June 21 - “Ready to travel ...”

Day two in Arlington was all about two things. First was the shopping trip.  We still needed some luggage for the big trip. We have two smaller suitcases that we use in our travels, but they are too little to pack things like a suit (not that I particularly want to pack a suit, but it is required.  Chris says so.  Sigh), and too big to be carry-on luggage for an airplane (American Airlines says so).  Our first stop was Kohl’s. No sooner had we buckled our seatbelts and settled in for the drive, and we were there.  It is just a few miles from their house.  Way too convenient, don’t you think?

We checked out their luggage. They had some nice things, but it was way out of our price range.  We did find one set that interested us.  Problem was, it looked like a dog had used it as a fire hydrant on the outside.  And one of the smaller cases still had someone’s luggage tag attached.  Gee ... I wonder if this was a return?  They didn’t have another in stock so we moved on.  It wasn’t a total loss, though.  Chris found some shoes she has been looking for.  I found a pair of shorts.  Cary even got some socks and underwear for himself.  But the absolute highlight of the trip - nay, of the entire day - was the find I made at the checkout counter.  A kids’ book about ... a moose.  Must be an omen ...

Next on the agenda was Target.  Well, Super Target. Way bigger than the one in Galveston, and they had quite the array of suitcases.  And guess what?  We found a set that worked perfectly for the required airline measurements.  It was still a little pricey, but within what I was expecting, so we pulled the trigger.  Chris tossed in some toothbrush cases and even a tiny little portable fan that charges through a USB port.  We’ll try that one out at camp next week.  Success number two.  So much so in fact that we headed back to the house for a celebratory sandwich and a nap.  Nice.

Supper was provided by the Winkle Arms Hotel staff.  Chicken dunked in something and baked with potatoes and beans on the side.  The potatoes were especially good.  Wayne and I helped in the preparation of said dish.  KayLynn even gave us each a relatively sharp knife to chop them up with.  The potatoes, not the Winkle’s. And the key topic of discussion around the table was ... moose.  Between us we came up with a pretty good start to another kids’ book.  Stay tuned ...

The actual reason for our trip was the final Alaska meeting.  We headed over right after dinner, hoping to get a front row seat.  We settled for the back row.  Close enough.  The meeting itself was interminably long.  Every one of the 50 or so people stood and introduced themselves.  Then we watched the same slideshow we have seen three times already.  She finally got around to the moment we had all come for ... the passing out of the travel documents.  Airline tickets, luggage tags, boarding passes and the like.  Quite the array of new stuff to digest.  After the meeting one old guy approached me and said he was looking forward to being on the trip with me around.  Apparently to him I seemed like the “kind of guy who was planning to have some fun.”  Well ... yep.

After the meeting we returned to the Winkle Arms for dessert.  The ladies sat at the table and made high level decisions regarding luggage packing and placement.  The guys meanwhile looked at pictures of the airplane interior to see if we would have enough leg room.  The jury is still out on that one.  It would seem that we are ready to travel ...

Psalms 113:3 says, “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.”

Father, thank you for the successful shopping trip.  That eliminates yet another level of preparation stress for us.  And thanks for the friends we have to share this adventure with.  And for the new friends who appear excited to share it with us as well.  Amen.