Alrighty then! Checked out of the Residence Inn, got rental car, checked into Doubletree, returned rental car, made it work by 8:30!
Only four more nights in Cleveland, then on to New York on Friday night. Looking forward to being back in NYC!
If only Alex was available to help me with my bags.
I’ve been remiss about taking photos around town, so in tomorrow’s entry I’m going to include several photos of Cleveland.
I really think if the weather had been a little milder I would have gotten many more pictures while I was here. But it’s been as low at the mid-twenties, for pity’s sake.
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One of the challenges of a trip of this length is the combination of having lots of pounds worth of baggage and many instances of having to move said baggage around. I’m not particularly fond of packing, and schleping my pile of bags from one place to another. I guess I should look at it as a real-life workout opportunity. But it’s the kind of thing that makes me think it would be awfully nice to have a servant.
Luggage Moves on Trip
(bold: already been done)
Home to LAX
Cleveland Airport to Residence Inn, Cleveland
Residence Inn Cleveland to Doubletree Cleveland
Doubletree Cleveland to Residence Inn Cleveland
Residence Inn Cleveland to Cleveland Airport
JFK Airport to Courtyard Upper East Side, New York
Courtyeard Upper East Side, New York to JFK Airport
Brussels Airport to Hotel Montgomery, Brussels
Hotel Montgomery Brussels to Brussels Midi Train Station
Gare du Nord, Paris to Marriott Rive Gauche, Paris
Marriott Rive Gauche, Paris to Gare du Nord, Paris
Brussels Midi to Hotel Montgomery, Brussels
Hotel Montgomery Brussels to Brussels Airport
Vilnius Airport to Holiday Inn Vilnius
Holiday Inn Villnius Lithuania to Vilnius Airport
Berlin Airport to Courtyard Berlin City Center
Courtyard Berlin City Center to Berlin Train Station
Munich Train Station to Hotel Muenchen Palace, Munich
Hotel Muenchen Palace to Munich Airport
Moscow Airport to Sheraton Palace Hotel, Moscow
Sheraton Palace Hotel to Moscow Train Station
St. Petersburg Train Station to Courtyard Pushkin Hotel, St. Petersburg
Courtyard St. Petersburg Hotel to Ferry Station
Tallinn Ferry Station to St. Olav Hotel, Tallin
My hotel in Tallinn. I think.
St. Olav Hotel, Tallinn to Tallinn Ferry Station
Helsinki Ferry Station to Hotel City Center, Helsinki
Hotel City Center to Helsinki Airport
LAX to HOME
Okay, getting tired just looking at this list! Be careful what you wish for, I guess!
///
Yikes! Speaking of being remiss, I’ve been VERY negligent of my Lynda.com training so far on the trip. I’m going to get better at that. I’m still working my way through the courses in Sharepoint and Lightroom 3.
For those of you not familiar, Lynda.com is this fantastic subscription website where you can learn almost any tech subject you care to learn. The instructors are top-notch and the videos are clear and focused. I highly recommend it!
Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 201 user reviews.
On the porch of their gorgeous 100 year old home in Toledo.
Toledo
March 26
Distance traveled today: 240
Total distance traveled: 2755
Today I drove west to Toledo to see my old World of Warcraft buddy Eric, better known as Kirian/Kirinas. He and I go all the way back the days of The Older Gamers / Thorns of Gold days in late 2004. After we were thrown out of T.O.G. (long story) we formed a guild called More Explosions that turned into sort of our WoW alma mater. Eric and I haven’t been in the same guild for a while now, but we’ve remained friends.
He and his wife and 20 month old daughter live in a beautiful 100 year old house in a lovely part of Toledo. We had a lovely visit which included Mexican food – always a plus!
In the 6.5 years I’ve been playing World of Warcraft, I have always jumped at the chance to meet up with friends I’ve made in the game. I don’t know anyone who’s met “IRL” more WoW friends than I have. Highlights:
Memorable Meetups with World of Warcraft Friends
Tantred, Neverwind and Lavalia – From the Bay Area, met in Hollywood
Drajh, Gaspard — Houston
Cclaudius – From Australia, met in Los Angeles
Nerual and his family – from Pacific NW, met in Los Angeles
Cloudblueyes – From LA, met in LA
Sacred – From Long Beach, met in LA
Aetropos and Thal – from Connecticut and Northern Cal, met in New York
Ardwen and Kulgarr – in Scottsdale
Iconia, Adam, others – Orange County
Jone, Newt, Natalyst, others – BlizzCon Anaheim
Kirinas – Toledo
Elithamaeter – from Seattle, met in Los Angeles
//
After tonight’s screening at the Cleveland International Film Festival, I have to pack, blech. I have to go stay in another hotel for two stupid days before coming back here to finish the week. What a bore.
Average Rating: 4.4 out of 5 based on 286 user reviews.
Great day trip today to see my friend Randy in Pittsburgh. For eleven years, I have written about computer games on Randy’s website, www.justadventure.com. Randy is a passionate enthusiast of games in general, but most particuarly of that most maligned genre, the adventure game.
After having a brief heyday in the late 80s and early 90s (until The Sims came along, Myst was the biggest-selling PC game), adventure games have been in a long, slow, sad decline. But at least partially thanks to Randy, the genre is still hanging on.
The view from Randy's neighborhoodRandy in the fabled computer lair!
Through these years I’ve met many interesting people in the gaming industry through Randy. My involvement with JustAdventure also led to a couple of actual paying gigs in the industry. I was the puzzle design consultant for the second and third Law and Order pc games.
It's well known that, like Patrick Wilson, all graduates of Carnegie Mellon are handsome and talented.
I used to see Randy once a year, when he’d come to Los Angeles to attend the Electronic Entertianment Expo with me. But for the last several years, Randy’s been fighting life-threatening d so he hasn’t traveled as much. It’s been ages since I’ve seen him, so I’m awfully glad I had this opportunity.
A tiny fraction of Randy's vast game collection
I finally got to meet his other two sons (I’d met Randy, Jr. before once when he also came out for E3), as well as Randy’s wife Sandy. After a tour of the city, they cooked me a fabulous Polish dinner before I hit the road back to Cleveland.
Average Rating: 4.4 out of 5 based on 171 user reviews.
Good news on the electronics front. The Magellan Travel Store online has comprehensive resources to help you figure out what your actual travel needs are. I just need to fire it up and go through my gadgets one by one and cross check them with each country I’m going to be in. Maybe a bit time-consuming, but should be doable.
///
Busy weekend ahead! I’m renting a car tomorrow morning and heading to Pittsburgh to see my friend Randy. I’m looking forward to the ride. It should be good weather for driving, cold and clear. I haven’t seen Randy in several years, so I’m happy I’ve got this opportunity.
On Sunday, I’m driving two hours in the opposite direction, to Toledo. There I’m meeting an old World of Warcraft buddy who I’ve known for over six years but have never met in person.
On top of all that driving, I have tickets to attend four screenings at the Cleveland International Film Festival, which starts this weekend in a venue just a five minute walk from my hotel. Lucky me, huh?
Things could get even crazier, because there’s a very real possibility I’ll have to check out of the Residence Inn Monday morning, which means I’ll need to pack Sunday night after all that driving plus a screening. Ugh.
Have to bounce back and forth between here . . . .
It’s my own fault. I was so obsessive about getting as many Marriott nights as possible, when I was informed that during my time in Cleveland the Residence Inn was sold out for some of the nights I needed to be there, I agreed to a silly leap-frog arrangement back and forth between the Residence and another hotel. I got lucky a week ago when cancellations allowed me to avoid the first trip to the other hotel. But my luck may run out this weekend. Fingers crossed.
Having to check out of my hotel, check into another hotel and return a rental car all before work on Monday could lead to a pre-work migraine. Yipee.
After all this activity I hope I’m not exhausted come Monday morning when I finally make it to work.
. . . . and here.
///
By the way, the Magellan Travel store is to die for. I want almost everything I see for sale there[1]. I think I’ll be placing an order soon and have it delivered to my hotel in New York.
Items Currently on my Wish List at Magellan’s Travel Supplies
WindPro Auto Umbrella
CarrySafe 100 (wire-reinforced camera strap)
World Time Alarm Clock (practically free with any order)
Last night when I was leaving work I ran into my friend Sara on the elevator. She invited me for a drink. There’s this bar in the basement of the building that a lot of the IT folks from the Client like to hang out in. I almost said no. I mean, I don’t drink. But thank goodness I considered my response before my knee-jerk “no.”
There is a very friendly bar hiding deep in this complex.
Reasons to Say No and Go Straight Home to my Empty Hotel Room
I don’t drink!
Those World of Warcraft daily quests won’t do themselves!
That Terry Pratchett book on my Kindle won’t read itself!
That Mario and Luigi game on my Nintendo DS wouldn’t finish itself!
Yeah. I’m that pathetic. For a brief moment those sad, small-minded reasons nearly scuttled my evening. But fortunately, in the instant I was weighing my answer to Sara, my mind ticked off the next list:
Reasons to Say Yes, For Heaven’s Sake
I have NO PLANS (see above list).
I LOVE Sara!
I only see Sara when I’m in Cleveland!
I’m not in Cleveland very often, and I’M IN CLEVELAND NOW.
What the hell is the matter with me!
Happily the second list won.
“I’d love to, ” I said. Thank goodness. Of course I had a wonderful time, club soda or no club soda. Sara is always great company.
Sara and I met, you may remember, in Beijing. Here’s a photo of us on the Great Wall of China:
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I’m finding myself surprisingly intimidated an discombobulated by the spectre of needing to use electrical devices in seven countries without blowing something up, starting a fire, or simply not being able to use one of my devices.
There’s more at stake here than the last time I was in Europe (2006). On that trip, I wasn’t hauling a laptop around. More importantly, I wasn’t hauling a C-PAP machine around.
The C-PAP machine is for my sleep apnea. Getting one changed my life for the better in September 2008. (Blog post: http://rayivey.com/wordpress/?p=137)
I have not slept without it a single night since getting it. I do not intend to have to start sleeping without it just because I am in Estonia. Even in Estonia I will need a good night’s sleep. And, oh yes, a modicum of oxygen to the brain.
So. I have to evaluate all of my gadgets and determine which ones will run on the European current. Plus, I’ll need to make sure I have a set of adaptor plugs for the outlets. Plus, I will need a power strip, because European hotel rooms are notorious for having scarce wall outlets.
I’ve always been a moron when it comes to electricity. Watts, amps, volts, just kill me now. I know that’s lame, but there you have it.
So I’m trying to research on the interwebs and from friends to make sure I’m prepared before I take off for Brussels on the 15th of April
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Whew! Plane tickets purchased for Cleveland/New York, New York/Brussels, Munich/Moscow and Helsinki/Los Angeles.
Hotel reservations secured in New York, Brussels, Paris (!), Berlin, Munich, Moscow, St. Petersburg and Helsinki.
Good news! I had enough frequent flyer miles for the flights from Brussels to Vilnius and from Vilnius to Berlin!
It’s a huge relief to have this much on the Done list.
Vilnius Old Town
You may notice there’s still some gaps in there. A certain amount of the travel is on my dime, so I still need to book the following:
Europe Trip Arrangements That Still Need to be Made
Train from Berlin to Munich
Train from Moscow to St. Petersburg
Ferry/Bus/Train from St. Petersburg to Tallinn
Hotel in Tallinn
Hotel in Vilnius
Ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki
yum
I simply cannot believe my good fortune that I get to go to all these interesting places in the next couple of months. I’m sooooooo lucky. I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas.
//
My evil friend Sara has introduced me to a Cleveland restaurant that’s worth going off my diet for. It’s called Melt, and there are a couple of them in the Cleveland area. They serve the most amazing, naughty sandwiches accompanied by ridiculous french fries. We’ve gone there twice in the three weeks I’ve been here. It’s good that I’m leaving soon.
Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 283 user reviews.
Two of my sisters have accused me of being a very black-and-white person. And this is probably true. I’ve tried in recent years to embrace the shades of gray a little bit more, but on some subjects I find I am unable to.
These affidavits stipulate that their brother Ray is always correct on all matters.
The main one being whether or not I am a full citizen of this country.
I will fully and freely confess to being guilty of black-and-white thinking on this topic.
To be sure, gay rights have come a million miles in my lifetime, and that’s fantastic. But until we have marriage we will remain second-class citizens.
I find I am growing quite weary of the entire argument. We either have the same rights as everyone else or we don’t.
Let’s break down the classic arguments against marriage equality:
1. The Bible defines marriage as one man and one woman.
Absolutely, positively untrue. The Bible defines marriage in many ways. Usually it’s a union between a man and several women. In the case of the Abraham (the original patriarch of Judaism, Christianity AND Islam) it was between a man and his sister. In most of the Bible, women are property. And divorce is mostly forbidden.
And even if the Bible actually DID define marriage this way So what?! Our country is based on The Constitution, not the Bible. Would you really like our laws to reflect Biblical rules and regulations? Are you ready for shellfish and cheeseburgers to be illegal? How red dresses, talking back to your parents, or masturbation? And, of course, if we’re going to be Biblical, then slavery will have to become legal again. If you go around claiming our laws should be this way because that’s how it is in the Bible, if you cherry pick the scriptures and leave out the stuff that would be inconvenient to you, you’re a big fat hypocrite.
2. Why can’t gays be satisfied with Civil Unions?
Two reasons:
First, a little US Supreme Court decision in 1954 called Brown vs. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. It established once and for all that “separate but equal” is unconstitutional. So even if marriage and civil unions were exactly equal, this would still be unacceptable.
But civil unions and marriage are NOT equal. Not even close. Many of the most important rights and responsibilities in marriage are federal, and civil unions do not bring any of these protections. So this is still second class citizenship.
3. We shouldn’t redefine marriage.
The same religious rhetoric, word for word, was used against the legalization of interracial marriage.
Hogwash. We’ve done it countless times throughout history. Marriage used to be an exchange of property (a daughter) between one man and another. Until fairly recently, it was for life (no divorce). Then divorce was only allowed in the case of adultery. Then we further redefined marriage with the concept (in many states) of “no-fault” divorce. Even more recently, laws banning interracial marriage were struck down.
4. Gay marriage will destroy “the sanctity” of marriage.
This is wrong on so many levels.
First of all, “sanctity”? Really? Do you think all three of Newt Gingrich’s marriages were sacred? How about Britney Spears’ 40-hour marriage? If you are really, REALLY concerned about the sanctity of marriage, why aren’t you picketing to take away the civil rights of people who practice The Divorce Lifestyle? If you aren’t, and yet you oppose gay marriage on “sanctity” grounds, you are a big fat hypocrite.
Finally, you don’t think that gay people treasure their unions just as much as straight people do? The idea that they somehow don’t is pure homophobia.
5. Kids need a mom and a dad.
Really? So why is single parenthood legal? Why is it legal for two people who have no intention of procreating to get married? Why is it legal for people who cannot have children to get married? If you’re going to play the children card, and you don’t call for any marriage that isn’t about to produce children to be illegal, you are a big fat hypocrite.
Beside, EVERY study coming down the pike shows that kids with two loving parents do well, and that the sexual orientation of those two parents is irrelevant.
6. Gay parents will raise gay children.
Really? All of my parents are straight. My dad is straight, and three of the four children he raised are gay. Hmm.
7. We live in a democracy. In state after state, the voters have said NO to gay marriage.
So what? Civil rights can’t be taken away by a bullying majority. At least, not forever. That’s what courts are FOR. If the majority ruled on issues of civil rights, black people might still have to ride on the back of the bus in the south. Sometimes the majority is WRONG.
8. This will lead to people wanting to marry their dogs and their toasters.
No, it won’t. Neither a dog nor a toaster is a legal consenting adult.
And then there’s possibly the most offensive one of all:
9. Forcing gay marriage on us restricts my religious freedom.
Really? How? No one is going to make you marry someone of the same sex. And if you think your religious freedom is being restricted because you have to live in a country that has gay marriage, then, well, get over it. How about the religious freedom of all the millions of Christians to DO support gay marriage? Doesn’t their religious freedom count as well?
Here’s the thing: When I think about the 1950s, when there was so very little accurate information about homosexuality out there, and so many lies about it being propagated, it’s kind of understandable when you think about how homophobic people were. Most people really didn’t know any better.
It's Adam and Steve! Get over it, and get used to it.
But today people know different. People know better. People know their gay friends and neighbors are not monsters. Many people know gay couples. A growing number of Americans know gay couples with children.
So if you know gay people, if you have gay friends, or a gay cousin, and you like to say you’re not homophobic, and then you go down to the polls and vote against gay marriage, please understand that you are a bigot, pure and simple. You are like the Southern wife in 1960 who would talk about how much she “loves” her housekeeper, while still supporting segregation. If that Southerner didn’t want her black maid to have civil rights, then guess what? She DIDN’T love her. And if you don’t shout and stamp your feet and vote in support of the absolute full citizenship of your gay friends, brothers, uncles and co-workers, then you do not really care about us.
And if that’s a black and white attitude, Donna and Rachel: SUE ME. 🙂
It is either ridiculous, sad, pathetic or all three to think of how many gadgets I have dragged along with me on this trip. Compare this to my first trip to Europe, when I took exactly one gadget: A camera (which broke halfway through my Paris stay).
Gadgets Taken on Trip
HP Laptop
Droid Incredible smart phone
Droid Incredible smart phone charger
Nintendo DS Lite handheld gaming system
Nintendo DS Lite handheld gaming system charger
Sony PSP lite gaming system
Sony PSP lite gaming system charger
Kindle
Nikon D90 SLR digital camera
Nikon D90 SLR camera battery charger
Nikor portrait lens
Data dump for photos
Data dump charger
Computer cable for camera
Computer cable for data dump
C-PAP machine
Earbuds
World of Warcraft authenticator fob
This protects my World of Warcraft account from getting hacked again.
Of course, I have to now check each one of the devices or chargers and make sure they won’t blow up if I plug them into a European 220-230 volt outlet. I think they should all be fine, but I must make sure, because I’d really rather not sully my reputation with the Client by burning down the odd hotel in Russia or Belgium.
On the other hand, I must be prepared, because having useable electricity will be very important, and European hotel rooms are not famous for the bounty of electrical outlets they typically offer. I’ll probably need to get a little Euro power strip. Not being able to use my C-PAP machine would be . . . not good.
I do love technology, but I worry about how utterly dependent on it we are becoming. I assume that as terrorism evolves the attacks will be more and more on our technology infrastructure rather than purely physical targets.
It's all about the games, baby
I’m also trying not to be too anxious about Moscow. I think of it as a pretty dangerous place. Isn’t it? I don’t want to end up a footnote in the Los Angeles Times.
Average Rating: 4.9 out of 5 based on 282 user reviews.
Had a wonderful afternoon and evening with my friend Sara. We saw the new movie Pauland went for dinner afterwards.
Paul is a movie about a couple of British nerds who stumble across a real alien and try to help him, well, go home. Sounds hackneyed and overly familiar, I know, but I was surprised how much I liked it. It’s full of well-done references to popular science fiction movies. There’s even a moment when Blythe Danner gets to say to Sigourney Weaver, “Get away from her, you BITCH!!” I loved it.
Sara and I met in Beijing. We were both there working on a roll out for the Client. We ran into each other at, Pizza Hut. Yes, they have Pizza Hut in Beijing. Thank goodness. [PHOTO]
Robert, Sara and Ray on the Great Wall. I was the largest human in China.
I started out eating the meal alone. I sat near the All-You-Can-Eat salad bar. While I waited for my pizza I saw one of the most amazing things I have ever witnessed. A young woman was turning her salad plate into an art piece. She must have spent thirty minutes building the tallest, most beautiful, most soundly structured tower of raw vegetables the world has ever seen. I swear it was twelve inches high. It looked like an art project. This chick was going to by God get her money’s worth from the salad bar.
Sara spotted me and joined me. We both watched in awe as the Tower of Salad grew taller and more complex. It was like watching someone build the greatest sand castle you ever saw.
We got to talking and it turned out we were both in Pizza Hut for the same reason: We didn’t much care for the food in Beijing. Don’t get me wrong, I love Chinese food. And by that I mean classic New York Americanized Chinese Food like God intended it. The food in the capital of the People’s Republic was just a bit . . . dodgy. Sara and I bonded over a mutual need for the familiar comfort of and American franchise restaurant.
We have been fast friends since that night.
My last night in China I took her to a Tex-Mex place I’d found that made a surprisingly respectable chicken fried steak, and then had a harrowing rickshaw ride back to the hotel. Harrowing not for us, but for the poor rickshaw dude, who nearly had a heart attack having to move the two of us (this was when I weighed quite a bit more than I do now). The whole thing became unreasonably hilarious to both of us. It was a good send off.
So. I always look forward to getting together with Sara whenever I’m in Cleveland, which is her home base. It’s a shame she’s not going to any of the other offices I’m heading to.
Best Cities for Restaurants
Tokyo
San Francisco
New York
Paris
Munich
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Physically feeling better each day as this week progresses. Very glad it’s Friday! Tomorrow I’m taking a bus and going to the movies all day.
Next week could bring a lot of driving: East to Pittsburgh on Saturday and West to Toledo on Sunday.
I’m happy to be finishing up the first week of the trip successfully.
I’m a bit anxious about the upcoming travel itinerary. Not anxious about going, but about getting it settled and paid for. I hope to have that all settled shortly.
It’s worth being a little anxious: The Client has significantly increased the countries I can now check off my Visited list, so I do feel like I owe them.
Countries Visited Prior to the First Project for the Client in 2006/7
Canada
Mexico
Bahamas
United Kingdom
France
Monaco
Switzerland
Italy
Vatican City
That’s nine countries, which isn’t bad, I guess, but not that impressive, especially considering three of them are Monaco, Bahamas and the Vatican.
But here’s how the list grew thanks to the Client:
Countries in Europe I have visited after the first project with the Client in 2006.
Countries Visited by the Conclusion of the First Project for the Client in 2006/7
Canada
Mexico
China
Japan
Bahamas
United Kingdom
France
Germany
Czech Republic
Slovakia
Hungary
Austria
Monaco
Switzerland
Italy
Vatican City
Sixteen countries. That’s a whopping 77% increase in my total number of countries. Now, I didn’t work for the Client in all of those countries, but the ones I went to recreationally – Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Austria – only happened because I was already in the neighborhood thanks to work.
Of course this list will be even more impressive by the end of this trip.
Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 244 user reviews.
Munich Train Station to Hotel Muenchen Palace, Munich
