HolographicMeatloaf.com

Since purchasing the PT Cruiser convertible (or “PT Loser” as Anthony calls it), I’ve experienced a slightly different drive than anything I’ve ever had in the past. This is especially true after driving an Explorer for nearly two years.

First, the absence of a solid roof is a big change. As such, the weight that would be above me has been distributed to the doors which are very heavy—and long. But those heavy doors make he thing feel like a tank.

When the top is up, it’s dark in the car because the interior lining of the roof is black and the rear window is small. There are two sets of dome lights: a pair in the rear-view mirror and a pair in that strange bar in the middle of the car. Neither pair seems very effective. The ragtop version of the PT Cruiser also seems smaller and at times I feel like I’m driving an 50s hot rod (save for the huge engine, fender-flames and raccoon tail on the antenna).

Top-down driving is fun on reasonably warm days and I’ve learned that driving with the windows up cuts down on wind noise. It also sort of puts a muzzle on the kid when he sees a Volkswagen Beetle and utters the phrase, “Look, Daddy! A piece of crap!” as he did yesterday…with the windows down…

I’ve also learned that driving top-down leaves you exposed to the elements. No, a bird hasn’t shat on me yet but I have had the pleasure of taking in the aroma of cigarettes and air fresheners from cars around me. (Seriously, why bother with air freshener when your car already smells like ass?) I can also glance at aircraft overhead and know exactly where to run and hide during the next blimp attack. Also, the radio needs to be cranked up pretty high in order to drown out the noise around me.

And picking your nose? Forget it.

Speaking of the radio, guilty pleasures are even guiltier when people around you can hear them. I guess that’s why that dude was staring at me when I was blasting Doris Day’s “Everybody Loves a Lover.”

But despite all that, I find driving in my new-used car a refreshing change from being behind the wheel of a behemoth vehicle that got terrible mileage. I’m not saying the mileage in the PT Loser is better, but I filled it on May 1^st and will have to fill it up again probably tonight before Ann and I go on our date. (Yes, married couples can still date—and trust me, they are worth it )

By comparison, I would have to fill the Explorer once a week even with taking the train to work.

But at least I could still pick my nose and listen to Kajagoogoo in peace.

Our little boy is growing up fast. *sniff*

I have signed-up with Google Apps and as such, I will soon have an e-mail address with my own domain! Yeah, big deal I know. But at least now I can look and sound like I know what I’m doing.

Pending Google and Yahoo! verification, my new address will be dave_at_(this domain)_dot_com and chances are that will be the only address for that domain since, you know, this is a one-man show here.

I will update this post when it is finally active (which, according to Google, could take up to 48 hours). In the meantime, don’t eat a Costco muffin

The title of tonight’s post should summarize everything.

We left Wednesday night at around 6:45 p.m., drove non-stop through the desert, and arrived in Las Vegas at about 10:30 p.m. Considering we drove 70 MPH maximum, that was pretty good time.

Once we got there, however, it was the usual Las Vegas Ritual that included finding a parking space (we used valet most of the time), checking in, finding the room (26th floor) and then lugging the suitcases to the room. We opted to have the bellhop bring them to the room since we had an extra person that, um, brought a suitcase filled with Hot Wheels.

Thursday saw us walking on The Strip and going to M&Ms World, seeing the lions at the MGM Grand and a few other things. We pretty much had to keep Anthony occupied since he was in a strange place–literally and figuratively. He did, however, have fun swimming in the Excalibur pool as did Mom and Dad.

Friday I attended the funeral in Boulder City, which is about 30 miles from Las Vegas. It was a military service so it was very honorable and humbling, and reminded me of my dad’s over 30 years ago. (An aside: both of our fathers fought in Korea.) Later that night we all went to dinner at Russ’ dad’s favorite Mexican restaurant which, I have to admit, was very, very good. The man had good taste.

We left Friday evening to avoid the mess of traffic we would surely become a part of. Not only that, Ann thinks our room was haunted. The first night, she felt somebody tap her on the shoulder and when she woke up, she saw Anthony lying beside her dead asleep. No biggie; she figured he did it in his sleep and forgot about it.

The second night her back was facing the wall–and she claims she felt somebody (or something) rub her shoulder! Now that freaked her out and I do have to admit, I did hear assorted noises in the room–26162 at the Excalibur if you’re keeping score–all night long.

Las Vegas is very pedestrian and after those few days of walking around, my knees definitely felt their age. In fact, I have my right one wrapped in a neoprene bandage right now. Ouch.

And finally, I have a picture to share with you all. I’m proud of it because it actually shows that I’ve lost some weight and believe it or not, I think I look thin. Well, thinner than I’ve looked in previous photos. Anyway, here you go.

Read the rest of this entry »

26th floor, Excalibur hotel. Made it in about 4 hours–good time.

Last night, I got the grim confirmation that a friend’s father had passed away after being on life support for a few weeks.

I’m not going to go into full details about everything so to make the story short, chances are this will be my last blog entry for the week as I plan on attending the funeral. We will be preparing our things (and getting some needed rest) on Wednesday night, driving to Las Vegas Thursday morning, attending the funeral Friday, and returning Saturday.

We will not be bringing the laptop; there won’t be time for any Web-related stuff in our short time there. Be prepared, however, to see Phone-Cam pictures of Tony at the Ethel M. Chocolate Factory, M & M World, etc. as those will be easy to send and post (except, of course, for that weird coding that Flickr will embed into the post). I will also be bringing my cheap yet trust camera along for the ride. By the way, Tony thinks we’re driving through Radiator Springs but Mom and Dad know otherwise. The ride home may also include a trip to Calico Ghost Town.

So there you have it. See you next week

UPDATE 5/7/08 8 a.m. I forgot to add that I will also not be moderating any comments during my absence so if you leave a comment between Wednesday night and Saturday night, chances are I will not approve it until Sunday or Monday. Sorry…