HockeyDude!: THE HOME STRETCH!!!

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

So the time has come for my adventure back to New Jersey!  Originally, the Navy had planned on providing me a plane ticket from San Diego to Philadelphia International, but I was informed today that due to costs of procuring a flight on short notice, that they will be sending me cross-country via Greyhound.  

Check out my itinerary:



It will certainly be quite the experience, to travel across our great land in the span of a single weekend.  I will provide updates, with my unique perspective on all the various stops I will make along the way.  Join me as I:

-sample various Western and heartland cuisines!
-try to find out what the matter with Kansas is!
-run into some Mormons in Utah!
-wear a Rangers jersey in Pittsburgh and Columbus!
-pass under the Gateway Arch and reenter the Eastern United States!
-pass time and chit chat with roadies and vagrants!
-throw down a cool $100 on a single hand of Blackjack in Vegas!
-make sweeping generalizations of entire states based on a single transient pit stop!
-Manning vs. Luck poll in Indy!

...I am greatly looking forward to sharing this journey and I hope you will join me!

[memphis]

Have you ever road tripped across America before? Most of the best scenery is in the Western part of the country. Your image didn't load properly on my computer, but I assume if you're passing through Utah and Kansas that you will be taking I-70 across Colorado. The Rockies end just before Denver and it's an endless stink of prairie after that point. Enjoy the mountains while you have them. The middle of the country is unbearable. Good luck to you. I once rode Greyhound from Richmond, VA to Memphis and that was more than enough bus for one lifetime.

[muon2]

When I was in graduate school I used Greyhound a number of times to get between Boston and St Paul. My advice is to pack quite a few snacks. If the schedule gets delayed you can find yourself in stations with nothing open or on a long stretch when it would be nice to munch. The overnight legs can be particularly dull, especially if you feel rested from a full day sitting. Bring something to keep you occupied.

[Joe Republic]

The Greyhound station in Vegas is next door to the Plaza casino, which sits at the top of Fremont St, so you won't have to walk very far to drop your $100!

[J-Mann]

Stop in KC and say hi if you have time.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Stop in KC and say hi if you have time.

I'll be in KC for about an hour Sunday morning at 7:30, J-Mann.  If you want to swing by the Greyhound bus station and have a breakfast burrito with me, I'm down. 

[memphis]

Do you get a chance to stay the night, shower, change clothes, etc at any point? You're going to be in rough shape if not. That trip has to be about 5 days by bus.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Do you get a chance to stay the night, shower, change clothes, etc at any point? You're going to be in rough shape if not. That trip has to be about 5 days by bus.

Only layovers ranging from 60 to 90 minutes, and the trip starts 4pm Friday and ends 1pm Monday.  I'll be sleeping on the bus (I'll buy an OTC sleep aid if I can't procure the thing I'm actually looking for) and freshening up in Greyhound station bathrooms.

Hey, 3 days on a bus beats 3 more miserable years in the worst reactor department in the Navy. 

[memphis]

I wish you the best. I know the Navy wasn't working out and you'll be glad to be home, so you'll have that to look forward to. Any plans for once you get back? I know of a great opportunity for unlimited income at a vaccuum cleaning company. Just PM me your Social Security and bank account numbers and I can you all set up.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

I wish you the best. I know the Navy wasn't working out and you'll be glad to be home, so you'll have that to look forward to. Any plans for once you get back? I know of a great opportunity for unlimited income at a vaccuum cleaning company. Just PM me your Social Security and bank account numbers and I can you all set up.

I've put in some applications at Federal agencies in Philadelphia, since...

1. I'd like to continue serving my country, albeit in a capacity suited for me.
2. I received a discharge under honorable conditions, giving me preference in applying, and with several references.
3. They do federal student loan forgiveness, like the military.
4. I have a chance to land a job at the GS-7 pay grade (45-50K to start) as I have some graduate school finished. 

However!  Now is not the time.  This thread is here to chronicle my journey across the continent.  I look forward to posting lots of pictures and commentary. 

[J-Mann]

Stop in KC and say hi if you have time.

I'll be in KC for about an hour Sunday morning at 7:30, J-Mann.  If you want to swing by the Greyhound bus station and have a breakfast burrito with me, I'm down. 

I'm up for that. You should add me on Facebook so I know who I'm looking for.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Stop in KC and say hi if you have time.

I'll be in KC for about an hour Sunday morning at 7:30, J-Mann.  If you want to swing by the Greyhound bus station and have a breakfast burrito with me, I'm down. 

I'm up for that. You should add me on Facebook so I know who I'm looking for.

When you see the bloke in the Rangers jersey, shout "Hockey Dude".  I will have it no other way.

[patrick1]

I wish you the best. I know the Navy wasn't working out and you'll be glad to be home, so you'll have that to look forward to. Any plans for once you get back? I know of a great opportunity for unlimited income at a vaccuum cleaning company. Just PM me your Social Security and bank account numbers and I can you all set up.

I've put in some applications at Federal agencies in Philadelphia, since...

1. I'd like to continue serving my country, albeit in a capacity suited for me.
2. I received a discharge under honorable conditions, giving me preference in applying, and with several references.
3. They do federal student loan forgiveness, like the military.
4. I have a chance to land a job at the GS-7 pay grade (45-50K to start) as I have some graduate school finished. 

However!  Now is not the time.  This thread is here to chronicle my journey across the continent.  I look forward to posting lots of pictures and commentary. 

GS-7 step one is only $41,797 in Philly. New and younger hires really only start at step ones.  With you completing college and some grad school you should aim for some higher grades. Just be aware that  the federal hire process is a cluster f* overall. Be prepared to wait...You'd probably want to get something in the interim if you need cash.

Have fun on your road trip.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

I wish you the best. I know the Navy wasn't working out and you'll be glad to be home, so you'll have that to look forward to. Any plans for once you get back? I know of a great opportunity for unlimited income at a vaccuum cleaning company. Just PM me your Social Security and bank account numbers and I can you all set up.

I've put in some applications at Federal agencies in Philadelphia, since...

1. I'd like to continue serving my country, albeit in a capacity suited for me.
2. I received a discharge under honorable conditions, giving me preference in applying, and with several references.
3. They do federal student loan forgiveness, like the military.
4. I have a chance to land a job at the GS-7 pay grade (45-50K to start) as I have some graduate school finished. 

However!  Now is not the time.  This thread is here to chronicle my journey across the continent.  I look forward to posting lots of pictures and commentary. 

GS-7 step one is only $41,797 in Philly. New and younger hires really only start at step ones.  With you completing college and some grad school you should aim for some higher grades. Just be aware that  the federal hire process is a cluster f* overall. Be prepared to wait...You'd probably want to get something in the interim if you need cash.

Have fun on your road trip.

It's an option, not necessarily the endgame.  It's all really about starting over in a way; go back to Summer 2010, and instead of delaying my entry into real world through more schooling I was somewhat unsure of (I think I just wanted to see if I could get into law school more than anything), and then following it up with a random foray into the Navy that I was seriously unsure of, get right back into that mode "I'm a college graduate, from a great university, I worked hard for this... now let's get a job I know I want." 

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

AND WE ARE UNDERWAY!  I make first reportings of America in San Bernardino, home of Inland Empire of Californias.  I finda more.   Jenqui!

[retromike22]

AND WE ARE UNDERWAY!  I make first reportings of America in San Bernardino, home of Inland Empire of Californias.  I finda more.   Jenqui!

It's a Southern California joke that San Bernardino doesn't actually exist, because a lot of people don't know anyone from that city and additionally that area has hardly anything of interest.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

AND WE ARE UNDERWAY!  I make first reportings of America in San Bernardino, home of Inland Empire of Californias.  I finda more.   Jenqui!

It's a Southern California joke that San Bernardino doesn't actually exist, because a lot of people don't know anyone from that city and additionally that area has hardly anything of interest.

I'll let you know if it's there when we arrive.  

And of course! First leg and I already have some drifter talking my ear off.  Why the hell are you darting off to San Bernardino with nothing but a dirty t-shirt, jeans, and shoes?  I'm going to tell him I don't do small talk; the awkward 10 seconds will be worth the peaceful 3 hrs.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

This image is hilarious!



LMAO! Could you imagine the driver's reaction when someone comes to him bitching about the Free Wifi being slow? 

[memphis]

If I remember correctly from my last trip out that way, it takes about 3 hours to cross San Bernardino County on I-15.

[Indy Texas]

This image is hilarious!



LMAO! Could you imagine the driver's reaction when someone comes to him bitching about the Free Wifi being slow? 

Pestering a person operating a large moving vehicle with dozens of passengers about WiFi seems like a needlessly dangerous thing to do. What could the driver do about it anyway? Pull the bus over and fix it himself?

[angus]

A one hour and twenty minute layover in columbus?!  You lucky dawg.  Try to stay out of trouble.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

A one hour and twenty minute layover in columbus?!  You lucky dawg.  Try to stay out of trouble.

I'll be rocking my NY Rangers jersey, and it happens to be a #16 Derick Brassard, a former Blue Jacket.  We'll see if I run into any fellow hockey goons. 

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

I can report that San Bernardino is a real place.

As for dinner.



Yup... Vending machine cuisine.  Onto Vegas!

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

And for your pleasure... The loo.

[dead0man]

Probably tastes better than the sandwich!