I'll preface this with a warning, I'm in row 41F, in a large plane going from O'Hare to LAX, and usually F indicates a window, not the case on this oversized United POS, and I barely made this flight after running from terminal F to C after a 1hr delay in Buffalo. So I'm a little tilted. First complaint, I hate aisle seats, and even more so despise middle seats. My body has grown acclimated to shutting down in an airplane seat. I travel so much, put in long hours, switch times zones frequently, and use the small crevice between the seat and window as a bed. On the aisle, I'm in no man's land. Nothing provides comfort; not the army soldier on my left and especially not the inconsiderate passengers who feel it necessary to bump into me. Walk straight or diet. It's not that hard. These same people find it necessary to use your seat, in front of them, when getting up behind you, as support.

The 5 minute schpeel flight attendants give before every single fuckin flight I've ever been on (300+?) is so useless. We all know how to buckle the seatbelt. If we don't, we deserve to deal with the repercussions of not knowing how. We all know that the seat we're sitting on is also a floatation devise we never hope to see if it actually floats in freezing water somewhere in the middle of America, or worse, an ocean. I don't care that there are 4 exits on the plane, as I only plan on using one.

A funny drinking game to play on a plane is drink every time a flight attendant says "stow." This word is never used in normal day to day life, yet on a plane it's the golden word.

Me and my ipod are not going to bring the plane down. Why do I have to power this off? I hate to admit it but I've risked my life as well as the life of everyone on the plane quite a few times when I rebelliously left my ipod on, threw my hoodie over my head, and continued to listen to Chicago upon departure. And landing. We made it safely.

The guy 2 rows up in 39H doesn't fit in his seat and is wearing jean shorts. People on a plane that take up 1.5 seats should pay for 1.5 seats. People that take up 2 seats should be tossed in with the oversized luggage.

I noticed in the airport today on multiple occasions, groups of guys that are friends tend to dress identically. I find this hilarious. One group of 4 guys were wearing hats, striped Abercrombie shirts and kaki cargo shorts with running shoes. Another group had the same pale tan, blonde hair cut, flip flops and tshirts. Has anyone noticed that people that wear those teva looking sandals with 5 different straps are 100% always geeky? It never fails. There is nothing cool about these sandals. I'd rather wear crocs to be honest. Or just be bare foot.

Shouldn't a hamburger come with things like lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles? Always? I bought a hamburger yesterday in Irving, NY that had 2 buns and a patty. Aren't people who make and serve this embarrassed?

Toll roads are one of the top 5 things I dislike about the East Coast. I decided to drive from Buffalo over to Niagara to see the falls. You'd think this would be a cheap excursion, for something that is completely natural like waterfalls. I'm driving, talking on my phone, and hit a toll booth. Its $1 and I think I have $10 on me so I drive to the cash only booth. I pull up, check my pockets and realize I've lost that $10. And that I have no cash. So I put down the phone and ask her if she takes cards. She doesn't. She says she takes coins. So I get out of the hummer I rented, walk around to the trunk to see if I have change. People are now honking. I have 45 cents. She looks at me and says that's not good enough and requests my driver's license. She takes down when seems like every word on the license, gets out of her booth, writes down the license plate number and issues me a ticket. This is a 5 minute procedure. People behind me are beside themselves at this point. I think I see middle fingers in 5 straight cars. She tells me I can pay this on the way back, or mail it in within 5 days. $1.

I drive off and think; sure, I'll just pay it off on the drive back after I atm money somewhere. But wait, I paid down my credit card and have $14 in my checking account (this all happens the day before I get paid). The minimum atm withdrawal most likely will be $20. I'd overdraft if I did this. So I decide I'm not going to go this route and I'll just mail it in. But then I pull up to the bridge before the Canadian border that says I owe $3.25. I still haven't found money in-between the last toll and this. So I ask the girl, "Do you take cards?" Nope. "Will you take down my license info as well?" No. She makes the cars behind me reverse so I can reverse and pull parallel to a convenience store that has an atm. I overdraft. Which is probably like $30. So now I'm in for $34.25 to see the falls. I make it to Canada and park for $20 (they took Visa). $54.25 to see the falls and take pictures for about 15 minutes. Then I drove back. Here is the $54.25 picture.

On a happier note, a pic from the 4th of July in DC

And a beautiful Pittsburgh summer

I'm back in SB this week, before I head to Vegas for a wedding next weekend. Last weekend's scuba trip out to Anacapa Island was amazing. I got 4 dives in and generally had a great time. Once I buy a camera for underwater I'll probably dedicate a full blog to scuba diving. If you live near the water, I highly suggest getting certified.

This weekend has been relaxing thus far. Got the car washed, had a costco lunch, played 1100 hands of poker yesterday. I'm thinking about seeing "Inception" today since all I'm reading on facebook is about how good it is. I also intend to go buy some local art down at the beach. Until next time...