<warning:  this is long and potentially boring - send complaints to idontgiveacrap@biteme.com>

 I 'm working offline, so bear with me if I'm repeating post or information that Keith's already sent…
Yes, it's the long-awaited TRIP REPORT - Hootie and the Blowfish - World Mardi Gras, Indianapolis, IN 11/30

As I sit in this spacious Boeing 757 (yeah, RIGHT) reflecting on the last 30 hours or so… I realize that I really have a lot to be thankful for in my life.  It's not often I take the time to think about my fortune and today's been a good day for that…  Let me explain..

Last night, Darius told a story about how they were rehearsing beginning Sept. 10 and were scheduled to rehearse on the 11th.  Naturally, they didn’t but he said it occurred to him on the 12th, that being "at war" has a very different meaning for families of US troops.  This is true for active duty families as well as those in reserve units.  Keith and I actually got into one of our rare fights around the third week of September over this very issue, but I digress.  Anyway, Darius explained that in a literal moment, these men's and women's lives were going to change forever and immediately.  They wrote a song about this … having to do with leaving for a war, not knowing exactly where you're going, what you'll be doing, and how long you'll be gone…. And sang it during the show last night.  It was a wonderful song - I hope it makes it to the new album or a future release - and anyone standing near me, and probably Dean and Darius as well could tell you I bawled all the way thru it.  You see, my husband is in the military.  He's not at a high risk for heading to parts unknown, but as with all other active duty families, our lives have indeed changed for the foreseeable future and  we're  waiting for orders that may  or may not come at any moment that will send him to be responsible for boarding foreign ships bound for US ports looking for God knows what.  And anyone can tell you, this is  considered among the most dangerous  law enforcement  duties  in the military .

So when I get to the airport today in Minneapolis and move from one terminal to another to catch my connecting flight, the presence of MPs carrying their automatic rifles combined with the adrenaline letdown from last night's excitement sets the emotions rolling again and leaves me melancholy.  Not only because it saddens me that our lives have come to this…having to assure our own domestic security by military force, but that these men and women are probably far from home or they've found themselves with a new full-time job and an unanticipated leave of absence from a job that they presumably liked just fine.  At the same time, I'm proud of the fact that we're able to rebound as a culture with such vigor and there really is a sense of normalcy which finally feels good and "right" to me after these three months.  I'm happy that I'm in a place in my life that I was able to recognize the impact of the attacks of Sept. 11, was able to make decisions about my life and future based on them and that I'm in a financial position to carry out the whims of those decisions.  Naturally, this includes traveling to Indianapolis for one night to catch a concert! 

So… on to the trip!  The trip from Seattle to Indy was pretty uneventful which is pretty much how I like it. I sat next to a Northwest Airlines (and Navy) DC-9 pilot on the first segment and we had some great (and generally amusing) conversation.  Who knew that "lawyer" jokes could be turned into "747 pilot" jokes so easily?  Example:   " Do you know how copper was invented? Two 747 pilots were fighting over a penny. "   When he found out I work for Microsoft he said "May I ask you a question?  I have Windows ME and …" At that point I interrupted him with "I am SOO sorry.  No, really.  On behalf of Microsoft, I'm genuinely sorry and apologize for making you endure that POS"  Now, I can't even remember what his question was  * grin *   Segment 2 wasn't near the fun but that's ok 'cause I was too excited to be much conversation and besides, it's a shorter trip.   Oh wait... that was the segment that the guy across the aisle from me started snoring before we even taxied out to the runway.  GRRRR.

Keith picked me up, and we headed for the hotel to throw my things in my room, cranking the tunes on my MP3 player the entire way.  We parked the car and dumped my stuff at which point I realized that I, being the complete absent minded moron that I am, left my military ID on the airplane.  I'm not sure that it's an offense that justifies incarceration at Leavenworth, but it probably should.  That ID could literally get someone onto any US military base in the world.  So before we left, I made a call to Northwest to let them know it was missing. I figured if they found it (it was still with my boarding pass in the seat   pocket of the last plane I was on) they'd turn it in and if they didn't find it, they'd throw it away thinking it was just an old boarding pass.  Either way, it kinda sucked.  The guy that I talked to told me that it  wasn't likely, but he'd see if they found it and call me back later on my cell. So… off to dinner!

(to be continued..)