A Real-Life Traveler

This is what I want to be - a "real" traveler. When I travel now, on vacation, I usually map out all the things I would like to see or do. Whether it be to a place I've been before or somewhere new, I always do my research to see what I could possibly do to make my whole trip worthwhile. It is the planner in me. When I decide that I want to go somewhere, the first thing I do is look at flight times, how I will get to hotels (if I don't have a rental car), and all the things that are in the neighborhood of the hotel. Then I look at the big picture and list all the things that I would like to see/do while I'm on vacation. My days are practically planned out before I even leave. For some reason, I am just not a 'fly by the seat of my pants' type of person. I need to know that I will have a nice place to sleep, access to transportation, internet and other amenities when I get there. Maybe that makes me a high maintenance traveler but I guess I just like to be 'prepared.'

However, as I talk to other people about their travels, it always fascinates me that they're doing things that I would never think of doing - they almost travel off the beaten path...and that doesn't sound so bad. I'm wondering if I can just get away with booking my flight and hotel to a destination and nothing else....deciding upon what to do only when I get there? I'm not sure if I can....I don't know if it's in me.

Part of me does want an adventure, though. I want to be able to travel somewhere and have amazing finds and bring it back home and say, 'I purchased this while I was in *such-and-such* and it was so great. I found so many great things while I was there.' But my problem is I don't know where to find the good stuff - I don't want to keep buying ready-made souveys and chachkas to bring home -I want to bring home something significant so it can be a constant reminder of my time in that place.

How does one go about doing this? My guess is that to get started, I just need to book a trip to somewhere I'd like to explore and just go - just do it....TRY to have an adventure and see what I make out with. OR I can travel with friends that do know how to find the good finds and explore when they're somewhere new...and follow their lead. I don't want to be the touristy tourist (with map and camera constantly in hand) - I want to be the laid back tourist that takes everything in, come what may.

If this doesn't sound right, I'm taking other suggestions!

Afros, Fat Guys and the Underdog

My husband is a simple man. He knows what he likes and he knows what he dislikes. He loves candy and frozen treats. He dislikes curry and the Cardinals. I often describe him as an abundance of baseball knowledge, especially when it comes to the Cubs. I guess I can relate in some way as I seem to be an abundance of useless 80s knowledge...we all have our quirks.

When it comes to cheering for our favorite sports teams, I have my Cowboys, he has his Bears; I have my Yankees, he has his Cubs. But when it comes to reality game shows, you can usually count on my husband to be cheering for the guy with the afro, the fat guy or the underdog. This is just something I've noticed about him in all the years we've been together.

For some reason, he is obsessed with afros - if he sees an afro (on TV, on the street), he will be the first one to point out, 'That's a cool afro.' I think he might have hair envy or something but if you've got an afro and you're on a game show, chances are, my husband is on your side. We often joke about getting him an afro to wear for Halloween....and during those conversations, I feel like I might be the only one that's joking.


When I was watching last season's Project Runway, my husband didn't watch with me but if he caught a glimpse while I was watching, who do you think he put his support behind? 'Fat' Chris, the costume designer. When Chris first got booted off the show, I let him know and he was a little sad but when they brought him back to replace Jack, he was all smiles. He was also happy to see Chris make it to the Final Four. It's not just Project Runway, but if you've got a fat guy on TV competing for something, chances are, my husband is on your side.

And of course there are the underdogs. He's a Cubs fan - that should tell you that he truly is a fan of the underdog. When we watch American Gladiators, we're alway cheering for the underdog...because you just never know.....and a few of them have managed to pull through. Maybe he can relate to the underdog and therefore feels the need to lend them his support. That's also why we love the Dodgeball movie so much, with it's lovable band of losers - because it is a true underdog story and they prevail in the end. If you're an underdog, you have my husband's support.

The only way you wouldn't receive my husband's support, if you fall into any of the three categories above, is if you're a total ass....if he even senses for a minute that you're a little full of yourself, he will drop you like a hot potato. But in a majority of cases, dudes with afros, fat guys and the underdog don't usually cop the 'tude - so it's all good.

He DID NOT Learn That From Me!

I enjoyed a very, pleasant weekend back in New Jersey - hanging out with the family. I was even able to accompany my nephews for their haircuts....they always look so cute when they're done getting their buzz cuts.

The barber shop they go to has a wall full of pictures - pictures of all the faces that pass through the shop to get their hair cut. I got to see the family pictures - one of my brother-in-law with one nephew and one of my sister with the other nephew. Very cute indeed. The wall, however, reminded me of a possible match.com board...like the dry cleaner that had pictures of all their single patrons looking for love. I knew that wasn't the intent of the barber shop but I couldn't help but think it.

As my sister, my oldest nephew and I were sitting against the wall waiting for my brother-in-law to get done, I would turn to look at a few pictures on the wall....my oldest nephew was also looking at people's pictures - naming people that he thought these strangers looked like. He did come upon this one girl's picture where his first reaction was "Eww." My sister scolded him a little because it's not polite to say that about someone's picture, especially when you're in public, and you say it loudly. She didn't tell him all this but this was the intent. When I looked at the picture he was looking at, it was of a girl (probably in her 20s) with lip and nose piercings...reminded me of Goth. I can understand why he would be 'scared.' We couldn't exactly explain her look as 'Halloween' since it was June.

We continued to sit there and both boys were just running around, not able to sit still. Then my oldest nephew went over to my sister and whispered loudly, "Chris is F-A-T." Apparently Chris's picture was over my sister's shoulder and this was the impression my nephew had of Chris. When he said those words (remember, it was a loud whisper), I nervously sat there thinking, 'Oh my God, did he learn that from me? I don't say things like that in front of him, do I? I can be mean but I would never deliberately say anything like that in front of impressionable young minds!' I looked over at my sister as she was finishing up her second scold and I'm like, "Where did he learn that?" Of course the whole thing reminded me of something I would have done when I was seven, but curiosity made me ask where he might have learned such a thing.

"Where do you think? School." So that's what they're teaching him in school...scary people where face piercings and we don't say fat when describing someone, we spell it to spare their feelings (and on an off chance they can't spell themselves). But I guess it's all natural and normal - kids can be cruel and it all bounces off one kid to the next. I was there, I know how it was. Some might even say (ahem) that I was a bully back in the day....

But one thing is for sure....my nephew did not learn name calling from me....

Okay, So Your Name Is Mudd. Who Cares?

A week or so ago, my husband and I sat down to watch "National Treasure: Book of Secrets." While the first "National Treasure," was passable (certainly not great), I think even People magazine gave "Book of Secrets" a dismal review. Regardless, I do like history, and for a semi-action flick, there was at least the possibility that I could pick up a few historical tidbits. "Book of Secrets" partially delivered on that score. I learned a little more about the origin of the desk in the Oval Office. I learned that a smaller scale Statue of Liberty exists in Paris. But, I am sorry to report, that's about it (unless you count learning that Nicholas Cage really needs to just admit he's going gray and balding and be done with it - that was some seriously bad hair).

I just couldn't get behind the premise of the movie. I'll give you the nutshell. Nic's character, something "Gates," has his family name threatened when inexplicable bad guy (played by Ed Harris (see Nic - the bald thing isn't so bad)) comes forward with a dog eared page from the diary of John Wilkes Booth that implicates Nic's great great grandfather in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Nic spends the entire movie, traveling to Paris and London, and then ultimately kidnapping the President of the United States (yeah, right) at a birthday function at Mount Vernon trying to clear the Gates family name. He tells the story of Dr. Mudd, how even when he was cleared after setting Booth's broken leg, his reputation remained tarnished by association and the rumor that he was somehow complicit (I suspect that this was supposed to be one of those neat tidbits to pick up from watching the movie, but I already knew it so was unimpressed). Oh, and some kid at the White House Easter Egg roll taunts Nic with the latest headline, "Your family killed President Lincoln, nanny nanny boo boo." (as if an eight-year-old boy is really going to get all worked up about something that happened a century and a third before he was even born).

The entire plot was absolutely ridiculous and unbelievable, which still would have been okay with me had I found it remotely entertaining. What was even worse than Nic's antics was Ed Harris' bad guy, who was so obsessed with having his own family name get a gold star in the annals of history that he was willing to tap into Nic's dad's phone, follow Nic across the ocean, have a wild car chase in London that resulted in millions of dollars of property damage, and hold various members of Nic's family and friends at gunpoint. Really? Would you go that far?

As a relative of John Wilkes Booth himself, I would have to say no. Get over it. You weren't even there.