight to board. I feel like it’s been forever since I’ve done an early morning flight like this… I had a car service pick me up this morning…..4:30 AM….my plans for the week have changed slightly, though. This was supposed to be a week where I hid out at a friend’s cabin and did nothing but think and write.
But.
I potential new client needs some help on a project and I have a meeting now in the middle of the week in DC. Which is good, because work always comes first. I just hope I can focus the rest of the week and get some writing done when I really just wanna….relax.
I forget how full these early Monday flights are to the East coast. There are 23 folks on the upgrade list this morning – including me. First 2+ hour flight in six months I haven’t gotten my upgrade, but I’ll live. Watching others trying to talk the gate agent into upgrading them, when they are 11th or 20th on the list has been very amusing. I’m number 3, but I don’t think I’m gonna make it, but the entertainment factor has been well worth it. I am often amazed at the attitudes of travelers who demand they be treated better than everyone else.
It looks to be a good week weather wise, a little rain today but nice the rest of the week. I’m hoping for inspiration…..
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A Change Would Do You Good
Posted on 19. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
If someone were to ask me, I would say that I am incredibly flexible and take changes in stride. In recent months, however, I would agree that I do have some routines. Today, I realized that I like the comfort of sameness in many ways.
I needed some new luggage because no matter how fabulous your luggage is, lots of flights puts way too much wear and tear on it. My middle-sized bag has been on at least 100 flights. It was tired. The deciding factor was when I realized the pop-up handle doesn’t pop up anymore on my small case. Macy’s is having a One-Day sale and everything in luggage is discounted. I tried and tried to find nice, lightweight pieces that fit my needs, including my budget. I ended up getting a duplicate set of my luggage. Seriously.
Then it was on to Verizon, where I am eligible for a new phone. I have had my number, by the way, since 2000. Anyhoo, I looked at all the fancy phones, and blackberries and stuff, but I didn’t want anything I saw. All I use the phone for is to talk and text. I don’t want to email or surf or download ringtones, even. So, I got another Razor…. yes, nice and familiar. But I did get the silver one instead of another pink one.
I pity anyone who has to travel with me. I have my routines, especially where travel is concerned. Any major change in my routine can lead to me losing something – or worse: becoming a crank.
I like to think that I like the excitement of a new city…the lure of a fresh book that I haven’t read…..like the excitement of a first kiss….. but down to it, I like what I like….how I like it.
Sigh. …. Maybe I only think that I am flexible and embrace change…..
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Springish & Shopping
Posted on 10. Apr, 2008 by Deb.
Spring is very much in the air. We are experiencing the weather disturbances that happen….but also the incredibly beautiful days as well.
Home was 85 and sunny when I landed. I changed from my jeans and sweater to a skirt and sandals. I had lunch with Miss O, picked up kid from school, and then had drinks with an old friend…..and sushi for dinner with kid and her boyfriend.
The drawback to traveling and seeing spring come alive in other parts of the country….is I haven’t been able to see spring here in Texas. I have yet to take a single photo of a bluebonnet, like I submitted to the Earth and Sky issue of All Things Girl. The upside, though, is that I am able to experience the beauty of spring in other places, like DC.
I took this photo last week – and the photo that is my header right now…..
Now. totally off topic….of Spring. Shopping. and Returns.
Sometimes when I am shopping, I may buy something that I am not sure about. Today, I took something back that I had changed my mind about. I had the clothing in the original bag, all the tags on them, and had the receipt. I paid cash. But they required a photo ID for the return. That makes no sense to me….. What is up with that??
Another note on shopping. I have suddenly become unhappy with my wardrobe. I’ve bought a new suit, a pair of slacks, a couple of shirts and two pairs of shoes in the last week.
I have purchased some lingerie, but we won’t talk about that little obsession. We’ll pretend I didn’t spend any time at Nordstrom’s, ‘kay?