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Well I'm sorry to say that this is my first blog in over a month. I've just fallen out of the habit of writing on a nightly/weekly basis. It might be that I feel like I have nothing to talk about, or just a lack of motivation due to my new job (still at the same company I was).

I'll start with some random tid-bits and factoids, and then proceed to my regular posts. Currently, my favorite song is "From now on we are enemies" by Fall Out Boy; hopefully the link works. In addition to my daily work outs....I'll let that sit in again, yes, daily work outs I am not experimenting with eating totally healthy. My dinner is on the way, salad, grilled chicken, dressing on side, skim milk and side of fruit. Honestly I think it sounds horribly boring. You might be able to guess that this whole attempt to eat healthy (despite the fact I ate Mr. Gyro's this weekend) is because I am still training for my triathlon. It's a little over 7 weeks away now. I think my goal of 1 Hour 30 Minutes is looking attainable. What's funny is it looks like my 2 weaker events, the run and the swim, will be where I make up time. It's taking me about 32 minutes to bike 20k. That's with a small warm up, and my last meal hours beforehand. I'm hoping with proper warm up, adrenalin and a good meal I can be even faster. Anyway, enough about that stuff.

In case you all forgot, I'm currently staffed in Dallas, TX. Overall, it's really not too bad. The biggest hassle is getting into a routine of it. I have developed some wonderful travel habits because of it. Rather than have a string of posts that involve my travel experiences, I'll do one large post to chronicle my adventures, and hopefully leave it at that, but I'm sure new events will pop up.

-To the family of 20 traveling together on the same flight: I think it's a wonderful thing you are all getting together. Really. I just want to drop some knowledge on you. When it's Thursday at 5:30pm, and you see 100 people with roller-boards getting on the same flight as you are, that is going to mean you have 100 people desperate to get home after being gone for a week who want to get back to family and friends. Most of us are experienced travelers (i.e. we know to take off our shoes at the security check in) and will get annoyed quickly by your ignorance and lack of worship. That being said, do not take the boarding time as an opportunity to continue conversations you could have had in the terminal. Please take your seat, sit down, shut up and get ready for a 2 hour flight. The aisles are generally for one way traffic, so you walking 10 rows up to say hello to your mother-in-law is not acceptable. I blame the 20 of you for making a 30 minute process take 45 minutes and causing us to be delayed by weather.

-The airline industry has turned into a caste system: There are those with varying levels of status (usually varying by some sort of metal or words like, "Exclusive" or "Executive"). These people (myself included) look down on the rest of the travelers around us. We can conduct the security check in like an orchestra, each piece of our travel-wear seamlessly removed and replaced without a moments hesitation culminating in a magnificent crescendo when we execute a laptop-to-bag||shoes on feet||one-handed belt back on pants without missing a beat. It's truly a spectacle to behold.

We can recognize which "upper class" tier each other belong to by the quality of dress, the type a breakfast being consumed (the highest usually bring their own herbal blend of teas or fancy coffees because Starbucks is so 2 years ago) but mostly it's in the salty looks thrown about. Next time you fly, find the saltiest person you can find, glaring at weaker travelers like a hawk. Odds are they have the most status, and are bottling up their anger at how these minions will ruin the flight. The upper-echelon people will also arrive to the airport solo, but will run into other uber-elite and being small talk to secure loose allegiances should the lower folk up-rise. Much like a game of asshole, everything flows downward, however, there is always that hope of climbing up the ladder.

Then there are those who have traveled in the last 5 years and know how the system works, but have yet to achieve true status. These are the middle-class of the travel system. These people will sometimes arrive together in smaller groups, but can also be found alone. They know the routines ("You mean cell phones CAN'T go through the metal detector?!?!") but are casual enough about the whole process to take their time and just enjoy the fact they are leaving wherever they are coming from. These folks are prone to simple mistakes like forgetting the 3oz. rule, or wearing too much jewelry, but make up for these mistakes by keeping to themselves and not making a scene.

Below them are the inexperienced travelers. These people will set off the metal detector several times before realizing they have a belt on, or will look at the security guard with sheer disbelief that shoes must be removed. They are also the people who will take 20 minutes at the self-help kiosk, call over someone for help, and then realize they aren't even in the correct terminal. With a preference to just go to the desk and have someone physically print out a ticket for them, arrive in a Hawaiian shirt even though they aren't going on vacation, the upper classes can't help but feel pity for these people sometimes. Occasionally a middle-class or bottom of the upper class will offer a sympathetic hand to these travelers, getting them through the confounded new technology, or pointing the way to the tram to the next terminal.

Finally, we have the bottom of the traveler caste system. Families with children. These travelers are frowned upon by all who see them. Carrying no less then 5 carry-ons for a mother, father, and anywhere from 1-3 children, plus the kids backpacks makes even the most battle-hardened road warrior cringe. Strollers in tow, these peons delay security with a frantic attempt to fold a horribly designed mode of transportation, walk 3-5 wide blocking the isles, and take up no less than 1 row of seats at the gate to accommodate their damn kids. Sometimes, an upper-echelon father (or mother) can be seen desperately trying to ferry his family through this labrynth of delays, and high tempers. You can see the sweat on their face, worried one of their allies will catch them in the act of transporting these refuges to safety.

The contempt all travelers have for these people....I wish I could convey it in words. Teenagers should be subjected to hours of sitting on a plane to the sound of a crying baby to be used as a tool against teen-sex. 20 minutes of that god forsaken noise in an air-tight compartment with no hope for escape can crack better people.

That was longer than I thought, I wish I had more time to give true justice to each traveler, but alas there isn't enough time.

-Most of my other rants involve carry-on bags, the weather, and overweight people, but just go by the idea that if you don't want someone to do it to you, you shouldn't do it either.

While on this project, I've actually eaten a lot of Indian food. I'm still not quite used to the spice, but I really have a new affinity for the genre after my experiences that started this blog. I had Malai Kofta the other night, and it was truly delicious. That and Biryani are going to be my 2 new stand bys.

Several weeks ago my roommate Sweet-Tea got "Settlers of Catan" for a birthday present. We've played twice so far and I am hooked. It's a well balanced game that's easy to learn, yet difficult to master. I personally would like to play the expansion edition, as I feel the current format (which lasts about 30-45 minutes) is a little too fast, and doesn't allow for enough wheeling and dealing to see who is truly the best settler. Just my opinion though, although if the game is good enough to win "Game of the Year" then it's good enough for me.

Sweet Tea also got me turned onto a book I purchased today called "Soccernomics." I would say it's a cross of "Money Ball" and "Freakanomics." It truly is amazing what we can learn from data and information. This book makes me want to go back to school for the sole purpose of doing more with statistics.

All right everyone, that's been quite enough blogging for one night. I don't want to over due it. In the spirit of giving the customer what they want, feel free to leave comments and let me know what you like, and don't like about the blog. Let me know what you want me to blog about, or stop blogging about. I always like input on this subject.

Until next time....