The Ultimate Seasonal Cookie

Pumpkin Spice
Oreo (2014)

These are incredible!

Let's Carve A Cantaloupe

You can't fool me, Wegman's!

USS Fessenden

USS Fessenden
Edsall-Class Destroyer Escort
This was my grandfather's ship when he served in the Navy.  Seventy years ago during World War II, this ship made a depth charge attack in the waters south of the Cape Verde Islands and destroyed the German submarine U-1062.

Grandpa was seven years old at the time of the U-Boat sinking.  He served on board the Fessenden in the mid 1950's.  That's him on the right.

Mr. Pickle

Mr. Pickle
Dillsburg, PA
I was told that the town made alterations to an old Mr. Peanut statue to turn it into a pickle coming out of a jar, but apparently that's not true.  According to PennLive.com, a local car dealer named Bill Wessels commissioned chainsaw artist Brad Heilman to carve what was left of a large maple tree on his property that was hit by lightning.  It was always supposed to be a pickle, but the wood wasn't painted so people from out of the area thought it was a statue of Mr. Peanut.  They had it painted a few years ago to make it more obvious that it's supposed to be a pickle.

Happy Birthday B.B.

Brigitte Bardot
Cannes Film Festival (1956)
Happy 80th birthday to the one and only Brigitte Bardot.

We'll Make The Best Of What's Around

Under The Table And Dreaming
Dave Matthews Band (1994)
The first album from the Dave Matthews Band is turning twenty years old today.  Seeing this got me thinking about my path to becoming a fan of this band.

The first song that I heard from Under The Table And Dreaming was the album's first single, What Would You Say.  The music video was in reasonably heavy rotation on MTV in the mid 90's, and I didn't really think much of it at the time.  It's not that I disliked it, but it wasn't the kind of song that made me want to run out and buy the album.

My second experience with a song from this album came in 1996.  I had a job as a busboy for Carmen's Restaurant in Hazleton when I was 15 and 16 years old.  It was an experience in my life that I look back on fondly, and though there were situations that I wish I handled with more maturity, the good days by far outweighed the bad.  There was always very low but audible music coming from speakers in the ceiling that were hooked up to a cassette deck in one of the cabinets behind the bar in the back dining room.  The tapes that it played were licensed mixtapes of adult contemporary songs from a company that sold such things to businesses that wanted to play music that fit the mood of their establishment.  One of the songs that I heard a few times a day during my shift had a pleasant and mellow vibe.  That song was Satellite.  I had no idea that it was from the same band that was responsible for What Would You Say (in fact, it's the very next track after that song on Under The Table And Dreaming).  At the time, I assumed it was a song from the mid 80's.

A few months after I first heard Satellite at work, I won a prize in a contest from the Gallery Of Sound music store in Valmont Plaza in Hazleton.  They used to have boxes set up with various promotions.  All you had to do was fill out one of the contest entry blanks with your name, address, and phone number and you'd be entered to win a prize.  I entered just about everything that wasn't country or hip hop because, what the hell, it was free.  Although I never won the grand prize for any of these contests, I won quite a few second, third, and fourth place prizes.  I have no idea what the grand prize was for the Dave Matthews Band contest, but I ended up winning one of the lesser prizes, which was a t-shirt, a hat, and Under The Table And Dreaming on CD.  The only song that I recognized from the band was What Would You Say, which I didn't really have any strong opinions on in either direction, but I figured "hey, what the hell, it's a free album so I'll give it a listen".  I'm glad that I did, because not only did I find that song that I loved from Carmen's, but an entire album of music that I fell in love with.  Honestly, I think that What Would You Say was my least favorite song on the record, not because it's bad, but because I thought that everything else was that much better.  It was my entry point to what became one of my favorite bands that I still keep up with and listen to decades later.

I had no intention of making that such a long and drawn out explanation.  Guess I got a little carried away.  Anyway, I'm not sure if this is my favorite song on the album, but it's definitely in the top three.  I picked this song to represent Under The Table And Dreaming in this post because it's the first track on the album, and the first song that I heard when I popped that free prize CD in my boombox.  The opening seconds is the moment when my ears perked up and I thought "hey, there might be something to these guys that I could really dig".

The Best Of What's Around
Dave Matthews Band (1994)

Hey, my friend

It seems your eyes are troubled

Care to share your time with me?

Would you say you're feeling low and so

A good idea would be to get it off your mind?

See, you and me

Have a better time than most can dream

Have it better than the best

So can pull on through

Whatever tears at us

Whatever holds us down

And if nothing can be done

We'll make the best of what's around

Turns out not where, but who you're with

That really matters

And hurts not much when you're around

When you're around

And if you hold on tight

To what you think is your thing

You may find you're missing all the rest

Well she ran up into the light surprised

Her arms are open

Her mind's eye is

Seeing things from a

Better side than most can dream

On a better road I feel

Oh, you could say she's safe

Whatever tears at her

Whatever holds her down

And if nothing can be done

She'll make the best of what's around

Turns out not where, but what you think

That really matters

See, you and me

Have a better time than most can dream

Have it better than the best

So can pull on through

Whatever tears at us

Whatever holds us down

And if nothing can be done

We'll make the best of what's around

Turns out not where, but who you're with

That really matters

And hurts not much when you're around

When you're around

We'll make the best of what's around

A Sticker And Decal Time Capsule

Cosmos Crystal
Bloomsburg Fair (2014)

This was my favorite stand at the Bloomsburg Fair when I was in high school.  It's still one of my favorites today, but for different reasons.  This place has a lot of things for sale that I didn't take pictures of, but here's a small sampling of their merchandise.

The wall behind this stand is covered with stickers and decals, many of which are music related.  The thing that I love about this place is that while they do have a few new things in stock every year, they don't seem to remove any of the old stock unless it sells out.  It's not super uncommon to see merchandise for some classic rock bands like Ozzy, Pink Floyd, and The Beatles, but I can't imagine that too many stores have Mad Season and Mother Love Bone decals in their display case.

I had the Smashing Pumpkins sticker from the top photo and the Sublime license plate sticker, the ICP sticker next to it, and the Rage Against The Machine sticker in the bottom right corner of the bottom photo on my car when I was 17 years old, and I'm pretty sure that I bought all four of them from this stand when I was a teenager.

These helmet stickers are so stupid that they're funny.  Most of these are exactly the same as the ones they had back in the late 90's.  I don't remember ever buying any of them, but I know that I looked through them every year.  My favorite part is how the people who run this shop try to censor the profanity with a black magic marker.

The glass case on the side of the stand has stacks of patches.  Like the helmet stickers, they're not the kind of thing I was into as a teenager, but I sort of regret not buying the Rocky & Bullwinkle ones this year.

These kind of speak for themselves, but the size of these may not come across too well in the picture.  Each one of them is about the size of one of my shoes.  I just like to imagine the scene of some dufus meticulously measuring their back windshield for optimal placement of their new "lick me" and "honk if you're horney" decals.

Brother Can You Spare A Dime

 
Andrea's Glass Pitch / Debbie's Dime Pitch
Bloomsburg Fair (2014)
This stand has been at the Bloomsburg Fair since I was a child, and probably for many years prior to that.  The game is simple: you grab a handful of dimes and toss them into the field.  If your dime lands on the target (which is usually inside of a shot glass), you win the drinking glass that's below the target.  It may seem silly to try to win an ordinary drinking glass, but it's a lot of fun to play and the place is always filled with dime-throwing customers.

Pumpkin Waffles

Pumpkin Waffles by Kolar
Bloomsburg Fair (2014)
This is another long standing tradition at the Bloomsburg Fair.  The only thing that they sell are pumpkin waffles.  You can smell the pumpkin and powdered sugar wafting through the air when you get anywhere near the place.

These are very good, but you've really got to eat them right away to experience them at their best.  I've taken a box home on some occasions and they're never as good the next morning as they are when you eat them as soon as you order them.  Fair warning, they tend to crumble as soon as you bite into them, so it's best to eat them sitting down, preferably with a paper plate, or there's a decent chance that a few pieces are going to fall to the ground.

A New Friend Hitched A Ride

Folk's Butterfly Farm
Bloomsburg Fair (2014)

We stopped to feed the butterflies at the Bloomsburg Fair and this little fellow decided to perch on my nose for a little while.

A Night At The Movies

Horticulture Hall
Bloomsburg Fair (2014)

The theme of Horticulture Hall this year was "A Night At The Movies".

Riding Above The Bloomsburg Fair

Sky Ride
Bloomsburg Fair (2014)
This year, I bit the bullet and rode the Sky Ride at the Bloomsburg Fair.  I'm not too crazy about heights, so this is a big deal for me.  Heights from places like an airplane, or being on a high floor of a tall building, or even riding a roller coaster never bothered me because they're the kinds of places where falling to the ground are extremely unlikely.  However, any heights from which I could conceivably fall just for being clumsy or from one small thing going wrong tend to really freak me out.

I'm not going to pretend that I wasn't a little scared, but it was still a hell of a lot of fun!

Fair Food

Bloomsburg Fair
Bloomsburg, PA (2014)

The Bloomsburg Fair is one of my favorite things in the world.  It has gotten a lot larger over the years since I started going in the early 80's when I was a child, but no matter how much is added, it somehow feels the same to me every year.  It's a pleasant place to walk around, play some games, ride some rides, look at all of the displays, and generally put the outside world on pause and relax and enjoy yourself for a while.  However, my favorite part of the Fair is the food.

The first thing that I had to eat this year at the Fair was a giant cheeseburger with tomato, mushrooms, onions, and nacho cheese from Gordy's Steakburger stand.

Next up was a hot apple dumpling with a side of cinnamon ice crema from the Bissinger's tent.  It's the best four dollars you could ever spend on the fairgrounds.

 

I didn't take a picture of it, and it really wouldn't do it justice if I had, but one of our annual traditions is to get an apple cider float from The Apple Cart to bring back to the tables near the fountain in the Agricultural Building.  It's just a simple styrofoam cup with a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream and fresh apple cider poured to the top of the cup.  It's delicious!

Last, but not least, we both had a delicious hot roast beef sandwich from Top Of The Beef.  It made the perfect end to a perfect day at the Bloomsburg Fair.

How To Use Discontinued Products To Earn A Promotion

Chocobake
Nestle Toll House (2013)

Today was my second interview for the role of project trainer for the Nestle CBI team.  The first interview went very well, but I think I really nailed it in the second, and I owe it all to this discontinued product.  The second interview for this job is to facilitate a training to the project managers.  The content and methods used in the training are entirely up to you.

One of the more common drivers for consumer contacts across all channels is from people who are either looking for Chocobake or who know that it has been discontinued and are asking for it to be brought back.  The bad news is that the company has no intentions of bringing it back to the market, but the good news is that you can replicate it very easy using Nestle Baking Cocoa and vegetable oil.  Our representatives give the recipe for this all the time, whether it's over the phone, in an email, or in a good old fashioned letter in the mail (if that is how the consumer contacted us).  However, we've never had the team get together in the test kitchen to produce this very simple recipe, so that was the subject of my training.  I had the baking cocoa, vegetable oil, and all of the kitchen utensils ready, as well as some old Chocobake product to serve as a comparison.  I then gave a presentation on the background of the product (including examples of consumer contacts) and instructions on how to replicate it before walking both managers through the steps to produce their own Chocobake.  While the managers were comparing what they made to the old Chocobake product, one of them asked me for examples of how this product is used in a recipe.  It was a follow-up question I was hoping that they would ask, because bam... here's a dozen recipes from Very Best Baking spanning the past three decades of things that call for Chocobake as an ingredient.

I have never walked out of an interview feeling this confident.  This went as perfectly as I could have hoped for!

Don't Treat Me Like Potato

Happy We'll Be Living Under The Sea

The Snorks
Hanna-Barbera (1984)
Thirty years ago, The Snorks debuted on NBC.