Crazy Life & Annoying Drivers...
Wow. I haven't written in a while. Time on land seems to go by much quicker and there's so much more to do. Ever since I arrived in the city back at the top of November, I've just been on the go looking for apartments, auditioning, looking online for jobs, and just meeting with friends. I really haven't had a clear mind to sit down and write. I still don't (especially after yesterday), but I figured I'd let some thoughts out so my mind had room to breath.
First I have to get off my mind my crazy driving experience on Sunday. In the event of rising airline prices and restrictive baggage requirements I decided to rent a car and drive back to New York City from Cleveland. All week long my mom and grandma were watching the news and weather and agonizing over the dreadful day when I got the car. They have a right to be worried since I no longer handle long drives well. The car seems to lull me to a state of blissful sleep. Not good while driving. Also the impending weather conditions and holiday traffic were not sitting well with them. So all week long I got the updates. It wasn't looking good. I managed to get a decent car with okay gas mileage. The perks were amazing though. It had a G.P.S. inside as well as Sirius Radio. Sirius meant one radio station (or channel swapping between stable channels) all the way through. No static!! Also a G.P.S. meant that I wasn't going to be referring to my printed Mapquest paper especially upon arrival into the madness that is the New York City thruways. I was told where to go all the way and if there were gas stations nearby in case I got into a jam. I packed the car with what I could. Mapquest and the G.P.S. lady told me that it would take approximately 8 hours to complete the trip in good conditions. I was off and it was rainy. The temps most of the way were above freezing so I was fortunate to stay clear of icy conditions. The drive started well with okay conditions and light traffic. I was making good time and I was busy trying to figure out the car so I was active and not feeling drowsy at all. I hummed along to the top 40 hits I never heard before and even dabbled into the Broadway station for a bit. I love Sirius. So then the toll came when I left interstate 80 in Ohio and that's where the dilemmas began. A long line cued for the toll. Oy!! I got through that with minimal delay. Now I began my quest on the most tedious art of the journey. The drive through PA. Straight shot all the way on I-80. Yikes! It started off okay and then it went down to two lanes. It was then I discovered that American drivers have no respect for the road. I was perfectly fine with my cruise control in the right hand lane cruising just above the speed limit. Occasionally I'd stumble onto a trucker and have to edge around them. They travel at slower speeds. HOWEVER there were the truckers that would just speed down the expressway in the left lane. Sometimes they couldn't go as fast as the cars so they held up traffic a bit. Truckers should STAY in the right lane and only go left if they are passing, and not cruise in the left lane. Really NO ONE should cruise in the left lane on a 2-lane road since it should only be used for passing or allowing oncoming traffic onto the expressway. There aren't many exits/entrances so staying right is fairly easy. However you got the speed demons that just zoom along in the left lane inching up on the tails of those just trying to pass someone. Like an accordion they zoom up at top speed and brake when approaching a slower car trying to pass. The brake lights cause other cars to brake and this leads to congestion. These are the same drivers in packed traffic that will weave in and out of lanes not leaving any safe distances just to get ahead by seconds. Even in stopped traffic they try to inch over to the left lane. Frustrating? YES!! Besides the impatient driver there are the slow left land cruisers. Ones who should NEVER be cruising in the left lane since the right lane is going much faster. Come on!! Respect people! Get over!! They cause problems especially with the impatient driver weaving in and out and the truckers cruising along in the left. The weather kept getting ugly then better in a cycle like the traffic was a cycle of open road to stopped traffic. My mind was active trying to find a pace and figuring out the traffic puzzle so I wouldn't be caught behind a truck, slow cruiser, or be faced by the weaver. My hands were gripping the wheel at times of intense rain. Intense rain and truckers all the way don't mix well. Together they cause a spray on your windshield that's just overbearing. On the flip side all these aggravating things were good for my travel drowsiness. I couldn't imagine wanting to close my eyes and my brain was active all the way keeping me very alert and constantly thinking. By the time I arrived at the George Washington Bridge coming out of New Jersey I was relieved to be out of the mess and finally heading home. I had my trusty G.P.S. lady telling me exactly where to turn and merge. She lost me once, but got right back on. I made it into Forest Hills 3 hours behind schedule. Yikes! Parking was a disaster so I ended up finding a temporary spot, unloading, and then taking the car back that night. I just wanted it off my hands. I did enjoy the Sirius Radio though. I hope I have one on my next drive for Christmas. Yes, I am insane enough to do it again.
Besides the craziness of driving I had the craziness of New York and the holiday before. I had an intense 3 weeks in New York auditioning like mad, getting extremely nervous, and taking voice lessons and classes. I was diving in all the while looking for a new place to stay, a job to sustain income, and keeping up with friends. New York was a frenzy. I did find a place, which I will be moving into this week amongst the lot of auditions planned. I managed to get paid work while here in that time. My commercial can be viewed below. Do enjoy and if you're in the Long Island area you can see it locally. Take a visit to the spa. They ARE good. I will be using my earned gift certificate real soon.
I also was busy over the holiday. My mom had me baking up a storm getting ready for the Christmas holidays. I was also working on a New York project while at home and trying to catch up on some old friends I hadn't seen in over 15 years. I went to a gathering at home of people I knew over 15 years ago. Wow!! There are families now and the kids I once knew as kids are now grown adults (although some still act like they did when they were kids). It was fun revisiting that time again. Also that weekend I was dealing with Christmas madness at home as my mom & grandma wanted to get all the decorations out while I was home to help. Christmas went up in practically a day. The house was transformed from Thanksgiving to Christmas just like that. I was sure I'd be sitting down to Christmas Eve dinner by Sunday, lol. On Saturday we all celebrated my grandma's 80th and I saw relatives I hadn't seen in over 15 years. What's with the past revisiting this holiday season? My mind was overloaded. When I finally got back to the city after the drive, the events of the 3 weeks in NY, and the events of the holidays, I was just exhausted. So exhausted I didn't want to do anything today and didn't. The most I did was go and sign my new lease and do a bit of grocery shopping. That was all. The rest of the day I vegged on internet TV catching up on my Heroes season. The madness begins again tomorrow. I feel I will finally be calm once the second holiday is over and I'm settled into my new abode. Here's to the New Year.
First I have to get off my mind my crazy driving experience on Sunday. In the event of rising airline prices and restrictive baggage requirements I decided to rent a car and drive back to New York City from Cleveland. All week long my mom and grandma were watching the news and weather and agonizing over the dreadful day when I got the car. They have a right to be worried since I no longer handle long drives well. The car seems to lull me to a state of blissful sleep. Not good while driving. Also the impending weather conditions and holiday traffic were not sitting well with them. So all week long I got the updates. It wasn't looking good. I managed to get a decent car with okay gas mileage. The perks were amazing though. It had a G.P.S. inside as well as Sirius Radio. Sirius meant one radio station (or channel swapping between stable channels) all the way through. No static!! Also a G.P.S. meant that I wasn't going to be referring to my printed Mapquest paper especially upon arrival into the madness that is the New York City thruways. I was told where to go all the way and if there were gas stations nearby in case I got into a jam. I packed the car with what I could. Mapquest and the G.P.S. lady told me that it would take approximately 8 hours to complete the trip in good conditions. I was off and it was rainy. The temps most of the way were above freezing so I was fortunate to stay clear of icy conditions. The drive started well with okay conditions and light traffic. I was making good time and I was busy trying to figure out the car so I was active and not feeling drowsy at all. I hummed along to the top 40 hits I never heard before and even dabbled into the Broadway station for a bit. I love Sirius. So then the toll came when I left interstate 80 in Ohio and that's where the dilemmas began. A long line cued for the toll. Oy!! I got through that with minimal delay. Now I began my quest on the most tedious art of the journey. The drive through PA. Straight shot all the way on I-80. Yikes! It started off okay and then it went down to two lanes. It was then I discovered that American drivers have no respect for the road. I was perfectly fine with my cruise control in the right hand lane cruising just above the speed limit. Occasionally I'd stumble onto a trucker and have to edge around them. They travel at slower speeds. HOWEVER there were the truckers that would just speed down the expressway in the left lane. Sometimes they couldn't go as fast as the cars so they held up traffic a bit. Truckers should STAY in the right lane and only go left if they are passing, and not cruise in the left lane. Really NO ONE should cruise in the left lane on a 2-lane road since it should only be used for passing or allowing oncoming traffic onto the expressway. There aren't many exits/entrances so staying right is fairly easy. However you got the speed demons that just zoom along in the left lane inching up on the tails of those just trying to pass someone. Like an accordion they zoom up at top speed and brake when approaching a slower car trying to pass. The brake lights cause other cars to brake and this leads to congestion. These are the same drivers in packed traffic that will weave in and out of lanes not leaving any safe distances just to get ahead by seconds. Even in stopped traffic they try to inch over to the left lane. Frustrating? YES!! Besides the impatient driver there are the slow left land cruisers. Ones who should NEVER be cruising in the left lane since the right lane is going much faster. Come on!! Respect people! Get over!! They cause problems especially with the impatient driver weaving in and out and the truckers cruising along in the left. The weather kept getting ugly then better in a cycle like the traffic was a cycle of open road to stopped traffic. My mind was active trying to find a pace and figuring out the traffic puzzle so I wouldn't be caught behind a truck, slow cruiser, or be faced by the weaver. My hands were gripping the wheel at times of intense rain. Intense rain and truckers all the way don't mix well. Together they cause a spray on your windshield that's just overbearing. On the flip side all these aggravating things were good for my travel drowsiness. I couldn't imagine wanting to close my eyes and my brain was active all the way keeping me very alert and constantly thinking. By the time I arrived at the George Washington Bridge coming out of New Jersey I was relieved to be out of the mess and finally heading home. I had my trusty G.P.S. lady telling me exactly where to turn and merge. She lost me once, but got right back on. I made it into Forest Hills 3 hours behind schedule. Yikes! Parking was a disaster so I ended up finding a temporary spot, unloading, and then taking the car back that night. I just wanted it off my hands. I did enjoy the Sirius Radio though. I hope I have one on my next drive for Christmas. Yes, I am insane enough to do it again.
Besides the craziness of driving I had the craziness of New York and the holiday before. I had an intense 3 weeks in New York auditioning like mad, getting extremely nervous, and taking voice lessons and classes. I was diving in all the while looking for a new place to stay, a job to sustain income, and keeping up with friends. New York was a frenzy. I did find a place, which I will be moving into this week amongst the lot of auditions planned. I managed to get paid work while here in that time. My commercial can be viewed below. Do enjoy and if you're in the Long Island area you can see it locally. Take a visit to the spa. They ARE good. I will be using my earned gift certificate real soon.
I also was busy over the holiday. My mom had me baking up a storm getting ready for the Christmas holidays. I was also working on a New York project while at home and trying to catch up on some old friends I hadn't seen in over 15 years. I went to a gathering at home of people I knew over 15 years ago. Wow!! There are families now and the kids I once knew as kids are now grown adults (although some still act like they did when they were kids). It was fun revisiting that time again. Also that weekend I was dealing with Christmas madness at home as my mom & grandma wanted to get all the decorations out while I was home to help. Christmas went up in practically a day. The house was transformed from Thanksgiving to Christmas just like that. I was sure I'd be sitting down to Christmas Eve dinner by Sunday, lol. On Saturday we all celebrated my grandma's 80th and I saw relatives I hadn't seen in over 15 years. What's with the past revisiting this holiday season? My mind was overloaded. When I finally got back to the city after the drive, the events of the 3 weeks in NY, and the events of the holidays, I was just exhausted. So exhausted I didn't want to do anything today and didn't. The most I did was go and sign my new lease and do a bit of grocery shopping. That was all. The rest of the day I vegged on internet TV catching up on my Heroes season. The madness begins again tomorrow. I feel I will finally be calm once the second holiday is over and I'm settled into my new abode. Here's to the New Year.
posted by Chris | 1:18 AM
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