Tag Archives: Los Angeles

Beaches, Mountains or Concrete

It seems I’ve recently come to a fork in the road. Using past experience this should come as no surprise. Let’s go back about 18 years to take a look at said history. In late 1994, at the ripe old age of 18, I left the comfy confines of Long Island to go to college in Pennsylvania. Four years later, after finishing college, I promptly moved to Washington, DC. I ended up moving back to Long Island just two and a half years later. I only spent a year and a half back home before leaving for mile high country, Denver, CO. In what might go down as a personal record, it took six years to leave Denver for sunny Southern California. And here I am today, almost 4 years later, living in the Marina del Rey / Venice Beach area. For how long is the big question as I’m having thoughts of making a change (again).

The fork that I’ve come to seams to split in three prominent directions. The first road goes straight, leaving me in Southern California. This may involve moving to a different location. That location may be with a different employer or it may be closer to my current employer.

The second fork takes me slightly north and to a much higher altitude… Denver, CO. I haven’t forgotten what a great place Denver is to live. Add the fact that I already own a home there, so the transition would be quite smooth. There’s something to be said about being able to walk out of the front door, hop on the bicycle, and go for a long ride without having to worry about getting hit by a car… all with beautiful scenery.

The last fork would take me close to where this all got started… New York. It occurred to me recently that, although I’m from New York, I didn’t really get to experience it as an adult. I’ve seen the Knicks play in Washington (DC), Denver, and Minneapolis since leaving NY, but have never seen them play in Madison Square Garden. I’ve seen the Mets play in Denver, Los Angeles, and San Diego, but not in their new confines at Citi Field. I’ve never seen the Jets play in person… at any stadium. Beyond sports, it would be nice to be able to walk around Central Park and be closer to family and friends from my younger days. Even being closer to my parents to help them out as they get a little older.

So there you have it – 1 fork, 3 directions. Sandy beaches, rocky mountains, or concrete?

Continental Airlines 1281

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Depart CLE @ 4:45 EDT
Arrive LAX @ 6:48 PM EDT

It’s been a long couple of weeks in Canton, OH. The weather was cold and often rainy, but am finally on my way back home to the sun and beach of California.

Construction around the airport, specifically the roads to drop off the rental car, were backed up. This caused a bit of a delay in getting to the airport. Also, the security line was quite hectic, or, as my coworker noted, intense. We didn’t actually get to the gate until it was time to board the plane. Overall, the Cleveland airport could use a redesign. Everything was cramped and out of place. There was something brought up by the commish in the fantasy football league which I had to deal with today, the bathroom stalls. Why do they make the doors swing inward on bathroom stalls? It was quite an adventure attempting to get my luggage into the stall in order to get changed Into some more comfortable clothes for the flight. The worst part was when I walked out of the bathroom and my coworker was standing there having already changed. He used the family changing room just outside the men’s room to get changed… and said there was plenty of room to maneuver. I might have to take note of that option for future reference.

I’m now about 2.5 hours into the flight, which is just about the half way point of the flight. The seats on this flight seem to have more width to them, making it a bit more comfortable then the flight to Cleveland, but my but is getting numb nonetheless. The seats also have individual TV’s, so I paid the $8 to have a wide variety of shows available. This means I’m going to have to watch X-Men: First Class, the movie I rented on iTunes, some other time during the next couple of weeks.

The rental car picked at National this week was a Dodge Avenger. The controls were familiar, that might have something to do with Dodge having the same parent company as Jeep. Overall though, the car seemed cheaply built. I can’t pinpoint why it felt that way, but it just did.

The hotel was a Fairfield Inn by Marriott. I usually prefer to stay at a hotel with a kitchen when traveling for multiple weeks at a time, something the Fairfield did not have. As a result dinner was at local watering holes the whole stay. Other than that, the rooms were nice and clean, so no complaints. Ok, back to the TV, hope everyone enjoys the weekend.

Continental Airlines 1291

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Depart LAX @ 10:30 AM PDT
Arrive CLE @ 5:59 PM EDT

At some point in the future I’m going to research previous travel experiences with airports and airlines to see what’s working and what’s not. Way back in May I travelled with Continental and, although I may have enjoyed the in flight entertainment, the seats did not provide much space between the armrests. If not for the empty middle seat right now, I would be going through that same feeling on my current flight. In a mild surprise though, the check-in and baggage check lines were short. The security line was nonexistent at about 8:45 this morning, to the point I wasn’t even ready with my license and boarding pass.

We’re now going through what the stewardess termed as “moderate to severe turbulence.” Typing is very difficult, going to take a small respite from typing this post. Still a good amount of turbulence about 20 minutes later. Turbulence has finally subsided after about 30 minutes. That was pretty rough. Anyway, back to the business at hand.

Although I’m flying to Cleveland, my final destination is Canton, OH, about 60 miles south of Cleveland. On the way to Canton I should pass through the small city of Akron, known for being the hometown of Lebron “I’m taking my talents (quitting) to South Beach” James. I wouldn’t be surprised if, deep down, he hopes there’s no basketball this season. Anyway, having the option to either fly on Sunday, return on Friday night, then fly back on Sunday, I decided to cut down on the travel and stay next weekend. This will also allow me to check out the Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, which is only open during normal business hours during the week. Outside of the Hall of Fame and some work, not really sure what is in the cards for next weekend. Maybe a lot of rest.

I’m renting a car through National Car Rental and will be staying at a Fairfield Inn by Marriott these next 2 weeks. I’m trying, as much as reasonably possible, to pick up travel points with the same airline, car rental, and hotel chain. However, I’m having trouble finding an airline that meets my needs, but may stick to United/Continental and Southwest as the go-to airlines until future reference. United/Continental will be for longer direct flights, if available, and Southwest for shorter flights. Other than that, we’ll have to see.

Southwest 689

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Depart Denver (DEN) at 03:15 PM
Arrive in Los Angeles (LAX) at 04:40 PM

It’s becoming a common occurrence that I’m on the same flight multiple weeks in a row. Not much to discuss about the airport or security this go round, everything was smooth. Sometimes I surprise even myself at how calm I am dealing with the many aspects of airports, when it seems everyone around me is all stressed out. What I wasn’t prepared for on this trip was the person sitting next to me in the middle seat. I’m hoping he doesn’t look over to my side long enough to be able to read this, but there is a bad stench emanating from his body. Is it that hard to take a shower and put on deodorant before going into a place where you’re going to be packed like a sardine?! Don’t get me wrong, what people do on their own time is their own business. If you’re a hermit and only get out of the home for emergencies, then don’t ever take a shower for all I care. But if you’re going out in public and plan on going into a confined space, do the rest of us a favor, take a shower and put deodorant on, maybe even splash some aftershave if you have known stench issues. I can’t tell you how happy I was when the stewardess passed out the little peanut bags so I could open one up and have the aroma of peanuts take over, even if just for a small period of time.

For a brief summary of the SpringHill Suites by Marriott check out the travel post from last Friday. There’s nothing new to report on that subject.

The rental car of choice this week was a Jeep Patriot. For those of you that are not familiar with National, they have rows of cars based on your club level. I’m in the Emerald Club level. It’s the lowest level, so don’t let the name fool you. All you have to do is pick a car from the row and drive off, stopping to show them your license on the way out. When I arrived at the National Emerald Club row of cars there was a Ford Flex available. I’ve had my eye on this car ever since last summer when I was in the market for a new car. I was thinking this would be a great opportunity to see what I’m missing. But apparently I wasn’t the only one with my eye on it. An old lady made a bee line for the Flex that I’m sure I couldn’t have stopped with two good knees. So with the Flex no longer an option I went with the Patriot. Overall, I wasn’t impressed. I thought the Patriot was supposed to be the smaller and smoother SUV made for the masses by Jeep. It was a loud and rough ride. Not sure if it was anomaly or the usual ride, but my Wrangler rides smoother than the Patriot did, and that’s saying a lot.

My next trip and subsequent travel post will be on October 10th when I will travel to a city known for being the home of the National Football League Hall of Fame. First one to guess where will win… nothing.

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Southwest 605

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Depart Los Angeles (LAX) at 08:30 AM
Arrive in Denver (DEN) at 11:45 AM

Another trip to Denver this week. This doesn’t happen often, but after the alarm went off this morning I mumbled a few curse words for having to get up to travel again. That’s not a good sign. I’m hoping this week goes fast as I can use a break from traveling. I’m also hoping to catch up with a few friends this time around, something I didn’t do last week.

For the amount of times I take United Taxi to get to the airport, it got me to wondering if taxi companies ever thought of having a rewards program. Maybe there are some out there that do, who knows. Either way I think my rewards points would be overflowing with free rides.

Nothing new at LAX Terminal 1 today. The check-in / baggage check line was light and the security line was a little better than the usual Monday morning madness. I arrived at the airport about 1:45 before departure time, was through security and at the gate about 25 minutes later.

That’s all I’ve got for this flight. Next travel update is scheduled for Friday afternoon.

Southwest 689

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Depart Denver (DEN) at 03:15 PM
Arrive in Los Angeles (LAX) at 04:40 PM

The past couple of weeks the idea of moving back to Colorado has been making the rounds in my thoughts. Don’t get me wrong, my happy quotient (read: my ever increasing gut) says California has been a very fun place to live. I take part in the work hard, play hard concept here more then ever before. When I lived in Colorado, work got done, but there always seemed to be more than enough time to stop and smell the roses during off hours. That doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. Days seem to melt together, when the week is over I don’t remember where it all went. That may just be a function of getting older too, I don’t know. But moving back to Colorado is definitely an option that is open during the next few years, if only to get back to exercising more.

Denver International (DIA) is one of my favorite airports. The check-in / baggage check and security lines were very reasonable. The longest part of getting to the gate was the train to Terminal C. It’s the only reason to give yourself extra time at the airport. And the food options are plentiful. I’m pretty sure these same comments were made back in March after my last trip to Denver.

The hotel, SpringHill Suites (Marriott) Denver North/Westminster, seemed relatively new and was clean. There was a good connection to the wireless internet in the room. The connection was fast enough to do what I wanted and, best of all, it didn’t require an extra fee on top of the room fee. There was a good selection of places to eat around the hotel, including a Buffalo Wild Wings, Hacienda Colorado, Panera, and Qdoba. There was even a Dave and Busters about a half mile away. The only issue might have been the lack of people around. I’m not sure if the economy has hit that part of town hard or if the development of housing is in its infancy and things just haven’t picked up yet. Or, It might be a combination of both.

The rental car of choice this week was a Ford Fusion from National. I’ve heard and read some good things about Ford during the past year or two, so I thought it was worth taking it for a test drive. My biggest surprise was it’s ability to get up the mountains hills with relative ease on the way to Keystone last weekend. If I were in the market for a smaller car, I’d give it a serious look next to one of my favorites, the Honda Civic. Alas, I’ve only owned the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited for a little over a year now, so there will be no car shopping in the near future.

Let’s do this again sometime, maybe next week on the back end of this two week trip to/from Denver.

Southwest Flight 154

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Depart Los Angeles (LAX) at 10:55 AM
Arrive in Denver (DEN) at 02:10 PM

Having too much too drink the night before a flight makes for a rough morning. Luckily, flying Southwest out of LAX on a Saturday morning is quite different then a Monday morning, making things a lot less stressful. The area outside of the terminal was not overflowing with cars dropping off travelers, the baggage check line was short, and the security line didn’t even flow off the second level. The best part though is the flight is not full and, as a result, I have free access to spread my legs a little bit into the unmanned middle seat.

This trip to Colorado has multiple purposes, work and play. Today I’m going to check-in at Dakota Lodge at Keystone Resort, where my condo has been stranded without me for over 2 years. I may have to do some research to figure out the last time I stayed there. I’ll add that info later. I’m hoping to relax tonight after I arrive, then get some outdoor time on the mountain tomorrow before stopping to enjoy Sunday night football (featuring the NY Jets). I’m thinking the outdoor time tomorrow will be in the form of a hike, but we’ll see, maybe I’ll rent a bike or get a round of golf in. All options are open for discussion after I wake up and get some coffee at Starbucks. However, the discussion will be one sided as only I’ll be the only one involved in the discussion.

The remaining part of the trip starting Monday morning will be spent working in Broomfield, CO. This is the first of 2 consecutive trips to Colorado, with the second trip occurring next week. Rumor has it I might find myself here again in January. Ah, the life and time of a business traveller, finding time to fit in a pseudo get-a-way in between trips.

Hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend.

UPDATE: Turns out I was close, the last time I made it to Keystone was August 2009.

Southwest 1596

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Depart SACRAMENTO CA (SMF) at 5:40 PM
Arrive in LOS ANGELES INTL (LAX) at 7:00 PM

I get confused with all the different rules that apply to flying. Sometimes I don’t think the airlines know what the actual rules are. A few months back I was able to board an earlier flight with Southwest to return home, no questions asked at the gate, only to find out my luggage didn’t join me on the flight. Earlier today I arrived at the airport about 4 hrs. before the scheduled departure time. Since I packed a smaller carry-on bag, I figured I’d try to get on the 2:45 PM flight back to Los Angeles. When I arrived at the gate the attendant noted I’d have to pay an upgrade fee to go standby. The reason being the flight was purchased using the Wanna Get Away price, the most discounted fare. This happens to be the same fare I always buy. So what was the real difference between the flight last month and the flight today? So now I’m waiting to board the original scheduled flight at 5:40.

The rental car this week was through National again, with a little upgrade. There was a Jeep Liberty available in the Emerald Club section, so I figured why not give a current version of a car I used to own a try. Other than a rattle on the left side of the steering wheel due to something being loose, it was a nice ride. Still like the Liberty, but definitely prefer the Wrangler Unlimited waiting for me at home.

This week really was a duplicate from last week, same airline and flight times, same car rental agency, and same hotel. There is one comment about the Fairfield Inn that I didn’t write about last week. I’m not sure why hotels do this, but they frequently advertise having widescreen TV’s in the rooms. What they conveniently leave out is there is no HD connection attached to the tv, so you wind up watching people that look awkwardly wide on the screen, due to stretching the picture to use the full screen. Not all hotels do this, but I have noticed it a lot. You would think in a place that looks relatively new the HD connection would have been set up right from the start. It’s not a big complaint, just something I’ve noticed.

It just about time to start heading to the gate. Hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend! And to those of you on the east coast, stay safe.

Southwest 1543

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Depart Los Angeles (LAX) at 08:40 AM
Arrive in Sacramento (SMF) at 09:55 AM

This is one of the few occasions where I purchased a ticket with the same depart/arrival times to a destination in consecutive weeks. With that in mind and little else to discuss about this uneventful morning, I’m able to do a little comparison between this week and last regarding the security line. Last week the length of the line almost reached the second terminal. Today wasn’t as bad, but the line still had me starting outside. I did get here about 10 minutes earlier today and was also able to get through security faster with little stress. That’s it for today, enjoy the week ahead.