News for the ‘travel’ Category

Hotel AC Hack

So I’ve been traveling regularly since forever for work. At least once a week I’m out of town. And I only just thought of this last night.

Some hotels have ‘governors’ on the AC in the room – meaning, you can only go down to a certain temp … no more. I love sleeping COLD, and sometimes this is a pain in the ass. I even have a OneNote on hotels in cities I frequent so I don’t make the same mistake of staying at hotel for this very reason (and others).

Last night was a new hotel for me and as I was gearing up for bed and getting the thermostat to <65, I realized this was such a room … limit was 68. Ugh. I stared at the thermostat for bit and had a thought: “this is just a circuit board surrounded by plastic. I bet there’s a way to override the board.”

I googled. Lo and behold, there’s a whole slew of videos on just how to do this, by manufacturer. It took me about 3 minutes and I had the circuit board reset and the temps down to 64. Boom.

There are other settings you can adjust, as well – constant fan, disabling motion detection, etc. Just be sure to carry a philips screwdriver (I have a leatherman tread apple watch band, which has helped so many times).

Here’s a link if you’re bored.

Posted: September 28th, 2023
Categories: travel
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Don’t Mean To Brag

So after 50+ Stays at Marriot Hotels this year (plus the 30 or so at Hilton), I achieved the glorious rank of PLATINUM with Bonvoy (the Marriot App).

This week, I got a room with a couch (upgrade) and tonight I got a suite upgrade with an extra room and … robes and slippers.

Livin’ Large, yo!

Posted: December 15th, 2022
Categories: travel
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The Wondrous Sites of Clovis, NM

So … I travel weekly. Today I find myself in Clovis NM.

When I got settled this evening, fired up the laptop and arrived and the splash screen, below is one of the segments of the sign-in page of Hilton. I think I’ll stay in the room tonight.

Posted: June 12th, 2019
Categories: travel
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2 Traveling Pro Tips

So – I travel a lot. Like 2-3 nights a week are in a hotel. Fortunately, my company is pretty good about taking care of me with this – I can stay in some nice hotels and have a per diem that is solid. We work hard, should be taken care of.

But 2 things that have been to mind recently that have made a difference considerably when traveling …

1 – Remember (and use) this IP address: 8.8.8.8. If you are using different hotels (sometimes under the same banner, ie Hilton), this address will reset any cookies that you had in your system and send you to the sign-in page if you are using the hotel’s wifi. Through the years, I have gotten hung-up consistently because the sign-in page I am trying to contact to sign in that night is still hung up on the prior night’s/visit’s stay in another city. Try 8.8.8.8 – it works well.

2 – Really only applies if you are a cord-cutter (we recently ended our 20 year contract with DirecTV and use the Firestick for HULU, Netflix, etc (it’s amazing … did my due diligence on this vs Roku, etc). Carry an extra streaming device in your bag! It’s like bringing your TV with you. You see, when I’m in a non-home city or from hotel to hotel – every market and TV and remote is different. Sometimes it is so fustrating to fumble around to find the ‘guide’ or channel you want … this is just plainly awesome. Plug it in, connect, BOOM! Your channels are right there and you have your handy voice-activated remote. Can’t say just how awesome this has been for me …

That’s all for today …

back to email.

Posted: May 21st, 2019
Categories: tech, travel, tv
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Remove Cats Before Take-Off

Posted: March 25th, 2017
Categories: animals, pets, travel
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Airport Logic

So I saw this at the Minneapolis airport this past week while traveling for work …

WalkStand

This is a pic of the moving walkways that are found throughout the airport. Most airports have them nowadays, but this was the first I had seen marked like this. Thought it was a pretty simple, yet effective idea. I instantly thought of my irritation with driving the freeways here in New Mexico. New Mexicans are terrible about slower drivers staying in the left lanes. It drives me up the wall. Couldn’t we do this to our roads? Just a thought that occurred as I walked through the airport …

 

Posted: April 13th, 2013
Categories: transportation, travel
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Creepy Travel, Courtesy of KLM

Posted: February 28th, 2012
Categories: tech, travel, video
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Just Got Back from Disneyland …

Seriously.

Have a lot of pics and stories to tell. Give me a few days to put this all together. Sedona, Disney, Santa Monica Pier, Vegas (kind of), Monument Valley, and Speeding Tickets.

Stay Tuned.

Posted: March 19th, 2011
Categories: holidays, travel
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Retrofitted and Modernized for as Little as $40

Posted: November 16th, 2010
Categories: news, transportation, travel
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3 Beds and 1 Guy

So I arrived in Elizabethtown KY tonight for a week-long project. When I checked in at the front desk at the hotel, the guy said …

“You’ll really like this room. It has 3 queen sized beds.”

Really?

“Would you like a wake-up call?” he asked.

“Sure” I said … “Call me every hour, on the hour, so I can switch beds.”

I walked in, and he was right about the beds, but wrong about my enjoyment of said room …

Frankly, being away from Tina and the kids like this hurts.

Oh Well.

Posted: October 24th, 2010
Categories: business, travel
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Flying Home

Took this from plane leaving Chicago tonight … you can see Sears Tower in the background.

Good to be home again.

Posted: October 21st, 2010
Categories: travel, work
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Post Trip Thoughts

While on the trip, in some back-mountain restaurant in Bluff Utah we were having dinner with the kids. They were eating what must have been their 10th dish of Chicken Nuggets and French Fries – the kids’ staple when eating out. I took a moment to acknowledge the last dinner on the road for this trip, as well as to point out that today was Mom and Dad’s 18 year anniversary. Eighteen years ago today, we agreed to date. We celebrate this day with more sentiment than our wedding anniversary.

In our eighteen years, we have rarely taken vacations, in the typical sense. When we have taken time off of work, it has always been to see family – either in NM when we lived in the Northwest, or to Houston to see the Foxleys. If I weren’t spending that time traveling to see family, it was a “Staycation”. I can literally count the trips excluding familial visits on two fingers: camping in Durango in 1995 and London in 2000.

So this trip was special for us. It was special not just for our first one in 11 years, but that we had 2 new attendees in Gavin and Elyce. I have been planning this for over 3 years – not that it was elaborate, but simply each of the first two years, I had to cancel at the last minute due to work issues. I HAD TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN this year. It was becoming an integrity thing to me – for the kids. I don’t want to be a dad that the kids can’t trust my commitment. When I say we are going to do something, I want them to believe and trust that it will happen. I guess I’ve grown to appreciate integrity and this was part of that.

So I sit here at the St Louis airport waiting to connect to Nashville for work. I literally unpacked shorts and camera chargers last night – only to turn right around and re-pack a case with suites and computer power-cords for my trip this week (and next). I wouldn’t be surprised if when I unpack tonight that I find some sand or a random souvenir in my case. Hell, maybe I’ll find one of those chicken nuggets.

I think Tina and I agree that we need to reduce the frequency between these vacations – if not for the sake of our sanity, for the kids’ memories. We chatted last night about the most memorable moments in the trip, and we agreed that it was the afternoon we arrived in Santa Monica.

The kids were so elated to see the ocean, jump in the water, search for shells, and simply drink the ocean air. And, oddly, this was the least expensive afternoon of the entire trip. Kids, I’m finding, aren’t impressed by the price tags of experiences. They really just want to have fun. They really just want to be with Mom and Dad. And when I look back at the trips that meant the most to me when I was growing up, the ones I remember the most were the ones and moments with family.

Somehow, I forgot that. I think that’s the most powerful take-away for me … these experiences carry limited cost and are priceless in the end.

Posted: March 19th, 2010
Categories: holidays, kids, travel
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