Saturday April 4: The beginning

So, we got off to a bit of a late start. We were planning on hitting the road at 7:30 and, well, that just wasn’t in the cards. We didn’t sleep in at all, we just had so much work left to do that we didn’t get out the door until closer to 10:00. I suppose if either of us had finished packing last night, or had even figured out exactly what it was we wanted to bring, it might have gone a bit smoother. But no... we, in our infinite wisdom, procrastinated to the very end and it resulted in us scurrying around the house in the wee hours of the morning trying to get done what should have already been done. But it’s ok. We’re on vacation. =)

At 20 to 10 we had the car all loaded up and we hit the road! Our new found motivation lasted for all of five minutes when we got to the local Tim Horton’s. I mean, come on. We can’t leave the country without stocking up on some Timmies, can we?

Once on the highway, we were really starting to get excited about leaving it all behind. The wind was gusting, trying to push us off the road. And it was cold. We are really, really sick of the cold. We stopped in London to fill up our gas tank and I was wishing for my winter jacket. As we left London we literally saw blue skies ahead. It was a weird juxtaposition, with cloudy grey skies in the rear view mirror and blue skies in front of us; it perfectly symbolized our feelings about this trip. We are both just so ready for this vacation.

We got to Windsor without incident, despite passing four or five speed traps, and stopped in for our very last Tim Horton’s for three weeks. It was a bittersweet farewell. With some apprehension, we approached to border crossing. You hear so many horror stories, you can understand our misgivings. But all our worrying was in vain, as we crossed without incident. Though I do suspect our “interview” lasted longer than most as the guard kept muttering about “how familiar we looked”. Yikes. He really only warmed to us when I mentioned WoW and all the great people we were going to be meeting on the trip. Closet Night Elf Mohawk, perhaps?

Detroit was depressing, what little we saw of it, with what has to be the most complicated and confusing road system I’ve ever seen. Yes, even worse than Montreal. We dutifully followed the little I-75 SB signs and I swear it had us doing figure eights. Luckily, Chris had himself a master navigator along and we only got lost once. Onward and upward!

Over the course of the morning we’ve had an ongoing discussion about the merits of concrete highways versus asphalt ones. This discussion came to a head as we crossed the Michigan/Ohio boarder and the highway promptly changed from concrete to asphalt. I totally understand the benefits of concrete, but man, is the asphalt ever pleasant to drive on! In fact, everything about Ohio is more pleasant. It seems cleaner, more open, more inviting. In a lot of ways, it reminds me of the part of Southern Ontario where I grew up. Celer, I really like your state.

‘Cept for one little thing. The “Welcome to Ohio” center is about 30 minutes into the state. We were told to follow the ? on the first exit after entering a state. Apparently Ohio didn’t get that memo. It’s way into the state, on the side of the highway. Very nice place, though, with nice staff. We took a little break there to learn about the area, snap some photos and so I can smoke. As an aside, this trip would go a whole lot better for me if Chris were a smoker. All I’m sayin’.

We're currently enjoying some WI-Fi at a Burger King while waiting for Celer to get off work so we can hang out. More posts to follow, including a picture only post.

The Preparations

In preparation for Saturday, and the beginning of our adventure, I thought I'd take the time to catch you all up on how we decided on this trip, and all the work we've put into making this happen.

As most of you are aware, Chris and I spend inordinate amounts of time playing a video game called World of Warcraft. Now, normally, video games have a pretty short life span, usually measured in hours or days. What makes WoW different is the social aspect. And when you play with the same people day in and day out, you get to know them pretty well. Chris and I have been playing with the same people now for about two years , and we've sort of become a family.

Chris had the opportunity to meet a few of them last year when he vacationed in Florida, and he came home raving about the experience. He was slated to go to Mexico this spring with his cousin, but that plan fell through and he was suddenly stuck with two weeks worth of vacation that he had to use up by the end of April. But what can you do with two weeks and no plan? Certainly not languish at home!

So, he had an idea. Kind of a rash idea, about travelling all over the States to meet these people we play WoW with. He totally didn't think we'd be able to make such an idea fly. But it sounded like such a unique experience, I just knew we had to try. Originally it was, "hey Pete, your sister lives in California, right? And we have some guildies who live in California, right? So... let's go to California!" Then, as more and more of the people we play with showed an interest in meeting, our travel plans began to cement into the route we've planned out now. And it doesn't look like we'll be able to make it up to San Fran to see my sis. Interesting how these things go.

The first stumbling block was actually getting the time off work. Chris already had the two weeks, but we quickly came to the conclusion that we'd need an extra week to do anything even remotely like what we were planning. His boss agreed to give him the extra week if he worked it's equivalent beforehand and banked the hours. So, he's been faithfully going to work early and leaving late to make up the needed time. (He's a trooper.)

Then, it was my turn. For those of you that don't know, I've recently started a new job (mid Jan) so it was with some apprehension that I approached my bosses. It was a long process, getting the time off, because my work is also transitioning into some new technology and my boss was already swamped with that. But somehow, she found the time to look at my request and work some magic to make it happen for me. Major props to Maggie and Sean, if they happen by here, for making this trip possible.

So, ok, we've got the time. Unfortunately, neither of us have done anything remotely like this before so we have no idea what we're doing. The basic premise is to try not to eat fast food and to try and find cheap lodging to keep costs down, but other than that.... Our peeps have come through, however, giving us all sorts of great advice about road-trippin' on a budget. Advice like stopping at tourist information booths when we enter states we're going to be spending the night in and picking up coupon books. Or to make sure we have lots of bottled water when crossing Arizona because you get dehydrated really quickly. Stuff that didn't occur to us, but will certainly make the experience a little smoother. And for the rest of it, we're just going to make it up on the fly. It's kinda the point of it all, for us. Besides knowing where we're stopping when we're meeting people (a necessity when involving more folks than just us), this trip is just a blank canvas waiting to be filled.

So. Exciting!

Other than that, our preparations have simply been stocking up on things we think we might need. Chris bought a cooler. We're borrowing his brother's laptop so we can blog our experiences. (Thanks Adam!). I'm picking up a USB adaptor for my camera's memory card so we can post pictures as they come in. Chris' brother-in-law is sending us some books on tape to enjoy as we're driving. (Thanks Mike!). I've filled my new 80gig Ipod (Thanks Dave!) with all the music I own, as well as a ton of Vinyl Cafe podcasts and Ted Talks. Chris had the car maintained so we don't have any unpleasant surprises along the way. Even simple things, like stocking up on socks and underwear (there may be long stretches between coin Laundromats), or finding someone to watch our place while we're away (Thanks Pat and Nadine!).

And I think we're pretty much ready to go. Chris still has to work today, and I'm heading into KW to pick up my freshly minted passport. Then, it's packing and loading the car, ready for our 7:30 AM start time tomorrow. We've booked our hotel in California (since it's the only place we're going to be staying more than one or two nights)--the Clarion Los Angeles. And we still have to touch base with one or two people that we're going to be meeting this weekend. But other than that, it's onward and upward!

So a heartfelt thanks to everyone who's made this trip possible. And a thanks to everyone who's going to make this trip memorable. And another thanks to everyone who's going to be keeping tabs on us here and sharing some of the experiences with us. We're so grateful for this opportunity to "do America". I'm sure it will never be the same again.

How do I add a comment?

After unveiling this masterpiece of a blog, we were instantly assaulted with this question from multiple fronts. We attempted to deal with each situation as it arose, but alas, we failed. Cannot blame the posters of course… once being given access to this site, obviously everyone will wish to post immediately. In order to facilitate this action in a clean and precise manor, I am going to post some step-by-step instructions which should allow everyone to share their wisdom with the world and at the same time receive the due credit for their generous act.

1. Think of something important to stay (this step is optional)
2. Click on the title of the post, or the word “COMMENTS” under the post you wish to respond too. There may be a number beside the word comments; this indicates the number of comments already associated with the post.
3. Scroll down to the end of the comments already connected with that post. You will find a box just waiting for your deep thoughts, please fill it in.
4. Once your brilliant insights have been composed so that us commoners can understand them, please click on the drop down box entitled “Comment As” found just below the text box.
5. If you do not have an iGoogle account, select the option “Name/URL” from the choices available. Fill in your name in the “Name” field, and then click “Continue”.
6. Sit back and bask in the praise of the people whose lives you have just enriched.

Come One, Come All, The show is about to begin!

Welcome, friends and family to Light and Lazz do America. If you have found this blog, it is possible you are a close family member who has helped up prepared for this trip, a more distant relative who has been given the opportunity to get a unique view of our lives, or a friend that may soon find themselves as topics of discussion. Each of you have been invited specifically because you are special to us in some form. We hope you enjoy your stay.

This blog will be like a diary that Pete and I wish to share with you. As most of you know, we will soon be traveling across our neighboring country to the south in an effort to experience new experiences, meet friendly people, and just soak up a lot of sun. As we travel, we will make a concentrated effort to write of our adventures, and document the days of our lives.

You are all invited, nah, encouraged to respond to anything on this blog as you so desire. Whether you know us as Light and Lazz, or Chris and Pete, you are welcome to comment on whatever you may find here. Who knows, maybe you too can meet someone new.