My watch is three hours fast, and I can't fix it. So I'm going to move to New York.

Day 12:
New York City

After sleeping in a bit, I again stored my luggage and hit the city for a little while. I headed over to the Brooklyn Bridge to get in some photography on a beautiful, sunny day. Though it is a bit of a walk to get to the middle span and observation areas, it was worth the effort since the reward is a sweeping view of the city. Since it was nearby, I also headed over to the African Burial Ground National Monument so I could get a park stamp and learn a little history of the area. I didn't have a lot of time since I had to get over to Chinatown to prepare for the NYC Hash House Harrier Red Dress Run. I didn't plan my trip to specifically be here for the event, but things were able to work out so I could attend, which was nice. I already knew a few hashers, Kiss My Rash of NYC and Shrimp Skanky of San Diego when he hosted me for their RDR many years ago. The afternoon and evening was spent socializing at the starting/ending bar and doing what turned out to be over 4 miles of a running trail. I was able to keep pretty close to the front of the pack since I definitely didn't want to get lost and separated from the herd. I've seen enough Discovery Channel to know what can happen when that occurs. I met some great people, including Kathy (NYC hashers do not apparently get hash names, which is very unusual) whom also was planning on hitting Peru this year and was into hiking and outdoor kind of stuff. I was pretty much at the bar from the time the hash started until most everyone had left since I didn't have too many other places to be.

After leaving I wandered to Times Square just one more time to take in the lights and sounds of the city before grabbing my stuff at the hostel (again the Google Maps application on the iPhone was vital) and heading to the airport. Since I had a very early flight anyway, to save money and some sleep time, I just went to the airport and slept just outside the terminal in a relatively quiet top story elevator lobby with no announcements and little traffic. NYC is probably one of the few major cities outside of Boston that I'd be comfortable in living. Except for getting to outdoor activities, there is always a lot to do and entertainment available and might be a place to which I'd consider moving.

Excuse me, maam, is that dress felt? Would you like it to be?

Attended the Annual Tampa H3 Red Dress Run today. Since late-November, I really haven't been going to many hash runs, so it was nice to get out and see some old friends. We hit several locations near the old water tower in Sulphur Springs with even a special bus transportation arrange to take us to a dance place so everyone could have some fun.

Claustrophobia: fear of white-bearded men in red suits.

After having a good time at the Tampa Red Dress Run last weekend, we decided to head to the Orlando event so I can see some of the folks I'll be missing from Run-A-Muck this year when I'll be in Australia/ New Zealand. Since we picked up passes a couple of weeks ago, Kristen and I decided to stay at her family's condo in Kissimmee so we could hit Disney the next day. We dropped off her dog and headed to the downtown area to the first bar. We drove around for a short bit and found a metered spot that was just a block away from start. It was nice to see some of the old friends (Peterphile, Lunar, Skinamax, et al). The trail was nice as it even had a pretty significant turkey/eagle split that had the eagles running (in high heels, bare feet, or hooker boots mind you) for at least two miles! We went around the park with the big pond and fountain and got a lot (as usual) of strange looks and questions of 'what kind of event is this?'.

On Sunday we headed to Epcot for the day and went around the World Showcase. Instead of going through the front entrance, we parked at Downtown Disney and took a bus to the Swam and Dolphin hotel where we caught one of the water taxis to the back entrance typically only used by hotel guests. While it didn't save any time, it was something different and enjoyable. The rest of the park was enjoyable, as usual and we hit most of the showcased countries and even made it as far forward as 'The Living Seas', but skipped Spaceship Earth and the other rides since it was getting late in the day.

On the way back my front tire literally blew apart. I pulled over to change it, only to find the spare nearly as flat. I slowly made my way to the next exit and just as I was pulling into the pump, the tire was coming off the rim. We called AAA, however I had a bright idea and rejacked up the truck so the weight was off the tire. Now that the tire could stretch out, it would now seal against the rim and hold air. We canceled the tow and cruised home, totally exhausted and worn out, but it was a fun weekend.

My Orlando RDR 2008 pics:
http://picasaweb.google.com/mblitch/OrlandoRDR2008

I don't eat red meat anymore. I cook it until it's brown.

This weekend was the Tampa Red Dress Run. Most of us were feeling sickly over the past week, so I wasn't sure if we would be able to make it. Since we had a lot of out-of-towners coming in, I wanted to go, so we finally disinfected ourself and took off. We had about 80 people this year and the organizers hired a bus to take us around to the various bars, strip joints, and clubs that we'd be attending. There was plenty of beer, pizza, and friends around to have a good time.


My Tampa RDR 2008 pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/mblitch/TBH3RedDressRun2008
ICP's Tampa RDR 2008 Pics:
http://picasaweb.google.com/JonBojar/2008TBH3RedDress

Red meat is not bad for you, fuzzy blue-green meat is!

I, along with Kiddie and Service, went to Orlando this weekend for their Red Dress Run. I've missed the event in the past since their event is the same weekend as Tampa's in the past, however this year they move it back a weekend due to the biking campout they had last week. We got a late start Saturday and didn't get to the clinic as early as I had hoped since I was taking Kinda to remove the drain tube that was put in last week after the surgery. We decided to just meet with Mammaries at her place and head off to the start since she was a hare and had to get things organized and ready.

People slowly trickled in and we had folks from Naples, Daytona, and even out-of-country hashers join the run. We hit 3 different bars with the last one being a large, and apparently very popular bar/ resort call 'The Parliament House'. We had some food at the end and hung around for a few hours since we had free access to the 'Dreamgirls' show put on by the Footlight Players. I had never seen such a show, but I suppose it was entertaining enough for once, just nothing terribly exciting. I was probably too tired to really get into it, but we did hang out for a while, but the thick smoke really started getting to me and we finally left to crash at the house for the evening. On Sunday we went to the clinic to get Kinda finished up and then had breakfast before heading back to Tampa. I got a call in the afternoon with emergency computer issues at the office and had to go back and deal with that for the evening, so it was a pretty long weekend.

Pics from the weekend can be found here:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.1pel19rj&x=0&y=354iz3

Red Ship Hits Blue Ship - Sailors Marooned

Saturday was Tampa H3's annual Red Dress Run. We had about 80 people show up to enjoy the nice weather and had folks from Daytona, Naples, and BVD show up. As soon as people were showing up they were directed down the road to the first bar where pictures were being taken to be made into key chains for the attendees. It was nice to see some of the old school hashers (ones that rarely show up to normal runs) attend and get to see some of my traveling friends from other hash kennels. After our first stop at some neighborhood bar we headed to Dogwater Cafe for a while (the location where we ended a few years ago and general hash bar whenever we do any runs nearby). After what was a short jaunt down to 'Wild Gentleman's Club' (yes a strip bar) where there was a full keg waiting. Along the way, apparently some of us thought it would be funny to play in the lined up traffic waiting for the light to change. I'm sure we were quite entertaining for the denizens that were just expecting to go about their business. Oh well, it was fun and no one got smashed by a car, so I suppose it turned out well. The entertainment provided by the hashers was more fun that the paid ..er... staff. The last time we were here (a couple of years ago) there were rules that said we were not allowed on stage, which was of course ignored after 10 minutes. This time they specifically allowed us up there and let everyone dance and have a good time. It was quite a bit of fun and large enough to move around, but small enough to keep everyone together.

After leaving this spot we loaded up into the special transportation which of course ended up being a large U-Haul truck, though it was empty inside (e.g. no couches or mattresses). A short ride to the next bar (Blondie's) was made shorter by group songs. Soon after arriving our dinner of pizza showed up, after which it became eerily quiet. apparently the only way to shut these people up is to stuff their mouths with something! anyway, we were soon off again, this time to gay bar called Valentine's that happened to by next door to my old dance school. I went by to see my teacher, but there was a class in progress that I did not want to interrupt. We were at the bar for a while and had our ceremonies and awards (for 'Sexiest outfit', 'Most Complete Package', and so forth). Our last drive was to the bar where we first started so we could pick up the key chains. We headed home around 11PM or so since I had to drop off Service and Candy at their place. Except for the key chains being SNAFU, it was a great time. This was unfortunately BMW's last hash event as she was getting reading to head out Thursday for Army boot camp. She'll be out of touch for a while, but as soon as we get her APO address we're planning on sending care packages that will surely embarrass her and be a grand source for entertaining stories for when she gets back.

Pics from the event can be found here:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.bu99p51r&x=0&y=pvd2e0

You can always tell when it's Halloween in the mall, the stores start decorating for Christmas.

This week was spent finishing up the apartment, getting it rented out, as well as working on some garage projects such as a kayak rack and a bit of metal cutting and welding on the teardrop camper batter shelf. Friday I decided to head over to Daytona for their red dress run. I had planned on going to Orlando for the Halloween Horror Nights event, but plans fell through after tickets were sold out with only scalpers on eBay and Craig's List having anything really available.

It was a fun event and I got to hang out with most of the Florida people that were on the cruise this year and see some folks that I had only met a couple of times before, mainly at the Bike Week events in March. We hit a several spots on the run/pub crawl, including a family style restaurant that ended up being a lot of fun with most of the patrons enjoying the spectacle. One of the Daytona hashers used to work at Hooters (hence the name 'Rolling Hooters') and taught me how to do a classic calendar pose. One really can learn something new every day. Here is a link to a bunch of the pictures that I took at the event.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.bgaa51wr&x=0&y=-og19me

I spent the day at Downtown Disney walking among the neat shops and enjoying the beautiful day outside. I might try to hit the parks again in the future once crowds die down, but a lot of the fun and experience of Disney could still be had even without having to go inside the park.

My blood type? Well red of course!

The morning's weather was not looking a whole lot better than the prior evening. However, one cannot be sitting in a red dress with nowhere to go. The house was used by not only the tenants and visitors, but also a few locals as a place to get dressed. It was a fun morning in helping getting everyone suited up and properly accessorized including nails, hair, containment devices (i.e. purses), and other items necessary to look good. We all walked the .3 mile route to the metro and headed to the bar. It is funny to see the various looks people give as we pass by. Some folks are astounded to see the get-ups while others barely give it a glance. While sitting in the subway station waiting for the train, an old lady strolled by and had a very astonished look on her face (especially when looking at the devil dressed guy in the group) that I wish I had the forethought to capture. Since it was pretty cold out, and for effect, I decided to wear my burqa as much as possible and actually enjoyed being able to be a little bit incognito. While on the run, however, I decide to wear the normal outfit so I could actually see and so I wouldn't get so hot. After what seemed to be a LOT of walking, we made it to the bar and signed in to receive our tags and give-away, a red dress themed buff like they have on Survivor.

After enjoying quite a bit of beer and general socializing and meeting different folks we circled up behind the bar for chalk talk (where the signs used on trail are explained). A couple of hashers won a limo ride in the drawing (one winner was 1 number away from my ticket!) while the rest of us had to decided to do the walker or runner trail. Since I came here for a good time and to hash, I of course took the runners trail since it usually ends up being the most interesting. We were not disappointed and found the trail to be involve a nice set of twists including shopping malls, the White House (see picture), and other local sites. It was fun running right by the base of the Executive Branch and have all the hundred or so tourists milling around completely divert their attention from the landmark to all the runners going by blowing whistles, yelling 'On-On', and in various stages of (un)dress with red outfits. We hit the one bar stop (3 stories of beer!) for what seemed to be a couple of hours before heading back to the start. There was a lot of singing with redentions of 'Yogi Bear', the 'S&M Man', and 'I used to work in Chicago' being sung out. Even the runners trail on the way back had a turkey/eagle split near the end with the eagle trail going through a construction site, complete with rebar, ditches, and other hazardous materials! Thankfully there was a lot of hot food waiting for our arrival and no one waiting long before jumping into line for some chow. The rest of the afternoon was spent meeting with and talking to others with a little bit of dancing thrown in.

Right at the time of venue closing (and their subsequently kicking us out), we headed to an after party at the nearby home of ToothFairy and someone else who's name escapes me. Though it was quite crowded, there was plenty of beer as well as ham and other snacks for everyone. A game of tippy cup was started in the kitchen that was able to hold an astounding amount of people. Everyone was deciding at about the same time to head back, however a couple of us were able to find a ride instead of taking a taxi. It seemed like a good idea at the time since the person navigating got us hopelessly lost. As we started I was making dumb jokes about 2 wrongs not making a right, but 3 rights making a left, and would you believe that after 15 minutes of driving, we literally ended back at the part street? Fortunately the navigator was able to finally figure things out and we were heading the right way within a couple of minutes! Well, at least we had a nice tour of the crack district of DC!

Take me back to New Orleans, And drop me at my door

This weekend I was trying to figure out why it was people seemed to be much more receptive and considerate whenever one travels away from home. I think I've figured out that it isn't just because people outside of our home are so different, it is because we are different. I find that I am a lot more outgoing when I am in a new location because I'm excited and learning about the area, culture, and differences. As such, almost every traveling trip I have done, I have had a stupendous time because of not only the things to do but also the people I meet. This weekend I headed over to New Orleans for their annual Red Dress Run.
As tradition dictates, I did not seem to start packing until about 11 o'clock on Thursday night, even though my flight was at seven o'clock in the morning. Since I did not finish until about 1 a.m., I decided to just drive to the airport and nap there before my flight other than risk falling asleep and not waking up until it was too late in the morning. I had the unfortunate timing of being among the first travelers after the huge "liquid bomb" scare, but my experience was pretty straightforward and they're really seem to be no noticeable delays.

My friend Angela (FillMeUp), who was my host for Mardi Grass, was kind enough to pick me up for the airport since she had the day off. On the way downtown to check into the hotel we did some last-minute shopping and picked up some necessary supplies the weekend. we met several of the hashers from the Ft. Walton area for lunch in the French quarter. I went back to the hotel to crash for awhile so I can get some sleep before the evening partying, and was later able to see a friend, Ina, I met during my last visit. We have kept in touch a bit since March, and even though her youngest daughter is leaving home next weekend for college, she was able to come out and join us for some of the hash events. We all headed over to Tuckers on Magazine Street for the free pre-run party that was a chance for some people to show off their weekend outfits in a fashion show as well as trade any old ones. While there, a wedding party showed up for drinks. After a while, as an act of randowmess, I asked the waitress tell me what they were drinking and bought the bride and groom a drink and presented it to them. I may not believe in karma per se, but I do think such gestures really an make someone's day memorable.

Saturday morning I had to get a relatively early in order to help some friends get together their outfits. Since at sometime I apparently had professed myself as an expert finger painter in kindergarten, I was drafted to get up early Saturday morning and assist some friends in putting together their 'outfit' of liquid latex. This was almost every bit like finger painting including the massive mess and relative skill in getting almost as much of the rubbery substance on me as on the subject. While it took several hours of mixing, painting, drying, and reapplying, I think everyone attending the event would agree that it was an overwhelming success. We headed over to the run start to socialize for a while a good chance to meet with everyone. Our cabdriver thought that we were probably pretty strange until we rounded the corner and saw a group of two to three hundred other runners also wearing red dresses. One thing I like about the New Orleans hash is that they are runners and I certainly was not disappointed at this event with the 4 to 5 mile trail that we did throughout the day. The trail ran through the Riverwalk mall area, with the expected security guard confusion and panic as 400-500 people unexpectedly ran through, as well as several parts of the downtown and French quarter area. The beer stops were certainly plentiful with our stopping at several of the locations that we visited last year along with surprises along the way, including a kiddie pool being pulled on a trailer in which folks could cool off! One of the bars even had a mechanical bull that seemed to be irresistible to many of the group. I was able to stay on a but longer than I would have expected due to a decent amount of skill and luck. Actually I was aided by the fact that I have long legs and was able to hook the edges of my shoes underneath the mechanical bull to help stay on until the operator caught on and threw me off using centrifugal force by spinning me around. We eventually got back to Tucker's for a catered dinner and a bit of partying, and even volleyball, for the rest of the evening. Just by chance, I found out that there was a concert right across the street that one of my Friends was Tampa was attending. one of our hashers knew someone that knew someone, and through some sheer luck I was able to get inside to catch some of the performance by 'Better than Ezra', though I was not able to find my friend in the crowd. After that we headed over to Tucker's and hung out until about 2 a.m. before deciding to call it a night. Since I am almost always the driver/hair holder/voice of reason for my friends in need, it was a good to have someone look out for me since by this point I wasn't in much of a state to do anything, and pretty much passed out as soon as we got back to the hotel room (if not quite well before then, but that's another story that shallt be committed to print).

My Tampa friends had to leave early Sunday since they needed to drive back home, so the rest of the group and I had lunch (having completely passed every establishment's posted breakfast hours) and headed over to Southport Hall to check out a concert. when we got there, the Ft. Walton group decided to head back home since many of them had to work or get on with things done while Angela was starting to get tired and wanted to go home. I decide to hang out and and listen to the bands as I did not have anything else planned that day. I had seen 'Bag of Donuts' at a Lundi Grass performance last year and wanted to get a chance to see them again while I was in town. Pelicanpalooza was a fund raising event for a summer camp for children with respiratory illnesses and head several well-known area cover bands performing. They and the other bands, such as 'The Molly Ringwalds', 'Five Finger Discount', 'The Topcats', and 'Contraflow', put on a great show and had the crowd dancing and chanting for more. Even after 'Contraflow', the last band of the evening (with an amazingly talented lead singer), finished their last planned song there were several people chanting 'one more song' and were delighted when the group unpacked the instruments they just put away and belted out one more number. Impromptu things like this are what make local concerts so memorable! After that was over, I decided to walk back to the Garden District where Angela lived since it was only about 4 miles away, I decided to walk back so I could check out the area a bit more and stop for dinner. After finally getting in I took a quick shower, hit the Bulldog for a beer for traditions sake (since I had done so every time I've been there) and crashed. It was a great weekend and I met so many people and had an absolute blast. It is great to be able to experience so many good time with friends and just be able to meet so many strangers and establish a connection or friendship. I don't think I'll be able to get to New Orleans as often in the future, but hope to make it at least once a year and will probably aim to make it to one of the weekends of Jazz Fest next year.
Kudos to anyone that knows, without using Google, the song from where the lyrics in my subject line originate.