Since I was on an airplane racing away from the rising sun and crossing over the international date line, I completely missed Halloween. When I landed in Sydney it was November first. Caitlin and Nelson were just getting started tricking for candy Friday night as I was getting ready to start Saturday.

I am much too tall to fly coach. For 14 hours. Banging elbows, knees and sometmes my head on everything that was too short, close, or small. The food was not bad (but remember that I will eat just about anything) and the people on the flight, both staff and passengers were nice, quiet, and friendly.

On the flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles, a woman was seated next to me on a trip to see her daughter graduate from University in Sydney. The woman, Lee Ann, is 'in real estate' somewhere around Atlanta. Her daughter went to Syndey as part of a program from Georgia Tech and decided to stay. She is a photographer doing freelance work for Rolling Stone. She is about to graduate and then her student visa will expire. She is scrambling to find some way to be able to stay in Australia after that.

The flight went well and we got to LA without problems. I did not like having to go all the way back to the ticketing counter to get the Quantas boarding pass, but that worked out because Lee Ann was headed for an earlier flight and got moved to the head of the queue. I was standing next to her asking for some instructions on what I was supposed to be doing and the Quantas staffer just moved me to the front of the line also. Lee Ann caught her flight on time and I had time to eat a passable chicken sandwich and call Mary.

The Quantas flight from LA to Sydney was very long.