Saturday, June 17, 2006

Just Flew Back from Virginia...

...and boy, are my arms tired!

In fact, all of me is tired. Got home to a house full of lonely critters who needed petting and time napping on the bed with me. I didn't really get to spend time with Jacob, so I'll have to set aside some time tonight for that. He got his apple, carrot and pecan treats, though. The neighbors who take care of the zoo when I go on travel give them just standard food, so everyone is in the mood for treats and personal attention when I get back.

I didn't take my camera with me this time, but I didn't really get any good photo opportunites, either. I suppose if I had it with me, I would have gone out of the way to find some good spots to shoot.

I stayed in Alexandria, but I was determined to get some seafood at the coast. Using my GPS mapping software on my PDA during a lull in our meetings, I found a place called Trader's in Chesapeake Beach. The location looked good and the map info said it was steaks and seafood. It only took about 45 minutes to get there and the place was pretty popular. I stood out in my dress slacks and shirt since everyone else had jeans and shorts and t-shirts and tank tops, but it wasn't a big deal. I ordered a dozen crabs.

40 minutes later I was still waiting. When the crabs finally came, I was ready to leave. Eating alone on travel sucks. I almost always get my food to go and take it back to the hotel with me. Waiting alone for 40 minutes really sucks. There was no view, either, as we were across the street from the shore and the buildings on the other side blocked the view. The whole thing was a fiasco. Add to that crabs in the shell took forever to eat. I put an exclamation point on the event when I whacked a shell with the mallet they gave me and crab guts squirted all over my pants and shirt.

Wonderful.

I did manage to take a group of friends to my favorite restaurant, Southside 815, and it got it's normal rave reviews. That was fun.

I stayed at my favorite hotel, the Marriot Courtyard in Alexandria, but I'm thinking of changing that. Since I eat in my hotel room anyway and I get a fixed per diem, I'm thinking of trying to find a Marriot Residence Inn from now on so I can get food at the local supermarket and save some money. Of course, there will be the requisite trip to Southside 815, but other than that I can pocket some cash on each trip. I got tired of the heavy food with no fresh veggies and really pined for some of my own cooking. Pan-seared fish, brown rice and steamed veggies with garlic and soy sauce would have been marvelous.

It's good to be home. Catblogging photos to follow soon.

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