Yes, and a merry Christmas to you as well. Made the two flights. The first to Chicago (that's a picture of the ol' Chicago skyline early Christmas morning - a skyline this old Chicago cabbie hasn't even laid eyes on in 20 years), and the second to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Both flights were early and full.

On the Chicago flight, I sat next to a woman from the Czech Republic en route to Frisco. Didn't quite get the whole story - a little language barrier. That's the Lake Michigan shoreline down there and the giant skyscrapers of the world's most overlooked major city.

The Albuquerque flight had me parked next to Rory, an accountant from Denver working in China for a sporting equipment company. Very high on China was he. Rory was still trying to get home to snow-pounded Denver for Xmas (and he smelled like it, too). To see New Mexico, the state that calls itself the "Land of Enchantment" after a 30 year-absence was special. Sure doesn't look like Vermont, eh?

Albuquerque was quiet. Very quiet. I was the only person on the rental car bus at the airport. Hey, did you know they've got a 75 m.p.h. speed limit on the interstate here?

Good decision to come here to Santa Fe this Christmas. Sister Maureen's paintings are knockouts. All this takented struggling artist needs is a good agent.

And yours truly needs to get his traveling shoes out more often.