professional traveler

i'm a professional traveler. my official title at work is "Process Improvement Engineer," but the biggest part of my job involves airports, hotel rooms, rental cars, and expense reports. i have the security line at the airport down to a science. i have airport shoes (slip-ons are a necessity). i leave my belt in my bag and never carry anything in my pockets except for my drivers license and boarding pass to avoid having to dump it into a container and collect it on the other side of the metal detector. i can tell you the flight schedules for monday morning on almost any airline leaving the raleigh airport. in the past month alone i've been to chicago, il, columbia,sc, newport beach, ca, tampa, fl, and long island, ny. if you've never spent a significant part of your work week traveling, consider yourself lucky. my dad also travels for a living. we exchange tips on the best restaurants in airports and road construction information in major cities. i don't think i would have lasted this long if i couldn't share these mundane facts with him.

there are all kinds of professional travelers: truck drivers, business executives, young professionals, seasoned airport veterans, train engineers, airline pilots, musicians. i could go on but the point is although we are a diverse group, we share a common bond. we all leave our families on a regular basis to make money. its an incredible sacrifice for both the traveler and the family and it causes you to question your priorities every time you leave your driveway.

i have a very patient wife, but as we start to consider having a kid i'm sure her patience will wane. i don't know how other professional travelers cope with missing their children's first words or most of the games in a little league baseball season. i just can't justify it. i want to see my child grow up. i want to be there with my wife to see him/her discover the world instead of hearing about it over the phone.

i don't know how long i'll continue to travel professionally, but every time a sit in an airplane i hope that flight will be my last one for a long time... or at least a couple of weeks.