Under New Management (Unfortunately)

The good news: We managed to stave off the efforts of a couple Twi-hards and a pair of lying Minnesotans to win the baseball roadtrip.

The bad news: Due to some really unfortunate real world events, Cara is not able to participate in the trip.

But as they say, the show must go on, and so the show will go on without our darling Cara. Stephen will now be roadtripping with Luke Halls under the name Team Conquistadores. We're going to be heading out from Carbondale late on Friday night. Follow our journey here or on exploringmyamerica.com

What this whole shakeup means for you is... Let's make sure that Team Logan doesn't bring home the grand prize. While Cara sadly isn't able to go on the trip we were all excited for, she will still get her share of the loot when we bring home the grand prize. So... go out and vote everyday from Sunday until Saturday.

P.S. If anybody needs an air freshener, we have about 300 of them.

What Time Is It, James Van Der Beek?

It's Time

To Vote.
Click Here.

Our Trip: In Playlist Form

Did I mention that I enjoy making themed playlists? Oh yeah, I did mention that.

Here's a look at what our journey would look like in playlist form. Enjoy.

1. Dexter Freebish - Leaving Town
2. Sufjan Stevens - Out of Egypt, Into the Great Laugh of Mankind, And I Shake the Dirt From My Sandals As I Run
3. On the Open Road from A Goofy Movie
4. Neil Diamond - Kentucky Woman
5. Cake - Stickshifts & Safety Belts
6. The Monkees - Last Train to Clarksville
7. Arrested Development - Tennessee
8. The Lovin' Spoonful - Nashville Cats
9. Jason Aldean - Crazy Town
10. Paramore - Franklin
11. Canned Heat - On the Road Again
12. Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama
13. Randy Newman - Birmingham
14. Ram Jam - Black Betty (She's from Birmingham, way down in Alabam')
15. Bon Jovi - Lost Highway
16. Ludacris & Field Mob - Georgia
17. Ray Charles - Hit the Road Jack
18. Golden Earring - Radar Love
19. Less Than Jake - Gainesville Rock City
20. Foghat - Slow Ride
21. Sammy Hagar - I Can't Drive 55
22. The White Stripes - Conquest
23. Ohio Players - Love Rollercoaster
24. The Go-Gos - Vacation
25. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Road Trippin'
26. LMFAO - I'm In Miami Trick!
27. Will Smith - Miami
28. Flesh for Lulu - Postcards From Paradise
29. The Beach Boys - Kokomo (STAMOS!)
30. John Mellencamp - Key West Intermezzo
31. Jimmy Buffett - Margaritaville
32. The Starting Line - Island
33. Incubus - Wish You Were Here
34. Whitesnake - Here I Go Again On My Own
35. Dropkick Murphys - Sunshine Highway
36. Katrina & the Waves - Walking on Sunshine
37. The Proclaimers - I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)
38. Willie Nelson - On the Road Again
39. Ray Charles - Georgia On My Mind
40. Relient K - Savannah
41. Cake - The Distance
42. Gladys Knight & the Pips - Midnight Train to Georgia
43. Roger Miller - King of the Road
44. Stone Temple Pilots - Interstate Love Song
45. Jermaine Dupri & Ludacris - Welcome to Atlanta
46. Tom Cochrane - Life Is a Highway (NOT YOU, RASCAL FLATTS!)
47. Johnny Cash - I've Been Everywhere
48. Dot Dot Dot - Home
49. Mötley Crüe - Home Sweet Home
50. Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - Home

We're Finalists!

Get ready to vote for us on www.exploringmyamerica.com starting July 11.

Beaches & Baseball & Beachy

This is not a blog about Atlanta Braves pitcher Brandon Beachy.

Unless he wants to go on vacation with us.

Getting to Know Stephen

Stephen McGrady

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Education:
Fountain Central High School (Veedersburg, IN)
Illinois College (Jacksonville, IL)
Southern Illinois University School of Law (Carbondale, IL)

Favorite Teams: Atlanta Braves, Indianapolis Colts, Duke Blue Devils, Southern Illinois Salukis, Indiana Pacers

Hobbies: Trivia nerd, roadtripping, making themed music playlists, cooking (but not cleaning).

20 Fun Facts About Stephen
1. I have visited 44 of the 50 United States. Still have to get myself to Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, North Dakota, and Oklahoma. (I've also never been to Miami, the Florida Keys, or Savannah - three locations on our road trip!)
2. Life Goal #1: Be a contestant on Jeopardy!
3. Life Goal #2: Watch a game at all 30 Major League Ballparks by age 30. I'm at six right now. (Atlanta, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis.) I've also attended games at the Tigers', Indians', Reds', and Cardinals' former abodes.
4. I have an extreme aversion to anything topped with ketchup, mustard, pickles, lettuce, onions, relish, mayonnaise, sour cream, peppers, tomatoes, salsa, tartar sauce, guacamole, or any type of salad dressing. I'll have that sandwich "plain", thank you.
5. When I was potty-training, my parents would distract from "the business" by holding up baseball cards and asking me what team the player played for. I've been a baseball junkie ever since.
6. My hometown's motto is as follows: "Hillsboro, Indiana: Home of 600 Happy People and a Few Old Soreheads."
7. Best Day Ever: Atlanta Braves Opening Day 2010. Four of my friends from undergrad and I made the trip to Turner Field for opening day between the Cubs & Braves, getting ourselves all-you-can-eat (and drink!) seats. We watched Jason Heyward drill a home run on his first swing as a major leaguer as the Braves blitzed the Cubs 16-5. Later that evening, my Duke Blue Devils won the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship, as well as securing me a victory in my bracket pool. We celebrated with a walk to Waffle House. That was a good day.
8. Best Night Ever: I studied abroad in Ireland after my first year of law school. On the next to last night of the trip, my friends and I went on a pub crawl in Dublin. At the end of the crawl, we ended up randomly attending a Ying Yang Twins concert for free. That was a good night.
9. I really don't like being referred to as 'Steve'.
10. I met Barack Obama once. He called me 'Steve'. For this reason alone, I am not a fan of Barack Obama.
11. One of my father's biggest disappointments is that I am a Braves fan, not a fan of his beloved Cardinals. (The Cardinals are still #2 in my book.)
12. I am a member of a literary society. It's like a fraternity.... not a book club.
13. Go-to Karaoke song: Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.
14. I have an active streak of watching a Colts games in a different stadium for 4 straight seasons. '07 in RCA Dome (Indianapolis), '08 in Jacksonville, '09 in St. Louis, '10 in Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis).
15. If there is no NFL Season this year, I think my plan is to watch The Replacements every Sunday afternoon and try to create a UFL fantasy football league.
16. Films I can pretty much recite from beginning to end: Wayne's World (1 & 2), Van Wilder, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Monty Python & the Holy Grail, Fight Club, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
17. I was once cut from a high school basketball team that went on to go 0-20.
18. When I was a kid, I wanted to be an veterinarian. Then I took Anatomy in high school, and I no longer wanted to be a veterinarian.
19. When I started college, I wanted to be an engineer. Then I took Calculus III during my sophomore year, and I no longer wanted to be an engineer.
20. When I started law school, I wanted to be a lawyer. Then I started studying for the bar exam, and I..... Well, I still want to be a lawyer.

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