Home at last. It feels so good to sit on my own couch with my wife and my cat.

After the conference, I went back to the airport for my flight home. We boarded the plane on time, but the aircraft computer kept trying to improperly pressurize the cabin. After sitting at the gate for awhile, they let us back inside. The flight was delayed about four hours, and by the time it left, literally no one on the flight could make their connections in Houston. I'm writing this from a hotel in Houston, waiting for the first flight out to Columbus in the morning. Assuming that flight runs on schedule (which is a big assumption), I will have spent 18 hours waiting for Continental/United's delays, not counting scheduled layovers. Compare with 8 hours of total time in the air.

I understand things happen, not every flight goes smoothly. But, this is two of my flights in a row with serious aircraft problems - not counting a 3rd flight they offered me a seat on instead that was delayed a similar amount. That number of equipment failures, just in my own sphere of consciousness, really does not make me feel safe flying Continental/United. I've been a loyal United customer since I moved to Chicago in 2001, but that has all changed. I can't risk my life on some company that's willing to regularly fly poorly maintained aircraft just to try and save a buck.

To complete my frustration, United does not have a customer service telephone number. In order to make any comments, complaints, or requests, one is required to submit a ticket online and wait for them to email back. There are numerous accounts online documenting the fact that United really doesn't care and does not respond often or well. This is, of course, only to be expected from a company that won't let me talk to an actual person about my experience.

The conference was very inspiring. Saturday started with the kinds of lectures you expect at such an event; one on derivative meter and one on orchestral excerpts. There was also a masterclass by featured guest artists Viento Sur trombone quartet from Argentina, and a student trombone choir recital. Then, I gave my lecture, which I think went pretty well. I didn't say all the things I intended to, but I said some other things which were equally important, so I think that's ok. That was followed by the faculty recital, which I did not play on since I had just gotten done speaking. At that point, we had a break, and I went out for some dinner with a couple of the other faculty members. We came back for the evening's featured performance by Viento Sur, and then relocated to a nearby bar for a performance by a trombone-featuring jazz combo followed by an open mic.

Today started with a lecture on doubling, and then my colleagues and I adjudicated the final round of the concerto competition. I found it very enlightening to hear the best students from universities around the country and be able to compare their approaches. The conference concluded with a recital of trombone and electronics. Overall, the weekend was very inspiring, and I can't wait to get back to work at Ohio State.

This weekend is the Big 12 Trombone Conference at Texas Tech University, and I am presenting a lecture on phrase design. I'm safely in Lubbock, Texas now, but getting here was a little rough.

I woke up early for my flight, and Katy got me to the airport. I was worried about delays because we had gotten some snow and ice overnight and some schools in the area were closed. My fears were unfounded, as we got in the air on time and landed in Houston a few minutes early.

That's where things started going downhill. I had a little bit of a layover, so I went and got some lunch. I know it was an airport restaurant but it was some of the worst service I have ever received anywhere. I never even received silverware or a napkin. I ended up doing the best I could with a piece of lettuce.

The people sitting at the table next to me did not have time to eat their meals despite their long layover, but I had no such problem. I ended up spending 6 1/2 hours in Houston airport. before my plane left for Lubbock it had a trip to Baton Rouge to make. It was delayed several hours, and when it finally took off it had to come right back to the ground because of a mechanical failure. Eventually, the plane returned from Louisiana, and we boarded. We pushed back from the gate, and the pilot spun up the engines. He immediately taxied right back to the gate, and told us to please remain patient as engine number two was and I quote, "pouring out smoke." we sat on the runway for another half hour well maintenance crews tackle the problem. I had hoped that we would switch planes just for peace of mind, but we did not and we took off in the plane that had experienced at least two mechanical failures that day.

It was a short flight so we had no reason to climb to particularly high altitude. However the pilot chose to skim right over the tops of the clouds the entire way. The flight was extremely bumpy, the seatbelt light stayed on the entire ride, and the plane was full of children screaming in understandable discomfort.

By the time we landed there was no point in even trying to get to what was left of the conference tonight. I missed the first day entirely. I certainly hope tomorrow is a little smoother.

P.S. the good news is, even though Wi-Fi is not working in my hotel, I can dictate this blog post to my phone and the device inputs it for me so I don't have to fight with the miniature keyboard.

I attended the GLHS bands' Winter Concert this afternoon. I was very happy to see some of the same family names in the program as always - Shaylin Booth was playing trombone, etc. George Simon was highly featured as lead trombone in Jazz II, and then he had a number of solos as principal tuba in Gold Band. I also got to see some old friends, including Mary and Brandon, who were in town to hear George play.

The main event of the concert was the world premier of the piece commissioned in honor of Jeff Shellhammer. They did a small ceremony where all the past directors of the Gahanna Bands were individually recognized, and then Jeff was presented with a copy of the score signed by the composer. It was a very meaningful experience, and I'm very glad that I happened to be living in Columbus and able to be there.