Last Friday was my final workday of 2011. Yes, that's right. You read me correctly. My last 2011 workday.
It wasn't all smooth sailing, however, since the end of that day. No, I had to prepare for my annual flight home AND the office "Holiday Pot Luck" which was on Monday.
So many things had to be done...things had to be mailed, things had to be shipped, things had to be cleaned, things had to be picked up, things had to be sorted through and things had to be cooked. I prepared a huge bowl of green beans, a sweet potato souffle and two coconut pies. That was my contribution to the potluck which was tons of fun.
When I got out of bed Tuesday morning (travel day), I placed my suitcase on my bed and began the ordeal of selecting what I would be wearing for the next two weeks.
This was an ongoing (until about 2 p.m.) task until I realized I was done and could close everything up and place it near the front door.
I flew out of San Francisco at 10 p.m., arrived in Atlanta at 5:20 a.m. yesterday and departed Atlanta for Columbia (SC) Airport at 8:10 a.m. We arrived at 9:09 a.m.
During my trek to Columbia, it occurred to me that I had failed to pack a couple of things that were essential to my peace of my mind, so I told my mom we'd need to stop at a Walmart to pick up a few things. It turned out she and my aunt, both, needed things from Walmart.
Thus began Day 1 of my trip home for the holidays. We had beef stew and cornbread for lunch, and then I retired for a 5-hour nap. I never sleep much on those overnight flights. It doesn't help when your seat has been changed and you find yourself on the 1st row facing a bulkhead and the workstation for the flight crew. No end of noisiness, light and traffic of other passengers opening and closing restroom doors. I was not pleased. It was all a big "mystery" as to what happened to my pre-selected seat of 3C and why it was, at the last minute, given to someone else as an "upgrade". Given the look of the guy who got "my" seat, the mystery wasn't too mysterious. I figured him for a Federal marshal-type. Sigh. You can't argue with security!
We ate ham sammiches for supper with some potato chips. I did some computer upgrades for my mom (new browser, updating Adobe flash and reconfiguring one of her Facebook apps). I retired at 10 p.m. and slept the sleep of petrified logs.
Day 2 has begun. I made a strong pot of coffee, had a breakfast of fried eggs, sausage and grits, and am now having my third cup of coffee while I type these notes.
The weather, thus far, is like the Bay Area's...highs in the upper 60s and lows in the upper 40s-lower 50s. It's like I never left Oakland, weather-wise.
I have a tree to decorate this morning. More anon...
