Thursday, October 14, 2010

Ooooooohhh We're Half Way There!

This week marks the halfway point of my travel season and in honor of the special occasion, I thought I should do a little self reflection. I read through ALL of my blogs tonight and have to say, I’m so glad I’m writing all this stuff down. I would have forgotten so many of the minor details – Remember the bats in Austin that I sat outside an waited two hours for? Still makes me laugh. Certainly, these last five weeks have been an adventure, but also a huge learning experience.

Here’s the nuts and bolts of my trips thus far:

Five weeks, five states – though I did drop by NJ a second time today, just to get some gas. I actually enjoyed not pumping. It’s the perfect time to tweet! These Jersey folks got it right! According to my GPS which runs all the time when I am in the car, I’ve driven 87 hours. That’s over 3.5 days of non-stop driving. I’ve also hit about 2,800 miles, which is just over the distance from New York City to Los Angeles. Or a round trip drive to Miami. When you put it that way, it doesn’t seem that bad, but remember, every minute and every mile has been solo. Just me, the road, and the radio. Sometimes the ipod. But more times not because I like to be surprised and shuffle gives me anxiety. The radio gives you no control as to what songs may come up, even if you change stations you have to pick something. With the ipod on shuffle, I just keep hitting next until I find something that I could have easily picked 10 minutes earlier from one of my playlists.

I’ve also decided a king sized bed is a must for my future. Though, I enjoy the king bed alone so much, I don’t know if I’m willing to share it with anyone else. Perhaps we’ll have 2 king sized beds. I also really want sheets with lines in them. Like in the weave design. I just think it looks so classier. I don’t know if it makes them better sheets. But my next sheets will have a stripe.

I think I’ve become a better drive, contrary to what my mother may say after driving with me last weekend. It might be that I am scared to crash a rental car or that I am not used to driving big cars so I am more aware of the size, or maybe it’s that I am on unfamiliar roads that I am just driving better – for whatever reason, I think I have had less near-death experiences than expected! On a similar note, my navigation skills, with or without Garmin, have not improved. Not the slightest bit. I could drive down a road and up it 30 minutes later and not even realize I was ever there. Thank goodness that my GPS tells me what roads I have been on before.

I’ll give a moment for a shout out to all the Starbucks, Barnes & Nobles, McDonald’s, and other fast food restaurants, shopping centers and gas stations who have unknowingly let me borrow their w-ifi, parking lots, and bathrooms for pit stops, wardrobe changes, and the occasional nap. I’ve gotten really good at doing my makeup in public bathrooms and occasionally changing clothes in the car. You gotta do what you gotta do, right?!

While some may say that I have become spoiled with fancy hotels and top notch rental cars, I’d like to disagree. Yes, I have had some fabulous residences and rentals, but I wouldn’t say they are any better than what I would have booked for myself on my own budget. I’m a woman with high standards and I am glad U- is willing to help me maintain those. I’m so glad I read all those reviews and spent hours researching hotels because the results have paid off. And all those reviews I have written in return? Apparently they are being read! I just got an email today from Trip Advisor saying that 100 people have clicked the link for my review of the Emily Morgan, my first hotel in San Antonio.

I’ve definitely had some growing moments, which I’ll discuss in depth later, but some things haven’t changed one bit. I don’t mind wearing dress clothes to work, but give me a pair of jeans, flip flops, and a U- t-shirt any day and I’d be happier, and more comfortable. I still despise high heels. They are the bane of my existence. Now, I wear flip flops to the car, put my heels on as I walk into my school visit leaving my flip flops near the peddles, come back out and side the fip flops back on. Repeat 3-4x daily. It’s a decent system but going to be tougher as the weather gets colder and socks are required. I wore out the only pair of heels that are remotely comfortable so I brought them to the shoe shop yesterday. All fixed! Big difference. I trip less too!

Shockingly, I don’t mind waking up every morning. I have an overly cheerful cell phone alarm which makes me want to dance (most days) when I hear it. “Good Morning! Good Morning! It’s a beautiful day!” Catchy little tune. Maybe its because I have no other choice. If I don’t wake up right away, I could be late and therefore have no job in 3 months. There’s a lot riding on that little ringtone. Every morning, I wake up and put the local news on TV. It’s fun to hear what issues are important in the local communities, thought there’s a whole lot of political ads right now. At home I've always watched the news in the morning, for years, even through all 4 years of college. It’s definitely part of my daily routine and a little part of who I am. Always local news. Never ever CNN or FOX or any of those national news channels. I don’t care about wars or political polls. I just want to know when a puppy saved a kid from a burning building, and the local weather and charity fund raisers. Traffic is sort of nice to hear, but I never know where I am going, so it doesn’t make much difference. I also just started reading USA today, I think that’s what it’s called. Most hotels have free copies. I like it. Makes me feel intellectual and well read.

I’ve certainly learned a lot about getting rental cars, double checking reservations, and dealing with car troubles. I can book a hotel, navigate an airport, and typically breeze through security. The last time I flew I went through the “expert traveler” line, instead of the “casual traveler” or “family” lines. To be an expert, it says you should be familiar with security procedures and fly at least twice per month. Check! Expert. Coming through! I think it’s supposed to make the line shorter but on the day I did it, the expert line ended up taking longer. Oh well. Thank goodness for my four wheel, 360 degree spin luggage. The best investment I’ve made since I got this job. I can push two suitcases and a laptop bag with just two pinkies. Sometimes I spin them in a full circle just to prove I can. Makes it really easy to walk/jog anywhere.

Well, I’ve only just covered the little things I have learned in the past five weeks, but I am starting to get tired. I’m ending this entry and will continue it tomorrow, on a significantly deeper level. I’m too exhausted to be deep right now.

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