Where in the world is LN?

This is part 3. If you haven’t heard the previous ones- stop now. Go back- listen. We’ll wait…. ———   --------   A friend of mine went to Hawaii for 38 days The text from her read: “omg! The craze! I miss my dogs, I can’t wait to be home, I don’t understand how you can just roam…”   I empathize with this. I really do. Being homesick is no joke- It makes you quite blue. And the only solution that works for me Is to download some apps before I flee That help me keep in contact with friends and family   Yea. That’s a stretch… sorry. I’m mostly talking about Voxer, Whatsapp, Skype and Facebook messenger.   Voxer is my favorite app for staying in contact with people. Here is my friend Dana explaining what it's like for her.   What helps you from getting home-sick? Email me at LN.lurie@yahoo.com or write a review on iTunes. Also- as always- if you want to see photos and links of these things- go look at my website LNLurie.com or Facebook page /whereisLN   Next and final week? LISTS! All the lists…     One last thing: My friend Dana voxed me this message a few days ago….      

Podcast players do this weird thing in queue… Where your part 1 is AFTER part 2. So pause… and go back And listen to “part 1: Don’t over pack!” Because it’ll just make more sense to you.   This is my brother, Josh….     What could he have done instead? I'll tell you! listen to his sister and follow the list. I mean, really, Josh....... I love you. But I have experience in this.   And We’ll be back With a list About what to pack Right after this.   ——————— ————   If you ask for advice from those who know: The answer will usually be right on the nose: Double the money and half the clothes.   My list, by the way, is in the show notes Along with pictures of my new fancy coat.   Ok- but really- what is the bare minimum that you need..... To succeed In traveling over seas… What if you’re bored and want to read? Do you bring a book or a nook? What about a guidebook? What should you leave at home? And what can you find elsewhere- like in Rome?   Let’s start with reading…

PRE-THOUGHT NOTE: #Confession: I have stopped listening to other podcasts. I know… I know… I'm confessing this even though this is a link to listen to a podcast. I can hear you now: "BUT! LN! HOW DO YOU EXPECT TO GET BETTER AT MAKING PODCASTS??!?"   #Tangent: I had this problem when I graduated from college- where I had to stop listening to music because all I would do is analyze it. (I-V-vi-iv)… Over and over again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOlDewpCfZQ   The same thing happened to me with podcasts. I can hear the script. I can hear the agony of stupid decisions of "Should we pause here? Should we have a bigger music swell here? What will this nuance of ____ convey to the listener? Should we use a different word here that is gooder than that other word?"   And you know what? I really hate all that. I dispised the naval gazing. I cringed at the thought: "is this creative enough? Is this conveying the message I want to convey?" So I stopped. And I've been SO MUCH HAPPIER with what I've been creating!   With that said- I don't want you to stop listening to my podcast :P If it's helpful for you- keep listening! But I've changed how I make it. It's more for me. It's *MY* creative outlet. I don't have an editor marking my scripts. After November, I'm going to be switching to Reaper- so I don't even have to pay for audio software anymore. I don't have people in the sidelines saying "eh… but this is how ____ does it! You should, too!" Fuck that noise. I'm done being like someone else. It's using skills (my useless audio degree) that I don't get to use while fighting fire.   Oh.. Right… update: I'm a wildland fire fighter/disaster response girl now- and much happier because of it. For once- I have a 5-year plan! And this summer, during downtime inbetween fires, I hope to get more chunks of my book done. I kinda need to- because my grandparents aren't getting younger- and they don't listen to podcasts, either.   So there ya go. THIS is the reason this podcast has taken so long. This is the reason it's in a weird format. This is what I'm doing with my time.       *************     I’m currently obsessed with Hamilton the musical And sometimes it’s usual To be inspired by something beautiful And potentially do-able… So I’ve been going cuckoo Trying to dream up something new While I was on a fire-crew   And this may be useable…   I am currently in Grand Rapids, Minnesota Where I need to fill my quota Of classes for wild land fire-fighting— but in truth, it’s kinda really boring.   And the girl in the next dorm packed like she was moving in. Her bag un-thin, bulged like double chins, Looked like she had rubbermaid bins, All for some classes over 5 days, At the end of may, That was given high praise,     2 rolling bags, A duvet with the american flag, A month’s worth of rags, All wheeled out of her little chevy To be walked up the stairs… man, I bet that was heavy.   Reportedly, I packed accordingly, Shockingly And probably quite boringly. Which I’ll give you my list At the end of all this.     This is a mini series where my lips will be smacking And I’ll be racking My brain to find people to be backing This podcast about Packing.   But before I continue the verse… Let’s do this first…..   ———————   Most people over-pack- like the girl in the dorm. That’s the norm You have to brainstorm- what’s easiest for you? Have more stuff? Or more leg room?     I called my friend Victor- from Victorstravels.com And he decided to help me, because he is the bomb, We talked about the importance and unimportance of stuff And when to get rid of things- which is really tough.   But he had a good formula which isn’t new Or a breakthrough, It’s something that all travelers accrue, And now I want to share it…. With you.       I use the same formula, Which is no phenomena, Doesn’t matter if I’m going to florida Or utica To fight fires or play in an orchestra-   But if you insist, I’ll give you my packing list. From this past trip.   (Pause)   —————   The things I was wearing: -Hoodie (yes- I know it's june… but this is Minnesota). -Shirt -Pants -Sandals -Phone, wallet, keys, glasses, etc   Contents of backpack: 5 pairs of underware 5 shirts Extra pair of pants Sleeping bag, Micro fiber towel Toiletry kit Med kit (always) Water bottle   Total weight: 13lbs.   Moral of the story In all of this glory Is to think about: Is this worth hauling out?’ And- That’s all for now, I’m LN Lurie.     What is on your list of things to haul around? Email me at LN.Lurie@yahoo.com or write a review on itunes. If you want to see photos of things discussed here, or links and other things- go to my website at LNLurie.com or find me on social media: facebook.com/whereisLN.   Next week, I'll talk about Consolidation. ----------  

A story of a really bad travel experience in 2012.... that ended up with me being alive. Thanks (or no thanks?) to my procrastination. / / / / / ------------- / / Transcript: / / There was a time when I was VERY MUCH into crossfit. It's this exercise cult thing- and they have their own games- like the olympic games, but with weight lifting and way less attention to personal safety. / / / / In 2012, the crossfit games were being held in LAX in July- and I was gonna go. / / / / First problem: I procrastinated too long and didn't have a ticket AND they were sold out.. No scalpers online, either. Hmm. No worries. I called up my local paper and asked if they could give me a press pass. They did, weirdly? And I was off. / / / / The trip was scheduled to go something like this: / / DAYTON- DENVER - LAX. Arrive on Friday morning in time for the opening ceramonies. Stay in LA for the games that weekend? Visit some friends in Ventura. Travel back to Dayton on Wednesday--- plenty of time before my next trip: Family vacation in Montreal- on Friday. / / All in all- it was supposed to be 6 flights in less than a week. Pfft. Whatever. I can do that. / / / / So- I'm off to catch my first flight. / / ?.and?.I accidentally slept a little longer than I should have and?.. I miss the flight?. But 4 minutes?.. / / Which means that I would have missed my connecting flight in Denver, too. Which means that my whole schedule was now screwed up as it was delayed a day. / / / / Ok? I'm gonna miss the opening ceremony? Whatever. I'm not being paid for this- it's just for fun, right??? RIGHT??? / / / / Sigh. Ok. So I'm on the next flight. That one goes?. Kinda?. We arrive in Denver and then get delayed in denver due to lack of planes. Something about a huge storm somewhere else- which means that I'm stuck in Denver for 9 hours. / / / / ?? Ok. Fine?. I try to tackle some writing assignments I had, but I'm in an airport!!! There is SO MUCH PEOPLE watching!!!! / / I put off my assignment until I land. / / / / And?.. By the time I DO get to LAX it's Sunday morning. I totally give up trying to get to the stadium for the last 4 hours of the competition and just go to Ventura to meet with my friends and wash the gross off me. / / / / I have a good time there. And we discuss all the hiccups of traveling?. / / / / Missing flights. / / Getting on wrong flights. (That happened a lot in the 70s, apparently). / / We missed our dinner reservation entirely because we were chatting so much. (Opps!) / / / / Wednesday comes- my friends take me to the airport. My flight is delayed due to lots of reasons, but it's also WAY over booked. I offer to take a later flight- but insisting I need to get to Dayton before FRIDAY MORNING? / / / / They say "yea yea. No problem." And book me on the next flight and give me a 200$ voucher. / / / / Btw- if you heard a previous podcast where I talked about having a voucher- this is how you get it. Except! PRO TIP: You wait (or ask nicely) if they can bump it up to the full value? which is somewhere between 350-400$? ask for cash. Never vouchers. Also get a hotel room and all that jazz? I was a n00b and didn't do any of this. So I just got 200$ cash voucher with Delta. / / / / Ah. Delta? it stands for "Doesn't Ever. Leave. The. Airport?? and it's not talking about the plane? it's talking about it's passengers?. / / / / I was in the airport all day on Wednesday. The "next available flight" they promised? Was Thursday morning. / / / / I "slept" in the airport- thank god for tetnus vaccinations, and woke up ready for all sorts of chaos but DETERMINED to get to Dayton that evening for my 6am flight to Montreal the following morning. / / / / My flight had changed slightly. I was now scheduled to go LAX to SFO to DEN to DAY? ok. No big deal. An additional flight, right? What could go wrong? / / / / ?? Why did I have to ask that? / / / / Our flight was delayed getting INTO sfo? and then delayed getting OUT of SFO. And by the time I arrived in Denver, it was Thursday evening of July 19th and I knew I wasn't going to make it to Montreal. / / / / I?. Make the really sad call to my parents. / / / / I then stand in the never-ending line for a hotel pass- figuring I procrastinated on life enough and I should actually do something? While standing in line, I mentally decide that if I don't get a hotel, I'll go to see Batman in the closest theater- which probably won't have tickets, but whatever, I'll give it a go. I have hours to kill, so why not try, right? / / / / Well? You're smart, audience. You know exactly what happened in Aurora on July 20th?. During a batman screening. / / / / My mom tells me this. / / It doesn't quite process? / / I hang up, shower and get breakfast. I watch the horror that all of America watched that morning?.. / / / / I make my way to the airport. EARLY. I check into my flight. EARLY. The TSA agent was polite and really attentitive- which is, oddly, what I expected him to be after a mass shooting 17 miles from this location. / / / / My flight was delayed, of course. Eff-you, Delta. But I finally made it to Dayton by noon. / / / / Alive. / / / / The only thing this whole experience taught me- was that I CAN control some things?.. Like my procrastination. And there are other things that I can?t control?.. Like weather?. Tornados, hurricanes, and? wildfires. Oh- Right. This just in: I?m a wild land firefighter. Contract right now- but I?ve already fought a few! And it?s exhilarating! It?s probably the coolest adrenaline rush since I was in the Philippines. / / / / But? what that means is that I?m probably not going to get my podcasts out on time?.So- I?m taking a break. Until the season here in Minnesota dies down- which is June, apparently. / / / / But stay tuned! I have a mini-series about packing coming up! I also had this cool podcast about Sarajevo- but that?s just gonna have to wait until I get it perfect. It deserves that. / / / / In the meantime, if you?re aching for more stories?. You can go to my blog at LNLurie.com, reach me at LN.Lurie@yahoo.com or my Facebook - which will have heaps of pictures uploaded kinda daily? www.facebook.com/whereisLN

Are you good at haggling? Wish you were better? This is a short episode where I describe how I barter successfully.   LNLurie.com facebook.com/whereisLN @whereisLN

Once upon a time, I was a normal person.... I had the "American Life" - the thing that is supposed to make you happy, but I wasn't. I thought back to when I *WAS* happy- and that was when I was younger and unplugged. So... I set off to get that back.  www.facebook.com/whereisLN @whereisLN LN.Lurie@yahoo.com www.LNLurie.com   100-item challenge: http://www.lnlurie.com/100-item-challenge/ Typhoon Disaster Relief - http://www.lnlurie.com/ep-17-disaster-relief-stories-from-haiyan/  

I remixed/re-mastered this podcast for a few reasons:  1) It's good (for me) to remember where I came from. 2) I'm currently soaking up Vitamin D right now- and don't have time to put out a whole new podcast.  3) It's a good story that you may/may not have heard. And every time I re-tell it--- I tell it differently.    www.LNLurie.com

This is a story, of about how, my life got twist- turned upside down because I was poorly kidnapped in a city that was flooded.   Spidey-sense was alllllllll kinds of tingly. Spoiler- I'm alive. but how? The Macarena. No joke.   Thanks Chris Allen for being my fantastic Editor!   LNLurie.com

A lot of people LOVE their bath/spa experience.... So I went to the oldest bathhouse in Istanbul.    My experience was...... interesting..... Definitely memorable.   Thanks Chris Allen for being my awesome editor. LNLurie.com    

My cat was an adventurist, too! She loved to go hiking and on road trips and she and I used to spoon on Saturday mornings under warm covers.    Zoey died this past Thanksgiving.  After being depressed for, what seemed like forever, I produced this piece for her.    Thanks Kit Burroughs for the VO, Chris Allen for editing, Robin Giantassio-malle and my family for feedback and shoulders to cry on.    LNLurie.com  LN.Lurie@yahoo.com

Happy Holidays, guys. Yea. it's THAT season. I'm living in Minneapolis and was involved in a holiday-story-reading thing called Xmas Quilt. Xmas Quilt is a collection of stories and poems and music to, you know, get you into the holiday spirit.  I, of course, recorded the whole thing and assembled a few of my favorite stories here after adding some sound design and music- because that's what I do. My partner in Crime is named Nyla - which you'll hear in the first story.  Just as a reminder- this took place in Minneapolis, where they eat ludafisk. If you don't know what this disgusting crap is. consider yourself lucky. But it's a traditional food up here. With that, I give you 15-ish minutes of Christmas Stories. Cuckoo Clock Ludafisk  I made a snowball Christmas in the Trenches www.LNLurie.com  

I get asked the question "What is your favorite country" a lot... VERY OFTEN! And one of my favorite countries is Albania. Beaches, mountains and food aside, I love countries that go through a lot of hardship (WW2, communism, totalitarianism, pyramid schemes, etc) and end up still banding together and flourishing as a nation.   www.LNLurie.com  

Imagine...... You’re living in Kosovo. Your passport is useless because you’re living in a country not fully recognized by the UN. You’re young! You have ideas! But the government doesn’t want to listen to it. And because the government won’t listen to you- you don’t vote… So… what do you do? If you’re Visar Arifij, you break the system… Change it… From the inside. He started a political party and named himself the Legendary President of Partia E Forte.    Thanks to Chris Allen for helping me edit. Thanks to Visar and Partia E Forte! LN.Lurie@yahoo.com www.LNLurie.com  

I visited (broke into) Buzludzha last summer. I tell you some history and my adventure of the giant meeting place-- but then... I become stumped as this weird sound shows up in the recording...... What is it? Not really sure....   www.LNLurie.comLN.Lurie@yahoo.com   Thanks to Chris Allen for editing. Dan, Nick and Matt for being my adventure buddies. and the Bulgarian Communists- for abandoning the coolest building I've ever been in!

Stuff always falls apart while traveling. Plans change, health declines. Items disintegrate… Relationships fade… It doesn’t always happen, but it’s usually inevitable, no matter where you are, as nothing is made to last forever. This episode will talk about just that… Things falling apart.     Act 1: Adventure Pants (Juneau, Alaska) Act 2: Bulgarian Car Rental (Sofia, Bulgaria) Act 3: Broken Relationships (Zagreb, Croatia) Thanks to James Gralian and Robin Giantassio-malle for being my sound boards, Marianne and James Thurland for reading the broken ship stories, Thank you Lana with brokenships.com, Thanks Dan and Nick for being Bulgarian adventure pals, and Thanks Matthew for putting up with me for as long as you did… www.LNLurie.com LN.Lurie(at)yahoo.com @hydrix13  

What would you do if you had 100Million Euros (or more!) to spend on a country? What would you spend it on? The leaders of Macedonia chose statues... And lots of them.  So many that you kinda get overwhelmed... At least I did.      Thank you Mia, Maya, Lana, Erika and Matthew for giving me your opinions on these statues. And thanks to James Gralian and Robin Giantassio-malle for all your wisdom and fabulous ears. for pictures go to:  www.LNLurie.com. Email me at LN.Lurie(at)yahoo.com

I've always complained about the "hurry up and wait" mentality. I *KNOW* that you should always be appreciative and aware of the place that you are... And not try to rush life. Yet, I still struggle with this, daily. There's hope (for me), though! I got slightly closer to understanding this during my latest trip to Alaska. www.LNLurie.com  

Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) hit the Philippines on November 7, 2013. It had winds that were stronger than Hurricane Sandy and Katrina combined. I was there before, during and stayed to help with relief. Along the way, I met my friend, Ian, who was doing the same thing. In reflection of the disasters that have happened lately, I thought this was over-due. These are reflection stories about the people that we met along the way. Good/Bad/Ugly- all of them were trying to survive in the way that they knew how. Click if you want to see pictures, or read more and more and more. 

Hospitals are scary.... But why?    I'm scared of the cost- but what are OTHER people scared of?  We investigate other countries (Australia, Canada, South Africa, Iran and China). Their stories and outcomes and fears.      Thanks to Gotye and Peter Biedermann for thier music contribution. 

I was in Peru and everyone is all "OMG! Are you gonna go on the Machu Pichu trek?"  ...sure! Why not?   So I did. But I can't tell you what the ruins were like- because the trek's journey and all the drama of this guy sticks out in my mind more than the ruins ever will.   This is the best example, in my life, of "It's about the Journey, not the destination".   Lauren Jennings helps me retell the story.