On the Natchez riverboat

I've always wanted to take a cruise aboard a real steam powered
paddlewheeler, and now I've had the chance. It is not as romantic or
exciting as one may hope. Its a smooth rideand the air is clean and
cool. The banks of the river here are industrial and ugly. A dew
taterred palnation houses dot the landscape, but they are shadows of
their former glory here. I'd lile to contine down to the gulf, or
upriver, but this is only a 2 hour cruise. I could easily see myself
using this form of transportation 100 years ago.

We leave New Orleans today and head to Gulf Wars. God I'm going to miss
this city.

The breakfast of champions

Cafe au lait and beignets (a french donut) at the Cafe du Monde. This
place first opened around 1880.

After a walking tour of the Garden district we had lunch at Commanders
restaurant. Its listed at the best restaurant in the coiuntry by Zagat.
The food was outstanding and the service and setting amazing. To make up
for this pricey lunch we ate dinner at a greasy spood called deja vu.
Cheap but very filling, and plenty of room for a fight.

I hate you tmobile...

Due to a cock up with the servers at tmobile, my emailed postings are showing up out of order. We're in New Orleans right now, enjoying some absolutely great food. This is a kick-ass city and a must see for anyone who can't afford to travel abroad.

A pale imitation

Breakfast and dinner today were at 2 different casinos. Both were, at
most mediocre. Once you have tasted the delights of Las Vegas all else
is a pale imitation. I don't know why, but every time I go to a
substandard restaurant I want to fix it. I will not be content with
merely being dissatisfied or barking a complaint. I want to sieze the
manager and shake them furiously. We're eating in the pirate ship now,
and the staff are like a lazy crew. They know their jobs, but they
perform them with the minimum of energy and conviction. Then again,
these aren't the best jobs in the world to start with.

Sales were good today. We did our part to help the south be less singed
monkey butt hair ugly. Oh, and I saw Walter Koenig today. It was al I
could do not to jump up and down and demand that he say 'nuclear
wessels'.

Florida, Epcot, and tech support

We decided to take a quick jaunt to visit Epcot center in florida.
Rossana and I went during our very first trip as rennies about 15 years
ago. Getting there though, involves driving through florida. I don't
know what the hell is with this state. The standard mile stretches on
forever and time rushes by at a vastly accelerated rate. Thus, a trip
that should take 6 hours becomes 10 and requires 2000 extra miles to
reach our destination.

Epcot was very fun, especially test track and the space experience. We
ate in Morocco and the food and entertainment very great. We didn't buy
anything in the 'souk', the prices were too hight and the quality was
lacking from the real goods. I did take lots of pictures of walls, doors
and accent items.

On leaving Biloxi tmobile service took a dump. When I used a free wifi
spot in the lobby of our hotel last night to check my mail I got an
urgest email from a client telling me his online store wasn't working.
This shit happens every fucking time I am 1200 miles from my home. I
spent an hour working on it and sending emails to resolve the issue. On
returning to our room, I flug myself down on the bed in exhaustion,
which promptly collapsed. This morning I believe the issue is fixed and
tmobile is semi working. We're on the road to New Orleans to stay at a
former brothel.

The circus leaves town

The calm after

Dealer rooms are always scheduled to be open far longer than actually
do. At some unspoken signal, we quietly begin to retrieve our storage
tubs from our vans. At 4pm I look at the room and call it. We begin load
out. Rhe sky outside in quickly darkening. It could be rain. The van is
rearranged and we say some quick farewells and headed out for a
traditional post-show chinese dinner.

We'll have to figure out our next move now. Head to New Orleans or maybe
a hard push to Orlando and a trip to Disney. Hey, all work and no
play...

Why I love Waffle House

Down South they don't fuck around with regards to sugar. Up north, we
dole it out like magic pixie dust. But down here, sugar comes in a glass
bucket. Use all you want, we'll get more. Say what you will about the
South, they treat my sweet tooth right.

Another day, another cock up in the schedule. Our paperwork says dealers
room opens at 10. Upon arrival, it seems it doesn't open till 11. I
could have slept in another hour. Thanks you smacktards. With decent
sales yesterday, we hope to pick up one or two more today before
load-out, which is even more fun that set up.

Big-ass pirate ship

This is a casino across the sreet. The thing is massive, like three
stories tall. Someday I shall have a pirate ship/casino...oh yes...I
shall.

Sales picked up later in the day yesterday and we celibrated with a sea
food dinner followed by a wild evening on the down. And by wild evening
I mean we watched tv in our hotel room. Today dawns bright and cool. The
air is clear and the sun shines almost too brightly in the sky.

A rocky start

The above image is my dealers pass. It depicts a skeleton in a wreaked
car. What this has to do with scifi I have no idea. But its a pretty
good representation of my mood. We arrived on time and started load-in,
which is always fun in the same way dental surgery is fun. The dealers
room is a craptastic hall across from the host hotel. Its a condemned
building. Litereally. After this con, they're tearing it down. This will
be no great loss. It has all the charm of a vfw hall and smell like cat
piss. Although pleasant outside, the room is freezing. Not a great
start.

Signs of the times

This photo is of the front of a big-ass gas station. In a burst of
creativity that their home office would dissaprove of, they built a
small pond. Its about 12 by 4 feet and 6 inches deep. Now take note of
the signs. I can't be sure if this is funny or a sad statement on
american inteligence.

The road goes ever on and on. We're almost to Biloxi. We're running
behind. A nasty accident held on immobile for almost an hour last night,
and this morning an unearthly fog covered the state like a shroud.

Somewhere in Kentucky

When we stopped for gas we found this great roadside relic. "The Ole
Genr'l Store" is a string of five or six old buildings absolutely
stuffed with all manner of stuff. Geodes, antiques, walking sticks,
preserves, you name it. Its run by a nice old couple. I had to get some
pics. This kind of place won't be around in 10 years. It will be leveled
and turned into another clean, efficient BP or Sheetz with a layout
exactly like the one in your hometown.

Windows Dressing Fun - Part 1

This is the view of our local video store from the street. Details
below.

Windowdressing fun - Closer look = Funny

Here's the sign next to the snowman. Read it all, its truly disturbing. Life in a small town makes people funny I guess.

'Gay' apparently naughty now.

This is a little messed up. Apparently there are teams of people who play something called Pro Sports. When they play these games, which involve ass slapping and showering together, they wear clothing with their team colors, name and number. (I once wore a colored uniform with my name and a number on it, but that was only until the witness had an 'accident' and I was released for lack of evidence).

So, as a fan of these sports, it stands to reason that you too might like to spend $80 to buy a replica of the jersey they wear, so that you can make believe that you 'got game', or whatever, while eating chili cheese fries at your local sports bar. Lucky for you the NFL now has a place where you can make your own jersey. You can choose your favorite color, number and name. Unless you try to use the work 'Gay', of course. When you enter this most horrible of words, you will be rejected. Originally, the site said that you are not allowed to use 'Naughty' words on your shirt. This site was changed after people, one of whom actually played pro football and is named Gay, complained. The restriction is still in place, but the rejection notice is more impersonal. For the story, check here.

Of course we can't let people use just ANY words. That kind of unregulated freedom of speech is reserved for communist countries like Canada. In fact, there are over 1,121 words you can't use on your $80 shirt. And Gay is one of them, along with 'Homo', 'Lesbian' and oddly, 'sexy'. The following words were not offensive though; 'Terroris't, 'Cocks', 'Bin Laden' & 'Hitler'.

I went to the site and made my own design. Although I am upset at the company for being asshats, my design is pretty sweet.