How many States Have You Visited?

Posted on September 10, 2013September 10, 2013 by Dusty Roads

Here I am in a traveling “lull”. I’ve been so busy getting acclimated to my new job and my new schedule that vacations and travel haven’t been “TOM” (top of mind). Even now that I’m getting settled in I’m still figuring out the finances. There were bills that I didn’t have before that I now have to pay, bills that I did have that have gone away, bills that were “automatically deducted” that I now have to remember to pay and so on. Plus a big change is that there is no overtime with my new job. I’m earning pretty close to the same hourly rate but a lot of my “fun” money was what I earned by working “OT”.

So while I figure out what I can spend on travel and prepare for next year’s vacation I’ve been playing a little game with myself. There’s a survey/game that goes around Facebook every now and then. It lists all the states and you click on the ones you’ve been to and it gives you a “traveler’s rating” or some such thing. Of course most of the people I know are counting states their plane landed in even if they never got off the plane. I don’t think that’s really the intention but I could be wrong.

Back when I started traveling for fun I thought it might be nice to spend a week in every state. That means 50 weeks of vacation. Of course I would have to “double up” a few years because I doubt if I have 50 years left to take one week a year. I thought I’d like to sell my condo and buy an RV and travel the US that way but the downturn in Real Estate values put a damper on that plan, at least for now.

But I am not going to give up. I met a couple whose goal was to visit every National Park once they retired and they did it. Since there are about 388 National Parks in the U. S. it makes visiting each state sound like a measly goal.

So back to the little game I’ve been playing with myself…I’m trying to cross states off my list but I never seem to get very far before I get side tracked.

How many states have you been to? Can you make a list?

Alaska behind me What Lies Ahead?

Posted on July 21, 2013July 21, 2013 by Dusty Roads

My traveling days are behind me for awhile I’m afraid. Even though my new job gives me 3 weeks vacation it will take awhile to “earn” the time. Plus all this running around from Alaska to Seattle and back again has taken a bite out of my travel reserve. It needs to be replenished.

The new company did reimburse me for my travel expenses when I went out for the company introduction but they don’t cover Pet Sitting costs any more than they would cover child sitting.

As you probably know the Northeast has been in the grip of a heat wave.

It is actually the 2nd heat wave of the summer. I was doing my practical training when the first one hit and driving home on RT 128 the AC in the car died. Of course it gave up the ghost when I was stopped in a 6 mile traffic jam in 90+ degrees and the sun beating down and not a whisper of a breeze. Needless to say the car went into the shop the next day and came out 3 days later with my wallet $700 lighter.

But, I could keep penguins happy in the car now and believe me, I was very thankful this past week when we had 6 days of 90+ weather and high, high humidity.

I told my Florida friends that we were experiencing the South Florida weather they get in August!

During all this I was studying harder than I’ve ever studied in my life. My new job requires that I have a real estate license. They hired me in good faith counting on me to get the license ASAP. I was hearing horror stories from everyone about the test and most people that had taken the “New, Revised and Tougher” Massachusetts exam had failed the first time. I would just die if I failed! OMG that was the stuff of nightmares for me so in a panic I spent every spare moment studying and taking practice exams.

On July 3rd I sat for the exam and to my great relief, Passed! So I am now a licensed real estate sales person in Massachusetts. YAY ME!

My whole mind and body gave a sigh of relief and I felt like I could look around and take stock of where I was for the first time since we’d left for Alaska in May.

My new duties let me work from home. Nice! I can save on gas and wear and tear on my old jalopy. I am also finding that I have a lot more time since I’m not spending hours commuting each day.

Although I am a “Night and Weekend” worker I am now working 8 hour shifts instead of 10 so I only have 2 days off in a row instead of 3, so mini vacations like I took last year are probably not an option, at least not right now.

So the bottom line is that I’m not sure what topics I’ll be covering until my next vacation. I hope little local jaunts and observations won’t be boring for anyone. As for my next vacation…well it’s just a germ of an idea …but I’m looking into Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons.

At this point it’s just an idea. I need to work out cost and logistics to see if it’s feasible. I’m still looking for a vacation that will let me get that icon bear or elk photo. So far the best vacation for wildlife has been the South Dakota vacation we took. I’m sure there will be more. I just have to find them. 🙂

Home Again But Not For Long

Posted on July 12, 2013July 12, 2013 by Dusty Roads

The Alaska trip was fun and pretty relaxing. When you put yourself in the hands of the cruise line they handle everything, at least Princess did. It’s not the kind of vacation I’m used to but change is good. 🙂

After we arrived in Albany International Airport We took the park and fly shuttle to Sandy’s car , then drove back to her house for my car…with a stop on the way for breakfast at the Golden Corral. Yummm. I’m afraid I’m spoiled over breakfast between the cruise buffets, the Alaskan Breakfasts at the lodge and now Golden Corral, how will I ever give that up once I’m home?

Speaking of home, as much as I wanted to get back to see my kitties I had to grab a nap before I tackled the drive. It’s about 3 hours but traffic can change that in a minute. I knew I needed to be alert. So I grabbed a couple of hours sleep before I left New York and when I found myself struggling to keep my eyes open , I pulled into one of the rest areas on the turnpike for another 30 minutes of naptime.

Finally home! My 3 fuzzy roommates greeted me at the door and began inspecting my bags enjoying all the strange smells from the trip.

This was Saturday. Sunday I unpacked and made reservations to turn around and head back to Seattle, this time for work. Yup one week home and I’m traveling again.

We’ll see how this back to back travel works out. Thankfully my pet sitter is available again.

Airports can be fun

Posted on July 11, 2013July 11, 2013 by Dusty Roads

I was just thinking how much air travel has changed in the last 30+ years. Yes that’s how long I’ve been flying the friendly skies. But I didn’t always travel for fun so I don’t think of those business trips as “travel”. “Travel” to me is a vacation, an exploration of my choosing.

But anyway, “back in the day” they didn’t have security, x-ray machines, body scans and pat-downs. Oh occasionally there was a hijacking but it was to get to Cuba or some such thing. Because gates weren’t locked away the duty-free shops and restaurants were all along the concourse.

Since we didn’t have to take our shoes off and belts were ok, travelers dressed up. Flying was a “Big Deal”. I know I always felt very important. Jet ways were rare if at all. Most of the time you crossed the tarmac and climbed the stairs. The planes were small but they weren’t crowded. I seldom had to share a row with anyone unlike today where we sit on top of each other.

But in spite of the modern inconveniences of air travel there are some nice trade offs.

The airports are much fancier. Some have the moving sidewalks like flat escalators. Many have shuttles to take you from concourse to concourse . Good thing because the airports are so big now that we’d never make our connections if we had to walk and carry luggage too.

The restaurants have definitely improved and since they are often beyond security they are closer together. Lots more choices in less space.

We dress simpler so we can get through the security scanners without setting alarms off and slip on shoes like loafers or boat shoes are much more comfortable than even sneakers.

Yes, air travel has changed, some good , some bad but I like it more now because most of the time it’s taking me to someplace new and exciting, or so I hope. 🙂

(PS. I had more pictures to share but they were all taken with my camera phone and for some reason, the transfer keeps failing. I’ve been trying for 2 days to get them from my phone to the computer so I’m just settling for the one that went right through. That was in Chicago O’Hare )