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contact me at:
justin (@) deepdrift dot com
GyozaQuest is a non profitable site,
Dallas, a return to traveling.
I went to Dallas at the beginning of March. My first business trip since the trips to Korea last October. Texas wasn't that bad, at least it was warm, and it was only humid the evening I arrived. In any case I don't think I really spent that much time outside. A lot of the time was spent inside the factory, and sitting in restauraunts, or at the hotel.
Short trip, left Monday, back on Wed night.
You know you've really been traveling too long when you get to the plane after checking in, and the same woman you were sitting next to on the way there, recognizes you, and greets you. She seemed to remember my name, although right now I can only seem to recall it's Angela, Alicia. She's the woman from Toronto, I met on my way to Dallas on Monday, and on the way back to Toronto on Wednesday. I noted on the flight down that she was reading "Shake hands with the devil" maybe it's just my own nytimes reading psyche that immediately put the book as one that was written about the rwandan genocide. However my attempts at conversation were rather shallow, and although I did get a little bit of information about her outI admire someone who's the courage to do system engineering, and then after getting an MBA to start their own company, only to have the software product bought by someone else. I'm sure she's wealthy enough by now to be able to do whatever she wants at this point. in the end after meeting her twice, and being somewhat impressed with her, I gave, nor got a business card nor any further contact information. Single serving friend...
So after taking full advantage of the US Air same day standby policy, including getting an "at the airport only involuntary reroute, missed flight" I made it back into Boston at 10PM. US Air must be really padding it's flight arrival times as it was supposted to be 30 minutes later.
You know you've been flying the same airline too long when you step off the plane, and then realize...
Wait this isn't Terminal C??? Is this still Boston?
<pause, while brain recalculates>
Oh yeah, I'm not flying United for a change.
Upon returning, I realized I'm probably one of the only one of my friends
with the frugality or the gumption to try such a thing.
Well I _think_ I could standby on the flight, and well... I guess that
the worst thing that could happen is that they charge me the full $599
(or whatever, plus taxes and the like) one way fare to Boston. A less
frugal, more controlling biz traveler, would probably have a secretary
calling around, and then confirming the changes, thus incurring all the
change fees, and the reticketing fees.
I should have fought against my gut instinct and just stayed out there
till Saturday, but somehow I had this notion that it would only take a
day. In a sense it did, but I might have enjoyed the flavor of Dallas,
and our service guy out there was definatley a good host.
Anyhow, I guess the last thing to wrap up from the trip of last week.What
surprised me the most was that on the flight back, I was in the very last
row next to the galley, and the bathroom. The flight attendant asked two
people to move to the middle of the plane for "weight balance"
and neither me nor the guy sitting next to me was volunteering. After
waiting a few minutes and seeing that both of us weren't going anywhere,
I said "rock, paper, scissors" He had rock, I had paper. He
moved... I wonder if I should have bought him a drink for the 2 hour flight.
The flight attendant came through with the beverage service. I asked for
milk, the flight attendant said they don't have any. So I asked for coffee,
with cream only. About 15 minutes later, the flight attendant comes to
my seat and says he's found some milk, and asks if I would like to have
it. Of course, I show him the cookies and offer him one, which he declines.
Maybe 15 minutes later he comes back and said he found a box of chocolate
milk too... I accept and thank him for offering that too.
Anyhow, I guess I reminisce, because for some reason... when I was flying
back from Shanghai the first time, United Airlines had no chocolate milk,
and I shrugged it off, but when I got back to Boston, back in August of
2003, for some reason Clara said "sure you can come over" I
think I helped her housemate configure a wireless router. Clara made me
a glass of chocolate milk.
Funny, that I was doing sorta the same thing, trying to fix the network in my home, this past weekend too, and never did figure out what was wrong, after fiddling, and fiddling... I just hooked up eveything again, and it worked.
Since then, I haven't since found chocolate milk again on the plane. I hadn't thought to ask.
March 30, 2006