11/18: USAirways to JAX via CLT.
11/24, 11/25: Penske Truck to Pittsburgh with a Charlotte stop, ironically (see Charlotte review below somewhere..)
11/26: JetBlue to BOS via JFK(?!) This was a ~10 hour endeavor. Note that it takes less time to drive PIT->BOS.
[rest]
12/10: Alaska Airlines to PDX.
12/13: Alaska Airlines to BOS IN TEN INCHES OF SNOW OMG. All the other planes were diverted to MHT. They plowed the runway twice before letting us land. I have distantly observed that JetBlue pilots can land without front wheels, well, direct experience suggests that Alaska pilots can land without friction. As we waited for a gate (the usual one was being occupied by a glacier), the pilot discretely announced Alaska's latest service to Mexico. Dos cervesas, por favor?
12/14: JetBlue to PIT.
12/17: JetBlue to BOS, less snow.
12/18: Appointments with regular doctor and cardiologist. It is determined that my recent dizziness problems are likely a result of pressure affecting cells in my inner ear. I am told to sit near the wing and not get wasted on the plane.
12/21: Southwest to JAX via BWI.
12/30: Southwest to MHT via BWI. It's snowing. Again. @#$%!
[die]
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Charlotte, NC
I now present several non-Bojangles, yet still fine establishments.
Brixx is a pizza/sandwich/pasta/bar sort of dealie, complete with 24 taps. I had a sampler of for 4oz glasses for maximum adventure and a pizza with chicken on it.
*The Mad River Jamaica Red, from California somewhere, was a hoppy red/amber ale, and I think my favorite of those that I tried. They also apparently have a Sunset India Pale Ale that I think I will keep my eye out for.
*The Flying Dog Tire Biter was a light-colored ale, brewed with pale malt and German hops; good, but probably something I'd use to introduce a corn drinker to the finer things in life rather than keep as a personal pick. A gateway beer, if you will. :)
*A local choice, the Highland Gaelic, was very good; not as hop-flavored as the Jamaican, but amber in color and a good malt/hop balance. The Gaelic was better had prior to the Jamaican due to the hop differences.
*Finally, the Hobgoblin, I chose purely based on name. It's British, and turned out to be a good hoppy full-bodied brownish beer.
Now, around the corner from this particular Brixx was the ever-so-interesting Wine Shop at Foxcroft. The wines and beers are hand selected by the owner, and there is a little table area and a bar for tasting wines and beers. After Brixx, I didn't take advantage of this table area, but I think I will if I am in this area again.
Brixx is a pizza/sandwich/pasta/bar sort of dealie, complete with 24 taps. I had a sampler of for 4oz glasses for maximum adventure and a pizza with chicken on it.
*The Mad River Jamaica Red, from California somewhere, was a hoppy red/amber ale, and I think my favorite of those that I tried. They also apparently have a Sunset India Pale Ale that I think I will keep my eye out for.
*The Flying Dog Tire Biter was a light-colored ale, brewed with pale malt and German hops; good, but probably something I'd use to introduce a corn drinker to the finer things in life rather than keep as a personal pick. A gateway beer, if you will. :)
*A local choice, the Highland Gaelic, was very good; not as hop-flavored as the Jamaican, but amber in color and a good malt/hop balance. The Gaelic was better had prior to the Jamaican due to the hop differences.
*Finally, the Hobgoblin, I chose purely based on name. It's British, and turned out to be a good hoppy full-bodied brownish beer.
Now, around the corner from this particular Brixx was the ever-so-interesting Wine Shop at Foxcroft. The wines and beers are hand selected by the owner, and there is a little table area and a bar for tasting wines and beers. After Brixx, I didn't take advantage of this table area, but I think I will if I am in this area again.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Pamplemousse!!!!
In a move of questionable patriotism, Adam and I spent Veterans Day weekend in Québec... coincidentally during the celebration of Remembrance Sunday. The temperatures weren't completely stupid like when I went to Montréal in 2006 (with highs around 2F), so walking around didn't come with the constant threat of hypothermic death.
Québec City will be 400 years old next year, so there is an abundance of neat old architecture. Vieux Québec is walled and has a citadel. The fact that it is up a steep hill on a of bank the St. Lawrence made for some sweet natural defenses when warfare was two-dimensional. Personally, I'd say screw it and invade some Caribbean island instead, but apparently people really liked cold-ass cities on suspected Northwest Passage routes. Go figure.
The trip was mostly lookin' and walkin', but food procurement was quite successful, too. I found a fun little pub filled with locals called Pub Saint Alexandre. It had a useful selection of taps and bottles and also a reasonable food menu. Lunch the next day was at La Petite Italie where I ordered a pizza and chocolat chaud. Both were quite good. Sadly, I was too full to examine the crêpe establishment a few blocks away. Next time.
Québec City will be 400 years old next year, so there is an abundance of neat old architecture. Vieux Québec is walled and has a citadel. The fact that it is up a steep hill on a of bank the St. Lawrence made for some sweet natural defenses when warfare was two-dimensional. Personally, I'd say screw it and invade some Caribbean island instead, but apparently people really liked cold-ass cities on suspected Northwest Passage routes. Go figure.
The trip was mostly lookin' and walkin', but food procurement was quite successful, too. I found a fun little pub filled with locals called Pub Saint Alexandre. It had a useful selection of taps and bottles and also a reasonable food menu. Lunch the next day was at La Petite Italie where I ordered a pizza and chocolat chaud. Both were quite good. Sadly, I was too full to examine the crêpe establishment a few blocks away. Next time.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Haha, yay!
Which Cool Evil Guy Are You?
You are a fluffy bunny. Either you are not evil at all, or the perfect killer in disguise. I'd rather not stick around to find out.
You are a fluffy bunny. Either you are not evil at all, or the perfect killer in disguise. I'd rather not stick around to find out.
2 crazy weeks
Monday, July 30th, I left for a business trip to Baltimore. I got to the airport around 3pm, then departed for Reagan National (note that this is not Baltimore) around 8pm. My luggage stayed in Boston. Delta is not one of my 400 favorite airlines right now. We'll see how that changes when I send them the receipts for the clothes I had to buy.
The problem is not really that the bag was late - I rescheduled my flight after a cancellation at the last second. The problem is that when I called Tuesday I was told it was out for delivery. It was not. I, therefore, missed my one good opportunity to go to the mall. Wednesday, I learned the bag was still at the BWI airport and "should be delivered in 12 hours." Haha, like I believe that. The desk guy at the Sheraton informed me that the bag delivery is done by contractors in what appear to be personal car-sized vehicles.
I skipped a morning of work Wednesday to get clothes from the mall. Though I had enough to last two days, I decided the risk was too great and that my bag needed to be in my hands Wednesday night. If I wanted until Thursday (ie, my departure day) the stupid bag would likely have been put on a vehicle for delivery and thus unreachable. I went to BWI and found it and picked it up along with an address to send receipts to.
Thursday afternoon, I flew back to Boston (carried-on this time, bitches).
Thursday afternoon, 3 hours later, I flew to Las Vegas on JetBlue. Woo! Shiny! I got some cards and dice and saw Penn & Teller at the Rio! I attended some talks at Defcon as well. I really like the presentations about locks and physical security, and the presentations given by military guys are usually very interesting too. Desert heat is soooooooooo goooood. Ahhhh, comfy.
Monday evening, back to Boston. I attended a conference for three days in the city and managed to get a stroke-quality migraine the second day, but the topics were still fun.
Of the 24 hours that made up Sunday, I slept about 15 of them. Squeezing the three things together was a bit overwhelming.
The problem is not really that the bag was late - I rescheduled my flight after a cancellation at the last second. The problem is that when I called Tuesday I was told it was out for delivery. It was not. I, therefore, missed my one good opportunity to go to the mall. Wednesday, I learned the bag was still at the BWI airport and "should be delivered in 12 hours." Haha, like I believe that. The desk guy at the Sheraton informed me that the bag delivery is done by contractors in what appear to be personal car-sized vehicles.
I skipped a morning of work Wednesday to get clothes from the mall. Though I had enough to last two days, I decided the risk was too great and that my bag needed to be in my hands Wednesday night. If I wanted until Thursday (ie, my departure day) the stupid bag would likely have been put on a vehicle for delivery and thus unreachable. I went to BWI and found it and picked it up along with an address to send receipts to.
Thursday afternoon, I flew back to Boston (carried-on this time, bitches).
Thursday afternoon, 3 hours later, I flew to Las Vegas on JetBlue. Woo! Shiny! I got some cards and dice and saw Penn & Teller at the Rio! I attended some talks at Defcon as well. I really like the presentations about locks and physical security, and the presentations given by military guys are usually very interesting too. Desert heat is soooooooooo goooood. Ahhhh, comfy.
Monday evening, back to Boston. I attended a conference for three days in the city and managed to get a stroke-quality migraine the second day, but the topics were still fun.
Of the 24 hours that made up Sunday, I slept about 15 of them. Squeezing the three things together was a bit overwhelming.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Adam did not run over a crab
My life is a self-sustaining cycle of silly occurrences and inside jokes.
But back to our crustacean pedestrian friends. I encountered one about the size of both my fists in the parking lot that made fun sounds as it scuttled along. There was another in the pool that some local children and I had fun holding in our hands.
And then I saw a little hermit crab struggling across some stairs with a gigantic shell it appeared to have not yet grown into - nature's little summary of struggle, a symbol of the effort and ambition against the odds. I hope the little crab with the too-big shell makes it. It's a good sign for the rest of us.
But back to our crustacean pedestrian friends. I encountered one about the size of both my fists in the parking lot that made fun sounds as it scuttled along. There was another in the pool that some local children and I had fun holding in our hands.
And then I saw a little hermit crab struggling across some stairs with a gigantic shell it appeared to have not yet grown into - nature's little summary of struggle, a symbol of the effort and ambition against the odds. I hope the little crab with the too-big shell makes it. It's a good sign for the rest of us.
Saturday, July 07, 2007
lol stingrays
Stingrays don't kill people. They are cuddly and fun.
This particularly forward one vying for either a squid or a belly rub is a female; males are smaller. To clarify, the stingray is the grey and white one, and I am the one in blue. One super sneaky stingray kept hiding in the sand and let only its eyes and tail show. The dive site has been described by National Geographic as the best 12-foot dive in the world. I concluded the event with a Cuba Libre and a nap.
This particularly forward one vying for either a squid or a belly rub is a female; males are smaller. To clarify, the stingray is the grey and white one, and I am the one in blue. One super sneaky stingray kept hiding in the sand and let only its eyes and tail show. The dive site has been described by National Geographic as the best 12-foot dive in the world. I concluded the event with a Cuba Libre and a nap.
Friday, July 06, 2007
Fish Tale
I am happy to report a distinct lack of second degree burns. But, it is tedious to tell again tales already plainly told.
My new dive equipment has been working out really well. Against all reason, a female BC fits me a lot better than a male BC. Among the more interesting things I have seen are a small stingray on the sea floor at about 55 feet (Adam has some good photos of it), some giant freaking tarpons, a blue anemone, and some of my favorite blue speckled fish.
Historically, my adventures tend to be a respectable blend of insane awesome and stupid bullshit. While searching for giant conch shells on the beach, we noticed a small purple blob in the process of being washed onto the shore. Bluebottle. Do Not Lick. Why was this non-delightful colony of hydrazoa on my beach? Stupid Bullshit quantifier. I did collect four conch shells fresh from the depths.
I have seen a good portion of Grand Cayman at this point, at least the land portion. Also, thanks to Lexi, I have a new word to force into the vernacular: ridiculousity. I don't believe suffixes have limitations.
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Weekend adventure interlude
When I got home from my business trip, Adam was here. :) We skied on Friday and I felt like I was actually making some progress with turning. I even decided to buy my own skis on the way home... so I've acquired a second expensive sporting habit. At least my outfit is cute.
On Saturday I wanted to know what this Cape Cod thing was all about, so we drove there and played on the beach for a few minutes. It was a nice weekend. :)
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
I'm still alive
I'm closer to the ocean now, but it's not a real ocean because real oceans aren't 45 degrees. Even my car is happier and no longer throwing gas mileage fits. AND nothing bad has happened to my feet since both pinky toenails fell off (don't ask).
I went to the aquarium with Adam this past weekend. We had a lot of fun at the tropical tank watching the turtles and the sharks. One of the sharks kept trying to sneak up on me as he swam his laps around the tank. I guess that's what I'd do if I were stuck in a tank - that or try to eat the children pounding on the glass. The biggest turtle kept trying to bully the divers and steal the feeder squid. It was really comical to watch.
There was also a large penguin exhibit and I had a good time watching the penguins jump into the water. I guess I was living vicariously a little. Hopefully I'll get to a real ocean soon. :)
I went to the aquarium with Adam this past weekend. We had a lot of fun at the tropical tank watching the turtles and the sharks. One of the sharks kept trying to sneak up on me as he swam his laps around the tank. I guess that's what I'd do if I were stuck in a tank - that or try to eat the children pounding on the glass. The biggest turtle kept trying to bully the divers and steal the feeder squid. It was really comical to watch.
There was also a large penguin exhibit and I had a good time watching the penguins jump into the water. I guess I was living vicariously a little. Hopefully I'll get to a real ocean soon. :)
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
The oncoming train at the end of the tunnel
After some slick diplomacy, I have a thesis defense date. Conveniently it is the same day that I drive 550 miles to my new residence. Now, this leads to the obvious challenges to the stability my mental state and more than enough pieces of advice on how things could be otherwise arranged to avoid this situation.
So I present a detailed discussion of how I got myself into this mess and why I am not going to get myself out of it other than in the trivial way...
It started with my last post - the great TomTom adventure below. I got my job offer and, since I was in the relevant geographical location for the holidays, we went out looking at apartments. On Day 2, I found one. Thus began the usual ordeal of holding the place for an appropriate time, and choosing a start date and alerting the company of such.
Then came the decision on what was to move. Some things are going to my brothers (ie mini fridge, desk) and the rest will go with me. Ok, simple enough so far. Now we had to settle on the dates to move. I wanted to get to the apartment for the 1st of the month, so my parents and I decided the driving should occur on the 31st. The following reservations took place: 2 plane tickets, one truck rental, 2 hotel rooms. Good. Annoying date juggling done... I thought.
Then, just when the expensive parts were all set in stone - thesis. I was getting slightly neglected due to insane department schedules that were revolving around the job talks that all the professors are attending. I suddenly started freaking out that I was going to miss the 1/31 deadline for fall graduation and would, consequently, have to pay spring part-time tuition. Everyone agrees it is stupid to have someone pay for tuition - even part-time - for a minor infringement of a deadline for defense, especially since I was at the mercy of others' chaotic schedules.
Well I have to give a week notice to defend. Great. I explained I was leaving the state on the 31st, but if I wanted the conference room and both my committee members to be in the same general area together, the time had to be 9am on the 31st. And here we arrive at the present situation. Changing the move date means I lose a lot of reservation costs; changing the thesis means I pay spring ABD tuition costs. I have $3 in my wallet; I'm defending and moving in one week.
So I present a detailed discussion of how I got myself into this mess and why I am not going to get myself out of it other than in the trivial way...
It started with my last post - the great TomTom adventure below. I got my job offer and, since I was in the relevant geographical location for the holidays, we went out looking at apartments. On Day 2, I found one. Thus began the usual ordeal of holding the place for an appropriate time, and choosing a start date and alerting the company of such.
Then came the decision on what was to move. Some things are going to my brothers (ie mini fridge, desk) and the rest will go with me. Ok, simple enough so far. Now we had to settle on the dates to move. I wanted to get to the apartment for the 1st of the month, so my parents and I decided the driving should occur on the 31st. The following reservations took place: 2 plane tickets, one truck rental, 2 hotel rooms. Good. Annoying date juggling done... I thought.
Then, just when the expensive parts were all set in stone - thesis. I was getting slightly neglected due to insane department schedules that were revolving around the job talks that all the professors are attending. I suddenly started freaking out that I was going to miss the 1/31 deadline for fall graduation and would, consequently, have to pay spring part-time tuition. Everyone agrees it is stupid to have someone pay for tuition - even part-time - for a minor infringement of a deadline for defense, especially since I was at the mercy of others' chaotic schedules.
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