Tag / DLM

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Travelling The 50 States – Iowa

Over my now 48 years, I’ve done my fair share of travelling across these United States.  I thought it would be an interesting experiment go look back at those trips to each of the 30 states I have visited (60% isn’t bad, is it?) and see if, and when, I may be returning.  Working in alphabetical order, we start today with the 29th state to be added to the Union: Iowa.

State: Iowa
Joined the Union: 1846
Visits: 1

To the best of my knowledge, I’ve made a single trip to the Hawkeye State, coming in 2014 on the backend of a trip to Minneapolis with Danny and Michael to see the White Sox battle the Twins.  On the way up, we took the route through Wisconsin, so, to mix things up, we decided to come home through Iowa.  If I had it all to do over again, I would have made a different choice.

I’m sure there are things to do and/or see somewhere in Iowa, but we did not encounter any of them on the long drive back home.  When it came time to find something to eat, we eventually found an exit that contained a Steak ‘n Shake.  This is where things got a little more exciting.  The restaurant was next to a hotel that seemed to be holding a furry convention of some sort.  Some of the costumed folks had made their way over to the Steak ‘n Shake, which was very confusing for a young Mr. Michael, who had not yet reached his tenth birthday.  After some awkward questions, his curiosity seemed sated, we finished our meal, and then continued our long journey back to the loving arms of Illinois.

Will I return?  I’m sure there may be a reason to do so someday, but I have no current plans.

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Travelling The 50 States – Indiana

Over my 47 years, I’ve done my fair share of travelling across these United States.  I thought it would be an interesting experiment go look back at those trips to each of the 31 states I have visited (62% isn’t bad, is it?) and see if, and when, I may be returning.  Working in alphabetical order, we start today with the 19th state to be added to the Union: Indiana.

State: Indiana
Joined the Union: 1816
Visits: 1100+

From the fall of 1992 through the spring of 1997, I matriculated at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.  Accounting for breaks, weekends home, and other holidays, I estimate I would have spent over 1100 days in the Hoosier State.

While it is possible that I visited the state of Indiana at some time during my youth, given its proximity to the Chicagoland area, the first confirmed visit would have been in the early 90s, when I made my campus visit to Purdue.  I can’t say that i have any particular memories from this trip, but I’m fairly sure it happened.  Starting in August of 1992, West Lafayette became my home away from home for the next five years.  In December of 1993, I made my first visit to Indianapolis for a double header of Purdue women’s and men’s basketball at Market Square Arena.

As I was stopped at a gas station before getting on I-65 on my way home after graduation, I said that I would never return to the state of Indiana again.  That pledge lasted a little more than two years, as I returned to campus in September of 1999 to see Purdue defeat Notre Dame at Ross-Ade Stadium.  I would return again in December of 2000 for the final game of the season, seeing Purdue defeat IU and earn their first trip to the Rose Bowl since 1967.

My next trip to Indiana came in March of 2001, when I saw the Monkees at the Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville.  In November of 2004, I returned once again to my old stomping grounds to see Purdue once again defeat Indiana at Ross-Ade Stadium.  I made two football trips the following year, watching Purdue fall to Notre Dame in October and defeating Illinois in November.  In 2006, I made my first visit to South Bend with friends from work to see Notre Dame once again defeat the Boilermakers at Notre Dame Stadium.

My next trip to Indiana came in November of 2008, when Purdue managed to defeat Michigan at Ross-Ade Stadium.  The following September, it was another loss against Notre Dame.  In October of 2011, there was another family clash as Purdue defeated Illinois by a touchdown.  Two months later, I spent New Year’s Eve of 2011 at Mackey Arena, watching Purdue defeat the Fighting Illini in my first basketball game back on campus since graduating in 1997.  I returned a little more than a year later on the second day of 2013 for another successful tilt against the Illini at Mackey Arena.

In 2013, I made the mistake of returning to Ross-Ade stadium in September with a work friend, as her husband’s alma mater, Northern Illinois, throttled Purdue.  In March of 2015, a trip to Mackey Arena saw the basketball team beat the Illini, but the football tilt that November went the other way. Continue reading →

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FB8 – Week 36

After a late week surge last week, disappointment settled back in as I fell back below 30,000 steps.  Things got off to an ok start on Sunday, where I finished with 4100 steps after lunch in downtown Lafayette with Danny.  Monday fell off quite a bit, dropping to 3300 steps.  Tuesday was the high point of the week, finishing with a sad 4500 steps thanks in part to my first visit to an Allstate office since March of 2020.  Wednesday was the week’s low point, finishing with only 3000 steps.  Things started to improve again on Thursday, going up to 3300 steps.  Friday saw a nice jump, going up to 4100 steps. Saturday fell off a bit, finishing 10 steps shy of 3800.

Total steps: 26.298

Daily average: 3756.9

 

 

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Travelling The 50 States – Florida

Over my 47 years, I’ve done my fair share of travelling across these United States.  I thought it would be an interesting experiment go look back at those trips to each of the 31 states I have visited (62% isn’t bad, is it?) and see if, and when, I may be returning.  Working in alphabetical order, we start today with the 27th state to be added to the Union: Florida.

State: Florida
Joined the Union: 1845
Visits: 10 (at least)

At some point in the mid-1980s, my grandparents bought a condo in Clearwater, Florida, which has helped make the Sunshine State one of my most visited states.  I’m fairly certain my first trip there would have been in the summer of 1988 and my most recent was last year, with a number of visits in-between.

From what I can recall, my first trip to Florida came the summer of 1988, following my eighth-grade graduation.  I’m pretty sure a collection of seven family members got in the car the day after Mike Tyson’s 91 second knockout of Michael Spinks for the two-day drive to Clearwater.  I’m not clear on exactly how long we were there, but I know there was a one-day excursion to Disney World.  Aside from that, we saw all of the tourist attractions that my grandparents thought were interesting.  Which means nothing that was really all that interesting.

We made another trip two summers later.  I don’t remember much of this trip, aside from the trip home where we came up through southern Illinois and listened to the White Sox somehow beating the Yankees 4-0 despite being no-hit by Andy Hawkins.

My sister and I made a return trip over Christmas break in 1991, our first time on an airplane.  Again, I don’t have many vivid memories of the events of this trip.

My fourth trip to Florida came during March of 1997.  I had an interview with GTE Data Services and turned it into a mini-vacation during spring break, staying with my grandparents.  The highlight of the trip, aside from nailing the interview and getting a solid job offer, was a trip to Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota to watch a spring training tilt between the White Sox and the Twins. Continue reading →

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FB8 – Week 32

A trip down to some old haunts helped put me will over 30,000 for the week.  Things got off to a slow start on Sunday, where I finished with 3400 steps.  A slight increase on Monday saw a jump up to 4300 steps.  Tuesday was the low point of the week, falling down to 2900 steps.  Wednesday rebounded a but, rising back up to 3600 steps.  A trip down to West Lafayette for a Thursday night football game helped me surpass my daily goal, finishing with 8600 steps.  Breakfast with Danny combined with a Purdue volleyball game on Friday, not to mention the end of the previous night’s football game, left me with 6600 steps.  A thrilling White Sox game on Saturday left me 24 steps shy of 5700.

Total steps: 35,188

Daily average: 5026.9

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2022 College Football Kickoff

My alma mater, the Purdue Boilermakers, kick off their 2022 gridiron campaign tomorrow night, looking to improve upon last year’s first winning season since 2017.  With Danny now entrenched in the marching band, I’m sure to make it back for a few games this year after setting a career high with 3 games last year.  With that, it’s time to take a look at the results of the now 24 college football games I have attended since the 1993 season, covering 5 different stadiums in a whopping 2 states.

All-Time Team Records
Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Penn State Nittany Lions 1 0 1.000
Ohio State Buckeyes 1 0 1.000
Notre Dame Fighting Irish 4 1 0.800
Purdue Boilermakers 15 7 0.682
Northern Illinois Huskies 1 1 0.500
Illinois Fighting Illini 2 6 0.250
Western Michigan Broncos 0 1 0.000
Northwestern Wildcats 0 3 0.000
North Carolina State Wolfpack 0 1 0.000
Michigan State Spartans 0 1 0.000
Michigan Wolverines 0 1 0.000
Indiana Hoosiers 0 2 0.000
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Travelling The 50 States – California

Over my 47 years, I’ve done my fair share of travelling across these United States.  I thought it would be an interesting experiment go look back at those trips to each of the 31 states I have visited (62% isn’t bad, is it?) and see if, and when, I may be returning.  Working in alphabetical order, we start today with the 31st state to be added to the Union: California.

State: California
Joined the Union: 1850
Visits: 11

With eleven visits between 1998 and 2019, the Golden State is the state I have visited the most, outside of those I have lived in and/or attended college.

My first visit was in 1998 to attend Comic Con International in San Diego.  I went early, spending the entire week and enjoying some pre-Con time checking out the sights, including the San Diego Zoo.

I returned the following year for Labor Day weekend, but this time up to the San Francisco Bay area, to visit my old friend Scott, who had moved out there after graduating to work at AMD.  What I remember from that trip is my first Giants/Phillies tilt at the former Candlestick Park, my first trip to the toilet that at the time was called Network Associates Coliseum, and a car trip over the Golden Gate Bridge.

I returned to San Diego for Comic Con in 2000 and 2003.  I don’t remember much of the 2000 trip, but the 2003 trip included my one visit to the former Jack Murphy Stadium to see the Padres face the Diamondbacks.  At the Con, I managed to see many of the stars (or, at least, bit players) from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Smallville, and Tru Calling.

With the Cubs coming off their first division title since 1989 and a new stadium opening in San Diego, my friend Pete and I planned a trip for the Cubs mid-May road trip.  We attended all three games at PETCO Park, which the Cubs swept, while also taking in the local sights and the ambience of the Elephant and Castle bar in our hotel. Continue reading →

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FB8 – Week 29

A busy weekend helps rescue the week somewhat, pushing me back over 30,000 steps.  Things got off to a bad start on Sunday, as I finished 16 steps away from 2900.  Monday was even worse, dropping down to 2500.  Tuesday started a rising trend, jumping up to 3300.  Wednesday jumped up again, going up to 4200 steps.  A road trip to Indy to see Danny at the DCI Championships on Thursday came 24 steps shy of 5700.  A return to Lucas Oil Stadium on Friday for semis rose again, going up to 6800 steps.  An unexpected appearance in the Finals on Saturday led to another night in Indiana and 7300 steps.

Total steps: 32,835

Daily average: 4690.7