Bricktown, OKC

I didn't think I'd have anything to say this trip since I've been here before. But I was walking around today at dinnertime just looking at stuff. It's really pretty here.

Sunset over Oklahoma City.

This time out I drove. I've had enough of the airport for a while. Oklahoma City is 3 hours from my house so it's easier to drive. If I were to fly, I'd spend more time at the airport than in the air.

I'm staying in downtown Oklahoma City in a neighborhood called Bricktown. This is a historic part of downtown that first sprung up in 1898. There were three generations of buildings that went up in the part of town. The first generation was between 1898 - 1903, the second was from 1903 to 1911 and the last generation was from 1911 to 1930. The building styles were all different to varying degrees but the common thread was that they were all built with red brick.

Now it's largely an arts & entertainment district. They have a ballpark (right behind my hotel) where the minor leagues play. Mickey Mantle is from this area so his name is very prominant in all the street names & some of the restaurant names.

This is the tunnel that separates Bricktown from downtown Oklahoma City.

They have a riverwalk, similar to that in San Antonio but not quite as extensive.

One of the many works of art around the riverwalk.

The minor league ballpark. I've never been to a game here but it looks like a pretty nice park. Maybe some time when I'm not so busy...

A view of the riverwalk. I had dinner in one of the restaurants off the river. It was a pretty good Cajun place called the Bourbon Street Cafe. Most of the restaurants along the riverwalk and in the Bricktown area are chains like Spaghetti Warehouse, Abuelo's, etc. The others are similar to places like Chili's or Hooters.

All in all, it's a nice place to visit.

First Class

I know what you're thinking - First class, big deal. And under normal circumstances, I would agree but this was First class on a Boeing 777. This was one of those planes where the commoners can't even go through your cabin. Winners to the left, losers to the right. Normally, I'd be going to the right with the rest of the losers. This time, I was able to go to the left.

Now I'm no travel novice. You've all seen pictures that I've posted, read about my travels, etc. I've flown first class. The seats are bigger, you get free booze, the warm mixed nut snack. It's all great. This time, I got my own cubby.

This was a one seat row. And that seat was mine. The chair swiveled so that I could comfortably face my own personal tv. I got my own pillow & blanket instead of having to fight with some woman that really shouldn't NEED a blanket.

I also had my own ottoman. HUH? That's right, kids. I had my own place to put my tootsies while I was flying home from Chicago.


There's even a seat belt there incase...what? I have no idea. Maybe if someone wants to come visit you from steerage, they have a place to sit.

I was obviously a first timer in this group. The flight attendant knew the guy across the aisle from me. Talk about your frequent flyer. She brought him a drink without asking! When she got to me, she asked me if I knew how to work the chair. I must have looked uncomfortable turning my head to the side like a sucker. She showed me how the swivel worked and then she reclined my seat for me.

Look at all the ways I can relax! I got a foot rest in my chair (so what's the ottoman for?). I can fully extend so that I can nap comfortably. There are all kinds of combinations.

The personal tv was way cool too. Usually, they play a movie. Their choice, right? No sir. Not in this first class. This was like "on demand". I selected the movie I wanted to watch from a list.

Then the attendant came by and asked if I wanted a little dinner after we took off. Seriously? uh, yeah? I got chicken teriyaki. It was good too. Not two sad little chicken wannabes. This was a full size chicken breast with rice and it came with a cesar salad. When she came by with the bread, I gave her the snake eye - as in "I want everything I got coming to me!". When she came by with the wine, she didn't even bother to ask, she just poured.

You know, I try to act like I belong and not like some hillbilly that never leaves the cave. But this was way beyond anything I expected.

This was one of the better business travel perks I've gotten. As a rule, we all fly steerage. But my client wanted me to come out this particular week and this was the only flight. I looked on all the other airlines, I swear! AND, this was the cheaper of the alternatives.

Sometimes, it pays to be a consultant.

Business Travel - El Paso, Texas

I'm back on the road again, this time in El Paso. With daylight savings, I actually got here during the daylight hours.

On a whim, I thought it would be cool to go by my grandmother's old house and see what it looked like. I wish I had a picture for comparison. My grandmother had painted her brick white. So the whole exterior of the house was white. The lawn was just dirt. When I drove by the house, the owner was outside doing yard work. I felt a little weird driving by and taking a picture of the house so I got out of the car and introduced myself. Ida, the owner, was so nice. She actually invited me in to see the inside. She's made some really nice changes.
This is the house. She took off all the brick and added stucco. Then she painted it these earth tones. It looks really nice. Plus, check out the lawn. She has two trees in front. I didn't want to ask to take photos of the inside but there were a lot of changes. I guess it's good that it wasn't the same house. Too many memories.

From there it was off to Chico's tacos for dinner. This place is an El Paso institution.
They make these rolled tacos that they put in a tomato type sauce and then they put cheese and it's yummy! You can also add this green chile salsa for a little pep.
Don't they look delicious? Every time I go to El Paso I have to go to Chico's at least once, preferably more than once.

So my uncle and family live in Dallas. They live about an hour from my house but we hardly ever see each other because we're all so busy. They happen to be in El Paso the same week as me so we all hooked up for dinner.
Me & Allen. We met up for dinner at Leo's. Holy cow! That's good stuff.
They were there visiting Ed's dad, Burt. Here are 4 generations: Burt, Ed, Allen & Drew.
Chantal with her Grandpa. She is so pretty. She came out with her kids and rode back with Ed & Allen.
Me & Ed.

It was a full week of work. I was doing training sessions for my clients. I did, however, have time to meet up with my cousins. My godfather & Charmaine & her family were on Spring Break and they went to San Antonio. But I met up with Angie and Lupe and Lupe's kids. Oddly enough, we met up at Leo's. I had Mexican food pretty much every day. This is the place to be for good Mexican food.
Me & Lupe.
Angie.
Dahlia & Nadia. These are Lupe's girls. They are so sweet. Dahlia is a primo basketball player. Nadia is a funny girl. I was really giving her grief at dinner and she was a great sport.
This guy was shy all of a sudden. He was talking to me all through dinner. He told me he was 4 and how he thought he saw his sister in the kitchen and all kinds of stuff. But when I wanted to take his picture, he was shy. This is Lupe's son, Ryan.

As always, it was great to see my family. I wish we all lived closer and saw one another more often.

Like I said, I was there doing software training for my clients. Every morning I would drive to their office and I'd see the mountains. It was so beautiful. It looked like scenery in a movie. I tried to take a picture but that's kind of hard to do while driving. I couldn't pull over because I was on the highway.
This was the best picture but it doesn't do the live view justice at all. Driving in you would see the mountains and the hazy blue behind them. With the sun rising, it was really breathtaking.

My clients were awesome. I really enjoyed this job. Most of my clients are pretty nice but with these guys, I felt like I was leaving a job that I'd been at forever. They really made me feel like part of the team. It was kind of a double edge sword - I was sad to be leaving because I really enjoyed the group but I was REALLY glad to be going home.

I've been very fortunate that my job has taken me to El Paso twice this year so that I've been able to see my family. Next time I go El Paso, I'm hoping it will be for pleasure, instead.

Business Travel - Madison, Wisconsin

Once again, I'm on the road. This time, I'm in Madison, Wisconsin, home of the University of Wisconsin Badgers. I've never been to Wisconsin, let alone Madison so I had no idea what to expect. I found out that this was also the home of the Onion. I'm not sure how many of you are fans but they actual print the newspaper here and it's free.

The way my schedule worked out, I was able to do a little bit of walking around during the daytime. Madison has, of course, the main campus for the University of Wisconsin but they also have a large medical facility and a veterans hospital.

This town feels very much like Austin, but colder. It's an isthmus - sandwiched between Lake Mendota and Lake Manona. The streets are filled with students and the campus occupies most of the surrounding area in the town.

When I first got assigned to this gig, all I could think of was "Wisconsin? In March? I'll freeze!". I looked at the forecast and the highs were in the '40s. But when I got here, it wasn't really that cold. It wasn't windy, even though we were surrounded by water. All the kids had these fur lined boots and the goofy hats that have ear flaps. On the days that it rained (most of the days I was here) they wore these goofy looking golashes. These people obviously are not slaves to fashion. They appear to be all about comfort...and warmth. These are my kind of people!

The first order of business was business. I had a meeting with the client. They supposedly had a great view of the lake from their offices. Unfortunately, it was so foggy, you could barely see anything. Below is a photo of the view from the client office. You can't even see the lake.

My first day here, after my client meeting, I decided to walk in the direction of the campus to find food. I walked over a mile in one direction and passed a cousin's sub shop and two subway stores. Seriously?? I'm not much of a sandwich person so I headed back to the hotel. Across the street was a sushi place and on the other corner a Korean place. The last corner had an Italian place that I considered but they weren't open for lunch. I decided to eat at the hotel restaurant but guess what? Closed. No kidding. I ended up having a cookie that the hotel left me the night before.

As I was walking along, I kept wondering why they had these big piles of dirt along the side of the road. It didn't look like they were doing any construction. As I got closer, I realized that it was dirty snow. It was all nasty from car exhaust and stuff that I thought it was dirt.

I also thought all these house were pretty cool. In the area of town I was staying in, it was mostly student housing. They had these old houses that looked REALLY cool that had been split up into apartments.
They also had your traditional student housing apartments. Apparently 'free heat' is a huge selling point here.

That night, I decided to head out to State Street. This is supposed to be the equivalent of Austin's 6th Street. I've never been to 6th street but in my mind I pictured lots of students, lots of noise, lots of action. I walked the 2 miles from my hotel to State Street. Then I walked the 10 or so blocks on State Street. It was kind of a let down. Of course, it was a Monday night. I did get to see the capitol all lit up. That was pretty nice.The way the capitol square was laid out, you could get this really nice shot from any corner. It was also really foggy that evening

I kept walking and walking. I thought, it's not quite dark, I should hurry over to the lake so I can check it out. Right after I thought that, it got dark. I kid you not. Still, I was so close that I had to try. I walked down a couple of streets in the direction of the lake and before you know it, I was all alone and it was very dark. I thought I was right next to the lake but I couldn't see anything so I turned around and headed back to the hotel.

Keep in mind, I still hadn't eaten. Nothing but Pubs & bars & pizza. I was really getting frustrated. With my trusty iPhone, I was able to make my way back to State street and head back to the hotel. On the way I saw a Mexican place and almost laughed out loud. Mexican? in Wisconsin? No way! I decided to check it out because I had to know what they though Mexican food was. Apparently, there are Mexican people in Madison that know how to cook. I had the best pork and chile verde. It was awesome! If my hotel had a microwave, I'd have brought it back with me. Check it out - doesn't it make you hungry?

I headed back to the hotel with food in my belly and a smile in my heart. It's a good thing I walked. I think I ended up with about 8 miles for the day when all was said and done.

The next two days, I was working out of the hotel. I work out of my house in one of the bedrooms that we've tricked out like an office. This should be the same thing, right? I felt like I was going stir crazy. I ordered toast to my room for breakfast. Blech. Soggy bread. AND only 1 stinking cup of coffee. I only ordered the toast because I thought it came with a pot of coffee! The food that day was really not so good. I didn't really go anywhere because it was raining. I hit the gym at lunch and then my legs fell off. Or at least they felt that way.
Me - working in the hotel.
This is where I lived this past week.

The third day I had breakfast in the little restaurant downstairs. I had UNLIMITED refills of coffee. Every time the lady came by and said, "would you like more coffee?" I said "Yes I would. Thank you." But the toast was still soggy. It was wet outside but I thought, I won't melt. I walked over to the university for lunch. I wanted to get some shirts as gifts and eat on campus. There HAD to be food there other than subway. I ended up eating at this brauthaus. I had a braut that was really good. The fries were the pits and the bread was a bit much but the brat itself was yummy!

I walked around the campus a bit and found Lake Mendota. The lake was frozen. As in ice. As in the water was not moving. There were two little ducks on the lake and they had this puddle of water to swim in and the rest of the lake was frozen over. I couldn't believe it. I'd never seen that before. There's a section that looks like a little white cap but it's SNOW! Snow on the frozen lake.

I felt so bad for these poor ducks. They had a tiny little pond with water and the rest of the lake was iced over. (NOTE: John's comment was if they weren't so lazy and had flown south, they woudn't be in this predicament).

Back in the hotel room. One thing - these people kept giving me cookies. Every night - 2 freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. Good God! Enough! I've had 6 cookies in four days! I have four more in the nightstand drawer. I don't want to even look at another chocolate chip cookie. With all the walking I did, I still don't think I offset the effects of these evil cookies.

For dinner that night I ventured out again. This time in a different direction. I found this place called Tex Tubb's Taco Palace. I read mixed reviews about the service but someone posted that they had a fried avocado taco here and that it was to die for. Now, how can I pass that up? I ordered the fried avocado taco and a fish taco (grilled mahi). The fried avocado was just bizarre. The fried part was good but it was avocado overload. The fish taco was good but I just don't think mahi mahi is the fish to put in it. Overall, I was satisfied. Besides, how can you not go to a place called Tex Tubb's Taco palace?

The big hunk of fried stuff is avocado. It also has onion and pico de gallo on it.

Thursday was the big day. I did the final presentation to the client. I'd been practicing in my room (out loud - the maids probably thought I was psycho!) all week so I was ready. When I got to the client office, I look out the window and realized that the lake was frozen. That's why I couldn't see it last time. The ladies were telling me that sometimes people go out there and sit on a 5 gallon drum and fish all day. Huh???

Another picture from the client office. That's actually the lake - frozen over. Lake Mendota.

The presentation went well but it didn't take as long as we thought so I decided to walk around so more. I hadn't had anything to eat (too nervous) and it was 2 pm. I'd heard the hotel bartender tell another guy that this restaurant called The Old Fashioned was really good. I was walking around and saw it and thought why not? I should have thought twice. It was mediocre at best.

The capitol building in the daylight.

I was down around the capitol area again and this time I had my mind made up to see the other lake. Plus there was an outdoor garden and a tribute to Otis Redding! I made my way down to the lake when I realized this is exactly where I'd been the other night. When I thought I couldn't see the lake? It was because it was frozen too! The place that had the garden and the tribute was closed. Bummer. I went ahead and walked back to the hotel. Another 2 or 3 miles. That's really a good thing. I just wish I hadn't been wearing loafers.

Lake Monona. Also, frozen.
Me in my new "Bucky the Badger" t-shirt. I felt I needed to support the campus.

Well, my trip is over. It was really interesting. I'll be back in a couple of weeks but I won't have time to do much other than sleep and work. Next week I'll be in El Paso. We'll have to see what that brings....