What to do while away

Okay, I have to say right up front that the subject of the following post may be a little offensive to some.  To others, it may seem juvenile (It certainly does to my wife!).  I will attempt to defend myself and my cohorts by saying that when you spend as much time away from home as we do, you have to have something to show for (other than the obvious "bring home the bacon..." thing).  Plus, there is only so much Clive Cussler a man can take.  I consider this act a bonding experience between coworkers.  Though our significant others consider the practice juvenile and mean-spirited, they do occasionally afford themselves the same enjoyment we derive, and sometimes may actually participate.  I do believe that it may be a very deep wish in all of us that one day we will be caught in the act, and may even be harmed (if only mentally).  What a story to tell years later..."Remember when that dude caught you?  He was like,'The eff you doin'?  'Tso funny?' Man, I thought you were gonna die!"  I have noticed that we are all taking more risks in our little hobby, so there is obviously some sort of allure to getting caught.
I definitely do not consider our passion mean spirited since we're not making anything up.  We're not slandering anyone, and we are not uncovering any secrets.  In fact, there are several websites devoted exactly to the same sort of hobby.
My favorite aspect of our game is what we refer to as "The Capture."  "Pursuit" can be fun as well, though can often seem obsessive and perhaps a little creepy.  Often overlooked, but equally satisfying is "Categorization."  It is not so much making up a category as it is deciding how many categories your subject will fit into.
I recently went to a convention in New York City.  Expecting the convention yield a fairly good crop, I was pretty pumped. I'm pretty sure there has never been such a gross underestimation in the history of everything.  My phone battery was empty by around 3:00 each day because of the constant stream of email.  I happened to be at the Audio Engineering Society national convention, and as I'm sure you have guessed by now, I take pictures of people with mullets.  I (we) then categorize, and share the results.  I'm sure that our company's email server is quite full of jpegs bearing subjects such as "Femullet" or "Silverback."
The following is my advice on how to take a picture of a potential subject.
0.  Try to keep your camera phone at the ready.  I have an iPhone, so I open the camera app, then use the sleep button
1.  Identify and Qualify the subject.  Pony-tails can be deceiving
2.  Follow the subject for a bit.  Proper lighting is essential.
3.  On camera phones, you usually have to be pretty close in order to get an acceptable capture.  usually within 6 feet
4.  If you are able to get a frontal shot, you win for the day.  The trick is appearing that you are actually looking at something on you phone rather than taking a picture.  Don't be too obvious as this can lead to injury
5.  Practice the sideways picture take (i.e. look like you're actually talking on your phone)
6.  If at all possible.  TURN OFF THAT STUPID CAMERA NOISE.
I hope that this post inspires you to do something creative with your time in the airport or truck stop.

I would like to say to all of you mullet wearers out there,"Keep it up."  The rest of us who simply do not have the guts to sport the short-long are, and will alway be in some part envious of your bold statement.

Now, here's a bit of traveling advice:  If you haven't ever been on a plane before, NO ONE CARES!!!!