YOU CAN'T GET THERE FROM HERE!

        SATURDAY, MARCH 21ST., 2020
  YOU CAN'T GET THERE FROM HERE!

    Christmas is coming a little late this year
for my old friend in New York State. Oh, our
present  was ready. But he wasn't around during
the holidays so we tucked it aside for our next
visit.
     My wife and I arranged to meet my buddy
at a restaurant just outside Binghamton last
week. We were about 15 miles north of our
house when we realized we had forgotten the
gift. Rather then turn back and throw off our
meeting time we decided to mail the gift to
him. I should have turned around!
     After finding an appropriately sized
mailing envelope I took the present to the
Pittston Post Office to begin its journey to
North Bay, New York, near Syracuse. It's
about a 3 hour drive from Wilkes-Barre.
      I checked the package in with the
post office at 12:49pm in Saint Patrick's
Day. It was shipped out that afternoon at
4:15.
       Next stop on the way north, for some
reason, was due east to Jersey City, New
Jersey! It showed up there on the 19th at
9:33am Wednesday. Less than an hour later
it resumed its trip up north by going, for
some reason, due west, to Pittsburgh! The
postal workers there got it at 2:50pm on
the 19th.
       Pittsburgh processed the gift and,
finally, dispatched it to Syracuse that
same day.
        Now that it's close to its intended
destination my tracking report shows
it's expected to be delivered on Monday
by 8pm!
        I'm guessing that will give them
time to ship it to Ohio or somewhere else
before it gets to my buddy's postal box.
        I suppose 5 days isn't a very long
time to get a package through the mail.
It just seems a little long since I'm three
hours from his house!
        Hope it actually arrives and that
all your NEWS is good. 
   
     
   

ESCAPE!

  FRIDAY, MARCH 20TH., 2020
                ESCAPE!

      Thursday was truing into a very
long day! I usually spend a good part
of it with my little grandson. But he
has the sniffles and rather than chance
passing them off to me his Mom and
Dad decided to keep him home.
       Cabin fever wouldn't have been
so bad with the little guy around. But
since that was not to be I planned an
escape!
       I had to take my wife for a hair
appointment and then pick her up
an hour later. That gave me some
60 minutes to be "at large."
       I used the time to head to my
old hometown to see if it was
surviving these hard times.
       At first I had doubts. I found
the original Victoria's Candy Shop
closed down and dark. Still, there
were signs in the windows boasting
of new locations so, at least, the
chocolates live on.
       There was better news on
East Broad Street where I found
Jimmy's Quick Lunch open, at least
for take outs, and the hot dogs ready
on the grill. I, of course, took a
couple along for the ride.
        With time still left I made a
quick stop at Snape's for a box of
pizza and a bag of tea biscuits!
         I was back in time and with
supper at that! Time well spent!
         Hope you're using yours
well and that all your NEWS is
good!

       

AND STILL THE COME!

    THURSDAY, MARCH 19TH., 2020
          AND STILL THEY COME!

   Seems our world has been turned upside
down.
    Is this the world's Passover?
    Most of us are, generally, tucked away
inside our homes waiting to see if the
angel of death will pass us by. I'm
wondering if we should be putting the
blood of a lamb on our doors?
    Schools have cancelled classes.
   Theaters are closed.
   The restaurants are shuttered or
are offering pick up only,
     Playgrounds have been declared
off limits.
     Park trails are open but their
bathrooms are closed.
     Gas is at record low prices. But
there's basically no where to go.
     Supermarket shelves are empty
of toilet paper and cleaning
supplies. They're offering special
shopping hours for the elderly. But
the seniors have to get up by 6am
if they expect to shop.
       Churches have closed and
pastors are turning to social media
outlets to offer services.
        "Normal" isn't around these
days.
          Yet today, on this first day
of Spring, the Swallows are returning
to the Mission in San Juan, Capistrano.
            Makes one stop and think.
            Hope we're back to "normal"
soon and that all your NEWS is good!
days

ESSENTIALS!

  WEDNESDAY, MARCH  19TH., 2020
                     ESSENTIALS!

   I escaped....I mean I got out of the
house a bit Tuesday. I went to the market
for "essentials!"
   Of course my essentials were, it seems,
a little different than those most folks
were after.
    The pictures you've seen from various
shopping places are accurate. The Paper
product and cleaning supply shelves
were pretty much empty. The only thing
they were filled with were signs limiting
the number of products were allowed to
buy.
      Although people are staying at home
I'm not sure they'er brushing their teeth!
I was in need of some toothpaste and the
supply seemed more than adequate! Why
is there so much toothpaste and so little
toilet paper?
       People have been hitting the canned
good supplies too! The shelves there
weren't empty. But you could tell the
supplies were a little thin.
       Thinking that trend might continue
I picked up an extra can of Span. Just in
case!
        I ended my essential buying with
a bag of pretzels. As I explained to my
wife, I felt they were absolutely
necessary to aid my television viewing.
         Hope your teeth are clean and
all your NEWS is good!

TOUGH TIMES!

  TUESDAY, MARCH 17TH., 2020
             TOUGH TIMES!

  This "virus thing" has us all facing
some inconvenience right now. Some
worse than others I'm sure.
   But I saw something on TV today
that really moved me!
    It was about a fairly large family
trying to make the best of things with
very little! The father had no formal
job and was doing the best he could
to make a living at home.
    They were in a rural area with
only one store anywhere nearby.
     As if a house full of kids
weren't enough two grandparents
shared the house as well.
     And get this! Not only no cable.
No TV!
     Imagine getting through these
or any other tough times under
those conditions.
      But my hat's off to them. They
were getting along pretty well
entertaining themselves with just
a piano and an old style radio in
the home. And everybody was
pitching in to help one another.
     You may even know them.
The Waltons!
     Hope all your NEWS is good!

CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!

   MONDAY, MARCH 16TH., 2020
CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!

   I slept in Sunday morning. An unsettled
stomach had me longing for an extra two
hours rest.
   It helped. And by early afternoon my wife
and I were wishing we had something to do.
   It was at that exact time we realized our
refrigerator was no longer working!
   We had dealt with a brief power outage
on the circuit that feeds the fridge on Saturday.
It was apparently caused by a last gasp of breath
from the old Kenmore.
    I remember hauling it to our house some
20 years ago with the help of my late friend
and cameraman Bob Dennis. I remember
swearing it was the last time in my life I
would move a refrigerator!
     Refrigerators should be born in the place
where they are to stand. They are not built
to be carried anywhere!
     My wife began to clear what she could
salvage into ice chests. My grandson came
to our rescue with additional coolers and
his ability to clear out a bottom freezer
without breaking his back!
     Then my son turned to Superman, again,
by giving us his family's "back up refrigerator"
which was stored on his back porch.
      He physically moved it and lashed it to
a carrier that fits into a trailer hitch on my car.
      My only job was to drive it home and hope
I didn't let it drop onto the highway as I negotiated
the 5,000 or so pot holes between his house and
mine!
      Next he and my grandson spent the day
installing the new refrigerator, removing the
old one, then restocking the unit from all those
ice chests.
       I watched the younger grand kids while the
two younger men did all the hard work. My wife
handled some heavy stuff too and the only injury
sustained all day came while I was pushing my
grandson on the playground merry go round
and the steel bar tore open a large patch of skin
just below my knuckle on my right hand.
       So it seems we had "something to do" after
all!
        Hope we'll get 20 years out of this fridge
and that all your NEWS is good!

STILL SIDETRACKED!

      SUNDAY, MARCH 15TH., 2020
           STILL SIDETRACKED!

     Some of you may remember this
blog. I originally published it on March
15th of 2016.  I've updated it just a bit.
But, sadly, my hoped for outcome
remains a dream.
     I don't like to get too serious in my

Blogs. It's too much fun making fun

of things that happen to me everyday

and making sure you're aware of

unusual holidays that are daily

excuses for silly celebrations. But

today I'm going to switch things a

bit and take a different track!

    My grandson and I paid another

visit to the Steamtown National

Historical site last week. We've been

stopping there ever other week or so

since he was two or three.

     There's an exhibit there that gets,

in my opinion, far too little attention.

       It's a small "park sized" engine

and a passenger car.

       Years ago while on the news beat

for WYOU TV I covered a story

involving a generous local man named

Hank Evanish.  Mr. Evanish, who has

since passed away, had discovered the

rusty remains of an amusement train

ride that once entertained children in

Scranton's Nay Aug Park. As I recall

it was headed for the junk yard when

Evanish bought the train, had it

restored and donated in back to the

city to once again be set up at the

park.

      I know it ran there, or at least sat

there, for a couple of years. But then

it disappeared again. I had heard a

rumor that it had been lent or given

(not such which) to Steamtown. And,

sure enough, there it sits! The

Lackawanna Railroad Diesel-looking

engine and one of the passenger cars

that carried children over those rails

in Nay Aug Park.

      First I rejoiced! So  happy to see

that train still preserved.

      But then I realized there was

something missing. There was no

plaque or information sheet to tell

visitors about the history of this little

train. Where it rolled. How it was

saved from the junk yard by an area

man who cared. Or how he hoped it

would roll again. And what better

place than Steamtown!

       Rail enthusiasts from around the

world come to this place. Why not

set up the tracks, perhaps add more,

and allow visiting children to enjoy

this historic attraction? I'd love to

see it done. How about you? At the

very least the history of this once

popular amusement park ride should

be on display!

       Perhaps some letters or calls to

Steamtown! This is the Little Engine

that should....have our support!

       Hope someone pays attention

and that all your NEWS is good!