At Last

I am off this week to do my Willy/Willie thing, as in Loman and Nelson.  Too vague? OK, I'm back on the road again doing my sales thing. I am off to Cheeseheadistan before the cold winds of winter make the trip more miserable. More to the point, it is a semi-short drive compared to some of the far-flung parts of my territory. I have to ease back into distance driving before I embark on fifteen hundred mile or more round trips. The trip to Green Bay is broken by Chicago and Milwaukee. Omaha or Wichita are just long hard drives.

I have gotten used to being home. It will be hard to return to travel three or four days a week. On the other hand, I miss it. It is hard to describe if you have never been a road warrior. Life from a suitcase is not what most people think it is. Business travel is not like vacation travel. I stay in hotels close to my customers. Factories are not usually in tourist areas. The industrial part of town is not usually on the attractions list.

Don't get me wrong, I like my job. I have been all over the country and world. I have seen things and visited places I would never be able to on my own. I have memories and stories that could fill a book (or a decade plus of a blog). That does not mean it is easy to take off every week and leave your family. That was especially true when my kids were small.

Anyway, I am glad to be back on the road. Working customers via phone is not he same as face-to-face. That is what I am good at. I may seem a giant ass around here, but I am good at my job.