Summer Tour 2010

Before Chicago media focused on the Blagojevich trial, it spent some time on airport body scanners at O’Hare. Alas, I flew out of Milwaukee, which, it turns out, also has body scanners.

So it is a little before 6am on a Tuesday morning, and having experienced an extremely sluggish computer terminal for check-in, I find myself facing a quickly growing security line. Why is it growing so quickly? Because Milwaukee has one metal detector and one body scanner open. It took a second for the body scanner to register. It doesn’t look intimidating at all and its grayish coloring makes it blend rather nicely next to the metal detector. Not to mention the baggage scanner and the other gray matter that makes up the security check point. The only color is that of passengers in white, red, orange, green or powder blue shirts. If you’re not looking for it, you’ll likely miss the body scanner.

Having spotted it, I opted to empty my pockets while I was still standing in line. I even took off my belt. No one had passed through it yet, but it seemed reasonable to expect at least one of the 20 people in front of me to pass through it, increasing my odds of passing through it as well. It only takes one, after all, right?

Idling in line with my boarding pass and driver’s license, it seemed clear that Milwaukee does not quite have its act together this morning. Once you get checked by a rather cranky official, you’re left to ponder if you should get in the screening line on the right, or on the left. No official points or directs you, they just kind of look at you and half nod when you start to move in a direction. Course, by the time I get up there, someone has taken charge, noticing that the line to the left is decidedly longer than the line on the right. Except people from either line were going through the metal detector while the body scanner sat there, gray, sullen and empty.

Not this trip, perhaps, I thought to myself as I followed the direction to get in line on the right and watch as one brave soul stands in front of the body scanner, points to himself and then to it, causing a TSA official to half nod.

It does, in fact, take one to start something.

Perhaps he was in a hurry and thought the body scanner would be faster than the 8-deep line for the metal detector. Who can say really, but in he stepped, up his hands went, down they came and out he went. He was held for a couple minutes by a TSA official, then motioned to go collect his belongings.

I had two thoughts: that was fast! And: if the government has a body image now, along with all the other information collected, can they please present me with a complete profile so I don’t have to go through all this again? Require me to get re-scanned every 5 years or every 5,000 miles to verify or record any changes, but since so much information has been collected, complete with a body scan, why will I have to do this again?

These thoughts bounced around my head as I, too, stood with my hands up in the body scanner. I don’t know quite know what, if anything, I expected. I didn’t feel foolish, standing there with my hands in the air as if I was behind held up. There wasn’t anything to look at outside the glass, just the unused metal detector and other body scanner. There was a faint noise. Faint, as passengers getting ready to go through the metal detector make a fair amount of noise. The experience was lackluster, to say the least, but a little quicker than the metal detector.

I stepped out and was held for a couple minutes until someone, somewhere, radioed the all clear. So somewhere in General Mitchell Airport is a person, or two, sitting in front of a bank of monitors, staring at whatever image of me was just collected. No weapons, explosives or anything out of the ordinary on my person, or perhaps inside, so I was free to go and collect my things.

Not much different from a metal detector, on the face of things.

Again, I thought, now that there is an image of me, why can’t I pass through security that much more quickly? Such a luxury isn’t afforded by metal detectors since they can’t store images of any kind.

And then I thought of WikiLeaks. Issues of compromised security and safety aside, WikiLeaks did what others have failed to do: it put all documents in one accessible location. You can find all the pieces and construct them yourself.

Now the government could do that, if it were inclined, with all the information it has on me, complete with a visual aide. At first thought, that sounds awesome. A good deal could be simplified if it took a couple of clicks to pull up a complete profile of me. Airport security. Passport renewal. Driver’s license renewal. Paying taxes. Almost anything that requires government involvement.

The thought of such a complete profile being kept by the government in one location makes me uneasy. What, exactly, would I be giving up? Control of my information? Maybe. There is an argument to be made that I have little control as it is, and am thus assuming a certain amount of risk. Like applying to jobs through CraigsList, or sending a resume via email. I’m trusting that the person on the other end isn’t going to do something beyond the scope of reviewing it for a potential match to vacancies.

I’m trusting the TSA, and the government, not to do anything else with the image they just collected. But what if I want the government to do something else with the image they just collected? What if I want the government to match it up and present me a complete profile of myself? I must admit, it is intriguing and a bit scary. But if it means I’m cleared through airport security in a flash for the next 5 years or 5,000 miles, it might just be worth it.

All in all, passing through the body scanner was just as uneventful as passing through the metal detector. It is only after you have been asked to step out and are held for a couple minutes that it takes on more meaning that a metal detector. Instead of a light flashing telling TSA to check you out, there is a person unseen checking you out and deciding if a further search is necessary. That extra human element that you cannot see gives pause when confronted with a body scanner.

I’ve been under the weather since my return with a horrible sore throat. Hence the sudden stop to posting.

What’s to come: Battery Park, Central Park and The Moth.

Stay tuned…

A couple friends of mine from .college, who are married to each other, live in Brooklyn, and offered to show me around.

They live in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn.

This neighborhood-within-a-neighborhood is like Chicago. The big neighborhood, say the North Side, and then the neighborhoods within, like Lakeview, Wrigleyville, Uptown, Rogers Park and others. There is Brooklyn, and within there is Coney Island, Prospect Park, Park Slope and others.

It being a Saturday, of course there was subway maintenance, which meant track changes. I was given good direction, though they kind of read like a treasure map, or stereo instructions. Rather amusing, no? The subway isn’t bad, once you figure it out, and I arrived on time, and without getting lost. Score!

Another similarity with Chicago: the farther away you are from the center of things, the more room you get for your real estate dollars. I can see why entertainment is big in New York. Bars, clubs and restaurants are more spacious than Manhattan apartments.

After breakfast, we went to the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. It’s open for free until noon on Saturdays, and once you’re in, you can stay the rest of the day, if you’re so inclined.

The Brooklyn Botanic Gardens are beautiful, and nicely laid out. The roses in the rose garden were still in bloom, and magnificent. We wandered around for awhile, taking in the scenery. There was a wedding in one part, and it was nice to observe from the far. We found our way to the Japanese gardens, which were also nice. Turtles were out on rocks, sunning themselves. Gigantic fish were cruising near the surface. And there were waterfalls throughout, which was quite cool.

From there we went down to Army Square or Army Circle. The name fails me at the moment, so feel free to correct me. There was a farmers market in full swing, which was crowded but cool. Fresh produce. Fresh flowers. Fresh game. Fresh fish. You name it, it was there. That led into Prospect Park.

Prospect Park is designed by the same guy who designed Central Park, and it turns out he liked Prospect Park best. I’m writing this from Central Park, and I can see why. He took the better parts, the gentle slopes, open greenery, and added more of them to Prospect Park. It is very much like Central Park, but without the intrusion of skyscrapers. You look up and see unobstructed views of blue sky. That is not the case in Central Park.

We walked through Prospect Park over to Park Slope, the trendy, Hipster area of Brooklyn. Stroller Central. And very much like Chicago. Brooklyn, really, feels a lot like Chicago. Who knew?

We ate at a Burger joint called Flipster, or maybe Flipsters. It was incredible. Incredible! And waffle fries. Mmm….was so tempted to get a milkshake but that would’ve been overkill. But so good. So good.

Bit annoyed I can’t remember the name of the awesome coffee shop we went to next. Such good coffee. And the finest looking pasteries. If I hadn’t just eaten, I woulda had some.

I’m thinking this post will news to be updated with the names of these places, so I’ll close by saying walking around Brooklyn was quite fun. I had not been there before, making it a new experience. And a good one, with such excellent hosts.

The Cyclones are the Mets minor league team, and they play at MCU Park on Coney Island in Brooklyn. Beyond that, I knew nothing.

So it was rather entertaining, and quite fun, to go to a game.

The minor league baseball game experience is quite different from major league baseball. For one thing, you are much closer to the action, regardless of where you sit. And having attended numerous games at Wrigley Field, it was nice to know my view would not be obstructed by any pillars.

We had third base side seats, closer to the bullpen than the dugout, which offered a sweeping view of the whole stadium. Granted, it is not that big, but it is still majestic in the way only baseball stadiums can be. The sea out beyond center field, buildings of Brooklyn to the right and the Cyclone and other rides of Coney Island to left gave it a unique granduer.

The game itself was entertaining. As my brother said, stuff happened. Stolen bases. Three errors by the visitors. Bizarre yet entertaining antics between innings. Not to mention throw back music of the 90s.

Proof that even if you don’t know any of the players and have no vested interest in the team, the game itself remains a pleasure.

Sounds like the name of a band, doesn’t it?

Coney Island is a place in New York, in Brooklyn to be specific, and the Cyclones are the Mets minor league team. They play at MCU Stadium on Coney Island, in Brooklyn.

My brother and I went out to Coney Island to see a game yesterday evening. It was an absolutely perfect night for baseball. We arrived early, though, so walked around for awhile.

Coney Island is probably best known for Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, and the hot dog eating contest. Nathan’s is impossible to miss. You step off the subway, follow the signs out towards the beach and right there, across the corner from where you step into the light, is Nathan’s. The line already stretched down the street. It was quite a sight.

Since neither one of us had ever been to Coney Island before, we opted to walk around first. We walked out to the pier, out in the pier where people were fishing, and the back and walked the other way.

Two things strike me now, wherever I go in New York: the number of people, and the variety of backgrounds.

To describe the number of people at any given location as a crowd is insufficient. I have yet to walk down a street where there are less than 15 people. And people of any kind of background/heritage that comes to mind. Chicago is homogeneous, relatively speaking. Sure, there are ethic neighborhoods, like New York, but there isn’t as much intermingling as there is in NY.

Coney Island is another example of this melting pot. People, from all walks of life, were out and about. And there was no end to the noise. Interesting to notice the various musical, and non-musical sounds after reading some of In Pursuit of Silence.

We got a Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog before going to the game. I must admit, I didn’t think it was anything spectacular, and not nearly as good as a Chicago char dog. However, Nathan’s goes down easy, is not very filling and thus a good choice for a hot dog eating contest.

The stadium is nice, and there is a wonderful tribute to those of Brooklyn who lost their lives in 9/11, including police, fire, FBI and Secret Service. It was pretty moving, a little eery and a little aggrevating. Some young kids, teenagers, walked past without stopping. Perhaps they’ve seen it every day, though, so it holds a little less meaning. Just part of the stadium, part of life. So different from what my childhood and teenage years were like.

Anyway, so the Cyclones. Oops. Have to get off the subway and find my way to my friends place in Brooklyn.

To be continued…

Around the holidays, or when a new family member is expected, the photo albums come out. It occurred to me that there is at least one photo of a family member reading a book. There’s one of me, for example, age 5 or 6, smiling while sitting on my bed with the gold-colored head board, reading Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

Family gatherings. Vacations. Airports. Trains. In the car. There is always someone reading a book.

I am a consumer of knowledge, and find myself in a city filled with bookstores. Independent, used bookstores. Lots of them. Bookstores hat specialize in children’s literature, and subjects I never knew people wrote about. Titles I’ve never heard before by authors I can’t always pronounce.

So far, I have been to two independents, and one chain. The sole purpose of a trip to the Barnes & Noble by NYU was for a college friend of mine to show me the longest history section she has found. And she also took me to The Strand.

Before I left, I read a book called The Man Who Loved Books Too Much. An excellent read about a book thief and the world of rare books, and rare book dealers. It reminded me an awful lot of The Island of Lost Maps, also an excellent read and one I am reading again.

The Strand, it turns out, has a rare books section. The whole third floor is rare books, so we went to.have a look. Pretty awesome stuff. There was even a section called Books About Books, which contained a number of volumes on book making and book binding. Yes, binding, or what people often refer to as the spine and cover. It may be considered rare art, or a rare art form, some day. Perhaps a lost art form. Perish the thought!

Tuesday, my brother took me to a local shop in the Village, and today we went to Book Culture. Both excellent places. Came across some interesting works, and nearly purchased In Pursuit of Silence. Rather fascinating read about sound/noise, brain chemistry, purchasing & eating habits and how noise plays a vital, intricate role.

Being an avid Kindle user, I must say there is something extremely gratifying about walking into a bookstore and aimlessly browsing instead of visiting a website that shows suggestions based on previous purchases. Not helpful when your previous purchases were children’s books, and you want something adult for yourself.

No website can give me the ability to just aimlessly browse. I.have to, at least, pick a category. Bookstores, however, let the mind freely wander and stumble upon something like In Pursuit of Silence.

New York has reminded me that the pursuit of books has not jumped the shark.

NBC Nightly News is a staple in our household. At 5:30 Central every evening, my mother takes command of the remote and flips to channel 5. So I thought it would be cool to take the NBC tour early so my chances of seeing the studio were good. Other than plane tickets, it’s the only thing I planned and booked ahead of time.

Now, I am used to trains and public transportation. I’m used to taking a moment to orient myself while getting on an unfamiliar line. I figured the hard part would be getting to the right subway station. *chuckle* That turned out to be the easy part.

In Chicago, you just need to know color and direction. Signs on the L cars, and posted throughout stations, make it easy. New York seemed to follow such logic, but then there is a gross deviation you can miss.

Subway cars show both destinations, or end points, of a particular line, along with color and letter. You are on your own, though, to figure out the direction, not only of where you want to go but how that correlates to the direction you are facing. Confused yet?

I found this out the hard way. I got on the right letter and color car (B orange) but ended up taking it towards Coney Island. Figured that out once we crossed the river. Oops. The destination signs are useless in terms of directions. Who knew?

Got myself situated. Got off and got back on, in the right direction, at 9th and started again. I had missed the check in time for the 9:30am tour. Non-refundable, no exchanges tickets. I had two choices: go back to my brother’s or go to NBC anyway and see if I could get on another tour.

I took option 2.

NBC is located at 30 Rockefeller Center, and hard to miss. From the street. Entering via the subway, you wouldn’t know NBC was there. I made my way out to 5th Ave. and easily found my way to the right spot. Arrived just in time for the 10am tour. Score!

The tour is pretty neat. You’re reminded of the rich history of NBC, how it started and where it has gone. I still remembered a lot from my J-School days at Mizzou. FYI: There is an NBC affiliate in CoMo, KOMU, where broadcast students cut their teeth, so to speak.

I had excellent tour guides, though I can’t remember their names. We had to turn our cell phones off so as not to interfere with the ridiculous amount of equipment in the building. Apparently people on the air hear a buzzing in their ear piece from cell phone interference. I imagine that’s rather annoying. I didn’t have a pen or paper, either, s writing by hand was not an option. So if you take the tour, bring pen and paper!

The tour guides were really good. And for one, it was only her second day! Never would’ve guessed that.

It starts with a video of the history of NBC and then you go on a tour of some studios. What you see depends in when you go since not all studios are available all.of the time. They are all working studios, as they say.

Lucky for me, I was still early enough to see the Nightly News studio, which was awesome. Brought back memories of the KOMU tour I had to take as part of a J-School class.

All of MSNBC is there, working away. Number of news producers, people scanning thousands of news sites, “keeping an eye on the competition so we don’t have to,” which I thought was a funny way to put it. It’s really quite amazing how much technology has transformed, and enhanced to some extent, television news. You don’t get a full appreciation of that just by watching it.

Also saw the Late Night with Jimmy Fallon studio. Pretty neat, though meat locker cold. Refrigerated air since any condensation will destroy the cameras. Dress in layers if you ever go to a taping.

The Saturday Night Live studio was also neat. Some behind-the-scenes tricks were discussed, which were interesting. For example, there is one stage that has dedicated electric, water, etc. for sketches that need it & can’t be broken down during a commercial break. Chris Farley was on that stage pretty much all.of the time.

And you know everyone on the show gets a plaster mold of their face? Sometimes more than one. They are so accurate that losing or gaining 5 pounds means it’s time to make another.

Do you know why SNL needs such accurate molds? Post your answer/thoughts in the comments. Curious as to why you think SNL needs such accurate molds…

We ended the tour by having our picture take at a news desk, and a couple of volunteers doing a mock newscast. I wasn’t kidding when I told the people next to me that being a weather person is the hardest thing to do, on air.

All in all, it was a good tour. Worth the $27…OK, $52 if you count the tour I missed. Still worth it. Glad I did it.

Whenever check in and boarding go smoothly, I’m destined to sit on the tarmac. Ten, 15 minutes maybe.

Today? Forty. 4-0 with the possibility of it being longer.

Why? Bad weather over New York so they aren’t letting planes take off until it clears. I don’t know how bad the weather is, though not bad enough to cancel the flight. Perhaps they are just playing it safe?

The trip is about two hours and 15 minutes. Tack on a 40 minute or so delay…if we can predict when the weather clears…

Being told we’re going to taxi out and hopefully taking off in about 16 minutes.

I was trying to think of the last time I flew somewhere, and all that comes to mind is a trip to Wichita, Kansas, for New Year’s 2009-2010. Way back in January. The trip was all of three days, maybe four, so packing was fairly easy. I think it took longer to gather all of the electrical components for my laptop and cell phone than it did to pack clothes.

For the Midwest Summer Tour, I was driving, which presented less…OK, no incentive, to pack wisely or neatly. What didn’t fit I just threw in the back of the car, or if I thought of it on the way out, I threw it in the back of the car. And now that I think of it, I should probably take a more in-depth look at the back of the car. Save that for another post.

For the East Coast Summer Tour (still hoping to sneak in a trip to Boston but we shall see), there are a few factors that make packing a bit more complicated. The most obvious one is that I’m flying to New York and the “just throw it in the back of the car” method is not an acceptable packing method for air travel. So I have to be a little bit more diligent in my packing.

I’m also going to New York, which has a vastly different sense of fashion than Wichita or Bartlesville, and all the places I visited in between. That may be a gross understatement, sure, but it presents a packing challenge. I prefer comfort over style, and like simplicity. Now, there is a middle ground when it comes to comfort and style, you can balance the two, but simplicity requires a little bit more thought. Actually, it just requires focus. And focus requires a plan. Plans for this trip are about as fluid as my plans were for the Midwest Summer Tour, surprise surprise.

OK. Not quite that fluid.

I’m doing the NBC Tour Experience on Wednesday, which should be fun. Going to a couple of outings with my brother and his friends, meeting up with people I know on Twitter (shocking, isn’t it?) and meeting up with some college friends. Oh, and did I mention The Moth? I hear it’s good.

Some events. Brings some focus. Focus makes it easier to plan out clothes for New York, which also makes it easier to pack for a plane ride.

I’m certain there are more seasoned airline travelers out there who have tips/suggestions/dos/donts/whatever when it comes to airline travel in the 21st Century. So what say you?

Oh, one other thing: 4am comes rather quickly, just in case you also book a 7:30am flight somewhere.