Epinions Recent Reviews for AllyMcBeal

A boutique hotel in a very nice location

Wed, 30 May 2007 19:48:43 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - My latest travels took me to Chicago. As I planned my itinerary, I initially shot for an airport hotel, much like back in San Francisco or Seattle, to save money, then figured on renting a car. But when my Chicago area friend suggested that I ditch the...

Great features, but requires lots of power

Fri, 6 Apr 2007 02:09:22 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - After taking some flights on Mi
crosoft
Flight Simulator 2002 and 2004, I've grown an interest in the series, along with aviation in general. I liked re-creating flights from my past vacations, as well as flying to...

Former PC user is very happy to switch

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 02:30:32 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I recently had my H
P
Pavilion laptop fail on me, for the second time in a year. Frustrated, I fell back on a very old, very slow Dell laptop - but I needed a replacement fast. I decided to return to a desktop machine,...

The City of Lights - in another City of Lights

Tue, 13 Mar 2007 03:17:04 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I just returned from another quick weekend getaway to Las Vegas - something I am trying to do twice a year. This time, I decided to splurge and stay on a Strip property. Shopping around led me to Paris Las Vegas this time; although I had been to...

Start with Walt Whitman, throw in current events...

Wed, 28 Feb 2007 03:15:07 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - After reading and reviewing T
he
Book of Dead Birds, and after taking a few of her classes, I have been very fortunate to keep in touch with Gayle Brandeis, and follow the development of her new projects through her...

Nice Sightseeing Stop on I-40

Fri, 16 Feb 2007 02:54:21 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - Last Thanksgiving, I took a long road trip that took me to Santa Fe and Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. As I made my drive east from California, I made sure to stop by Petrified Forest National Park in northeastern Arizona, as I had heard of the place...

Not perfect - but I won't get lost anymore

Thu, 9 Nov 2006 02:57:44 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - My search for a GPS navigation solution for my business and personal use first led me to a combination of M
icrosoft
Streets & Trips and a Pharos 360 GPS antenna, running on a laptop computer. The cost: $100 plus the...

The largest in Koreatown

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 19:46:15 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I needed to change banks recently, after being burned by W
ashington
Mutual. Having been fed up with all three of the major players in California's personal banking industry (Bank of America and Wells Fargo being the...

Hilton Vancouver Metrotown/Burnaby, BC: Good value in the suburbs

Sun, 10 Sep 2006 00:41:20 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - As I planned out my recent trip to V
ancouver,
I looked at a number of options for my hotel accommodations. With the Canadian dollar at near-parity to the US dollar, even budget accommodations were over $100/night, with...

My first "date" with Vancouver

Tue, 5 Sep 2006 21:19:06 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - After recently visiting S
eattle,
I decided that another trip to the Pacific Northwest was in order. This time, I decided to take it all the way across the 49th Parallel, and visit Vancouver, a city that I had visited...

Here's my favorite local girl!

Thu, 24 Aug 2006 02:17:43 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I may be a longtime Southern California resident (albeit with gaps here and there), but it's been pretty difficult for me to name a favorite local artist. LA's Red Hot Chili Peppers? No thanks. Long Beach's Melissa Etheridge? She's my...

Sirius Satellite Radio: I'm now a convert

Sun, 20 Aug 2006 01:28:46 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I've been doing more and more driving lately, as part of my work, and I also love taking road trips. That's a lot of time spent in my vehicles - much of it in infamous Los Angeles traffic. Needless to say, I spend much of it listening to the radio -...

A long weekend around Puget Sound

Tue, 11 Jul 2006 03:35:51 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I recently came back from a weekend in and around the S
eattle
area. Normally, I tend to drive my own car to my destination and use it there, but Seattle was a wee bit too far for that, so I flew in, and rented a car...

Falling in love with Seattle

Sun, 9 Jul 2006 04:42:35 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I've just come back from a long Fourth of July weekend in Seattle - my third visit there, and the first where I strayed beyond the tourist traps. I am getting to know the place better than before, and although I still am nowhere near being a Seattle...

Inexpensive, but not the best there is

Fri, 7 Jul 2006 02:04:58 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I spent a lengthy Fourth of July weekend in the Puget Sound area. Since I was going to spend five nights, price was going to be of essence; that quickly ruled out Hilton Garden Inn, as much as I loved the chain, due to its $85+ rates. In fact, finding an...

Hyundai's luxury sedan comes of age

Sun, 4 Jun 2006 18:46:36 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - Last year, I had a $40 offer from Hyundai; all I had to do was test-drive the new S
onata.
I took up the offer, and now Hyundai has returned with another offer, for $50 this time. This time, I had to drive the all-new...

Hilton Garden Inn San Francisco Airport North: A pleasant surprise, conveniently located

Sat, 3 Jun 2006 00:05:26 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I just came back from my second stay at this property, and both times I was very satisfied. I first stumbled onto this property as I planned my visit to the San Francisco Bay Area for the Labor Day weekend of 2005. I had started work on my novel,...

Updated 3/25/07 - stranded after a hard disk crash

Tue, 16 May 2006 03:19:43 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - Please read the bottom for the newest update, which explains why I downgraded this computer's rating. I've been using my De
ll
Dimension 4500 for four years. Lately, it's showed signs of age; it's slowed down...

The Chateau Trim: the SUV alternative

Fri, 5 May 2006 01:19:01 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - After a horrible experience with my '99 Contour, I've stayed far away from Ford Motor Company's products. And so did my family members - even though my father continued to drive a '95 Econoline van, now with a quarter million miles on it. Happy with the...

Free checking isn't so free

Wed, 19 Apr 2006 22:27:56 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - There was a time when I used Washington Mutual - back in 2000. I moved there after a horrible experience with Wells Fargo, both as a customer and as a prospective employee. Washington Mutual treated me well, with its no-catches free checking and...

Streets & Trips interface, with a few flaws

Sun, 2 Apr 2006 23:53:24 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - I remember my first drive in the Old World. Renting a Citroen at London's Heathrow Airport, I took the M4 motorway into downtown London, heading for a hotel. Then I got lost, and I circled the same maze of streets several times before I finally figured...

Cheaper alternative to in-car navigation systems

Sun, 26 Mar 2006 01:24:43 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - In my family business, people do a lot of driving around town. My family also does quite a bit of long-distance driving, when not working. Until now, St
reets
and Trips 2001 and 2004, by themselves, worked just fine; we...

A parallel story of mother and daughter

Sat, 11 Mar 2006 02:16:05 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - In recent months, I've been taking writing courses to help with my novel-in-progress. I've been fortunate enough to work with Gayle Brandeis for three classes in a row; she has given me extremely helpful feedback, being more than happy to share her...

Felicity Huffman plays a transsexual

Sat, 4 Feb 2006 20:50:32 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - Right now, I am writing a novel about a transgender woman, and because of this, people in the writing community have been giving me tips about anything transgender. That included information about Transamerica, a movie starring Felicity...

Busan, South Korea: Korea's No. 2 City

Tue, 22 Nov 2005 00:49:34 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author AllyMcBeal - In my review of the D
MZ,
which I visited last year, I mentioned that my father was a North Korean, and my mother was an ethnic Chinese living in North Korea. When North Korea turned Communist, both my parents, as young...