Up in the air...

For the first time in -- uh... since I can remember? -- I wore a jacket on an August afternoon when I was walking outside. (Have I EVER needed a jacket in August? Maybe when I was a kid and lived in Buffalo...) It was about 70 when we went out for lunch today -- which wouldn't have been jacket-worthy if it had been sunny and calm, but it was cloudy and very windy, so I threw one on just in case I got too chilly. Granted, I WAS a bit warm by the time I got back home, but I was glad I had it at first...

I'm also glad we're heading to Austin at the end of the week, where the temperatures are still hovering around 100 every day -- because I really want a good dose of Super Summer Overkill before settling in for autumn in Chicago. Spending a week in oven-like temperatures will remind me of how nice the changing of the seasons can be... :)

I can't even remember the last time we were in Austin -- it's a been a while. In fact, it's been a while since I've flown anywhere. (Rick, on the other hand, has been jetting off to exotic locales like Kansas City and Fargo on a weekly basis...) We actually drove past the airport last night on our way to dinner with some friends out in the 'burbs (I also haven't been out in the 'burbs in a while... and why do I keep saying "burbs"?? It's a really weird word). And I did what I always do when we're near the airport -- stared in fascination at the low-flying planes overhead, simultaneously wondering how they stay aloft and where they've been or happen to be going. I especially like to see something big, like a 747, just after it takes off or right before it touches down -- I'm amazed by those things. They defy all logic... they should NOT be able to float in the air the way they do. In fact, the one time I traveled on a 747, I was slightly disconcerted by the amount of time our plane stayed in contact with the runway before lifting off... I had time to read an entire chapter of a book before that thing was airborne (that may be a slight exaggeration... :)).

I'm also just, in general, fascinated with airports. Or rather, not the AIRPORT itself, but the idea that everyone inside the airport is traveling somewhere. I walk through the terminal, reading every destination on every board at every gate, jealous of the cool places ("aw, why can't I be on that plane to Milan??") and curious about the not-so-cool places ("I wonder why all those people are headed to Fargo..."). I'm amazed, when I get to my own gate, that so many OTHER people have reasons to travel to the SAME place I'm going, at the SAME time that I'm going. I guess airports, for some reason, bring out some sort of naturally curious streak in me... there are so many stories in an airport. Would it be weird for me to go from person to person and ask them where they're going and why? Yeah, that would probably be weird...

But at least I know where I'M going this week... which reminds me, I really should start thinking about what to pack for Super Summer Overkill weather...