Day Two of New Job. I got my security badge: "I’m a real boy! I’m a real boy!" Finished my CAD exercises. Everyone pretty much bailed out about 3 (I was again the last of my group to leave).
New Friend G (who, with his wife S, invited me to the Mustang Club of Houston Christmas party that was held this past Sunday) helped me retrieve the Cobra from K & B’s place up north a bit, then we went to dinner (after I met their two dogs, 3 lovebirds, and 3 of the 4 cats) at a delightful Mexican place where G & S have been regulars for some time (with the same waiter, no less — said waiter handled the food service for their wedding reception some 12 years ago), which meant I was traveling under their "good customer" umbrella and tried to live up to it (and tipped aggressively on my part of the check – I took the food, G took the beverages).
As the weather appears to be absent freezing stuff between here and Tulsa tomorrow and Thursday, I will be taking the Cobra up and back. I have to work on Friday, so this is a quick trip, 500 miles each way. Up at 0 Dark Early tomorrow. Barring nasty traffic, the Cobra should cut nearly an hour off the travel time each way vs the truck. And get better fuel economy while doing so.
So, to all who read this, I offer you my very best wishes for this holiday season, be it the Yule that has past, Chanukkah that is going on now, Christmas to come, or the Winter Holiday of Your Own Making. May it be filled with joy, hope, and as much food, family (of blood and/or choice), and fun as you can stand. Those of you who are traveling, be safe on your journeys, and may said journeys be free of hicups or other disasters.
See you when I get back.
AutoJim's Brain Dump Zone V2 
Congrats on the badge and the new friends! Stay safe on your trip and merry season!
Happy holidays and safe driving.
I hope you have a safe trip. Merry Merry!
You probably won’t see this until you get back. Safe travels, and have a merry Christmas with your family.
Clear roads, good drivers in all the cars thereon, and a wonderful Christmas.
Aside from the toad-strangler around the Woodlands/Conroe, things got a little weird on US-75 through Allen/McKinney. Wound up dropping the Cobra to 3rd (which allows OMFG-level acceleration at highway speeds, the better to shoot small gaps, and is good up to about 97 mph while making glorious V8 noises) to do a little slice-and-dice on a 10-car rolling chicane that held me up for about 5 miles (Note to Texas Drivers: 50 mph in the fast lane when the limit is 65 or 70 is a Bad Idea. Seriously). DPS presence noted more than on previous trips, but the V1 picked them up in plenty of time for appropriate action. 503.7 miles in a grand total of 7 hours, 32 minutes, with about 31 minutes of “stop” time (traffic lights and 3 fuel stops), according to Garmin. I got about 24 mpg (the headwind north of Huntsville, the slice-and-dice, and a bit of 14-over running on the Indian Nations Turnpike didn’t help that any). I’m hoping to better the time on the return run tomorrow — traffic *should* be lighter.