SIDE SALAD - Everything crunchy is good.

GOING BACK TO TALLY

Postings might be a tad light today and tomorrow. I'm in the heart of Seminoles country today on a business trip.

I went to FSU for three years (before I wised up and finished at UF), but I haven't been to Tallahassee in about 15 years. Took me a good hour to get my bearings, the town has changed so much.

If Yankee Stadium is the House that Ruth Built, Tallahassee is truly Bobby Bowden Town. It's astonishing the growth of the campus. The amount of construction is beyond comprehension. When I left town, the football stadium looked like a glorified high school field crossed with an erector set. Now the athletic facilities, to borrow a metaphor, look like they're on steroids.



I came out through the gate at Tampa International Airport Wednesday evening to find this James Bond mini-plane waiting for me on the Tarmac. I had to freaking limbo to get to my seat. It took only about 2 minutes for the flight attendant to serve all the beverages for the 25 passengers.

Your rational thought would usually be: since it's a small plane, it'll be easier to get off the aircraft. Nevertheless, it took, I swear, 20 minutes between the wheels came to a stop and the time they opened the cabin door and let us out. Whenever I fly, I'm captivated by the idea that we've perfected air travel for more than 100 years but we've still not found a decent way to get people off a plane in an expeditious manner.