Overall - two thumbs up....
And you can't beat our "hot" cousin, Debbie -- she cleans up good!
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Its Another Family Wedding!
Another family wedding! It was actually really lovely and we all had a great time. Andy and Liz looked great - the reception was fun and just classy.
Overall - two thumbs up....
And you can't beat our "hot" cousin, Debbie -- she cleans up good!
Overall - two thumbs up....
And you can't beat our "hot" cousin, Debbie -- she cleans up good!
Do You Like Football?
"Do you like football?"
That was the question that was put to us in a low, muted voice as our waitress stooped to deliver our coffees.
Kim had picked me up at the airport and, in turn, I took her to dinner at Wildfire on Willow Road. We sat and had a wonderful meal and then went for dessert as a group of men filed in and seated themselves at the table directly behind us.
As the waitress came to bring our coffees, she casually asked us this question and then cocked her head towards the group seated behind us and lowly informed us that there was a group of Bears players at the table directly behind us.
Of course, Kim and I looked at her blankly but then, once we knew they were Bears, I immediately became the gawker as I figured that SOMEONE in my life would be impressed if I could discretely snap a shot of them.... unfortunately, this is all I got (sorry Kim....).
If you actually recognize anyone - let us know - I wouldn't know any of those players from proverbial Adam....
That was the question that was put to us in a low, muted voice as our waitress stooped to deliver our coffees.
Kim had picked me up at the airport and, in turn, I took her to dinner at Wildfire on Willow Road. We sat and had a wonderful meal and then went for dessert as a group of men filed in and seated themselves at the table directly behind us.
As the waitress came to bring our coffees, she casually asked us this question and then cocked her head towards the group seated behind us and lowly informed us that there was a group of Bears players at the table directly behind us.
Of course, Kim and I looked at her blankly but then, once we knew they were Bears, I immediately became the gawker as I figured that SOMEONE in my life would be impressed if I could discretely snap a shot of them.... unfortunately, this is all I got (sorry Kim....).
If you actually recognize anyone - let us know - I wouldn't know any of those players from proverbial Adam....
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Americano
This is a little YouTube thing that they showed in Budapest before the University meeting. I fell in love with it -- pretty cool... Enjoy!And here's another version from my cuz...:). The funny one...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEhdV6_oQCU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
The Town That Used To Be - A Town
So here's a little Thursday story that will work your mind...
Pennsylvania is a big mining state. It was also one of the leading producers of anthracite. One the biggest mines for anthracite was in a town called Centralia, which was founded in the 1800s. There were a lot of open pit and closed mines (in and out of the ground). If you drive around the area, the towns are almost nonexistent and so Centralia was actually a "bustling" city with a main downtown filled with banks, a post office, grocery store, gas station and other stores.
In 1962, there was a garbage dump right on the outskirts of town that was getting a little excessive and so the town sent some workers out to get rid of some of the trash. After gathering piles of it together they promptly lit it on fire. However, not thinking, the dump was located in an old open pit mine which had some open veins running into an underground anthracite mine. You guessed it - poof - the well-doers indirectly sparked a fire which lept into the closed mine. The thing about anthracite is that its a great fuel - which is extremely hard to light. But - once its lit - its near impossible to put out. Unbeknownst to these garabage men walked away from a spark that lit one of the underground mines on fire.
The fire department poured tons of water and thought that the fire was out, but - poof - it just lit up again. Pits were dug, other methods were used to try to extinguish the fire, but the ground continued to smoke.
In 1979, a gas station owner in the town went to check his tanks and found them to be hot. After checking his underground tanks and finding they were showing a temperatire of 172F, the government came in and put sensors in the ground, discovering that the temperature under the tanks was registering almost over 1000F!
There were smoke and toxic fumes always in the city and finally in 1981, a 12 year old boy was playing out in his grandma's yard and a sink hole popped open under him. He grabbed onto tree roots and was pulled out by a friend. He just missed death as if he had fallen just a few inches farther he would have fallen into temperatures over 300F. The sinkhole measure 80 feet deep.
At this point there were continually sink holes appearing around the town as the fire underground continued to catch and burn. There was sickness, there was continual danger. The federal government now stepped in and, with 42 million dollars bought the town of Centralia.... All of the homes were taken by eminent domain and homeowners were given money to leave their homes - and as they left, the town was bulldozed behind them leaving empty streets, driveways and vacant stores and lots. Within time, most of the remaining stores, churches, post office and other buildings either caught fire and burned or fell down in sinkholes.
Today, the town of Centralia has no more post code, has been bulldozed and now is merely an occassional name on a town marker, with a grid of streets that go nowhere except leading into wisps of smoke coming out of the ground as the anthracite continues to burn under the ground. With the amount of anthracite that is below the surface, experts estimate that it could still burn for another 1000 years.
Here's a video of some of the smoke coming up from the ground. If you didn't know any better, it could just be a forest fire slowly extinguishing itself. They say that there are some days that the smoke is so bad that you can't even see.
There are pipes sunk into the ground all around the town which are supposed to vent the fumes.
Another road that leads nowhere with a church in the far distance.
Pennsylvania is a big mining state. It was also one of the leading producers of anthracite. One the biggest mines for anthracite was in a town called Centralia, which was founded in the 1800s. There were a lot of open pit and closed mines (in and out of the ground). If you drive around the area, the towns are almost nonexistent and so Centralia was actually a "bustling" city with a main downtown filled with banks, a post office, grocery store, gas station and other stores.
In 1962, there was a garbage dump right on the outskirts of town that was getting a little excessive and so the town sent some workers out to get rid of some of the trash. After gathering piles of it together they promptly lit it on fire. However, not thinking, the dump was located in an old open pit mine which had some open veins running into an underground anthracite mine. You guessed it - poof - the well-doers indirectly sparked a fire which lept into the closed mine. The thing about anthracite is that its a great fuel - which is extremely hard to light. But - once its lit - its near impossible to put out. Unbeknownst to these garabage men walked away from a spark that lit one of the underground mines on fire.
The fire department poured tons of water and thought that the fire was out, but - poof - it just lit up again. Pits were dug, other methods were used to try to extinguish the fire, but the ground continued to smoke.
In 1979, a gas station owner in the town went to check his tanks and found them to be hot. After checking his underground tanks and finding they were showing a temperatire of 172F, the government came in and put sensors in the ground, discovering that the temperature under the tanks was registering almost over 1000F!
There were smoke and toxic fumes always in the city and finally in 1981, a 12 year old boy was playing out in his grandma's yard and a sink hole popped open under him. He grabbed onto tree roots and was pulled out by a friend. He just missed death as if he had fallen just a few inches farther he would have fallen into temperatures over 300F. The sinkhole measure 80 feet deep.
At this point there were continually sink holes appearing around the town as the fire underground continued to catch and burn. There was sickness, there was continual danger. The federal government now stepped in and, with 42 million dollars bought the town of Centralia.... All of the homes were taken by eminent domain and homeowners were given money to leave their homes - and as they left, the town was bulldozed behind them leaving empty streets, driveways and vacant stores and lots. Within time, most of the remaining stores, churches, post office and other buildings either caught fire and burned or fell down in sinkholes.
Today, the town of Centralia has no more post code, has been bulldozed and now is merely an occassional name on a town marker, with a grid of streets that go nowhere except leading into wisps of smoke coming out of the ground as the anthracite continues to burn under the ground. With the amount of anthracite that is below the surface, experts estimate that it could still burn for another 1000 years.
Here's a video of some of the smoke coming up from the ground. If you didn't know any better, it could just be a forest fire slowly extinguishing itself. They say that there are some days that the smoke is so bad that you can't even see.
Enjoy some other pictures from the town that used to be Centralia, PA.
This is right on the outskirts - a time capsule and a veterans memorial (incidentally - Happy Veterans Day!). There are still 3 cemeteries that are full and are visited by locals on occassion.
A drive way that leads to - no house....
There are pipes sunk into the ground all around the town which are supposed to vent the fumes.Another road that leads nowhere with a church in the far distance. Vacant yards
One of the few houses that remain.
There are sink holes that appear all over the town. This is one of them that has been patched. One of the latest ones measure about 20 feet across - and it appeared about 8 feet in front of one of the remaining house on the Main street.
One of the few houses that remain.There are sink holes that appear all over the town. This is one of them that has been patched. One of the latest ones measure about 20 feet across - and it appeared about 8 feet in front of one of the remaining house on the Main street. The Anthracite Museum in Ashland about 2 miles from Centralia.
The city of Ashland - sleeping soundly mere miles from the fires of Centralia.
Driving towards Buffalo through the hills of Pennsylvania. There was mist rising off the mountains as the sun set and the landscape frequently looked like the mountain in Tennessee.
If you want it -- here's a link to more info on Centralia....
Driving towards Buffalo through the hills of Pennsylvania. There was mist rising off the mountains as the sun set and the landscape frequently looked like the mountain in Tennessee.If you want it -- here's a link to more info on Centralia....Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Sometimes I Forget....
So heres the thing I've discovered about me...
I'm tired...
Remember how I said I've flown 100,000 miles....
That being said, I forget tons of junk!
- I forget where I park my car at the airport...
- I forget I DID NOT park my car at the airport (I took the train and then paniced as I had my keys but no clue where the car was...)
- I forget to pack my toothbrush
- I forget to pack my deodorant (both of these quite frequently :( )
- I forget to eat or if I've eaten
- I forget to put my mascara on so my eyes look like really freaky (that just happend today)
- My favorite - I very often forget what city I'm in
- I forget where I've been
- I forget where I got my rental car from (I've often drove my car into the wrong rental car lot - Avis when its Hertz, vice versa)
I could go on - but I think you get the idea that I get completely discombobulated when I'm travelling. Oy - its just gotten worse. I think its the frequent lack of pure oxygen on those airplanes :)
Well, tomorrow I'm off to....... dang --- WHERE AM I??!!!!
I'm tired...
Remember how I said I've flown 100,000 miles....
That being said, I forget tons of junk!
- I forget where I park my car at the airport...
- I forget I DID NOT park my car at the airport (I took the train and then paniced as I had my keys but no clue where the car was...)
- I forget to pack my toothbrush
- I forget to pack my deodorant (both of these quite frequently :( )
- I forget to eat or if I've eaten
- I forget to put my mascara on so my eyes look like really freaky (that just happend today)
- My favorite - I very often forget what city I'm in
- I forget where I've been
- I forget where I got my rental car from (I've often drove my car into the wrong rental car lot - Avis when its Hertz, vice versa)
I could go on - but I think you get the idea that I get completely discombobulated when I'm travelling. Oy - its just gotten worse. I think its the frequent lack of pure oxygen on those airplanes :)
Well, tomorrow I'm off to....... dang --- WHERE AM I??!!!!
Monday, November 8, 2010
A Tribute To The Emerald Isle
Heres what some more digging pulled up from my desktop... This was another trip to the UK -- a stop in Ireland by the Cliffs Of Moher and a visit to an Irish pub in the town. And this was like a Wednesday night! Crazy!
And to continue my tribute to the Irish ... you have to watch this SNL clip.... Its a house makeover spoof that will bust your gut! :)
http://www.hulu.com/watch/97772/saturday-night-live-the-irish-home-makeover
Top o' the mornin to ye!
Is This Sad?
Two quick realizations...
I went onto the United website earlier today just to check on something and, greeting me, was the status message which has now flipped from Executive Premier to 1K. In essence, I have completed 100,000 miles or equivalent segement travel this year. I actually am a few miles short of 100,000 which makes the next statement even more sad -- I have acutally flown more flights than I have miles this year.... I've spent more time getting on and off and back on a plane than I've actually spent consistently on one. Because of this sad fact, United has chosen to bestow on me the "Congratulations, You Have No Life" status. Thank you. Thank you. Oh - and please don't make excuses for me -"Alison, its because you do SO much international travel". Here's the deal - I have only flown to St Thomas and Hungary this year. Last year I flew to Israel, to Japan, to Hungary and to Romania -- and I still never reached the 1K status. Don't get me wrong, I'm quite proud of my accomplishment and of the fact that I've been exposed to more germs and bacteria than I could manage to procure while standing on earth and that my face will probably fall to my knees sometime in the next few years and that I have more travel advice than Rick Steves and that I know the best restaurants and coffeeshops in every airport from here to Fargo, ND.... Sigh....
Secondly - I just went to check in for my flight tomorrow and I was - its happening - directed to the Continental website. They're taking over... or I guess, technically merging.... I have no clue whats going on - I'm not even really sure where to go tomorrow - I guess I'll find out. They're supposed to be doing all these changes and I'm very frightened because I don't cope well with changes.... I couldn't even get extra leg room on the Continental flight - yuck - I hate being with the regular people.... Sigh.....
Oh - you can send me hand sanitizer and surgical masks in lieu of congratulatory gifts.... :)
I went onto the United website earlier today just to check on something and, greeting me, was the status message which has now flipped from Executive Premier to 1K. In essence, I have completed 100,000 miles or equivalent segement travel this year. I actually am a few miles short of 100,000 which makes the next statement even more sad -- I have acutally flown more flights than I have miles this year.... I've spent more time getting on and off and back on a plane than I've actually spent consistently on one. Because of this sad fact, United has chosen to bestow on me the "Congratulations, You Have No Life" status. Thank you. Thank you. Oh - and please don't make excuses for me -"Alison, its because you do SO much international travel". Here's the deal - I have only flown to St Thomas and Hungary this year. Last year I flew to Israel, to Japan, to Hungary and to Romania -- and I still never reached the 1K status. Don't get me wrong, I'm quite proud of my accomplishment and of the fact that I've been exposed to more germs and bacteria than I could manage to procure while standing on earth and that my face will probably fall to my knees sometime in the next few years and that I have more travel advice than Rick Steves and that I know the best restaurants and coffeeshops in every airport from here to Fargo, ND.... Sigh....
Secondly - I just went to check in for my flight tomorrow and I was - its happening - directed to the Continental website. They're taking over... or I guess, technically merging.... I have no clue whats going on - I'm not even really sure where to go tomorrow - I guess I'll find out. They're supposed to be doing all these changes and I'm very frightened because I don't cope well with changes.... I couldn't even get extra leg room on the Continental flight - yuck - I hate being with the regular people.... Sigh.....
Oh - you can send me hand sanitizer and surgical masks in lieu of congratulatory gifts.... :)
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