So without further ado, the 4-day trip that saw me go from Sonoma, CA to Dunedin, FL. And only in 2,970 miles!
California
Ah, California. The state of my birth. Where up until the 29th of December, I had spent basically my entire life outside of a trip to New York (Hi, Aunt Kathy and all) a trip to Tennessee (Mike, Esther, Mikey, George, Jonny, Audrey, I miss you all) a trip to Florida (by plane to Orlando) a couple of trips to Reno and Las Vegas (money was lost, not won) a trip to Washington that ended in a roadtrip through Oregon back to California (Congratulations on graduating, Jared) and a trip to see Mike and Esther and all in Arizona, the first plane trip that Pete and I took. Okay, so maybe I spent a little bit of time outside of the state.
Fun facts about California:
-It's the sixth largest economy in the world. Or seventh. I can't remember. First fact is a guess.
-It contains approximately 40,000,000 people.
-It thought about splitting away from the country for a second before it realized that National Guard couldn't even try to contend with the U.S. Army. Smart choice.
-My hometown of Sonoma was the state capital for a little bit. Or, was recognized as such. I can't remember, either. Maybe my facts aren't that good.
Now, for my trip:
-The trip through California to the Southland was nothing I hadn't done before. In fact, three weeks earlier, I made the trip south to hang out with Pete for a bit before I headed to Las Vegas for the Job Fair. Much drinking, basketball watching and drinking occurred. I enjoyed myself greatly. The great unknown for this trip occurred a couple of times once I got to the Southland. Once I got to the northern city limit of Los Angeles, I jumped on I-210 east towards Pasadena, the first time I had ever gone on this freeway before. Now, tons of looks at maps told me I was making the right call. I was to take this to Highway 57 (which is what I took from Fullerton to Vegas) and then off to I-10 I'd go, and that would be my best friend for like, oh, four days. One problem, though. L.A. traffic rears its ugly head as I hit east of the Rose City, and I have to kinda find a way around it. I'd like to bring I-605 into the equation. I-605 runs from just east of Pasadena and on south through east Los Angeles, and it goes nearly all the way to Long Beach. Luckily, I only needed a 10 mile stretch. There was I-10, and once I got on, I got cozy. I had about 2,500 miles on this damn thing. You gotta savor it, right?
-The point of no return officially happened when I passed I-15. In the Southland, I had never been east of that point. So then, it became clear to me: this was it. I had made my decision to leave California. I actually love the southern part of the Mojave Desert. Those of you who actually drive to Vegas see that there ain't a damn thing out there except for three things: Victorville, Barstow and Baker, which houses the World's Largest Thermometer. The southern part of the desert has places like Palm Springs, Indio, and Coachella. Little bit better than those, unless you like podunk. Now, I got down there as the sun was setting (see above) so when I was making my trek across the desert towards Arizona, I didn't get to see much, but what I did see, I loved. I ended up making the big climb, and as I got to the ridge, I got out and took a picture of the skyline. My little camera did good.
-As I took the dark trek across the desert, I realized that this would be the last time I would see California for a long time. So I kinda cherished it a bit. For the first time in my life, I took a giant plunge. Not for college or for a vacation, but for my career. As I got into my last minutes in California, I took a deep breath and headed across the stateline.
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT CALIFORNIA: Ray Stevens is the greatest wrestler to come out of California. He owned the San Francisco territory in his heyday when the Cow Palace would get sold old routinely. Look up some stuff about him. Watch matches with him in it. I beg of you.
Arizona
Arizona is the home of John McCain. He lost the presidency to Barack Obama. I also know that Arizona was probably one of the places where the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, Super Genius, did battle. It's a state that is part of the "Four Corners." It likes the sun a lot. I know that part. I had been here before for my first ever trip by myself away from home. I remember I missed my mom dearly, a lot like I do now.
Fun facts about Arizona:
-Arizona is not the 6th or 7th biggest economy in the world.
-Sonoma's Brett Wallace hit 45 homers as an ASU Sun Devil in his three years there. He almost hit .400 for his career. He's now preparing to hit home runs in the St. Louis Cardinals system. Let's just say he's going to do good.
-Randy Johnson won three Cy Young Awards as a member of the Diamondbacks. Or was it four? Yep, it was four. He also won an award in EACH YEAR OF HIS CONTRACT, which was 4-years, $53 million. Let's just say that was probably the best free-agent signing in history. Wow.
-Arizona is mostly desert, but not at too high of an elevation. Interestingly enough, once you go up the big hill to exit California, you come down into Phoenix, which isn't too far above sea level.
-I was once in Phoenix when it was 120 degrees. At the zoo, no less. Wow.
Now for my journey across the state:
-Traveling in the dark in the desert probably did me well. One thing I learned about Arizona right away was that they had a 75 MPH speed limit on I-10 through the state. I loved it. Helped out in my journey. I only had about 150 miles from the state line to get to Phoenix, where I would be staying with Mike and his grandpa. Thankfully, I got there at a somewhat reasonable hour (this was when I realized I needed to add an hour to the proceedings) and it was neat to get there and have a nice meal for my first day of driving. I settled in after a little bit of talking with Mike and company, with Mike being basically blind after getting LASIK surgery that day. So, I got some sleep, got up early and showered, and then got back in the car and headed east. It was a huge drive, 1,000 miles to Austin, TX, so that I could stay with my cousin Dennis, who I was really excited to see.
-There were some neat mountains (go to my Facebook page and see the pictures: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=11702031&ref=name) and from there, I got to Tuscon, where they were doing major road construction. That was kinda slow, but once I got out, I basically cruised to the New Mexico border. From there, I entered the first state that I had never been to!
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT ARIZONA: Mike DiBiase, father of "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, was the first ever Arizona Heavyweight Champion. His grandson, Ted Jr., is about ready to come back to WWE after a stint in helping film a movie.
New Mexico
Because Old Mexico just couldn't cut it. They needed a new one.
Fun facts about New Mexico:
-New Mexico probably has the world's 600th largest economy.
-It, like Colorado and Montana, is the home of the North American Continental Divide, the exact halfway point between the farthest west point and the farthest east point of the landmass. Pretty incredible when you think about it.
-I'm pretty sure you are constantly going up in New Mexico. Everything is way above sea level.
-The city of Las Cruces means "The Crossroads."
My trip through New Mexico was largely uneventful. I knew I had to just get to El Paso so I could revel in the glory that is The Republic of Texas. I stopped for gas there, because I had to, and I remembered that New Mexico was different from Arizona (No, seriously) because while there was much beauty about the desert in Arizona, there was a lot of dead grass in New Mexico, as opposed to a bunch of neat cacti and clay. There were some neat mountains, though. Also, there was this thing called "The Thing" that i probably should have gone to in Arizona, but I decided not to go to. Scott Daigle said it was something he would have stopped to see. I'm not Scott Daigle, so I didn't. I'm also not Scott Daigle because, well, let's be honest. He's an editing god. I can only wish to be as good as him. I basically just got through there, went up the second step and went into Texas.
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT NEW MEXICO: The great Mick Foley, who has written countless #1 best selling books (Okay, three), hailed from Truth or Consequences, New Mexico when he undertook his original gimmick of Cactus Jack.
BANG, BANG! That would not be the only pro wrestling related picture I would take. No, siree.
Texas
See, now before that whole secession business, Texas was actually it's own country for a while. That's pretty sweet right there. I also like to think of Texas as the big keister of the United States: I dare you to try and kick its ass. In fact, it won't happen. You know why?
It's true, people!
Fun facts about Texas:
-It's the second largest state in the country, and was the largest state until Alaska was pronounced a state nearly half a century ago.
-It's where the Alamo fell. Davy Crockett owns you.
-I am pretty sure that the greatest players in the history of the game of football came from Texas. If you don't believe me, just ask them.
-HOW BOUT THEM COWBOYS? Oh, wait, they didn't make the playoffs? Awwwww.
(I'm sorry, I had to.)
My drive across Texas was crazy. I hit El Paso at about, oh, 2 p.m., but then from there, it got crazy. When you get to West Texas, all you really see are mountains. Not too many plains. That happens once you get south after the big I-20 merge, which you take through Dallas and goes all the way to the ATL. Lil' Jon approves. From there, it was a long drive south through the plains of Texas. It was a lot of the same thing, but in the end, I got to see a lot of neat stuff. My biggest thing that happened to me before I got to Austin that day to see Dennis was when I stopped for gas in I believe it was Ozona. I couldn't find unleaded at either Chevron in town, so I went to a different gas station, got some there, and then saw a Sonic. I had to get food there.
So when I went to get back on the freeway, I was ready to get on the on-ramp when all of a sudden, the on-ramp was a bit off from the straight path! All of a sudden, my car ended up heading for a curb on a grassy little patch. I slammed on the breaks, but went up on it anyways. It was a traumatic thing, and knowing I was still about 3-4 hours away from Austin didn't make things better. The car wasn't damaged, so I just pressed on, with slushie spilled all over me and me being so mad I couldn't eat. I decided I just wanted to get to Austin already. I finally got there at around 11:30 after about a 2-hour trek on U.S. 290, where I navigated throughout the Texas plains in the dark like a madman possessed for his final stop. I got in contact with cousin Dennis, got into Austin (which is a beautiful city at night) and after navigating the west side of the city, got into the neighborhood and arrived...going up the wrong driveway in the process. I got a chance to see Anne and Dennis, got some water in me, and caught up a bit before heading to bed. I'd like to thank Kellen for letting me sleep in his bed, as Anne told me before I headed up that he had been crying because "it was the best bed in the house." For such a gracious cousin, Kellen, I appreciate you doing that. It was also a great little bed for me. It was the best sleep I would get on the road trip.
The next morning, I woke up to the sounds of the kids enjoying their Christmas gifts, with a bunch of them huddled around a portable DVD player with "Enchanted" playing. Kellen got his PSP out and was playing Iron Man for a bit, and after I got some cereal in me, Dennis took me out for a ride around Austin. He took us by his office, where he checked his schedule to see how long he had off for New Year's. With it being New Year's Eve, he was preparing a nice little get together at the house with some friends. So it was good that he figured out his schedule. After that, he took me through downtown Austin, which was neat. See, it's a city that is based around these three lakes, and the waterfront district was all lit up when I drove in the night before. There were a ton of places to hear live music. Remember, kids: Austin is the live music capital of the world. I'm trying to remember, but I think Dennis said there was at least 600 places with live music.
Anyways, he took me through downtown, which I loved, even with all the construction they were doing, and then from there, he took me to the State Capitol building, which was pretty incredible. I liked the California State Capitol, but there's something rustic about the Texas Capitol. It was really nice. Right behind the building is the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. It's a school that I started following about seven years ago after the College World Series. I watched Huston Street turn in a performance for the ages, and I was hooked. I was all about hookin' them Horns.
Texas Memorial Stadium, also known as Darrell K. Royal Stadium, holds 94,000 people or so, but for a big time game, it can get up to over 100,000 people for standing room only. While we couldn't get in to the stadium, and I had stupidly left my camera at the house, I couldn't get a picture, but Dennis did a really cool thing: He took me to the merchandise store and bought be a Texas beer coozy. It sits on my desk at work. After that, we had breakfast tacos waiting for us when we got back to the house, so we headed on back to the house, where the kids had all dispersed and the ladies of the house, Anne and Michelle, had decided they need to go shopping. It was getting close to my time to get on the road, but I stuck around for a bit, watched some entertainment TV, and then packed my stuff up. Oh, and we took a picture or two, as well:
Aren't we just the cutest? So, after I said my goodbyes, I headed east through the plains of Texas towards Houston. I loved this so much, because while the majority of my trip through the middle of Texas was in the dark, I got a chance to see all that made Texas what it is as I drove towards Houston. Neat little towns all along the way. I actually stopped for a second with the intentions of getting a cowboy hat, but I didn't see one I liked. Actually, I didn't see one I liked that was cheap enough. Stetson, I know you love your cowboy hats, but damn it all if they aren't damn expensive. I was also able to stop off and get some Texas BBQ: BBQ pork sandwich, potatoes with bacon and onions and some coleslaw. It was all good.
Houston is a neat city. Really great area, and I loved driving through the middle of the city on the freeway. I got into a little bit of traffic, but nothing major. I knew I had to get through there, and then I was on my way towards Louisiana and my next stop: New Orleans for New Year's!
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT TEXAS: Texas is the home of some of the greatest wrestlers ever: Stan Hansen, the Von Erichs, and of course, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, who makes his home in Victoria.
STONE COLD! STONE COLD! STONE COLD!
Louisiana
There are lots of bayous in Louisiana. When people think of the "Dirty South," there are usually two places that they go to: Atlanta and New Orleans. I think that Louisiana is actually a very pretty state from what I saw. I don't have much else to say about the state other than that.
Fun facts about Louisiana:
-This is where the Mississippi River begins. Seriously. In Louisiana.
-It's the only state in the union shaped like a boot.
-Louisiana was only a small part of the Louisiana Purchase. In fact, almost everything east of the Mississippi River going to the original colonies was a part of the purchase.
-Shaquille O'Neal came from Lousiana. He's now practically a billionaire because he's tall and made the movie "Kazaam." Tell me how my ass tastes, indeed.
My trip across Louisiana...well, it wasn't the greatest, I'll say that right now. I got there at about mid-afternoon, early evening, and I realized I had basically made half of my trip on New Year's Eve. I drove through cities like Lafayette and Lake Charles, and basically set myself up to be in New Orleans by about 8:30. I got to Lafayette and got all filled up on gas and got a little snack, finishing off my McDonald's card, and off I went towards Baton Rouge, which was next. What happened next basically ruined my New Year's.
The picture above was taken by myself after I left my car in the middle of a traffic jam. An accident outside of Baton Rouge left traffic stopped, so I had to wait it out to see what would happen. I turned the car off like everyone else and ran the radio for a bit, scanning to see if there was any word on the accident, but there was no dice. About a half hour passes (this after I heard, of all things, a Flyers/Stars hockey game on the radio...huh) and the traffic moves. Hooray! But the car won't start...ohhhhh, no. I know exactly what it is. The battery died thanks to the radio and lights being on for an extended period of time, although I turned the lights off after like...2 minutes. So, a guy behind me was nice enough to push my car off the road and into the median. Yeah, did I mention I was in the left lane? Oi.
After calling my dad and telling him what happened, he said to call AAA, and that's what I did. Problem was that it would take longer than I would expect because of the accident, as tow trucks were looking to take away the cars from the wreck. Knowing that, I just kinda stayed put as best I could. A few minutes after I called, Louisiana State Troopers were driving back up westbound portion of I-10, where they could keep an eye out for anything crazy happening...you know, like a car dead on the median. They helped me push my car to the shoulder, safely, thank God, and then I sat there and waited for the help. After a couple of tries, I finally got the car jumped with the AAA guy, and away I went, into the night, and off towards New Orleans...with only 2 and a half hours left until midnight. I had 90 miles to go, so I knew I'd get there around 11.
Got through Baton Rouge fast enough, and then I realized that I had an hour til midnight, like I thought, as I crossed the big causeway into New Orleans. It was neat to see all these fireworks going off from a distance. So as I got closer, it turned 11. All of a sudden, I saw a hotel...but I realized I was about 15 miles from downtown. Yeah...I wanted something closer. Keep that in mind for later. I went towards downtown, looking for anything, but found nothing. I went down Canal St. and circled around Harrah's (through traffic, of course) as midnight drew nearer. It was about this time that Barb called me from work, and I told her how I couldn't find a damn thing. I did find a Holiday Inn downtown, but they were filled up. And it was just before midnight that they told me that, too. That about did it for me. As I drove towards the hotel that Barb directed me towards, I got increasingly sad. Then, midnight hit while I was getting back on I-10. I wanted to simultaneously cry and then throw shit out the window. Barb directed me towards the hotel, and after one wrong turn, I finally got into the parking lot of a Motel 6 in East New Orleans...15 miles from downtown.
I got in, contemplated for a second, called my dad, and then after being just absolutely pissed off and tired, I just went to sleep. I woke up at 7:45 the next morning, and after a shower and some ESPN, I decided to just get up and go. Got my bag and headed for the car, ready to get back on the road. One little problem though.
The battery was dead. Again.
This time, AAA was kind enough to come out and give me a new battery. The guy who hooked it up said that when he was checking the voltage that 6 amps were being pulled, but I didn't think there was anything on in the car at all. Lights were off, no battery charger, none of that. It was later on that I realized that when I was turning the key from outside the car, that I flicked the signal on...and pushed it forward, activating my brights, which couldn't be seen in the daylight. So, after the battery was installed, I got a chance to go to Pep Boys and get a diagnostics check. Everything was fine, so I was back on the road and ready to go. I was looking for breakfast. So, of course, one thing came to mind: Waffle House.
I went to the one down the street, but it was so packed I couldn't sit down. I decided that I needed to just move on down the road and look for one. Luckily, about 20 minutes up the road, I found one. It was glorious. A waffle, biscuits and gravy, and hash browns with cheese, onions and tomatoes. I put both ketchup and hot sauce on top of that. It was GLORIOUS. I haven't seen one in my travels around Dunedin yet, but man, oh man. I need to go back. That was just...wow. After that, I was on the fast track out of Louisiana. Finally. Jim Levy, your homestate gave me one hell of a ride, my friend.
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT LOUISIANA: This was the state where many famous wrestlers in the 1980s got their start: Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Jake Roberts, The Fabulous Freebirds and The Junkyard Dog all were a major part of Lousiana wrestling before it was bought up by Bill Watts.
Mississippi
Four S's. Four I's. Two P's. The M is there to make sure you don't call it Wississippi. It is basically a mirror image of Alabama.
Fun facts about Mississippi:
-One of the states that decided to go against the Union in the Civil War.
-Had the first ever human lung transplant at the University of Mississippi in 1964.
-Both Archie and Eli Manning went to Ole Miss. However, they are not my favorite player from that school. That would be Michael Oher, who will be one of the best linemen in the NFL in 3 years. You watch.
-Elvis was born here. Yep.
-Root beer was invented here in 1898.
Mississippi for me wasn't anything too major. In fact, outside of going through Biloxi, it was a bunch of trees all along the freeway. I stopped off to get gas and some batteries, and it was about that time that my iPod decided to dive off behind my chair. So then I went into a mode where I had to figure out a way to get it out from under the seat, which was blocked by all my stuff that I had crammed in there. Luckily, after a couple of pokes with an air hose, I was able to jam my hand inbetween the seat and the damn thing was in reach. So, a painful pull later, and I was back in business. The drive on I-10 through Mississippi is really short, only about 60-70 miles, so my time there was limited. I saw a lot of trees. That was about as good as it got for me. After that, it was off to Alabama.
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT MISSISSIPPI: Bob Kelly won the Mississippi Heavyweight Championship EIGHTEEN TIMES in a ten year span from 1968-1978. That's pretty crazy right there. I'm not sure even Jerry Lawler himself did that. Ric Flair won the World Heavyweight title 16 times. Bob Kelly owned Mississippi until Mid-South took over the territory in '79. Still, that's a whole lot of titles.
Alabama
Charles Barkley, ladies and gentlemen. The Crimson Tide. Bear Bryant. Forrest Gump. Yeah, Alabama is pretty sweet. For 70 miles, I definitely enjoyed myself.
Fun facts about Alabama:
-The first Confederate flag was flown in Alabama, and a smaller replica of it is on their current state flag.
-Joe Louis was born in Alabama. Dude could box. I know, because grainy old footage of his exists and he was knocking people out.
-Lynyrd Skynyrd loves them some Alabama. So much they wrote a song about it. You know the one. I think it's kinda popular.
-The two major colleges in Alabama play a game called The Iron Bowl, and that's because Alabama is the only state in the country that can produce it's own iron.
-This is more of a fictional fact: Forrest Gump is from Alabama. He was involved in many things throughout U.S. history. For some reason, he didn't make it into any of the history books....
It was a short drive through Alabama, too, but there were much less trees. In fact, Mobile was a neat little city, and it was the only tunnel I went through on my trip. I went over a lot of water in Alabama before I got back on land and headed towards the Alabama/Florida border. There wasn't much else outside of Mobile that I remember. In fact, looking at the photos, I didn't take too much. A couple pictures of the Gulf of Mexico, as I drove over a lot of water, but then, once Florida was on the horizon, it was back to the trees. Which brings us to the final state on our little tour.
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT ALABAMA: "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton comes from Huntsville. This dude could wrestle. Part of one of the best tag teams of all time in The Midnight Express, and had a couple great runs as a singles wrestler, too. Some of the best right hands you'd ever see, and the Alabama Jam was a thing of beauty. But even with that, he had the best swinging neckbreaker I EVER saw. Guy also had the mullet rocking at many points in time, and even became English for a bit when he tagged with Steve Regal. I love me some Bobby Eaton.
Florida
The final stop on our little tour. I had driven 2,500 miles at this point. I was tired. I had been through a lot. But, I made it. Ladies and gentlemen, the southeastern most part of the United States.
Fun facts about Florida:
-It was owned by Spain once. Seriously. Look it up. Back when they had Mexico, Spain claimed Mexico as its own. Pretty funny stuff.
-Clearwater, which is literally next to my new hometown of Dunedin, has more lightning strikes a year than anywhere else in the country.
-Gatorade was developed at the University of Florida (Home of the Gators, hence, "Gatorade") in 1967. It's now the most popular sports drink in the world.
-It takes 3 and a half hours to drive from Miami to Key West, which is the southernmost city in the continental United States.
I had finally arrived to my new home state. I was so proud. I was actually very overwhelmed. I couldn't believe I had done what I had done, and I still had about 450 miles to go! The drive was weird. Pensacola is beautiful. It's a bay right on the Gulf, and you drive right over it on I-10, which is just gorgeous. Then, after that, it's 150 miles of forest. Not joking. Once I got through Pensacola, Florida became a giant forest to me until I got to Tallahassee, the state capital. That's where I stopped and got gas and a snack, because just outside of town, I'd be getting off I-10, which was my home for 2,500 miles or so, and head south on U.S. 19. It was called the Georgia/Florida Thruway, and I was on it for about 200 more miles as I headed towards the Tampa/St. Pete area. More forest surrounded me, but after about 100 miles or so, that cleared up, and I got into the middle of the state, and closer to the water.
I knew I got close enough once I made it to the first city over this causeway. I was finally out of those woods and into a city. Problem was that I didn't know how far I had to go because, well, to be honest, the cities were all next to each other! That's when I first realized how expansive the area is around Tampa/St. Pete. I got through about 50 miles or so of city before I saw my exit for Dunedin. I had finally come to my new home. It was time to start my career off proper.
Now, I'm sitting here in this hotel room while I wait for Mike's house to clear, and I'll tell you this. The last two weeks, including the week I stayed in that roach motel as a temporary solution, were some of the most trying times of my life. I thank you all for supporting me and getting me through a tough time, and now, as I look at my career moving forward, I'm ready to begin it. This week, it's one week closer to Spring Training. Pitchers and catchers report on Feb. 14.
I say bring it on.
RANDOM WRESTLING FACT ABOUT FLORIDA: Dusty Rhodes owned this place back in the 70's and early 80's. Now, he does Florida Championship Wrestling broadcasts for the WWE minor league training facility. He's still the same ol' American Dream. Can't help but love the big fella.
Look for a new video coming soon, as Mike and I get our Cribs on.
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