Erie government reps listen…and call back

As Pennsylvanians, we all know about the Pennsylvania state budget impasse. In fact you probably have a friend, family member or neighbor that’s been directly affected by it in some way. Some families are looking to tighten their belts even more in these dangerous economic times.

My wife will soon be affected if there is no resolution in Harrisburg soon. Her agency is funded by state dollars that will stop flowing shortly. At the urging of one of her co-workers, she wrote letters to her government representatives in Harrisburg. Don’t you remember writing a letter to your Congressman or to the President when you were in elementary school? Don’t you also remember not getting a response back? (maybe it was just me)

We were both shocked when House Representative John Hornaman called my wife directly. He said he was working as hard as he could to get the situation resolved and he very much appreciated reading her feedback regarding the whole issue.

Government officials DO listen!

I know we’re not the only ones that are hoping for a speedy decision. I feel if the state government was filled with John Hornamans, we wouldn’t be in this spot in the first place.

A Trip By the Numbers

Last week my wife and I took a trip to Virginia to visit friends and family.

1. Traveled through four states
2. Traveled through 14 construction zones
3. Traveled a total 645 miles in three days
4. Traveled a total of 12 hours in three days
5. Spent $52.00 on gas
6. Watched five movies
7. Saw zero police cars!

I always enjoy visiting people down near Washington, D.C. and it seems that more and more people are moving down there that are close to us. We’ll be visiting a lot more frequently in the future but I probably won’t be keeping track of things like above. It’s a lot easier to just get in the car and go.

Master Plan

Take a look at my Flickr gallery (flickr.com/jmccullor) and you’ll see my backyard transformation from plain grass and weeds to a completed patio. Outdoor home improvements have been on my project list for quite a while and I finally had the spare cash and motivation to get some things crossed off the list.

Next on the list is to plant some native grasses I bought from the Tom Ridge Environmental Center and fill in around the patio edges. I don’t think I’m going to purchase any annuals this year except for some hanging baskets. Annuals are a waste of money in my opinion, and if you plan your perennial gardens well enough you won’t need to buy any flowering plants at all. Easier said than done I know!

Six Months

It’s been SIX months since I’ve written anything by golly. What in the world has happened since then? Here’s some ten:

1. Twilight took over the world.
2. Britain has talent apparently.
3. Yes We Did.
4. King James dethroned.
5. T.O. joins my team.
6. Another Terminator movie.
7. Star Trek was reborn…and is fantastic.
8. YouTube became the #2 search engine in the U.S.
9. Every other word I read is ‘Twitter’.
10. Giant newspapers are chopped.

If you had a time machine, which one would you remove or add to the list? I’d definitely watch this all the time:

Holiday Detox

My wife and I were among the 40 million Americans that travel more than 50 miles to visit family during the past couple days.  Luckily, our families are within about an hour drive, making them close but just far enough away.  We left Erie on Thursday morning and arrived back in Erie Friday evening. 

The Thanksgiving menu:
Appetizers consisted of a pepperoni/cheese platter, hot sausage dip (that is still giving me heartburn) with crackers and Fritos, shrimp with cocktail sauce and enough beer and wine for a platoon.  For the actual dinner we each had a part of a 22-pound turkey (roasted for seven hours and baked for one), inside and outside-the-turkey stuffing, two different kinds of potatoes, crescent rolls, cranberries, green bean casserole (my fave), acorn squash and two different kinds of pies with Cool Whip of course.  

After our trip and eating like a king and queen, my wife and I are in need of a massive food detoxification.  We’ve been eating nothing but gravy-covered, potatoed, salty turkey and it’s regular accomplices.  I know that’s what this of time year is all about but I’m ready to eat nothing but salads and water for the next week to get myself back on track. 

All in all, I can’t wait to do it next year as we visit the nearby relatives again!

My Date with RockErie

On Sunday August 24th Erie witnessed The RockErie Music Awards 2008.  Between 2,000 and 2,500 people filled the Bayfront Convention Center to watch Erie’s best musicians awarded for their tireless efforts in their different genres.  This was THE place to be on Sunday, let me tell you.

I was asked to present again this year so I made sure to not say something incredibly stupid (unlike last year’s, “I’m not originally from Erie” nonsense).  I was paired up with bassist extraordinaire Frank Furko (of the two-man band Otis) to present the bassist winner.  Frank and I were joined with the lovely Roar on the Shore girls, probably to enhance my non-rockstar appearance.

Here’s a picture of Frank playing his bass on stage:

Frank Furko, Bassist to the Stars

Here’s a shot of the crowd from the podium:

REMA

The show lasted a good three hours with a twenty-minute intermission, preceded by a musical medley of hip hop, vocals, guitar and drum solos and just some good old fashioned rockin’ out.  ‘Twas quite the time!  For a full listing of winners, visit: www.rockeriemusicawards.com.

Thank you Rolling Rock for being my friend during the show .

Fred Flintstone Is A Genius

Good Lord it’s almost been a month since I posted last!  What the hell have I been doing you ask?  Well I can tell you what I’ve NOT been doing: driving!

My bicycle and I became reacquainted last weekend.  See awesome photo below:

My pedal-powered hotrod

Mind you I’ve had my bike for a good 10 years and never used it to really ride anywhere of importance.  I used to ride around my hometown when I was younger but I never really used it for a primary means of transportation.

Someone told me once that you see a lot more of the world when you take your time from Point A to Point B.  That was SURELY the case with my first day back on the bike.  I would’ve missed the following two things had I drove:

Only in Erie

One word: Awesome

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ride your bike, your butt and your waistline will be proud of you. (Because they’ll both start shrinking)

Wolverine is a true ass-kicker, stuff blower-upper

This movie looks fantastic.  I hope it lives up to comic book movies that have appeared this year, i.e. Iron Man and The Dark Knight.  It already looks to blow the doors off all the X-Men movies.

The Perfect TV Spot

As you may well know, I’m a huge movie fan and I’m becoming an even bigger movie marketing fan after all The Dark Knight viral shiz happening these days.  Need an excellent example?  IM me to see my wicked-cool Dark Knight IM message.

Short tv spots like the one above are perfect in my opinion.  I just hope that the actual fans of this movie know who James Lipton is and what he does for a living…

Fourth of July in Warren, PA: A Religious Experience

I went to my wife’s hometown of Warren, PA over the weekend to partake in some of the fourth of July festivities that happen there every year.  These few days of summer prove to be those of legend in this community, providing two days of parading, fireworks and most importantly, planning ahead.

The first big event is the Warren Fourth of July Parade.  It’s probably the most interesting three hours you’ll spend sitting on a street’s curb.  I’ve never seen so many fire trucks in one place – Warren and it’s surrounding community is REALLY prepared for disaster.  The peoplewatching is better than the parade itself.  This one event shakes out all the “interesting” people from their homes who wouldn’t otherwise be seen in public on a sunny day. 

Interesting people included:
1. Ferret lady – she wouldn’t be seen on the 4th without her pet ferret on her shoulder.
2. Firecracker boy – he felt it necessary to light firecrackers at every parader passing by.
3. Red wagon dog-selling guy – he was selling his prized black lab puppy from his red wagon.  When asked if we’d buy his only best friend he replied, “Nah, I got twenty of ‘em at home!”
4. Attention-seeker dude – he loved to walk up and down the street numerous times, shirt half-off, sometimes carrying a pizza box, sometimes not.
5. Old man candy thief – he enjoyed walking between the parade participants and the lines of kids at the curb, picking off candy as it was thrown from vehicles.

As you can read above, the people attending the parade REALLY WERE more fun than watching the parade.  Here are some photos from that lovely day:

Butler Vagabonds

Tall Parade Guy

One word: Awesome

Interesting parade float

Turd Hearse

Impressive…

Tiny bicycle clown

Best float of the day

Probably the best and most odd part of the parade is that Warren citizens will plan ahead and place their lawn chair in their favorite spot at least A WEEK early.  My father in-law had his spot picked out the Sunday prior to the big day.  Talk about being prepared, he’d shared the same spot with his group of friends for the past twenty-odd years.  What great stories they must have shared in that time.

The second big event of the two day affair is the fireworks the next day.  They take place at Betts Park, just off Route 6.  Typicaly there is a fun fair that takes place all day with carnival rides, food and games but that didn’t happen this year due to low turnout I think. 

As with the parade, much preparation goes into watching the fireworks.  By 11:00am, vehicles are parked all along Route 6 (a four-lane highway in these parts) including the cloverleaf exit and entry ramps.  Why park your car there so early?  So you can leave easily when the show is over of course.

I’d definitely return to Warren next year.  I’d sit on the same bench with my father in-law.  I’d eat the same parade food (peanuts) and I’d drink the same parade beverage (Miller Lite).  What a great time in little ol’ Warren.  I definitely look forward to going back to experience what could only be described as religious.