Sarah J

it’s everything I expected and more. palm trees lining the streets, pastel stucco houses with red tile roofs, celebrity friends, and big parties on the weekend. looking forward to a full weekend of Halloween activites and swimming in the Pacific.

updates:
Detroit
amazing city. so strange in its development and interesting to see a town so intertwined with cars. it’s intriguing. really enjoyed the Ford Factory and museum. I learned so much there and yet still have so many questions.

Texas
so I didn’t use the internet while I was there. here’s a summary instead:
Dallas – state fair. yeeee haw! livestock shows and carnival rides, Dallas Cowgirls, prize-winning arts and crafts and a whooole lot of fried food.
Austin – longhorns, an interactive film about Texas, nice thrift stores and a whooole lot of clubs and bars.
San Antonio – remember the Alamo? I do. and the riverwalk and the Mercado…
Canyon Lake – the hill country is sooo beautiful. went for a bike ride and swam in the river, watched the stars, and just relaxed. ahhh…
Pat and Sam have been the most gracious hosts. thank you both so so so much.

30hr train ride – not as bad as I thought. slept normal hours, got a blanket from a train conductor, watched a couple films and the desert. hooray. passed by a sign on a fence that read “This is the border of the United States of America” near El Paso.

so I am out of the midwest and familiar territory. Texas hasn't been treating me too bad... yet. today's adventure: Texas State Fair. it's my first one. I'm excited. yeeee haw!

ridiculous amounts of laughing
crazy radio karaoke
and OUTLET SHOPPING!
wow. I'm really in the suburbs.

ungh... yay international pub crawl in Toronto. boo hangovers.
last night I spoke english, french, italian, german, spanish? I lost track. but it was fun! I also found people who will be travelling as much as I am, in the same places and at the same time even! now if I can just remember his name... gimme a minute... no seriously, I know this...

ok, not looking forward to 8hrs on a bus now, but at least it's not 18! getting closer to warmer weather as it gets colder here. Texas, here I come! (after michigan... go Wings!!!)

waiting on Amy just now. heard a great pickup line on the radio:
'I'm new in town, can you show me the way to your place?'
heh, maybe...

this morning was actually nice (despite waking up at 2a and not doing laundry until 8:30a because I had no change). wandered over through chinatown and kensington market. nice vintage stores! but none of them were open yet.

once my laundry was done, I ventured over to the Hockey Hall of Fame! (I'm still drooling...) nice. so many inane details and records... but! I saw Dennis Potvin's name on the Stanley Cup! oh yeah, saw the cup. way cool. saw all the Red Wings' many wins on there! yay.

now I'm starving. so Amy better get here soon. I want cheese.
had some strange cheese yesterday - Cahill Guinness? literally laced with guinness. very strange. tasted like cheese but then had a guinness aftertaste. not sure if I totally enjoyed that or not. think I'll try the cranberry/cinnamon one today.

Amy!!! where are you!?

I guess it counts as the next day if I've slept for 8hrs and it's past midnite. man, that bed felt good! glad I got that cheese/baguette. I always need access to food. apparently I also need access to change - I don't even have enough quarters to start my laundry. damn. this makes me wonder how I'd deal with serious jetlag if I can barely handle 18hrs of buses.

at least I have some time now to figure out what I want to do and how to go about it. I have had the hardest time finding how to get places in Toronto. first problem: does anyone know where to find a decent MAP?! *grumbling mumbling* and why doesn't Zagat rate ANYTHING in canada?

so far all I've found to do is visit some distilleries, a wine shop, and perhaps a tour of the vineyards around Niagara Lake. not that I'm opposed to drinking or anything... just, is there anything else?

suggestions anyone???

Ugh!
so glad the bus ride is over. just can't wait to actually get into my room here so I can shower, do laundry, sleep, eat... damn this 18hrs of bus rides.

but I'm terribly excited for Toronto. it's not even that cold! I'm basically wearing shorts! it was colder in Grinnell.

I can't think right now. too much travel. I just want to figure out what to do with my stuff, where to go, how this all works, who's in my room... waah.

I love it
I hate it
I love it
I hate it

...ugh.


planning life is crazy!

staying with three guys:
Keystone tallboys, football, porn, 'Final Countdown', football, Prefontaine, football...
you get the idea.
but it's really great to be here. seeig everyone at 10-10 last night was wonderful. I can't wait to see people in a slightly more sober state so we can actually talk and catch up and all. I'll probly plant myself in the forum so people can find me.

the Chicago Sox just beat the BoSox in Boston while I'm in Chicago. it's interesting. pretty funny though. I mean they were swept! that's pretty harsh.

the weather in Chicago has been pretty funky. in my mind that's what accounts for my funky mood (read: lazy). the day I got here - high of 90. yesterday and today - high in the 50s, windy, rainy, yeah. really good day to sit inside with some beers, get some takeout and watch baseball, presuming they don't let the rain stop them.

I think I may as well break the news, that I want to keep traveling. I don't think I'll be stopping on the west coast, but it's not entirely planned out yet. I'll keep posting with updates. if there's anyone else out there who wants me to come visit them, let me know because it's all up in the air right now.

leaving for Chicago in 5 1/2 hrs.
never thought I would be so hesitant to leave the east coast. it hit me yesterday morning and I simply couldn't wake up all day. but that's also the problem with the east coast for me - everything's so accessible that I'm not out of my comfort zone. once I get into the midwest, even though I'm familiar with Chicago, it's that much harder to go back to NYC. but this is what I need - to get out of my comfort zone. I think if you're too comfortable, you need to challenge yourself more.
and yes, I'm up at 6:30a again.

Bliss
staying in University City and absolutely loving it. old brick houses with painted wooden porches on tree-lined streets. tiny cafes with outside seating. everything is just so quaint and detail-oriented, I have to catch my breath everytime I turn a corner. there's no way to describe the feeling of Philadelphia and this neighborhood in particular. but I'll work on it.

uh... Amy and I have done so much without really doing anything at all.
the zoo cost $18 so we went in the store and played with the stuffed animals. the museum was $8 but we've both been there before so we walked around the outside. the one thing we did do that was fun and novel for us was strolling the bars on South Street. found a good cheap one to play pool in and played doubles with two chill dudes.

we stumbled across the bar that John recommended - Tattoed Mom. the nachos we saw in there were nasty, pretty mixed crowd, but it had this depsondent air about it. we preferred Malokai's.

yesterday must have been wedding day cause we saw 3 bridal parties taking pictures around the museum and 2 bachelorette parties on South Street. this place is really something else. but we like it!

ungh...
pub crawl on South Street. well actually, mostly one bar with a pool table and a local brew - Yard. after 6hrs on buses, it was very much appreciated. as was the cough medicine and a hotel with an actual bed that is all my own.
glad to be with Amy and having a blast laughing at everyone, everything and especially ourselves... and the Iranian-English comic on tv.
CHIJI'S anyone?
yum