It was so nice to drive to work this morning with the sun shining in on me and warming up the coolness of the morning air.

Made it a little bit easier to head back to work after the long holiday weekend.

Really glad we aren't in the El Paso area that  got snow over the weekend.

Hope the cool weather and sunshine lasts.

Becky

This Thanksgiving I am thankful for many things. So not to bore you with it all I will limit this to my gratefulness as a commuter.

I am thankful for the men and women who build and maintain the area highways and streets so I and thousands of other motorists have safe means to travel.

I am thankful for the mechanics who work on my car and keep it running (guys, my car is due for a visit).

I am thankful for the convenience stores that always have gas available for me to fill up my car. (Just a request to the suppliers - cut the prices a dollar or 2 a gallon and I will be extremely grateful to you as well.)

I am thankful for the deer that continue to graze on the side of the highway as I pass by instead of running out in front of me. I am also thankful for the dogs, coyotes, armadillos, opossums and skunks that manage to leap or crawl clear of my lane of traffic before I get to them.

I am thankful for the motorists who travel the speed limit or move over if they do not want to travel the speed limit.

I am thankful for the law enforcement officers who patrol the roads and highways keeping me and the other motorists safe.

I am thankful to whoever the smart person was who invented breakfast finger food so I can eat breakfast while on the road.

I am also thankful for the fast food workers who take my meal orders at night on my way home from work.

Now for general thankfulness:

I am thankful for my job, which has brought me many rewarding challenges this year and hopefully will continue to challenge me.

To my family and friends who continue to believe me when I say, “We will get together soon.”

Most importantly I am thankful for my husband who puts up with my strange work hours; the weird stories-of-the- day that I insist upon telling him at 11 o’clock at night; and my many scribbled notes on the refrigerator door asking him for a honey-do, like buying milk and laundry detergent at the grocery store or pick up clothes at the dry cleaners, because I don’t have time to get it done.

Happy Thanksgiving to all and please be careful in your holiday travels.

Becky

 Let me say it up front I hate fog.

It’s blinding, I can’t see oncoming cars until they are right there.

I can’t see deer jumping across the road until I am right on them.

I can’t see the landmarks to know where I am on my journey.

I can’t see the color of the traffic lights until I am right on them.

The strain of trying to see what else is on the highway with me makes my eyes water.

I also don’t like people who insist upon driving in the heavy fog without any form of lights on their vehicle. This morning, with visibility at a millimeter of an inch, I met several cars on the highway with no lights on. A white Cadillac came barreling up behind me -without even the daytime running lights-and I didn’t see it until it was almost on my bumper. That is just plain stupid - and unsafe - driving practices on the Cadillac’s part.

Our resident weather wizard tells me to be prepared for similar conditions Tuesday.

I only hope he is wrong.

Becky 

I heard my first Christmas song on the radio Tuesday morning, so I know Christmas is on its way. The song was the 1980s rock'n roll version of  "I Saw Momma Kissing Santa Claus."

I also saw two large wreaths on the entry gates to a drive leading to a nice big house along the route. At night it is really pretty. In the day is it nice as well.

I'm looking forward to the coming weeks and seeing all the Christmas decorations on homes and businesses as I make my way to and from work.

And I am especially anticipating our annual trips through the Christmas in the Park in Cuero - which I'm told will be lit on Monday, Nov. 19.They have more than 40 new scenes this year.

I'm also looking forward to walking around the lighted Lavaca County courthouse in Hallettsville, listening to Christmas carols piped in over a PA system and enjoying all the lights and the feeling of Christmas. The courthouse and the square will be lighted during the annual Festival of Lights celebration on Saturday, Nov. 24.

And on a smaller, but just as nice scale, is the Centennial Park display in Yoakum.

All are put on by volunteers.

All are well worth the trips to the small towns.

If you go, take your time and enjoy the sights and sounds of Christmas.

Becky

Sometimes you see strange things along the highway.

On the way to work today I met  a northbound ambulance and following behind it was a hearse....not a good sign for someone.

On my way to work today I stopped at the fire station and cast my vote in the Constitutional amendment election and the Yoakum school bond election - both very important issues.

It only took a couple of minutes.

If you haven't voted please do. Polls close at 7 p.m.

If you are not registered to vote and you are qualified to be registered - shame on you. That's one of your rights as an American citizen. Please register so you can vote in the March primaries and the November general election next year.

No matter how minor an election may seem, all are important.

So get out and vote.

To recap Part 1 - we took a trip to Atlantic City, our connecting flight from Atlanta to Atlantic City was canceled Monday. After more delays on Tuesday, we finally arrived in the early morning hours of Wednesday for what was supposed to be a four-night stay.

Now the rest of the story…

We chose to be pedestrians for the two days we were in Atlantic City, only taking a taxi when it was time to go back to the airport.

As pedestrians we walked the boardwalk and sidewalks of the area. And we walked some on the sandy beach.

It was relaxing - even though it was raining and windy at times.

When the time came to come home, we headed to the airport in the allotted time so we would have two hours to check in. We then sat for the next 1:45 and waited, watching TV and reading the paper.

The trip to Atlanta was uneventful - except for the people who literally arrived as they were preparing to close the airplane door. They were growling at the airport employee because he said they may not make the flight and they were growling at each other as they got seated. We all watched and listened hoping the growling would stop.

But again the adventure began when we got to Atlanta. We had an hour layover before our next flight. But that layover became much longer than that.

We were to leave from Gate B24, but the gate was changed to B31, so we all moved like a herd of cattle to the next gate and claimed our waiting spots. It’s time to board, but no plane and no explanation. The weather was great so they couldn’t use that as an excuse.

OK fast forward…we are finally on the plane -which was packed with close to 200 passengers. We were on row 38 seats B and C - that’s the VERY last row in the plane- right at the bathrooms.

As we got settled, the woman sitting next to me pulled out her giant - or at least they looked giant - knitting needles. I commented that I was shocked they let her through security with them. She said they saw them and let her through - and they made me check my overnight bag because they didn’t like the way I had the liquids packaged -they weren’t in the mandatory Ziploc bag.

We were given the required safety instructions that no one seems to listen to and were then told we would be delayed a few minutes while we waited for the catering truck. But it was OK to turn all electronic devices back on and it was OK to come to the back and use the bathroom - which they did - some more than once.

A few minutes later the captain came on the PA system, said the catering truck would be finished in a few minutes, that we would be leaving soon, and to be patient. So we waited.

Then after what seemed liked a really long time, he came back on the PA system and apologized for the delay saying the truck has yet to arrive. He then polled the passengers to find out if we wanted to continue to wait or to go ahead without the soft drinks and crackers. We said, “Let’s go!”

“OK,” he said, “Let’s prepare for departure - but oops we can’t now because the catering truck just arrived.” So we waited some more for the crackers and soft drinks - what a waste of time.

Finally we moved away from the gate and had to once again play the waiting game for our turn to take off.  You would think an airport that serviced 85 million passengers in 2006 - I learned that by listening to one of the many announcements made while waiting in the airport - would have a better scheduling method for take offs and landings.

And we are off finally. The flight was pleasant, except for the smell left behind by the frequent bathroom visitors.

We were more than an hour late in leaving, but we arrived in Austin about 45 minutes late - so we must have caught a really good tail wind.

We finally walked in the front door of our home around 10 p.m. that Friday. Happy to be home.

As much as I have moaned about the flights and the delays I still prefer to fly than drive when traveling. I’m not a very good car traveler if traveling a long distance - that is any place outside of Texas. I want to get to the final destination so I can begin enjoying it. And when it is time to come home, I don’t want to have to ride in a car for two days when a four-hour plane ride would get me there quicker.

I have flown many airlines over the years and have had delays, but this trip takes the trophy for the most delays and schedule changes.

Gary and I are already planning our next airplane trip. While we don’t know where our trip will take us, we do know we want to be able to get there in one plane, with no plane changes and no delays.

Last week my husband and I took a trip to the East coast. We were looking forward to this trip because we had never been there and we were ready for a break from the daily grind.

We flew out of Austin on the same Monday the cold front blew in.

Our plane was late in leaving because of bad weather in Atlanta - and that was the first foreshadowing of things to come.

We finally arrived in Atlanta about the same time everyone else did. We had to wait on the tarmac for 45 minutes and wait our turn to ease up to the terminal. Periodically the captain came on the PA system to update our position inline for crossing the next runway. Hearing the large jets take off so near our much smaller plane was a little unnerving.

We finally made it to the terminal but we weren’t concerned we had a two-hour layover before our next flight. Some people weren’t so lucky. I heard one woman say - as she was rushing to get off the plane- that she had 10 minutes to catch her next flight. I’m guessing she didn’t make it.

We finally got off the plane and this is where our true adventure began.

We checked the flight screen to see the status of our connecting flight. It read CANCELED in big red flashing letters. So we set off to the designated gate to determine if that was a correct report. Two concourses over and the last gate in that terminal later, we learned that yes in deed it had been canceled. We were instructed to go about six gates back to find out our alternate travel options.

The agent at Gate D-24 was pleasant and friendly. She said the flight was canceled due to weather, but in return the airline had reserved a room for us at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel, gave us food vouchers and tickets for the next flight- the only catch was it was at 8:29 p.m. Tuesday. They were the only airline to fly into Atlantic City and that was their only flight in.

So the next question - what about our luggage? We were sent to the luggage service area in the baggage claim department two more concourses over. There we learned that it would be a four to five hour wait to get our luggage. But I asked why can’t they just get it because it just came off a plane that is not going anywhere, it should still be grouped in the area where the canceled flight was supposed to be, but no that reasoning didn’t work in airlines terms. The agent, who I instantly liked because she made the woman ahead of us get off her cell phone to conduct business, had an answer for our every option and question. She definitely knew her job.

She offered us a bag of complimentary toiletries - toothbrush, paste, razor, shaving cream, deodorant and a T-shirt that was two sizes too small.

At the hotel, we convinced the clerk to let us stay in the room past the noon check out. In the room, which was really comfy, I called the hotel in Atlantic City to let them know we were stranded in Atlanta, but would be there on Tuesday. We ended up calling the company we booked the trip with to make sure our reservation was secure. In the end we received a refund for thee first night we were supposed to be in Atlantic City, but weren’t.

The next morning we took our time getting dressed back into our dirty clothes.

We left the hotel a little after noon, went back to the airport, where we had a late but leisurely lunch, bought new reading material, walked around, shopped and watched planes and people.

The people watching will be a subject of a separate blog.

At the first window where we stopped, we saw a maintenance man walking on top of a plane a few minutes after hearing a radio transmission asking for someone to check out the plane because it may have been struck by lightning. A little later we saw a small plane being towed in. And at a different window we watched as the airport fire truck with lights and sirens activated headed out to a call somewhere on the grounds. Made me kind of wonder if an alternate mode of travel was in store.

But we persevered.

It finally came time to board plane, but there was a problem - no plane. So we waited.

During this time I realized I had been in the airport too long - I, a mere out-of-town visitor, was giving accurate descriptive directions to other travelers.

Finally we were able to board the plane. As we waited to step into the plane I looked into the cockpit window and saw a woman pilot. I turned to Gary and assured him in my most confident tone that we were definitely going to make it to Atlantic City this time because there was a woman behind the wheel. And I knew from experience that when a woman is running late she knows how to make up for lost time.

Relief - we were finally in the air. A short time later the female pilot’s voice came over the PA and announced they were going to try shorten the flight time some. I smiled and nudged Gary.

We finally arrived at the airport in Atlantic City - about an hour late. It was virtually deserted- the police and security were leaving as we walked through the airport to the baggage claim area. Inside there were three car rental agents and two airport luggage handlers. Outside were three taxis and a shuttle bus.

Oh yeah, our luggage was there as promised.

Finally around 12:24 a.m. Wednesday we arrived at Caesars-Atlantic City. We checked in, unloaded our luggage in our room and then went exploring. It was the quietest casino I had ever been in. We had a late dinner/early breakfast, walked on the boardwalk for the first time, smelled the Atlantic sea air, played the slot machines and went to bed.

We had finally- as the airlines like to say- reached our final destination. We were ready for a good vacation and to explore unchartered territory for us - and it was starting - 25 hours late.

The return trip was also an adventure, but that will be the next blog.