Fun with time zones

We're back home in Austin after a superb trip! The flight from Amsterdam to Houston went off without a hitch (long trip, though- more than 10 hours!). But then reality set in: when we landed in Houston, we stood in the immigration line for more than an hour, because only 4 officers were on duty, and hundreds of people were waiting!
That caused us to miss our connection to Austin. The next flight was scheduled to depart about 3 hours later, and we were able to get seats on that plane. But, it ended up being delayed for an hour... and Jim's bag went on its own little vacation to points unknown... you get the picture. (The bag was delivered this morning in good condition. I was relieved to find the bottle of Luebecker Rotspon intact!)
So, we got back to the hacienda at about 9 PM last night. The house looked bizarrely huge compared to the cozy Dutch and German quarters we've been used to for the past two weeks. But, I guess that will pass after awhile. :-) Our cat, Calli, was suitably unimpressed to have us back again. You can almost see her thought bubble: "Oh right- you again." I regaled her with stories about the friendly cats we met in Europe, hoping she would take the hint. No dice. :-)
Calli was taken care of by my Mom and brother, who loved their two-week vacation in Austin!
It's definitely easier flying west, but it does make for a long day (you get those 7 hours  back that you 'lost' on the way over). Right now I feel vaguely hung over, without having had the fun of consuming those beverages which cause one to get that way.
Poor Jim is at work- I took the day off to recover (i.e. do laundry and get some food in the house!) Tomorrow I go back to work... for one whole day, then I'm off on another adventure. Tune in on Wednesday for more fun with time zones! :-)