Red and Blue: The "Summer-y!"

So here we are. It's our last night with the Liberty Bus. While it's a little sad, we've had an epic summer and we're not stopping with the movement. We'll be working out of our campus rooms and traveling when we can. So keep checking back here...we'll keep you updated.

As for the summer...well, here is the best and the worst that we've come across. We talked about this. The blue text is Luke and the red is Justina, for those of you playing along at home.

Best Macaroni and Cheese:

Okay, so the best macaroni and cheese by far has to be from Phillips Avenue Diner in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. I think it had four cheeses and two forms of dead pig. The only place that even came close to holding a candle was Rock & Ritas in Las Vegas.

Best Pizza:

Chet and Matt's Pizza in Sandusky, Ohio wins this one.

Oh, God. Chet and Matt's was amazing and not only the one kind of pizza, either. Dessert, buffalo chicken pizza, chicken wing pizza...just everything.

I wonder if I could con them into delivering to western New York. I thought I was going to die over their peanut butter and jelly pizza.

Oh my God...

Chet saw me looking at the menu and knew what I was thinking. He brought out an entire PB&J pizza for me to try. So damn good.

Most Hospitable:

Bruce helped us get a TON of contacts during the week we spent with him. I think he might have to win, because he was stuck with us for the week.

Bruce is a psycho-SEAL who talked about hunting in Costa Rica...somehow I don't think he was talking about bears...to piloting his own plane to Vegas just to see us. Crazy.

He's seriously awesome. Though it should be noted that we met a bajillion hospitable people. Everyone we met, stayed with and/or hosted an event was more than generous.

Best Night:

Okay, Luke, we have to pick the best night of the summer.

(laughter)

Alright, let's see. Last night was pretty epic. No, wait. Done and done. Fourth of July. That was pretty good. Wait. No. This is the easiest one in the world!

Vegas. The night of the Elvis wedding. I don't think there's any contest, there.

Wait, last night was so good, though.

Uhh....

Luke, you did a body shot off a barmaid at Coyote Ugly. Beth PAID for it!

Well...

See?

Think about it. In Vegas, we drank $1,300 in FREE champagne. No contest.

(laughter)

We took advantage of a rich dude with $1,300 worth of room service champagne in a Vegas hotel room. We stumbled around Vegas in the heat looking for Elvis and people who'd let us watch them get married with a woman we barely knew.

But we love that woman!

But we barely knew her. And we partied with a bunch of random Libertarians and guys named Favio and Carlos.

You know, I still can't figure out if that was one of them that was texting me the next day.

It had to have been. It makes sense. And we passed out with five people in a bed in someone else's hotel room, despite her having left the state already. And she left a goodbye note on you.

Oh my gosh, so ridiculous. Okay. That night wins.

Worst Day:

The worst day might involve coming back to Vegas after vacation, driving around the city with nowhere to go in the heat, only then to get the bus back, finally and find out that it smelled like Charles Manson had been storing his dead bodies in it for the entire week we were gone.

That was so disgusting. The fridge was so gross. I can't believe everything rotted.

The taste in my mouth of bile from almost puking might have tasted better than the bus smelled.

The thought of exploded frozen shrimp makes me want to throw up everywhere. And there was NO air conditioning, either.

No, and everyone was so pissed off.

It was too hot for that. So gross. Poor Janis, cleaning that out.

Best City:

I loved Park City/Salt Lake City. Think about it, it was 800 degrees there, but we still had an amazing time. The heat has killed every other city we've been to for the most part, but just there was amazing.

I liked Annapolis, though.

You weren't in Annapolis for twenty minutes and you didn't do anything in it.

It's a pretty city!

Yeah it is, but that doesn't make it the best city of the summer. That's stupid.

I liked it. The buildings were absolutely gorgeous. You liked Park City just because you could look at mountains.

Park City had the most beautiful house you've seen in your life.

That's not representative of the entire city.

This is the best city that we went to. We spent time ther

e. We went to Olympic Village, did the alpine go-kart thing, found that cool little bookstore thing where we bought the movies...

...that was Cheyenne.

Shit, yeah it was.

Janis thinks that Annapolis and Park City is like comparing apples and oranges. Annapolis is more of a man-made wonder where Park City is natural. I agree.

Blue is trying to say that Salt Lake City and Park City are one and the same. They're not. If that's the case, then Baltimore was my favorite part of this trip. (We didn't go to Baltimore.)

We agree to disagree.

Worst City:

San Francisco.

Oh yeah. By far.

And that's not because it was the worst city, but the most disappointing. It was cold, dirty and the beautiful little trolleys were replaced by gigantic city buses that were ugly. Our hotel...

...no, that's coming later.

Okay, we'll talk about that later. Our sleeping arrangements, then, were less than appealing.

Finding out that the Golden Gate Bridge is the most frequented place for suicides in the world was crazy depressing.

That was interesting, but depressing.

At least I got to sing the Full House theme song.

Most Frightening Moment:

Oh, this one's mine.

We went to San Francisco twice. The first was kind of our usual run-of-the mill stop, but the second was sans Luke and focused on Chinatown.

We had two gracious hosts. We set up a table in the middle of the square thing promoting Liberty In America and voter registration.

Although our hosts were wonderful, I was a little traumatized at being left at the table. By myself. Without an English speaker in sight. A bunch of Chinese men crowded around me, flipping through the Constitution upside down, pointing at me, and what sounded like...yelling at me. In Cantonese. This happened for forty-five minutes.

I kept smiling and nodding until my mouth and neck hurt. I had no other option. Oh, the glory of liberty.

What We Missed Most:

I missed Allentown and just being able to when it hits ten or eleven at night go "I want to hang out with friends". The atmosphere of going, sitting in a bar and meeting new people. I missed things that are familiar. I missed being familiar with Allentown. I missed sitting at Brick Bar with a glass of Guinness in my hand and shooting some pool. That's heaven for me.

Garbage plates. And a normal-sized bed.

Most Outrageous Moment:

Oh my God. Well...we have a few options.

We have the body shot.

Um. I was called out by the bartender at Coyote Ugly, and I adamantly turned her down. But then everyone I was with, boss included, decided that this was an experience THEY needed to have. They didn't do it for me. They did it for themselves.

(hysterical laughter)

Oh my God...how did this make you feel?

Am I on Oprah?

Well...I decided it'd be more embarrassing to sit and the corner and have someone drag me up. So I shuffled my feet to the bar, whereupon two gorgeous women dragged me...dragged me...oh man...into their embrace...and proceeded to do what can only be described as all but...oh God...a striptease. I really hope my parents read this. They're gonna find this so funny.

Anything else you'd like to add?

No, I'm good.

(laughter)

Best embarrassing Luke moment. Ever.

Most Frequently Asked Question(s):

Can I see your ID?

Are you brother and sister?

Are you dating?

How do you get young people involved in the tea party?

Why are you guys Legos?

What does your shirt mean?

Do you really live on a bus?

Places We're Sick Of:

Texas. Any place in Texas.

Ugh.

It's 100 degrees, humid as hell...

And it's got fire ants, scorpions AND rattlesnakes.

The weather here is like jumping into a hot tub in the middle of the summer day...but the hot tub is only filled with mist. That's Texas for you. Hell on earth.

Also in line with that, Tex-Mex restaurants.

Freaking hate Mexican food now.

Tiny, tiny bunk beds.

Number Of Days We've Gone Without "Real" Food:

I'm gonna go about four or five at Freedomfest. Objections?

Wait. I never ate at Freedomfest, yeah. We went out, like, twice. But yeah, we spent four days surviving on taquitos, Hot Pockets and other microwavable things.

No, we didn't have any of that. Not at the hotel we were at.

Wait...what did we eat? We went out a few different nights, but not too often.

That extra bacon pizza...

Oh my God, what did we eat?

Doughnuts off the breakfast cart...

I can't think of anything else we ate.

I did grab Cheez-Its that one day from the bus!

I don't remember that. Hm. Weird.

Worst Places We've Spent The Night:

Oh God. I don't remember the names of them. There were two campgrounds we stayed at...

Yeah, the Deliverance ones.

More people lived than camped at these places, and stayed at their "houses" which could probably be sold for less than most cars nowadays. Not to mention the mosquitoes at these places.

And that damn bugspray that smells so bad. No, I honestly think the true winner is the Taylor Hotel.

Oh. My. Lord. There was an Indian family sleeping behind the desk! We walked out the next morning to find a homeless looking lady on the stoop.

Oh my gosh, I thought we were gonna die. Remember leaving the bathroom light on?!

I remember there only being one outlet in the entire room, so we had to decide if we wanted the main light on or the TV.

Didn't we watch MANswers all night?

Yeah. The place should be condemned.

Biggest Bus Controversy:

The mosque. Is there any question?

I don't feel like talking about this right now.

Quotes For Honorable Mention:

"Guys, don't worry, it's okay. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre didn't really happen."

-Red

"Luke...why do you have handcuffs in your bed...?"

-Janis

"Do you guys have beer with you?"

-Beth

"BEAUtiful!"

-Luke. Every day.

Pizza Lady: What do you guys want on your pizza?

Luke: Bacon.

Pizza Lady: Anything else?

Luke: Extra bacon.

"Why don't you just drive this bus into the Capitol Building? Maybe then they'll pay attention."

-Biker Dude

"Luke, don't have orgasm at the dinner table, please."

-Beth

*That's all we've got for you for the summer, sports fans. Like we said, we'll be in touch.

Over and out,

The Legos

Red: The Poll

So we've started a new thing here, in case you haven't noticed: the poll.

Two days ago, as a bit of a joke and just for fun, we posted "Who Least Deserves Their Position?" as is still shown on the right sidebar.

Now we're getting a little flak from the Facebook community who are calling Liberty In America "partisan" and "foolish interns."

Luke and I are part of Liberty In America, but we are also individuals. True, we live on a bus and are literally living our jobs, but we're still allowed to have our own opinions and political views, although all five of us do firmly stand behind the five things on our commitment documents and a Constitutionally-limited federal government.

Debates happen on this bus among our team and so the debate on our poll on Facebook is no different.

I am the only registered Democrat living on this bus, and I'm about to make a t-shirt that tells the world. On the outside, does the poll seem decidedly Republican? Of course it does.

But now that you know that a Democrat posted it, what does that make you think? To me, that says that people in general are "disgusted with both parties," according to Beth Powers in our educational programs.

We chose the president, the Speaker of the House, the Senate Majority Leader and the newest Supreme Court justice, because simply, they're the ones in power, they're the ones we hear most about from people on the street and again, this poll is just for fun.

Some of our Facebook followers suggested adding George W. Bush or John McCain to the poll, but Bush is out of office and McCain is a more state-specific figure than we would have liked. We decided against adding state-specific legislators because then it's likely our voters would select someone strictly from their own state. By keeping to federal offices, it offers a better representation of how our voters are reacting to these specific officeholders.

And rest assured that had it been a few years ago, George W. Bush would be on this poll.

Red: There can be no fifty-fifty.

So the mosque got approved for "neargroundzero" in New York. 80% of voters in our poll said that it shouldn't be approved.

I gotta tell you, I still don't agree with this. Just like how I don't agree with Muslim Family Day being advertised as "the weekend of September 11."

At the bottom of our blog page, you'll find some links for extra reading. I will say that after reading these, I feel a bit better. As I said before, it's nothing against the Islamic community, I think that respect is an issue, here. I think that a true American should recognize and respect the tragedy that happened that day.

The last words I have on this subject are stolen from Teddy Roosevelt.

"There can be no 50/50 Americanism in this country. There is room here for only 100% Americanism; only for those who are Americans and nothing else."

Next on Red's dockett: the Supreme Court. Look for that within the next day or two.

Red: F*^@ yes! This is AWESOME!

The general consensus on the bus right now is exhaustion.

Luke fell asleep on the couch on the way to the campground and I've been going to bed obscenely early. I blame the 110-degree bus rides, thanks to an out-of-commission air conditioner. I really think it's the heat that's making me feel like an old person, but hopefully the air conditioner will be fixed tomorrow.

We have long days and by this point, two months in, we're all missing our families, significant others, friends, school, dogs and everything associated with our previous lives. I can't wait to get back to school and settle back into my apartment (that doesn't move on a daily basis) with my lovely roommates and a normal-sized bed.

But at least I'm not traipsing across New England with burlap bags tied around my feet like General Washington's men over two hundred years ago, as Beth puts it.

SPEAKING OF...I've been watching that HBO miniseries "John Adams." Man, did Washington, Jefferson and Franklin steal his thunder! It's a pretty good show. It can get a little tedious at times, but he seemed like a cool dude.

And I really just want to hug General Washington. He's the sweetest guy ever, wooden teeth/cherry tree or no.

Oh, and we got interviewed by the BBC today for a documentary they're doing. It comes out in October, and that was really neat. The interviewer seemed entertained, and we were entertained, too - he was Scottish, nice and the lining of his suit was hot pink. A baller if I ever saw one. (Note: I come from a cow town. I haven't seen too many ballers in my lifetime.)

I learned that in Colorado that people have to work for food stamps. One particularly disgruntled homeless dude approached us to tell us this. Hmm. I'm confused. From what I've seen on the streets, I was under the impression that the homeless were WILLING to work for food. Cardboard apparently lies.

But one particularly AMAZING thing happened today.

We were handing out free copies of the Constitution in front of the capitol building today. I offered one to a younger kid with big gauges in his ears and long hair. I was expecting a "What the hell is this?!" but instead I got a...

"F*^@ yes! This is AWESOME!"

So I smiled and sent him on his merry way. I've never seen anyone so happy to have one. Definitely the high point of my day.

Exhaustion aside, we're getting things done. It's worth it. Totally worth it.

Red: Let's Set The Record Straight

Facebook, for us, is practically a full-time job. Our page has tons of "likes" and we try to initiate discussions about what's happening in our country.

Well, we found this comment a few minutes ago under one of our photo albums:

"I had hoped this was a pro America site of positive thinking. I see now it is an anti-American, anti-constitutional organization hell bent on fear mongering, racial profiling of the Tea Party and GOP nut jobs that have no inkling of the history of this country or the diversity of our people."

Really? Really?!

Excuse me, Mr. Commenter, I sure as hell didn't jump on a bus featuring the United States Constitution to be called "anti-American" and "anti-Constitutional." Now, I don't know if we have differing opinions on what the Constitution really entails, but we hand them out free to passerby. If you're confused, I'll be glad to send one your way.

As far as fear-mongering goes, I'm five foot nothing, so we'll see how that one works out for me, and I don't even know where you came up with racial profiling. We know some tea partiers, and I've never heard anything remotely racial come out of their mouths or seen any swastikas anywhere near them. Trust me. I've looked.

Oh, and by the way, I'll let you in on a little secret: I'm a registered Democrat. Yeah, you heard me.

I don't think "G.O.P. nutjob" applies. Thanks for playing, though.

Blue: For the People or For Your Party?

Simple question. Do you support the people, the better good, and so on or do you support your political party. Many people claim both but here is the proof that this is far from the case.

"ObamaCare", we all know what it is by now. Many people hate it, myself included, but some people do like it. What does this mean? Absolutely nothing, at least not by itself.

In what I can only see as being the worst display in the history of the United States of political groups voting only for their parties and not for the people, a bill was turned down offering aid to those who responded to the terrorist attacks that rocked this country to its core on 9/11. These men were heroes, risked life and limb, climbed into crumbling buildings in what was a suicide mission for many, all in the hopes of saving at least one more life. Few can argue that these men and women deserve more credit than any of us. Unfortunately, those who made it out alive were far from alright. Many are now dealing with complications from their heroic efforts.

Thus a bill was proposed by the Democratic party. This bill aimed to give free health care to these brave souls. People who are now suffering and dying because the selflessly through themselves into the fire so others may live. Wow, the Democrats are doing something great right? Well that depends. Some may say we need to stop government spending, and by God do we ever. However, if we can pass health care that will help illegal immigrants, denying these heroes health care is far from acceptable. This is still not the main issue.

In a move that we can have come all but expect from the Democrats they put in a clause, BIG surprise right? The main clause; a suspension of the rules. This means that Republicans would be unable to offer amendments to the bill. What the .... well I don't feel the need to finish that. If the Democrats really care so much about those this bill would help why would they make it so controversial and difficult for Republicans to pass. Once again the Democrats display an obvious hidden agenda. If they could get their heads out of their left winged asses and work for the people like they are HIRED to do, this bill would likely have passed.

However all blame is not to be placed on the Democrats here. The Republicans, in almost no time at all and in an overwhelming majority instantly shot down the bill. Their reason was not for anything in the bill. It was merely that they could not offer an amendment. OK, damn those Democrats for trying to tie your hands. But really? You will get your stupid right winged panties in a bunch over this so much that you will deny the bravest and most honorable people in this country the ability to get the care they not only need, but deserve more than the President himself ever has? How dare you care about your tiny ELECTED group so much more than the people you were elected to protect and serve.

Both parties gave these amazing US citizens a gigantic FU but we have no problem offering health care to those who do nothing but leach off society. It's a sad day to be an American and an even sadder day for those denied the benefits they deserve. America will not get better until we abolish political parties.

Blue: Absence, a Bruised Face and a Rundown Motel

So I have been absent from the liberty crew for exactly one week and one day. I finally got a break from the million-m.p.h. push that Liberty In America has been doing all summer. That break came in the form of a cruise with my family from Tampa, FL to Mexico.

Now I had never been on a cruise before. I have spent the last 21 years, almost 22 now, traveling but it has always been driving around the country so I was pretty excited to finally get on a cruise. I mean there's gambling, booze, sun, Mexico...what's not to be excited about? Now I won't get too much into the cruise - the blog is supposed to be about Red and I and Liberty In America, of course. However, I do feel there is at least one story I should share.

So keeping in mind that this was my first cruise I could not wait to get on the boat and explore. Thus, that's exactly what I did. So I made my way up to the deck, then to the bow of the boat. There, my brothers and I came across a putt-putt course. People were still boarding so it was empty except for a group of three kids about six or seven years old. Anyway, my brothers and I were standing there looking around when my youngest brother goes "LOOK OUT" and dove to the side. I turned just into to see one of said children "Happy Gilmore" his ball. Now we were on the deck of a boat. Open air was all around for a 360 degree radius. A golf ball is about an inch in diameter. Unfortunately my head is apparently a much larger target than I realized, because out of the 360 degrees it had somehow managed to find the side of my face. That's right. The once innocent looking child had turned to a demon of hell when his bright red projectile launched squarely into the my upper cheek bone.

Now this is where some of you go, "Hey, be nice. He is just a little kid and it was an accident." Well, this is what mini-Satan had to say to me as I fell to the ground amidst screaming people: "I said look, why didn't you move?" Of course, after death stares from my two brothers, he dropped his golf club, exclaimed that he thought he'd had enough putt-putt for the day and ran inside the ship. I spent the next ten minutes trying to figure out where I was, what had happened to my glasses and why there was a baseball-sized welt on the side of my face. In other words, cruises are awesome. You should go on one.

Too be fair, the rest of the cruise was fun with the exception of constantly popping Tylenol to keep the throbbing pain in my face down. So I managed to have a good time all the same.

After the cruise, I had a flight booked to Denver, as that was where the bus was supposed to pick me up. Of course, planning ahead has never been something we have done well. This was no different. Instead I got a phone call explaining that the bus would be on Oregon, not Denver, Colorado. Well apparently, the airlines think four hours notice is too short of a time to change flight plans for some reason. So off to Denver I was with no car, little money, and oh - my phone was dead. A typical day in the life of Liberty In America.

I have now been spending the week in a motel outside Denver waiting to be rescued. I do mean rescued. See, there are apparently no airports near the Denver airport that don't cost an arm and a leg, so Justina found me a lavish hotel on the outskirts of Denver. A place that had reviews the likes of "I slept on towels because the bed sheets were so dirty" and "I booked a room, paid and then no one was at the office all night so I had to go find another hotel to stay in but they still charged me". My room is not all that bad. A few cigarette burns in the bedding, a hole in the bathroom wall, a bathroom door that doesn't close and an air conditioner that is pooling water on the carpet leaving a pleasant inviting smell of old musty carpet. In other words, it's a room built for a king. Of course the surrounding area is nice. I can walk to a couple of restaurants. All I have to do is take a mile or two stroll down one highway and across an interstate and I am treated to everything from Jack in the Box all the way to Burger King, which I guess is fitting with the room being fit for a king I should be able to eat like one as well.

So I was originally supposed to be picked up this morning. Of course, the bus generator broke down once again (yes that's at least the third time, now) and I get to spend another night of luxury. I guess I can't complain too much. I did have an old friend from freshman year of college come pick me up for a day to hang out. We walked around Denver, caught a movie (Inception, it's really good, watch it) and even went to a Rockies baseball game.

So that's where I have been. Red has hopefully been doing her part keeping you up to date with happenings on the bus. If not, be sure to yell at her, she needs some criticism and don't worry about making it constructive.

Be sure to check back soon. We have a lot going on the next few days across Colorado!