Saturday, August 17, 2002
Dale: I'm back after a week spent in Arlington, Virginia. I was attending a training conference with 40 other people, and I barely had time to come up for air. We were working all week. They put us up at the Key Bridge Marriott, a truly pleasant and expensive hotel. Most of my vacations have cost less than the price of a two-night stay in my room. I think it has something to do with the overall costs of staying in the central Washington DC Metro area--nothing's cheap there. Still, if you can afford it (or someone else is paying), I recommend it.
I kept up with the world--sort of. I was able to follow a few stories, including (for once) a happy ending to a child kidnapping. It's good to be back. I had so much coffee last week I half-joked to Heather that I was going to throw our pot through the nearest closed window after I returned. The good news of the trip (besides the valuable training) was that I managed to find a Catholic Church in Arlington County with a very late Mass for the Assumption, and, through a combination of the DC Metro, a sufficiently detailed Arlington map obtained from the Marriott concierge, and nicely maintained walking trails, I arrived in good order. St. Ann's (located in Arlington's Ballston neighborhood) is a wonderful place, and it was nice to stop thinking about legal matters for a few minutes. More or less.
I was never so happy to see Heather and Madeleine as I was when I rode the escalator down to the baggage claim area at Metro Airport, and saw them waiting for me. That was moving beyond words. We ate at the local Olive Garden, where Maddie charmed several dozen more strangers.
And then I had a chance to get caught up on Church news, and have been stewing since. More on that later.
I kept up with the world--sort of. I was able to follow a few stories, including (for once) a happy ending to a child kidnapping. It's good to be back. I had so much coffee last week I half-joked to Heather that I was going to throw our pot through the nearest closed window after I returned. The good news of the trip (besides the valuable training) was that I managed to find a Catholic Church in Arlington County with a very late Mass for the Assumption, and, through a combination of the DC Metro, a sufficiently detailed Arlington map obtained from the Marriott concierge, and nicely maintained walking trails, I arrived in good order. St. Ann's (located in Arlington's Ballston neighborhood) is a wonderful place, and it was nice to stop thinking about legal matters for a few minutes. More or less.
I was never so happy to see Heather and Madeleine as I was when I rode the escalator down to the baggage claim area at Metro Airport, and saw them waiting for me. That was moving beyond words. We ate at the local Olive Garden, where Maddie charmed several dozen more strangers.
And then I had a chance to get caught up on Church news, and have been stewing since. More on that later.
