New York City(!)

272222UDEC04

Just got back to the Embassy Suites in lower Manhattan from a day of hiking and sightseeing. We had breakfast at the hotel, then headed to the ferry terminal, to visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. It was a cold and windy, but crystal clear, day. The wait for the ferry comes in two parts -- it helps greatly to send some folks to get tickets, and some to wait in the ferry line. Lorraine and Emily were the ticket-getters; Joe and I waited in the line.

The Ellis Island experience is worthy of an entire day. The displays are first-rate.

After we got back from the tour, we stopped back at the hotel to warm up and have a snack at the hotel's hospitality set-up. Then, we headed out for dinner in Chinatown. We walked back through Little Italy (where desert was had).

Memphis, TN

A late entry.

261509UDEC04

At Memphis International Airport, in the Northwest lounge. The flight is a bit late in departing, so we're (Emily, Joe, and I) enjoying some quiet time in the lounge.

There's still a little snow on the ground here.

The Muzak folks haven't retired the Christmas tunes for the year, so we're getting our last (or so I hope) dose of the year. If this year is any guide, I only need to wait until shortly after Halloween(tm)* to reenter the "Christmas spirit".

*Trademark of the seasonal merchandising industry

I'm scribbling this on the iPAQ PocketPC at the Holiday Inn in Niceville, FL. It's a cold and rainy evening, but not so cold and rainy that I was dissuaded from a little geocaching! There's a microcache about 1.3 km from the hotel, so I trudged down the road to find it, and score a new state while I was as it.

As I expected, the dining opportunities are very limited. I was surprised to find a Subway sandwich shop open, but I wasn't in the mood for a sandwich, so I passed it by. I'd brought a little pizza from the house, so I had that for a snack. I may head out to the mini-mart across the parking lot if hunger strikes later this evening.

At the Northwest Airlines lounge at Washington's National Airport.

Winter has definely arrived in our Nation's Capital. We had a few chilly days over the past week. A hot water pipe on the second floor failed at a poor solder joint. Fortunately, my hand was four feet from the service cut-off, so there wasn't any water damage.

The new living room furniture showed up on Wednesday. It looks nice; the cats approve, as well.

It looks like baseball will actually return to Washington, DC. a city with the financial and social service problems that DC has needs to plow cash into yet another stadium? It should be evident that the dollars should go to fixing the school system, but that isn't the way it's turning out.

The Montreal Expo's will be renamed the Washington Nationals. It is only a matter of the until the team is renamed the Washington Reagans, just like the airport.

On NW956, preparing to launch to Memphis. As reported, flights are overbooked. I've learned from Lorraine to take advantage of the on-line check-in capability.

What a spectacle. I hadn't realized that tonight's finale episode of The Apprentice was supposed to run all night. Thank goodness for Tivo.

So, Kelly Perdue gets the nod (and the job). Jennifer Massey held her own this evening, but couldn't pull it off in the end.

Regis Philbin? What were "they" thinking? If they needed someone who could run a live broadcast and who could think on their feet, why not pick someone like Billy Crystal? Someone with real talent? And Sugar Ray Leonard? In a half-season packed full of product placement opportunities taken, we have to sit through a plug for an unrelated reality "experience"?

Next season offers something new: class warfare. The haves vs. have nots. How imaginative. We haven't seen that plot twist since the last election.

Amateur Extra

I took (and passed) the Amateur Extra examination yesterday morning. Now all I have to do is pass the CW (Continuous Wave) exam -- I'm planning to take that exam in January. It's offered the second Saturday of every month by the Mount Vernon Amateur Radio Club. When I pass that exam, I'll have the Extra ticket, allowing me to transmit on the MF and HF bands.