Franklinsanity

4:30 PM EST, Washington DC – Ensconced in the offices of my firm’s lobbying arms, I figured it’s time to break from work content for 15 minutes and talk travel.

I’m midway through my criss-cross of the US by plane, vs. car.  There’s no question planes are faster – I am happy to confirm that shatteringly obvious point.  But I have to say I miss the car, including the nutty dogs – not to mention the family.

Here’s what I don’t miss:  worm-infested $45 caesar salads at the otherwise-reliable Rosewood Hotel in Sand Hill Road; and cancelled rooms after a redeye flight at the otherwise reliable Grand Hyatt in Washington DC.

I have to say I’ve never been to a pitch before where I literally was trying not to throw up, given that 30 minutes before I was halfway through a very elegant looking salad when I noticed not just one, but multiple creepy crawlies clambering all over the plate.  It was clear I had to have eaten rather a lot of them.

I mean, there’s farm to table – and I am an adventurous eater – but let’s agree that one has to draw the line somewhere.  These weren’t fried crickets.  And I’m not in special forces.

Still, all’s well that ends well.  I’m no longer nauseated.  I got to see both my college roommates and a bunch of other friends for dinner in SF.  And I am back within a few hundred miles of the family.  Oh, and the meetings went well.

Next up – flying from DC to Hartford.  That’s a regional jaunt I’ve not done by plane before.  And then planning our car trip BACK to the West Coast.  Yes folks, this is happening.  Tolkien doesn’t have a monopoly on There and Back Again – though I was afraid I’d get sued if I used that as the blog’s title.

Plus, I like the ambiguity of Franklinsanity.