Am I Where Yet?

I spent last weekend in Longboat Key, Florida. Since I thought the keys referred only to the chain of islands south of Miami, this trip was a geography lesson as well as a vacation (or, as my dad would say, not a total waste). There was plenty of downtime, lots of laughter, abundant time at the beach (even if some of that time was rain-soaked) . . . basically everything you’d want out of a weekend. For my money, the one thing that distinguished Longboat from other beaches I’ve been to is the softest sand on the planet. Really. It’s just one of those things that you have to feel for yourself. In a place I’d never heard of, they have beach sand like powdered sugar. A super-fine layer of which now resides on the floor of my laundry room.

I was home for just about 36 hours before I flew out of town again. Not quite up to my old travel schedule yet, but there’s a sense of excitement about airports, hotels, and rental cars that I still thrive on. After working in Connecticut for a couple days, I did something I’ve always wanted to: took the train into the city to meet with a client. I know it’s a little goofy, but I found an incredible energy in walking out of Grand Central, getting a cab, then walking down the sidewalk in Manhattan with my briefcase. For a brief moment I thought I might actually be an adult.

Then came the reverse trip. Both the train ride back to Connecticut and the drive to the airport were non-eventful. I checked in, then found a monitor to double-check how much time I had. I had a lot. In general I like smaller airports: simple to navigate, easy to get in and out of. I’ve now discovered the downside: there’s generally not a lot of entertainment available. After four hours there, I can assure you that in the Westchester County airport, there is none. But somewhere in that time a miracle occurred: I found myself longing to be home . . . as in Alpharetta. I hadn’t really felt like this was home, but sometime between leaving Manhattan and walking through my front door, my brain finally made the switch. Now I wonder where I’ll be moving next.