Here I go again...

I've finally finished unpacking from my trip down south, and I'm off again tomorrow morning to Ottawa on business for the week. Good thing I enjoy travelling.

My trip to Hot Springs, AR was mostly to help out my sis with her new baby twins, but we did manage to squeeze in a little R&R. We checked out bathhouse row early on New Year's Eve. Too bad we didn't have a babysitter lined up, as the Arlington Hotel was hosting a cool shindig. It woulda been neat to check that out. It was a gorgeous day like an indian summer, yet the steam was coming off the hot springs as if it was below zero. The architecture inside some of the bathhouses was magnificent. The height of their popularity was between 1900 and 1940, and there is only one bathhouse still in operation today. Al Kapone is rumoured to have visited both the Arlington Hotel and the bathhouses often when he passed through the Hot Springs area. It is said that the hot water coming out of the ground has been deep in the earth's crust for thousands of years, and is thought to have significant healing properties. Before and after our sojourn to Hot Springs we climbed the West and East Mountains to take in the view. It is largely a wooded mountain, and a couple of days after we were there there were severe brush fires in the area that nearly burned out of control. The ground is so dry and arid that they have had to enforce burn bans to avoid forest fires from ravaging the area.

We celebrated New Year's quietly at home and played Texas Hold 'Em between bottle feeds. Exciting stuff! Actually it was nice not having to get all dressed up and go out somewhere for a change. We watched the Ball drop at Times Square, and then hit the hay right after midnight.

Other than the necessary trips to Walmart for sundries and provisions, we didn't do a whole lot of shopping. However Pam did take me out to the mall so I could get my Bath and Body Works fix! We SO need one of those in Canada! No trip to the States is complete without a stop at the BBW!

We did stop to check out a State Park with a lake named after MOI to see where the water level was at. Being as dry as it is, and not having had a decent rainfall in gawd knows how long, the lake was understandably lower than normal. You can see the dock at the right of the photo to see where the water level should be at. Shocking to see how much water is missing.

At any rate, it was a great trip, and although I didn't get much sleep I did come back recharged and rejuvenated after almost three weeks off work. I will not travel late in the day again, however, after BOTH of my flights were delayed significantly. I didn't get home until almost 1am on Monday, and had to get up to go right back to work only five and a half hours later! I also vow to leave myself at least a day to decompress before I have to jump right back into the old routine again. Sheesh.

My trip to Ottawa promises to be paced a bit differently, and I don't know if I'll be able to do any sightseeing as I'll be working most of the time. But I do hope to have a little fun while in our nation's capital. I'll be home Friday night so there'll be lots of time to settle back in before Monday. And if I've got the ambition I just might get started on my bathroom...

B.G. ;)