The Holidays are upon us!

Picking up from where I left last February, it is now November 21, 2006! I don't know why I haven't written all this time... I have been in the UK and Poland last May (lots to talk about). We have had a fabulous vacation in the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in July (those tourists and bisons are indeed worthwhile to stare at) and I had a long weekend in Washington DC together with Karin who flew in from Holland in September (well, talking and blogging don't go very well together).
Now it is two days before Thanksgiving. This year it means one lousy day off this Thursday... Somehow the Thanksgiving spirit never caught on with me (maybe we Dutchies are too pragmatic or maybe it is just because there is no family in my immediate surroundings to share this day with..). I also do not want to be caught dead in shops on Friday, when the rest of the USA is trying to get the best deals for the "upcoming gift-giving season". As for Christmas, for me it suffices to buy my kids some presents and send out Christmas cards. Never got into the habit of buying gifts for whomever 'till my creditcards burst at the seams. Even my kids don't really know what to ask for Christmas; doesn't everyone already have everything???? It never ceases to amaze me what people come up with to buy year after year. This year a 42" TV, next year a 52" TV, ... When does it stop?

Springtime in LA

Ohh, those familiar scents in the air! I am smelling home, I am smelling oceanwind. I long for home so much, it hurts! When I landed in LA this morning I decided on the spot to drive straight home tomorrow after the last interview, instead of catching another plane. I have had it for a while with airport waiting and cramped spaces in airplanes. Driving home on the I-5 equals freedom right now.

Neverlost

Arrived in Dallas yesterday. Got me a car with a GPS system! It took me a while to get used to. The little screen shows only about 1 mile ahead. No map from beginning to end destination. It gives me the feeling of driving blindly. I like to see the whole picture (map in this case). Yes, yes, I know..... I like to be in control of the situation. But after a few rides I am starting to trust my neverlost lady's voice. So today, do I dare to just go by her good lumes?
Mmmm, better print out those yahoo map quickies first!

I did it! I did it! After two more trips I finally dared rely on Miss Neverlost. She had to work hard to gain my trust, but now we are buddies!

-20F?

Friday on the flight from JFK to Minneapolis, all passengers heard to their astonishment:
"Here is the captain speaking. Due to the 70 mph winds, we have to make a gas stop in Green Bay, but we'll be back on our way in no time."
A gas stop? In mid-air? Nobody could believe what they were hearing. I felt like being in the Arctic outback, which came to be true once in Minneapolis. Friday night Minneapolis -20F I don't know how cold it would be calculating the chill factor. The sun shone bright all day, the landscape beautiful to look at. But the winds were blowing right through my bones! No exposed skin allowed outside! Chances of bitefrost were extensively discussed on TV. A new day, a new world!

The World Trade Center site 

911

Today the collapse of the world trade center became 200% more real for me. I visited a family that lives three blocks away from what is now a gaping hole and heard firsthand of the shocking effect it had on the people living around the center at the time. The lady I talked to was called on the phone by a friend who heard the news on TV. She looked out of her window and saw a gaping hole in one of the towers. She was just about to say she didn't see an airplane, when the second plane burst into the next tower. She grabbed her daughter and ran out of the apartment building with all other inhabitants (thinking the towers would collapse right on top of their apartment) and was ultimately picked up by a firefighters boat and brought over to the New Jersey side of the water. For three months she was not allowed to go back to her home; having to live with friends and in hotels. Afterwards the cleaning process began. Professional cleaning, over and over again, until they had to make the assumption that it was safe to come back. She thinks exposure to asbestos (in the massive black and grey clouds of dust) will be a major concern in the coming years. Already firefighters seem to be having health troubles. Although for me it seemed like a long time ago, today I relived it and learned that in Manhattan it is still a daily topic of concern.

Manhattan

The trip from Orlando to Manhattan was uneventful, apart from an hour long cab ride from the airport to the hotel. Three weeks ago, when I came here with Smriti, we just zoomed to our hotel in 20 minutes. Not today. On top of that the cabdriver dropped me off at the wrong Hilton hotel. But walking to the right hotel turned out to be very pleasant, with the weather being around the 50ies and snow still piled up on the sides. Upon taking a walk around the block I stumbled upon the International Center for Photography and to my surprise found an exhibition from the Light couple about the delapilated situation in the Virginia coalmine towns. A couple of weeks ago I heard an interview with them on public radio and the story stuck in my mind. The photographs are comparable to those of my favorite photographer: Lange's pictures of the 1920 dustbowl situation. It is unbelievable that today in America 15% of all citizens are still living below the poverty level of around $9500 per year! They literally live from the land (and in the dirt). I just can't get it out of my mind.... www.coalhollow.org

Packing for the Feb 2006 trip around the US 

Orlando

Today's first interview would be at 9:30am. Being prepared to the max with printed maps (thanks Google) I got lost in a detour (thanks Google; but regular maps are still needed!) and arrived at the doorstep 10 minutes late. A warm welcome awaited me. A family with four kids, aged 17, 11, 10 and 8. Mom homeschooling the whole bunch, except the 11 year old girl. I always feel so humble, when people share their home and their life with me. It makes no difference whether I am in China, Sao Paulo or Orlando. People are so in and in good. I had a lot of fun with the girl. More or less similar to what I am used to with Nika. East or West Coast, so far not a lot of differences..... What I was surprised about was the amount of TV's in the house. 6! One in each room, each with DVD. What I also was surprised about was the amount of freedom the kids have to switch the TV on or off to their own liking...... The girl falling asleep in her bed in front of a TV and waking up, while the TV was still running..... New concept to me! Reminds me of readjusting my perceptions, over and over and over again...
Second visit, guy 20, student, works, did not turn up. I sat in my conspicuous, too bright white Hertz car for about an hour in front of his house, like a novice detective, not knowing how to hide, when right in front of me a police man stopped a motormouse. I could not but overhear the conversation and started to bug in. Don't get me wrong, everything in a nice and friendly manner. The policeman said he noticed me sitting out there already for a long time (see, there goes my cover) so I had to explain my roundabouts. Oh well, never a dull moment. After contacting the local agency we finally gave up on our second respondents and I was on my way to the third lucky guy. The distances are far, but fortunately not a lot of traffic jams.
Meeting the 30-year old bachelor chef sounded promising. This third respondent required some re-adjustment of my perceptions as well. Details too complicated to jot them down here, but summarizing; the first half hour, he was holding the fort, saying this was his house, and his mother living in the back guest room. Until the mom walked in and took over the kitchen. Turned out he was still living with his mother, and she definitively was the boss in the house.
All in all a fun day and lots of learnings!

The New York Times

Finally some time, back in my hotel room in Orlando, after a day of interviews, to trust the happenings of the last few days to my blog. It all started last Friday, when I was reading the online FrequentCrier magazine. For a survey on hotel prices, people were encouraged to share their opinions. Since I travelled a lot for the past couple of months, I definitively had an opinion, so I responded in a quick email. To my utter surprise someone from the New York Times was on the phone asking me some more questions and if it would be okay if I would be quoted in an article? "Oookay", I said hesitantly, "what about? A whole article about higher hotel prices?" Yes, and by the way what would be a good time for a photographer to come by? "Emmm, do you realize I live in California?" I stammered. Oh yes, but we have photographers in that area as well, so what do you say?
Okay, I guess I was flattered or something like that...in the New York Times? I think someone is pulling a leg on me. But low and behold, Saturday morning 11AM Peter DaSilva arrived at our curb with his camera and lenses. A very amicable, relaxed guy who made some 50 pictures in 10 minutes without much ado. Asking him about his experiences, he said one day he would do a session with a head of state and the next day make a story with homeless people. Fascinating!
On Monday some last minute calls from the New York Times to verify their text with me and if it was okay to call me marketing consultant instead of analyst (what is the big deal here, but hey, if that makes or breaks their story, no problemo!).
The end result an article in the New York Times on February 14 in the business section: "More sticker shock for the weary" (does that make me a "weary"?) Interesting how they pull a story together:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/14/business/14hotel.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Yesterday was a day of travel. Leaving at 6am from SFO to Orlando via Salt Lake City. I had forgotten how beautiful the rockies are. At the airport in Salt Lake City I saw the snow topped mountains lining the horizon. A view I hadn't seen since 1990 when I was living in Colorado Springs. That brought back memories, one standing out us driving home from the hospital with a brand new baby in the car (Robin), looking at a similar horizon, thinking, wow, now we are a REAL family! Which brings me to the point that we should go back to Colorado for a vacation. It is sooo beautiful here, and the people so friendly. One other thing I noticed at the Salt Lake City airport was that I am starting to recognize which area the people are coming from. A lot of laid back, comfort shoe, flannel shirt and long hair types comingled with the black suit mormon young guys. No, I am not trying to simplify anything, just noticing and observing. It is sooo cool (or "sweet" according to Robin) to travel!