20,000 Leagues Above the Earth

So the trip is winding down. Houston is behind me, West Palm is behind me, and Houston (again) is behind me. 2 of this year's conferences down, 3 more to go. Sunday night I fly home.

The fridge at home may be broken, or it may just be an ice blockage. Why is it every major problem we've had with the house has happened when we're away? Last time the bathroom on my side of the house, now this. COuld it be because I leave 3 teens alone? Nahhhhhh...........

There's a lot we didn't get to do in Houston. The only touring we did was NASA, and that was on Taanit Esther. Touring and fasting is not a great combination, and when you addin waiting on long lines, well. Any suggestions for better tourist sites in the Houston area would be appreciated; we'll be back for at least 2 weeks in November, more if B can score a few jobs there between one set of conventions and the next. I didn't get to any yarns stores, since we ended no earlier than 6 pm each night and the yarn store I planned to visit closed every night at 7. The only fiber shopping I got in was at Hobby Lobby (5 colors of Magic Stripes yarn for socks and a set of Boye interchangable needles that B insisted I get -- not that he had to insist too hard) and Walmart (3 lbs. each of 3 different colors of Peaches and Creme cotton for sweatshirts). I have tomorrow in NYC to shop if there's any room and weight left in my luggage after I pack.

I think we did pretty well at the conventions. Each time the other vendors complain about how little traffic there is, how few sales, but they always seem to come back. This last convention was the first time I actually saw them get togther a petition about it, but we didn't sign. We had a great booth location, and though I think we only got 5-10% of the conventioneers to sign in at our booth, that was about 95% of all those who came to the exhibition area and quite possibly was close to 90% of those who have jobs to bid out. The raw numbers probably don't matter all that much; if if there are 10-15 new jobs to be bid out in a year, all you need to really reach are those 10-15 people. I'm also becoming less of an introvert: each time it takes fewer and fewer hours for me to feel comfortable starting a conversation with a total stranger who doesn't yet know how desperatley he or she wants to talk to me.

And now we're on the plane back to NY. Not quite relaxed--one of the conventioneers is a few rows behind us so we can't grub off until we get to B's mom. But I can look out the window and day dream about what a nice quilt the view would make. Maybe after I've learned to use my new loom (that had better be waiting forme in NY) -- one cow at a time.