White Flint Mall

This past Sunday, I was looking for some place to ride to. The weather was nice and, I had an itch to explore some where new. I haven't been impressed with the prizes at the Hanover, Maryland Dave & Buster's (D&Bs) . I found out the only other D&Bs was at the White Flint Mall just off the Rockville Pike. I decided to check out the D&Bs there as well as the mall.

The mall was pretty with a number of very nice looking shops. Size wise, it wasn't super big though it made up for that some by having 3 floors. The mall had some anchor stores including Lord & Taylor and Bloomingdales. Parking was decent.

In regards to the Dave & Busters, initially, I had a hard time finding the arcade. I did manage to find it and checked it out. Size wise, it was probably smaller than the Arundel Mills D&Bs. However, the prize booth was definitely bigger and better stocked. They had a 30 gigabyte Zune player, an iPod and one of the Apple phones. I forget what they're called.

While walking around, I noticed a girl playing the Deal or No Deal game. I decided to play it to see how I would do. I've found it pretty interesting watching the tv show. I found out my luck in this game royally stunk! To my disbelief, I managed to pick the case that had the lowest number of ticket (2) TWICE in a ROW. I definitely got the idea I better stick with Spin & Win.

The ride back home was uneventful barring getting honked at once and having cars passed around me. I was being cautious riding wise. I wouldn't move over to another lane unless I was absolutely certain it was safe to do so. I continue to be pleased with my TMAX. It can really take off and, it's a pleasure to ride. I can't wait to ride it down to Richmond to show it to my friend Harvey. Cheers all!

Dave & Busters

Dave & Busters brought back half priced games this week. Normally, I find it very expensive to play their games. My favorite game is Spin & Win. I feel that game gives you the most control barring a hoop shooting game or some such. With Spin & Win, you decide when to stop the spinning light. If you time it right, you can consistently get it within the area where one of the 1,000 ticket lights are. At that point, it's just a matter of managing to stop it the split second it hits the 1,000 ticket light. Last night, I probably missed the 1,000 ticket light 40 or 50 times BUT, because I was getting it in the range of the light, I was able to hit it 16 TIMES! I ended up winning over 20,000 tickets which isn't bad for $100. I've seen others turn in just 2 or 3,000 tickets.

The half priced games promotion they had made it affordable to play their games. I'm sure Dave & Busters still makes money with that promotion. You look at what the prizes cost and what it'll cost you to win enough tickets and, they're making money. Still, it isn't able trying to find a bargain at Dave & Busters. It's about having fun playing the games and, they are definitely fun. I'd give a large whoop every time I hit the 1,000 ticket light.

To my delight, my ticket hoard is now up to 253,345. I can get multiple prizes of anything I want there. That's neat thinking about that. I still haven't been wiped out by the prizes they have at the Arundel Mills Dave & Busters but, I'm not going to win a prize. I go just to win the game and gets LOTS of tickets. I hope to go back next week and add to my hoard. Cheers all!

Hard Day

Yesterday, I had a hard day of work at an alternate post office I sometimes work at. One of their regular carriers injured his foot and, his doctor put him on mandatory rest for a week so it could heal better. The Postmaster at that post office asked for me to cover the route. I assumed I was going to get a day of training with the regular carrier and so took my time arriving at that post office. I got one huge shock when I found out I would have to do the route cold turkey. There wouldn't be any training and, because I'd taken my time getting to the post office, I'd wasted 20 minutes I could've been casing mail. It ended up being a slog. Normally, mail routes follow a path of right turns. This one did anything but that. Also, the directions weren't clear where I should deliver mail and where I shouldn't. I found myself doing a number of u-turns so I could go back and deliver to boxes I'd missed. Lastly, I had a time finding addresses on the mail case because I didn't know it.

I managed to get the mail delivered for the route and, I took some comfort knowing I'll do better tomorrow. I'm scheduled to work at the alternate post office today and Thursday. I hope things will go better. We'll see. Cheers all!

Arlington National Cemetary

Yesterday, I visited Arlington National Cemetary. I first visited in during my July Globus Historic U.S. East tour. While there, I failed to get some decent photos so I decided to go back and try again. My Garmin GPS proved priceless in finding the place. Thanks to that, I was able to drive there in about 35 minutes. The first thing I did once I got there was take some pictures fo the USMC War Memorial. The memorial is located just outside the cemetary. It is a very impressive memorial. It features bronze statues of 5 Marines and 1 Navy medic raising the flag on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima. The flag raising immortalized the Marines. It is a magnificent memorial.

Inside the cemetary are countless rows of white marble crosses marking the graves of soldiers, sailors, marines and coasties who have died in service to their country. Many veterans ask that when they die, they be buried at Arlington. You can see why if you ever visit the place. I know when I die, I want to be buried there.

One thing I didn't get to do when I visited with Globus was see the Tombs of the Unknowns. We had a lot of things to see in D.C. and a limited amount of time. The Tombs of the Unknowns are the remains of military members who were killed in World War I, II, the Korean War and Vietnam and couldn't be identified. On the main tomb at the end of the epitaph, it says "known only to God." That is how it is for the these unknown troops who gave the final measure of service to their country. A lone sentry patrols the tombs standing guard, day and night. Immaculately uniformed, they march back and forth guarding the tombs. I found it a moving sight.

My last stop was to see President John F. Kennedy's gravesite. Few men have spoken such inspirational words as he did. I still think it tragic how he died. With him, I can't help but wonder how things might've been if he had lived. Next to him is his wife Jackie Onassis who epitomized class and style of the time. Close by are his 2 brothers Robert and Ted. Robert is another one you have to wonder what if. Why did he have to die?

I left Arlington in somber reflection. In my opinion, there isn't any more sacred ground in the entire United States. It is filled with the remains of those who placed their country above themselves and some gave their lives for it. It is the burial place of many of its military heroes. It is a deeply moving reminder of the price this country has had to pay to stay free.

Honeycrisp Apples

One of my MySpace friends (I forget who) raved about honeycrisp apples. She said they were pricey (she wasn't kidding there) but, they were very good. I'd never heard of the things. Later, I heard them being advertised at the local Safeway. My curiousity was peaked. So, when I visited the base commissary and saw them, I decided to try some of them. I found them to be better than red delicious apples. They have a better flavor. Also, they are every bit as crunchy as a red delicious. Price wise, they are expensive. Safeway sells them for $3 a pound unless you have their shopping card in which case they are $1.49 a pound. That isn't cheap but, they are good apples. I plan to buy some more of them while they're in season. If you like apples, I'd recommend you try these. Bon appetit!