Fresh Travel Tales

Been traveling a bit lately and usually that results in some interesting stories and observations:

Exit Row Not All It's Cracked Up To Be:

Sometimes you think you have it all figured out. I booked a cross country flight and when I looked at the seat map I screeched with glee when I saw that I could choose a window seat on the exit row. It's a well known fact that the exit row has additional leg room, so I was very pleased with myself. Upon boarding I was indeed blessed with lots of leg room, but it was not without its penalties. Firstly,  the seat did not recline, so I was missing out on those extra 5 degrees of recline angle comfort. No sleep for me, so I thought I would get some work done. Only the table was so far away, it was really bouncy,  every key stroke shaking the computer.

Other consequences of this seat choice had nothing to do with the seat but with my neighbors. At one point, I felt a bump on my elbow. I looked down and saw the sole of a huge Nike,  the giant behind me was not satisfied with his extra leg room and felt the need to wedge his foot between the side of the plane and my seat. Also, whenever Goliath got up to use the restroom, he used the back of my seat as a handle/springboard.

Things were no better in front of me. The restless sole seated there kept bouncing on the back of his seat, which made my already shaky tray flail around with every motion.

And if all that wasn't enough, the couple sitting next to me took the cake. At the beginning of the flight, they were working together on a crossword. Nothing wrong with that, except they routinely celebrated their puzzle prowess by kissing, often. What made this that much more awkward was that they were of a later generation,  like in their 70s. It didn't stop there, for the beverage  service the lady of the pair who was seated next to me got an instant decaf coffee. I don't drink coffee and don't know what was in the stuff she drank but it created the most foul coffee breath I ever encountered. She did pop a mint or two, but they were powerless against the stench.  And when she and her beau tired of crosswords (and kissing) in favor of a nap, she fell asleep with the look of a corpse, mouth wide open, the smell of coffee glazed trash freely blowing forth. "Luckily", the couple both woke up and went back to their gaming/PDA. It was a long flight.

The return flight had a similar woe. I paid extra for an even more space (jet blue speak for more leg room), since it was a red eye. Well that backfired. While I had tons of leg room, I was again cursed with a non reclining seat. Sleep was a challenge.

Stuck in the Middle:

I like window seats. I like to look out the window, and it cuts my interaction with other passengers by 50%, I like those odds. Usually I am successful in getting the window, but on my latest flight, not so much, I was singing the middle seat blues. On one side, a long haired hippy type with a bulky military jacket. Fortunately, he was quiet and read Harry Potter the whole flight, but I had to relinquish the arm rest. On the other side, things were very different. The man who sat next to me seemed reasonable, but when he sat down, he sat with a 'wide stance', legs splayed out so his leg was against mine. His legs were so far apart, it was pushing the armrest up. Awkward...Then, he began humming. I don't know the tune, but it was audible and constant. I was tempted to ask what song was in his head, but decided to pop in my earbuds and avoid the confrontation. While I tried to tune out the humming, I noticed midway through the flight, he was on his smartphone. No big deal, I was watching a movie on mine at the time. However, I noticed he was texting, in flight. We all know that when flying you are supposed to put your phone in airplane mode...AIRPLANE mode. Get it. I don't know what effect our phones have the planes or its systems, but the FAA has decided we shouldn't do it. Do I believe the plane will fall out of the sky if the Mad Hummer texts in flight? No, but why does he feel entitled to make that decision on the part of everyone on the plane, just to send a few texts?

Fido on Flight?:

It started small, little pets, in a carrier, under the seat. Then I started to see working dogs in the airports and on the planes. But it seems to have gotten out of hand. People just walking around the airport with their dogs? And not just little ones, I've seen larger dogs that are more than would ever fit under the seat. When did this become OK? I realize we are all attached to our pets, but in the end, these are animals and as such are unpredictable. They can bite, scratch, soil, or any other possible things that animals do. And what if one of the other travelers are allergic? Why should the rest of the plane be subject to an individual's pet in tight quarters?

Runway torch bearers:
On a recent flight, the plane came in early and we were parked waiting for the gate to open up. I was watching the pushing back process. Lots of us have seen it, a little buggy attached at the front wheels shoves the plane away from the gate. Ever notice the two 'attendants' that go along with this process? Two people in bright colored vests holding up an equally bright piece of plastic. What is the point of this? Are they worried some will run into the plane? Is someone going to miss the giant airplane on the tarmac but somehow notice these two?

Automated fixture roulette:
Almost every time I get off a plane, I visit the restroom. Mostly because airplane bathrooms are nasty and I avoid them whenever possible. Have you ever noticed the game of a chance that occurs in every bathroom? It seems that at best only half of the automated soap dispensers, faucets, toilets, paper towel dispensers, and hand dryers work, and I always choose the faulty ones first.

The Big Push:
Rented a car lately. Boy do they put the screws to you. Pre-buy gas you'll never (and can't possibly) use...never mind that the only way to get the full use of this is to run tank dry. BUY INSURANCE!!! No, I carry auto insurance and my credit card picks up some insurance too. Who pays an extra 20 bucks a day for this? And what's with all the taxes? My rental price practically doubled by the time the taxes were figured in. Just include it in the quoted price!

I know this was a long one...now it's your turn, let's hear some of your travel stories.

Protecting the Edge

I'm one of those people that does not believe in a naked smartphone. A case and a screen protector are a must. These days a phone costs more than a computer or a car payment and the idea of leaving it exposed to the harsh world is unthinkable to me. When I received my new Edge +, I had no case or protector, so it sat in the box for for a couple of days till those arrived. Oh, the anticipation. But clothing the Edge+ proved to be harder than expected, so I'm sharing my experience.

When my accoutrements finally showed up, I went straight to the task of installing them. First the screen protector. I went for a tempered glass model, since those feel the best, but there were few choices for the edge screen. Also strange, they mostly had a colored finish around the sides. So I found a cool green one (the Edge+'s little brother comes in a gorgeous emerald green color, that I was hoping this protector would emulate, it didn't). The install went well, bubble free and matched up with home key and speaker. But when I powered on the phone, it had a weird dot pattern in the glass. My new beautiful quad HD display marred with a grid of dots, what the heck? Then I put on the case, a minimal clear plastic model. I guess not minimal enough, because when I snapped it on, the edges of the screen protector cracked. Yikes. Luckily I had bought 2, so I put the second one on, but the case kept pushing the sides up.  Clearly this combo was not going to work.

Combo #1:

   

On to the second try...after a bit of research, I tracked down a screen protector that declared it was 'case friendly'. Perfect, except it was plastic. It got good reviews on amazon so I decided to try it. The install process was...interesting.  It was a 'wet' install, basically you spray the phone and protector with some kind of magic liquid that allows for adjustment, then squeegee out all the excess liquid. I did the initial install and it looked pretty good, but there appeared to be a hair under it, so I pulled it up and wiped it down, repeated the process, hair still there. After a third and fourth try, not only was it still there, but now I had two...I was able to clean off the new one but the old one was still there. I completed  the install, hair and all. Overall the protector was surprisingly good for a plastic one and unbelievably,  the 'hair' disappeared. The billing of self healing was true! I complained to the company about the install anyway and they sent me a replacement shield. Good customer service. And it truly was case friendly working well with the second case, an even more minimal plastic case.

Combo #2

  

So I'm good now, right? Not quite. Being the glutton for punishment that I am, I was determined to find a tempered glass protector, so I ordered one off eBay that was all clear, no color border, and the pic on the listing revealed no dots. But...when it arrived, there were the dots. Didn't even put it on, just complained to the seller and they refunded my money. Next...

Image from Ebay listing: (looks clear to me)                 

Actual glass:

I decided to try another plastic model, since I had the best success with that to date. I found a well recommended one that came in a pack of 6 for $1.99, pretty low risk, so I went for it. Good thing they were so cheap, cause it took 3 attempts to get a clean install. But once I did, I was pretty pleased with it. These cheapies were a great deal and what I'm using now, along with an aluminum bumper case. But, the edges are starting to come up a bit, so I'll probably have to replace it soon.

Combo #3:

 

I still haven't given up on glass and have another option on deck, waiting for a rainy day that I feel bold enough to try it.

Till then, the Edge is protected, but it was not easy. Maybe there is something to be said for going naked.

This Year's Techno Harvest Moon Comes Early

For those of you that follow this blog (shout out Mom and Dad) you may have noticed I've been slack and haven't posted in a while. I hope to get back into a rhythm now that summer is drawing to an end (It's not over yet, dammit!).

The harvest moon I reference in the title hardens back to an old post where I talked about my semi-annual ritual of renewing my tech and replacing my phone. Alas, while my all too short time with the Nexus 6 was mostly good, the gremlins started to creep out with random freeze ups, poor battery life and not playing nice with the Bluetooth system in the car, so it had to go.

So began the search for its replacement. At the same time I started looking, leaked images of the new Samsung Galaxy Note 7 began to appear, in all its curved screen sexiness. While it looked very tempting, I knew I couldn't swing the price tag it would command when it was finally released. So, I settled for last year's model, the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus (for less than half the price). With its 5.7" curved screen it was just a tad smaller than the Nexus while being faster, more compact, lighter and giving better battery life.

So far, just over a month in, I really like it. The rich interface has lots more features that I like, the screen is super bright and crisp, and I dig the curved edges with the special people edge and edge apps drawer. The only downside so far is that people complain that I don't always sound so good while talking over the speakerphone, and it seems more prone to dropping calls than the Nexus (I'll have to keep an eye on that).

Judging by the recent headlines about exploding Galaxy Note 7s, I think I made the right choice, at least until the next Harvest Moon begins to wax.

Summer is not over!

It happened not once, twice, but three times over the last weekend, I encountered somebody who said, "Summer's almost over". It should be noted, that at the time I was given this breaking news, it was still JULY, so I am unsure why these folks want to burst the bubble that is summertime. Isn't summer short enough that we don't need to mentally fast forward to the end when we are only at the half way point? Especially in the Northeast, where I reside, and summer is the precious pair of months that we are freed of the constraints of outerwear to bear our pasty skin to the elements. We all know that our near future will be filled with fleece and Gore-Tex, you don't need to remind us.

Part of the issue could be the fact that kids, mine included, seem to return back to school earlier than I did as a child. "Back in my day" :-) Labor Day was the last day of summer, the next day, the first day of school. Now, kids go back to school, a week before Labor Day, even earlier in some locales. This effect gets even more pronounced as the stores begin rolling out back to school ads and promotions in store starting in late July. It's a relentless reminder that summer days are fleeting.

So please, let's all resolve not to dwell on the end of summer, but to enjoy the remainder of the season while the days are still long and warm.

Get ready to sit back and enjoy the ride

Ever wish you had a personal chauffeur? Maybe you've been sitting in traffic and wished that someone else were at the wheel and you could relax and watch YouTube videos? Well, the dream may be closer than ever before.

At this time, most auto manufacturers offer sophisticated driver aids, whether it be intelligent cruise control, lane keep assist, or the like. We got our early taste of this a few years back when Lexus ran an ad on TV where their car parked itself without any input from the driver. This technology has only advanced from there. In fact, many experts believe that the levels of autonomy in current cars could get to the point where they literally drive themselves. This is already available in some models from Mercedes Benz, BMW, and Tesla, to name a few where the car takes charge and the driver can take their hands off the wheel. It's truly amazing.

The other aspect of this trend of development that certain experts have focused on are the inevitable impacts that self driving cars will have on our society and economy. The feeling is that the trend in cars will shift away from individual ownership and towards more of an on demand model, ala Uber (sans the driver). If we have a bunch of cars out there driving themsleves, networked together, then theoretically there should be few to no accidents, no moving violations, and consequently, no casualties.This would definitely change the whole auto insurance industry. And if all cars are on demand with no drivers, that pretty much eliminates taxis (or at least the taxi drivers). Of course in this scheme, since people would not end up owning their own cars, the auto industry would end up selling fewer cars, and mostly to these ride on demand services.

All this makes me curious. While I find all these developments to be interesting, I can't help but wonder why all these car companies are jumping over each other to develop these technologies, essentially engineering the demise of their industry?

And what is to be for those select few of us who actually enjoy driving? Will there be a place on the road for human operated vehicles? How will all these autonomous vehicles react to cars that are operated on instinct rather than algorithms?

Only time will tell if these technologies will truly have these profound impacts on our world, at least in the short term. In the meantime, we should all try to enjoy the ride, from behind the wheel, while we still can.

One of many curses of the mobile phone

"What? No you go ahead..."

I find myself saying that a lot when talking on my cell phone. I seem to constantly find myself talking over the other person. Does that make me a rude person? I've always figured it was a flaw of my own, poor cell phone cadence exacerbated by the lack of face to face contact. But maybe not.

I did a little research and there is a possibly a technological explanation for my rudeness. Turns out there is a slight delay on cell phones, not present in landlines. This is referred to as latency. While the continued improvement of communication technology has decreased the effect quite a bit, it's still there. Evidently it's also slightly worse on CDMA networks (like Verizon, my carrier) than GSM networks (at&t and the like). Now mind you, this delay is measured in milliseconds, but somehow it's still enough to set off conversational rhythm so as to have people talk over each other. And if you have two people talking, both on cell phones, is the delay doubled?

I didn't go into it that deeply. I just wanted to relieve some of the guilt of talking over friends, family, and associates. From now on, I'll just blame the latency for my bad manners.

Anyone else experience this phenomenon?

On the use of 'Spoiler Alert'

TV is better than ever right now, so many quality shows there's never enough time to watch them all. Not only that, but there are now more ways to watch TV than ever before. Used to be you'd have to camp out in front of the TV on the right channel and the right time to see the program you wanted. Now you have options...Sure you can watch shows as they air, or you can record them on a DVR and watch them later (even forward through the commercials). Maybe you prefer to stream them from your carrier or the network. Or you can wait and watch whole seasons on a service like Netflix or Amazon Prime. Yes, plenty of options.

However, with all of these delayed options for watching shows, inevitably, info on your favorite shows can be seen or heard, commonly known as spoilers. Spoilers can take many forms, all of which can be a real bummer. Maybe it's the person who is dying to discuss this week's episode and spills the beans not knowing that you haven't caught up yet. Could be the casual glance at Yahoo! news only to see who won last night's game that you had stored in your Tivo. Or perhaps the morning radio crew couldn't wait to talk about who won the Oscar for Best Picture. Whatever form it takes, it can be a downer.

Then there's malicious spoiling. Those folks who just love to let the cat out of the bag and revel in your misery. These people are a scourge on the TV viewing public and should be strung up and forced to watch Laverne and Shirley re-runs as penance for their collective bubble bursting.

Which brings me to my point. The phrase 'Spoiler Alert' was conceived to protect those of us who like to watch shows a bit past the airing date from those who seek to expose potentially exciting plot lines. This can work well, when used properly:

• Know your audience. If you work in an office full of people with common favorites, maybe don't let it all fly first thing Monday morning.
• When describing potentially sensitive material, announce 'Spoiler Alert'
• Upon announcing "Spoiler Alert" allow enough time for those of us who want to excuse ourselves (or stick our fingers in our ears) before your recount of the show's events. Don't just dive right in after the Spoiler Alert declaration.
• I know it should seem obvious, but saying "Spoiler Alert" after you say who got killed on Game of Thrones, is not effective. 
• While I don't believe there is a universally accepted amount of time lapsed before talking about shows is acceptable, 2 or 3 days seems reasonable to me. But a courtesy Spoiler Alert is always appreciated.

I think if we can all abide by these simple tenets, we can put an end to spoiling. Happy watching.

"Do one thing, do it well"

That tagline was a slogan recently used by GMC Trucks extolling their skill in truck building. The underlying lesson was that by focusing on one type of product, they garnered an expertise and superiority that could only come from specialization. "Jack of all trades, master of none" as the old saying goes, but does that really hold true? Could anyone say that Ford makes a worse truck because they also have a full line of automotive products?

In some cases, it could be said that product diversification didn't work. Did anyone know that Smith and Wesson made a mountain bike? Or that Frito Lay made lemonade? Exactly.

The flip side includes companies that took a risk and stepped outside their comfort zones to create real success stories. Can you imagine if Apple never looked beyond computers?

Then there's the extreme cases of over- specialization. It seems like there's a dedicated position for ever little job out there. Hire a heating company to fix an issue with your furnace and they're just as likely to tell you you need a plumber, or an electrician. No Jacks here.

Seems like there must be happy middle ground between trucks and contractors. Apple found it, maybe we can all find just enough things to do right.

Back in my day, a Hershey bar cost a nickel!

We've all heard our parents say this or something like it (depending on the 'vintage' of your parents) before. Well, I guess I've officially turned that corner, because I was at the supermarket with my daughter and upon seeing candy bar prices of 99 cents, I remarked, "When I was a kid, candy bars cost a quarter!". Another favorite candy of mine, Jujyfruits (aka dental dynamite) in the big yellow box was selling for $1.49 when I remember that it cost a hefty $.49 in my youth. Not only that, but the box was only 5oz, where it used to be closer to 8oz. Yes, the times they are a-changing, but what's interesting is the things that haven't gone up in price, or have even gone down.

We could obviously discuss gas prices, as they dipped to ridiculous lows as recently as a few months ago. I was paying less at the pump than I did 10 years ago, but as the market has stabilized, that's reversed.

I recently read an article about the new Honda Civic Coupe, with a starting base price of $19,050. Having shopped this same car back in 1996, I know it had a starting price of $13,980. A modest increase of 36% when you consider all the updated performance, safety, and technology you get in new cars these days and well below the 'Candy Factor' of price increase.

Recently I bought a new pair of sneakers and noticed that a good pair of running shoes will cost around $60-80, same as what I recall paying back in high school. How can a candy bar quadruple but a pair of Nikes stays the same?

Computers are an area that is truly perplexing. My first laptop cost me over $1200 and it was refurbished to keep the price that low. I have replaced or upgraded my computer every 2-3 years since that first one and the prices have only gone down while the capabilities and features have only improved. My latest computer with a much larger screen, more hard drive/RAM, and faster processor cost around $800. I'm not complaining, mind you, and I realize that with technology as materials and techniques get more streamlined the price goes down, but I would also think that the constant improvement of the components/tech would offset the decreases.

All we can do is roll along with progress and groan as the price of a Baby Ruth rises to more than an cell phone charger, and rejoice when a gallon of gasoline costs less than a gallon of milk. Just try not to sound too much like Grandpa Simpson when you say, "Back in my day...".

The Burden of Choice

'Variety, it's the spice of life' as the saying goes. We all like to have choices in our life, to feel like we have some control over what lies before us and not have it all laid out on our behalf, but in this magic day and age we live in, the choices often become so numerous that they become overwhelming.

Take a simple example, ice cream. I recall when I was young, if the treat of ice cream was presented, the offerings were vanilla, chocolate or strawberry. Easy enough, between those three, most folks could probably choose a favorite. But sometime around my later youth, new flavors began to come into the picture. It started off simply enough with chocolate chip (melding two of the 'basic' flavors), French Vanilla (who would have thought you could improve on vanilla), and maybe things got as crazy as rocky road (put the nuts and marshmallow IN the ice cream!). I guess people could not get enough of these because a flavor explosion occurred over the ensuing years/decades. Now when I step up to the local ice cream stand, I have to select from a dizzying array of taste choices, and when I finally settle with my flavor(s) of choice, then out comes the toppings menu.

So what's the problem? With so many choices, surely you can find what you like, isn't that a good thing? On the surface the answer would certainly be yes, however inevitably, no matter how hard I try to make the best choices, I experience regret. Initially I figured this must just be me, that I make poor decisions, or I just have the type of personality that always makes me wonder 'what if?', but it seems I'm not alone.

I did a little poking around on the internet and many articles have been written about what has been titled as 'Overchoice', where people are paralyzed (maybe a bit of an exaggeration) but the abundance of choices presented to them. A gentleman by the name of Barry Schwartz wrote a book called The Paradox of Choice which goes into a great deal of detail on the topic. A notable quote, "the more options there are, the more likely one will make a non-optimal choice, and this prospect undermines whatever pleasure one may get from one's actual choice." I hear you Barry, I wish I had gotten the Maine Moose Tracks instead of the Cookies 'n Cream.

So what can be done to abate this epidemic of choice? Something I've tried to alleviate this condition is something I will call 'pre-choice'. If I can make some level of determination of my selection prior to being exposed to the options, then I've already removed a cross section from the equation. An example I've mentioned before on this blog is toothpaste. There are easily a hundred different types of toothpaste in any grocery store to choose from, but by deciding that I don't want whitening in my toothpaste, I narrow my options down to just a few (or even one!), no pressure there.

What about a more 'daunting' decision, like say a menu in a restaurant? Same deal, we went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner last week. I had pre-decided that I was going to get a combination plate, so I only had to look at the options on that part of the (very lengthy) menu. While still having to decide from the 20 or so options on that list, it was much easier than sorting through the hundreds in the remainder of the menu.

The flood of choices aren't going away, in fact they will likely only become more numerous. So choose wisely and don't suffer from frozen confectionery regret, or just get a 6 scoop sundae and cover all your bases.

What items do you think that too many choices currently exist?

The home of the free...

I was driving in the car with my 12 year old daughter over the weekend and she expressed her concern about the hazard of people who text while they drive. She went on to tell me about an idea she had for a device that would be installed in cars that would not allow drivers to use their smartphone in the car. While this would certainly prevent many texting while driving accidents, my reply to her was, "That would never fly, this is America, where we have the freedom to do what we aren't supposed to." She replied, "Dad, that makes no sense." and the conversation was over.

While I will admit, my off hand comment does sound nonsensical, it has some validity. Could you imagine the outcry if suddenly one of our "freedoms" to be bad was revoked? Imagine if cigarettes were made illegal? If cars were made so they couldn't exceed the speed limit? If all junk foods were taken off the shelves? We know these are all things we shouldn't partake in, but we demand the ability to choose our negligence.

And of course big business would have their say. Tobacco is a huge industry and lobbyists work hard to make sure you have right to kill yourself slowly with their products. And how many Corvettes do you think Chevrolet would sell if you couldn't open it up on the highway? Frito Lay wants you to able to pick between Original and Cool Ranch Doritos. They all rake it in while we push the limits.

So rejoice in the fact that we live in a free country where we can put the petal to the metal on the way to get Marlboros and Twinkies. But use your freedom wisely, and please for the sake of your fellow motorists, save the texting for when you get there.

If you don't use Ebates, you are missing out!

It's true, I use Ebates all the time and it's awesome....I know this shameless promotion, but it doesn't cost you anything and it can only benefit you. I love a good deal, so why not share?

So what is Ebates? It's a click-thru site that you use for online shopping. If you want to shop at one of the 1800+ retailers they have on their site, you click the link and if you make a purchase you get a percentage back in the form of a quarterly check (a Big Fat Check as they call it). It's really that simple. They make it even easier by offering an extension to your web browser that lights up to tell you that you are browsing one of their participating sites and you just click the button to activate it. It'll even show you coupons and try them out for you at check out.

I'll give you an example. I was shopping for a new computer. I found one on the HP website that fit my needs. The computer was $1100, but it was marked down to $800. I clicked the little E on my browser to activate Ebates for this site/purchase. Turns out that they were offering 15% cash back on HP purchases at that time. Not only that, but Ebates found a coupon code that saved me an extra $25. That transaction will net me over a $116 on my next Big Fat Check. Pretty sweet, right? You get paid for buying the stuff you were going to buy anyway.

If you aren't a member of Ebates yet and you want to be now, please do so using this link (I confess, I get credit for referrals too): http://www.ebates.com/rf.do?referrerid=CraSx%2BVRnAWK5yaMLKLclA%3D%3D&eeid=28187

Happy saving!

That old familiar itch

I can feel it coming. The days are getting longer, the temperature is rising, spring is upon us. Every year as winter puts itself in the rear view mirror, something inside me gets triggered, and it makes me long to change my automotive situation.

This year, contrary to years past, I find myself shackled having committed myself to a 3 year lease on a perfectly adequate vehicle. Probably for the best, to save me from myself, but not enough to control my vehicular wandering eye.

Especially strong as the weather improves is my desire to rekindle my romance with a convertible. Fiercely impractical from its wobbly structure to its mostly unusable (if even present) rear seat, there's just nothing quite like top down motoring. I gave up my latest flirtation with an open top automobile a couple of years ago in the name of practicality (more doors, more space and all wheel drive). My 2005 Saab 9-3 convertible was one of the best cars I ever owned. A powerful 2.0 liter turbo engine and the ability to let the sun shine in through the motorized roof in about 20 seconds all with stylish good looks, a comfortable ride and a cozy leather interior. Some thought I was out of my mind to buy a used (6 years old with 95k miles) Swedish convertible, but surprisingly it turned out to be one of the most reliable cars I ever owned with hardly any issues during the three years I owned it (one of my longest car ownership experiences to date).

Sadly, when it comes to scratching this itch, I know it is not to be (for now :-) ) but while my mind knows this, my mouse hand still directs my browser to Craigslist and Autotrader to waste time looking at what will not be. Sad, I know.

Care to share any of your favorite past rides?

Entering a show void, suggestions?

I admit it, I'm a victim of on demand media availability. The ease with which you can watch shows has been too hard to resist and I have gotten roped into a bunch of series. Some of them are long time established ones that I could binge on from the beginning, without waiting for the calendar to click by. Others I have heard things about and jumped on the boat mid-stream.

Now I am at an ending point with many of the ones I was watching, leaving me in the 'show void'. Here are some of my favorites:

The League: chronicling a group of long time buddies in their misadventures against the backdrop of a fantasy football league, the show is hilarious, raucous, and often raunchy. Laugh out loud funny, especially Jason Mantzukous' character Raffi. Sadly the current season was their last. Farewell :-(

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: This is another absurd comedy featuring a group of long time friends who run a bar in the city of brotherly love. The craziness was only amplified by the addition of Danny deVito to the cast. Alas, this show too has aired its final episode.

Strike back: this was an action series about a covert British intelligence faction. Often ridiculous in a Rambo-esque way (evidently all bad guys have lousy aim), it was a fun ride. I got in on this one late, it's already done but available on demand.

House of Cards: an amazing performance by Kevin Spacey is the highlight of this behind the scenes look at government and politics. I've watched since season 1 and Netflix gets that people like to binge and they release whole seasons at a time.

Billions: A new Showtime original about a billionaire money fund manager and the attorney who wants to expose insider trading. Paul Giammati plays the lawyer masterfully and I look forward to next season.

Better Call Saul: an excellent prequel to Breaking Bad. It's fun to watch the characters from BB pop up periodically and witness the development of the Saul Goodman character. Season 2 is mid-way through. I'll wait for it to be over and plow through them all at once.

I know what you're thinking, "does this guy do nothing but watch TV?" On the contrary, it's usually just an episode or two at night in bed, but it's all so available, I can get through a season in less than a week.

So here lies my chasm, waiting for these shows to return, or others to come to my attention. Any recommendations?

More travel adventures

I was traveling again today, and since I got such good feedback from my last travel post ( but no comments...:-) = shameless request for comments ), I figured I'd keep it up.

My outbound flight was an early one, 6:18AM, so right off the bat that sucked. The plane was an Airbus A321 (of French manufacture) and I was excited when I entered as it looked like it was very new featuring leather seats, digital video systems and usb/power connections at each seat. My excitment turned to dread when I arrived at my row/seat. Of course, by the time we got through the precious metal/gem seating, there was no overhead space, so I had to put my bag under the seat in front of me. Usually this isn't such a big deal, not so in this case. Whoever designed this torture chamber (of course it was the French, who are also famous for the guillotine) put the seats so close together that there was precious little space. And the toe space was further compromised by a metal box, probably the brains of that fancy digital screen. My bag, which usually fits fine underseat was sticking out another few precious inches. Then when airborne, I attempted to use my (mini) laptop, I had to do body origami just to get my hands on the keys. Then, just when i figured out how to contort myself to make it work, the wonderful gentleman in front of me reclined his seat, sapping what little space I had to work with. I finally gave up. I beg of you AA, please don't get any more of these planes.

The return flight was a very different experience. While this was clearly an older plane, it was a tried and true Boeing 737. It was low on the tech and had older shabby looking fabric on the seats, but had worlds more space and legroom. Not to mention I scored a sliver of overhead space so my feet and bag were not vying for room. I like window seats and that's what I had. A gentleman was also seated on the aisle. It appeared that boarding was over and we would be extra blessed with an empty middle seat, when onto the plane came running a disheveled young lady who had clearly only just made the flight. She was wearing a heavy leather jacket, scarf, and hat, despite the balmy weather, and she plopped down in previously vacant middle seat. Before she buckled in, she removed the jacket, hat, and scarf, stuffing them under the seat in front of her. Under all that she had wild hair and was wearing a tank top, which wasn't all that remarkable, till she reached up to open the air vent. Whoa...clearly in her haste to make the plane, she neglected a step and missed deodorant. Or perhaps her hurried pace had taken its toll. Not only that, but she also had some halitosis issues going on. It smelled like she had eaten a crap sandwich for lunch, covered in crap, with a side of crap, and washed it down with a double shot of crap. And she was sleeping open mouth beside me. I don't now if I've ever gone so long without breathing through my nose.

We all know travel comes with its challenges. I've shared mine, do you all have any? Put them in the comments.

The Force Awakens

I know that I am really behind the curve on this one, but my family and I finally went to see The Force Awakens (the latest installment in the Star Wars saga, for anyone living under a rock) this past Sunday. Star Wars was a huge part of my childhood (Action figures, books, comics, trading cards, Halloween costumes, and of course the movies), so I was pretty excited to see the new movie. So why the delay? In short, the kids. We felt we need to fully expose the kids to story and see all the preceding movies beforehand. We got through Epidsodes IV-VI (the first three), but not I-III. Finally we gave up and figured if we wait too long, we won't get to see it in the theater, on the big screen.

So, we pre-purchased our reserved seats in the epicenter of the theater. I figured the movie had been out for nearly 3 full months, and that the theater would be empty. Not quite so. My feelings on attending movies in a theater have been documented in a prior posting, but I can't help but say it again; Why the heck do they sell the noisiest forms of food for consumption in a movie theater? Every quiet scene had the background noise of crunch, crunch, crunch...crinkle, crinkle, crinkle. No Matter. I was there for the movie and shut out the outside noise as best as possible.

First things first, this movie is light years better than Episodes I-III, the horrible installments George Lucas submitted us all to. We wanted to like them, but after hours of trade federation footage and ridiculous creatures (Talking about you JJB), we all agreed they sucked. This one has a good story, characters we can relate to, and the benefit of familiarity. From here on, I will warn that there may be some things that could be construed as 'spoilers', so if you have not seen the movie yet and don't want to know about it beforehand, see you next post.

As I said above, there were a lot of things to like, only, a lot of the things I did like about the movie, also left me feeling kind of let down. The story, feels very familiar. That's because it bears a striking resemblance to Episode IV, the original Star Wars movie. From the beginning with a stranded droid containing vital information, to the end with the need to destroy yet another 'Death Star', I feel like I've seen a lot of this before.

This is enhanced by the presence of familiar characters. Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, C3P0, R2D2, and Luke Skywalker are all back in this movie. I was excited initially at the prospect of the returning characters, but for some reason, it didn't really work for me. Perhaps it was the fact that they have aged nearly 40 years since the original movies, but we are still expected to believe that their characters are up to the same action. I definitely felt like it was too much Han Solo. He was in a lot of the movie and the soap opera between him and Leia resulted in the creation of the latest bit of evil, Kylo Ren. Probably the best 'character' to make a reappearance, is the Millennium Falcon. Featured heavily in this film, the odd looking spaceship that resembles the end of a tennis racket was the height of cool in the original movies and I was glad to see it again here, especially how they introduced it in the movie as 'a piece of junk', a reference to Luke's first reaction to it in Episode IV.

There were other little samples of familiar stuff. While on the Millennium Falcon, we see the holographic chess game that was in Episode IV.  There was also a scene where you could see the training ball that Luke used with his light saber, also in Episode IV. The melted mask of Darth Vader from when Luke burned Vader, his father on Endor in Episode VI.

While we are talking about masks, another thing I have to comment on is Kylo Ren's mask. It's ridiculous. From the odd flap of leather like material on the snout, to the silly metallic bars, it doesn't jibe. We all remember Darth Vader, right. His mask was awesome, a visual that stuck with you from the original opening scenes on. Not only did it look cool, but it was 'functional', he needed it to breathe. Kylo Ren could take his mask off at will, which makes you ask, why the heck is he wearing that thing at all? To make his voice sound deeper?

I could probably go on, at the risk of sounding even geekier. Despite my criticisms, I did like the movie and was all along for the ride. I look forward to seeing what JJ Abrams does with the next installment and hope that he doesn't rely so heavily on nostalgia and familiar themes and brings us on truly new and spectacular adventure, sans Jar Jar Binks of course.

Let me know what you thought of the movie in the comments...

Google is awesome...in a scary sort of way

So I had a trip to Pittsburgh coming up where I was staying in a hotel for a night. Since I have best access to my Gmail from the road, I forwarded my hotel confirmation to that email account a few days before my trip. Within hours, my Google+ enabled smartphone started giving me weather updates for Pittsburgh, in addition to my home location. Hmm, I thought, how did my phone know I was going there?

I speculated the source was the info I sent to Gmail, so I tried an experiment and sent my flight confirmation to Gmail. Sure enough flight updates starting popping up on my phone and watch (yes, a Google/Android wear watch, I'm firmly entrenched).

These updates and the fact that they showed up nearly automatically are awesome and I've taken to using this method whenever I travel, but what is behind all these updates is that Google is reading my email. I'm not sure how I feel about this, since I don't use my Gmail much. But a lot of folks out there do use it as their primary email. So how how much IS Google reading emails? How much info is retained/stored/distributed/sold?

For now, it's a price I'm willing to pay for the gained awesomeness, but perhaps a day may come where I value my privacy over the added functionality. What about you, what's in your Gmail?

"We'd like to begin the boarding process...for everyone but you!"

I have had the great "pleasure" of traveling quite a bit over the last few months, which has included a lot of air travel. Anyone who has flown on a commercial flight knows the various forms of torture involved, but lately, it seems the airlines have opted to get it going before you even board.

Remember how simple it used to be? When they were ready to board a plane, they called out row numbers, and when your row was announced, you casually strode up to the gate, ticket in hand, to board the plane.

That was then. Now, the mere announcement of the inkling of a thought of initiating the boarding process starts an ambush of anxious travelers towards the gate to jockey for position. The reason being that they no longer subscribe to the 'to expedite the board process, we'll be boarding from the rear of the plane forward' method of loading a plane.

Firstly, they board first class. Yes in return for paying 3 times what the saps in coach pay for a ticket, you have the esteemed joy of getting in your seat first to watch all the poor folk march by and bop you with their elbows, knees, and luggage, all the while being seated for an extra half hour, a huge advantage on a long flight.

Then comes a dizzying array of categories of  people far more important than me who have been granted early access: Priority, Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze, Sapphire, Ruby, Emerald...It seems that if you are not associated with a precious metal or gem, you are not worthy of boarding an airplane.

Of course there are the 'people who need more time', families traveling with children and active military as well.

Only now do we come to the general boarding. Although at this point, I look around, and the waiting area is mostly empty save for myself and the few other unfortunate souls who failed to achieve the status of any of the aforementioned categories. We are left to try not to scalp anyone as we make our walk of shame down the aisle, scrounge for any available overhead space, and climb over our fellow row-mates in an effort to complete the boarding process for an on-time departure.

I realize it's just sour grapes on my part, having not paid for, earned, or self-proclaimed any need or reason to get on a plane casually, but let's be honest, all of these mechanations all boil down to a single objective, securing the precious space in the overhead compartment. This rarest of commodities has grown more so, since everyone hates to wait for bags at the claims, and airlines try to use bag check fees to supplement their bottom lines. Having traveled on some 'newer' aircraft where the goal is maximize number of seats, with no increase to baggage capacity, it's a problem that won't be going away.

So, put on the helmets and shoulder pads, and get ready for take off.

The DNC is a joke!

No, not the Democratic National Convention, although I'm sure the argument could be made. What I am referring to here is the the National Do Not Call Registry, a laughable effort to try to prevent people from being harassed by telemarketers and other nuisance calls. Set up by the Federal Trade Commission, the DNC Registry supposedly..."gives you a choice about whether to receive telemarketing calls at home. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days." Well I can tell you, having been registered on this list since 2003, that it does not work.

Perhaps we have ourselves to blame, being a member of a shrinking demographic of households that have a land line (required for our security system), does that make you more susceptible? The phone rings many times a day, we've basically adopted a policy of just ignoring it and screening the message to see if it's a call that we actually would want to take. Most of the time, it's not. No, most of the time, it's either a telemarketer, scammer (You're computer may be infected with a virus...said in my best Indian accent), automated message/survey, or a dead line (a tactic I am told is just used to test whether you are home at certain times of the day). The called ID isn't much help, as it will describe Unknown Caller, a random location (City/State) where the call origniates, or some other gobbly gook. Every now and then, we get an interesting description, this one is my favorite:

I did discover a feature on my phone provider's website where I could block numbers, which I have done for the more persistent callers, but there are always more. If anyone out there knows how to get rid of unwanted callers, I'm all ears, the FTC and their DNC aren't getting it done.

If only you could take the 'Live' out of Live Entertainment

I can't be the only one. You decide to attend an entertainment event, you procure tickets, get yourself to the venue and situate yourself, only to have the experience soured. Not by the act you've intended to see, but by your fellow patrons.

Recently, my family and I attended a performance of The Nutcracker. As the lights start to dim, we were fortunate enough to have a pretty sparse crowd and the usher said we could move to another  (empty) portion of the theater. We found a sweet spot where there was no one in front or behind with a nice clear view of the stage. However, when we returned after intermission, we realized quickly our oasis had been tainted. Another family had situated themselves in the row in front of us, making our clear view cluttered by silhouettes of heads (is it important to see the performer's feet in ballet?). Also, much to my surprise and chagrin, this particular theater allowed food and beverages into the venue. The whole second half became a surround sound of crinkling, crunching, and slurping.

Theater is not the only place where one can expect Fellow Human Eating And Drinking Syndrome (we'll shorten it to F-HEADS). Any movie going experience is rife with F-HEADS. Honestly, the person who decided that the introduction of a messy and noisy food such as popcorn to a situation where you are in the dark with a bunch of strangers trying to hear a movie should be shot. Add to that the kicking of your seat, talking all around you, and ringing cell phones and you wonder why anyone goes to the movies at all.

Live sporting events are just as bad, adding in the wild card of weather and the fact that your team may lose, which makes for a long ride home.

Concerts these days you can barely see the stage through the oceans of morons holding up their phones, struggling to get a lousy video they will never watch again, instead of enjoying the moment.

And that is really what it comes down to, to me. People seem to be content to experience their lives rather than living them. If it doesn't happen on a smartphone and can't be posted, it never happened (don't worry, the irony of posting this comment on a blog is not lost on me), if at least two things can't be done at once, it's a waste of time and a couple of hours simply can't go by without some sort of food/beverage being administered.

I know I come off here as a curmudgeon. The fact is, I like seeing movies on the big screen, watching a good game, and seeing live music. If only we could all have private screenings, the NFL in the front yard and Billy Joel live in the Living Room. I guess that's why we a put up with these annoyances, F-HEADS and all.