Next week I’ll reside in an Atlanta,Georgia hotel room and attend a conference on Fossil Fuel Power Generation. As the consummate homebody, I feel fortunate to have landed a job that doesn’t require extensive travel.
That's not to say I mind traveling, really. And Naomi relishes these brief business excursions of mine. She delights in her father’s undivided attention. Their a day or two of their laid back routines.
On my end: the distant city brings some conciliatory offerings. While the food is generally bland, it’s cooked for and presented to me. The plate is similarly cleared and cleaned without asking me to lift a finger. I polish off whole chapters of whatever book I’m reading in a single sitting, meet interesting people, and own control over the television remote.
At the end of each conference my luggage is improved by a large, three-ring binder of learning materials, and a trinket (usually a multi-tool or Swiss-Army knife) sporting the vendor's logo.
Whenever my plane lands in Lincoln's dinky Airport I am reminded of a conversation my dad had with his twenty-something daughter (me) about the word domicile. Under the law, it's essentially it’s your legal residence, but on our front porch dad called it a place to which you plan to return. It marks the endpoint of your travels.
I don’t mind a business trip here and there. However I always sigh with relief at the end of my journey. There isn’t a lot that can top the struggle of getting Naomi dressed and ready for school each morning. The trick of pulling that off AND arriving at work on time. Cooking my own spicy dinner in an awkward and small kitchen. Starting and stopping my book mid-sentence. At times I am grateful that the sweetness is loosely tied to the struggle of this life.
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Currently Listening To: Ladies of Liberty by Cokie Roberts
Naomi’s Latest Undertaking: Proliferating Her Repertoire of Knock-Knock Jokes
Dinner Line-Up: Carrot and Cashew Curry
Recent Personal Mantra: You're not paranoid if they really are out to get you.
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