“The unexamined life is a life not worth living.”

Homeward Ho!

2009-02-14T13:00:00.003-05:00

Jen again: Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! We woke up in Lone Pine, Calif., just outside of Death Valley, to a clear, cool, gorgeous morning. Our rustic mountain motel is ringed by towering craggy peaks covered in snow! We had a hot breakfast in the lobby and are preparing for the last leg of the trip through Yosemite National Park. This is the second time we've been through the park in as many months, but as John rightly put it: "I haven't been there this year!" Tonight, we'll sleep at home in Marin. Thanks to all who followed our trip on this blog -- hope you enjoyed the show!

Goin' Back to Cali

2009-02-13T23:12:00.002-05:00

Jen this time: We've arrived in Lone Pine, Calif. For me, it's good to be home. For John, it's a rite of passage. Rolling over the Nevada/California state line in Death Valley was a big moment; John arrived in California for the first time as a resident. Sweet. Tomorrow, Yosemite and then ... Home. Together. Finally.

Check it out

2009-02-12T20:58:00.001-05:00

At 6:51 p.m. mountain time, we crossed the 3,000-mile point in our trip. We're just outside of Phoenix. This number is significant to us becuase it represents the distance between us all these months.

The loooong star state

2009-02-11T17:51:00.000-05:00

John here (via mobile): It's been three days without internet access, but we're hopeful for Las Cruces, N.M. We stayed in a real hole in San Antonio. To top that, we went on a beer run around 11 p.m., just after getting a bite to eat. Well, we were in the River Walk area of the city, and there were plenty of little trendy, pay-8-bucks-for-a-beer little bars. But all we wanted was a 6-pack to take back to the room. Well, there wasn't a single gas station or any type of store in the area. It's not that there wasn't one open ... there WASN'T one. Lame! Anyway, we're in west Texas now driving through the desert. Keeping score? We've traveled 2,222 miles at the time of this post.

Leavin' for the Lone Star

2009-02-10T15:40:00.000-05:00

Juppy's wearing cowboy hats and swiggin' sweet tea by the quart. We're headin' Texas' way!

Time to dine

2009-02-09T22:45:00.001-05:00

John here (via mobile): We had a wonderful dining experience at Mulate's in downtown NOLA. We had a sampling of basically everything, which included frog legs, crab claws, oysters, catfish, gator tail, crawfish tail and many shrimp. The place was wonderful; it had river-style music and when you were in there you could imagine New Orleans as it was before the storm came through.

Big Easy ahoy!

2009-02-09T13:22:00.001-05:00

John here (via mobile): We're on the way to NOLA! We had a night in Birmingham, Ala., with Riley -- a bloke I knew from my ECU days. In New Orleans, we'll stay in a hotel just off the French Quarter. It's about a six-block walk to Bourbon Street. At the time of this post, we have about 6 miles left in Alabama. We'll slice off a corner of Mississippi, and then straight into the Big Easy. For those of you counting, we've driven 1,170 miles.

A new first

2009-02-08T00:11:00.001-05:00

John here (via mobile): This is the Jup-star after her first blog post!

Charleston, SC-Bryson City, NC

2009-02-07T23:58:00.003-05:00

Jen here: Friday night we spend the evening in the company of the delightful Maureen Hartshorn, my friend and former Marin IJ page designer who now works for the Post and Courier in Charleston. Pizza, beer, beer, uhh... beer. Oh, yeah, and Alka-Seltzer on Saturday morning after chowing down at the Cracker Barrel! South Carolina is not much to look at from I-26, which cuts through the state from the coast to the capital, Columbia, and threads north through the Blue Ridge foothills and into North Carolina's Great Smoky mountains. John's paternal grandparents, Wanda and Ken Swartz, who live in a cabin Ken built in Bryson City, fed us a delicious meal and visited with us Saturday night. Tomorrow: Birmingham!

2009-02-06T14:51:00.001-05:00

John here (via mobile phone): We're on the road, heading into South Carolina. We've just stopped at a Bojangles, and Jen is having her first-ever taste. Watch this space for her thoughts on this Southern fried yummy.

Our Trip

2009-02-05T23:07:00.005-05:00

John here: Well, I suppose this is technically Day 1 of our travels. We had a great good-bye party with my friends last night and people kept asking when we were leaving. Of course, when we'd say "the next day," there were a few surprised looks. They were thinking how ridiculous it would be to start a long road trip the day after ... well ... such an event as Wednesday night. There was, however, more understanding when I'd mention that the first leg of the trip was only 78 miles. The traveling really starts tomorrow. We're heading the way of Charleston, S.C., to see a friend of Jen's. In all there are quite a few stops along the way that include New Orleans, San Antonio and Phoenix. Below is our tentative trip plotted out.

View Larger Map

The one

2009-01-08T19:05:00.003-05:00

This post has been a long time coming, as the event in question happened a week ago today. There's no other way than to just come out and say it ... I'm getting married. No date's been set yet, but the ring's on her finger and it's all official as far as that goes.

Oh, I haven't even told you about the girl yet, have I? Well, here's a picture ...

... That's us on a wine tasting adventure through northern California. Her name's Jennifer, but I call her Jen when I even use a name. Of course, we're one of "those couples" have have pet names for each other. I won't put it in writing, don't worry.

She's a fellow journalist, working for the Marin (MAH-rin) Independent Journal, or just the IJ for short. We met at a work conference at Poynter in Florida last year; we were both learning video. Right away I could tell she was the right fit. Jen's got the biggest heart I think I've ever seen, and she cares deeply for whatever her heart tells her to. Luckily for me, I'm one of those things. She's got the amazing ability to do the cutest things and not even know they're cute. Just recently, I had flown across country and my sinuses were acting up. We were sleeping on an air mattress in Oakhurst, Ca., and I was snoring. She had to wake me up several times, and in doing that she gave me a light shake and said, "Baby, too much snoring." I can't think of any cuter way of being woken up.

You've seen the photo, so I don't even need to go into how beautiful she is, although I'd be remiss not to at least mention it. From the picture, you can probably see her blue eyes, depending on how good your monitor is. I didn't know it until I finally put 2 and 2 together, but they're the same color as the Pacific Ocean at sunset. Until I'd met Jennifer, I'd neither seen that color nor the Pacific. Seriously, go back and look at the picture of us, then look at this one I took of the sun setting over a mountain and the ocean ...

... See what I mean!

One word my mother often uses to describe me is tenacious. That adjective fits Jen as well. She's a newswriter in a field that is still quite dominated by men. She has to deal with cops and firefighters all day, not to mention the many city officials. She's rock solid all day and as fierce as any and then, at the end of the day, she'll come home and just melt in my arms. She'll let me carry her to the couch, lay her down, get her a beer and let her unwind. It's like she waits all day for my arms to take her, and then she can finally let go. I haven't gotten to do that much, as we're still too far apart, but I'm looking forward to doing it for years to come. And she'll even do it for me, though there's less carrying and more leading. I came home from a long day, and I was so tired she had to put me to bed. It's comforting knowing there is someone there who'll care for you when you need it.

I love this one, and there's no way I'm letting her get away.

Camping

2008-11-19T12:52:00.004-05:00

Mobile post

2008-10-15T06:40:00.000-04:00

I've been playing with my new phone, and I've got it set up to use with mobile facebook and blogger on the go.
Here is my fist post using the mobile blogger function. Oh, I have a qwerty keyboard on this phone too, so texting is really easy. Good thing I got the plan that includes 500 txts!

Good Samaritan 5K

2008-10-12T03:45:00.000-04:00

I did the Good Samaritan 5K today. It was a road race, and I totally crushed my PR. My previous best was 29:36, and today's time was 29:27. It was a good run in great weather. I ran a decent pace, yet managed to have just enough in the tank for a late push to the finish to make sure I got in under 30 minutes. Good run.

Remember the good times

2008-10-03T16:58:00.002-04:00

As East Carolina heads into its bye week this weekend, it's run to remember the good times. Remember this touchdown as part of the ass-whuppin the Pirates put on West Virginia?

Birthday carbomb

2008-09-13T00:39:00.001-04:00

Bo returns home after 20 years

2008-08-23T20:44:00.011-04:00

Bo is a man I met while studying at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla. He is but one of the many homeless who call St. Petes home. Especially him, since he's been living in Columbus, Ohio, for the last 20 years. And even though he had no actual house to come home to, he still came home to Florida. Here is his story.

Picking the Premiership

2008-08-01T22:42:00.001-04:00

Let me start all this off by saying that I have no idea what I'm talking about. As a sportswriter, I do strive to be an expert on whatever subject I take on. When that's not possible, I at least try to know a little bit about it. And that's just what I know about English football ... a little bit.

I got into sports writing because I enjoy reading, talking and writing about sports. But doing something 40 hours a week does have a way of making an enjoyable hobby into a chore sometimes. That's probably one of the reasons I think I've really enjoyed getting to know a little bit about English football. I'll probably never cover a game, and so I can be free to root for a team solely as a fan. Given that, I can also totally write about whatever I want when it comes to the Premiership without having to worry about my professional reputation. So, I've decided to take on the task of predicting the finishing order of all 20 teams in English football's top flight. This will be my first full season following the Premiership, as I jumped on late during the last campaign. With that said, I'll close with the same sentiment as I began ... I don't know what I'm talking about. But I'm learning something different every day, and trying to keep up.

Let's have some fun.

1. Manchester United
Sure Cristiano Ronaldo will be out for the Red Devils' first several league fixtures, but Man U. has plenty more weapons to take up the slack. Man U. finally own Carlos Tevez, and there's former Evertonian Wayne Rooney and Nani who love finding the net for what is probably the most loved and most hated club in the world. Man U. squeaked to the championship last season, and some of the teams right behind them have been making moves all summer. But I'm just not sure it's all been enough to dethrone the kings.

2. Chelsea
The Blues managed to hold on to Drogba and Frank Lampard this summer, both who were rumored to leave during the transfer window. They locked up top-keeper Petr Cech, and added the likes of Deco in midfield. Jose Bosingwa was another big signing for the Blues. Chelsea are going to be good, but still only second best again.

3. Liverpool
The Merseyside Reds have done seemingly nothing but improve this summer, and I think now have the talent to eclipse what was last season a seven-point difference between the fourth and third spots. Fernando Torres is simply nuts following his stellar performance at the Euros, and Liverpool have added Tottenham's Robbie Keane to boot. It certainly doesn't seem fair, does it? The biggest loss for Liverpool this summer has been Peter Crouch to Pompey, and the striker was rarely used anyway. This GBP11 million the Reds got for Crouch no doubt went far to buy Keane off Spurs, anyway.

4. Arsenal
I came drastically close to dropping the Gunners out of the magical top-4, but with Adebayor stating that he's going to stay on at the Emirates will do a lot to keep Arsenal among the league's top once again.

5. Tottenham
And here's the club I thought might have a chance to crack into the top-4 this season. Spurs still might, and they've not been shy in spending money this summer to make sure an 11th spot in the table isn't repeated. An early signing of Luka Modric to the midfield was bolstered by the recent transfer of Blackburn's David Bentley. Sure, the loss of Robbie Keane will hurt a little, but managing to hold onto Dimitar Berbatov keeps the front line effective. A co-worker of mine jokes, "Spurs are gonna run that 4-5-1." Well, they certainly have the midfield for it.

6. Portsmouth
It's going to be hard to score on keeper David James, and the recent addition of striker Peter Crouch make Portsmouth a force as they try to climb the table. They finished eighth last year, but were only three points from sixth. I think they've made up that difference this year.

7. Everton
As much as it pains me to say (as Everton is the club I've selected to throw my support behind), the Toffees have done absolutely nothing this summer. The midfield was weakened slightly by the departure of Lee Carsley, and another midfielder, Tim Cahill, won't be ready for the first Saturday of the season. Everton have been getting outbid for manager David Moyes' top targets all summer, and have yet to secure a major signing. The recent resignation of chief executive Keith Wyness won't make things any easier. On top of all that, the Blues have let go Andy Johnson, the club's record transfer from Crystal Palace. While the money Everton made from the sell of Johnson to Fulham has no doubt bolstered Moyes' transfer budget, they've yet to use any of it on an actual player.

8. Aston Villa
Aston Villa were nipping on Everton's heels throughout the latter stages of the last campaign. No doubt, they'll be back at it this year, too. Villa have been desperately trying to hold on to Gareth Barry, who has been linked with a transfer to Liverpool all summer. The Sunday Mail even reported last week that Barry was signed by the Reds. For now, however, Barry is still on Villa's roster. The squad's keeping corps have improved this year with Americans Brad Friedel and Brad Guzan.

9. Manchester City
Already with one of the most fun-to-watch strikers in Benjani, Man City have added striker Jo from CSKA Moscow. They finished ninth this year, and I have them in the same spot for the upcoming season. Not because they haven't improved, but because some of the clubs right above them (aside from Everton) have done just a little bit more with the transfer period.

10. Blackburn
Blackburn finished in seventh last season, but a new and very young and inexperienced manager coupled with the departure of David Bentley will be tough to overcome. Blackburn could be very competitive this year, and will likely still finish in the top half thanks to the efforts of striker Santa Cruz and newly-signed midfielder Carlos Villanueva.

11. West Ham
West Ham United haven't been very active in the transfer period, but still seem to be the club that could lead the lower half of the Premiership table. They spent quite a bit of money on midfielder Valon Behrami.

12. Middlesbrough
I'll admit I don't know much about the teams in this end of the table, but I do know that big things are expected from Middlebrough midfielder Digard this season.

13. Fulham
Fulham, the team with all the Americans, barely escaped relegation last season, but the addition of striker Andrew Johnson from Everton will likely strengthen the squad who should be able to safely secure another year in the Premiership.

14. Newcastle United
Newcastle looks to be a club in trouble. They have an owner who wants to sell the club, or not. Obafemi Martins is still fun to watch.

15. West Brom
Recently promoted WBA seems to be the club doing the most to make sure they secure a second consecutive season in the Premiership. They have signed about eight new players in an effort to upgrade to their new level of competition.

16. Bolton
Bolton are seemingly another side who are primarily concerned with survival in the top flight. The Wanderers signed Fabrice Muamba from newly relegated Birmingham City, and the midfielder looks to strengthen Bolton's chance at survival for another year.

17. Sunderland
Of the teams who managed to survive relegation last season, Sunderland had the worst goal difference at minus-23. However, Sunderland have been active recently in the transfer battle. El-Hadji Diouf is one of those names that make me glad I'm not in TV, but may be one of the pieces that keep Sunderland up, barely.

18. Wigan
Well, somebody's got to go down, and Wigan is my pick for that club that will come oh-so-close to staying up, but not. The top Wigan signees this summer are two players from Birmingham. Two players who apparently were unable to keep Birmingham up a year ago.

19. Hull City
After promotion, Hull City have been quite active in the transfer period. Those new players, no doubt, will help Hull City bounce right back up after getting relegated this year.

20. Stoke City
Stoke had a great campaign to secure a season in the top flight, but a team that's known to give up a lot of goals will do just that this year. Hopefully, Stoke can better Derby's efforts of a year ago.

Triathlon Training

2008-06-26T00:51:00.002-04:00

Recently I was formatting the results for this year's Lake Kristi Triathlon. I've gotten similar results like those in the past, and I've always imagined what it would be like to compete in such and event. Finally, I decided to find out.

I've been behind a desk for a while, and when I did work out I pretty much stuck with the weights, while only using cardio training as a way burn a few calories here and there. In the past, I've been far from an endurance athlete, preferring strength- and sprint-oriented sports. The closest I came to endurance was four years of soccer, playing mostly as a midfielder, as a youth. With that said, this is a totally new undertaking for me. Swimming, by far, will be my weak spot ... but that's what training's for, right?

I'm using a training-specific blog site to keep track of my workouts and my progress. Each time I train, I'll enter the data there and maybe say a few words about how it all went. You can keep up to date with the training by clicking Triathlon Training up in the top menu.

Why all this? Well, I needed a change or something to jump start my cyclical life. Something to look forward to. I was finding it hard to keep motivated to work out, and if I've got something to shoot for, I know I'll let nothing get in my way.

Don't Tread

2008-06-08T15:33:00.001-04:00

An interesting take on soccer.

Mmmm, beer

2008-06-06T22:27:00.003-04:00

Relegation worries

2008-05-20T04:53:00.002-04:00

In becoming a soccer fan, of the European variety, a new concept in sports has come to light -- relegation.

Relegation is when a team performs badly over the span of a season (in some cases, two), and they are sent down to what is effectively the minor leagues. A common example that's used to explain this concept to most Americans is this: Say the Kansas City Royals are crap this year like they usually are. Since they're so bad, baseball is going to demote them down to AAA ball, and take the best team from the triple-A ranks and promote them into the major leagues to replace the Royals. This not only would happen from the major leagues and AAA ranks, but also between AAA and AA ... AA and A, and so on. Now, around here, the Kinston Indians (Cleveland's A team) are usually pretty darn good. If the Kinston Indians were to win the A championship, they could move up to AA. Should they win that, send them to AAA. A championship there would mean ol' Kinston would be the home of a Major League Baseball team. Interesting stuff, huh? This concept has many benefits and consequences I won't get into here. I think you get the idea.

But the idea of relegation is sometimes a painful one. In Europe, it's just a fact of life. Like dying. Now, everyone gets that it happens to teams every year in every league. For a casual fan, I understand this. But that doesn't mean that I want to see it happen. I mean, I know lions eat antelopes, but that doesn't mean I want to see the grizzled scene.

Just last night, I watched the Fox Soccer Channel replay of the Roma-Catania match. Roma is at the top of the standings (or Table, if you will). Catania, however, was teetering on the relegation line. The squad needed a draw (tie) to stay in Italy's top soccer league. Down 1-nil late in the contest, if the result stood, Catania would be relegated into a lower league. I found myself rooting for Catania with everything I had. I knew full well that it the squad succeeded in its task, some other club would be relegated. But, like I said before, relegation is a fact that sometimes we just don't want to see. This "other club" wasn't in my living room, Catania was. Catania scored a goal in about the 80th minute that was recalled for an off-side penalty. Painful. In about the 84th minute, Catania scored the equalizing goal and effectively staved off relegation. There was so much joy in the stadium, and I found myself cheering loudly for this team I'd never seen play nor heard anything about until last night.

It's amazing how the use of club relegation can make a match between one of the leagues best teams and worst teams played on the final day of the season when the championship has already been settled mean so much. Right now, the San Diego Padres have MLB's worst record. If that stands, on the last day of the 162-game season, Padres fans have nothing to lose and the amateur baseball draft's No. 1 pick to gain. Imagine, Padres fans, if your entire team faced being sent to the minors on that day instead. Then you might get a hint of an idea about what true Catania fans were going through this week. With that, you can understand what a 1-1 draw on the season's last day can truly mean.

Life after college agreeable

2008-05-19T21:50:00.004-04:00

I've got to say, life after college has agreed with me so far. My days off from work are just that, days off. I don't have to wait for a work day off to coincide with a school day off to be able to schedule something out of town or simply lay around the apartment and not do a damn thing. On my last two days off, see picture below, I went to Clayton and hung out with my dad. We even checked out most of a concert ... before the rain made it too damp to enjoy.

Oh, and staying up until 4 a.m. -- which, admittedly, I've got to eventually stop doing -- isn't followed by that sense of guilt knowing that my time would be much better served either sleeping or studying. Especially considering my staying up until 4 in the morning involves one of (or a combination of) three things -- drinking, watching TV or playing games (video or card/drinking games).

Another thing I'm enjoying is the sudden absence of required reading. Not that I hate reading, quite the opposite, actually. But now I get to read simply for pleasure and only books of my choosing. I've just finished Bill Buford's Among the Thugs -- a look into the world of Great Britain's football hooligans. I actually got the book with about two weeks left in the final semester, and I'll admit I had a struggle of a time putting off really getting into it. I had quite a bit of academic reading I had to get through first.

---

In an unrelated topic, I'll take this time to put into writing my current wish list. I've recently used my extra free time to broaden my sport fandom, and I have recently included soccer to the list of sports I follow. Growing up, I played the beautiful game, and made some of my fondest sports memories while on the pitch. I'll never forget the sweet one-touch goal in what turned out to be a 5-1 losing effort. I made a side-by-side charge with a teammate with one defender and the keeper to beat. The back stepped in the direction of my teammate who had the ball. After the pass was sent my direction, the keeper charged in to attempt the save. The ball was fed into space, right between the keeper and me. I had to slide in with my left foot extended to make sure I got to the ball first, and I sent a slow roller just inside the left post with the keeper looking helplessly back. I had a decent basketball career, and even nailed a few big-time shots from 3-point land. I scored a game-winning touchdown once while playing football (I even received a 15-yard penalty for spiking the ball after the score). But I've never felt the rush of excitement equal to that which hit me when I scored that goal on the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base soccer field.

Getting back to my, I guess you'd call it, re-interest in soccer (or football as it's called when talking about my Premiership team Everton), I'd like to build a diverse collection of jerseys to go along with my fandom. I really like soccer jerseys. They're not as bulky and baggy as football jerseys. And unlike basketball jerseys, they actually have sleeves. Hockey jerseys are OK, but they're more like wearing sweaters, and it's just too hot in North Carolina to get much use out of them. I'll include here my top-5 wish list for soccer jerseys. I've already procured enough Everton FC jerseys to satisfy my needs for that team. I would, however, like to get a few player-specific jerseys from that club. Without further adu, the list (player, league, team, kit):

1. David Beckham, MLS, L.A. Galaxy, long-sleeve home white
2. Landon Donovan, international, U.S. National Team, short-sleeve away Navy
3. Benjani, EPL, Manchester City FC, home blue
4. Joleon Lescott, EPL, Everton FC, long-sleeve home blue
5. Clyde Simms, MLS, D.C. United, short-sleeve black home

I can lead a nation with a microphone

2008-05-08T17:32:00.003-04:00

Who's next?

Look at me
Look at me
Driving and I won't stop
And it feels so good to be
Alive and on top
My reach is global
My tower secure
My cause is noble
My power is pure
I can hand out a million vaccinations
Or let'em all die in exasperation
Have'em all healed from their lacerations
Have'em all killed by assassination
I can make anybody go to prison
Just because I don't like'em and
I can do anything with no permission
I have it all under my command
I can guide a missile by satellite
By satellite
By satellite
and I can hit a target through a telescope
Through a telescope
Through a telescope
and I can end the planet in a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust
In a holocaust

-- excerpt from Flobot's "Handlebars"