Virginia, Florida, Virginia, Home

This has been a week on the road, but in a more far-flung way than usual. Last Saturday, I departed Ontonagon before sunrise (which was really about 7:50am, but we don't want to talk about that, do we?). Because I live in the UP and flights in and out are limited, I did a little creative traveling. My ultimate destination was DelRay Beach, Florida. The training I was attending ran from early Monday am until 3pm on Weds. We were asked to book flights that left after 5 on Weds, so that we did not leave the training early. Turns out, you can't leave DelRay Beach after 5 and get home to the UP on the same day. So, I got creative and booked one round trip from Marquette to DCA (National Airport) and then one from DCA to Palm Beach.

I spent Saturday in Washington/Northern Virginia, visiting with friends and enjoying the Fawcett's hospitality; Sunday, I worshipped at St. Anne's and generally reveled in being back with so many folks that I love. Dinner with Kate before flying out completed the day.

After a two hour delay on Sunday night, I flew to Florida where I was trained to be an anti-racism trainer for the Episcopal Church. The weather was warm and sunny, but the training was long and tiring, so I didn't get to enjoy Florida nearly as much as I might have if I had been there for something less taxing. I still managed a long brisk walk on Monday night and an evening sitting outside and visiting with other trainees on Tuesday. This was not, however, a day at the beach!

I must say, there's nothing like several days of listening to people talk about the kinds of cruelty they have experienced because of race (and class, and gender, and sexual orientation) to make me want to cry. Or get violent. Or (at least on good days) actively work to change the world.

I returned to VA on Weds night, had more time with friends, flying out at noon on Friday. Thursday morning, Kate and I took a walk in the sun, watching birds and admiring creation at Huntley Meadows. The beauty of that place and the gift of our conversation did much to recharge my soul.

I survived an amazing airport adventure in Minneapolis. [We won't even talk about the fact that I thought I was going to Detroit, since nearly every flight from DCA to MQT goes through Detroit, and it was only when I got to the airport and the Northwest agent said, "Gardner, going to Minneapolis," when she handed me my luggage tag that I learned otherwise!] I landed in Minneapolis at 1:45CT for a 3:35CT flight to MQT. The monitor said that the flight was delayed until 4:30. I got some sushi, poked in a bookstore, fought with the airport wifi, and finally, about 2:55, I wandered off to the gate. The plane was now listing at 5:05. I called the friend who agreed to meet me at the airport, and alerted her to the great lateness of the flight. Settled at my gate, fought with the wifi somemore, and then heard someone talking about a flight that was not going to Marquette. So, I wandered off, at 3:28 to check the status of my flight and see if it had moved gates. The flight had moved to a new gate, and reverted to being on time. I raced back, scooped up my stuff, sprinted to the new gate, and discovered that the plane was actually boarding. Great aerobic exercise. I bought the older Barak Obama book to read in the airport, since my first book would not stand the test of the extra hours, and then I slept most of the way from MSP to MQT. Sigh.

I'm in MQT, at the apartment, but it's closer to home then I've been in a week, and it feels great.