Author Archives: Jill Adler

Roadtrip Savings’ Tips

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I got this email from nationally-recognized consumer and money-saving expert Andrea Woroch just in time for our roadtrip tomorrow. Some of the tips are pretty basic but if you’re not a deal hunter like me, it pays to pay attention to her advice.

  1. Plan Ahead she says. Well, I may be a bargain shopper but I’m not much of a planner. In fact, this trip came together in one evening of bedside chatting. Luckily there’s Google and Easy Tether Pro. I can do my research from the road! I can even book our campsite when we’re 100 miles out. I tried TripIt initially but found it to be a huge hassle over writing down my To-Dos in my journal. I also have my RV Road Atlas so I know exactly where the campsites are.

2. Save on Gas. Gas prices have dropped but it’s still going to cost a boatload in Ryan’s Jeep Laredo. At least he gets slightly better mileage than in my Chevy Equinox. So we’re taking his car. No box on the roof to create extra drag and expense. We’ll use my GasBuddy to find the cheapest prices in the area and my Amex to get SkyMiles so the tab won’t hurt as much.

3. Get Tuned- Woroch also suggests we take the car in for a tune-up before hitting the road.
Riiiight. Like we have that kind of time! Admittedly, a car breakdown during the trip would suck big time. Fortunately, Ryan’s Jeep is new. J

4. Save on Dining Out! We have agreed that when we camp (have the time), we’ll also grill in the firepits. Not only do we save $$$ but Sage the 5 year old will love it. I’ll also be sure to check local deal sites for restaurant certificates.

5. Pack Wisely she says. The best thing about a roadtrip is you can take the kitchen sink and not have to pay a baggage fee.; not that you would want to. If you pack everything you need you won’t have to stop at some over-priced convenience store for wipes, batteries, toothpaste, chapstick, sunscreen, etc. Go ahead, load up! Don’t pay for something you already have at home.

6. Make Snacks? Yeah, no. Even when I pack a ton of snacks for everyone, we still wind up
grabbing something from the roadside. The drinks are colder, the stop gives us a chance to get out and stretch, and you just never know what you’ll feel like eating until the mood strikes. That said, because Sage is a bottomless pit, we do pack PB&J, cheesesticks, crackers, pretzels, etc. for her. Rarely do you find healthy treats to satisfy a kid.

7. Avoid Bottled Beverages. We pack waterbottles and travel mugs.
The savings with refills are huge.

8. Tell Your Bank. When a bank sees a bunch of charges from various states in a short amount of time, they could flag your account and shut down your credit card. Give them a heads up but also monitor your account. You need to know the minute you lose your card that some a*&hole didn’t pick it up and continue his own roadtrip on your dime. P.S. Don’t carry a wad of cash. Carry the same amount you would on an average day. ATMs are everywhere and you don’t need to worry that a hotel housekeeper or campsite lurker is going to steal from you. Speaking of which LOCK YOUR CAR NO MATTER WHAT AND PUT VALUABLES OUT OF SIGHT!

9. Drive Legally. Oh, That’s a good one. Yes, studies show that you save gas by doing the speed limit and you won’t risk a pricey speeding ticket but come on, who out there doesn’t get the needle up on occasion, or get pulled over even when they weren’t speeding? After three years with my Escort Passport 9500ix I trust it completely. It picks up every kind of radar including laser and redlight cameras. You can even hook it up to the internet and download updated locations of those cameras.

10.Wear Comfortable Clothes. This tip is mine. Ryan asked if he should bring anything nice. Why? We’re camping, staying in motels, hiking and driving. When you’re in your car more than not you want clothes that feel good. And you want pants that are easy to drop. It’s much easy to drop trough at the gas station or roadside if you have an elastic waistband than a belt and button fly. I grab my Keens that have stretchy cinch straps instead of laces (I like being barefoot in the car), Kuhl Capris, Polarmax XDRY T-Shirt that hides smells and a sweatshirt for when Ryan cranks the AC and I’m not hot. This time I’m taking my new Sherpa Sera sweater. I want to test and review it plus the wool will keep me warmer on the nights we camp.

 

The Road to Travel

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Better late than never! One day before we’re due to hit the road for the west coast and I’ve booked us our first hotel. To be honest I’ve been trying to book campsites for the past week but that stupid ReserveAmerica, ie State Park Ticketmaster, keeps telling me they’re “making upgrades to improve service” come back later. I’d be satisfied with a working website! Later=Never. I’ll be calling the 800 number finally. We need sites in Sunset Bay, Redwoods National Forest SP, Morro Bay SP and probably Carlsbad since my dad doesn’t want the pup to ruin his backyard putting green.

Tomorrow is a crazy day and I won’t even get to packing until super late. I have to take Sage to camp, climb Parley’s with friends and show up at my acting class from 6-9:30p. Oh, and I really really want to yard sale for a couple of hours on Saturday before we leave. Haven’t shared that idea with ryan yet. I know he won’t be cool with it. Sigh. I hear it’s going to be a morning.

Back to our hotel- “America’s Best Value Inn”. We got a pet-friendly king room in Klamath Falls, Ore., for this Saturday night – $54. Ryan says he doesn’t trust my choices because I always book sh*tholes. I book cheap. All we need is a clean bed and bathroom. It’s not like we’re taking up residence. Besides, I don’t see him online making reservations. I’ll post pictures and let you judge.

The plan is to hit Coos Bay by Sunday and head south on Hwy1/101- Crescent City, Klamath, Humbolt, Eureka, San Rafael, San Francisco, Morro Bay, you get the idea. If anyone has any suggestions for unique Kodak moments or dining experiences, please speak up!! We’re flying by the seat of our pants on this one.

Another One Bites the Dust?

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I know I’m not supposed to let what happens to others affect me. Just because something good happens to someone else does not mean they’re better or I sucked. Unless of course they audition for the same role as I did and they got the part…but even then it could have been a million different reasons why someone was chosen over me. Look, age, hair color, height, weight, and, yeah, they did better in their audition. However, in this particular case I and this woman did not go out for the same part. I didn’t even read with her in the callback. Yet while she shared her joy on Facebook, I wallowed. F*&king Facebook. I can see why there are so many more depressed teens in the world today.

I’m still silently hoping that perhaps I too will get a call. After all, she did only hear from the director yesterday and there are several roles to fill. Maybe they’re not done casting. I felt pretty good about what I did in the callback but the night sorely dragged on and after two and half hours I’m asked back into the room to go another round with a different actor. I played off him differently because of how he was acting but it was still good. What do I know?

I’m going to blame my parents on this one. It’s their fault I’m so competitive. J The right parts always come along so if I’m meant to be cast in this project, it’ll happen. In the meantime, I have a callback on Saturday for a role I know totally works for me. Fingers crossed. And, oh yeah, can you please click this link to boost my rating. Apparently, casting directors care.

BTW- check out my new headshot! It’s one of four (I like variety). Shaun Anders did a great job, no?

Adventures in Aspen

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Foggy head. It’s either my allergies, lack of sleep, too many hours in a car or the stress of knowing it’s time to get my butt in gear and get active outdoors. I usually use something like Outside in Aspen- a festival filled with clinics to introduce people to the outdoors- to jumpstart my summer. But as I watched the grey-tinged water pool at my feet this morning in my shower back home, I realized I was going about this all wrong. Aspen, Colorado, is place of intense mountain beauty that should be indulged, not sniffed at. Plus, you should plan a week not two days when the weather is this grand. Oh, and get two hotel rooms. But we were here for an event and sometimes you just don’t have the luxury of time.

I hadn’t showered or shaved in three days. At home, as I finally washed out the weekend in solitude, I felt weightless.

The whine of little children and a puppy cramped up in a Subaru for seven hours, a truckload of toys and clothes covering the floor of our room at the Molly Gibson Lodge so that it was impossible to find anything in a hurry, and the mad dash to meet our clinic leaders left no room for recovery.

The first night, we arrived at 8 p.m. in time to rush to the Welcome Reception, kids in tow. The tasty morsels of beef sliders, chicken satay, mac and cheese and veggie springrolls made up dinner. We crawled back to the hotel by 11 p.m.; exhausted from our roadtrip, the wine and the day.

Saturday morning, it was up at 7 a.m. to meet the sitter and get situated. She got the kids, we got to have to fun. We walked the six blocks to Basecamp at the Aspen gondola to sign our waivers and pick up sack lunches from the registration table. I was already drooling over the huge sandwiches from The Big Wrap because I had rushed through breakfast.

I said good bye to Liz and trotted Moki over to Glory Hole park for five hours of mostly dog demonstrations by trainer Mike Stewart from Wildrose Kennels. Three of the five dogs were his; they were invited to this Adventure Dog Clinic to show us what trained dogs are supposed to do.

I was jealous of Liz. She took the whitewater rafting workshop on the Arkansas River off Independence Pass and said the only break from serious rapids was at the take-out. While she was hanging on for dear life and I was sitting quietly and listening. Mike is a good ol’ boy from Mississippi who travels the world training hunting dogs, diabetic detection dogs and adventure dogs. He says the idea actually came to him while he was sitting at a patio restaurant in Aspen. With all of these dogs in town, why not create a program for them? He went over an outline of adventure dog etiquette and we briefly (ie. tried one time) some of the things on his list. Luckily, I took a ton of notes and can practice at home but I sure wish I could have really worked with Moki to get some of the techniques down. Of course, at 7 weeks, he may be too young to do what Mike’s dogs were doing but even the older pup that was there sat around. The owner asked questions and would have to work with his dog on his own back home. Don’t get me wrong. It was all valuable information but my ass got awfully tired.

I got back to the hotel in time to change for dinner. I was meeting some fellow writers at Ellina for drinks and Above The Salt for dinner. I’m going to blame my buzz on the sun and the altitude because I was one happy camper after the first (and only) lemon basil martini. Liz was hanging with the kids poolside at the Sky Lodge; holding my raffle ticket just in case they called my name. We rendezvoused on the promenade after dinner and slowly escorted the weary kids back to the Molly.

The next clinic day- whitewater kayaking for beginners/intermediates- was all beginners. Again, not exactly what I needed to rev my spirits. The calm, rippling water lulled me to sleep rather than stirred my adrenaline. Apparently, no one had signed up for the expert class (about now I was thinking that I should have) and only one person besides myself had ever been in a whitewater boat. Piglet from Aspen Kayak and SUP was a ball of spunk and smiles and her partner in crime –Willie “River” Kern- coached our group of six through the equipment, the paddle strokes and lingo associated with the sport. As we practiced going in and out of eddies (the stagnant corners of water on the sides of rivers), I couldn’t help but look longingly over at the standup paddlers passing us. At least they were moving. Both SUP clinics were full and booked out way in advance, attesting to its rise in popularity.

Everyone in our kayak group was having a blast with the basics but I have to admit that I was now a bit overqualified for the beginners. After my two weeks kayaking in Montana with First Descents the past two summers I was ready for something more challenging. Sigh. The most excitement came at the take out when I attempted to roll – on purpose of course. I didn’t really do it (I used my paddle on the bottom of the river to push me back up) but the try made my heart skip a beat. Jeff, a newbie to the sport, hung back in the water with me and I coached him through his bow rescue. With that huge grin, I’m pretty sure he’ll be boating in the future.

We packed up and headed back to town. I had just enough time to find the rest of my gang before the Adventure Athlete Symposium started. More on that in another blog! This was the weekend finale and it made sense to have this panel of pros talking about giving back. We just had two days of play in the outdoors and how often do you think that the landscape might not look like this when our kids are grown?

Aspen was glorious. The weather perfect (aside from the Cottonwood cottonballs floating through the air 24/7) and the clinics extremely well-organized. I just chose wrong. Sometimes life happens that way and, like a river, we have to go with the flow. The kids adored playing in Colorado, the pup couldn’t get enough attention walking from A to B and Liz not only survived a roaring ride but learned a thing or two about outdoor camera work in the adventure photography class.

It may have been chaotic for me, but Outside in Aspen did what I wanted it to do. Tomorrow, I will take my dog to the park here in Park City and start my own training program. Then I’ll mountain bike in the evening and paddle around the local reservoir. We often forget that you don’t need to leave home to find adventure.

8.5 Hours to Aspen

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Photos by Liz Mallen

 

At least I didn’t forget my panties. Talk about your chaotic roadtrip embarkments. Three times I had to drive back to my house before I was finally on the road to Aspen. So instead of a 9 a.m. start it was more like 11:30 a.m. Then with three kids and a puppy, the 6 hour drive brought us to the Molly Gibson Lodge at 8 p.m. We were already late for the 8 p.m. Welcome Reception and I had missed cocktails with Promo Communications- the PR agency that had invited me out to this exciting event.

The reception for Outside in Aspen at the Sky Lodge was a mix of Aspen locals and out of town guests. I ran into Chris Anthony (long-time Warren Miller pro) who would be leading the rockclimbing group. “There’s no snow,” he shrugged in response to my look when he said he was climbing. Some of the girls (myself included) wore cocktail dresses while others were more comfy in jeans. Men of all ages smiled. One girl with a painted mustache on her face was doing lines off her iPhone in plain sight of us. Not one to think that’s cool, we ignored the bad seed and enjoyed the DJ, the open bar and the yummy appetizers. The servers were happy to bring over kid food to- like sliders, mac n cheese and chicken skewers to keep the little ones happy.

We finally got the gang to bed before midnight. The Molly is a cozy spot just off the main drag that welcomes pets. Moki got dog treats and dog bowls at check in. And he romped with two other pups in the rear courtyard before stowing away in his crate so we could party. Tomorrow will be his day.

I had to tell Sage that her day with the sitter would be a lot more fun tomorrow because Momma had a meeting with grownups. That’s code for – you can’t join me for my adventure dog workshop. It’s my first clinic at Outside in Aspen and I’m determined to learn as much as I can from the experts leading my groups.

A guy I met tonight was considering the number of attendees. His company – Triumph Motorcycles – was one of the sponsors. He said organizers expected ‘only’ 300 people this weekend. I told him that was plenty; 10 clinics/300 people translates into 30 people per group. Those are big groups. I could see where a sponsor would want more exposure but personally I’d prefer a group half that size. We’ll see how it goes with the dog trainer tomorrow. Moki could use some individual attention. This is his first foray into adventure.

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