Gone to Texas
I just flew in from Texas, and boy are my arms tired. Actually, no, but my right shoulder is still kinda sore.
On Friday, my flight was delayed 7.5 hours, then 8, then 8.5 as they tried to get a replacement crew. As compensation, I was given $26 worth of food vouchers with which to pig out, including an unagi rice plate at the Japanese fusion restaurant and a grilled ham & cheese with clam chowder. I remarking how long it felt like since I had a cream-based chowder, when I remembered, oh right, I might be lactose intolerant. But I was okay on the plane, so I may want to retest that conjecture. Anyway, being stuck at the airport for about 10 hours meant I got a lot of reading done (statistical learning methods coming out of my ears) and I wrote a very simple (and thus fairly bad) Pandora-like music suggester.
The flight touched down in Houston in the middle of the night. My sister-in-law kindly arranged for the family to rent a house for the weekend (my parents' health is still sensitive), so we bunked there for a few hours until morning proper came. My youngest niece, Melanie, takes a while to warm up to people, but the elder, Evelyn, was childish exuberance from the get go. People went their separate ways for Saturday afternoon activities which, for me, was more reading, until cousin Kathy and Edwin's wedding banquet on Saturday night.
The banquet was at a restaurant called Ocean Palace, but a couple letters had gone out, so it was now the OCN Palace, which actually doesn't really change the name. The 10-course meal was easily the largest meal I've eaten all year. I got to sit between my nieces and help feed Melanie while my brother and another doctor at the table talked shop (and kids and schools and houses). I only got to talk to my cousins, aunt, and uncle as they circulated through the party, but I did get to dance with them a little afterwards.
Then it was home for bed because my mother needs regular sleep and I had a flight early Sunday afternoon. After waking up, there was only time for breakfast, packing, and playing with my nieces a bit(Melanie now only runs away sometime :p) before it was off to the airport. A 4 hour ride then BART and then walk home under luggage.
On Friday, my flight was delayed 7.5 hours, then 8, then 8.5 as they tried to get a replacement crew. As compensation, I was given $26 worth of food vouchers with which to pig out, including an unagi rice plate at the Japanese fusion restaurant and a grilled ham & cheese with clam chowder. I remarking how long it felt like since I had a cream-based chowder, when I remembered, oh right, I might be lactose intolerant. But I was okay on the plane, so I may want to retest that conjecture. Anyway, being stuck at the airport for about 10 hours meant I got a lot of reading done (statistical learning methods coming out of my ears) and I wrote a very simple (and thus fairly bad) Pandora-like music suggester.
The flight touched down in Houston in the middle of the night. My sister-in-law kindly arranged for the family to rent a house for the weekend (my parents' health is still sensitive), so we bunked there for a few hours until morning proper came. My youngest niece, Melanie, takes a while to warm up to people, but the elder, Evelyn, was childish exuberance from the get go. People went their separate ways for Saturday afternoon activities which, for me, was more reading, until cousin Kathy and Edwin's wedding banquet on Saturday night.
The banquet was at a restaurant called Ocean Palace, but a couple letters had gone out, so it was now the OCN Palace, which actually doesn't really change the name. The 10-course meal was easily the largest meal I've eaten all year. I got to sit between my nieces and help feed Melanie while my brother and another doctor at the table talked shop (and kids and schools and houses). I only got to talk to my cousins, aunt, and uncle as they circulated through the party, but I did get to dance with them a little afterwards.
Then it was home for bed because my mother needs regular sleep and I had a flight early Sunday afternoon. After waking up, there was only time for breakfast, packing, and playing with my nieces a bit(Melanie now only runs away sometime :p) before it was off to the airport. A 4 hour ride then BART and then walk home under luggage.