Man o man...... 1 month from my departure date for those sunny beaches down south!!

Right now, I'm thinking of the airport down in Miami. I love that place. I love the people from so many countries that are coming and going. I love the cafe con leche at the little coffee shop there. I even love waiting for my luggage to come off the carousel. I love walking out the front doors and feeling the warm, humid, Miami air and watching the palm trees blowing in the breeze. You can tell that everyone is so happy to finally be there.

When you're leaving, there's always that little tinge of sadness that you feel after you've had a great time in Miami. You exit your cab to go inside. Check your luggage. Stop over for a cafe con leche. Step back out into the warm, humid air to sit on the benches out front and have a few last Camel Lights. Savoring the smoke and the memories of the week. Watch the people picking up loved ones. Watch the people sitting out here smoking on the bench. Watch the cabs and buses come and go. Watch the palm trees swaying in the breeze again. Think about your life and how you wish you could find some way to get down here permanently. You sit outside in the warmth until the very last moment. Then, you bite the bullet and head inside to the security line that will take you to your gate. BUMMER. It's official. You're going home now.

You always want to make sure that you're sitting on the right side of the plane on the way down and on the way home. That way you get the best views of the city. It sure is tough when you're flying out to look down at the city below. Seeing you're hotel, down there on the beach, fading into the distance is the moment when you really feel like it's over. The airplane, once a symbol of your freedom, of your escape, now becomes a prison bus taking you back to prison after they let you out by mistake for one week.

Well, perhaps it's time to just do it. Just move down there permanently and exit the frozen tundra once and for all.

We'll see.