Disclaimer: Since Travelpod does not allow you to export blogs, I shall be bringing old entries to you slowly, but surely, through good, old-fashioned (and painstakingly arduous) Cut-and-paste.
August 8, 2008
Fortunately, there was enough time during our layover in the nation’s capital on the way to Rome to grab a frosty java chip Frappuchino, a mug, and a snapshot. I never drink Frappuchinos, but it seemed like the right thing to do before embarking on a 10 hour flight in a 2 x 3 x 5 ft cube. What you DON’T see is that to the right of the storefront was a life-sized cardboad cutout of Barack Obama. Thumb’s up!
Disclaimer: Since Travelpod does not allow you to export blogs, I shall be bringing old entries to you slowly, but surely, through good, old-fashioned (and painstakingly arduous) Cut-and-paste.
February 2, 2008
We really needed a getaway but couldn’t get away, so instead booked two nights at the Drake Hotel on the Magnificent Mile for a super bargain. Walking down Michigan Ave., we passed by an old familiar stomping grounds. The 670 N. Michigan Starbucks store, #2548, is gone. In lieu of Starbucks, on this ground now stands the Ritz Carlton luxury condominiums (starting price: $1.7 million). As a result, I had to get my coffee that morning at Ghiradelli. No offense to Ghiradelli, but as you can see here I’m seriously hung over from bottles of wine the night before, and, it’s just not Starbucks.
Disclaimer: Since Travelpod does not allow you to export blogs, I shall be bringing old entries to you slowly, but surely, through good, old-fashioned (and painstakingly arduous) Cut-and-paste.
December 24, 2007
Having already visited stores in Canada and the US (continental and Alaska), this beauty completes the North American tour of Starbucks stores. Here at the Sante Fe mall in Mexico City, paying for coffee in pesos, ordering a grande and having it actually mean something besides medium… that deserves six thumbs up.
By the way, we also caught sight of two more stores on a tour bus cruising through Mexico City:
notice the snowflakes…
We were there at Christmas time and is was a breezy 65-F
Disclaimer: Since Travelpod does not allow you to export blogs, I shall be bringing old entries to you slowly, but surely, through good, old-fashioned (and painstakingly arduous) Cut-and-paste.
August 16, 2007
Huntington, WV is where I began this Starbucks journey in earnest. It’s first photo of me, thumb outstretch, giddy with glee that a place that in my mind only consisted of gas stations and pancake houses would have a bright green siren gleaming in the sky. It was a plain old black coffee. And it was delicious.
Alright, so I know I already have a photo in Chicago (still hanging out over on travelpod, and two if you count my boarded up old store at 670 N. Michigan). Plus, it’s not really “around the world” for me since I live in Chicago, and it’s in the airport…..
…But this is terminal 3 at the airport.
The Starbucks experience was just fine – I had an iced coffee and a yogurt parfait, but I might add that this may be the only terminal I fly out of from now on because I’m totally gaga over Virgin America as my new airline of choice. If you want to hear more about that, read my post about it.
I’ve never been more excited than to hear that ding of the captain turning off the seatbelt sign…
Ok, this is not the best picture of me, I’ll admit, but today I’m giddy with excitement as I’m blogging for the first time while actually in the air. After all, it’s a little embarrassing to be taking photos of yourself when there are people six inches to each side of you.
I was pretty pumped to finally redeem my free coupon for Gogo inflight internet from the travel bloggers conference I went to a few years ago so I could do some work on a grant application during my four hour flight to San Francisco today.
Apparently, said coupons have an expiration date. But, through a little magic and the power of persuasion I’m surfing here for free anyway. Normally, it’s a steep $13 per flight and I generally prefer to be completely low-tech on flights (as in, reading things on paper or sewing). But I’m certainly not complaining about updating my status from 30,000 feet. According to my flight tracker (on Gogo’s home page), we’re currently cruising over Omaha…
It’s a whirlwind of a trip. With two four-hour flights, about 4-5 hours of driving, and only 2.5 days, this trip is not for fun or relaxation, but closure.
My Grampy passed away last August and because of some not so great timing (I had a huge dance show the same week) my brother and I are going this weekend to pay our respects. His death was extremely sudden, entirely unexpected, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Grampy taught me how to work hard and play harder, and with the patriarch of our family gone it’s hard to say if our familial cookie will crumble or bake. I guess that remains to be seen. For the time being, his life is a reminder to me that life will never be a cakewalk, but you should eat cake anyway.
Enough with the baked goods references…
By the way, I’m way more impressed with Gogo than with Boingo, the in-terminal internet for which I also had a free coupon (sans expiration date). I might also mention that, aside from our seats being double booked, and a super bumpy takeoff, I’m totally in love with Virgin and will have a hard time flying any other airline. We stood our ground and won on the seats, and I’m assuming the bumps were on account of clouds, not the captain. I mean, come on! They have purple and blue mood lighting on the plane….
As many of you may know, I ride my bike to work (almost) every day. Lately I’ve become interested in hearing stories and comparing notes with other bike commuters. Therefore, I’m kicking off a new series today called True Confessions of a Bike Commuter. It’s an opportunity for us to meet and greet with my fellow commuters, and find out what makes us get in the saddle every morning.
Me first? Well, if you insist.
Spring-ish, 2011 and adjusting to the new commute from our fixer-upper in Portage Park (yes, we had mirrors in our living room).
Where do you live? Chicago
How long is your commute? I work two part time jobs during the day and travel to both by bike. The daily commute from home to work to work to home is about 15-20 miles.
What kind of bike do you ride? A Trek hybrid
Do you wear work clothes on your bike, or wear bike clothes and change at work? I’m lucky that both of my jobs have locker rooms, so I wear bike clothes and can change and shower if necessary. Padded shorts are non-negotiable.
How do you carry your stuff? Paniers? Messenger bag? Milk Crate? I’ve tried all three, but these days I’ve got a trunk bag that has attached paniers. It has a huge capacity (key since I commute between jobs, bring a change of clothes, and pack my lunch), and I like not having to carry anything on my back. Downside: it’s heavy. I’ll add, too, that the homeless people who like to steal bikes noticed me a LOT less when I was rocking the orange milk crate.
laying laundry out to dry in the office
Fair-weather rider? For the most part, I ride every day. I’ll ride in the rain, snow, hot, cold, or wind. The only thing I refuse toride in is sleet and ice. The only downside to this is that my co-workers often have to pass by my underwear drying in the office…
Scariest moment on the bike: I’ve been “doored” about 5 times but the scariest by far was when I went over the top of a car door and landed in the middle of a busy road. I was fine, except for some nasty road rash and a cut on my eye. The driver said he was sorry, and then when I asked if my face was bleeding (it was) he said “No, No… you look great!”
Tips for new riders: Spend the money to invest in good shorts, a helmet, lights, and a reflective jersey. You’ll look goofy, but it makes for a more comfortable and safe ride. Learn hand signals and use them, especially when you’re among a big bunch of riders (other riders can be just as dangerous as cars). I also think it’s important to be a defensive rider, especially in a big city. That doesn’t mean you have to be a jerk – just be sure to appear confident on the bike.
Why you ride: We have one car in our household, but I only use it on the weekends. I get really frustrated with the cost of public transit and the time it takes to get where I need to go. This month, I’ve spent four dollars and fifty cents total on transportation costs. I commute by bike in 45 minutes a distance takes me 70 minutes on bus. Plus, I like the fresh air and built-in exercise. I’ve had some of my best creative moments on my bike… for me it’s a way to escape from my hectic schedule. After you commute by bike for awhile, you can’t really imagine doing it any other way.
If you are a bike commuter and would like to be featured in this series, please send an email to lauren@artintercepts.org for consideration. Thanks!
Lauren Warnecke 
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