Shannon Genovese

a.k.a. Tinkerbell

a.k.a. Noner

For some reason I went through a phase where I liked to change the sounds of vowels from long to short and short to long.  So, for awhile, my sister to me was Shanone (pronounced SHAY - NONE).  Eventually that nickname begat a nickname and when I get a phone call from her today, I usually answer "Noner!"  Her official Disney name, however, is Tinkerbell.  Tinkerbell was the fairy with the hot temper that was always flitting about in Peter Pan.  Watch the movie again and, if you know anything about my sister, I think you'll agree we made a good choice.  

Patrick Genovese

a.k.a. Prince Charming

a.k.a. Wacko

When we were growing up, our younger cousins had a hard time saying "Patrick", so they shortened it to "Packo".  Somewhere along the line that turned into "Packo Wacko".  Being the king of acronyms and liking to shorten things, I eventually dropped the Packo.  I still call him Wacko most of the time, but if we're going to get formal or break out the Motorola's, Prince Charming it is.  

Laurie Genovese

a.k.a. Miss Daisy

a.k.a. Daisy

Ever since I learned to drive, my mom has abdicated the privilege to me whenever we go anywhere together. Even if she's dropping me off at the airport, I'll drive there and drop myself off, then she takes the car.  She's also made a bit of a name for herself in the family because whenever she sits in the front passenger seat on a drive, she'll invariably attempt to bring the car to a stop with the imaginary brake pedal in front of her.  Over the years my siblings and I have tried to coach her on how to be a better passenger, after all, her anxiety is unfounded since none of us has ever crashed with her in the car!  Our efforts are evident when, in an effort not to be a distracting "back seat driver", she'll silently tense up her entire body, attempt to slam her foot through the floor, and nonchalantly grab onto the "oh shit" handles as if a giant vacuum cleaner were trying to suck her out of the car.  

If more than two people are riding in the car, we usually put mom in the back seat. Sometimes if it's just the two of us, I'll still put mom in the back seat.  That's why we call her Miss Daisy.  And because Daisy Duck is a Disney character, we aren't even breaking the rules. 

Raymond Genovese

a.k.a. Ray

a.k.a. Cozy Bear

a.k.a. Worst Copilot EVER

Back in the day--which of course was a Wednesday--I was at the Riverside Resort Hotel & Casino in Laughlin, Nevada with my parents and siblings. I had recently purchased some Motorola Talkabout two way radios and this trip to Lake Mohave was to be their first trial. I rode the elevator downstairs to get everyone their morning coffee and pastries. A few floors from the lobby, with an elevator full of people standing around me in my pajamas, a voice crackled over the radio in my hand: "Brer Rabbit this is Cozy Bear come on back".

Where the hell my dad pulled out Brer Rabbit and Cozy Bear is probably best left a mystery. The Cozy Bear part stuck though, and at that moment a Genovese family tradition was born. Since then, anyone who travels with us when we have an occasion to break out the radios (i.e., the lake, Disneyland, etc.) is bestowed a nickname fitting of their personality. The rules state it needs to be a Disney nickname, but there are a few exceptions, the Cozy Bear being one of them.

By the way, Brer Rabbit didn't stick with me.  At some point during that fateful trip, I adopted the name Robin Hood.

Vicki

a.k.a. Daniel
a.k.a. Danny Boy

Vicki is the successor to Kathy, our Garmin C330 that retired last year prior to the England trip. A versatile and reliable addition to the TRS family, Vicki was named after the robot on the television show Small Wonder (although the spelling is different since the acronym does not apply). Vicki is equipped with Bluetooth, an FM transmitter, an MP3 player, a photo viewer, text to speech, and maps of North America and Europe. She can also alter her voice to sound like her colleagues from around the world. Her favorite impersonation is her British counterpart, Daniel. I never leave home without her. Or him.

Hal Genovese

a.k.a. Halloween Genovese
a.k.a. Halapeno
a.k.a. Mr. Peno

Perhaps one of the most well known Road Scholars, Mr. Peno is certainly the most well traveled. I first met Hal when Jen brought him home from Barnes & Noble. It was after Halloween and since he was clad in an orange Jack-O-Lantern costume, he was on sale. It turns out the costume is permanent, so he's often seen wearing his blue "Daddy's Little All Star" onesie, which provides a more all-season Cosmopolitan look.

Hal is a consummate tourist and in addition to a multitude of domestic destinations, he has traveled abroad to England, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Turkey, Germany, and Austria. TRS is proud to consider him an official Road Scholar and I wouldn't be surprised to see a few books with his name on them sitting on the shelves of his Alma Mater someday soon.

Meghan Gamble

a.k.a. Nurse Meghan

a.k.a. Thelma

a.k.a. My High School Prom Date

It was tough deciding on just one picture for Meghan's TRS profile that embodies all of who she is.I could have used our prom picture, the one where I left my sunglasses on, at her request.  Or I could have used the one where she and cohort "Louise" came to visit me at Cal Poly, sporting purple nail polish and showing off the ability to tie a cherry with their tongues.  Or there's the most prevalent picture of Meghan I have, with her mouth wide open in an expression that says "that is SO not true!" Or how about the one of Meghan in Switzerland, wearing pajamas and glasses and painting her nails while a fellow CDE counselor lay beside her, passed out drunk?  Meghan is definitely one of our more...robust...Road Scholars.  She is also the world's greatest procrastinator, which is why I think this one sums her up nicely.  I took it while we vacationed together in Venice after our summer at TASIS.  While you can see Meghan calmly taking it all in, what you can't see is what she's supposed to be doing.  I can promise you it isn't what she's doing at the moment...ever.  TRS is tickled to count her among the ranks, the only Road Scholar with more stamps in her passport than me.

What Happens In Texas Was Lucky To Get Here In The First Place

Ever since we moved to Texas, we've noticed a bit of a lag in receiving mail from the United States Postal Service. It's most noticeable with greeting cards. An event will pass and a family member will call to ask us if we got the card. We'll say "no" and then about a week later the card will show up.

This lagging mail phenomenon (LMP) was most apparent earlier this year when my grandfather sent me a check. Actually, he ended up sending three checks. I have yet to receive two of them. Then, in May I went on a business trip to Macon, Georgia. Preparing for the trip, I noticed my corporate credit card was about to expire. I called the credit card company to find out when I would be receiving my new card: "Oh that would have gone out in March". They ended up canceling the card and issuing a new one.

We finally got that credit card that was sent in March. It came Friday. This is what happens to mail in Texas.



Here's the letter printed on the outside of the plastic bag they sent us our mail in. I've added my comments in parentheses.

Dear Postal Customer:

The enclosed was found loose in the mails or has been damaged in handling in the Postal Service (no kidding).

We realize your mail is important to you and you have every to expect it to be delivered intact and in good condition (I would certainly hope so!). The Postal Service makes every effort to properly handle the mail entrusted to it. However, occasional loss or damage may occur (ya think?).

Our organization handles over 177 billion pieces of mail annually, (and sometimes fire happens) and depends on mechanical systems to process this large volume. Loss and/or damage can occur if envelopes are not sealed, mail is insecurely enveloped, or envelopes contain bulky enclosures (did they just blame this on me?).

The Postal Service is committed to the improvement of our processing methods to minimize occurrences such as the enclosed (so do they carry fire extinguishers on their trucks now?). We appreciate your concern over the handling of your mail (concern? this isn't concerning, it's outrageous!) and sincerely regret the inconvenience you have experienced.

Sincerely,


MANAGER DISTRIBUTION OPERATIONS
San Antonio Processing & Distribution Center

Katerina Voitik

a.k.a "Kat"

Like my friend Teresa, I also met Kat at Cal Poly while working for ASI. In 2004, a year after I graduated, Kat decided to "study abroad" in New Orleans, Louisiana. Once again, I discovered a talent in one of my friends of which I was not previously aware. After a few of Kat's email updates to friends and family, I asked her if I could help with distribution. "Kat In The NO" was the first official "blog" TRS ever syndicated. I previously relied mainly on the email distribution list to tell my stories, sometimes posting the updates on the trs web site along with pictures. Kat In the NO introduced TRS to the blog format and we thank her for it. Ironically, a year later, Hurricane Katrina (which is how Katerina is pronounced by the way) would make a name for itself in the history books.

Read the Adventures of Kat In the NO

Teresa Hoffman

I met Teresa at Cal Poly working for Associated Students Incorporated (ASI). As graduation loomed closer for both of us, I began looking for a job and Teresa applied to the Peace Corps. As I departed for Lugano, Switzerland to work with very privileged children from around the world, Teresa left for Uganda to work with kids with some very different needs than what I would experience. Just before she left, Teresa started sending out Road Scholar style email updates to her friends and family.

I knew Teresa for five years before we parted ways, and I always knew she was an extraordinary person. What I didn't know is that she is also an extraordinary writer. After her first couple of updates, I asked her if she would mind allowing me to syndicate her updates to the TRS mailing list. As you might imagine, Teresa's experiences in Uganda tend to be quite different from my experiences in places like New Jersey or Lugano, but occasionally she does find herself in some very TRS style dilemmas--like the bank ATM that wouldn't let her have her money. All of her experiences will touch your heart and I recommend taking some time to read about Teresa's journey. She's never traveled personally with me or Chris, so I can't bestow official Road Scholar status on her, but Teresa is certainly the Most Honorable of the Honorary Road Scholars.

Read About Teresa In Uganda

Chris Pasley

Chris and I went to high school together in Southern California, but it wasn't until we got to college and roomed together Freshman year that we really became friends. Chris has the distinction of being the only other "original" Road Scholar. He helped kick off TRS with the Year 2000 Road Trip Extravaganza! in the summer of 2000. Since then, he has traveled with me in England and Spain, and been an avid supporter of all things TRS (he even wears his Y2KRTE shirt from time to time). You can read more about Chris in the About TRS section.

About The Road Scholars

Welcome to The Road Scholars (TRS), a place for passion. My name is Sean Genovese, I am the founder of TRS, created originally as a way for me to combine my passion for being a tourist and an entrepreneur. It turns out I also have a passion for writing, sarcasm, humor and encountering problems while traveling the world. So if you like any of those things, you might want to keep reading. I may also decide one day to take over the world. You'll read it here first.


A Little About Me


At the age of twenty, I had never taken an airplane ride. I know, pathetic. We won't talk about how old I was when I finally started dating. I'm a quick study though, and within ten years of my "first", I visited 34 states, a dozen countries, and racked up enough frequent flyer miles to fly business classto Europe on my honeymoon. I flew my wife business class as well (I did say I was a quick study).

I grew up in Southern California and a trip to Sacramento for a History Day competition in high school was about as far away as I'd gotten by the time I entered college. In 1997 I began my first year as an Electrical Engineering major at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. My roommate that year was Chris Pasley. He and I went to the same high school but we never really hung out. After a year of living together in a 20 x 25 room, I didn’t think we ever needed to hang out again.

A summer apart however, and that tune changed. During our winter break in 1998, Chris and I took a road trip to Vegas together. We couldn’t gamble or drink but we didn’t need to, our destination was the Las Vegas Hilton and the Star Trek Experience. How cool were we?! I think that’s the trip that started it all. I’ll reflect more on that in my book. Let’s get on with the history lesson.

Chris and I were inspired. We planned two additional trips: one to Yosemite for the spring of 1999, and one mother of all road trips that would take us across the country during the summer of 2000.

In March of 1999 I accepted a six month co-op assignment with a biomedical company. The job required that I fly all over the country to test clocks on hospital equipment to see if it would explode at the dawn of the year 2000. Yosemite got canceled.

The Y2K testing experience was the farthest and longest I’d everbeen away from my friends and family. I started sending out weekly updates to keep my family up to date on how I was doing. Whenever I received an email from someone asking how things were coming along with my co-op, I added them to my mailing list. Before I knew it, I had a bit of a following and people couldn't wait to live vicariously through my writing. It would be another year before TRS was officially born, but the Y2K testing updates was surely its conception.


Enough About Me, What About TRS?


Chris and I were on a travel rush. For the summer 2000 road trip we decided to go big. It was the height of the dotcom boom and we were inspired by DotComGuy, a twenty-something UPS employee who quit his job and for an entire year didn’t leave his house in order to prove that anything one needed could be obtained using the Internet. Our own endeavor, dubbed the Year 2000 Road Trip Extravaganza (Y2KRTE) was to be a round trip circle tour of the U.S. covering 12,000 miles in 45 days. In DotComGuy style, we would get corporate sponsors to underwrite the trip in exchange for my witty accounts of life on the road. It turns out we were broke college students with no corporate marketing connections, so what actually happened was something a little more…modest. But we did get T-shirts.

Sponsors or not (we did have a few, mostly self-employed friends andfamily), the trip was fantastic--the experience of a lifetime. We ended up flying to New York using a novel new business concept called Priceline. From there we rented a car and in 24 days drove through 25 states back to California; we put 6,542 miles on our high performance two door Chevy Monte Carlo (with air conditioning).

Here's what amazed me most about the experience (besides the fact that I was literally paying the trip off for the remainder of my college career): in 24 days on the road, we spent only five nights in a hotel. Chris and I collectively knew people all across the country and, what's more, they were all more than eager to make us part of their family for a few days. That is really the essence of what TRS has become: the experience of all kinds of people and their ability to impress the hell out of me with their generosity and hospitality, especially when the situation is less than ideal. That's the rest of the essence, by the way. It seems that wherever I go, the situation is always less than ideal, which is why the adventure is the destination, not the journey.