Yearly Archives: 2013


1Password support with a flair

As I was setting up my MacBook Air to leave LA and travel in 2011, I sent a query to 1Password support. I promptly received a clear, full, excellent answer and my passwords and notes remained safely with me. Tonight I happened upon that support reply and noticed the closing words, perhaps for the first time. I’m sharing them here because they were both fun and indicative of the company. I wish you the very best for a safe and enjoyable trip abroad, and please know that you may reach us whenever you have a problem.  All it takes is a little bandwidth to send the Bat Signal! Cheers! Brandt — Brandt Swindell AgileBits Customer Care http://agilebits.com/support http://twitter.com/1Password


My friend Sarah Conner, only in LA

Some years ago, on what I now call my Three-year Trip, I was in Ko Samui,  Thailand planning to go out for the afternoon on motorcycles with some newly met friends. But, as a couple of the guys finished their meal under the wall-less thatched roof that was our accommodation’s restaurant, a VDO started. The guys were hooked. One of the girls and I went to get them as on the TV in front of them we watched something called a Terminator seek out Sarah Conner and kill her. It was the wrong Sarah Conner, so the VDO continued and we were hooked too, eventually needing to sit down. (So much for motorcycles that day.) Flash forward some years until I’m back from what I now call my Central America Trip and may someday call my One-year Trip. Rather than get an apartment in LA for my in-between travels time, I’m house-sitting. […]


Kayte Deioma’s Things to Do in Los Angeles

Whether you’re visiting Los Angeles, thinking of traveling to LA, or live in Los Angeles — if you’re looking for Things to Do in Los Angeles,  columnist Kayte Deioma’s guide to Los Angeles at About.com can help. Kayte’s been collecting and publishing information about events in Los Angeles to guide locals and visitors alike for many years. She’s got post after post about what you can do in Los Angeles. Her LA event listings are well-written: easy to read, full of the necessary information, and complete with links.


Balearic Islands trip research via Twitter

I’m still in Los Angeles, a break between travels, as I write this. But I’ve been thinking about the places I’d like to head to next. A writer acquaintance living in Minorca, got me thinking about heading there, to the Balearic Islands of which Minorca’s a part. I don’t normally do much research into a place before I go. I like to discover as I go. But this time I’m using  more “social media” and see what kind of relationships I can form before I go anywhere. In this post, I shall share all good or interesting information that I find on Twitter. Why? Because I’m curious as to what can be found using Twitter as a research tool. Using TweetDeck as my Twitter client, I created several columns, each its own hashtag search. One is a search for #Mallorca as it’s the largest island in this group of islands. Mostly there […]


A video by some backpackers

Need some more inspiration to travel? On August 6, 2011 my friend Lorrie sent me this link to a video by three traveler’s video called Move, saying, “I can see you doing this.” The travel, she knew I’d done and would do again. The video… well, I may have done something cool in video but as we know, my cameras were stolen at the start of my trip. Plus, traveling solo makes it harder to have video. I took plenty — for others, though. The travel. Nope, not me. The hit 11 countries (38 thousand miles) in 44 days, taking 18 flights. In my opinion, 44 days isn’t enough time for one country. Maybe for two very small ones…   Anyway, enjoy Move! It is well done.


Sandals or shoes good for travel

I am always on the lookout for sandals/shoes that I might choose to take on a year-long trip.  I intend to add to this post as I find shoes that I’d consider for travel. Here’s my shoe wish list: Good for walking long distances Light weight Packs into the smallest possible space Looks good with a skirt or dress, but not dorky with shorts or trousers (likely not factor for men’s shoe choices) Looks good with shorts or trousers, but not stupid with a skirt or dress (likely not factor for men’s shoe choices) Can stand up to rain or water Can be washed when they get muddy Have traction


Tweakker app for international Android setup

If you’re traveling with an unlocked Android cell phone, you’ll need to know how to set your phone up to work with the local phone services. Word on the street is that the easiest way to do so, is to use a free app called  Tweakker. I have not used Tweakker myself but here is the link to it at the Google play store, along with the start of the description the developer lists there. App name: Tweakker APN INTERNET MMS App location: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tweakker  App description lead: Worldwide Internet and MMS APN settings – Now with ICS support – Tweakker is the best APN manager tool that helps you set up your APN settings – Access Point Name – for Internet and MMS connection.


Tetanus & Travel

Tetanus is not necessarily a required vaccine, but I personally think it can be a wise decision to get one. I did, for Central America. Here’s an article that may help you decide for yourself. How Dangerous Is Tetanus Really? 10 FAQs by James Hubbard, MD, MPH — The Survival Doctor. This article about Tetanus and the debate about getting a Tetanus shot — and many more that may be of help to you are on his website, The Survival Doctor. His survival-medicine website, as he says: “provides general information, not individual advice. Most scenarios assume the victim cannot get expert medical help.”


For travelers to Montana

If you happen to be heading to Montana… I recently “met” Lynn Kinnaman, a fellow writer, who has lived in Bozeman, Montana for much or all of her adult life and has written many an article and book about Montana. She is also the Editor of this small website that lists some upcoming events taking place there. So, in case it helps you in your travels: SW Montana Magazine — What we love (& you might not know) about Montana.


Fire knife handy on your travels

If you’re traveling to places where you want to ensure that you have fire, you might love this Swedish FireKnife. One of the best knife companies, Mora of Sweden, teamed with the Swedish company, Light My Fire, to create this handy  3.4 oz. (94 g) knife that ensures you’ll always be able to start a fire — as long as you have something to burn. You’ll find it, and other useful travel items here, at Industrial Revolution.


Marina Del Rey, new business class Hilton Garden with free wi-fi!

As I start writing this I am cozy on a nice suede couch in the earth-toned lobby of the newly opened Hilton Garden Inn (hotel) in Marina del Rey. And… get this — I can actually post this from the hotel because it actually allows guests to have wi-fi access for free. Now, you may be thinking…what’s the big deal about free wifi? So here’s how wi-fi tends to work in the USA. For some reason I have yet to understand, the more reasonably priced hotels offer free wi-fi for guests but the high-end hotels change from $10-$25 per 24-hour period for wi-fi. (At $25 it’s part of a “resort fee.”) Holiday Inn, a chain at which I have elected to stay at and hold events, led the way with access by offering free wi-fi since 2005. Business class hotels followed, and Hilton Garden Inn falls into this category.


Historic Route 66: 8 States to the Pacific Ocean

US Highway 66 was once THE way to cross the US from Chicago to Santa Monica, CA and arrive at the Pacific Ocean. You may have heard, “Get your kicks on Route 66” from the 1946 song written by Bobby Troup. Then the larger higher-speed roads were built and travelers stopped taking this route. Real travelers continued to choose roads such as this and actually get to see and know the USA instead of speeding past so much of it. When I drove across the USA myself the 2nd time, after traveling much of the world, I sure elected those real-life roads. I highly recommend those smaller roads whenever you have time. Anyway, the historic Route 66 log appears more and more on clothing and products. It’s got the appeal. And happily, towns along the route are helping people know about it. Google Maps even notes it in its directions […]


Carrying cables & small tech stuff

As you travel, you’ll find you need a pouch to carry your cables and smaller computer or cellphone accessories. I used a soft zippered ditty bag to keep weight down, but STM Bags just came out with STM Cable Wrap Portable Organizer — which looks promising as a way to keep your cables and chargers organized and tangle-free.

STM Cable Wrap folded

Deborah sounded the most interesting – my sailing reference

Richard, who selected me to be the line handler in December 2012, making it possible for me to transit the Panama Canal, published this about me: I put a post on CS to look for extra crew for our Panama Canal transit. Of the people who responded I thought Deborah sounded the most interesting so she joined us for the day. I must have made the right choice because she proved to be very good company and an asset to our crew.


Free Trolley in Ventura, CA

People come up to Ventura to enjoy the harbor, the amazing Channel Islands, and the fresh breeze — and now the Ventura Trolley will make travel within the area a breeze. Ventura, California is about to become easier for travelers to visit this summer thanks to a FREE trolley system to take you between Ventura’s Downtown and Harbor Village. After living in Los Angeles for many years, I finally got up to the Southern-ish California coastal village of Ventura. I was there to kayak around the Channel Islands and their pristine beauty took my breath away and reinvigorated me at the same time. But while there, I also got to know downtown Ventura — and as I walked around I was sorry I had missed this lovely town for so many years. (I also learned Ventura has two great golf courses and that one is a true Links course. Soon […]


Travel with children: Custom coloring activity idea

As friends talk about the issues of traveling with children, I am reminded of the travel kit I made for a four/five-year-old child because he and his dad were heading onto a very long airplane flight.

Rather than just giving him some coloring books, paper, and crayons, knowing he’d soon be asking “what should I draw” or “may I have more paper,” I created play scenes for him — my own take-off on coloring and Colorforms®-like scene play.


Honduras: gang truce upcoming 2013

As I traveled in Central America in 2012, I had only good experiences and never met anyone who had actually witnessed violence. However, Honduras is known to have problems with gangs, so if you’re considering traveling in Central America, you may like this news. On May 24, 2013, the Honduras Weekly reported, “Gangs in Honduras Will Sign Truce Next Week.” The article reports that this is the work of Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Pedro Sula, Monsignor Romulo Emiliani. The truce will be “agreement modeled after the gang truce in El Salvador of March 2012 that has produced a 52 percent drop in homicides in that country during the past year.” My own travels in both Honduras and El Salvador never brought me near  gang members or issues as far as I knew. While in La Ceiba, Honduras I was told repeatedly that after dark it was absolutely necessary to […]


iPhone/iPad/iPod case for extended viewing

In November 2011 I saw, tried, and fell in love with the ZeroChroma “Theater-Stand 360°” case — an iPhone and iPad case that was also a brilliant stand. My first reaction was, why didn’t someone think of this before. My second was that this is incredibly well done. The easel mechanism is perfectly flat in the rear of the case. It then pulls out to provide many flexible viewing angles. The iPhone case provides 11 viewing angles and comes in two models — slim and more protective. Some of the cases provide slightly different viewing angle options, but there are always plenty. This is, I believe, a great travel case. About 6 weeks ago, I gave one of these ZeroChroma cases to a young man that impressed me. As he was writing to me recently, he included this paragraph. In addition I would like to express my gratitude for the new iPhone 5 […]


In CA Sprint LTE handles dual apps — even when one is real-time navigation

I write this from my home-base of Los Angeles, CA as I take a travel break and my travel is house/tech-sitting within various areas in LA. Sprint recently launched it’s LTE (Long Term Evolution aka 4G) network in Los Angeles, California, so I took a Samsung Galaxy Note II for a test run on a bus across town to see how it does. The bus was a local, but there was no traffic at this time of day, so we moved rather swiftly. The Note II is a rather large screen and has a split screen feature so you can view and use two apps at the same time. I placed the Maps app on the top and, well, Facebook, as the bottom app. Maps loaded immediately. I figured out how to set it to track my movement. (It’s not highly intuitive.) I did that first by Destination, later just […]


Carry light, give light

I think that we who live in cities, be it on any continent in any city, tend to not realize that there ARE places in the world where there is NO electricity and people do not have light — other than that of the sun. And we who live in cities have so much light in the sky at night that we don’t even realize… how very dark the night really is. Those who live in non-electrified places can wake with the sun and go to sleep with the sun — but there are still issues such as: going to the bathroom before bed or in the middle of the night a mother needing to get up in the night to feed an infant a parent needing to tend to a child a person needing to work until dark and then find his/her way home boats needing to cross a lake or ocean or […]


Petit Ermitage — unique hotel in West Hollywood

The Petit Ermitage is a four-story building that you can easily miss as it’s on a quiet residential street, although if you look closely the attentive doormen give it away.

The Petit Ermitage describes itself as Bohemian. However, I don’t feel ” Bohemian” captures its elegance. Petit Ermitage is worldly — or rather reflective of the greater world in which we live. A little bit old European, a bit of Morocco, a splash of modern at the saltwater pool — and all around perfect in feeling and comfort.

Inside, you’ll find unique room, and atop you’ll find a rooftop saltwater pool, restaurant — and butterfly garden. And from this beautiful rooftop, there are beautiful views of Los Angeles.

Petit Ermitage, West Hollywood Entrance