"Contact"

So, I am traveling again; this time to Durango, CO; the hippy village in the mountains. First, I had to get here. The only direct flight from where I live is on a small 38-passenger plane. And the plane is a Bombardier Dash-8 200 Series turbo-prop. Yes, commercial airliners still use propeller planes for regular routes; I’ve just never flown on one. It was loud, bumpy, and my seat was in front of the exit row so did not recline. Other than that, it was a normal 2 hour flight. I do have to admit that it was kind of cool to look out the plane window and see the propellers slowly spin and then gain amazing speed. And after we had taken off, to see the landing gear rise up into the engine enclosure; just like you see in the movies. If I had a whip, leather fedora, and linen shirt unbuttoned to mid-chest I would feel just like Harrison Ford in an Indiana Jones film. Of course, it would be the original (or maybe Temple of Doom) because it was the best; it’s all about the snakes.

As I pull up to my hotel. The large marquee out front has written ‘Welcome New Mexico Department of Health’. Wow, I thought, the department had to leave the state to have a convention. Oh well, maybe the hotels in New Mexico didn’t meet the department’s strict requirements. I turn into the parking lot and see that the marquee has another side. On the other side is written ‘Welcome British Petroleum America and Southwest Republican Women’. I’m not sure if the two groups are meeting together or just a coincidental run-in on the hotel sign. Then the thought occurs to me, maybe Gov. Palin is scheduled to appear and the groups are destined to become WRONG (Women Republicans for Oil and Natural Gas). Either way, I am looking forward to finishing out this week and getting back to my family. Don’t forget to vote.