so you're probably wondering which states are remaining. partially for my own accounting, i keep that list here, as well as where and when i've been to the other states. as far as my rules for visiting states, the only real one is that touching down at an airport in a state but not leaving the airport does not count. however, driving through (or even briefly into, as you'll see below) certainly does count.

without further ado, here's the list of unvisited states:

• north dakota - not sure when if i will ever make it to ND, but it does have the geographical center of north america. much else?
• vermont - missed it when i lived in the northeast. i've heard amazing things about this liberal hideaway and would love to visit and hang out for a few days.
• delaware - "hi, i'm in delaware." haven't yet found a good reason to visit, but maybe someday when visiting DC i'll swing by rehoboth beach or something.
• georgia - have had flights through atlanta airport, but like i said above - that doesn't count. this one is likely to get knocked off the list someday, just not sure when.
• alabama - not much for me there. *almost* went to mobile to watch toledo play in the GMAC bowl once, but the trip fell through. not sure when, if ever, i'll make it there.
• mississippi - again, not much for me there. since i'm not into riverboat gambling, elvis, or confederate civil war history, i don't expect i'll be going there any time soon.

so what about the states i've been to? i'll start from one corner and go across the country.

• hawaii - family trip to oahu over winter break, 2001. particularly awesome: dole plantation, pali point, and the north coast - still relatively undeveloped. particularly crappy: the "concrete jungle" that is waikiki - if you ever need an "ABC store," there's one within 20 steps and three within 50 steps. would like to make it to maui and kauai some day.
• alaska - week long vacation with the parentals in august, 2007 - went to denali NP and checked out the kenai peninsula. the state in general has a good vibe; people are *so* nice. feels like a small town, but has a national park that is bigger than switzerland... AND has higher mountains.
• washington - made a trip to the beautiful pacific northwest in september, 2007, to watch my buckeyes paste u-dub in football. the stadium is absoloutely beautiful. seattle itself is more than manageably sized and has a ton to offer. the weather was still decent in mid-september, but i hear it gets pretty depressing to live perpetually in rain. still, seattle definitely had all of the social elements i look for - good food, a great bar scene, neat sights, and just a good feeling about it. it'd be cool to climb mount rainier some day, which majestically sits above seattle. gorgeous.
• california - i live here. been to northern california (lassen volcanic park, crescent city, redwoods state park, etc.), all around the bay area, the central coast (santa barbara, monterey, santa cruz), LA (i think it's a cesspool of sprawl), yosemite, sequoia, and san diego. would like to visit some of the inland parks, including death valley (best in the spring?), joshua tree, and the mojave desert. it's hot down there.
• oregon - family trip with the parentals in october, 2006. only cruised around southern oregon and saw crater lake. beautiful. however, i've heard some great things about portland - would like to make it there sometime.
• idaho - drove across the southeast corner (I-15!) on the drive out to california in june, 2005. saw idaho falls (not impressive in the least bit) and the wonderful town of preston, where napoleon dynamite was filmed. back in '82, i could throw a pigskin a quarter-mile, i swear.
• utah - drove across the northern part of it on the drive out to california in june, 2005. stopped by salt lake city and saw the mormon temple. nice people. drove across the southern part of it in july, 2007. saw some ridiculous scenery - the most amazing rock structures ever. it seems like the surface of mars. went to bryce, zion, natural bridges NM, and grand staircase-escalante national monument. so pretty.
• nevada - vegas for my 21st birthday. felt like a small fish in a huge pond. such a ridiculous construction in the middle of a desert. drove across it on the way to california in both 2005 and 2007 also. there is nothing there. nothing. reno is a hole, also - no plans to ever go back. however, if driving in, get off I-80 and take US 50 - described as one of the most beautiful (and lonely) stretches of road in the country. when i drove across in july 2007, the thermometer in my car hit 111. that's a lot of degrees.
• arizona - took the greyhound into phoenix (and through flagstaff) in december, 2002. watched the fiesta bowl there at the beginning of 2003 when OSU won the national championship. thus, i've got some good memories there. mill street at arizona state seemed like a *crazy* place. still have yet to visit the grand canyon and sedona - someday.
• new mexico - took the greyhound through it on the way to the fiesta bowl in december, 2002. one recollection is that albuquerque is a scary, crime-ridden city. be careful.
• colorado - finally knocked this one off the list in november, 2006, visiting for a conference. went to boulder (home of CU - a nice liberal town surrounded by stunning natural beauty) and fort collins (home of CSU - a quiet little town). still have yet to go to denver and the host of ski resorts around - vail, beaver creek, telluride, etc. spent time camping in rocky mountain national park (gorgeous!) and saw the black canyon of the gunnison and canyon of the ancients on the 2007 road trip. there are some tall, tall peaks in that state.
• wyoming - drove through the northern part on the way to california in june, 2005. definitely an overlooked state - has the smallest population of any state in the union. saw devils' tower, bighorn national forest, yellowstone NP, and grand teton NP. the route through bighorn national forest was some of the best driving i've ever done. everyone should see yellowstone and grand teton some time in their life - the untouched wilderness is truly miraculous to anyone who grew up in suburbs or a city. would love to go back someday. shout out to mable, who was born in cheyenne.
• montana - barely drove into the southern end of it on the way to california in june, 2005. i have pictures to prove this. :) 4th biggest state by area. would like to visit glacier NP sometime - friends say it's pretty unreal.
• south dakota - drove across it on the way to california in june, 2005. pretty freakin rad state - mitchell corn palace (go mitchell HS colonels/kernels!), custer national forest, badlands NP, and mount rushmore. the southwestern corner of this state has enough to see to garner a visit by itself. gorgeous.
• nebraska - used to have family in omaha, so i visited them once. there's a lot more of the state i haven't been to, but i haven't heard of any highlights.
• kansas - knocked it off the list on the california-bound road trip in 2007. not much to see there - once you get past the (small) cities in the east, it's barren. it feels very long too (because it is!).
• oklahoma - took the greyhound through it on the way to the fiesta bowl in december, 2002. unfortunately, taking the greyhound doesn't take you to the best parts of town. not too excited to visit oklahoma ever again, though. i do hear it's OK!
• texas - many visits. been to the dallas area to visit a friend, along with a recent trip for a wedding and spring break (2007) to see austin, san antonio (important for texans to visit, but horribly unimpressive for the rest of us), and corpus christi (they actually named a city "body of christ" - right down my alley). south texas is pretty lush with rivers and nice scenery. i will say 6th street in austin is probably the best bar scene i have ever encountered. those kids have fun. one other trip to texas was on the greyhound to phoenix - stopped in at amarillo at a diner and had a one pound hamburger. it was big. also, the greyhound journey back went through the entire state, west to east. it, too, was big.
• louisiana - been to new orleans on a cruise with the family in 2001. would love to visit again now that i'm of age. it's actually quite a small city and has shrunk mightily due to katrina. something about the french culture of the bayou (and the food!) is very enticing to me. LSU is one place i'd love to watch a college football game someday.
• arkansas - took the greyhound through it on the way back from phoenix in january, 2003. though it was a victorious journey, it was horribly uneventful. nothing to report. missouri - been to st. louis with the family, through the entire state on the greyhound, and through the state again on the 2007 road trip. the arch was neat to see, KC serves up some unbelievable BBQ, but other than that, not a terribly memorable state.
• iowa - drove through it on the way to omaha with the family. nothing to report.
• minnesota - drove through it on the way to california in june, 2005. pretty cool state - we got off the highways and took backroads. pretty serene. i'm keen to explore the northern lakes and the "boundary waters." apparently there are cool hikes, canoeing expeditions, and other outdoorsy whatnots.
• wisconsin - lived there for a summer and loved it in 2003. milwaukee is an awesome city because it's a microcosm of chicago - it has the advantages of diversity and beautiful summer weather without the disadvantages of being too big. summerfest is a ridiculous gathering of bands over 10 days, and the other festivals (every weekend in the summer) are supposedly pretty sweet too. however, they say there are two seasons there: winter and construction. i can attest to that sentiment. also, i drove through madison on the way to california - from what i saw, it looked like a fun and enjoyable city to live in. pretty good bar scene from what i hear as well. i never did get to go to a football game at camp randall either, sadly.
• illinois - chicago more than a few times for games, trips, and concerts. recommend seeing the sears tower, lincoln park, navy pier, all the familiar sights. also - i seriously dig the cultural centers there - i remember a delicious swedish restaurant and a polish part of town, and i'm sure there are many other options. nothing quite like it in the midwest. saw blue man group too - they're both blue and entertaining. also, i've been to urbana-champaign ("downstate") to visit relatives who work at U of I. quiet.
• michigan - as ohio's natural rival, i absolutely abhor this state. i've been there many, many times, to visit my brother (who used to live in grand rapids), go to football games at "the school up north," and go to the car show in detroit. my partisan blood boils a little each time i'm in the state, and i loathe detroit airport more than any other.
• indiana - i grew up an hour from it, so i've naturally been there many times. i've visited friends in west lafayette at purdue and been to indianapolis and richmond for no good reason many times. nothing horribly memorable, though
• ohio - lived there from ages 5-21. been to many corners of the state. highlights: cedar point and kings island, lots of awesome restaurants in columbus, the shoe and campus (go buckeyes), and my nephew poo who lives in twinsburg. the parentals still live in vandalia. glad i grew up there.
• kentucky - been through it and been to it multiple times. lexington and louisville seemed like neat cities, and i'm sure it's a crazy spectacle to see the kentucky derby with mint juleps and all. the word is that covington (just across from cincinnati) is up and coming too. once spent a night in erlanger near the airport while stranded for a layover - delightful.
• tennessee - i've been to pigeon forge and gatlinburg on a family vacation. my impression is that tennessee has lots of cities with lots of cool things to see, but is very spread apart. pigeon forge and gatlinburg (near the great smoky mountains) is not particularly memorable for me, but seemed quaint. other places of note: memphis (has a huge pyramid from the world's fair), nashville (grand ole opry - yahoo for country music), and knoxville (second largest college football stadium, covered in orange). not exactly my kind of culture, but would like to see more of it someday.
• florida - i went to orlando when i was five. DISNEY WORLD! also, i left on a cruise from tampa in june, 2001. florida is like ohio south - so many people from the midwest move there. other than the weather, i don't see much redeeming about the state. like i said, "midwest south."
• south carolina - spring break to columbia in 2002, cruise from charleston in 2003, spring break to myrtle beach in 2004, and laura/todd's wedding in the summer of 2007. many fond memories. great BBQ, awesome place to buy a pimp suit (super bad in charleston!), and very nice beaches. myrtle beach seemed a bit run down, but charleston definitely made up for it. that city has tons of character and culture. overall, south carolina seemed like a good state.
• north carolina - been through it a few times, mostly on the way to south carolina (see above). charlotte seems like an up-and-coming city and i've got friends living in the research triangle area. i've also heard wilmington is a nice beach city. not much of my own information to volunteer here - i hope to explore this state more in the future.
• virginia - other than around DC (which i've been to many times), i do not have much experience with virginia. i know that it's illegal to use radar detectors there (weird). i've heard good things about virginia beach but have yet to explore it myself.
• maryland - on a trip to DC, i've been to antietam (AKA sharpsburg), the site of the bloodiest battle of the civil war. also, i went to baltimore for a job interview once. the harbor area was pretty well developed and renovated. i've heard the rest of the city leaves something to be desired, however. anyone ever heard the term "baltimorons"?
• pennsylvania - i was born in erie and lived there until i was five. i've been to pittsburgh and gone whitewater rafting in western PA. i miss yuengling. there's still a lot of this state i want to see, including the central wilderness, the poconos, penn state's campus (state college and beaver stadium), and philadelphia. it'll happen at some point.
• new jersey - once, in the summer of 2004, i took a daytrip with mable to watch manchester united and AC milan play at the meadowlands. other than that, i haven't seen much of jersey. i hear princeton is a nice little colonialish town. i do, however, love to make fun of jersey. why? no good reason.
• new york - traveled it end-to-end on the way to and from massachusetts during the summer of 2004. also, visited the city that summer and again in the summer of 2007. as a boston fan, i harbor a certain animosity towards NYC, but it amazes me as a cultural center for so many different peoples. i'd love to live there for awhile and immerse myself in the diverse cultures (and foods!). you know the old adage: live in new york for awhile, but leave before it makes you too hard. live in northern california for awhile, but leave before it makes you too soft. one down, one to go. regardless, i'm in awe of the city. in awe.
• connecticut - went through it on the way to NYC in the summer of 2004. along with jersey, this state is one big suburb. i could tell there's lots of money there. i've heard that other than yale, new haven is a dump. the state as a whole seemed quiet.
• rhode island - went through it on the way to NYC in the summer of 2004. i've heard good things about the mansions at newport. providence is supposedly a mob run city. weird.
• massachusetts - lived there for the summer of 2004. what a beautiful state. from the berkshires in the west (been to tanglewood, the summer home of the boston symphony orchestra), to the rural and rustic central part (wachusett brewery is a good place to hit up), to boston, i thoroughly enjoyed this state. in boston, be sure to eat lots of clam chowder, see a game at fenway, walk the freedom trail, and spend time at boston common and garden. so many other great places to see in this state too. also, if you can, make it out to cape cod and martha's vineyard. i didn't get to go to nantucket, unfortunately. someday.
• new hampshire - visited a couple times in the summer of 2004. i went hiking at franconia notch in the white mountains. pristine. lots more to explore. also went and saw exeter's campus and the lovely seaside town of portsmouth. new england at its best. one other memory: no tax on alcohol.
• maine - spent a weekend there during the summer of 2004. i went sea kayaking near wiscasset and camped near york. the lobster was delicious and the scenery was gorgeous. i really want to go to acadia NP sometime.