Rockland and Pemaquid Point - Day 6

Well, the weather finally turned on us. Today was muggy, off-and-on rain, and a high of only 63. Granted it's a refreshing taste of change considering the 90's we're used to, but I guess even the local's said it's kinda dreary even for them. But, it's a good thing we went on that schooner ride yesterday because we were cold enough yesterday, today would've been downright miserable I'd bet.

Today we ventured up US-1. Our original plans were just to visit the Pemaquid Point lighthouse, arguably Maine's most famous light, and then head home; however, Michael (the Inn owner) said that's a short day trip and that we could probably make it to Rockland AND Pemaquid both...so we did. Rockland's a town about 45 minutes from here. You travel through some very pretty countryside to get there. The crag's of Maine's shoreline extend up to 30 miles inland making them more like fjord's than inlets. But because of that and the expense of bridges, to go to the next island over, usually you have to go up and around. When we made it to Rockland, we first stopped at the Lighthouse museum. Very interesting and we learned some cool stuff about lighthouse keepers. The chamber of Commerce guy then told us that there was a schooner race at noon that we should check out. So we wandered up to the jetties and lighthhouse to watch them, but they took too damn long and we ended up leaving and heading over to Owl's Head Light. Very pretty light high up over the entrance to Penobscot bay.

After leaving there, we left to go get some lunch. I went to pay and realize I lost my debit card earlier that day. Thankfully I remembered my credit union's number and had them cancel my card. They also referred me to a network credit union here in Rockland so I could still withdraw money. The whole debacle cost me 15 minutes, tops. Thank God.

After this, we headed back towards home and pulled off at Pemaquid. It's an incredible lighthouse also located on top of a cliff, but this one juts out into the ocean more so there were huge waves crashing up against the rocks and the cliff. I stepped down onto the rocks to get better pictures and a guy that worked there yelled at me to come back up as supposedly recently a grandmother was killed trying to rescue her grandson who wandered too close to the water. It's not that it's deep there, but it's a 12 foot tidal change and the surge usually bashes you into the rocks and you end up getting sucked under some rocks and will drown. I'll take their word for it.

We got back to Boothbay and headed out to dinner. Being our last night, I had to get lobster again 'cause I liked it so much. Michael recommended a place called Robinson's Wharf just outside of town on Southport Island. So we ventured there and a sign outside said "twin lobster dinner for $18.95" I'd be stupid not to, right? I think 'cause I knew what I was doing, it just made the lobster tastier. The only reason I'm telling you about dinner is that when I heard my number called, I went to get Becky's and then pick up mine at a seperate window. In the 3 seconds I turned my head some old lady grabbed my food and seriously was eating it that quickly. I went to the guy at the window and said "That lady picked up my lobster I think...can I get mine?" He says "Well go get it from her!". I said "Uhhh, no...would you make me a new one please?" He says "well did she start eating it yet?" I'm looking at this guy like 'are you kidding me?'. But after all this, he eventually caved and gave me my twin lobster...and maaaaaaaaan, were they good.

Tomorrow, off to Rhode Island.

Boothbay Harbor - Day 5

Today we woke up late, got our first breakfast at the Bed and Breakfast. Home-made chocolate chip Belgian waffles...yum. Well, because the weather is supposed to suck tomorrow, we changed our plans and went out on the the Schooner Eastwind for a ride around Boothbay. The views were incredible. And the ship was amazing. Herb and Doris (our guides) hand built this ship along with 6 others over their lives. Two of them they have sailed around the world twice. 4 trips around the world in a 60' sailboat. I was telling Becky...I'm adventurous, but I honestly don't think I could do that. Evidently some rich couple paid them a crap load of money to take them around the world as customers even.

Anyway, the ride itself was amazing. They took us through the harbor where we saw literally thousands of lobster pots, we saw harbor seals in the water, harbor seals basking on the rocks, porpoises, and seagulls. Because the sailboat was whisper quiet, we really could take in nature that much more.

We sailed south to Damariscove Island where evidently some crazy dude lives. All the islands out here are privately owned. Another stat that blew me away was if you stretched the entire coastline of Maine out (including the islands) it would be 7000 miles of coastline. Considering it's only about 150 miles from the Southern tip of Maine to Lubec on the border, that gives you a sense of how many crags and islands there are here.

After the schooner tour, we just took it easy and drove around the East and West Boothbay areas. The only other highlight really was visiting the Maine aquarium. It's quaint...unlike Atlanta's. It's a one-room building but they have marine life we don't have down there obviously. Specimens include a 25 pound lobster, dogfish (which are actually sharks) and all the local crustaceans you'd see in the tidal zones (baby lobsters, starfish, horseshoe crabs, etc). They also had a blue lobster that you could touch and pick up amazingly.

Very neat day. Tomorrow off to Pemaquid Point.

Boston to Boothbay - Day 4

Day 4 - Boston to Boothbay

The day started pretty early for me...for some reason I woke up at 7:15 and couldn't get back to sleep. We packed up our stuff, got a taxi over to the airport to get our car, and off to Boothbay Harbor we went. It took about 3 hours to get here. Boothbay is everything, and I mean everything I had imagined. It is quinessential coastal Maine, complete with seagulls, lobster buoys on houses, light houses, and the smell of a salt air that we don't get down South. I stepped out of the car and immediately hear the sound of seagulls that I haven't heard in 16 years. It was very nostalgic.

My highlight of today was suprising Becky with our stay at the Welch House Inn. I had told her we were staying at the Boothbay Motor lodge and prepped her for staying at place that looks like a dump. When we pulled in, she was confused as to why we were stopping, but then I got out and said surprise!". Obviously she was very happy. So we check in and it turns out they did mess up our room reservation. Not the end of the world...we're just staying in a room with 2 double's instead of a king. But the view is INCREDIBLE. We are on the top of a hill that overlooks all of Boothbay Harbor. Just beautiful.

After checking in, we wandered down to the wharf area. It's your typical tourist trap I suppose, but in a quaint way. There are tons of shops with lots of crafts, arts, etc. We actually had a chance do to a couple games of Candlestick bowling. If you've never heard of it, it's like regular bowling I supposed, but you get the pins look like candlesticks, you get 3 balls per frame instead of 2, and the balls themselves are about the size of a canteloupe. So we played 2 games of that which was a lot of fun. Here's the shocker...Becky beat me. She finally has a sport where she owns me. Good job Becky!

After our adventure in candlestick bowling, we were pretty hungry and we hadn't eaten a good meal all day, so off we were to eat our first lobster ever. We stopped at Boothbay's most famous lobster joint, the Lobster Dock. We told them that we had no idea what we were doing, but they assured us we'd be fine. The lobster came out with an instructions sheet, a bib, and a lobster fork...and butter. That's all we needed! Honestly, it was quite easy to eat; and as tasty as I thought it'd be. It did taste like crab...to me anyway. Becky handled it just fine, but she said she did have a hard time eating something she knew was alive minutes ago. But she got over it. So, yes, we had our lobstah dinnah. Check that off our list.

The picture taking here is almost too easy. There's a shot everywhere you go. Look on my picture page for my favorites. Until tomorrow...

Boston - Day 3

Okay, I changed my mind from day 1. There's a reason I live in the South. As funny as the crasspersonalities are, it does kind of wear on you. I guess we Southerners just a bunch more social creatures and can handle small talk. At the Red Sox game, there I was all by myself craving for someone to talk baseball with. I tried finding something in common...yelling any cheer, commenting onbig plays, etc.; but not a single person recognized my existence let alone talked back. I thought"do I smell?", did I accidentally say "Let's go Yankees"? I didn't think so. But I realized, that's just the way they are around here I guess. But nonetheless, I can't let that ruin my experience because Fenway is every bit as magical an experience as I expected it to be. The place justoozes baseball and the history of baseball. And I will say the fans live and die the Red Sox...much the way I have the love for my Dawgs. I definitely appreciate the passion. But anything that could go my way, went my way. I got there early enough to enjoy the stadium, got a Fenway Frank,took some pictures, got to see Manny and Papi hit a homer, and see the Sox win 4-0.

But alas, Fenway wasn't my only highlight of the day. Becky wasn't feeling too well and stayed backin the room to recover. I fret to say I took advantage of this, but I did. There's no way shecould have kept up with me the rest of the day. Immediately after we parted ways, I took off on the "T" and headed up the red line to Harvard and took a bunch of pictures. Harvard and UGA, honestly,look almost identical. Sure the college is more expensive and the kids may be a hair smarter, butall in all, it was like touring UGA. However, I will admit that UGA doesn't quite have the history andstories that Harvard does...but hey, they've been open 150 years longer.

After my travels at Harvard, I took off for the North End. This is the Italian district of Boston andboy howdy was it. Walking around, I swear to you people were talking in Italian, there were more Italian flags than American, and there were over 100 Italian restaurants in about 2 square miles. I took part in one them and ate at CitySearch.com's #1 Pizza establishment, Pizzeria Regina. Honestto God, it was the best pizza I have ever eaten, and I am very picky with my pizza. We don't knowpizza in the South, y'all. Nothing even comes close. The only bad thing was they didn't have it bythe slice, so I had to order a large pizza for just one. I'm sure I looked like a glutton, but I didn't care. Also, after I left, I had to tote around a pizza box while touring the rest of North End. Again, totally worth it.

But my night ended in Fenway...which I've already touched on. Tomorrow, we leave for Maine.

Boston - Day 2

Man, I think I found an even better diet plan. The Boston Diet...walk for a mere 11 hours, only eating light fare (because that's all we can afford) and sleep. I have to be down another 5 pounds since I arrived.

What a day. We slept in until, oh, 9:00 or so and off we went. We had a plan of course, but when the temperature was supposed to climb to 90, we decided to change it up a bit. The MBTA has a 7-day plan for unlimited rides for $15.00. 7 trips and it pays off. If you ever come here for more than a day, you need to do it. So we elected to go with the Duck tour today rather than Monday. We headed to the Prudential center to buy our tickets but unfortunately the next trip wasn't available until 4:30. We get back on the "T" and get off at the North End station. From there it was a 10 minute walk to the USS Constitution.

Walking to the COnstitution was fun in itself. You cross a bridge that takes you right over the Charles River and then it's a few hundred feet from there. Old Ironsides was every bit as astounding as they say it is. Georgia got its props because the wood from St. Simons and Jekyll Island was used for the planks and the hull. The wood from the Live Oak was the strongest wood there was. It got its name because cannonballs from enemy ships bounced off her wooden hull as if it were made of Iron. But to see it there, knowing the ship had been built 1797, just made it more amazing.

After the Constitution, we hopped on the "T" ferry which took us down towards the aquarium. On the boat, this old lady looks at me and says "Is your last name Murphy? Where'd you get that shirt?" I'm like "huh?" She thought Dropkick Murphys was a bar and she wanted the shirt since her maiden name was Murphy. Actually I think it'd be pretty funny to see an old lady with an Irish/Ska Punk band T-shirt.

We then took a trip on the Boston Duck tours. These are world famous. They're
vintage 1940's WWII amphibious vehicles that have been modified to tourist standards. The concept is you view all of Boston's historical sites from the land, then splash into the Charles River and see 'em from the water. Pretty neat.

After the duck tour we took a nice long break for dinner and relaxation. Boston's a great town to unwind in. There's a park somewhere close to you no matter where you are.

At 9:00, we took a Ghosts and Graveyards tour. Interesting, but not the best I've ever taken. The guy was more concerned with being in character than telling us stories about ghosts. But it was entertaining I suppose. We went into Copp's Hill Burying ground in the middle of the night. That was cool. We learned about the Boston Strangler, Lizzie Borden, and other local ghost stories.

The ghost tour was 90 minutes, so by the time we got back to our hotel, it was
11:15 at night. We were exhaused. Better charge up for tomorrow.

New England Trip Day 1 (Atlanta to Boston)

Well, today's the day I've been looking forward to for, oh, about 6 months. I was almost like a kid last night. You know that feeling you got before a big trip where you couldn't sleep because you're so excited? That was me.

So the day began quite early...you never know with the Atlanta Airport. Better safe than sorry. So we got to the airport around 8 and checked in pretty quickly. We were at our gate by 9. So we had to wait an hour and 20 minutes for the flight, big deal. But thankfully Airtran was on time. Speaking of Airtran, today I have to say I was very impressed. Not only did we leave on time, but it's like the pilot customized the trip for me. We flew over Washington DC, Philadelphia, Manhattan, ducked right over Connecticut, and headed up Naragansett Bay in Rhode Island. I could almost identify every landmark between Washington and here. Actually here's pretty much what I saw when flying over NYC:

My View from the plane

When we got into Boston, the pilot was quick to announce that we were 40 minutes early! What a help that was too!

So we get a cab right outside the gate. Mind you this is Becky's first trip to New England. Steph and I even told Becky that people up here aren't exactly as civil to each other as they are down in the South. Well not 20 minutes after we land, we're in our cab and we're just about to get to our hotel and the cabbie cuts off a city bus. The bus driver pulls up next to us at the next light and says "Where do you think you're going, f**kface?!?!" Yes, the busdriver of a city bus says this. The cabbie is quick to yell out "F**K YOU!" right back at him. God, what a great city! I belong here. HA!

So the hotel is really nice. Tiny, but nice. It's right downtown, so the location is unreal. We pack up and head out on our mission is Cheers. To get there we walk right through Boston Public Garden. It's a gorgeous place. You'd never know you're in the city honestly. I've never been to Central Park, but I'd presume it's similar. Cheers itself was fun, but every bit the gimmick you'd think it was. $30 for lunch...no alcohol. But how often are you at a bar famous for a show that ended, what, 16 years ago? :-) Even the valet guy admitted he'd never even seen the show because he's too young. Kids these days...

After Cheers, we took a walk up Beacon Hill, saw the capitol building and then mosied over to Grannary Burial Ground. This is where Paul Revere, John Hancock, Mother Goose, and some other famous old people are buried. The gravestones were really really cool...obviously original as they were faded and hardly legible. It was amazing to see "d. 1734" on a gravestone. I guess we'd have that too in Atlanta if Sherman hadn't gone and burned down everything.

Later we went and toured the Beacon Hill area. This is where the likes of John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, and other well-to-do type people live. Becky and I ran across a real estate rental ad that said only "$3,000 per month". Cheap, eh? We then had dinner at a little Italian joint named Antonio's. It was good, and cheaper than Cheers...go figgah.

After dinner, we went and watched a free concert over at the city park over on the Charles river. Honestly, it was a lot of fun and we just watched the sun set while the music played. After that, we wandered back over to Beacon Hill, got some ice cream and sat and ate it in the Boston Public Garden. I think that's gonna be our go-to place to unwind...it really is a neat place.

So here I am, back in the room, ready to hit the hay. I wore Becky out already and she's out cold. It's only day 1 too...she'd in for a world of hurt. Vacationing Malmquist style is anything but relaxing. But hey...you can relax when you retire. Alright...off to the Irish Pub downstairs to watch the rest of the Sox game. Update: Sox won!!

A fan of Google, I am, yes...

Anyone that knows me knows that I pimp the crap out of Google. I don't know if it really IS the best set of applications out there, but it is almost as if they designed everything for me.

In fact I recently stumbled across some secret transcripts not officially released to the public. It went something like this (I swear!)

New associate: "Mr. Page, Mr. Brin...I have developed a new application for Google use. It allows you to get directions from anywhere, to anywhere, accurately and with a nice interface, down to the utmost details...it's really incredible. We could call it Google Maps"

Larry Page: "I think it's crap! No one will ever use it"

Sergei Brin: "I agree, Lar...it sucks ass"

New associate: "Really? I think ScubaDawg97 would love it."

Sergei and Larry (both): "Oh, really? Well in that case, let's roll with it"


Okay, believe it or not, this conversation did not actually happen. I did make it up. I'm sorry, I know you're devastated. But seriously....it's not just Google Maps. It's Google everything. I use Picasa, Maps, Earth, Docs, Mail, Images, Reader, and even search the internet with it believe it or not.

But yeah, I guess Google Maps is my favorite app of the entire Google Suite. So if you haven't checked out "My Maps" on Google Maps, give it a whirl. To do this you must have a Google Account.

• Go to Google Maps
• Click on the 2nd tab that says "My Maps"
• Select the link right underneat that says "Add Content"
• Select any application that suits your fancy. I personally liked Distance calculator, the Long Distance tool, Panoramio, and Dig a Hole through the Center of the Earth.

Try it out.

Went to the Ga. Tech - NCST game last night

A few observations:


1. Tech fans suck, period. I really think that they should stick to calculus or magnetics or whatever the hell they do. To say they were uneducated about football would be an understatement. I think at freshman orientation, they teach them to automatically emulate the "pass interference" motion any, and I mean ANY time Tech drops or misses a pass. Only one time did they have a legitimate argument, and only because of the incessant booing, I think the refs gave in. Also, overhearing some of the "fans" around me doing their playcall suggestions just magnified how stupid I think they are. It’s fourth and 2 "I think an end around would work here…they’d never expect it". Unbelievable.

2. Tech fans suck, part 2. Tech "trash talk" is comical. They haven’t quite left high school yet. Case in point: adding the word "sucks" to the end of every NC State cheer, such as "Let’s go Wolfpack" "SUCKS!". Good one, nerds. Also, they really have an inferiority complex when it comes to fans of other teams. I wore "neutral" colors and watched Tech fans dish it out to Pack fans. But then at the end of the game, POOF, they were gone. Wow, imagine that.

3. Tech fans suck, part 3. There’s 2 minutes left. You have the ball on a game winning drive. You know what seems like a good idea? Leaving the game. I couldn’t believe how many people left the game early. It was a steady stream of people. Well, I guess if you got a long night of reading the new Harry Potter novel, you can’t start at midnight. So, my bad.

4. Reggie Ball really sucks. Sucks long. Sucks hard. I mean even Tech fans admit this but they try to paint him as a poor kid stuck in a bad system. No, he just sucks. Countless overthrows, under-throws, misread routes. Chan Gailey can thank Ball alone for his firing at the end of this season.

5. Calvin Johnson is a stud. He is literally the only Tech player that scares me. No one else. Some of his catches were astounding. We still win by 40 points.

6. Some Georgia fans are stupid and they embarrass me. I’m a die hard Dawg. I bask in every moment of Tech misery. I hope they go 0-11 every year. I went to this game just to pull against Tech hoping my being there impacted the game’s end (obviously it did). Wearing a "G" shirt is fine, but be prepared to get yelled at. But some UGA fans there were chanting "Overrated" 3 minutes into the game, screaming "51-7 part two!!", openly blaring out how lame Tech is in every aspect. Basically poking the hornet’s nest, literally. Then when this one kid is pestering me to join him in ridiculing Tech, he was shocked when I just ignored him. I’m sitting on the edge of the stadium, dude. I’m not getting thrown over because you’re a dumbass. To go there and start screaming "…nothing finer in the land, than a drunk obnoxious Georgia fan" in the middle of the Tech student section? If you die, you deserved it. You got way bigger balls than I.

7. Never, and I mean NEVER, underestimate the power of Georgia Tech football. Just when NC State was looking like they were gonna give it up, they throw down the gauntlet and execute a bomb PERFECTLY. The next drive, Tech has to punt and hope the defense holds. They were able to get the ball back with 2 minutes. To that point, Tech had been running over the Wolfpack D. They get closer and closer, tearing the Wolf D a new one. The Wolfpack fan next to me is going apes**t saying "Oh man, we suck, we’re gonna lose, this in unreal, we had it in the bag" etc., etc. I told him "It’s not over yet…this IS Georgia Tech football. Strange things happen to this team" He rolled his eyes at me looking at me like I was nuts. 3 plays later "INTERCEPTION!!! TOUCHBACK!!! OH MY GOD!!!! WHAT THE F**K JUST HAPPENED?" I hit him on the shoulder and and looked at him as if to say "Told ya so". He looked at me like I was some kind of god. What he didn’t know is, I am.

8. Lastly, it’s DAMN GOOD TO BE A GEORGIA BULLDAWG!!!

Gas Prices

If you know me well, you know I like to bitch a lot. Today's topic: Gas Prices. On the Dawgvent (to your right is a link) I got hammered for bitching about gas. They said "Well you shouldn't own an SUV then!" Bullsh*t! When I bought that thing, gas was $1.19 a gallon. Gas was very affordable. Now gas is, what, $2.99 today. Let's do some math:

20 gallons a week
52 weeks a year
Before: 1040 gallons @ 1.19 = $1237 a year
After: 1040 gallons @ 2.99 = $3109 a year

This is for one car. My other car is about half the capacity. This is $2500 roughly per year difference for two cars! Do you know what I could do with $2500? Ugh.