Saturday, July 19th, 2008
If you have ever driven through Virginia, you would probably agree with me when I say it is a very pretty state. I like to drive down Interstate 81 because of the scenery. Virginia has a very diverse landscape, which makes almost the entire state exciting.
I am sure I mentioned that I love to browse different towns online. I like to look at photos of the areas. Many times though, there really aren’t a lot of photos to see, not even on the websites that the towns own and maintain. This always gets me a little curious. I mean, the reason for the website in the first place is to inform and attract, so why not add a nice photo gallery to it? I guess they are getting there.
Recently, my brother Jeff bought a cute place in the hills of Virginia near Luray. He has made a little hobby of taking interesting photographs of the area. He has been emailing them to me and I thought they were great. I asked his permission to post them on my blog and he agreed. I think this may be his big break…getting published on a famous blog like mine.
Anyway, since there really aren’t any great shots of Luray, VA out there yet, we are going to start putting them there. The pictures below are some country shots. I believe Jeff is going to start taking pictures of the town and different more populated areas, so I will post them when he gets them to me.
I think I finally know where Jeff gets his talent…me.
Related posts
Posted in Family & Friends, Travels | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008
As promised, the basketball hoop is being enjoyed by someone who may have a bit of trouble dunking for some time…even when the hoop is on its lowest setting.
My brother stopped by a few days ago to pick up the whole thing. This, of course, is after I spent a good chunk of time with my sledgehammer getting that large ball of concrete off the bottom pipe. With a bit of sweat and a lot of energy, I removed the concrete. The hoop was as good as new.
I told you he was going to have a little trouble dunking. I can see it now, the next best basketball star telling his story about practicing in the mountains of Virginia.
Related posts
Posted in Family & Friends | 1 Comment »
Thursday, June 19th, 2008
Last night was pretty fun. My brother, Jeff, came over and we went out to dinner.
Lately, you pretty much have to drag me out of my chair to get me to do anything. I have my head stuck staring at this horrible computer screen 24 hours a day. It really is unattractive. Jeff told me that I have to get out more often. I explained to him that it’s not like it used to be.
When I was younger, I had no responsibilities. I was also bored a lot. Now, I am always busy and running a business takes a lot out of me. There is no one else to handle things if something needs to get done. I mean, I have help, but the majority of things rest right on my shoulders. Good thing they are so muscular.
It was good to get out. I decided that we would go up to Applebees in Glastonbury, CT. We drove up there and when we passed by the restaurant, I realized it wasn’t an Applebees, but a Chilis. Jeff told me that he always goes to Chilis and would rather not go there. I really didn’t want to go there either. I made a left from Main Street onto Glastonbury Boulevard. Glastonbury Boulevard is really cool. It is tree lined and there is a lot going on. I basically just wanted to show him the road and then turn around to find somewhere to eat. We drove down the road a little and noticed a Houlihan’s on the left. We pulled in and parked.
Since the restaurant was so close to Somerset Square, I thought it would be nice to show Jeff where people do some shopping. So, we got out of the car and walked.
I gotta tell you, I really love sidewalks. I also have to tell you that it did feel a little foreign to me to be walking. I am so used to driving every little place I need to go that walking felt very out of the ordinary.
Right before we began our walk, I ran back to the car to grab the camera. I could see that Jeff was wondering what the heck I was doing. I mean, what in the world is there to take pictures of during a little 15 minute walk to no where? I explained to him that this is what blogging is all about. I told him that I searched for photos of the different things in different towns a lot before we moved here. I thought people would appreciate it if I posted some of my own. I think he got a kick out of the camera thing because he jumped on board.
Anyway, the photo above is of the tree lines and sidewalk I was talking about earlier.
Before we got to the enterance of Somerset Square, we passed the backside of a few restaurants. I didn’t think the photos would come out so blurry, but because it was getting dark, I guess that’s what happens. The photo are of Max Fish, Max Amore and some other one. Perhaps we will eat at one of these next time. I have heard good things.
We walked a bit more and made it to the enterance of Somerset Square. The lighting of this place was really cool and it felt like I was on vacation. We walked through a little bit and took a picture of Cold Stone Creamery. Jeff told me that I had to get a picture of that.
We did our thing and walked back to Houlihan’s, which I forgot to get a picture of. We went in a sat down to eat. When we did finally eat, I have to tell you, I was really very pleased. I mean, the food was really great. I could believe it. Even Jeff told me that his potato soup was the best he ever had.
I had my usual Guinness. He likes to drink sweeter drinks, and mentioned that he didn’t really like beer. He took a sip of the Guinness and I think he might have changed his mind.
What’s the moral of this long story? Try Guinness, you might like it.
Related posts
Posted in Family & Friends, Food & Drink | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008
On Memorial Day, we took a cruise out to Point Judith, RI (above). I took some photos of that, but wanted to post some pretty funny pictures here in this post really fast.
For some reason, these are funny. They are of the entrance of Fisherman’s Memorial State Park in Rhode Island. It’s out near Point Judith. The reason it’s funny is because we went camping here when we were kids. I remember something about that little house in the front. I can’t seem to remember what though. It was part of some joke or something. Something with my brother, Jeff. I know this means nothing to most of you, but perhaps my family can fill me in.
Here, take a look…
This place is really cool. I remember there was a little ranger’s office with a bunch of fish tanks. Also, right in the back of this campground/park, you can roll up your pants and go clamming. My friend Craig says that he goes clamming with a bottle of hot sauce. He just grabs a clam from the sand, opens it, sprinkles some hot sauce on it and sucks it down. Can you imagine being that clam just out for a tan one day? Holy cow.
There is a lot to do around this area and it’s a great place for a vacation. It’s very “beachy.”
Related posts
Posted in Family & Friends, Travels | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 21st, 2008
Ok, before anyone freaks out and asks why the heck I am taking down a nice basketball hoop, let’s just talk about this.
There are a few good reasons. The first is that I don’t see myself shooting hoops outside all too much. I don’t even own a basketball. That’s not to say I’m not in peak physical condition, just not for basketball. The second (and last) good reason is that my brother would like the whole set up for his two young boys to play with. They will get much better use out of it that I will. They will enjoy it and know that Uncle Jay treats them right. Jeff is going to come get it in June and bring it down to Virginia to plant near his driveway. We will handle the hoop with loving care.
I was wondering how easy, or difficult this was going to be. I knew the pole was stuck in some cement, but I had no idea how much. I began picking at it a few days ago with my pick-ax. I had a little luck, but nothing compared to today.
This afternoon, I went after the cement ball in earnest. It took about a half-hour, but I got it loose and down on its side. One thing I did notice while taking it down was a bird that flew out of the top of the pipe.
After the whole thing was down on its side and the cement ball out of the hole, I began taking the net and backboard off. About half way through this, another bird flew out of the top of the pipe, which was now really low to the ground. Again, I didn’t think too much of this. A few minutes later, a little baby bird fell out of the pipe. My heart sank. What have I done? The baby was about the size of a baby hampster. I got a flashlight and looked down the pipe and saw about four more baby birds.
I thought about it for a little while and came up with a solution. I finished taking the backboard and net off and then stood the pole up again, similar to what it was like before.
I was pretty much done bringing my tools back in the garage when I looked back at the pipe. I noticed a bird (that had been on a branch right above me the whole time), fly into the pipe. Then, another one did. They were obviously the parents going back to see how their kids were doing. I felt very good about that. I think we’re back in business.
Jeff is coming down in June to grab the setup. This gives the birds about a month to grow up and fly away. I am hoping they can do it by then. If not, Jeff will have to wait a few more days.
Related posts
Posted in Animals, Family & Friends, Home Improvement | No Comments »
Saturday, May 17th, 2008
On Thursday night, my brother met Laura and me up in Manchester for dinner. Laura and I left a little early so we could visit Pottery Barn at Evergreen Walk in South Windsor.
I really like Pottery Barn, not for its fame from a certain “Friends” episode, but for its quality furniture. I need some office furniture, so we went to browse. We didn’t buy anything, but checked some stuff out for another day. I would say we need a bunch of things. Besides the office furniture, we need a bedroom set, coffee table and end tables, to say the least. One day it’ll all be complete. For now, we will focus on one item at a time.
After we left Pottery Barn, we had some time to spare. We wandered over to Williams-Sonoma to check out their kitchen stuff. This is another really good store, but expensive. Actually, I’m not sure if it’s expensive when you really compare quality. A few minutes in there and we were ready to go. I would say that the Promenade Shops at Evergreen Walk is a very nice place. It felt like we were down South on a vacation.
A few minutes later, we pulled into the parking lot of Carrabba’s Italian Grill in Manchester. My brother has been raving about this place for a few weeks. He just loves the bread.
We all sat down and ordered. A few minutes later, the waitress brought over the bread, which was very good indeed. After that, we ate and ate and ate (the main courses). It was sinful. When we were almost done, the waitress asked if we needed anything and my brother mentioned that I wanted more bread. I said, “No I don’t” kind of embarassed. She offered to bring me a loaf to bring home and I accepted. Just a bit later, the nice and very kind waitress brought me three loaves of bread to bring home. Wasn’t that nice of her?
Every time we go someplace, I ask Laura to remind me to take a picture of whatever we are doing. Every time, I forget and she never mentions anything. When I sit down to write about it, I end up not having any photos. With that being the case, today’s photo is of the bag we brough the leftovers home in. In this business, you need to be creative.
Related posts
Posted in Family & Friends, Food & Drink, General | No Comments »
Monday, September 17th, 2007
Well I hooked up the new Brother printer. I must admit that I was a bit skeptical, because I have never actually used that brand. I was very used to HP printers.
I think every printer I ever had has been an HP, except for that one Epson printer I bought back in the day. I remember I bought it over in Danbury, CT. I was so excited. I brought it home and hooked it up to my laptop. I printed the first page and looked at the outcome. All the print looked “spattered.” I printed a few more sheets…same thing. I thought there was something wrong with the printer, so I brought it back to the store. I handed it to the guy behind the counter and told him what happened. He said, “Did you use the special Epson paper?” I said, “What?” He continued that the Epson printers need special Epson paper so the ink doesn’t spatter. I almost started laughing. I told him that I have been using regular copy paper with every printer I have ever used and the print had been just fine. Now I was supposed to start buying special paper just to use an Epson? Pleeeeeease. I just bought an HP instead and the regular copy paper worked fine. Life was good.
Anyway, this new Brother printer seems to be doing the job nicely. It’s not too big on the desk and it seems like it can live up to the “Workhorse” nickname it has. The print is very clear. It should be fine for my two pieces of paper I need printed per year…yeah, just fine.
Hey, if there’s a problem, I’ll let you know.
Related posts
Posted in Computers | No Comments »
Monday, September 17th, 2007
So I returned the HP laser printer. I was getting a black line down the right side of the paper every time I printed a graphic. I didn’t need the hassle. I even uninstalled the driver and reinstalled the new one from the HP website. Nothing worked.
Really, I am getting too old to diagnose a brand new printer that is supposed to work when plugged in. I paid for the plug and play technology when I bought a brand new laptop and desktop and, pardon me, I expect it to work. It’s HP’s job to have updated drivers for printers they claim to work with Windows Vista.
I returned the printer to Staples today with no problem. I went over to the shelf and grabbed a bigger Brother HL-5240 Laser Printer. All I really wanted was a small home office laser printer, but walked away with something described as a “work horse.”
I am going to hook this one up tonight and see what happens. I looked on the Brother website and saw printer drivers for Windows Vista. I will let you know what happens.
Related posts
Posted in Computers | 3 Comments »
Saturday, August 4th, 2007
For our television enjoyment, we had satellite service installed way back when we moved in. I remember it was a Thursday. With this, comes a bunch of channels we don’t use, but there are a few channels that I come across that have something that makes me pause. One such channel has the “Dukes of Hazzard” reruns showing a few times a day, every day.
I always liked the Dukes of Hazzard. It was sort of like the little boy’s version of “Little House on the Prairie.” My brother and I had this little thing going…we would want to know which car was faster, the General Lee or Kitt from “Night Rider.” Personally, I think Kitt is faster, with the Turbo Boost and all.
Anyway, today I was watching “Beauty and the Geek” and I discovered that one of the “Geeks” is the vice-president of a Dukes of Hazzard fan club. I thought this was pretty interesting, so I searched Google for his smiling face. I couldn’t find it, but I did find this pretty exciting fan club. Luckily they came up first in the search results. I didn’t go too far down the page. I looked on their “Fan Club Bios” page, but didn’t see any geek from the TV show. Oh well, you should take a look anyway.
Related posts
Posted in Entertainment, Ramblings | No Comments »
