A little more than a year ago I published an entry to my blog titled "The Medieval Times Experience - Myrtle Beach, SC Edition", which you can read for yourself by clicking the hyperlink. As you might assume, that particular entry was more or less a gushing love letter to Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament. My wife and I are huge fans of Medieval Times, you see, so much so that we visit their Myrtle Beach castle at least once a year. On top of that, we've also been to the Atlanta and Orlando castles as well but to be completely honest with you of the MT locations we've visited Myrtle Beach is the best of the three in our opinion.
All that having been said, I'd like to share with you a vlog we recorded after a recent visit to MT in Myrtle Beach. I wanted to take the time to document the entire experience, from getting into the parking lot to ticketing, and from navigating the great hall to the tournament itself. I'd like to think I did a fairly thorough job which is why the video clocks in at just under 40 minutes. You people should know me by now - brevity is not something I'm good at.
Showing posts with label Atlanta. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Atlanta. Show all posts
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Thursday, March 6, 2014
A Trip to Duluth, GA for Valentine's Day Weekend 2014
I'm going to be blunt here for a moment. I'm not a fan of Valentine's Day - never have been and probably never will be. Why? I fail to see the point of the thing, quite frankly. If you truly love someone then you should tell them specifically that each and every day of your life (either with words or, better yet, by your actions), not just the one day of the year that retailers feel it's best for you to do so.
That said, Valentine's Day 2014 was a step in the direction towards changing my mind about February 14th (I refuse to refer to it as a holiday) because my wife and I took a weekend road trip over to Duluth, Georgia. Right about now, you might be asking yourself "Where's that and what's there to make the drive worth it?". Duluth is about an hour or so north of Atlanta and it happens to be home to Medieval Times Atlanta which is the only MT location in the southeastern United States we hadn't yet visited.
A month or so prior, we received an email from MT that contained an offer for a Valentine's Day package. The offer was actually a really good deal considering the usual cost of admission and what was included; for $99 we would receive our meals, a tour of the dungeon, a split of champagne (in etched keepsake flutes), a framed 8" x 10" photo, cheering banners (read, flags on sticks), and what I can only describe as a light-up "wand". ("Wand" is the only word I can use to describe it with eloquence; it looks like a fluorescent tube light bulb only shorter and it flashes with various colors when turned on.) The special package and the fact that we had the opportunity to take in an experience that was familiar but yet still new were more than enough to get persuade us to hit the road.
In describing my/our road trips in the past, I've mentioned how I prefer to take back-roads as opposed to interstates and main highways. Driving can be such a stressful thing these days - I figure why not enjoy it, if you can, by taking in sights and scenery between where you are and where you're going? Duluth presented us with an opportunity to do more of this kind of travel as we would leave our base of operations in Saint Matthews, South Carolina and head west via SC highway 6 before hitting I-20 west for a stretch only to then get back off the main road as we made our final approach.
The drive was very enjoyable for me as my wife is always great at maintaining a conversation. We talk all the time as is, so the fact that we were cooped up inside my truck for a few hours only gave us more of an excuse to rattle on about anything and everything. One area of contention we will probably never see eye to eye on are our favored radio stations. For me, it's usually either rock (I'd say hard rock & metal but you hardly ever see a station on terrestrial radio fitting that description) or sports talk whereas my wife prefers country. Not that I can't listen to country, it just starts to sound silly after a while (said the guy who listens to a number of bands known for wearing masks, face paint, and assorted costuming).
We'd had breakfast earlier in the day at a Sonic Drive-In and since we knew we were bound for a bountiful supper we opted to grab something from a convenience store while we'd stopped for fuel as opposed to a full-scale lunch. I forget what town we were in but I do remember that the store was a Flying J truck stop for two reasons: 1) they had a soda fountain capable of dispensing flavored shots into your beverage such as vanilla, lemon, cherry, and others and 2) they had a chill-chest embedded in the checkout counter that was stocked with, among other things, hard boiled eggs.
I'm not a huge fan of eggs in any form (other than scrambled and even then they need a healthy compliment of cheese or various other proteins to make them edible), but boiled eggs are about my least favorite food, ever. The consistency and flavor of a boiled egg is just this side of wretched. I saw them and all I could think of was some trucker making his way on the interstate, chowing down on those things and stinking up his cab to high heaven with sulfurous ass-gas. I hate to drum up a stereotype of trucker culture but it's difficult not to given that there's apparently a market for such food items in stores such as these.
I made the comment to my wife before we left home that I've made more trips to Georgia in the past year than I have over the course of my entire life, which was an entirely true statement. (Purposeful trips to Georgia, that is - it would've been a horrible lie if I counted the number of times I passed through with my family as a youngster on our way to Florida.) We stayed overnight last May in Covington, GA for our anniversary trip that included stops in Atlanta and Porterdale. In July I got to spend a week in Atlanta as I was in town to attend a pair of training classes. And here we found ourselves going to another Georgian city, that being Duluth.
I couldn't tell you much about the town other than to say that Duluth is one of many cities that benefit from their proximity to Atlanta. What little bit of Duluth we did have time to see (we were only in town for one night, after all, and our arrival was delayed after we wound up having to take a lengthy detour to get around the scene of an accident that happened on a bridge we needed to cross) appeared to be incredibly busy. Traffic is something that folks living near Atlanta seem to have gotten used to over time, so as an outsider I'll say that the volume of traffic we encountered was a bit startling. Duluth's not that close to Atlanta, but even though there aren't any high-rise buildings nearby it sure felt like Atlanta.
Our hotel for the evening was the Duluth Hyatt Place. I'm not sure how old the Hyatt Place is as a chain but we've now stayed in two of their locations (the other being in Charleston, SC) and been very pleased with them both times. You get a modern, no-nonsense room fit for travel geared towards business or leisure at a price that would make you think its quality wouldn't be anywhere near what it is. It's almost like they took the sensibility of a franchise like Microtel and combined that with the luxury of a Hyatt. What's more, they have a great continental breakfast with plenty of variety - no do-it-yourself waffles, though.
After we checked in, we relaxed in our room for a short while before making our way to Medieval Times. You might read between the lines when I say that we, a young couple on a Valentine's Day jaunt, "relaxed in our room" but the funny thing is we sat there, watched TV, and played around on our phones. Bear in mind, we were still emerging from ICE-OCALYPSE 2014 and we'd been without cable or internet for most of a week. Suddenly having access to those creature comforts was too much to pass up for us, I guess, although that probably speaks to there being a larger problem of our addiction to content and the gadgets we use to consume it than anything.
Medieval Times Atlanta is an anomaly in terms of its setup when compared to other MT locations in that it's attached to a shopping mall, the Sugarloaf Mills. (The name is taken from the fact that the mall sits on a road called - you guessed it - Sugarloaf Parkway.) As far as I'm aware, all the other MT castles are stand-alone structures. That it's connected to the mall detracted from its presentation somewhat for me, not because the decor was sub-par (quite the opposite, actually; MT ATL is one of the more authentic-looking MT castles we've visited as the interior of the lobby is made to look like the walls are constructed from stone and wood) but because Sugarloaf Mills is essentially an ultra-high end flea market. We were shocked to find that a majority of the shops there seemed to specialize in cheap baubles and knock-offs. There were big chain stores but the landscape was dominated by what came off as fancy flea market booths. In all fairness, I can't not be critical of our home castle's location as well seeing as how Medieval Times Myrtle Beach sits in between a deserted shopping mall and an abandoned theme park. At least MT ATL is a part of a still thriving outlet.
We'd arrived at MT ATL about an hour before the doors were scheduled to open so we killed the time by browsing a few stores. Like I said in the previous paragraph, we couldn't help but laugh when we saw the sort of stores that make up the majority of Sugarloaf Mills. The only one that was all that interesting, realistically, was a Sears that had nothing but appliances, most of which were of the scratch & dent variety. We made a lap of the mall and by the time we got back to MT a line had formed at the gate so we took our place in the queue.
Right before the gates opened, a number of serfs & wenches (read, the MT wait staff) appeared before the crowd. Their presence was heralded by a pair of trumpeters as well as the Lord Chancellor who drew attention to the event by making an announcement of the tournament and feast to come that evening. The Lord Chancellor's role is more or less that of an emcee, which made this moment all the more fitting. If I remember correctly, I believe they do something similar to this at MT in Myrtle Beach but it's more of a walk-over in that the King, his daughter, the Lord Chancellor, and a few other players make a public walk from one side of the castle gates to where the crowd enters the castle just before guests are let into the building.
Not long thereafter we were allowed to enter. The admissions staff won't always honor this type of request but we asked to be seated in the Black & White Knight's section as it's in the middle of the arena and makes for ideal viewing. After we had our crowns we got our picture taken then made our way to an area that was set up for patrons who'd purchased the Valentine's Day package to pick up the accessories that came along with it, including our split of champagne. I'm not a connoisseur of wine or champagne by any means, but the champagne we were served was not like the champagne I've had in the past. By that I mean it tasted bitter and dry, and it left me willing to sip my wife's Diet Pepsi just to get the taste out of my mouth.
We toured the dungeon, which was exactly like every other MT dungeon we've seen in that it has the same set of replica torture devices on display. I must say that the setup in the pre-show bar/lobby area of MT ATL is quite the sight to behold. The bar itself is an impressive visual but the real draw is the absolutely massive fireplace that dominates one whole section of wall. It's a fantastic addition to the room and a useful one on a chilly evening like this.
As an aside to the story I'm telling, I'd like to say this. If you're a parent taking a child to MT, I encourage you to do all that you can to make the occasion memorable, but for the love of God DO NOT BUY A TOY SWORD FOR YOUR CHILD. We watched a group of kids whack at each other mercilessly with plastic, light-up fencing swords for a good 15 minutes. They were beating the bejeezus out of one another, meanwhile every sensible adult nearby was looking at them wondering "Where are their parents?" who, of course, were nowhere to be found!
Finally, we were called into the arena. Guests are seated by section according to the color of crown you were given at admissions; the procession is always red-green-red & yellow-black & white-blue-yellow. We usually will wait until almost everyone is in the arena before we enter because you're more likely to wind up with a seat at the end of a row, which allows me to have a little more leg and rump room than I would otherwise (me being the Rubenesque fellow that I am). We thought we'd timed it right but I wound up being in the middle of a row - it wasn't bad, though, because the people who were seated next to me acted like I had the plague or some other communicable disease as they immediately began shifting their plates down the table.
Our serving wench (I think MT may be the only place in the world you can get away with calling someone a "wench" and not wind up getting your teeth loosened) was an outgoing young lass with an accent that most definitely wasn't that of a Southerner. It wasn't even American, for that matter. I think I caught her off guard when she asked if anyone had questions and I chimed in with "Yeah, where are you from?" Her response was something about not being able to answer because it would ruin the illusion. If I had to place it I would say she was from somewhere in the United Kingdom. She would've fit in well as a cast member at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Orlando, for sure.
The food at MT is always consistent in terms of its quality and their chefs are to be commended for that. No matter how many times we've had it, we can never get enough of the roasted baby dragon (half of a rotisserie chicken), barbeque ribs, herb-crusted potatoes, and desert pastry. A slight difference to the usual bill of fare exists at MT ATL as we were offered Pepsi products, water, and sweet tea as beverage options. I guess it goes well with the culture of Georgia but we're Southerners too and we don't get sweet tea at our castle in Myrtle Beach - go figure. The only negative comment I have about the meal at MT ATL was that the vegetable soup we were served didn't seem to be as good as what we've had at other locations. This soup tasted kind of like watery marinara sauce more than anything. It wasn't terrible but it wasn't quite up to par.
Aside from one or two uncooperative animals, the show itself at MT ATL was fantastic. (As W.C. Fields once said, "Never work with children or animals.") I dare say it may have been one of the best overall performances I've ever seen at any MT as the knights were all in top form and did a spectacular job of not only connecting with the crowd but emoting & selling the action. I don't know how much "the art of selling" (selling as in professional wrestling where a wrestler acts a certain way to convince the audience of their character, injuries, etc.) is emphasized when these knights are in training but the crew at MT ATL appeared to have been giving it their all this particular night. Unfortunately, our knight (the Black & White Knight) was the first one to get "killed" during the tournament, which has become a trend the past few visits we've made to MT and one made worse when you realize these have been the knights for whom we chose to root. What can I say other than that we apparently don't know how to pick a winner?
By the time that the show was over Sugarloaf Mills had closed for the evening, and since it was a Sunday we didn't expect there to be much else going on around town which is why we retired to our hotel room for more TV and web surfing. We snuggled up and watched coverage of the Winter Olympics, which we had seen practically none of since we'd been without cable at home for so long.
Speaking of being without cable, before we left for Duluth I had called Time Warner Cable about our services being down and at that time they said the earliest they could send out a technician would be the Sunday we'd be traveling. That wouldn't work because the TWC representative I spoke with said someone had to be home when the tech arrives. The next available time was Monday between 2-3 PM. I half way hated to agree to that scheduling because it cut into the time my wife & I would have to enjoy the remainder of our trip, but it was better than putting off whatever needed to be done for another day, so I took what I could get.
Consequently the drive back to Saint Matthews was more than a tad rushed, but we still took the time to document a few roadside attractions we encountered along the way. Additionally, we stopped at the same Flying J store for more vanilla Coke and sustenance - yes, they still had plenty of boiled eggs for sale.
We got home in the area of 1:30 PM, meaning we were back in plenty of time to make our appointment with TWC. When we pulled into the driveway I checked my phone to see if our WiFi was functional. Sure enough, I had data connectivity. Going inside the house revealed that our services had been fully restored. On the one hand, I was grateful for everything finally being back to normal around the house after the ice storm in terms of our modern amenities, however on the other hand I was pissed off because we rushed home because I was told we had to. All I can say is that this is one more example I can add to my already lengthy list of examples of how poor TWC's customer service is. (To the credit of the technician they dispatched to repair our services, he did call our home phone later in the afternoon to make sure things were still up & running.) I can only hope things will get better once they're assimilated into Comcast but I've heard plenty of bad things about how that company does business as well, so we'll have to wait and see where the situation goes from here.
This was definitely a quick trip, probably quicker than either of us would've preferred, but even with that being the case it's better to be thankful for having had the opportunity to do something like this than not. We visited places that we'd not seen before and got to enjoy an experience we both get a kick out of - nothing bad about that, I'd say. It never fails that my wife and I manage to make the best of whatever we might encounter. It takes patience (a virtue both of us struggle with), confidence that whatever will be is what we were intended to find, and that we'll all come out for the better in the end.
That said, Valentine's Day 2014 was a step in the direction towards changing my mind about February 14th (I refuse to refer to it as a holiday) because my wife and I took a weekend road trip over to Duluth, Georgia. Right about now, you might be asking yourself "Where's that and what's there to make the drive worth it?". Duluth is about an hour or so north of Atlanta and it happens to be home to Medieval Times Atlanta which is the only MT location in the southeastern United States we hadn't yet visited.
A month or so prior, we received an email from MT that contained an offer for a Valentine's Day package. The offer was actually a really good deal considering the usual cost of admission and what was included; for $99 we would receive our meals, a tour of the dungeon, a split of champagne (in etched keepsake flutes), a framed 8" x 10" photo, cheering banners (read, flags on sticks), and what I can only describe as a light-up "wand". ("Wand" is the only word I can use to describe it with eloquence; it looks like a fluorescent tube light bulb only shorter and it flashes with various colors when turned on.) The special package and the fact that we had the opportunity to take in an experience that was familiar but yet still new were more than enough to get persuade us to hit the road.
In describing my/our road trips in the past, I've mentioned how I prefer to take back-roads as opposed to interstates and main highways. Driving can be such a stressful thing these days - I figure why not enjoy it, if you can, by taking in sights and scenery between where you are and where you're going? Duluth presented us with an opportunity to do more of this kind of travel as we would leave our base of operations in Saint Matthews, South Carolina and head west via SC highway 6 before hitting I-20 west for a stretch only to then get back off the main road as we made our final approach.
The drive was very enjoyable for me as my wife is always great at maintaining a conversation. We talk all the time as is, so the fact that we were cooped up inside my truck for a few hours only gave us more of an excuse to rattle on about anything and everything. One area of contention we will probably never see eye to eye on are our favored radio stations. For me, it's usually either rock (I'd say hard rock & metal but you hardly ever see a station on terrestrial radio fitting that description) or sports talk whereas my wife prefers country. Not that I can't listen to country, it just starts to sound silly after a while (said the guy who listens to a number of bands known for wearing masks, face paint, and assorted costuming).
We'd had breakfast earlier in the day at a Sonic Drive-In and since we knew we were bound for a bountiful supper we opted to grab something from a convenience store while we'd stopped for fuel as opposed to a full-scale lunch. I forget what town we were in but I do remember that the store was a Flying J truck stop for two reasons: 1) they had a soda fountain capable of dispensing flavored shots into your beverage such as vanilla, lemon, cherry, and others and 2) they had a chill-chest embedded in the checkout counter that was stocked with, among other things, hard boiled eggs.
I'm not a huge fan of eggs in any form (other than scrambled and even then they need a healthy compliment of cheese or various other proteins to make them edible), but boiled eggs are about my least favorite food, ever. The consistency and flavor of a boiled egg is just this side of wretched. I saw them and all I could think of was some trucker making his way on the interstate, chowing down on those things and stinking up his cab to high heaven with sulfurous ass-gas. I hate to drum up a stereotype of trucker culture but it's difficult not to given that there's apparently a market for such food items in stores such as these.
I made the comment to my wife before we left home that I've made more trips to Georgia in the past year than I have over the course of my entire life, which was an entirely true statement. (Purposeful trips to Georgia, that is - it would've been a horrible lie if I counted the number of times I passed through with my family as a youngster on our way to Florida.) We stayed overnight last May in Covington, GA for our anniversary trip that included stops in Atlanta and Porterdale. In July I got to spend a week in Atlanta as I was in town to attend a pair of training classes. And here we found ourselves going to another Georgian city, that being Duluth.
I couldn't tell you much about the town other than to say that Duluth is one of many cities that benefit from their proximity to Atlanta. What little bit of Duluth we did have time to see (we were only in town for one night, after all, and our arrival was delayed after we wound up having to take a lengthy detour to get around the scene of an accident that happened on a bridge we needed to cross) appeared to be incredibly busy. Traffic is something that folks living near Atlanta seem to have gotten used to over time, so as an outsider I'll say that the volume of traffic we encountered was a bit startling. Duluth's not that close to Atlanta, but even though there aren't any high-rise buildings nearby it sure felt like Atlanta.
Our hotel for the evening was the Duluth Hyatt Place. I'm not sure how old the Hyatt Place is as a chain but we've now stayed in two of their locations (the other being in Charleston, SC) and been very pleased with them both times. You get a modern, no-nonsense room fit for travel geared towards business or leisure at a price that would make you think its quality wouldn't be anywhere near what it is. It's almost like they took the sensibility of a franchise like Microtel and combined that with the luxury of a Hyatt. What's more, they have a great continental breakfast with plenty of variety - no do-it-yourself waffles, though.
After we checked in, we relaxed in our room for a short while before making our way to Medieval Times. You might read between the lines when I say that we, a young couple on a Valentine's Day jaunt, "relaxed in our room" but the funny thing is we sat there, watched TV, and played around on our phones. Bear in mind, we were still emerging from ICE-OCALYPSE 2014 and we'd been without cable or internet for most of a week. Suddenly having access to those creature comforts was too much to pass up for us, I guess, although that probably speaks to there being a larger problem of our addiction to content and the gadgets we use to consume it than anything.
Medieval Times Atlanta is an anomaly in terms of its setup when compared to other MT locations in that it's attached to a shopping mall, the Sugarloaf Mills. (The name is taken from the fact that the mall sits on a road called - you guessed it - Sugarloaf Parkway.) As far as I'm aware, all the other MT castles are stand-alone structures. That it's connected to the mall detracted from its presentation somewhat for me, not because the decor was sub-par (quite the opposite, actually; MT ATL is one of the more authentic-looking MT castles we've visited as the interior of the lobby is made to look like the walls are constructed from stone and wood) but because Sugarloaf Mills is essentially an ultra-high end flea market. We were shocked to find that a majority of the shops there seemed to specialize in cheap baubles and knock-offs. There were big chain stores but the landscape was dominated by what came off as fancy flea market booths. In all fairness, I can't not be critical of our home castle's location as well seeing as how Medieval Times Myrtle Beach sits in between a deserted shopping mall and an abandoned theme park. At least MT ATL is a part of a still thriving outlet.
We'd arrived at MT ATL about an hour before the doors were scheduled to open so we killed the time by browsing a few stores. Like I said in the previous paragraph, we couldn't help but laugh when we saw the sort of stores that make up the majority of Sugarloaf Mills. The only one that was all that interesting, realistically, was a Sears that had nothing but appliances, most of which were of the scratch & dent variety. We made a lap of the mall and by the time we got back to MT a line had formed at the gate so we took our place in the queue.
Right before the gates opened, a number of serfs & wenches (read, the MT wait staff) appeared before the crowd. Their presence was heralded by a pair of trumpeters as well as the Lord Chancellor who drew attention to the event by making an announcement of the tournament and feast to come that evening. The Lord Chancellor's role is more or less that of an emcee, which made this moment all the more fitting. If I remember correctly, I believe they do something similar to this at MT in Myrtle Beach but it's more of a walk-over in that the King, his daughter, the Lord Chancellor, and a few other players make a public walk from one side of the castle gates to where the crowd enters the castle just before guests are let into the building.
Not long thereafter we were allowed to enter. The admissions staff won't always honor this type of request but we asked to be seated in the Black & White Knight's section as it's in the middle of the arena and makes for ideal viewing. After we had our crowns we got our picture taken then made our way to an area that was set up for patrons who'd purchased the Valentine's Day package to pick up the accessories that came along with it, including our split of champagne. I'm not a connoisseur of wine or champagne by any means, but the champagne we were served was not like the champagne I've had in the past. By that I mean it tasted bitter and dry, and it left me willing to sip my wife's Diet Pepsi just to get the taste out of my mouth.
We toured the dungeon, which was exactly like every other MT dungeon we've seen in that it has the same set of replica torture devices on display. I must say that the setup in the pre-show bar/lobby area of MT ATL is quite the sight to behold. The bar itself is an impressive visual but the real draw is the absolutely massive fireplace that dominates one whole section of wall. It's a fantastic addition to the room and a useful one on a chilly evening like this.
As an aside to the story I'm telling, I'd like to say this. If you're a parent taking a child to MT, I encourage you to do all that you can to make the occasion memorable, but for the love of God DO NOT BUY A TOY SWORD FOR YOUR CHILD. We watched a group of kids whack at each other mercilessly with plastic, light-up fencing swords for a good 15 minutes. They were beating the bejeezus out of one another, meanwhile every sensible adult nearby was looking at them wondering "Where are their parents?" who, of course, were nowhere to be found!
Finally, we were called into the arena. Guests are seated by section according to the color of crown you were given at admissions; the procession is always red-green-red & yellow-black & white-blue-yellow. We usually will wait until almost everyone is in the arena before we enter because you're more likely to wind up with a seat at the end of a row, which allows me to have a little more leg and rump room than I would otherwise (me being the Rubenesque fellow that I am). We thought we'd timed it right but I wound up being in the middle of a row - it wasn't bad, though, because the people who were seated next to me acted like I had the plague or some other communicable disease as they immediately began shifting their plates down the table.
Our serving wench (I think MT may be the only place in the world you can get away with calling someone a "wench" and not wind up getting your teeth loosened) was an outgoing young lass with an accent that most definitely wasn't that of a Southerner. It wasn't even American, for that matter. I think I caught her off guard when she asked if anyone had questions and I chimed in with "Yeah, where are you from?" Her response was something about not being able to answer because it would ruin the illusion. If I had to place it I would say she was from somewhere in the United Kingdom. She would've fit in well as a cast member at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Orlando, for sure.
The food at MT is always consistent in terms of its quality and their chefs are to be commended for that. No matter how many times we've had it, we can never get enough of the roasted baby dragon (half of a rotisserie chicken), barbeque ribs, herb-crusted potatoes, and desert pastry. A slight difference to the usual bill of fare exists at MT ATL as we were offered Pepsi products, water, and sweet tea as beverage options. I guess it goes well with the culture of Georgia but we're Southerners too and we don't get sweet tea at our castle in Myrtle Beach - go figure. The only negative comment I have about the meal at MT ATL was that the vegetable soup we were served didn't seem to be as good as what we've had at other locations. This soup tasted kind of like watery marinara sauce more than anything. It wasn't terrible but it wasn't quite up to par.
Aside from one or two uncooperative animals, the show itself at MT ATL was fantastic. (As W.C. Fields once said, "Never work with children or animals.") I dare say it may have been one of the best overall performances I've ever seen at any MT as the knights were all in top form and did a spectacular job of not only connecting with the crowd but emoting & selling the action. I don't know how much "the art of selling" (selling as in professional wrestling where a wrestler acts a certain way to convince the audience of their character, injuries, etc.) is emphasized when these knights are in training but the crew at MT ATL appeared to have been giving it their all this particular night. Unfortunately, our knight (the Black & White Knight) was the first one to get "killed" during the tournament, which has become a trend the past few visits we've made to MT and one made worse when you realize these have been the knights for whom we chose to root. What can I say other than that we apparently don't know how to pick a winner?
By the time that the show was over Sugarloaf Mills had closed for the evening, and since it was a Sunday we didn't expect there to be much else going on around town which is why we retired to our hotel room for more TV and web surfing. We snuggled up and watched coverage of the Winter Olympics, which we had seen practically none of since we'd been without cable at home for so long.
Speaking of being without cable, before we left for Duluth I had called Time Warner Cable about our services being down and at that time they said the earliest they could send out a technician would be the Sunday we'd be traveling. That wouldn't work because the TWC representative I spoke with said someone had to be home when the tech arrives. The next available time was Monday between 2-3 PM. I half way hated to agree to that scheduling because it cut into the time my wife & I would have to enjoy the remainder of our trip, but it was better than putting off whatever needed to be done for another day, so I took what I could get.
Consequently the drive back to Saint Matthews was more than a tad rushed, but we still took the time to document a few roadside attractions we encountered along the way. Additionally, we stopped at the same Flying J store for more vanilla Coke and sustenance - yes, they still had plenty of boiled eggs for sale.
We got home in the area of 1:30 PM, meaning we were back in plenty of time to make our appointment with TWC. When we pulled into the driveway I checked my phone to see if our WiFi was functional. Sure enough, I had data connectivity. Going inside the house revealed that our services had been fully restored. On the one hand, I was grateful for everything finally being back to normal around the house after the ice storm in terms of our modern amenities, however on the other hand I was pissed off because we rushed home because I was told we had to. All I can say is that this is one more example I can add to my already lengthy list of examples of how poor TWC's customer service is. (To the credit of the technician they dispatched to repair our services, he did call our home phone later in the afternoon to make sure things were still up & running.) I can only hope things will get better once they're assimilated into Comcast but I've heard plenty of bad things about how that company does business as well, so we'll have to wait and see where the situation goes from here.
This was definitely a quick trip, probably quicker than either of us would've preferred, but even with that being the case it's better to be thankful for having had the opportunity to do something like this than not. We visited places that we'd not seen before and got to enjoy an experience we both get a kick out of - nothing bad about that, I'd say. It never fails that my wife and I manage to make the best of whatever we might encounter. It takes patience (a virtue both of us struggle with), confidence that whatever will be is what we were intended to find, and that we'll all come out for the better in the end.
Friday, August 9, 2013
I Went to Atlanta for a Week
In my line of work - that being information technology, if you weren't aware - it's important that I stay relatively up to date regarding what's going on in the world of bits, bytes, and Silicon Valley as a whole. I tend to do a lot of reading, specifically tech-related blogs and associated publications involving news and reviews of what's coming down the pipe but this is really only scratching the surface. It's one thing to know about what's on the horizon, but it's something else entirely to have the knowledge of how to use those evolving developments in the environment of a workplace like mine. This is why it's great to have access to a travel and training budget (to say nothing of the blessing it is to work for an employer that cares enough about its employees to invest in them), an asset which can grant me the incredible opportunity to seek out facilities specializing in continuing the education of individuals like myself. Hence why it was that I recently found myself traveling to Atlanta, Georgia for an entire week.
Of course it wouldn't just be a week of going to classes, though. Far from it. Seeing as how I'd only been to Atlanta once before in my entire life and had no idea what to expect from spending time downtown, this would be an adventure.
As transportation for this trip I was able to take one of our fleet vehicles, that being a Ford Crown Victoria. There will come a day when motorists see a Crown Vic and don't immediately think "COP!", thus prompting a muscle response in their right foot to perform a covert pressurization of their vehicle's brakes, but that day is not here yet. While this particular Crown Vic wasn't an exact match in terms of color to the cruisers used by law enforcement in the region, it's still a Crown Vic with permanent plates. That's enough visual evidence to give most folks pause while they consider whether or not to pass said potential police cruiser.
I tend to pack heavy when I'm preparing for a trip, be it for business or pleasure. I wind up bringing way too many sets of clothes, and I do this because of my appreciation for redundant mechanisms. (That and the fact that I'm too cheap to do laundry whilst on the road. Laundromats are sometimes hard to come by and in-house laundry services at most hotels are ridiculously overpriced.) The old "I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it" logic, which is perfectly sound in my mind. I can appreciate having 5 extra pairs of underwear because you should never be away from home without plenty of clean underpants.
Other than clothing, I packed the essentials - those being my camera, laptop, tablet, cell phone, and iPod as well as their associated accessories. Some of those I needed to have with me (laptop and phone, for work and communication obviously), while others were there because I need them. Little boys don't stop being little boys just because they get old. We still like to have our toys within arm's reach, they're just significantly more expensive than the baubles we toted around as children.
I hit the road on the afternoon of July 21, 2013 which just happened to be the day after my birthday. My wife and our families had dined the evening before at Cowboy Brazilian Steakhouse in Columbia, SC and I was still reeling from the near meat-coma I'd put myself into (not that it's a difficult thing to do at a restaurant like that). Be that as it was, I loaded up the car, said my goodbyes to Wifey, punched up directions on my GPS app and hit the road.
Driving to Atlanta from our home in Saint Matthews, SC isn't exactly a daunting task - not until you get close to the city, that is. You have the option of going north a ways in order to get to I-20 in Columbia, but I prefer taking highway 178. It's a more scenic route and one that doesn't require you to drive 40 minutes north just to turn around and go back south. It connects to I-20 in a more organic fashion for people in our neck of the woods, I guess you could say.
I hadn't really had anything to eat that day and I began to get a bit hungry as I made my way through Aiken, SC. I stopped at a Hardee's there and had a burger with some fries and a frosty Coca-Cola. Much to my chagrin, this particular Hardee's claimed to no longer be serving curly fries, a favorite of mine. This came as news to me as our local Hardee's in Saint Matthews, to my knowledge, still serves them. I settled for the homestyle fries; this emotional blow was softened by the fact that they had self-serve Heinz ketchup, something our hometown Hardee's removed after the building was renovated recently. I do love ketchup, Heinz in particular, and the opportunity to dip my fries to my heart's content was very welcome.
What wasn't so welcome was the mess that awaited me in the men's restroom. It seems like Walmart bathrooms get recognized as being home to some of the most poorly maintained facilities, but this Hardee's bested any Walmart latrine I've ever seen. It looked as though someone had ransacked the joint; tiles were pulled off the wall, the sink was filthy, the urinal was flooded with waste, but the worst part of it was the gigantic pile of puke clearly visible beside the toilet in the restroom's lone stall. I kid you not, this was a veritable hill of vomit - not projectile or splatter vomit, but a thick, viscous mound of sick. (I'm sorry to have to have forced you into digesting that description, dear reader, but I had to witness it so it seems only fair.) I left without relieving myself (truck stop gas station, for the win), however I did report the issue to a member of staff.
I knew from having driven this route previously (see blog entry "The Truesdales Went Down to Georgia") that when I reached Covington, GA I had less than an hour to go before I'd be in Atlanta. It's around this same point that traffic begins to devolve into a ridiculous display of impatience and rudeness. I prepared myself mentally to face the coming storm but it seemed as though my technology was failing me. I noticed that my phone began to blink its indicator light a combination of amber and green, a signal that the device is overheating. I can only assume that the issue was a result of the phone's resources being overloaded in conjunction with sitting in the cradle I'd positioned on the Crown Vic's dashboard that was more or less in full-sun. This was bad seeing as how I was using it as my GPS for this trip; if it went down, I would have had no way of knowing where I was going. I took the phone out of the cradle, unplugged the charging adapter and began holding the phone in front of one of the air conditioning vents. Fortunately, this seemed to work rather well although it became something of a juggling act - suffice to say juggling isn't something you want to do in these conditions.
My phone got me into the vicinity of my hotel, the Westin Peachtree Plaza, but what these GPS units and apps often lack is good intel on where parking garage entrances happen to be located. I wound up circling the area twice before I found where the garage was located, a result of the fact that there was construction in the area limiting access to it. PRO-TIP: While traveling in Atlanta, be mindful of the fact that many streets are, in fact, one way only.
Once I was in the valet area, I dropped off my keys to the attendant and grabbed my bags. I don't know how best to describe what - well, who, more specifically - I saw next other than to just start at the top and work my way down. She looked to be in her 20s. She was tall, made more so by her high-heel shoes, had bleached blond hair, and wore a pink tube top with what was either a mini-skirt or hot pants. Her makeup was overdone but her massive fake eyelashes were even worse (she appeared to have fakies somewhere else on her anatomy, too). I'm assuming she was a hooker, either that or she chose to dress provocatively for the sake of it.
5 minutes in Atlanta and I've already seen an escort. I spent a week in Las Vegas several years ago and while I saw plenty of ads for call girls I can honestly say I never saw one in person.
I do enjoy staying at higher-end hotels, mainly because the level of service you receive is typically on par with what you'd expect. The Westin was no different; the associate who checked me in was helpful and courteous, as were all the other members of their staff I'd encounter throughout the rest of my stay.
Something I learned about highrise buildings in Atlanta starting with my hotel is the fact that not all elevators go to all floors. Case in point, I was staying on the 43rd floor; one bank of elevators went from the lobby to 45, whereas another set went from the lobby to 70-something. (The Westin has a restaurant on several of the top floors; I was unable to see it because of renovations being in progress during my stay. Apparently it has its own elevator independent of the others.) I lost track of how many times I wound up getting into the wrong lift, not only in my hotel but in the building where I'd be taking classes as well. Pure rookie errors on my part.
I went to my room and I have to say this was one of the nicer rooms I've ever stayed in, although it presented some oddities in terms of a general lack of storage space. This was intended to be a room suitable for business travelers, as was evidenced by the desk dominating one whole corner. There was a closet but very little else in the way of drawers. I know not everyone unpacks when they arrive at a hotel, however I do - I may be living out of a suitcase but I don't necessarily want to have to leave everything in my suitcase. Fortunately, there were plenty of hangers to accommodate my shirts and pants, and my overstuffed bag wound up holding just enough to occupy what drawers were present in the room.
Having moved in, I wandered down to the bar in the lobby for dinner. The restaurant was closed, I assume for refurbishment, but their menu was still available. This first evening I dined on fish and chips accompanied by a tasty Samuel Adams - hard to go wrong with fried cod and a great American brew.
I retired to my room once I was finished but my stay at the bar wasn't without entertainment of the human kind. A couple from Europe had been sitting next to me (I am guessing here but they sounded to be from somewhere out of either the United Kingdom or Great Britain), and the lady had been drinking a glass of white wine. She wound up leaving a fair amount in her glass when they departed. Within moments, two women came to the bar and assumed the same seats that the couple had occupied. They ordered drinks and when the bartender went to fill their order one of the women grabbed the wine glass and knocked back the entire thing in one gulp before the bartender had returned.
Two things...
1) Ew.
2) Is finishing up someone else's drink an acceptable "fumble recovery", as it were? I guess it depends on your level of chemical dependance and desperation for libation.
Like I mentioned when I kicked off this entry, the purpose of my being in Atlanta was to attend a series of classes. I'm not going to go into much detail regarding them other than to mention they involved configuration of Cisco network switches and security appliances. I know there are probably a handful of folks out there who would find a recap of those topics tremendously enthralling but the material is a bit too involved to simply start talking about. (This reminds me of my wife's reaction to hearing me "talk shop" with one of our neighbors who is also involved with IT; she no longer tries to follow along, she just tunes it out until the subject has changed.) I will, however, mention a pair of concepts that I learned about, both having to do with IPv6 which is a new internet protocol addressing scheme intended to replace IPv4.
- IPv6 was brought about because of the fact that the world is running out of old IPv4 addresses. Hard to imagine there are that many devices out there with assigned static IP addresses, but it's happened. There are a couple billion IPv4 addresses out there. By comparison, there are 340 UNDECILLION IPv6 addresses.
Yes, undecillion is a word, and yes, it represents a very, very, very large number.
- The concept of IPv6 is mildly terrifying from a security perspective as it will allow for the unique identification of every piece of equipment on the Internet thanks to the way the addresses are formatted. I'll allow your mind to delve into the implications of that considering the fact that nowadays our phones, our TVs, our refrigerators, and even our cars in some cases are connected to a network of some variety. Our instructor for the week referred to this as the Skynet effect, making reference to the artificial intelligence from the Terminator films that became self-aware and deemed humanity unfit to continue running the show. I don't think we're in any immediate danger of being overrun by murderous robots, but it's still a valid area of concern for anyone who doesn't exactly agree with the idea of having your every move captured digitally and broadcast to God only knows who.
Atlanta is a huge city and it's equipped with a number of modern public transit systems, probably the most widely used of those being the MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority), a 4-line subway system that runs underneath the city. I'd never so much as seen an actual subway train with my own eyes, so the fact that one of the main MARTA stations (Peachtree Center) was nearby to my hotel meant I had to go exploring. "Exploring" is an appropriate term to use in this context seeing as how that's what I felt like I was doing while riding one of the longest escalators in the world. (Not until later in the week did I realize that there are elevators.) It seemed to go on forever, 120 feet down into the station which itself resembles a cavern thanks to the exposed rock walls lining the subway tubes. I purchased a multi-day pass for the MARTA and I intended to ride the thing, but I will be forthright in admitting that I didn't ride the MARTA for fear that I'd wind up somewhere with no idea of how to get back where I began. It's silly, I know, but I erred on the side of caution seeing as how I was all by my lonesome with no one to rely on for assistance. That experience under my belt, I decided walking or taking a cab would be my best option for the remainder of the week.
I didn't do much sight-seeing while I was in Atlanta. For that matter, I didn't get away from the area around my hotel all that much but quite frankly I didn't need to since there are a lot of eateries and things to do in the blocks surrounding the Westin. I focused on culinary experiences because food is obviously something I enjoy but also because, to me, it's as much a cultural indicator as anything. The foods of a given region are reflections of the people, and seeing as how Atlanta is a genuine melting pot community I knew I'd be in for some great options.
I wound up eating dinner at Meehan's Public House on two separate occasions. Why? Well, it's not often that I get to encounter an honest-to-God Irish pub with an amazing assortment of bottled and draft beers, ciders, and ales that also serves up a great selection of food. Those reasons combined with the fact that it was literally within 50 feet of the Westin made it too good not to patronize.
My first Meehan's experience was their traditional Reuben sandwich with fries. Not exactly the most eclectic selection on my part, but I love a good Reuben and Meehan's was quite tasty. I sampled a brand of cider I'd never had before, that being Strongbow which is produced in England and is kept on tap at Meehan's. I'll always be a beer connoisseur but ciders are some of my absolute most favorite adult beverages. I know it's not manly to drink something that tastes like fruit juice but I contend it's not always wise to drink something that tastes like you're chewing on a rusty drain pipe, which is exactly what some ales come off as.
I went back to Meehan's 2 days later and wound up inadvertently being part of a crowd who were on hand to watch the CONCACAF Gold Cup match featuring USA versus Honduras. Now I can say I've been in an Irish pub while watching soccer - I feel so very European suddenly. I've gotten more into soccer as I've tried to watch the sport in an effort to learn its rules; I equate it to hockey in a lot of ways, except soccer players tend to over-dramatically sell every poke or push as if they'd been hit in the face with a 2x4 whereas in that same scenario hockey players would just drop the gloves and have at it with each other.
Overall, the experience at Meehan's that evening was very enjoyable. I had several pints of Strongbow (watching soccer makes one quite thirsty) but I dove a bit deeper into the menu this time around as I had their fish tacos as an appetizer and the 101 meatloaf for my main course. I'd never tried fish tacos before but I can say that I'm now a fan; these were fantastic and I would certainly order them again. Likewise, the 101 meatloaf was great (no, I have no idea why there's a "101" in front of the name). It's a combination of beef, bison and sausage making for a succulent meld of flavors. The meatloaf came with mashed potatoes and sauteed green beans, which I'm not certain I enjoyed all that much because I'm rather particular when it comes to my green beans. Even so, I did clean my plate, which is as telling as anything about my thoughts on the meal.
I'd asked friends on my Facebook page to recommend their favorite haunts in Atlanta and I also sought pointers from people in my classes who are locals. One joint kept coming up - that being the Vortex, a truly one of a kind bar and grill with a heavy metal/punk rock attitude. It's a good thing I didn't have access to a place like this when I was in college because I'd have come out of school being a 600 pound alcoholic. They serve Laughing Skull ale as their house beer, which is made locally at Red Brick Brewing. It has the look of a full-bodied ale but is tremendously smooth and easy to drink. What's more, it paired perfectly with my meal which consisted of an appetizer of fried pickle spears (served with an amazing jalapeno ranch dipping sauce) and the Big Blue Buffalo Burger with sweet potato waffle fries. Vortex burgers are unique in that they're made from ground sirloin, and the BBBB is exactly what it sounds like - a big, juicy burger (I had mine cooked to a perfect medium rare) smothered in the Vortex's buffalo wing sauce and covered with a scoop of their blue cheese spread. I am not mincing words here, that was arguably the best burger I've ever had. I can't do it justice here in trying to describe how awesome it was, you just have to go there for yourself and have one.
As a side note to discussing the Vortex, I will add that if you get the sweet potato fries be advised that there will be a cup of sauce on your plate that looks like it could be half a dozen different things, but it's actually frosting. Like the kind of frosting that comes packed with toaster strudels. My waitress didn't tell me what it was and I don't believe it's mentioned on the menu; I feel like I have to make this known because I almost poured it over my burger without tasting it, thinking it was something I had the option of adding on. I'm glad I didn't, needless to say, because it wouldn't have gone as well with the burger as it did with the fries.
I had taken a cab to get to the Vortex but I decided to walk back to my hotel. It wound up being just shy of 2 miles, and it was a good opportunity to get some exercise since the weather was especially pleasant that day (it was most of the week as the temperature never got out of the mid-80s). The only negative aspect to walking around downtown Atlanta is that there is a rather large vagrant population. Having to say no or otherwise ignore their requests for money became a chore; I could imagine that being a woman and walking those same areas would be rather scary.
I don't know if you've noticed or not but I haven't mentioned lunches up until now. Reason for that is that they weren't all that memorable seeing as how I ate in the food court of a mall that's situated underneath the cluster of buildings where I was taking classes. I had a steak wrap and 3 or 4 varieties of Chinese "chicken" (that stuff is so heavily sauced it could be anything) served with various side items up to and including Kraft-style macaroni & cheese. They weren't exactly meals of shame but they weren't anything to write about either, hence why I'm not giving them much attention.
For my final evening in Atlanta, I decided to try a restaurant I'd walked by every day and could no longer resist. Pitty Pat's Porch is located across from the Westin, in what I can only describe as a subterranean level of the building. It's so odd for it to be where it is considering it's interior aesthetic is that of an old, two-story plantation home. The upper floor is essentially a lobby area equipped with a battery of rocking chairs and other seating for guests to use while waiting for a table. The lower floor is the dining room, and to get there you walk down a flight of stairs that takes you directly past an open area of the kitchen where you can see chefs working to prepare various breads, pastries, and deserts.
Pitty Pat's is a very old restaurant as it opened in 1967 and has been in the same location ever since. Their style of food is traditional southern cuisine, specializing in fried chicken and ribs among other savory items. For my meal, I decided to try their interpretation of a favorite dish of mine, shrimp and grits. Before I would get to the main course, though, I made a trip to their salad bar which features so much more than what you'd expect. My two favorite selections were the tomato salad (ripe tomatoes sliced up and marinated in a balsamic dressing with herbs, red onions and roasted cloves of garlic) and pickled watermelon rind - no, really, it's watermelon rind and I promise it was great!
When I returned to my table I found a plate with a biscuit, a piece of cornbread, and a cheesy muffin (I only ate the cornbread since I didn't want to load up on dough to save room for the rest of my meal) as well as my beverage. Pitty Pat's has a full bar but they craft their own specialty cocktails. I chose what they call the Ankle Breaker, which is described on the menu with this: "General Jackson broke his ankle after half a dozen of them. You might have to get yourself a partner to handle one." It's more or less a mason jar filled with light rum, brandy, and enough grenadine to make it pink. Trust me when I say I wouldn't have drank more than one of them knowing I was going to have to walk out of there under my own power!
The main course arrived and it was accompanied by a bowl that was half black eyed peas and half turnip greens. Pitty Pat's menu labels the shrimp and grits as being from the low country (if you aren't aware, "low country" is a term used to describe the coastal region near the South Carolina/Georgia line), but their interpretation is a bit different than what I'm accustomed to eating - different doesn't equal bad, mind you. Theirs is served with blackened shrimp, sauteed peppers and onions, and a butter sauce. It was a very rich but manageable portion and I had just enough room left over to order desert.
I have eaten a lot of bread pudding in my day. It's one of my favorite deserts as it was something my Grandmother made for me as a boy and I have carried on my love for it ever since. Up to this point in time, just about the best I've ever had came from the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, SC and it was a banana bread pudding. Sadly, that bread pudding is no longer available as a result of HOB's management deciding it was time to monkey with the menu, thereby removing virtually all my old favorites. That said, there is a new champion in the world of bread pudding and it's Pitty Pat's Porch.
It was absolutely perfect. Firm exterior and a warm, custard-like interior. A raisin or two in every spoonful. Drizzled with a bourbon sauce and topped with a dollop of fresh whipped cream. I am not kidding when I say that I would drive to Atlanta just to eat this again, it's that amazing.
My time in Atlanta drew to a close, and thus began the interesting process of packing my bags. It never fails that what fits in a certain number of bags initially is damn near impossible to get back into the same bags once its been used, worn or what have you. I've gotten to be fairly skilled at the game of Tetris that is bag packing, though, and I managed to get my suitcase together better than I thought I would have - it was at that point I realized I still had about a drawer and a half of clothes to get into that same bag.
Drat.
Much like the check-in process, the check-out process at the Westin was a smooth one. I made sure to request that receipts for my stay be sent to me via email prior to leaving the concierge desk as I'd need to give them to our finance people upon my return to the office. I didn't see the point of getting paper copies at that moment so I then gathered up my bags and made my way down to valet services, which was where the only stumble the folks at the Westin made. I'd paid for my valet at the point of check-out but the people at the valet desk claimed I hadn't yet paid the bill for parking. Instead of attempting to argue my point, I went back up to the desk at which I'd checked out and retrieved a paper copy of my receipt. I showed it to the valet clerk and she admitted the error; apparently the valet and the hotel are on independent systems when it comes to payments. That would seem like a problem to me, but what do I know - I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.
The drive home was mostly uneventful, I'm happy to report. I made my way out of Atlanta and stopped only briefly between there and here in order to get a bite to eat and relieve myself. I did see a random piece of law enforcement, though, as I witnessed a patrolman (I don't recall whether it was a state trooper or a local cop) pull over a single car out of a pack, all of which seemed to be going nearly the same speed to me. I couldn't help but wonder why that car? All I can say is on that day it sucked to be that driver.
I did enjoy being in Atlanta but it sure did feel good to see a whole bunch of green trees and fields when I got closer to home. Being around nothing but concrete and steel all week was good for my allergies but not so much for my state of mind. By the end of the week I was missing my house, my dog, and mostly my wife. As God tells us in the Bible, "It is not good that man should be alone so I shall make a companion for him..." I don't know what I'd do without mine.
Of course it wouldn't just be a week of going to classes, though. Far from it. Seeing as how I'd only been to Atlanta once before in my entire life and had no idea what to expect from spending time downtown, this would be an adventure.
As transportation for this trip I was able to take one of our fleet vehicles, that being a Ford Crown Victoria. There will come a day when motorists see a Crown Vic and don't immediately think "COP!", thus prompting a muscle response in their right foot to perform a covert pressurization of their vehicle's brakes, but that day is not here yet. While this particular Crown Vic wasn't an exact match in terms of color to the cruisers used by law enforcement in the region, it's still a Crown Vic with permanent plates. That's enough visual evidence to give most folks pause while they consider whether or not to pass said potential police cruiser.
I tend to pack heavy when I'm preparing for a trip, be it for business or pleasure. I wind up bringing way too many sets of clothes, and I do this because of my appreciation for redundant mechanisms. (That and the fact that I'm too cheap to do laundry whilst on the road. Laundromats are sometimes hard to come by and in-house laundry services at most hotels are ridiculously overpriced.) The old "I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it" logic, which is perfectly sound in my mind. I can appreciate having 5 extra pairs of underwear because you should never be away from home without plenty of clean underpants.
Other than clothing, I packed the essentials - those being my camera, laptop, tablet, cell phone, and iPod as well as their associated accessories. Some of those I needed to have with me (laptop and phone, for work and communication obviously), while others were there because I need them. Little boys don't stop being little boys just because they get old. We still like to have our toys within arm's reach, they're just significantly more expensive than the baubles we toted around as children.
I hit the road on the afternoon of July 21, 2013 which just happened to be the day after my birthday. My wife and our families had dined the evening before at Cowboy Brazilian Steakhouse in Columbia, SC and I was still reeling from the near meat-coma I'd put myself into (not that it's a difficult thing to do at a restaurant like that). Be that as it was, I loaded up the car, said my goodbyes to Wifey, punched up directions on my GPS app and hit the road.
Driving to Atlanta from our home in Saint Matthews, SC isn't exactly a daunting task - not until you get close to the city, that is. You have the option of going north a ways in order to get to I-20 in Columbia, but I prefer taking highway 178. It's a more scenic route and one that doesn't require you to drive 40 minutes north just to turn around and go back south. It connects to I-20 in a more organic fashion for people in our neck of the woods, I guess you could say.
I hadn't really had anything to eat that day and I began to get a bit hungry as I made my way through Aiken, SC. I stopped at a Hardee's there and had a burger with some fries and a frosty Coca-Cola. Much to my chagrin, this particular Hardee's claimed to no longer be serving curly fries, a favorite of mine. This came as news to me as our local Hardee's in Saint Matthews, to my knowledge, still serves them. I settled for the homestyle fries; this emotional blow was softened by the fact that they had self-serve Heinz ketchup, something our hometown Hardee's removed after the building was renovated recently. I do love ketchup, Heinz in particular, and the opportunity to dip my fries to my heart's content was very welcome.
What wasn't so welcome was the mess that awaited me in the men's restroom. It seems like Walmart bathrooms get recognized as being home to some of the most poorly maintained facilities, but this Hardee's bested any Walmart latrine I've ever seen. It looked as though someone had ransacked the joint; tiles were pulled off the wall, the sink was filthy, the urinal was flooded with waste, but the worst part of it was the gigantic pile of puke clearly visible beside the toilet in the restroom's lone stall. I kid you not, this was a veritable hill of vomit - not projectile or splatter vomit, but a thick, viscous mound of sick. (I'm sorry to have to have forced you into digesting that description, dear reader, but I had to witness it so it seems only fair.) I left without relieving myself (truck stop gas station, for the win), however I did report the issue to a member of staff.
I knew from having driven this route previously (see blog entry "The Truesdales Went Down to Georgia") that when I reached Covington, GA I had less than an hour to go before I'd be in Atlanta. It's around this same point that traffic begins to devolve into a ridiculous display of impatience and rudeness. I prepared myself mentally to face the coming storm but it seemed as though my technology was failing me. I noticed that my phone began to blink its indicator light a combination of amber and green, a signal that the device is overheating. I can only assume that the issue was a result of the phone's resources being overloaded in conjunction with sitting in the cradle I'd positioned on the Crown Vic's dashboard that was more or less in full-sun. This was bad seeing as how I was using it as my GPS for this trip; if it went down, I would have had no way of knowing where I was going. I took the phone out of the cradle, unplugged the charging adapter and began holding the phone in front of one of the air conditioning vents. Fortunately, this seemed to work rather well although it became something of a juggling act - suffice to say juggling isn't something you want to do in these conditions.
My phone got me into the vicinity of my hotel, the Westin Peachtree Plaza, but what these GPS units and apps often lack is good intel on where parking garage entrances happen to be located. I wound up circling the area twice before I found where the garage was located, a result of the fact that there was construction in the area limiting access to it. PRO-TIP: While traveling in Atlanta, be mindful of the fact that many streets are, in fact, one way only.
Once I was in the valet area, I dropped off my keys to the attendant and grabbed my bags. I don't know how best to describe what - well, who, more specifically - I saw next other than to just start at the top and work my way down. She looked to be in her 20s. She was tall, made more so by her high-heel shoes, had bleached blond hair, and wore a pink tube top with what was either a mini-skirt or hot pants. Her makeup was overdone but her massive fake eyelashes were even worse (she appeared to have fakies somewhere else on her anatomy, too). I'm assuming she was a hooker, either that or she chose to dress provocatively for the sake of it.
5 minutes in Atlanta and I've already seen an escort. I spent a week in Las Vegas several years ago and while I saw plenty of ads for call girls I can honestly say I never saw one in person.
I do enjoy staying at higher-end hotels, mainly because the level of service you receive is typically on par with what you'd expect. The Westin was no different; the associate who checked me in was helpful and courteous, as were all the other members of their staff I'd encounter throughout the rest of my stay.
Something I learned about highrise buildings in Atlanta starting with my hotel is the fact that not all elevators go to all floors. Case in point, I was staying on the 43rd floor; one bank of elevators went from the lobby to 45, whereas another set went from the lobby to 70-something. (The Westin has a restaurant on several of the top floors; I was unable to see it because of renovations being in progress during my stay. Apparently it has its own elevator independent of the others.) I lost track of how many times I wound up getting into the wrong lift, not only in my hotel but in the building where I'd be taking classes as well. Pure rookie errors on my part.
I went to my room and I have to say this was one of the nicer rooms I've ever stayed in, although it presented some oddities in terms of a general lack of storage space. This was intended to be a room suitable for business travelers, as was evidenced by the desk dominating one whole corner. There was a closet but very little else in the way of drawers. I know not everyone unpacks when they arrive at a hotel, however I do - I may be living out of a suitcase but I don't necessarily want to have to leave everything in my suitcase. Fortunately, there were plenty of hangers to accommodate my shirts and pants, and my overstuffed bag wound up holding just enough to occupy what drawers were present in the room.
Having moved in, I wandered down to the bar in the lobby for dinner. The restaurant was closed, I assume for refurbishment, but their menu was still available. This first evening I dined on fish and chips accompanied by a tasty Samuel Adams - hard to go wrong with fried cod and a great American brew.
I retired to my room once I was finished but my stay at the bar wasn't without entertainment of the human kind. A couple from Europe had been sitting next to me (I am guessing here but they sounded to be from somewhere out of either the United Kingdom or Great Britain), and the lady had been drinking a glass of white wine. She wound up leaving a fair amount in her glass when they departed. Within moments, two women came to the bar and assumed the same seats that the couple had occupied. They ordered drinks and when the bartender went to fill their order one of the women grabbed the wine glass and knocked back the entire thing in one gulp before the bartender had returned.
Two things...
1) Ew.
2) Is finishing up someone else's drink an acceptable "fumble recovery", as it were? I guess it depends on your level of chemical dependance and desperation for libation.
Like I mentioned when I kicked off this entry, the purpose of my being in Atlanta was to attend a series of classes. I'm not going to go into much detail regarding them other than to mention they involved configuration of Cisco network switches and security appliances. I know there are probably a handful of folks out there who would find a recap of those topics tremendously enthralling but the material is a bit too involved to simply start talking about. (This reminds me of my wife's reaction to hearing me "talk shop" with one of our neighbors who is also involved with IT; she no longer tries to follow along, she just tunes it out until the subject has changed.) I will, however, mention a pair of concepts that I learned about, both having to do with IPv6 which is a new internet protocol addressing scheme intended to replace IPv4.
- IPv6 was brought about because of the fact that the world is running out of old IPv4 addresses. Hard to imagine there are that many devices out there with assigned static IP addresses, but it's happened. There are a couple billion IPv4 addresses out there. By comparison, there are 340 UNDECILLION IPv6 addresses.
Yes, undecillion is a word, and yes, it represents a very, very, very large number.
- The concept of IPv6 is mildly terrifying from a security perspective as it will allow for the unique identification of every piece of equipment on the Internet thanks to the way the addresses are formatted. I'll allow your mind to delve into the implications of that considering the fact that nowadays our phones, our TVs, our refrigerators, and even our cars in some cases are connected to a network of some variety. Our instructor for the week referred to this as the Skynet effect, making reference to the artificial intelligence from the Terminator films that became self-aware and deemed humanity unfit to continue running the show. I don't think we're in any immediate danger of being overrun by murderous robots, but it's still a valid area of concern for anyone who doesn't exactly agree with the idea of having your every move captured digitally and broadcast to God only knows who.
Atlanta is a huge city and it's equipped with a number of modern public transit systems, probably the most widely used of those being the MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority), a 4-line subway system that runs underneath the city. I'd never so much as seen an actual subway train with my own eyes, so the fact that one of the main MARTA stations (Peachtree Center) was nearby to my hotel meant I had to go exploring. "Exploring" is an appropriate term to use in this context seeing as how that's what I felt like I was doing while riding one of the longest escalators in the world. (Not until later in the week did I realize that there are elevators.) It seemed to go on forever, 120 feet down into the station which itself resembles a cavern thanks to the exposed rock walls lining the subway tubes. I purchased a multi-day pass for the MARTA and I intended to ride the thing, but I will be forthright in admitting that I didn't ride the MARTA for fear that I'd wind up somewhere with no idea of how to get back where I began. It's silly, I know, but I erred on the side of caution seeing as how I was all by my lonesome with no one to rely on for assistance. That experience under my belt, I decided walking or taking a cab would be my best option for the remainder of the week.
I didn't do much sight-seeing while I was in Atlanta. For that matter, I didn't get away from the area around my hotel all that much but quite frankly I didn't need to since there are a lot of eateries and things to do in the blocks surrounding the Westin. I focused on culinary experiences because food is obviously something I enjoy but also because, to me, it's as much a cultural indicator as anything. The foods of a given region are reflections of the people, and seeing as how Atlanta is a genuine melting pot community I knew I'd be in for some great options.
I wound up eating dinner at Meehan's Public House on two separate occasions. Why? Well, it's not often that I get to encounter an honest-to-God Irish pub with an amazing assortment of bottled and draft beers, ciders, and ales that also serves up a great selection of food. Those reasons combined with the fact that it was literally within 50 feet of the Westin made it too good not to patronize.
My first Meehan's experience was their traditional Reuben sandwich with fries. Not exactly the most eclectic selection on my part, but I love a good Reuben and Meehan's was quite tasty. I sampled a brand of cider I'd never had before, that being Strongbow which is produced in England and is kept on tap at Meehan's. I'll always be a beer connoisseur but ciders are some of my absolute most favorite adult beverages. I know it's not manly to drink something that tastes like fruit juice but I contend it's not always wise to drink something that tastes like you're chewing on a rusty drain pipe, which is exactly what some ales come off as.
I went back to Meehan's 2 days later and wound up inadvertently being part of a crowd who were on hand to watch the CONCACAF Gold Cup match featuring USA versus Honduras. Now I can say I've been in an Irish pub while watching soccer - I feel so very European suddenly. I've gotten more into soccer as I've tried to watch the sport in an effort to learn its rules; I equate it to hockey in a lot of ways, except soccer players tend to over-dramatically sell every poke or push as if they'd been hit in the face with a 2x4 whereas in that same scenario hockey players would just drop the gloves and have at it with each other.
Overall, the experience at Meehan's that evening was very enjoyable. I had several pints of Strongbow (watching soccer makes one quite thirsty) but I dove a bit deeper into the menu this time around as I had their fish tacos as an appetizer and the 101 meatloaf for my main course. I'd never tried fish tacos before but I can say that I'm now a fan; these were fantastic and I would certainly order them again. Likewise, the 101 meatloaf was great (no, I have no idea why there's a "101" in front of the name). It's a combination of beef, bison and sausage making for a succulent meld of flavors. The meatloaf came with mashed potatoes and sauteed green beans, which I'm not certain I enjoyed all that much because I'm rather particular when it comes to my green beans. Even so, I did clean my plate, which is as telling as anything about my thoughts on the meal.
I'd asked friends on my Facebook page to recommend their favorite haunts in Atlanta and I also sought pointers from people in my classes who are locals. One joint kept coming up - that being the Vortex, a truly one of a kind bar and grill with a heavy metal/punk rock attitude. It's a good thing I didn't have access to a place like this when I was in college because I'd have come out of school being a 600 pound alcoholic. They serve Laughing Skull ale as their house beer, which is made locally at Red Brick Brewing. It has the look of a full-bodied ale but is tremendously smooth and easy to drink. What's more, it paired perfectly with my meal which consisted of an appetizer of fried pickle spears (served with an amazing jalapeno ranch dipping sauce) and the Big Blue Buffalo Burger with sweet potato waffle fries. Vortex burgers are unique in that they're made from ground sirloin, and the BBBB is exactly what it sounds like - a big, juicy burger (I had mine cooked to a perfect medium rare) smothered in the Vortex's buffalo wing sauce and covered with a scoop of their blue cheese spread. I am not mincing words here, that was arguably the best burger I've ever had. I can't do it justice here in trying to describe how awesome it was, you just have to go there for yourself and have one.
As a side note to discussing the Vortex, I will add that if you get the sweet potato fries be advised that there will be a cup of sauce on your plate that looks like it could be half a dozen different things, but it's actually frosting. Like the kind of frosting that comes packed with toaster strudels. My waitress didn't tell me what it was and I don't believe it's mentioned on the menu; I feel like I have to make this known because I almost poured it over my burger without tasting it, thinking it was something I had the option of adding on. I'm glad I didn't, needless to say, because it wouldn't have gone as well with the burger as it did with the fries.
I had taken a cab to get to the Vortex but I decided to walk back to my hotel. It wound up being just shy of 2 miles, and it was a good opportunity to get some exercise since the weather was especially pleasant that day (it was most of the week as the temperature never got out of the mid-80s). The only negative aspect to walking around downtown Atlanta is that there is a rather large vagrant population. Having to say no or otherwise ignore their requests for money became a chore; I could imagine that being a woman and walking those same areas would be rather scary.
I don't know if you've noticed or not but I haven't mentioned lunches up until now. Reason for that is that they weren't all that memorable seeing as how I ate in the food court of a mall that's situated underneath the cluster of buildings where I was taking classes. I had a steak wrap and 3 or 4 varieties of Chinese "chicken" (that stuff is so heavily sauced it could be anything) served with various side items up to and including Kraft-style macaroni & cheese. They weren't exactly meals of shame but they weren't anything to write about either, hence why I'm not giving them much attention.
For my final evening in Atlanta, I decided to try a restaurant I'd walked by every day and could no longer resist. Pitty Pat's Porch is located across from the Westin, in what I can only describe as a subterranean level of the building. It's so odd for it to be where it is considering it's interior aesthetic is that of an old, two-story plantation home. The upper floor is essentially a lobby area equipped with a battery of rocking chairs and other seating for guests to use while waiting for a table. The lower floor is the dining room, and to get there you walk down a flight of stairs that takes you directly past an open area of the kitchen where you can see chefs working to prepare various breads, pastries, and deserts.
Pitty Pat's is a very old restaurant as it opened in 1967 and has been in the same location ever since. Their style of food is traditional southern cuisine, specializing in fried chicken and ribs among other savory items. For my meal, I decided to try their interpretation of a favorite dish of mine, shrimp and grits. Before I would get to the main course, though, I made a trip to their salad bar which features so much more than what you'd expect. My two favorite selections were the tomato salad (ripe tomatoes sliced up and marinated in a balsamic dressing with herbs, red onions and roasted cloves of garlic) and pickled watermelon rind - no, really, it's watermelon rind and I promise it was great!
When I returned to my table I found a plate with a biscuit, a piece of cornbread, and a cheesy muffin (I only ate the cornbread since I didn't want to load up on dough to save room for the rest of my meal) as well as my beverage. Pitty Pat's has a full bar but they craft their own specialty cocktails. I chose what they call the Ankle Breaker, which is described on the menu with this: "General Jackson broke his ankle after half a dozen of them. You might have to get yourself a partner to handle one." It's more or less a mason jar filled with light rum, brandy, and enough grenadine to make it pink. Trust me when I say I wouldn't have drank more than one of them knowing I was going to have to walk out of there under my own power!
The main course arrived and it was accompanied by a bowl that was half black eyed peas and half turnip greens. Pitty Pat's menu labels the shrimp and grits as being from the low country (if you aren't aware, "low country" is a term used to describe the coastal region near the South Carolina/Georgia line), but their interpretation is a bit different than what I'm accustomed to eating - different doesn't equal bad, mind you. Theirs is served with blackened shrimp, sauteed peppers and onions, and a butter sauce. It was a very rich but manageable portion and I had just enough room left over to order desert.
I have eaten a lot of bread pudding in my day. It's one of my favorite deserts as it was something my Grandmother made for me as a boy and I have carried on my love for it ever since. Up to this point in time, just about the best I've ever had came from the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, SC and it was a banana bread pudding. Sadly, that bread pudding is no longer available as a result of HOB's management deciding it was time to monkey with the menu, thereby removing virtually all my old favorites. That said, there is a new champion in the world of bread pudding and it's Pitty Pat's Porch.
It was absolutely perfect. Firm exterior and a warm, custard-like interior. A raisin or two in every spoonful. Drizzled with a bourbon sauce and topped with a dollop of fresh whipped cream. I am not kidding when I say that I would drive to Atlanta just to eat this again, it's that amazing.
My time in Atlanta drew to a close, and thus began the interesting process of packing my bags. It never fails that what fits in a certain number of bags initially is damn near impossible to get back into the same bags once its been used, worn or what have you. I've gotten to be fairly skilled at the game of Tetris that is bag packing, though, and I managed to get my suitcase together better than I thought I would have - it was at that point I realized I still had about a drawer and a half of clothes to get into that same bag.
Drat.
Much like the check-in process, the check-out process at the Westin was a smooth one. I made sure to request that receipts for my stay be sent to me via email prior to leaving the concierge desk as I'd need to give them to our finance people upon my return to the office. I didn't see the point of getting paper copies at that moment so I then gathered up my bags and made my way down to valet services, which was where the only stumble the folks at the Westin made. I'd paid for my valet at the point of check-out but the people at the valet desk claimed I hadn't yet paid the bill for parking. Instead of attempting to argue my point, I went back up to the desk at which I'd checked out and retrieved a paper copy of my receipt. I showed it to the valet clerk and she admitted the error; apparently the valet and the hotel are on independent systems when it comes to payments. That would seem like a problem to me, but what do I know - I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.
The drive home was mostly uneventful, I'm happy to report. I made my way out of Atlanta and stopped only briefly between there and here in order to get a bite to eat and relieve myself. I did see a random piece of law enforcement, though, as I witnessed a patrolman (I don't recall whether it was a state trooper or a local cop) pull over a single car out of a pack, all of which seemed to be going nearly the same speed to me. I couldn't help but wonder why that car? All I can say is on that day it sucked to be that driver.
I did enjoy being in Atlanta but it sure did feel good to see a whole bunch of green trees and fields when I got closer to home. Being around nothing but concrete and steel all week was good for my allergies but not so much for my state of mind. By the end of the week I was missing my house, my dog, and mostly my wife. As God tells us in the Bible, "It is not good that man should be alone so I shall make a companion for him..." I don't know what I'd do without mine.
Friday, May 10, 2013
The Truesdales Went Down to Georgia (A Blog About Our 3rd Anniversary Weekend Get-Away)
May 1, 2013 marked 3 years since Jill and I were wed. I wasn't aware of this until here lately but the theme for gifts at the third anniversary is leather as the third year is when the marriage shows its resilience, much like leather itself. That being the case, I went to our local Goodwill store and found an old pair of work boots and gave them to my wife as an anniversary present. Seemed appropriate, so I went with it.
No, I didn't actually get her a pair of work boots. We did, however, work as a team in putting together a weekend jaunt down to Georgia in order to celebrate our anniversary. Jill had told me a while back that she wanted to visit the World of Coca-Cola, which is in Atlanta. As luck would have it, there wound up being a professional wrestling show in nearby Porterdale that I wanted to attend. Realizing we'd both have an opportunity to see something we'd enjoy along the way, the trip more or less planned itself - all we had to do was put one foot in front of the other.
THE ROAD
I do enjoy road trips and traveling in general, so much so that I've told my wife that once we're both old and retired I fully plan on selling our house and buying a recreational vehicle. Then we can spend our twilight years together on the road, seeing the country while terrorizing other motorists. Seriously, imagine me as a septuagenarian piloting a tour bus-sized RV hurtling down the highways at full speed - it's going to be awesome!
In all seriousness, I do think it's fun to get out and roam around every now and again. There was a point in time when my career didn't seem to be going anywhere that I considered going to truck driver's school. I wanted a vocation that I could earn a living at and enjoy the work as well, and that seemed like an option at the time. Fortunately, things picked up for me professionally speaking and I didn't have to take that route, but my appreciation for opportunities to hit the road hasn't diminished.
For this trip, we'd start off by taking a series of back roads through several counties in South Carolina until we hit I-20 west which would carry us the rest of the way to our temporary home of Covington, Georgia. From our home, GPS services would've had us drive to Columbia and hit I-20 there; this would've added a good many miles to the trip, which is why I plotted out an alternative course. "The scenic route", if you will.
Getting to Covington was a real breeze as the traffic going through South Carolina and Georgia happened to be somewhat sparse. I attribute this to the time of day we were traveling and the fact that it was pouring rain. Speaking of which, rain has become a running joke when we're on the road as it doesn't seem like we ever take a trip when the forecast doesn't call for precipitation. I can't remember an occasion where we've been traveling and there wasn't something wet falling from the sky. This was the case even before we were married as it was absolutely pouring rain the morning we flew out of Charlotte, North Carolina to Las Vegas. The rain would be an issue for us this entire weekend as it never really let up the entire time we were gone. Such is life for the Truesdales!
The ride into Atlanta wasn't that bad either, which was a surprise as I'd never driven there before but have always heard horror stories about how terrible an experience it can be thanks to congestion and the notion that most drivers there have an aggressive temperament. Maybe it was because we made our entrance fairly early on a Saturday or that combined with the persistent rain - whatever it was, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to get to the part of town we'd be visiting. The parking garage for the Wold of Coca-Cola was clearly marked and our GPS took us right to it without issue.
Unfortunately the trek out of Atlanta was the exact opposite. We left town in what may have been a weekend equivalent to rush hour as we encountered heavy traffic that was true to the sort of things I'd been told about driving in Atlanta. The roads were packed and the drivers were just as ornery as I'd been lead to believe they'd be. We got through it by remembering the wise teachings of a Jedi Master - "Patience, young padawan..." I feel for people who live in cities like Atlanta as I don't think I could drive through that on a daily basis, not without heavy medication anyway.
After that, it was good to have an uneventful ride home. We stopped along the way at a mall near Augusta, GA long enough to do a little shopping and to have lunch. Nothing like bourbon chicken, fried rice and an Orange Julius during a road trip to revitalize your mind, body and spirit!
THE HOTEL
I'm notorious for my frugality in general but especially so when it comes to hotels and seemingly frivolous expenses related to travel. My wife will verify this for you, should you think that I'm lying, as she's had to endure the brunt of my being a cheapskate. We have stayed in some questionable hotels during our relationship and the Travelodge in Covington, GA which we called home during our weekend get-away was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
We hit the road around 5:30 PM after we'd both gotten off work. We'd stopped at a Chili's for supper in Augusta, GA so it was around 10 PM when we arrived at our hotel. I had picked this particular Travelodge for two reasons: Price and its relative proximity to Atlanta. Staying in Atlanta was out of the question; I couldn't justify spending $150 or more per night to stay there seeing as how that would've wiped out the entire budget for this trip. Even with the extra fuel we'd be using, we would come out better by not splurging on a hotel. When we got off the interstate and entered Covington, my immediate reaction was to say that it appeared to be a pleasant area. There were several restaurants and shops nearby and it looked to be a very nice place to shack up for the next couple nights. My confidence didn't waver as we approached the hotel - I said to myself, "Hey, there's a Waffle House next door and a Taco Bell across the street, what more do you need?"
I left my truck under the overhang near the lobby then went inside to check us in. The parking lot was nearly full which wasn't surprising seeing as how a hotel like this one located right off of a major interstate stands to have plenty of business on any given night from road-wary travelers. The lobby seemed quaint enough and the staff were courteous, although I noticed that there appeared to be renovations in progress. A sign proclaiming "We're making our great hotel better!" confirmed my suspicions. Suddenly this value hotel was starting to seem a bit suspect as I didn't know how the renovations might intrude on our comfort.
After parking the truck we went to our room, which was on the second floor. The renovations were obvious by this point in time as there was a pile of furniture underneath one of the staircases and various supplies at the top of the stairs. There were some children playing outside a room near ours and I could sense that my wife's opinion of the facility had taken a nosedive based on what we'd encountered thus far. The conditions of our room didn't improve matters as it became clear we were definitely staying in a "value" hotel.
Our room had a king-size bed, which wound up being rather comfortable albeit a bit shaky, but I noticed right off the bat that there were three small, square pillows on it. We've encountered these things before when staying in hotels and I gather that they're called European pillows. Why hotels in this country are using them, I have no idea. We're not in Europe, folks - just because they're all the rage across the pond doesn't mean we should have to be subjected to them here. Remember, our forefathers fought a war over this sort of thing about 230 years ago.
When I was checking us into the hotel, the clerk at the front desk told me to call down to the lobby should we need anything once we got into our room. Since we needed more pillows, I did precisely that - problem was, our in-room phone didn't work (the hotel's WiFi was also not working). I saw the number to the hotel was printed on an information sheet attached to the phone so I attempted to call the front desk using that number and my cellular phone but there was no response - there was no ring, no "invalid number" system message, nothing but dead air. After 10 minutes of trying to do things the high tech way, I wound up walking back to the lobby and getting a few more pillows from the same clerk who'd checked us in.
Ambient noise is a consistent issue when it comes to hotels, not only the sounds created by other guests but also the pangs, rattles, and what have you of equipment like air conditioners and refrigerators. The AC in this room sounded like a diesel engine, quite frankly, and the fridge constantly made an odd pinging sound. This AC wasn't the most noisy unit we've ever encountered while traveling, though. That title belongs to an air conditioner at a hotel (I forget which chain it was) we stayed at during the last leg of our honeymoon in Saint Augustine, Florida which I do believe may have been a jet engine in another life.
Continental breakfasts offered by hotels are a real crap shoot. We've had experiences in certain hotels where you're lucky if you get milk to pour over your generic "Fruit Loops" cereal and yet we've also been to hotels where the breakfast bar was worth the price of the stay alone (case in point, the Days Inn in Asheville, North Carolina near the Biltmore Estate - phenomenal breakfast buffet and a very reasonably priced hotel). The breakfast bar at this Travelodge was kind of a mixed bag as it included your standard continental fare of pastries, confections, coffee, and juice but it also had biscuits, sausage and a waffle iron with a ready-made batter dispenser. Liability issues of having a hot waffle iron sitting out where small hands could get to it aside (I don't care if you do put a sign on it, it's still an invitation for injuries), I think the waffles are probably the best thing you can get out of a deal like this. They're fresh and hot, and here we got sausage to go with them. We could've just as well walked over to Waffle House but the hotel waffles were free and rather tasty for what they were.
I had an interesting personal experience at the breakfast bar our last morning at the hotel. My wife wanted to sleep in but I got up around 8 AM as usual. By the time I'd had my shower and gotten dressed, Jill was stirring. She asked that I bring her back a biscuit, sausage, some jelly and juice which I was glad to do for her. I fetched her breakfast, brought it back to our room, then returned to fix my breakfast. I was about to sit down at a table when a three children came in, all of them wearing pajamas. I noticed one was wearing a onesie with feet - nothing too strange there, she was a child after all. Within short order a few more arrived; they too were wearing pajamas except several of this group were grown women. And yes, they were wearing onsies with feet. I assume they may have been living out of the hotel. I hate to poke fun considering they might have been going through some sort of plight, but I have to say that I hope to get to a point in my life where I feel it's perfectly acceptable to have breakfast whilst wearing a onesie in public.
All things considered, for what we paid the room was passable. It had a bed, a TV, and a functional bathroom; nothing more than what we needed, in other words. I've promised my wife that I'll try to book better hotels in the future as after 3 years of marriage and putting up with my propensity for cheapness, I think I owe her that much.
THE WORLD OF COCA-COLA
Visiting the World of Coca-Cola was an idea my wife expressed to me a while back. I honestly had not heard of it prior to her telling me about it, which is possibly because of the fact that I'm a Pepsi fan truth be told. (There's a World of Coca-Cola in Las Vegas as well, but I guess we either missed it when we were there several years ago or just didn't think to check it out.) As such, my agreeing to go there seemed like somewhat of an invitation to be burned at the stake as a heretic more than anything. I'm glad to report that I was not assaulted in any way during our time there, regardless of my status as an infidel.
We arrived at the WC-C fairly early, I'd say around 9:15 AM. When you purchase tickets to visit the WC-C you select a time slot that you'd like to begin your tour; I assume this is done to control the flow of visitors as there are some aspects of the tour which are lead by ambassadors however most of the facility can be viewed at your own pace. The early slot we selected was a great idea as it allowed us to get in with a smaller group prior to the bulk of the visitors who'd be coming in that day (not to mention the benefit of not having to fight for a parking space in the garage).
The WC-C is an interactive museum, for lack of a better phrase, centered around the cultural phenomenon that is Coca-Cola. It's amazing to behold the collection of related artifacts this facility holds as I don't think people consider the impact a brand like Coca-Cola has had on our way of life (or at least I don't - I blame it on the Pepsi in my blood). You can find everything from paintings by Norman Rockwell to Olympic torches, from a giant bottle opener to biographical information on the inventor of Coca-Cola. What's more, the WC-C contains an exhibit called "The Vault" which they claim holds the original formula of Coca-Cola.
Suffice to say that "The Vault" is intimidating. I did find it funny, though, that visitors are instructed to stay behind a line on the floor or else a proximity alarm will be triggered (sure enough, a woman in our group got too close and an alarm did sound) yet they have that fancy hand scanner there which is basically a big, shiny red button with "TOUCH ME" printed on it.
If you make logical progress through the WC-C, the final area you come upon is the tasting room where you may sample upwards of 60 varieties of Coca-Cola products distributed throughout the world. The tasting room has a series of stations which are coordinated by continent and the beverages popular to each are available from fountains. Visitors can sample as much as they want, and that's exactly what we did! I believe we tasted all of the international offerings; some were great and some weren't exactly to our liking. Case in point, there's a drink that Coca-Cola manufactures which is popular in Italy known as Beverly. It's a pallet cleanser and it is one of the most revolting flavors I've ever experienced. It's deceptive in that it has a sweet aroma. The only way I can describe the taste is to say that it's like the bitterness from grapefruit but without any of the citrus flavor or subtle sweetness of grapefruit. I hated it and suffice to say that Jill didn't care for it either.
THE GEORGIA AQUARIUM
We hadn't originally planned to check out the Georgia Aquarium when we put together our itinerary for this trip but we wound up having more time in the area than we'd expected as it didn't take that long to go through the WC-C. Seeing as how the aquarium is literally next door to the WC-C and we had most of the afternoon to work with, we figured why not go ahead and see it while we were there.
I mentioned earlier how the weather during our trip to Atlanta wasn't that great as it rained off and on (I'd say it was more "on" than "off", though) the entire time we were on the road. That said, the people of Atlanta seemed to be focused on enjoying various indoor activities and the aquarium proved to be quite busy that afternoon. When I say "quite busy", I'm talking about a crowd that resembled some we saw last year while at the theme parks in Orlando.
This was a spur of the moment deal so we didn't have tickets in hand when we decided to tour the aquarium which meant we had to wait in line to purchase them. Trouble was, the line to buy tickets using the aquarium's automated ticketing kiosks isn't protected from the weather. There was another line which was under cover but it was absolutely massive! I'm not sure what the deal was there but we opted to stick with the kiosks as they appeared to be the faster method for ticketing. Jill had her umbrella meanwhile I had a hat; she shared her umbrella with me but I wound up being mostly exposed, and that lead to me being quite soggy as the downpour continued. I wasn't as bad off as a fellow in front of us who had no protection whatsoever - he was drenched, needless to say, but his resolve was admirable.
By the time we got near the kiosks, there were probably better than 50 people in line behind us. I'd estimate that it took maybe 20 minutes to get to the front, which in reality isn't all that long of a wait but when you're standing in the rain 20 minutes feels like an hour. Seeing as how we'd been patient enough to observe proper queue etiquette, it was rather funny to hear the reactions of patrons near us as a woman attempted to walk right by the line and go straight up to the kiosks. After she was called out for her transgression, she turned around and looked at the line as if it were a herd of purple rhinoceroses playing chess - confused and caught off guard, in other words. Her kids laughed at her, as did we, and she took her rightful place in line after the fact.
[SIDE NOTE: For my wife & I, the cost of entry to the Georgia Aquarium was almost $65. By comparison, the WC-C tickets were barely $30. I realize an operation like an aquarium has a tremendous overhead, but what are they feeding those fish, lobster and prime rib?]
The Georgia Aquarium is a truly stunning facility, both in terms of its size and in regards to the collection of animals it hosts. There are otters, frogs, dolphins (which can be viewed as part of your admission but there is an additional charge to see a performance by them), jellyfish, and even whale sharks - yes, whale sharks, living in captivity and on display for all to see and appreciate. It's amazing to think that all those critters exist in the middle of an urban jungle like Atlanta. I'm glad we took the time to experience it as it would've been a mistake not to take advantage of the opportunity.
PORTERDALE, GA & BURNIE'S BBQ
After braving the traffic outbound from Atlanta, we made our way over to Porterdale, GA for an evening of professional wrestling action from Chikara, a promotion I've been wanting to see live for years but had never had the chance to previously. It was getting on towards supper time and I wanted to have a bite to eat before the show. Porterdale is a small town, much like our own, as we noticed there weren't many eateries to be had aside from a few national chains like Subway and Burger King. I like to be adventurous when we're on the road, though, and I particularly like to try local fare as in things that you can't get everywhere. This was exactly what we found in the form of Burnie's BBQ, which wound up being directly beside the venue.
Burnie's BBQ is a small restaurant located on Main street in Porterdale. If you weren't looking for it or didn't already know where it is, you more than likely will miss it as I didn't even see it until my wife pointed it out as we drove through town (for the second time; we made a reconnaissance lap, just to see what was around). Jill was a little hesitant to try it as she wasn't sure if it would be all that great or if the food might upset us. I'm happy to report that her concerns were dashed - Burnie's was some of the best BBQ we've ever had.
BBQ is a culinary anomaly in that it means very different things depending on what part of the world you're in. In the Carolinas, it's pork and either a mustard or vinegar based sauce, whereas in Texas it's usually beef. We have several great BBQ restaurants in our part of the world, and while they & Burnie's were similar in that they serve pulled pork BBQ the difference was in the fact that Burnie's BBQ is smoked over hardwood which gives it an entirely different flavor than what we're accustomed to having (we didn't try it but Burnie's offers turkey as well as pork). The meat was tender, moist, and the sauces Burnie's had to offer as an accompaniment were fantastic. We sampled several including one that is a strawberry habanero combination which had great sweetness from the berries but a real kick in the throat thanks to the peppers!
No BBQ plate is complete without side items and for mine I chose their Brunswick stew and potato salad. I'm a sucker for homemade potato salad and Burnie's was top notch. Brunswick stew, if you're not familiar with it, is similar to a vegetable soup as it has a tomato base and includes other vegetables as well as some type of meat, be it beef, chicken or pork (some traditional recipes involve rabbit and squirrel). It had a hearty consistency and was a great item for a chilly, dreary day like this one was. I could've made a meal out of it and some oyster crackers alone.
Jill & I were both very impressed with Burnie's, not only because of their food but also because of an encounter we had with one of the owners, Nina Mae. She and her husband operate Burnie's; she's a great asset to the restaurant as she took the time to explain their sauces to us, give us some background information about the town, and made us feel incredibly welcome. That's the sort of thing you can't get at a chain restaurant anymore and that's a big reason why I like going to places like Burnie's when we're traveling. You never know what you're going to get when you walk through their door, but sometimes you discover a real gem like Burnie's.
Burnie's BBQ
2021 Main ST
Porterdale, GA 30070
http://burniesbbq.com/
CHIKARA PRESENTS "THE GHOST OF YOU CLINGS"
Everyone who knows me well knows that I'm a huge fan of professional wrestling, and not just the stuff that comes on TV every Monday or Friday night. I like the smaller companies as well, such as Ring of Honor and Pro Wrestling Guerilla as well as local federations like Premiere Wrestling Experience and Pro Wrestling Evo. These are groups that are made up of guys and girls who are still working hard to make a name for themselves in an industry that's about as difficult (if not more so) to break into as just about any legitimate professional sport. Their passion for wrestling is on display every time they get into the ring, and Chikara is home to some of the most vibrant personalities you're likely to ever see inside the squared-circle.
Chikara is hard to describe to someone who's a casual wrestling fan. Theirs is a product which incorporates aspects of high-flying, mask-wearing luchadores from Mexico, Japanese "strong-style" (matches that are choreographed but involve action made to look more like mixed-martial arts fighting), traditional American wrestling and a decent helping of comedy to boot. Pro wrestling is a form of performance art, you see, and it should involve the full range of human emotion. I don't know that any company out there gets that quite as well as Chikara does as their events will leave you totally drained from having laughed, booed, cheered, and everything in between.
Chikara's shows feature themes, and the card we attended was titled "The Ghost of You Clings". I'm not going to try and explain what that means because it would involve me dictating the history of a faction within Chikara, and this entry to my blog is getting out of hand in terms of its length as is. To make a long story short, it has to do with the aftermath of a long-time member of the Chikara roster suddenly quitting the company as a result of their management forcing him into aligning with a different group.
Here's a list of results from the show and my comments on each.
1) Tag team match featuring local talent from Platinum Championship Wrestling - The Washington Bullets (Jon & Trey) defeated Shane Marx & The Jagged Edge
There were plenty of people in the crowd who were knowledgeable regarding PCW and I take it that the group has a strong local following, which is great to hear. The pacing of the match was way too quick, although this might have been what they were aiming for in an attempt to get the crowd going; they packed in a lot of high spots and when you do that so hurriedly they wind up looking cool but have no real point. Not a bad match but nothing superlative either.
2) Shenron defeated "The Kentucky Gentleman" Chuck Taylor
I've never seen Shenron before and the people we sat near who knew PCW's product had never seen him either, so he may be a new member of Chikara's roster. Chuck Taylor gave him a stiff contest as it looked like Taylor may have been testing him at times. Good showing for both with lots of support for Shenron in the crowd.
3) The Pieces of Hate (Jigsaw & The Shard) defeated Fire Ant & assailANT
Fantastic match between these 4 as you have a genuine display here of what Chikara is all about when it comes to masked gimmicks. Fire Ant & assailANT looked strong working together but they couldn't get past the combination of Jigsaw & the Shard, who have really dialed up the intensity of their style since becoming a tag team.
4) Gran Akuma defeated Sugar Dunkerton (with Icarus) by disqualification
Interesting dynamic going into the match as Sugar Dunkerton and Icarus were the only remaining members of F.I.S.T. (Friends In Similar Tights), and Gran Akuma was at one point in time a member of the group. The match ended after Icarus was caught shoving Gran Akuma off the top rope. Afterwards Sugar confronted Icarus about his cheating ways and announced that he was officially a "free agent" and quitting F.I.S.T.
5) Amasis defeated Kobald
"The Funky Pharaoh" Amasis continues his build towards a match against his old tag team partner Ophidian, here taking on a member of the Batiri in Kobald. This wasn't the cleanest match of the night nor did the finish have that great of an impact as they went through several false moments before ending on a rolling elbow, a move that didn't have near as much impact as the earlier series' had.
6) The Colony Extreme Force (Missile Assault Ant, Arctic Rescue Ant and Orbit Adventure Ant) & deviANT defeated The Spectral Envoy (Ultramantis Black, Hallowicked and Frightmare) & Green Ant
This match was as crazy as the combination of combatants would make you believe. An 8-man tag in a building this size made for some rather tight moments, but the crowd loved every minute of it as the biggest reaction of the evening went to the Spectral Envoy & Green Ant. Lots of great action here, including an insane inside-out suplex maneuver involving 6 of the wrestlers. Ultramantis Black and his team were disqualified after Missile Assault Ant removed his mask but made it look to the referee like UB had taken it off him.
7) Saturyne defeated Tim Donst
The angle here was more about Donst's torturing of Jacob Hammermeier and developing his feud with Gavin Loudspeaker than anything. I can't say as I cared too much for this match but it was decent for an inter-gender bout. Donst's group of misfits are so odd - they don't come off as being intimidating, rather they look like the weird, medicated and socially awkward kids from high school. Donst laid out Loudspeaker after the match and cut off some of his hair before being contained by referees.
8) Eddie Kingston defeated Mark Angelosetti to retain the Chikara Grand Championship
It was getting late into the evening by this point in time and you could tell by the crowd's reactions from this point in the card forward. Kingston came to the ring hobbling and favoring his left knee, apparently selling an injury from his match the night before in Gibsonville, NC against Green Ant. That knee became the focus of the match as Angelosetti, who looks very much to me like a young Chris Jericho, attempted to take it apart throughout. Hard to imagine an old school wrestling match out of Chikara but that's exactly what this felt like and it was well done, I thought; great build, fantastic tension, and a true sense that Eddie could've been defeated. Kingston fought through it, though, and he remains the Chikara Grand Champion.
9) Best 2-out-of-3 Falls - 3.0 (Shane Matthews & Scott Parker) defeated the Batiri (Obariyon & Kodama) to retain the Campeonatos de Parejas
3.0 found themselves in a hole early on as they lost the first fall then seemed to be reduced to 1.5 as Parker suffered an injury to his back as a result of having been thrown into one of the ring posts. Matthews would somehow manage to survive against not only Obariyon & Kodama but also Ophidian and Kobald as the entirety of the Batiri made themselves known throughout the contest, scoring the next pinfall by himself after a quick roll-up. Parker would return to the match after having received medical attention, his ribs heavily taped. 3.0 retained the Campeonatos de Parejas after what became a very spirited and entertaining bout.
I had a great time at this show and I cannot say enough about the entire experience we had in Porterdale. Perhaps what impressed me the most, though, was something that happened after the show was over. As we left the building we realized that almost all of the tecnicos (good guys) on Chikara's roster had gathered around the exit to greet fans. That's something I've never seen before, quite frankly. They were standing out there in the rain to say thanks - that's how you build appreciation for a product, by showing the fans that you care about them. I'll certainly be back again when Chikara heads south, hopefully sometime soon.
CONCLUSION
My wife & I were married in Lugoff, South Carolina at Pine Grove Baptist Church on May 1, 2010. Life changed for us both that day, and I'd like to think we've been on the upstroke ever since in terms of growing as a couple in every way that two people can who are joined the way we are. Our relationship is as great as it's ever been as we still talk about everything and anything with each other (communication has always been one of our strongest points). Professionally speaking, we're both doing well as we're gainfully employed doing work that we enjoy. We have an awesome home, a fiesty little pooch named Roddy, and with any luck we'll begin to grow our family in the near future. Life is good, and it's because we have each other that we are where we are. That said, here's to many, many more anniversaries.
No, I didn't actually get her a pair of work boots. We did, however, work as a team in putting together a weekend jaunt down to Georgia in order to celebrate our anniversary. Jill had told me a while back that she wanted to visit the World of Coca-Cola, which is in Atlanta. As luck would have it, there wound up being a professional wrestling show in nearby Porterdale that I wanted to attend. Realizing we'd both have an opportunity to see something we'd enjoy along the way, the trip more or less planned itself - all we had to do was put one foot in front of the other.
THE ROAD
I do enjoy road trips and traveling in general, so much so that I've told my wife that once we're both old and retired I fully plan on selling our house and buying a recreational vehicle. Then we can spend our twilight years together on the road, seeing the country while terrorizing other motorists. Seriously, imagine me as a septuagenarian piloting a tour bus-sized RV hurtling down the highways at full speed - it's going to be awesome!
In all seriousness, I do think it's fun to get out and roam around every now and again. There was a point in time when my career didn't seem to be going anywhere that I considered going to truck driver's school. I wanted a vocation that I could earn a living at and enjoy the work as well, and that seemed like an option at the time. Fortunately, things picked up for me professionally speaking and I didn't have to take that route, but my appreciation for opportunities to hit the road hasn't diminished.
For this trip, we'd start off by taking a series of back roads through several counties in South Carolina until we hit I-20 west which would carry us the rest of the way to our temporary home of Covington, Georgia. From our home, GPS services would've had us drive to Columbia and hit I-20 there; this would've added a good many miles to the trip, which is why I plotted out an alternative course. "The scenic route", if you will.
Getting to Covington was a real breeze as the traffic going through South Carolina and Georgia happened to be somewhat sparse. I attribute this to the time of day we were traveling and the fact that it was pouring rain. Speaking of which, rain has become a running joke when we're on the road as it doesn't seem like we ever take a trip when the forecast doesn't call for precipitation. I can't remember an occasion where we've been traveling and there wasn't something wet falling from the sky. This was the case even before we were married as it was absolutely pouring rain the morning we flew out of Charlotte, North Carolina to Las Vegas. The rain would be an issue for us this entire weekend as it never really let up the entire time we were gone. Such is life for the Truesdales!
The ride into Atlanta wasn't that bad either, which was a surprise as I'd never driven there before but have always heard horror stories about how terrible an experience it can be thanks to congestion and the notion that most drivers there have an aggressive temperament. Maybe it was because we made our entrance fairly early on a Saturday or that combined with the persistent rain - whatever it was, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to get to the part of town we'd be visiting. The parking garage for the Wold of Coca-Cola was clearly marked and our GPS took us right to it without issue.
Unfortunately the trek out of Atlanta was the exact opposite. We left town in what may have been a weekend equivalent to rush hour as we encountered heavy traffic that was true to the sort of things I'd been told about driving in Atlanta. The roads were packed and the drivers were just as ornery as I'd been lead to believe they'd be. We got through it by remembering the wise teachings of a Jedi Master - "Patience, young padawan..." I feel for people who live in cities like Atlanta as I don't think I could drive through that on a daily basis, not without heavy medication anyway.
After that, it was good to have an uneventful ride home. We stopped along the way at a mall near Augusta, GA long enough to do a little shopping and to have lunch. Nothing like bourbon chicken, fried rice and an Orange Julius during a road trip to revitalize your mind, body and spirit!
THE HOTEL
I'm notorious for my frugality in general but especially so when it comes to hotels and seemingly frivolous expenses related to travel. My wife will verify this for you, should you think that I'm lying, as she's had to endure the brunt of my being a cheapskate. We have stayed in some questionable hotels during our relationship and the Travelodge in Covington, GA which we called home during our weekend get-away was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
We hit the road around 5:30 PM after we'd both gotten off work. We'd stopped at a Chili's for supper in Augusta, GA so it was around 10 PM when we arrived at our hotel. I had picked this particular Travelodge for two reasons: Price and its relative proximity to Atlanta. Staying in Atlanta was out of the question; I couldn't justify spending $150 or more per night to stay there seeing as how that would've wiped out the entire budget for this trip. Even with the extra fuel we'd be using, we would come out better by not splurging on a hotel. When we got off the interstate and entered Covington, my immediate reaction was to say that it appeared to be a pleasant area. There were several restaurants and shops nearby and it looked to be a very nice place to shack up for the next couple nights. My confidence didn't waver as we approached the hotel - I said to myself, "Hey, there's a Waffle House next door and a Taco Bell across the street, what more do you need?"
I left my truck under the overhang near the lobby then went inside to check us in. The parking lot was nearly full which wasn't surprising seeing as how a hotel like this one located right off of a major interstate stands to have plenty of business on any given night from road-wary travelers. The lobby seemed quaint enough and the staff were courteous, although I noticed that there appeared to be renovations in progress. A sign proclaiming "We're making our great hotel better!" confirmed my suspicions. Suddenly this value hotel was starting to seem a bit suspect as I didn't know how the renovations might intrude on our comfort.
After parking the truck we went to our room, which was on the second floor. The renovations were obvious by this point in time as there was a pile of furniture underneath one of the staircases and various supplies at the top of the stairs. There were some children playing outside a room near ours and I could sense that my wife's opinion of the facility had taken a nosedive based on what we'd encountered thus far. The conditions of our room didn't improve matters as it became clear we were definitely staying in a "value" hotel.
Our room had a king-size bed, which wound up being rather comfortable albeit a bit shaky, but I noticed right off the bat that there were three small, square pillows on it. We've encountered these things before when staying in hotels and I gather that they're called European pillows. Why hotels in this country are using them, I have no idea. We're not in Europe, folks - just because they're all the rage across the pond doesn't mean we should have to be subjected to them here. Remember, our forefathers fought a war over this sort of thing about 230 years ago.
When I was checking us into the hotel, the clerk at the front desk told me to call down to the lobby should we need anything once we got into our room. Since we needed more pillows, I did precisely that - problem was, our in-room phone didn't work (the hotel's WiFi was also not working). I saw the number to the hotel was printed on an information sheet attached to the phone so I attempted to call the front desk using that number and my cellular phone but there was no response - there was no ring, no "invalid number" system message, nothing but dead air. After 10 minutes of trying to do things the high tech way, I wound up walking back to the lobby and getting a few more pillows from the same clerk who'd checked us in.
Ambient noise is a consistent issue when it comes to hotels, not only the sounds created by other guests but also the pangs, rattles, and what have you of equipment like air conditioners and refrigerators. The AC in this room sounded like a diesel engine, quite frankly, and the fridge constantly made an odd pinging sound. This AC wasn't the most noisy unit we've ever encountered while traveling, though. That title belongs to an air conditioner at a hotel (I forget which chain it was) we stayed at during the last leg of our honeymoon in Saint Augustine, Florida which I do believe may have been a jet engine in another life.
Continental breakfasts offered by hotels are a real crap shoot. We've had experiences in certain hotels where you're lucky if you get milk to pour over your generic "Fruit Loops" cereal and yet we've also been to hotels where the breakfast bar was worth the price of the stay alone (case in point, the Days Inn in Asheville, North Carolina near the Biltmore Estate - phenomenal breakfast buffet and a very reasonably priced hotel). The breakfast bar at this Travelodge was kind of a mixed bag as it included your standard continental fare of pastries, confections, coffee, and juice but it also had biscuits, sausage and a waffle iron with a ready-made batter dispenser. Liability issues of having a hot waffle iron sitting out where small hands could get to it aside (I don't care if you do put a sign on it, it's still an invitation for injuries), I think the waffles are probably the best thing you can get out of a deal like this. They're fresh and hot, and here we got sausage to go with them. We could've just as well walked over to Waffle House but the hotel waffles were free and rather tasty for what they were.
I had an interesting personal experience at the breakfast bar our last morning at the hotel. My wife wanted to sleep in but I got up around 8 AM as usual. By the time I'd had my shower and gotten dressed, Jill was stirring. She asked that I bring her back a biscuit, sausage, some jelly and juice which I was glad to do for her. I fetched her breakfast, brought it back to our room, then returned to fix my breakfast. I was about to sit down at a table when a three children came in, all of them wearing pajamas. I noticed one was wearing a onesie with feet - nothing too strange there, she was a child after all. Within short order a few more arrived; they too were wearing pajamas except several of this group were grown women. And yes, they were wearing onsies with feet. I assume they may have been living out of the hotel. I hate to poke fun considering they might have been going through some sort of plight, but I have to say that I hope to get to a point in my life where I feel it's perfectly acceptable to have breakfast whilst wearing a onesie in public.
All things considered, for what we paid the room was passable. It had a bed, a TV, and a functional bathroom; nothing more than what we needed, in other words. I've promised my wife that I'll try to book better hotels in the future as after 3 years of marriage and putting up with my propensity for cheapness, I think I owe her that much.
THE WORLD OF COCA-COLA
Visiting the World of Coca-Cola was an idea my wife expressed to me a while back. I honestly had not heard of it prior to her telling me about it, which is possibly because of the fact that I'm a Pepsi fan truth be told. (There's a World of Coca-Cola in Las Vegas as well, but I guess we either missed it when we were there several years ago or just didn't think to check it out.) As such, my agreeing to go there seemed like somewhat of an invitation to be burned at the stake as a heretic more than anything. I'm glad to report that I was not assaulted in any way during our time there, regardless of my status as an infidel.
We arrived at the WC-C fairly early, I'd say around 9:15 AM. When you purchase tickets to visit the WC-C you select a time slot that you'd like to begin your tour; I assume this is done to control the flow of visitors as there are some aspects of the tour which are lead by ambassadors however most of the facility can be viewed at your own pace. The early slot we selected was a great idea as it allowed us to get in with a smaller group prior to the bulk of the visitors who'd be coming in that day (not to mention the benefit of not having to fight for a parking space in the garage).
The WC-C is an interactive museum, for lack of a better phrase, centered around the cultural phenomenon that is Coca-Cola. It's amazing to behold the collection of related artifacts this facility holds as I don't think people consider the impact a brand like Coca-Cola has had on our way of life (or at least I don't - I blame it on the Pepsi in my blood). You can find everything from paintings by Norman Rockwell to Olympic torches, from a giant bottle opener to biographical information on the inventor of Coca-Cola. What's more, the WC-C contains an exhibit called "The Vault" which they claim holds the original formula of Coca-Cola.
If you make logical progress through the WC-C, the final area you come upon is the tasting room where you may sample upwards of 60 varieties of Coca-Cola products distributed throughout the world. The tasting room has a series of stations which are coordinated by continent and the beverages popular to each are available from fountains. Visitors can sample as much as they want, and that's exactly what we did! I believe we tasted all of the international offerings; some were great and some weren't exactly to our liking. Case in point, there's a drink that Coca-Cola manufactures which is popular in Italy known as Beverly. It's a pallet cleanser and it is one of the most revolting flavors I've ever experienced. It's deceptive in that it has a sweet aroma. The only way I can describe the taste is to say that it's like the bitterness from grapefruit but without any of the citrus flavor or subtle sweetness of grapefruit. I hated it and suffice to say that Jill didn't care for it either.
We had a great time at the WC-C, though, and I would strongly encourage you to check it out should you ever visit Atlanta.
We hadn't originally planned to check out the Georgia Aquarium when we put together our itinerary for this trip but we wound up having more time in the area than we'd expected as it didn't take that long to go through the WC-C. Seeing as how the aquarium is literally next door to the WC-C and we had most of the afternoon to work with, we figured why not go ahead and see it while we were there.
I mentioned earlier how the weather during our trip to Atlanta wasn't that great as it rained off and on (I'd say it was more "on" than "off", though) the entire time we were on the road. That said, the people of Atlanta seemed to be focused on enjoying various indoor activities and the aquarium proved to be quite busy that afternoon. When I say "quite busy", I'm talking about a crowd that resembled some we saw last year while at the theme parks in Orlando.
This was a spur of the moment deal so we didn't have tickets in hand when we decided to tour the aquarium which meant we had to wait in line to purchase them. Trouble was, the line to buy tickets using the aquarium's automated ticketing kiosks isn't protected from the weather. There was another line which was under cover but it was absolutely massive! I'm not sure what the deal was there but we opted to stick with the kiosks as they appeared to be the faster method for ticketing. Jill had her umbrella meanwhile I had a hat; she shared her umbrella with me but I wound up being mostly exposed, and that lead to me being quite soggy as the downpour continued. I wasn't as bad off as a fellow in front of us who had no protection whatsoever - he was drenched, needless to say, but his resolve was admirable.
By the time we got near the kiosks, there were probably better than 50 people in line behind us. I'd estimate that it took maybe 20 minutes to get to the front, which in reality isn't all that long of a wait but when you're standing in the rain 20 minutes feels like an hour. Seeing as how we'd been patient enough to observe proper queue etiquette, it was rather funny to hear the reactions of patrons near us as a woman attempted to walk right by the line and go straight up to the kiosks. After she was called out for her transgression, she turned around and looked at the line as if it were a herd of purple rhinoceroses playing chess - confused and caught off guard, in other words. Her kids laughed at her, as did we, and she took her rightful place in line after the fact.
[SIDE NOTE: For my wife & I, the cost of entry to the Georgia Aquarium was almost $65. By comparison, the WC-C tickets were barely $30. I realize an operation like an aquarium has a tremendous overhead, but what are they feeding those fish, lobster and prime rib?]
The Georgia Aquarium is a truly stunning facility, both in terms of its size and in regards to the collection of animals it hosts. There are otters, frogs, dolphins (which can be viewed as part of your admission but there is an additional charge to see a performance by them), jellyfish, and even whale sharks - yes, whale sharks, living in captivity and on display for all to see and appreciate. It's amazing to think that all those critters exist in the middle of an urban jungle like Atlanta. I'm glad we took the time to experience it as it would've been a mistake not to take advantage of the opportunity.
After braving the traffic outbound from Atlanta, we made our way over to Porterdale, GA for an evening of professional wrestling action from Chikara, a promotion I've been wanting to see live for years but had never had the chance to previously. It was getting on towards supper time and I wanted to have a bite to eat before the show. Porterdale is a small town, much like our own, as we noticed there weren't many eateries to be had aside from a few national chains like Subway and Burger King. I like to be adventurous when we're on the road, though, and I particularly like to try local fare as in things that you can't get everywhere. This was exactly what we found in the form of Burnie's BBQ, which wound up being directly beside the venue.
Burnie's BBQ is a small restaurant located on Main street in Porterdale. If you weren't looking for it or didn't already know where it is, you more than likely will miss it as I didn't even see it until my wife pointed it out as we drove through town (for the second time; we made a reconnaissance lap, just to see what was around). Jill was a little hesitant to try it as she wasn't sure if it would be all that great or if the food might upset us. I'm happy to report that her concerns were dashed - Burnie's was some of the best BBQ we've ever had.
BBQ is a culinary anomaly in that it means very different things depending on what part of the world you're in. In the Carolinas, it's pork and either a mustard or vinegar based sauce, whereas in Texas it's usually beef. We have several great BBQ restaurants in our part of the world, and while they & Burnie's were similar in that they serve pulled pork BBQ the difference was in the fact that Burnie's BBQ is smoked over hardwood which gives it an entirely different flavor than what we're accustomed to having (we didn't try it but Burnie's offers turkey as well as pork). The meat was tender, moist, and the sauces Burnie's had to offer as an accompaniment were fantastic. We sampled several including one that is a strawberry habanero combination which had great sweetness from the berries but a real kick in the throat thanks to the peppers!
No BBQ plate is complete without side items and for mine I chose their Brunswick stew and potato salad. I'm a sucker for homemade potato salad and Burnie's was top notch. Brunswick stew, if you're not familiar with it, is similar to a vegetable soup as it has a tomato base and includes other vegetables as well as some type of meat, be it beef, chicken or pork (some traditional recipes involve rabbit and squirrel). It had a hearty consistency and was a great item for a chilly, dreary day like this one was. I could've made a meal out of it and some oyster crackers alone.
Burnie's BBQ
2021 Main ST
Porterdale, GA 30070
http://burniesbbq.com/
CHIKARA PRESENTS "THE GHOST OF YOU CLINGS"
Everyone who knows me well knows that I'm a huge fan of professional wrestling, and not just the stuff that comes on TV every Monday or Friday night. I like the smaller companies as well, such as Ring of Honor and Pro Wrestling Guerilla as well as local federations like Premiere Wrestling Experience and Pro Wrestling Evo. These are groups that are made up of guys and girls who are still working hard to make a name for themselves in an industry that's about as difficult (if not more so) to break into as just about any legitimate professional sport. Their passion for wrestling is on display every time they get into the ring, and Chikara is home to some of the most vibrant personalities you're likely to ever see inside the squared-circle.
Chikara is hard to describe to someone who's a casual wrestling fan. Theirs is a product which incorporates aspects of high-flying, mask-wearing luchadores from Mexico, Japanese "strong-style" (matches that are choreographed but involve action made to look more like mixed-martial arts fighting), traditional American wrestling and a decent helping of comedy to boot. Pro wrestling is a form of performance art, you see, and it should involve the full range of human emotion. I don't know that any company out there gets that quite as well as Chikara does as their events will leave you totally drained from having laughed, booed, cheered, and everything in between.
Chikara's shows feature themes, and the card we attended was titled "The Ghost of You Clings". I'm not going to try and explain what that means because it would involve me dictating the history of a faction within Chikara, and this entry to my blog is getting out of hand in terms of its length as is. To make a long story short, it has to do with the aftermath of a long-time member of the Chikara roster suddenly quitting the company as a result of their management forcing him into aligning with a different group.
Here's a list of results from the show and my comments on each.
There were plenty of people in the crowd who were knowledgeable regarding PCW and I take it that the group has a strong local following, which is great to hear. The pacing of the match was way too quick, although this might have been what they were aiming for in an attempt to get the crowd going; they packed in a lot of high spots and when you do that so hurriedly they wind up looking cool but have no real point. Not a bad match but nothing superlative either.
2) Shenron defeated "The Kentucky Gentleman" Chuck Taylor
I've never seen Shenron before and the people we sat near who knew PCW's product had never seen him either, so he may be a new member of Chikara's roster. Chuck Taylor gave him a stiff contest as it looked like Taylor may have been testing him at times. Good showing for both with lots of support for Shenron in the crowd.
3) The Pieces of Hate (Jigsaw & The Shard) defeated Fire Ant & assailANT
Fantastic match between these 4 as you have a genuine display here of what Chikara is all about when it comes to masked gimmicks. Fire Ant & assailANT looked strong working together but they couldn't get past the combination of Jigsaw & the Shard, who have really dialed up the intensity of their style since becoming a tag team.
4) Gran Akuma defeated Sugar Dunkerton (with Icarus) by disqualification
Interesting dynamic going into the match as Sugar Dunkerton and Icarus were the only remaining members of F.I.S.T. (Friends In Similar Tights), and Gran Akuma was at one point in time a member of the group. The match ended after Icarus was caught shoving Gran Akuma off the top rope. Afterwards Sugar confronted Icarus about his cheating ways and announced that he was officially a "free agent" and quitting F.I.S.T.
5) Amasis defeated Kobald
"The Funky Pharaoh" Amasis continues his build towards a match against his old tag team partner Ophidian, here taking on a member of the Batiri in Kobald. This wasn't the cleanest match of the night nor did the finish have that great of an impact as they went through several false moments before ending on a rolling elbow, a move that didn't have near as much impact as the earlier series' had.
6) The Colony Extreme Force (Missile Assault Ant, Arctic Rescue Ant and Orbit Adventure Ant) & deviANT defeated The Spectral Envoy (Ultramantis Black, Hallowicked and Frightmare) & Green Ant
This match was as crazy as the combination of combatants would make you believe. An 8-man tag in a building this size made for some rather tight moments, but the crowd loved every minute of it as the biggest reaction of the evening went to the Spectral Envoy & Green Ant. Lots of great action here, including an insane inside-out suplex maneuver involving 6 of the wrestlers. Ultramantis Black and his team were disqualified after Missile Assault Ant removed his mask but made it look to the referee like UB had taken it off him.
7) Saturyne defeated Tim Donst
The angle here was more about Donst's torturing of Jacob Hammermeier and developing his feud with Gavin Loudspeaker than anything. I can't say as I cared too much for this match but it was decent for an inter-gender bout. Donst's group of misfits are so odd - they don't come off as being intimidating, rather they look like the weird, medicated and socially awkward kids from high school. Donst laid out Loudspeaker after the match and cut off some of his hair before being contained by referees.
8) Eddie Kingston defeated Mark Angelosetti to retain the Chikara Grand Championship
It was getting late into the evening by this point in time and you could tell by the crowd's reactions from this point in the card forward. Kingston came to the ring hobbling and favoring his left knee, apparently selling an injury from his match the night before in Gibsonville, NC against Green Ant. That knee became the focus of the match as Angelosetti, who looks very much to me like a young Chris Jericho, attempted to take it apart throughout. Hard to imagine an old school wrestling match out of Chikara but that's exactly what this felt like and it was well done, I thought; great build, fantastic tension, and a true sense that Eddie could've been defeated. Kingston fought through it, though, and he remains the Chikara Grand Champion.
9) Best 2-out-of-3 Falls - 3.0 (Shane Matthews & Scott Parker) defeated the Batiri (Obariyon & Kodama) to retain the Campeonatos de Parejas
3.0 found themselves in a hole early on as they lost the first fall then seemed to be reduced to 1.5 as Parker suffered an injury to his back as a result of having been thrown into one of the ring posts. Matthews would somehow manage to survive against not only Obariyon & Kodama but also Ophidian and Kobald as the entirety of the Batiri made themselves known throughout the contest, scoring the next pinfall by himself after a quick roll-up. Parker would return to the match after having received medical attention, his ribs heavily taped. 3.0 retained the Campeonatos de Parejas after what became a very spirited and entertaining bout.
I had a great time at this show and I cannot say enough about the entire experience we had in Porterdale. Perhaps what impressed me the most, though, was something that happened after the show was over. As we left the building we realized that almost all of the tecnicos (good guys) on Chikara's roster had gathered around the exit to greet fans. That's something I've never seen before, quite frankly. They were standing out there in the rain to say thanks - that's how you build appreciation for a product, by showing the fans that you care about them. I'll certainly be back again when Chikara heads south, hopefully sometime soon.
CONCLUSION
My wife & I were married in Lugoff, South Carolina at Pine Grove Baptist Church on May 1, 2010. Life changed for us both that day, and I'd like to think we've been on the upstroke ever since in terms of growing as a couple in every way that two people can who are joined the way we are. Our relationship is as great as it's ever been as we still talk about everything and anything with each other (communication has always been one of our strongest points). Professionally speaking, we're both doing well as we're gainfully employed doing work that we enjoy. We have an awesome home, a fiesty little pooch named Roddy, and with any luck we'll begin to grow our family in the near future. Life is good, and it's because we have each other that we are where we are. That said, here's to many, many more anniversaries.
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