Back in Oz/US Trip Summary

[MoeFOH]

Well, my US Trip is done! Mind suitably blown and weight increased by about 10kg, I arrived back in the Land of Oz from the Land of Excess on Monday last week. And I'm bloody exhausted (bringing a particularly savage case of man-flu back with me on the flight home was far from ideal). And 7 weeks living out of a suitcase is a literally a job for a maniac. No offence to anyone who does that sort of thing for a living; in fact, I simultaneously take my hat off to you and send you my condolences. But the almost incandescent allure of lengthy overseas travel quickly dulls to that of little more than a penlight under a blanket after two weeks of wearing the same undies (inside out and back to front)... Yes, yes, I hear you: do a wash, Steve! But I hate doing laundry at home, so the appeal is hardly going to increase while hauling my arse around a foreign country, now is it!?. And that's just one example. Travel is a holdall for many things contrary to one's creature comforts, all of which somehow disappear from view, in those planning days prior, when you're perched excitedly over your laptop with a wildly dumb grin on your face as you press "Go!" on that Qantas airfare... 

Anyhow, any minor niggles and travel whinges aside, it was actually a thoroughly magic trip. I got to see a large portion of the US, much of which I had not seen before, and I met some truly wonderful people and had some amazing experiences (least of which was my beloved Red Sox getting off to the best season start in franchise history and attending many of their games at Fenway! Go Sox!). But I am also very glad to be home. There's no place like home?... Maybe. Maybe not. I certainly think you can find the lineaments of home in lots of places, and I guess I did in a few places in the US in particular. One thing is for certain: for those FOH members I met up with, and for those with whom I traded messages but didn't manage to coordinate a meeting, I want to say thank you for making me feel incredibly welcome in your country, for generously taking the time to impart local wisdom, and simply for making the effort to get in touch in the first place--massive appreciation! Also, for those interested, I'm going to piece together a short trip summary vid (which, among other things, will briefly highlight some of those meet-ups) from the photos and footage taken over the course of the journey. I'll hopefully post that in the next week or so. 

Again, glad to be home, and I'm looking forward to rejoining the forum now I have my regular time and clean underwear available to me.

Cheers, All. 

Moe. 

PS - here's a snap of me and the wife (yep, she tracked me down) at Yankee Stadium in the last days of the trip. Unfortunately, the Red Sox lost that night, but on the upside that probably allowed us to escape the Bronx alive! 

[El Presidente]

10 minutes ago, MoeFOH said:

Well, my US Trip is done! Mind suitably blown and weight increased by about 10kg

Welcome back you fat git. 

[MoeFOH]

6 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Welcome back you fat git. 

Thanks, El Pres. A genuine Aussie welcome home.