The view from 37,000 feet

Phase II of the annual New Jersey/NYC Pilgrimage took place at an altitude of 37,000 feet.

With a little help from my camera, our plane's rather utilitarian interior has taken on an ethereal, dreamlike ambience. The engines purred reassuringly while cotton candy-like clouds gently wafted about the wings. This, along with the smoothness of our ride belied the fact that we were hurtling through space at 600 mph.

I especially enjoyed the new high-tech features offered on today's flight, including the ability to send text messages to any of your fellow passengers by simply selecting their seat number and typing your message (my son, four rows behind me, was a willing guinea pig) the ability to place a request for more food and drink by simply using the touchscreen in front of you, and the ability to view in real time, the plane's exact location using a cool Google maps app which included distance traveled, distance remaining, speed and altitude, also from the handy touchscreen.

Though we only paused in San Francisco for about 30 minutes, it was enough time to conjure up memories of my many years living, working, raising a family, raising cain, and generally enjoying myself in this gorgeous city by the bay.

And now, here I am, back in New Jersey for a bit. I've performed a complete reverse geographical chronology of my life's travels in the space of a few hours with the help of a pretty nifty big 'ole jet airliner.

Fasten your seatbelts.