Back in the Saddle

Back from the 10-day roadie. Lots to cover and I'll have plenty to say about the adventures of Hornet and Booty once I piece it all together (and Matt will have his own commentary, I'm sure), but I've got a few quick observations:


1. Airport security is as ridiculous as ever. During a stopover in the Phoenix airport, I actually witnessed a TSA "agent" who had pulled aside a wheelchair-bound woman -- not a day under 90 -- and was wanding her with a metal detector. There she sat, seemingly only vaguely aware of what was going on, probably reminiscing about the days when air travel was a glamorous and exciting adventure during which all the men wore ties and you could have a smoke and use real metal silverware to eat a hot meal. No more. Grandma's shoes were cast aside and some other TSA yahoo was going through her valuables, looking for (I presume) a bottle of exploding Geritol or perhaps a false cane hiding a Tommy gun. When the indignities were completed, TSA flunky #1 had to help the lady put her shoes back on, leading me to believe perhaps this woman was traveling alone (hence the suspicion, I guess.)




2. People may remark about the density and relatively small size of Manhattan, but it's a helluva a lot bigger than you think if you try to walk somewhere. That's why the subways are so indispensable. Matt and I did pretty well negotiating the NYC underground, getting around most of the time with the same detached aplomb as the locals. It's when you poke your head out of the station and you have to look around to see where you are that you feel like a Kansas prairie dog coming up for air in the noon-day sun.




3. 99% of a comfortable subway ride appears to rest on the ability to erase your countenance of any emotion. I call it "subway game-face," and everyone has it. I found the whole psychology of the subway pretty interesting. Where do you look as your eyes move around the car? At the ads? At the floor? Out the window? Who stands and who sits? Do you grab the pole in the middle of the car or the upright bar above the seats? One thing's for sure, you do not want to make eye contact with any one person more than 2 times during the course of a ride. The "subway game face" is about 3 parts boredom and 2 parts nerve, with just a dash of disdain for everyone else. If you can keep that facade in place you're doing okay.




4. Drivers are crazier in DC than they are in NYC. Maybe they hate tourists more there?




5. I have no idea where NYC can possibly be putting all its trash. I remember reading about that barge they tried to pawn off on West Virginia a few years back, but I'm sure they've generated a few more pounds of refuse since then. Where's it all going? Because WV ain't that big a state.




6. Cool bars in New York that we hit (basically) all in one night: Toad Hall, Marshall Stacks, Freeman's, Paddy Reilly's, Iggy's, 86 Bedford (closed due to fire), Shillers, Back Room, Home Sweet Home, and some Belgian bar I was too loopy to remember the name of. Nice night New Yorkers, t'anks...urp.




7. I bought a 6-pack of Guinness in the bottles on the Upper East Side and it was $14.95. I'm still not quite sure if the lady ripped me off or not, because the Buds and the Coronas seemed reasonably priced.