As many of you (or any of you, if there are any of you) may know, I re-established my Met fandom last year after Phillies Managing General Partner Bill Giles told a reporter that Brett Myers wasn't beating his wife, he was trying to help her. Brett Myers was in fact beating his wife, exposing himself and Giles as the criminals and villains that they are.
In any event, I started rooting for the Mets again, and in the year and a half since, I have experienced a crushing Game 7 NLCS defeat at the hands of the Cardinals and now the worst September collapse in MLB history.
Yup, these are the Mets. I remember them well.
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
A.B.B - DAY 398
Summer has ended, time to see what's happenin' (as Raj, Dwayne, Rerun and the always formidable Dee would say) with the Anybody But Bush crowd.
REPUBLICANS
1. Rudy Giuliani - Hanging on to first place by the skin of his falsies, Rudy continues to pray that every day was 9/11 (only a year away, big guy!). America's Mayor has withstood some Swift-Boating from the NYFD, but look for more as the primaries approach. He made it through the summer without any huge hemhorrages, only the usual Giuliani stuff, you know, minor scandals involving various former aides and supporters that never gained any real traction. "I will make you safer," is his mantra, and he's sticking with it.
2. Fred Thompson - He's in! Just ask Jay Leno. Ol' Fred joins up just in time to win the NASCAR Dad, or as I like to call it, the Rednecks Turning (And Always Were To Begin With) Right vote. Boy, I've never seen such a pair of Republican shams as these two guys. At least Reagan actually believed his bullshit, as much as a guy like Reagan could understand what the puppet-handlers around him were telling him to think. Fred, like Rudy, belongs at a tony Manhattan or LA dinner party more than he does kissing babies and/or pigs at the Iowa State Fair (maybe that's why Fred missed this years'.) It should be fascinating to see to what depths of folksiness these guys will be willing to go to get the nomination.
3. Mitt Romney - Things aren't looking good for Mitt, despite his store-bought win at the Iowa Straw Poll. The creepy spectre of Mormonism haunts his every move, and it didn't help that he thinks his five miltary-aged sons are serving the country by working for their Dad's election campaign. He clarified his stance on abortion rights by saying that he was for them before he was against them. Nice going, John, er Mitt!
4. Mike Huckabee - He's still my dark horse. Every time I see him, he makes more and more sense, which isn't necessarily good for a presidential candidate, but it is refreshing. Yeah, I know, he said via Wolf Blitzer-inspired hand gesture that he doesn't believe in evolution, but what he meant was that he didn't think that evolution was strictly a natural phenomenon with no divine intervention, which is a mainstream view.
5. John McCain - Wow, he's behind Huckabee now (well, to me he is). Big Mac is out of cash and bereft of ideas, aside from The Surge Is Working, and it looks like he won't be retaining Karl Rove's services.
6. The Field - Tom Tancredo, Sam Brownback, Duncan Hunter, Ron Paul, Jim Gilmore. None of these guys have done anything to distinguish themselves, aside from maybe Paul, whose Libertarianism appeals to Hollywood types, at least enough to pat him on the head. I'm surprised at Brownback. I kept hearing all this hype that he was primed and ready and a darling of the base, but he keeps polling in the low single digits. Is anybody there? Does anybody care?
DEMOCRATS
1. Hillary Clinton - The Democrats seem to have settled on Hill to wear the pants(uit) for them in '08, which also surprises me. At this point, she'd have to fuck it up pretty bad to not get the nomination. She leads in every state poll and in the overall polls, often by wide margins (although, ominously, Iowa is close). I guess Obama still has a chance, with all that Internet cash he has, but it appears that the party has listened and turned away. 2008 will be an historic, and historically ugly, political year.
2. Barack Obama - Not Enough Experience. The verdict is in, and when you reach a conclusion like that, a few more months isn't going to help. Hillary could still blow it (no, Bill, it's not what you are hoping for), but I doubt it. He would make a hell of a Veep.
3. John Edwards - $400 Haircut has been reduced to the fallback's fallback, and a weak one at that.
4. Al Gore - What's he doing here? Well, he's running ahead of Edwards nationally, and would definitely give Hillary a coronary if he joined. We should be seeing "An Inconvenient Truth" on basic cable any day now, which should only help his chances. I simply can't believe he can keep himself away, not with Hillary about to go through a nuclear holocaust of right-wing sexist rage that could set the Democratic Party back from a presidential perspective for at least 20 years and in the South possibly forever.
5. The Field - Joe Biden, Chris Dodd, Bill Richardson, Mike Gravel, Dennis Kucinich. Dodd is the only grown-up of the bunch (sorry, Dennis, but you are pretty short). Biden foams at the mouth and never shuts up, Richardson is a future cabinet member, Gravel is wacky (although I like most of what he says), and Kucinich is left of Hugo Chavez. Given that, even Dodd's odds are still near zero.
REPUBLICANS
1. Rudy Giuliani - Hanging on to first place by the skin of his falsies, Rudy continues to pray that every day was 9/11 (only a year away, big guy!). America's Mayor has withstood some Swift-Boating from the NYFD, but look for more as the primaries approach. He made it through the summer without any huge hemhorrages, only the usual Giuliani stuff, you know, minor scandals involving various former aides and supporters that never gained any real traction. "I will make you safer," is his mantra, and he's sticking with it.
2. Fred Thompson - He's in! Just ask Jay Leno. Ol' Fred joins up just in time to win the NASCAR Dad, or as I like to call it, the Rednecks Turning (And Always Were To Begin With) Right vote. Boy, I've never seen such a pair of Republican shams as these two guys. At least Reagan actually believed his bullshit, as much as a guy like Reagan could understand what the puppet-handlers around him were telling him to think. Fred, like Rudy, belongs at a tony Manhattan or LA dinner party more than he does kissing babies and/or pigs at the Iowa State Fair (maybe that's why Fred missed this years'.) It should be fascinating to see to what depths of folksiness these guys will be willing to go to get the nomination.
3. Mitt Romney - Things aren't looking good for Mitt, despite his store-bought win at the Iowa Straw Poll. The creepy spectre of Mormonism haunts his every move, and it didn't help that he thinks his five miltary-aged sons are serving the country by working for their Dad's election campaign. He clarified his stance on abortion rights by saying that he was for them before he was against them. Nice going, John, er Mitt!
4. Mike Huckabee - He's still my dark horse. Every time I see him, he makes more and more sense, which isn't necessarily good for a presidential candidate, but it is refreshing. Yeah, I know, he said via Wolf Blitzer-inspired hand gesture that he doesn't believe in evolution, but what he meant was that he didn't think that evolution was strictly a natural phenomenon with no divine intervention, which is a mainstream view.
5. John McCain - Wow, he's behind Huckabee now (well, to me he is). Big Mac is out of cash and bereft of ideas, aside from The Surge Is Working, and it looks like he won't be retaining Karl Rove's services.
6. The Field - Tom Tancredo, Sam Brownback, Duncan Hunter, Ron Paul, Jim Gilmore. None of these guys have done anything to distinguish themselves, aside from maybe Paul, whose Libertarianism appeals to Hollywood types, at least enough to pat him on the head. I'm surprised at Brownback. I kept hearing all this hype that he was primed and ready and a darling of the base, but he keeps polling in the low single digits. Is anybody there? Does anybody care?
DEMOCRATS
1. Hillary Clinton - The Democrats seem to have settled on Hill to wear the pants(uit) for them in '08, which also surprises me. At this point, she'd have to fuck it up pretty bad to not get the nomination. She leads in every state poll and in the overall polls, often by wide margins (although, ominously, Iowa is close). I guess Obama still has a chance, with all that Internet cash he has, but it appears that the party has listened and turned away. 2008 will be an historic, and historically ugly, political year.
2. Barack Obama - Not Enough Experience. The verdict is in, and when you reach a conclusion like that, a few more months isn't going to help. Hillary could still blow it (no, Bill, it's not what you are hoping for), but I doubt it. He would make a hell of a Veep.
3. John Edwards - $400 Haircut has been reduced to the fallback's fallback, and a weak one at that.
4. Al Gore - What's he doing here? Well, he's running ahead of Edwards nationally, and would definitely give Hillary a coronary if he joined. We should be seeing "An Inconvenient Truth" on basic cable any day now, which should only help his chances. I simply can't believe he can keep himself away, not with Hillary about to go through a nuclear holocaust of right-wing sexist rage that could set the Democratic Party back from a presidential perspective for at least 20 years and in the South possibly forever.
5. The Field - Joe Biden, Chris Dodd, Bill Richardson, Mike Gravel, Dennis Kucinich. Dodd is the only grown-up of the bunch (sorry, Dennis, but you are pretty short). Biden foams at the mouth and never shuts up, Richardson is a future cabinet member, Gravel is wacky (although I like most of what he says), and Kucinich is left of Hugo Chavez. Given that, even Dodd's odds are still near zero.
NOT THE MICHELIN GUIDE
I've finally decided to write about my many travels, but I'm going to do it in the form of a travel guide. I'll list a bunch of topics, and rate each destination by each topic. You'll figure it out...
BEST HOTELS
1. JW Marriott, Ko Olina Resort, Ko Olina, HI. I love my job. Any job where I get to blog while looking at the ocean right outside the window is my kind of job. Hey, there's the ocean now! That's a lot of water. Maybe I'll catch the sunset...that was nice. Seriously, the Ko Olina, as the guys at the refinery call it, is pretty damned special, as are the prices, if by special you mean "Holy Shit that's expensive!" And for most people, absolutely nothing is included! The rooms are the best rooms I've ever seen, with a humongous bathroom with a glass shower and two sinks. The food at the Naupaka Terrace Café leaves a lot to be desired. It's basically Sodexho Marriott cafeteria food at ridiculous prices. They also have a fancy Mexican restaurant (Azul) and a Japanese place (Ushio-Tei), neither of which I’ve tried. You’re better off going over to Roy's, a high-end national chain with an eclectic menu which is on the property of the adjacent golf course (18 holes = you need to fill out a loan application). Roy's is the best food I've ever eaten in my entire life, and that includes my mother's cooking after 6 months of dorm food. The hotel has a nice little breakfast bar in the morning, but again, everything including the formerly free coffee is pricey. I wish the gym would open earlier (it opens at 6 am), since I am usually up by 4:30 because of the jet lag, and I have to be in the refinery by 7 am. The company I work for gets free parking and internet. Without that, they wouldn't let me stay here, I think.
2. Arizona Biltmore, Phoenix, AZ. The Biltmore is a Frank Lloyd Wright paradise in the desert. I love Wright's designs, and this place is as spectacular as it must have been when it opened in the 20’s. The opulence of the place is stunning, with huge fountains, putting greens, a life-sized chess board, hand carved statues, and intricate stonework everywhere throughout the site. We drove by Lynda Carter’s house, "Woman In Tights", which is just off the property, as is Paul Harvey's (no name given, although I’m sure if it has one, it has something to do with Gold Bond Medicated Powder). I was fortunate enough to play both of the golf courses, which are no longer owned by the Biltmore, but are just as gorgeous. The big downside of the place is that for the unwashed who actually drive their cars in, the parking garage is halfway to Scottsdale. I was there for a conference where all the meals were provided, so I didn’t try any of the restaurants, and I was too busy golfing to swing by the gym.
3. The Lodges at Deer Valley, Park City, UT. The Lodges is set at the base of a ski resort in Park City, affording spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. The rooms are very large, almost suites, and unlike many high-end, full-service joints, they provide a fridge and a microwave (what a concept, JW!). One weird thing was that you had to walk through the parking garage to get to your section of the hotel, which if I was driving I wouldn’t have minded. For this particular conference, though, I had my transportation provided, so it seemed unnecessary that I had to dodge rental cars in the garage just to find my room. All my meals were provided, so I can't say much about the restaurants. I saw a gym and an outdoor pool with jacuzzi, neither of which was able to get to. They had a nice little Starbucks Robo-Barista machine in the "General Store" behind the Front Desk, which was handy. The overall vibe of the place was old time Alpine Ski Lodge, which was strange in the summer, but it was nice enough that I’m looking forward to going back next year.
4. Marriott Copley Place, Boston, MA. At thirty-four floors, it is the tallest hotel I've stayed at for more than one night. They have a Starbucks, so score one for them. The gym was huge, but still full (damn those Boston travelers, always staying in shape). The room was tiny, but well-appointed. I didn’t try the restaurants because the conference I was at provided all the meals. The hotel is connected to the Shops at Copley, which is connected to the Prudential Center and the Hynes Convention Center, plus it is right on top of a T stop. Don't use that T stop to go to Fenway, though, like I did. It's two changes and lots of walking from the park. Use the Copley station across Copley Square, which is on the same line and only two stations from the Fenway Park Kenmore Square stop. I did get to meet 500 of the sweatiest 20-somethings Boston has offer, so that was nice.
5. Concord Hilton, Concord, CA. I only stayed here once, but it was nice. The breakfast was excellent, they have free parking, and there is an outdoor mall within easy walking distance with at least five restaurants and a bunch of shops. It's another full-service hotel, so not many freebies. They have a Starbucks shop right in the lobby, so I would live here if I could. I didn't try the gym there, but they have one.
6. Marriot Lincolnshire Resort, Lincolnshire, IL. This place looks like it was built in the 50's to accommodate families making cross-country trips in wood-paneled station wagons. The hotel building itself is mostly wood-paneled and low-slung (only three stories), and the resort has just about everything on the grounds, including horseback riding, tennis, golf, and even a drama theatre! The hallways go on forever and then branch out and go on some more. I spent almost 48 hours never leaving the hotel, it had so much stuff in it. This is another hotel with a Starbucks on site, although the barista was an annoying amateur comedian, and he shuts it down around 2 pm.
7. Embassy Suites North, Phoenix, AZ. It looks like a sprawling adobe Motel 6 from the street, but it's actually pretty sweet. They have a Cajun-themed restaurant, and a lobby that puts more expensive hotels to shame. The gym isn't bad, and the suites are huge.
8. Homewood Suites, Houston, TX. Pretty standard, run-of-the-mill extended-stay place, but they do everything well. They have a pantry, and the free hot breakfast was more than expected. The suites are good size, with a kitchen.
9. Residence Inn, Foxborough, MA. It's the Homewood Suites with none of the proceeds going to support Paris Hilton's coke habit. Nothing special, but more than adequate.
10. Embassy Suites, Walnut Creek, CA. I hate this place's parking garage! It's in the basement, and every space has a pole on one side or the other that is holding up the building. I brushed one with my rental car, and the company had to pay $500. They do have suites, and the food isn't bad. The breakfast is free, and it's a pretty good selection of stuff. There's a nice little outdoor "main street"-type mall up the road with a Greek restaurant and a coffee shop. The gym sucks, with only some crappy treadmills.
11. Uptown Motel, Kenai, AK. I was expecting an utter shit hole, so I was pleasantly surprised. The rooms are small but serviceable, and the wireless high speed internet is the best on the planet. No logging in to a stupid hotel firewall or anything, just boot up and go, and it's really fast. There is a semi-attached restaurant, Louie's, where the food is spectacular. The portions are so huge, though, that I can only eat there once a visit. Forget about a gym. You're happy just to stay un-frozen. You could go running, but I wouldn't recommend it. You might get raped by a moose. Or a north sloper.
12. Best Western Seven Seas, Mandan, ND. What can you say, it's a Best Western. They have a bed, a bathroom, and the old “Sanitized For Your Protection” seal. The restaurant was full of hearty Midwestern fare, and this hotel comes with, incongruously, a Water Park. I was there in August, and it was till too cold to swim, so, like, when isn't it?
13. Fidalgo Country Inn, Anacortes, WA. Another place with an improbable pool. It has great views of Puget Sound, and our refinery, but not much else going for it. The wireless Internet didn't work in my room. How hard is it to buy another router? Jeez louise, this is supposed to be Microsoft country. There was a restaurant in the same parking lot that was pretty lousy, and they also had a convenience store and not one but two drive-through espresso islands. There isn't much up in this neck of the woods, so you have to take whatever you can get.
14. Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu, HI. The hotel itself isn't bad at all, but the location, right on Waikiki Beach, is terrible. You have to drive through about 6 million cars on narrow two-lane streets to get to and from it, and I was so exhausted after the commute back and forth from Kapolei that I barely had time to eat before I crashed. They have a bunch of nice little restaurants in the Village, and the rooms and amenities are great. You have to pay for internet and parking, and the gym is $10 a day. Forget it. I'd rather flab up for a week.
15. Hyatt Regency Waikiki, Honolulu, HI. This may be the worst nice hotel ever. They have two 40-story towers, and of course, they don't tell you which room numbers are in which towers. You get to do that coin-flipping experiment yourself. The parking garage is a nightmare – narrow and tall, and you have to go up six floors until you get to the self-parking. On top of that, it is across the street from the hotel, and there is no footbridge, so you must go down to the street and cross in the heavy Waikiki traffic. I ate at the "Terrace Bar" restaurant, and birds almost ran off with my meal. And it's 30 miles from the refinery, through more heavy traffic. I left after one night and checked in at the Ihilani.
16. Extended Stay America, Phoenix, AZ. Stay the fuck away. I mean it. What a disaster. They do throw in the mildew stains for free, so that's something. Never again.
BEST AIRLINES
1. Continental. The non-stop from Houston to Honolulu is about as comfortable as being locked in a flying death-cage for 8 hours can be. You get meals and in-seat entertainment, and the stews mostly leave you alone to sleep. I have tons of frequent flyer miles with these guys, so I don't want to write anything negative they might read.
2. Southwest. I hate having to line up to get a decent seat, but Southwest is one of the only airlines that acts like they actually care about what they are doing. They have this sense of urgency that the rest of them haven’t even heard of. They get the planes turned around like their hair is on fire, and everybody you meet is friendly and knowledgeable. If only they had more room in the cabins, but then again, none of them do anymore.
3. United. I like the CRJ-700 flights that I can take direct out of San Antonio to SFO, Phoenix, and eventually, Salt Lake and Los Angeles. They are a little cramped, but it beats changing planes. Other than that, United is unremarkable.
4. Era Aviation. They fly a little DeHavilland Dash-8 from Anchorage to Kenai, Alaska every hour or so. Nothing fancy, but efficient and timely. You get the pre-flight safety talk directly from the pilot.
5. Delta/Skywest. They really aren’t much better than Northwest, but at least they fly into Salt Lake directly. I remember Delta from my youth, flying into Atlanta on the way to Florida. I think they still use the same planes.
6. US Airways/America West/Mesa. I take these guys to Phoenix if United or Southwest isn't available. God, do they suck. They are just playing out the string until they finally are allowed to merge with United. They were the first and only ones so far to lose my luggage! Congratulations.
7. Northwest. Absolute worst. I fly Northwest to Alaska via Minneapolis. They charge for everything, and you get no in-flight entertainment of any kind, even audio! The only good part is I get Elite Access status because they have an agreement with Continental, or otherwise, these flights would be completely intolerable.
BEST AIRPORTS
1. Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP). No, it isn't for the bathroom cruising, you sicko. I like MSP because of the central food court/mall. They have practically everything in there, including an iPod vending machine. Even the longest walk from concourse to concourse isn't that far, and it routes you through the food court/mall, which is very bright, open, airy and convenient. It beats having to eat at one of the satellite concourses that you see in most airports that are very hit and miss. Yup, I take a wide stance on MSP (maybe that should be the new slogan)!
2. Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX). Pretty much everything is great about PHX, (including the name "Sky Harbor") as long as you stick with Continental and Southwest. The luggage carousels are all modern and roomy, the rental car place is centrally located so you don't have to drive all over looking for your car company, and the concourses have plenty of good eating places. The United terminal SUCKS though; it's old and cramped and the security set-up is totally inefficient.
3. Baltimore/Washington International (BWI). This is an oldie but a goodie for me, since I used it a lot when I was in Philly. The Southwest terminal is almost completely new, looks great, and is very convenient and comfortable.
4. San Francisco International (SFO). The rental car dropoff place at SFO pisses me off because the sign comes up way too late and you end up having to drive around 18 cloverleafs to get back. Other than that, it’s pretty good. This is another central rental car place, and this once has a train, which is nicer than the stupid shuttle bus, I think. They have a killer soup place that serves fresh sourdough rolls in the United terminal, plus a place called "Just Desserts".
5. Bismarck Municipal (BIS). Wow, what a cool airport! I wish they could all be this nice, only in big cities and larger. They have free wireless, and the whole place is wood paneled and brand-spanking new.
6. Anchorage International (ANC). ANC is a nice homey little airport, with high vaulted ceilings and a pleasant restaurant that overlooks Prince William Sound. It's under re-construction on the inside (unlike on the outside, which would describe every other airport in America), so it's kind of messy. I love seeing the North Slope roughnecks in line for their flights. They crap guys like me.
7. Honolulu International (HNL). Overall, it's not that bad. The concourses are mostly open-air, which is pretty strange and exotic, they have a restaurant where they serve a melt-in-your-mouth polish sausage with sauerkraut, and security is always a breeze. However…the rental car place is a clusterfuck. I mean, a place like Hawaii doesn't have Hertz Gold Club or National Emerald Aisle? I'm going to get run over in that rental car parking lot one of these times. Bringing the car back is even worse.
8. San Antonio International (SAT). It's actually further down the list, as in at the bottom, but I didn't want to name every other airport I’ve been in before commenting on my home airport. The whole area is under construction, and probably will be for another 10 years, which makes any trip there depressing. The two terminals are competing with each other to see which one sucks worse. For a city of 1,000,000 people to have a sorrier airport than Bismarck, ND is quite a feat, but San Antonio has done it. The place looks almost Eastern European. It's gray, dank, crowded, and a complete mishmash of styles. The luggage carousels are not labeled, so you don’t have any idea which one might fire up and deliver your bags. The rental car places are spread out over a 5 mile radius, so good luck finding yours. Security at Terminal 1 isn't half bad, but the line at Terminal 2 (where Southwest and the Mexican airlines are housed) can spill out down the hall, around the corner, back up another hall, and back out into the main terminal area. And if you park out in economy long-term parking, be prepared to wheel your bags a good half mile. I just wish I could close my eyes, open them, and see the final result of the construction, but instead, we'll be suffering for another decade.
BEST RESTAURANTS
1. Roy's, Kapolei, HI. I ate a macadamia-encrusted swordfish steak there that almost made me cry. At lunch a couple of weeks later I had a bacon cheeseburger to end all bacon cheeseburgers forever. So good.
2. Jamba Juice. I discovered these in Kapolei, and I’ve been going there for breakfast in every city I travel to, if I can find one. I get a 16-oz smoothie with an immunity boost, to battle those sniffling masses on the plane, and I usually get the honey bran muffin as well. The only complaint I used to have is the poor selection of fresh-baked muffins and pastries, but they’ve recently expanded their offerings to include a protein cookie, an energy bar, and a blueberry muffin.
3. Louie's, Kenai, AK. Louie's serves enormous helpings of food, so much that you're in pain for a couple of days. It tastes good going down, though! The blackened prime rib bites are a unique appetizer. I pretty much order clam chowder and a salad now, and I can't finish that. The breakfast sausage is the size of your head.
4. The Chart House, Honolulu, HI. Mai-tai's and steak, that's always a good combination. The atmosphere can get pretty raucous, with tourists and locals alike jamming the place.
5. In & Out Burger, Phoenix, AZ. The best burgers in the world, except when Roy cooks one.
6. Charlie's Steakery, Phoenix, AZ. The buffalo chicken cheesesteak with ranch sauce is highly recommended. Extra ranch sauce for the fries!
BEST CITIES
1. Foxborough/Boston, MA. Massachusetts is my ancestral home, and I always enjoy returning. I would live there if not for the snow. The people are just totally cool. They are smart, funny, engaging, acerbic, and sarcastic, but in a good way. They have the second-fiddle-to-New York mentality like Philly people, which keeps them humble, but they evince it in a wry, humorous manner instead of the aggressively antagonistic behavior of most Philadelphia denizens. The best of the many good things of going to a game at Fenway Park is listening to the inane yet witty banter from the college kids behind you in the stands. The streets and highways of Southeastern Massachusetts are scenic and completely bizarre, but the public transit system is excellent, so you can get out of your car if you want to. And Foxborough is, of course, home to my beloved Pats.
2. Phoenix, AZ. Clean, well-planned, dry, with a sweeping mountain view, it's a hard city not to love. I'm not sure I'd feel the same way in August, but February and May were excellent. Phoenix is a lot more diverse than I imagined. I was thinking I'd run into a million Midwestern retirees, but it's not like that at all. Phoenix has the same huge Latino population that most Southwestern cities enjoy, and there are tons of young families everywhere, as well as a healthy assortment of Joe Dirt types. I was impressed with the amazingly sustained booing of the Phoenix Suns fans in Game 5 against the Spurs, at which I sat in the last row of the arena with a ticket I bought on e-Bay. They booed every single time the Spurs had the ball, all the way to the end, and they stayed completely projectile-free.
3. East Bay Area, CA. I'm calling this the East Bay, because I've never gone into San Francisco the couple of times I’ve been there. The East Bay people aren’t nearly as snooty as their Marin County and San Fran counterparts. I love the scenic, mountainous drive from the airport to Walnut Creek or Concord where I stay. Both Walnut Creek and Concord are upscale little suburbs with new, modern shopping and eating places, right off the freeway. I can’t wait to go there during the summer to see AT&T Park.
4. Chicago, IL. That toddling town was a little disappointing, but it was good to go back. It's been a while since I experienced Midwestern hospitality, and it was jarring. The barista at Starbucks (not the creep at the Marriott, another one) asked me how my day was going, and I thought she was talking to somebody else behind the counter. The Tri-State Tollway is a freaking mess. The exit from the Tollway to the Edens Expressway bottlenecks from three lanes to ONE lane. They built it that way! Gee, I wonder if it backs up, EVERY DAY?! Toward the end of the trip, my sister, my boss, another co-worker and I walked back to my sister's high-rise through Wrigleyville after taking in a Cubs game. I heard the other day that Chicago is one of the most highly segregated cities in America, and after I thought about it, it was pretty startling, and kind of sad, not to see very many minority faces in such a large city neighborhood.
5. Honolulu, HI. Are you interested in going to Tokyo, but don't want to be encumbered with all that Japanese efficiency? Go to Honolulu! You’ll see millions of Japanese people, with a highway and street system designed like Northeast Illinois! Ugh. The traffic in Honolulu is the absolute worst in America. The drivers are either locals in no hurry or tourists who have left their brains on the mainland. And everything is under construction, all the time! And lanes begin and end on a whim! It's great, you’ll love it. My advice is to drive from the airport to the hotel, and NEVER DRIVE AGAIN. Better yet, take a taxi or a shuttle from the airport and don't drive at all. Other than that, the people are great, but as I mentioned, they are never in a hurry. That's fine if you are on vacation, but it kind of sucks when you are on business. You can't beat the scenery, I must say.
6. Kenai, AK. Well, it's not much of a city, really, just an outpost. They do have most of the modern conveniences, including blazing fast internet for some reason. The snow-capped peaks are spectacular, if you are lucky enough to see them. In December, I drove to work in the dark and drove back to the hotel in the dark. There's not much else of interest in Kenai, unless you are unhealthfully attached to salmon.
7. Houston, TX. Houston has become like Honolulu, without the scenery. I shudder to imagine what Houston would be like without a really good highway system. It's complete chaos as it is. The other main reason I don't much like traveling there is because I've lived there, so I've seen and done everything there is to see and do, at least twice. Minute Maid Park is still one of the best parks in the majors, except for the Astros fans, who never sit down and just watch the game.
BEST HOTELS
1. JW Marriott, Ko Olina Resort, Ko Olina, HI. I love my job. Any job where I get to blog while looking at the ocean right outside the window is my kind of job. Hey, there's the ocean now! That's a lot of water. Maybe I'll catch the sunset...that was nice. Seriously, the Ko Olina, as the guys at the refinery call it, is pretty damned special, as are the prices, if by special you mean "Holy Shit that's expensive!" And for most people, absolutely nothing is included! The rooms are the best rooms I've ever seen, with a humongous bathroom with a glass shower and two sinks. The food at the Naupaka Terrace Café leaves a lot to be desired. It's basically Sodexho Marriott cafeteria food at ridiculous prices. They also have a fancy Mexican restaurant (Azul) and a Japanese place (Ushio-Tei), neither of which I’ve tried. You’re better off going over to Roy's, a high-end national chain with an eclectic menu which is on the property of the adjacent golf course (18 holes = you need to fill out a loan application). Roy's is the best food I've ever eaten in my entire life, and that includes my mother's cooking after 6 months of dorm food. The hotel has a nice little breakfast bar in the morning, but again, everything including the formerly free coffee is pricey. I wish the gym would open earlier (it opens at 6 am), since I am usually up by 4:30 because of the jet lag, and I have to be in the refinery by 7 am. The company I work for gets free parking and internet. Without that, they wouldn't let me stay here, I think.
2. Arizona Biltmore, Phoenix, AZ. The Biltmore is a Frank Lloyd Wright paradise in the desert. I love Wright's designs, and this place is as spectacular as it must have been when it opened in the 20’s. The opulence of the place is stunning, with huge fountains, putting greens, a life-sized chess board, hand carved statues, and intricate stonework everywhere throughout the site. We drove by Lynda Carter’s house, "Woman In Tights", which is just off the property, as is Paul Harvey's (no name given, although I’m sure if it has one, it has something to do with Gold Bond Medicated Powder). I was fortunate enough to play both of the golf courses, which are no longer owned by the Biltmore, but are just as gorgeous. The big downside of the place is that for the unwashed who actually drive their cars in, the parking garage is halfway to Scottsdale. I was there for a conference where all the meals were provided, so I didn’t try any of the restaurants, and I was too busy golfing to swing by the gym.
3. The Lodges at Deer Valley, Park City, UT. The Lodges is set at the base of a ski resort in Park City, affording spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. The rooms are very large, almost suites, and unlike many high-end, full-service joints, they provide a fridge and a microwave (what a concept, JW!). One weird thing was that you had to walk through the parking garage to get to your section of the hotel, which if I was driving I wouldn’t have minded. For this particular conference, though, I had my transportation provided, so it seemed unnecessary that I had to dodge rental cars in the garage just to find my room. All my meals were provided, so I can't say much about the restaurants. I saw a gym and an outdoor pool with jacuzzi, neither of which was able to get to. They had a nice little Starbucks Robo-Barista machine in the "General Store" behind the Front Desk, which was handy. The overall vibe of the place was old time Alpine Ski Lodge, which was strange in the summer, but it was nice enough that I’m looking forward to going back next year.
4. Marriott Copley Place, Boston, MA. At thirty-four floors, it is the tallest hotel I've stayed at for more than one night. They have a Starbucks, so score one for them. The gym was huge, but still full (damn those Boston travelers, always staying in shape). The room was tiny, but well-appointed. I didn’t try the restaurants because the conference I was at provided all the meals. The hotel is connected to the Shops at Copley, which is connected to the Prudential Center and the Hynes Convention Center, plus it is right on top of a T stop. Don't use that T stop to go to Fenway, though, like I did. It's two changes and lots of walking from the park. Use the Copley station across Copley Square, which is on the same line and only two stations from the Fenway Park Kenmore Square stop. I did get to meet 500 of the sweatiest 20-somethings Boston has offer, so that was nice.
5. Concord Hilton, Concord, CA. I only stayed here once, but it was nice. The breakfast was excellent, they have free parking, and there is an outdoor mall within easy walking distance with at least five restaurants and a bunch of shops. It's another full-service hotel, so not many freebies. They have a Starbucks shop right in the lobby, so I would live here if I could. I didn't try the gym there, but they have one.
6. Marriot Lincolnshire Resort, Lincolnshire, IL. This place looks like it was built in the 50's to accommodate families making cross-country trips in wood-paneled station wagons. The hotel building itself is mostly wood-paneled and low-slung (only three stories), and the resort has just about everything on the grounds, including horseback riding, tennis, golf, and even a drama theatre! The hallways go on forever and then branch out and go on some more. I spent almost 48 hours never leaving the hotel, it had so much stuff in it. This is another hotel with a Starbucks on site, although the barista was an annoying amateur comedian, and he shuts it down around 2 pm.
7. Embassy Suites North, Phoenix, AZ. It looks like a sprawling adobe Motel 6 from the street, but it's actually pretty sweet. They have a Cajun-themed restaurant, and a lobby that puts more expensive hotels to shame. The gym isn't bad, and the suites are huge.
8. Homewood Suites, Houston, TX. Pretty standard, run-of-the-mill extended-stay place, but they do everything well. They have a pantry, and the free hot breakfast was more than expected. The suites are good size, with a kitchen.
9. Residence Inn, Foxborough, MA. It's the Homewood Suites with none of the proceeds going to support Paris Hilton's coke habit. Nothing special, but more than adequate.
10. Embassy Suites, Walnut Creek, CA. I hate this place's parking garage! It's in the basement, and every space has a pole on one side or the other that is holding up the building. I brushed one with my rental car, and the company had to pay $500. They do have suites, and the food isn't bad. The breakfast is free, and it's a pretty good selection of stuff. There's a nice little outdoor "main street"-type mall up the road with a Greek restaurant and a coffee shop. The gym sucks, with only some crappy treadmills.
11. Uptown Motel, Kenai, AK. I was expecting an utter shit hole, so I was pleasantly surprised. The rooms are small but serviceable, and the wireless high speed internet is the best on the planet. No logging in to a stupid hotel firewall or anything, just boot up and go, and it's really fast. There is a semi-attached restaurant, Louie's, where the food is spectacular. The portions are so huge, though, that I can only eat there once a visit. Forget about a gym. You're happy just to stay un-frozen. You could go running, but I wouldn't recommend it. You might get raped by a moose. Or a north sloper.
12. Best Western Seven Seas, Mandan, ND. What can you say, it's a Best Western. They have a bed, a bathroom, and the old “Sanitized For Your Protection” seal. The restaurant was full of hearty Midwestern fare, and this hotel comes with, incongruously, a Water Park. I was there in August, and it was till too cold to swim, so, like, when isn't it?
13. Fidalgo Country Inn, Anacortes, WA. Another place with an improbable pool. It has great views of Puget Sound, and our refinery, but not much else going for it. The wireless Internet didn't work in my room. How hard is it to buy another router? Jeez louise, this is supposed to be Microsoft country. There was a restaurant in the same parking lot that was pretty lousy, and they also had a convenience store and not one but two drive-through espresso islands. There isn't much up in this neck of the woods, so you have to take whatever you can get.
14. Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu, HI. The hotel itself isn't bad at all, but the location, right on Waikiki Beach, is terrible. You have to drive through about 6 million cars on narrow two-lane streets to get to and from it, and I was so exhausted after the commute back and forth from Kapolei that I barely had time to eat before I crashed. They have a bunch of nice little restaurants in the Village, and the rooms and amenities are great. You have to pay for internet and parking, and the gym is $10 a day. Forget it. I'd rather flab up for a week.
15. Hyatt Regency Waikiki, Honolulu, HI. This may be the worst nice hotel ever. They have two 40-story towers, and of course, they don't tell you which room numbers are in which towers. You get to do that coin-flipping experiment yourself. The parking garage is a nightmare – narrow and tall, and you have to go up six floors until you get to the self-parking. On top of that, it is across the street from the hotel, and there is no footbridge, so you must go down to the street and cross in the heavy Waikiki traffic. I ate at the "Terrace Bar" restaurant, and birds almost ran off with my meal. And it's 30 miles from the refinery, through more heavy traffic. I left after one night and checked in at the Ihilani.
16. Extended Stay America, Phoenix, AZ. Stay the fuck away. I mean it. What a disaster. They do throw in the mildew stains for free, so that's something. Never again.
BEST AIRLINES
1. Continental. The non-stop from Houston to Honolulu is about as comfortable as being locked in a flying death-cage for 8 hours can be. You get meals and in-seat entertainment, and the stews mostly leave you alone to sleep. I have tons of frequent flyer miles with these guys, so I don't want to write anything negative they might read.
2. Southwest. I hate having to line up to get a decent seat, but Southwest is one of the only airlines that acts like they actually care about what they are doing. They have this sense of urgency that the rest of them haven’t even heard of. They get the planes turned around like their hair is on fire, and everybody you meet is friendly and knowledgeable. If only they had more room in the cabins, but then again, none of them do anymore.
3. United. I like the CRJ-700 flights that I can take direct out of San Antonio to SFO, Phoenix, and eventually, Salt Lake and Los Angeles. They are a little cramped, but it beats changing planes. Other than that, United is unremarkable.
4. Era Aviation. They fly a little DeHavilland Dash-8 from Anchorage to Kenai, Alaska every hour or so. Nothing fancy, but efficient and timely. You get the pre-flight safety talk directly from the pilot.
5. Delta/Skywest. They really aren’t much better than Northwest, but at least they fly into Salt Lake directly. I remember Delta from my youth, flying into Atlanta on the way to Florida. I think they still use the same planes.
6. US Airways/America West/Mesa. I take these guys to Phoenix if United or Southwest isn't available. God, do they suck. They are just playing out the string until they finally are allowed to merge with United. They were the first and only ones so far to lose my luggage! Congratulations.
7. Northwest. Absolute worst. I fly Northwest to Alaska via Minneapolis. They charge for everything, and you get no in-flight entertainment of any kind, even audio! The only good part is I get Elite Access status because they have an agreement with Continental, or otherwise, these flights would be completely intolerable.
BEST AIRPORTS
1. Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP). No, it isn't for the bathroom cruising, you sicko. I like MSP because of the central food court/mall. They have practically everything in there, including an iPod vending machine. Even the longest walk from concourse to concourse isn't that far, and it routes you through the food court/mall, which is very bright, open, airy and convenient. It beats having to eat at one of the satellite concourses that you see in most airports that are very hit and miss. Yup, I take a wide stance on MSP (maybe that should be the new slogan)!
2. Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX). Pretty much everything is great about PHX, (including the name "Sky Harbor") as long as you stick with Continental and Southwest. The luggage carousels are all modern and roomy, the rental car place is centrally located so you don't have to drive all over looking for your car company, and the concourses have plenty of good eating places. The United terminal SUCKS though; it's old and cramped and the security set-up is totally inefficient.
3. Baltimore/Washington International (BWI). This is an oldie but a goodie for me, since I used it a lot when I was in Philly. The Southwest terminal is almost completely new, looks great, and is very convenient and comfortable.
4. San Francisco International (SFO). The rental car dropoff place at SFO pisses me off because the sign comes up way too late and you end up having to drive around 18 cloverleafs to get back. Other than that, it’s pretty good. This is another central rental car place, and this once has a train, which is nicer than the stupid shuttle bus, I think. They have a killer soup place that serves fresh sourdough rolls in the United terminal, plus a place called "Just Desserts".
5. Bismarck Municipal (BIS). Wow, what a cool airport! I wish they could all be this nice, only in big cities and larger. They have free wireless, and the whole place is wood paneled and brand-spanking new.
6. Anchorage International (ANC). ANC is a nice homey little airport, with high vaulted ceilings and a pleasant restaurant that overlooks Prince William Sound. It's under re-construction on the inside (unlike on the outside, which would describe every other airport in America), so it's kind of messy. I love seeing the North Slope roughnecks in line for their flights. They crap guys like me.
7. Honolulu International (HNL). Overall, it's not that bad. The concourses are mostly open-air, which is pretty strange and exotic, they have a restaurant where they serve a melt-in-your-mouth polish sausage with sauerkraut, and security is always a breeze. However…the rental car place is a clusterfuck. I mean, a place like Hawaii doesn't have Hertz Gold Club or National Emerald Aisle? I'm going to get run over in that rental car parking lot one of these times. Bringing the car back is even worse.
8. San Antonio International (SAT). It's actually further down the list, as in at the bottom, but I didn't want to name every other airport I’ve been in before commenting on my home airport. The whole area is under construction, and probably will be for another 10 years, which makes any trip there depressing. The two terminals are competing with each other to see which one sucks worse. For a city of 1,000,000 people to have a sorrier airport than Bismarck, ND is quite a feat, but San Antonio has done it. The place looks almost Eastern European. It's gray, dank, crowded, and a complete mishmash of styles. The luggage carousels are not labeled, so you don’t have any idea which one might fire up and deliver your bags. The rental car places are spread out over a 5 mile radius, so good luck finding yours. Security at Terminal 1 isn't half bad, but the line at Terminal 2 (where Southwest and the Mexican airlines are housed) can spill out down the hall, around the corner, back up another hall, and back out into the main terminal area. And if you park out in economy long-term parking, be prepared to wheel your bags a good half mile. I just wish I could close my eyes, open them, and see the final result of the construction, but instead, we'll be suffering for another decade.
BEST RESTAURANTS
1. Roy's, Kapolei, HI. I ate a macadamia-encrusted swordfish steak there that almost made me cry. At lunch a couple of weeks later I had a bacon cheeseburger to end all bacon cheeseburgers forever. So good.
2. Jamba Juice. I discovered these in Kapolei, and I’ve been going there for breakfast in every city I travel to, if I can find one. I get a 16-oz smoothie with an immunity boost, to battle those sniffling masses on the plane, and I usually get the honey bran muffin as well. The only complaint I used to have is the poor selection of fresh-baked muffins and pastries, but they’ve recently expanded their offerings to include a protein cookie, an energy bar, and a blueberry muffin.
3. Louie's, Kenai, AK. Louie's serves enormous helpings of food, so much that you're in pain for a couple of days. It tastes good going down, though! The blackened prime rib bites are a unique appetizer. I pretty much order clam chowder and a salad now, and I can't finish that. The breakfast sausage is the size of your head.
4. The Chart House, Honolulu, HI. Mai-tai's and steak, that's always a good combination. The atmosphere can get pretty raucous, with tourists and locals alike jamming the place.
5. In & Out Burger, Phoenix, AZ. The best burgers in the world, except when Roy cooks one.
6. Charlie's Steakery, Phoenix, AZ. The buffalo chicken cheesesteak with ranch sauce is highly recommended. Extra ranch sauce for the fries!
BEST CITIES
1. Foxborough/Boston, MA. Massachusetts is my ancestral home, and I always enjoy returning. I would live there if not for the snow. The people are just totally cool. They are smart, funny, engaging, acerbic, and sarcastic, but in a good way. They have the second-fiddle-to-New York mentality like Philly people, which keeps them humble, but they evince it in a wry, humorous manner instead of the aggressively antagonistic behavior of most Philadelphia denizens. The best of the many good things of going to a game at Fenway Park is listening to the inane yet witty banter from the college kids behind you in the stands. The streets and highways of Southeastern Massachusetts are scenic and completely bizarre, but the public transit system is excellent, so you can get out of your car if you want to. And Foxborough is, of course, home to my beloved Pats.
2. Phoenix, AZ. Clean, well-planned, dry, with a sweeping mountain view, it's a hard city not to love. I'm not sure I'd feel the same way in August, but February and May were excellent. Phoenix is a lot more diverse than I imagined. I was thinking I'd run into a million Midwestern retirees, but it's not like that at all. Phoenix has the same huge Latino population that most Southwestern cities enjoy, and there are tons of young families everywhere, as well as a healthy assortment of Joe Dirt types. I was impressed with the amazingly sustained booing of the Phoenix Suns fans in Game 5 against the Spurs, at which I sat in the last row of the arena with a ticket I bought on e-Bay. They booed every single time the Spurs had the ball, all the way to the end, and they stayed completely projectile-free.
3. East Bay Area, CA. I'm calling this the East Bay, because I've never gone into San Francisco the couple of times I’ve been there. The East Bay people aren’t nearly as snooty as their Marin County and San Fran counterparts. I love the scenic, mountainous drive from the airport to Walnut Creek or Concord where I stay. Both Walnut Creek and Concord are upscale little suburbs with new, modern shopping and eating places, right off the freeway. I can’t wait to go there during the summer to see AT&T Park.
4. Chicago, IL. That toddling town was a little disappointing, but it was good to go back. It's been a while since I experienced Midwestern hospitality, and it was jarring. The barista at Starbucks (not the creep at the Marriott, another one) asked me how my day was going, and I thought she was talking to somebody else behind the counter. The Tri-State Tollway is a freaking mess. The exit from the Tollway to the Edens Expressway bottlenecks from three lanes to ONE lane. They built it that way! Gee, I wonder if it backs up, EVERY DAY?! Toward the end of the trip, my sister, my boss, another co-worker and I walked back to my sister's high-rise through Wrigleyville after taking in a Cubs game. I heard the other day that Chicago is one of the most highly segregated cities in America, and after I thought about it, it was pretty startling, and kind of sad, not to see very many minority faces in such a large city neighborhood.
5. Honolulu, HI. Are you interested in going to Tokyo, but don't want to be encumbered with all that Japanese efficiency? Go to Honolulu! You’ll see millions of Japanese people, with a highway and street system designed like Northeast Illinois! Ugh. The traffic in Honolulu is the absolute worst in America. The drivers are either locals in no hurry or tourists who have left their brains on the mainland. And everything is under construction, all the time! And lanes begin and end on a whim! It's great, you’ll love it. My advice is to drive from the airport to the hotel, and NEVER DRIVE AGAIN. Better yet, take a taxi or a shuttle from the airport and don't drive at all. Other than that, the people are great, but as I mentioned, they are never in a hurry. That's fine if you are on vacation, but it kind of sucks when you are on business. You can't beat the scenery, I must say.
6. Kenai, AK. Well, it's not much of a city, really, just an outpost. They do have most of the modern conveniences, including blazing fast internet for some reason. The snow-capped peaks are spectacular, if you are lucky enough to see them. In December, I drove to work in the dark and drove back to the hotel in the dark. There's not much else of interest in Kenai, unless you are unhealthfully attached to salmon.
7. Houston, TX. Houston has become like Honolulu, without the scenery. I shudder to imagine what Houston would be like without a really good highway system. It's complete chaos as it is. The other main reason I don't much like traveling there is because I've lived there, so I've seen and done everything there is to see and do, at least twice. Minute Maid Park is still one of the best parks in the majors, except for the Astros fans, who never sit down and just watch the game.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)