Woke up at a lovely 3:30am today. Barely 4 hours of sleep since my mind was racing with thoughts of the trip. I was already packed from last night, so all I had were my bathroom duties and feeding Saki before I left the house.
Jim met me at work all bleary eyed but shortly afterward we were at the airport and he was heading back home to bed. Dulles was already brimming with activity at 5am, even on a Saturday they remain busy all the time. Being a frequent traveler I breezed through security and made it to my flight to Newark.
Couple of pics from the plane including a hazy Potomac valley. This will be my last blog from my phone till the next time I am in Newark, in 14 days. From now on I will post whenever I find an internet connection.
All packed up, and at the moment, no place to go. I really should get a
little shut eye before my early morning call to arms, but the sandman is
no where in sight and frankly todays events have left me wired and
un-nerved. Our supreme leader at work decided to drop everyone a note
talking about the impending layoffs and just what the seperation package
would include, based on your level in the company. This of course sent an
already nervous work place into a frenzy. See, I promised myself I would
not check my work mail today…and I didn’t. But that didn’t stop people
at work from telling me all about this scare-gram.
In just about 7 hours I get on a plane for a country where I don’t speak a
lick of language. Who knows what will happen here, and frankly I don’t
even want to think about it till I return in 2 weeks.
This morning started out pretty much as I had planned it, cleaning and
sorting for my trip that starts tomorrow. Then I got an IM from my
sister*.
She tells me that this morning Dale passed away.
Dale entered our lives some years ago when Mary remarried. Mary is Donna
and Wes’s mom, and has been like a mom to me over the years. And while I
have not had much opportunity to spend time with Dale over the years, each
and everytime I was able to sit and talk with him I did so. He was a
dynamic man who was heavily involved in Oklahoma politics all during his
life. Dale loved his guns also, something he loved to talk about and show
off. And he was a very loving husband to Mary. We all wish we had spent
more time with our loved ones over the years, and it is usually at times
like these that we really wish it the most.
In a situation like this I would normally jet home, but my commitment to
my trip is looming to close to make that happen. I love Mary and my
brother and sister deeply. And hope that my long range feelings reach them
and support them in this time of sorrow.
Rest in Peace Dale Patrick, you deserve all that and more. And be sure to
take Saint Peter out skeet shooting, think he would like that.
* Okay quick side note here, for those that know me, you know that I am
an only child. And adopted also. But in spirit I have a baby brother and
an older sister. See when my parents went looking to adopt a child, their
best friends Mary and Don were looking also. So myself, Wes and Donna were
all adopted pretty much at the same time. We would have Christmas parties
together, go on long RV trips around the country together…and while we
were not related by blood, we spent a lot of those formative childhood
years together.
After my long 15 hour day at work, my vacation to China is so needed. Problem is that after my long day I am to wired to think about sleep. I have all of Friday ahead of me with no plans but laundry, packing and forgetting all about work and the upcoming layoffs!
So here I am gassing up my car in my little town of Manassas, when I am
captivated by the advertisement above the pump. Now my town has a pretty
good Hispanic population, but so far it is not the majority. And the part
of town where I was gassing up was not any different. So when I saw this
car ad all in Spanish, it caught me unawares. I even walked to the other
side of the pump to see if maybe one side was in English. But it would
seem that for whatever reason, the Pakistani manager of this British owned
oil company’s gas station in Virginia was banking on the Spanish
population pumping their gas here. Now THAT is product placement!
So here I sit waiting for more shots at the county health clinic when I see the sign. I guess if I ever need a tornado shelter, I should head to this womens restroom the next time a twister is nearby!
What a Sunday! Today we attended the Maryland Ren Faire. It is proported as the largest in the country.
Lots of Jousting, mead, shopping, plays, mead, music and MEAD! Jared, Jen, Joe, Drew, Jen, Gracie, Dave, Stacy, Rob and Chrissy were all there. And luck was with us since the rain did not start until the time that we left.
So I got an unexpected yet pleasent surprise today, my friends Jared and Jen came to town a day early.
Now Jared is in the Navy and graduated from the naval academy there, so he brought Jen in to show her around. They also caught the Navy vs Tulsa game (Tulsa won).
So I drove in to spend a little time with them. We had a great dinner then he took us on a night time tour of the academy.
Good times!
Last weekend at Wolftrap their annual Face of America series was presented….this year showcasing Hawaii. I was at a wedding reception or I would have been there. Today we got a treat along the same lines. For the last two years at the end of the Wolftrap season we have had a party for the volunteers. This years was a luau complete with roast pig and all the fixins. They even had hula dancers and taught some volunteers how to hula. Great time!
What a great day for a wedding. And in the case of this couple who eloped in June, their wedding date has been transformed to a local reception. I love these two deeply and wish them ever lasting life together. Obviously the party went great and everyone had a good time. Many of these people I have never socialized with outside of work, so that was an special treat!p
