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This is my view as I’m writing this blog post. I’m in Bermuda and if you haven’t been, you need to go for five reasons alone!
1. The View – this is what you’ll be looking at during your stay.
2. The Ease – it’s a quick flight (2 hours) from Charlotte or Boston. I venture to say it’s easier to get to Bermuda than the Outer Banks or Provincetown.
3. The People – they are Bermudian and English. They’re basically the nicest and most polite people you’ll meet.
4. The Money – they use US currency so there is no exchange rate.
5. The Community – hubby and I have visited a few islands and resort communities where the poverty is disheartening. We would leave feeling like ugly Americans who visit, consume and utilize what locals could not afford. In Bermuda, they are often more educated and wealthier than us. The economy isn’t based soley on tourism so locals want you to love their home but it’s more out of pride than necessity.
** I’m headed to the beach now. I’ll be updating during the trip then give you a full video tour upon my return!
The hunt for an iPhone is on. After months of cajoling, begging, and downright demanding, hubby decided that we could abandon our Verizon BlackBerries and get iPhones. I am thrilled. It could not come at a better time as the past month has not been a good one for my BlackBerry. She’s crashed, wiped out all my data, and now has an odd chirp when I’m using her. I think she’s on her last leg; dying at the precise moment when she can be replaced.
So yesterday afternoon I found out my roommate wasn’t able to pre-order and a light bulb went off in my head: we can do it! We can be part of the crazy people who wait outside the Apple store for hours. Surprisingly, roommate agreed. We went to bed and decided we’d leave the house at 4:30am and head to the Burlington Mall.
Here’s the time line:
4:03a — roommate wakes me up. he’s made a game time decision to leave a half hour earlier.
4:10a — in car with laptops, lawn chairs, and flipcam.
4:25a — there is no visual line outside the mall.
4:27a — see a bunch of people starting to wait outside mall entrance.
4:28a — set up camp outside. we’re impressed. it looks like we’re number 9 and 10.
4:50a — man walks out of mall and says the line is inside.
4:51a — set up camp inside. we’re now number 50 and 51. not bad.
4:55a — asked if this is the line for iphone.
4:57a — roommate tells me Spitzer has a new show on CNN
5:05a — dudes next to me are talking about being Apple faithful.
5:10a — this is picture of the people behind me. they’re not too thrilled i’ve captured their image for my blog. but we’re all in a very public space so it’s all fair game.
5:15a — it’s all of a sudden quiet in here. the small talk has stopped. everyone around me is on some type of electronic device: iphone, ipad, laptop, ipod.
5:19a — number 52 and 53 introduce themselves to each other.
5:25a — roommate thinks we’re in good shape. he thinks if they didn’t have this many phones – they’d come out and tell us. i think apple just likes a crowd!
5:28a — number 53 mentions how this is what it means to be an early adopter. that’s straight from sitcom modern family.
5:29a — man walks slowly by, counting. i wonder what number he is.
5:30a — i secretly love this. i love crowds, i love events, i love people watching. this reminds me of 1999, when i decided it would be fun to get up at the crack of dawn to do black friday shopping at wal-mart for a new computer. this is a much different crowd.
5:36a — discussing with roommate what plan i’m getting. realized hubby still hasn’t contacted me and i need his information to get his phone. hubby… get on it! call me!
5:38a — number 55 is standing up and asleep. it’s pretty amazing.
5:39a — apple employee just walked by and told us we’re ok! sweet!!! sweet!!! sweet!!!!!
5:45a — checked out front of line and saw folks actually asleep. this is serious business.
5:46a — we’re talking about how mighty and powerful the blue-shirted apple employees are today!!!
5:47a — a guy just walked by, looking for end of line, and said, “what the f#@$!!” i concur.
5:52a — roommate says i need to fix my icontacts so i have a smooth sync. ug… busy work!
6:03a — one more hour! roommate is watching news on his laptop. 6:10a — went to see what the end of the line looks like.
6:12a — number 53 just asked about blog. he’s now reading it. glad he finds it humors. *whew!*
6:14a — number 52 went to get picture of end of line.
6:16a — number 49 is wondering about editing software our television station uses.
6:26a — apple employees are rolling out carts with dunkin donuts coffee…. wholly apple love!
6:27a — trying to upload video i got of the line. not going well.
6:28a — just noticed it’s about 6:30a. yeah!!!
6:31a — my video won’t upload on vimeo. no video of line.
6:35a — everyone is back to chatting.
6:37a — noticed a cute outfit in j. crew window that i’d like to buy. (i’m sitting in front of the store)
6:40a — the excitment is building. it’s either that or the coffee.
6:42a — me getting coffee and a donut hole. i feel the love!
6:43a — discussion between roomie and number 43 – editing software. number 52 and 53 are talking about ipads being redundant if you have iphone.
6:48a — number 52 and 53 talking about how awesome macs are. this is definitely a cult!
6:50a — hubby finally sent over his information. he’s lucky. without it – no iphone for him!
6:52a — number 53 checked out line and thinks it’s now well over 200+. he says there’s a toddler and baby in line. poor kids! i hope they get an ipod out of this!
6:54a — just dawned on me that i have been blogging some super mundane things for 2 hours. i’m growing concerned about how geeky i am! it’s pretty severe!
6:57a — ah….there’s movement…. see you when i have an iphone in hand!
7:01a — applause! doors are now open!
7:02a — number 52 says how fun it was to meet new people including 51 (me) and 53. ah! apple brings people together!
7:03a — just let first guy in.
7:07a — number 52 and i are trying to convince number 53 to get his wife an iphone. he says she doesn’t want one. who doesn’t want one???
7:09a — trying to convince roommate to let me take a picture of him and me. he says no!!! he’s embarassed he’s now officially “one of those people!”
7:14a — line is not moving. ug. but upside… apple employees are handing out bottles of water.
7:16a — there is a whole other line on other side of pre-ordered peeps. why come so early? you know you have one waiting for you!
7:18a — the crowd here is way different from the ’99 wal-mart experience. for that i’m grateful!
7:20a — we’re now realizing we all had our clocks set to 7a being the goal. we didn’t account for the additional hour or two needed to proccess all these people.
7:21a — my batttery is doing well… but will it last? do you think one of these fine folks will let me use their power cord?
7:25a — folks are sitting again and a little quiet. i think we’re all starting to realize – we’re all a bit nuts for waiting hours to spend hundreds of dollars on a small piece of electronics.
7:28a — just saw a guy walk out with his apple bag and new iphone. i asked him what number he is. he says he’s number 8 but from the pre-order line. please let me make it out of here with joy and not frustration!!!!
7:30a — number 47 and 48 look exhausted. they don’t seem to happy.
7:35a — number 52 just acknowledged this is just a little insane and painfully slow.
7:36a — frustration is mounting and starting to take over excitement. 36 minutes after doors opened and we’ve not moved. uh oh!!!!
7:38a — number 53 went to do some recon.
7:39a — number 48 just got back from front of store – says very busy inside and a lot of blue shirts.
7:40a — battery running low and wordpress is freaking out so may not have update for a while.
7:56a — ok attitudes are changing. mall cop just told folks, “you can’t sit on the floor.” what???
7:57a — hearing that they’re letting 10 people in from pre-order line for every one person in this line. i might not make it out of here alive.
8:13a — had a run in with mall cop, so called security supervisor who told me to call mall management. called mall management, recording says not open till 8:30a.
8:30a — called mall management explained situation; normally we would not be sitting on the floor of the mall but due to the unusual circumstances here at the apple store and the fact we’ve been waiting for several hours, could they please make a special exception for this situation. she granted us a reprieve and let us sit on the floor till 10a. says she’ll come down and reassess situation.
8:38a — manager kitty says we’ll definitely get a phone and we’ll get in around 10a.
8:41a — apple dude with pad and paper taking inventory of what phones we want and how many. i asked how it’s looking. he says, “i’ll let you know.”
8:42a — number 53 does not like the sounds of, “i’ll let you know.”
8:43a — thinking this waiting in line thing was not such a wise idea.
8:45a — optimism rebounds – we just had a big move towards the entrance of what i am now calling mecca.
8:48a — people around me are calling wives and employers saying they’ll be late.
8:49a — number 53 got ok from wive to stay.
8:54a — big move… 2 store windows!
8:55a — number 52 got permission from employer to stay in line and come into work late. things are looking up!
8:56a — just found out on my twitter feed that mall cop the movie was filmed at the burlington mall. i now understand why that mall cop was such a rule follower!
9:02a — getting closer. see the apple logo behind me?? sweet!!!
9:10a — someone is passing out candy! i <3 kind person!
9:13a — second round of water and coffee are being offered.
9:14a — just found out friend is at a different mall waiting outside, with threatening clouds, for his iphone.
9:15a — twitter friend says charlotte (with only one apple store) has an insane line.
9:16a — only have 20% power left on computer and no power cord. may have to contiue on blackberry twitter or finish once i have that pretty little iphone 4 in my hands!
10:17a — (the following posts are done from apple store computer) roommate has entered the store.
10:30a — roommate is leaving with his iphone. he’s an active at&t customer!
10:46a — i just got my iphone!!! yippeee!!! now getting hubby’s!
10:55a — having problems activating hubby’s phone. they don’t understand how we can have family plan when we have different last names, different addresses, and different area codes on our phones. at&t get modern!
11:10a — trying to activate hubby’s phone. had to answer security question. there was actually a trick question.
11:31a — walking out of apple store. lost. it’s been so long i don’t know where i came in and where to go out.
11:32a — made first call on new iphone.
11:48a — sent first tweet from iphone.
12:12p — taking quick nap before work! yes, i’ll be snuggling with my new baby!
Big Fun! I love big fun. And recently it entailed a pedicab and a fantastic dinner.
First the dinner. Our friends’ friend (like a cousin twice removed), Tiffani, of Top Chef fame, had just taken over the kitchen at Rocca. A large group of us went and had a wonderful meal. Among some of the delectable delicacies we ate: White Tuna in Beet Cure, Swordfish Belly Escabesche, Crispy Artichokes, Stozzapretti Neri (hubby’s favorite dish), Gnocchetti, and some grilled breads with House Ricotta and Lobster Butter.
But to get there we got into three pedicabs. It was my friend Steve’s idea. I was hesitant at first. I’d often seen folks riding behind men (and some women) in these chariots powered by mighty calves. I think because it looked so rickshaw-like, I’davoided them; as if riding in one would make me a vicious tyrant taking advantage of someone’s manpower. Of course I soon figured out this was not just a means of transportation but also a source of income for, often, recent college graduates. And needless to say, I ended up loving the ride. There was the scenery – rows of gorgeous brownstones streaming past us like a transition in a movie. The chatty pedicab drivers added to the charm with their tales of interesting fares. And of course there was the humor of watching the crazy drivers, in cars, who appeared rather annoyed that their rate of speed had been seriously impeded by our presence. It was all big fun!
I grew up in Los Angeles. After long visits with friends and family, I revert back to the Valley Girl in me and start tacking on “likes,” “you knows,” and “oh my gods,” as if they were commas. So it goes without saying, my new declaration of wanting the Celtics to beat LA flies in the face of my hometown. And I’m getting a ton of hate from friends and family back home. The truth is, I’ve been away from Los Angeles almost as long as I’ve lived there and I’m starting to feel like home is here on the East Coast.
So don’t hate! Sunday’s admission into the Garden came with a hefty price tag; not just for the tickets but the crap I’m getting with the declaration of my new found allegiance. With that being said, “Let’s go Celtics!”
There was recently an intense thunderstorm in Boston that brought down trees and damaged many properties. It was a Sunday. I was home when the sky started turning an ominous shade of gray. I set my flipcam and tripod on the porch so I could capture video of the storm while I sat safely in the house. I watched as blades of lightning illuminated the sky, followed quickly by crushing sounds of thunder. After shooting a few minutes of video, I saw the rain was starting to come in horizontally. I went outside to grab my camera. At that precise moment, I remembered the lightning story I did just last week when a teen was struck while holding a screen door. I started to freak out and tried to run inside. In my haste, I slipped and this is the painful result. The worst part, the video was so uneventful!
Like the NASCAR tailgate itself, I think I might have over done it with this blog post. I’m constantly trying something new but this time it is possible I might have gone into over-kill mode. Though I suspect, if there’s ever a time to do anything in excess, it’s when the situation involves NASCAR.
On Memorial Day weekend – I spent Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway with hubby and 17 friends. We met at our friends’ Katie and Mike’s house at 10:00am sharp. We loaded into our 15-passenger van, packed 2 SUVs with supplies, and headed up to Concord. With my secret route in hand, we arrived at our lot at 10:30am. Time roared passed us like a stockcar rounding its last turn and before we knew it, a crackling voice came over the loud speakers for the drivers to start their engines. We didn’t make it into the race until sunset. The video will illustrate what we did to kill time and contains the much-anticipated definition of the portmanteau: yupnecks.
This is my view as I’m writing this blog post. I’m in Bermuda and if you haven’t been, you need to go for five reasons alone!
