I went for an afternoon of geocaching before it would be time to pick up LA Girl at JFK, and while checking the back of a road sign for a hidden cache, I happened to look upward and saw a JetBlue airplane fly past. Is it that time already?

A few text exchanges and I finally met LA Girl for the first time, waving to her as I tried to squeeze into the terminal. I had forgotten that airplanes tend to carry more than one occupant, and had to fight a crowd of cars all looking to pick up loved ones, friends, cargo, drugs or whatnot.

The drive from JFK to midtown went amazingly fast though. We made friendly small talk while I tried to resist the urge to put on 80s music, which I knew she HATED with a passion. (Who hates a decade of music anyhow?)

I finally dropped her off at the hotel and stashed my car at a Hertz parking garage. The attendant almost had a fit when I told him I wanted to keep it here for a few hours.

“You’ll need to be back here by 10 if you’re not doing overnight.”

“Sure, no problem.”

“Make sure you’re back here BEFORE 10.”

“Sure, not a problem.”

“You HAVE to be here before 10, got it?”

… … … … …

“How ’bout I pick it up at 9?”

He shrugged and gave me my ticket. Dweeb.

Anyhoo, it was back to the hotel, where LA Girl met me on the corner, and we were off. It’s been a while since I’ve actually walked with anyone, so I didn’t really know just how much of a slow walker I was until we started walking together.

*pant *pant* pant*

I stopped every now and then to get a shot of the city with my new camera, only to realize every time I did so LA Girl was 20 blocks ahead of me. It was like a scene out a of Wil E. Coyote and Road Runner cartoon.

*pant* *pant* pant*

Eventually we stopped at Whole Foods, her getting sushi and me opting for, what else, pizza. Only this was prosciutto pizza too, mmm mmm MMM! The supermarket was HUGE, and oddly enough, what I remember most about is was the trash receptacles being divided up into at least 5 different bins, each one for different items. Including one for cell phones.

After that it was a quick walk back to Tasti D-Lite, mmm mmm MMMM. It wasn’t exactly ice cream, sort of like a cross between frozen yogurt and regular ice cream, but it was indeed tasty. We enjoyed some bantering back and forth again while a crowd of college aged folks started gathering in the store, including a few girls. I watched them to see if any of them would look my way and acknowledge my existence, and sure enough, one of them did, thus proving my theory that women do indeed pay more attention to me when I’m with company of the female persuasion. Well maybe. Perhaps she was really looking THROUGH me.

After the ice cream, it was another quick walk back to the hotel, where we bid each other adieu and good night. Overall I had a good time, I was glad to help a fellow conservative get situated in the city and ready to enjoy a week of sightseeing. For once it was nice to mingle with an actual human being, rather than the usual liberal crapbags I have to deal with here in a regular basis.

And now that I’ve done it, I can go back to being my usual antisocial techno-hermit self. Yaaaaaaaaaaay me!

Tags: conservative, food, geocaching, girl, hotel, ice cream, LA girl, midtown, pizza, supermarket, Whole Foods
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
(  Print This Post | | 51 views )

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

 Loading ...

2 Comments »

For my last day I used the morning as an opportunity to go geocaching around Boston, and by pure chance that led me across the river again to the campus of MIT. While I was cache hunting, something about the place seemed familiar to me, until I finally looked up and saw one of the main building’s inscription: “Massachusetts Institute of Technology.” Heh.

Now I can honestly say I've been to Harvard and MIT!

A view of the Charles River from the campus of MIT.

I spent the rest of the morning walking the campus and eventually along the Charles River, and even found the building that housed some of the shhhmartypants that helped build the Hubble telescope too. Not wanting to leave just yet, I decided to drive back over the river and to the North End again to visit the Paul Revere House. I had walked past it a few times, but hadn’t yet been inside till then. Because it was Saturday the Freedom Trail was drawing more of a crowd than usual, and I was surprised to see how may were visiting the old house too.

I took a few minutes to visit each room and breathe in the history, still unable to believe where I was. This entire trip had been a surreal experience for me, and my only regret was not being able to share the many moments of traveling back to the past with a loved one. Perhaps someday.

It was already past noon now, and I couldn’t stay any longer. I drove around the city one last time, bidding adieu before getting on the interstate and making my way home.

Behind me the city buildings glistened in the sun, awaiting the day that I would return again.

Tags: boston, Charles River, geocaching, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, North End, Paul Revere, Paul Revere House
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
(  Print This Post | | 44 views )

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

10 Comments »

I left on the ninth, the massive storm front that had just dumped 55 inches in Washington, DC only a mere few hundreds miles away and slowly making its way north. Despite the forecasts, I threw caution to the wind and hightailed it out of New York for a four day adventure in Beantown. There was not a cloud in the sky as I opted to take the scenic route through Rhode Island, and do some geocaching along the way. It would in fact be my first ever visit to the state too.

Oh wow... a rock...

Driving towards Newport, RI

Rhode Island was… blah. Although I drove through Newport where all the famous mansions were, Rhode Island didn’t really do anything for me. It just felt… blah. After a few hours of hunting down geocaches here and there, I decided I had seen enough of the state and continued northward. By the time I arrived at Boston it was around 3PM, the sky still as blue as the Caribbean ocean. I was about a day ahead of the storm, and I was determined to start checking out the city as soon as I settled into the hotel and stashed my car safely away at a nearby parking garage.

Boston!

I’m glad I picked the financial district too. It was immaculate, lightly crowded, and the T line was literally right outside the hotel. I bundled up and headed straight for the North End, cutting through Christopher Columbus Park and enjoying the splendid view of the harbor. Before I knew it, I was standing right outside Paul Revere’s House, amazed and awed that I was finding myself walking the same paths and traveling the same roads that so many famous men of history had once been on.

India? Fuhgetaboutit!

Still standing! Now where's my pizza??

Once the sun began to set, I decided it was time to see for myself if the Italian food here (namely the pizza) lived up to the hype. It was time for Santarpios Pizza!

Santarpios was located in East Boston, so I hitched a ride on the blue line over, and promptly got lost from there, even with my GPS. I had gotten out of the stop for Logan’s Airport, but once I got above ground all I saw were a maze of freeways and no clear way through. Santarpios was somewhere out there, but my GPS would not cooperate and insisted I had at least a 2 mile walk ahead of me. I wasn’t willing to do anything more than a half a mile, so next thing I knew I was hopping freeway barriers, dodging an insane amount of traffic moving at breakneck speed, and breathing in the toxic fumes of all the car exhausts before making it to the other side and hoofing it another few city blocks before I finally found the pizza joint.

Man this had BETTER be worth it. I walked in, asked for a booth and was promptly seated. My muscles were aching from climbing the freeway barriers, so I was glad to be able to stretch my legs and relax a bit.

Weird menu by the way. I had never seen one so brief it didn’t even have the option of ordering pizza by the slice. It included choices for the types of pizzas you wanted, and beverages. That was it.

I opted for extra cheese and sausage, and patiently waited. The pizza came after about 10 minutes and I was ready to dig in. I used a knife and fork to cut a piece and savored the moment before I took my first bite, indeed the first bite I would ever take of a pizza made in Boston. And the verdict was…

Meh.

Don’t get me wrong, it was good pizza, spicy and tasty, but there were no heavenly choirs singing, or psychedelic moments that took me to a different level of the astral plane. It was just modestly good pizza. Yes I am in fact a New York snob, deal with it.

I did note that it was so thin you couldn’t really eat a slice by hand, so I had to use a knife and fork for the most part. That’s just weird. It wasn’t until a few minutes when the crust began to harden again that I was able to fold up a slice and eat it by hand. I had another slice or two and then had them bag the rest. Good thing I had cash on me too, because they didn’t accept credit cards either.

Once my food was boxed and ready to go, I bundled up again and braced myself for the walk back to the T line. There had to be some better way to get to it, but rather than use my Garmin GPS, I went to Google Maps on my iPod this time. There appeared to be a park that separated the streets nearby from the T line, so I made a beeline straight for the park, initially discouraged to see that the gates were closed. Undeterred, I kept moving along the fence, until somehow, by the grace of God I was able to find the still open main entrance, which led directly to the subways. The park also afforded me an amazing view of Boston’s skyline in the distance, so I took a moment to take it all in, until I could hear the rumbling of the blue train nearby. I raced ahead and down the stairs, just in time to catch another ride back to the hotel, before the latest episode of Lost would start.

Returning from Wonderland: The Blue Train

After Lost ended, I was all settled in for my first night, enjoying the view of the buildings from the 7th floor, and anxious for tomorrow to begin so I could start my journey on the Freedom Trail. Outside, the city lights twinkled in a night that had been further darkened by a brewing storm.

A view from my hotel window.

Tags: boston, boulder, Christopher Columbus Park, driving, geocaching, gps, iPod, italian food, journey, new york, North End, Paul Revere, pizza, Rhode Island, skyline, storm, subway, travel
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
(  Print This Post | | 36 views )

(1 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5)

 Loading ...

3 Comments »

In the world of geocaching, people can release what’s called travel bugs, which can be any small item you’d like attached to a dog tag that travels from geocache to geocache. You can monitor their journey online too to learn where they’ve been and where they might be going.

To join in the fun, I decided to release two travel bugs of my own. So I went out and bought split heart necklaces, then took one half of the necklace and dropped it off at a cache in Boston, while the second half will be dropped off somewhere in Manhattan today on Valentine’s. The goal is for these two travel bugs to somehow find their way back to each other with the help of cachers so that they may be whole again.

I told you, I’m a disgusting sap.

Ironically enough, today also marks the 10th anniversary from when I was evicted from my home. Ten long years. It seemed the height of irony that an act of cruelty and hatred which forever altered the course of my life would occur on this day, but it did, and I have hated Valentine’s with a passion ever since. But even before then I despised the day, having to watch as couples snuggled and called each other schmoopies while it was all I could do to keep myself from pouring lighter fluid on them and then dropping a lit match. God, why won’t these disgusting happy couples just DIE, or get herpes or something?

But anyhoo…

I’m determined not to let the day get to me. I have been so far removed from the traumas of the past that I think it’s time I learn to let it go and move on with my life. I still have many plans and places I want to visit, many new experiences to be had, and much delicious pizza to sample.

So Happy Valentine’s Day to all you disgusting, diseased riddled perverts. May you find your flowers rife with poisonous thorns, your chocolates filled with dung, and your greeting cards laced with acid.

Tags: anniversary, boston, geocache, geocaching, hatred, holidays, manhattan, sap, travel, travel bugs, Valentine, valentines day
Categories: Romance and Relationships
 
(  Print This Post | | 27 views )

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

2 Comments »

I started writing this while enjoying dinner at Cheers (yes THE Cheers, or at least the replica they created at Faneuil Hall). As soon as I walked in the overhead speakers started playing “More Than A Feeling”, and I knew I was home.

Unfortunately no one knew my name...

After a few days in the city too, I think I’m almost ready to become a Red Sox fan. ALMOST.

Boston was simply amazing, and it’s not just this city either. I don’t know what it is about Massachusetts, but this state seems more endearing to me than any of the other New England states I’ve visited so far. On my way up here I traveled through Rhode Island for the first time, and decided to spend a day of geocaching as I made my way through just to get a sense of the state. By the time I got to the border and reached Fall River I decided Rhode Island was simply the state people drive through to get to their REAL destinations. Even though I took the scenic route that saw me pass through Newport, (an area famous for its mansions) Rhode Island was just a blah experience. I decided that I would probably never visit there again, and just cut through Connecticut instead for future trips (unless of course I go to Cape Cod, then I’ll have no choice.)

My initial impression of Beantown was just how clean everything was. Seriously. The roads were smooth and paved for the most part too. Trust me, take a drive through Manhattan and you’ll start to understand why this is a big deal. I had played it right by reserving a hotel in the financial district, where it was only lightly crowded, the parking garage just a block or two away, and where the T line was literally outside the hotel’s entrance. It was a no frills hotel, but it was immaculate. It was also freezing cold, but once I got settled in I was anxious to take a look around even as the wind cut right through me. Boston’s skyline was not as busy as New York’s, but it still seemed majestic and pretty in its own unique way. Once the sun set and day went to night, nearby Christopher Columbus Park and Faneuil Hall went ablaze in colorful lights. From my 7th floor window, the lights of the city just seemed to dance like fireflies in the woods.

The next few days proved to be a whirlwind of sightseeing and running around. I’m finally back home now and I still haven’t caught my breath yet. I’ll write a series of posts over the next few days on what I did and where I went, but suffice it to say it was an awesome experience, and I cannot WAIT to go back. I didn’t even have time or the energy to start ranting about Valentine’s Day either, which starts in just a few hours. Tomorrow I think I’ll probably sleep in for 15 hours or so, then go out, find a happy couple to spit on, and then come back again to sleep for another 15 hours. Sounds like a plan to me.

Tags: Beantown, boston, cheers, Faneuil Hall, geocaching, manhattan, Massachusetts, New England, new york city, Newport, Rhode Island, skyline, tourism, travel, valentines day
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
(  Print This Post | | 19 views )

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

No Comments »

So hey, I finally took the plunge and made a reservation for Boston, just in time to see a forecast for a storm coming to New England Tuesday night, a forecast that was confirmed juuuuuust late enough to ensure I couldn’t cancel my reservation in time. Yaaay!

But whatever, I was born during violent weather, so this will be a mere walk in the park for me, even though my dear Mommy threw a fit about me traveling under such adverse conditions. If this is how she reacts to me being in mildly bad weather, then I probably shouldn’t tell her about my plans to go tornado chasing in a few months.

So this is how I’m gonna kick it: I’ll be spending a large part of the day driving the scenic byways in Rhode Island and geocaching along the way like a fanatic monkey who has no life whatsoever, mainly because I do in fact have no life whatsoever. In the course of doing so I may come across hot babes at rest stops and whatnot prior to my arrival at Boston, in which case I will walk up to them and use my world renowned pickup line: “I think you’re beeeooootiful! Will you be my love snuggles?”

After having been solidly rejected by the entire female population of Rhode Island (all 6 of them), I will spend a few minutes crying over hot cocoa at the border of Massachusetts, then continue on my journey until I arrive at long last at Beantown, for the first time evah! I will then check in, discreetly inquire about escort services, then decide I would never make enough money in this lifetime or the next to afford it, and opt for a slice of pizza at the North End instead.

Good times, baby, good times.

Wish me luck! I probably won’t blog at length until I’m safe and sound at my hotel tomorrow night.

Tags: Beantown, boston, geocaching, hot babes, hotel, journey, Massachusetts, New England, pizza, scenic byways, storm, travel, weather
Categories: Lincoln's Personal Log
 
(  Print This Post | | 28 views )

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

 Loading ...

2 Comments »