Waiting in Dallas

DFW - Dang Fuckin' Wait.

I'm actually cool and not in a hurry. But anyone who knows me well also knows I am extremely impatient. Most of the time. I hate having to wait when I technically don't need to. It's both a trait my dad tried to redeem me of and a trait shared equally among my closest friends, perhaps mostly with Sarah ;) Thank goodness I have a laptop to use and a wireless connection to go with it.

I am on my way back home (currently Austin) from a 2 and a half day trip to Bentonville, Arkansas wherein we got to meet some potential clients and learn more about the Wal*Mart culture back there. I'd say the trip went real well. We have 3 promising contacts, and learned a bit more about how businesses deal with Wal*Mart with the other two.

I didn't expect much in the way of sights to see, going there. Much to my surprise - and delight - the area was extremely pretty, with the fall colors of deep red, fiery orange, deep yellow in full bloom. It was a rural type of area for sure, and it had the quaint, darling feel of a little town in the south, at least until you see the looming Wal*Mart Distribution Centers marking the underlying presence of a giant retail industry just waiting to take over the world. It wasn't as blatant as I thought it would be, but you sure could feel the presence of a great looming force out there. You can tell that Wal*Mart's changed the town; whether for better for worse is probably a matter of perspective. You can see that the area is definitely riding the wave of progress, and that its local economy is booming.

Surprisingly, there is not much of a presence of food chains in the area. A lot of the places to eat are locally owned enterprises that have a home-cooked feel to them, but also have the most delicious gastronomic delights in the planet. The best steak of my life I've had in Bentonville, AK. If you ever go out there, you better check out Doe's Eat Place. Its melt in your mouth steak and world famous hot tamales are absolutely fantastic. For a unique experience, check out Briosos Brazilian steak house. They have a set menu that includes soup, some really yummy cheese toast, a world-class salad buffet (with lots of Smoked Salmon, capers, and dill sauce!), and different kinds of meats carved tableside.

*Sigh*

More on the Bentonville story later... I think our plane is about to board (Finally!). I wish I had taken pictures. I'm definitely buying a digital camera come QIP :D

Thank goodness I didn't have to wait till 2010 to post!

~ Jen