Airports

Had to take a friend to the airport recently. Wasn't as bad as I had expected. Getting in and out of Philadelphia International is actually quite easy. The access roads from I-95 are clearly marked and there are enough lanes to keep traffic moving. Parking is easy as well. There are the terminal parking decks, the "cell phone lot", where you can park until your party calls you to come get them and the long term parking if you want to leave your car there and drive home after your trip. While there's no more curbside check-in (thanks Al-Queda) it's still fairly convenient during off-peak hours. I always try to schedule my flights after the peak morning or mid-day hours as well as avoiding early evening flights when everyone is coming back from their business trips. It's all in the timing. Choosing your flight time wisely can avoid a lot of aggravation. It's still a good idea to get there at least two hours ahead of time for domestic flights and at least three hours ahead of time for international flights. I'm a bit of an airplane fan so I don't mind sitting around the airport for a few hours watching the planes come and go. An airport is also, at least to me, the best place in the world to people watch. It's a great mental exercise to try and figure out or at least guess at what each person's story is. Where they're coming from or going to, are they on vacation, business or both and are they meeting someone or do they have to get an airport shuttle, taxi or a rental car. It's a fun way to pass the time. But then again, so is having a drink in one of the airport restaurants or bars. Either way, it's fun.

Turning Leaves

Fall's finally here and the leaves are starting to turn. I really do love watching the colors change. We get some really nice colors around me. The weather is actually nice and it's perfect for walking. Not too warm or cold. Had to pick a friend up at the airport the other day. Traffic wasn't too bad and parking was relatively easy. Have a few things going on this week but nothing outrageous. Have a great week everyone.

Fall's Here

Fall finally showed up. It's rainy and a bit gloomy but cooler temperatures and nicer weather are in the offing. It'll be nice to go outside and not sweat to death standing still. Great weather for walking and just enjoying the outdoors. Some nice parks around me that I haven't had the chance to walk in for a while. Nice walking trails and some good exercise. Nice scenery, too. It really looks great when the trees are at their peak color. Nice reflections in the water. It's a nice oasis in the middle of a busy suburban area. The county does a really good job of maintaining the parks and they've been allowing the area to go back to a more natural state. They've stopped mowing the grass along the streams and what they do mow is just enough to keep the paths clear. They still mow on the street side so people can picnic and use the softball field but they don't cut the grass right along the river banks. They let that grow naturally and it helps to control the runoff and helps keep the water cleaner. They've got fish ladders at the dams and that seems to be helping increase the local migrating fish stocks. The fishing in the park is actually pretty good. It's all catch and release but people seem to really enjoy fishing there. If you tune out the traffic noise and the planes flying overhead heading into Philadelphia International Airport, it's quite peaceful. It's a great place to spend an afternoon.

This is October?

It's October 9th, and it's 83º outside. Um, where's fall and what did you do with it? I guess you could call this "Indian Summer". They did have a frost warning the other night so I suppose this little warm up is Indian Summer. It's supposed to go back down to the low 70's by later in the week so I guess we might just as well enjoy the sunshine. It's cool at night so it's definitely fall. Looking forward to the foliage. We get some really nice colors around here. Hope everyone is having a great weekend. See you later.

It's Nice Out!

Finally, some decent weather. It's in the mid-60's (Fahrenheit) and very sunny. Still job hunting and I got the car serviced this morning. Heard some squeaking from the front end but it turned out to be the suspension bushings. Nothing serious and they took care of it. Other than that, not much else today. Hope everyone's having a good week so far.