AN END, A BEGINING, AND A ?

  THURSDAY, AUGUST 14, 2025

  AN END, A BEGINING, AND  A ?      

   This is truly an important day and

for several reasons. In 1945 Americans

learned that Japan had accepted 

unconditional surrender, officially

ending the Second World War! .

Years earlier, 1935  to be exact,

President Franklin D. Roosevelt

signed the Social Security Act,

establishing a fund to help insure

the financial security of retired

individuals and those with handicaps.

Many of us rely on those benefits

today. It's also an important day

for me personally as I'll be

undergoing some eye-related

surgery to help improve my

vision, especially while

driving at night. But because

of that procedure I'll be unable

to do my BLOG for a few days.

A couple of my grandkids have

threatened......that is....voluntered

to take over temporarly but nothing

formal has been arranged so you'll

just have to wait to see if one or

more of them post their own version

of my BLOG here on my page. Either

way I hope to "See" you soon! Till

them may all you days be sunny and

all your NEWS be good!

GOT MILK?

   TUESDAY, AUGUST 12, 2025

             GOT MILK?

  Today, August 12th., is "Milkman

Day!" There ws a time when most

every home had a visit from the

milkman early each morning. Glass

bottles of milk were left on the

doorstep or in special containers

designed for just such deliveries.

In my hometown of Hazleton one

of those deliveries, up until at 

least 1969, was made my house

drawn wagon! The trend began

to change as more and more

small stores started selling milk

in cartons. But, interestingly, there

has been a resurgence in home

deliveries of milk, especially in

rural areas. In fact some dairies

are now delivering multiple

products directly to the home

of customers! The horse drawn

wagons may be gone for good

but the Milkman seems to be

making a comeback!! Hope you're

drinking your milk and that all

your NEWS is good!  

THE DISTESS CALL!

     MONDAY, AUGUST 11, 2025

            THE DISTRESS CALL!

    A bit of history trivia today friends!

Sometimes history can prove to

be very strange! And sometimes some

history heroes get lost in time. Such is

the case with Theodore (Ted) Haubner.

He was a radio operator aboard the S.S.

Arapahoe which was sailing from New

York to Charleston, SC, when its

propeller shaft broke. That left the ship

adrift in the so-called 'Graveyard of the

Atlantic" off the outer banks of NC! The

150 passengers on board were in very real

danger, And it was on this very date in 1910

that Haubner became the first person at sea

to send the distress signal SOS! A sister ship,

the S.S. Iroquois, heard the call, responded,

and was able to tow the Arapahoe to safety.

Ironically, after the vessel was repaired a

few months later it was sailing for New York

when it was the Iroquois that ran into serious

trouble with a broken rudder near the same

area off NC! It also sent out an SOS which was

immediately received by Ted Haubner on the

Arapahoe! He thus became the first sailor to

both send and receive an SOS Distress call.

The Titanic's use of SOS came two years

later! Hope you're not in distress and that

all your NEWS is good!

LAZY, HAZY, CRAZY DAY OF SUMMER!

             SUNDAY, AUGUST 10TH., 2025

  LAZY, CRAZY, HAZY DAY OF SUMMER!

   August 10th! One of those unofficial holidays I've
not only looked forward to, I've rehearsed for it!
    Holidayinsights.com lists August 10th as
"Lazy Day!"
     The name says it all. It's a day to be lazy. You
goof off! Pretty much do nothing! Certainly put off
whatever you can put off. Enjoy yourself by doing
nothing!
      Now, if by chance you're locked into some task,
take heart! August 15th is "Relaxation Day" So you'll
get another chance!
      My wife claims I've been rehearsing for this day

since the beginning of January! Hope you're relaxed, 

taking it easy, and that all your NEWS is good!

READ ON!

   SATURDAY, AUGUST 9, 2025

                 READ ON!

   August 9th is "Book Lovers Day!"

This "holiday" could easily have been

made for my wife. She is a devoted

book lover and reads each and every

day. When she had some eye problems

recently she tuned in to audio books

so as not to miss the literature! Between

family, friends, and the library she has

a constant supply. Reading, of course,

is good for you. It stimulates the mind

and good be a good source of history

as well. So as not to miss out I've

selected a copy of our grandson's

"Thomas The Tank Engine" for

the day. Looks like a good story

and there's lots of pictures! Hope

you're a book lover and that all

your NEWS is good! 

    

DO WHAT!!??

   FRIDAY, AUGUST 8, 2025

           DO WHAT!!??

   I've come across a lot of unofficial

"holidays" as I've prepared for my daily

BLOGS but this one is one of the

most unusual! August 8th is "Sneak 

Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's

Porch Night! I guess I shouldn't be

surprised it was created by somebody

in the media. Thomas Roy, a Talk show

host, came up with the day. He's also

responsible for "No Socks Day" and

"Humbug Day."  Roy thought the

day would be an opportunity to share

the wealth of your garden with your

neighbors. We do have a neighbor

with a porch but we haven't grown

any zucchini. We do have a fruitful

Blackberry bush so maybe we can

substitute as a way of observing

this holiday! Hope you'll share

your garden harvest as well and

that all your NEWS is good!

WHAT'S IN THE BOX?

   THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 2025

        WHAT'S IN THE BOX?

   Here's an unofficial "holiday" that's

probably been familiar to most of us

even if we didn't know it existed!

August 7th is "Particularly Preposterous

Packaging Day!" I've sort of touched

on this before in a sense when I told

you about medical bottles that are

sealed on top, require a certain type

of push and turn to open them, only

to find another seal underneath the top.

But that's just one example. Think 

about the thumb drive you ordered

on line that comes in a package the

size of a shoe box! I was recently

gifted with a frame and cover for

a portable garage for my Miata.

I still don't understand how the

delivery driver was able to lift

the package and bring it to our

front porch. My son managed to

set it upright and wiggle it onto

his old skateboard in order to

move it to the site where we

was able to get it assembled!

That box was tremendously

heavy, wrapped in a plastic

coating and sealed with 

plastic bands along its

length and width! So, how does

one deal with "Particularly Preposterous

Packaging?"  I guess you just do

the best you can and be happy

they are at least delivered

safely! Enjoy the day! Hope

all of your NEWS is good!  

"HAVING A COW!

    WEDNESDAY AUGUST 6, 2025 

         "HAVING A COW!"

   In slang terms "Having a cow" generally

means to be very angry and upset. But that's

not the "cow" you're invited to enjoy today!

You see August 6th is "National Rootbeer

Float Day!" That freshing summer time

beverage was said to have been invented

by Frank Wisner in 1836 inspired, so

the stor goes, by the snow capped mountains

of Colorado! It's a simple drink composed

of a scoop of vanilla ice cream mixed with

root beer soda. And, it ois also know as a

"Black Cow!" But whatever you call it

today is the perfect day to enjoy one to

join in the celebration! Hope you enjoy

yours and that all your NEWS is good! 

A STOP IN CLEVELAND!

    TUESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2025

     A STOP IN CLEVELAND!

  Cleveland has a lot of history! The

city boasts the Rock &Roll Hall of

Fame. It's the place where you can

find the house from "A Christmas

Story movie! But Cleveland has

given us a lot more than those

treasures. In fact on this very

day in 1914 Cleveland gave us

the first electric traffic light!

Other hand operated signals

before that were all well and

good for horse and buggy

traffic. But one the automobile

came along the speed of things

picked up. The initial signal was

set up at the corner of Euclid

Avenue and  105 Street. It had

only red and green lights. No

amber! So now you know where

the traffic light came from. And

if I were a betting man I'd wager

the first car horn blast came about

two hundredths of a second after

that light turned green and the driver

up front failed to drive on instantly!

Hope you're obeying

all the traffic signals and that all

your NEWS is good!

THE STUFF WE BROUGHT HOME!

   MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2025

THE STUFF WE BROUGHT HOME!

  Leaving vacation isn't easy! When we

left Wildwood this past Saturday we had

already said goodbye to the family members

that joined us there. That was tough. Then

the was the packing. My wife did ours

because, if left to me, we'd need a U-Haul

truck. I had a 4 hour drive and that

included the usual Grand Prix on the

Schuylkill Expressway through Philadelphia!

There was unpacking and a ton of laundry

my wife handled while I took to the grass

that apparently grew 5 inches in just a

week. I'm still getting sand out of my

sneakers and I'll be able to fill a kid's

sandbox with the remains in our

folding chairs. On the positive side,

we did bring back wonderful memories

and a special treat. People will talk and

talk about Salt Water Taffy. But Salt

Water Taffy is an "add on." But enough

Fudge and you'll usually get a box of

taffy. Fudge is what you really want!

I bought a half pound box of mixed

flavors. Wait a minute. I just checked

and it's down to a quarter pound. Maybe

less. I don't believe my wife has had any

yet so you know what that means. I'll

have to eat the rest fast!!!!  Hope you're

all well and that all your NEWS is

good!     

HEADING HOME!

  SATURDAY, AUGUST 2, 2025

          HEADING HOME!

  Well our family vacation week in

Wildwood, New Jersey has come to

an end. By the time most of you read

this or watch my video we should be

back in the beautiful environment of

northeastern Pennsylvania. But what

a great week it has been! We've gone

fishing, gone to the beach, and gone

to the boardwalk. Our grandkids

have taken in some of the amusement

rides. Although I personally found

a few of those "attractions" far more

frighting than amusing. We've enjoyed

some great dinners and speciality foods

that I only seem to see when I'm here in

Wildwood. Chief among them, Curley

Fries, and Sticky Buns! The weather

has been great for the most part

although we had some rain on\Thursday 

and much cooler temperatures Friday. 

A suggestion, perhaps, that summer 

was beginning to come to an end. Of

course we all know we have a lot more

coming. Just not here at the shore.

I hope you've enjoyed coming along on 

vacation by way of these BLOGS and

I hope you'll keep watch for them daily

on my Facebook page. As always, I

hope all your NEWS is good!

THE FISH DINNER!

   FRIDAY, AUGST 1, 2025

     THE FISH DINNER!

   For most of the many years we

have been vacationing in Wildwood

one evening has usually been set aside

for a fish dinner. So it is that two of

my grandsons, my son and I set out

(the second time this week for 3 of

us) to catch our meal. This time we

had a lot of luck. Well sort of. We

did reel in a number of fish. But

they were too big for our aquarium

at home and too small to feed any

one of those among us. Fortunately

we passed a Fish Market en route

back to our condo so there was,

indeed, a fish night for this year's

vacation! It probably worked out

better than our fishing efforts 

could of since the odds of us

catching a hundred clams, shrimp,

and long leg crabs were pretty

slim! Today's our last but we

plan to make the most of it.

Hope you're making the most

of your days too and that all your

NEWS is good! 

STILL TIME TO CELEBRATE!

  THURSDAY, JULY 31, 2025

STILL TIME TO CELEBRATE!

   Had to believe I know, but here we

are in the last day of July! We're still

on our family vacation in Wildwood,

New Jersey but I didn't want this day

to pass without reminding you there

are several month long celebrations

assigned to July so you've still got

time to celebrate. July is National

Ice Cream Month. It's National

Hot Dog Month, and if it has been

at  hot for you as it has been for

us here at the shore I know you'll

understand why this is National

Air Conditioning Appreciation

Month! I wasn't so sure what I'd

be celebrating till I reviewed the

full list. After doing so I took a

walk straight to the beach to

begin my celebration of National

Bikini Month! Hope you're

celebrating something and that all

your NEWS is good.

THIS STORY IS REEL!

   WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2025

      THIS STORY IS REEL!

     [FISHING REEL THAT IS!] 

   OK. Here's another BLOG from

our vacation in Wildwood, New Jersey.

There are so many things to do down

here. Most people go to the beach.

Most people  go to the Boardwalk/

And so people go fishing. One Tuesday

I went fishing with my son and my

grandson. We had a lot of luck.

Unfortunately it was all bad! My

grandson caught the only first. We

nearly caught two seagulls who were

trying to steal our bait. More about

bait in a minute. I expected a great

catch. I had my "Spiderman rod"

all ready for  action. But it didn't

happen. I think the real trouble,

other that the 100 degree sunshine

under which we fished, was the

bait. Or, rather, the lack of it.

We had some bacon left over

from breakfast. It probably would

have made great bait. But....I ate

it! Maybe we'll try again later this

week. Hope you're enjoying my

vacation ramblings, that you've

got enough bacon, and that all

your NEWS is goodQ!  

ANOTHER BEACH REPORT!

     TUESDAY, JULY 29, 2025

   ANOTHER BEACH REPORT

   Since I'm on vacation I fully expected

to release one of my "classic" blogs today.

But it was such an eventful day I figured

I better share it with you. Today I tackled

the Atlantic Ocean. The way I see it one

doesn't really swim in the ocean. One

just avoids drowning. I did that. I avoided

drowning  which I consider a pretty good

accomplishment! But not without a great

effort. And that effort doesn't even count

my time spent in the water. You see here

in Wildwood, New Jersey, at least where

we're staying, you get to the ocean on

the beach that runs from the sea to the

boardwalk. From the time your feet

him the sand just off that boardwalk

you've got at least a quarter mile walk

on the sand till your feet hit the water!

And after you've battled the waves and

the tide in the water, and the blazing

sun, you've got to walk that same quarter

mile back to the boardwalk. Then there's

the stroll back to the condo after that!

I'm proud to say I made it and still

have enough energy to walk back to

the boardwalk in the evening to watch,

and I stress the term "watch" two of

my grandkids on an amusement ride

called "The Slingshot!" Now I'm

tired. Hope you have a great Tuesday

and that all your NEWS is good!    

READY, AIM, SQUIRT!

       SATURDAY, JULY 26, 2025

         READY, AIM, SQUIRT!  

    It is the last Saturday of July. That

makes this "National Water Gun Fight

Day!" I didn't know that either! But I

fondly remember being a kid with a

25cent water pistol, taking on other

neighborhood kids similarly armed!

When you stop to think about it wouldn't

it be great to pull the kids away from

their smart phones and computer 

games, get them outside, and into a

water gun battle? Lots of running

around, a good supply of "ammunition"

and nobody gets hurt! I 'm not a kid

anymore. But I bought my grandson

a huge water gun rifle that holds

about a  gallon of water and can shoot

a stream a good 20 yards! Since I

keep it here I may just fill it up and

go outside to celebrate the day! 

Hope you're armed, ready, and that

all your NEWS is good!   

WHO'S CALLING?

    FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2025

         WHO'S CALING?

  Several years ago my wife and I

joined thousands, probably millions

of people who happily put our phone

numbers on the governments "Do Not

Call List." It was an effort to limit

unsolicited sales calls to out home and

cell phones. Of course the government

allowed for a few exceptions including,

of course, political calls. Well it seems

as though the Do Not Call system has

come down with the covid virus or

it's communications equivalent! On

Thursday, for instance, we received

no less than 15 of these spam calls.

The actual number may have hit 20!

So please Uncle Sam, take a minute

away from the "Big Beautiful Bill"

and tariffs and give us a vaccine,

or some other solution to stop this

very real invasion of our daily

lives! If we could kill the calls

our NEWS would good! 

KNOCK, KNOCK, WHO'S THERE?

        THURSDAY, JULY 24, 2025

   KNOCK, KNOCK, WHO'S THERE?

July 24th is "Tell an old Joke Day!' Don't confuse it 

with "Tell A Joke Day!" That's in August! This day

 was set aside to tell the classic jokes that have stood 

the test of time.You know, like Why did the chicken 

cross the road? That's an oldie but goodie. Some of

 the old ones were very simple, thus easy to remember.

That may be why they survive! I asked my wife if she 

knew any old jokes."Know one," she replied. "I live with one!"

 I think she was joking! I have to go now. Somebody's 

knocking at the door! Hope you're well and all your

 NEWS is good!

GORGEOUS GRANDMAS!

    WEDNESDAY, JULY 23, 2025

     GORGEOUS GRANDMAS!

   "Gorgeous Grandma Day" is celebrated

annually on July 23rd to honor women of

all ages, regardless of whether they are

grandmothers or not. The day encourages

appreciation for the beauty, vitality, and

contributions of grandmothers, challenging

outdated perceptions of aging and promoting

a positive image of older women. Alice 

Solomon created the day in 1984. Unfortunately

in my case both of my grandmothers passed

away when I was very young. But, my wife 

is also a grandmother and she certainly is

gorgeous so I guess I get to celebrate too!

Hope you do as well and that all your NEWS

is good! 

WHAT DID HE SAY?

             TUESDAY, JULY 22, 2025

                 WHAT DID HE SAY?  

   Welcome to July 22nd! Otherwise known

as "Spoonerism Day!" Spoonerisms are

verbal errors in which a speaker accidentally

transposes the initial sounds or letters of

two or more words! It can be very humorous!

Here's an example/ "Is it kisstomary to cuss

the bride?" That, or course, should have

been "It it customary to kiss the bride?"

One of my camermen once heard a collie

yalping and said "Listen to that darking

blog!" Sometimes they're so funny that

while initially offered accidentally the

speaker tends to use them over and

over! Most everyone comes up with a 

spoonerism from time to time. I, of course,

am an exception being such a professional.

I seldom get my mix all talked up! Hope you're

well and that all your NEWS is good!