Highways and...upgrades?

There is really only one thing I want to do at 6 AM...Sleep. It might be because I have a really incredibly comfortable bed--it's also very warm, and as the weather gets colder, it is continually more difficult to get out of bed; it might also be because I just really like to sleep. I like to go to bed early and get up late. Thus, this morning, when the alarm clock went off at 5:45, I really didn't want to get up. I knew I had a long drive ahead of me and had to finish packing, though, and more than I love sleeping, I hate being late.

I drove about 2 hours and 45 minutes to get to my first school today and talked to several great students! It was a really great visit. At my second school this morning, I ran into a Simpson alum who is a year older than me and now the band director for the high school. It was great to run into a familiar face! All in all, it was a great day of high schools--lots of students with great questions!

This afternoon, I got to my hotel to check in. The lady at the front desk is all "King, smoking room, right?" And I'm all, "Yah..no. Non-smoking." And she's all..."oh, well, um, this says smoking, let me see what I can do." (*I have allergies--smoke messes with my face and it's not pretty--especially sleeping in the remnants of it. I enjoy breathing in the morning.) She ended up having to upgrade me to the king suite with a whirlpool, couch, and an actual comforter--rather than those silky gross things! So, here I am, living the hotel high life in Cedar Falls.

Travel season is coming to an end, and as nice as it will be to stay in my own bed on a daily basis, I have grown accustomed to this nomadic existence over the last few months--especially when upgrades are involved! It's gone fast, and I realize how many people I have met--lots of great people that I hope to see at Simpson in the coming years!

What will I miss about travel season? Cable, mostly. :) And of course, listening to NPR for miles on end--seriously, it's interesting and you'll learn a ton. 640 AM, in case you were wondering. I will miss the curiousness of the great NE Iowan unknown and using my map on a daily basis. I have decided, as much as I hate getting out of bed, I really love mornings--nothing really beats an early morning misty drive in the pale rainbow of sunrise down a winding country road. I like small town restaurants, and random phone calls on the road. Roaming the streets for the biggest, oldest, coolest houses--Osage has a ton of them! And, of course, meeting new people in the schools and towns I've never been in before.

That being said, now that I've come to see all of you people, I'm pretty sure it's your turn to come to campus and visit me...