"You've been so quiet"

Yes, I have. I've been busy on other web projects--check them out!

A complete redesign of one of my blogs, now called Texas Mountain Trail Daily Photo.

Building content, coordinating development, building marketing efforts and trying to sell ads for the website supporting our Times Square billboard.

But I did take most of the holiday weekend off--a Chinati tour in Marfa on Saturday, pleasure reading most of Sunday, Monday a hike to Devil's Hall in Guadalupe Mountains National Park.

I will write more soon. Promise!

Needs Fulfilled

For so long, I've been wanting co-workers. With this Times Square billboard project, I've got them....never mind that Lisa is 80 miles away, and Brenda another 170 miles away and it takes us 4 HOURS to get together. We're definitely a team and we're working well together, and it feels great. We know we're on the cusp of something pretty big for the region, so we're having fun, too.

Now to matters of furniture...I'd been sleeping on an ancient mattress and box spring. Embarrassingly old. On the way home from my last trip, I bought a new set and I've been sleeping on it for a week and wow, it makes such a difference.

So I am a happy girl.

The down side...

Lest you think the life of a travel professional is all beer and skittles.....this is Texas Tourism Week, so I am distributing regional brochures at three travel fairs.

This is a shot from Saturday's travel fair at the region's only outlet mall. Our booth was next to the "performance area" which meant blaring Spanish-language children's music, a "clown" whose side-kick (not pictured) was a burly man wearing a Playboy bunny T-shirt with the words "Road Kill" emblazoned upon it. Then, gunfighting reenactors, with "Shady Ladies."

The kids seemed to enjoy it......

Last Sunday

Taken a week ago by the wonderful Clara on Galveston Beach, this just might be my favorite picture of myself in recent years. (And it is a good one of Monte too~)

With the help of my Dad, I'm sending this one to my Mom today.

Our Times Square Billboard Ad

15 Seconds of West Texas in New York City!http://youtube.com/watch?v=agtL9C7OHUk Take a look!

And then, go to http://www.westtexastrip.com/ -- we're still populating this with content....

Next step....planning a media trip to NYC this summer!

Working, working like a fiend

The Times Square billboard is up and we're working furiously to get content posted on the new accompanying website, www.westtexastrip.com The home page is up, and the link to our Texas Mountain Trail website is now working...please go there to see for yourself!

Would you like to see the billboard too? Click here for a document from the marketing company with most of the photos from the ad: http://texasmountaintrail.com/docs/vmt_tsny_2008_1_.pdf

So, I might be pretty quiet this week--working on new web content with our partners in Midland and Fort Davis, and attending three travel fairs in El Paso. And getting new bookcrossing books out to our participating locations.

Yes, I did have a great visit in Iowa, fun in Houston (with a sidetrip to Galveston--my first time there since I packed everything into my Volkswagon Beetle and left the island in 1982!), and a great conference in Corpus Christi. It will just take me a few days to post a report and new photos.