The Big Apple

I didn't want to go to New York city. My mind was full of assumptions and stereotypes that assured me that a trip to the Big Apple would be a big disaster. Broadway, Seinfeld, the Yankees, Rudy Giuliani, and the heroes of FDNY, couldn't dislodge my bias against America's largest city. But the people I met in NY accomplished what I believed impossible. I've been to New York city and I am looking forward to going back.

Not that our trip into the city was easy. It included a challenge to my common sense, a perfect RV park with views of the Statue of Liberty with no vacancy and a subway ticket booth that only sells two tickets per day per credit card and refuses to accept $20 bills.

If you've read my account of the philly cheese steak you know that I have no problem navigating narrow roads with parked cars on either side. I pulled off another feat of skill that didn't require the precision driving, but the persistent driving. New York has two types of highways, expressways and parkways. As we desceded a bridge into NY from NJ I glanced at a sign that said "Trucks - Expressways Only, Cars - Parkways/Expressways." I didn't know I needed that information so I just let it move to the trash bin of my mind. Holly, our expert navigator was in the process of rerouting us to a RV park on Long Island since our first choice didn't have a site available for us. As she brought us to the parkway that would lead straight to Long Island I saw the horrendous sign that said, "No Trucks, Clearance 8'" WHAT!!!! I'm thinking at the time that only an idiot would build a highway and make its maximum clearance eight feet. So once again Holly rerouted. Fortunately it was Sunday afternoon and the traffic wasn't bad. We took a nice stroll through this part of NY moving twenty miles in two hours. That's right, 20 miles in 120 minutes. We could have avoided the unintentional tour of Nowhere New York City had I registered one item 119 minutes earlier. We, being in a motorhome twelve feet tall, would need to stick to the expressways and wouldn't fit on any of the parkways we attempted. Holly was kind to me as I gave her this bit of information. I said it kind of like this: "Hey I read a sign a couple hours ago that didn't make sense to me then, but I think I get it now. Trucks can only use expressways and cars are to use parkways. I bet every parkway has low clearance because the bridges are so old. We should try to get to an expressway and stick to them on our way to Long Island." The new plan worked and we made it onto Long Island with the skyline of Manhattan to our rear.

The following day we met some of the nicest people of our trip. It began on the steps to the platform of the Long Island Rail Road. We were attempting to catch the 9:35 AM train to Penn station. The train left our area hourly to travel to the city. At 8:55 we began the frenzied, frantic trip to the rail station. Moving our family quickly required us to forgo searching for an elevator for our stroller. Instead Sam was popped out of his seat and into my arms. Holly and Isaac began lifting the stroller down the staris when a stranger asked if he could help. Shock! We said yes. While waiting on the platform for our delayed train to the city the stranger struck up a conversation with us, asked us to watch his bag while he ran to the store (perhaps not a good idea in post 9/11 America), and gave us tips on going into the city. We had a similar experience leaving the city that evening on the same train. We ran into a family that had traved by train to Tampa for a week's vacation. We helped them with their luggage off the train at 9:30 that evening. The twelve hours inbetween were a blast.

We started our trip visiting Macy's on 34th. My first date with Holly was "Miracle on 34th Street" and we often watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The cheese steak was great. The drive is still bothering me.

~ by Paul

The Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich

One of the items on our agenda from the beginning of the road trip was to stop the rig, go ashore and grab an authentic Philly cheese steak sandwich. Holly and Isaac had seen a segment on the Food Network on the restaurants that claim to have originated the iconic sandwich, Pat’s and Gino’s. They’re adjacent restaurants close to the heart of Philadelphia.


Holly confirmed the information and put it on our itinerary. When in Philadelphia we wouldn’t see the Liberty Bell, we’d see Pat and Gino’s. As we drove through downtown Philadephia I had a moment of excitement considering the historic accomplishments achieved two centuries prior in the midst of the old buildings. Moments passed and my grip tightened on the wheel. The streets in the city are narrower than the interstate. Much narrower. I tried my best not to let my eyes wander from the road before me as my glee subsided. The closer we go to Pat and Gino’s the smaller the roads seemed to become. The final turn toward the smells, sounds and crowds surrounding the cheese steak mecca caused us to paused and reduce the width of our rig. We pulled in both rear view mirrors providing another essential six inches of clearance to either side. Like a ship that leaves the ocean to explore a river, our motor home was far from the comfort of the open road and navigating a one lane street lined with parked cars to the starboard and port side. I kept imagining the sound of scraping as we passed through the gauntlet of steel, fiberglass and rubber. And then Holly uttered words akin to what I was already repeating in my troubled mind, “Where are we going to park this boat?”

With the wisdom, genius and spontaneity I declared with confidence that I would let Holly, Isaac, Silas and Claire out at the corner while Samuel, Ahna and I continued our perilous attempt to navigate shallows. My forearms ached from the grip I had on the wheel as I rolled down the road at 5 mph. I hadn’t allowed my genius to consider how I was going to return to pickup the shore party. Instead I endured the horns honking at our white rolling box from the line of cars curing our existence. However this captain didn’t care. They couldn’t go around me and I wasn’t going any faster, period.


Several blocks from Pat and Gino’s I came across town homes that had garages and driveways facing the street. I brought our ship to rest allowing the column of cars to pass by. After exchanging heated glances with the first several drivers I lowered my gaze to my lap, pried my fingers from the wheel and took in a deep breath. I was safe, but I wasn’t done. Somehow I would have to whip around and pick up the family I had hastily left behind.

After a few minutes with the iPhone map app I charted a course for a grocery store with a large parking lot just 2 miles away. With my hand on the gearshift I looked out the passenger window hoping to use the rear view mirror to check for traffic before pulling back into the road. Oops, the mirror was pulled in to give me the clearance I still needed to wade down the street. Again a hasty plan was hatched in my mind. I rolled down the passenger window and listened carefully. After about a minute I was confident I could tell when a car was coming down the road using sonar. I listened for awhile, prayed, prepared and pulled out. No screeching, no wreck. I was feeling pretty good.

The parking lot was home for forty minutes and several phone calls to Holly inquiring on the status of our loot. While waiting I plotted out a course for Holly and the kids to follow in order to pick them up on a corner that didn’t require the expert driving skills I had displayed earlier. I asked Holly to walk two blocks East where I would pick them up at Ninth and Washington. You may take a look at Google Maps. It seemed like a great place to rendezvous. I was wrong.

I received the call from Holly letting me know she had the package and was making her way East. This was my cue to rebuckle Sam and Ahna and headed their way. After just five minutes I received a frantic call from Holly. I had led them to a corner that inspired fear. They were waiting and displaying a high dollar camera, iPhones, philly cheese steak sandwiches and blonde hair. Whether real or imagined the kids had observed a car drive by them with the universal “I’m shooing you with my finger” motion made in their direction. They wanted to get out of there, immediately. The six liter engine under my control roared as I broke my pledge to stop speeding. I buzzed light after light, moving from Second to Third and then Fifth avenue. At the corner of Eighth and Washington I was in sight of the blonde foursome waving me down from the side of the road. They hopped onboard rattling off their perspective of the shore excursion. There may have been some embellishment with their fervor. But the stories were good. Ten minutes down the road we began consumption of our famous sandwiches. They were novel, filling, and worth the effort.

Florida's Blizzard

~Paul
Blizzard Beach has three great advantages to every other waterpark. First it's a part of Disney and the employees reflect it. Second the rides are innovative and long. Third there is something to do for every age group that's really, really fun.


I never heard a single lifeguard yell don't run. The Steiners usually get in trouble for this and it was refreshing not to be scolded every few minutes.

Isaac's favorite ride was the double dipper. It was the fastest and scarest that he went on. It started with a drop and then you get a real surprise with the second dip. I think I left the tube I was in for a moment as I flew down the hill.

Sam was my favorite attraction of the day. He and I spent most of the time in what he titled 'his park' for kids under 48" or in 'Ahna's park' for the little ones. He ran up the ramp and rode his slide literally fifty times throughout th day. He was one cute, sunburnt, smiling little boy.

Well try out the other Disney World waterpark on Sunday. I heard rumors of surf lessons and river rapids.
~

Surpassing Expectations

~Paul
Disney World and especially Magic Kingdom is incredible. What impressed me most was not the rides or shows, but the employees. What an incredible feat of vision and leadership to create an entire workforce that flows together to create a place where all the guests feel valued.
I'm inspired.

Each and every person was kind to the kids. The cast and characters from the shows would stoop down and listen to the kids and ask questions. Ahna got to sit with Cinderella, Belle, and Princess Aurora aka Sleeping Beauty for a little one in one time.

Rides were excellent. We found three that especially rocked. Splash Mountain was our favorite and last ride of the day. I have a blurry jerky and incredible video of us all getting wet. And Buzz lightyear was really good. You can ride and shoot at targets at the same time. Kind of like hunting the Denali Highway (just kidding).


I'm ready to extend this part of our vacation.

Sammy-isms at Carlsbad Caverns

Samuel could care less about the cave. He was obsessed with the bats the entire 2 hrs we were in there, even though we never saw one because they hadn't migrated back to the area yet.

Things Samuel said:

Shhh the bats are seeeeping. Don't wake dem up!

When seeing the water dripping to form the stalagtites, Samuel said "the bats are peeeeeeing!"

When the kids were getting tested on what they learned from the Park Ranger, Samuel's answer to EVERY question was "BATS!"
Park ranger-"what did you see in the cave?" Sam- "Bats!" Park ranger-"what are the formations that grow in the cave called?" Sam-"Bats!" , etc...

On the way to supper that evening we were looking for a Denny's because kids eat free on Tuesdays. Sammy said, " Denny doesn't have a restaurant. He have a house!" He became angry when I said he did have a restaurant and we were eating at it!

Joe Allen’s

Joe Allen’s….What can I say about Joe Allen’s? It was my introduction to Texas Barbeque. That mesquite-smoked-fall-off-the-bone-goodness. This was my favorite restaurant in Abilene, Texas, the town I went to college in and lived for 6 years. I have missed Joe Allen’s. I have dreamt about it throughout the years living in Alaska, where you can’t get it. You can’t really make it. You’d have to get a mesquite tree log and a smoker. I suppose that is possible. I bet Carol Symond’s husband could make it.
We planned to spend a half day in Abilene and do 2 things: tour our college and show the kids where we met, and eat at Joe Allens. After a long afternoon of walking the campus, our mouths started to drool just thinking about the brisket. It was time to get on over to that restaurant. We looked it up on google maps and made our way over there.
Sammy was sleeping so Paul was planning on staying in the RV until the food arrived. The kids and I went into the new restaurant (Joe Allen’s expanded since 13 yrs ago). We sat down and ordered drinks. I got the sweet tea of course. The kids were trying to figure out what they wanted on the kid’s menu. Paul and I knew what we wanted since at least 10 years ago. We got our drinks and we started to order. The kids all gave the waitress their orders, with all their sides picked out. They could choose from ranch beans, green beans, fries, or corn. Then she finally got to me. I ordered for Paul, the combination plate with brisket and sausa….”Sorry, we’re out of brisket”, says the waitress. “What! You aren’t serious?!”, I exclaimed as I was on the verge of tears and cupped my hands over my face. “We just drove from Alaska to have brisket at Joe Allen’s, our favorite restaurant!”, I said. The waitress felt really bad. She said, “ let me give you a little more time to figure out what you would like to order.” Ok. I called Paul and he said, “let’s go somewhere else”. I agreed. After all, there wasn’t anything else I wanted there. The kids were shocked. Silas began to cry. He was looking forward to the sausage he ordered. The other kids didn’t care much because they ordered the usual chicken strips that all restaurants have.
The waitress came back and I very politely told her we would pay for our drinks and try another restaurant and I went ahead and ordered Silas’ food to go for him. He was happy. On the way out, I just had to laugh. What else could I do? I could get really mad, but that’s dumb. We tried to find another barbeque place but it closed just as we pulled up. Once again, we laughed. And I was reminded another reason why I think Texas is like another planet. Who closes for dinner at 7:45pm? Only in Texas.
We ended up at the Cotton Patch Café, where Paul worked during our newly wed months. It is a Texan, home-cooking kind of place. It was ok, just ok.
~Holly

Doing it in the dark

By Paul ~
I didn't mean to become familiar with the inner workings of our RV in the dark. I just didn't bring a flashlight. And I didn't think I'd be doing much in the snow. But I was wrong. I had brought a headlamp, but couldn't recall where I had put it and knew the batteries were dead anyhow. And so three days after my primer from Holly's Dad I made my first attempt to hook us up into a full service campsite in Moab, Utah.

The RV park was dark, really dark. With my impromptu $300 flashlight/iPhone in hand I connected us to power. No explosion, things were good. Next came TV service. Got that nailed down. I was avoiding what would need to happen eventually, flushing the septic. I had no gloves, though I bet Bill told me where they are. You know iPhone aren't really that bright so instead of the septic I hooked up the water. In the dark that didn't go so well. I couldn't figure out how to attach the hose to the RV. The two parts seemed to be enormously different sizes. Since the hose wouldn't screw on, I just held it there to fill the tank. Hands wet and cold I kept thinking I was doing something wrong. But things were working just fine.

Note to rookie RV drivers. There are two places to hook up your hose. One is to fill the holding tank. I had found that one. The other, which I didn't find until daylight, allows you to screw the hose right onto the RV bypassing the water pump and providing an endless supply of water. Bill had told me that. Its in my notes.

And then came the septic. A few dilemmas besides the lack of light:
1. Hose was too short. Who puts a six foot hose into a motorhome bumper ten feet wide. I improvised by stretching out the hose and placing a rock on it to keep it from springing back. I was a bit freaked out knowing that if the hose did spring back when I pulled the drain, I'd have a lot to clean.
2. What did Bill say about black water and grey water? I wrote it down, but the list was inside and I wasn't going inside. Inside were questions and requests to do stuff and noise and chaos. I'd just sit out in the dark and try to remember.
3. When I did remember the valve seemed stuck. I was NOT going to break this thing, so I just kept pulling, and pulling, and pulling. And then with a giant suummp the tank started to drain. It had been a good ten minutes since my rock had been put in place. You know how in a millisecond you can think something really bad is happening. I had that thought. But unjustifiably so. The hose stayed in the hole, the rock stayed in its place and away went the waste. I was my own personal hero! And I was cold.