I have to say, Louisiana (my first “new” state on this trip) has been quite exciting. I love the countryside, the wonderful people, the Mississippi River. I don’t love the car carrier on our Penske Truck (the only thing I would give them a thumbs down on so far…and it probably has more to do with the MINI that anything else).

After speaking with Ian on Monday, we came down to Baton Rouge (”Red Stick” en francais) yesterday. It was an easy and wonderful drive. I, being me, forgot to write down the Lamar HQ address, so oops. I called Lamar in Portland and surprised them by asking for the address of HQ. Once we figured out where that was, we rocked by in our yellow truck (or “Miami Assault Vehicle” as Jenny has dubbed it) and tooted the horn as the whole Portland crew happened to be out front on a break from their training. Kinda surreal.

Ian gets us our room key and a note describing just all of the benefits Jenny and I were to get: hotel, happy hour, dinner, breakfast, huge celebration dinner today, etc. Ian, I love you. Lamar, thanks!

Jenny and I drove over to our hotel (directly across the street) and noticed that the truck wouldn’t fit, no way, no how. So, we drove around the block and found the Marriot, which had a huge parking lot. I decided to put on my Bambi eyes (I’m good at that, really) and waltzed into their lobby. I asked in the kindest of ways if we could usurp a good 5 or 6 parking spots in their lot. The guy said “no.” Then I asked if I could pay him for a spot. “Nope.” After I sighed, bowed my head, and began my slow swivel to retreat in defeat, he buckled. He told us we could have two spots, and to make ourselves inconspicuous.

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This headline was the closest I could get to the title of Peter Weir’s classic film. Yesterday was itself quite cinematic considering what we saw out the windshield.

We started out from our hotel in Dalhart, TX and headed south. We were determined to see this monument of Cadillacs. After a few wrong turns and trips down endless dirt roads, we finally found it (hint, it is right next to the interstate). I must be perfectly honest – though cool, the planted cars were definitely very, very, strange.

We headed east from there toward Wichita Falls where I bought the sexiest cowboy boots that have ever been made. I’d always wanted a pair, and this was finally my chance. They feel good, they look great, and I know they’ll help me fit in in Miami.

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Live from Dalhart Texs, good morning. The whole scenario has changed a bit on this trip. Jenny and I left Colorado Springs after the wedding (more on that later) and headed SOUTH, ’cause god’s wintery wrath was a bit too intimidating.

So, we headed down I-25 next to some of the most gorgeous mountains I’ve ever seen and crossed into the enchanted New Mexico. I love New Mexico, but sadly there isn’t much to see in the northeast New Mexico at 4:30pm on a Sunday. So, we pressed on east towards Texas, because no trip is complete without a jaunt through the land of flat, empty, wide-open spaces. Oh, but there are cows. Lots and lots of cows. And when you can’t see them, you can smell them. It makes the thought of getting a hamburger completely unappetizing.

This morning, we head out to the Cadillac Monument. Ever seen photos of these classic beauties planted nose-first in the ground? No? I’ll take some and post them soon. It’s bound to be a weird.

The wedding was simply superb. My cousing Amy met an awesome photographer in New York, named Alex, and they tied the not in this really beautiful adobe church. And the reception was in a nice dinner hall next door. The band rocked, the Salmon kicked butt and the drinks were served well into the night. If only I could go to parties like that more often.

And, I got to see my excellent friend Jason, who was on AdTeam with me back at the U of O. He’s a crazy, brilliant, wonderful guy that somehow ended up in Colorado Springs. I hadn’t seen him since graduation day. So, we went out for lunch and caught up for what little time we had.

This is the trip thus far. I have tons more photos, but they take so long to upload from this computer, and we’ve been rushing out the door most mornings. This is why I have not proof read anything. Sorry for the grammar errors; hopefully there aren’t none that are two egregious.

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Day 4

Jenny and I are safely in Colorado Springs, but only due to diligence, perseverance, talent, potato chips and a smidgen of good luck. Most of the luck has been somewhat lousy.

Check out the photos, read the story, have a good time.

We started off in the snow in Portland. That wasn’t a great sign. It snowed all the way the first day, and neither of us knew how this 16-foot truck with MINI in tow would perform on the slicks. We arrived at Meacham Pass on I-84 (our first big uphill) and noticed a good deal of accumulated snow forming. But, the motto was press on. It was kinda scary, but we made it to Ontario ’cause we’re rock stars.Day two was from Ontario to Rock Springs, WY…barely.

We headed out across Idaho and the potato state showed its true colors: snow drifts and mega-frightening cars crashed on the other side of the road. When we got to Ogden, UT, we really started to climb. The roads were just getting worse and worse and worse. Finally, just past Evanston, WY the truck started to slide on the ice that had formed over the road. Not cool.

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In the event that I get to drive to Miami, here’s a proposed route. It would take me though the following cities:

Lakeview, OR
Wendover, NV
Colorado Springs, CO
Cawker City, KS [that's where the world's largest ball of twine is...and I'm dying to see it again]
Wichita, KS [I make fun of it so much, it's time I pay the city another visit]
Dallas, TX
Shreveport, LA
New Orleans, LA [never been before]
Tallahassee, FL
Miami, FL

Whatcha make of dat?

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Hey all. Hope your last 24 hours was as exciting as mine. I traveled around 5,000 miles for one of the greatest interviews I’ve ever had. Still don’t know the outcome, but I should find out soon. It was odd being in Miami, especially for such a short period of time. I was up pretty early yesterday morning at about 6am EST as I knew that the wee hours were the only time I was going to get to wander around to look at stuff. So, while I was out, I got this shot. Kinda looks like Florida, doesn’t it?

Anywho, it was a great trip. I’m exhausted from all the travel, but it was well worth it. I’ll check in when I hear more.

Well hello my dears. I’m currently just killing time at good ol’ PDX waiting for my flight to Miami. That’s right, Miami.

I’m headed out there for an interview at the numero uno ad agency del mundo, and I felt that’s a good enough reason to go to Miami. The weather is somewhere between 70 and 80 (but with spots of rain). Everywhere I go, rain rain rain. Tomorrow is supposed to be quite nice, though. 80’s and sunny. That’s my kind of February.

I’ll let you all know what happes as it happens (or within a reasonable amount of time). Peace out.

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Gutten day, all. I am now back in Portland after a much enjoyed trip to San Francisco.

I’ve not made mention of this, but I am soon departing my job…like on Wednesday, to be specific. I’ve been keen on a particular advertising school in San Francisco (aptly named the Miami Ad School) for quite some time now and am deciding that now might be as good a time as any to get my backpack back out and head back to class (say that 3 times fast).

So, I phoned up my dear McGill friend Gisele and told her I was a comin down for a visit. She and her family were overly kind in hosting me. Cheers!

I packed up my bags, filled up my tank and headed south on Thursday mid-morning. Google tells me it was a 646 mile journey that would take “10 hours and 1 minute” to complete. They were only off by an hour or so. I have to tell you, 11 hours in the car, by yourself, with nothing to keep you sane is a nigh impossible task. But, I made it.

On Friday I had my interview at the school. It went strikingly well, I felt. After that, I meandered around town in the rain, poking my head into various nifty shops. That evening, I met Gisele at the Canadian Consulate (where she works) and headed out for a night on the town with all her friends. And, I got to see Max again, who was an old McGill friend of mine too. Hadn’t seen him in ages!

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If you’re a helpless tech geek like me; if you are simply fed up with the way the airways are handled in the States like me; or if you just like clicking online petitions like me, then you’ll like this…like me.

Virgin America (a branch of Sir Richie Branson’s Virgin Group) has been denied permission to set up shop here in the states. The US Department of Transportation requires that all domestic airlines meet certain criteria, and one of those is that they be US-based. Despite VA’s US-based ownership and control, the company claims that immediately upon filing the requisite papers various US “legacy” carriers (you know, all those ones that are in bankruptcy right now) filed opposition briefs, effectively derailing VA’s application process. Of course, this being America, there’s an appeals process and VA is asking for your help.

Why would you want more competition in the domestic airline business? I, for one, believe that these legacy carriers are suffering from their self-caused problems and failures to adapt to a changing marketplace. Take a look at jetBlue, for example. Here’s a new-ish airline that arrived on the scene with smart ideas and offered services that people wanted and would pay for. The result is that they have been one of the few succesful airlines in the past few years. The older carriers, once comfortably situated in their long-standing roles, never moved swiftly to meet the new demands of the air travel business. Result? They’re in the same boat as the Detroit automakers.

Branson’s airline (and business group as a whole) has been successful because they meet their consumers’ needs and provide innovations and services that people actually want. Nobody likes getting barked at by ticket agents. People gripe about losing precious inches in their economy seats. Not a soul is happy about paying for former-freebies. But, without competition, your Delta’s, United’s, American’s, and Northwest’s can get away with it. People need to fly. So, we typically just have to grin and bear it. VA is hoping to capitalise on that problem.

What if there’s even more fresh and new competition in the domestic airline business? What if there was an airline that provided an alternative approach and better service? Would you be interested in checking them out? Even if it might cost a few extra dinero’s? Many probably would.

And, if VA shows up and can’t hack it, then they get phased out. It’s just economics. And here, the traveller finally might get a bit more stock in how her or she travels. Check out LetVAFly.com and see if it might be worth signing their petition.

Thank you for flying ekasbury.com and have a nice day.

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Saturday, I had the wonderful opportunity to spend the day in the big city up north. Janelle, Loren, Megan, Vanessa, Skye and I piled into a giant Toyota and drove up. Most of the crew were headed to Bumbershoot (huge music festival), but Megan and I opted to wander around. We did all the usual Seattle stuff, so not much to report, except that it was a beautiful day and a breath of fresh air. One should take more day trips to Seattle – it’s not too far, and it’s a ton of fun.

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