by Vicki Brown

Created on: August 14, 2008

April 11th, 2007. I am finally going to Singapore. I say finally not because I've been waiting or yearning or longing to go but because I've run out of excuses and am running out of time to go at IBM's expense.

So, why was I going at all? My husband had been there for almost two years on an assignment. He would come home for good at the end of June and I wanted to be a part of his Singapore experience.

I've taken the dogs to Lucky Puppies; stopped the paper and mail; alerted the neighbors; watered the plants; turned the heat way down; bought whatever I think I might need that I won't find in Singapore; have an antibiotic just in case of a sinus infection; have gone through my summer wardrobe months earlier than would be necessary in VT and packed. I'm ready for the adventure to begin.

Dana and I head for the Burlington airport in a taxi with enough luggage for a family of six! Plus, carry-ons and, of course, computer bags. The first leg of our journey is on a small Continental plane to Newark. Dana requested wheelchair service so I don't have to walk too much. A Continental employee with a wheelchair greets us, at the airport gate in Newark. She is small but not at all weak! She can take us to the Singapore Airline counter but not to the First Class lounge. She does have a sister who works for the airport who can go to the first class lounge. I remain in the wheelchair while Dana checks us in at the Sing Air counter and my new driver takes over.

I have never been in a first class lounge before. I used to fly first class as a child traveling with my parents but there were no lounges set aside for first class then. As I sit in the lounge nibbling on cheese and crackers and sipping mineral water, the other travelers nibbling & sipping while talking on cell phones or working at computers intrigue me. There is one group in particular that get my attention. They are young probably in there 30s but diverse as to race and nationality. They are traveling together on business and laugh and chat about their job and their trip. They remind me of my kids who are that age, especially my daughter who travels a great deal on business. They seem to be so much more confident and worldly than I remember being at their age. But, at their age I was a full time mother to three children, lived in the mid-west, and thought going to California was as exotic as it got!

So here I am a middle- aged grandmother going to Singapore. I've come a long way! And still have 12,000 to go!

One of the

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