Since I am a professional griper, or at least I strive to be a professional griper, I should complain bitterly and meanly about travelling. It seems that many people who do what I do LOVE to complain about travel. And, yeah, there are some things about it that suck, e.g. missing the family, getting stuck in places like this, (and BTW that has got to be one of the worst airport web pages in the history of the internets), losing your luggage, and bathing in airport restrooms. (Did I forget the "MOOOs" while waiting to board any Southwest flight? I did? Sorry.) Ladies and Gentlemen! It's really not that bad.
Right at this moment I'm sitting in an airport terminal waiting for an airplane that, God willing, gets me home. And this part does suck. But I've been having a great time (until now). I met some new, interesting people. I ate some food that I enjoyed and would probably never have tried had I been with other folks. I saw some sights that are famous (to some people) and I got some insight into what makes them famous sights. I'm smarter now than when I got here. I paid for nothing out of my own pocket, and I spent two work days away and (maybe) spent two hours working.
For the sake of comparing, let's say I stayed home and went to work as normal. I missed one panic which had no basis in fact. I missed one likely chewing-out by a manager who thinks all computers are under her control (and therefore "forbids" trips to the internets that are not "work related"). I missed gripes from one of the supervisors. He's a terrible griper - no imagination at all. I missed at least six meetings, probably more, where my contributions would be ignored if brilliant and complimented if terrible. Hell no! I'm seeing America!
When the weather is clear you can see it. Farms. Highways. Cities. Rivers. What is happening down there? The mystery is heightened at night. What are all those lights? What do they signify? What's fun (for me and I'm weird) is to fly on a Friday night in September or October and see all the football fields lit up for high school football. I don't live in Texas, so for me high school football is still an amateur sport, and it still has all the connotations of something innocent and sweet (something I was at 18 and will never be again).
I'll add more to this bad boy later. Don't want to end it there and have you think I'd gone all soft or something. My plane is fixing to board...
OK I'm back. Yes, I remember now. Riding in planes sucks. I tried the old laptop on the tray table, but when the numbnut in front of me leaned back I abandoned that effort. The flight attendant handed me a diet coke like it was manna. The small child about three rows back howled for the last 15 minutes of the flight, and the mom/grandma (can't tell nowadays) did a very unprofessional job of trying to get the kid to shut the hell up. (Hey, I'm a parent - it's not THAT hard. [well, not for me because, ahem, my kids are perfect]). So, maybe my whole premise is wrong.
Then again, plane flight offers the chance to just sit. Just sitting offers the chance to play on the computer (if the person in front of you is cool), but it also offers up the chance to read a good book, which is something that I have not chosen to do much lately. So I did. Got this one from my brother, very funny but some people might find it an eleven on the flippant and offensive side. If you liked the movie Miracle then you'd enjoy this one, which adds some detail to the stories in the movie. Lastly, if you enjoyed Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath (maybe "enjoyed" is not the right word...) you might try a nonfiction version like this. None has anything to do with business. That would be a good thing.
Right at this moment I'm sitting in an airport terminal waiting for an airplane that, God willing, gets me home. And this part does suck. But I've been having a great time (until now). I met some new, interesting people. I ate some food that I enjoyed and would probably never have tried had I been with other folks. I saw some sights that are famous (to some people) and I got some insight into what makes them famous sights. I'm smarter now than when I got here. I paid for nothing out of my own pocket, and I spent two work days away and (maybe) spent two hours working.
For the sake of comparing, let's say I stayed home and went to work as normal. I missed one panic which had no basis in fact. I missed one likely chewing-out by a manager who thinks all computers are under her control (and therefore "forbids" trips to the internets that are not "work related"). I missed gripes from one of the supervisors. He's a terrible griper - no imagination at all. I missed at least six meetings, probably more, where my contributions would be ignored if brilliant and complimented if terrible. Hell no! I'm seeing America!
When the weather is clear you can see it. Farms. Highways. Cities. Rivers. What is happening down there? The mystery is heightened at night. What are all those lights? What do they signify? What's fun (for me and I'm weird) is to fly on a Friday night in September or October and see all the football fields lit up for high school football. I don't live in Texas, so for me high school football is still an amateur sport, and it still has all the connotations of something innocent and sweet (something I was at 18 and will never be again).
I'll add more to this bad boy later. Don't want to end it there and have you think I'd gone all soft or something. My plane is fixing to board...
OK I'm back. Yes, I remember now. Riding in planes sucks. I tried the old laptop on the tray table, but when the numbnut in front of me leaned back I abandoned that effort. The flight attendant handed me a diet coke like it was manna. The small child about three rows back howled for the last 15 minutes of the flight, and the mom/grandma (can't tell nowadays) did a very unprofessional job of trying to get the kid to shut the hell up. (Hey, I'm a parent - it's not THAT hard. [well, not for me because, ahem, my kids are perfect]). So, maybe my whole premise is wrong.
Then again, plane flight offers the chance to just sit. Just sitting offers the chance to play on the computer (if the person in front of you is cool), but it also offers up the chance to read a good book, which is something that I have not chosen to do much lately. So I did. Got this one from my brother, very funny but some people might find it an eleven on the flippant and offensive side. If you liked the movie Miracle then you'd enjoy this one, which adds some detail to the stories in the movie. Lastly, if you enjoyed Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath (maybe "enjoyed" is not the right word...) you might try a nonfiction version like this. None has anything to do with business. That would be a good thing.
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