Signs of home

Crossing the state line from the east on I-10

Home is where you rest most soundly, feel most comfortable and yearn to return after a long trip. After thirty-six days on the road, I am ecstatic to be home with Sam and enjoying the comforts of home-made food and excess sleep. I returned to Houston on Wednesday August 5th and surprised Sam by arriving a day early. To thank her for enduring my month-long absence, I made a little welcoming party with flowers and balloons. If you've been following the previous entries on my claw victories, you might recognize a few members:

My last two days on the road were a long push from Atlanta to Houston. Generally, that trip should only take 13 hours, but leaving Atlanta, I encountered severe traffic. Using the "Avoid Highways" feature of my GPS has been incredibly useful on the trip, but it added some time nonetheless. My advice for all roadtrips (and life) is simple: Avoid congestion. When you're constantly hitting the brakes, struggling to cut people off, and becoming frustrated with inexplicable delays, choose the open road. Yes, it may take longer, but forging your own path will lead to a more pleasant and fulfilling trip (and life).

Another thing that made the final drive a little longer was an unexpected stop in Biloxi, Mississippi. Who knew they had casinos along I-10? I visited the Hard Rock (picture below) for a few final hours of poker play and made a tidy profit of $260. That brings my total trip losses to under $400 but also means that I am up in live casino poker play. Online losses are just as real though, and I lost over $500 there so I still cannot pride myself a winner. That said, I played over 100 hours, so my loss per hour is under $4. If you think about it that way, poker wasn't very expensive entertainment. My next poker hand, however, is far away...snoop and I are planning to spend New Year's 2011 in Vegas and I will not be playing online or in casinos until then. That should allow me to save a few pennies to compensate what I spent on this trip.

As for total expenses (including gas and gambling losses), I calculate the damage at $4,500. It helps that I shared gas and two hotel stays with Steve Clark as we traveled back east, but overall, I think I kept it reasonable. Not as frugal as backpacking or camping, but certainly not as lavish as one could imagine (the nightly price of Ceasar's suite from the movie "The Hangover" was $4,400). At a $125 daily cost including transportation and entertainment, money was well-spent for incredible scenery and great times with friends. Plus, I got to opine and ruminate on life for free using my Google-provided website. Who could ask for more?

Miles driven: 9,444 (final total)

Quote of the day: “Home is the place where it feels right to walk around without shoes”

Poker update: Loss of $390 in total or under $4 per hour of play. Cheaper than the movies and a better deal than watching G-Force. Worst movie ever!