People, Part I

The skycap at Mitchell, as he looked at my I.D.: "You have the same birthday as the King!"
Me: "Yeah, I'll wave as we pass over Graceland."

A very pretty young woman and her extremely sleepy little five year old boy were in the line behind me for boarding in Milwaukee. While I didn't get their names, I've added them to my prayer list; they have been travelling every two to six weeks since he was fourteen months old - to go to St. Jude's Hospital in Memphis. That made my whole trip seem a bit...insignificant.

My seatmate for the first leg of the trip has a degree in large animal veterinary medicine - and works in the "raw" end of research and development for a meat processing firm in Kenosha. Makes you think of your hamburger in rather a different light.

Louis Armstrong airport is a distance from downtown NOLA, so I joined a ride-sharing van. I was sitting right behind the driver, and may have been the only one who noticed, but he was quietly singing - no radio, no ipod, just singing a capella - the entire half hour into the city. While he was unloading my bag, I thanked him for the concert - and his face lit up. Love of music runs deeply in the people here.

Signs are all over the hotel promoting the USGIF convention.  A woman one table over in the lobby lunch bar struck up a conversation, and was able to tell me it was the United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation - they are the ones who analyze all the data sent back by intelligence satellites, apparently. It seems to be an up and coming profession, a convergence of a number of disciplines.  Still, it makes me feel a bit...spied on?...to know they are there. 

Four women in their early sixties waited for the steamboat cruise just in front of me.  It turns out they are old college chums, who went to Illinois Wesleyan years ago, and meet every year somewhere for a reunion trip.  Friendships like that are truly a treasure!

Who knew?  My waitress on board the cruise grew up on the north side of Milwaukee!

Pictures, commentary and, if I can figure out how to upload it, video coming tomorrow, once I've had some sleep.  Two planes, three states, two vans, a couple taxis, a steamboat and an elevator for which you press the floor number before the car arrives...it's been a long day!