On Monday afternoon I board a Southwest Airlines flight for Phoenix. In Phoenix I meet up with a co-worker that I have only met once or twice. We share a rental car to the hotel. It is only about 80 degree today, so I get out for a good 6 mile run along a bicycle trail and dry wash that I found near the hotel. During the run I see two other runners, one cyclist, two of the birds with the mohawk-shaped feathers on the head, and a number of jackrabbits. Other than being dry and dehydrated, it is a good run.
After a shower I meet up with my co-worker, Person F_I, and we go have dinner and get to know each other and talk about his sons, ice hockey, cycling, the war in Iraq, and other things. Person F_I is very knowledgeable and I like him (in a professional and friendship manner, by the way).
On Tuesday I wake up at 5:15 am and cannot fall back asleep, so I get up and run 4 miles to get the day started. We have a good, day-long meeting with interesting technical exchanges and programmatic issues. The meeting goes well so Person F_I and I head for the airport to catch an early flight home.
We get to the airport and Person F_I wants to go to the ticket counter, "...to change our flight reservations". But I twist his arm with, "There's a 5pm flight and a 5:30pm flight out of the C concourse. We'll just go to the gate and get on the plane." Person F_I gives me a hard time and insists that we will not be able to get through security without a boarding pass, but I grab his arm and start walking, "There isn't an airport security gate on the planet that I can't get through." Person F_I is skeptical, especially during these times, but he comes along. It only takes me a few weasle words to have security let us go to the gate without a boarding pass, exchange our tickets, and get on the 5pm plane.
On Tuesday night I fall asleep before 11pm but wake up at 2am and cannot fall back asleep. This response is very atypical for me. But there are many things going through my mind. There are many emotions running wild right now. I feel good, if tired, physically from the stress relief and fun physical activities. I get up and surf the Internet and talk with a few people before heading back to bed at 3:45am to salvage some sleep for the night.
On Wednesday afternoon, following a reasonably productive dat at Northrop Grumman, I'm riding the motorcycle and the rain starts. It keeps getting heavier as I get closer to home. At the sweeping corner that I usually take in the dry at more than 105 mph (front end steering wobble and all) I can only go about 70 mph today. The 70 mph is more due to other cars going slowly as opposed to the capability of the rider and the motorcycle to go around the very wet corner. Won't these people ever learn how to drive in the rain?