Holiday Road

Friday night our holiday adventure ended when we pulled our little Scion into the garage at 4:00 PM. Two weeks and 3190 miles later, we don’t regret any of the days we were gone but we’re glad to be home. Well, maybe we regret the last day. It really sucked.

The distribution of destination points worked out such that we never had more than a 8-hour day of driving until the end of the trip. Less driving and more visiting and exploring made us all dread getting into the car a little less. Tina brought her portable DVD player and the boys watched the Indiana Jones trilogy when the drive got too long. I brought books but I never did any reading in the car since I was either driving or sleeping.

I started to write a summary of each day in this entry, but it turned into an incredibly long read, so I’ll be breaking it into a series. Watch this space for a day-by-day rehash of our journey to Arizona and back.

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2352
Weight lost (in pounds): 35
Hours of sleep last night: 7
Hours billed last week: 37
Aches & pains: sciatic (when I stand too long), right shoulder (when I extend my arm away from my body), left achilles tendon, joints in my right hand (likely RSI from Guitar Hero)
Current reading: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, Space Cadet by Robert A. Heinlein
Recent listening: In Rainbows by Radiohead, The Shepherd’s Dog by Iron & Wine
Recent viewing: Countdown, The 300 Spartans, Rank, Numb3rs, Eagles vs. Cowboys
Recent playing: foosball, Guitar Hero III (Wii)
Recently accomplished: cleaned cat boxes, recycling, old email, Christmas shopping
Imperative To Do: Sift through inbox, post office (Sunleafs, Seagate, Kent, Sue), sunglasses, InstantCake, phone calls, vacation planning, packing list

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2332
Weight lost (in pounds): 35
Hours of sleep last night: 9
Hours billed last week: 44
Aches & pains: sciatic (when I stand too long), right shoulder (when I extend my arm away from my body), left achilles tendon
Current reading: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, Beyond This Horizon by Robert A. Heinlein
Recent listening: Velvet Goldmine: Original Soundtrack, Come On Christmas by Dwight Yoakam, Wolfmother by Wolfmother, Kid Rock by Kid Rock
Recent viewing: Countdown, Suns vs. Jazz, Steelers vs. Patriots, Raiders vs. Packers, Ravens vs. Colts, Wired Science
Recent playing: foosball, Guitar Hero III (Wii)
Recently accomplished: hosed off walkways and deck, stored hoses for the winter, groceries, gorilla shelf parts on Freecycle, paid bills, cat box, email to Curt N.
Imperative To Do: Sift through inbox, post office (Sunleafs, Seagate, Kent, Sue), sunglasses, InstantCake, phone calls, vacation planning, packing list

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2307
Weight lost (in pounds): 35
Hours of sleep last night: 10
Hours billed last week: 47
Aches & pains: sciatic
Current reading: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, Rocket Ship Galileo by Robert A. Heinlein
Recent listening: Chicago IX by Chicago, Broken Boy Soldiers by The Raconteurs, Essential Ten Years After by Ten Years After, Chrome Dreams II by Neil Young
Recent viewing: The War, Countdown, High Stakes Poker
Recent playing: foosball, Guitar Hero III (Wii)
Recently accomplished: cat boxes, cardboard recycling, completed RMA for broken Tivo drive, final build of soon-to-be-released product
Imperative To Do: Sift through inbox, post office (Sunleafs, Seagate, Kent, Sue), freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses, InstantCake

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2268
Weight lost (in pounds): 40
Hours of sleep last night: 6
Hours billed last week: 24.5
Aches & pains: right knee, sciatic, right hand, left wrist
Current reading:: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, The Rolling Stones by Robert A. Heinlein
Recent listening: Chrome Dreams II by Neil Young, Coverville, DrugMusic, Pure Pod For Now People
Recent viewing: The War, The Simpsons, Eagles at Patriots, Dolphins at Steelers
Recent playing: Guitar Hero III (Wii)
Recently accomplished: cat boxes, raked front yard, cardboard recycling, fixed sitting room speakers, paid bills, called Kent
Imperative To Do: RMA old Tivo drive, sift through inbox, post office, freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2236
Weight lost (in pounds): 44
Hours of sleep last night: 10
Hours billed last week: 40
Aches & pains: sciatic
Current reading:: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Recent listening: NPR Story of the Day, Science Friday
Recent viewing: Nature: The Cheetah Orphans, Nova: Intelligent Design on Trial, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Numb3rs, High Stakes Poker
Recent playing: foosball, Guitar Hero III (Wii)
Recently accomplished: cleaned and lubed bike, cardboard recycling, groceries, cat boxes, installed rear fender
Imperative To Do: RMA old Tivo drive, sift through inbox, post office, freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2155
Weight lost (in pounds): 43
Consecutive South Beach days: 4
Hours of sleep last night: 8
Hours billed last week: 37.5
Aches & pains: sciatic when I stand for too long
Current reading:: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore
Recent listening: This American Life, Kid Rock by Kid Rock, Dead Prez
Recent viewing: Patriots at Colts, Countdown, Pushing Daisies, The War
Recent playing: foosball, Guitar Hero III (Wii)
Recently accomplished: Cleaned roof, gutters and downspouts; picked up and delivered apples, pears & cider; cleaned cat boxes; swept garage, voted
Imperative To Do: RMA old Tivo drive, sift through inbox, post office, freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2092
Weight lost (in pounds): 45
Consecutive South Beach days: 4
Hours of sleep last night: 7.5
Hours billed last week: 46
Aches & pains: sore throat, sciatic
Current reading:: The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, Death By Black Hole by Neil deGrasse Tyson, Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Recent listening: Dead Prez, History of Rock by Kid Rock, Fresh Air, Coverville
Recent viewing: Into The Wild, Countdown, Colts at Jaguars, Dancing with the Stars, Grand Theft Parsons
Recent playing: Guitar Hero II (XBox 360), foosball, Guitar Hero III (XBox 360 demo)
Recently accomplished: cat boxes, groceries, returned bottles and cans, paid bills
Imperative To Do: Vote, RMA old Tivo drive, sift through inbox, post office, freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses, clean gutters and downspouts

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2061
Weight lost (in pounds): 40
Consecutive South Beach days: 10
Hours of sleep last night: 7
Hours billed last week: 41
Aches & pains: low on energy (lack of carbs)
Current reading:: 2107 Curious Word Origins, Says & Expressions by Charles Earle Funk, The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, Death By Black Hole by Neil deGrasse Tyson, The Tin Prayer by S.H. Semken
Recent listening: This American Life, The Mixup by Beastie Boys, In Rainbows by Radiohead
Recent viewing: Planet Earth, The Daily Show, Larry King Live
Recent playing: Guitar Hero II (XBox 360), foosball
Recently accomplished: Can & bottle recycling, cardboard recycling, mowed/edged/trimmed lawn, cleaned and swept garage, cleaned catboxes, lubed & cleaned bike, unstopped kitchen drain
Imperative To Do: RMA old Tivo drive, sift through inbox, post office, freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses, groceries, clean gutters and downspouts

Vital Statistics

Bike odometer: 2013
Weight lost (in pounds): 36
South Beach days in the last week: 4
Hours of sleep last night: 8
Hours billed last week: 40
Aches & pains: none
Current reading:: 2107 Curious Word Origins, Says & Expressions by Charles Earle Funk, The Book of Totally Useless Information by Don Voorhees, Death By Black Hole by Neil deGrasse Tyson
Recent listening: Fresh Air, The Mixup by Beastie Boys, Live From Mountain Stage by NRBQ, Icky Thump by White Stripes
Recent viewing: Pushing Daisies, Countdown, Saturday Night Live
Recent playing: Guitar Hero II (XBox 360)
Recently accomplished: Signed and sent release papers for Sears commercial, cleaned cat boxes, camping with the Boy Scouts
Imperative To Do: RMA old Tivo drive, sift through inbox, post office, finish garage, freecycle gorilla shelf parts, sunglasses, can & bottle recycling