Day Three

Not the most interesting of days, so ill just give y'all the rundown.

This hotel is pretty nice for its price, so i decided i would indeed be making this my home for the duration of the stay. That being said, i got a new room with a king size, and closer to the wireless hub. It...was....f-ing...HOT today. over 101 degrees. I just wasnt expecting this humidity with the heat, and i was remembering how much i appreciate A/C.

Before Paul left he took me to the airport and i rented a car. Of course, all they had left were mini-vans, so im pimping Omaha in a fly Dodge Grand Caravan.... awwww yeeaaaah. I headed down to Old Market section of Omaha. This is a cool like area that has a lot of neat little shops, delicious restaurants, and art gallery's. I met up with Whitcotton for a freaking amazing lunch, and we chatted about the Beatles show (cant wait to see it tomorrow.) After a quick trip to a Walgreens (thanks GPS!) iv been here at the hotel the rest of the day doing 2E work. (big and awesome week comin up.) More interesting entry tomorrow, im pretty tired.

Day Two.

Welcome to Omaha.

Yep. Two Days. It was a hell of a journey, but here i sit, in a very comfortable hotel room in Downtown Omaha. Paul is passed out, in front of his laptop, pretty much exactly where he sat down when we walked into the room (lightweight) and i have been milling about the room, swearing at the dotty wireless internet connection i seem to be getting.

We departed Detroit around 10am plowing through Gary, Indiana (much to the delight of many of my theatrical friends) and detouring up to Chicago. Chicago is a cool town, very different from NY and Boston, but, at least from what i could tell from the short time i was there, a pretty hoppin place. Have i been using "hoppin" too much in the blog? eh. We saw the giant Chicago Bean in Millennium Park, which is pretty bizarre, and then got some very filling Chicago Deep Dish pizza from a nearby establishment. Quickly we were on our way again, only to hit Chicago at rush hour.

Ok. so this is where i started to get punchy. Can you blame me though? I mean i just eat a pretty sizable meal, and then we get back into the car, punch up the GPS and it reads over 400 miles to go. You're in rush hour horrible stop and go traffic...its hot, its humid, your in an uncomfortable seat, and the internet on your phone is just not working. So, about 25 minutes of me tweaking out led me to put my muff headphones on, and just pump some soooooothing tunes into my ears. This helped a bit, and when we stopped to gas up, i got out, ran around, got some liquids, and was able to calm myself a bit.

I realize the thought of driving 12 hours a day is daunting to most of you. Dont get me wrong, its not somthing i would wish to do everyday, but as i mentioned yesterday, i love road trips, i was all about this road trip, and i knew what i was getting into do. I was, however, plesently surprised with today's journey...

If you have to make a 7 hour drive straight thru from Chicago, this is the one you want. After you clear city limits in Illinois, the speed limit hits 70, and its nothing but a straight flat road for nearly the rest of your trip. Its almost as if you hit auto pilot. Set the cruse control, keep a light hand on the wheel to keep its straight, and your set. It's really astonishing to take in the view of Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska. Its just field after field, and a straight line of highway that you can see miles and miles ahead down the road. Bugs hit your windshield at an alarming rate, requiring the use of wiper fluid many times. Rest stops and gas stations are few and far between, and civilization is even more infrequent. What people could possibly do out here for fun, i have no idea.... all i saw was the occasional porn outlet. At the same time tho, its very cool that people live out here, farming, taking in life the way its meant to be. Theres no lights on the roads out here, so i can only imagine how pitch black and dead quiet it must get at night. Thats just something im not used to. The stars here are breathtaking, and i saw a shooting one tonight, i made my wish....heres to hoping.

So basically what im saying is, i liked this long drive in a way, it was easy, and i got to see a part of the country that not everyone, or prolly not even the majority of people back east get to see, which is exactly one of the main things i wanted to accomplish with this trip. Its a shame that Paul heads out tomorrow alone, and i can't drive to San Diego, but alas, work calls. I havent heard from Kate or Billy yet, despite numerous times trying to get in touch with them. Hopefully they get back to me tomorrow, or else iv come to Omaha for naught. Im pretty tired and its really 3am for me without this time switch, so im gonna end this one on this note.

Life is to short to worry and stress over things like long car rides. the end always justifies the means, and your will always be stronger from your experience. live it up.

Places of Interest: Gary, IN, Chicago, IL, the worlds largest truck stop, the random Hummer dealership between two cornfields in the middle of nowhere Iowa, the exit in central Iowa that is home to nothing else but a porn store, Des Moines which is much bigger than i expected, and of course, Omaha, a beautiful site at 11pm tonight, having traveled over 700 miles today.
Total Miles Traveled: 1458



goodnight moon.

Day One

So, it begins.

I'm sitting here at 12:09am on July 16th. As anyone who knows me will understand, this is prime hour for me on any normal day. I'm someone who loves the night, loves the dark, loves to come home as the sun is coming up. I revel in the nightlife, and the effect that going out with the people you love till the wee hours can have on a person. That being said, i am tired.

F.

Today was day one, on the trek halfway across the US to Omaha, NE. The thing about love trips is that you love them and you hate them, and you also can love to hate them. I'm wicked excited this journey is happening, and i have been excited about it for months. I'v never made such a long drive before, and besides fly completely to the other coast (Cali, and Washington), iv never been more west than Pennsylvania. Iv been looking forward to driving through states and cities that have no choice but to be a rich experience to me.

First reaction to all but two people who i told i was driving to Nebraska was "....oh god, why?" My reaction being "isn't that awesome?!" There's something enlightening and accomplished about making a trip like this, and seeing as much of the country that we live in as can be seen. There is so much i don't know about the Midwest, and places that should absolutely be visited. I have no doubt Omaha is going to be one hoppin town.

Currently i sit on a fold out couch in Detroit. My cousin and i departed the great state of Connecticut at about 9am on our way to our various destinations (he's dropping me in Omaha on his way to Seattle.) Knowing we were going to stay in Detroit for the night, our route took us through upstate NY and to Niagra Falls. This was my first visit to the falls, and they were gorgeous. The sheer amount of water that moves through there is staggering. What i wasnt crayz about in Niagra Falls was just the tourist trap part of it. You just stare at the falls, and its amazing, and beautiful, and then turn around 180 and your looking at gawdy kitch. We had precious time to spare, so after a could quick pics, we were back on the road. Oh...hold on, cant go on without mentioning customs. We got grilled by the hottest customs officer ever. She asked us a billion questions... more than expected. it was exciting a in a weird way. I'd also like to mention that this broke my Canada virginity bubble, and i can offically add this country to the Places Iv Been application on Facebook.

I wish could say the rest of the trip so far has been super fun and exciting, but its been just long empty roads all the way to Detroit, with limited cell service in Canada. This is why you can love these trips and hate them, because as great as the prospect of travel and seeing the country can be, its never fun to be in a jam packed car for 12+ hours a day. I have to say tho, today didnt really get me too stir crazy...we'll see how tomorrow treats me.

Talk to y'all tomorrow

Day One:
Points of Interest: Niagara Falls, Canada!!, that rest stop with the Arby's, Detroit
Miles Traveled: 710

Where did the week go?

I wish i could hook you in and tell you this will be the most exciting blog entry you've read yet... you know what... to hell with it.

This will be the most exciting blog entry yet.*

This has been a week that has just flew by, but dragged at the same time. It's weird, because, i love my job. seriously, i love it. I get to do, for a living, what i went to school to learn to do. How many people do i know that absolutely hate what they are doing, working outside (no where near, really) their field. Here i am, an entertainment electrician, a lighting designer.... i have a cool job. But just like any other job, there are things that i hate about it, and there's always things to complain about. But there is this weird phenomenon when it comes to be me working. I'll either be really gung-ho about working one day, or ill just want to go the F home all day long.

I'v been at Hartford stage all week. We did 8 hours days for the whole week, and while thats not very long to most of you, you have to remember were doing 8 hours of physical manual labor... it takes it's toll. I bench focused about 150 lights, which doesnt mean much to you, but im essentially lifting a 15 lb light over my head twice, over and over, for hours and hours... man have i been sore!

As i said, sometimes i just keep looking at my watch and seeing that only a half hour has gone by since last i checked, and i just want to go home and sit on my couch. But sometimes when i work, i just want to get stuff done, fast and efficiently, and i start thinking about other things in my life that i need to get done. Sometimes working motivates me to get other stuff done, just because im being so productive. I guess the key is, i need to get into the mindset that i feel like that all the time, so i can just be really productive with my business. This week, on one of those productive days, 8 hours zipped by, and i went to the bank, made some phone calls, returned some emails, and sat down and designed a little bit more of 42nd Street. But one of my slow days, i just went home, sat on my couch and chatted on AIM till 2am doing nothing.

One thing is for sure, iv taken the next step. i recognize when i in a productive mood, so i constantly have lists of things that i need to get done, so that i dont waste time thinking about it.

In other news, i can not wait to get on with this road trip to Nebraska. its gonna be hell of fun, and then i get to see my niece in sunny San Diego. I hope to see Kyle out there too, with maybe a side trip into LA. Also Brett returns to CT this weekend from New Hampshire, so im sure ill be blogging about our awesome adventures in the Dirty Water and surrounding areas.

Keep me bookmarked cause im planning on blogging every day of my 2 week vacation all over the country. Till then. Seacrest out.

* i lied. this was not very interesting huh?

We're up and running.

Well, after a stressful and hellish weekend of customer support, my iPhone was up and running as of about 8am this morning. As they figured out (finally) once my account status was changed, my phone activated immediately. So, i wont lie, theres some stuff i love, some stuff i dont love, and some stuff i need to get used to. I'll give it a week before i give y'all a full review. But for right now.... im as trendy as they come...lolz

Update: iPhone Nightmare, Day 2

So, we think we have the problem nailed down. Way back nearly a decade ago, when i got a cell phone in high school, my mom had to be the primary account holder, so my cell was linked to her business phone. Flash to 2007, where i pay my own bills, but my account never had the business status removed from it. They classify my line as "corporate liable" and since AT&T isnt ready to offer iPhone to full cooperations yet, my phone will not activate, and of course.... there won't be anyone around that can fix my account status until Monday morning. wonderful. so theoretically, as soon as my account goes to individual, not corporate, my phone should start working no problem. until then, i have a paperweight.