July 2009 Archives

1.
Krystal Square Off is coming up! I technically have Opera Ball the night before...but I think I might just have to ditch that this year :( I am actually sad because I like going to Opera Ball...but there is no way I can drive through the night this year!

Since there are no Krystals anywhere near Chicago, it is really no surprise that there are no qualifiers anywhere near Chicago...

View Krystal Square Off 2009 in a larger map

And there are a few new interesting twists to the contest this year!

2.
I had my second photo class on Tuesday. We learned about capturing motion. This is my best shot from class.

3.
Right Now: I'm addicted to porn. With Heather. And Alyssa. And Ice cream. Out of martini glasses. Classy.

Sunday night Heather and I met up with Alyssa and went to Wicker Park Fest. We played with some random dogs, listened to music, drank (Alyssa beer, me sangria, and Heather nursed a hangover), met batman, ate (I just had sweet potato fries), and played half-assed hipster bingo (we spotted some nice ironic mustaches and a lot of fedoras).

I determined that my usual theory that a hot camera can make a guy look hotter did not apply to Wicker Park Fest for some reason.

Then we tried to go to the bar I've wanted to go to but it was closed so we went to another one and swung danced and I drank half a beer. Why do I order a beer if I hate it?

More photos here!

After the eating contest I met up with Pat and Tim and Hall et. al. over at Bowman's for lunch/drinks. It was $20 fish bowls and so there was much drinking...including Pat making himself a super straw to drink from another table...

We headed back to Tim's and watched their appearance on the morning's Channel 5 news segment before heading off to yet another food stop. Seriously, if I ate twenty sandwiches all I'd want to do is continually go out for food! :-) But I didn't eat 20 sandwiches. So I was hungry :-)

We went to a place called Susie's I think and got fries that came in a taco shell and were covered in cheese and gyro meat. Um, yum! From now on I think I will always get some meat on my french fries! They also had delicious milkshakes. Mine was German chocolate and was kind of awesome. Tim got beef sandwiches from somewhere else and brought them over. We ate a lot.

After that we piled all six of us back into the car back to Tim's place for more drinking and more harassing of the dog by trying to fit him into a beer case and then spending entirely too much time trying to get him to knock down a tower of beer cans...

After the beer ran out we headed to some bar. My new rule is to never order whiskey sours from a foreigner. Last weekend at that Polish bar I ordered a whiskey sour and she asked what I wanted in it. I ended up with a whiskey and coke. This time I ordered a whiskey sour and got half a glass of whiskey with a splash of sour (or something). Just sayin. Or maybe I need to find myself a new girly but not too girly drink...

My second new rule is not to take a shot. Ever. At least not to take a totally ungirly shot because it usually ends badly. In this case it totally ends up with me having a gag reflex and puking it up. On my purse. Yeah, I'm classy. And can totally hold my liquor. Just sayin.

Anyways. Actually it was kind of funny because Tim kept saying that he was going to make sure I vomited every time we hung out. And then like 30 seconds later I did. No wait, that is totally unfunny.

Anyways. (Cue Sid leaving a comment that says "Pukahontas"...)

After listening to some Kelly Clarkson and Ashlee Simpson we left for another bar, which was closed. So we went to another bar that was almost empty except for one group of people doing karaoke over and over. And a zombie. But he came in later. And then Pat pulled up his brothers underwear and it broke. And later they kicked us out for some reason...

I've flown to New York two years in a row for Nathan's. I've driven the ten hour drive to Chattanooga two years in a row for Krystal's...so sometimes it is really nice when an eating contest just happens to be just two miles down the block from your apartment!

Saturday was the Jimmy John's Freaky Fast Sandwich Making and Eating contest! This contest is a little different than most, it's a series of exhibition-style contests that pits professional sandwich makers against professional Major League Eaters! The premise is that the eaters have to try to eat the sandwiches as fast as the makers can make them.

For this contest the eaters were Hall Hunt, Pat Bertoletti, Tim Brown, and Steve Dokho (who had won a qualifying competition to compete). Before the contest I said hi to Pat and he gave me a T-Shirt...he's probably sick of me rooting for Tim :-) Then Tim complained that I was wearing a Pat t-shirt. :-) For the record, I love them both equally.

Anyways.

The contest started a little late as the singer before them (who was singing Britney Spears songs and begging the audience to give her french fries) went a little over. But finally the stage was set and the contest was announced. Three sandwich employees from around Chicagoland were announced first. And then the eaters took their places.

And then it was off! The makers started putting together their sandwiches. It was hard to see as they were behind a screen, but they got down making as the eaters waited. For this contest the eaters would not be penalized for not having sandwiches at first. The makers would be given six minutes to make and then when the time ran out the eaters would be given an extra minute or so to finish (the amount of time they spent at the beginning with nothing to eat).

As soon as the first sandwich was handed to them they were off! The eaters ripped sandwiches in half to share, they dunked, they stuffed, they swallowed. At times it definitely looked like the four to three ratio of eaters to makers would pay off as often times an eater would be without anything to eat at all. For the first time on the circuit it looked as if the eaters could win!

After six minutes the makers were told to stop and it looked like a victory was possible for the eaters as they went into their final minute. There was a tense moment as it looked like Steve was about to have a reversal of fortune, but luckily he powered through. Finally time was called for the eaters too.

After examining the table the results were announced...the eaters left behind two slices of tomato and a handful of lettuce. The makers would emerge victoriously!

It was a sad day for the eaters who have been facing off against Jimmy John's employees around the country all summer. This was the closest they got and they still couldn't out-eat the Jimmy John's makers.

Hopefully there will be another rematch and more chances next year.

View Jimmy John's Freak Fast Eating Contest Photos Here!

one.
Is it good or bad that the sushi lady knows my name?

two.
I wonder if the neighbors can hear me when I play my guitar.

three.
Did I mention that I can hear everything that they do? So much so to the point that when I am trying to sleep I get freaked out because it sounds like they are right outside of my door?

four.
Did I mention that I have no idea how to play the guitar? And that I just strum it a lot and sign whatever comes to my head?

five.
Have you seen this video? It's kind of awesome.

six.
Speaking of videos, here are two of mine from Hyder that I posted over at Silly America.

seven.
I am semi-obsessed with Millennium Park hot dogs...

...and Eric eats sandwiches!

seven.
My photo was in the Chicago Tribune!!!

eight.
Apparently changing someone's name to "DO NOT CALL!" in my phone does nothing to prevent me from calling them.

nine.
Yay stock market surge! Now my mutual funds are ONLY down by $3,000 :(

ten.
Tuesday night Alyssa came over and we all watched Twilight and had champagne. Twilight would have been better without all those vampires...

So far this year I've earned from photography: $580, a sandwich combo, 4 pancakes (of which I only ate 2), a play ticket, & a $25 Target gift card. I don't think I have to claim pancakes on my taxes, do I?

This has been a crazy month for my photography:

1. I will hopefully soon wrap a project that paid more than anything has ever paid in my life.


2. My photos for Project 891 Theatre appeared on their poster and in a bunch of publications along with their reviews.
   Never the SInner Poster
   Time Out Chicago
   Chicago Theatre Blog
   Centerstage
   Newcity


3. I was told I'd get media credentials for the Krystal Square Off and was contacted by a PR person for the Jimmy Johns Contest about going to that (already was planning on it!)


4. I did a project for Alliance (a homeless services organization) that will appear in an informational video.


5. Got paid for the photos I took for Josh's wedding.


6. Started photography classes at Chicago Photography Center tonight. I'm taking a beginner class which will probably be a lot of review but I will still learn a lot and get more confidence in feeling like I know what I am doing.

WOW.

Here's my favorite shot so far that I took during my first class:

Since most of my friends were out of town on Saturday for my ex-boyfriend's wedding I decided to crash Heather's friend Sarah's bachelorette party!

The night started with Heather and I getting way too excited over the Bus Tracker...we refreshed it on her phone every minute to see if the bus was still on track and then when we got on the bus refreshed it every minute to count down how long it would take to get there...I swear it was hilarious at the time. And we were heading South on the bus and a guy got on and asked the driver if it was heading North. He said yes and we were confused... But then the dude got off at North Ave and we figured it out and again thought this was hilarious.

Anyways...

We started the night by heading over to Zakopane where I met the bride, Sarah, got some drinks, and got tattooed. Well, we covered ourselves in fake tattoos. And Sarah was crowned with a sweatband with a toilet paper veil. Awesome.

When a dude came in, motorboated Alyssa's arm, and pulled out a fake vagina we decided it was time to leave that bar...and so we headed out to Five Star!

We had our own private room at Five Star...complete with a stripper pole! (but no porn!) And we had napkins to fill out to invite guys in to dance for us...which resulted in being entertained by everyone from an old guy to a guy who actually took off his shirt and pulled down his pants to a cute Brit. And a couple of guys who actually seemed to know what they were doing. (and I totally don't feel bad about posting such incriminating photos because I have no idea who these people are).

We had lots of drinks and lots of shots and lots of dancing and pole dancing. We left when the bar kicked us out. And we went back and watched National Lampoons Vacation until we passed out.

Oh, and my pont and shoot totally broke :( So much for my no more buying photo stuff this year plan...

Bachelorette party photos here!

1. I am going to probably leave my website looking like crap and use it as motivation to redesign the site. Sorry it looks ugly. Stay tuned for it to look even prettier than it was before!

2. Eric's opinion of me: "I think she tries really hard to get people not to like her."

3. My coworkers think it is odd that I love competitive eating and yet crumbs in a jelly jar disgust me.

4. Heather and I have furniture! No more sitting on the floor!

5. Tuesday night I met Josh for dinner in Oak Park. Yay!

6. Wednesday night Mat came over and we got buy one get one free pizza at Frasca. Yum.

Before dinner he took me for a ride on his motorcycle. This is what happens when you put Val on a motorcycle:

Val: Aaaaah! Aaaaah! Stopstopstopstopstop. Aaaaaah! No stop! Stopstop! Aaaaaaah!
40 feet later, Mat pulls over.
Val jumps off and runs away.

After dinner I convinced Mat to stay and let Heather practice her Mary Kay party skills! We got facials!

More photos here!

7. In case you were wondering, I posted 1,243 photos of my vacation!

i am really really really really really fucking pissed off right now.

so apparently, after ruining my blog, i have come to find that the problem lied in my spam filtering. Apparently every single legitimate comment anyone added over the last month was filtered out as spam. Which is, kind of ironic, because I received over 1,000 spam comments a day that went through just fine.

So everything anyone tried to leave is lost. and that makes me sad. and i ruined my blog in the process. and that makes me sad too.

and i'm pissed off and really upset and am going to bed.

(but comments do work again.)

So...I really felt like a loser over the last two months because no one has left any comments...but I guess it turns out my comment form isn't working at all and therefore if anyone has left any I have not gotten them at all :(

I'm going to try and fix this now... :(

So as you may or may not have seen, I decided to try something new for my photo galleries last week! The new system includes lots of new features like the ability to comment on individual photos, photo tagging, and gallery searches! I think it really keeps the photos organized and makes them easier to view and find specific photos, which will hopefully result in a more dynamic, engaging experience and encourage people to look through my photos more often! (it's like my own little facebook!)

Right now it is a pretty blank, separate design, but eventually all the same functionality and design will be incorporated seamlessly into my website.

So...what do you think? Do you like the new gallery? Hate it? Is there something about it you really don't like? Is there any feature missing that you are just dying to see? Do you not even care because I post way too many photos and you don't look anyways (p.s. I know this is the case, but I won't stop posting millions of photos!)?

If everyone likes it I am going to go ahead and start migrating my old photos into the system, but if people have problems with it I will wait and try to find something different that fits my readers needs more. Or I will take into account what you say and try to modify this program.

One request I have already heard is to have hi-res photos available for download. While I would love to do that, it just is not in my budget as I can't afford enough web space to host hi-res images, plus I don't necessarily want them floating about for anyone to use. But if you drop me an email I will almost always send a hi-res image along as long as it is for non-commercial use and it's not something that I was paid from someone else to do.

So, please leave me a comment on what you think of the new galleries and if you have any suggestions/comments!

1. Heather thinks it's weird that I have never shaved my legs above the knee.

2. Heather's response to our night out watching I'm a Major League Eater: "You guys (me, Pat, Tim) would start laughing at some point and I didn't get it. I figured it was some kind of competitive eating inside joke."

3. Thursday night Heather and I got Guatemalan food and we shared a pitcher of strawberry margarita. That may have helped and may have hindered my ability to edit photos.

4. Saturday night I met up with Chelsa and we got tapas and shared a pitcher of sangria. We went to see Ron's play Never the Sinner. I got a free ticket because I did the photography that appeared on their posters and was sent to press. I was also very surprised to see that it was used in the multimedia backdrop to the show! My pictures were in a play!
The play was very good and very well done and performed. I'm impressed!
Then we got brownie batter blasts from Dairy Queen and sat on her porch people watching. We timed how long empty parking spaces would take to fill up (23 minutes, 6 minutes...) I was surprised they didn't fill faster. We met the "Wrigleyville Choir," a group of intoxicated people who said they would sing us any request but specialized in love ballads from the 80s, 90s, and today. Then we saw a bunch of people dressed all in white with red sashes go by...followed 5 minutes later by two guys in giant puffy bull costumes. Where is my good camera when I need it? I tried taking a crappy pic with my point and shoot...

Don't you love Wrigleyville on a Saturday night?

5. Me and Heather decided to try and figure out the best place to put our table...

Saturday was the Fourth of July! For some that means fireworks. For others that means barbeques. For others that means donning winter coats and sleds and joining the parade! But for me, the Fourth of July only means one thing: The Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island!

Since it started airing on ESPN I would watch it every Fourth of July. It was my favorite part of the holiday and last year Nadia and I went to New York to see it in person! Unfortunately Nad couldn't join in this year, but I decided that I just couldn't miss it and went on my own!

I got to Coney around 8:45am. I managed to get myself a VIP pass but I wasn't exactly sure where that meant I could be. I'm glad I got there early though 'cause I soon met up with Jamie and Sadie and Carrie again and we managed to get right up front near the stage. I decided to stick it out with them because the VIP area looked to be a little more off to the side. Although, since it is such a fan favorite/media frenzy/thunderstick clapping/signs in the air event it is nearly impossible to get a good photo from anywhere! Maybe next year I can get a media pass...does running two blogs make me media?

Anyways, we stood there. For a long, long time. But we were entertained by both the stage and the crowd! The guys behind us were die-hard Kobayashi fans. And the guys next to us were all about Chestnut. I think me and the Hungry Sisters didn't care too much who won since we love them all! I mean, on one hand I have never seen Kobayashi win live, so I'd love to see him win, on another keeping the title in America is cool so I totally want Chestnut to win. But on my third and fourth hands I would die to see Pat Bertoletti or Tim Brown win it and do Chicago proud! So, in conclusion, I just want to see lots of people eat a lot of hot dogs!

The on stage entertainment was great as well. There was everything from a strong man to dancing dogs to music groups to the musical stylings of Badlands Booker himself!

Finally at noon the broadcast began! We watched Bunnettes dance and an ESPN reporter put hot dogs in a blender and drink them!

And then the competitors were announced and everyone took the stage...

As the giant Nathan's Famous clock counted down we all prepared for what surely would be an epic battle. And boy was it.

As soon as the clock ran down the eaters were off, hot dogs were dunked and stuffed and pressed and consumed. I had a good view of Tim Janus who seemed to be eating at a pace I'd never seen from him before. Joey and Kobayashi were pretty much neck and neck but with Joey always seemingly just that much ahead. I tried to keep up with my favorites Pat Bertoletti and Tim Brown, but unfortunately they were at the other end of the table and tough to see.

They ate. And ate. And ate. And then something completely crazy happened. Not only did Joey Chestnut break his ten-minute hot dog eating record from last year...he broke his twelve-minute record from the year before! With 68 hot dogs and buns Joey Chestnut won and edged out Kobayashi (who ate 64.5) for the third year in a row! Pat came in third with 55, which, by the way, just four years ago would probably have been enough to kill the competition. It's amazing the pace and capacity that has built up over these last few years!

After the competition I headed over to Ruby's where the eaters congregate after the contest. It was fun to catch up with the people I have met and I really do find it funny when I have conversations that go like:
Me: "Hi I'm Val."
Eater: "Wait, Val Bromann?"
I'm supposed to be following you, not the other way around! :-)

After drinking some beers that were just handed to me I headed back to the hotel, grabbed a pizza and Advil because by this point I had had almost nothing to eat, no caffeine and had a splitting headache. I ended up watching a few old contests on ESPN classic and then headed out to a bar for the after party.

It was tons of fun and I have to admit the fan girl in me was totally excited that I was sitting at a table in a bar with Kobayashi and Joey Chestnut. Totally. Joey's friend kept buying me drinks. Like, a lot of them. I know I had bought myself at least three. And I think he bought me at least three and two shots. I lost count. So I kind of felt bad when I ditched him to leave with Tim and his friends to go get food. But only kind of.

At maybe 2am or so we ended up going to get crepes at some crepe place. I had a smore crepe but...remember how I had like a million drinks? and remember how all I had had to eat was a piece of pizza? And remember how I have said countless times that I can't handle my alcohol? Well, I may have ended up throwing up in a garbage can outside. I figured though that it was OK. I mean Tim's a competitive eater so he's pretty much used to vomit. Right? Anyways, after feeling like a totally lame girl we went and ate hot dogs, because apparently a person who ate 30 hot dogs earlier in the day still feels the need for more! And then they dropped me off at my hotel.

And then I passed out. And that was my Fourth of July. And it kind of rocked.

View July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest Photos here!

After the elephant eating contest on July 3 I met up with Jamie and Sadie and Carrie who run a site called HungrySisters and are also competitive eating fans. We went to Nathan's for lunch and then I watched as they rode the Cyclone. I had my camera so I couldn't risk getting on with it...Yeah, that can be my excuse ;-)

I took the subway back towards the hotel but got off at Bryant Park to walk around. I took a lazy stroll home through Times Square. Do they let cars into Times Square anymore? Everyone was just sitting in the streets.

Then crashed for a while, took an impromptu walk through Central Park, then grabbed some Chinese takeout. While waiting some of the kitchen staff got in a big fight. I don't know what it was about because they were fighting in Chinese. I still got my food though. So all was OK.

I took my takeout back to my room. I am never in a big hurry to be a tourist in New York because I have been there before and know I will be again. Plus I was pretty worn out. Plus I knew I had a long day ahead. Plus I was paying an arm and a leg for the hotel room so I wanted to take full advantage. The shrimp was delicious because it was full shrimp with just a light breading. I am so used to Chinese shrimps being tiny and all breading. It was delicious.

But my fortune cookie was empty. I was sad.

View Photos from Day 10 - New York!

So from the moment I saw the first commercial for I'm a Major League Eater I pretty much knew I was wasn't really going to be on it. Why? 'cause Pat Bertoletti was nowhere to be seen. I think Pat was supposed to be featured more originally, not sure what happened there. But my "plot line" involved me being number one fan of competitive eating but especially above all else Pat Bertoletti and Tim Brown. Which is, you know, me. So when I didn't see Pat as a featured player I figured my shot at reality TV stardom was gone too. Especially since I knew my interview about Pat went slightly better than my one on Gravy (I am a photographer for a reason). They had interviewed me a few times and had taken lots of interviews with them while I was in the background taking photos of them and such. You know, doing my thing. But none of those got aired. Oh well.

Here are a few behind the scenes photos from the taping of I'm a Major League Eater:

If you caught the show and knew who I was you would have seen me: I was the crazy girl standing there when Tim walked in the bar...and the crazy girl standing behind Tim while he was eating at the bar. I was wearing my Krystal Square Off T-Shirt. Super. Fan. And, well, that was it! Really, I looked crazy. But I guess that is me. Honestly, I have never really liked the way I look on camera, I always look like I'm made of spaghetti and get really shy and nervous and giggly...which does not a reality star make. But it was still a totally fun experience! And I gobble up any chance I get to be involved in competitive eating and see the eaters at work! And who knows, maybe it will get good enough ratings that it will get picked up for a series and I can make a triumphant return!

In the end it was an EXCELLENT show. Truly entertaining and really well plotted. But I have to say that Tim ran away with it. He pretty much was the show. And he was awesome. As always.

I watched the show last night in a bar with my roommate Heather, Pat Bertoletti, Tim Brown, and a bunch of their friends. It was so fun to watch the premiere of a TV show with its star! What a night!

p.s. I still haven't touched the 621 photos I took at the July 4 hot dog eating contest...and still have a gallery left to edit for July 3. But hopefully I will have that tomorrow...hopefully.

Can I say it again that Tim "Gravy" Brown rocks my socks? 'Cause seriously he does.

I woke up way too early on Friday and didn't want to get out of my amazingly comfortable hotel bed. But I had an eating contest to attend! So it was off to my first of two mornings at Coney Island! This contest was a little different - it pitted three of the best competitive eaters on the circuit against three of the finest elephants the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus had to offer! Since elephants do not eat meat they were not eating hot dogs...they were eating hot dog buns!

Now, the event seemed to be set more as a press event that one for spectators. Which I totally understand. There was a huge lineup of video and still cameras in front and then a fenced off area to the side where everyone else got to stand. You could still see it though. So I got the best view I could from there...but then I saw Tim pointing me out to someone and then they came over and told me to go stand with the press photographers! Awesome. I was told I could move around to anywhere when I needed to but was too paranoid about getting in someone's way. So I mostly stuck to one position and went with it! But I got to stand with these people:

The elephants were introduced first and then the eaters: Eric Badlands Booker, Tim Gravy Brown, and Juliet Lee.

They took their positions...and then the elephants started eating! George Shea didn't even call it to start yet! The elephants totally cheated and got a head start! Just sayin'.

The elephants' pace seemed to be slower. They didn't have the urgency of the other eaters. And once in a while they got a bit confused and started grabbing at bananas instead!

But both groups trouped on stuffing their mouths with hot dog buns for six minutes! When time was called it was tough to say...the eaters went at a fast pace but could only fit a bun or two at a times in their mouths. The elephants took the slow and steady pace but grabbed trunks full of buns at a time.

And then the results...the three eaters ate 147 buns...but the elephants came out ahead with a whopping 505!

So in the great rivalry between the elephant and the human, the elephants triumphed! But I am sure one day they shall meet again...

View Man vs. Elephant Hot Dog Bun Eating Contest Photos!

p.s. I have a new photo management system that will hopefully work out! It looks boring now but will eventually be styled and seamlessly integrated with my website design and all of my past photos will be added!
Some of the new features include: commenting on photos, photo keyword search, photo tagging, and more!

p.p.s. Don't forget to watch "I'm a Major League Eater" tonight 10/9central on Biography Channel. If there is a crazy superfan in the Chicago bar segment, that would be me!

So I spent three more days in Seattle with Scotty. On the first day I visited his school and walked around the campus while he worked in the morning. We met for yummy Thai food for lunch and then I was left on my own for the rest of the day.

I decided to take a bus to Fremont, which is pretty much my mecca. There are all kinds of crazy things there, like a giant rocket and a statue of Lenin and a giant troll. Awesome, eh?

I then wandered over to Gas Works Park where I chilled a bit with the pretty view of the cityscape and the odd view of gas tanks.

I headed back to Scott's and we got some sushi buffet for dinner. It was delicious. AH the fresh seafood!

The next morning I got up early to go to Pike's Place Market, watched people throwing fish, got some original Starbucks, ate some delicious macaroni, and saw the Museum of Giant Shoes!

Then I walked to Pioneer Square and got more coffee and saw more stuff. I went on the Seattle Underground Tour which was awesome. Except I hate when they put the most dynamic tour guide up in the front to give the introductions and then you get stuck with a different tour guide.

Scott and I wandered around Ballard and stopped at a great little Italian restaurant. The only hard thing was choosing what to order because it all sounded so good! I got a fish stew though because I was obsessed with getting fish I knew was way fresher there.

On my final day I took a bus to the zoo. It was fun and I saw lots of animals. I headed back and Scott and I ended up having a pretty lazy afternoon.

I was exhausted from all my touristing over the previous week and had to get ready for the last leg of my journey: New York!

I left for New York in the morning and didn't arrive until night, so I didn't do much besides get dinner. But my hotel room was awesome. And it had a big nice comfy bed. And it was mine all mine.

View Day 6 Photos!

View Day 7 Photos!

View Day 8 Photos!

View Day 9 Photos!

It took another day and a half to get back to Seattle. Another twenty something hours of driving. Luckily the views are gorgeous and Canada is more insane about their roadside culture than America is!

And luckily Brian managed to crack us up the whole way by using his kazoo at opportune times. Wha wha.

View Day 4 - Driving Home Photos

View Day 5 - Driving Home Photos

So we made it to Hyder, Alaska and were surprised that we didn't have to stop at customs to roll into the new town and new country we were entering from Canada. The town itself is beautiful despite having nothing really going on. We stopped for a while and took photos outside of the Welcome to Hyder, Alaska sign. We stopped at the Glacier Inn bar to get Hyderized. That means they give you a pretty big shot of 150 proof everclear. I went from OK to drunk and sick in about 10 seconds. I may have kind of thrown it up 20 minutes later. I felt it was more logical to do it there in the bathroom than to wait until I got car sick on the road. We chilled at the bar for a while to recover. There was a bear sighting right outside but we missed it.

We went to the post office which was kind of awesome in the way that it was thoroughly American and thoroughly not. We made our way to Fish Creek to look for more bears but alas we saw none than went to the opposite end of town and checked out the breathtaking mountain views from the "pier."

We may have travelled long and far to reach a destination we only stayed at for three hours, but it was worth every minute and every mile. Driving to Hyder, Alaska was surely a road trip that will be very, very tough to beat...but that is not to say I won't try!

To next time!

View Photos from Hyder, Alaska!

Our trip from Seattle to Hyder, Alaska lasted three days. It was about 20 hours of driving each way which was a long journey to get to a town that basically held nothing. But it was definitely worth it. There really is nothing in Hyder, Alaska but it's one of those places that you go to just to say you went. And you should totally go! Because it's awesome.

It took us an entire day and some change to drive from Seattle to Hyder. As we got closer we stopped at a lot of road signs that pointed the way and made a trip to a glacier and Hyder's sister city of Stewart, British Columbia for lunch and a peak at the Toaster Museum (which was unfortunately closed). Ah well, next time...

View photos of Day 3 - Driving to Hyder, Alaska

View photos of Day 4 - Driving to Hyder, Alaska

Time for a re-recap on my vacation! With more detail! And WAY MORE PHOTOS!

I arrived in Seattle on a Wednesday morning and took a way too expensive cab to the hotel because I was way too tired to try to figure out the bus system. But I got to my hotel and since Brian wasn't getting in until late in the day I decided I would explore on my own. After trying to read a map I determined that I was sort of kind of near Capitol Hill, which is the eccentric area kind of reminiscent of Clark and Halsted here, only even a bit more out there. Seriously I got stopped by a woman(?) on the street who told me she was a street person and wanted to be my friend and wished me a happy early Pride day. A lot of people in Seattle randomly told me they want to be my friend. By that I mean two. Which I think is a lot.

Anyways. I went to the Museum of Mystery which was kind of lame. It cost $2 to get in but I only had a ten and the guy had no change. I scrounged up a $1.60 in change and he let me in although he said I could go in for free. There were big foot prints and information on ghost sightings and such.

I stopped for some coffee and then headed to Volunteer Park and stopped at their free conservatory to check out the flowers.

I walked up the street looking for the Jimi Hendrix statue, passed it, went back, still couldn't find it. Walked all the way around the block. Walked all the way around the block the other way and finally stumbled on it.

I went to the Seattle Art Museum, mostly because I wanted a place that I knew I could check my bags. I had my entire camera bag and laptop on me and my shoulders and back were killing me and I needed a break. That was much needed. While some people said the museum wasn't that great I actually really liked it. There was a lot of modern art and things like giant black rats and an interesting exhibit on race in America where the artist took classic paintings and changed them up.

I then walked to the waterfront and checked out the awesomely amazing Ye Olde Curiosity Shoppe which had amazingness like two-headed calves and petrified skeletons.

I got some clam chowder and watched the seagulls. Then I walked to the Olympic Sculpture Park and walked amongst giant pieces of artwork and admired the water.

I walked around a bit more but nothing of interest was open anymore and I wasn't really hungry so I went back to the hotel and chilled. Brian and Time and Rose didn't end up getting in until maybe 11 or so. By that time I was tired and sore and a little hungry. When they got there we checked in and ordered pizza and then passed out.

The next morning we headed to EMP/Sci-Fi Museum. We checked out the Sci-Fi Museum first. It was small but pretty cool. It was basically everything the Hollywood Americana Museum in Metropolis should have been. The best part though was the Jim Henson exhibit! It rocked my socks and had everything from the posters he designed in college to his experimental works to Sesame Street.

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We didn't have time for EMP because we had to head out to the Mariners Game! The game was great! The Mariners killed it and I not only had a hot dog, but also had clam strips! I was disappointed by the lack of craziness when a home run was scored. Where were the fireworks? I was not disappointed by the fact that the guys raking the field busted out in dance. Awesome.

It was at the game where we found out that Michael Jackson had died and it became what everyone was buzzing about. The street vendor when we left was blasting his CD but swore that it was what he played after every game.

We headed back to EMP and walked through. The museum was soso, basically just a history of Seattle music and not too much spectacular. As a designy-ish person I liked the special poster exhibit going on. I think the recording studio thing was probably what people like most, but we didn't have much time for that. It seemed interesting though.

We next headed up the Space Needle! I have to admit I was a bit scared up there! Heights just aren't my thing. But the view was coolcool.

We headed back to the hotel and tried to get some sleep, we had a long drive ahead...

Day 1 - Seattle photos here!

Day 2 - Seattle photos here!

p.s. I am trying something new with my photos and am hoping this works out. It is seperate now but will eventually be styled and integrated with my website design. If this works out I will be migrating all of my photos into this!
Some of the new features include: commenting on photos, photo keyword search, photo tagging, and more!

I am back in Chicago! I left my New York hotel yesterday and borded a Southwest flight back home. Let me tell you, I have never confused a cab driver more! Southwest just started flying out of Lagurdia I believe July 1. So when I told him to drop me at the Southwest gate he first pulled over at Northwest and then tried to convince me that I was wrong. He wouldn't believe me that I was flying Southwest! Luckily he drove around and we were able to find the gate!

I was also very very hungover at this point. Just sayin'.

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Alright...I'll post a major recap of my amazingly awesome Fourth of July when I return to Chicago...For now here is a picture of the great American hero of the hot dog, three-peat victor at Nathan's, Joey Chestnut in action!

p.s. The good thing about competitive eaters is that they do not mind if you throw up in front of them because they are used to vomit. Just sayin'

This morning I woke up way too early in a cushy bed in NYC. I didn't want to leave! But alas I had big things ahead, and by big I mean the size of an elephant! I hopped on a subway to Coney Island for a very special eating contest that fitted three of Major League Eating's top eaters versus three of the Ringling Brothers' elephants. It was a tough and hilarious competitition! (I'll have a more thorough recap of this and everything else with way more pictures when I get back to Chicago!)

Afterwards I met up with fellow bloggers the Hungry Sisters and we got some Nathan's and I watched as they went on the Cyclone...I had my camera that I wouldn't trust to be on it so I didn't go...yeah, let's use that as an excuse.

We then parted ways and I made my way back to Manhattan, walked through Bryant Park, and Times Square then took advantage of my cushy hotel bed. Sometimes you just have to take a vacation from vacationing, especially when you start thinking of all ten thousand of the photos you took that need to be edited when you get home. After a lazy day I took an impromptu walk through Central Park and grabbed some takeout Chinese food!

Tomorrow it is off to Coney Island again for the year's biggest eating contest, the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest!

You can watch the hot dog eating contest live on ESPN, 12noon Eastern, 11 Central, Saturday July 4!

1. I am kind of screwed up on time. It is currently 12:15 in New York, 11:15 in Chicago, and 9:15 in Seattle. I need to wake up early but am nowhere near tired yet.

2. I hate when I see cute boys with hot cameras and all I have on me is a point and shoot.

3. Having to pay $15 a day if I want internet in my room sucks. Free WiFi in the lobby is decent enough though. (p.s. I was totally going crazy because it didn't work in the lobby...until I figured out that I had my wireless card turned off...)

4. I used an airplane bathroom for the second time ever today.

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I spent my day travelling. Two busses to the Seattle/Tacoma airport. Shuttle to my gate. Delayed plane to New York. And finally a cab from JFK to Manhattan. I'm a bit screwed up on time zones but the fact that my hotel is pretty posh (thank YOU Priceline name your own price)and a giant brisket sandwich is now in my belly make everything A-Okay. I honestly don't think I have ever stayed at a hotel this nice before and, come to think of it, don't think I have ever stayed in a hotel all by myself before. It is an experience in itself!

I didn't bust out my good camera today...but here are a few pics I took from my point and shoot.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Most of the time while on vacations I am a gogogo person who likes to see everything and do everything humanly possible...but sometimes after a long 7 days of vacation and a lot of stress at work and home a girl just needs to have a lazy day!

The day started out with a trip to the Woodland Park Zoo. It's a really nice zoo and there are lots of exhibits. My favorite was the adorable red panda (who unfortunately was sleeping in a tree, but was cute nonetheless) and the orangutan who seemed to have dressed himself up like a Star Wars Jedi...

After a few hours of wandering I headed back and chilled with my friend Scott. We got some Pho for dinner and later got some Starbucks (it started in Seattle, so it totally is local...) and spent a pretty quiet night in. A good relaxing night to end off the first...uh second...no, third...part of my trip.

Tomorrow morning I leave Seattle for New York City!