Worry vs. Donuts

(For the uninitiated: my trip stories tend to be summaries of everything - a little bit of the touristy stuff, a little bit about the random conversations I have with passers by, and other random stuff. Enjoy.)

$4.63 - the price for 1 gallon of Unleaded at the Shell near LAX

The movement - The first thing I saw as I exited the LAX terminal was a group of workers in SEIU t-shirts, carrying carnations. I asked an airport staffer on his break what was going on. “Oh, they’re trying to get healthcare and such,” he says, “they’re currently working under limited contracts.” I was told that this sort of dispute is ongoing and that organization has been difficult due to threats of job loss levied against the workers. Still, the movement seems to have a strong following (the t-shirts were everywhere), and I can certainly understand the need for health care. (Read the article)

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Today, I once again find myself flying across the country to return to the Golden State - a place where things are magically more expensive, the Asian food is cheaper/better, and bearded basketball professionals engage in random acts of philanthropy. It’s kind of a bummer to have to leave Madison, especially considering I’ve had more time to hang out with friends since I’m done with school. However, I’m sure it won’t be all that long until I’m enjoying a jog along the shoreline and saying “hella” a lot more than I should.

Unfortunately, to get to California, I once again find myself using the plane and traveling via Chicago O’Hare. It’s pretty easy to see why people dislike this airport: it’s cramped, busy, and lacks… flair. Many newer airports try to combat this kind of thing by adding shopping, restaurants, and other stuff that’s ludicrously overpriced. While some believe that this sort of thing helps, I think that there’s a few things that would help the weary travelers of this nation cope a whole lot better than overpriced cosmetics and Cinnabon. Furthermore, if O’Hare takes the initiative in implementing such changes, they can recoup some of the goodwill that they have lost by being…. O’Hare. Here’s where I would start: (Read the article)

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Columbus, Wisconsin. There are no buckeyes here, and no city for that matter. I’m standing on a pebble-covered road that I hesitate to call a parking lot, since it’s more reminiscent of someone’s driveway. Actually, scratch the lot description entirely - I’m in a small space between a lumberyard, an old brick building, and an even older concrete building with a faded sign attached to it: “rail passenger station.” As I walk through the parking lot, I come across an old brick pathway that is partially submerged in the pebbles that cover the “lot” - perhaps a relic of an era gone by when this town saw more activity. The side of the train station has two things carved into the concrete: “Columbus” and “1906.” Yes, Columbus is a pretty quiet place, but it does have one thing going for it: the train still comes through. (Read the article)

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For your reading pleasure, some interesting experiences/things that make travel worthwhile:

☆ Meeting a fellow language major on the train and talking for 2 hours
☆ Having a room with a bird’s eye view of the Gaslamp Quarter after a Padres game
☆ Knowing that a long day can be ended beautifully by a cone from the ice cream shop one block from your hostel, which is open until 1AM
☆ Being able to jog along the shoreline the morning after to take in good scenery and repair whatever damage you did to yourself with the ice cream
☆ Good Phó
☆ Helping a friend break into their own house (don’t ask)
☆ Swings

All things considered, I have a lot of stuff to do… so I should get back to doing it.

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Quick update before I go back to catching up on work:

I’ve arrived in Santa Monica. The city is, as always, an interesting place to be. I’m staying at the HI-Santa Monica which is fantastic thus far. Since I don’t have many plans for the next week, I plan to spend my time working, enjoying the scenery, and maybe even taking in a hostel event or two.

Hotels, although nicer, are BORING. Hostels have a lot of life, there’s stuff happening all the time, and I always run into interesting people and find myself chatting about all sorts of weird stuff. I’ve always wanted to join in one of the hostel events that are always happening, but never had the time. Although I have lots of work to do, I should have an opportunity or two to join some events.

My schedule for the next few weeks, for the curious/stalkers:

Today-Saturday, 6/23: Santa Monica
6/23-6/27: San Diego
6/27-7/3: Long Beach, AnimeExpo, work, potential hilarity
7/4-not sure: Minneapolis and CONvergence

EDIT: The car was fixed. Final repair bill: $2007 and change. Apparently the repairs involved removing the entire dash of the car (steering panel, gages, stereo, everything) and fiddling with wires and switches for six hours.

I spent most of last night playing Babanuki with some random students from Japan and Italy. They forced the losers to dance. Interesting hostel experience attained.

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That is to say, there is no update.

Yeah, lots of stuff has been going down and I haven’t had any time to even ponder updating this information. I beg ye, oh internet, for forgiveness.

More in the near future. Really.

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Allo there!

Last night, the open road and I had another 4 1/2 hour conversation (punctuated with snow flakes and patches of ice) as I travelled from Minneapolis back to Madison for my second semester of Grad School. Since I was feeling bored, I decided to try one of the “alternative” routes suggested by Google Maps to see if it was any faster.

(Read the article)

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