The Wheels On The Bus Go Round & Round

Back in England now... riding the airline coach from Gatwick to Oxford as I write this entry. From a travel point of view, this year is off to a more normal start for me. Less than one week into the year and I have already flown; unlike 2008 when I was grounded for over six months -- my first flight was not until mid-July! Now I am back in England for twelve days, then I am flying off to Japan for a week!

Alas, the return flight was less than what could have been desired. For one thing, it involved a stopover -- never a good thing. Even worse, the stopover was in Philadelphia. In my experience, the PHL airport is something to be avoided whenever possible! This time was no exception. Thanks to a hydraulic leak, we left (and landed) over two hours late. They also managed to lose one of my two pieces of checked luggage. Whee!

Still, the flight itself was good. I managed to sleep for much of the journey, I was lucky enough to have a remarkably friendly (and cute) neighbour to chat with, and I started reading Twilight -- getting through about one third of the book.

Also keeping my mood up are the fresh memories of a wonderful time in Chicagoland. I will try to write about the whole of my US trip soon, at least in summary, but for now I just want to say that the five days I spent at the Event Horizon (and vicinity) were fantastic! Particular thanks go out to gyades, the terrific tawneypup, the incredible iamthesphinx, and xirpha for making this trip into such a good time!

Finally, as a PSA, I should say that I intend to venture into the virtual swamp of my InBox and LJ backlog in the not-too-distant future -- either today or tomorrow. I have not touched either my e-mail or my f-list in two weeks whilst travelling, so it may take some time to clear everything. Indeed, it remains to be seen whether I ever catch up with my f-list or write it off as a lost cause! Still, if you have sent me something recently and have been waiting for a reply, rest assured that it should be coming soon!

The Wheels On The Bus Go Round & Round

Back in England now... riding the airline coach from Gatwick to Oxford as I write this entry. From a travel point of view, this year is off to a more normal start for me. Less than one week into the year and I have already flown; unlike 2008 when I was grounded for over six months -- my first flight was not until mid-July! Now I am back in England for twelve days, then I am flying off to Japan for a week!

Alas, the return flight was less than what could have been desired. For one thing, it involved a stopover -- never a good thing. Even worse, the stopover was in Philadelphia. In my experience, the PHL airport is something to be avoided whenever possible! This time was no exception. Thanks to a hydraulic leak, we left (and landed) over two hours late. They also managed to lose one of my two pieces of checked luggage. Whee!

Still, the flight itself was good. I managed to sleep for much of the journey, I was lucky enough to have a remarkably friendly (and cute) neighbour to chat with, and I started reading Twilight -- getting through about one third of the book.

Also keeping my mood up are the fresh memories of a wonderful time in Chicagoland. I will try to write about the whole of my US trip soon, at least in summary, but for now I just want to say that the five days I spent at the Event Horizon (and vicinity) were fantastic! Particular thanks go out to gyades, the terrific tawneypup, the incredible iamthesphinx, and xirpha for making this trip into such a good time!

Finally, as a PSA, I should say that I intend to venture into the virtual swamp of my InBox and LJ backlog in the not-too-distant future -- either today or tomorrow. I have not touched either my e-mail or my f-list in two weeks whilst travelling, so it may take some time to clear everything. Indeed, it remains to be seen whether I ever catch up with my f-list or write it off as a lost cause! Still, if you have sent me something recently and have been waiting for a reply, rest assured that it should be coming soon!