ivibevan.com Travel Blog

FYI – I’ve added several new pictures to the gallery.

Well it’s official.  This trip is coming to an end.  I’ve now been on the away from home for 31 days.  Now, if everything goes as planned I will be back to Indianapolis tomorrow night.  Now, considering this will be my last entry there are several things and stories to update you all on that have happened. To be honest I really don’t know where to begin…

While in Atlanta, I remembered that the Morning Mess (from Radio Now 93.1) moved there so I gave them a call.  Thankfully, they had a minute to chat with me about my trip and ivibe.  Let’s see, later in Atlanta I stayed at two fabulous places.  One was the Pine Crest Motor Inn (see pictures) and the other was a motel located in between two adult establishments.  No I did not visit these establishments while I was there and the only reason I stayed there was because they looked shady enough that I could sneak Irie into.  After that, I spent one more night in Northern Georgia and then headed to Nashville, TN where I stayed with Tony.  Since in Nashville, Tony and I have managed to have a time that some would consider amazing.  Anyway, too many stories and not enough time left in the day to write them all. The plan is to hit the road at 3am tomorrow morning to make it back to Indy.

Anyway, I wanted to thank those of you who’ve been reading this blog.  Hopefully, I was able to entertain you or at least draw you away from your work for a little bit.  Happy St. Patrick’s Day and have a wonderful night.

.. but it’s true.  Today, I managed to burn the left side of my face and my left arm as they are cloesest to the window while I am driving.  I guess I can’t complain considering the horror stories I’ve heard about the weather back home.  Anyway, a late night puts me into bed early.  ).  More later.

- Matt

 PS - I’m about 1hr north of Atlanta in a questionable motel called the Pine Crest Motel (should anything happen).

Whelp… lost an hour today.  Friggen’ Farmers.  Not a big deal to me though.  We could use some more sun during the day.  That’s for sure.  Tell you what, look around Monday morning and see how many people are late to the office because they reset every clock in their house but that one (the alarm clock).  Us Indiana folk aren’t use to dis gosh darn time changin’ thang.  You know what?  A little off subject, but I love kids.  In fact, I plan on having 3-17 some day (depending on the receptiveness of my future wife, who resides in the same place as Josh’s, an acquaintance nice enough to let me sit with him and his friends at a Hooters in Georgia last night, wife does).  I know this might sound out of the blue, but I’ve always felt that way about kids and today just solidified it.  Here’s the story.  I took Irie to a nearby park to walk her around and three little boys came up wanting to pet her.  Of course I let them and we got to talking about everything from Nintendo to the weight of one of the boys mothers.  Yes, you read that last sentence correctly.  The boy said, “My mom might look somewhat overweight to you because she’s trying to loose weight.  That’s why she started playing tennis.”  “I’m sure she looks great,” I responded.  “Well, my dad is taller than you,” he quickly said back as if I was plotting to break up his parents with a hidden passion I had for his mom.  Ultimately, I just laughed and we kept walking Irie and the topic of conversation moved on to other things.  After I got back to the hotel I was able to internalize that some and I’m wondering something.  First off, I’m sure when you read that you laughed and probably wondered.. why would he tell Matt that.  Well, I’ve got a question for you.  Would anyone you know close to your age say something like that?  Why not?  What’s stopping them?  What do they have to hide?  It think it is because “adults” would ultimately feel that that the weight and diet plan of their mom (or anyone close to them for that matter) might reflect upon or influence a perfect stranger’s opinion of them.  Ultimately, someone might take this as the fuel to look down upon them and their lifestyle when in reality it has nothing to do with that person.  It is merely an element of conversation.  Would you take it as that or something more?  The bottom line is… a comment like this shouldn’t have that effect that it does with adults. Why can’t people look past a comment like that?  Ultimately, the person who would allow such a comment to influence their opinion is someone who is too wrapped up in the content of their own ego that they can not see the true identity of themselves let alone that of others.  And…  That is why kids are great.  Their ability to “say the darndest things” only lasts for so long before they become an adult that hesitates before thinking out loud and makes conversation with a perfect stranger soley for the interaction and not to gain anything for themselves.  Now, 17 kids is probably a bit too much, but we’ll see.  So, it’s probably Monday (for those of you that actually read this).  Before you sigh, and get all pissed off let’s try something today.  First, take a minute and think about how you come into work every Monday.  After you understand that, now think about how you come into work every Friday.  Now, change only your pre-work day thinking to treat today as if it were a Friday.  I promise a “better” day.- MattPS - I gave Irie a bath in the hotel I’m in right now and the entire room smells like a wet dog and there is hair everywhere!  Whenever she gets wet she runs sprints in a circle until she dries off.  Well, there’s only so much room in here, so I let her run sprints in the hall.  My neighbors weren’t so happy…  Oh well… life goes on.

FYI – 4 New Pictures PostedToday is my last day in South Carolina and I think I’m the only person not wearing a jacket.  It’s just because I’m not used to the warm weather this time of year.   It is amazing.  With that said, make sure you spring forward this Sunday March, 9th.  Daylight Saving (it’s not plural) Time is tomorrow at 2am.  Today, I head to Atlanta, GA and then make my way back North to Indy.  Right now, It’s looking like I’ll be back home the week of the 17th.  I’m thinking around the 20th probably, but we’ll see.  Things keep happening that make me enjoy being on the road and meeting new people.  For example, I’ll be the first to admit I’ll sing along with an Enrique Iglesias song; however, I did not expect to meet an older man (native to South Carolina) sing along with Enrique’s song “Escape” out loud while I was talking to him.  His southern accent and his lack of lyrical knowledge made it tough to hold in my laughter.  Now, that is not because it was wrong of him to sing along with a southern accent, but it was just a version I had not heard before.  It sounded like Boomhower from “King of The Hill” singing Escape if that gives you any idea.  Something else that happened, that I hope I don’t have to explain to the Days Inn in North Carolina, is that I left Irie’s dog bowls inside of the hotel room.  Hopefully, the cleaning people don’t assume I had a dog in there and just assume that I am a weirdo who likes eating dog food out of a bowl on the floor.  We’ll see…. Yikes…Anyway, I’m excited for the rest of the trip.  I’ll bunk up for the weekend tonight in Atlanta and hopefully it’ll be warm enough for the hotel pool… we’ll see.  Feel free to e-mail me (mmcintyre@ivibe.net) if you’d like me to touch on something specific.  Of course, I’ll leave your name anonymous and just make general comments.Finally, I’ll leave you all with this quote from the book I’m currently reading, A New Earth (p41), “Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you need? Because this is the experience you are having at this moment.” Make the most of your weekend - Matt

That’s right … I’m up early today with some time to spare so I thought I’d fill it with a delicious maple glazed donut and some coffee.  Amazing!  As it turns out Irie likes donuts too (who would’ve thought).  Anyway, as the sun comes up and the temperature gages rise here in sunny Charlotte, North Carolina, I can only think of one thing.  That is… how I will never eat at a “Jack in the Box” ever again.  Although a little intimidated by the clown-like mascot, I went forward with my first JITB experience last night, and I must say I feel somewhat violated.  First off, I didn’t realize the name of the fast food joint was so literal.  For example, once you eat it the music starts while your stomach winds the little knob thing on the side of the toy unbeknownst to you when the “jack” will pop out of the box.  You have to understand what I’m saying..   Today is just going to be one big wind up. :-O Moving on… I had another night in the van last night with my new air-mattress so that was good.  I ended up parking in a used car lot so I’m sure it looked like the ivibevan was part of the mix.  So, while I’m sleeping Irie manages to crawl her way into my sleeping bag.  As cute as that probably sounds, it’s more uncomfortable than anything because it’s not a regular sleeping bag but a mummy-style one.  This means there is about 1 square foot of extra space around my legs where she likes to sleep and I can’t move.  Oh well I guess, at least she’s warm. Alright, coffee is done… on with the day.  FYI … my total miles thus far are 5, 737 miles since Feb. 14th….  Loving every minute… I’ll post again tonight.- Matt   PS -  Jenni, Thanks for saying the site is “awesome” (Jessica told me that).  I’m glad someone is reading it. ;).  Tony – Glad the blog is keeping you entertained.  See you in Nashville.

FYI - New pictures added to the gallery…Yes, that’s right Tornado Warnings are all over the place in Raleigh, NC.  They are around until 2AM in fact.  Good thing the local day’s in decided to put me and Irie up for the night.  Well they didn’t really know about Irie, but oh well.  Nothing too exciting happened today, besides hours of driving.  Oh wait something did happen …. In fact, it was the first time this whole trip.  Well, Irie rides in the front passenger seat the entire trip.  Even though, she has the entire van to walk around in she insists on it.  Anyway, she was sleeping and I had to slam on the breaks.  Yes, she went flying into the dashboard.  She is okay and took it like a champ but it surely freaked me out.  Then…. I laughed hysterically.  I mean come on it’s pretty funny considering she’s okay.Sleep well… and tomorrow do something you’ve never done.  As small as that might be…,- M@ (get it?)

Right now I’m laying in the back of the ivibevan, a 93 chevy astro van, in a Metro Travel Plaza (truck stop) in northwestern North Carolina with Irie in-between my legs, the windows covered with towels so the only visible light is that of which is emitting from my computer, my air mattress slowly deflating because I tore a hole in it while opening the small metal door that separates the driver and passenger seats from the cargo area and I wonder if I know anyone else that could do this… maybe I do… yeah, I think so….. Could you?  …  I am more excited to learn than I think I ever have been in my entire life and these little antic dotes only encourage my desire.  Everything Happens For A Reason.  It’s a very simple yet very broad statement that is tough for anyone to define; however, any way you want to slice it or dice it.. it is true.  Essentially, (for most) nothing is just handed out for “free”.  Things are nudged in front of you and it is up to you to act upon them.  For example, today… I helped an elderly woman carry some packages into a store.  Actually it was several packages.  Who knows what they were.  They might as well have been bowling balls because they were heavy.  Anyway, when I was finished the woman offered me $5 for my help and I politely refused and told her it was my good deed for the day.  Looking back now, what is a “good dead for the day”? Are you only allowed to do one good deed a day?  Whoever started that phrase should take it back and rephrase it to “that’s my first good deed of the day”… Much better…. Anyway, I’m getting off track.  After this encounter with the elderly woman, I went to the gas station and low and behold found a 10 dollar bill on the ground.  I immediately looked around to see if it belonged to anyone at the gas station and nobody was there to claim it. Bottom line is… everything happens for a reason.  It’s up to you to figure out what that reason is.  Are you brave enough to discover it on your own?  Are you patient enough to realize the true “reason”?…. something to chew on. I’ll leave you tonight with this.  What the hell is a “U-turn”?  Seriously, if we were all doing “u-turns” we’d end up reversing our cars on the road… what it should be called is a “lowercase n-turn”… how about that?g=night- Matt

Wow, I’ve driven a lot, but it’s all been worth it!!….  You can see the route I’ve traveled thus far on the home page (www.ivibevan.com) and see the pictures (that I can post) on the gallery located at (www.ivibevan.com/gallery)Thus far I’ve learned these 3 superior travel tips (among many others) that I would like to share with you all immediately:1) A peanut butter and jelly sandwich is the ultimate travel food2) Without a GPS navigation system you might as well not hit the road and just browse different pictures of cities on the web for 10 days.  I have no idea where I would be without is.  Same goes for satellite radio.3) If you’re planning on a 30+ day road trip be sure to bring along a companion that can help pay for gas.  Irie, my dog, is a great travel partner, but her lack of income certainly hurts the bottom line of a trip like this.Moving forward I’m going to continue to update this blog often so feel free to check back periodically. In fact, I’d recommend bookmarking it and starting your day with reading my entry. Now, considering so much has happened during this trip, I would like to categorize my entries not by event or day but rather by city or state.  My entry may have nothing at all to do with that specific city or state.  It will only act as a title defining where I was when the specific thought I chose to write about entered my head.  Now, to catch you all up I’ll back up a little bit:New York - A huge state with the most toll roads I’ve ever been on.  Or, maybe it was just one toll road that I just got on and off of several times.  Either way, I think I spent around $30 at toll booths.  Anyway, NY is home to some of the greatest people I have ever met.  Truthfully, their hospitality was uplifting and inspiring as I drove through what I’ve deemed the “snow storm of Jesus”.  Pictures are up in the gallery.Pennsylvania -  Can someone tell me if PA has the most colleges/universities in it than any other state?  I must have driven by at least 50.   Penn is a very historically structured city that really takes you back to olden times of the Quakers that inhabited the area long ago.  I really enjoyed it.  A friend of mine said to me that when he is ever given grief for throwing away any paper object he responds with, “Have you ever flown over Pennsylvania?  We’ve got plenty of trees to go around.”  Although, that might not be the right way to look at it, it is true that PA has a ton of trees.Maryland - I really like the water everywhere.  D.C., Baltimore, Annapolis.. there is a lot to see in Maryland (except for an NFL team that holds the mascot of the Colt).  I had to say that.  Seriously, I really do like MD and the water that is everywhere.  Take a look at the pictures in the gallery, but I was really taken a back by some of the bridges I traveled over.  It was easy to see how sailing is such a big deal out there.Lynchburg, VA - This is where I’m at now and where I’ve had the most time to rest (and think) thus far: I have a request for everyone reading this; however, I’m going to explain my experiences first and then the request.  At the start of this “crazy” (as most would call it) trip I did have some reservations before I headed out.  These reservations were more so about the people in other cities being receptive to me, as a young, “out-of-towner” trying to get around and do business in their home town.  Well, I those reservations come from the “Midwest” mentality that I have, and ultimately would end up true if I tried to fit in rather than admitting I am from out of town.  The truth is people are very receptive and helpful to someone who is honest, has a positive attitude, and genuinely listens to whom they are talking to regardless of where you are from.  I’ve had the best time using this method thus far and met some of the most amazing people.With that said here is my request,  Today or Tomorrow (depending on when you read this) take the time during a conversation you either regularly have (or have never had) with someone and force yourself to actively listen to the person you are communicating with.  It’s really simple.  1) Enter the conversation and continue it only being positive (even if you don’t want to) 2) Make sure you look the person in the face while they are talking. Meaning you can’t do ANYTHING else.  3) Do not say anything until they are done talking. Completely done talking.  4) Respond with comments in direct correlation with what they are saying.  Do not respond with what you want to talk about but rather comments to what they’ve already said.  5) End the conversation on a positive note and walk away.

I promise you will walk away knowing more about that person than you’ve ever gotten from a conversation with them before and you’ll feel better about yourself.  I know this has worked for me on this trip thus far and I just want others to try and see if they are as successful.  E-mail me with your stories and I’ll be sure to post them (mmcintyre@ivibe.net).  They don’t need to be anything well written, too long, or perfect… just your thoughts.

Until the next one -

- Matt

Well, I know many of you have been waiting for it.  So, here it is… my first blog post.  The only reason I didn’t write earlier was because not much had happend that was overly exciting.  Now, being 2000 miles into this wild road trip I certainley have a lot to talk about..

 As, I sit in the Ho Joe (Howard Johnson Hotel) in Niagra Falls, NY I can only think “Wow, I’ve done a lot of driving” and “Wow, that is one big waterfall” and “Wow, Irie has been to another country”.  Regarding that - I accidently took a wrong turn and was forced to cross the border to Canada.  They had to search Irie to make sure I wasn’t smuggling anything in her “area” back into the states.  Also, driving a large white Chevy, Astro Van may have raised some suspicion.  Anyway, all was approved and we’re safely back in the U.S.

 So far, I’ve been to all big cities in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio.  Here is my route thus far.

  … think you could do it?

 Here are a few other pictures… Prologue, Go Horse , My Birthplace, Snow Park (for Dogs) , How I Roll , Mer-uggles, Puggles and Friend… I will post some more soon.

This has already proved itself to be the road trip of all road trips.  It is truly an eye opening expierince let alone an already successful business venture. 

If you’d like an immediate update feel free to call me anytime.  Sundays, I am usually free all day.  I hope all is well in Indianapolis and I’m looking forward to sharing all of my stories.