Mann on the Move: Moving On Up....

So, this is my first post in a new blog dedicated to all the activities in my life. Frankly, I was encouraged to create this blog when a co-worker was the recipient of some of the craziness that is my life.

To start off with, here are a few recent facts about me:

· I started a new job with my company

· Said new job required me to move from my home city of Dallas to the DC area

· I had to sell my house

· I had to find a new home

· I have the opportunity to travel to more places than I used to!

Let’s start with the house. I found and subsequently bought a three-level town home in the suburbs of DC. Everyone tried to tell me to buy closer into the city but for what I could afford, I would be living in a one bedroom tiny place with no outside space or garage. And for a Texan like me, that would just not work. After all, where would I park my two (you heard me) cars? So I settled on a town house built in 1996…and boy does she look it design-wise. The good news is I like to tinker around the house and so I see projects everywhere! The bad news is funding and plain time in the city to get things done. That and I am just lazy…putting that right out there. So those faux-green stone Formica countertops in the kitchen and cultured stone countertops in the bathrooms will be with me for a while. Other things I can do in the interim I will accomplish (promise) and post on here.

As to the travel…well that is off to a roaring start here in 2014! Thus far, I have traveled to Dallas, Dubai, Las Vegas, San Antonio, San Francisco, St. Louis, and Seoul. You virtually heard me…all that since January 1. The travel does not slow down much going forward with Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Taipei, Anaheim, and NYC coming up in June alone. Things I have learned along the way:

· I will never again book long haul travel in coach if I can help it. That is just torture plain and simple

· I still cannot sleep when flying but put me on the ground in an airline club and I can easily drift to sleep.

· I thank the day that I chose to sign up for an airline club…especially one that offers really nice shower facilities.

· There is nothing like being able to shower and freshen up after 14 hours on an airplane. Seriously.

· Patience is a virtue.

· Never let me loose with a credit card and luxury duty-free. I now have a purse I refer to as “The Mortgage” for obvious reasons.

I simply love to travel and even being up 36 hours straight traveling to a destination cannot get me down. I have had the opportunity to travel to two new continents this year – Africa and Asia- and look forward to continuing the discovery. Each of the travels so far and those yet to be are giving me the opportunity to visit places that may not have been on the top of my travel list but have been extraordinary in their own ways.

Now some pictures: