Tomorrow I celebrate my 40th birthday. Certainly an occasion for celebrating. It will be a holiday weekend, and I’ll be returning to my hometown to spend time with my family. Sound like something anyone hitting a milestone birthday would do.
But for me it is particularly momentous.
Because I am a Red Hat Survivor. I was born with an insidious heart defect called Tetralogy of Fallot. It is a defect that, left untreated is fatal by age 10 for 70% of those afflicted. The chances I would have reached age 40? 1 in 20.
The American Heart Association is a cause that is very dear to me. Because of the work they do children like me are living to 40, 50 and beyond. They raise the money that goes to fund research to find the causes and cures of all variety of heart disease as well as strokes. I’m proud of their work and my association with their efforts.
Team Traveler Bill 2009
You can show your support for the American Heart Association by sponsoring TEAM TRAVELER BILL in next months walk. You can make your tax deductibledonation online via the Heart Association’s secure website by clicking here.
Please note, the website has a minimum donation of $25. Donations of smaller amounts, or from people who prefer to not donate online, are enthusiastically accepted by US Mail. Email me at Bmail@TravelerBill.com and I will provide you the details on how to make an off-line donation.
Over the past three years family, friends and colleagues have helped me raise almost $15,000, but there is much more to do. Until heart disease and stroke are a distant memory, I will keep doing my best to fight them the only way I can…with your support.
Traveler Bill Industries is pleased to announce that, for the first time in three years, a Travel Log Project is being undertaken. Last week Traveler Bill sent his Director of IT Traveler Nell to her hometown of Melbourne to accompany Traveler Bill Industries newest employee and travel logeuer, Walter O’Bea in his trip to Australia.
Walkabout Wal
Walter “Walkabout Wal” O’Bea grew up in Albany, Western Australia on the wrong side of the Rabbit Proof Fence. He’s traveled up and down the country from Albany to Port Albany. He’s looking forward to the trip and meeting all of the people with whom Traveler Nell purports to be acquainted.
At a welcoming ceremony in Regent, Walkabout Wal reports meeting two of Traveler Bill’s biggest fans. Lola Potente, an old school chum of Traveler Nell and her work chum, Peony Stockton.
(L to R) Peony Stockton, Walter O'Bea and Lola Potente
Peony revealed herself to be, quite possibly, the biggest Traveler Bill barracker outside of Traveler Bill himself. Her fandemonium proved not just by her reaction to an audience with Traveler Bill’s duly appointed representative, but by also scoring a 105% on a comprehensive Trivial Bill quiz. (The additional 5% earned having “Julie and Julia’d” the entire Edi-Bills recipe book. ) As a result, it is hereby announced that Ms. Stockton has been appointed Honorary Chairman of the Traveler Bill Admiration Society: Southern HemIsphEre (‘TASSIE’ for short). From his offices at Two Traveler’s Plaza Traveler Bill issued the following statement. “I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Ms. Stockton on this momentous occasion. It is an honor well earned.”
Traveler Bill is asking for you to support by helping out a great organization, the American Heart Association. If you are comfortable making a secure online donation, the link on the left hand column of this site will bring you to his donation page. (Please note the AHA’s website requires a minimum donation of $25.00) If you prefer to make a donation of any size by check you can send that directly to me by post. Please email TravelerBill@TravelerBill.com to request the mailing address.
I am in the guest room of Traveler Nell’s parents house in a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Wide awake at 4:00AM, I’ve been up for the since 12:30 AM (after sleeping 4½ hours. I am spent the past hour in a half cursing my Circadian rhythm and Foxtel for opting to show the Seattle/Texas baseball game instead of Yankees/Tampa Bay.
All in all the trip was quite an experience. Traveler Nell has made the trip several times so she has this down to a science.
•We left Two Travelers Plaza at 3:00PM on Thursday afternoon heading to JFK international airport.
•Arriving at approximately 3:45 we headed to the Business Class check-in for Qantas since Traveler Nell is a long time member of the Qantas Club. There was no line as we were several hours early.
•After check-in we were screened at the First Class security check point which was also completely empty where we were processed within minutes and were headed to the British Airways “Terrace Lounge” where Qantas Club members are welcomed.
Sony Noise-cancelling Headphones
•On our way to the lounge we passed a Best Buy Express vending machine. It was amazing. Filled with all sort of nerdly goods from portable TV’s to a wide range of iPods to Garmin gps. Unable to resist we picked up a pair of Sony Noise-canceling headphones. A God-send these turned out to be to drown out engine noise.
•In the lounge we grabbed a gentile sufficiency of shortbread cookies (biscuits) and I recklessly tried the shrimp salad and watercress finger sandwich. It wasn’t until the bite sized morsel was heading down the alimentary canal did the thought of foolhardiness of eating fish in an airport strike me. (Nothing happened)
•At the lounge we had complete reign over the satellite television room. The lounge was fairly busy so the lack of company was surprising, though not unwelcome.
•At 6:30PM we headed to the gate, boarded the plane and settled into our seats. The flight to LA was delayed by ½ hour due to congestion. Luckily we made this time up in the air.
•Compared to many airlines, Qantas is head and shoulders above with regard to the long haul travel. Between the food, the entertainment or the crackerjack service, it was the best air-travel experience I have ever had. I wont describe the meals as that is a trademark of Traveler Nell but believe me when I say they (or at least mine) were good.
•Landing in LA on time a little before 1:00AM Eastern (10:00PM local) we had 1½ hours before our connecting flight so we headed to the British Airways/Cathay Pacific/Qantas lounge at LAX. There was a nice little buffet of both Chinese and Mexican dishes.
•We headed to the departure gate to catch our flight to Melbourne and learned we would be on one of the 747-400′s decorated with Aboriginal art
•Everyone was on-board in time to take off on time of 2:20AM Eastern. Unfortunately there was an ill passenger that delayed leaving the gate by 15 minutes. Then there was a delay in being able to leave the gate. Once we were in line to take off the sick passenger decided the couldn’t fly after all so we returned to the gate and we placed at the back of the take-off line again. (This is where I had my first taste of sleep; napping until the plane took off an hour and a half late.)
•Once in the air the excellent entertainment came in handy. My only comment on the movies is to say was it really necessary to show the Lawrence Taylor/Joe Theisman leg break tackle so many times at the start of The Blind Side?
•The flight from LA to Melbourne is 15 hours long. I’m going to repeat that and let it sink in. The flight from LA to Melbourne is 15 hours long.
•According to the Traveler Nell long-haul Westerly travel guide you are to stay awake until 9 hours out of your destination. Alas this advice is terrific if you can fall asleep on planes.
So basically except for an hour here or there I cannot. All told I estimate that I slept no more than four hours from the outset of the journey to when we left the airport at 8:00PM Eastern (10:00AM local time) 29 hours door to door or 37 hours since I woke up the day before. I took an hour nap yesterday afternoon and slept a good 4 ½ hours last night.
When I return home there will be 2 months until the Start! Wall Street Heart Walk. Support me and help out a great organization, the American Heart Association. If you are comfortable making a secure online donation, the link on the left hand column of this site will bring you to my donation page. (Please note the AHA’s website requires a minimum donation of $25.00) If you prefer to make a donation of any size by check you can send that directly to me by post. Please email me at TravelerBill@TravelerBill.com for the mailing address.
Today when I left work I started what will be the longest time without reporting to work I have had since I was a Junior at high school. Ever since I was 16 and working at Wendy’s I have not been without a job for any extended time period. I left Wendy’s for the K-mart. When I was in college I worked part-time shifts at the Campus Center as a short-order cook. When I left school I worked at the now defunct Citgo as a cashier as I sought full time employment.
After that point at age 22, I have been working full time pretty much constantly. Every time I would change jobs I would work to the last Friday and start on Monday. When I moved to New York City I took less than a week off and that time was spent working on the move. Since that time the longest vacation I have ever taken is two weeks back in 2002. Even when I was laid off last summer I was only out of work for two days before I received a call from an old boss asking whether I would be interested coming back as a temporary employee. The way I figure the Universe will not let me go without work for too long.
Well tomorrow I am heading off to Australia with Traveler Nell. We’ve been planning this trip for months and it will give me the opportunity to meet her friends and family and to receive the Traveler Nell Reality Tour. We’ll be spending time in Melbourne, Tasmania and Sydney. Keep an eye open here and at Jenelle‘s site for updates on our trip.
The only exception to this, of course, is the seven weeks I was on disability in the late winter and early spring of 2007. I given 8 weeks for my valve replacement. And even though I needed and additional open heart surgery, I was back to work in seven weeks.
And it’s thanks to organizations like the American Heart Association that I was able to recover so rapidly. Help them by supporting me in the Start! Wall Street Heart Walk this June. If you are comfortable making a secure online donation, the link on the column to the left will bring you to my donation page. (Please note the AHA’s website requires a minimum donation of $25.00) If you prefer to make a donation of any size by check you can mail directly to me. Please email me at TravelerBill@TravelerBill.com for the mailing address.
This week I officially started my 2010 Start! Heart Walk Fund-raising. In less than a week I have already raised over $1,250. The people who started me off with their donations have my eternal thanks but I have a long way to go to reach my goal of $25,000.
Team Traveler Bill 2008
Yes, that is accurate…Twenty Five Grand. Needless to say, were it up to me, my goal would be $1 more than I raised last year, or $5,724. But I am a victim of my success. I was contacted by the New York branch of the American Heart Association hoping to take the potential I had shown raising more than $11,ooo over the past two years. I was asked if I would be interested in becoming a “National Fundraiser.” I was of course honored and accepted.
I was assigned Sara, a Regional Director of the American Heart Association, to be my guide and she felt that while $5,724 is a tidy sum, I could be capable of greater heights. Whether I am 5 time greater, only time will tell. I certainly am going to try.
So for all three people who read this blog (thanks Mom!) I am going to ask you to please donate. If you are comfortable making a secure online donation, the link on the left column will bring you to my donation page. (Please note the AHA’s website requires a minimum donation of $25.00) If you prefer to make a donation of any size by check you can mail directly to me. Please email me at TravelerBill@TravelerBill.com for the mailing address.
It is my sad duty to announce that after 11 years in its current location, Traveler Bill Industries, Ltd. will be leaving Traveler Bill Towers®, their headquarters on Seventh Avenue in Manhattan and relocating overseas. Their new main office is in the center of a wild and exotic locale known the world wide…Brooklyn!
It is the extreme pleasure of both Travelers Bill and Nell to announce that Traveler Bill Industries, Ltd. will be opening their new offices at Number One Traveler Bill Plaza at the Yorkshire® in the middle of March this year. The new location offers far more spacious office space necessary for the day to day operations of a large Multinational concern.
My results have been so good the past years that I have been asked to become a National Fundraiser by the New York office of the Heart Association. That’s the good news. The challenging news is that I have a very aggressive fundraising goal. $25,000!!! To put this into perspective, that is almost 250% higher than what I raised in ’08 and ’09…combined!
But my handler Sara is confident, and so am I. Which means that for the next six months I am going to be reaching out to everyone I know and asking for every last drop of generosity.
More details will follow, but to opt out of future announcements, please click here and make a donation.
Dateline New York City, NY – December 23, 2009 (Embargoed until December 26, 2009)
On the 22nd I posted the recipe I used to create brownies for gifts for my family. In the post which I implied had been uploaded from my mobile phone, I stated that Traveler Nell and I had headed up to Albany for the holiday. That wasn’t exactly true.
You see I was still in NYC at the time and my Nellie was on her way to Melbourne for a surprise trip home for Christmas. A trip that had been in the works for at least nine months and which I played an integral role in the planning. Which is why I have no problem giving an account of the planning stage here on the Traveler Bill-og.
Early on it was decided that Nellie would be going home to Melbourne sometime this year one way or another. Either for Christmas or to see Collingwood in the Grand Final. When the Pies faltered early on it was looking more and more like a Christmas time trip would occur.
The idea for a surprise trip came from a trip home I made while I was away at college in Oswego. I made an unannounced trip home for Thanksgiving. I took a cab from the train station and was greeted by an empty house and an hour wait in the cold for someone to turn up.
But Nellie is far too shrewd to be caught unawares like a 19 year old Traveler Bill. As soon as it looked like Collingwood was out of it, during her trip to Las Vegas with her parents in May, she switched her tickets from September to December. Little did she know Collingwood would go on an improbable winning streak and come a hairsbreadth from the Final. At that point however, we were so invested in the surprise trip home that the Christmas trip would have happened regardless.
Not to say it wasn’t difficult to maintain the ruse. In many of her calls home Nellie nearly let it slip, or felt like she couldn’t hide the truth anymore. I was there to make sure she kept to the company line right until the end. To the point that while Jenelle was in her Qantas 747-400 over the Pacific heading toward the International Date Line and the future I was logging in to her email to send a phony dispatch to her parents saying how cold it was in Albany.
I wish I could be there to see their reactions which, if Jenelle makes decent time from the airport, should be happening right about as I write this sentence.
————–
As promised, here is the previous post with photographs.
Christmas Time is here and that means that Traveler Nell and I are headed to Traveler Bill’s ancestral home to spend the holiday with my family. Nellie being from Australia, Upstate New York is a slightly easier commute.
The siblings in my family have drawn names for a grab bag for more than 20 years and 2009 was no exception. And while it has recently changed to include our oldest niece and nephew, it is pretty much how it was in the late 80’s. Which means while I don’t go all out for everybody…everybody get something.
An early Traveler Bill T-shirt
In the past that has meant Smart Wool (1997) socks for everyone, a genuine Traveler Bill t-shirt (see image) (2003) or even peanut brittle 2006). This year it will mean brownies.
But not just any brownies. This brownie recipe is my adaptation of The Barefoot Contessa’s Outrageous Brownies which were also an adaptation of the chocolate globs in the Soho Charcuterie Cookbook.
Ingredients
1 pound unsalted butter
14 ounces plus 10 ounces semisweet chocolate chips – divided
8 ounces unsweetened chocolate
6 jumbo eggs (room temperature)
3 tablespoons instant coffee powder
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups granulated sugar
1 cup plus ¼ cup all purpose flour – divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 ounces peppermint candy canes (about five) broken into pea sized pieces
3 cups walnuts chopped
¼ cup (4 or so) candy canes ground into a fine powder
¼ cup confectioners sugar
Preheat your oven to 350° F. Butter and flour your largest metal baking pans. The original recipe called for a 13 X 18 X 1½ sheet pan. (I used a 13 X 17 X 1 aluminum pan and put the rest into ceramic dish. The brownies in the metat dish came out MUCH better.)
I first mixed the walnuts, the 10 ounces of chips and the pea sized peppermint chips with the ¼ cup all purpose flour, then placed this mix into the refridgerator.
In a large aluminum pan over simmering water melt the butter the 14 ounces of chips and the 8 ounces of bakers chocolate. I did this over too high of heat and had to wait a while for the mix to cool down once melted.
While it is cooling mix with a beater on low setting the eggs, the coffee the vanilla and the sugar. I mixed until the were well combined but not frothy. I added a cup of the warm chocolate mixture to the egg mixture to temper them before combining the eggs into the chocolate again with the mixer.
In another bowl (Nellie was THRILLED with all the dishes involved) I mixed the 1 cup of flour, baking powder and salt; then folded into the chocolate mixture. Once fully mixed and glossy I folded the chilled walnut/chocolate/peppermint mix into the batter and poured into the pand and baking dish.
I ended up baking the dish for 30 minutes and the pan for 45, but start checking at 30minutes. Test by inserting a toothpick into the center of the brownie. When it comes out clean, it is done.
Cool on racks until room temperature then refridgerate overnight in the pans. After I cut the brownies into squares I dusted the top and bottom with a mix of the candy cane powder and confectioners sugar.
The subtle peppermint taste is very pleasant and not the punch in the nose that peppermint extract can be. I brought some into my lawyers office today and everyone who tried them (especially those who tried them multiple times) found them delicious.
Christmas Time is here and that means that Traveler Nell and I are headed to Traveler Bill’s ancestral home to spend the holiday with my family. Nellie being from Australia, Upstate New York is a slightly easier commute.
The siblings in my family have drawn names for a grab bag for more than 20 years and 2009 was no exception. And while it has recently changed to include our oldest niece and nephew, it is pretty much how it was in the late 80′s. Which means while I don’t go all out for everybody…everybody get something.
In the past that has meant Smart Wool (1997) socks for everyone, a genuine Traveler Bill t-shirt (see image) (2003) or even peanut brittle 2006). This year it will mean brownies.
But not just any brownies. This brownie recipe is my adaptation of The Barefoot Contessa’s Outrageous Brownies which were also an adaptation of the chocolate globs in the Soho Charcuterie Cookbook.
Ingredients
1 pound unsalted butter
14 ounces plus 10 ounces semisweet chocolate chips – divided
8 ounces unsweetened chocolate
6 jumbo eggs (room temperature)
3 tablespoons instant coffee powder
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups granulated sugar
1 cup plus ¼ cup all purpose flour – divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 ounces peppermint candy canes (about five) broken into pea sized pieces
3 cups walnuts chopped
¼ cup (4 or so) candy canes ground into a fine powder
¼ cup confectioners sugar
Preheat your oven to 350° F. Butter and flour your largest metal baking pans. The original recipe called for a 13 X 18 X 1½ sheet pan. (I used a 13 X 17 X 1 aluminum pan and put the rest into ceramic dish. The brownies in the metat dish came out MUCH better.)
I first mixed the walnuts, the 10 ounces of chips and the pea sized peppermint chips with the ¼ cup all purpose flour, then placed this mix into the refridgerator.
In a large aluminum pan over simmering water melt the butter the 14 ounces of chips and the 8 ounces of bakers chocolate. I did this over too high of heat and had to wait a while for the mix to cool down once melted.
While it is cooling mix with a beater on low setting the eggs, the coffee the vanilla and the sugar. I mixed until the were well combined but not frothy. I added a cup of the warm chocolate mixture to the egg mixture to temper them before combining the eggs into the chocolate again with the mixer.
In another bowl (Nellie was THRILLED with all the dishes involved) I mixed the 1 cup of flour, baking powder and salt; then folded into the chocolate mixture. Once fully mixed and glossy I folded the chilled walnut/chocolate/peppermint mix into the batter and poured into the pand and baking dish.
I ended up baking the dish for 30 minutes and the pan for 45, but start checking at 30minutes. Test by inserting a toothpick into the center of the brownie. When it comes out clean, it is done.
Cool on racks until room temperature then refridgerate overnight in the pans. After I cut the brownies into squares I dusted the top and bottom with a mix of the candy cane powder and confectioners sugar.
The subtle peppermint taste is very pleasant and not the punch in the nose that peppermint extract can be. I brought some into my lawyers office today and everyone who tried them (expecially those who tried them multiple times) found them delicious.
(I will be updating this post with hyperlinks and photos as soon as I can.)
Last night Traveler Nell and I make our annual pilgrimage to the American Australian Association‘s Benefit Gala at Cipriani’s (this year at their 42nd Street location.) It was a very good time with a very nice meal and pretty good entertainment.
The Torpedo meets Travelers Bill and Nell
We also met Australian Olympic Swimming Legend, Ian “The Thorpedo” Thorpe, or Thorpie as everyone called him. One thing that struck me is that swimmers back in 2000 must have been tiny as I always recalled him towering over everyone. In person however, he isn’t much taller than I. He is an exceptionally gracious man who accommodated an inordinate number of photo requests. As you can see to the left of this paragraph, one of these requests came from the principal of Traveler Bill Industries.
Also regarding Mr. Thorpe, Traveler Nell was able to keep my past Michael Phelps comments to herself. (Unlike this past February when she told Phoenix Cardinal punter Bennie Graham how I “barracked for the Steelers!”) As an aside is it me or does it look like someone is holding a Muppet up between Traveler Nell and me?
Finally, Traveler Nell had her photograph taken with two of the stars of Fox’s breakout hit, Glee who were on hand to introduce fellow co-star Amber Riley’s terrific performance, as well as with Rosanna Scotto of Fox5 Good Day New York morning program. Check out the embedded video for Rosanna’s recounting of the evening which starts at the 1:22 mark. There are some errors in her recollection, for instance it is the “American Australian Association” not the “Australian American Foundation.” Also, at the 2:28 mark she tells an anecdote with a couple mistakes, ie: it is JENelle not JOHNelle and the guy with her is her fiance, not her husband. Everything else in that portion was correct.
NOTICE: Australian viewers with gentle sensibilities should stop listening immediately after the previous anecdote! Don’t say you weren’t warned!
