A recent essay I published brought back to me how much and how quickly travel is changing. And how quickly history is forgotten. Unless you’re watching an old movie (wow! people went to baseball games in 3-piece suits?) or looking at old pictures, technology and time can sneak up on you–and you realize that fond memory of yours sounds like complete gibberish to someone of a younger generation. Continue reading “Travel – Then and Now” »
Twenty years ago I took three months away from college to take a ship around the world. Well, not me personally. I didn’t drive the thing, but I was on it. It left from Vancouver, British Columbia in September of 1992 headed for Japan, followed by Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, India, Egypt, Turkey, Ukraine, Spain, and Venezuela. It was only three months, but it changed my life forever. Continue reading “Ode to Semester at Sea” »
I’m very lucky. I’ve been going to Telluride, Colorado for 36 years now. I go in all four seasons. I love that little Old West box canyon town.
It’s no longer much of a secret though. This year the World Cup was there. All that was missing was snow… Continue reading “8 And A Half Things To Do In Telluride When The Snow Sucks.” »
My plane was right there, out the window, only forty feet away. But this was the holidays, and the San Francisco airport hadn’t planned properly, and there was no one to direct the plane the final thirty feet to the gate.
It sat there for forty minutes. Waiting. So close. And my connecting flight out of Los Angeles didn’t care. Continue reading “Climax Jerky – A Review” »
After two weeks of skiing over weeds and rocks and logs and small dead wood varmints I have decided to move the holidays to the end of January. With global weirding really heating up, it doesn’t make sense for Christmas to stay where it is. Especially if you are dreaming of a white one. Continue reading “It’s Time To Move Christmas” »
Food poisoning sucks. Seriously. It’s so unnecessary. It seriously seriously sucks to have it. I can’t recommend it at all. I would recommend that you don’t get it, actually.
However, it’s probably going to happen. I can remember a time, back in the old days, when I was a young gallivanting explorer, naive in the ways of food preparation, when I was visiting Luxor, Egypt. The restaurant we were supposed to eat lunch at was closed for no reason at all, which was quite common in those days. Continue reading “Food Poisoning: A Review” »
We started early in the morning. Dark and cold, the sun still a couple of hours away. Apparently that’s the perfect time for a balloon ride in Morocco. I was cold and irritable. But as the ride wore on, and the van drove us out of Marrakech, towards the Atlas Mountains, my mood improved. Continue reading “Balloon Over Morocco” »
I had an epiphany today. I’m in Atlanta for family reasons. As cities go, Atlanta is, in my opinion, right up there in my affections with Silver City, Nevada and Paris, Texas – two places I’ve never been. Continue reading “Escape From All My Crap” »
I currently do not have access to the Internet. When I have the Internet it distracts me and I complain about it. If only I didn’t have the Internet, I tell myself, I could get so much done. Well, here I am without it, and I’m annoyed I don’t have it. So there’s no winning with me. Continue reading “Staying Connected On The Road Isn’t Easy” »
Today I flew a brand new airplane operated by Delta. I paid the extra money to sit in what they are calling “Economy Comfort.” I’ve flown it once before on an overseas flight–but I had an exit row seat, so I couldn’t tell how much “extra” legroom they give you. Well, I can now say none. Continue reading “Rise of the Air Zombie” »