Monday, January 09, 2006

The Great White North

I'm writing from snowy Vermont. Yesterday's travel went well. I took two regional jets--one from Austin to Cincinnati and the other from Cincinnati to Burlington (plus a 45 minute cab ride $98 to Montpeiler).

I read a USA Today on the first and tore out an article, "Cats Have More than 9 Lives, and Plenty of Cousins." Either it's research, or I just miss my kitties already. In the Cincinnati airport, I was delighted to find a sit-down restaurant, Moe's, which served me a wonderful chicken-and-parmesen omlette, and at Border's, I picked up a copy of Mr. Monk Goes To The Firehouse by Lee Goldber (Signet, 2006)(read excerpt), which is a mass-market tie in book to one of my fave TV shows. It's told from the POV of Monk's assistant, Natalie, and is quite good.

When I arrived in Burlington, there was snow on the ground, though the roads were clear. (People here really believe in salt!). I went with KA and LK, who'll be my workshop partner, to the grocery store for provisions, and then to the faculty dinner. MDB and EL, both scheduled to be here, had to cancel at the last minute. They are missed. NFM brought her husband HM last night, which was a treat. The whole party ran to about 11 p.m. local time, and I feel instantly to sleep.

Enjoyed breakfast this morning with KA, PK, and SM, which had a vaguely WF reunion feel.