Higgins Lake and Etcetera

Last Wednesday my old college roommate came up to Ann Arbor and we drove up to Higgins Lake for the weekend. Out plan was to get a CIAYCELB (Cottage Inn All You Can Eat Lunch Buffet) before the drive up but he didn't make it up in time.

Every year my old roommates do a trip up to beautiful Higgins lake in Northern Michigan for a weekend of drinking and fun. Since I've always been in Seattle this is the first time I've been able to go and I was looking forward to it. We got up wednesday afternoon and had a few beverages around a nice fire waiting for the rest of our friends to arrive.

On Thursday Zola, Dan, Al and I went to go play 9 holes at Ye Olde Country Club which was about 10 miles from the lake house. Unfortunately I hadn't played since last August in Oklahoma so I embarrassingly had a more than one violation of the Dick-Out rule. For those who are not familiar with golf, the USGA rulebook defines the rule as "If a player fails to advance his ball past the ladies tees on his first shot he must pull his dick out and proceed to his ball on foot and take his next shot with his dick out" (sorry mom). The good news is that when we went back for 9 holes on Friday I did not have any violations of the dick-out rule.

Before Golfing on Thursday Zola put a pork butt in the smoker and 12 hours later (with a few hours in the oven), we had the most delicious pork. On Friday Al repeated the feat with a brisket. Saturday saw some Turkey Legs take their turn through the smoker. Basically we ate pretty well.

The rest of the time we spent drinking on the boat, drinking in the yard, drinking around the campfire, drinking to the "HJNTIY" (He's Just Not That Into You) drinking game, drinking while playing euchre, drinking while watching lesser movies and drinking at the local bar where we paid the DJ to play Rocky Top. We drank a bit.

Sunday, Zola and I came back to A2 and after short power naps we sent to The Brown Jug for dinner followed by an epic best-of-7-game pool series at the 8-ball saloon. I came back from down 3-2 to best him, but there was no besting the 2 whiskey shots and 2 High Life's for $5.50. After that we walked down the railroad tracks to the new Rub Pub BBQ at State and Packard but it was closed. Dejected but not defeated we went back to the Jug for karaoke. There was some real singers in the room. I stumbled my way through Runaround Sue and a bit later Zola knocked out Country Roads. Not a bad little Sunday.

On Monday Zola and I finally got that CIAYCELB we had been craving. Tuesday saw me wake up at noon and then do a research study for $5 followed by a little afternoon light reading at Dominick's.

In other news:
I will soon start trying to find a job which means the blog may go dark for weeks or months at a time. Sorry about that.

I've been pleased to see some campus characters are still around from my days. They weren't well known to probably anyone else but me and mostly from my days as a bus driver. There is this one middle aged woman who I would always see jogging with a windbreaker around her waist. We always looked really frail but I'm happy to see her still running. Also I saw the guy I nicknamed "Turtle Man" He was a middle aged guy with a big belly and always wore a hat. I could never tell if her was a little slow or not. But I saw him at Rub Pub BBQ my first week back. He used to guard the door to Schembechler Hall in the fall and do other jobs the rest of the year.

Continuing my eatery tour mentioned before I've also knocked out Blimpy, CIAYCELB, The Brown Jug, Red Hot Lovers, Mr. Spots, Quickie Burger.

Also, I went to Chipotle today and found myself in line directly behind two members of the Michigan Basketball Team. Being a big fan of Michigan Sports it is nice to see the athletes around town although I always avoid interaction unless prompted.

One week back in Ann Arbor

I've been back in town for a week now (minus two days I spent at home) and getting back adjusted to college life - sans the college. I've noted a couple of things.

• College houses are dirty, and all we watch is ESPN. I've watched more ESPN in the last week than I have all year.
• Booze is super cheap and it is awesome. WA is probably middle of the road in terms of booze prices but how can you pass this up?

At RUB BBQ where Packard Pub used to be. Which was MY IDEA.

• I've been trying to exercise a bit more now that I have a lot of time but it hasn't been working out very well due to a few of the following notes.
• I don't wake up until 11 each day which is great. It took my body 4 months to get used to the routine of waking up early and going to work. It took 3 days for me to start staying awake until 3 and waking up at 11.
• I've been gorging on AA food since I've been back. BTB, Bells, Za's, Sottini's, Noodles, Jimmy John's, Cottage Inn (but not a CIAYCELB), Heidelberg free wings. I was planning to do Blimpy Burger this week but didn't have any cash. That and a CIAYCELB are happening for sure next week.
• I've been walking around a lot enjoying Ann Arbor. It's weird walking by houses that I have so many memories in, but seeing other people on the porches. Sometimes I just want to go up and tell them how I went to a party there in 2008 and something crazy happened. Most of those crazy things I can't share with the blog until the statute of limitations expires in a few years. I have such fond memories of many of these houses and apartments.
• In sad news I have to report that Oriental Express has gone out of business. I will always miss their inexpensive, below average fare. I guess in a way their car get tow fast (not a typo, but fans of OE will get the joke).

So much blight on Packard.

• Next door I was unsurprised to see that the "Get Your Game On" storefront (old Sake Bombs for the older crowd) was empty. I knew that place wasn't going to last. That is until I was walking up State Street and saw that they actually moved the a BETTER storefront. It looks like they are actually doing well. Color me surprised.

People love games I guess.

• I found out that I have a much higher tolerance in Ann Arbor. A month before I left, I played Edward 40 Hands in Seattle and afterwards could barely drink anything. A few nights ago I polished off two 40's including a Mickey's ICE and then went to the bar that moved into Packard Pub and had 3 $1 PBRs. I'm a machine in A2. No plans for E7C yet.

Mickeys Ice - Built for results not for pleasure

• I went out last weekend and it was weird that the most popular bar on South U looked to be the Blue Lep. I met up with a buddy at the Jug and was surprised when I got a booth immediately. We then went to the Blue Lep which I wasn't too crazy about until I saw how many people were there. I had heard it was also the place to watch the final 4, so maybe there is a new king in town. It's still a shame that Mitch's closed but I have accepted that.
• I've been trying to keep busy, and so far I have been for the 6 hours between when I wake up and when the sun goes down. I wandered over to the wild bird shelter on Mary St. and I think I might volunteer there a bit this summer even though I don't really like birds. I've also been going to a lot of public meetings because usually they have free cookies.
• My proudest moment though is when I saw the new Landmark building was completed. If you recall from the blog that in 2008 I went before city council and shared my support for the building which was then ridiculed by the Student Assembly vice president. Also note my subsequent mention in The Chronicle. And now that it is complete and looks terrific I'm happy to know that it was built and has made the city better even though some people thought it wasn't a good idea. Victory!

Looking a bit better than U Towers.

Some final notes from my trip

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Just some final notes from my 2 week trip back to Ann Arbor:


States Visited (15) in Order:
Washington
Idaho
Montana
Wyoming
Idaho (again)
Utah
Nevada
California
Arizona
New Mexico
Colorado
Kansas
Missouri
Illinois
Indiana
Michigan

Total Miles: 5,425

Total Cost: $1,128
Lodging Cost: $108
Gas Costs: $805
Food Etc: $232

Campsites ranked best to worst:
1) Joshua Tree National Park, CA
2) Yellowstone Natioal Park, WY
3) Hayburn State Park, ID
4) Lewis and Clark National Forrest, MT
5) Shitty state park near Las Vegas, NM

College Football Stadiums visited in order:
Martin Stadium - Washington State
Kibbie Dome - Idaho
Mackey Stadium - Nevada
California Memorial Stadium - Cal
Rose Bowl - UCLA
University Stadium - New Mexico
Bill Synder Family Football Stadium - Kansas St.
Memorial Stadium - Kansas

The Drive Back to Ann Arbor

I forgot the video first posting.

Greetings fans. A special shout-out to my international readers.

It's been 4 days since my last post and I've gone a long way since Phoenix. I've visited Manhattan and Las Vegas. Sadly the Manhattan was in Kansas, and the Las Vegas was in New Mexico.

After staying with my buddy Jon, I started making the 2 day drive to Kansas. The first day I drove north from Phoenix and turned East at Flagstaff. After turning onto I-40. I started seeing cops every 5-10 miles. Since getting a ticket would hurt my budget for the trip, I played it safe and put the cruise control at 77, which seemed reasonable on a 75MPH highway. About 30 miles and 6 cops later, I got pulled over for speeding. I was pulled over and issued a warning for going 2 over the limit because as the officer told me "In northern Arizona, 75 means 75". He was also pretty convinced that I was hauling large amounts of methamphetamine back to Michigan in the large containers that had my camping gear. Unfortunately for him, I didn't have time for him to get a chance to find out.

University Stadium - New Mexico

After getting a little behind, I made it to Albuquerque where I grabbed a snack with my cousin Meg. After that I went north to Santa Fe and eventually to Las Vegas, NM. I had picked out a state park that on the map looked like a really cool lake surrounded by the forests of the southern Rockies. It actually was a large dirty and rocky field with a dried out lake. To make matters worse there was a burn ban in effect so I couldn't even have a fire. It wasn't my favorite night camping.

Camping in New Mexico

On Wednesday I woke up and hit the road for Kansas. It was another long 11 hour drive plus I lost another hour to time changes. After an uninspiring drive through Kansas, I made it to my buddy Jones's place around 7:30. We grilled some burgers and drank some beers and watched 3 episodes of Jeopardy. It was an overall terrific evening, and since we hadn't seen each other in about 3 years it was great to catch up and a quintessential element of my current life goals of keeping in touch with people.

Bill Snyder Family Fun Football Facility - Kansas State

Thursday I left to drive to Chicago which was another 11 hour haul including a brutal stretch across Missouri. In Chicago I stayed with my old roommate and went  to the bar to watch the blackhawks game. We ended getting back to his place around 11 and then stayed up until 2am half watching the Larry Sanders show and  mostly bullshitting. I always enjoy Chicago and this morning we slept in and got a late breakfast before I left for Michigan.

Memorial Stadium - University of Kansas

I got into A2 around 4:30 and met the two guys who are living in the house that I'm subletting a room in. It's right next door to the house I lived in in college and I've had 3 sets of friends live in this house when I was a student, which was part of the reason I picked it. Within 10 minutes of getting to Ann Arbor we left to go to the Heidelberg for free wings and $2 beers. That's why college towns are awesome.

I've provided some pictures of the house as I came across them moving in. This is exactly the same condition the house was in when I was a student. It's going to take some getting used to living in filth again, but I think I'm up for the challenge. For your sake I'm not picturing the bathroom. It's good to be back in Ann Arbor though. Sorry if the pictures are upside down.

Not pictured - Laptop on the kitchen floor

Nativity Scene

Casual Carlos Rossi Jug chilling in the hot corner

Amen brother.

California

It's been a few days since my last post. It's much easier to find the time to write when I'm camping and without distractions. Since I left Yellowstone 5 days ago I've gotten all the way to Phoenix, by way of San Francisco. Let's catch up on the last few days.

After leaving Yellowstone Wednesday and driving by the Grand Tetons I drove west from Jackson, WY and across southern Idaho where my Grandfather was born. I then turned south towards Salt Lake City. As I neared SLC I realized that I would not make it to my goal of Elko, Nevada that night. Unfortunately there isn't really any camping between SLC and Elko so I had to get a hotel just over the border of Nevada in Wendover. I got a room in a casino where I watched the Wings get eliminated from the playoffs.

Thursday I woke up and kept heading west on I-80 through Nevada. It was a long drive and the rugged arid mountains were not as entertaining as the lush green mountains from the day before. Eventually I made it to the California border where the landscape again turned into more appealing forms.

Mackay Stadium - Reno

The American West has so many climates and environments that each day of this trip brings a new type of beauty to me. I'm lucky to have this opportunity to experience it all now because the last 1/2 of my trip will be much flatter and less visually appealing.

That evening I arrived in Berkeley and checked in at the hotel where Carly's brother was getting married. It was a few blocks from the campus of Cal, so after hauling my stuff up to the room I set out on a walk around campus. I then spent the evening with Carly's family while waiting on her to fly in from Seattle.

California Memorial Stadium - Berkeley

On Friday I helped Carly's family set up for the rehearsal dinner which we had in a large park. It took most of the morning to get set up, and then most of the afternoon to go to the rehearsal and most of the evening to enjoy the pizza and beer in the park. As simple as pizza and beer in the park sounds, it was about 2 van-fulls of gear that we had to haul there and get set up and it was a really nice rehearsal dinner complete with drinking game Olympics (boccie ball, croquet, beer pong, cornhole).

The day of the wedding Carly had to leave early to be with the bride. I walked around Berkeley and then got ready. The wedding was a full catholic mass but as a reward for all the sitting and standing, the reception had a Manhattan as their signature cocktail which I enjoyed thoroughly. It was ie to meet some of Carly's friends and family including her host parents from when she studied abroad in Denmark. I spent a good deal of time with them and sat with them at the wedding. I think if  I make it to Copenhagen this fall I will visit them.

Rose Bowl - Pasadena

On Sunday I had to say goodbye to Carly for the next 4 months which was really hard. Luckily as a man I have mastered my emotions, but it wasn't easy knowing we wouldn't see each other all summer.

I drove south through the California Valley towards LA and then east. I was going to stay in Seqouia national park but I made such good time that I got all the way to Joshua Tree. Which was good because it made it an easy drive today and Joshua Tree was amazing. Desert camping is way different than woodland camping and it was pretty warm all night. I got to sleep without my rain-fly on my tent and stare at the stars. Sunset and nighttime in the desert was awesome. I can totally see why people go there do their drugs.

Today I made a quick 5 hour drive to Phoenix where I spent the afternoon at my Aunt and Uncle's house in Scottsdale. They have a pool, shower, laundry facilities, wi-fi and beer. Talk about hospitality. We are going to go out to dinner and then afterwards I'm going over to my old co-workers Jon's house for the night. Jon was a big inspiration for the trip and I've only seen him once since he moved down here from Seattle last year.

Joshua Tree Campsite