Death by Auto Audio Omission

Every time I rent a car and it doesn't have an aux audio input, a part of me dies.

Not dying is considered a matter of 'comfort'

Anyone who has flown on a plane lately may have heard the following line uttered by one of the flight attendants before takeoff:

"The cabin is pressurized for your comfort."

I'm sorry, but the cabin is pressurized so we won't die at 35,000 feet! I guess they call it 'comfort' so people won't freak out. Still, I wish they would state the real reason:

"The cabin is pressurized so that when we reach an altitude where the atmosphere is too sparse to permit normal respiration, you won't die of asphyxiation. Enjoy your flight!"

Familial Displacement, Part Deux

My family is moving... again. And it figures that they would be moving because I moved to Texas specifically to be closer to them.

Ten years ago, when I was a month into my freshman year at Lehigh my parents and sister moved from metro Baltimore, Md. to San Antonio, Texas. The reason? My dad sought and was granted a job relocation. (He works for the Dept. of Defense.) My first job after graduating from Lehigh in 2001 happened to be back in Maryland, so I spent about 3.5 years there after college. During that time I decided to look into getting a job in Texas, to be closer to the family. I was able to find a job in Austin and moved here in February 2005.

Living in Austin, I found, was very conducive to being able to see the family regularly. San Antonio is only 1.5 hours down I-35. So I go on my way, back and forth between Austin and San Antonio every couple weekends or so, thinking that all was right with the world. Little did I know that Dad had another adventure planned.

Not long after I was finally moved down here, Dad informs that he's considering doing an assignment in England. Nothing permanent, but just a minimum three-year stay over there before returning to Texas. So as of now, they are all moved out of their house and ready to fly over there tomorrow. I will definitely miss having them close by, but will enjoy the opportunity to visit them in England and be able to see more of Europe while over there. And knowing that they will be back here is reassuring because I won't have to entertain thoughts of moving again. I'm glad to be living in a place like Austin and can handle being apart from the family for a while, knowing that they'll be back before too long.