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 |  I travel the country on business, sometimes the world. Come see where I've been. |
| Locale: Irving, Texas Week of: 9/26/22 This week finds me in Irving, Texas for a week long class. The customer was a company partner, the students were from various locations in Texas, North Carolina, Alabama, and more. It was a fun class in some ways, a tiresome class in others. I think you know what i mean. This was a Networking class, most of the students had very little Networking experience. One student was much more experienced than the rest, he became my assistant during the hands-on exercises. This can be very good really, because instead of having to monitor all three groups, I could monitor/help two, while he worked with his group. The one thing you have to be careful of though, is that he doesn't become the instructor, and that the students don't look to him for answers. This didn't happen at all, he was content to help, he answered questions at times, but never tried to be the instructor. My hotel. Uggh. Despite being a Hilton brand hotel, the one I checked in on Sunday was not one a business traveler would want to stay at. It was a Tru by Hilton, and in my humble opinion, was a step above a Motel 6, but far below what I've come to expect with a Hilton Brand Hotel. Yes, I'm spoiled. My room was on the small side, that was okay. There were no drawers to place your personal clothing items in, there was no closet to hang things in, just a bar that jutted out from the wall and bent upwards to connect to the ceiling. This was above the small refrigerator in the room. I didn't really like that, but I could live with it. The TV could not be moved, it was mounted to the wall, parallel with the wall, and could not be rotated. The only place you could really see the TV and watch it, was from the bed. I don't know about you, but I get in bed and the next thing I know, it's hours later. Yep, I fall asleep, and fall asleep quickly. Did I mention that the room was on the small side, with just enough room around the bed to walk? Being the only person in the room, that wasn't a big issue. Believe it or not, the biggest issue I had with the hotel in general, was that there was NO COFFEE maker in the room. Are you listening Lilith of House Martell  ? Can you believe that? No coffee maker in the room! The only way to enjoy early morning coffee was to go to the lobby breakfast area and get it. Another issue for me was that there was no restaurants I'd enjoy dining at nearby. I mean fairly close, I don't mind driving some distance, but in a city like Dallas, I'd rather find restaurant close to the hotel. Don't get me wrong, obviously there were nice restaurants all around me, I just couldn't find several that I'd enjoy visiting during the week. Needless to say, I spent one night (Sunday) in that hotel, checked out and went to a Home2Suites by Hilton Monday afternoon. Its disadvantage was that it was a 30 minute drive to and from work. The advantages? Better room, much more suited to a business traveler, and a lot of dining option very close by. I enjoyed that hotel much more, and Tru by Hilton is off my list as a viable place to stay from now on.Noteworthy Restaurants: So, about those restaurants.... Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen https://pappadeaux.com/menu/ I worked at a Pappadeaux in Arlington Heights Illinois, and left there about the time I joined WDC, so I knew how the food was prepared, I knew it's quality too. I enjoyed their Texas Redfish Pontchatrain. This was Pan-grilled redfish, lump crab, shrimp, brown-butter wine sauce, with dirty rice. I really wanted their Greek Salad, but it was far too much for me. I should have gotten it for lunch on Tuesday. Sanabels Mediterranean https://www.ubereats.com/store/sanabels-mediterranean/vBB9GcRfQvaM5IhCffXFlQ I do enjoy Mediterranean food at times, and felt like it this night. For an appetizer, I chose their Dolmas. I've long wanted to try this, but hadn't yet. Tonight was the night. Domas - Hand rolled grape leaves, stuffed with rice, tomatoes, onions, and parsley marinated with lemon juice and olive oil. The filling seemed to resemble meat, not what the menu describes, still, it was very good. For dinner, I chose their Kabob Sampler, and had the Lamb Kabob, Kufta Shish Kabob, and Shrimp Kabob. It was excellent, just what I was craving that night. La Fisheria https://www.facebook.com/lafisheriarestaurant/menu?referrer=PAGE_ATTACHMENT Their menu page link is broken, but you can find them on Facebook using the link I'm providing. I went there for Seafood, so why did I end up ordering their Brochete de Rib-Eye Y Camaron? Just look at the photo on their menu. Sixth row down, middle item. Yummm. Was far too much for me, I could have had 2 or 3 of you with me and we'd all end up full. My only 'complaint' about this place, is that the music was very loud. If I'd had someone with me, we'd have to yell to each other to be heard. Either that, or text on our phones, something I refuse to do while dining out. Cantina Laredo https://www.cantinalaredo.com/menus/view/?place=cantina-laredo-14&menutype=main I chose their Queso y Guacamole Combinación for an Appetizer. Chili con Queso and guacamole with diced tomato and queso fresco. For the meal, I chose RELLENO DE CAMARONES. Shrimp, monterey jack, vegetable and mushroom stuffed roasted green chili, with avocado, roasted red pepper and poblano sauce, on charred street corn and cilantro lime rice. Bombshells http://4bombshells.com/menu.aspx First off, this is not the type of restaurant I would choose to dine at. But one of my students is the son of the man who was my mentor at Motorola. I mentioned him in my notebook I'm sure. He retired from Motorola in July 2020, and died from cancer July 2021. John wanted to have dinner with me one night, so we chose Thursday. We picked this place, and it wasn't until we'd commited ourselves (we could have backed out of course) that we learned it was a bit like Tilted Kilt, Hooters, Twin Peaks, and the like. You get the idea I hope. We decided to still go there because of one appetizer, their WMD's (most of their menu items are named after some kind of weapon). We get there, order our drinks, and the WMD's. The server takes our order and returns moments later to tell us they are out of WMD's for the night. We settled for Bomb Poppers. Bacon Wrapped, Jalapeno Stuffed Shrimp, with grilled onion and mushrooms, topped with Cheddar Cheese and their Swet n Spicy BBQ Sauce. For dinner, I just had a burger, which though it was very big, was very good. Still, I wouldn't dine here again if given my choice, only because it's not the kind of place I would frequent. The same goes for La Fisheria, the music was just too loud for me to frequent the establishment. In Closing The next two, probably three weeks will find me at home on vacation (staycation) again. I will go to Schaumburg on Monday the 10th to make cables that will connect two of the devices on our small K Core. After that, I can do all the configuration from home. That 3rd week was supposed to be a class in New Jersey, but the customer has to complete instructor led online training, and did not attend as scheduled. Since my class with this was all hands-on activities, the online portion has to be completed before my class, and since that was not completed,nor can it be completed in time for my class, it's been cancelled Til next time, be good to yourselves and those you love, and WRITE!  Jim Dorrell |
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