South Carolina 2012 with Matt

Anyone who is familiar with this site knows that I always used to hug my cat Coach Gordon Bombay before I left. He died in August of 2012, but I have a new cat Major Korben Dallas. He wouldn't let me properly say goodbye so I took his picture. Don't worry, he's got plenty of time to learn my traditions.

Even though it was late November it was still beautiful down here. It was still in the 60s this late at night and I can see why people move down here. No snow in the Winter and palm trees? Where do I sign up? I wish it were that easy. I don't mean this as a knock against my brother but I just can't leave my family and friends, no matter how enticing everything else seems down here. They are my life, not some tropical locale. Without them I have nothing. But I'm glad that I have somewhere nice to visit once a year.

One of my favorite things about traveling out of Milwaukee is the non-existent wait through security and the delicious airport beer. Since this is the land of beer I was able to get a tall glass of Leinenkugel's Red and it tasted wonderful despite the airport prices. It was a great way to kick off the weekend.

Every fall I go down to South Carolina to visit my brother James and his wife Melissa. I've already been down there 3 times and I've seen and done pretty much everything that Columbia (which is where they live) has to offer. Last year was awesome because we drove North to Charlotte to watch the Green Bay Packers beat the Carolina Panthers. Although I do enjoy spending time with them, it's always nice to have something special to look forward to. When I found out the Melissa's brother Matt would be down there on business at the end of November, I worked out my flights so I could meet him in Charleston and fly out of Charlotte at the end of the weekend. I've become good friends with Matt, so I knew that this time down here would be one for the record books. Expect a fair amount of rage.

I had to change planes in Newark on my way to Charleston and this would be my second time in New Jersey. And even though I didn't go outside this time I still could say without really knowing that New Jersey smells. Plant some flowers Garden State.

We were about to take off but had to go back to the terminal because some guy broke the armrest in the exit row. After more than a half hour delay, they wrapped it in bubble wrap and duct tape. I sure hope they don't fix the rest of the plane this way.

I got in to Charleston around 10:15pm (about 45 minutes late) which actually worked out better because Matt was at work until 11pm. Since I was staying at his hotel tonight I bummed around the airport goofing off and tweeting out things to do here.

We flew in/out right past the island of Manhattan and I got to see all sorts of cool stuff like Lady Liberty and the Freedom Tower. A lot has changed since I was last here in 2005 but I didn't have time to check them out. I had other things to do this weekend.

Matt picked me up a little after 11 and we drove around looking for some place to grab some eats. We ended up up stopping at Taco Bell for the deliciousness they call "4th Meal" here in America. After that we just went to the hotel and watched some TV before calling it an early night. When Matt is on the road working he puts in 12+ hour days so he didn't want to stay up late. I had a long day as well with a half day of work and a couple of travel delays. We had a day to ourselves in Charleston tomorrow so we had better rest up.