I have to agree with BuzzBop, MacWorld was disappointing. Other than the extremely thin notebook, there wasn’t much that caught my attention. And about the MacBook Air, sure it’s tiny and light, but as BuzzBop points out, how much durability has been sacrificed? I would expect, given its conveniently transportable size, I would want to take it everywhere…that’d make for an awful lot of abuse, don’t you think? Could it withstand it all?

I tried to question Quickbooks about whether or not they will be introducing a Mac version of Quickbooks Premier…they were unable to tell me much except that they aren’t able to talk about new products being worked on…or not being worked on…thanks for nothing.

What did catch my eye:

1. Vertus Fluid Mask 3, photo imaging software, makes cutting and blending images quick and easy; can be used as a plug-in or stand alone (this would make En Wrapture’s graphic design guru’s work much easier)
2. DataPilot software that allows you to backup and sync contacts, calender, music, photos, etc. between your computer, cell phone (not just for the iPhone), and iPod
3. iVolta Wireless Charging System which allows you to charge multiple devices at the same time on a charger plate without the usual tangled mess of wires
4. Hybrid Solar Charger - soon to be featured on the En Wrapture website as an option for an eco-friendly gift, this is the perfect gadget for travelers and the environmentally conscious and is able to power a GPS, mobile phone, mp3 player, PDA, digital camera, game console, etc. with the adapter tip system cable and USB tip
5. EcoSmart computer gear by Targus - line is priced from $50-130 and includes laptop slipcase, computer bag, messenger bag, and backpack, and are made of 100% recycled polyester, contains no PVC, metal hardware is nickel-free, plastic hardware is recyclable, and a portion of every sale is donated to the Conservation Fund to replant trees in Southern California in areas that have been destroyed by fires

Tip: If you aren’t going to hear the Keynote speaker, skip the first day and avoid the lines and crowds because you can get the skinny online and the following days are much more pleasant and more productive.

As I was sitting in the ‘Blogger’s Lounge’ at MacWorld in San Francisco, I had someone walk up behind me and enthusiastically ask, “Are you Dad Gone Mad?” I tried not to be completely offended…’Dad’ is Danny Evans…Hello? Is it not obvious? A male, I am not! And, I don’t look anything at all like Danny, not from the front, behind, or as he towered over me. pfft.

I suppose because I happened to be reading the Dad Gone Mad blog at that moment, he assumed I was updating, which I guess is what I should have been doing to my own blog in the ‘Blogger’s Lounge.” Anyway, Danny at Dad Gone Mad, you should know that I bumped into an ardent fan of yours who experienced great disappointment that he did not get to meet you. Seems I wasn’t the only suffering withdrawals from your blog.

I just have to air about something that really gets to me when I travel: Waking up in a hotel that charges $175 for the night, the last thing I expect to find when I prepare for my shower is that there is no conditioner. They can’t spring the .25 for conditioner? Don’t they know that conditioning shampoo is not a comparable substitute? Now I’ll have tangly, frizzy hair for the day and have to remember to stop off at a drugstore on my way back to the room. Grrrr.

On the other hand, one of my favorite things when traveling is to find an exceptionally nice line of amenities, the kind you want to smuggle home…Now those hotels and B&Bs get a gold star - they are well remembered and worthy of another stay.

Who do you think has the best room amenities?

I just got off the phone with a dear old friend and traveling companion, BJ (or Beej as we’d fondly call her), from what I call ‘my old life’, referring to my time spent overseas. I’m reminded of a song we used to sing at Camp Fire Girls get-togethers:

Make new friends

But keep the old

One is silver and the other’s gold

Since moving back to the states in December of 2000 I’ve had to start all over and make new friends, create a new network. While wonderful people have come into this ‘new life’, there is no replacing those friendships I made overseas in Saudi Arabia, some beginning at the onset in 1993. Many of us very different and perhaps not someone we would have ventured to get to know had we been in the comfort zone of home, yet always with one particular common thread: we were expatriates, away from family, friends, and home, searching for something familiar, someone with whom to discover the richness & mystery of the new culture and city. We could share the trials and tribulations of the loss of freedom our gender forced upon us in this exotic place and at the same time celebrate this new found gift - the gift of time.

Many of us had previously worked full-time while trying to raise our children in a society that required 2 incomes to support even a modest lifestyle, and this respite from careers afforded us the luxury of pursuing other interests, new hobbies, the ability to fully participate in our children’s lives, volunteering at school, performing community service, becoming advocates for worthy causes…and traveling. In between our stateside vacations, we would venture off on side trips to visit other wonders of the world - the pyramids of Giza, the Taj Mahal in India, Ephesus in Turkey and Hadrian’s Gate, the souks that were like a rabbit’s warren in Marrakesh…

Then circumstances would change and someone would move away, relocating somewhere else in the world. Now that these ‘golden’ friends and I are spread out all over the globe, I look forward to the phone calls and emails that help to close the distance and allow us to dream of the possibility of reuniting for our next adventure.