Author Topic: Cross-country trip, CA --> NJ (Read 519 times)

esteban · « **on:** May 22, 2006, 02:36:35 PM »

Hi folks. I see that nodtveidt is taking a trip at almost EXACTLY the same time I am

. Have fun on your trip nod

.

We'll be leaving tomorrow night (23rd) from L.A. and I hope we'll be in NJ by Saturday (27th). Anyone wanna place bets on our chances of making it across country on schedule?

In one small minivan, there will be four cats, my daughter and my partner in crime. When we drove across the country last time, we didn't have a child. Also, we were bastards and sneaked our cats into our hotel rooms.

With cats + child, I don't know if our plan will run too smoothly...

Most hotels have internet access, so if I have any interesting stories from the road, I'll be sure to share them with you. I'm sure nothing will happen, but then again...

-------
Bummer: At the end of the month, I'll be returning to CA alone (to do some last-minute repairs and sell our home). So, that means that tonight is the final night all three of us are going to be in this house together

. It's really crazy, I still can't believe it's happening, and it's sad

...

Keranu · « **Reply #1 on:** May 22, 2006, 02:46:45 PM »

Moving back to NJ, are ye? With four cats in a van alone, I can only imagine that could be trouble but with a child too... lets just say I feel sorry for you that you'll be making such a long trip in the van

. I would tell your daughter to wear ear plugs during the long nights of the trip incase daddy gets a little frustrated :idea: .

We'll all await for nod and your arrival from departure and be sure to keep you guys in touch with any e-news that happens. As for me, I'll be gone between June 2nd - June 4th at a video game convention, but I'm sure the world can handle a day or two without Keranu

.

Ninja Spirit · « **Reply #2 on:** May 22, 2006, 05:07:29 PM »

Tight where at in NJ?

My brother lives in Keasby.

rolins · « **Reply #3 on:** May 22, 2006, 05:20:10 PM »

I wish ya good luck and a safe journey Steve. I love road trips but traveling with cats might be troublesome. Shouldn't be nothing that you can't handle though. I suggest bringing along a canister of baby wipes. I found those indispensible in messy situations. Ketchup stains, juice, vomit, etc.

Keranu · « **Reply #4 on:** May 22, 2006, 08:07:28 PM »

My mom always packs baby wipes for trips.

esteban · « **Reply #5 on:** May 22, 2006, 10:43:47 PM »

Oh yeah, I forget to mention that my wife has made it across the country in two days. She drove non-stop, with friends who took shifts driving, but still....

Quote from: "rolins"

I wish ya good luck and a safe journey Steve. I love road trips but traveling with cats might be troublesome. Shouldn't be nothing that you can't handle though. I suggest bringing along a canister of baby wipes. I found those indispensible in messy situations. Ketchup stains, juice, vomit, etc.

Thanks, and YES! I don't go anywhere without baby wipes. Those little suckers are friggin' brilliant (I get the cloth ones): motor oil, ketchup, custard, syrup: nothing can stop a baby wipe or two. Plus, I'm the type of person that has to have "clean-feeling"* hands before I do stuff, so I'll be wiping aplenty.

Quote from: "Keranu"

Moving back to NJ, are ye? With four cats in a van alone, I can only imagine that could be trouble but with a child too... lets just say I feel sorry for you that you'll be making such a long trip in the van Wink . I would tell your daughter to wear ear plugs during the long nights of the trip incase daddy gets a little frustrated.

Yup, it's finally happening. I remember the old turboboard -- slownerve was from NJ -- and wondering when I'd actually make it back to NJ. I can't wait to listen to WFMU and WBAI on FM radio instead of the internet

.

Quote from: "Ninja_Spirit"

Tight where at in NJ?

My brother lives in Keasby.

Northern Jersey. I grew up in Bloomfield (right next to Newark). I've actually driven past Keasbey a zillion times, though I never new that until I looked at a map. Next time I'm on the Parkway I'll make a mental note when I see signs for Perth Amboy

. NJ RULES! I can't wait to finally have some REAL DINERS.

TRIVIA: Bloomfield, believe it or not, is surprisingly close to NYC: all you have to do is hop on Route 3 and head east. When there's no traffic, you just zip right in.

* "clean-feeling" is just what it sounds like. My hands might very well be oozing bucketloads of bacteria, but as long as they "feel" clean, I'm happy.

nodtveidt · « **Reply #6 on:** May 22, 2006, 11:50:52 PM »

Good luck, steve!

Wifey and I are heading out today at 5:30PM, although we're just going for a week...

PC Gaijin · « **Reply #7 on:** May 23, 2006, 04:48:28 PM »

So did that neighbor's house blowing up scare you off or what?

Keranu · « **Reply #8 on:** May 23, 2006, 05:09:12 PM »

Quote from: "PC Gaijin"

So did that neighbor's house blowing up scare you off or what?

Hahahaha, I forgot about that!

esteban · « **Reply #9 on:** May 24, 2006, 08:48:33 PM »

QUICK UPDATE: We're in Albequerque (

? spelling

?) now. I got a speeding ticked, goddamit, for $180. But, we don't care, because tonight we have a nice hotel and free wireless connection. Last night, in contrast, we stayed in a scary, nasty motel in Barstow, CA. Never, ever stay in Barstow. Never. Our hotel was next to a railroad switching station (or something like that) and ALL NIGHT LONG we were treated to the delight of squealing train cars slowly rolling on tracks. All night.

Then, when we were leaving the nasty motel this morning, one of our cats (Loungenies) decided to rip the bottom of the mattress and LITERALLY hide in the bed. Hah! The only way to get her was to lure her out with a homemade cat toy (kleenex on a chopstick). Oh yeah, that's right, my daughter uses chopsticks as drumsticks, so we always have them with us.

Then, I went to enjoy the "Continental Breakfast" the motel offered. Well, that was the best hot water I've had in a long time. That's it. Hot water. No tea, coffee, juice, snack, bagel, muffin, etc.

MORAL OF THE STORY: The Barstow Abomination was actually the BEST WAY to start a cross-country trip. It couldn't possibly get worst. Yay!

Quote from: "PC Gaijin"

So did that neighbor's house blowing up scare you off or what?

I think I mentioned this before, but we had an open house planned for the week following the explosion! Our house would have been sold by now if that idiot didn't blow things up. Our new windows and doors were finally installed 2 weeks ago...

Now, of course, we just hope that the two homes ruined by the blast aren't too much of an eyesore for prospective buyers...

I'm still optimistic(on our house selling), but we definitely got screwed

(our neighborhood doesn't look as cute as it once did).

Keranu · « **Reply #10 on:** May 25, 2006, 10:30:23 AM »

Crappy hotels are always hilarious to hear about. I was at this terrible one in Canada one time called Al Mac's and it was just awful. Oh and a big LOL to that hotel serving hot water! What the hell is up with that??

Good luck on the rest of your trip.

esteban · « **Reply #11 on:** May 26, 2006, 04:30:03 AM »

Thursday, May 25th. 2:00 A.M. Oklahoma City. We checked-in tonight at 10 P.M. We had dinner at 12 P.M. It sounds late, but don't forget, this is Okie Time. As far as we were concerned, we were having dinner at 10 P.M. (PST). After dinner, I had a grand time. Since we had lots of stinky laundry, I decided to do the wash. Even at 3:00 A.M. in the goddamn morning (when I was taking the clothes out of the dryer and folding them), Oklahoma City is FRIGGIN' HOT. Now I know why the employee who checked us in was upset that they lost the A/C in their office. "Why would this person worry about the A/C when their shift ends before morning?" I asked myself. Well, now I know. Also, the internet connection speed they offer horrendous. Yes, it is free wireless -- but what's the point if it's equivalent to a 56K connection? Horrible, horrible internet connection.

Friday, May 26th. 8:30 A.M. (Oklaf*ckinghoma City Time). That's right, it's only 6:30 A.M. for us (since we're on Pacific Time) and the bastards here at Marriot Residence Inn have started major construction (on the unit adjacent to us, apparently). WTF?

?

I wait 10-15 minutes. I pray (not really) for the noise to stop. It doesn't stop. Still groggy, I call the front desk:
"Uhhhhh, is there construction going on?"
"Yes, we are renovating the property. Oh wait, you mean *right now*?"
"Yes, I mean right now. I hear what can only be described as a jack-hammer.

(Note: Actually, I wasn't entirely honest. The noise could also have been described as a really, really aggressive plumber roto-rootering the hell out of our kitchen sink. I kid you not, the jack-hammering noise was constant for 30 minutes. 30 MINUTES with only an occasional moment of glorious silence.)

"I haven't looked outside to confirm my suspicions... I'm in, uhhhhh, room 1013...."
"OK sir, let me check on that for you. Can I call you back?"
"Sure."

(Note, Part II: I Did I mention that Jasmine and Beth fell asleep at 2 A.M. Okie Time? Less than 5 hours later, we were jack-hammered awake. Yay! Now, I don't care if I don't get enough sleep. But Jasmine? Holy poop, that irked me! This place -- Residence Inn -- sells itself on catering to "families" and their special needs! Thankfully, the little stinkbutt fell back asleep shortly after the jack-hammering began.)

Phone rings.

"Hello?"
"Hi, I'm Barry ________. I'm the manager of this property, and I am really sorry you were disturbed this morning: we are doing renovations... I can move you to another suite if you would like..."
"No, that's OK. We were just staying the night. It's just that we are from the west coast and the construction began at 6:30 A.M. PST. We got in late last night and we were hoping to sleep a little late."
"I'm very sorry. Is there anything I can do for you?"

(Note, Part III: "Hmmmmm", I think to myself, "perhaps the manager has a time machine?" )

"No, don't worry -- we're up now anyway."

I really didn't care at this point. I was annoyed when I first woke up, I was annoyed when the sound didn't stop for 30 minutes. But when Jasmine fell back asleep, I was happy. That didn't stop me from being (very) slightly passive aggressive with the manager, though.

rolins · « **Reply #12 on:** May 26, 2006, 10:09:50 AM »

This just hilarious. Lets hope your your trip doesn't end up like the movie "Trains, Planes, Automobiles".

Keranu · « **Reply #13 on:** May 26, 2006, 05:24:56 PM »

Quote from: "rolins"

This just hilarious. Lets hope your your trip doesn't end up like the movie "Trains, Planes, Automobiles".

I love that movie, John Hughs is my lord. His situation is also sounding like National Lamphoon's Vacation (another applause for John).

esteban · « **Reply #14 on:** May 27, 2006, 05:07:51 AM »

Quote from: "rolins"

This just hilarious. Lets hope your your trip doesn't end up like the movie "Trains, Planes, Automobiles".

Yeah, that is a friggin' great movie

.

Last night was uneventful, thankfully.

On Beverages: During the day I keep myself "alert" by drinking tons of caffeine (well, I don't know if it really helps, but I've convinced myself that it helps a little bit). I don't know how much caffeine is in various types of beverages (soda, Red Bull), but I wish they put that info on the "Nutrition Facts" label. Seriously, why isn't caffeine listed? It's an addictive drug, goddammmmmmit! Tell me how many miligrams I need for my next hit! I've seen nutrition books that give "generic" info on how much caffeine is in an average serving of coffee, soda, tea -- but I'm looking for facts that are very specific. HOW MUCH CAFFEINE IN A SOY LATTE FROM STARBUCKS? I never looked for this info, but damn, they should have it available at the store.

I don't really believe the marketing around products like "Red Bull", but I still buy them because smaller-size cans don't fill up my bladder as quickly 12oz. or 20oz. bottles of soda.

I don't drink coffee while driving because it often acts as a laxative and 30 minutes after consuming it I had to make a mad dash to the latrine.

On "Pacer Cars" and my "Posse": I don't know if there is a better term for "Pacer Car", but the concept is simple: I pick someone who is going slightly faster than me. I use them to pace my speed, and I follow them. Usually, a little *posse* of cars is created and we all take turns being the Pacer, then we scoot over to the right lane and let someone else take the lead. It's not so easy to stay together as it might sound, however. Tractror trailers and "new cars" can block you and slow you down (especially before a big hill).

THEN THE CHALLENGE OF CATCHING UP TO YOUR POSSE, or your designated Pacer Car, BEGINS!!!!!! Yesterday I had a tough time, because you can simply "speed up" to catch your Pacer -- if you do, you risk getting a ticket. Usually, if you're lucky, the Pacer will get stuck behind someone going really slow and you'll be able to catch up to them.

If it wasn't already obvious, *cruise control* is not cutting it for me. I get ants in my pants and bored as hell w/ cruise control on. I always have (my old '82 Datsun had cruise control). To make things interesting, I play little games where I have to hold my breath until I pass the car in front of me.

On Racing Uphill: I got a ticket using this method, so I don't encourage you to use it. However, I'm still under the misguided belief that the best way to "speed" is to race uphill, pass all the slow cars and trucks, but then cut the gas just before the crest of the hill, which causes you to slow down to an "acceptable" speed.

The problem with this theory is that police often sit at the top (or near the top) of a hill with their radar in hand.... I must therefore visually inspect an upcoming hill and pray (not really) that there are no cops.

Now that I think about it, racing uphill is probably a really stupid thing to do (plus it wastes gas), but it is the single most effective method to pass lots of slower vehicles in one fell swoop....