April 9, 2010: Laptop Theft and Elvis' Birthplace

After a very nice breakfast at the hotel, Dan inquired at the front desk about retrieving his things. Last night, he had been told that they thought we checked out and his things were kept in a room for which the night clerk did not have a key. This morning, the manager told him a different story. They had no knowledge of the items. The maids claimed there was nothing in the room except a left over water bottle, which was promptly thrown out.

The manager told Dan that the only thing he could do was file a police report. Dan noted that last night, other people were also saying things had been stolen from their rooms. Filing a police report was NOT the only thing that could be done. The hotel should have been reasonable and demanded that the maid who had the items turn them in. I told the manager that I would put all of this on TripAdvisor. He said he would file a management response, which is his right. I'll also be submitting a complaint to Choice Hotels itself.

When the officer arrived, he took down the information and had a lengthy talk with the manager. He told Dan that beyond taking the names of the employees down as suspects, the most he could do was file a report. There was likely no chance Dan would ever get his things back.

The laptop itself was old. But, he now has to obtain a new laptop. The bag also contained his cell phone charger and various other things. So, now Dan has to obtain a track phone. While it's best to not trust people in these situations and assume they would steal (thus the need to remove valuables from a hotel room when one is not in the room), it's too bad we live in this kind of world. I'm of course embarrassed as this was a hotel I chose. It was not a dumpy hotel either. Were it not for my points, it would have cost $100/night.

As for me, I really liked this hotel up until the point that I learned things were stolen. The room was clean, the breakfast was great, the furnishings were great, etc. Since I like to occasionally go to Birmingham to see EWTN, this would have been my default hotel for visits to that city. But I would never set foot in the Birmingham Clarion again.

While Dan was going to stay around Alabama so he could attend Sunday Mass at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, I had to move further west in order to stay on schedule. The plan was to be in Little Rock, Arkansas for the evening. I expected to leave shortly after breakfast. Ultimately, I left shortly after noon since we had to deal with the totally avoidable problem of items in our room spontaneously growing legs and escaping.

Birmingham is likely going to be the furthest point south on this entire trip. Everything else going out is moving northwest. Tupelo, Mississippi, was on the way to Little Rock. I saw Graceland in 2008, so I wanted to see Elvis' birthplace as well. It was about 2.5 hours from Birmingham. Most of the driving was on an interstate like road which is signed as the future I-22. It was mostly desolate. Cell phone service worked for the most part, though while talking to a friend, it cut off.


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The birthplace of Elvis consists of the home where he was born, the church he attended, and a museum. The church tour was the most impressive. It's a very small building, but they give a presentation by showing three movie screens. One is in front and the other two are on either side. People easily feel like they are part of the scene. You almost want to stand up when the people on the screens are standing up, and you feel like they are talking to you directly.

The birth home was owned by Elvis' parents until Elvis was around age three. His father lost the home. When Elvis became famous, he bought it back. The tour guide for the home is Elvis' second cousin. She knew him before he became famous.

The museum was inspiring, talking about Elvis' rise from abject poverty to fame. The family left Tupelo and moved to Memphis (which is where Graceland is located) to look for more opportunities. Those opportunities certainly came.

The drive from Tupelo, MS to Little Rock, AR was mostly uneventful. Mississippi gets the prize for the least expensive gas in my trip at $2.59. But that was only one particular station.


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I had a reservation at the Econo Lodge in North Little Rock. Typically the Econo Lodge is in the low end of Choice Hotels. But it was a brand new hotel and I was pleasantly surprised. I would definitely go back there if I'm in the area again.