Flapping My Wings

This Monday, as has been previously mentioned, for those who are keeping track, is the first of many days I'll be Elsewhere. Probably in a windowless room in the back of a seedy motel, just me and a computer and a lonely engineering trainer. Maybe another designer or two, but these classes are usually pretty customized. One of the best parts of this trip is I get to fly there (my very favorite thing). Another best part is when I return, I'll no longer be between jobs, but be able to focus on the new gig. A third best part is it's a week with different scenery. Since I am one who loves variety, this is a good thing. Another (fourth, if you're counting) best part is yon Alabama is roughly 70 degrees warmer than hither. That, my friends, rocks. While we're on the subject of flying, Mrs. Spiffy decided to take Girl on a Girls-Only Vacation during spring break. Where would Girl like to go? Disney World, of course. This greatly pleased Mrs. Spiffy, who used to go with her family every year. They looked into the cost and timing of driving, and opted to fly. Which came as a surprise to me, since Mrs. Spiffy isn't a big fan of flying, and it's kinda pricey for an impromptu little getaway. But, they've decided it Shall Be and both are working extra jobs to make up the difference. It fell to me to book the tickets, since I have some degree of internet air travel booking experience. I compared prices and dates, and surrounding airports, and came up with a good budget number. I selected Southwest and plunked in the dates, credit card number, and hit "Purchase." All was set, and they were committed. Three days later, we discovered afresh that I am an idiot. I got a phone call from Mrs. Spiffy at the office. "Um, can we come home after our vacation?" "I don't know. Do you think you should?" I answered. "Well, it's where we live," she said flatly. Turns out SOMEone had incorrectly thought, with all confidence, that 'round trip' was selected before air travel was purchased. It wasn't. The nice people at Southwest kindly sold me another pair of tickets. Same price as the first leg of the trip, which was just slightly less than the price I'd found for round trip tickets elsewhere. Which is why I'm now working an extra weekend job, to help pay for their little excursion. They'll be camping at Fort Wilderness, which is a much nicer place to camp in February than most anywhere in Michigan. They have an adorable little tent and it's fun seeing Girl count up the trip money that's pouring in from their enterprises. Boy and I will be all bachelor-like for a week, watching chick-flick-free teevee and leaving the seat up, eating spicy foods and burping all we want. Oh wait, Mrs. Spiffy is the family champion belcher, so I guess we'd better come up with something distinctly bachelorey. Any ideas? We may go skiing, who knows. It should still be hella cold then.