Best of Hawaii Pictures
March 13th, 2010
Thanks to Christopher who had the camera!
Kona, Big Island, Honolulu. Christopher, Garrett, Amy and Ana
121 Photos
Archive
Archive for the ‘Travel’ Category
Ana, the hostess with mostness
March 8th, 2010
Luau
March 8th, 2010
We’re getting quiche!
March 8th, 2010
I guess we must be incredibly entertaining house guests to deserve
this…xoxo Ana!
Sunday Bloody Mary Sunday
March 7th, 2010
Blowhole
March 6th, 2010
Coffee
March 5th, 2010
South!
March 4th, 2010
Black sand, wind and turtles
March 4th, 2010
At a black sand beach…see if you can spot the turtle! It is W I N D
Y ! The sand it pelting us in the face…
Volcano!
March 4th, 2010
Flying Hawaii
March 3rd, 2010
Kona to Hilo via Kohala coast, Upolu point, Hamakua coast and back via
Waimea. Cessna 182 N5692P 2.2 hours of time logged. Simply awesome.
Good morning!
March 3rd, 2010
Here’s the view from our condo in Kona town. Didn’t realize the
powerlines were there… Funny what your mind filters out. The
flowering trees below I believe are Gardenia trees. Whatever they are
they smell awesome!
Aloha!
March 2nd, 2010
Kona or bust!
March 2nd, 2010
A decade of blogging
October 3rd, 2009
I’ve been blogging for a decade. 10 years already… huh!
While this is certainly an interesting point in a time line, it’s really only an electronic analogue to a diary. I’m sure many people have been keeping diaries for longer. Nonetheless I’m kinda tickled to meet this milestone. I started “blogging” before “blog” was even a noun or a verb; indeed before it was even a popular catchphrase. Indeed I had my first web page back in 1995 (See my “Deep Archive” link above)
That’s a lot of time and bandwidth (timewidth?) dedicated to my own banter. What have I accomplished in that time?
As it turns out quite a bit. I became a true adult (still out for some debate). I had a successful consulting company (official corporation even!) and then transferred clients/closed it after my clients became successful and got gobbled-up by other, bigger corps in what became the dot com bomb. I moved to California and back. I bought a house. Got cats. Sold a house. Bought a condo. Used five different types of blogging software. Stumbled into a great relationship. And generally observed what made me laugh and ranted upon the stuff that irritated.
As I look back at some of my entries it makes me smile and laugh a lot. Also I cringe a lot…was I THAT shrill, really? Or was I THAT stupid, really? But that’s the deliciousness of time and becoming older — the cumulative benefit of your experiences always makes you wiser and wiser.
So what will the next decade have in store? Who knows….That is what is fun, and worth living!
-Garrett
1998:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/1998/
1999:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/1999/2/
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/1999/3/
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/1999/
2000:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2000/1/
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2000/2/
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2000/3/
2002
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2003/1/
2003:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2003/2/
2004:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2004/1/
2005:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2005/1/
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2005/2/
2006:
http://www.gmwnet.com/archive/2006/1/
P.S.: I’m going to attempt to add these old entries to my database. So if you subscribe to the RSS feed you may see a slew of new entries. I’ll be careful to set the date in the posts properly, but I’m unsure if they will appear in the RSS feed because they are “new” entries as far as the database is concerned…
Aviation, Capitol Hill Living, Cats, ColdFusion, Downtown Living, Evert, Food, Fun!, Holiday, Holidays, Politics, Rants, Technology, The Condo, The House, Travel, Virtual Aviation, WOW!, geek
My ride to MSO
September 14th, 2009
Link me!
July 31st, 2009
img src=”http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2621/3775967354_8857dd4920_m.jpg”>
Finally got to ride today…pretty nice…signage still needs
improvement though
Southern Hospitality
March 11th, 2009
While in Atlanta I was able to spend time with my fine looking Southern cuzins Beth & Michelle! We had a great time and they took me to areas of Atlanta I would not otherwise have seen or known about:
Having a “FO” (Frosted Orange) and peach pie at Varisty, a drive-in dive and Atlanta tradition.
Had lunch here — was in the little “alternative” district of Atlanta (Little Five Points? — I forget already — They had good beer, though!). Was totally fun.
Welcome to Atlanta, now let me tell you a story…
March 9th, 2009
I like to compare Belligerent Urban Miscreants (B.U.M.s) in different cities, as there is a distinct difference and local flavor in each municipality’s B.U.M. membership.
Atlanta B.U.M.s are not as absolutely direct as in Boston, ala “Welcome to Boston, care for some crack?”
In Atlanta apparently there is a law that you can not directly ask for anything (as in solicitation of money). So the B.U.M.s have gotten pretty crafty down here out of necessity. They’ve become the “helping tour guide.” They strike up the conversation and then ask you if you need directions and point out new bars and city hot spots. They’re pretty clever and engaging. Then they hit you up for a “contribution” for their services.
I never give money to any particular B.U.M. member, but I actually had to break down and do it here in Atlanta after I saw the same guy twice. Last night he gave me some “advice” on a local pub….and I’ll be damned if it actually wasn’t good advice and the pub was really cool. So I gave him a couple dollars when I saw him today; he was appreciative and I felt pretty OK too.
Today I’m touring Atlanta city including The Georgia Aquarium (apparently the largest in the World…who knew!) and CNN. Then just wandering around, seeing what’s up.
Fort Myers and a blast of children
March 6th, 2009
Today I drove down to Fort Myers to see my good friends Scott & Paige, whom I’ve known since college, and their adorable kids Pierce (2) & Sloane (6 mo?). Most of you know I hate kids, so this may come as a surprise, but they really are cute. Pierce is talking up a storm and Sloane is the biggest, cutest smiley-girl you’ve ever seen — always a smile (Except when I took away the Tupperware of goldfish crackers from her after she started sucking on it — Ooooh, boy, did I hear protest about that!!)
The Paces are now putting the kids to bed, and I’m downstairs in the kitchen listening to the baby monitors down here — it’s really cute. I found myself singing along “abcdefg, hijklmnop, qrs, tuv, w, x, y and z…”
I’m down here thru Sunday and then I’m off to Atlanta!
Hopefully pictures to come — Pierce looks just like a little Scott!
More sunsets; plus video!
March 5th, 2009
Another pretty sunset, this time you can also watch the video as the sun drops down below the water and gets applause from the people in the bar below.
At the beach…
March 5th, 2009
I did dip my toe into the Gulf — it was cccccold. Like, freezing! At least I did it.
So writing this report outside from my balcony, sipping an ice-cold beer and observing interesting people. This part of the beach is devine.
So far…
Favorible impressions of Northwest Airlines
(soon to be Delta…sad to see NWA go…). So far — I haven’t flown NWA in decades, but each flight was spot on time and my bag came out only 10 minutes after arrival. First class was nice (when is it not?!) but actually I thought it was a wee bit better than American, my usual carrier. Food was actually good.
During the flight between MSP & TPA I was graced with a delightful traveling companion sitting next to me. She was from Minneapolis and ya, sure, you betcha — honest to goodness. Her mannerisms and accent were straight from Francis McDormand in the movie Fargo, but she looked EXACTLY like Ennis’s wife when she was blonde later-on from Brokeback Mountain (Was that Anne Hathaway?)! She was my age and travelling to a conference in Tampa — we had a great time talking about everything. It was a hoot.
Favorible impressions of Minneapolis Airport (MSP)
I actually haven’t transferred thru the main terminal at MSP before. It is quite large, and I had a hefty hike between gates, but it’s really nice. Massive mall will all shops you could imagine, incredible food choices. Makes me want to plan longer layovers here — with 2-3 hours you would not be bored in MSP. That said my 40 minute transfer was a bit tight, but worked perfectly — one of those magical layovers where just as you get to your next gate they pick up the mic and start announcing the boarding.
Favorible impressions of the Doubletree North Redington Beach, FL.
Slightly older building, sweetheart staff so far. I think I forget about the Doubletree when I travel — this is as nice as any Sheraton or Marriott I’ve been too, and it’s on the beach and was fairly inexpensive. And they asked, for $20, if I wanted a “welcome” package waiting for me in my room of assorted cheeses, crackers, fruit and beverages. I said yes, expecting a saucer of maybe 3 pieces of cheese and two small, green strawberries (but hey, I’m on vacation…) But then I found it and honestly — the thing is huge! All pretty and wrapped in a bow. I will never be able to eat all this cheese and fruit. It was awesome. Oh, and remember that Doubletree’s also give you a warm cookie upon checkin — yum!! Doubletree gets A+ from me so far…
So-so impressions of the beach.
It’s a nice beach for sure, and nice to look at and the Gulf view from my balcony is fantastic — love that! But, as I had thought, I can already tell that beach life is just not one of those things I’m attracted to. Laying in the sun and doing nothing. Just not my thing. And even off-season just before spring break hits there are still way, way too many people. I don’t like people as a rule. I DO like to lay around and do nothing, but not with people I don’t know and sweat dripping down my backside. Not comfortable! For me, relaxing on my balcony in the shade with a breeze reading my books OVERLOOKING the beach — well, that’s quite another thing. Lovin’ that. And the little lizards are cool.
Ahhhhhhhh
March 4th, 2009
William Shatner really does negotiate
February 8th, 2009
Karate CHOP! All be damned if priceline.com still has it!
I’ve used priceline in the past when being uber cheap was the name of the game. These days I’ve become a little more, well, fussy, and require control of my travel plans — I’m an admitted “mileage whore” so I like to stick with my favorite airline and hotel programs.
So when planning my March vacation this year to FLORIDA, I got all my favorites lined-up in a row and they satisfied me with good, competitive rates….and more miles! I’m totally happy with that.
But then Florida left me with a somewhat new-ish dilemma; Usually I go to cities that have lots of public transportation and there is NO need for a car. Umm, yeah, not so Florida! Seems like you and us in Washington have something in common other than being “corner” states after all! Damn. Must. Rent. Car.
So I look up the rates — they are atrocious. Ridiculous, even. $60 per DAY is the best I can get on Expedia or Travelocity. I have no loyalty to rental car companies — I don’t care which one, as long as it’s major. There has to be something better. I muse to myself “Hey, what would William Shatner do?!?” So I go to priceline.com and put in an equally ridiculous low price for a car, per day.
$14…. [click]
…your offer has been accepted!
No way! Gaddam, that really was the best exciting thing to happen to me in a while. I got goosebumps. I could talk and go on and on about what a complete cahoots the car companies are in, but I was just glad to get a righteous price.
So cheers to the captain, and priceline really does still have it.
Virgin America LAS-SFO-SEA Oct 2008
October 8th, 2008
From a trip report I posted to airliners.net.
The actual trip to Vegas was nice — very relaxed. I didn’t even bring my laptop!! Although I later was feeling quite detached from the world. Guess I have Internet addiction, but since I can claim that is my career hopefully I can avoid those nasty visits to the therapist LOL!
___________________________
Bottom lines at the top:
–Nice new airplanes, of course.
–Nice staff, not outlandishly cute, but happy & professional
–Exit row reservation of $15 is worth it
–Upgrade to first class $50 worth it…perhaps
–Red is cool, but needs some work. Holds promise
–Will definitely fly again; all-in-all superior to other competitors that I have flown
In brief…my first time on Virgin America as I was trying their product to see what the fuss was all about after a 3 day quickie in Vegas. I usually fly either Alaska (We’re nearly slaves to it in SEA for west coast stuff) or Southwest for short trips like this.
I forgot my camera — 20 lashes with a noodle, I know.
LAS-SFO VX909
Scheduled: 3:35P
Actual: 3:35P
Load: 85-ish%
Reserved an exit row window on this leg. Found the legroom more than some domestic first class cabins I’ve sat in. Definitely worth the $15 for me. Seats are comfy and did not feel “squashed” into them and I’m a pretty big guy. The side wall does start curving into your headroom if a window seat, though. Not enough to make me unhappy for 1.5 hours. Weather was gorgeous all along the coast, so spot on-time departure. Arrived 40-35 minutes early into SFO!
The Red in-flight entertainment is nice, but still seems buggy — slow screen redraws and artifacts. Google maps is slow. TV is good. Music good (obviously as a Virgin product…) Navigation of the screens was a little confusing, but I’m getting old and analog, so perhaps it’s just me. Once the kinks are worked-out and the final features added it will indeed be killer.
Now had a 4 hour layover in SFO, but that was planned — had dinner with some friends which was fabulous. Returned to the airport an hour before departure only to find a gate change to the other side of the SFO Int’l terminal to G83. Quite long walk — not something you want to do when you have no time.
SFO-SEA VX748
Scheduled: 8:45P
Actual: 8:45P
Load: poor (perhaps 33%?)
Got an upgrade to first class on this leg. After cheap Vegas hotel and no gambling I figured i could afford the $50 upgrade luxury to try it out — I AM an airplane lover after all, so it’s research, at least this is my excuse to myself… 
First class is really akin to a good International business class. Unbelievable seat pitch — I could not reach-out and touch the seat in front of me without getting out of my seat. Seat comfy. Only annoying thing was there is no place to rest a single drink glass as the arm rests are padded and contain the tray table on one side and the Red screen on other.
We were served a BBQ chicken salad, which I poked thru as I was stuffed from dinner, but it was good and appropriate for the quite late hour. All-in-all for this short flight the $50 wasn’t particularly worth it when I knew from the first flight that $15 extra scores an outstanding seat totally sufficient for 1-3 hour coastal flights.
I later sat in a “normal” coach seat for a few minutes. It did feel more constricted, obviously, but I would not hesitate to sit in one of these either. As good or better than other airlines.
Oh, and we arrived 30 minutes early in SEA as well. Must have been the excellent weather, I’m sure. Vividly shows you, however, how much delay airlines pad into schedules some times (yet still are late…I know, a huge other topic! 
Summary:
IMHO this is a superior product compared to the normal airlines I endure when doing quick flights on the west coast. Perhaps not mind-blowingly so, but definitely a noticeable step above the rest. If Virgin America flies to a destination I want to go to I will choose them over anyone else from now on; let’s hope that network of theirs is expanded. I think they have the potential to really take-on a certain airlines if they can hang in there during the tough times and passengers take notice.
________________
http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/trip_reports/read.main/135267/
The best airline (any?) commercial ever
September 16th, 2008
OK, I’m late to the party… (big surprise!)
This commercial that United aired during the Olympics is simply a masterpiece. It is an epic film in 60 seconds.
Normally I’m not a huge sappy guy, but this one softens even my hard edges. It is so nuanced and heartfelt — literally; the way the heart gets cut-out and slipped in a pocket. They way you see the light thru the empty heart during the presentation. They way the bird flies thru it and the score is outstanding. Plus just a hint of United’s famous use of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” at the end, which has to be one of the most effective, and really great, corporate identities out there.
Just too bad United is really going through some rough times, as obviously they have some incredible talent and feeling somewhere in that leviathan body. This is beautiful.
Anyways, here it is…
My new favorite blog
August 25th, 2008
And no, it’s not mine!
http://www.bsideblog.com/travel/
This guy is hysterical — he writes about his travel experiences. He’s an awesome writer (apparently what he does for a living) and he says it like it is! The travel section of his blog is just a part of his other subjects. But it’s the one’s that I identify with the most.
He used the word “gauche” in a post. Always a plus in my book.
He’s also obviously a Child of the 80’s like me, For example, on JetBlue’s videos channel:
“Anyway, I’ve watched a good number of videos on the three-headed monster that is MTV-VH1-VH1 Classic. Highlights have included “No Air” by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown (my new guilty pleasure), “We Built This City” by Starship (my all time favorite guilty pleasure), “Foolish Beat” by Debbie Gibson (a guilty pleasure I didn’t even realize was a guilty pleasure until it came on), “Wishing Well” by Terrence Trent D’Arby (a smooth pleasure), “Love Song” by Sara Bareilles (a goddamn pleasure), and “Touch My Body” by Mariah Carey (a funny video pleasure). I should note that for whatever reason, I was oddly compelled to sing along to “We Built This City,” but I restrained myself out of respect for the passengers and/or any small animals that may be aboard. I should also note that while I’ve seen the video many, many times in my life, this was the first time that I carefully studied Grace Slick’s dance moves, and let me say that while rhythm might not be her strong suit, no one can touch her when it comes to teetering over on her side / clapping oddly.”
I especially loved the first few points of his “Top Ten Worst Baggage Claim Annoyances.”
Say it, man, say it!
Gone fishin’
July 16th, 2008
Life’s a beach!
June 7th, 2008
So enjoying a weekend away at the beach. Even if it is a little cool, it hasn’t rained much although the wind has been fierce. I got a great little condo unit right on the beach in Moclips, which is around 20 miles north of Ocean Shores. Other than an excursion to Ocean Shores itself, I’ve seen maybe 10 people. The beach is wide-open. Me likey!
Also got to take a ride in the parent’s motorhome, as they came along as well — stayed in Pacific Beach down the road. Was fun, until my Dad won at mini-golf. My mother and I are still debating his alleged 10-point win
Big photo upload!
April 20th, 2008
I finally had some time to clean my photo pile and get some of that organized. I downloaded Picasa from Google — and I’ll be if that ain’t the best little utility ever for organizing and creating photo albums (once you find the time).
The scary part, though, was Picasa found everything — and I mean everything. So some editing had to take place!
I organized a bunch of stuff including the full set of photos for my recent Paris trip. Here they are:
Full Paris Compilation:
Misc albums that amused me:
Home. Finally.
March 16th, 2008
OK, everyone knows I love travel — but I must admit sometimes I get the better of myself. Let’s see, depart Paris at 9 AM Paris time (get up at 6 AM), fly to JFK for 8 hours. 5 hour layover (turned into 6). Fly 5 hours home to Seattle. Arrive at 10 PM Seattle time. 30 minute delay waiting on plane for jetbridge to be fixed. Same day. Hmm — what is that…a 36-hour day? I dunno. Too tired for math. Anyways, I’m home and being mauled by my cats for attention. Still, Paris was fantastic.
Last Day!
March 14th, 2008
So we were going to cook today. Unfortunately the chef mis-scheduled others during the day and couldn’t acommodate us — a truly bummer deal. So we ended up doing some “left-overs” of our own and hit some places we missed or wanted more of.
THEN we set off for our last night at new hotel near the airport, since we have an early morning flight. Below is the video that pretty much sums up my thoughts on the hotel. It was better than I had dreamed of — I’m such an airplane nerd. (Warning: I’m slightly a potty-mouth)
Plus here’s the photos:
Public Pommel Horsing not allowed in France
March 13th, 2008
Wandering around Paris I went down this ally to a little park as I was waiting for Claire to finish on her own taking some last pictures of the Musee D’Orsay and what do I find out: France discriminates on gymnastic apparatus. Damn. My routine was all ready to go, too.
Here’s the parks where the sign was — cute little thing, but what an interesting welcome. It’s obvious they mean not for you to slide on the railing there or jump it, but still
les omlettes sont les meilleurs!
March 12th, 2008
I had the best ham omlette, of all things, for dinner tonight. The ham was real and tasty, cheese perfect and the eggs — remarkably done, yet tender and fluffy. Amazing something so seemingly simple could be so vastly better than you’ve ever had before.
Today we went to the Centre Pompidou and saw the Mus
Expanded Paris Photos
March 9th, 2008
OK, so my friends have cajoled and sucked me into using facebook. I must admit their photo page creator is pretty slick, so I used that to upload my photos so far:
Quick Paris Photos
March 9th, 2008
No poop yet; The French DO smile!
March 7th, 2008
I have travel stories already. I made it my goal of staying awake the first day until a reasonable hour. Yay — I did it. 10PM and it’s bedtime on this Friday night! I am dog tired!
Speaking of dogs, I had always read and heard that Paris has dog crap laying all over the streets as people didn’t pick up after their dogs. It must be one of those fallacies to keep people away — kinda like Seattle and rain, because I have yet to come across any of this detrius on the streets. As a matter of fact most are pretty clean actually. Hmmpf. Must hunt for this elusive French dogshit. Will take photos. This is my new mission.
And speaking of the French — I have yet to be truly offended by anyone’s rude behavior yet either. I actually got a lot of smiles and good natured-ness even using my extremely limited French phrases. Although you do get a lot of “matter-of-factness” as I call it. Call it a smooth indifference. They absolutely give you what you want, but just no smile. I say — so what?! That’s not rude. That just…is. Which apparently is very French. Definitely not American style. But that’s why you travel, isn’t it — to get out of your comfort zones, explore and witness that there are other ways of doing things just as good as your own.
OK, I’m nearly hitting the keyboard with my head nodding off to sleep. Pictures to come tomorrow and so does Claire!
I’ve travelled 70% of the way to the moon!
October 13th, 2007
Or at least that’s what this cool new website, flightmemory.com, says.
This is a website where you enter all the details of your travels and it then spits-out maps and statistics for you. I totally got into this just being lazy today. Spent hours putting in my flights and travels, all from memory.
Then you start to remember trips you forgot! Like I vividly remember flying on Delta Airlines through Cincinnati once, and Northwest via Detroit — but I can’t remember what for!
*Highly* entertaining for an aviation/travel nerd such as myself.
View my Flight memory maps and stats here!
Highlights (And I’m far from complete!):
In Miles 167,658
In Kilometer 269,821
Earth Circumnavigation 6.73 x
Distance to the Moon 0.702 x
Distance to the Sun 0.0018 x
Total Airports 53
Total Airlines 16
Total Aircraft type 28
Total Routes 106
Total Countries 8
Oh yeaahhh…travel planning time!
September 25th, 2007
I’m off as a traveller again!
Super excited — I just planned two cool trips. A short trip in December to the Bay Area to see some friends I haven’t seen in ages and then a fantastic trip to Paris in March — my favorite travel month.
I planned the trip to Paris first and then thought — crap, that’s 6 months away! I need a vacation to ease all that waiting…so I planned another.
Hopefully my friend Claire, who’s going back to school on the East coast, will be able to join me as it’s her spring break.
Pssst…I’m flying first class to Paris…yes, hate me…Bahahahaha!
No arrests made! so far…
July 14th, 2007
Natalie and I have made it back from our road trip — we covered a lot of territory. Sedona, Grand Canyon, Meteor Crater, Petrified Forest National Park.
I get back home tomorrow.
Vid: “Sleep in a Wigwam on route 66″ said the sign! So we did!!
Start saving bail for me now…
May 29th, 2007
