Dutch, Whitey And The Kruker

Darren Daulton, Richie Ashburn and John Kruk
Three icons of Philadelphia baseball who will never be forgotten.

Bloomsburg Fair 2010

Bloomsburg Fair (2010)
I love going into the display buildings when it's still daylight outside and going outside to see that the sun has gone down and the park is all lit up.  The Bloomsburg Fair is one of my favorite places in the world.  I'd come here for the full week if I didn't have work and school.

Anyone Need An Eight Inch Emmylou Harris Decal?

Sticker Stand
Bloomsburg Fair (2010)
Though not it's official name (unless I managed to guess it correctly), the Sticker Stand is one of the places I always make a point to visit at the Bloomsburg Fair.  I don't think they've updated their stock since Kurt Cobain was alive, but they have well over a thousand different decals, bumper stickers and other random stuff.  Some of it is music related, some of it is political (both sides), some of it is pretty offensive, and some of it is pretty damn old.  I have to wonder how a teenager today interprets a parody Fahrvergnügen car decal.  They probably think it's a Norwegian metal band.

Neon Pepsi

80's Neon Pepsi Sign
Bloomsburg Fair (2010)

Waffles And Ice Cream

Waffles & Ice Cream stand
Bloomsburg Fair (2010)
One of the best parts of the Bloomsburg Fair is all of the good food.

It's All Right

Here Comes The Sun
The Beatles (1969)
These are the original lyrics hand-written by George Harrison for one of the most iconic songs to ever be recorded.  It was released 40 years ago.

Looking For Jupiter

Looking For Jupiter
September 20, 2010
The planet Jupiter is closer to the Earth tonight than it has been since 1963.

Psychles Staff

Wilkes University
2010 Psych Department Picnic
Kirby Park - Wilkes Barre, PA

Don't Be A Tuna Head

Maniac Mansion
Nintendo Entertainment System (1990)

The NES port of Maniac Mansion was released twenty years ago today.  I spent countless hours playing this game and, with the help of Nintendo Power, solving its puzzles with every combination of characters.

It wasn't until many years later that I had an opportunity to play the original on Commodore 64 and the enhanced DOS edition.  Both of those versions are superior to the one that was released on the NES, but censored or not, the console version will always have a special place in my heart and bring back fond memories of my childhood.

It's A Modern Stone-Age University

Henry Student Center
Wilkes University - Wilkes-Barre, PA
My thanks go out to campus security for their constant vigilance.

Mortal Monday

Mortal Kombat ad
KayBee Toys (1993)
The impact that this game had cannot be overestimated.  Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter 2 brought arcade gaming back to the forefront in the early 90's, and the home console release gave the Sega a rare victory over Nintendo.  Due to their family friendly company policies, Nintendo didn't allow the Super Nintendo version to have blood and many of the fatalities were toned down.  Meanwhile, the Genesis port had unlockable bloody graphics by way of the ABACABB code.  It may seem like a little thing, but it was the deciding factor in a lot of kids who chose the Genesis over the SNES on their Christmas wish list.  This was a mistake that Nintendo wouldn't make with the sequel.

Carmen's Restaurant

Carmen's Family Restaurant
Broad Street - Hazleton, PA
This was my first real job.  I was a busboy at Carmen's when I was 15 years old.  The food was incredible and my co-workers were all pretty awesome.  I enjoyed working there, especially on Friday nights during the seafood buffet in the back dining room.

Carmen's closed a few years ago and re-opened a few different times under different names and new ownership.  These days, it's called the Crystal Barbecue.  I stopped in to see the place during Funfest.  They took out a few rows of booths and the front counter with the register and the revolving pie rack, but it appears that the back wall of the front dining room looks the same.

Off The Beaten Path: Farmer's Iced Tea

Off The Beaten Path (WYLN TV)
Farmer's Iced Tea 
The green and yellow carton has been a fixture in Hazleton since long before I was born..