Day 3 ... where am I?
I’m writing to you from a cruising altitude of 35,000 feet while munching on some Blue potato chips. Ok, I really wish that I had the chance to have my laptop open the whole trip! Sorry I didn’t get a chance to post to the page yesterday, but if it counts for anything I did actually write a post. I’m on day #3 of 31 during Cross Country Carter and I’m really in a great mood. Well, tired, but a really great mood. So far both of my flights have arrived late night and the next departed early the next morning. I’m at 5 hours of sleep over two days. I’m ok with that since I have plenty of awesome memories already in just the first couple of stop.s
The first two days could not have been in more different cities but they equaled two stellar day trips that got me amazingly excited about the next few weeks on the road. But, let me tell you about yesterday in our nation’s capitol, Washington DC. I honestly did not know what to expect getting off the plane as the only time I was in DC I drove in with my family (and that was over 15 years ago, mind you). This time I fly JetBlue into Dulles International Airport.
If you have never been to DC and plan to just do the sites I seriously recommend not getting a rental car – they’re some of the most expensive in the country I’ve found. In addition to that parking is a total pain in the ass so you add up your expenses quite quickly before actually doing anything. Instead there is a really nice shuttle that takes off right from terminal 4 (which is where JetBlue is fly to) and brings you to the Metro DC subway. Total roundtrip cost: $22 … cheapest rental I could find: $109. Pretty good savings for a day.
Navigating the city is pretty easy and they apparently offer like 10 different tour buses to choose. Save the money on that and take a bus. They all go the exact same place and the trolley I took was driven by an angry war vey who made awful remarks about every country except the US. Example?? “This is the World War One memorial … see those little hearts? They’re some tourist thing for South America … I don’t know why they put them here. Not like they helped with the war. I don’t think they should have put those there … doesn’t make any damn sense.” An actual quote. Another one: “The first battle of WWI was an air mission with the Brits, but obviously there were American soldiers helping with that battle, or they wouldn’t have won the mission.” No, I’m not kidding.
Anyway, got to see some amazing sites and partake in some awesome people watching. I decided to play a game and count the little American Flag lapel pins on guys suits and although I wasn’t paying close attention I did manage to count quite a few! I’m a big fan of the political scene so this was a treat for me. I was in absolute awe standing in front of the White House and the Capital Building just knowing the immense power those two building have over the day to day operations of the world. I planned on greeting every older looking person in a bland suit with “Good afternoon Senator,” as I’m sure I would have been correct at least once.
So, here is what I got to see in DC yesterday
Smithsonian, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Reflecting Pond, Capital Building, White House, Ford’s Theatre, a bunch of other stuff, 42 US Flag Lapel Pins, and 3 different Starbucks that resulted in 3 Iced Coffees (making the current tally for Iced Coffee at 7 in two days … already on my first for the day on the plane). I dined at a ‘power lunch’ stop called Aria, which was really good. Had a red pepper crusted halibut and didn’t have any wine … also didn’t spot any power players which made this a power-free lunch (with the exception of the protein I got in the fish).
Off to Orlando today to hang out with Tia. What’s on the schedule?? Nothing actually … and I’m totally cool with that. Tomorrow I’ll be attending a private acoustic performance with the band The Fray at the Social in downtown Orlando thanks to my friends at Miller Lite and MGD 64. Since it’s Orlando Restaurant Week hopefully I’ll try someplace new that I can report back on!!
Excited to land … excited to see people … excited about what might happen! Touchdown in Otown in just 1 hour and 50 minutes! I’m going to upload all the pictures this evening.
Hope you’re having fun with whatever you’re doing today and I’ll check back in during Cross Country Carter later tonight!
Carter
New York City
No sleep for the wicked, as they say. Day one is in the books and what a way to start Cross Country Carter. Honestly I was sure what to expect but that was an amazing day in New York City. It took a little while to get used to the subway system – which wen you’re only in town for a day it’s not a good thing to ‘take time’ to do anything. Alas, it was a quick learn.
Once I did learn to navigate the system, thanks to my trusty Metro System iPhone app, it was a breeze to catch all the sites I wanted to take in and actually quite a few more! It’s pretty overwhelming to land in a city you haven’t been to in years and get off the subway in the middle of Times Square to start a month long travel trip.
It was at that point that it really sunk in … I’m actually doing this! I wandered around the world famous Times Square looking at all the sites, going into shops and stores and more than likely totally looking like a tourist. By the way, few places I can think of have better people watching than Times Square if you’re into that.
From there I literally stumbled upon Ground Zero at the World Trade Center. This was not really what I was expecting. It almost stopped me in my tracks as I saw the massive amount of space where the buildings used to be not just a hole being filled in for the memorial. I grabbed my camera to start to take photos and only took one. I just had an odd feeling that this shouldn’t be a kodak moment … something this monumental should not be a tourist attraction, so I didn’t treat it as such.
I got to check out Carnegie Deli (sandwich was in fact huge but painfully overrated … meat was a little dry and the bread was decent at best. At least I can say I went), NBC Studios where the Today Show is filmed (and a subsequent stop at the wine bar next door which was pretty cool), Radio City Music Hall (where ironically the VMA’s will be held on Sunday … might go after Chicago since that’s a light day for me), Central Park (where I walked around for 45 minutes, sat on a bench and had some Starbucks Coffee and wrote out some postcards) and the Empire State Building (which is tall … really really tall).
Some things I realized on day one … although having a game plane is good, don’t overplan. My Mother will hate me saying this but if I stuck to the plan I had in my head I wouldn’t have seen anything! It was so much easier to get around than I thought I would be. Also, custom made Chuck Taylors are not suitable for walking around NYC all day. And very important: no matter how much battery time you think your phone has, when your snapping pictures like a Japanese tourist the whole day … that sh*#$ gonna die. Period. No ifs ands or buts. I had to go buy another iPhone charger and sit at a Starbucks while it charged for a while. Sidenote: I got another coffee out of it so it’s ok!
Also accidentally found Macy’s where the parade goes by … went in said Macy’s and it’s HUGE. Literally the belt section in that Macy’s is larger than the Macy’s on Cape Cod – not kidding in the least bit. And, something also pretty cool – as I was getting set to go back to the airport I was trying to find the A train and found it at Penn Station … which apparently is inside Madison Square Garden!! I got to walk around the inside of the lobby of MSG for a bit before heading back to the airport.
Today, woke up sore and early for another day on the road. Today, I’m heading to Washington DC to hit a bunch of sites, though it might be a slow day since it’s supposed to rain ALL day. I forgot about that whole ‘bad weather’ potential thing.
So, here’s a rundown of what yesterday had:
Times Square, Ground Zero, Empire State Building, Fashion Week Mercedes Tent, Macy’s, Carnegie Deli, NBC Studios, David Letterman Showroom, Central Park, Madison Square Garden … there are more, but those are the ones that certainly ‘count’.
TOTAL ATTRACTIONS/SITES DAY 1: 10 (good start!)
TOTAL STARBUCKS COFFEE: 4 (good start!).
Off to the Nations Capitol … today armed with flip-flops (and Starbucks #1 of the day, #5 overall). Expect to hit about 10 more landmarks today depending on the weather. Or, I might just spend a lot of time in the Smithsonian and knocking on the door of the White House asking for an umbrella with the presidential seal.
Til later - Carter
And, so it begins!!
Wow … it all comes down to right now. I just woke up in the living room of my parents house in Lynn, MA (just outside Boston) and immediately grabbed the iPhone to look at my TripIt app to see if I screwed up the times of this flight and missed it.
But, luckily, nope that didn’t happen. My first flight on JetBlue for Cross Country Carter takes off today at 9:44 to
There are quite a few cities where I’m meeting up with friends and such but either way, I’ve got a LOT of things to remember – and being that many of these cities are totally new to me that just adds a little more of that ‘um, what?’ factor. I think that’s part of the excitement though … and once I get past the first day I’m sure I’ll be fine, it’s just a little different!
A lot of people are equating this to a road trip … I can see what they mean, but with a road trip you control your own schedule. Feel like stopping … stop! Feel like staying a day? Stay! Doesn’t work that way with this trip – I know today I leave
If you want to follow my entire itinerary you can do so via www.tripit.com and search for “Cross Country Carter” or enter the email carter@crosscountrycarter.com if that doesn’t work – then shoot me an email and I’ll send you an invitation so you can see all the things I’m doing, cars I’m driving, places I’m stay and current reservations I hold.
Well, I’ve got to jump in the shower and get ready! By the way, the whole time I typed this I had a big stupid smile on my face. I’m quite surprised I’m actually doing this! The idea came up – it started happening and I don’t think it’s really sunk until 5:38am when I rolled over and thought “f%#&”.
Wish me luck and make sure you’re following me on twitter (at www.twitter.com/carterspage) as I’ll be posting tons of pics and randomness from NYC in just a few hours! Also, email me if 1) you’re in NYC or 2) you have some last minute suggestions!!
My current visits (time dependant):
WTC Memorial
Carnegie Deli
Broadway
Wall St.
Some Shopping
And Statue of Liberty (which I don’t think I’ll have time for – but I do go back another day)
Game time friends. Where’s my coffee??
Happy travels, be it air or sea or land or just in your head while you’re working from your desk… sometimes those are the best vacations
CARTER
Trip By Numbers
I’m not a fan of numbers for the most part. In fact, in school one of the only subjects I consistently sucked at was math – math or any kind. And, ironically it was the only subject I even put effort into and still couldn’t make it happen (everything else I could skate through and typically get an A).
Today, on the other hand, me and numbers are like peas and carrots. I shall present to you my trip by numbers! When I started the idea of Cross Country Carter I wasn’t sure exactly how to do this but I scribbled out some ideas and I put a goal of hitting 20 cities in 30 days. Well, to prove that I wasn’t that good with numbers it turns out it was actually 31 days … bonus day before I even started! SWEET!
My trip starts on Tuesday September 8th … I will be landing in NYC at pretty much this time (9:15am) on Tuesday. Therefore I present to you my first number: 48 hours. That’s the countdown until I take off on this amazing 31 day trek across the country. And you say across the country eh?? Where are you going?
Well, that list is rather long as the next number is number of cities I’ll be visiting: 23!! Yup, 23 cities in 31 days – might even be more if I can squeeze a drive in some of the multi day trips but I might try to slow it down and really enjoy the trips I currently have scheduled rather than add more.
So, with 23 cities, you know I’ll be flying quite a bit (by the way, thanks for the recommendations – I’m taking extra vitamins as well as additional vitamin C and Zinc to build up my immune system. In addition to that I’m taking an aspirin every day to thin my blood … all that flying and altitude changes make me a little more weary of blood clots!), but what exactly is quite a bit?? Good question – one that I can easily answer as I’ve added everything up:
40 different flight segments – shortest is 189 miles (Boston/NYC) and the longest is 2697 (San Fran/Boston) – for a grand total of 32123 miles! That’s pretty impressive pulling out a crazy average of 1036.22 miles per day. Wow … I’m even surprised about that one! I didn’t realize it would be that much. I don’t know the total amount of airtime, but I’m going to figure that one out later so I can give you the total hours as well as the average time I’m going to be on a plane. At the end of the trip I’m going to give you the total time I was in airports – I think that would be an interesting number.
Thanks to JetBlue these flights aren’t costing anything because of the All-You-Can-Jet Pass… but if I were to book every one of these flights today it would come at a grand total of $4938.00 (plus tax and airport fees – which would be closer to $6000). The JetBlue All-You-Can-Jet Pass was only $599 and there were not additional taxes or fees! Not a bad deal at all. At that price my prices work out to:
Each Flight Segment: $14.97
Each Mile: $0.01864
That’s pretty damn good if you ask me!!
Some additional numbers you might be interested in:
Flight Changes/Cancelations: 14
Times I had to call JetBlue: 11
Number of Landmarks I Intend To Visit: 62
Time Zone Changes: 36
Total hours I’ll be home: 14 (mostly to grab more clothes)
Number of sleep hours (not on a plane): Roughly 12
Potential Number of Priceless Memories: Ummm … I can’t find the little “infinity” sign. So, I’ll just say a bunch.
Talk to you tomorrow … the official pre-party day!
Carter
Rock You Like A Hurrican
Oh man!! It’s Friday and a long weekend. That should be reason enough to be excited … but right after the long weekend waves goodbye over the horizon I get to go on a month long trip around the country! Um, yea, I’m slightly pumped like old Reeboks right now (c’mon you’ve got to remember these … I had a pair in grade school and yes I was smashingly awesome).
It’s difficult to stay focused right now on the things I’ve still got to complete … remember that feeling like the last day of school before Summer vacation? That’s pretty much what I’m feeling right now. Even doing that little bounce in my chair like “let’s goooooo already!” Hard to say what I’m most excited about right now, but there have been a few changes and city additions and something awesome that was much unforeseen in Orlando. So, I guess I’m just all around excited.
On a non-travel related note I was just reminded by Tom Sorrells, meteorologist for Local 6 in Orlando, that 5 years ago Hurricane Francis rolled through Central Florida. Hurricane Frances was the sixth named storm, the fourth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the very busy 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. It came just 3 weeks after Hurricane Charley tore through CFL and we weren’t really even cleaned up from that.
At that time I was still on air at OROCK 105.9 and needless to say, when a hurricane comes someone still has to be at the radio station. Well, that ended up being one of the more fun weekends on the air that I can recall as myself and Jody and Scott (from the creatively titled Jody and Scott Show) ‘hunkered down’ in the studio for pretty much 3 days straight. While we were there we continued to play music and keep listeners updated with information about the hurricane, shelter, water, electricity etc.
But, in addition, we chose to go on and do pretty much whatever we wanted and that was just have fun with it. All the other channels were all about that ‘scare’ delivery making everything sound aweful and painfully ominous but we went in the other direction by taking calls, encouraging hurricane parties and WAY overusing the term ‘hunker down’. Another really fun part for me was since I am the only person that had any actual news/newsradio experience I would do the news. But rather than let me know when, Jody and Scott would play the news music whenever they felt like it and I’d have to do a full news report.
That was really fun (and pretty damn funny on-air) as it would happen in the middle of a song, a conversation, a phone call … whenever Jody felt like hitting the button. I really wish I had a tape of that as I remember it being really funny, but at the same time I got pissed a few times as I was mid-sentence and then the music starts – gotta drop what I’m doing and go to news delivery. Sidenote: We didn’t have food so we raided the vending machines until we found the one Chinese food joint that would deliver … in a hurricane. Something awesomely comical about that too.
I can tell you though, having do that for a long period of time really does make you go a little crazy without sleep. It’s not the easiest thing in the world to stay up and stay focused for days at a time. I have a feeling that I’m going to need to recall some of that focus on this trip. There are 5 days on this trip, in a row, that I only have sleep time on the plane. But, at the end of it – I know it’s going to be worth it and there should be tons of memories I get to store in that filing cabinet in my head which already has so many insane memories of things I’ve been fortunate enough to do in my 28 years on this rock.
And on top of the memories, who knows what else will come of it! Excited about the ample opportunities … to say the least!!
Be well and talk to you tomorrow- Carter
I'm Alright, Nobody Worry 'Bout Me.
I currently have a song stuck in my head. That’s not abnormal, I should mention, since I listen to music about 6-8 hours a day. Honestly, I’d much rather listen to music than watch TV fo sho. But the song I currently have stuck in my head is because of an added leg of my trip which will be a huge addition to the list of things I’m pretty sure not many people have ever done but have probably thought about (well, at least if you have a slightly warped mind like myself).
The song: I’m Alright by Kenny Loggins.
This morning I woke up thinking of what other random things I could do and the idea came to me while looking out the window to the golf course in my backyard (which is Ocean Edge by the way, beautiful place on Cape Cod). I jumped on my computer to do some research and found out that Caddyshack, one of my favorite movies of all time, was actually filmed in Boca Raton FL at the Boca Raton Resort Country Club. (SideNote: By the way, if you haven’t seen that movie you must. I mean it’s almost to the point that if you can’t use “It’s a Cinderella story” in the voice of Bill Murray from that movie in normal conversation, I don’t want to talk to you.)
No, my plan isn’t to go play the golf course … that’s not that random.
No, instead I plan on sneaking on the golf course and recreating one of the scenes that makes me smile every time I think of it. Seriously … EVERY time. I am going to go do the gopher dance while pumping Kenny Loggins “I’m Alright”. You might think I’m kidding … but I’m not. And, yes, I’m going to video tape it. I have been known to rock the gopher dance at nightclubs, restaurants, the beach, etc… now I get to do it at its birthplace.
Oh yea ... that swine flu thing!
Wow … soooooo much stuff to get done today. Well, I guess that’s probably the reason why I am just now getting a few minutes to sit down and write today’s entry.
Being that I only have a few days left until I go, it’s quite unnerving knowing what I still have left to accomplish. Luckily I can take a quick break on the balcony here on Cape Cod with a cup of Starbucks Iced Coffee and write for a few minutes. Try to clear the brain before I go back to the ultra-extensive list of stuff that has to get completed today.
I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the website tripit.com but, if you’re not go check it out!! It’s like your own personal travel assistant. You can keep track of flights, hotels, rental cars and more … and it can all be sent to your phone. If you’re a frequent traveler or have an upcoming trip with multiple stops I seriously suggest you sign up for that site. Best part, it’s totally free! I’ll have a link on tomorrows entry so you can see my exact itinerary … feel free to meet me at your local airport with coffee as I think I’m going to need it.
As we speak I have a few pages open with different rental car companies trying to secure vehicles in the cities I know I’ll need them. Trying to get as few as possible – but that will still be quite a few! In addition, as much as I love to do random stuff I want to have a few ideas on where to go for food and what attractions/sites I want to see … now these won’t be set in stone at all but I want to have a rough idea on what to do.
By all means, if you’ve got any suggestions of places to check out, please shoot them my way! The more assistance in any shape the better off I think I’ll be.
I’m also have a tough time figuring out exactly what trips are ‘musts’ and which are a little more optional. There are two trips right now that I’m going to cut by a day so I can squeeze in an additional city or two. When I was on the phone with my Mother this morning she said ‘how many cities are you currently at? You have to make it to twenty … you told people twenty and they’ll notice.” She’s certainly correct about that (and she’ll be glad to know, plenty of other things too).
There is no doubt that I will make it to at least 20 cities on my trip … if it works out it might be more than 20, which would be, in my mind, pretty astonishing!
I guess I as for your permission for a potential hall-pass on completing the trip … and that would be if I contract Swine Flu. Seriously!! They’re saying 90,000 people will die from Swine Flu this year and I’m hoping not to be on that list. And, if one person on the plane has it I do have a chance to get it … by the way, I’m trying to fit in the term ‘when pigs fly’ as I find it right on point with this conversation, but just telling you I was thinking about it works, I suppose.
Oh, good, and surprising news: after some research, airplanes do recycle air – but it takes a while for the air in the cabin to fully recycle with fresh air from outside at cruising altitude. I don’t know why I thought the air just moved around the plane. So, it’s a little cleaner than I thought – but not clean. I offer a suggestion that everyone should do: Wipe EVERYTHING down when you sit down. I’m bringing disinfectant wipes and wiping my seat, the seatback in front of me, the armrests, the seatbuckle, and yes, I will wipe down the poor schmuck who is stuck in the middle seat.
Sidenote: It’s not even swine flu, so please stop calling it that. That’s good for press reasons, but it’s actually called “H1N1” … I think that’s an abbreviation for something, I just don’t know what. I personally use it as: “awww Hell1 No1!” I can say that … I used to work for an urban radio station and grew up in the ghetto so it’s ok.
Sidenote 2: I was just talking to Tia who said “You can’t get swine flu … if you do, you ca’t come back here”. Hmm … I was only thinking of the potential negative of death … didn’t even think of that part! More reason not to get it. Haha1 N1
Sidenote 3: I think when I rent cars, where you have to initial in the 29 boxes or whatever, I’m going to use the initials J1C1 … I think it’s fitting.
Anyway, sorry to cut this a little shorter than normal but I’ve got to get back to work so I can make sure I’ve got some good stuff to talk about and show you on the actual trip, ya dig?
Have a wonderful and fulfilling day and evening.
From the cockpit, I'm your pilot, Captain Random
One week. Not just a song I happen to enjoy by “Barenaked Ladies (the best thing to happen to Canada since You Can’t Do That On Television, by the way), but a measure of time. That is exactly how much time I have left until Cross Country Carter begins! One week. There’s still so much stuff to do and quickly the hours are flying by like those comfortable and convenient JetBlue Airplanes.
Last night over a bottle of wine and momentary lack of logic I scribbled out some changes and additions. Rather than waking up this morning thinking that those plans were absurd, I pressed 8 on my cell phone (which is speed dial to JetBlue) and booked a ton more odd travels. So a few things to add but the gaps are being filled like a jelly donut.
So, today I booked a few things that I had already planned, and made some changes. The changes include an extra day in Orlando – rather than leaving the 10th I’m going to stay through the 11th and head straight to Chicago for the U2 concert from Otown. I’m also adding Salt Lake City for a day so I don’t have to fly all the way from San Diego to Boston and back to Las Vegas in the same day. This will help on the jet lag (see yesterday’s entry for some interesting thoughts on jet lag … and hamsters) I think and I’ll get to visit a city I’ve never seen.
I’ve been getting some questions as to what is the most random leg of the trip. I think there will be two… and I’m looking forward to them both a lot (as I love randomness ).
Trip 1 is to Los Angeles. Now, I’m going to LA to visit some friends (Including, Thaddeus Brown, Jess Mack, Warner Brothers Jenny aka J-Flo and The Sexy Savannah … who actually gave me the name The Carter Experience!) for a few days I am going out there on a different occasion for one reason. In-N-Out Burger.
Yes, I’m literally flying from one place to LA jumping in a cab and heading to the In-N-Out Burger that’s 2.4 miles from the airport, getting an animal style double double with cheese, animal style fried and a Neapolitan milkshake and going back to the airport. In-N-Out is a cult type place if you’re not familiar with it. They have a really small menu, but hundreds of menu options. You have to know what they are to get them … if you want to see some of the insider info on the amazing menu check out this article!
The other one is food related as well (good thing I’m walking a lot of this trip … more unhealthy food than I have had in ages – but worth it!). I’m going to fly in the morning from Boston to Buffalo to have lunch at the original home of the Buffalo Wing! I love me some spicy buffalo wings and I’ll get to have the first. Finish lunch, back to the airport on a plane to have dinner in Chicago. And then back to the airport and onto my next full day destination.
If I have the chance to do this odd and random stuff why shouldn’t! This trip is all about trying and experiencing new and exciting things. Seriously, think about that … who can say they jumped on a plane and flew roundtrip 6000+ miles for a cheeseburger? And, who can say they experienced two legendary restaurants in two different time zones in the same day? On both of those … not many people, I’m sure. But, I will be able to say that I did and that makes me amazingly happy. It’s life and it can be as wonderous and exciting as we make it and I think I am upgrading my life status with this trip, wouldn’t you agree?
Speaking of diving in with both feet, I want to say congrats to my friend Dusty who just moved from Orlando to St. Maarten to attend Medical School. Talk about a sweet place for school!! Ironically JetBlue does fly there so maybe I’ll have to fly out for a congratulatory high five … welcome to the club of living life kid!
If you’re thinking about trying something new, or changing yourself for what you think is the better … please try it. The first step is the hardest, obviously, but it’s one could change your life. I firmly think that the risks are worth it no matter the result. At least you’ll be able to say you tried.
So, take the jump … “Leap, and the net will appear” (Jason Mraz – from the song ‘Make It Mine’)
Talk to you soon, friends! Carter
ps ... yea, my hair looked like that when I woke up. I went with it ... got some interesting looks at Starbucks.
Pardon me, do you have the time?
It’s Monday which means in 8 days I’ll start my voyage to 20-Cities-In-30 Days. One thing I’ve realized over the past few days is that for a month straight I’m going to honestly be confused as to where I am and what time it is.
There is no way to avoid this – in a 8 days stretch I’ll be in 7 cities encompassing every damn time zone. Should I even bother to change my watches and get on a different time zone? According to some doctors for short term travel its not worth attempting to get settled as jet lag apparently can take a while to recover from. I think I’ll probably change the watch – but not to get used to the time … just feel like it’s east coast time with an odd light pattern.
Sidenote: I think we should all start referring to everything in Mountain Time Zone. Here’s an example of how this conversation would go:
Sally: “Say John, do you happen to have the time?”
John: “Yes Sally I sure do. It’s 11:45” then while looking directly at into her eyes in a deep and slow voice “Mountain Time”.
Try it. This could be fun … in fact I’m going to only give mountain time no matter where I am from now on. Oh and if you’re a dork like me and want more information about time zones, where they are and why they are around, you can click here. I like useless information so I was on that page for like an hour. I seriously need a hobby.
Ok back to my pending confusion and ample jet lag situation. I was trying to figure out some remedies for jet lag for when I come back to the East Coast after a week on the west coast. According to this BBC article, I might have an interesting option:
A recent study in hamsters showed that sildenafil (known commercially as Viagra) aided in a 50% faster recovery from shifts comparable to eastward travel experienced by humans and was effective starting at low doses. However, this use has not been tested in humans and is considered an off-label use by the drug's manufacturers.
Not sure I’ll use that suggestion but that’s pretty interesting. Hmm, so I guess the only thing that will be hard is sleeping (rim-shot). By the way, why the hell did someone conduct this study? And, did the study hamsters fly anywhere good to get this jet lag? Do they get frequent flyer miles?? I have a great visual of little hamsters with bomber jackets and goggles flying those single propeller World War II style planes. Go ahead, picture it … it’s kinda cute. Now picture them doing scenes from Top Gun.
If you want to check out the whole article, which is oddly fascinating, click here. Anyway, I think we’ve had enough of the hamster conversation (but good luck getting that visual out of your head. Right now my little hamster is singing “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin” to his little girlfriend hamster).
At the moment I’m trying to finalize all my plans, update the website, co-ordinate with friends on what we’re doing, book hotels and rental cars, and learn about Search Engine Optimization (SEO) which is a total pain in the ass. Let’s see, I talk into a microphone and attempt to entertain people for a living … this isn’t really my cup of tea. But, it’s an interesting thing to learn and since this is an experiment about growth, I’m all about it! So much to do on my little to do list and I’m getting seriously short on time. This is when it gets a little difficult to focus, but I’ve got the blinders on! I think it's time for more coffee ...
You getting excited? I am!!
Hope you’re having a great start to your week and I hope you find the time to do something new and exciting along the way.
Carter
1 Guy, 1 Bag: A Story Of Love and Friendship
SAY HEELLLLLOO TO MY LEETLE FRIEND!
I’d like you to meet my travel companion for a majority of the upcoming Cross Country Carter trip. It’s my travel case! I don’t have name for it or anything, yet, but being that I’m flying a ton and it is an actual carryon bag I’m going to be spending more time with this over the month than any one person it will have a name by the end of the trip.
If they happen to make me check my little bag buddy because of lack of overhead space it’s going to be as distressing as Tom Hanks in Castaway with that volleyball … WILSON!!! WILLLLSSSSSOOOOONNNNN!!!!
This particular bag is quite amazing – it has so much more space than it actually looks like. In case you’re wondering, it’s a High Sierra roller bag. They typically make camping stuff and it’s very lightweight and insanely durable. I can thank my friend Johnny Damon from the New York Yankees (and more importantly, formerly the Boston Red Sox) for that bag. He gave me that as a gift for playing in his celebrity golf challenge last year. When I got it I was like “oh, um, a bag. Thanks.” I now feel compelled to send him a thank you note, or some flowers, or a puppy as this thing is priceless!
And if you get a moment, please, check out the Johnny Damon Foundation – it’s a great cause that helps a ton of well deserving kids in the Central Florida area.
Anyway, this amazing little bag will come in quite handy on my California/Westcoast leg where I’m in San Diego for a few days, LA, Vegas, San Fran and Seattle… probably over a 1 week period. This will be the only bag getting packed. There is enough space if you know how to properly pack!
One of the best tips I can give on light packing is rolling your clothes up before putting them in your bag. If you “fruit roll-up” style fold your it will literally save 30-40% of bag space. I fit a full week of stuff in that bag on a recent trip down south.
I also like to put a small first aid kit in my Carter –Crapper-Case … aka, a toiletry bag along with a solid bag of quality shampoo and grooming product. Might sound stupid as hotels have stuff as do (most of) my friends when I’m crashing but there’s a lot to be said for consistency of what you use. It’s healthier for you!
Here’s a picture of my toiletry bag and whats in it. This bag which you can get at htis a great one – fits a ton of stuff and you can hang it up in the bathroom or closet! (And, yea, my name is on the bag ... don't judge me.)
If you’d like some other tips and benefits of light packing check out OneBag.com – it’s really helpful and has tons of tips on getting the most out of your trip with the least in your bag!
On shorter trips, I’ve got even lighter packing plans. On my day trips (in-and-out on the same day), I’m not bringing any bag … not even a carry on since I’ll mostly be walking around. Currently, the exception to that rule is Orlando on Sept 10th as I’ll need to bring board shorts and a change since I’m going to the Hard Rock pool with Tia and don’t want to do lunch after in soggy boards, ya dig?
Overnight trips will be placed into my laptop bag – one small change and the laptop (so I can do my live uStream video feed in the evening for you!).
That should do it for a little bit. Gotta go hit the gym … trying to make sure I’m in decent shape for this trip as I feel it’s like a cruise and I’ll probably toss on a few pounds. It will be well worth it careening around the country trying new foods … but most of these are walking trips so maybe it will even out?? Maybe? Maybe not.
Talk to you in a bit! Love, Carter
(ps: Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe. ~Anatole France)
