From Sun to Snow

I haven't posted anything new recently, because for the past five wonderful days I was at home in California. We had a quiet Christmas with the family and the puppies, and that is just how I like it. It is simply nice to take some time off work to relax at home. The weather was beautiful. It was sunny and warm. Many people might think that 65 degrees is cold, but I think that it is perfect, especially when the sun is shining. Unfortunately the trip was a short one, because I had to come back to work this week to send some books to press. Still, any time at home is better than no time.

Wednesday was my travel day and our plane was supposed to leave around 2:00 in the afternoon. But, because of bad weather throughout the Midwest, the plane that was supposed to take us back to Denver didn't arrive in California until 3:45. So we didn't take off until about 4:30. Most of the people, though, were good natured and very patient. The only two people who were visibly annoyed were two younger women who were dressed in tank tops and pajama bottoms. There are two fashion-related things that I do not understand: people who wear their sunglasses indoors and pajamas while out in public. But, whatever. Anyway, after that little delay we eventually made it to Denver. With the weather as bad as it was, there was obviously a lot of missing luggage (or people!), because luggage without owners was strewn along the walls near the baggage claim area. Everyone on our plane waited patiently for our luggage to come out of one baggage carousel that was showing our flight number. Meanwhile the carousel next to us was overflowing with luggage. It took a while before we all realized that that was our luggage that was spinning around. I got my bag and by the time I caught a shuttle and made it home safely, it was already 9:30 in the evening. And I had to go to work the next day!

The weather started to get bad again and it was snowing for most of the night and all morning. Most of the people in the office decided to stay at home because they didn't want to deal with the traffic and nasty roads. The people who actually live in Boulder made it into the office, although that doesn't necessarily mean that the roads in Boulder are clean and safe. Because it kept snowing, they decided to close the office early at 1:00. So I stuffed some work into my bag, and here I sit, warm and cozy in my apartment with a fresh pot of hot coffee. Right now I'm just taking a little break to have lunch and to write this post, but, alas, I must get back to work.