It was during my college years that I began to appreciate country. There was a dirty hole-in-the-wall called Harry’s Bar where my friends and I liked to congregate and consume large amounts of adult beverages. Harry’s was a converted automotive garage, the sort of lovable dump where you could drop a glass beer bottle on a concrete floor and no one would mind. (Seriously!) In addition to the worst billiard tables known to man and random free shots of tequila (personally administered by Harry himself), Harry’s offered a brilliant old school jukebox stocked with your grandfather’s country music. No pretty girl fluffy fluff. We’re talking about grizzled old veterans like Willie Nelson and George Jones. When that jukebox started pumping out the right country tunes, it was magic. There’s something about hearing George Jones singing from a jukebox that, even today, that gives me the uncontrollable urge to guzzle a pitcher of cheap domestic beer.

Then I got married. Although I sadly stopped hanging out at places like Harry’s Bar, I began listening to even more country music. That’s because my wife loves country music. She buys the albums. She watches the awards shows. She knows about all the artists and seems to have memorized the lyrics of all the latest songs. She has increased my aptitude for country and I guess I like it more every year. While I don’t profess to be an expert, I now can distinguish between Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood.

Funny thing about the Internet – you never know who might be out there reading and watching your stuff. A few months ago, I got an email from this fellow. He wrote, “I’ve been following you guys for a couple of years now. I’m the drummer in the country band Lonestar. Let me know if you are ever near one of our shows and we’ll get together.”

“Hey Kristy,” I said. “I just got an email from this guy in a country band. Do you know Lonestar?”

“Yes!” she replied. “They’re really good!”

“Really?”

“Yeah!” she said. “They’ve had a bunch of great songs. Number one hits. Heck, they’ve even got a song that fits with Long Long Honeymoon. It’s called What About Now.”

It was true. Lonestar is a massively successful country band. Over the past twenty years, they’ve carved out a nice career with a series of platinum albums and hit songs. They tour the world. It’s mandatory that their #1 song Amazed is played at every wedding in North America.

So I looked up the guy. His name is Keech Rainwater. Keech is an original member of Lonestar (which with the return of lead singer Richie McDonald has been restored to its original lineup) and has been banging drums for the band for more than two decades. In fact, Lonestar started in 1992, which is right about the time I was slurping tequila at Harry’s Bar.

Next I checked out the song Kristy mentioned. The lyrics were spot on. What About Now is about a couple who finally hits the road for the trip of their lives. Instead of endlessly waiting for someday, they decide to focus on now.

Fast forward a couple of months. We checked out the Lonestar tour schedule, and found an appropriate date. I sent Keech a message about the event.

“Just finished a show at an undisclosed location in Asia where we performed for the military,” Keech replied. “Am about to board a 29-hour flight back to Nashville.”

It turns out that Lonestar has a long history of supporting the military, performing shows for troops who are serving far from home.

We agreed on a suitable date. Then on the appointed day, we towed our Airstream to the venue. We met Keech outside the arena and spent a good deal of quality time together.

Over the course of a day, we got to know Keech. Sometimes you meet people and you feel an immediate bond. This was one of those times. It turns out that in real life he’s exactly what you’d hope – a down-to-earth, sincere, all around nice person. 

Keech hails from Texas, though his home is in Nashville. He’s got a daughter in Canada. When he’s not touring with Lonestar, he’s usually spending time with his daughter. The upshot is that for Keech, travel is truly a way of life.

The subject matter that brought us together, obviously, is our common interest in Airstreams. A few years ago Keech bought a vintage Airstream. He’s currently in the process of renovating it. His plans for the silver bullet extend beyond weekend camping trips. Since he spends so much time traveling anyway, the traditional suburban brick-and-mortar home doesn’t seem to make sense. Instead, he’s thinking about selling his house and pursuing fulltime life on the road.

In addition to Airstream trailers, we share interests in other obsessions — like filmmaking, cinematography, and quality coffee.

After hanging out with Keech for much of the day, we felt we’d made a new friend. I have a feeling we’ll see him again someday, when his Airstream is a little further along and he’s out there following his latest passions.

This brings me back to that Lonestar song Kristy mentioned. After she told me about the song, I listened to What About Now, and it stuck in my head. Like so many country songs, it tells a story, and it’s an inspiring one.

When’s the best time to pursue your dreams?

What about now?

And that road rolls out like a welcome mat
I don’t know where it goes but it beats where we’re at
We always said someday, somehow
We were gonna get away, gonna blow this town

What about now, how ’bout tonight
Baby for once let’s don’t think twice
Let’s take that spin that never ends
That we’ve been talking about

What about now, why should we wait
We can chase these dreams down the interstate
And be long gone ‘fore the world moves on and makes another round
What about now

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When we’re not camping, I’m one of those people who really enjoys coffee as a daily ritual. Yes, you may call me a coffee geek. It’s more than just an indulgence – it’s a full blown hobby.

Coffee is kind of like cooking and photography – while everyone does it, not everyone does it well. Does that sound snobby? It really shouldn’t. I don’t think it’s snobbish to pursue quality; in fact, these sorts of pursuits make life interesting. And it’s certainly not a money issue. While there may be a few snobs who insist on drinking nothing but $50 cups of cat poop coffee, there’s no reason that quality coffee should be an expensive hobby.

A few years ago I decided to learn the ancient, or actually the modern, secrets of the barista. I bought a fancy Italian espresso machine (Rancilio Silvia) with matching burr grinder (Rancilio Rocky) and started pulling shots. My espresso machine is a full blown manual experience, a little messy and time consuming but also quite satisfying. Like an Airstream, it’s a quality product that’s built to last. Unfortunately it’s too large and unwieldy to take with us on the road.

This is my home coffee rig. It pulls a killer shot of espresso. Unfortunately, it's about the same size as our Airstream and draws more electrical current than the Las Vegas Strip.

If you have acres of space inside your RV, and if you never boondock, then maybe you can go for an electricity suckin’ shot pullin’ Italian stallion of a machine. But inside our Airstream, we measure countertop and storage space in terms of square inches. We’ve been known to go weeks without a hookup. We’ve got to focus on something small. And if it doesn’t require electricity? That’s a bonus.

It probably wouldn't kill me to quit coffee, but why take chances?

You’ll find that creating your own coffee is both more rewarding and more economical than lining up for a hit at the local Starbucks. Even my fancy Italian espresso machine, expensive in the short run, “saves money” over the long haul by delivering restaurant quality espresso at a fraction of the cost. If you are in the habit of shelling out $4 for a grande latte every day, do the math. Although I’m no mathematical genius, the numbers favor prepping your own quality brew at home. By a huge margin.

Good coffee beans need not cost an arm and a leg. At the moment I subscribe via Amazon to Lavazza Qualita Rossa espresso. I get a four-pack at the subscription price of $22 – less than $6 a bag! This is excellent Italian coffee at a reasonable price, and another reason why I love Amazon. Sometimes I use other beans, though I’m fairly loyal to Lavazza when making a “serious” cup of coffee. Lavazza sells a variety of espresso blends that are available in bulk. In addition to Qualita Rossa, I have tried Crema e Gusto, Crema e Aroma, Super Crema, and In Blu. They each produce espresso with unique flavor and character.

"Italy's Favorite Coffee" - buy it in bulk for $6 a bag!

I’ve learned a lot over the years – enough to know that I’m still learning. Again, it’s like photography. You can learn the basics (composition, shutter, aperture) in a day, and then spend the rest of your life in pursuit of excellence. There are many variables that contribute to a great cup of coffee – the bean, the roast, the grind, the water, and the “extraction” process. The one constant is the need for good water. As for the rest, you can change ‘em up to see what suits you.

My goal over time here is to document the various means of making coffee when camping. For our first video, we take a look at the world’s most popular coffee maker. Bialetti has been selling “Moka Pot” coffee makers since 1933 – just a couple of years after Wally Byam started Airstream! They are a staple in every Italian household. If you go to Italy and stay in a B&B, chances are that your morning brew will be made with one of these durable contraptions. Not only do they make a nice cup of espresso (well, it’s technically “almost espresso” because the pot doesn’t create the same pressure as a true espresso maker) but you can buy one on Amazon for a measly $20. See? Good coffee doesn’t need to be expensive.

Italian coffee pots are ideal for camping (even tent camping) because they do not require electricity. They are also quite compact. Our “three cup” version is about the size of a travel coffee mug. The downsides to this approach? First of all, they use some of your propane. Secondly, there’s a bit of mess.

If you want minimal mess, consider this video:

I know what you’re thinking. Instant coffee? Didn’t I just blather on about roast and grind and extraction? What does instant coffee have to do with quality? Admittedly, I am stepping onto treacherous ground here by even suggesting that instant coffee may be worthy of consideration.

Yes, in the past, instant coffees have been rather terrible facsimiles of the real thing.

Yes, it’s probably true that most instant coffees still taste like dirty lawnmower oil.

I love Trader Joe's, but HATE their instant coffee. This horrid nasty stuff is frankly undrinkable. That's why there's mold growing inside this jar.

Nevertheless (and I’m probably destroying my coffee snob credentials here), there are a couple of instant coffees that are surprisingly decent.

The first is Starbucks Via. If you drink Via you retain your snob status because the stuff is more expensive than plutonium. Plus, every package comes equipped with its own stylish Starbucks logo. Via is a weird product – kind of like a practical Ferrari hatchback. You may be inclined to mock it, but you can’t deny that it delivers the goods. I daresay that Starbucks Via would perform well in blind taste tests. This would make a great ad campaign, if Folger’s hadn’t already done it.

A Ferrari FF, aka "the Starbucks Via of automobiles."

Of course there’s an alternative to Via. It costs one-tenth the price and it’s available everywhere…

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Pollen? Check. We’ve been sneezing at least fifteen times an hour.

Airstream cleaning? Check. We recently pressure washed the old gal. She’s now shining in the sun like a gigantic loaf of silver sour dough. This time around, thankfully, Sean managed to avoid pressure washing his foot.

Facebook page rebooting? Check! In the spirit of spring cleaning, we’re launching a new “Long Long Honeymoon” Facebook page. It makes a lot of sense. When we’re traveling (and even when we’re not), Facebook makes it super easy to keep everyone in the loop.

Our new page will feature conversation, photos, video, and FREE STUFF. Note that we’ll be posting video and photos on Facebook that won’t be found anywhere else. We have approximately one googleplexzilliontrillion video clips and photos that we have collected over the years. At least a few of these gems will be making their way onto our new page. Check it out!

You can find it here: http://Facebook.com/LongLongHoneymoon

Our goal will be to engage everyone with tales of travel… to inform, educate, and entertain… and yes, to shamelessly bribe you with loads of free goodies that pertain to Airstream / RV camping and generally having a good time.

You’ll note that we are sporting a spiffy new logo. A new logo means new products. We will soon be ramping up several weekly contests and giveaways on our Facebook page, including Long Long Honeymoon DVDs, t-shirts, and books.

So why not head on over to Facebook and join the fun?

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We flew to the Caribbean to appear in an upcoming TV show (code named “Vacation Hunters“) for the Travel Channel. We love watching the Travel Channel, and we’d never visited the Virgin Islands, so this seemed like a fun and memorable way to experience a new destination. We arrived in the island of St. Thomas, and ventured out from there. Over the course of the week, we experienced several different types of vacation.

The premise of the show: participants ”hunt” for a unique vacation experience that suits their own wish list. So we got to “test drive” three different ways to vacation in the U.S. Virgin Islands. We’ve watched a zillion episodes of shows like House Hunters and House Hunters International – this is a similar show.

I won’t reveal too much just yet (since all will eventually be revealed on TV) but we were pleased by the variety of offerings cooked up by the TV production company. There were a few surprises, and no bad choices. In the end, we were able to dovetail our love of Airstream camping with our time in the Islands.

The location didn’t hurt. The Caribbean is gorgeous in springtime. The weather was warm but not hot. The ocean waters were a perfect temperature for swimming. Rum is cheaper than water! Overall we had a blast in the Caribbean. I’m sure we’ll go back someday.

We’d previously been to Jamaica. The U.S. Virgin Islands reminded me of Jamaica in many ways, but it nevertheless has its own unique identity. As a United States Territory, the Virgin Islands are not bound by all of the usual American legal excesses. Life in the Islands is a just a little different. For example, I stopped and chatted with a man who had set up a sidewalk “rum & coke stand” that was like a lemonade stand for adults. In the States you’d need a permit, one the bureaucrats would never agree to issue anyway.

Here are a few photos from the trip, presented in pretty much random order. I shot some video also, and will eventually edit it for your consideration. Note that clicking the individual photos will open up the view to full size.

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The love between men and power tools is well documented. Of course, certain power tools – like the pressure washer – simply bring out the “lower animal” in many men.

When using a pressure washer you get to crank an engine, hold a gun, pull a trigger, and shoot dangerous projectiles. What’s not to like?

Pressure washing walks that fine line between constructive and destructive behavior.

The results of pressure washing can be alluring. As we’ve previously demonstrated, pressure washing can have an astonishing effect on the aluminum skin of an Airstream. There’s no more dramatic way to scrape off whatever gunk and funk has accumulated over time.

Although pressure washing is, dare I say it, a fun activity, it’s also quite dangerous. Obviously, a 2400 PSI stream of concentrated water is powerful enough to slice skin and sinew. Pressure wash injuries are unique, made worse by the possibility of wound contamination. If you are pressure washing with a cleansing substance, you could inject “Mr. Clean” into your bloodstream.

In the case of my own pressure washing injury, on the fateful day in question I was wearing (what else) Crocs. To make matters worse, at the time of the accident I was lying on the roof of our Airstream, and so I had removed my Crocs. When wriggling around on the roof, I pulled the trigger, and the wand whisked past my exposed bare foot. I now have a nice scar to go along with a not-so-thrilling story.

Scene from my upcoming film, "Scarfoot."

So here are a few tips to keep in mind when pressure washing.

1. Dress appropriately. Wear shoes, since your feet are probably most vulnerable to a stray swipe of the pressure washing wand. Gloves are probably a wise idea. Helmets are optional.

2. Choose the right wand tip. You can adjust the power of the wash by changing the tips of your washer (this is true with most washers). I find that the so-called “dirtblaster” is effective, since it gives you a variety of cleaning angles. It also claims to have some sort of “turbo” function (but I think that’s just because men like saying the word “turbo”).

3. Respect the wand. Pressurized water is not only capable of damaging your own fragile flesh, it can also damage whatever you’re attempting to wash. A strong pressure washer will easily gouge wood if you hold it in the same spot for too long. It’s best to move the washer in slow even sweeps. Keep it away from the panel seams of an Airstream or other camper. Keep it away from electronics. (HINT: WATER AND ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS DO NOT MIX.)

When you get a pressure washer, you probably have certain tasks in mind. But once you’ve nuked the front sidewalk and your brick walls, what’s next? Hey, how about a barbecue grill?

I first heard about pressure washing grills in some long forgotten corner of the Internet. Hey, any excuse to fire up the pressure washer is fine with me.

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I’ve blathered in this space before about Yellowstone, and why it’s God’s greatest creation since Eve, fire, the wheel, and the GPS. It’s the “oldest and best” park, the world’s first national park, and… BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.

There I go again. Let’s face it: you’re tired of hearing me drone on about Yellowstone. So I thought I’d pull together a video of reasons why you should NEVER visit Yellowstone. Instead of hearing about all of the delicious reasons to visit, let’s consider some downside risks. Many of these involve the possibility of dying an unusual and violent death. Studies show that most people prefer to avoid unusual and violent deaths.

In Yellowstone, you run a reasonable risk of death by wild animal. In the video I refer to bison as “the most dangerous animals in the Park.” This is true, as Obi Wan Kenobi might say, from a certain point of view…

Bison are not necessarily the deadliest animals in the Park, but they cause the most human injuries. This is because many people act rather silly around bison, treating them like cuddly play toys. I heard about one woman who literally grabbed the horns of an adult male bison so she could turn its head and “get a better picture.” She ended up in the hospital with a severe (and arguably well deserved) goring. At the risk of sounding harsh, I don’t feel sorry for people who antagonize and agitate powerful wild animals. What was she thinking?

When I worked in Yellowstone, one tourist lost her left buttock in a bison goring. (Do you realize how much self-control is involved in relaying this story with a straight face?) It hit her from behind and tossed her twenty feet. Sayonara, butt cheek. I just hope she wasn’t a Hollywood butt double.

Then there are the bison-related snowmobile and auto accidents. Bison enjoy using the roads just like we do. If you hit a full grown male adult bison at high speed with a Fiat, for example, you may bruise the bison’s ribs. The Fiat, on the other hand, will be totaled. If you smash headlong into a two thousand pound bison with a snowmobile, you will be totaled.

What about bears? When pondering animal death in Yellowstone, everyone thinks of grizzly bear attack. In recent years bear attacks have been on the rise. Every year, a few people experience “negative human bear interactions,” as the rangers like to say. I wouldn’t want to die being eaten alive by a hungry bear – that would truly be a negative interaction, at least from my perspective. (Click here to see our incredibly informative bear safety video.) The most likely risk of a nasty bear encounter happens when hiking. To really enjoy Yellowstone, you need to lace up some boots and hit the trails. When you do so, you’d better make a lot of noise and pack some pepper spray.

I sincerely would prefer death by bear to taking a dip in one of Yellowstone’s geothermal features. Believe it or not, over the years many have suffered this cruel fate. In fact, more have died in Yellowstone by boiling than by bear. I do feel sorry for these people, even the ones who naively chose to jump into the pools. No one would voluntarily choose that fate. Obviously most have underestimated the amount of heat generated by the Yellowstone super-volcano. Those turquoise pools may look pretty, but they are as comforting as the average lobster pot.

Yellowstone simply isn’t like most other parks. If you take a wrong step, you can die an extremely painful death.

Geothermal features are generally well marked. Stay on the boardwalks and you will be fine. But whatever you do, please don’t go hiking after dark, with no flashlight, through a geyser basin. In 2000, three Park employees did just that – they fell into a 10-foot deep pool of boiling water, and one poor girl died from the resulting burns. Horrible to think about, isn’t it?

It looks innocent enough, but fall into Yellowstone's Cavern Spring (where water temps approach 200 degrees Farenheit) and you'll wish you were dead.

When I was working in the park, one employee got drunk and walked beyond the pathways into unsafe areas. He fell through the crust into a boiling hot pool. His body was pretty much destroyed from the waist down. He was airlifted from the park by helicopter (there are no real hospitals in Yellowstone). I’m not sure whether he survived.

Several wayward children have wandered into the thermal areas. A few poor souls, not realizing the intense heat of the geothermal areas, have voluntarily leapt into the pools chasing after dogs and the like. So let’s all consider today’s safety tip: never, ever, ever, ever, ever approach Yellowstone’s geothermal features with anything less than the utmost deference and respect. A healthy dose of fear, in this case, is warranted.

Another weird way to die in Yellowstone is by falling into the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River.

“Aren’t there guardrails?” you ask.

Of course there are guardrails. There are also scores of foolhardy tourists who eagerly climb over said guardrails in order “to get a better picture.” Just about every year someone climbs beyond a guardrail, poses for a photo, loses his or her balance, and plunges several hundred feet to their death into the canyon. Hey, falling into the canyon wouldn’t be the best way to go – but it sure would beat boiling water or bear.

You’ll note that many victims in Yellowstone were Park employees. If you live full-time in Yellowstone, it makes sense that you are more exposed to its dangers.  Hopefully you are more attuned to them as well.

For me, working in the Park was a wonderful experience. Sure, the money sucks. You simply don’t work in Yellowstone expecting to make much money. Although your paycheck is laughable (useful mainly for buying pizza and beer in the employee pub), you will be compensated in other ways. You’ll form memorable friendships with your coworkers, and you’ll experience the Park to a degree that few others can appreciate.

For more information about working in Yellowstone, check out YellowstoneJobs.com.

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My wife has a Barnes & Noble Nook (also a fine e-reader), but I have a Kindle. Amazon makes Kindles in many different varieties that serve different needs and different budgets. Kindles have fixed storage capacities, but even the cheapest current model offers 2GB (enough to store about 1500 books!).

The author's own Kindle DX!

My own Kindle is the Mac Daddy DX version. It features a large 9.7-inch black & white (e-ink) screen that is not backlit. The “e-ink” screen makes it easy on the eyes in all sorts of lighting environments, even bright sunlight.

Overall I love my Kindle DX and its large display. But if there’s a drawback to my model, it’s that the DX is a bit bulky and heavy compared to the standard Kindles. It’s heavier in the hand. It’s also more expensive (thankfully, mine was a generous gift). I don’t think the DX sold particularly well, because Amazon isn’t really promoting it these days. The standard-sized Kindles are where the action is. Once you try one, it’s easy to see why.

A standard 6-inch Kindle.

My mother has two Kindles. One is the 6-inch size and the other (the new Fire model) is 7-inches – about the size of a traditional book. (For you ladies out there, Mom likes these sizes because they easily slip into her purse.) The standard e-ink Kindles are light as a feather and a joy to read. “Sometimes I forget I’m reading my Kindle,” Mom told me, “and I try to physically turn the book page!”

If you want larger text on a standard Kindle, it’s easy to adjust the font size to suit your eyesight. The entry level Kindle lacks a touchscreen, but it costs a mere $79. It weighs less than six ounces; if it was any lighter, it might blow away like paper! So it’s no wonder these amazing devices are selling like hotcakes.

The Kindle Fire tablet.

In addition to the 6-inch e-ink Kindle (a black & white unit that’s just like mine but more portable), Mom also has the new Kindle Fire. The Fire is a more robust tablet that’s comparable in performance to an iPad or Nook Tablet. Its backlit full-color touchscreen isn’t quite as eye-friendly for readers as e-ink, but it does a great job with Facebook, email, web surfing, playing videos, apps, and games like Angry Birds. There’s no camera or GPS, but if you want a reasonably priced tablet, the $199 Fire is the bargain of the year.

What about e-books? It’s my belief that e-readers should lead to a lower cost for books. We all should benefit by the permanent retirement of the “dead tree” delivery method. The end of paper-and-ink printing and distribution should mean better prices for everyone.

Along these lines, we’ve priced my e-book on RV camping (Long Long Honeymoon – Living Large in a Small Tin Can) cheaper than a cup of fancy coffee. For only $2.99, you get a whopping 80,000 word book on RV camping. Not a bad way to start the new year.

So that’s a quick look at the Amazon Kindle.

There are many e-readers available for your purchasing pleasure. One of the most popular rhymes with “book.” Why should I choose to focus on Kindle? Conspiracy theories abound. Am I biased? Have I loaded up our investment portfolio on AMZN? Or am I merely an Amazon fanboy who wears Jeff Bezos pajamas?

Nah. While I may be a bit of an Amazon fanboy, I started with Kindle because Amazon is currently KING KONG of the e-reader world. If recent sales figures are to be believed, Amazon is now perched on a skyscraper high above E-Reader Metropolis with Fay Wray sitting on its lap. Or is that Jeff Bezos in a dress?

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in a dress? This is wrong on many levels.

With Kindles selling faster than mouse ears at Disney World, it’s good to be King Kong. But if there’s a pesky swarm of biplanes on the horizon, it’s the Barnes & Noble NOOK.

The author's book on his wife's NOOK.

The Nook is a series of e-reader devices sold by everyone’s favorite brick-and-mortar bookstore behemoth. These range from inexpensive e-ink readers (Nook Simple Touch) to more robust tablets (Nook Color & Nook Tablet). You can buy Nooks online, in 90,000-square-foot bookstores, in shady back alleys, and even in exotic specialty stores like Walmart.

After slugging it out with Amazon, Apple, and Sony for a couple of years, Barnes & Noble has carved out 25% of the e-reader market. I’m not sure whether that share grew or shrank this past retail quarter. But if a Nook tickles your fancy, current market share shouldn’t matter. Nooks are excellent devices and they have garnered a large and dedicated following. In fact, there’s a Nookite in my own family.

NOOK Simple Touch ($99)

About a year ago, my wife was choosing between Kindle and Nook. She chose NOOK. Why?

“I liked that I could check out e-books from our local library on Nook,” she told me, “and it was also easier to lend and borrow books from friends.”

Over the past year, Amazon has made strides by adding these features to Kindle, but her points were well taken. Nook was first to embrace book lending. Amazon arrived late to the party.

“Also,” she added, “I like that Barnes & Noble has real brick-and-mortar bookstores. If I bring my Nook into a store I can read any book for free. Sometimes they offer complementary coffees and that sort of thing to Nook owners.”

A national network of physical bookstores? Free hot beverages? The occasional slice of pumpkin pie? Amazon won’t be adding those benefits anytime soon. Advantage: Nook.

NOOK Tablet ($249)

Another feature of Nook that appeals to the geek in me is the micro SD card slot. The micro SD slot allows owners to easily expand the memory capacity of their Nooks. The only Kindle with such a slot was the first generation unit that Amazon no longer sells. All of the new Kindles have no memory expansion. (Sometimes I think Jeff Bezos graduated from The Steve Jobs School of Dumbing It Down.)

Along these lines, one exciting development in the world of NOOK was the Nook Color. While its full color backlit touchscreen is not as eye-friendly as e-ink screens, it is fantastic for displaying magazines and children’s books. But the real excitement? Nook Color could be “rooted” and converted into an Android tablet. Thousands of people bought and “rooted” Nook Color to Android so they could check Facebook, play Angry Birds, etc. In a way, these hacked Nook tablets paved the way for the Kindle Fire. Of course, now there’s also a fancy $249 Nook Tablet that offers a few spec sheet upgrades over the Kindle Fire.

The Nook Tablet is a premium color ereader. At $249, it’s half the price of the cheapest Apple iPad. It’s also $50 more than Kindle Fire. But it’s loaded with more memory than the Kindle Fire (1GB of RAM which makes it more speedy), allows for capacity expansion via the micro SD slot (only 1GB reserved for user content, but easily expandable up to 32GB), and an integrated microphone. The idea of the microphone is genius – it allows grandparents to narrate books for their grandchildren. Of course, the microphone also begs the question, “How many technology challenged grandparents will ever be able to figure out this feature?”

We could spend all day debating the technical pros and cons of “Nook versus Kindle,” but it strikes me as a “Ford versus Chevy” type of argument. Both camps have their loyal fans. Really, with the exception of the occasional tech failure, I’ve never heard an owner of either device regret their purchasing decision. At the end of the day, either a Nook or a Kindle will get you where you want to go.

You first need to decide exactly what you want to do. In other words, do you mainly want to read books? If so, a true “e ink” device with a black-and-white is what you want. Trust me, these black-and-white readers are fantastic for extended reading sessions. The screens are simply easy on the eyes.

If you want to do Facebook, browse the Web, and so forth, then your choices become more spendy and a little more complex. Or in the case of one option, spendy and simple…

It’s time to address the Godzilla of the e-reader world. Yes, we’re talking about Apple and its iPad tablet. If Amazon is King Kong, Apple is Godzilla. (In this analogy, Nook is Rodan; never underestimate Rodan.) While iPad isn’t a dedicated e-reader, many people use it as such.

NOTE: Images are not to scale (we all know that Godzilla is much larger than King Kong).

It wasn’t so long ago that ol’ Mister Black Turtleneck himself was standing on stage like some sort of Silicon Valley prophet, proudly holding his gleaming metal tablet aloft. The initial response was a collective, “Huh?” On that day Apple CEO Steve Jobs suffered a few snickers at the device’s name, which reminded some of a feminine hygiene product.

A lot has happened since that fateful day in 2010 when Jobs unfurled the iPad to skepticism and derision. It turned out that Jobs was once again right. The iPad became the most popular consumer product since running water. People around the planet bought RVs just so they could more comfortably camp outside Apple stores while waiting to buy the latest model. Apple became more valuable than the Earth itself.

You never know when NOOK might fly into the scene and crash Godzilla's party.

As for Steve Jobs, in 2011 he moved on to that great product launch in the sky. I read the authorized Steve Jobs biography (on my Kindle – sorry, Steve), and learned that he was almost as much a jerk as he was a genius. (I’m being generous by using the word “jerk” instead of a certain alternative.) Jobs had his own way of doing things. His approach worked wonders with technology, but not so great with people. One lesson we might draw from the Steve Jobs tale? Never rely solely on herbal teas and fresh fruit to cure pancreatic cancer.

Steve Jobs at the original iPad product launch. Good times...

In some ways, the iPad represents Steve Jobs’s final genius move on the global computing chessboard. Apple created the tablet market. The iPad has flourished where others have struggled. If you are considering full featured tablets, there’s the iPad and there’s everyone else. Many other tech firms have tried to compete with iPad, and failed spectacularly. Yes, Apple has acted like Godzilla in this tablet space, and has reduced many tech rivals to smoldering ruins. (Hey, anyone want to buy some HP stock?)

My in laws have an iPad and they love it. In fact, I’ve never really heard from anyone who didn’t enjoy the iPad.

The author's father-in-law browsing vintage vehicles on his iPad.

Every iPad comes equipped with an Apple logo; we all know what these logos do to price. The cheapest wifi-only model costs $499. A fully loaded model will cost you $829 (plus a monthly 3G contract with AT&T or Verizon). Even with these prices, iPad benefits from the Apple halo effect. Many consumers happily pony up a few extra hundred dollars to get the Apple gadget, even though cheaper alternatives abound. This is a key reason why Steve Jobs died with 7 billion dollars in the bank.

Apple's iPad 2 ($499 and up) is the Rolls Royce of tablets.

What is an iPad? It’s a 9.7-inch touchscreen equipped with a robust CPU and Apple’s intuitive iOS operating system. It’s kind of like a jumbo iPhone, but without the phone. This is not intended as criticism; the iPad is perhaps the best Internet content consumption device ever created. If you have any familiarity with iPhone, you already know how to use an iPad. It’s brilliantly easy to use. Steve Jobs dubbed the iPad experience “magical,” and who are we to argue? This is the Rolls Royce of tablets. Yes it costs more, but you get a very smooth ride. It does everything quite well. (Everything except play Flash content; Steve Jobs didn’t like Flash, so neither does iPad.)

Like other tablets, iPad really isn’t focused on content creation. Most people don’t go to the Internet to edit HD video or write the next War and Peace. If you want to check email and Facebook, browse websites, and even play a few games, do you really need a physical keyboard and mouse? The iPad has proven that you do not.

The iPad’s large backlit LCD touchscreen does not offer an “E ink” reading experience. For those of us who enjoy reading novels (and labyrinthine Steve Jobs biographies), an iPad is less than optimal. The backlit screen simply strains and tires the eyes after a while. Black-and-white e-ink devices like Kindle and Nook can be read all day long without eye strain. Nevertheless, a lot of people are doing a lot of reading on the iPad. The iPad is wonderful for magazines and the Web, and fine for short bouts of book reading.

The 9.7-inch iPad screen is larger than most of the competing ereaders. The larger size is nice, though it comes at a cost of weight and bulk. If you’re kicking back on the sofa or easy chair and browsing the Web, the iPad is tough to beat. But unlike Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet, the iPad isn’t purse ready. Sorry guys, but it probably won’t fit your murse either. It’s thin but it just isn’t as compact and lightweight as the less expensive competition. On the other hand, the build quality of the iPad is excellent. The iPad feels well crafted and solid in your hands.

What about apps? This is where iPad really shines. iPad benefits from Godzilla’s – I mean, Apple’s – massive network of third party developers who are churning out fresh apps on a daily basis. At last count the iPad boasted more than 250,000 separate apps (ranging from games like Angry Birds to social media like Facebook). There’s an app for just about every desire under the sun. And here’s a key point – you can install free Kindle and Nook apps for iPad. So if you want to buy books on Amazon / Barnes & Noble and read them on your iPad via the Kindle / Nook apps, feel free to do so.

At last app count, Android was catching up to Apple quickly via the Android market. But since Apple was the first on the scene with its iTunes apps market, it remains the gold standard.

If you’ve got the coin and want to indulge in a premium full featured tablet, it’s hard to find fault with the iPad. The main criticism these days concerns price, since there are lower cost alternatives available in the form of the Kindle Fire and Nook Color. Some Wall Street analysts have speculated that Apple will unfurl an “iPad Mini” to better compete with these tablets. But I would also state that if your primary goal is reading books (not magazines), the “e ink” screens offered by inexpensive Kindles and Nooks are better suited for this purpose.

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So here’s this year’s “video card” – shot during our December 12-19 transatlantic passage from Southampton to New York. The voyage crosses more than 2000 miles of North Atlantic Ocean during a season of predictably dangerous weather. To further bolster one’s confidence, the route passes within 80 nautical miles of the remains of the RMS Titanic.

The Queen Mary 2 is the largest ocean liner ever built. As a true ocean liner, it was built differently than cruise ships. It’s got 40% more steel in the hull, for example, than typical passenger vessels of comparable girth. It’s equipped with a couple of massive Rolls Royce stabilizers. In rough seas, these extend underwater from the hull of the ship and act like airplane wings. The stabilizers are said to reduce roll in extreme weather by 90%. So the Queen Mary 2 is not only a beautiful ship, but a capable one. She has been designed to handle the North Atlantic in winter.

Even so, when you toss force 10 winds and 30-foot swells at her, you’ll notice…

We encountered two separate storms on our transatlantic passage. Both generated swells in excess of 20-feet and winds in the gale force 9 and 10 range. Travel outside to the ship’s decks was forbidden for obvious reasons. But I was able to step onto our balcony and snap a few moments of video. The wind was powerful, cold, and laced with pellets of rain. I could only stand on our balcony for a few moments before retreating back inside the cabin.

Our stateroom was located near the front of the ship, fairly high on deck 8. Ship movement is most exaggerated towards this area of the ship. (If you think about a ship’s rocking motion during a storm, it makes sense that the most stable portion would be low and towards the center of the vessel.)

Technically our stateroom was an upgraded cabin, due to its location and the fact it was equipped with a clear plexiglass balcony. The balconies on deck 8 are not directly adjacent to the water since they overlook the deck 7 walking area. This is a benefit. If you somehow managed to fall off a deck 4 balcony, there would be a big splash. Sadly, it would probably be the final splash you’d experience in this particular lifetime. If you fell off a deck 8 balcony, you would hit wood and metal instead of water. It would be painful and probably injurious, but you might actually survive.

I guess in most situations the higher staterooms are the more desirable. But there’s an ironic old saying about passenger ships: “the more you pay, the more you sway.” As a practical consequence, this meant that our deck 8 stateroom was swaying wildly for several days. The pitch (vertical motion) was much more extreme than the roll (horizontal motion). The room was rising and falling with such force that when lying in bed, we got a genuine sense of weightlessness as the bed dropped through the air! Then, as the ship crested over the next swell, we felt ourselves pressed down into the bed with significant gravitational force. Oddly, at times this sensation could be comforting; it was like we were being rocked in a giant cradle.

Of course some passengers were afflicted with seasickness. Thankfully Kristy and I did not encounter seasickness. (We did contract an unfortunate viral bug in England that we battled during our voyage, but that was no fault of the ship or weather.)

The first three days of our seven day passage were dominated by this extreme weather. Rough seas transformed life on the ship. Due to the conditions, many shipboard entertainment events were rescheduled or cancelled altogether. (You can’t exactly have a group of people dancing around on stage during this sort of storm, else they go flying into the front row seats.) So there were certainly times that we were wanting the weather to clear.

But in hindsight, it was a spectacular travel experience. The weather turned our cushy cruise into a legitimate adventure.

After a couple of days of stormy travel, it began to dawn on me how unusual such an experience would be. “You know the weather’s bad,” I told Kristy, “when you see members of the crew stopping to watch it.” And we did see this happening all over the ship. Overall, the crew amazed me as much as the ship. They displayed a remarkable ability to “keep calm and carry on” despite the challenging circumstances.

I asked the ship librarian how often she sees comparable weather. She told me that she had not experienced anything so severe since Hurricane Ophelia in 2005. So, this transatlantic crossing was rare indeed. The entertainment director said “we’ll be talking about this one for the rest of the decade.” Kristy and I will be talking about it for the rest of our lives. (Thirty years from now, you can just tell me to stop since you already heard the story… )

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If you have ever watched Steven Speilberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, you probably recognize Devil’s Tower. In the movie it served as a meeting place for aliens. It was a brilliant choice of location, because there’s something truly otherworldly about this place. It’s a mountain of rock that looks like no mountain you’ve ever seen.

Native Americans had their own theories about the origins of this geological oddity. Their folklore tells of a time when giant bears were chasing a handful of Indian maidens. The Great Spirit himself raised the Tower from the earth in order to save the damsels in distress. Giant bear claws thus created the deep vertical grooves around the outside of the tower.

Science has its own theories. But interestingly, even amongst the slide-rule & calculator set there’s not a clear consensus. Park Service signs outside the tower reference three different theories as to its formation. Sadly, none of these includes giant bears. The most likely is that Devil’s Tower is the remainder of an ancient volcano.

When Kristy and I visited, we took a little time to stop and hike around this base of the Tower. This was time well spent. It was not a particularly challenging or lengthy hike, but it was memorable. The majority of tourists in our national parks and monument rarely venture beyond the most obvious photo opportunities. Sometimes you will get a greatly enhanced perspective on a place by simply traveling a little further than everyone else.

We enjoyed a nice and mostly quiet hike. We spotted a few deer. And we watched a few humans attempt to scale the tower. Wherever there is a large rock, there will be people wanting to climb said rock.

We learned that Devil’s Tower is a special place amongst the native Indian tribes. For centuries, Devil’s Tower was not called Devil’s Tower. Due to its sacred nature, it was revered by Native Americans as something holy. Then in the 1800s it was taken away from those people by the U.S. government and turned into a Satanic-themed recreational area.

The Indians weren’t too thrilled when people began climbing the Tower for fun. So the Park Service now asks people to refrain from climbing the Tower during the month of June, when Indian tribes hold ceremonies outside the tower. They say that 85% of people honor the request; so I guess (according to my 7th grade mathematics) that means that 15% ignore it. The scientific term for those people is “buttocks area.” While one can understand the desire to climb the tower, I think out of simple respect and decency people could take the month of June off. That’s not asking much.

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