Saturday, June 7, 2014

...and all is right with the world again

I have washed the plane off, had a good night sleep in my own bed, and I'm back with the best cat in the world.

I love to travel, but there's nothing better in the world than coming home and I'm happy to be here. That said, the trip was fun (even though it was work).
Sadly - this is as close as I got to downtown Chicago - speeding by on the way to the airport. We were suppose to go down Thursday night, but after two days of nine hours meetings, everyone was just bushed. We went out for pizza then had a "lobby party" in the hotel.  Maybe next time.

The flight home was uneventful. I took an obligatory "sunset" picture from the plane.
Combination of a dirty window and the sun on the other side of the plane and it's just not that thrilling....

After that it was just knitting.
I'll share some progress pics later this week.

I did manage to get a couple of souvenirs. Just before the Virginia trip last year, I was talking to my boss about souvenirs. She's a well-versed traveler and shared some knowledge with me. She never buy the common little souvenirs - key chains, magnets etc with the town you visited. It just becomes vacation clutter... so she saves her money to buy something to buy one really nice thing that she will enjoy for a long time - in her case, it's usually jewellry and shoes.

I loved it. When we went to Virginia, I bought both. I didn't have as much money this time, but I did find a very lovely Serpentine Jade bracelet to mark the trip
Okay... so I might have have bought some "Chicago" stuff...
Starbucks has a line of mugs called "You are here" to mark the city of your Starbucks trip. I'm not a Starbucks fan (or a fan of coffee in general) but it's a nice big mug and it was the perfect thing to bring home for Dave. It was already coffee stained when I got up this morning, so he must have liked it.

And the airport really knows how to sucker people... on the way to the terminal, there was a large display of good old Hello Kitty...
Most of the people I work with on a daily basis work out of the Chicago office... so this little kitty will sit on my desk at work.

And now, if you'll excuse me - I have some cats to snuggle with.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would TOTALLY have had to get the Hello Kitty!!!!

The mug is great too. I have the older version (white/blue) of Philadelphia (my hometown) and Orlando (where I live now). I love those mugs.

Your bracelet is beautiful too. I'm not one for the typical souvenirs. I usually go for yarn or something to wear. Polo shirts if I can find them or a tee shirt for the local sports team if I can't find a decent polo.

Araignee said...

Welcome home! My one trip to Chicago ended the same way-with just a glimpse of the city as we drove past. I've heard it's wonderful but I'll probably never find out for myself.
Love the bracelet and the kitty. I brought a big, red back scratcher home from Ohio for Daddio. I am a terrible shopper.

Minding My Own Stitches said...

There's something to be said for a good night's sleep in your own bed. Tux looks pretty content to snuggle with you.

kathy b said...

Love those L mugs . :)

elns said...

I love that pic of you and Tux! But don't let Rocky read this or he'll be jealous! I'm glad you had a good time, even if you didn't make it downtown ... this time! I like all the souveniers you picked out. The jade is lovely and I really like the mug's design. Mugs are great. Coffee, tea, soup, boullion, whatever. a mug of warm happiness got me through a weekend of illness.

Unknown said...

Ooooohhhh, seeing you with Tux is just the BEST!