Just returned to Portlandia from a long weekend in Atlanta. I traveled to that warm, sunny city to give a speech to a large group of lawyers and accountants about tax law. The audience was warm and appreciative, even though most of them had been sitting around listening to speakers for the better part of a mind-numbing week.

My wife and kids came along for the ride, and we had a great time once the official doings were over. We stayed at a great hotel -- the Grand Hyatt up in the toney Buckhead part of town. We took a fun day trip yesterday out to a place called Stone Mountain, where there's an amusement park of sorts at the foot of a large loaf of granite that sticks up about 500 feet or so above the tops of the Georgia pines. An offbeat spot, to be sure, but just right for a little family fun. They've even got an aerial tram that rides up the side of the mountain, past the large relief sculpture of the three Confederate generals that's been blasted into the granite wall. Up top? A snack bar and a great view of the smoggy landscape. Back down below, we got in a long playground session, visited the pumpkin patch, caught the pie eating contest, petted the farm animals, and skirted the edges of a large, loud chili cook-off. All in a day's work out at Stone Mountain.

As I rode up in the tram, I couldn't help but think of the skylift that Portland's taxpayers are about to build for the oh-so-important physicians. I hope the thing gets overrun with tourists, and the white coats have to wait 15 minutes to get a ride. Next thing you know, it will be closed, or made prohibitively expensive, to the public who paid for it.

Anyhow, for a few days we were a million miles from the foibles of those who live under the volcano. The fried chicken was excellent, the people were friendly (by and large), and the weather was highly cooperative.

The one blue note, and it was a big one, was another trip on Delta Airlines. I've blogged about these folks before, and they're not getting any better. Their new slogan appears to be, "We're insolvent, and it shows!" Somewhat dirty planes, no towels in the lavatory, no envelope to put your boarding passes in, and at their Atlanta headquarters airport, torn-up gates and long, long security delays. You pay for your food on Delta now ($8 for a sandwich), and you wind up busing your own garbage to the back of the plane while the flight attendants close the curtains and work on their resumes.

Awful. Those guys deserve what they get.