Mission Complete



Bus Inspection Station Where I Spent Most of Week

I returned home last night from my week long adventures near San Francisco.  We had one last bus to inspect in the morning before heading to the airport.  The turkey came out to say goodbye with one last attack but I think he knew we were leaving because he posed for a last picture in the midst of his attack (see below).  The trip back went without problem although I’m still not sold on Jet Blue.  They didn’t issue us seat assignments because there were two of us travelling on the same booking.  I didn’t realize this required some sort of magic computer algorithm but we didn’t get seat assignments until the they were actually boarding.  Again, there was no food served on this six hour flight so my plan was to buy something in the shops that are ubiquitous in all terminals, right?  Well, Jet Blue in San Francisco is located in the international terminal and for some reason I guess international travelers don’t spend a lot on food because the pickings were extremely thin.  I ended up with a pizza for lunch and then a box of Chips Ahoy for the flight.  The only redeeming value was the personal TV for each seat which really helped the flight pass by.  We were coming into Boston through a blinding snow storm and I was actually excited and planning on how I was going to get the snow blower out.  However, when we got within 100 feet of the ground everything turned over to rain. My favorite toy remains sadly inactive.  The limo company was a little late showing up and we had to navigate around a truly impressive pool of vomit outside the door.  So my trip started and ended with some regurgitation. The van finally showed up but after getting through Boston I was transferred to my own personal limousine – I even got to ride in the back seat.  I was totally impressed with myself but of course it was almost 11 o’clock at night so none of the neighbors witnessed my faux affluence.  I returned to an empty house which was kind of a downer.  I talked to the wife on the phone and that helped a little bit.  This morning I spoke with her again and made the mistake of saying how empty the house with without Buddy around.  After a dramatic pause to gather her strength she reminded me that she also was not present and why did I miss the dog more than her.  So I have that to recover from.  Today is massive catch up day, paying bills, cleaning house, watering the jungle of plants and finally heading down for the house filling presence of Buddy.  My friend is joining me for the trip down to RI and we’re planning on hitting a movie on the way down and maybe consuming a beer or three.  It was a nice trip but it’s good to be home – just wish the house was fuller – most especially with the illuminating presence of my wife (and the comeback begins).

Bus Axles Outside the Assembly Line at the Gillig Factory

The Last Bus We Inspected




Ripped Pants from Zip Line

Attack Turkey Says Good Bye