So, I’m back home, tired, overwhelmed, coughing, buried in work, full of ideas and… already looking forward to going back to Austin next year.

Quick thought before turning in for the night:  Sarah Lacy should do a panel next year on when crowds attack…  And there should be a live Twitter/Meebo feed up on the walls during the panel.

Well, I had a great first day at SXSW–more on that later–but my attempt at sleep last night failed miserably.  So, I’m working on just over four hours of sleep today.  Great.  Maybe I’ll have to try to catch a cat nap in the car later this afternoon…  Otherwise I could find myself wiped out before day three begins.

Well, today has been a trainwreck. I’m not going to rant about fucking over my second accounting midterm this morning, but let’s just leave it at that I’m extremely disappointed in myself.

Extremely disappointed.

But, I’m in Austin, so it can’t be that bad, right? Well, let’s start with that “I’m,” which should really be a “we.” Thanks to Northwest Airlines, though, my coworkers are stuck in Minneapolis, and are set to pretty much miss the entire first day of the conference. (Note to Northwest: IF YOU DON’T HAVE THE SEATS, DON’T SELL THE FUCKING TICKETS.) This mishap will be affecting my schedule as well, probably preventing me from seeing the Worst Website Ever panel (where I expect we’ll see this thing get pitched), as well as the Flickr party.

I’m also kind of disappointed that my coworkers’ introductions to SXSW will be the Frog opening party. Not that there’s anything wrong with the party, of course, but it strikes me as kind of a harsh way to start the conference.

~ ~ ~

The row in front of me on the flight down today had two parents with their nine-month-old. It made me wonder how my baby was doing.

~ ~ ~

Well, on top of everything else, it looks like my site is down. (Fucking Dreamhost.) I guess I’ll be posting this tomorrow, then.

I have a tight schedule tomorrow. My second Accounting midterm is at 11:00, and it’s estimated to take about two hours.

My flight for Austin? 2:15. I’ll be cutting it a bit tight.

~ ~ ~

And with that, back to studying.

Yesterday didn’t feel like Christmas Eve, but today, with the visiting of relatives and the opening of presents, has definitely felt like Christmas.

Tonight, turkey. Tomorrow, back to Minneapolis.

I’m envious of all the snow here in Madison. It sounds like Minneapolis got a good coat while we were in Wausau. Here’s to hoping it’ll stick through the winter.

Saturday evening in Manitowoc. Today included a visit to Lisa’s grandmother in Wausau, followed by a visit with Ben and Beth in Two Rivers later in the day. As far as driving today, I have two words: Pea soup. With the exception of around 20 minutes near Green Bay, the day was fog, fog and more fog.

Dinner this evening was provided by Fatzo’s, a sub place I frequented when I lived here. We were served by a blond girl with a ponytail and a Two Rivers Wrestling shirt, which is kind of hilarious in a way that can probably only be understood by those who went to high school here years ago… And then got out of town.

Fatzo’s is still tasty, though.

Mathias has been kind of cranky this trip. He had his six-month shots on Friday, and that combined with traveling has produced a baby more agitated than normal. Or, at least, that’s our current theory.

After lunch and some more visiting tomorrow, the plan is to head to Madison. The forecasters have been fairly off this weekend, so it’ll be interesting to see what the day brings. Regardless, we’ll probably head there via Milwaukee in an effort to avoid two lane roads. All I can say now is I’d take snow over fog… Just as long as the freezing rain stays away.

More later.

Well, we’re in Wausau. I just had a weird 20 minutes running errands, starting with a Shopko near our hotel. Shopko itself isn’t weird, of course, but whenever shopping there I always find myself wondering if they’re trying to be Target or Wal-Mart (or maybe a discount Kohl’s on crack), and usually all I get is a headache as a result. Anyway, while carrying a poinsettia out into the parking lot, I got a call from Lisa.

“I figured out why the Super8 here got such good ratings,” she said.

“What’s that?”

“[ This sentence deleted at Lisa’s request. ]”

“Uh, we better make sure we’re not paying for that.”

“I think its from the 1930s.”

“Oh. Probably free then.”

Next stop was McDonald’s to pick up a cheeseburger and iced coffee for Lisa. (I decided to grab a fruit and walnut salad for myself.) They handed over the food and I drove off to the hotel. Stepping out of my car, I heard a guy yelling. “Sir! Sir!” I turned around, and there was a guy from McDonald’s. “We forgot to give you your hamburger.” He’d actually run there after me. Dumbfounded, I took the burger and thanked him, and he headed off.

I thought about it for a moment, and then the full gravity of the event finally struck me: A McDonald’s employee had just run out of the restaurant, chased me down the street and located me in a parking lot in order to deliver a hamburger. That had to be good for some kind of tip. I jumped out of the car only to find he was already 20 or 30 yards away. (While he works at McDonald’s, it would appear that he doesn’t actually eat there all that often.) I yelled at him to stop, which he did, or at least tried to do, as he was on a patch of ice. Bang, on the ground. Fuck. At least he got up quickly.

“I have to give you a tip for that,” I said. I rummaged through my pockets, and got an ill-timed demonstration of the fact I’m primarily a plastic user. Total availability of cash to give him? $1. At least I got to thank him again.

So, it’s been kind of a weird evening. I’m out in the Super8 lobby now, as Lisa and Mathias are back sleeping in the room. The hotel has a computer set up in the corner for guest use, and I just watched some guy wander out in his underwear to check his email. Alrighty.

We weren’t originally planning to be here tonight, but yesterday’s weather forecast made it clear that if we didn’t get out of Minneapolis today, there was a distinct possibility we wouldn’t be getting out until Sunday or even Monday. So, we made a run for it. It’ll be interesting to see where we get this weekend… Or where we don’t.

Well, it’s time for me turn in for the evening. I wonder how warm the hotel room is. When I left, it seemed appropriate for poaching eggs.

More later.

10:30 p.m. We’re back in Minneapolis and settling in after what proved to be a very long weekend.

I’m drinking eggnog. Yes it has brandy in it.

Well, we’re back in Madison in what’s basically an overnight pit-stop on the way back to Minneapolis.

The funeral didn’t turn out to be as much of a production as some had suggested it would be. Yes, it was extremely formal, with two processions, one from the funeral home to the church and another from the church to the cemetery, and a detailed funeral mass with two priests, but generally speaking they respectfully got on with it. The mass itself was probably 45 minutes, and in the end we left the cemetery under three hours after arriving at the funeral home. The interment itself was not part of the ceremony, which seemed a surprise to some and a relief to others.

Lisa handled everything well, as did her dad. Just about everyone appeared to be asking him how he was doing, and he’d quietly respond that he was OK, which actually seemed to be the case. (Side note: Don had a really nice tie on today. I feel obligated to note that for some reason.)

There was a small luncheon after the funeral, where people dined on church food and reminisced about Baba. I didn’t know her well, but from the stories I’ve heard over the past 48 hours, I think I have a fairly good idea about the kind of person she was: Unique and occasionally frustrating, but able to make everyone who met her very glad they had done so.

Well, with that it’s time for me to make a quick run to Walgreen’s. (Long story.) More later.

Actually, one other thing I have to point out: The second leg of the funeral procession was completely knocked out of order by some guy driving a Hummer. As the lead cars and the hearse started out of the parking lot, the Hummer swooped around in front of the cars lined up to follow. Many of the other drivers reacted to this event… Poorly. Within 10 seconds of the Hummer’s introduction, both remaining lines of cars had managed to dissolve into a completely unrecognizable mess. I stared at the disorder in disbelief while Lisa complained from the back seat about which relatives close to Baba just got knocked back in the line.

The worst part about it? The people in the Hummer were part of the procession. Hi, welcome to Indiana.

Sunday evening in Valpairaiso, or Valpariso, or Valparaiso, or however it’s spelled. People down here probably call it “Valpo” for a reason. No one can fucking spell it.

The visitation for Wanda Horak, previously known here as Baba, or as Mathias’ great grandmother, or as 12.5% of our little one, is still in progress. We had to leave early due to Mathias’ schedule’s tendency to be inflexible for funerals, travel or acts of nature. We’re at Lisa’s cousin Ed’s place now, with Mathias seemingly cooing along to the lullaby CD we’re playing for him.

I’ve said this before, but our baby is awesome. He gets more so by the day. Unlike me, he may still have the chance to remember one of his great grandparents. We’ll have to check back on that in a few years.

Today has been kind of weird. That in itself is not surprising, as funerals are probably only second to weddings in bringing out emotional weirdness in people. (Lisa and I will both have to have funerals some day, I suppose, but we skipped the wedding part for a number of reasons.) The strange thing for me is there was one part of the trip I kind of expected drama from, and another that I didn’t, and for all practical purposes the reality has proven to be the reverse of the expectation. (No details here, move along.) Everyone is fine, but I’m feeling a bit off as a result.

Tomorrow’s the big day, the Polish Catholic funeral a couple of people have said may last well over an hour and a half. It’ll be followed by a trip to the cemetery, a burial, and a late lunch. I’ve never been to a funeral where we actually watched the interment before. It should be… weird.

Well, it’s time to clean up to head off to what’s been dubbed Thanksgiving Part II. Most of us thought we were getting pizza tonight, but it looks like something a bit more formal is in order. More later.