JTM & VIP

Broken ATM

Mohawk Ballin'

Cascada Fallin'

Lunch Extraordinaire 

Swimmin' hole

Power Out

Jose Enrique

Pickup Truck

Baller Man

Drunken Van

Pizza Pan

Jew Spew

Purple Net

Tomorrow yet

Good night. 

(Wed night/early Thu am)

Real World Nicaragua

I originally thought calling this trip, "Real World," would date us and then found out the show is still in production. It turns out a knock on the door circa 3 AM lured Ed and I up to Juan's suite where the six newcomers were enjoying their beverages. I also learned that Juan's two friends from NY didn't know each other and were only aquaintances with him. We are truly a band of strangers besides the people traveling with Juan and with me. Our ages range from 27 to undisclosed and at 41, I'm not the oldest! An early morning drinking game of mushroom was followed with a Timmy chat as he got ready for work back home, then I went to bed again. 

Juan's dad picked us up in a tourist van after an amazing buffet breakfast at Barceló Managua. We're now on our way to Cascada Blanca, the waterfall and eco-lodge he owns in Matagalpa. 

Now There Are Nine?

Summary of day one; Flor de Caña Rum is better than I expected but does not eliminate insomnia!

The three of us arrived 30 minutes early at Augusto C Sandino (MGA) in Managua. I expected a small airport but was surprised that this very large city of nearly two million people had a single runway with a u-turn at the end of it. The experience was not quite like that of our Mexican emergency landing several years back but wasn't the most pleasant. I was even more surprised at the broken down planes littering the side of the runway. 

The three of us had a free day to explore Managua but after a delicious lunch and several margaritas decided to relax for the day. We chose a few lounge chairs by the pool and relaxed the day away. At around 5:30, while Erin was enjoying a massage at the spa, Eddie and I decided to get showered for happy hour. Our timing was impeccable as the sky turned black and the torrential rains of the Summer rainy season rolled in.

We contemplated naps as the rest of our group was to arrive at around 1 AM but Erin insisted we power through. This didn't happen and we threw in the towel around 9 when the band took a break. With tummies full of delicious food, wine, beer, and rum, we went to bed. I just awoke at around 2 AM to find the others had arrived and went out to find some beverages. Since I missed them, and can't go back to sleep, I decided to summarize the day. I think there are now nine of us and I'm looking forward to meeting up for breakfast to start the group adventures.  

A New Travel Chapter

I haven't posted for quite some time. After so many work posts, I simply took a break. There are no journal entries from our epic Spring Vacation to Florida, several weekend getaways, #NOTS24, Camp Chimney over the 4th of July, or this year's scooter rally trips to WKRP, Band Camp 15, or Motor City Shakedown 10. The last few trips were made in our new rally transport vehicle, Vanastasia! She's a nice-as-new 1994 Teal Green Aerostar; what a riot!

Today marks a new form of travel with a trip to Nicaragua. It isn't that adventure travel or Central America is new, but it's the first real vacation I've taken outside of the states without my boyfriend of 16+ years. Work is great but I needed to stamp the passport and turn off the work email. Timmy is back in school, working on his BSN, and travel time is limited. With him working full time, and taking classes, Spring Break was the only long vacation we took this year. I had to get away!

A quick Faceyplace shout out a few months back yielded five great friends with a similar hankering to travel before Fall. My friend, and old colleague, Juan, frequently organizes trips to Nicaragua. With my friends, and a few of his, we'll ultimately make a band of nine for this five night adventure! It should be interesting as I am about the only common thread in this group of virtual strangers. My good friend, Erin, and I departed CMH at 6:00 AM for Miami where we'll meet up with Eddie from DC! The three of us will then have a free day until the others arrive tonight. 

I'm looking forward to a new adventure and will attempt to log the trip. This time it won't just be for myself, but also for Timmy to vicariously experience Nicaragua too!

Just Plane Jay

Life is good. No, life is real good! I haven't had time to blog my trips lately but it has been a fun experiment. This will likely be the last of the series. While still traveling for work, my role is expanding. Ohio Chapter 2 seems like a logical time to stop; I may return to vacation or event blogging or I might just go back to the Instagram. 

Off to Dallas for work, as usual. The airport smells like Axe body spray and there are orange muscly men everywhere. The Arnold must be over. Winter, however, continues in full force. I'm quite ready for Spring!

Patience is a virtue!

That's all. Boarded for home. There are stories to tell soon. 

It's cold!

A quick weekend home from Dallas where we cleaned out two and a half rooms in my parents house for their pending remodel. It was really too snowy to drive without a legitimate cause but I took it easy and made it without issue. As shown above, it was white out most of the time. 

We found lots of crazy stuff like the VHS camcorder from the 80's, too many books and videos with titles that would make you cringe, and my Grandmother's stereo from the 60's. I am stoked that they let me take it home. I'll post pics when it's all cleaned up. 

For now...back to Dallas for a few days. I sure hope it's warmer than Columbus. Most of the schools and even OSU already cancelled classes for tomorrow. It is supposed to be brutal! 

Frigid Travel

Another cold spell has hit the states and I'm heading home a day later than planned due to work. It kept me a little warmer for an extra day I suppose but these Texas folks are downright frozen. Considering I have to come back in a few days I should have just stayed for the weekend. 

This beautiful mid-century masterpiece will NOT be our vacation home. We ended too far apart on price. Nothing else even comes close to this one so we'll have to keep looking or make a decision to spend at the maximum desired $/SF for the area. At present, we did not take their counter and are moving on. 

Let's hope this delayed flight makes good time and I get home before Niko closes. This wig needs attention!

Going Places!

It has been an interesting flurry of events since I last checked in for a flight and a journal entry. Two weeks ago kicked off with a friend's birthday celebration on Friday and hanging out with my cousins from Westerville, DE, and KY over the weekend. It was certainly great to catch up. A super busy, and eventful work week followed. More to come on that when I know what's what. This past weekend we went to Detroit for the North American Auto Show. The heavy snow on Friday delayed our arrival by car but we did make it in time to see our great friend perform improv at GoComedy in Ferndale. This is a must see show. We then discovered Valentine Spirits, drug our scooter friends to super gay Soho, and then went to an after hours party with some new friends from the bar. Needless to say, we weren't the first ones to arrive at Cobo center on Saturday morning. 

The show was fantastic despite the fact that several manufacturers recycled last years displays. I'm looking at you Lincoln and Nissan. Some others did too, but I would expect the bigger players to make everything shiny and new. While Nissan did show some nice stuff, the only innovative design in the Lincoln display was their Shinola boutique. I need the orange bike! Overall, two very different cars turned my head. The Porsche 911 Targa actually spun it around. While the automatic roof isn't quite as impressive in person, the return to that classic Targa style with the metal bar is magnificent. There aren't really any ugly 911s but this one stands out. It makes me want to trade in the 996 C4 tomorrow! Too bad it's out of my price range this year? The best part of this display was some white trash dude walking by, commenting to his family that Porsche has lost its style because they've been, "making the same damn car for 40 years." Oh how sad and sheltered his life must be. 

The second car is dubbed an urban utility vehicle and caught me 100% off guard. When Mini super sized their classic tiny Cooper, I was angry because they were trying to duplicate the mini experience in an American size. I thought they should stick with what they knew. When Porsche, despite my love for them, started making big sedans and SUVs, I turned my head in disgust. Fiat took a different approach. They wanted a bigger car but didn't try to replicate the style or appearance of the very successful 500, a car which now outsells the Mini Cooper. Instead they used a proven, shared, European urban platform. It is essentially a tall hatch called the 500L. It probably should have been given a unique name of its own, but I'm utterly in love with the quirky style, versatility, and size. It offers more rear leg room and head room than a full size Cadillac! While the comfort and power aren't anything to write home about, this may be our next camping, scooter rallying, buzz around the city car. I can't believe it barely caught my attention before Detroit. The fancy blinged out orange version with the retro wheels actually caught my eye first. If the drive and ride are acceptable, I might actually replace our beloved Ertha. She is a little long in the tooth at 3-1/2 years old. 

I finished the weekend with a wake in Cleveland for a dear friend's brother and then visited my family for MLK day. The parents are prepping for their first big vacation, ever, so I had to educate them on packing, flying, etc. Our lives are so very different. I might have also found time to make an offer on a vacation home yesterday. The intent is for my daughter to live there until she finishes school. It's 100% right for us but unfortunately 160% priced relative to unremodeled mid-century comps in the area. We'll see what they think of our generously realistic offer and we'll continue the hunt if they don't bite. My only concern is that it's way cooler than my primary residence. Too bad it's not close enough to live in on a regular basis. There's more big potential news on the horizon, but it will have to wait. While this is my personal journal, without any readers, some things must be kept under wraps! Now off to Dallas for a 4 day work week!

Uneventful

I'm home.  It was terribly cold in Dallas but apparently even colder in Ohio. There are lots of fun things on the horizon but for now I am exhausted. 

Year 2013; Flight 1

It's been a busy week! I took my first CoGo Bikeshare ride to the Short North for drinks and shenanigans with friends. We ate at Betty's which was a good thing because Liz is apparently closing this location. I also discovered a hidden gem of a local music venue called Little Rock where we listened to a friend of a friend turn out some tunes! The weekend included a road trip to the country for Family Christmas followed by New Year's Eve with my scooter peeps. I took down the tree on New Year's Day and then had the pre-requisite pork and sauerkraut at Schmidt's with some neighbors. Here's a little documentation of that day:  https://vine.co/v/hVUgAWhp77h/embed

Tim and I road tripped to Kentucky for a family wedding this weekend and I'm boarding a flight for Dallas just in time to miss the big snow storm. The rain and current temperature contradict the forecast but it is Ohio and everything can change within the hour!