Wednesday, May 22, 2013

On the road again...

I am back on the road!  This time I am traveling for work, not pleasure, although I always think traveling is pleasure.  At the very least, it is always an adventure. 

After being unemployed for 7 months, I finally have a job.  Not just any job, but a great job.  I am working as a freelance installer and trainer for a library automation company.  So far, I'm loving it!  For one thing, I really like the company.  I worked closely with them in my previous job and had developed a great deal of respect for them...their products, their philosophy, and their employees.  I'm ecstatic to be working for them now.

In my new job, I get to travel all over the place visiting libraries.  That combines two of my favorite things: travel and libraries.  Plus, it pays really well and all of my travel expenses are reimbursed.  I'm a very lucky and very happy girl!  I already have jobs scheduled in NYC, Quincy (Indiana), and Tulsa (Oklahoma).  It looks like in addition to being lucky and happy, I am also going to be a very busy girl.  But, that's how I like it.  Being unemployed is booorrrrrring. 

This week I'm in Largo, Florida.  It's just a few miles from Clearwater on the Gulf coast.  It's beautiful here.  I've never quite understood why people live in places that are prone to hurricanes, but now I understand.  It's a lovely, quaint, clean city with palm tree-lined streets and only a few miles from the coast.  From my hotel, it takes about 10 minutes to get to Belleair Beach or Indian Rocks Beach.  I got off work around 2:30 this afternoon and within 30 minutes I had run back to the hotel, changed into my swimsuit, swung by the CVS for sunscreen, and was lying on the beach at Indian Rocks.  Did I mention that I love my new job?

Here are some pics of Largo and the surrounding areas:


 
The sunset over the ocean at Indian Rocks beach.

I was driving on West Bay Dr. and saw a shop called William Dean Chocolates.  You know I had to stop in and get Tanya some truffles.  They were so fancy.  I had one (just one, really) and it was as tasty as it was pretty.
 
 
 
Well, unfortunately, those are the only pictures I can get to load.  For some reason, all the others are only loading 1/4 of the photo.  I don't know why that is...given the number of pics I loaded from Europe with no problems, I feel like a pro when it comes to uploading photos.  Still, it just isn't working.  I'll try again tomorrow.  I really wanted to get them to load, because the headquarters of the Church of Scientology is in Clearwater and I went by and made a few pics of it today.  It is beautiful, but scary.  It's heavily guarded.  I mean h e a v i l y...like with armed guards who are apparently part of the church's para-military wing.  Personally, I think if your church even has to have a para-military unit, that should tell you something!