Turnpike Memories

This is the third birthday I have spent on the road with VRX Studios. The first year was in Washington, DC. Last year was in Cairns, Australia and this year was in tropical Amherst, Ohio. Amherst is a truck-stop along the turnpike. It is about an hour away from Cleveland.

I managed to find a fairly decent restaurant in Cleveland and the staff were really laid back and normal. I ate quail at the bar and had some weird bourbon drink with cinammon infused cherries and mulled oranges. And of course a glass of my favourite scotch, Oban. I received some really thoughtful and wonderful e-mails this year which makes me feel really blessed. Really.

The last hotel I shot in Ohio was, again, another truck-stop hotel along the turnpike in the middle of fields of corn. Only $34.95 a night! Quite a change from the Park Hyatt in Zurich I shot last year where my room was worth 350 euros a night. But that is what I love about this job, the contrasts.

Managed to do some body surfing today in Daytona Beach and had dinner at a beach bar. Blackened Mahi Mahi with a shrimp squewer and a lime margeurita. No salt. Okay, I had two.

Toledo. The one in Ohio, not Portugal.

I have not really posted anything in a while as I only take pictures of things that I find weird. Ohio has been suprisingly normal. Well, a huge mint green hotel is kind of bizarre to me. My hotel contact asked me today, "So. What do you think of the new colour." Ahhhh. Well, it's colourful and it really stands out."

On my day off a few days ago I went and saw an ATP Women's Tennis Final. Both a singles final and a doubles final. There was hardly anybody there, not like the US Open in NYC. The first match was a bit of a blow out but the doubles was quite close. For the doubles I snuck down to the first row just to the left of court right behind where they were serving. I even got hit by a ball! Actually it landed behind me, bounced back and landed on my shoulder. Threw it back to the perky ball girl.

I have two more hotels in Ohio and then I'm off to Daytona Beach for one hotel and then off to Vegas to shoot the Golden Nugget.

I'm off to eat oysters at a restaurant in Toledo. Tchau.

Everyone into the Pool

Notice the ool. See that there is no "P" in it ... I took a photo of this sign yesterday at my Baymont Hotel in Oxford. Oxford Ohio ... Oh look, a spider the size of a quarter is on the wall ... excuse me ... great, tried to kill it with a newspaper but it just landed in one of my camera bags ... probably still alive. I think I still have scars from the spider bites I got in that Days Inn in Jersey.

Left the headlights on in my rental car again. Had to wait two hours at a Burger King in Wilmington Ohio ... the spider is back, finally got the poor soul with a rolled up newspaper .... anyways, had to wait forever for the Hertz guy to show up. I think I ought to tatoo the Road Side Assistance number to my ass. No. Too hard to read there.

While I was waiting I went to CVS. CVS is a drug store chain in the United States kind of like London Drugs in Vancouver. I guess I missed the entrace and went to far. Some guy asked me, "are you looking for the ARMY?" Are you crazy? "No. CVS."

These are some of the small random details.