2012--Day 15

Day 15

So here is how it all ends.  We spent the night in Fort Collins (third time during this trip, but different hotel).  On the way to the airport (79 miles—shortest day yet!) we could see the smoke from the fires hanging over the area to the west.  One of our students was on a quest to photograph license plates from every state/province.  On the trip to the airport we saw Alaska AND Hawaii.  It always amazes me when I see Hawaii plates on the mainland, as it’s a long shipride for that car.

On the way we discussed the highs (aside from the tornadoes, of course) and lows of the trip and what we learned.  Fortunately the highs overwhelmed the lows by a wide margin, and the general takeaway message was the incredibly valuable hands-on experience and application of the material we cover in lecture.  It’s a shame that we can’t do this for every student.

We dropped the kids off at the airport and took the van back to the rental place.  We started at 3,647 miles on the odometer, and ended at 10,421 miles, for a final tally of 6,774 miles driven over a two-week period.  The van was overdue for two oil changes.  If you recall my prediction in Tulsa on Day 5, I was off by 26 miles.  My best forecast ever.

Just prior to going through security, we said goodbye to our first student, who had a much later flight than the rest of us.  One of our other students had an even earlier flight, but we’d meet up in Chicago.  After lunch, our two New Yawkers had to leave us for their flights.  We arrived at our gate to find that our already-delayed flight was delayed even further, by about an hour in total.  When we finally did board, Gustavo (being the extra-special world traveler) was naturally first.  When he told the gate agent he was the leader of our little group, we got to bypass the madding crowd and head up the specially-carpeted aisle—thank you Dear Leader!

The flight was relatively uneventful (a bit bumpy), but the delay made for a rather quick hustle through O’Hare, from one plane directly onto the other...where we proceeded to wait for the pilots to arrive.  The only advantage of having a seat in the ass-end row is that it’s a short trip to the loo. 

We landed in Rochester and met up with the parents and friends of our kids…and my lovely wife.  My son was waiting at baggage claim, and it was time to officially call it a trip.  While we were all ready for it to be done, I think we were all a bit sorry to see it come to an end…but not that sorry, either. 

Taking stock:

  10 fantastic students

  2 phenomenal faculty

  6,774 hard-driven miles

  12 states (Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Wyoming, Montana, Arkansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota)

  1 province (Manitoba) 

  4 national parks and monuments (Devil’s Tower, Rushmore, Badlands, Minuteman)   

  2 iPods (1 distinctively more popular than the other)

  150 shades of banality (Fifty Shades of Grey + Fifty Shades Darker + Fifty Shades Freed)

  2-inch hail

+3 tornadoes

=1 hell of a great trip

That’s a wrap!