Spring Break in October

Hello All,

I have officially covered every state on the East Coast as my travels for work have taken me to the Sunshine State of Florida. Tonight, I'm staying in Panama City, the site of "SB06" or "Spring Break 2006"- my senior year spring break road trip with my college buddies. I never really thought I'd be back here, especially for work! Nevertheless, here I am, back in Florida after living here for the 18 months following graduation. Since moving in January, I've only been back once, and that was just for a brief few days in early February to train someone in Tampa. Hard to believe it's been that long, and that it's almost November!

I'll be working in Panama City tomorrow, heading to Jacksonville for work tomorrow night and on Thursday, I'll be working in the Ocala area. Friday is a travel day, so I'll be heading back to Charlotte Thursday night/Friday morning.

I hope you're all doing well and don't forget to VOTE NOVEMBER 4TH!

On the road,

Matt

Hokie Country

Friends,

I'm moving to Blacksburg.

I love this time of year. Cooler weather, leaves changing; all the things about fall I really enjoy. The last couple days I've been in Southwestern Virginia and I absolutely love it here! The rolling Blue Ridge Mountain range is beautiful this time of year and I could definitely see living in a place like this.

I'll be here working tomorrow and then heading down to Charlotte where I'll stay Thursday night before heading to Asheville for the weekend. Tennessee next week and from there, my schedule is yet to be determined. Just trying to stay flexible like I've been forced to be all year!

Hope you're all well!

On the road,

Matt

I'm a Coke guy myself

Hello All,

...and greetings from the birthplace of Pepsi Cola: New Bern, North Carolina! Everybody knows about Coke and its history in Atlanta, but few could recite the birthplace of Coke's arch rival, Pepsi. I'll admit, I didn't know, either, until I drove into town and saw the billboard today! I spent the morning in downtown New Bern, at a store called Mitchell's Hardware, oddly enough, before heading south to Havelock and Northwest to Greenville (home of East Carolina), where I'm staying tonight.

The past two weeks, I've been working out of Charlotte, which has been very nice. As my travel schedule slows down a little, it's nice to be contained to the Southeast from here on out. I'll be in eastern NC tomorrow, and then I head West to Blacksburg, VA (home of Virginia Tech) tomorrow night. I'll be working in VA Wednesday and Thursday before heading to Charlotte Thursday night and working in the office Friday.

I'm still a moving target, but it's definitely easier to find me now than before!

I hope you're all doing well and as always, thanks for reading.

On the road,

Matt

A New Direction

Hey All,

The last week has been a little topsy-turvy as I've been waiting to find out what I'll be doing the rest of the year since my schedule for October was abruptly cancelled. This week, I'll begin a project that will run for the next (roughly) 2 months, and it will keep me in the Southeast. What it entails is much of the same work I've been doing all year, but with a few differences. Now, I will no longer be a "show on wheels," traveling with the trailer. Instead, I will just drive my truck to see accounts, which will be a very nice change.

The job itself will be similar to before, but since it's a more defined project, I don't need to show as much product to customers. Kind of hard to explain, but the skinny of it is I'll be contained to the Southeast region for the rest of the year, still traveling, but now with a little less hectic schedule overall!

This week, I'll be in the Carolinas, beginning today in the Charlotte area (how convenient!). Next week, I'll be in North Carolina and Virginia, and the following week, I'll be in Tennessee. We're still working out the schedule for the end of October and November now, so there will be more to come soon.

Thanks for reading and I hope you're all doing well!

On the road,
Matt

The (former) Linebacker U

Friends,

It was back to reality this week after an amazing week off in California. My days were spent largely in West Virginia, not exactly my favorite place as you all know from reading previous blogs. Nevertheless, this was where I was called and I don't have much choice in the matter. Thursday night, I crossed through the Maryland peninsula north into Pennsylvania, and settled in State College, PA for the night. State College is home to Penn State and I must say, it's a pretty nice little town. I got inThursday evening, and my hotel was right on the edge of campus, so I was able to see a lot of the school on my drive in.

The funny thing about Penn State, though, is they consider themselves "Linebacker U" because they think they have the best players in the nation at that position. As a buckeye fan, I beg to differ. They may have been the center for head-smashing linebackers in the 90s, but I think linebacker greatness passes through Columbus now, not State College. Anyway, the folks around there were excited about the game with Illinois Saturday, so it was cool to be in that atmosphere.

My travel schedule right now is in limbo a little bit as my October dates in the Northeast have been cancelled last minute. So, I'm in Charlotte now, awaiting word on what the next few weeks will entail. Likely, I'll be contained to the Southeast from here on out, which is fine by me! I'll have more details to report in the next week.

Hopefully you're all doing well and thanks for reading!

On the road,

Matt

Back to Cali

All,

I know, I know...you're all wondering where my thought-provoking, insightful posts have been the last week (yeah right!). Well, you're in luck. This past week, I've been on vacation in California, so my time in front of a laptop has been limited; on purpose, of course! It felt good to get away from work for awhile and enjoy some long-overdue R & R. What made the time even better was that my girlfriend, Stephanie, had the week off, too, and made the trip out west with me.

The vacation kicked off in Los Angeles , as we met my brother and his fiancee, Amber, in Burbank Friday night. We were all in LA for the Southern Cal-Ohio State football game on Saturday. This much-hyped match up between traditional powers did not turn out to be much fun as many of you know. SC beat our Buckeyes in a BLOWOUT. Tough pill to swallow, but it is what it is. The loss didn't prevent us from having a good time. Steph and I left Burbank Sunday morning for Malibu, where we ate lunch at Beach Cafe at Paradise Cove, an oceanfront restaurant with beach access. This kicked off our tour up Highway 1, the Pacific Coast Highway. From here, we spent some time walking the streets of Santa Barbara before stopping in San Luis Obispo Sunday night. Monday morning, we visited the Hearst Castle in San Simeon, the palace inhabited by media mogul William Randolph Hearst in the first half of the 20th century. This was an amazing place, and the stories told of lavish parties there in the 1920s filled with Hollywood stars of that era made you envision Hugh Hefner's Playboy Mansion of today. At least, with less skin exposed.

The rest of the trip up US-1 incuded stops in Big Sur, Carmel and Monterrey, where we saw amazing views of the rocky coastline and visited the country's #1 aquarium in Monterrey where they pump in actual sea water from the bay. After the aquarium, we made the "17 mile drive" around Pebble Beach. One of the pictures above is of the "lone cypress" at Pebble Beach, the famous logo the golf course uses on everything.

From Monterrey, we started to head East and eventually picked up the interstate towards Steph's aunt's place in Sonoma. She lives on a mountain overlooking the Sonoma valley. The views from her deck were absolutely amazing. The picture above does not even begin to do it justice, but at least it gives you an idea. We spent a few days in Sonoma, touring wineries and visiting landmarks. Jack London, the famous author of White Fang and Call of the Wild, is buried here. His famous "Wolf House" that he built and then tragically burned down a month before completion, is also located here. I didn't know much about London besides his books...ok, movies...but found out that he was an very interesting guy, and after touring the site, definitely gained an appreciation for his life.

We left Sonoma Friday afternoon and made it to Ryan and Amber's place in Lodi in about an hour and a half. We did a few more wine tastings at some of the vineyards around Lodi on Saturday. Some of you may have heard of the wine, "Seven Deadly Zins" which is made there.

Now, I'm sitting in the Sacramento airport waiting for a flight back east. Tomorrow morning, I'll take off from Charlotte and spend the week in West Virginia and southern Pennsylvania. Next week is up in the air as far as my schedule goes, so I'll keep you all updated as I know more.

This post was a little wordy, but I had a lot to ramble about this time. Thanks for reading. Back to reality tomorrow.

On the road,

Matt

The Heart of Rock n' Roll is in Cleveland

All,

Greetings from the BUCKEYE STATE!!! Yeehawww! Back to the roots of my childhood I've arrived after several months spent everywhere else it seems. I'm working mainly in northern Ohio this week, as I began the week in Sandusky and the last two weeks I've been staying in Mansfield. I must admit, there have been some boring drives through the cornfields, but it feels good to be back, nevertheless. Today, I was in and around Cleveland. The weather was beautiful today; Sunny and in the middle 60s. It doesn't get any better than that for me! Cleveland gets a bad rap back where I'm from, probably because we hate the Browns and Indians...and the Ohio River never caught fire...but it's not so bad. My girlfriend's from up here, though, so I guess I'm developing a soft spot for C-Town!

Thinking of Cleveland and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that's here, I wanted to share a cool story from a few weeks ago when I was in New York City. A guy I worked with in Brooklyn was an interesting dude who didn't really fit the mold of a typical hardware salesman. When I asked him "Yankees or Mets?" he replied with, "Led Zeppelin." Hearing this, I laughed and knew where this one was going. Luckily, my love for sports is rivaled by my affection for good music, so I had a feeling this would be a day filled with enlightening conversation! Turns out, this guy was in a heavy metal band back in the day that was pretty small time. They got a huge gig one night, though, as they opened for someone at the famed CBGB Punk Rock club in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. I thought this was really cool as you hear a lot about CBGB being THE underground venue of the late 70s-early 90s. The Ramones (pictured above) got their start here, and many other bands played here, too. The club is closed now, but it's well-known with the leather pants crowd, of which I'm not a member. Just a poser who knows a little, I guess. This guy was an original, and that's refreshing since most of the people I work with on a daily basis are as apple pie and white bread-American as they get. He just sold hardware to pay for his guitars and amps! I love that.

Anyway, I'll be in northern Ohio working tomorrow, then tomorrow night I stay in Lancaster and work in SE Ohio Thursday. Thursday afternoon I'll drive to Charlotte. Friday afternoon, Stephanie and I fly to LA for the game Saturday at the Coliseum, and a weeklong trip up the coastline of California for a long-overdue vacation. More details and pictures to come.

Thanks for reading and everyone cross your fingers and shout out loud for the scarlet and grey Saturday when they take on Southern Cal. OH......IO!!!!

On the road,

Matt

College Football is in the Air

Friends,

Hopefully you all had a good long weekend! Mine was nice as I spent it with family in Lake Hartwell, SC. I worked in the Atlanta area Friday, and then drove in to Charlotte after work. Stephanie and I headed to the lake Saturday afternoon and spent a couple days with everybody there, including my grandfather, who just celebrated his 93rd birthday!

After spending a great deal of time in Ivy League country in the Northeast the last couple months, now that I'm back down south, I'm in SEC country! I can't help but talk football with everyone around here, as every small town in the south has its allegiances to someone. I love this time of year! As luck would have it, my South Carolina Gamecocks will be playing Vanderbilt in Nashville Thursday night (televised on ESPN), and I happen to be IN Nashville this week, so I plan to go to the game tomorrow night. This is yet another example of how I'm probably the luckiest traveler there ever was!

This game should be a good one, and I'm excited that I get to see a new stadium. It's a goal of mine to visit every SEC stadium before I die, a project I've talked to my dad about trying to pull off together. After the clash between SEC East titans Thursday night, I'll drive to Louisville, KY, to see my parents Friday morning. Since I must travel to Sandusky, OH for work Monday, I was given a travel day Friday. I will spend the weekend with the folks in Louisville, before making the 6 hr. drive to Lake Erie Sunday.

I'll be in Ohio Monday-Thursday of next week, then it's back to Charlotte Thursday night before Flying to Los Angeles Friday for a week in California.

Well, back to work for now. Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a great week!

On the road,

Matt

Way Down Yonder on the Chattahoochie

All,

That's right, I'm living an Alan Jackson song. I've been hopping back and forth over the Chattahoochie river bordering Alabama and Georgia the last couple days, working and swatting nats every 2 seconds! It's pretty country down here but it's the humid, buggy deep south you might expect this time of year. Still, I'd trade urban sprawl for this any day of the week!

I'll be working in Southern Georgia and Alabama most of the day today, then it's off to north Georgia this afternoon, as I'll be staying in Dalton, GA tonight. Tomorrow and Friday I'll be in Atlanta and Friday night it's off to watch my cousin Kyle play soccer for Elon vs. High Point.

As I drive through SEC country, it's hard to ignore the fact that college football is in the air...

I expect all of you will be watching my Gamecocks play NC State tomorrow night (Thursday) on ESPN at 8!

Hope you're all well.

On the road,

Matt

Back Where the Tea is Sweet and the Talk is Slow

Friends,





After an intense few weeks in New York City, my travels for work have taken me back down south. I left Flushing, NY, Friday afternoon, en route to Charlotte. This drive took me about 12 hours. I spent the weekend there and am about to drive the rest of the way to Columbus, GA, this afternoon. Since NYC-Columbus is over 1000 miles, I was provided a travel day today. I'm looking forward to easy, interstate driving, where I don't need to worry about which bridges and tunnels I can go through and which I can't, and what parkways to avoid, like I did in the city. Though it will be hotter than hell down there this week, probably, I'm excited for a change of pace. It's cool that I can be in a major metropolis full of culture and diversity one week, and a mid-sized town of a completely different demographic the next. This gig has allowed me this opportunity time and again!



The time in New York was great, don't get me wrong. I was able to spend a lot of time with friends in the city when I wasn't working. Thursday, my buddy Danny, and a few other friends and I went to a Mets-Braves game at Shea Stadium. I had a view of Shea out my hotel in Queens, so I was glad I was able to make it to a game while I was in town. This is the final season for Shea Stadium (they move into Citi Field in Spring 2009), though you wouldn't know it because Yankee Stadium's last year is this year, too, stealing all the limelight.

I'll be in Georgia and Alabama working this week. The upcoming Labor Day weekend will be spent at Lake Hartwell with family and friends, the following week I'll be in Tennessee, then in Louisville for the weekend, then back in Ohio for a few days before enjoying a week off in California. This week off will be highlighted by the OHIO STATE - USC football game in LA!!

I want to thank all of you for your support over the last several months. I hope you're all well and thanks for reading.

On the road,
Matt

Turn Right to go Left

Friends,

For those of you who have had the pleasure of driving through New Jersey, you probably know what I'm talking about. Take whatever you learned in driving school and throw it out the window when you get to the Garden State. You make U-turns and left turns from the right lane and you can't pump your own gas here, either. It's interesting. I'm sure there is a reason for the madness, but I can't see the logic. Oh well, I'm sure they don't care what I think!

I've been in Jersey for the last two days, working in the Newark area Monday and Tuesday. I spent the weekend in New York City with friends. Steph and I met up with some of my college friends and others for a great weekend in Manhattan. Over the course of two days we were able to see and do a ton of stuff and, lucky for us, the weather was amazing. I'd been to New York several times before, but one thing I hadn't experienced until now was "Top of the Rock," a viewing deck on the top floor of the Rockefeller Center. This was cool because, since it's not nearly as tall as the Empire State Building, you're able to actually see objects in the city far more clearly. After some tough weeks at work lately, this weekend was much needed!

I'm back in Queens this week, working in Long Island tomorrow, the Bronx and Manhattan Thursday, and back in the Bronx Friday. Friday after work, I'll be heading south where I'll be working the next three weeks. Monday-Wednesday, I'm in Alabama, Thursday and Friday of next week I'll be working in the greater-Atlanta area.

That's all for now. It's getting late and I'm exhausted. Hope you're all doing well.

On the road,

Matt

Sunsets over Midtown

Folks,

I'm not sure it gets much better than this. As I type this blog, I'm looking out my hotel in Flushing, NY (Queens), and I'm watching the sun set just North of Midtown Manhattan, of which I have a full view. Breathtaking.

Since I was a kid, I've loved skylines. I remember family drives where it was a big deal to drive through downtown Dayton because we got to see the buildings and Ryan and I thought that was so cool. I also remember driving through Cincinnati and playing a game with my brother in the back seat called "Who can spot Riverfront first" (of course this was pre-Great American Ballpark and Paul Brown Stadium!) I love cities, and you could argue the coolest skyline in the world is staring back at me through my hotel window right now. Pretty cool. Now please don't misunderstand my hotel to be ritzy with these views. All night long I have planes flying low overhead as LaGuardia Airport is literally a 1/4 mile from my hotel! The beauty come with a price: Sleep!! Well worth it though...

Anyway, yes, I'm still in New York and still in one piece. Last week had its hurdles, but this week has been much smoother. I spent the weekend in Danbury, CT, which is about an hour north of the city. This was nice as I was able to unwind a little bit and enjoy a relaxing weekend. Sunday night I drove back to Queens and Monday I worked in Brooklyn all day. I really like Brooklyn a lot. I feel like it's real New York. It used to be a lot rougher, but lately, they've been sprucing things up and it's getting very nice. I really like the Park Slope neighborhood, the area where I stayed back in May. Apparently, property prices there are beginning to rival those across the river in Manhattan! Definitely a resurgence going on.

Today, I was in central Long Island all day, so this made for very easy driving compared to the city! Tomorrow, however, I'll be back in Manhattan and up in the Bronx all day, so hopefully I'll get through unscathed!!

This weekend will be a lot of fun as Stephanie is flying into town and we're going to spend the weekend with friends in Manhattan. It should be a great time. I'm going to leave my truck at the hotel here in Queens, so it'll be nice to just take cabs and trains around, not having to worry about parking!

Next week is my last week in the city. Then, it's back down south as I begin a week in Alabama and Georgia the last week in August. Alabama in August - I'm sweating just thinking about it!

Thank you all for reading and for the continued support and prayers along the way. I sincerely appreciate it and couldn't do it without you.

On the road,

Matt

Beginner's Luck

All,

After being in New York City for two days, I've already had a flat tire and a fender bender! It's funny, I was in the city driving for the first time back in May, and I made it through unscathed. Now, the second time around, I haven't been so lucky! Actually, I'm 0 for 2, which is a pretty crappy way to begin a three week run in the city!

The first problem was yesterday, as I drove around in Queens' Chinatown. As you all know, I drive a truck and pull an 18x7x12.5 ft. high trailer. It's not exactly maneuverable. Because of this, city driving can get interesting. Let me tell you what happened. My trailer is wider than my truck as its wheels stick out about a foot on each side. Considering the narrow streets in this part of Queens, evidently my trailer tires rubbed along a curb that had a sharp spot and it popped my tire on the side. The flat tire that resulted was unable to be patched. Luckily, because it's NYC, there was a shop only a block away. They were able to change the trailer tire for me, so we were only out about 45 minutes! If this would have happened in the small towns I typically frequent, this mishap likely would have wasted the whole day. It ended up being a great day as I made a friend in the distributor sales rep I worked with and he invited me to dinner last night with he and his wife at an excellent Italian restaurant in Long Island!

Today, I had another unfortunate encounter driving, this time while merging onto 2nd Avenue from the Queensboro Bridge in Manhattan. Rush hour got pretty crazy and as I was trying to make my way off the bridge, a tractor trailer got a little too close to me and as I moved ahead, my trailer's fender (over the same wheel well with the flat tire!) hit him and got pretty bent up. Fortunately, it was not badly damaged and still operational, so I moved along and so did the truck. It's hard to say whose fault it was, so we both nodded at one another and went our separate way. The rest of the morning was intense as I drove through Times Square, up to Harlem and down through Greenwich Village. The day ended in Brooklyn, which seemed like a cakewalk after navigating Manhattan!

I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend in Danbury, CT, where I'll crash tomorrow and Saturday night. Sunday afternoon, I'll head back to the city, where I'll be for the next two weeks.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading and I hope you're all well!

On the road,

Matt

Calm Before the Storm

Friends,

First off, I'd like to extend my apologies for the drought between posts. Since my last blog, I've been in the Carolinas, weaving back and forth between North and South, braving the oppressively humid, 95+ degree heat. It was all worth it, though, because my job finally took me back to the familiar, easy-going Carolinas. It was a great couple weeks as I got to spend a lot of time in Charlotte, while enjoying my travels through Columbia, SC, where I went to college, as well as some of the other beautiful towns in the region.

Now, it's back to white-knuckle driving in New York City. Yep, I'll be in the 5 burroughs of NYC for THREE WEEKS STRAIGHT as I'm working with a distributor that's pretty much exclusive to this area. I'm staying in Danbury, CT, tonight, and I'll head into the city tomorrow. Luckily, I've already been down this road before, so I know what to expect at least. It'll be crazy, but that's what I signed up for!

I hope you're all well and I will try to update this thing with stories from the city. Thanks for reading!

On the road,
Matt

Where Jordan Got His Start

All,

Since I left you last week, I've made my way south of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and into North Carolina. It's feels good to be back on the familiar roads of the Carolinas again! Since last week, my travels for work have taken me through Virginia Beach, down the coast to Wilmington, NC. Interestingly, considering all the time I've spent in the Carolinas over the years, I've never been here before. It's beautiful! I've always heard great things about the beaches here, so this weekend, I'll find out for myself as Steph and I will check out nearby Wrightsville Beach (shown).

As you sports fans may remember, Wilmington is the hometown of the greatest basketball player in history, Michael Jordan, who went to Laney High School. I had to reference him because other than the beaches here, I don't have much more to go on!

Next week, I'll be in South Carolina. Specifically, I'll be in Murrel's Inlet (near Myrtle Beach) and Columbia for a couple days, which will be great because that's the town where I went to college. It'll be good to see the familiar sights and talk football with the locals. From there, I'll head back up north where I'll be in and around NYC for the first few weeks in August.

Hopefully you're all doing well and thanks for reading!

On the road,

Matt

Hallowed ground for us history buffs

Friends,

Tonight, I find myself once again without cell service, this time in Roanoke, VA. Sprint clearly is not the preferred carrier in the Shenandoah region because this is quickly becoming the source of many headaches!

Alas, it's beautiful country out here as pretty much everywhere you look you can see the Blue Ridge mountain range. Today, I spent some time in the town of Appomattox, VA. This city is known, as many of you recall from American history, as the site of the Confederacy's surrender to the Union in 1865 to end the "War of Northern aggression," as it's referred to around heeya. Being honest, the town was nothing special, but the people were pretty nice so I guess it's ok in my book. Lately, I've been all over Civil War country as I go back and forth over the Mason-Dixon line (a.k.a. the PA-MD border), constantly seeing signs along the Interstate for battlefields. Not only that, a couple weeks back, I worked with a sales rep who was taking part in a reenactment that weekend! So, you could say the people get into it a little bit. Whether it's Gettysburg, Antietam, or some of the others that were fought up here, this region is full of history. I'm glad it's full of something, because cell phone towers it is not!

I'll be in Roanoke again tomorrow, before I head down to Charlotte for the weekend (about 2 1/2 hrs). Next week, I'll kick things off in Lexington Park, MD near the Chesapeake Bay, before heading down along the coastline to Virginia Beach and closing out the week in Wilmington, NC. I'm looking forward to finally being in the Carolinas again, for work, anyway.

I want to send along birthday wishes (yesterday) to my dad, as well as congratulations to Stephanie on purchasing her first home in Charlotte, and Ryan and Amber for buying a house out in Lodi, CA.

Hopefully everyone else is doing well and having a great summer! Thanks for reading.

On the road,

Matt

Tough Act to Follow

Friends,

My travels have me back in the metro area of Washington, D.C. as I spent last night in Hagerstown, MD, about a mile from the Civil War battlefield Antietam. I worked all day today in D.C., spending much of the morning at Frager's Hardware on Pennsylvania Ave. Though at first glance this store was much like every other mom and pop hardware store I call on daily, this one had a pretty cool story. Last year, when President Bush was promoting measures that would aid small business, he visited this store for a tour. After all, it was just down the street from his house! I talked to the store owner about the visit today, and he said that last year's VIP visit by the president was preceded by weeks of preparation. Though flattering, he said it was an exhausting undertaking!

Check out the picture I've included. I found this online and the cool part is, if you look to the left of President Bush, you'll see a bunch of yellow packaged goods. These are IRWIN chalk reels and chalk canisters, every day items for many tradesman on job sites and products I sell daily! I tell you what, just when I thought I'd seen it all this year...

Tomorrow I'll be back in D.C. before heading to Richmond for the night. I'll close out the week in Roanoke, VA and spend the weekend in Charlotte helping Stephanie move into her newly-purchased townhouse!

Hope you're all well and thanks for reading.

On the road,

Matt

And...THERE goes the phone

Hey guys,

I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Independence Day weekend. Mine was awesome, as I spent it in Charlotte and Lake Hartwell, SC, spending time with family and friends.

While in Charlotte, Steph, her friend Brandy and I went to the Carowinds amusement park. Before this, I think it had been like 10 years since I'd been to an amusement park. I had to go way back to the Kings Island days pre-high school! Needless to say, I was excited to dominate some roller coasters for old time's sake! So, we get to the park and hit the first ride we come to, After Burn (pictured). We didn't wait long because it was early, so after 15 minutes or so, we were in our seats. Before the thing took off, I joke to Stephanie something like "Wouldn't it stink if I lost my cell phone on this ride...", kinda tapping my pocket where my phone was as I spoke. Well, you guessed it. We take off, enjoy the ride for a minute or two, come to a stop back where we started and I feel for my phone and it's gone!! I'm a genius, I know. Well, we looked for it below the tracks briefly, but pretty much all agreed that it was no use. I resolved to just file a report at lost and found at the end of the day and hope for the best. If any of you have been trying to call me since Saturday and haven't heard back, that's why! Oh well, that's life. I'll hopefully get a new one by tomorrow or Wednesday at the latest. Also, please send me your numbers!

This week I'm in the Baltimore/D.C. area. It's nice because I'll only be in two hotels this week, so I won't have long drives after work at all. I'm starting to make my way south the rest of the month, as next week I'll be in Virginia, then NC the following week and NC/SC the last week in July. Enduring the weather in Dixie is challenging this time of year, but I'm glad to be getting away from the Northeast for a little while. I'm thrilled to finally be in the Southeast after being pretty much everwhere else this year!

Well I think that's all for now. Hope you're all well and thanks for reading!

On the road,

Matt

Wild, Wonderful...and unreachable

All,

The last couple days have been frustrating as I'm back in West Virginia after being away for 5 months, and once again, my cell phone has had zero service. It's a nice place and the people here are pleasant, but man, get your act together! I stayed in Morgantown, WV last night, a stone's throw away from the WVU campus. Being the flagship university of the state, you'd think I wouldn't have a problem making an outbound call, but not so. This was frustrating, but I'm now in Harrisonburg, VA for the night, where they do in fact have cell phone coverage! This is a beautiful area on the northern ridge of the Blue Ridge mountain range. As I type, I'm looking out my hotel window at nothing but green hills and valleys. Pretty cool. The JMU campus is right down the road, and it's making me realize that I've been in a TON of college towns this year! I've been all through the Ivy League and eastern Big Ten country, and now as I make my way south, I'll be getting into the towns of the SEC and ACC. I know, I always have to find a way to make a sports reference. You guys know me well...this should be no surprise!

I'll hit the road tomorrow early, so I can take off for Charlotte where I'll spend the weekend.

Everyone have a safe and enjoyable Independence Day!

On the road,
Matt

Southbound

All,

After a restful, relaxing week off in North Carolina, I'm back at it. The past week was spent mostly in Charlotte, with a couple days spent in the town of my alma mater, Columbia, SC, for a friend's wedding. It felt good to get off the road, and I'm grateful that my company recognizes how brutal the road can get without breaks now and then! The weather in Charlotte was beautiful all week, and I got to spend a lot of time with Stephanie and my other friends in the area.

Now, I'm sitting in the airport awaiting my flight to Providence, where I will pick up my truck and drive 10 hours southwest to Clarksburg, WV. It's funny, Clarksburg is the town where I began my trek on the road back in early February! As you may recall, this was where things went a little topsy turvy. Hopefully I'll have better luck this time around!

My flight will land around 11:30 this morning (Monday), so I will get in to my hotel tonight fairly late. Having to drive through NYC metro always makes arrival times unpredictable. I will be in WV tonight through Wednesday, then I'll work in Harrisonburg, VA Thursday, before spending the Independence Day holiday weekend back in Charlotte.

I've attached a picture of my friends and I at the wedding this weekend. I promised them I'd give them some love on the blog. Here you go guys!

Thanks for reading and I hope everyone is well.

On the road,

Matt

Greetings from Scranton

All,

Today I spent the day in Scranton, PA, the television home of Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, better known as "The Office." For all you office dorks out there (my immediate family), the town of Scranton is actually quite nice. I spent the night last night on top of a mountain in the Poconos, overlooking the city. I was right next to a ski slope, so it's too bad I'm here now, and not in the winter when I could do some skiing! The weather was cool all day today, a nice change from the heat and humidity last week in NYC.

I'll be in northeastern PA again tomorrow, and then tomorrow night off to the Newark area. I'll be in Jersey through Friday, then flying to Charlotte Saturday morning to begin a week off.

All for now. Hope everyone's doing well!

On the road,

Matt

Fugetaboutit

All,

This weekend I'm in Rochester, NY. I got in pretty late last night (Friday) because I worked a pretty full day in Newark and then had to drive 5+ hours up here. I wanted to just get here so I could settle down a little bit for a couple days and not have to drive anymore...for two days, at least!

Jersey was crazy yesterday. It was probably my best day numbers-wise, but some of the customers were, well, let's say connected? Like part of a "family" so to speak? Ferraris in the parking lot, Italian flags flying high, a pig displayed 30 feet high on a pole, random guys on the payroll hanging out doing nothing... Now do I have proof that these guys are card-carrying mafiosos? Of course not. However, all the clues were in place. Needless to say, they run a very successful business and I learned a lot in my few hours spent with them...and managed to do it without my legs getting broken! Once again, this job has given me the opportunity to do things I never would have guessed!

I'll spend most of this weekend catching up on the mundane tasks that usually take a back seat during the week; I'll do laundry, get an oil change, catch up on work, etc. This week will be a final push before I get a week off and spend 8 or 9 days in the Carolinas, mainly in Charlotte, where I'll be flying Saturday morning.

Hopefully everyone is doing well and to all you fathers reading this, Happy Fathers Day!

On the road,

Matt

Check one off the bucket list...

Friends,

This post is long overdue, I realize, but my last post didn't show up, so I gave them a break for awhile. If you didn't read my last one, "Three States in Three hours," you can click on May and it'll show up. For some reason, "Long Weekend in Philly" was the last post that shows up when I log on. Anyway, maybe you all are having better luck with it than me.

Since I left you in the DelMarVa peninsula, I've been all over the place. New York City for a weekend, Portland, ME for a couple days, Boston, Hartford, a weekend in Charlotte, back in New York City, and now, back in Northern New Jersey in the town of Mahwah.

It was cool being in Maine for the first time. I laughed out loud when I read road signs along I-95 that read "Watch for Moose Crossing." The weather up there was awesome, cool and sunny for the most part. From Maine, I met up with some of my managers and major customers from the Northeast and we all went to the Boston Red Sox-Tampa Bay Rays game at Fenway Park Tuesday night. This was INCREDIBLE! It fulfilled a lifelong dream seeing this stadium, and what made it even better was the starting pitcher for Boston was a high school opponent of mine, Justin Masterson, who played at Beavercreek, a league rival of Centerville. I faced this guy at least 5 times back in the day, and it was great seeing him on the big stage. Better yet, he won! We had fun and it was great catching up with my bosses I don't get see very often, as well as some of the customers I work with regularly.

I'll be in Mahwah tonight and tomorrow, before spending the weekend in Rochester, NY, from there heading over to Scranton, PA mid-week and closing out next week in Newark, NJ.

That's all for now. Hope you're all doing well!

On the road,

Matt

Three states...in Three hours

All,

My travels have taken me to Rehoboth Beach, DE. This is a pretty impressive area, I think, as there is water all around, yet farm land still scatters the region, too. I took the Cape May (NJ) Ferry yesterday to get here, saving me 4-5 hours of driving had I driven around the Delaware Bay. This was fun as I'd never taken a "drive on" ferry before. It was about a 75 minute ride and, though it was very cold as we left the bay and entered the Atlantic, I enjoyed the experience. Once we made it back on land, my hotel was only about 10 minutes away. I'm staying about 2 miles from the beach, so last night, after eating the best crab cakes I've ever tasted, I drove over to the ocean to hang out for a little bit. It was cold so I didn't stay very long, but I enjoyed looking out over the Atlantic, and realizing that this job had literally taken me coast to coast, as I did the same thing in Huntington Beach, CA a few months earlier!

Today, the day began in Ocean City, MD, before then heading even further south into the Eastern Shore of Virginia, the unique sliver of Commonwealth not physically connected to any other part of Virginia (except for the man-made bridge to Norfolk). I find this to be a pretty cool piece of trivia! Consequently, I realized by about 9:30 this morning that I had already been in 3 states! Pretty funny.

After work tomorrow, I'm off to Wilmington, DE where I'll stay for the night. Then, I'm driving to NYC where I'll spend time with friends and stay the night in Manhattan Saturday night. Sunday, I'll drive the rest of the way to Portland, ME, where I'll kick things off on Monday. Tuesday night, I'll be going to the Boston Red Sox-Tampa Bay Rays game at Fenway, which will fullfill a lifetime goal of mine to see a game at this baseball shrine! It will be a work event with customers, but still, I can't WAIT for this!

Well, my hotel room smells like wet paint and I'm starting to get dizzy looking at the computer screen, so I guess that's all for now.

Hope you're all well! Thanks for reading.

On the road,

Matt

Long Weekend in Philly

Friends,

Life has been moving a little slower since I left you in New York City. What an awesome rush that was! I've spent the last several days in the South Jersey/Philadelphia area. This has been cool because though I've been in central and western PA at length this year, I haven't spent much time in Philly until now.

This weekend was great as my dad was able to fly into town to spend Memorial Day with me. One of the cool perks of his job as a commercial pilot is he can "jumpseat" (Jumpseat = pilot-speak for free ride) fairly easily, so he hitchhiked an outbound flight from Louisville to Philly and I picked him up Saturday morning. We stayed downtown, right around the corner from the William Penn building on Juniper St. This allowed us to walk everywhere; we saw Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, and the Battleship New Jersey on the Delaware River. The best stop of the weekend by far, though, was Geno's Steaks in South Philly. As you guys know, Philly is known for cheesesteaks, but there are two places in particular that are the best: Pat's King of Steaks and Geno's Steaks, two places that are across the street from each other and have had a rivalry for years! My dad and I got steaks (with provolone, not "whiz" like the locals) and both of us agreed they were as good as billed! All in all, it was a great weekend. It's awesome that I get to see loved ones while traveling for work!

Tonight I'm in Atlantic City, along the Jersey shore. My hotel has a nice view of the strip as you can see in the picture above. It's a little hazy here, but you get the idea. I don't know if I'll do any gambling tonight, but as luck would have it, a college buddy of mine, Colin, is meeting up with me later since he's in the area this week, too! If we didn't both have work to do tomorrow, we'd probably have a LOT of fun giving our money to the casinos!

Anyway, hopefully you all had nice long weekends and are in good health. Thanks for reading.

On the road,

Matt

If you can drive it here, you'll drive it anywhere...

Friends,

Well, I survived New York City. Not only that, I made it through my tour in the Big Apple without so much as a parking ticket or a fender bender! Last time we chatted, I was in Long Island getting ready to head out of town for the weekend. I had a blast in Charlotte over the weekend, and after finally making it back to New York in the wee hours of Monday morning following two delays, I was excited for the adventure. Monday was pretty tame as I was out in eastern Long Island where the traffic was light. Monday night was spent in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn. This area was awesome, surrounded by great restaurants and culture. I'm told that some of the blocks in this 'hood are more pricey than those in Manhattan! Tuesday morning got started early, as I spent most of the morning in Brooklyn, double parked with fingers crossed that I wouldn't get rear ended or handed a ticket. Through lunch, it was so far, so good! Then it was on to Manhattan, one of the most notorious areas to drive in the entire country for a compact car, let alone a 3/4 ton full size truck + 18 ft. trailer! Nevertheless, I was excited and ready, despite an afternoon of steady rain and fog! Believe it or not, driving in Manhattan was not as bad as I expected. Everybody drives so crazy there that a big truck with its hazards on in the delivery lane is not really an uncommon occurence!

I've included some pictures of the experience just to confirm that I was actually there and it wasn't just a crazy dream!

Last night I made it safely to Newark, NJ, where I spent the night and all day today working. I'm in the northern Jersey suburb of Fairfield tonight, not far from Montclair, where my brother lived right after he graduated from college. I'll be in New Jersey the rest of the week, making my way south towards Philly, where I'll spend the weekend. It'll be a fun long weekend as my dad will be joining me. He's catching a jumpseat (pilot-speak for a free ride!) from Louisville, so we're going to stay downtown and see the sights and maybe head to the shore for one of the days. Should be fun.

Well, that's all for now. Thanks for reading and all the continued support!

On the road,

Matt

What a difference a week makes...

Friends,

Last time we chatted, I was wrapping up my stint in Pennsylvania. Specifically, I was in the heart of Amish country, driving through back roads in small towns scattered through the middle of the state. Some of the roads in these towns weren't paved, but the real kicker is that some of the accounts I visited didn't have indoor plumbing. They run vibrant, busy stores with a lot of customer traffic, but if you need to use the restroom while you're there, you need to head for the outhouse. Seriously. I know this because I used it.

I bring up this unpleasant detail because I now find myself in New York City just two days later. This is an eye-opening realization for me. My job has given me the opportunity to basically interact with people and cultures at each extreme end of the spectrum. From communities in Pennsylvania that don't use electricity and basically live life pre-1900, to New York City, arguably the center of the world! At the risk of being cheesy, this is a pretty cool thing.

Last night I spent the night in Danbury, CT, and this afternoon I made my way from West Chester, NY, over the Hudson and through the Bronx and Queens to my hotel in Westbury, NY, in southern Long Island. It was a beautiful drive, but a little stressful. The next several days will be spent in greater NY metro, so I'll be gripping the wheel a little tighter than usual...

Tomorrow I'll spend time in Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island before flying to Charlotte for the weekend out of JFK. I hope you're all well and thanks for reading!

On the road,
Matt

What I'll miss about Pennsylvania

Friends,

Since I've stayed in Pennsylvania a lot the past couple months, I thought it was appropriate to recognize my two favorite things about the Keystone State. As some of you may know, I'm a huge fan of soft pretzels. Not the SuperPretzels you buy at a baseball game, but the genuine, bakery-fresh twists of salty dough you can only find at your local pretzel shop. Lucky for me, since I'm in the pretzel capital of America, there are bakeries like this everywhere. Back home in Dayton, we had a pretzel shop downtown and they provided the local schools with pretzels once a week. I still remember pretzel days on Wednesdays being one of the highlights of my elementary school years. ...Pathetic, huh? Anyway, long story short, this weekend while in Lancaster, PA, I sought out a pretzel shop and got my soft pretzel fix.

The next Pennsylvania contribution I will miss is Sheetz gas stations. Though I've never even filled up my truck's tank at Sheetz, I've eaten here countless times this year! They have a unique system that operates leaps and bounds better than any other gas station convenience store out there. They have an automated, touch screen order-taking system that eliminates humans from the transaction. You just walk up to the kiosks (shown in the picture) place your order, then the people in the kitchen make your sandwich. The stuff is quality. These places are all over PA, and they're trickling over into NE Ohio and down the east coast. It's fast. It's cheap. It's tasty.

Anyway, that's my pitch on what I like about Pennsylvania.

This week I'll be in Lancaster through Tuesday, then heading North to Hazleton, PA. Thursday I'm in Danbury, CT and I'll finish the week in Long Island, NY. Friday afternoon I'll be flying out of JFK to spend the weekend in Charlotte.

To all the mothers reading this blog, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a great week.

On the road,

Matt

Deja Vu

Friends,

It's funny, when I think about the places I would like to go and spend extended periods of time, central Pennsylvania is not one of them. Alas, here I am, spending the next 6 days and nights in this region, again. Fortunately, I'm in the same hotel until Tuesday, which is HUGE!!

Today, I spent time in the rolling hills of the upper Appalacian mountain range. Despite the pot holes and road construction, there were some amazing views of rolling farmland with mountains in the distance, but I couldn't exactly pull over and take a picture, so you'll have to take my word for it.

One cool thing about today was getting to meet customers in Pottsville, PA. This town is the home of America's oldest brewery, Yuengling. Most of you have probably enjoyed this fine lager, but for those who haven't, it's a good one.

On a side note, I wanted to take the opportunity to congratulate my brother and his new fiancee Amber on their ENGAGEMENT! I'm so happy for you guys and can't wait to celebrate with you!

On the road,

Matt

Yes, I'm still alive...

Friends,

I know, it's been almost two weeks since my last post. Sorry for the drought. I spent last week relaxing in the Carolinas with Steph, visiting Charleston one weekend, while hanging out in Charlotte for the remainder of the week. We went to the Jimmy Buffett concert on Tuesday, which was pretty cool, especially considering we came upon the tickets at the last minute! It really didn't sink in until we saw all the crazy parrotheads dancing in the parking lot! It was an awesome week off, though, and it felt really good to get my mind off work and the truck off the road.

This week I'm back at it, having spent the last couple days in Western Pennsylvania. Monday, I was in Pittsburgh and today I spent most of the day in and around Somerset, PA. Today I saw some interesting places, well off the beaten track. I drove by the farm where Jeff Hostetler grew up (He was an NFL quarterback in the 90s, adding to the list of QB greats from western PA...Joe Montana, Joe Namath, Dan Marino, Marc Bulger, Terrelle Pryor.....and the list goes on); I passed by the first Arnold Palmer-designed golf course (He's from nearby Latrobe, PA, also home of Rolling Rock); The most moving place I saw today, though, was the crash site of United Flight 93 that went down valiantly on September 11th. As you all remember, this plane, destined for Washington, D.C., crashed in a Pennsylvania field that day, outside Somerset in the city of Shanksville. It was on the way to my hotel this afternoon, so after work, I felt it was necessary to stop and pay respects to this hallowed ground where true patriots gave their lives.

On a lighter note, tonight I'm staying in Harrisburg, and the next four or five days will be spent around Lancaster, PA, which is nice for me because it allows me to stay in the same hotel for consecutive nights. Little things like this make my life a lot easier!

Anyway, it's late and I'm very tired, but I wanted to bring you all up to speed on the happenings in my life these days. I sincerely appreciate your thoughts and prayers while I'm out on the road, and I'm thankful that you take the time to read about what I'm doing. I couldn't do it without you guys!

On the road,

Matt

Chi-Town, Indy, and a few cornfields in between...

Friends,

As I mentioned in my last blog, today I spent the morning on the south side of Chicago, one of my favorite cities! I caught a few glimpses of the skyline over the lake driving in from the Indiana side and though it was pretty overcast today, it was still quite a sight to see! I only wish my view was as good as the picture I attached!! This afternoon was spent mainly in the Indiana countryside, and I'm thankful I didn't fall asleep behind the wheel tonight driving to my hotel in Indy! I can't stand driving in this state. The roads are ok, but there ain't much to look at...

It's funny, I keep visiting cities in which my brother used to live (Columbus, Indy), yet he now lives in Cali, so it's kind of ironic that my job is taking me through his old stomping grounds!

That's all for now, counting down the days til my vacation in the Carolinas!

On the road,

Matt

Spring Football

All,

After driving 1500+ miles last week in Michigan, I was ready for a break this weekend! Luckily, I was able to spend the weekend in Columbus, and watch the Ohio State spring game on Saturday. It was a typical Big Ten afternoon - cold and rainy - and these conditions made for some great football. It was cool getting to be in town for this, and I'm lucky it timed out with my hectic travel schedule.

Tonight I write from my hotel in Valparaiso, IN, about an hour East of Chicago. I got in fairly late, so I was unable to drive into the city tonight, unfortunately. Tomorrow, I'll spend much of the day working in Chicago, before ending up in Indianapolis tomorrow night. It's funny, though, after spending all day in inner-city Detroit on Friday, tomorrow will be a walk in the park!

Wednesday night I'm in Cincinnati, and Thursday after work, I'll drive to Louisville and spend the night with my parents. Beginning Friday, I'll be on vacation for a little over a week, time off I plan to enjoy in the Carolinas.

Hopefully you're all doing well!

On the road,

Matt