Ft Worth, Office Time & Jay Oklahoma

Third week of January

Monday found me back on the road for a day trip to Ft Worth. With the change of seasons you always see something new on highway 287. But still as much as I have traveled this road I get a little bored.

While in Ft Worth I had the opportunity to take my client by the Ft Worth Stockyards. After being at the National Western Stock Yards last week I found it to be a little ironic to be at the same type location just a few days and a few hundred miles apart. Okay so it’s a few days and several hundred miles apart. My client remembered several stories his dad told him about buying cattle at the Ft Worth stockyards. The stories simply build up the romance of the time. Stories about determined and persevering people who endured good times and trying times.

Here is a couple of links to the history of the Fort Worth Stockyards. I found the history about the Armor & Co and the Swift & Co packing plants to be especially intresting.
Click - http://www.fortworthstockyards.org/history_overview.aspx
and
Click - http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/FF/dif4.html

Here are some pictures of the taken while we were at the stockyards. (click on the pic's for a larger view)

With the intense travel schedule of the past several it was nice to have a couple of days off while my client spent time in his office.

Thursday found us back on the road to Jay Oklahoma. Traveling East, the land looked dry all the way. My client mentioned there seems to be a lot less cattle on wheat pasture. From Tulsa east there was still a lot of grass and the cows seemed to be doing well. My client observed that there are still a lot of calves running in pastures either with the cows or in adjacent pastures. Some are getting pretty big.

I had to work overtime on Thursday. It was about a 7 hour drive to Jay Oklahoma where my client spoke to at a cattlemen’s conference. After that he made me take him back to Oklahoma City, which was another 3 hours back west. At 12:30 I was very glad to see the LaQuinta Inn. This is the hotel my client usually stays at when he is in Oklahoma City. It’s pretty new and very comfortable. They took good care of us.

A quick drive home Friday morning so my client could enjoy his kids participating in the county stock show. More animals, Yea!

Midland & Denver

Second week of January.

Monday my client and I drove to Hereford Texas & met up with the same customer that traveled with us in Louisiana last week. It was refreshing to ride in a different vehicle and a different driver. The customer drives a nice pickup. I enjoy sitting a little higher up. I can see out better.

The wind and the dust made the travel interesting. If you like brown, it was a good day. At least the wind was at our back. It made for good gas mileage.

We arrived late evening in Midland Texas and had supper at Abuelo’s. After Mexican food in Alabama my client was ready for some good Texmex. Don’t know how many restaurants they have but they do a really do Mexican food well. Anyway here is the link you can check it out your self. Click here for Abuelo's

Nothing special about the hotel. Just an older Hilton in downtown Midland.

The symposium wrapped up late Wednesday afternoon and we hit the road to get back to Canyon. A quick night of sleep and then catch a Southwest Airlines flight early Thursday morning for Denver.

My client and his customer spend the next 2 days at the National Western Stock Show in Denver. Its amazing to see how many cattle come and go out of the stockyards everyday. National Western is still a primary place for seed stock ranchers to transact with commercial cow-calf ranchers.

The National Western Stock Show complex is built right where the old Denver Union Stockyards was. If you remember the Union Stockyards it shows your age.

In 1886 the Denver Union Stockyards were established, later becoming largest receiving market for sheep in the nation. Here are some links to read about the Denver Union Stockyards and the National Western Stock Show.
America's Historic Stockyards
Union Stockyards and National Western
National Western Stock Show 2009

One evening while we were there my client took several customers to supper at a great Italian food restaurant. Il Posto is located just a few blocks from downtown Denver. Andrea Frizzi, the chef, met us at the door with a friendly welcome. I couldn’t believe he remembered my client. I was impressed. Andrea is from Milan Italy and his menu is true Italian. Dining there is an evening of entertainment unto its self. Plan on spending at least 3 hours as they serve in courses. The first course is appetizers followed by a pasta course and then the entrée. The food is indescribably good. It’s the perfect place to simply enjoy the company and conversation of whoever you are with. A trip to Denver would be incomplete with out eating here. I highly recommend this place. Click here to read more about Il Posto.

Friday night my client took some customers to Ted’s Montana Grill for supper. Yep, you guessed right, it's Ted Turner’s restaurant and they feature buffalo. My client has eaten here before but for some of us it was our first time to experience buffalo. Not bad! But don’t think it will ever replace beef. Click here to read more.

I really enjoyed the Marriott hotel we stayed at in Aurora Colorado (a suburb of Denver, out towards the airport).

Saturday morning found us back on Southwest Airlines headed home. I am looking forward to a full Sunday at home. Hopefully my client will slow down the travel next week!

Alabama & Louisiana

First week of January.

Monday my client and I flew into Birmingham Alabama. With the heavy rain the drive to Jasper Alabama at night was difficult. My client was glad to have me along to help navigate the winding and unfamiliarly roads.

Supper at Jim & Nicks Bar-B-Que was fantastic. The pulled pork was as good as I have ever eaten. Fried green tomatoes was a regional side item. If you have never had fried green tomatoes make sure you are in the south the first time your order them. They do them right! Rarely do I order dessert but at Jim & Nicks they make their own pies. I have a hard time passing up home made coconut cream pie. It was outstanding! I would recommend eating here. Clickhere to learn more about Jim & Nicks

Stayed in Jasper AL at my “home away from home” (Holiday Inn Express).

Tuesday the rain continued. It was interesting to see waterfalls coming down out of the hill and forest. They received 3 to 5 inches that day.

My client made a stop in Cullman AL and then on to Russellville AL. He would spend most of the next 2 days with a customer in Russellville. Nice people, the kind you wouldn’t mind being your family.

Stayed in Florence AL a couple of nights. It was an older Holiday Inn. It was okay but could sure use some updating. The bed was good though.

Alabama & Mexican Food – yep, your right that’s not a good combination but my client and his associate just had to try it. Rancho Viejo, it wasn’t bad but it really not a good idea to eat Mexican food in Alabama.

The second night in Florence we ate at a well noted steakhouse. Dale's Steakhouse is recognized by National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, the Beef Industry Council and Certified Angus Beef as a highly recommended place to eat. One of their trademarks is that all the waiters are black and wear red dinner jackets. The steaks and the service were very good. If you are in Florence I recommend this place. Click to read about Dale's Steakhouse.

Late Thursday evening my client and I drove from Russellville to Birmingham to catch a late flight to New Orleans. Another good flight on Southwest Airlines. On arrival in New Orleans we met up with another customer at a newly remodeled Crown Plaza (part of the Holiday Inn family). In fact it was so newly remodeled that we were some of the first guest to stay there. A great hour of conversation with my client’s customer and then a deserved good night of sleep.

Early Friday we were off to Baton Rouge LA with the customer on board for a symposium at the LSU campus. Beautiful drive on an elevated highway along the edge of Lake Pontchartrain. One can certainly understand how a hurricane can flood that country so easily.

When we arrived in Baton Rouge my client and his customer were very glad to have me along as I navigated them to the symposium, hotel and various errands they had to run. The roads aren’t straight and the street signs are hard to see. The LSU campus if very pretty. It looks like a great place to attend college. Click to read about LSU.

I took them to Chilies for lunch, can’t believe they both ordered the same thing. Could be they travel together too much. For supper that evening the symposium host prepared top sirloin jambalaya. I really enjoyed watching them make it from scratch. I’ll have to try making this myself when I get home.

Saturday we wrapped up the symposium and drove back to New Orleans. We enjoyed supper and entertainment in the French Quarter. The food at La Bayou was native tourist. They fried everything. Oh well, the people watching on Bourbon Street was entertaining. You see a little of everything there. The better restaurants are a couple of streets either side of Bourbon Street. I will try to do a better job of recommending them next time. Sometimes its hard to out guess my clients eating preference sometimes. They did get to enjoy some nice music while they were there.

Sunday we had a pretty early flight on Southwest Airlines back to Amarillo. A few hours of rest and reload the bags and get ready for next week.

New year, new budget, new places to go.

Thought I would blog about some of the places I travel to and the people I meet, mixed in with the adventure (or misadventure) of the trip.

Professionally, I am a travel assistant. I recently graduated (2007) with a dual degree in cartography and entertainment etiquette. My job is to help the clients I work for with everything they need while traveling on business and pleasure. It’s a hectic pace, as I travel with them everywhere they go.

I assist them with simple things like road directions but I also help select hotels, historic points of interest and great places to dine as well as entertain customers and associates. When asked; I also help them manage their phone calls, contacts and appointment calendars. While traveling I always have a copy of their favorite book, music and a pod cast of their favorite speaker.

My primary client keeps me occupied pretty much every week. He is a real gentleman and travels mostly in the US. Every now and then he goes to Mexico or Canada.

Check back weekly to see where I have been.