Via Byway, My Way.

Car has made it to Georgia! Didn’t spend the night in my car after all, ended up spending the night in a hotel in Montgomery. I’m now in Atlanta using the public express internet terminal at the library, and a growing mob of people want access to my computer, the pressure is on!

* 7 lanes of traffic in Atlanta plus construction and every other street is called “Peachtree Street,” with other designations that follow it like “NE, Road, SE, Avenue, Drive, NW,” and blah blah blah. Streets normally change their names so it is pretty difficult navigating through the city.

* The south sure does love its chicken…everything from KFC, Popeye’s, Church’s, Chic-Fil-A and Hartt’s Chicken buffet. I’ll have to try one of them out soon.

* Mike gave me a suggestion for Krystal’s, similar to White Castle…okay brother, I’ve seen the Krystal and I’ll go for it next time I’m hungry!

* Congrats to Eric who made the All-Star team for our basketball league. We didn’t make the playoffs, but considering this was our first year playing as a team, props to my teammates for having a great camraderie and playing as friends…can’t wait to get back to play some hoops!

* Don’t know when I’ll have a chance to upload my pics, I tried unsuccessfully to use the library in West Point, GA–but their tiny library was closed.

* My time is up on my computer, that’s all for now!

I’m in Mobile, Alabama, pronounced Mo-beel. I don’t have a place to stay for tonight, so it’s either sleeping in my car or spending some money for a hotel, hopefully one with some internet access. I don’t have a laptop, so my best bet is to inquire about those with a business center…so if I don’t update this blog tonight, then you’ll know I spent the night in my lovely car!

Quick useless stats before my public library internet connection is lost….

* My car has put on 4000 miles since Portland and has another 2000 to go.

* The burning oil smell is really more pronounced and at times I can smell it in my car cabin.

* I’ve been keeping an eye out on my tires….in Dallas, I put air in all four, as they were all underinflated.

* The roads through Louisiana and Alabama are poorly maintained and my car jerks around on uneven road, sometimes it feels like I might lose control even though I’m at a steady 70 mph. The roads are that bad.

* I promised myself that if I ate fast food, I wouldn’t go to the same place twice. So, here is your fast food count: McDonald’s, Carl’s Jr., Whataburger, In-N-Out, Hot Dog on a Stick, Del Taco, Taco Cabana and Jack in the Box—twice. In a moment of weakness, I did go to Jack in the Box a second time because I was craving an Oreo milkshake. So, I confess, I have no self-control and the milkshake got the better of me. But man it was soooo gooood!!

* Lots of ‘Waffle House’ restaurants all through Texas, Louisiana and Alabama. Yep, had to eat breakfast there once. Not bad. Later I was told from a friend of my Houston hostess that locals refer to it as the “Awful House.”

* Texas road signs: “Watch for ICE on the bridges.” “Don’t Mess with Texas.”

* There are also a lot of Luby’s restaurants off the Interstate in Texas. Didn’t eat there. But I learned that it’s a cafeteria style place where a bunch of old people eat–must be those senior discounts.

* I’m interested in finding a Whitecastle. Gotta try those famous sliders.

* New Orleans deserves its own entry…definitely eye-opening. Much of the city is in ruins, deserted, abandoned and ghostly…however, there are signs of recovery, albeit slow and gradual. Hopefully I’ll have more time later.

* And that’s it for now. Tomorrow I arrive into Atlanta and I’ll be on Eastern Standard Time…

Spent most of the day at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, just south of Houston. Admission was kinda steep, but because of the bad weather there weren’t a lot of people there. Manned space exploration has always fascinated me from the time I was a little kid watching “Star Trek” and “Battlestar Galactica.” I can still remember when I was a sixth grader at Hosford Middle School when one of my teachers, Mrs. Newby, started crying because of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. Here are some cool things that I learned that I now share with you!!

* The average cost for an astronaut’s space suit is 12 million dollars.

* Launches occur at Cape Canaveral in Florida, but after lift off Mission Control is at Johnson Space Center.

* Mars exploration isn’t rocket science; the real problem is the limitations of the human body and the effects of zero gravity on bone mass, muscle, etc.

* The International Space Station is a collaboration of 16 nations that should be completed by 2010. The space station orbits the earth 16 times a day, and can be seen by the naked eye.

* It’s now 12:3oam, and I can’t think or remember anything else, so that’s it for now….

Okay WAZU Cougar loser, here is your special request travel post just for Monica, Apparently my posts lack certain pizaaz and sizzle, as she wanted to know more history about the locations that I am visiting and how past events have shaped the political, cultural and economic landscape of the local region. Coupled with special emphasis of demographic statistics, she guaranteed that readers will be more drawn to my updates and really stir within them a deep sense of osmosis. So, without further ado, thank Monica for this entry:

Houston, TX. Founded in 1823 by Jeremiah “Gene” Hackman, it was once the site of a meteor crash site that could have, may have, perhaps so, wiped out the dinosaurs and ancient cavemen. Authorities are unable to substantiate this claim because they weren’t around then, but if they were, then surely the local Houston Chronicle would have their front page devoted to this catastrophic event (continuted on page C9). Leftover bones and tattered clothing were discovereed at Hermann Park (named after John “Gene” Park), and thus Houston was born out of the rubble and exploded to become the 4th largest city in the U.S. With no urban planning and being named America’s Most Unfit City, it is a city on the up and up and has a lightrail system to rival any transportation system consisting of wheels and donuts.

The biggest draw to Houston, however, is not the Eiffel Tower or Disneyland, it is the local Houston Zoo. Whales were the first animals to be featured at the zoo, and then in 1801 dolphins made their debut to a delightful appreciative crowd of school children, dignitarians from Africa and the local militia. These reptiles performed wonderous feats of magic, such as tightrope walking, somersaults and painting with acrylic oils that were later sold to art galleries near and afar (go to any Thomas Kincade Gallery and give the code name “The Animal” to see these rare and priceless pieces of art). Later the curator added lobsters, pigs, bats, elephants and chimpanzees. It was the chimpanzee program that became the pride and joy of the organization, churning out performers for “BJ and the Bear,” “Cannonball Run,” and “The Wonder Years.” In 1765 an earthquake shattered the cages which held the wild mammals captive, and they integrated into society under the radar of the public. However, by using special sunglasses, townfolk were able to differentiate those who were human and those who were not. Finally, in 1799, Commissioner Gordon and multi multi multi billionaire Bruce Wayne formed a new branch of government “The People’s Coalition.” A year long curfew was imposed on all citizens, and before long, these ruthless zoo animals were rounded up and bequethed to the Queen of England on the famous Titanic oceanliner.

Things returned back to normal, but the volcano’s damage had inflicted permanent damage to the Atzec ceramic plate collection and the aquaduct infrastructure. Taxes were increased and that’s how Houston was named “Space City USA.” Other famous Houstonians include Mr. Bean, Mr. Rogers, Mr. Clean, Mr. Ed and Mrs. Butterworth. Today, we had lots of rain, thunder, lightning, strong winds and a dose of “The Birdcage.” And there folks, is your short history lesson on the shaman tribe “Houston” and how the city became to be the number one exporter for pineapple and Enron stock.

Heading down to Houston today, but thought I’d share a few quick thoughts on San Antonio.

* The freeway system is quite perplexing; I’m a pretty diligent driver with knowing exactly where I’m going, but the way they have their freeways designed created quite a bit of backtracking. You have to pay attention to the signs on where you want to go, because there is little forewarning on the exit ramp. Traffic can exit on the left, merge on the left, there are turnarounds everywhere and road construction made it extra challenging on where I needed to go.

* San Antonio is known, of course, for the famous Alamo. And no, there is no basement. But surrounding the famous historic site are: one Ripley’s Believe or Not Museum, on Ripley’s Haunted House Ride, a Madame Toussard’s Wax Museum, a Hagan Daaz ice cream shop, a Davey Crockett minature golf course, and so many tacky souvenir shops with T-shirts 3 for $10 and other great tourist ‘bargains.’ Pretty amazing to see how much commercialism springs up whenever you have lots and lots of people with money to spend.

* The city is also well known for its “Riverwalk.” I did little reading on this and figured it was just another overhyped and overmarketed touristy thing for people to do. Well, I was wrong. The riverwalk has to be one of my favorite highlights of my road trip so far. It is basically a pedestrian-only street that follows the banks of the San Antonio River. Along these banks are numerous restaurants and bars with outdoor seating. On a Monday night or any night, it is the place to people watch. The river is narrow, probably less than 70 feet across, so on both sides there is a path that meanders for a good 2.5 miles. I spent about 2 hours just walking this path and ducking into the shops, hotels and whatever else that caught my eye. In the evening the trees on the path are adorned with colorful lights. It is a very lovely stroll with small tour boats that take a 30 minute ride around the waterways, some boats even offering table dinner service. It may be a touristy thing to do, but it is well worth it. So when in San Antonio, I highly recommend taking a leisurely stroll along the Riverwalk. Wikipedia has a pretty good overview here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Antonio_Riverwalk

* My host family for this leg of my trip was Lorna and her two teenage daughters, Ashley and Allison. Lorna was very kind to let me hog up her computer to do my necessary email and travelblog updates. It is a vibrant and welcoming household which also features their cat and dog. Thanks again for your hospitality Lorna!

* Other random thoughts: I’m hungry.

* Other random thoughts part two: Yeah, I’m hungry. Gonna stop here and get some grub for my drive down to Houston. Hasta Luego.

As per your request, since pictures tell a thousand words and my previous posts didn’t make much sense, here are some photos….

I spent part of the day in El Paso, TX, crossing the border and getting lost in the very crowded streets of Juarez. This is an endless maze of food stands, clothing, knick knacks, fruits & veggies, and more. There is also quite a bit of poverty. Unfortunately, this is also the city where, since 1993, there have been almost 400 women and girls murdered and more than 70 remain missing in Ciudad Juárez and Chihuahua, Mexico. Amnesty International has a pretty good overview here: http://www.amnestyusa.org/women/juarez/

Fitting enough, Hollywood is coming out with a movie starring Jennifer Lopez about these unsolved murders.

My host family, Molly and Juris, in El Paso. Molly comes by way of Malasia, and Juris via Latvia. Both very generous ambassadors to the city!

Carlsbad Caverns National Park. I signed up for a guided tour, but ran out of time as it took me 2.5 hours to do the self-guided walk in the underground trail. Thanks Melody for letting me borrow your National Parks Pass!

For even more pics, please check out my online photo album at:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/aurclyels/my_photos

You do not need to be a member of Yahoo to access the pics. One of the albums is of Costa Rica from last year, so ignore that one! Time to go play in San Antonio now!

So for all you quote-phobes, here’s one I saw in Austin:

“Be the change that you seek in the world”

Okay, I messed that up. It goes something like that. Maybe I forgot a word or two, but I think you get the idea. On the other hand, maybe I’ll just offer up an easier one to remember, like Murphy’s law #34: “If at first you don’t succeed, make up some other quote.”

I’m in San Antonio and my host family, well one of the members anyways, is watching Lord of the Rings. So of course I have to peek away and watch the really good parts. Like when Sean Astin exclaims “But Luke, I AM your father!!” And then the ogre, who is holding Luke captive, clubs him on the head. At any rate, you know how it is always difficult in trying to figure out what to get your family members for the holidays? Cause they already have everything or what your really want to get them is just soo far out of your price range? Well, wouldn’t it be totally easy if you were a Hobbit? Shopping would be cake–like how about one of those foot bath massage things for their big feet? Or maybe the Flowbee? Hobbits seriously need to get some style with their hair. Maybe some blue highlights or a crew cut. It would be easy to buy for a Hobbit.

Austin is one really cool town. They have a couple of greenbelt pathways that everyone plus their mother uses. Really, it was really quite inspiring, really. Did you realize that you just said really three times in the last sentence? Did you know that really consists of 2 syllables, 6 letters, and 2 vowels? Or 3 if you count the ‘Y.’ Really. And did you know that the human head weighs 7 pounds? And my neighbor has a bunny rabbit? Okay, back on track….

The greenbelt. Austin is a perfect town for outdoor pursuits. The University of Texas is less than a mile from the downtown core, and the downtown core is situated on the banks of a river with trails galore. There’s even an outdoor swim park that is open year round. For more info, check this out: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/greenbelts.htm I spent the afternoon biking around the town and ducking into shops along Old Pecan Street (6th street). I even saw Woody Harrelson smoking some weed in some park.

Check my blog tomorrow, I should have time to give you the scoop and post up more pics. I know you are dying to see the photos of caves. I stopped by the Carlsbad Caves National Monument… 80% of the pics are of darkness. But a few came out, so come back tomorrow. As you can tell, I’m still pretty tired and I’m not making much sense, so I better end while I’m ahead. With another quote: “Bye for now!’

Ah, Texas. The biggest state west of the California border. Land of Big Trucks, oil, George Dubya Bush, carpenter ants, and famous for the shot on location “A Very Brady Christmas.” I drove in from Tucson to El Paso. Don’t confuse El Paso with Old El Paso. Old El Paso is a brand of Mexican food, featuring taco shells, seasoning, sauces, hot dogs, lemonade and car wax. You can find it at your local grocer, unless they are super fancy and only sell items labeled as “Private label,” “Gourmet,” or “Throw away in 7 days or else!” In that case, try Albertsons and you should find Old El Paso. But be sure to bring your Albertsons card, because if you don’t, you won’t be able to save 15 cents off the shelf price like their privileged ‘members’ do. Did you know that those loyalty card programs kill off 20% of our land mass air every minute? That’s right, the ozone is being depleted by our inability to comprehend the factual findings that leading scientists have compiled in the last 20 centuries, but our elected officials refuse to confirm this data because they have pork programs to consider. That is why, in the year 2029, you should vote for Pedro Peter Picadilly. He’s only 2 years old now, but he will make a fine president to lead our country. Or at least Texas.

Dallas is home to that moment on November 22nd, 1963, when President JFK was assisinated. I visited the memorial and listened to the enterprising entrepreneurs trying to sell “souvenir” conspiracy programs and newspaper headlines. It made me want to watch the Oliver Stone flick, which he titled “JFK.” Which means John Frederick Kennedy. He wasn’t in the film, they used someone who looked like him. The real star was Kevin Costner. Maybe that’s why I never saw the movie. Cause everyone knows that Kevin Costner can only play 3 types of parts–a washed up baseball player; a post-aployptic anti-hero; and a disgraced sumo wrestler in in old frontier days. Which makes you think….has he ever been in the same movie at John Travolta? Hmmm.

Dallas is on Central time, which means it is 12:32 as I write this, but actually only 10:32pm at home. I am tired. Been pretty active this whole past week. I’m happy I brought my bike. Tomorrow, Sunday, is the Dallas marathon. If I was crazy enough, I’d run it. But my body is so worn out. So instead, I biked part of the marathon route today, around White Rock Lake. Also caught a Dallas Mavericks – Boston Celtics basketball game–tickets were only $5, how could I pass it up?

At anywho, you didn’t come to my travel blog to actually read about my travels, did you? I know you are really more fascinated with profound revelations about this world we live in and grand thoughts of wisdom that only travel can bring to the unbridled mind, yes? Well, you are in luck. I leave you with this quote, from my serious, harmonica-wielding friend Dave “Gherm” Barmon. He recommends to “Eat lots of poop.” I sleep now leaving you with that to digest. And maybe when I’m not so tired, my blog will actually make some sense.

P.S. I’m sleepy.

* My Vegas time is posted — http://devine.doitsports.com/vegas/. It’s official. 4 hours, 8 minutes and 27 seconds, or about a 9:30 pace per mile. I think I could have done better since I felt like I had a lot of energy at the end of the race–it could be the 10 energy gel packets and 2 clif bars I ate while running helped.

* Pics of the race are also posted here at

http://www.marathonfoto.com My bib number is 3570.

* The car is still hanging in there–burning oil and a back tire that the gas guy exclaimed should be replaced–he even offered to put on my spare cause he said it looked that bad. But I took it to a tire place and the tire dude said I could probably drive another 500 miles on it…so I will!

* Phoenix is one urban network of never ending strip malls and sprawl sprawl sprawl everywhere. Can there be anymore people driving and clogging the streets with smog? There are some nice places to visit in Phoenix, which I go into greater detail later–including an intense hike up Camelback Mountain that just about did me in because I have not fully recovered from the marathon.

* I’m now in Tucson, using the public library computer and I have 2 minutes left!! It’s on to El Paso, TX tomorrow… my Dallas contact, Phil, called me tonight and said that they are having freezing rain and snow, and added that Texas drivers drive CRAZY when there is snow and ice…hopefully I’ll avoid that come Friday.

* Thanks for your comments, public and private, and Nicole & Hope’s infrequent horoscope updates and Family Circus comic strip interpretations. Until the next library I find, over and out!!

Okay, so I typed out a great blog and due to my lame limited knowledge of blogging, I erased it. So here is the short version:

I brought the horrible Oregon weather with me from San Francisco to Las Vegas, with another close call. It also didn’t help that in the morning, I added oil to the car but forgot to replace the oil cap. So 200 miles later, a burning oil smell wafted into my car and traces of smoke emitted from my hood. I spent the next 30 minutes backtracking to Los Banos, CA, to an auto supply store and buying a replacement oil cap.

My visit to Vegas was to compete in the new Las Vegas Marathon, which starts at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino and proceeds 7 miles up along the World Famous Strip to the Fremont Street Experience in downtown. My goal was to complete it within 5 hours and with limited injuries. I’m staying with my pal Sarah, who I’ve known since high school and she is currently an art teacher for an elemtary school. We spent Saturday at the Health & Fitness Expo where I picked up my race packet, and we also drove the marathon course and visited a few sites along the Strip.

Finally, Sunday morning, race day. I tried to turn in early at 8:30 the night before, but my sleep was in and out and my mind kept turning to the marathon. I haven’t trained for this! Two 12-mile runs in 3 months, and I was supposed to complete 26.2 miles? I woke up at 4am to beat the traffic rush and did all my pre-race prep in time for the 6am start time. A colorful display of fireworks greeted the crowd of 12,500 runners, in chilly 39 degree temperatures.

4 hours and 15 minutes later, I crossed the finish. Unfortunately, my finish is not posted in the official results at http://www.lvmarathon.com. But I should have my official pictures shortly posted at http://www.marathonfoto.com (select the Las Vegas Marathon and enter my last name ‘Tanedo” and my race number 3570.

I am proud to say that I finished strong and I ran a smart race. I never bonked out, never developed the crippling cramps of debilitating pain, and kept hydrated the whole race through. The last 2.2 miles were quite the mental challenge, but positive self-talk and passing other runners made for an encouraging and satisfying end to the slowest marathon I’ve ever run–but hey, with no training, I’m on a cloud 9!

With my marathon finish, it’s now on to Phoenix, AZ….