4 Days in....

I got the best email from my close friend, lady Jen, who some of you may remember from the Booze Bouncing story. She's saying goodbye to the cold and lonely life of Wyoming for a Key West. I'm so jealous excited for her (okay and for my new vaca spot).  Four days into their moving process I got the following recap so far, laughed so hard I choked a bit and decided I had to share...

"We've made it as far as Austin, Tx. Here's a little recap for your pleasure...
Day 1: Cleaned house and struggled fitting everything into one vehicle, spent too much time with family, made it to Limon at 4 in the morning. 
Day 2: Amarillo, TX for A's attempt at the 72 oz steak at the Big Texan. 38.9 oz left. 
Day 3: 1 hour south of Amarillo and the car needs a new water pump and fan clutch. 9 hours later, on the road again. 1 hour after that, cat poops, lays in it, and jumps to the front seat, smacking his poop-covered tail in A's face. 
Day 4: (early morning) Exhausted, find the first motel we see. Woken by "man screams" 1 1/2 hours later as A hops around the room, ripping off his shirt. Cockroach. In his shirt. Turn the lights on: Cockroaches on the tv, nightstand, headboard, mattress, wall, bathroom. Leave motel on a cockroach high, make it to Austin. Pay the money for a NICE motel. Ahhhh. Spend the day sleeping and visiting with TT. 
Day 5: At this point, ANYTHING could happen!! ;)"

A Gypsy at Heart

It's true. I have a gypsy's heart. I get the itch. I can't sit still. I can feel an antsiness in my blood. It's all I can do not to pack myself a light bag, grab a case of rockstars and all my favorite CDs, and take off in the car. I don't even really care where I'm going. I wouldn't make a plan of what to do. I'd just know it when I get there.

I've never been very good a staying in one spot. Maybe it comes from living in so many different places growing up or having a revolving door on the houses that brought so many different kind of people into my life. I like newness and change.

We are all wanderers on this earth. Our hearts are full of wonder, and our souls are deep with dreams. 

During the college years I would pick off and take off for days at a time whenever I got the urge. I miss those kind of days. I really miss being able to pick everything up and take off at a moments notice. Sometimes the restrictions of having a steady job, car payments and student loans seem more stifling then rewarding.

I'll be honest. One of the reasons I may be so itchy right now is because my birthday is barely a month away. It's been another year and I tend to become unsure if I'm doing enough with my life. I get that feeling that I'm not living it enough. Then again what is enough?

I often wonder if I'll ever be content and relaxed in the place I am. Will I ever free comfortable and at home with where I am, or am I destined to always feel this itch a couple time a year and yearn to uproot myself and find something new?

Is there any substance that that elusive feeling of home?

The Misadventures of Lake Powell 2010

So my most recent adventure to Lake Powell was a combination of hilarity, dreams of mice, sunscreen, water floaties and banana hammocks saturated in booze and tossed onto a houseboat that by day two reeked of septic backup. Here are a few highlights:

While some people fly pirate flags, our crew in true Nebraskan fashion flew a Husker flag. That’s right a great big ass red flag with a white N. There was no question where most on this boat hailed from.  And if that wasn’t enough to proclaim where the patrons of that boat belonged then the giant “N” that we was resurrected at our first docking spot definitely was.

And just when I thought I was finally too old to get obscenely drunk and pass out in an odd spot I do, but at least I can blame it on The Man.  Pomegranate Pearl Vodka and a little Sprite Zero go down way to easy! Four ridiculously strong drinks later and a realization that I’ve become a pansy since leaving college, I took a look at the bottle and suddenly felt myself hit a wall. My drunk sea legs weren’t going to cut it anymore.  I was done. Out for the count. So what do I do? I crawl up underneath the 8 plus inflated floaties in one of the staterooms and proceed to take one the of best siestas of my life. Only to wake up with a fairly significant buzz hours later. That’s right. I can’t hang like I used to.

Also, there is nothing quite like resurrecting a game of truth or dare. Thanks to that I’ve seen a drunk guy sing I’m a little teapot while twirling around on a cooler, friends play bucking bull and try to dump each other into the dirt, and just about everyone in a banana hammock (yes, some of the girls too).

Did you know that mice (and apparently other disgusting creatures) will crawl up the lines at night while the boat is docked? All it took was one mention of this and I was dreaming of little mice crawling across my bed every night. While it never happened, the mere thought was enough to have me kicking out randomly at least 20 times per night. Tip: bring something to put on the ropes to fend off the little creepy, disease-ridden rodents.

Oh and one last antidote. When packing of course I remembered all the essentials like sunscreen, bug spray, water floaties and several cases of beer, but who would have ever thought to pack mass amounts of Febreeze? Well, I’m telling you that is another must have with 10 people all using the same crapper, and one in particular dropping 4-6 loads a day. The smell is builds up quick and at a whopping 10 miles an hour cruising speed you can’t generate enough wind flow to carry away the smell.

All in all, it was a hell of a time. What was your favorite random vacation with friends?

Why should I work when I could perpetually be on vacation?

The worst part about any vacation is coming home. I know some people are ready to crawl back into their own comfy beds and gorge themselves on American hamburgers, but not me. Okay, that’s not fully true. I did gorge myself on the Wendy’s frosty/fries combo. (God bless you Dave!) I am already missing you Costa Rica. What more could I ask for from my little adventure then the sound of waves crashing into the beach (off both coasts), several species of crazy monkeys and buttery plantains with every meal.

I know! Another vacation because hey, who really needs to be at work anyways? Definitely not me. That’s right kiddies. I’m off to Lake Powell with the NEB crew. Translation: hello to more sun (Yes, I’m getting seriously brown) and a houseboat full of booze. Ain’t summer grand?

Where would you go right now if you could?

Hello Costa Rica!

Image by Salvatore Vuono
Costa Rica, my friend, I love you! God bless 80 degree days filled with humidity. I know that sounds weird, but toss in a little trade winds and I’m in paradise – or better yet Costa Rica! New Orleans, don’t be jealous. I still love you too!

Though after the five and half hour red-eye flight and the annoying guy who got up to pee 6 (yes 6!) times and still insisted on having a window seat, I required some much needed ZZZs . FYI – I never got the expression red-eye till now because that is definitely how you look after one of those flights. Thank god for super early check-ins and really friendly front desk people who tolerate exhausted Americans trying to speak Spanish, but are too tired to form actual sentences in my first language.

After several hours sleep I woke up refreshed and ready to explore the city that was bustling just below my window. That’s when I realized that in our sleep deprived state earlier we hadn’t been given any instructions for the next leg of our adventure. While I’m fine with winging things most of the time, The Man definitely is not, so we’d arranged a travel package that would take us from one stop to the next and several tours at the various locations.  Not an ideal situation.

After several attempts to reach someone at our travel companies local office who knew what was going on (it was lunch and siesta hour and the poor girl who answered the phone didn’t speak that great of English and my Spanish isn’t good enough for that conversation) we had a time to meet the guide tomorrow and still half of the first day to catch some of the local sites in San Jose.

So here is to 10 days filled with nature, culture and adventure!

The Almost Vacation -But Not Quite Here Yet- Blues

It’s official. I’m finally going to get another stamp in my passport! The St. Lucia stamp was starting to get lonely, so what else could I do but give it a little company? The bad thing about scheduling a vacation is that the waiting period suddenly becomes so much longer. May 28th why, oh why, can’t you just get here?

If you know me then you know that when I get an idea in my head or a notion to do something I do it. I don’t sit and talk about how I would love to do this, or it would be so fun to do that, or I’ve always wanted to try… I take charge, pull the lever and send myself in there guns blazing. I’m proud of the dedication and determination I have to embrace every opportunity and challenge. Without it I would never have rode waves of the coast of Hawaii, jumped out of an airplane on a beautiful October morning, or had the courage to explore school again and a change in career.

Yes, I admit that sometimes things can go awry. Otherwise I would never have had the pleasure of cruising through airports in a wheelchair on the way back from New Orleans. But to me it was completely worth it. When else would I have randomly stumbled onto a pirate’s convention and spent the weekend hanging with swashbucklers?

You see, one of my biggest goals is to truly see and do everything. Anything from cruising the canals of Venice in a gondola, and eating native nuts with the Pigmies, to fishing the anchovies run in South Africa and even seeing that damn 5 legged calf in Kansas. Yes, everything. The important thing is gaining the experience. Feeling something, learning something, exploring my understanding, expanding the mind and embracing another day that could have and would have just gone by.

As with anything, the key to reaching a goal is to make that first step. So, here I go again taking another step.  This time I will be stepping into Costa Rica where I will spend 10 days touring the canals in the rainforest, hiking up volcanoes, sea kayaking along the coast, and embracing the local culture from the Gulf side clear to the Pacific. Who knows, with a little luck I may even get the chance to put those surf lessons to good use again.

Now if only I can make it the 3 weeks till I take off for some vaca time.

Mountain Days & Snowboarding Dreams

For snowboarders and skiers there is nothing like a great weekend on the mountain. Last weekend I had the pleasure of spending 3 glorious days in Steamboat Springs, CO aka Ski Town USA! I've wanted to go there for years and loved almost every minute of it. I was surprised at how affordable condos were. Here are some of the cool places I found and things we did.

Nightlife

If you are into live bands then Ghost Ranch Saloon is a must. The staff is great, the drinks are stiff and the music is always bumping. Shake your thing up front on the dance floor, enjoy from one of the back tables, or scope the scene from one of two balconies.

Runs to Ride

Blue - Buddy's Run - is an awesome ride for intermediates. Steep enough to get you into your turns but not enough to have you on one edge or your face half of the run. Hop on the Storm Peak Express or Bar-U lift and enjoy the ride down.

Blue/Black - Flying Z Gulch & Longhorn - Situated on the far North side of the mountain you can catch these runs off the Pony Express lift. These runs aren't groomed as often and are perfect if your ready to step up your technique in some powder or soft moguls. 

Shops to Stop by

Epilogue Book Company - If you love to read check out this independent bookstore filled with antiquarian books.

All That Jazz - This place carries a ton of funky items aside from the traditional CDs. Find sassy t-shirts, earrings, jewelry, hilarious cards, vanity products and tons more!

Sweet Potato Lingerie - Spice things up with a trip to this store. A little pricey but some incredibly sexy and tasteful items.

Place to Pass On

One night we ended up at the 8th Street Steakhouse. While the food is good, they take the "Grilling Experience" concept a little too far. Unless you get seafood or prime rib your cooking your own meet on the grill. Some of the ala carte sides are also grill yourself. The price is steep considering you do everything yourself. After a long day on the mountain or in the shops, I'd recommend passing on this place for one of Steamboat's many sit down restaurants.

As a snowboard enthusiast and a mountain town junkie, I think Steamboat officially makes my top 5 list. Maybe it has a little to do with this beautiful morning scene from my first day out? Nothing beats being above the clouds your first run of the day. See you at the bottom!

  

I'd Bag These Airlines

For the last year regular air travelers have been frustrated with the baggage fees. First toted as a result of the high cost of fuel, many airlines kept the new fees in place long after the price of fuel dropped back to a manageable level. After all a new source or revenue is always a plus in business. Now it seems that some airlines are at it again.

This morning I read an article in the Denver Business Journal stating that both Delta and Continental are raising the price of of checking baggage. Turns out these two airlines aren't the only ones. United is also upping the prices for bags. I'm curious to the effects that the baggage price hikes have on overall purchase traffic.

Lets look at a real life example, I did for a search for flights from Houston to Denver for February 17-21. Lets assume that I am coming out for a snowboarding trip and bringing my own gear. I'd have to check both bags. Lets also assume that I'm flying non-stop and sticking with the same airline for frequent flyer mile earning purposes.

Frontier

The cheapest ticket is $222.90 on Expedia.com with taxes. Factor in the baggage ($20 for first and $30 for second) for both ways and I pay approximately $322.90

United

The cheapest ticket is $222.90 on Expedia.com with taxes. Factor in the baggage ($25 for first and $35 for second) for both ways and I pay approximately $342.90

Continental

The cheapest ticket is $220.90 on Expedia.com with taxes. Factor in the baggage ($25 for first and $35 for second) for both ways and I pay approximately $340.90

Southwest

The cheapest ticket is $228.30 with taxes at their want to get away rate. Factor in the baggage (free) for both ways and I pay approximately $228.30

When I'm booking a trip that seems like a pretty significant difference. We already hear news stories toting how other airlines are having trouble competing with low cost carrier Southwest. I'm curious, how do airlines think this will be financially beneficial in the long run? For me there is no contest. Price wins out in the end.