Thursday, March 29, 2007

Beware of Thermal Imaging Cameras at Airports

Ok. Last one for today.
Have you ever been walking the mall and you walk into this invisible, sulfurous wall of odor? Well, it's no longer invisible.

Notice how at the beginning he turns a little to make sure there's no one around. Pig.


It's a Thursday Video Avalanche

Owwww, that's gonna leave a mark.

This is a big horse

The Translator

Yeah, I can do that.


Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Randy Stonehill Jam

Ron and Tom, this one's for you.
Best lines:

And even though she's nonchalant
And acts as if her habit's a joke
She won't do too much laughing
When her life goes up in smoke


And every time that she inhales
A cloud of that cigarette smoke
She's just one step closer to the man in black
And sixty cents closer to broke


Monday, March 26, 2007

Happy Birthday Adam

I also forgot to post this one. My boy celebrates his magic birthday today:
26 on the 26th. Happy Birthday, buddy. I love you.

Have you seen my pet Gator??


Well this is Florida.....the home of the Gators. And I don't mean the ones that wear Orange and Green and clap their arms up and down on game day! We were at home the other day during the week of Jennifer's wedding and this guy in an airboat came by and knocked down the watergrass that was growing on the edges of the lake that our house sits on. Not only did he make a mess, but he created a haven for our new pets. We visit them now in the afternoon's when we get home from work and low and behold Grandpappy was there today. Boy is he big. I would have to say that this is the biggest one I've seen since we've moved here. I would guess he's got to be 12 to 13 feet long. Although I've never seen them out of the water (except the little 5 foot one in the driveway one day!) I was a bit nervous about getting too close. They're usually afraid of us and when we get close they swim away. But this big guy wasn't moving anywhere. We thought we'd share a couple of pictures.



We were about 15 feet away from the gator when we took this picture.


After a little while he turned to swim away.

You can't see it too well, but if you look closely there are actually three gators in this picture that were all on the edge when we walked up. The two smaller ones were scared and swam into the water pretty quickly but didn't go far.

Monday Blues Pick-Me-Up Jam

You know the drill. Echale un poquito de...




Sunday, March 25, 2007

Happy Anniversary, Mom & Pop

It's been 51 years. Today is Mom and Pop's anniversary. So many things to say about Mom and Pop. The one thing that God truly blessed me with was my parents. Pop's constant life lessons and Mom's unconditional love.

I remember 1976, Pop was my little league coach. That year we went undefeated and won the championship. U and Dave were playing for the community league on seperate teams. Pop would be coaching my game and after we were done (winning), he would run between their games to show support. Mom would work at night at Philco and at her dinner break she would spend it at the fields watching us play. The days she was off, the entire days would be spent at the fields. UNBELIEVABLE !!!!

U recently saw a movie called "Butterfly Effect". Him and I talked about what if Mom and Pop never moved to Lansdale and stayed in Philly. I believe that they were lead by God and the rest is history. I was talking to E (son) and he said "Dad, what if Papa never came to the states and he stayed in PR". Things would have been different, the story goes that Pop was engaged to be married..... but then he saw mom and the rest is history.... GREAT HISTORY.

Saturday, March 24, 2007

. . . And Baseball

In the spring a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love . . . and baseball.

Congratulations to young Adam Cardona and his lovely Sara. While it seems to most of us that it was only days ago that Adam was just a child, I’m sure our parents would agree that it was just a few weeks ago that we were just kids and the most important thing to us was getting to Moyers Road to play Little League baseball (hopefully on the Pirates or Orioles team with Mr. Ulises Cardona as coach.)
Live life the way it was intended (Luke 12: 27-31). Enjoy, love, laugh, learn and remember.
How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. James 4:14

Saturday Night Jam



Misters, grab the Mrs.
Mrs., track down your hubbie.
Singles grab a broom.
Techno Dweebs... take the wireless keyboard in one hand and the mouse in the other.

Turn it up. It's Saturday Night..
Join the man... he started the whole thing...


More Wedding Bells

My boy is getting married. This should have been posted 3 months ago but I was waiting for Adam to give me the picture from his trip to NY.

Over Christmas he took Sarah to New York city for a few days and at the top of Rockefeller Center (Top of the Rock) he got down on one knee, pulled out the ring and proposed. They had a photographer up there so as soon as I get the official picture I'll post it.

We're all very excited. Sarah is a gem and we're all looking forward to having her be a part of the Cardona family. We met her family a while back and they are very warm and down to earth. Best of all they love to have fun like the Cardonas. The wedding should be a blast. It's set for November this year, the day after Thanksgiving.





Thursday, March 22, 2007

Happy 46!!!!!


Happy Birthday Tomás

The Ceremony

I'll post the story of how I came to perform Jennifer's ceremony later. It's late. Enjoy.


Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Rita Day


What started out as a chance to get one free water ice has turned into a holiday for my family and I. Years ago we found out that on the first day of spring (March 21st), Rita’s Water Ice gives away a regular size water ice to everyone. No purchase required. Just ask for it. My kids and I travel from store to store, town to town, franchise to franchise to see just how many of these we can enjoy. While it is quite refreshing, it gives us a chance to try the new flavors (green apple, chocolate, mango, etc.)
I understand they have several Rita’s in Florida, so please, after the two hour drive to Clearwater enjoy a nice cold cherry flavored ice and think of me.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Books

I've been on a reading binge of sorts for the last 3 weeks. Friday I finished a thriller that had me at the edge of my rocking recliner.


The best part of these books are usually reserved for the last 20 pages. You're trying to read as fast as you can because you want to get to the end but you don't want to miss anything. It's like watching a movie in slow motion.

Sunday I took a trip to the library again and picked up three more books; one fiction and two works of non-fiction by Malika Oufkir. I remember hearing about her story a few yeas ago in the news. The books are Stolen Lives, written in 1999 and Freedom: The Story of My Second Life, written last year.

Here's the story from the book jacket:



While accounts of the unjust arrest and torture of political prisoners are by now common, we expect such victims to come with a just cause. Here, Oufkir tells of the 20-year imprisonment of her upper-class Moroccan family following a 1972 coup attempt against King Hassan II by her father, a close military aide. After her father's execution, Oufkir, her mother and five siblings were carted off to a series of desert barracks. At their first posting, they complained that they were short on butter and sweets. Over the years, subsequent placements brought isolation cells and inadequate, vermin-infested rations. Finally, starving and suicidal, the innocents realized they had been left to die. They dug a tunnel and escaped. Recapture led to another five years of various forms of imprisonment before the family was finally granted freedom.

20 years in captivity! From 1972 until 1992. Can you imagine being cut off from the rest of the world for 20 years? When she was arrested she was 19 and 39 when released. I devoured the book in a day and a half. It was an amazing read. The escape was the most thrilling part. Their reaction to the societal and technological changes around them after the escape were the most amusing. I would highly recommend the book. So would Oprah.

I started her second book today. It's mainly about her adjustments to civilization. She came over to the US to promote her book and Oprah got her to come on her show and talk about the whole ordeal. They booked her a hotel in New York and I leave you with a quote from that chapter and a big reason why I love my country:

"The valet delivers me and my luggage to the room, then wishes me a pleasant stay. America is the land where they wish you the most good things. A good time, a good trip, a good visit, good afternoon, good evening.....If a mere fraction of these wishes comes true, the United States must really be paradise on earth."

It's the closest you'll come to it. As Yakov would say "What a country!"

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Winter Solstice?

Yeah, I got your Winter Solstice right here Mickey. No thanks.

Pennsylvania rocks (in the head).







Unexpected snow storm in PA!
















Yesterday we received an unexpected snow storm here in PA. On Wednesday it was 79 degrees and this morning we woke up to tons of snow. I walked around and took some pictures to share.

Pennsylvania rocks!








Wednesday, March 14, 2007

300 - The Movie



Believe the hype on this one. I caught it Tuesday night. The plot is similar to Gladiator and the acting is ok but it's great eye candy. The lighting, cinematography, special effects are worth the $8.50. Persians need to chill out . It's just a movie. Hollywood = Fiction.

Based on a true story... yeah right.
Hollywood wouldn't know truth if it came up and bit them in the butt.

Not for the ladies or little ones.

Lans-Bowl gone up in flames


I thought this was worth sharing because many of us have memories there. Whether it was a date, the boy’s night out or a church youth group function; most of us had some fun times at the Lans-Bowl on Main Street in Lansdale. Early this morning around 4:30am the Lans-bowl burnt nearly to the ground after a fire that lasted most of the day. The whole area was evacuated. The street is still closed.

To see more pictures and the news story visit:

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=local&id=5120201

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

The Love King

I've been struggling with a nasty cold for the last 3 days. Yes, we get 'em here in Florida too.

The only good thing is I get to sound like Barry White for a week. Yeah, that's right. Barry White, Mr. Smooth, the Love King... check me out seducing Blue Eyes last night.



Monday, March 12, 2007

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Bike Week Part 2

I took a rare day off Wednesday. I’ve never been to bike week in Daytona and I’m determined to start doing things I’ve never done before as I start my 5th decade. Life’s too short (compared to what??).

The day was majestic: 78 degrees and sunny. I headed out about 9:30 up Interstate 4. I could’ve taken it into Daytona but I wanted to avoid all the traffic. Even though it’s midweek, BW draws a lot of people from out of town. I didn’t want to have a lot of bikers around when I stalled at the first light or ran into one of them. I caught I-95 off of 4 and got off at the Ormond Beach exit, a little North of Daytona, then came down A1A.

I don’t think I’ve even seen so many motorcycles in one place. They say about 500,000 make the annual event. I know this might be the “no sh*t Sherlock” quote of the year but man was it loud. Even though there are events all over Daytona, Main Street is the place to see and be seen. Cycles after cycles are all lined up on each side of the sidewalk for blocks. Anyone can park there but you see mostly the nicer bikes.

The attendees were mostly men in their fifties. Some brought their wives. Some brought their bimbos. I saw a group of men in their 60’s wearing t-shirts that read “The Geezers Club”. I asked if I could join but they said I had too much hair. Imagine that.

There really wasn’t that much to do unless you enjoyed drinking lots of beer or gawking at scantily clad women, neither of which I’m allowed to do. I think most of the action starts at night when the bottles are empty and inhibitions are lost. But I’m glad I went.

The highlight of my trip was, after spending a few hours on Main Street, I took A1A up the coast to St. Augustine. The ride was quite righteous. A1A hugs the east coast of Florida so going up there’s a picturesque shoreline on the right and I don’t care on the left. You had to see it. Actually, through the beauty of the Internet, you can. Beautiful blue sky up above and blue-green water and beach on the right. The Reverend U was praising the Lord.

I tried to shoot some video while I was riding but I thought “You’re 50 and you’re still stupid? C’mon!” so I only caught a few seconds before I came to my senses, got off the bike and shot the shoreline. Some of the video is a little overexposed. I accidentally hit the backlight button and it looks like we're in snow in some of the shots.

I’ve added the righteous Brothers Doobie for your listening pleasure. Enjoy.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Sweet

Ron, you gotta come next year.

Bike Week 2007 - Daytona Beach

Video tonight...
U

Global What?

February spoiled Al Gore's party. More here.

Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Speaking of Motorcycles

A little pricey but worth it to get me out of I-4 traffic.


Ice Week

Ice week starts in Lansdale this week. I might go this year for the first time. I was coming home and this thing came up along side of my car. I don't know what it is.

Monday, March 05, 2007

Jennifer and Mike's Wedding Video Part 1

Sorry it took so long to post. It took me this long to recover.
Enjoy. Next up, The Ceremony.


Friday, March 02, 2007

Bike Week

Bike week starts in Daytona Beach next week. I might go this year for
the first time. I was coming home and this thing came up along side of
my car. I don't know what it is.

Thursday, March 01, 2007

We Are Soldiers

Watch the whole thing. It's about 5 minutes long.

Tough?

I've heard of Ford Tough but how about VW Tough?