Photoshop is an amazing tool

I wish this was a blog about how I fixed some flaw in a photo and saved some priceless moment from being ruined by an errant blip, thumb or trashcan. But no, it isn't that special.

You may or may not know that I am out of town this week on business. So far, it has been an interesting trip. It started with the gate agent boarding the entire plane in one fell swoop yesterday. Not a big deal if you are flying a tiny puddle jumper, but this wasn't that small of a plane and considering that is was in the 30's yesterday, the wait on the Jetway was brutal!

The next hurdle came when I attempted to find the hotel from the airport. It seemed really easy according to my GPS directions on my phone. One problem, they weren't exactly accurate and I kept driving in circles around the Phoenix Airport. I got new directions and headed off on what I thought was the right path and then my phone froze up. Completely locked up. Now I am driving a car I'm not used to, in a city where I've never been, in the dark, in rush hour. Oh yeah, and I'm completely lost. Phoenix "looks" easy to navigate from the air, it all seems to be laid out in a grid. But from the ground, I was confused. Of course, I have two fatal flaws working against me, I have a horrible sense of direction and I'm stubborn. After 180 minutes of driving around in circles, I finally found the hotel. I honestly think I was within blocks of the place 5 or 6 times and gave up and turned around.

The hotel's website made this place look chichi. I was kind of excited about seeing it person. Turns out, not so exciting in person. I opened my door and my attention was immediately drawn to a squiggle on the wall. I thought to myself "Oops, looks like the maintenance guy left a little caulk on the wall". Reality, the squiggles of caulk are architectural "accents" to make the place look more "authentic". Thankfully, there won't be much time to watch TV because the reception is horrible and using the remote is a game of chance. Sometimes you move one channel at a time and other times it is 2 or 3.

Tonight we all ventured out for dinner on the town and made a stop at a local Walgreen's. Why the drug store trip? The dry air is wreaking havoc on our skin, hair and sinuses. On the way back, we all started talking about the hotel and it seems like I got the best room of the bunch. Doors don't close, showers don't drain, toilets won't flush, closets and built into weird angled corners making it impossible to hang up your clothes....the list goes on and on. So for all of you who are "jealous" because I'm at some fancy resort in the desert, just remember, you can make anything look good with a little time, creativity,talent and Photoshop!