Pro Wrestling Rampage

Saturday, Randy and I drove up to Erie for our first exposure to Stampede Pro Wrestling. We had no idea what to expect. We've been to MANY independent shows over the years and some were pretty good and some were, well, not.

We went to the mall first, had to have my Hot Topic fix. Yes, it is an addiction shopping at that store. No, they don't sponsor me even though I talk about them all the time. Of course, I'm more than willing to showcase their products anytime - fairy shirts, messenger bags and cool earrings are always welcome here. :)

We get to the arena and meet the promoter. Geoff, we can't thank you enough for making us feel welcome. He introduced us to all the wrestlers and we did some backstage posed photos. Everyone was great to work with. Being able to boss around these buff bods is always fun for me!

The show itself was amazingly good. The wrestlers have a lot of great skills and had no problems pulling off some really high-flying moves. They were selling the moves and there were a few times I simply put the camera down and watched. Now, anyone who knows me realizes what that means. I NEVER see anything, except frame by frame. For me to put down the camera and just watch, well, it's unique.


The show ended with a woman being set on fire. Well, not really set on fire, but the big heel J-Rocc threw fire at the champ Bill Collier, he ducked and it hit his manager. Really great stuff! Not expecting that, but sure enjoyed it.

We're hoping to get back to more shows in the future. The almost three hour drive makes it hard in the winter, but it's well worth it!

Camera Critters #25

The evil Darth Mittens has decided she isn't featured prominently enough on this blog, so she is sitting on me until I add additional photos of her royal evilness.





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Elk Viewing Groundbreaking

Last night I was covering the groundbreaking ceremony for a $12 million elk viewing area that will soon be built. Usually these things are pretty dry. Lets face it, when government officials are given a microphone, they have a hard time shutting up. I was having another migraine attack and wasn't able to drive, so my mother was nice enough to go with. She's also a reporter, so it's not unusual for people to see her at these events.

This one was a bit different, there were too many speeches, of course, but one really cool thing was a Native American from the Seneca Nation was invited to do a blessing ceremony. WOW! Never expected that! The only bad thing is they didn't have him mic'd, so we couldn't really hear what he was saying (and I was in the front row).

After the final speech and dinner, we went to see the elk. (Where the skywatch photo was taken) At this time of the year, they are bugling and absolutely gorgeous! I missed this buck sparring over a cow by only a few minutes. If you've never heard that sound, you really are missing out on a great experience. This was our first time to hear it. It just sends chills up your spine when you hear these huge male animals challenging each other.

Skywatch Friday

I took this photo at Benezette, PA while listening to the bull elks bugling and waiting for them to spar. It was amazingly beautiful and the sound was so eerie!



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Wordless Wednesday

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Blooming Tuesday

Here are the last of the roses that decorate my beloved Adonis' grave. With fall here and it getting colder, I'm sure they won't last very long. I'm surprised that they have continued to bloom so long. Guess love will do that.

Happy Sweet 16, Jessamy!!

Today my cousin Jessamy turns 16. Yes, she has hit that age where it's time to begin the change from child to young woman. Scary thought!

I hope you have a wonderful day, Honey!!!

Happy Birthday, Michael

Today is another one of those bitter-sweet days in life. Our beloved Michael should be celebrating his 20th birthday. He should be doing all the fun things kids that age do. He should be in his second year of college or married with a baby or two, but we can't watch him blow out the candles on his cake, all we can do is go visit his grave.



Michael was killed two and a half years ago in a car accident on his way to school. In one short moment, all the promise of a wonderful life was gone. He was a musician and could play the guitar like a star at only 17. Michael was my cousin, my godson, my son's hero and best friend. I still have a hard time accepting he's gone. I know in my head he is, but in my heart, I can't believe it's true. I still can hear the screams when we were told what happened that horrific day in March. It couldn't be true, but it was. I close my eyes and I can see the day in crystal clear detail. I wish I could wipe it from my mind, but it just won't go away.

Until we meet again, Michael, I'll love you forever and a day.

Photo Hunt 128: Road

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Camera Critters

I was on my way out of the infamous Elk Expo (will post about later) and saw this little critter on the ground. Thought I'd stop and get a few shots. He had such pretty green orb eyes.






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Wordless Wednesday

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Camera Critters

I wasn't able to sit up yesterday, so I'm a little late on this one, but still wanted to participated. This is our Golden Aphrodite and one of her many babies. She carries these things around until they get so gross I toss them out. Then she just goes and picks out another one from A's room.




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Photo Hunt 127: Wild

This week's theme is wild. What to choose? Hmmmm ..... How about some wild berries we found on one of our hikes?



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Skywatch Friday 9

I took this photo during a State College Spikes' game. The park has Mount Nittany right outside the outfield and is just gorgeous! Yes, I seem to be at a lot of minor league baseball games. They're fan friendly, better priced and the players are generally always happy to sign autographs for the fans. There are exceptions, but for the most part, they are all wonderful kids.




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September 11

It's a day I'll never forget, just like every other American. I watched the second plane hit live on TV. My in-laws were on a bus trip to Atlantic City, NJ, so I was frantic trying to reach them. The hotel phone just rang and rang. We didn't even have an address where they were, so I was going crazy worrying.

My MIL finally called around 2 p.m., to say that FIL had been rushed to hospital with his heart. I told her to give me the address and I'd be there in 12 hours. She kept insisting she was fine, but she was crying. Of course, I wasn't going to listen to her, I had to be there. Randy had just started a new job that week and couldn't go or he'd be fired. I ran to my mother and asked her if she'd go. She grabbed her toothbrush, called her boss and we left. I had my camera and a change of clothes and that's it.

It was so eerie driving on the Interstate. Very little traffic. We finally had to stop around midnight to sleep. We were back on the road by 6 a.m. and got to NJ by noon. MIL just cried and cried when we pulled in. We had no idea what to expect. Would there be more attacks? Was FIL ok? What would happen? We were there a week before he was released and we could drive home. Got lost in Philadelphia. All the street signs had been removed to prevent terrorists from finding the Liberty Bell, etc.. What a nightmare. We were in the ghetto trying to find out how to get home.

It's a day I'll never forget on more than one level. I think that's when the in-laws realized just how far I would go for them. Family is everything to me. I don't work full time just so I'm always available when someone needs me.

One other eerie coincidence is the week before, my 9-year old daughter had said we would be on the beach that week. I just laughed because there was no way, it was mid-September and they were in school. As I stood on the beach, looking at the Atlantic Ocean on Sept. 12, it hit me what she had said. She was right.

Sad day

We got some pretty hard news early this morning. Randy's aunt passed away at the age of 93 1/2. I had written about her being in the hospital about two weeks ago. I am so happy that I had recorded as much of her life story as I did. I only wish I had been able to get her to talk more.

The funeral is set for Wednesday afternoon. We spent the day running around getting her clothes and jewelry for the funeral, then finalizing the arrangements. This is horribly hard on everyone. I am truly worried about how Randy's dad will do on Wednesday. His health isn't the best as it is. :(

Not sure I'll be around much this week. Of course, the whole thing has set off a major migraine, so as soon as this posts, I'll be heading for bed.

Please think of Feenie tonight. The only positive about the whole thing is her nurse told me she didn't feel any pain. She simply went to sleep and never woke up. I hope to go the same way when my time is up.

The photo is of her and her brother celebrating her 93rd birthday last December 23.

Rest in Peace, Feenie. We'll meet again some day.

Camera Critters

I love these graceful animals. I stood there for about a half hour taking photos, guess this guy noticed me and blew me a kiss. :)




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Photo Hunt 126; Strings

This week's theme is Strings. A bit harder to find, but then I remembered the Japanese gymnasts hanging by a "string" during a show in Busch Gardens and there it was. :)

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Skywatch Friday 8

This was taken at the Erie Seawolves' final home stand of the 2008 season.





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Best Seafood Recipe We've Tried

My daughter is a great cook already at 16 and her favorite meal to make is seafood scampi linguine.

I'll share the recipe here because it truly is yummy and very easy to make.

One half pound of shrimp
One half pound of faux crab meat
One half pound of scallops
One TB of garlic chunks
One tsp of Olive Oil
One TB of butter

You need to caramelize garlic chunks (pre-shredded or fresh) in olive oil and real butter, not that nasty margarine. You then fry the seafood all together with the rest. Set it aside and make your linguine as normal. You put them together and have the greatest meal of your life. :)

Been out of touch

Sorry it's been a few days since my last post. We went on a mini-vacation to visit with a friend over the long weekend, then yesterday, I woke up with such a migraine I wanted to just curl up in a ball and not move ever again.

Hubby took me to the doc, who took one look at me and called in a VERY strong pain killer. (Read what they give terminal cancer patients) I took one and spent the rest of the day sleeping. The pain is so much less today. Those pills are a true miracle.

I've dealt with these horrors for over 16 years now. Usually, I'd have ended up in the hospital when it got this bad. The pills made it possible for me to stay home. At least the kids were able to walk in the room quietly and see I was still here. It scares them when I'm this ill. They're so young to have to deal with all this. They've had to go to the store because I literally couldn't stand up it hurt so bad.

I must have been VERY naughty in a previous life to deserve all of this. Sure hope I had fun!

Worldless Wednesday

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