Work Travel

So tomorrow I set out for three days, two nights in Phoenix for a work conference, and then it's looking like I have to fly to SoCal in the middle of October for one meeting--with a one-night stay-over.

Technologically speaking, travel for a work meeting--as in, sitting around a conference table, talking--seems completely obsolete to me. We have really nice videoconferencing equipment at work, but we don't seem very eager to use it. Conferences seem more sensible to me--much of the interaction of value is "informal," not just sitting in chairs and listening to other people talk. But for me to fly across the country, to talk to a group of people for one hour, answer some questions, and then fly back--aren't we beyond that?

Don't get me wrong--I don't mind a lot of the travel I do. I certainly get to see places that I otherwise wouldn't. But some of the short trips I end up doing are really unnecessary.