defocus·blog

The End Of Photography

Last week, Kodak announced that their iconic Kodachrome film is being discontinued. I've had a few days to digest this, and I don't feel any better about it now.

Interstate Exit Guide Winner

Well, I think we can close the book on the Interstate exit guide comparison: there just isn't any comparison. In real-world use, Exit Now: Interstate Exit Directory is the hands-down winner, beating The Next Exit in every way. It's not even close; I have already stopped using The Next Exit. The formatting, better print quality, and spiral-bound packaging of Exit Now are much easier to use, and the information has held up. There is exactly no reason to buy The Next Exit. See my original post for descriptions of each book, then go buy Exit Now.

Annoying Tourist Traps

Outside Rocky Mountain National Park is the little town of Estes Park. Like the entire surrounding area, it lives solely on the tourism industry, and it shows: one gift shop after another, punctuated by the occasional well-decorated restaurant. Off the main street, you'll find an endless selection of horrendously overpriced hotels, each one allegedly more cozy or quaint or rustic or authentic than the last. Pools, hot tubs, fireplaces in the rooms – you'd think the point was to check in and never leave the hotel.

One Small Step For Man

Entering the large national parks can often be like driving into another world. Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado takes this to an extreme: the road takes you above the tree line, above 12,000 feet, into the alpine tundra, a world nothing like the one you're from.

That Left Turn At Albuquerque

If you were ever a Bugs Bunny fan, it's okay to admit it: you've always wanted to make a left turn at Albuquerque. Me, too, and ideally a real, legitimate left turn on the trip, not just some symbolic left turn on a local road. I've made this left turn several times – I-40 east onto I-25 north – and it amuses me every time.

Rethinking Cafeteria Design

Unfortunately, at the Maswick Cafeteria, getting a table next to a power outlet is tricky. The entire back wall has no outlets at all – is that even legal? – and they keep one side of the room closed even if all the tables with outlets are taken on the open side.

I've Been In Some Big Towns, and Heard Me Some Big Talk

“Vegas ain't what it used to be.” Around the poker table, at a bar, wherever you go in Las Vegas, you may run into one of these guys. “Old Vegas was much better,” they'll say. “The big companies have ruined it.” Phooey, I say.

Black Market Showers

The folks in charge of the Xanterra shower facility at the Grand Canyon's South Rim hate you and want to make your visit miserable, so the showers here are coin-operated.

Know When To Hold 'Em

For my money, the best place to play poker is the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

The Kindness of Strangers

If you spend enough time on the road, eventually someone will approach you at a gas station looking for money. They're out of gas, see, and out of money, and they just need to make it to Omaha, or Albuquerque, or wherever, and they're really embarrassed to have to ask, but.