Leaves Uncovered by Melted Snow Having eaten our way across central New Hampshire, it was time to go home. We were sad. In the car on the way to Manchester, Judi turned to me and said it was the best trip we've ever been on. To Laconia! Who wouldda thunk it? Although Glenn had this take: "Visiting Laconia is like waking up in Whoville on Christmas morning. There are no decorations, no presents, no tree, no roast beast, but somehow you still feel like singing." He was right. One of the nice things about this trip was flying into and out of Manchester (instead of Boston). Manchester's airport was small and easy to get around, there were no lines, the rental cars were convenient, and upon leaving the airport there were no traffic snarls. When we picked up the rental car, the elderly woman who helped us (I think her name was Barbara) was so friendly and homey that it was like renting a car from Mom. Speaking of the rental car, one of the things I had thankfully forgotten about winter was how dirty it is. The car was covered with salt, sand, and slush in no time. We actually got stuck behind a salt truck on our way to Vermont. Yuck.

TSA in a Huddle This was my first airplane trip since September 11th, and I was anxious about the security checks. I had heard about delays, intrusive searches, etc. But I didn't have too bad a time of it. The check took longer than it used to, but on the other hand not as much time was spent standing in line. Judi did have one of her carry-ons completely dumped out and pawed through, and then everything was just tossed back in. There was no discernable reason for this search, which made her mad. It would be easier to tolerate disruption if, when they found nothing, they would at least tell you why they did it. While we were sitting in the waiting area in Machester, all the TSA people suddenly converged in a huddle, and screening came to a halt. The huddle lasted for a long time -- maybe five or ten minutes. I have no idea what it was about, but it looked for a while as though we might see some excitement. And there was a college-student-looking girl in the the waiting area reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Man, that book has been around for a long time. I didn't know young people still read it.

And in conclusion, I can inform you that, as a result of this trip, Judi has developed quite a taste for hot chocolate. Topped with whipped cream.

Goodby to the Snow Family

• Scrapbooks Home
• ||
• Send me a message