Most Dangerous Part

The cab ride to the airport is always the most dangerous part of any flight out of New York.

Hot As A MoFo!

It's hard to see in this picture, but I'm sweating. A lot. Asphalt was melting on the street and kids in my neighborhood were playing in the fire hydrants. It was oppressive and miserable. But I am clearly not the only one complaining.

I'm Not a Super Blogger or Anything

I've been doing a pretty poor job of blogging lately. I have to say that Kleitsch is doing much worse that I am, though, so I guess I'm not doing that bad.

Yes, Andy, this is a blatant attempt to get you to blog more!

Mattress Seller Will Sneak Into Your Bedroom and Kill You With a Clock

, originally uploaded by Drewje.

Dr. Dream is a typical mattress store in Panama. Typical except for the very scary way they use some psychotic guy to sell their brand on billboards and their trucks. What message are they going for here? That some guy with a clock and crazy eyes will get your house keys when they make the mattress delivery and come back when you're sleeping so he can "watch over you?"

Just plain disturbing. Disturbing and hilarious.

Holiday Inn Hot Tub

Holiday Inn Hot Tub, originally uploaded by Drewje.

This is the Jacuzzi tub that was in my hotel room in Raleigh. Very weird to just have it sitting out there like that.

Girls Gone Mobile

This is the first video post from Girls Gone Mobile, one of the brands we're developing. Check it out and share it with your friends!

Corporate Jets: Buy or Rent?

Yes, that's the burning question that I've been struggling with for some time now. Luckily, I'm a subscriber to Barron's, so their special report with it's own pull-out section that addressed this age old question was a breath of fresh air.

It turns out that I think I'd like to buy a jet. The best is obviously the Gulfstream, but at $47.6 million, I'm probably going to have to compromise a bit. I decided that I'm going to start saving for the Beechcraft King Air - a twin turboprop model that was the least expensive they reviewed. The bad news is the sticker on that plane is $3.2 million. The good news? I only have to put about $3.19999 million dollars more into my "corporate jet fund" until I can pick it up!

Most Hilarious/Meanest Present Ever

Coconut Records - West Coast

Just discovered these guys today. This song is really great, and the rest of the album is good, too. I'm playing the whole album at fairly high volume in my office this morning.

Super Tuesday

I got to vote on Super Tuesday today! I voted for Barack Obama.

My dad sent out a very inspiring email a few days back, talking about how Barack is inspiring a level of hope that he hasn't seen since JFK in the 60s. Watching the Dipdive video below really gives me chills.

Think we can actually have a president we can be proud of? Yes we can.

Photoblog?

This Project 365 thing is really becoming it's own blog. I think I'm actually going to start a "sister blog" that will have daily posts with my picture and comments. Actually, yes, I AM going to do that.

If you want to see my daily pictures as a blog, check it out at Drew's Project 365 blog.

As an added bonus, I'll get to see if I like Wordpress better than Blogger...

Project 365

Jana is my secret hero. I love reading her blog, and I admire her creativity. When I saw she was starting Project 365 on January 1st, I immediately wished I had done the same. Her husband, Andy, assured me that I could start any time, and upon further consultation of the rulebook, I found he was right.

I'd love picture comments if you happen to stop by and check them out. The main reason I'm doing this is to improve my photographic skillz, so all feedback is welcome.

My Project 365 photostream

$1 More

Ah, the airport bar.

Roman Fountain

DSC_0612, originally uploaded by Drewje.

Lots o' fountains in Rome. Here's a random one we came across near the Piazza della Venezia.

Rome Was Da Bomb

DSC_0589, originally uploaded by Drewje.

It's been years since I was in Rome, and you just forget what it's like to be driving through a city with 2000+ year old structures all around. Of all of them, my favorite had to be the Pantheon, which was rebuilt after a fire in 125 AD. Yeah, that's just 3 digits.

Go Ahead And Try

Summon my vehicle all you want. It won't listen.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

As I mentioned previously, Kate & I were in Florida for a few days the other week. The day we were scheduled to leave, however, the weather in the Northeast was not quite cooperating. Continental canceled all their flights to Newark, and booked us on a flight back late the next night. This was odd, because plenty of flights were happily landing in Newark, but we never got the story. We decided we had to get out of there.

The solution? Car to the airport, fly to Philadelphia, cab to the train station and take the train home. It took 10 hours with flight delays, but we did make it home that night. That's one thing I really like about living in the Northeast - plenty of affordable transportation options.

Rows of Wheelchairs

A couple weeks ago, Kate & I flew down to Fort Lauderdale for a little conference. Actually, I didn't attend anything, but the idea of hanging out in a Westin spa hotel on the beach in 80 degree weather was sounding pretty good.

We flew out of Newark nonstop to Florida. As we were sitting there waiting to board, I was starting to notice a certain demographic seemed to be dominating the waiting area. That's right - there were more octogenarians swarming around that gate than I've seen since.... Well, a long time anyway.

As we were boarding, I overheard the gate agent reiterate her request into the walkie talkie: 14 wheelchairs with attendants were needed to assist in boarding the plane. I've seen 2 or 3, but 14 has to be an all-time record.

Lots o' Blogs A-Comin'

I have about 3 blog posts written up in my head right now. I just need to take the time and write them. I've been sick, like everyone else in the country for the past week, but look for lots of posting over the next few weeks.

Kate & I are heading to Italy for Christmas & New Year's to spend time with my family. For those that missed a post about this a while back, my dad & I bought a vacation place in Tuscany. I haven't seen it - I just got the mortgage for my dad (he was too old to qualify as a foreigner by Italy's lending standards) and he is over there most of the time now managing the renovations. It should be almost done now, so I'm anxious to see it in person finally.

I'm sure this trip will inspire lots of posts. I also heard that Santa might have brought me a new digital SLR camera. I'll find out tomorrow night when we do our early Christmas. If all signs are confirmed, then look for lots of picture posts from the trip, too.

30 Rock(s)

Phenomenal show. Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey are great. My favorite quote from this week's episode:

"This company has a very strict 'Bros before Hos' policy." - Jack Donaghy