Okay, so I barely stayed in real time on Day one and began falling behind on Day two. I quess I could have uploaded some posts during the morning of Day three in the Bellevue Courtyard but I decided to wash clothes, eat a leisurely stationary breakfast, and sleep. The hotel layovers are about getting some sleep and my land legs back.
My bus trip back from Bellevue gave me a chance to try out the GPS receivers again. I cannot abide a mystery. After restarting the phone and initializing all the software, I did one thing different. I waited. The devices normally lock into sufficient satellites for tracking after 30 second to a minute. The previous day I gave up after about 90 seconds. The behavior was odd. Rather than “seeking satellites” it said “active (0). So I waited. After more than 3 minutes, the minimum three satellites locked in with around 8 being available a few minutes later. This is how I found that Seattle’s legendary overcast was not GPS friendly. I can handled the cool damp grey but this … How can the abundance of local tech guys function her?
Which reminds me: When I got on the bus, the rather good looking female bus driver asks: “Are you running away from home”? While feeding two dollar bills into the machine, I tell her about Clockwise Around America then tell her I need to reach deep in my too tight pants pocket for a couple of quarters. She says: “I’m impressed. You even know the bus fare.” See, planning does pay.
Imagine that. Two friendly bus drivers in as many days.
Arriving at King Station three hours early allowed me time to fire up the laptop and complete work on day 2. My how time flies while you are having fun. No seriously. I sat in the pole position next to door 1 for 3 hours on a tear! The words just flowed into my MacBook while carrying on numerous side conversations with the growing line of passengers.
Maybe I can do this. When the open the door releasing the thundering herd, that on average is 8% greater than this time last year, I was number three for bordering. Number one and two were a nice enough older couple we would have granted first passage to anyway if they had only asked. My experience on the Coast Starlight allowed me to zero in on my (Chicago bound) coach and be first in my lower level compartment, again. Waiting for me is seat number 77 with the single 120 volt outlet behind, a broad window beside, and long extension tray in front that works no matter what the passenger in front of my does. The seats behind incline into the wall. The seats in front have no tray with eight feet of floor I have no use for. All the seats on the left of the car are powerless. No seat 77LL is mine.
Now I should have time to upload the rest of day two while still in the station. Me and Karen, my white haired Chicago-bound traveling companion are alone as the time of departure approaches. Unfortunately, our coach attendant was given a “cold” car not prepared for its journey. She was way behind. So much to do including stuffing more than 80 pillows into their sanitary cases. Imagine how surprised we both were when I volunteered to help. She made one attempt to protest and then disappeared to do her other (undisclosed) duties. I did all fifty that were arrayed around me knowing this was not enough for all the passengers but glad to be done. She saunters back in to tell me there is another back she had not opened for me yet. Probably so I would not see the full magnitude of the task. Happy to be of service mam!
Net result. By the time I finished her job we were out of data range in the Cascades.
Okay, so I barely stayed in real time on Day one and began falling behind on Day two. I quess I could have uploaded some posts during the morning of Day three in the Bellevue Courtyard but I decided to wash clothes, eat a leisurely stationary breakfast, and sleep. The hotel layovers are about getting some sleep and my land legs back.
My bus trip back from Bellevue gave me a chance to try out the GPS receivers again. I cannot abide a mystery. After restarting the phone and initializing all the software, I did one thing different. I waited. The devices normally lock into sufficient satellites for tracking after 30 second to a minute. The previous day I gave up after about 90 seconds. The behavior was odd. Rather than “seeking satellites” it said “active (0). So I waited. After more than 3 minutes, the minimum three satellites locked in with around 8 being available a few minutes later. This is how I found that Seattle’s legendary overcast was not GPS friendly. I can handled the cool damp grey but this … How can the abundance of local tech guys function her?
Which reminds me: When I got on the bus, the rather good looking female bus driver asks: “Are you running away from home”? While feeding two dollar bills into the machine, I tell her about Clockwise Around America then tell her I need to reach deep in my too tight pants pocket for a couple of quarters. She says: “I’m impressed. You even know the bus fare.” See, planning does pay.
Imagine that. Two friendly bus drivers in as many days.
Arriving at King Station three hours early allowed me time to fire up the laptop and complete work on day 2. My how time flies while you are having fun. No seriously. I sat in the pole position next to door 1 for 3 hours on a tear! The words just flowed into my MacBook while carrying on numerous side conversations with the growing line of passengers.
Maybe I can do this. When the open the door releasing the thundering herd, that on average is 8% greater than this time last year, I was number three for bordering. Number one and two were a nice enough older couple we would have granted first passage to anyway if they had only asked. My experience on the Coast Starlight allowed me to zero in on my (Chicago bound) coach and be first in my lower level compartment, again. Waiting for me is seat number 77 with the single 120 volt outlet behind, a broad window beside, and long extension tray in front that works no matter what the passenger in front of my does. The seats behind incline into the wall. The seats in front have no tray with eight feet of floor I have no use for. All the seats on the left of the car are powerless. No seat 77LL is mine.
Now I should have time to upload the rest of day two while still in the station. Me and Karen, my white haired Chicago-bound traveling companion are alone as the time of departure approaches. Unfortunately, our coach attendant was given a “cold” car not prepared for its journey. She was way behind. So much to do including stuffing more than 80 pillows into their sanitary cases. Imagine how surprised we both were when I volunteered to help. She made one attempt to protest and then disappeared to do her other (undisclosed) duties. I did all fifty that were arrayed around me knowing this was not enough for all the passengers but glad to be done. She saunters back in to tell me there is another back she had not opened for me yet. Probably so I would not see the full magnitude of the task. Happy to be of service mam!
Net result. By the time I finished her job we were out of data range in the Cascades.
Okay, so I barely stayed in real time on Day one and began falling behind on Day two. I quess I could have uploaded some posts during the morning of Day three in the Bellevue Courtyard but I decided to wash clothes, eat a leisurely stationary breakfast, and sleep. The hotel layovers are about getting some sleep and my land legs back.
My bus trip back from Bellevue gave me a chance to try out the GPS receivers again. I cannot abide a mystery. After restarting the phone and initializing all the software, I did one thing different. I waited. The devices normally lock into sufficient satellites for tracking after 30 second to a minute. The previous day I gave up after about 90 seconds. The behavior was odd. Rather than “seeking satellites” it said “active (0). So I waited. After more than 3 minutes, the minimum three satellites locked in with around 8 being available a few minutes later. This is how I found that Seattle’s legendary overcast was not GPS friendly. I can handled the cool damp grey but this … How can the abundance of local tech guys function her?
Which reminds me: When I got on the bus, the rather good looking female bus driver asks: “Are you running away from home”? While feeding two dollar bills into the machine, I tell her about Clockwise Around America then tell her I need to reach deep in my too tight pants pocket for a couple of quarters. She says: “I’m impressed. You even know the bus fare.” See, planning does pay.
Imagine that. Two friendly bus drivers in as many days.
Arriving at King Station three hours early allowed me time to fire up the laptop and complete work on day 2. My how time flies while you are having fun. No seriously. I sat in the pole position next to door 1 for 3 hours on a tear! The words just flowed into my MacBook while carrying on numerous side conversations with the growing line of passengers.
Maybe I can do this. When the open the door releasing the thundering herd, that on average is 8% greater than this time last year, I was number three for bordering. Number one and two were a nice enough older couple we would have granted first passage to anyway if they had only asked. My experience on the Coast Starlight allowed me to zero in on my (Chicago bound) coach and be first in my lower level compartment, again. Waiting for me is seat number 77 with the single 120 volt outlet behind, a broad window beside, and long extension tray in front that works no matter what the passenger in front of my does. The seats behind incline into the wall. The seats in front have no tray with eight feet of floor I have no use for. All the seats on the left of the car are powerless. No seat 77LL is mine.
Now I should have time to upload the rest of day two while still in the station. Me and Karen, my white haired Chicago-bound traveling companion are alone as the time of departure approaches. Unfortunately, our coach attendant was given a “cold” car not prepared for its journey. She was way behind. So much to do including stuffing more than 80 pillows into their sanitary cases. Imagine how surprised we both were when I volunteered to help. She made one attempt to protest and then disappeared to do her other (undisclosed) duties. I did all fifty that were arrayed around me knowing this was not enough for all the passengers but glad to be done. She saunters back in to tell me there is another back she had not opened for me yet. Probably so I would not see the full magnitude of the task. Happy to be of service mam!
Net result. By the time I finished her job we were out of data range in the Cascades.
