Today’s Terror Alert Is 4

We just love to quantify stuff here in America don’t we? Channel hopping between commercials during what we were really watching we found the crawl on FoxNews telling us the terror alert was now High, a 4 as opposed to yesterday’s 3. Why did it go up? What increased precautions should be taken now? As confused as I? Here is the place to get all the answers: Homeland Security Advisory System Web Page. After reading that I know just what to do now, I just have to remember where I keep the caraway seeds.

Holiday Inn V

When we check-in on Friday our first impression was good. The lobby looked nice and was decorated well. The buildings themselves looked new. But unfortunately new was not the case. This place had obviously been renovated in the last couple of years. It didn’t really show until you got in the rooms. The tub had been covered up with one of those plastic surrounds, top and bottom. There was about 2 inches of the old white tiles peeking over the top of the plastic and the tub creaked and gave way slightly while standing in it. Another big giveaway was the room carpet. they either had not replaced it or had with the cheapest stuff they could find as it stained, showing wear and starting to come up in the corners. I guess another clue was the “vintage” TV.

You are now rightly asking yourself, “Why does he stay in Holiday Inns if every time the experience s*cks?” The reason is I am a Priority Club member and I get points towards a free night every time I stay. How lame is that?

Holiday Inn IV

If you have been around since last September 13th you know that when my wife and I travel we bring our own showerhead. As suggested there too, we have now starting bringing our own spring clips to hold the curtains closed. Well now I think we may need to trade the Miata in on a mini-van so we can bring our own TV. What we have for our viewing pleasure in this HI is a 25″ TV from the early 80’s that comes almost all the way into focus after about a 5 minute warm up time. As an added aggravation the remote is one of those generic ones that doesn’t have numbers for direct channel entry just up and down buttons of which only the down works.

A Shoppers Paradise

Off to another Disney inspired shopping experience for today, a place called Concord Mills, 200 stores around a mile long loop. It has 24 theaters on one end and a giant Bass Pro Shop on the other and in between, arranged in “neighborhoods” is a shoppers paradise. We spent a couple hours and a couple hundred dollars before we caught a matinee of “About Schmidt.” There are about a half-dozen of these places around the country and Donna and I had been in the one in Dallas, Grapevine Mills, in 1999 when we were there for the 10th annual national Miata gathering and have never forgotten the experience.

Started up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 7

Very Interesting

We drove a short bit of I-20 before escaping to the back roads for the trip to Cornelius, NC. After checking in to our motel we headed out for some dinner. We ended up one exit back on I-77 at a place called Birkdale Village that is sort of a mix of outdoor outlet mall and a Disneyesque small town with apartments above the stores. It is an interesting concept. There were a few places to choose from for eating and we picked a place called Planet Grill. The dining concept was as interesting as that of the surrounding development. Even found a parking spot right up front too. The only down side was that I had to parallel park (I know what you are thinking, “That shouldn’t be too hard in that little car.”) Well it isn’t, but because I do it so infrequently, I’m out of practice and it took a couple of tries to get the car close to the curb.

Started up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 7

Holiday Inn III

When we check in, the clerk gives us room 231 and some vague directions on how to get there. Off we drove to the back of the complex, noticing that the place is nearly empty. When we get to our room it is right at the top of the stairs. If you walk straight ahead after the last stringer you would bump right into the door of the room. There are 2 room locations in a motel you should never stay in; 1) next to or across from an ice machine and B) at he the top or bottom of the stairs. Both spots are notoriously noisy because of the people traffic (they wouldn’t be so bad if people were still considerate of others, but that is a whole ‘nother blog post.) We headed back to the front desk and ask for a room 2 or 3 doors away from this one. The clerk, after making a big show of checking for empty rooms, gives us a key to room 233. When we get back to our new room it is not 2 doors away, but merely one. Not only is it not far from 231, it is an adjoining room! The doors are literally 6″ apart. Seeing as the place was empty we decided not to try for room #3, knowing that if we did he would put us next to the weight room or guest laundry next…

Friday Cheat Post

Donna and I are off for a weekend of fun & frolic in Cornelius, North Carolina, so I won’t be able to post here for the next two nights. I’ll take the little blue notebook and do the analog blog thing and then transcribe it here Sunday night.

Thanks to Sandra Hull for that turn of a phrase, analog blog. It comes from her post about the shuttle’s disintegration last Saturday.