Mixing Business with Pleasure

I took a look at the National Park Service Air Quality Camera this morning, and realized that fall was practically running away from me! But, with the weekend still a few days away, with work meetings between now and then, how am I supposed to be able to go out and get some shots?
Well, I'm going to take a cue from my business travel playbook - I'm taking my gear with me. I have meetings in VA and DC tomorrow, with some time in between, and before the first meeting. It will be a tight squeeze (and a somewhat ambitious one), but I'm going to squeeze in some camera time - or at least try to. Several nice walking trails are near my home. On the way back from my customer site, there are terrific photo opportunities near some local parks, as well as the zoo. I can take my camera gear with me.
I've done this before. Some examples:

I was in Destin, Florida for business meetings. I took these pictures (and the picture above) early in the day, before my business meetings. It can be done.
Another example from 2007:

Thanks to flight scheduling issues, I had to fly to Tucson, Arizona a day early. Because I had a full day between business meetings, I took my Blackberry, woke up at 5 am, and drove to the Grand Canyon. I took pictures for a few hours and then drove back. It was an EXHAUSTING trip, let me tell you. 600 miles in one day can take a toll on a person. It's funny, though - this picture was taken three years ago. I'm a much better photographer these days!
If I can take pictures in far-flung locales such as these, I can certainly manage to take a few shots in my own metropolitan area. I just have to make sure I don't forget or lose my gear along the way! :)
Until tomorrow!