Wednesday, January 11, 2006
MY ADVENTURE PALES
guys:
having read all the blog replies, it's obvious that my airport adventures pale compared to some of yours. in fact, most of yours. now i think i'll think of the rest of you when i'm running through an airport lugging 90 pounds of photos and think that i don't have it too bad. at least i'm not pregnant or looking for a lost child.
somebody suggested that with my pro-active actions towards getting help from the cabin crew, that i'd be good on THE AMAZING RACE.
well, a friend's company utilizes this particular auditing company. the auditing company, at the end of the year, puts on a big event to thank all of their clients for the business. one year they did a "vancouver" version of the AMAZING RACE. i got invited along. we were in teams of 4 and had to get around town, find and decode clues and get to the pub at the end for beers and natchos.
we were not allowed to take cabs or bikes. we could catch a bus but of course, that's on theslow side when you're racing from one checkpoint to another. that's why it's called the AMAZING RACE, not the AMAZING BUS SCHEDULE!
anyway, when we were assigned to each other we sat down and figured out what our individual strengths were. one guy was a sailor, two others had some other tangible skills and when it came to me, i said, "the only skill i have is that i have no shame and will ask any stranger anything."
my team mates couldn't quite get a grasp on this until we were stranded downtown and i walked out into rush hour traffic and flagged down some old guy in a volvo station wagon at a red light. i had on my AMAZING RACE singlet so i had a shred of credibility. i talked the guy into giving us a ride across town. my team mates were standing on the sidewalk mocking me until i got in the front seat and waved them over.
later we passed a guy in a panel van on a break from painting a building. the inside of the panel van was crammed with paint cans and brushes, etc. i told my team mates that i'd get the guy to give us a ride. again, they mocked me and walked on. again, i got in the front seat and called them back.
we came in second.
cheers,
jonesy
Posted by jonesy @ 12:31 PM
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Gary has co-starred on Stargate SG-1 as
Let me be the first to say...
There are benefits to being proactive!
Gilder
Sweet!
There's never any harm in asking, right?
Next time I'm in grid lock in Vancouver I'll know just who to go to!
Good to see you blogging here. I love hearing about your off-show adventures! I hope to hear (er, read) a lot more. Thanks!
That mini-Amazing Race sounds awesome! Did you win? Last spring my friends and I did a huge scavenger hunt that spread across our whole downtown and the local carnival. Out of a handful of teams we somehow managed to win the most points and each took home $20!
'Have no shame and will ask any stranger anything...'
Never woulda guessed. ;)
Wish you could've gotten a picture of your teammates' faces.
Phoe.
Hehe you sound like me and how I am with strangers! Any chance of you doing the October convention circuit this year over here in Australia?
Just read the last two entires and am ROFL.
Congrats on second place.
Still a blast! Thank you!
anything with nachos at the end of the journey is fun times to me.
I think I'd need to be on your team. I have trouble running as far as the end of my road.
Beer and nachos. Sure, I'd get in vehicles with strangers for that. *LOL*
You are having WAAAYYYY too much fun!
Jonesy,
you are by far the best blogger. lol keep up the good work.
did you still get the beer and nachos even tho you were second? keep up with the good stories!
Jonesy,
You are absolutly hilarious! Keep up the great work and keep sending your stories that have my whole family ROFL! :)
I know airport stories were the last blog, but this one was the weirdest experience I've had.
I was flying to Gatecon just a week after the whole 9/11 thing and I'm in the airport at my home city and they are doing the luggage check thing in the x-ray. Well my small travel bag sets off some sort of alarm and they take me to this little room and they ask if they can open it. I say yes.
But before they open it, they rub the bag down with a cloth. Thinking that they are getting picky cause the bag has a bit of dust on it, I politely ask what that cloth rubbing was for.
Turns out my bag set off the alarm for explosives! The cloth was to detect any traces of the chemicals for explosives on the outside of the bag. When it doesn't show any, they open the bag and the culprit is immediately discovered and it's my Degree deodorant!
Apparently Degree Deodorant has one of the same chemicals in it that is also one of the components used in the making of homemade explosives.
Realizing that I was just a harmless Stargate:SG-1 fan and not a terrorist in the making, they let me and my deodorant on the plane. Good thing too, imagine the embarrasement of being in a photo op with you and the other actors and me without my deodorant! Harmless Stargate: SG-1 fan indeed you would have thought!
ROFL....yup great blog....some of the most enjoyable I've read...I usually don;t even rwead these things, but i've found myself following these likes it the law or something!!
That Amazing Race thing sounds familiar. I was at an international treasure hunt in a small town in Holland and got teamed with two italians and a Spanish girl. Now, I may study French and German, but I do not speak a word of Spanish or Italian. Understand, yes, speak, nooooo way. And they didn't speak English. Through speaking pidgin Latin and a lot of arm waving, we managed to communicate and we managed to charm our way into second place (the spanish girl charmed a dutch guy into becoming our chauffeur for the evening. I have never been so embarrassed at translating).
Anyway, thanks for the blog entry. You always make me smile when I'm feeling knackered and down.
Tracy x
Sweet - I do love people with no shame - that's what makes a good actor.
Love the blogs - keep them coming!
oohhh sounds like you had fun... i wish you would come join us in Australia in October... would sooo love to have you there!!!!
This sounds great, I'm suprised you didn't get first with you're shamelessnessto ask anything to anyone.
Hey jonesy:)
You know I think I was in
town when that was that
was happening. It was
during Gatecon 2004 when
we were on the City tour
we were in downtown and saw
people running arond someone
on the bus said the Amazing Race.
I personally have never seen the
show, but I would had been glue
to the set to see you show
those shamless teammates of
thing or two. I hope that
they stop laughting at ya after
getting in the van.
I also hope they got paint
on themselves for their
miss thrust in you.
Good going Gary!!
Look forward to your
next Blog!!
Hugs
Shortea
Perhaps the acting classes you have SO convincingly spoken about -- the ones you took which have allowed you to master the necessary "reaching, grasping, and grabbing" motions involved in opening and closing the iris and speaking to teams "off-world" -- have also provided you with the competitive edge.
Thrilled to have SG-1 back on the air in the States. Watched the new episode with my two teenagers last Friday. Sg-1 (and Sg-A) are the only shows they are allowed to watch. Otherwise the tv is off. (Homework takes priority -- except, of course, when we hear your voice...)
Glad to have you back in real time. Our video tapes were wearing out.
Bob Dole thinks that you should say Bob Dole on StarGate.
Hi Gary,
I have wanted to ask this question for ages.
When did you realise that your character had become a bit of a small icon?
You know, it would get to a point in the series where people would start to say - 'ooh look, there's Gary Jones again' and wonder if you were ever to be given the red shirt.
Then we'd say - 'and here's Gary!" until the amazing moment when you flew the Prometheus. Where upon we hit the floor laughing. Just how did the Chevron Guy get to suddenly fly spaceships? It was excellent.
Well anyway, thanks for giving us a good laugh over the years. I think my most enjoyable line was the 'galactic text message' one.
I married a welshman, it does make the sheep jokes worthwhile.
Cheers.
Ohh... someone who's not afraid to ask!!! We need more guys like you!!!
Thats wicked!!! Not only did you show your teammates that you're a take-action kind of guy but your team in second!!!!! I've watched most of the amazing races (all except for the 1st season). Best of luck and keep kicking butt!
Huh...
I wish the new drivers we hired wern't afraid to ask questions. Certainly would save a lot of hassle. Maybe I should have you come give them lessons....
Oh man! I wish I could have that quality, not being ashamed to ask questions and walk up to talk to total strangers. I usually freeze! Especially if I need to speak English (I'm from Mexico, so I speak Spanish).
Totally unrelated topic: I loved you on tonight's Ep. "Collateral Damage" That Medical jargon line was delivered perfectly.
Love the blogs! Keep up the good work.
Saludos,
Lizzie
aw man you would rock!!!! next time i do a treasure hunt...you are in!!!!!!!!!!!!! we do treasure hunts for the kids that i coach and hell coaches play too..you're in!!!!!!!!...that is..if your ever in ireland!
keep up the awesome work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
T