Tuesday, June 19, 2012

How many miles did I travel this weekend during my Father's Day visit to see my daughter? I traveled almost 1000 miles.

I like to keep track of the miles when I am driving in a car. I traveled this weekend by foot, taxi, bus and train, all of them good ways to travel but with drawbacks. I can still report the total miles traveled, but I can't report the odometer readings.
 
Foot travel exposes ones body to the world most, and it is the classic way to travel, all of the miles felt in ones feet. Bus travel is interesting, with large windows showing the passing world as a reality TV show that cannot be touched as one goes slipping through the world. The sound is pretty much off, covered by the sound of a bus motor or a train's rumbling song. Train travel also has those big picture windows, but also time to talk with fellow passengers and traveling companions. My daughter and I sat most of the run at a table in the dining car.
 
That's the closest I'll come to sitting around the dining room table. We chatted. We played cards. I taught her the basics of counting cards in Blackjack because she's a total math junkie, and felt glad the casinos can't allow her generation into the gambling chamber until late 2017. She matched the low cards, 2 through 9, with the ten cards, and kept track of the excess low cards. When the pool of low cards grows, the dealer wins. Maybe I am innoculating her, helping her conclude that if she wants to play BlackJack, she can play as the dealer. Although, I warned her, dealers can easily go to jail for not following the rules to the hilt. And the dealers have to deal with people from all walks of life, including those who crawl and slither. I had my daughter play dealer and say smarmy sorries as she took my M&M chips. Oh, so close. I hate to take your money. Better luck next time, Mr. W.
 
I have a delightful friend who plays an impeccable Blackjack. I have lost track of her, but I hope she found a wonderful friend to marry. She was flying out to Vegas to play Blackjack at a certain dealer's table, and I think the rule of not dating the punters is overlooked in Vegas. This woman has too much class and panache to be a punter, though. However, I think she hung out with her dealer the way many women hang out with their hairstylist, gay or not.
 
I never picked up the pinochle habit of my mother's people. My father's people decidedly didn't play cards. I understand that my Uncle G put himself through college playing cards and died a millionaire at the all-too early age of 40, from a second heart attack. He enjoyed ten years of grace, a retiree from the school district who carved reliefs in wood. My Uncle T got Blackjack fever in 2000 and had run through a fortune by 2011, after buying into the Vegas dream by purchasing a condo and flying out there often. I guess he's gone through bankruptcy court and foreclosure but now happily manages a three facility operation for growing medical marijuana. Called him up a year ago when I heard of his new calling, "So, I hear the family has returned to agriculture?
 
It's not that gambling or Blackjack is bad. Blackjack comes at the speed of fifty to sixty hands an hour, recurrent tests of ones willpower and judgement. I recommended chess to my daughter, where one gambles a tournament fee, at a slower pace. Much slower than any game of skill is the game of chess. A woman who plays a master's level game of chess has all kinds of options open to her. There's just not that much skill in Blackjack, even if one can count cards. Master chess players have agents; big time Blackjack players have casino hosts.
 
Hmm. I have noticed that my daughter drove her aunt's car back from Driver's Education, her first day in class. If you want adventure and risk, drive a car.
 
Mileage Report
 
 
DATE:                6/15/2012
ROUTE:             Work to Bus Stop
DISTANCE:        0.4
TOTAL MILES:  0.4
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/15/2012
ROUTE:             Bus Stop to Herman Ivory Station
DISTANCE:        3
TOTAL MILES:  3.4
METHOD:          MATS Bus
 
 
DATE:                6/15/2012
ROUTE:             Muskegon to Grand Rapids Rapid Terminal
DISTANCE:        40
TOTAL MILES:  43.4
METHOD:          Greyhound Bus
 
 
DATE:                6/15/2012
ROUTE:             Grand Rapids to Kalamazoo Station
DISTANCE:        57
TOTAL MILES:  100.4
METHOD:          Indian Trails Bus
 
 
DATE:                6/15/2012
ROUTE:             Kalamazoo Station to Detroit Station
DISTANCE:        140
TOTAL MILES:  240.4
METHOD:          Amtrak Train
 
 
DATE:                6/15/2012
ROUTE:             Detroit Station to Jacoby's Bar, Greektown
DISTANCE:        5
TOTAL MILES:  245.4
METHOD:          Yellow Cab Taxi
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Pegasus Restaurant to MGM Casino
DISTANCE:        5
TOTAL MILES:  250.4
METHOD:          Taxi
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             MGM Casino to Rosa Parks Transportation Center
DISTANCE:        0.4
TOTAL MILES:  250.8
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Rosa Parks Transportation Center to State Fair Terminal, Detroit Bus System.
DISTANCE:        9
TOTAL MILES:  259.8
METHOD:          Detroit Department of Transportation bus
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             State Fair Terminal to Phoenix Center bus shelter, Pontiac, Michigan
DISTANCE:        22
TOTAL MILES:  281.8
METHOD:          SMART bus
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Bus Shelter to Lucas Coney Island, Pontiac, Michigan
DISTANCE:        0.4
TOTAL MILES:  282.2
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Lucas Coney Island to Pontiac Transpo Center
DISTANCE:        0.6
TOTAL MILES:  282.8
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Pontiac Transpo Center to Birmingham, Michigan Platform
DISTANCE:        8
TOTAL MILES:  290.8
METHOD:          Ford Escape Driven by Daughter's Mom
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Birmingham, Michigan Platform to Somerset Mall
DISTANCE:        5
TOTAL MILES:  295.8
METHOD:          Ford Escape Driven by Daughter's Mom
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Somerset Mall to Palladium Movie Theater
DISTANCE:        5
TOTAL MILES:  300.8
METHOD:          Ford Escape Driven by Daughter's Mom
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Palladium Movie Theater to Big Rock Chop House and Birmingham platform
DISTANCE:        2
TOTAL MILES:  302.8
METHOD:          Metroview Taxi Cab (15 dollars, $2 tip)
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Birmingham, Michigan to Niles, Michigan
DISTANCE:        195
TOTAL MILES:  497.8
METHOD:          Evening run of the Wolverine, Amtrak
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Niles, Michigan train station to Magnusson Hotel, South Bend, IN
DISTANCE:        11
TOTAL MILES:  508.8
METHOD:          Blue Ribbon Cab
 
 
DATE:                6/16/2012
ROUTE:             Walk to Fiddler's Hearth
DISTANCE:        0.1
TOTAL MILES:  508.9
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Walk back to Magnusson Hotel
DISTANCE:        0.1
TOTAL MILES:  509
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Taxi to Leeper Park for Art Fair
DISTANCE:        2
TOTAL MILES:  511
METHOD:          Blue Ribbon Cab
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Taxi back to Magnusson Hotel for bags.
DISTANCE:        2
TOTAL MILES:  513
METHOD:          Blue Ribbon Cab
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             South Bend, Indiana to Niles, Michigan, Amtrak Train Station
DISTANCE:        11
TOTAL MILES:  524
METHOD:          Blue Ribbon Cab
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Niles to Pontiac, Michigan
DISTANCE:        203
TOTAL MILES:  727
METHOD:          Afternoon Run of the Eastbound Wolverine, Amtrak
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Pontiac Transpo Center to Phoenix Center Bus Stop
DISTANCE:        0.4
TOTAL MILES:  727.4
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Pontiac, MI to the State Fair Bus Terminal
DISTANCE:        22
TOTAL MILES:  749.4
METHOD:          Smart Bus
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             State Fair Terminal to Rosa Parks Transportation Center
DISTANCE:        9
TOTAL MILES:  758.4
METHOD:          Detroit Department of Transportation bus
 
 
DATE:                6/17/2012
ROUTE:             Rosa Parks Transportation Center to MGM Casino
DISTANCE:        0.4
TOTAL MILES:  758.8
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             MGM Casino to Holiday Inn Express, Michigan Avenue and Washington
DISTANCE:        0.6
TOTAL MILES:  759.4
METHOD:          Taxi
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             Holiday Inn Express to Westin Book-Cadillac Hotel
DISTANCE:        0.1
TOTAL MILES:  759.5
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             Westin Book-Cadillac Hotel to Holiday Inn Express
DISTANCE:        0.1
TOTAL MILES:  759.6
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             Holiday Inn Express to MGM Casino
DISTANCE:        0.4
TOTAL MILES:  760
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             MGM Casino to Greyhound Bus Terminal, Detroit
DISTANCE:        0.6
TOTAL MILES:  760.6
METHOD:          Walk
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             Greyhound Bus Terminal, Detroit to Herman Ivory Terminal, Muskegon
DISTANCE:        197
TOTAL MILES:  957.6
METHOD:          Greyhound Bus
 
 
DATE:                6/18/2012
ROUTE:             Herman Ivory Terminal to MATS bus stop on Airline Road at Norton Shores Border
DISTANCE:        9
TOTAL MILES:  966.6
METHOD:          MATS Bus
 
Note: To get the mileage records to show up right, and I hope Posterous and Tumbler doesn't maul them, I employed VBA code, shown here:
 
Function MileageReport(Date_String As String, Route As String, Distance As String, TotalMiles As String, Method As String)
Dim Return_String As String
Dim Date_String_Tag As String
Dim Route_Tag  As String
Dim Distance_Tag  As String
Dim TotalMiles_Tag As String
Dim Method_Tag As String
 
 
Date_String_Tag = "DATE"
Route_Tag = "ROUTE"
Distance_Tag = "DISTANCE"
TotalMiles_Tag = "TOTAL MILES"
Method_Tag = "METHOD"
 
 
 
Return_String = Return_String + Date_String_Tag + Chr(58) + Space(16) + Date_String + vbCr
Return_String = Return_String + Route_Tag + Chr(58) + Space(13) + Route + vbCr
Return_String = Return_String + Distance_Tag + Chr(58) + Space(8) + Distance + vbCr
Return_String = Return_String + TotalMiles_Tag + Chr(58) + Space(2) + TotalMiles + vbCr
Return_String = Return_String + Method_Tag + Chr(58) + Space(10) + Method + vbCr
Debug.Print Return_String
MileageReport = Return_String
 
End Function
 
 
 
 

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