Podcast 382

Travel Frustrations. When traveling sometimes, nothing goes as planned, and even the smallest effort to go where you intended, or do what you intended, fails. Its frustrating and eventually mind numbing. The bane of the digital traveler these days is Internet service that is too slow, spotty, or not robust enough to accommodate file uploads. Attempt after attempt to upload failed, in different villages all over Maryland’s Eastern Shore. From Salisbury, to Easton, and finally to Rock Hill. Literally the ends of the earth … but in the process riding on two lane farm roads in what is probably one of the most beautiful parts of rural America, in the middle of some of the largest population centers on the East Coast. There’s a great opportunity out there for enterprises to get free WIFI and robust Internet service right. As more and more people consider ‘untethering’; Something more big companies than you think are considering. It means closing offices, getting rid of big staffs and running things from the road, untethered. This is supposedly made easier with high speed Internet and WIFI, and autonomous software that does the work of the back office. All fine and well, but the places you want to go sometimes just don’t have the capabilities to accommodate a digital ‘road warrior’. So far, Starbucks has it down cold, with high speed internet for uploads, and free WIFI. Nothing to sign up for, nothing to log in on, no nonsense. There may be other solutions fine for surfing the net, but when it comes to uploading it’s a different story. Note to someone; We can’t work untethered if the upload capacity isn’t there. In spite of all that, there is enough technology present in the Mobile Podcast Command Unit, to make it possible to do quality audio from the road. The bottle neck is sending it somewhere. Travel may be frustrating but the happy accidents are what makes it worth the time. Having the opportunity to literally drive all over Del Marva Peninsula from the Atlanta to the Chesapeake Bay, from Norfolk and Virginia Beach, to Baltimore, also provides an opportunity to see a lot of this part of the country from the backroads. The reality? Some people may think the United States is coming apart at the seams, but it looks pretty prosperous from this perspective. Maybe some ought to stop shouting about the end of the world and start talking about how and why they think things should be a certain way. It’s hard to think people are enjoying these perfect summer days on the East Coast, shaking their heads and waiting for the ‘Walking Dead’ scenario to play out. Sponsored by X Government Cars. 

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Podcast 380

Rural Virginia. The road trip continues in the Old Dominion. It’s already hot in the south. As darkness falls, the night is alive with frogs, and insects; Many invading the Mobile Podcast Command Unit. With no bug spray, an interesting collection of available tools was used to rid the unit of critters. A hair dryer, compressed air for cleaning electronics, swatting, biological cleaning spray, and lysol air freshener. Then, finally down to business. A few hundred yards down a dirt road where this podcast was recorded are the remains of a village that has been here since before the revolutionary war. How often do we think about where this country will be in one hundred, or two hundred years. The people who lived here two hundred years ago depended on an expression of modern technology – at the time – to assure their livelihood; The mill. They did not know they were living in ‘ancient’ times by our standards. They didn’t worry about slow Internet, or decry broadcast television and its endless commercial clusters detailing drug side effects or how much cheese is on a pizza. When it comes to the news, this podcast has some stories for political junkies to consider. No one seems to be able to say with any clarity or authority what’s wrong with economy, or why its important. Meanwhile the same story lines regarding the latest GDP numbers keep replaying. Then there is the trans pacific partnership trade authority bill republicans are inexplicably supporting. More executive authority for this president? American citizens can’t review or read the bill and reporters can’t read it either. That doesn’t stop Paul Ryan and the Speaker, and the Senate Majority leader and other so called ‘conservatives’ from supporting it. Meanwhile, the Chinese have apparently hacked all the US Government data bases and extracted potentially damning information about high US officials. How is it possible the FBI can fly over our cities listening to our cell phone calls, but the government is unable to protect our privacy rights from the Chinese? We have a government that can’t seem to protect our rights, is riddled with incompetence and corruption, but seems to be quite capable of violating our privacy, and running amok. Why couldn’t Americans find reasons to shut down the federal government, regardless of where they stand on the political spectrum. And another theme that comes up every time we approach a presidential cycle is ‘why don’t we have an independent political party’. The solution, according to some brainy analysts, yet more candidates in the debates. Sigh. The fact is, American political parties have traded places, shifted and changed names, and have been born and died throughout our history. Sponsored by X Government Cars. 

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Podcast 379

National D-Day Memorial. The Road Trip continues, south from Indianapolis to Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Western Virginia. Stopping off for a street fair in Berea, Kentucky and by chance, the National D-Day Memorial at sundown, on June 6th, 2015; the 71st Commemoration of the landing by allied armies in occupied France, at Normandy. Meanwhile, more and more politicians declare their ‘candidacy for the Presidency’ and where’s the first place they go? Iowa. There’s many interesting and valuable small and medium sized towns across this country, with interesting people, that could do with a little attention from politicians who are supposed to be representing the people, but no. The entire media and political focus in this country is on the diffused population of a state that has made a tourist business out of politics, a full year before it will matter. This is how a handful of political ‘activists’, which really means ‘groupie’, ‘attention whore’, ‘fame vampire’, get to have an outsized influence on the American political process. The founding fathers not only are turning over in their graves; they’re spinning like tops. The best thing about travel is it all blurs together until its like a dream, and that’s good. All the better to turn off those idiots, and hit the road. The thing about travel is, once you let you go, and let the countryside and the experiences that go with it come and go, sometimes you get to see amazing things. This is the case with the National D-Day Memorial, which many people probably don’t even know exists, reached at sundown on June 6th, after an unexpected detour to save time, just in time to hear one soldier play taps, in honor of those who gave their lives that day so many years ago. Travel east of the Mississippi is different because the distances are shorter, but there’s more places to pull over and dawdle. College towns like Berea, Kentucky. Rocky Top Tennessee, and the birthplace of country music, Bristol, Virginia. Anyplace but Iowa! Sponsored by Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul. 

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