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Homeward Bound?
May. 3rd, 2015 09:55 pmI'm squeezing every last dime to get myself to San Francisco in June for the annual library conference. The problem is that hotels in San Francisco are freaking expensive. If you don't want to stay in the Tenderloin, the minimum that you'll pay for a hotel in S.F. is $200 a night, and most are more expensive. I just booked this hotel. It's close to Moscone Center, where the conference will be; it's close to the "official" hotels for the conference, so I can hop on the shuttle to Moscone Center; it has a refrigerator and microwave (which I'll probably need to use because I've spent so much money on the freaking hotel!) And it also has a daily wine tasting, which is civilized.
I don't know how I will feel about going back. I'm planning to fly into San Jose and spend a couple of days before hopping on CalTrain to the City. When I moved back to the Midwest, if you asked me where I thought that my home is, I would have said, "San Jose". Now I feel less closely tied to it, although I just freaked out that there was a small earthquake in the East Bay because the nightmare scenario is a strong quake in the East Bay. The faults run directly under populated areas. Because I've been bopping around the Midwest, I feel like I don't have a home. Chicago certainly isn't it because I haven't lived there since I was a kid. This promises to be an emotional trip.
I realized that there is no way that I can afford to take the California Zephyr to Chicago this trip. I am planning to take it to Reno, and stay a couple of days with my dad, and then fly out of Reno. It occurred to me, however, that I could take the Zephyr on the next time that I go to see my dad. I also want to take the Coast Starlight sometime up the West Coast. And those are the only train-related items on my "bucket list". I also want to go to Italy with my mom sometime in the not-too-distant future, so I've started reading about Florence and Venice. And I need to really watch my spending and save money for the trip.
I don't know how I will feel about going back. I'm planning to fly into San Jose and spend a couple of days before hopping on CalTrain to the City. When I moved back to the Midwest, if you asked me where I thought that my home is, I would have said, "San Jose". Now I feel less closely tied to it, although I just freaked out that there was a small earthquake in the East Bay because the nightmare scenario is a strong quake in the East Bay. The faults run directly under populated areas. Because I've been bopping around the Midwest, I feel like I don't have a home. Chicago certainly isn't it because I haven't lived there since I was a kid. This promises to be an emotional trip.
I realized that there is no way that I can afford to take the California Zephyr to Chicago this trip. I am planning to take it to Reno, and stay a couple of days with my dad, and then fly out of Reno. It occurred to me, however, that I could take the Zephyr on the next time that I go to see my dad. I also want to take the Coast Starlight sometime up the West Coast. And those are the only train-related items on my "bucket list". I also want to go to Italy with my mom sometime in the not-too-distant future, so I've started reading about Florence and Venice. And I need to really watch my spending and save money for the trip.
