Gone with the Wind – December 23-26

It’s been a while since I updated, said Mr. Obvious. That’s because it’s been a while since I went anywhere. I figure that this blog is about my traveling, so the only time I’m really going to have anything to say is when I’m someplace other than Dallas or just after I get back from there.

Christmas time has come and gone again. I must say that it affected me much less than usual this year. I only recall one day where I actually went to the malls or toy stores for shopping, and then all I did was head straight to the check-out line to purchase gift cards. I find them to be the easiest and most convenient method of gift-giving. Other than that one day, Christmas really didn’t intrude very much. Oh, Barnes & Noble seemed to have something going on every week that would cause a crowd to be there, and driving near the malls could be a challenge, but other than that… nada. It was all nice and peaceful, just the way I like it.

Lisa and I went to Georgia for Christmas. I like going there, whether it’s for Christmas or Labor Day or just a random visit. It’s generally the most relaxing vacation. I get to tuck myself away in a corner on a nice soft leather chair and bury myself in a book. I get up every once in a while to check email, although I did that much less this time than I normally do. Then there’s the food. There is always some sort of snacky type food lying around. It’s sort of like going to an all-you-can-eat dessert buffet and bed & breakfast. Very nice.

There were several very nice talking points about our trip. First of all was the flight. I burned 60K AAdvantage miles for two first-class tickets to Birmingham, AL. Lisa’s parents live roughly halfway between Atlanta and Birmingham, so either way we were going to have to do a bit of driving to get there. We got to DFW airport the requisite 1 hour before flight time and proceeded to get some dinner and make snarky comments about the other people waiting for their various flights. We changed gates twice, which was good for a little exercise. We went from one side of the terminal to the other. While we were sitting there, I looked up from my book for a moment just in time to spot a B- or maybe C-, list celebrity slouch into the gate to wait for the flight. Now, unless you’re a fan of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series, you’re probably not going to know who Nicholas Brendan is, but I am and I do. He was also on the very short-lived Kitchen Confidential as a pastry chef, but fewer people know that show than BtVS. Then after we boarded he ended up sitting across the aisle from me. He had his headphones on pretty much the entire time jamming to something. I wouldn’t have minded seeing what he was listening to. Hmmm, is this a mark of celebrity status or flight attendant inattention? I noticed that he was even listening to his iPod both before they said it was ok to use electronic devices and after they asked us to turn them off. Shame on him. I respected his obvious wish for privacy and didn’t hassle him, although I doubt he would have been very upset by a little interruption. He seemed like a fairly nice guy. Definitely talked like Xander. I have been advised by multiple people that Nicholas Brendan has a twin, and this could be him. I’m going to stick to my guns that it was the actor and not the actor’s brother.