"Welcome to the Crazy Land of Me" IMthat1girl000's Profile

I am a first generation Irish-American which is a big part of me. I got to visit family in Ireland 5 years ago and it was so amazing. I felt like so much of my life made sense. I think you don't realize how important it is to understand where you came from until you really see your roots and meet the people. Hey, and it doesnt hurt to meet a ton of other freckle faced ghostly complected people either! (finally my people! its cool to be Casper!)

What is even more exciting is that some of them are coming to visit us in August! Hurray! They love to brag to everyone there about coming to the US. I can not wait to spoil them silly.

I am currently a web/graphic designer in the Cleveland area. My job is highly unique as I do a lot of educational and medical research mixed with design and have little management over me. I am pretty much my own boss. (which is awesome!) The other great thing about working in this field is the opportunity to do outside work in a variety of projects.

I am ADDICTED to the internet! I am not certain how we survived without computers and can't imagine doing anything else everyday. Did we really only rely on guidebooks to travel 10 years ago? Now you can talk to someone that lives there and find out the real deal, or come on sites like this and have an entirely different trip the second time around.

I am getting another degree so I can get into teaching technology type courses because I find it SO important to keep up in this day and age.

I have lived in Cleveland for the majority of my life, escaping for a few years to Dallas, Texas, Toledo, Ohio and Angola, Indiana. I think in some part working on the Cleveland parts of this site are like therapy for me. When living somewhere so long you forget about the jewels you have. Remembering all the cool places there are in Ohio makes me feel proud to be here. I've lived all over the city from suburbs 45 minutes out, the west the east, the south and now finally downtown in the heart of the city.

My boyfriend is a mechanic and grew up in Amishland. I want to add some pages about the this culture in the middle of Ohio. Yes people in SUV's and horse and carriage CAN coexist. He grew up on a family owned dairy farm which if you may not know is a lost art in the USA. Most farms are all being controlled by corporations so its refreshing to see a relaxed atmosphere for the animals and wows me on how hard working these people are. The work DAY AND NIGHT! Love your cheese and your ice cream if you don't already!

Another great part of exploring together is because we both were brought up in totally different backgrounds we look for different things when traveling together that the other might not have appreciated before. Certain things may seem so ordinary to some if one is around them all day. It's always nice to have a different point of view.

I have to add as a side note...I am a bit of a beer snob. So you may notice as I add things to the list I am big on bars that have a wide selection of imported beers. (I blame my Irish heritage). I am also a museum lover so going to DC was a dream for me. So I will probably highlight a lot of cultural festivals and museums in my tips.

Although my travels have not been as extensive as some on this list I hope to offer some great tips on the places I have been. I have been trying to make it my goal to travel to a new country every year and also take a side vacation to a location in the U.S. For the moment I have only been to a smal strip of states in the middle of the country. With my new position last year I have been able to get loads of vacation time. My friends are escaping one by one to other states, so what does that mean for me??? Cheap vacations! Hurray!

I am excited to meet many of you in this community and am already so impressed with your pages and reviews. WOW!

As you can tell from my US Map, most of the states I have visited are all on top of each other. I don't count a visit to a state I have only driven through or stopped on a layover. For example, I often fly into New Jersey to go to New York, but I don't think that is a true Jersey visit. I've been trying to hit somewhere new every year. This year my state is Maryland, and I might hit an extra one: Arizona for a wedding.

The states I have lived in are: Ohio, Indiana, and Texas.

My Visited Canadian Provinces

Canada is a very fun place, but for me since I live in the snow belt, I prefer to stay away during winter months. I get enough snow thank you very much! I love everyone there, it is too bad that the borders have had increased security, I am sure that it has affected tourism :(

My best friend is currently living in Central America because I introduced him to a fabulous photographer when she came up on an exchange program. Although I miss him deeply I couldn't be happier for him. He is also my travel buddy as we are both doing well in our careers and are addicted to traveling. This is why most of my recent travels have been in central america.

The World!

October 2009
Phoenix, Arizona

August 2009
Belfast, Dublin, Tipperary, Ireland

May 2009
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Baltimore, Maryland

January 2009
Washington DC

September 2009
San Jose, California

February 2008
Bahamas, St. Thomas, and San Juan, Puerto Rico

October 2007
Los Angeles and San Francisco, California

September 2007
New York City, New York

July 2007
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

February 2007
Majahual, Mexico (Costa Maya); Belize City, Belize; Roatán, Honduras; Georgetown, Grand Cayman Island

November 2006
Washington DC

August 2006
New York City, New York

June 2006
Savannah, GA; Hilton Head, SC

February 2006
Guatemala City, Guatemala; Antigua, Guatemala; Lake Atítlan, Guatemala

Pending...Nov/Dec 09
Wilmington, NC