Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make!  ~Bram Stoker

View from my tree stand in Cortland, NY … 1st day of deer season 11/21/15

Let me explain my reasoning for using this quote, which was selected more for my own personal humor.  It’s a famous quote, basically showing the correlation between Dracula and wild animals.  Bram Stoker was referring to the werewolves.  Plus, let’s not forget there’s the underlying theme of Dracula being a hunter.  (I think I’m going to add this book to my list of reads.)  Everyone knows who, not what, Dracula hunted, although perhaps he too hunted deer in his off time.

Out of shear curiosity, I looked up hunting in Transylvania, and they actually have red, fallow and roebuck deer!  A little fun fact.  One day, I’d like to take dad to hunt there.  I bet it’d be fun.

Anyway, focusing on good old white tail deer, during rifle season in Western Pennsylvania, a few weeks ago, the hunting season began.  I wish I had stories to tell from fall turkey, but alas I was really busy with Thrill of the Hunt and prepping to take time off for deer season that I wasn’t able to go.  Perhaps, I’ll be able to participate in small game and spring gobbler for the remainder of my 2015 – 2016 hunting license.  We’ll see.

Larry adding ribbons to the trees, while Dad drove behind. Larry gave us a tour of the woods we were hunting in, & helped us get ready for the 1st day of deer. 11/20/15

Looking back on this entire season, it started off the same with the Hunting Adventures – The Goose Hunt and ended much the same with Pennsylvania deer.  How so?  Let me explain.

Dad and I went to Cortland, New York, as we do every year for the first day of rifle for deer, which began on Saturday, November 21st, a little over a week before Pennsylvania’s season began.  This year, we hunted in a different area, one that clearly showed signs of populated deer.  Promising right?  You bet!  Dad was positioned one side of the woods, while I was on the other end.  Prior to hunting on Saturday, a good friend of dad’s who we stayed with, showed us our new hunting spots the day prior.  Good to go!

Dad and I each had a buck and a doe tag.  How many deer did we get total?  Zero.  How many deer did we see between the two of us?  Nada.  Seriously?  Yes!  By Saturday night, everyone in our group got a buck, but no one saw a single doe.  It was the strangest thing, usually the opposite happens.  Then, for me and dad to not see a single deer, no one could believe it.  Well, it happens.

View from my tree stand in Indiana, PA. Love the morning view! 11/30/15

From what I was told, that area of New York, off the finger lakes, had a really rough winter last year ,and it killed off a bunch of deer.  Oh well, I was happy to see everyone else harvested at least one deer.  Keep in mind, that was just opening day.  Dad and I were going to continue hunting until we filled our tags, or Thanksgiving came first, forcing us home.

Sunday came, and yes you’re allowed to hunt on Sunday’s in New York, but another nothing.  No deer sightings at all.  Monday.  Zip.  Tuesday.  Zilch.  Wednesday.  Nada.  How many deer did we see?  Total between the two of us?  That’s a big fat zero.  We even moved to different locations throughout the week to increase our chances, but alas no deer.  I told Dad and Larry, I suspected the deer intercepted their phone conversations and had us bugged to avoid us.  Honestly, I had a great season last year so I can’t complain.  It’s a bit disappointing and anticlimactic, but it’s apart of the hunting experience.  Sometimes you see deer, sometimes you don’t, sometimes you see a trophy buck, sometimes you don’t even see a buck.  We left Wednesday to head home, after trying our luck in the woods again, but to no avail.

On a side note, Larry gave us his doe he shot later in the week.  That wasn’t necessary, but very kind of him.  Larry felt bad for our lack of adventure, but I don’t think he realized we had fun regardless.  Hanging with Dad in the woods is always a nice time.  I told Dad, that the deer he gave us to take home felt like a consolation prize.  Dad laughed and agreed with me, but was also very appreciative over the gesture.

One of my spots while hunting in New York. Waiting for Dad to pick me up to call it a day. 11/24/15

I’m glad we made it back by Wednesday night, to spend some time with Kyle.  I was also able to help mom cook and prep for Thanksgiving dinner, which Kyle joined us.

After a short hiatus, the first day of buck in Pennsylvania began on Monday, November 30th.  Dad and I were both really excited, thinking our luck was going to change.  Unlike New York, we were only allowed to shoot buck on Monday, three points or better.  The night before, I was joking with Dad saying, I forgot what a deer looks like in the woods.  Dad began to tease me and tell friends and family that I was the reason we didn’t see any deer.  We were both giggling over our New York experience, and we were ready to bring home some deer meat.

By eight or nine in the morning, I saw a few doe.  To be honest, it was nice just seeing the deer, however no horns.  At the end of the day when dad pulled the quad up to my stand to pick me up, neither of us had anything to drag out.  Dad didn’t see anything!  He was happy to hear I saw about thirteen doe, although I’m not sure if they were all different, or the same group running around.  Still, good sign.

Naturally, I have social fun while deer hunting. If Dad knew, I’d be the one shot, not the deer!

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to hunt on the first day of doe, that Saturday, but dad did.  He went into my tree stand and harvested a doe in the morning.  Yeah!  Finally something for our efforts.

I hunted sporadically with dad the rest of the season, again at different locations.  Can you believe we never saw a single deer?  Not one deer after Dad got his doe!  On the last day of deer season, Saturday, December 12th, which happened to be my birthday, and Mom and Dad’s 64th wedding anniversary, we never saw a deer.  This time we were hunting in Stahlstown.  We even had guys pushing for us, but nothing, not even an almost sighting, or a waving tail.

I didn’t realize our goose hunt started a trend we couldn’t shake the entire deer season, from New York to Pennsylvania.  The season might have been a bust with respect to harvesting deer meat, but to be honest, I had a great time with Dad.  It’s funny, when we came home on Saturday, Dad made the exact same comment about having fun even though no one took a single shot.  Like me, Dad loves being in the woods, walking around, and being removed from the hustle and bustle of life.  Sure, it’s always nice to accomplish your goal of filling the deer tags, but it’s also about the experience and spending time together.

I’m sure in years to come, we’ll talk about this adventure.  I hope so, for it’s a great memory!  The only thing missing was Kyle.

The unendurable is the beginning of the curve of joy.  ~Djuna Barnes

Love seeing Kyle happy! Kiski Marching Band Light Up Night Vandergrift, PA 11/27/15

Well, Kyle’s first year of marching band with Kiski has come to an end.  I know it’s a bitter sweet moment for him, as well as the rest of the students, for they’ve had quite a year, mostly in rain.

The 2015 Kiski Marching Band theme was Origins.  A little out there, pun totally intended, but very original.  From their scores and metals, evidently the judges enjoyed the show and understood the abstract meaning in the orbs.  You see, Kiski performed on the field with four very large orange orbs (rubber balls).  When the students came in close proximity to the orbs during their performance, they were said to gain knowledge.  Basically they did funky poses and choreography.  The colorguard really used the orbs for some fun routines!

The students worked really hard all year, putting in long Saturday practices, plus a few days a week, and Friday night football games.  Kyle experienced his first band camp this past August, and now he knows what it’s like to be apart of a team working toward the same goal, to be the best of their ability, and to perform like no one else.  Did that happen?  You bet it did!

On the few occasions I’ve seen their show in its entirety, I was thoroughly impressed!  Seriously.  Not because Kyle is my little man, I’d be proud of him no matter what the band looked like, but because they were seriously good.  So good in fact, their show placed them first in a few competitions locally, even beating Norwin, which is not be taken lightly.

This year, Kiski Area Marching Band also participated in the Bands of American Regional Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana on Friday, November 13th (the same day Dad and I went goose hunting), along with 95 other bands.  It was Kyle’s very first trip with the band, and a big one at that.  I’m glad Kyle got that experience, and I couldn’t have been happier for him, even though he came back sick.

Kyle’s in the middle also wearing an elf hat! I about died when I saw that perched on his head! Kiski Marching Band, Vandergrift, PA 11/27/15

How did Kyle do?  From what I was told, not by Kyle, because trying to pry any information from that kid, especially without an attitude is next to impossible, but everyone did really well.  Their Friday performance was so good, they placed first, moving them to the next level and allowing them to perform on Saturday.  Overall, Kiski placed second in their division.  Good job!

On Friday, November 27th, Kyle marched his last parade of 2015, for Light Up Night in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania.  It was a fun and relaxed event for the students.  They showed their holiday spirit by decorating their instruments, and sometimes themselves with Christmas lights and such.  Did Kyle get into it?  He did!

In fact, I was asked to chaperon the parade, which I happily did, and I was actually taken back by Kyle’s attire.  He was dressed in full Kiski Marching Band uniform, however, all the tuba players were wearing creative hats, or I should say elf hats, totally out of Kyle’s character.  As I walked up to the boys, my eyes caught sight of the item perched on top of Kyle’s head.  I instantly giggled, not trying to make fun, and I blurted, “What’s on your head?”  Even Kyle gave me a funny snicker, knowing what I was thinking, basically this is out of his character.

This is the attitude when Kyle is asked to get his picture taken… it’s almost too comical when he’s wearing an elf hat! Kiski Marching Band Light Up Night Vandergrift, PA 11/27/15

On a side note, Kyle is still trying to ignore me, like I’m ever going anywhere.  Fat chance buddy!

While the band was practicing, I couldn’t resist taking pictures, which ticked Kyle off.  I about died, when he started to throw a temper tantrum about me shooting some footage, when his fellow tuba player stepped in and said, “Get over it Piper!”  Kyle gave a smirk, especially when I gave the kid a high five.

At one point, I was in charge of passing out water.  Naturally, seeing Kyle, I approached him, pushing my water bottle case at his side, giving him the hint.  He wouldn’t take one so I left, to take care of the other students who appreciated me and my water supply.  Shortly after, I saw Kyle drinking water!  I knew it!  I knew he was thirsty!  I looked at him in surprise, at the same time he looked down at his water, and he gave me a huge ornery grin, knowing what I was thinking.  Jokingly, I said, “You wouldn’t take water from me, but you’d take it from someone else?!”  He almost choked while drinking, laughing at the situation.  Nothing else needed said.

Ah, good times.  It’s nice to see Kyle enjoying himself and having fun with his friends.  I’m really excited to see him enjoy band.  Can’t wait for next year!

And yes Kyle, I’m going to continue chaperoning, every chance I get!  So suck it up buttercup!  I’m your blood, your Aunt Heather, and I’m not going anywhere, EVER.

Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but of playing a poor hand well.  ~Robert Louis Stevenson

View from our goose blind in Pymatuning State Park. Yes, those are decoys .. 11/13/15

I blinked, and a month just passed me.  I guess this is the time of year everyone experiences the same.  For me, I’ve not only been busy with Thrill of the Hunt, but hunting season is in full throttle.  It’s been an interesting season thus far, so let me recap.

First, I’d like to mention, that on the Friday of goose hunting, Kyle was in Indiana for Nationals Marching Band Competition.  He also chose not to hunt this year.  Why?  I’m not sure.  He says it’s because he’s too busy with band, but truth be told, I believe he’s just not into hunting.  There isn’t anything wrong with that.  I too took a sabbatical in my late teens and twenties.  Between colorguard, winterguard, indoor drumline (senior year), work, college and becoming an independent adult, it seemed like there wasn’t enough time to add hunting.  I almost wished I didn’t, but then again I don’t regret it.  Although, I wish I would’ve had the opportunity to hunt with Ryan before he passed.  I mean Ryan came along when I started hunting, but he wasn’t old enough.  At least, I was able to be apart of Kyle’s hunting origins.  Perhaps, Kyle’s a lot like me with respect to hunting, growing an interest and appreciation for it later in life.  Whatever he decides I’m on board, but I truly missed him.

Now let me recap last month’s hunting adventures, starting with goose hunting.

Dad was playing lookout at Pymatuning State Park. Goose Hunting 11/13/15

Friday, November 13th – Goose Hunting in Pymatuning State Park (about 60 miles south of Erie, Pennsylvania)
This year was the first in about twenty years that dad was issued his goose blinds in Pymatuning!  Let me tell you, he was really excited, as was I.

I’m no stranger to Pymatuning State Park.  My parents had good friends, (two of the brothers who joined us on our hunt), had a cabin in that area.  We’d go camping in the summer, and feed bread to the carp at the Spillway on the Pymatuning Reservoir.  Yes, there are so many carp, the ducks actually walk on their heads.

So what does it mean to get a goose blind?  It means that dad was allowed to go goose hunting on his assigned day and bring four other guests.  Naturally, I was his number one choice!  The other two who joined us were Dave and Dean Shober.

The rules are very clear.  Like what?  We’re only allowed to hunt from sunrise, which was at 6:34 am till 12:30 pm, and checking out by 1:30 pm.  They clearly listed the rules as we walked in to get registered, as well as reiterated once we drew our blind number.  I can’t remember all the rules, but we weren’t allowed to shoot more than thirty to fifty yards away.  They encouraged waiting till the geese or ducks landed (not always practical).  We weren’t permitted to sky blast as they called it.  Of course, we were only allowed to use ten steel shot shells per person (total of forty shots out of one blind) and one goose or duck per person.  Do they count?  You bet they do!

Now for the fun part, the events of the day.  We leave mom and dad’s house around 1:00 am to arrive really early, about 4:00 am or so.  Registration wasn’t until 5:00 am (one and a half hours before sunrise).  Then, walking in, the first thing they do is ask for your Pennsylvania hunting license, goose stamp (an actual stamp purchased at the post office, which had to be signed) and the migratory bird license (another purchase).  All this to shoot one goose?  Yep.  Did we have everything required?  Yes, kinda.

Calling it a day, goose hunting at Pymatuning State Park. 11/13/15

In fact, I decided to be in charge of packing the required paperwork for me and dad.  The Shober brothers went in line first.  Everything checked out.  Done.  Now dad and I were up, with a minor problem.  We didn’t have our hunting licenses.  Really?  Kinda.  You see, I grabbed the doe tags thinking we just needed to prove we had a license, after all we couldn’t have our doe tags without having a license.  Boy I was wrong.  Apparently, those are tags and not the actual license.  The license was at the top of all the tags with a bar code on it.  Seriously?  In all the years I’ve been hunting, and been around hunting (my entire life) I never knew that. I thought the tag was the license.  Nope.  Apparently, they needed to punch a stamp in the actual license.  Oops.

Of course, the game commissioner had to pull us aside and look up our information and such.  Obviously, we had our Pennsylvania hunting license, or we couldn’t have presented our doe tags, but whatever.  Eventually, after much lecture and warning, he graciously let us hunt, since we were legit and we drove a large distance to hunt.  Dave said, “Once I heard you had no license I was ready to get back in the truck and go home, thinking they would never allow us to hunt.  Then, both of you didn’t bring your license!  I thought there’s no way!”  Ye of little faith.

Did you know the entire time, dad never threw me under the bus?  Ever.  He even stood up for me and concurred with my logic.

While we piled back in the truck to head to our blind (#18) I told the guys not to bring it up because it was my fault.  Dave said, “That doesn’t matter, it’s still Ron’s fault and he’s never gonna live this down.” as the guys laughed, ready to give a life long torment to dad.

Funny Stories

Dad, Dean, Dave creeping on the geese at Pymatuning State Park, PA 11/13/15

Now to the bat cave.  Not really, but to our blind.  We followed the map, and parked in the designated area, but no one really knew the actual location of our assigned blind.  Plus, it was around 5:30 am, still very dark.  In front of the truck sat a field.  The Shober’s thought we might need to hike back in there to get to our blind, but one knew for sure, until a stranger spoke up.  Another hunter must’ve overheard our conversation and pointed us in the right direction, which was the complete opposite of where we were heading.  Can you imagine, four hunters, dressed in total camouflage, walking around with large geese decoys, totting shot guns, in a mystery field of tall grass, in the pitch black?  Now that would have made for a GREAT story!

As we approached our blind, all four of us stopped to stare in disbelief.  We were expecting a small space among the corn field with four tiny stools.  Nope.  Instead, we landed ourselves the Taj Mahal, the luxury blind!  It was a well built enclosed structure complete with seats for everyone, shelves to set drinks and food, notches for the shot guns to lean safely, four half walls and a swing door.  The front structures had panels to remove in case additional visuals were needed, and the roof retracted back to accommodate sky shots.  Perfect!

When we were getting ready, Dave pulled out this light that wraps around his head, similar to the ones dad and I have.  He showed me his features including high and low beams and some read flashing lights.  Wow!  He had the Lexus of head lamps!  Me and dad?  Ours was a very simple on/off light that did tilt (although dad figured that out a week later after we basically had to wear the headlamps between our eyes to get the right angle).  Boy did that spark comments between the guys.  Dave kept asking dad to turn on his low beams, knowing dad didn’t have that option.  They were cracking me up!

Then, let’s discuss placing the decoys.  First of all, it was pitch black when we initially placed them.  The guys had me count out about fifty feet from our post to give us a general idea of distance.  After what should have been a simple activity, seemed to be a chaotic dance ritual.  Did I mention, Dave kept high beaming dad when talking to him?  I was dying!  Then, after playing musical chairs inside the blind, we got situated.  As soon as we could see our decoys, Dean decided to rearrange furniture again.  He also gave us a dissertation on his reasoning behind the placement.  Too much!  Personally, I didn’t care, I was just having fun laughing at the guys acting like kids.  Dean did give some some fun facts, like geese land flying into the wind and take off the same.  The wind was actually at our backs that day.

Dad, Dean & Dave, leaving our luxury goose blind at Pymatuning State Park 11/13/15

Now onto the face mask.  A few times, the geese were headed our way and we thought they were going to land and mingle with our decoys.  We all ducked behind the blind, concealing ourselves.  Can you image watching a bunch of grown men, dressed head to toe in camouflage, scurrying to hide from flying geese?  Then, what came next almost made me fall off my seat laughing.  Dave places this camouflage mesh face mask over his face, tucked under his hat, to peek out over the wall.  He announced, “I don’t see any geese.”  What?  There was an entire flock flying our way.  Dean decided to inspect the situation.  He pulled his camouflage hat low over his face and creeped up to look over the wall.  He said, “There right there Dave!”  I couldn’t handle it!  They were like Laurel and Hardy!  Even dad busted out laughing.  This didn’t just happen once, but a few times.

I felt like I was in a hen house with all the chattering going on.  What were they talking about?  You name it.  They were telling past and present stories of deer hunting, geese hunting, fishing, and all things guys.  On our way up to Pymatuning, we actually saw a driver on route 30 clip the hindquarter of a doe.  Dad tried not to hit it, but as soon as he was finally able to stop completely, Dave who was sitting in the passenger side, saw the deer’s head moving around not going anywhere.  To evaluate the situation, dad put the truck in reverse.  We felt the truck lift and drop as we drove back over the deer.  Yikes!  I was expecting the worse, but as soon as that happened, the deer got up and ran off.  Dad had it pinned under the truck!  Only later did that become part of the taunting with respect to the doe tags.  “Ron should have tagged the doe since he brought his doe tags to geese hunt.” and “Since Ron brought his doe tags, we should go deer hunting.”  I simply shook my head, laughing along with them.

At one point, the guys noticed another blind up the hill removed their decoys all together.  So our crew chose to follow suite thinking they had some goose insider.  Again, we had to leave our blind, which according to the rules, was only permitted if absolutely necessary.  I turned around to find dad holding two decoys, one under each arm like he was flying.  He was flapping his wings and cracking himself up.  He was like a little kid having fun with his friends.

It was a really windy and cold day, but one worth it.  I was torn between going to watch Kyle and go goose hunting with dad.  I would have won with either decision.  Did we eventually fill our tags and get our geese?  Nope.  Did anyone take a shot?  Nope.  Did the geese even come remotely close?  Nope.  Did we have a great time?  You bet!  I can’t wait to go again!  I bet Kyle would enjoy himself if he came.

murders row

Authority without wisdom is like a heavy axe without an edge, fitter to bruise than polish.  ~Anne Bradstreet

Close up of Kyle playing his sousaphone during their show (Origins) 10/23/15

I’ve always been involved with Kyle in some fashion or another, on all aspects of his life.  Was this a requirement for being Kyle’s Aunt Heather?  Well, no, but in good conscience, yes.  That was my choice made the day Kyle was born. (Honestly, I probably made that decision before then, when I saw the joy in Ryan’s eyes upon the anticipation of his son.)  Regardless, some of my influences and involvement have been necessary.  I always wanted to support Kyle in his interests, activities and friends, as well as his scholastic goals, his physical fitness, and most importantly his spiritual well-being.  For no other reason than for him, not for my own pride, my personal gain or anything of the such.  Being directly involved was the way I knew how to make this happen.

A few weeks ago, I received an email asking me to chaperon a Friday night football game for the band, and a Saturday night band competition.  Apparently, there was a last minute cancellation from a chaperon due to an injury.  Would I accept the challenge?  Of course!  Actually, I was beyond excited.  Okay, perhaps I do have a little bit of personal gain in volunteering.  What do I get out it?  I not only get to assist, but I also receive the opportunity to see Kyle grow as a young man, and experience his happiness while doing something he loves and he’s proud of.  That’s what makes it worth it.

Did Kyle know I was chaperoning?  Nope.  On my defense, neither did I until two days prior.  I would have called Kyle to give him a heads up, but he was still going through this phase of not answering my text messages or my calls, so I thought the heck with him, he’ll see me when he does.

Kyle with his sousaphone line. Their show is called Origins 10/23/15

Was Kyle happy?  Not in the slightest.  It was a quick reminder those days of volunteering for the PTA, and participating in Santa’s workshop were over.  Those were the good old days when Kyle would see me way down the hall in school, and he’d wave in desperation to get my attention.  The days he actually would tell parents, students, teachers, everyone, I was his Aunt Heather, and was proud of it.  The days he wanted to hang with me, and loved my involvement.  Yep, while lining up to get ready for the parade prior to the game, I was reminded those days are long gone.

While the kids were arriving and putting the final touches on their uniforms, they retreated into smaller groups to practice.  I was geared in my own Band Chaperon embroidered shirt.  On a side note, this is how much I love Kyle.  The shirts are canary yellow.  Yellow!  Anyone who knows me, is aware of my aversion, actually my revulsion for yellow.  The school colors are blue and yellow, and I get why they chose the less desirable color because we stand out for the students, but yuck!  Anyway, I never saw Kyle during all the confusion, that is until he was sporting his sousaphone.  How could anyone miss that instrument?

Kyle’s Marching Band performance – Origins 10/23/15

Surprisingly, I knew one of the band parents from the PTA.  In fact, she brought Kyle along with her son and another student.  She told me she asked Kyle if I was chaperoning on Saturday, seeing my name on the list.  Kyle’s response?  “I don’t know.”  That’s my little man.

Did I talk to Kyle?  Of course, who couldn’t resist?  Not wanting to make the night miserable for my sousaphone player, I kept my distance, but I had to acknowledge him at least once.  Upon setting up in formation for the parade, (the band marched through town to the football stadium), I nudged his arm to say hello.  Naturally, I was sporting a huge stupid grin.  Kyle on the other hand looked confused and almost disgusted.  Whatever.  I was there not only to support him, but his fellow band members.  I had a job to do!

I kept my promise to myself, and never called Kyle out, nor did I infringe on his personal space.  Although, while we (the band parents) were passing out water to the students, Kyle tried to dodge past me.  He literally ducked and weaved.  I never saw such fancy footwork from that kid!  Okay, now my maturity surfaced.  I instantly leaned in his direction, to get his attention and said, “Kyle, don’t you need water?  Kyle! KYLE!”  That brought a huge smile to my face, as well as to a few students witnessing such a strange exchange.  Kyle wouldn’t look up, he only shook his head and darted past me.  Am I that repulsive?

Kyle’s kneeling in position during the Kiski Marching Band show (Origins) 10/23/15

Throughout the night, some of the other parents commented, that they couldn’t believe what a cold shoulder Kyle was giving me.  I just shrugged and laughed it off.

The Saturday band competition was much of the same.  The only difference, I was preoccupied helping out and Kyle, as well as the other students, were feeling the stress and anxiety of competition.  It was a horribly rainy day and night.  While standing in our rain gear, getting organized, I turned around to find I was in close proximity to Kyle the entire time!  I had no idea, and I know he didn’t either, since my rain hood was up and I was wearing a YELLOW band raincoat.  I wanted to say “Hi'” and leave it at that, but Kyle’s evasive demeanor pushed me to be a stinker.  Again, I couldn’t help myself.  I suddenly felt a desire to be irritating.

What did I do?  Nothing terrible, at least not in my eyes.  Standing beside Kyle was his fellow tuba player.  I simply said hello to him, and he responded with a very polite hello back, albeit a little confused.  I continued, “I’m Kyle’s Aunt Heather.”  Kyle’s face was priceless.  He started to laugh and look away, trying to escape the situation he knew was going to happen.  I continued, “I’m Kyle’s really cool Aunt, even though he doesn’t know it and won’t admit to it.”  Now the boy was flashing looks between Kyle and myself, wearing the biggest grin, mimicking my facial expression.  He was such a nice kid, he only said, “Yeah, everyone has a cool Aunt.”  Taking that as my cue, I replied, “Yeah!  That’s me!”  We laughed for a few seconds before moving along.  I figured my job was complete.  Kyle kept his face turned away from us, probably rolling his eyes.

Kiski Marching Band Show – Origins. Kyle playing during the show 10/23/15

Did Kyle ever mention that exchange to me again?  Nope.  And I don’t care, I wanted to be there with Kyle, and that’s that.  I want to help celebrate his wins and support him with his losses.  That’s what family does.

Kiski won first place at the Gateway competition.  Right after the announcement, I searched the crowd for my little man.  Surprisingly, I spotted Kyle among all those similarly dressed students instantly.  He was hugging other students and celebrating their win.  That’s a memory I filed away, for he was truly happy and I was proud of him.

I wanted someone to get a picture of the two of us, Kyle in his band uniform and I in my chaperon shirt, but I didn’t want to push the situation.  Perhaps another time.

I hope I’m called upon to chaperon down the road.  Some of the parents already asked if I could join them for Grand Nationals in Indianapolis.  But alas, I’ll be goose hunting with dad and a few of his friends near Erie.  I was thinking about heading out to Indiana after we were done hunting, but Kiski was scheduled to perform on Friday, the day of the hunt.  Next time.

2015 Kiski Marching Band – Origins 10/23/15

On another side note, I finally was formally introduced to Kyle’s band director.  He sat behind me on the Gold bus.  During our little bit of chitchat, I asked why he moved Kyle from the trumpet to the sousaphone.  He said, “Honestly, Kyle was having a hard time hitting the high notes, but he’s a natural sousaphone player.”  Good to know.  Then, I shared with him, Kyle’s ability to play the piano and somewhat the guitar.  He was surprised, not knowing this information.  I’m not sure why Kyle refuses to admit to his talents, but I took care of that one too.

Kiski Marching Band is pretty stellar.  They also have a great support team, which is so good for the kids.  It’s also nice to see such family involvement.  After the competition on Saturday night, we actually had a police escort all the way back to the school.  Once the buses rounded the bend to the loading dock, the parents were lined up in their cars waiting for our champions.  Illuminating the night, they held up these light spinners, and hoked their horns cheering on the band.  Great support!

Good luck Kiski during Grand Nationals!  You guys are truly talented!

Good books tell the truth, even when they’re about things that never have been and never will be. They’re truthful in a different way.  ~Stanisław Lem

Kyle taking the controls of a Piper, getting ready to hit the open skies for his 9th birthday. 7/30/10

The other day, I was speaking with a few friends of mine.  About what exactly?  Well, you name it, we covered most standard topics, but this part of the story was about Kyle and my belief in giving him unconventional gifts.  In honor of his birthday tomorrow, I thought this was appropriate.

I’ve mentioned it previously, as a child, Kyle always had way too much.  Too many toys, toys of all varieties, and he most certainly didn’t need anymore, especially from me.  Now that he’s a teenager, he has too many video games, and spends way too much time on them.  Do you see a pattern?

Since the birthday gifts I get Kyle are never the standard, go to the store and wrap them, type of presents, they need a fair amount of planning.  My goal here?  To get others thinking about gift giving in a nontraditional way, like I do.  Here are a few gift givings of years past.

So what do you get a child that is spoiled and flooded with their desirable material goods, at that particular moment in life?  Easy, spoil them with attention, love, knowledge, and opportunities.  How does one do this?  Simply with unconventional gifts.

First, what do I consider an unconventional gift?  In my eyes, unconventional gifts come with some sort of bonding or learning aspect.   They may also include life experiences to be engrained in the child forever, or skills to be used later in life.  Of course, these are very subjective, but it’s a place to start.

When Kyle was a tiny, tiny little baby, it’s true, I did get him toys.  One in particular was a large metal Optimus Prime transformer.  It was really cool!  It even spoke when a button was pushed, with a serious of prerecorded standard phrases including the noise the transformers make when changing from vehicle to robot or visa verse.  I believe that was the last toy I purchased Kyle.  He played with it for a short period of time, and I don’t think I saw it after that.  In fact, I have no idea what ever happened to it.  That’s when I decided to think of gifts for him differently.

Kyle celebrating his 5th birthday at Seabase in Greensburg. Bumper car fun! 7/2005

Wanting Kyle to have every opportunity in the world at his fingertips, and to be exposed to all things to help him grow as a goodhearted honest person in every aspect, I knew there was more value in gift giving then instant gratification.  It was time to pull out the thinking cap.  And I did in a big way!  I wish I recorded my gifts to Kyle when he was younger, but alas, I did not, so I’m not always exactly sure which gift went with which celebration, but not really relevant to this post anyway.

Secondly, what constitutes a celebration worthy of gift giving?  Of course, there’s the standard birthdays and Christmas.  However, I also give Kyle a gift for Easter, and I’ve been known to give him something for summer or for no particular reason.  Well, actually the reason would include a good deed, or good behavior, or to cheer him up due to illness, or sometimes just to surprise him.  That’s about it.  I don’t believe in turning every occasion into an excuse to spoil our little man more.  I don’t ever want him to grow up to expect material items from anyone, ever!

Please note, Kyle’s a great kid, he truly is!  So when I talk about spoiling him, it’s out of love.  He is certainly apart of this instant gratification generation, not waiting in anticipation or really working for things.  Who’s fault is that?  The family, me included, but I’m certainly not the main culprit.

Finally, what gifts have I given Kyle that fell under the classification of unconventional?  Here’s a brief list.  The items range in entertainment value, quality time, fundamental learning aspects, and some just plain different, or a combination of all things.

Athletics

Swimming.  Kyle took swimming lessons once a week, all year long at the local YMCA from the time he was five years old to about ten or eleven years.  It was our time together and now he’s a great swimmer, and has no issues with being in water of all depth levels.

Gymnastics. He stayed in gymnastics for less than a year.  Even though Kyle was not the athletic type, it was great for him to run around and learn certain skills, such as doing jumping jacks and tumbling.  Again it was our bonding time, and I loved it.  Plus, he was able to socialize with other kids.

Soccer.  Kyle was really little when I had him in soccer, probably about three.  He never did understand the game, not that I could have helped him.  As a general rule, everyone knows I have no clue about sports.  He had the opportunity to have fun, socialize with other kids, and gained a great cardio workout.

Basketball.  I signed Kyle up to play on a basketball league, again through the YMCA.  My sister once asked me why?  I remarked, “I don’t expect him to get a call from the NBA, but if he ever wants to go shoot hoops with his friends, he would be familiar with dribbling and shooting baskets.  So he’s not singled out.”  Small skills that could be most invaluable to Kyle later in life.

Snowboarding.  When Kyle was four, I purchased him snowboarding lessons, which he loved!  Then, for a few years after that, I’d purchase him his season tickets for the slops, along with his rental and accessories (coats, pants, helmet etc.)  Again, it was always something we did together and enjoyed being outside in God’s country up in the mountains.  Neither one of us have been able to hit the slopes in the last couple of years, but I think we’ll both get back into it, maybe next year.

Music

Kyle’s piano recital.  Yes I made him wear a suit, the one he wore for his 1st Holy Communion  5/17/09

Piano lessons & Keyboards.  Kyle received a keyboard to practice at my parent’s house, and one for his mom’s house, since his time was equally split.  This was for his sixth birthday, I believe, and the lessons continued until last August, right after he turned twelve.  Again, it was our quality time together, or whoever took him.  He also showed an interest in music early on, so I complied.  I believe this education really fine tuned his brain, and gave him an appreciation for music.  Since that time, Kyle took up the trumpet in school, joined the jazz band, and now started playing the tuba in the marching band.  He’s very accomplished at reading music, too.

Guitar and lessons.  Originally Kyle wanted to rock out on the guitar.  I made a deal with him, if he learned to play the piano, I’d get him guitar lessons.  He kept up his end of the deal, as did I.  For Christmas one year, I bought him a guitar and lessons.  He took to it very well, but never practiced enough to really be able to play.  He could strum the strings without looking at his fingers and follow along in his music books.  He took lessons off and on for a few years, and then called it quits.  He continued with the piano lessons at this time.  Most would say, playing both instruments at the same time, at a young age was too much for Kyle.  I completely disagree.  He had the talent and the knowledge to do so.  However, Kyle doesn’t like doing anything alone.  If I could have played with him, and practiced along side my musician, he would have excelled.  Alas, I have no music ability.  Hence why I want him to be so much better than me, at everything!

Entertainment/Culture/Education

Lion King tickets and dinner.  For one Christmas, I purchased Kyle and the family tickets to see the Lion King at the Pittsburgh Benedium Theater.  It was a nice way to spend an evening with the family, while being exposed to culture.  Prior to this, Kyle loved the cartoon, The Lion King, as well as the music.  So therefore, I thought he’d enjoy the musical.  He did!  In a big way.  Although when asked about it in his early teens, Kyle doesn’t remember going.  Sad.  Kyle and I actually spent the entire day in Pittsburgh together, hanging out at the Carnegie Museum (mostly among dinosaurs) before meeting my parents and my sister for dinner and then off to the theater.

LegoFest Tickets.  Anything to do with Legos used to be the thing to get Kyle.  So when I saw LegoFest was planning on making an appearance in Pittsburgh, I jumped at the chance to get us tickets.  As expected, it was a hit.  Everyone gave Kyle money to purchase Legos, which only added to his experience and made it complete.  We were there all day, before returning to get a few hours of hunting in.

Kyle’s Piggy Bank. A ceramic pig I made for his fourth birday. It has a cork in the belly area to remove the moola, & a slot one its back to add the cash. Teh eyes are plastic shaking eyes, & it’s equipped with the a metal squiggle tail. 2005

Bricks 4 Kids Lego Camp.  I purchased Kyle two different Lego Camp sessions, one morning and one afternoon, at Saint Vincent College, for a week each.  He was able to socialize with other Lego lovers, and he enjoyed learning about different ways to build certain items.  He was exposed to other ideas and possibilities with Legos, all brightening his week.  Kyle was in heaven!  It also gave him something to do in the summer, instead of playing video games and watching television.  He stayed with me for the week, and I dropped him off, took him lunch, and picked him up at the end of his hard day.  This was a suggestion from Lori Planinsek!  Perfect!

Flash Cards.  One Christmas when Kyle was two years old, I decided to purchase him addition flash cards, as well as workbooks.  Did he put his nose up to them?  NOT AT ALL!  He loved working with me on the workbooks and he would ask me to quiz him on his math flashcards.  Everyone thought that gift was a bust, but in reality, it turned out to be a big hit.  So by the time he was three years old, Kyle was easily adding all numbers.  Soon after that I got him subtraction flashcards.  He did have a little more trouble learning, but not much.  It’s no surprise that math is one of Kyle’s beloved classes that he’s in the advanced program, at least he was until this past year.

Books.  It was always tradition with my family to receive books in our Easter baskets.  I took it a step further and began giving Kyle books for almost all occasions.  Some books I knew he wanted to read, and others I got him to expand his horizon.  Those books became our shared interests, for I read most of them or I wanted to, before purchasing them for Kyle.

Written Books.  With Kyle becoming a teenager, I noticed his interest in reading has become relaxed.  I don’t ever want Kyle to loose his love of reading, especially since it was a struggle getting him to this point.  I get it, he loves his video games, but reading is important too.  So what did I do?  I wrote Kyle a book.  Seriously?  Yep!  It’s roughly a 400 page survival book that takes place in a post apocalyptic world.  It includes hunting, fishing and snowboarding, all things we both love.  I added elements of education and fun trivia to make it informative.  It’s slightly sarcastic and witty and the main characters travel by foot from Colorado to Latrobe, Pennsylvania.  Surprisingly, the book is finished, and the second in the serious has begun.  All that remains is to have it professionally edited for accuracy, and then I’ll have a book printed.

Really?  Yes!  I truly enjoyed writing the book and I thought it’d be something Kyle would enjoy.  What a better way to encourage reading, than by writing a book specifically for my young man.  Once the book is at a point to publicly talk about, I’ll write a post on it. (I also started two other separate books, I’m getting into this writing thing!)  I hope to give Kyle the book for this Christmas.  I’m also planning on designing the cover too, with my own photography.

iPod Touch.  Originally, the iPod Touch was a way for the family to keep in touch with Kyle since he didn’t have a phone yet.  It was also a means to begin working him into a little bit of freedom with electronics, music and the internet, while being monitored.  I setup Kyle with face-time, which he occasionally did with the family.  I also setup his own iTunes account (and some credits) and of course I gave him the iPod with an engraving on the back.  I did place parental controls and a tracker on it.  All of which I explained to Kyle, as well as my reasoning.  I wanted him to be safe, but I never wanted to be sneaky about it or deceitful.  He accepted the terms of the gift, and almost appreciated my concerns.   Of course, he was simply excited to get an iPod Touch!  Since then, it’s been replaced and he’s been hooked up with a laptop and an iPhone 6.  He did get a lot of mileage out of that gift and we benefited too!

Out of the Ordinary/Adventure

Kyle’s King sized quilt I made for his 1st birthday. 7/2002

Quilt.  I wanted to do something really special for Kyle’s first birthday.  I mean the kid was turning one, without knowing his dad, nor would he ever remember his dad.  Ryan passed away nine months prior.  It was a difficult time, but I wanted to help celebrate this every special milestone with Kyle.  I was given the idea to use all of Ryan’s cloths to make Kyle a quilt.  I did!  It ended up being a king size quilt, made from Ryan’s flannel shirts and tee shirts!  To this day, I think that was the best gift I’ve ever given!  It was a long road to making this gift, with the help of friends, but one worth it.  Since then, I’ve never made another again.

Clay Pig.   I’ve always taken clay / ceramics classes, in high school and college.  I love working with clay!  So it’s no surprise that I gave my love of clay, to my beloved nephew, and made him a very unique gift I knew he’d love.  I made him a piggy bank!  Everyone in my clay class knew the pig was for Kyle, for his birthday gift.  At the time Kyle was about four years old and he was learning to count, particularly money.  I was also trying to teach him to save, and to earn enough money to buy himself whatever large gift he wanted.  This was also the time I taught him about tax.  That kid got it.  He could figure out the total of our purchases, including tax before the register would display the answer.  Truly amazing!  To this day, Kyle still stores his moola in the pig, and he knows I made it for him for his birthday.  I’m always thinking of my little man.

On a side note, Kyle mentioned he wanted to go to England and that’s what he was saving his money for.  Good choice! That was about the time Nicole and I traveled abroad.  We spent a lot of time in London.

Kyle getting acclimated to the Piper, before his flying lessons. 9th birthday 7/30/2010

Flying Lessons.  For Kyle’s ninth birthday I thought it’d be fun to get him flying lessons.  YES!  Again, not that I planned on him being a pilot, but it was the experience.  He always mentioned how he was never in a plane, so I thought for his first time defying gratify, we’d do it right and let him fly the open skies, with an instructor, naturally.  Result?  Kyle remembered that experience, and looks at it fondly, almost brags to others about him flying a plane.  I was so happy for him!  It was a fun day.  I even hired a photographer to capture the experience.

Train ride.  I purchased Kyle, my sister and myself train tickets.  We took the train from Latrobe to Johnstown for the day (only about a forty-minute trip).  Granted, it wasn’t exciting, but it was something different.  We rode the incline and explored the town of Johnstown, took a tour of the Flood Museum, and even caught a movie. (Maleficent)  When we got back, we surprised Kyle and celebrated with an ice-cream cake at my parent’s house.  Prior to that trip, I purchased him companion books to the Lord of the Rings.  He began reading one of the books on the train.

Over the years, I’ve had many ideas for gifts, but sometimes it wasn’t the right time, or it was too expensive, or I chose another path, or I haven’t used the idea, YET.  Regardless, I hope others can take my ideas for unconventional gifts and run with them, or get back to me other ideas.  I’d love to hear them!  Here are a few:

• Hot air balloon ride
• Surfing lessons
• A plane ride to Vermont to snowboard for the weekend
• Helicopter flying lessons or a ride
• Movie passes (which I’ve done but not for a special occasion)
• Museum passes
• Bike trip on the Great Allegheny Passage and camping along the 400 miles (I thought it would be fun to bike to Washington DC and have my sister meet us and take us home)
• Volunteer – Instead of getting Kyle anything, we’d spend a day or a week together volunteering somewhere, maybe not local to get us both out of the area and find a new adventure.
• Membership to my gym to participate in the kids class
• A robotics camp or some sort of geeky week with others like him

I know I gave Kyle many, many more gifts, and I’ve had a ton more ideas, but alas they’ve escaped me.  I already know what I’m getting Kyle when he graduates high school.  Really?  You bet I do, and it’s really good!  I’ve had this idea since he was a toddler.  It’s a two part gift, and Kyle’s going to LOVE it.  When the time comes, which is around the corner, I’ll let everyone in on the secret.

Here are a few blog posts about my choices for unconventional gifts:

Good Intentions
Gift of Music – The Final Piano Lesson
Bricks 4 Kids, Kyle’s Lego Camp Birthday Surprise
Family Time Through an iPod Touch
Flying Back to Kyle’s Ninth Birthday
Discovering Our Own Backyard – Johnstown
Memories Sewn Into a Quilt

Cori, Tree & Me at the Cure Concert at the Mellon Arena (now Consol Energy Center) Pittsburgh, Pa. 7/17/96

If you’ve been following along with my previous posts, Pittsburgh – A Night Out in the Big City!  Vol. 1 and Pittsburgh- Night Out in the Big City! Vol. 2, you’ll realize, on the occasion, I make bad decisions.  During this particular night that never ended, I made several really bad decisions.  One after another, after another, after another.

To recap, I took my old car into Pittsburgh when I wasn’t allowed.  Said car broke down, in a tow away zone, in the middle of the ghetto, somewhere.  We were lost beyond hope.  I took a ride to get a new car battery, from a homeless man who lived in his car, who had no breaks and used his emergency break.  Incidentally, that same homeless man, hit a transvestite throwing her/him on the hood of his vehicle, intentionally I might add.  Once the battery was purchased, no one had tools to install it, however we did have candles, naturally.  Now introduce a new stranger, who was completely intoxicated, but had tools.  I took my second ride of evening with that stranger, the drunk one, to return the unused battery, since that wasn’t the cause of the car not starting.  Now you’re caught up … Enjoy the ride!

The drunk man did as promised, and found the store.  It was open!  Kinda.  It appeared closed, but people were standing among the darkness inside.  So I entered the shady establishment, and asked to return my unused battery, that I just purchased.  Surprise!  They refunded me!  My luck was turning around.  At this point, any silver lining was a step in the right direction.

Not sure, Jill, Lori Beanner, Justin Baldonieri, & me at a concert in the Strip District, Pittsburgh, Pa. mid 1990’s

Our drunk driver took us back to our friends and back to my broken down, illegally parked car in the ghetto.  This time, we didn’t hit anyone, but we definitely ran a few red lights.  Giving this stranger some grace, it was late at night with almost no traffic, and beggars can’t be choosers.

Upon approaching the corner store, all three of us, me, Sefo and our drunk driver, saw all the lights dancing around, lighting up our temporary home that resembled a dive convenience store in the middle of the hood, and the center of our demise.  It was the boys in blue.  In a way, I was relieved, yet I wasn’t.

Our drunk friend wasn’t happy to see the police, AT ALL.  He refused to drop us off, and sped past our destination.  I get it, he was drunk and who knows what else controlled him, but let us out!  This once relatively calm drunk man, turned into a frantic freak.  Now I was getting scared.  I know, NOW I decided to become scared, what can I say?  I’m a late bloomer.

The drunk man drove down the street, barely stopping, and ordered me and Sefo to get out and walk back.  We did as instructed and watched the man sped out of sight.  On our way back to the car, I knew I had some explaining to do to the Pittsburgh police.  Obviously, I was illegally parked, and personally I was aware of my Cinderella license, and the rules that accompanied it.  I also knew those flashing lights meant that I was going to pay out the nose for getting lost, figuratively speaking.  Truly, I didn’t care.  In my eyes, no one got hurt and the police were friendlies who swore an oath to serve and protect.  Good enough for me!  From what I’ve experienced thus far, in the short amount time from the conclusion of the concert to this point, the men in blue were a welcoming sight.

Me presenting my shoes in a an odd fashion…Yes I had a runner in my fish net stockings.  Strip District for a concert at the Metropole, Pittsburgh, Pa. mid 1990s

The officer instructed me to move my vehicle or I’d get a ticket.  Seriously?  That was the least of my worries.  I’d gladly accept the ticket if it meant I could get my friends and my car back home safely.  I explained the situation, omitting the details about the homeless man, and the drunk driver, and most importantly the homeless man hitting the transvestite.  No sense in rehashing actions that caused no harm and couldn’t be changed.

What did the police have us do before offering assistance?  They made us push the car back out of the illegal spot and park it along the curb on the street.  Really?  It was late at night and that’s what they were concerned about?  First, I want to say, I’ve never nor would I ever park in a handicap spot.  I was merely beside the convenience store, where it said  No Parking.  Why?  I have no idea.  To me it was a none issue.

What next?  One of my friends sat in the driver’s seat, while we pushed the car away from its current location.  In that time, the cop asked us to try and start the engine again.  We did and voila!  It started!  Are you kidding me?  No, but as soon as it started and it registered with me, the engine turned off again.  Okay, now this I can work with.  My logical side of the brain was telling me something supplying juice to the battery was loose.

The one cop asked me to pop the hood.  I did as directed, this time holding onto every bit of hope I had left, thinking they’d find a solution we overlooked.  We went through the same procedure as before with the same result, nothing.  However, this time we had actual flashlights, as opposed to candle light to look around the engine.  My eyes frantically followed their lights looking for anything out of place or suspicious.  Then, I saw something.  It was a cord snapped in half, near the battery.  Not knowing what it did, or if it was indeed the root of the problem, I just reacted.

What did I do?  This is all one-hundred percent true.  I usually wore berets in my hair, and on this eventful evening, I had a metal beret.  I simply unclipped the beret from my head, and snapped it to the broken wires to hold it together.  The engine fired to life and remained so.  Halleluiah!  Instantly, I thanked God.  I finally felt myself relax a little, at the very least my stomach stopped doing flips.  Now we needed to make hast!

Tree, me & Tracey in the art room at Greater Latrobe High School 1993-94

The cops gave us directions and sent us on our way.  We left without looking back and continued on getting lost.  Was I ticketed for my illegal park job?  Nope.  Things were looking up.

We continued on our way, trying to find a familiar road or sign, pointing us east.  Every few miles, the clip came loose, shutting down the juice to the car, in turn shutting down our travels.  As that happened, I’d stop, usually in the middle of the road, get out, and re-secure the wires, and repeat.  This was an inconvenience, but I didn’t care, it was the little bit of hope I was holding onto.

That is until the car shut down for good, probably about halfway home.  This time, we actually knew our location, and we were well past the city limits, headed to the safe suburbs.  Another little silver lining to our adventure.  I tried wiggling the wires together, nothing.

I truly had no idea what the problem was this time.  Not a clue!  That is until someone spoke up and mentioned the idea that the car might be out of gas.  Yes, Of course!  Can you believe it?  We ran out of gas!  At least that was our theory.  Now what?  We’re stranded on the side of the highway, in the dark (of course there wasn’t a street light around), still miles upon miles from home, with a temporary fix on the car engine, thinking we might be out of gas but really not sure.

To be continued…

Stay gold, Ponyboy, stay gold.  ~S.E. Hinton

Me & Gary & not sure at the Cure Concert at the former Mellon Arena (now Consol Energy Center), Pittsburgh, Pa. 7/17/96

Let me recap.  I was reminiscing from my high school days, actually about one night in particular.  A night that is so outlandish it sounds like it was made fictionally for television, but it’s entirely true!  Pittsburgh – A Night Out in the Big City!  Vol. 1

I took my old car, 1976ish Buick Limited, into Pittsburgh for a concert, when I wasn’t allowed, especially with a group of teenage friends.  We got lost in a bad section of Pittsburgh, illegally parked my car at a shady convenience store, to only find the night got worse when my car wouldn’t start.  Then, we accepted a ride to an auto parts store to purchase a new battery from a homeless man living in his car, which he may or may not have stolen.  We made it to the auto parts store and headed back to my friends who stayed behind with the broken down vehicle, in the middle of the ghetto, in the middle of the night.  Oh yeah, the homeless man’s car had no breaks.  He used his emergency break to stop.  I think that about sums up the last post.  It only gets better from here.

Our homeless man, or more accurately, the man living in his car, drove a little fast, as per the speed limit signs, and definitely too fast considering we had no real means to stop.  Suddenly, another obstacle struck us, or I should say we struck her.  What looked like a woman, dressed in stilettos, a micro mini skirt, and big hair, staggered in front of us.  Naturally, what else could make my story more colorful than a stranger appearing out of nowhere, to make contact with a moving vehicle, with no breaks!  Granted, we weren’t cruising at top speeds, but we were certainly in motion, and remained there despite the pedestrian.

Our driver used his emergency break to come to a stop, but not before we nudged her.  I know it wasn’t right, but we barely grazed this unconcerned night walker, who just walked in front of a moving vehicle.  Well, she wasn’t have having any of it, and showed her disdain by punching the hood of the car.  Then, our driver pushed the gas peddle, throwing her up on the hood, before using the emergency break again, throwing the stranger from the car.  What?  YES!  Can you imagine my shock?  I was mortified!

Tree, me & Tracey, graduation day from Greater Latrobe High School. 6/94

Please understand I never grew up around any alternative lifestyle, let alone knew what an alternative lifestyle was, or witnessed actions such as this one, meaning yelling out of a car at someone!

Again, what I thought was a lady, correction, I thought she was a prostitute, was not.  I sat there speechless, craning my neck to look over the hood of the car, trying to find life, hoping she wasn’t dead.

Eventually, what seemed like an hour later, the night walker got up, looked around, and stumbled a little.  To add to the terror, our angry driver began honking the horn and yelling out the window to get her to move.  Then, he started muttering a few words, one being transvestite.  Transvestite?  What?  Again, I’m a small town gal from Latrobe, who believed that a transvestite was a fictional character on television like a vampire, or an urban legend.  Instantly, my attention left our driver, my eyes grew three times the size, and I began to really examine the lady/guy standing in front of us, in the middle of the road, completely forgetting she/he was just hit by us.

Still staggering, she/he appeared to be either completely intoxicated or on drugs, or both.  The gal/guy stumbled to the passenger side of the door, where Sefo sat with the window down (allowing me to get air before I puked).  Why that side, and not the side of the verbal driver?  No clue. Aside from the staggering, which was evident before impact, our hit and run victim seemed unscathed.  The next thing I remembered, she/he tried to punch Sefo!  What did he do?  Sefo leaned into me, to put some distance between his shoulder and the staggering fist.  Luckily, our driver’s reflexes were quicker.  The homeless man, correction, the man who lived in his car, hit the gas, leaving my first transvestite encounter in the dust.  I mean Bruce Jenner (Caitlyn) wasn’t all over the news.  My heart was racing and never slowed down.  I looked at Sefo with wide eyes, expecting him to tell me all will be fine, that is until I saw his reaction.  It was exactly like mine!  Maybe a little more since he was in the line of direct fire.

Lori Beanner & Justin Baldonieri at a concert in the Strip District. I’m not sure why SCREAM was written on Lori’s leg. Pittsburgh, Pa. early 1990’s

Our unconventional hero of sorts, the homeless man who lived in his car, held true to his word and took us back to our friends and my broken car, almost safely.  We had a battery, now what?

It appears the craziness is nearly behind us, right?  That’s what I thought.  How could it get worse?

Would you believe we never thought about tools!  I didn’t have any, and our homeless man didn’t either.  Personally, I thought with all that junk in the car, he’d at least have a screwdriver?  Nope.  Now what?

While we were off hitting, literally the night life, (pun intended), my friends took a walk to a local hangout to use the restrooms.  They traveled down the street and came upon a gay bar.  Again, please keep in mind, times were very different back then, and my innocence was not ready for the reality of the world aside from my own personal corner of Latrobe.  My friends told me all about the sights they saw.  What did they witness?  No idea.  I wasn’t paying attention in the slightest.  It was at that moment, I started to hear ringing in my ears and I felt lightheaded.  I was breathing heavy and the world was in slow motion.  It was so surreal.  The last thing I wanted was to put my friends in any sort of danger or crazy situation.  Although, I will admit, they didn’t seem to mind and weren’t bothered by anything at all, except Sefo, rightfully so.  I can’t imaging hitting anybody, let alone a transvestite with a car was normal.

Not sure, Vanessa Vadas, me & Erin Butina in the art room at Greater Latrobe High School 1993-94

Sefo told our tale to everyone, and it was at that point, I knew changes needed to made, immediately.  What did I decide?  I instructed a few of my friends to call their parents to come and get them, while I stayed with the car and figured out how to get it home.  The idea of a tow truck did lurk in the back of my mind, but remember, I was about 30 to 40 miles away from Latrobe.  I probably could have called a tow, but to travel that distance would have cost me a fortune, and I didn’t have much cash left. Reality, I didn’t even have that much cash in my bank account.  Well, naturally my friends wouldn’t leave, so we all pulled up a seat along the curb discussing our next plan of action.  Sometime in there, our homeless man who lived in his car departed without incidence.

Please note, it’s now probably about two in the morning and I had my Cinderella driver’s license.

Just then, a beat up truck pulled into the parking lot.  Remaining consistent with our seemingly poor judgement, someone got up and asked the gentleman for assistance.  This time, we simply asked for tools to install the brand new battery.  He had tools!  Now we’re in business.

Giving this new stranger, who was obviously drunk, a few bucks to change out the battery, he did so, with the help of our candles.  One might wonder just how I was going to explain a brand new battery to my dad, and I thought about that.  I’d tell him the truth.  I had to have a new one installed since the old one died.  Done!

Feeling hopeful, I jumped in the driver’s seat to turn over the engine.  Nothing!  Are you kidding me?  No almost.  No turning over and grinding.  No attempt at trying.  Nothing.  Oh doubly crap!  It wasn’t the battery after all!  Now what?

Me on some sort of flippy ride at the Cure Concert at the former Coca-Cola Star Lake Amphitheater (now First Niagara Pavilion) 5/23/92

Our situation got even worse, and I didn’t have the money for a tow the whole way to Latrobe.

Now a second minor problem.  What was I going to do with a brand new battery?

Take it back of course!  Keep in mind, I had no idea where this auto parts store was located, or how to get there.  Personally, after the situation with the staggering transvestite, my mind was wiped clear of all awareness and reality.  How would we know where to go?  I got it!  I had the receipt containing the name of the auto parts store.  Would it be open?  It was worth a try.

Unbeknownst to our drunk driver, he was about to be added to our nightly events.  Sefo asked him to give us a lift back to the auto parts store.  Not knowing if the store was closed or not, me and Sefo jumped back into another stranger’s vehicle, this time we knew his full story, or at least the pertinent details, he was clearly drunk.  We took a ride from whence we came, for a small fee of course.  Driving like a manic, actually like a blind man, we departed, not knowing if we’d make it back, leaving our friends in the ghetto.  Who was safer?

To be continued…

Sometimes I make bad decisions.  ~Heather Piper

Jill, Lori Beanner, Justin Baldonieri after a concert in the Strip District, Pittsburgh, PA early to mid 1990’s

It’s funny how a simple conversation with someone can bring back memories nearly forgotten.  Throughout my life, I’ve found myself in unusual situations, putting it mildly.  This story is certainly one of those but is one-hundred percent true.  This stuff cannot be made up!

To this day, my parent’s have no idea, and I’d prefer not to bring it up at all, but to teach Kyle from my mistakes, I’m willing to share.  In a way, I don’t want Kyle to know my stupidity as a teenager or young adult, but then again I do, so he learns from my errors and immaturity, and knows I’m not perfect.

I’m very proud to proclaim I’ve never lied to my parents, at least not in the traditional sense.  However, at times, I’ve kept pertinent information from them that would have incriminated me.  I know, I know, the same thing, but not.  However, I’ve never looked them in the eyes and told a bold face lie, never!

Same tape player Nicole had & I used in my 1st car, since it didn’t have a radio.

As I’ve mentioned, my very First Car – My Very Own Days of Thunder was a 1976ish Buick Limited.  A big black beast with red interior, nicknamed Black Beauty.  I loved that car and so did my friends, one because I had wheels and two, because that car could seat a crowd.  Perfect for transporting large groups of teenagers who didn’t have rides, which is synonymous with that age.r.

Being a Latrobe native, I never really ventured any further west than Greensburg, about 15 miles.  East was a different story, my family is from Ligonier and I was familiar with the Laurel Mountains and the ridge.  In all reality, my parents were comfortable with that direction, as opposed to Pittsburgh.  Not that I was restricted by many rules, but one my parents reinforced was me traveling long distances, especially in my old car.  Understandable.  I really wasn’t permitted to go into Pittsburgh, about an hour and a half away, 40 miles or so.  Guess what?  That’s were I always wanted to explore, and I did.  Did they know?  They did, but mom and dad had the security of reinforcing my Cinderella license, when I had it.

Now that the stage is set, and the anticipation is built, here comes the most unbelievable night of my life.  It’s been a little over two decades since this adventure, so the details are a bit fuzzy, but the major events are still crystal clear.

Another big no in our household was concerts.  Really?  Unfortunately yes.  Mom and dad didn’t let us go to concerts, especially with friends.  I would have been open to my parents taking me to a show, but alas it never happened.  However, in this instance, I think I did tell them I was going to the show, since I paid for it myself.  In my senior year of high school, I waitressed at Valley Dairy.  I paid for my own gas, concert tickets, and associated expenses.  Regardless of my employment status, I do know for a fact that I wasn’t allowed to take Black Beauty into Pittsburgh, especially traveling with friends.  Yeah, I disregarded that rule.  We needed a ride and I had one, priorities!

The night started with a live show from Porno for Pyros (now that I think about it, what a horrible name).  Anyway, it was Perry Farrell’s band, the front man from Jane’s Addiction.  It was August 20, 1993, I found my old ticket stub!

Me & my cousin Colleen in the South Side, in front of Piper’s Pub. Night out before our friend Markelle moved to Arizona. Pittsburgh, PA late 1990’s

About five or six of my friends, including my good friend Maggie and I, made plans to stay at our friend Vanessa’s house.  Everyone met at Vanessa’s and I drove our eclectic group to Station Square in Pittsburgh.  To cut to the chase, we made it to the concert without incidence and it was a blast, but when it was time for us to simply exit stage right, we did, or so I thought.

Common sense would dictate that this story will take a hard right turn, especially since I was in charge of driving and maneuvering a group of teenagers from the suburbs into Pittsburgh and back out again.  Did you forget how Directionally Challenged I am, and always have been?

That’s exactly what happened.  I got us lost.  Where?  No clue, even to this day.  Also keep in mind, there were no cell phones and no GPS systems to guide our way.  We had to rely on road signs and verbal directions from locals.  To add another element of challenge, my gas gauge was broken.  I was instructed by my parents to record my mileage every time I got gas.  Did I?  Almost never.  I would go on gut instincts when fueling up.  Occasionally, I’d run out of gas and I’d have to walk to a house to call my brother, Ryan to rescue me.  A little foreshadowing here.

Eventually, after driving around for what seemed like forever, we ended up at a convenience store in the ghettos of sorts.  We stopped for two very important reasons, one, to get directions, and two, to stock up on snacks.

Did I mention I illegally parked the car too?  I figured our stay would be short lived, so no worries.  Well, that’s where it all went awry.

Please note, I’ve never and will never park in a handicap designated area.  The spot where I temporarily left my car was indeed in a tow away zone, but there was no real reason why it was marked as such.  There was additional access to the store from all angles.  The lot was triangular in shape, and I was in the back corner.  To me, a rule to be broken.

As we exited this dinky, dive store that sat on the corner among the shadows, we filed back in the car to find our way home.  Did I also mention I left the keys in the car because I was used to doing so?

Melanie Grimm & me. Wedding in Mount Pleasant, late 1990’s

It didn’t matter anyway.  Once I tried to turn over the engine, all I heard was click.  It wasn’t like the starter was grinding and trying to start.  Nope!  There was nothing!  No trying.  No almost.  Nothing.  Oh crap!  It was at that moment a sickness settled in the pit of my stomach nearly making me vomit.  Then, visions of my angry dad popped in my head.  YIKES!  Now can you say Adventures in Babysitting?

Being slightly familiar with engines, meaning not really at all, I had to try something.  I popped the hood to look inside.  Of course, no one had a flashlight. Why would we?  However, oddly enough, someone had candles and matches.  Seriously?  Yes!  I didn’t question, I just rolled with it.  We lit the candles to look inside to see if something stood out.  Nothing.  Keep in mind, the melted wax had to go somewhere, including dripping down into the engine.  A side note for later.

Okay.  Now what?  We had to try and fix the situation.  How?  By accepting a ride from a homeless man to a local garage.  Really?  Yes.  Who’s brilliant idea was that?  I have no idea, but I was desperate.  Almost immediately after coming to terms with a broken vehicle, this guy pulled up to the convenience store.  Sefo (his real name was Matt) was talking to this stranger who seemed semi-normal and I believe we paid him ten bucks to take us to a nearby auto parts store to purchase a battery.

Lori Beanner & me in the Strip District in Pittsburgh, PA. Pre-concert at the Metropole. early to mid 1990’s

Keep in  mind, at the time, we believed it was the battery that just died. Why didn’t we have someone jump the battery?  We didn’t have jumper cables.  Did I know how to give the car a jump anyway?  You bet I did!  But without cables, I couldn’t transfer juice from one battery to another simply by wishing it.

Our plan?  Sefo, who was no bigger than me, would travel with me and this homeless man to the auto parts store, while the rest would stay with the car.  Homeless?  Yes, he converted his backseat into a closet, meaning I had to sit in the front seat between Sefo and this stranger.

Only when we began our trip, did I find out he had nearly no breaks.  How did I know?  When we approached a stop sign, the car sputtered and jerked because he had to use his emergency brake, before obviously admitting to the lack of break system.  That wasn’t the worst part.  Upon closer inspection, I saw all the wires from the dashboard strung up on the outside, and hanging down at our feet.  It really looked like he stole the car!  Scary!  To be honest, I was still more afraid to tell my parents I took the car into Pittsburgh.  Why didn’t someone else call one of their parents?  I have no idea.

Somehow this man, who was somewhat pleasant drove us, recklessly through downtown Pittsburgh, bringing us an auto parts store, as promised.  Sefo stayed with the stranger in the car, while I went in the store to purchase a battery.  Luckily, I had a checking account and I had my checkbook with me, yes when we used checks and not Mac card or credit cards.  I didn’t have either.  Now for the trip back.

To be continued…

Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry.  ~Jack Kerouac

Dad & Kyle in the fishing boat, getting ready to fish! 8/20/10

It’s no surprise, I totally get a kick out of our chickens and turkeys.  Truly!  So when a story as amazing as this one presents itself, I feel obligated to share the experience.

We need to step back about two and half weeks.  Dad just mowed the lawn, which was pretty high from the continuous rainfall for the last two months, and he asked me to rake up some of the bigger piles of grass to feed to the chickens and turkeys.  Great idea!  They love fresh grass and it’s healthier for them and us too.  I raked the chlorophyll strands into a five gallon bucket, and headed to the turkey coop first, since it’s further away.

Please note, normally our turkeys are very docile upon entering their domain.  They either huddle together opposite to the door, or they remain steadfast on their roosts.  So you can imagine, any other behavior would take me completely off guard.

The escapee… this turkey is a survivor! 7/14/15

From the minute I opened the door, the story began.  I entered the turkey coop with my bucket of fresh cut grass and simply turned the container upside down to release the contents.  Well, the turkeys didn’t welcome such actions, and all eleven, yes there were (keyword here is were) eleven turkeys, each weighing about ten pounds or so, nearly fully grown, flapped their wings.  They flew in all directions and quite frankly freaked out!  Can you picture it?  Me standing in the middle of a feathery wind tunnel with large projectiles flying at and around me.  Just then, I saw two turkeys heading for the opened door, mid-air.  I leaned back, pretty gracefully I might add, and swatted the one bird back in the pen.  However, the second frantic bird made a break for it and succeed.  Oh crap!

My dad was still on the lawn mower doing the upper part of the yard.  I immediately, jumped out of the crazy hen house (pun intended), closed and locked the door behind me, and ran to the house to get the large fishing net.  While I was running around like a chicken myself (pun also intended)  I stopped dad to explain the situation.  Thinking he was going to be really made at me, he rolled his eyes, sighed, and got off the lawn mower to assist in rounding up the bird.

Dad and I cornered the escapee in the woods in the brush.  Yes, I was running around the woods with a long handled fishing pole while my dad was trying to work the bird in my direction.  At one point, we swopped and dad had the pole.  Did we capture the turkey?  Nope.  Of course that wouldn’t make much of a story.  The bird took cover under some very thick brush, and we couldn’t find it, even though we heard it calling.

Gram & Kyle for Gram’s birthday at her apartment. 7/24/10

That happened about midday, so we had no choice but to return to our chores.  That night, as dad I were sitting on my parent’s deck, I looked up the hill.  Low and behold the turkey was strutting around the turkey coop.  It was too comical.  This time, I had the big guns with me, Kyle!  We each grabbed a long handled fishing pole, and we went turkey hunting.  We were doing pretty good too, keeping the chase out of the thick brush, at least for a while.  I got the turkey by its back once, but it slipped out.  Kyle did the same.  To be honest, I actually had a fun time running around the woods, chasing the turkey with Kyle.  It’s been too long since Kyle and I have been involved in a silly situation like this one.  My little man did a great job assisting me, but alas the bird eluded us and we lost it in really thick brush.  I didn’t want to keep pushing the bird in the opposite direction toward my cousin’s fields.  I wanted to keep it close, so we gave up for the night.  We came back to the house empty handed, and decided to make mountain pies and s’mores on the fire.

That night, the following day and into Sunday it rained, and rained, and rained, and rained hard!  To me that was a good thing considering most animals hunker down in storms, meaning they wouldn’t be out hunting.  Not to mention, the rain helps to wash away any turkey scent.  On Sunday, Kyle and I went back into the woods, yes with our fishing poles, to look for our runaway.  Did we see her?  Sadly, no, but I also didn’t see a crime scene either.  Good sign. (Imagine what we looked like walking through the woods with long handled fishing poles!)

Upon exiting the woods, I decided to throw some feed alongside the turkey coop in case it would come back.

Gram & Pap. 1986

This brings us to Tuesday, of the following week!  The turkey lived for over a week in the wild.  Every once in a while we’d see it prancing around but couldn’t catch it.  It was too big, too fast and now it was flying.  Keep in mind, a couple hours earlier that day, I was informed my Gram passed away.  I happened to be at my parent’s house getting work down, since it was a really nice day.  I got a text from my cousin Mikey saying, he just saw a strange looking turkey on the road near my mom and dad’s house.  That’s our turkey!  She’s still alive!

Excited over the good news, I put Gram’s death aside, and ran out of the house to be struck down.  As I slammed the front door and walked down the porch steps, something came up from behind me, landed on my neck right behind my jaw and stung me!  Can you believe it?  I was stung in the neck!  Joking, I said that was Gram fighting one last time.

I ran back in the house holding my neck panting, “Oh crap!  Oh crap!  Oh crap!  It got me dad!  It got me in the neck!”

Dad:  “What happened?”
Me:  “I got stung in the neck!”
Dad:  Calmly.  Snickering at my drama.  “Ya, they hurt, especially there.”
Me:  “Oh crap dad!  It really hurts!”
Dad:  “Ya, I can imagine.  It’s not so funny now that YOU got stung.  You laughed at me when those bees chased me out of the turkey coop and stung me.”
Me:  Snickering to myself.  “No I didn’t laugh about that.  I said, I’m glad it was you and not me.  I laughed at you last summer when we were eating on the deck and the bee stung you in the lip and your lip swelled.”
Dad:  Chuckled
Me:  “Wow!  It really hurts!”
Dad:  “Maybe you still have the stinger in.  Come here and let me look.”  Dad looked, without putting on glasses and proclaimed.  “Nope, no stinger.”  Like he could see it!
Me:  “What if I have an allergic reaction?”
Dad:  Calmly.  “Well, then me and the boys (our dogs) will take you to the hospital.”
Me:   “No dad I don’t want the dogs to go along.”
Dad:  “Why?  They’d like to take a ride.  Seven (my dog) would hold your hand.”
Me:  “Dad!  I don’t want the dogs to ride along to the hospital!”
Dad:  “Oh, they’d be good.  Everyone should have a Lab doggie by their side.”  Our dogs are Labs but not my sister’s dog, even though Dad refers to her as a Lab.

Dad & Kyle fishing on Kyle’s birthday. The entire family joined in on the fun! 7/30/05

Luckily, the only reaction I got was really bad soreness in my neck and down into my shoulder, no major swelling, and no trip to the hospital with the dogs.

Dad and I armed ourselves with our fishing poles, and continued where we left off, chasing the turkey in the woods till we gave up.  Best way to spend the day after the loss of a family member!

Two days later, that Thursday, my sister came home for the funeral.  Nicole joined in on the hunt and we gave it the old college try when we saw the turkey strutting around the coop, begging us to chase it.  This time Nicole added a new element of surprise or challenge?  You decide.  Instead of using the long handled fishing poles, she decided to grab an old sheet.  Yes, a flat sheet, like the kind that goes on a bed.  A sheet! This just keeps getting better and better.  I think, she was expecting to gracefully throw the sheet on the turkey, and have the sheet perfectly spread out and land naturally onto of our bird, and then she’d tackle the lump in the sheet.  I’m guessing that was her reasoning.  What really happened was very different.

Nicole walked around the woods holding up this sheet, while I was opposite to her with my fishing pole.  (I wish I had a video of that!  It was as funny as you can imagine.)  If anything, I think Nicole gave that turkey a good laugh, or the runaway thought a ghost was following her around.  So far Piper 0, turkey 5.  All along, I’d throw turkey feed around the coop to keep our turkey in the area.  It worked!

Turkey’s on their roost 7/14/15

That following week, me, dad and Kyle finished building the chicken run on Tuesday, the day after Gram’s funeral.  We enclosed the area so nothing could get in or out.  That Wednesday, the chickens were running around in their playground, and who decided to join the fun?  Our turkey.  She came down to hang out by the chickens.  Dad had a great idea.  He instructed me to throw feed outside the chicken coop, prop the door open to their enclosure, and throw more feed inside, thinking we’d lure the turkey in.

That evening, when I went to set Dad’s trap, I came face to face with the turkey.  It was roosting on the post.  I couldn’t believe my luck.  Thinking I could capture the bird myself, like a ninja I crabbed my trusty fishing net and threw the net up over the turkey.  Did I get it?  Nope.  It flew up in a nearby tree.

The next morning dad said he went out to check on the chickens.  Guess who was waiting for him in the chicken run, eating the feed I spread?  Our wild turkey!  Dad said, he simply stepped in the fenced in area with a net, shut the door, and caught the turkey!

Chickens walking around their pen 7/14/15

We’re now back up to eleven turkeys, happily roosting in their coop, until this fall.  That turkey had no idea how close I came to pulling out the shotgun and taking care of this problem once and for all before another wild animal feasted on our bird.  To be honest, I’m surprised our dogs, especially my sister’s dog didn’t get the turkey.  At one point the neighbors Saint Bernard ran across the road and chased the bird, but I intercepted him before he had a turkey dinner.

I’m sure the refugee told the others about her adventures in the wild.

The voice of the sea speaks to the soul.  ~Kate Chopin

Kyle finally got to swim with the dolphins! One of the many activities on his cruise trip with Aunt Nikki. 6/2015

Summer has arrived and has consumed all of my time.  Between Thrill of the Hunt and my scavenger hunt events, the garden, the bees, the chickens and the turkeys, and trying to wrangle in a 13-year-old to spend quality time with me, there’s little time to do anything else.  Personally, I wish I’d open my schedule for more leisurely reading and writing, and I will, but until then, busy, busy, busy.  Those are my days, which are clearly very different from Kyle’s.

Kyle seems to be enjoying his summer thus far.  He’s in the marching band, practicing one day a week.  He’s also trying his hand at the Tuba.  I’m glad he’s challenging himself and I’m very proud of that young boy, who still hasn’t shaken his attitude (partially).  However, that’s not all, besides fishing and mostly laying around playing video games, Kyle recently added some miles to his life experiences.

Kyle and his Aunt Nikki set sail for Kyle’s first cruise.  Seriously?  Yes!  It was the annual Aunt Nikki and Kyle’s Week of Fun trip.  (Please note, I’m still not invited on these trips, which would make them even more adventurous and fun, just saying.  We could call it Kyle and the Aunts’ Week of Fun!)    I can’t believe the trip was nearly a month ago now.  To be honest, it started a few months back when Nicole and Kyle began discussing this year’s “Week of Fun” trip ideas.  Then, the anticipation grew even more when Kyle’s passport came in the mail.  What 13-year-old kid has a passport and has used it?  I’m sure some kids, obviously Kyle, but I never did until I reached my twenties.  He is blessed!  Then, the true excitement, when Nicole came home the weekend before departure to pick up the package, a.k.a. Kyle.

On Sunday, June 7th Nicole and Kyle drove to Baltimore, Maryland to jump aboard their cruise liner and set sail for a memorable week.

“Aunt Nikki and Kyle’s Week of Fun” … this year a cruise. 6/2015

Where did they go?  They went to the Bahamas, stopped off in Florida and visited NASA and the Kennedy Space Center, and they participated in activities on the cruise ship while at sea, including the hairy chest contest.  Nicole won!  Just kidding! (That totally made me laugh out loud!)

These were all firsts for Kyle, including the hairy chest contest!  I’m glad my sister was able to introduce him to new experiences.  Like what?  Kyle got to swim with the dolphins!  Did he love it?  You bet!  He also got to explore the Bahamas, something I’ve never even done.  In fact, whoever his tour guide was left an impression on Kyle that lasted long after his trip.  Unbeknownst to the tour guide, he knew how to speak Kyle.  Basically the language of Kyle is through statistics and numbers.  Nicole and Kyle came home on Sunday, June 14th.  I was in Arlington, Virginia on Friday administering to the Singles Scavenger Hunt, so I occupied Nicole’s house until my world traveler arrived, so I could bring our precious cargo back.  On the four hour ride home, Kyle kept rattling off trivia regarding the Bahamas.  “Aunt Heather, do you know how someone can become a citizen of the Bahamas?” (one is to purchase a house on the island) and “Aunt Heather, did you know they don’t pay taxes?” and “Aunt Heather they only lost eight people with the last hurricane, so it’s really not that dangerous.”  Yep for most of the ride, Kyle was simply spouting off facts and figures, mostly about the Bahamas and some regarding NASA.  That’s my Kyle!

Kyle insisted on meeting the captain of their cruise ship. Aunt Nikki, Kyle & the Captain. 6/2015

While sitting in Nicole’s living room, listening to the two reminisce about their trip, I was reminded just how much Kyle is like me.  Apparently, while waiting to take the elevator, they had to, well… wait.  Then, the elevator stopped at every level before arriving at their room.  Patience wasn’t strong with Kyle.  As the story goes, Kyle made my sister, who has an aversion to exercise, take the steps.  The agreement was, if it was more than two floors they’d take the elevator, if less the steps.  Now that’s my Kyle!  In general I usually take the steps, a habit Kyle has certainly picked up from me.  It’s that little extra effort that can make a world of difference to a person’s health.  While Nicole was commenting about the steps, I jumped into the conversation to defend Kyle, reminding Aunt Nikki that taking the steps was a wise choice considering all the food consumed.

Nicole said Kyle literally ate a burger a day, and treated himself to an ice-cream a day throughout the trip.  When bringing this fun fact to light,  Kyle gave me an ornery look as if saying “Ya Aunt Heather, I ate whatever I wanted and not healthy.”  I smiled and said, “Good for you buddy, I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.  That’s what vacations are all about.  I’m glad you got some protein in your system and not all sweets.”  He seemed pleased with himself.

There’s no doubt Nicole and Kyle had a blast and created memories for a lifetime.  Like I’ve always told Kyle, I want him to take every opportunity to travel and see the world, explore every inch and enjoy life.

During our ride back, Kyle mentioned that he could live in the Bahamas.  I’d visit him, but that’s about it.  That comment kind of surprised me, since Kyle doesn’t like being in the sun, and hates the heat, and really hates to sweat.  Who knows, maybe the Bahamas will be his favorite vacation spot.

On a somewhat side note, while driving home with Kyle I looked down to see he changed his iPhone cover.  What is it?  The NASA logo.  I guess he did have a great time and was very influenced by his experiences!  After pointing out the case and telling him it was nice (it really is), I told him about his Aunt Nikki’s childhood obsession about working for NASA.  He seemed intrigued, yet I’m sensing he picked up on this little known fact during their visit to Florida.

Kennedy Space Center. NASA 6/10/15

The annual tradition of Aunt Nikki’s and Kyle’s Week of Fun has been in existence since Kyle was a small tyke, growing in wow factor, mileage and expense year-over-year.  I hope it never stops and always continues for those two!  Personally, I love hearing the stories.  Wonder what next year will bring?

In this life we cannot do great things.  We can only do small things with great love.  ~Mother Teresa

Each one of them is Jesus in disguise.  ~Mother Teresa

Autumn on the ridge. 2013

Recently, I caught the movie A Walk To Remember (2002) on television.  The book by the same name was written by Nicholas Sparks.  Although I’ve never read that particular book by Mr. Sparks, I’ve seen the movie on numerous occasions.  I really enjoy the bittersweet love story, and I’d like to give the book a try.  Perhaps one day.

For those of you who read the book and/or watched the movie, ultimately a miracle happened.  The main character, Jamie Sullivan wanted to witness a miracle, and after a few years, she got her wish.  That was one of the items on her bucket list so to speak.

While watching, and knowing how the movie ends, I still found myself sitting on the edge of my seat and getting a warm fuzzy feeling at the actions leading up to the miracle.  It was in that instance, I began thinking of miracles, small and large.  With so much negative and unsettling actions taking place all over the world, some unknown to the masses and continue privately, it’s nice to think that we live in a time of actual miracles.  That goodness does exists.  We see tragedies and the ugliness of human behavior, but there is also the opposite.  The good does exist, it just not as popular or accepted.

Being raised, and is a practicing Catholic, who attended proctorial school for seven years, in my lifetime, as short as it is comparatively to history in general, I’ve seen, witnessed and heard of miracles.  The seeing and witnessing miracles, I’ll get to momentarily, but the hearing of miracles have been documented for ages.  The saints have been blessed with an extra dose of God’s grace, and God has had a very special relationship with these chosen people who do good in His name.  During the canonization process, these miracles are brought to light.  Random Fun Facts:  Becoming a Saint 

I once read Mother Teresa said her calling came to her in the form of a poor person.  She said she looked him in the face and saw Jesus.  Everyone knows Mother Teresa from her accomplished days of helping the poor in Calcutta.  Since Mother Teresa is on the road to sainthood with her beatification by Pope John Paul II, and she is the epitome of spiritual purity, I thought it fitting to incorporate her.

On a side note, originally, when I began writing this blog post a few years ago now (wow how time does pass by quickly!) I was helping Kyle with his geography homework, Europe before World War II.  Every time he mentioned Albania, I thought of Mother Teresa, where her roots began.

Over the years, speaking with people from all walks of life and faith practices, most have never heard of such modern day miracles, I mean even the big ones!  Keep in mind, Columbus was credited with discovering America in 1492.  Miracles happened and continue to happen all over the world.  The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe took place in Mexico in the 1530’s.  Then there’s the very intriguing story of Joseph of Cupertino, the Christian mystic and saint who had the power of levitation.  He was from Italy in the mid to late 1600’s.  I have to add the miracle of the bleeding Eucharist with the consecrated host.  In fact, there are several such instances.

Snowy day on the ridge 2015

Of course, some miracles have been heard of, but perhaps not completely understood.  Thanks to the movie Stigmata, Saint Francis of Assisi, who suffered the marks of Christ’s Passion through the stigmata, was brought to light.

There are so many other miracles that unfortunately, I don’t know them all, or I only remember the overview of the story, and not the pertinent details.  Keep in mind, I’m no expert on saints or miracles, but I’ve heard and accepted the stories as a sign from God and I believe wholeheartedly.  Perhaps miracles happen to reinstate our faith and to give us hope.

Not too long ago, I was told a story from a person who used to be an alcoholic.  For privacy sake, I’ll leave his name out and how I know him.  He told me of his emotional journey toward sobriety, having a similar experience like Mother Teresa.  Now here is this assumed ordinary Catholic man (I’m not saying you have to be Catholic to partake or witness a miracle), who was literally touched by Jesus.  After I heard the story, I didn’t doubt it for one minute!  Actually, I was so excited for him, I couldn’t stop thinking about it, even to this day.  To me, I was blessed enough to have a first hand account of such a miracle and holy intervention.

Really?  Oh yes.  My friend was befriended by a man who worked at this rehab facility.  The two men spent weeks together, sharing stories and working out my friend’s inner demons.  My friend even said the man’s face (worker) was like light.  Years after my friend’s release, he went back to the facility to find the worker who made such an impact in his life.  He wanted to thank him and keep him abreast of his new life in the clean and sober world.  Guess what?  The man never existed.  There was no record of him, anywhere, nor his likeness or his name.  It’s as if the worker didn’t exist, yet my friend spend hours upon hours with him, even in front of people.  To this day, he said he has no urge to drink and that God simply took that away.  Something to think about.

What miracle have I seen and witnessed?  First a good friend of mine survived a brain aneurysm that erupted, with little to now side effects.  She’s a walking modern day miracle.  Any others?  Sure.  Every time I attend mass and watch the priest consecrate the host and the wine into the Eucharist, the body and blood of Christ.  If you think I’m being naive or mislead, refer to the seventh paragraph above and look into it with an open mind.

I hope everyone gets to witness a miracle or at the very least a good deed!  We could all use a little reminder of good in our lives.

On a funny note, my biggest miracle would be to have Kyle drop the attitude.  He’s a good kid, with an edge to him.

This screen shot below is too comical.  I participated in one of those silly games on Facebook, and this was the answer for what is my calling.  Since I know it’s not true, as much as I’d be honored and blessed for it to be true, I wanted to prove we all have it in us, even me, even for a moment in a game.

I took one of those silly trivia games on Facebook, & this was the answer. Since I know it’s not true, as much as I would be honored & blessed, I wanted to prove we all have it in us, even me, even for a moment in a game. 2014

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.  ~Cynthia Ozick

A happy participant from the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt in Winchester, VA – Sponsored by Dancing Dog Natural Market 5/30/15

As far as I’m aware, Thrill of the Hunt is the originator of the dog scavenger hunt, (Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt and the Doggie in Disguise Scavenger Hunt, spring and Halloween themed respectively).  They’re certainly very popular among our Thrill Seekers and their four-legged pals.  To be honest, I enjoy administering to these particular scavenger hunts, as much as the participants enjoy walking around with their favorite sidekick, figuring out clues, completing online challenges, and collecting dog treats and toys, while hanging out with others of like interest.  They’re a lot of fun!

This past Saturday, May 30th, Thrill of the Hunt held another such event, the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt in Winchester, Virginia.  Why did we choose Winchester to expand our most recent dog scavenger hunt?  It’s all thanks to Dancing Dog Natural Market! (Check out their website: dancingdognatural.com and follow them on Facebook: )

Last year, Adam and Leann Pask, owners of the Dancing Dog Natural Market reached out to Thrill of the Hunt suggesting we hold a dog scavenger hunt in dog friendly Winchester, Virginia.  Great idea!  After checking out the area, and speaking with Adam, we both agreed Old Town Winchester would be a perfect location for a dog scavenger hunt.

Please note, the City of Winchester was very friendly and supportive when presenting this idea.

Checking out the goodie bag from the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt in Winchester, VA sponsored by Dancing Dog Natural Market 5/30/15

Now that we’ve decided to hold a dog scavenger hunt in Winchester, Virginia, some logistics needed to be outlined.

When is the best time to hold our event?  Recently, the Dancing Dog Natural Market celebrated their store opening anniversary, and so it was chosen to host the event in the spring, closest to their anniversary date. Perfect!

Eventually, after much research, planning and promoting, the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt became a reality.  Dancing Dog Natural Market was our official sponsor of the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt in Winchester, Virginia.

With Adam’s influence and suggestion, Kresha Hornby, publisher at Valley Homes & Style Magazine ran a double page article on the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt and Dancing Dog Natural Market, in the Valley Events section of the April issue.  That was very exciting!

In addition to the local vendors, Weruva was present to pass out samples of canned cat and dog food, and Carol from Pawtivity was on hand to socialize with the dogs and owners.

Pawtivity is a new site dedicated to staying active and involved with your dog, your local community, and the dog community in general.  They’ll be launching their website soon, so please look for it (Website: pawtivity.com).  In the meantime, please check out their Facebook page:  .  Thrill of the Hunt will be partnering with Pawtivity to bring all dogs and their owners exciting adventures!

Now that the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt has came and left, was it a success?  You bet it was!  In addition to being blessed with perfect sunny blue skies, we also had some awesome participants from as far away as Washington D.C.  We couldn’t have asked for a better group of dogs and owners to join us for our first dog scavenger hunt in Winchester, Virginia!

One of the biggest questions I received shortly after the conclusion of the dog scavenger hunt was, “Will Thrill of the Hunt be back?”  Of course we will!  We plan on making this an annual event and Dancing Dog Natural Market is one-hundred percent on board!

Thank you again to everyone who helped make the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt a success!  Thanks to the participants for spending their Saturday morning with us and showing an interest in our dog scavenger hunt.  We loved meeting your four-legged friends and we loved being a part of your family activity.

Thank you to the local businesses who participated as part of the scavenger hunt.  Your enthusiasm and involvement helped the scavenger hunt come together, and made it a true community event.

Thank you to Carol from Pawtivity for helping out and capturing the day in pictures.  It was nice having Weruva present and of course a huge thanks to Dancing Dog Natural Market for everything they’ve done!  Working with you was seamless and refreshing!  We can’t wait for next year!

Article in the Valley Homes & Style Magazine for the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt in Winchester, VA by Thrill of the Hunt, sponsored by Dancing Dog Natural Market

Now time to promote Thrill of the Hunt.  If you’re interested in a unique custom scavenger hunt or just want to discuss the possibilities, email me at [email protected], [email protected] or fill out the form on our Contact Us page for a free quote.  We’ll get back to you within 24-business hours. I promise!

Please note, Thrill of the Hunt will be hosting our annual Doggie in Disguise Scavenger Hunts in local cities including Latrobe, Pennsylvania; Annapolis, Maryland; Alexandria, Virginia; and New Hope, Pennsylvania.  Tickets are on sale now, but are limited.  We’re still accepting local businesses to be added to the actual scavenger hunt to increase foot traffic to these locations.

Next weekend, Thrill of the Hunt will be hosting our Singles Scavenger Hunt in Arlington, Virginia.  Join us for a socializing good time!

Speaking of different areas, we are always open to hearing suggestions on scavenger hunt themes and hometowns to bring our events.  Please Suggest An Event on our website, or email [email protected].  I seriously want to hear from you!

Please make sure you’re following the hunt on our social sites.  , always using #ThrillofHunt

Remember, everyone needs to … Experience the Game!

Art, art of any kind, shows that folks are trying.  ~Walter Kirn

Me & Lisa at Paint Nite in Pittsburgh (Allison Park) at Rocky’s. Great time! Lisa’s painting has so much depth! I love it! 4/10/15

My friend Lisa Zettelmayer, yes the same Lisa from Happy 50th Anniversary, had a great idea to get together for a Paint Nite!  For those of you who haven’t had the privilege of experiencing or even hearing of such an event, they’re seriously so much fun!  I can’t believe that was two weeks ago already!  I’ve been so busy.  With what you may ask?  You’ll find out in the next few blog posts.  In the meantime, I’d like to talk about Paint Nite.

Our event was held at Rocky’s on Route 8 in Allison Park in Pittsburgh.  What exactly is Paint Nite?  Simple, it’s an event whereas you purchase a ticket to paint a specific painting.  Yes, before signing up for the gig, the coordinating artist, along with the painting of choice is listed for review before committing.  These activities are held in multiple locations periodically throughout the year.  Do you have to be an artist?  Absolutely not!  That’s what makes it so much fun.  You get to hang out with friends, kick back a few brews, and listen to Ben, who happened to be our artist extraordinaire two Fridays ago.  His job?  In addition to setting up the brushes, our paints, supplying our aprons, and the canvases, yes they were very nice canvases stretched over wooden frames measuring about nineteen inches wide by sixteen inches height, he also instructed us with the steps to painting our very own masterpiece.  Ben was in essence playing Bob Ross.  He gave step-by-step instructions on how to accomplish the finished piece.  Naturally, when reviewing all the paintings in the room, about forty individuals, everyone maintained the same general theme but with their own artistic touch.  Is this fine art?  No, not in my opinion, just a neat way to introduce the arts and some culture into the lives of everyday people, while getting out and socializing and trying something new.  Personally, I loved it!

Paint Nite at Rocky’s in Pittsburgh (Allison Park) with Lisa Zettelmayer… she’s smiling in the background. I just started my painting. 4/10/15

Not only has it been a while since I’ve seen Lisa, and it’s nice to catch up, but it was also a pleasure to meet her friends.  However, what I really enjoyed was holding a paintbrush again and being around art.  You know, my art history professor Maureen Vissat, who was an excellent teacher and a wonderful person, once told our class, “Unless you’re involved in the arts, there will be a time when you miss it.”  Paraphrasing her of course, I realize just how true that statement is!  I do miss being around art, and participating in it.  Granted, I do graphic design on the side, but it’s not the same.  I actually long for the interaction between artists and the inspiration floating in the air.  There’s nothing like it.

While we were painting, I had a feeling of déjà vu.  I knew exactly what it was.  It was being among artists, lined up in front of easels, focusing on a single piece, from way back to my days at Seton Hill University, when I had drawing class with Phil Rostek.  Only our subjects consisted of  nudes, or some sort of masterpiece projected on the wall, or a fun center display.  I used a lot, and I mean a lot of charcoal and conte crayon in that class.  Seriously, I looked like I was mining the coal mines every time I left class.  I sported charcoal on my face, cloths, ears, hair, under my nails, neck, you get the idea.

Paint Nite with Lisa (in the background) at Rocky’s in Pittsburgh (Allison Park). My painting is about halfway done. 4/10/15

What I miss the most is getting my hands dirty in clay and sculpting pottery on the wheel.  Pottery was always a passion of mine, and I do miss that the most.  (After spending a few hours in the clay studio, I wore more of the clay than what was used in all my pieces combined!)

I don’t consider myself an artist, even though I love art, art history, I have a Fine Art Degree, which gave me the opportunity to have a gallery show My Senior Art Exhibit at Seton Hill University – ARTsylum, and admittedly, I do have an artist eye.  Perhaps, if I participated in developing art for the sake of art, then I might be able to classify myself in that manner, maybe.

Prior to the event we met at the Tuscan Inn, a few minutes away, for dinner and wine.  It was truly an enjoyable dinner with a great group of gals, delicious food, and fun conversation.  Maybe too much fun, for we were laughing and bringing the place to life.

Another progression of my painting from Paint Nite in Pittsburgh, Pa (Allison Park) at Rocky’s. 4/10/15

This trendy paint party, has become a big thing.  I’ve heard of them before, I’ve just never participated.  And you know what?  I’m ready to do it again.  Once I posted my painting to Facebook, a few of my cousins commented that they wanted to join me the next time I go.  That sounds like a plan!  I was told the Latrobe Art Center has them occasionally and the participants are permitted to bring his/her own alcohol, if desired.  I’m in!  Hopefully, I can get a ticket from Groupon, like I did this one.

Now, my next step is to create my Thrill of the Hunt scavenger hunt Events as such a hot topic!  One day, my scavenger  hunts will be the thing to do all over the nation, at least I hope so.  I love adventure!

After a hard night of painting, socializing & having a few brews… this is the result. Paint Nite in Pittsburgh, Pa (Allison Park) 4/10/15

Make your mistakes, take your chances, look silly, but keep on going. Don’t freeze up.  ~Thomas Wolfe

Kyle riding a motorcycle at Idlewild Park, Ligonier for the Gutchess picnic. 8/2004

Kyle always surprises me, especially with what he knows.  This time it’s what he didn’t that took me completely off guard.

Okay, I’ll set the stage.  Sunday night, I picked Kyle up from his youth group meeting and we proceeded to drive through Latrobe.  It was later, probably about 8:00 pm or so and definitely dark.  Why is this pertinent?  It is!  As we drove along, I barely noticed an older gentleman, who practically jumped into the street sticking his thumb in the air.  His white or silver hair  juxtaposed against his entirely black attire scared me.  I know smart right, head-to-toe in solid black, lurking in the shadows of the night, while practically playing chicken with moving vehicles.  I swerved into the left lane to miss him, before I stopped at our red light about ten yards away.  Yeah, I checked to make sure our doors were locked.  Check!

During this ordeal, Kyle was jarred a little from my fancy footwork behind the wheel, as well as me saying something like, “Whoa, buddy!” and “What the heck ?”  It really happened so fast.  While waiting for the light to turn green, I kind of reiterated the scene.  That’s when I found myself baffled and yet humored.

I made a comment about the hitchhiker and Kyle asked, “What’s a hitchhiker?”  What?  Yep, I’m totally serious!  He truly didn’t know what a hitchhiker was.  Then the conversation went something like this.

Me:  “He wants a ride somewhere, that’s why he’s hitchhiking or trying to, I almost hit him.”
Kyle:  “How do you know he was trying to hitchhike?”
Me:  Slightly sarcastic, “Because his thumb was in the air.”
Kyle:  “Does that mean he needs a ride?”
Me:  “Well, yeah.  You know, you’ve seen people walk along highways with their thumb sticking in the air, basically screaming, “Pick me up”, they’re hitchhiking.”
Kyle:  “I’ve never seen that before!”
Me:  “Really?  Well, that’s what he was doing.  Although, they’re usually not that aggressive.  He practically jumped up on the hood of my car.”

Let the silliness begin!  There’s always one moment with us that sends us over the edge to the land-of-no-return humor.  That was it.  Kyle looked at me with wide eyes, and a huge ornery grin.  So the ridiculous story unfolds!

Kyle driving his bumper car around at Idlewild Park, Ligonier for the Gutchess Picnic 8/2004

Yes, we started laughing.  I’ll take the blame for initiating this one when I said, “What would you do if he jumped on the hood of the car and held on?”  Kyle and I busted out laughing.  Then, I started to make noises like a car while I faked me driving erratically from side to side, to shake the imaginary hitchhiker from the hood of my car.  Instantly, Kyle joined in adding to the sound effects and mimicking my motions.  He said, “Can you image Aunt Heather?  That would be so funny!”

Now, I’m taking it a step farther by adding, “Want me to pull over and have him ride in your lap?  What would you do?”  I was trying to get a rise out of Kyle, however he turned the tables on me with his wit.

It took Kyle merely a moment to concoct his own scenario,  “No Aunt Heather, we’d put him in the backseat.”  Laughing trying to properly express his thoughts to me, he adds, “With all three dogs!  And I’m in the front seat.”  Yeah, that made uncontrollable roars of laughter erupt straight from my gut.  Kyle really painted the picture when he described the scene.  “Can you imagine?  Our boys would be walking all over him and he wouldn’t have any room to sit.”  Kyle’s now really humoring himself, as well as me.  He even added my cat, Storm, a.k.a. Lady Fluffington, to the story.

Playing off of Kyle’s new direction, I declare, “Scooby would be in his face growling and the guy would be too afraid to move.”  I motioned with my hand toward my face, where Scooby’s face would be in relation to our fake hitchhiker.   “Avery would just sit there and drool all over him, and Seven would pay no attention and tramp him down as he pranced back and forth on the seat.”  That’s our dogs, exactly!  Kyle found this story hilarious.  He buckled over laughing.  Actually, we both did.

Now, the crème de la crème, I blurted out, “No!  We pull over, with you sitting in the front seat, and all three dogs in the back.  I open the hatch and tell him that’s his seat.”  We died!  “He might say, “No thanks, I’ll wait for the next ride.”  I love that moment of pure hilarity, whereas you can’t event catch your breath.  In fact, not a sound could be heard.  You know it’s gut stretching!

Fort Jackson Bootcamp, South Carolina – Terry, Dad, Charlie Ferry, Pap. Summer 1969

Yes, all this excitement was going on while I was driving, but at least I got Kyle off of his video games to engage with me, even if it was imaginary.  We re-played that entire situation for the duration of the ride, changing things here and there and laughing at each new discovery.

I did explain that hitchhiking was more commonplace in his Gigi’s day.  I explained it to him, as I was told, especially with war veterans who came home and didn’t have a vehicle, so they hitchhiked.  I continued to explain that back in that day, most families only had one car, and sometimes not even that, and sometimes they needed a ride.  I also told him, since the olden days, it’s became less acceptable and now dangerous.  “So don’t ever pick up a hitchhiker or hitchhike yourself!”  Even though he didn’t appear to be listening, I know he was.

I’ve said it before, Kyle is the coolest!  I love being around him and under his thirteen-year old attitude, and general sluggishness brought on by poor eating and mind sucking video games, he has a strong personality and is really very funny.  His sense of humor still reminds me of his Aunt Nikki, very Saturday Night Live “esk”.  Nothing wrong with that!

Catch all the ridiculously funny stories!

Laughing About Nothing
Laughing About Nothing … True Story
Laughing About Nothing … Cats!
Laughing About Nothing … Truck Horn!
Laughing About Nothing … Dog in Space!
Laughing About Nothing … Our Dog vs. A Robber

You know, one of the tragedies of real life is that there is no background music.  ~Annie Proulx

Kyle at the shooting range with his .22. Kyle’s not a bad shot! 8/25/12

It never fails, my life is an adventure.  Sometimes it brings a smile, or in the case of my dad, it causes a lot of eye rolling.  This past weekend, dad and I were in Cortland, New York hunting.  We left early last Friday (only after we finally remembered to pack everything and had to turn around in Derry, and right before that, Seven and Scooby took off for a jaunt in the woods).  The first day of rifle season was Saturday.

As I’ve mentioned before, the New York hunting rules are slightly different from Pennsylvania’s.  Example, we are allowed to fill our tags with a buck and a doe starting at sunrise on Saturday, the season includes Sundays, and lasts for three weeks.

We arrived Friday mid-afternoon and met Larry, for all intents purposes he was the orchestrator of the hunters.  I was also given the honor of meeting sergeant Mike Bennett.  He’s a wounded warrior from northern New York, who served in the Afghanistan conflict and was a part of our hunting group.  Larry showed us our new hunting spot, and we rode the quads around a bit to get acclimated, seeing five doe on the way.

That night, all the hunters gathered around the campfire on the edge of the woods to finalize the game plans for the next day, and to enjoy idle conversation and socialization.

Dad and I got up early Saturday morning, about 4:30 am, got ready and headed for the woods, riding the quad to our tree stand.  We were on the opposite end of the woods, compared to last year; a really nice spot, with rows of trees, a few trails and a logging road, near a few patches of pines and up the hill from a crab apple section.  In theory, and later on in reality, a great spot!  Actually, I preferred dad hunt in this area, only because getting to it was not such a roller coaster ride and less dangerous for the old man, again compared to his other tree stand.  It was even closer to the truck, pretty ideal. Our Hunting Adventures … New York Our Hunting Adventures … New York Continued

Waking up to about a half inch to an inch of snow was a nice surprise.  Why?  It makes it better to hunt.  The deer pop off of the background, making them effortless to see.  Plus, it’s easier to follow the deer tracks when pushing deer through the woods or tracking the wounded.  Dad said this was the first opening season in years that snow laid on the ground.  So far so good!

My 1st buck ever! It as a nice size deer, with a small 6 point rack. Cortland, NY 11/15/14

I do love being in the woods, like dad.  There is something so tranquil and calm, especially sitting in a tree stand, overlooking the woods, blanketed in snow, before the darkness lets the light in.  It’s really quite lovely watching the sun paint the sky with a red and yellow glow as daylight approaches.  It seems at that moment, the cold is not bothersome, in fact refreshing.  The anticipation of the day’s events hold your mind hostage, yet keeps you at peace.  A feeling that needs to be experienced, for words do it no justice.

Hunting started out like it typically does, nothing, nothing, nothing, until that something.  Dad saw a deer wondering through the trees.  Actually, the conversation, which consisted in a loud whisper because dad is hard of hearing, went something like this.

Dad:  There!  Past the big stump.  Do you see it?
Me:  Where?
Dad:  There Heather!  Do it see it move its head?  To the right of the (some species of tree).
Me:  Where?
Dad:  Heather!  Look straight down past the big stump! (while there are several large stumps with blown over trees)
Me:   O think I see it! (I did see its backside for a brief moment)
Dad:  Do you see it?  It went behind the trees.
Me:  No.
Dad:  Do you see it now?
Me:  No.
Dad:  Do you see it now?
Me:  No.

Repeat that last part for about a half an hour.  I could not see the deer to save my soul.  At first, I thought I saw it briefly, but then it was behind a cluster of trees and out of my vision, or at least that’s what I’m claiming.  It also took me off guard that my dad, who is in his sixties with questionable eyesight, spotted the deer that far away, at least one hundred fifty yards, through obstacles.  Initially, I was looking closer to us, till I realized dad was looking at a large stump way down over the hill among the trees, through the brush.

The rest of the conversation continued with:
Dad:  There, its moving to the right.  Do you see it?
Me: (as I looked toward the left with my scope)
Dad:  Your other right!
Me:  (I chuckled a bit, for I was starting to get stressed out and flustered) O I see it!  (This time I actually did!)

Hastily, I lined up the deer in my scope and shot through the brush… and missed.  To make sure, dad had me get out of the tree stand and check out the scene to make sure it wasn’t wounded.

Naturally, once on the ground, I couldn’t find the location of the action.  While walking around an area, I looked up to see dad waving me in the right direction.  Now, I was able to really chuckle to myself, for I am always directionally challenged.  Eventually, dad must have been frustrated, so he too got down from the tree stand and trekked toward me to look around.  We saw no signs of the deer and most importantly no blood.  Total miss.  A little disappointing, but the day was still young.

The trail leading up to our tree stand in Cortland, NY 11/15/14

By the time we got back to the tree stand, dad was stripping off his neck warmer and hat and breathing heavy.  I had to wait for him to enter the stand first, since he’s so large and awkward, it makes it easier on him, and me, to use all the space to get adjusted before I plant my bottom down.  Dad needed to take a minute to catch his breath at the lander, before heading up.  Being a stinker and in not bad shape, I simply said, “Does someone need more cardio?”  Ya, dad gave me a snarly look, but totally worth it.

The next few hours weren’t very exciting, that is until dad pointed out a few does.  Picking out the largest one, I shot her at a close fifty to seventy-five yards.  We went through the process of getting out of the stand again, inspecting the harvest and tagging it with my name, and getting back in the stand again.  Believe it or not, that was my very first deer.  Yes, I did hunt when I was younger, but I never got anything.  I took a hiatus for many years before returning to my roots.

Believe it or not, in less than an hour later, even before I could get cold again, I saw a buck walking through the trees.  This one I spotted on my own.  I now had deer vision.  At this point, my heart was pounding and I was getting nervous.  Once dad spotted the graceful beast, which didn’t take him long, he coached me a bit.  “Wait for it to get out of the brush, don’t try shooting through the brush.”  He spoke in a whisper.  After watching the buck in my sights for what seemed like an hour, it finally gave me a clear shot, with less than a minute window to react at about one hundred twenty-five yards away.  I did, and the result?  I harvested my very first buck!  It was a nice size deer, no doubt I knew it would yield a lot of good meat.  How many points?  The buck had a small rack in relation to its body, but there were six points!  Dad was really proud of me; for the solid shot, for providing food for the table, for my first buck, for my efforts to keep our hunting tradition alive, you name it dad was happy!  He gave me a big old hug and a smile that lit up the already bright sunny blue sky.  It was a good day!  One I will always remember.

Now that my tags were filled, dad was next.  The rest of the day was uneventful, with the exception of gutting and skinning my deer.  That night everyone met at Larry’s house for some late night snacks, to show off everyone’s harvests and to share stories.  We stayed for a good while before our eyelids became heavy and the anticipation of the next day was overwhelming.

Sunday was much like Saturday, only a bit colder.  Early in the day, dad filled his doe tag, but not his buck.  The guys made a rule to those seasoned hunters, that they were only allowed to shoot eight points or better.  The only exception was me and the kids and those who have never shot a buck before.  We were allowed any number of points.  Did we see any bucks at all?  Nope.

Funny story.  During August or September, dad and I made a day trip to Cortland to bring our extra tree stand and help clean up, getting ready for deer season.  On our way back, I noticed all these birds sitting on the highway signs.  I mean, it seemed like thousands of them!  Every time I pointed it out, dad would drive by and miss this gathering of birds.  Repeating this phenomena at least twice, dad missed both.  By the time we came to a third sign, dad looked up and said, “Boy look at all those birds, looks like they’re going to bend the sign!” with total sarcasm.  I looked up to see about three birds sitting on the metal pole.  “Not funny!”  I told dad and tried to justify my observation.  The entire way home and after, dad teased me about the birds that bent the sign.  Whatever!

The Trooper Hunt Club in Cortland, NY. 1st day of rifle season. I got a buck & doe. Great harvest! 11/15/14

Well, as we sat there, all these geese started flying over head.  Naturally, they were making all kinds of noise.  There must have been a hundred, even though it seemed like a thousand.  The funny part, they flew in small sections, continuously making noise.  It went on for about fifteen minutes.  I couldn’t help myself, I started laughing.  Dad chimed in to say, “I bet they’re going to bend a pole.”  I was cracking up!  It was one of those silly moments, which are rare with my dad, who takes hunting very seriously.

A little later, dad pulled a Kyle.  He got out his trail mix and was trying to open the plastic bag, which was SO noisy.  It sounded like something Kyle would do.  I gave him a look of ‘Are you done yet?’.  That sparked me to say, “Ok, Kyle.”  Dad and I snickered and then started telling Kyle stories to humor ourselves, but mostly because we missed our little man so much.

Where was Kyle?  He wasn’t able to join us on our trip.  He already missed too much school, plus he was sick from the week before, still holding onto a cold.  The trip wasn’t the same without Kyle, but a good regardless.  Everything is more adventurous and fun with Kyle!  Maybe next year.

By Monday, it warmed up a bit, with steady rain ALL day.  It was a cold, bone chilling rain that was not comfortable to sit in.  Being the only ones in the woods, dad and I moved out of our wet spot to another tree stand nearby with a roof.  Well, in my opinion, it was too late since I was already sopping wet.  Dad and I stuck it out till about 2:00 pm or 3:00 pm before calling it a day.  I even hiked through the pine trees to push some deer toward dad with no luck.  We didn’t see any deer and we both knew they were hunkered down not moving, waiting out the rain too.  Eventually, we retreated to the local convenience store for some soup and hot chocolate (dad got coffee).

It took our little space heater in our motel room the rest of the day and all night to dry out our gear.  During our down time, which dad napped a bit, I brought my iPad to get some work done and enjoy the quiet time (with the exception of dad’s snoring).

By Tuesday morning, we decided to hunt a half day and before heading home.  That night the temperatures dropped, forming ice over everything and luckily enough, snow also fell to give some traction to the slick roads.  It was cold!  I mean really, really cold!  The temperatures were in the twenties with major wind, giving the feeling of single digits.  After about two or three hours, we both buckled and went home.  In that time, I walked for about an hour, trying to kick up deer and push them toward dad.  No such luck.  I didn’t even see fresh tracks.  It was time to exit stage right.

I do enjoying hunting, but the best part is spending time with dad in the woods.  God blessed us with a great harvest!  Can’t wait for Pennsylvania’s hunting season to start!  This time I get to hunt with Kyle!

Thank you to Larry, his family and everyone in New York for the hospitality!  I had a great time and I look forward to meeting up with everyone next year.

There’s things that happen in a person’s life that are so scorched in the memory and burned into the heart that there’s no forgetting them.  ~John Boyne

Skyping with Aunt Nikki … Kyle & I thought she looked creepy so we took a screen shot! 2012

Fall has always been my favorite time of the year, especially Halloween.  It’s also that time when all the ghosts and ghouls come out, especially on the big screen, but this one freaked me out.  For a few weeks now, the movie Annabelle has been advertising.  With the repeats of the advertisement, I had a weird feeling I’ve heard that story before, except I didn’t recollect the doll in the movie, just the name Annabelle and the story of a possessed doll.  Weird right?

With every advertisement and the mention the possessed Annabelle doll, my memory kept flickering to the past but couldn’t quite place it.  Then, it seemed like every time I searched the web using my iPhone or iPad, a pop up ad would appear with the face of this creepy doll, promoting the movie.  Let me tell you, it ALWAYS scared the crap out of me!  One, because it was the face of a creepy doll and two, I knew this story was familiar and it was haunting me.  Again, the doll’s face I didn’t recognize, yet the name Annabelle I knew.  I know, I sound like I was being hypersensitive to the ads, but they did feel like they were following me and I couldn’t shake the feeling I knew Annabelle.  What the heck?

As a kid, I did have a few dolls, mostly Barbie but I wasn’t one of those girls who kept them long, nor did I drag them around everywhere.  I had a blanket for that, which I won’t get into now, perhaps in time I’ll share the story of my banky (blanket).  So it’s not like baby dolls resonate with me or bring back childhood memories.  (Not like my blanket)  Why was I connecting with Annabelle?

Then, out of the blue it hit me.  I finally remembered the story I heard years ago.  I had to ask Nicole to confirm it and I was right!  While the commercial played its thirty second clip, my memory surfaced bringing with it a face of the person who told me the story, Lorraine Warren!  She’s the director of The New England Society for Psychic Research, and better known for her involvement in the Amityville horror case.  How in the world do I know her and why was she telling me the story of Annabelle?

There’s a very good explanation, my sister!  For years, my sister followed the Paranormal State crew around to the haunted places.  Let me step back to explain, Paranormal State was a paranormal reality television show on A&E.  The show’s stars were the members of the Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) Paranormal Research Society.  No joke!  A bunch of Penn State students created this club for dealing with creepy things.  I guess being a Penn State Alumna and a fan of all things haunted, Nicole’s interest found its home.

This group of ghost hunters traveled all around the United States conjuring up spirits.  Sometimes, they would hold seminars and give talks regarding their latest scary encounters and tell their ghost stories.  Naturally, Nicole followed the group on Facebook and Twitter and attended these events, sometimes dragging me along.  How could I resist an excuse to travel?

One trip I took with Nicole was to the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado in October of 2009.  Yes, the very hotel where the master of horror wrote The Shining, which I did get to see his room where he wrote the thriller, coincidentally our room was right beside it.

On a side note, the movie wasn’t actually shot at that location, but Dumb and Dumber was!  At least that’s what they told us when we toured the hotel.

Kyle as Jay Jay the Jet Plane accompanied by is Aunt Nikki. At first he was afraid to put the costume on, thinking he was really going to fly away! 10/2004

Anyway, it was a fun trip, which included a Halloween party and bunch of paranormal seminars, which I did find some interest, but not like Nicole.  That’s when I first met Lorraine Warren and heard the story of Annabelle.  I must admit, I was quite intrigued and creeped out at the same time.  On that very trip, I also met Father Bob Bailey  from the Prasesidium Sancte Michele Arcangelo (The Praesidium of Warriors of St. Michael).  They are a group of trained priests who perform exorcisms and deal with demonic activity.  I know it sounds like a joke, but it’s true!  My CCD teacher informed our class a few years ago that the Catholic church was in the process of training additional priests to deal with the increase of demonic activity around the world.  Every diocese is to have one of these trained priests stationed on location to deal with any of these special cases.  It’s very real and I feel we need it.  After all, a perfectly normal man doesn’t just one day become possessed and start eating the face off of a homeless man for nothing, in the middle of a street, in the middle of the day.  I believe crazy events like this happen more than we are aware and demons are the root cause for these unusual and extreme inhuman cases.  www.foxnews.com/us/2012/05/29/victim-in-face-chewing-attack-identified-as-cops-recount-goriest-crime      

After my introduction of the paranormal gang, which all the attendees seemed to know each other for their shared interest and traveling together, I was requested by Nicole to meet her in Gettysburg, a year or two later for another weekend of spook fun.

Knowing I love Gettysburg, I couldn’t resist joining Nicole, not to mention Gettysburg isn’t that far from my house.  Deciding I didn’t want an entire weekend of chasing vapor around, I thought I’d take Kyle for an educational mini vacation.  Plus, it was an opportunity for Kyle to spend some time with his Aunt Nikki.  Ghostly Encounter in the Hallway

While we were there taking in the sights of all things historical, Nicole wanted to meet up with us occasionally.  I distinctly remember one of those meetings we met my sister.  That Friday night after we got in, we met Nicole at an old house of some sort.  It was very brisk outside while we waited in line in the dark with others of ghostly interests.

Ferry kids trick-or-treating mom & dad & Kyle. 2003

On another side note, someone in front of us in line was smoking and the smoke kept blowing in our direction.  Poor Kyle, who has always suffered congestion and sinus issues, was coughing a little just getting over being sick.  Naturally, the toxic air seemed to head directly for his nose.  I know we were outside, but it still doesn’t take away the pollutants.  I’ve never hid my disgust for smoking, and Kyle is clearly aware of my feelings for the repulsive habit.  He also knows that smoke assists in making him sick and isn’t good for his little lungs.  As we stood there, Kyle tattled on these strangers, “Aunt Heather their smoking!  Tell them they can’t smoke around me.”  Yep, that’s my little man, stand up for yourself and call a spade a spade.  I was not happy about the smoke choking me either, so instead of making a scene, I moved us out of direct contact until it was our turn to enter the house.  Nicole took one for the team and kept our place in line.

Once we got inside, I fully understood what it was we were waiting to see, evil objects.  Yes, it was a room or two (I can’t remember) of all sorts of objects laid out on tables with signs asking ‘Do Not Touch’.  Each object had a story associated with it, some kind of story of evil or possession.  I wasn’t liking Kyle, only about nine or so, exposed to evil like this, but now he was intrigued and wanted to stay.  Did I mention it was warmer in there than waiting for my sister outside?

One of the hosts of the event was Lorraine!  We meet again!  Not that she knew who I was, for I was just a person in the crowd but I remember her very clearly from Colorado.  This time her story of Annabelle was different, this time she actually brought the possessed Annabelle doll!  Yes, the real Raggedy Ann doll! (Not the doll they portrayed in the movie)  At first blush, the doll did seem very creepy.  Then, add the story to it, and total scary!

While inside, they asked that no one touch anything for fear of spirits attaching to someone.  They informed us prior to handling any of these objects, they would wash their hands in holy water and a priest was present to offer blessings.  Kyle being Kyle and ALWAYS following the rules, was very careful not to come close to anything, not that I would have allowed it to happen.  Although, at one point, as I was reaching over a few items to point to something or examine an item closer, and Kyle instantly grabbed my arm and yelled, “No Aunt Heather!”  He took me a little off guard and almost shifted me off balance, where I would have fallen directly on the table of strange objects.  That’s my little man, always caring for his Aunt Heather!  Like I’ve always told him, “We do look out for each other because we are a team”.

So what is the story of Annabelle?  Below is a part of the story taken directly from the Warren website.  If you want the full story visit this website.  It’s really quite eery and unsettling.  www.warrens.net/Annabelle.html

In 1970 a mother purchased an antique Raggedy Ann Doll from a hobby store. The doll was a present for her daughter Donna on her birthday. Donna, at the time, was a student in college, preparing to graduate with her nursing degree and resided in a tiny apartment with her room mate Anngie (a nurse as well). Pleased with the doll Donna placed it on her bed as a decoration and didn’t give it a second thought until a few days later. With in that time both Donna and Angie noticed that there appeared to be something very strange and creepy about the doll. The doll apparently moved on its own, relatively unnoticeable movements at first, like a change in position, but as time passed the movement became more noticeable. Donna and Angie would come home to find the doll in a completely different room from which they had left it . Sometimes the doll would be found crossed legged on the couch with its arms folded , other times it was found upright, standing on its feet, leaning against a chair in the dining room. Several times Donna, placing the doll on the couch before leaving for work, would return home to find the doll back in her room on the bed with the door closed.

Me, Kyle & mom on the Gateway Clipper in Pittsburgh, Pa. We rode the locks & dams!  Kyle has a blast, he was 5 yrs old.   8/5/06

Growing up about an hour east of Pittsburgh, roughly 45 miles or so, I consider myself a Pittsburgher, secondary to being a Latrobean.  Random Fun Facts:  Latrobe, Pennsylvania  Pennsylvania is known as the Keystone State, as well as the State of Independence.  Tucked away in the lower left corner of the state, better known as Western Pennsylvania, lies the city of Pittsburgh.  It’s our own piece of the world, and it’s a great place to visit, and for me a place I call home.

Over the years, I’ve traveled and explored other areas of our beautiful planet, but I’ve always returned.  Why?  Because this is my birthplace, my home, and it’s a great place to live!  Sure we have our quirks, but nothing beats the landscape of the Laurel Mountains, the three rivers, all the art and architecture, and the quaint communities surrounding Pittsburgh and the suburbs.  Nothing!

Recently, Pittsburgh has been voted as having the “Ugliest Accent” from Gawker.com’s “America’s Ugliest Accent” tournament.  Do I care?  Not really.  I’m proud of our city with everything it has to offer, and its hard working and loyal people.  After all, no one can claim to have die hard sports fans like we do with our “Stillers” (Steelers), Steeler Nation, the Pirates (baseball) and the Penguins (hockey).  We are world renowned for our hospitals and doctors, and recently the Pittsburgh area has caught the attention of the movie industry, and celebrities alike.  Not to mention there are plenty of famous individuals who call Pittsburgh home or have close ties with our city, including Andrew Carnegie (the Carnegie Museum), Gene Kelly, Michael Keaton, Billy Gardell, Christina Aguilera and our world famous artist, Andy Warhol.  Not a bad line up.

We have Heinz ketchup!  Say no more.

Sure, we used to be known for our “still mills” (steel mills), but times have changed.  And sure, we don’t progress as quickly as other cities, but slow and steady seem to win the race, especially with respect to the cost of living.  Our area wasn’t hit hard by the housing market crash, no major spikes and valleys here.  Pittsburgh, like its steel is cool, smooth and solid.

I read somewhere, Pittsburgh averages more rainfall and “partly clawdy” (partly cloudy) days a year than Seattle, Washington.  I don’t know who won that race, but I can attest for our fickle weather that usually hides the sun.   Personally, I don’t mind the rain and clouds, for when the sun does shine we appreciate it all the more.

As a student in school, I was taught correct grammar, like most, learning the difference between slang and proper English.  It’s true, Pittsburgh is an educated bunch, so don’t let the “ugly” accent fool you.  We are fully aware of our creative and very recognizable Pittsburgh language, and we are proud of it the same.  In fact, I’m sure since I’ve started writing this blog, I’ve slipped in a few slang terms, or at least I started to until spell check didn’t realize I was from the Pittsburgh area.

My Pittsburgh accent isn’t as thorough as some, but I do “redd up” my room and walk through “jaggers” in the woods and “chitchat” with friends and offer them a “pop,” even though I don’t drink soda.  Sometimes it gets “slippery” when “yinz” are walking across one of our great bridges.  Yes, we have more bridges than Venice!  Sunday’s I find myself  “loafin'” around while my mom “worshes” (washes) the dishes with water from the “spicket” (facet).  Now that’s one I personally can’t stand!  I’ve never put an “r” in my wash, EVER, and I never will.  My mom is the only one in our family who does, and that drives me crazy!

Pittsburghers are a quirky bunch, but a great place to call home.  If you’re in the area, stop by and have a Primanti Brother’s “sammitch” (sandwich) and visit the “sahside” (Southside), “norside” (Northside) or “dahntahn” (Downtown) “n’at” (and that).  Don’t mock it until you’ve tried it, so go ahead and practice your Pittsburghese.

You think you can break me, you have another thing coming, I invented stubborn! ~Heather Piper

Kyle has his pappy wrapped around his finger … in this case literally. We love every piece of that little man! c. 2003

Those words have been ringing true over the years.  I’ve said them to Kyle more times than I seriously can recollect.  What I didn’t expect is the irony and the impact they would bring.

Kyle is a good kid, truly.  I’ve said it before and it still holds true today.  I mean that in every sense, he’s kind and sincere, honest and I’d love to say hardworking like his dad, but Kyle tends not to take after the Piper side with respect to work and work ethic, at least at his thirteen years.  He can work hard and has proven to do so, yet that is more a rarity.  When he wants to work toward something, he does his task the best he can.  However, getting him there is a journey all to itself with yelling, threats of being grounded and sometimes and all out war.  He is very difficult and stubborn, I guess like most kids.

I love Kyle with all my heart.  There is nothing I wouldn’t do for him and everything in my life is done with him in mind, EVERYTHING. Ever since God blessed us with that little critter, he has been my world.  Does he know this?  He sure does, even when I get so angry with his attitude or actions (usually lack of action) I still make sure I tell him how much I love him and care about his well being.   Let’s go back to our soul purpose on earth, to ultimately live in the absolute love that God gave us and prepare to live with Him in that love in heaven.  Can I claim this?  Sadly no, but I try.  Does Kyle care?  Probably not.

The more I reflect on my actions from this past weekend toward a teen with an attitude, I realize, he’s just like me, kinda!  First of all I will admit, I know I am not perfect and I believe rethinking some of my poorer decisions and actions can help make me a better person and perhaps a better aunt.  Secondly, coming to the conclusion that Kyle is just like me, blew my mind.

Kyle has always resembled his dad, my brother and yet has glimpses of my dad, Kyle’s pap, but mostly my sister.  The older Kyle gets, the more I see my sister in that kid.  Everything, from the way they move, to the way they think and even their appearance is similar.   Who Does Kyle Favor More, Aunt Nikki?

On a side note, I’ve actually had some friends of mine think Kyle looks just like me.  I’ve never seen it, but I’ll take it.  Perhaps they are seeing what I just realized, how very similar we are personality wise.  I’ve always tried to figure out Who Does Kyle Favor More, Aunt Heather?

Kyle is no stranger to being yelled at, especially from me.  Normally, I don’t completely flip my lid and loose it on that kid, but there have been times when I shamefully have lost my temper, to the extreme.  It does take me a while to get to that point and Kyle seems to be the one to take me there.  It’s not usually one thing, it’s a build up and a repeat of the same behavior that makes me hit an eleven on the old tension scale.

Kyle as the scarecrow for Halloween. This is how he looks to me with his attitude! Take at the Sacred Heart Church parking lot before the Youngstown Halloween parade c.2010

What sparked this one?  Egg rolls.  Yes!  First let me set the stage.  On Saturday, I was in New Hope, Pennsylvania administering to the Doggie in Disguise Scavenger Hunt for Thrill of the Hunt, my company.  Usually, I need assistance when doing these activities and Kyle usually helps me.  Well recently, his interest in the company has become less than mediocre.  There was a Warmachine tournament at the local comic book store Saturday morning and not wanting him to miss it, I offered to administer to the scavenger hunt solo.  It would have been nicer if I had someone help me set up and wrap up the scavenger hunt, not to mention the nearly six hour drive out and back in a day gets lonesome, but I knew it was important to him.

Let me also include, that for the last several months, not days, not weeks, MONTHS, at the very least since the beginning of summer, Kyle was suppose to get my database for Thrill of the Hunt in order and organized.  He made a deal with me and I was counting on him.  Basically, his job was to enter data so I wouldn’t loose important contacts and so I could keep all the scavenger hunts and their participants in order.  This database was not only going to help me target new businesses but it was to be used to reach out to our customers to promote up coming events.  You know so I can get our numbers up and all things associated with that.  Needless to say, it’s a very important job that I don’t have time for.  Did I also mention I was paying the kid?  Yes, even after all I give him and do for him, I wanted him to earn money, as opposed to just asking for it, a good work ethic lesson.  Plus, I know the experience he would receive by going through this process would be good for his accountability, to be apart of building the company from the ground up, great work experience for his knowledge and as a resume builder, and it would prove to be beneficial to him in his career.  All good reasons for him to administer to the Thrill of the Hunt database.  Could I get someone else?  Sure, but I wanted to give him this opportunity.

Is my database done?  Nope!  Not even close.  I even sat with him to assist at times.  He just wants someone to hold his hand and basically do the job for him!  I even tried helping, by showing him how to manage his time to tackle the mile high pile, piece by piece.  I don’t expect the kid to sit for hours upon hours on the computer entering data, but a half an hour every day is not too taxing.  Keep in mind, he’ll sit there for four even five hours straight, if not more, playing video games.  Yes, there is no reason why he can’t be responsible for completing this task.  None.

Our cousin Fred, Uncle Sonny & Ryan. Dad’s head made it in the pic. Taken at Uncle Sonny’s kitchen mid 1980s

Now the database not done was becoming a huge argument and growing fast.  Then add in the egg roll instance and Kyle’s attitude became a lethal combination for me to blow up like the atomic bomb.

Back to the egg roll, which was never really about an egg roll.  Kyle was at the Warmachine tournament and mentioned how Gigi got him Chinese food from the place next door, like all the other Warmachine players.  Cool, Kyle’s hanging with people of his own kind and fitting in.  Then, he brought up the egg rolls and how he threw them away.  Keep in mind this all happened right after church, when I should have had God in my heart the most.  Guess not.  I was appalled that he didn’t think of us in any way shape or form to bring the egg rolls home and offer them to us.  I got over that hurt and was more devastated to find out that he never even thought of anyone in the room to offer his egg rolls.  What?  How self centered!

First of all wasting food in my mind is no good.  Personally, I hate it and I hate seeing it.  Then, to not even offer someone what he doesn’t want, not like he’s sacrificing anything, is mind blowing.  Don’t even take me back to the fact that he never even thought of us, at all!  Didn’t I help raise this kid from birth?  Did he forget everything?  Now I began wondering how was he acted during the tournament?  Was he using his manners?  Was he being a teenage spoiled brat?

Well, in the matter of a few minutes that set the stage for the entire Sunday, which included a huge fight about my database.  It got even worse when I found out he didn’t care and was making mistake after mistake with my database!  Was he trying to sabotage the company?  The very company I am working so hard to build.  Apparently, he could care less.  Probably because all he has to do is ask my parents or my sister or anyone else for something and he gets it.  Why would the kid want to work when he gets things handed to him?  The answer is he doesn’t.  I wasn’t asking him to go chop down trees or build a house, he was simply sitting there entering data for a half an hour.

Then, I found out he wasn’t entering the companies!  What?  He didn’t want to, was the point, although he started to make an argument that is was double the work and all I had to do was search what I needed and pull the reports differently.  I did hear him out and considered his suggestion, even though I know it wasn’t to make himself more efficient nor to help me make a better database.  I told him NO, I wanted it done correctly and my way.

Well, Kyle was not going to be told NO, which is not like me at all, none of us were ever like that.  He argued and argued and pouted and commented under his breath and then was moving so very slow, I wanted to send him flying out the window into the my Uncle Walter’s field!

There’s a Lego war brewing … Kyle’s Lego army. 2012

During all this, the egg roll argument and then later the database discussions, he kept giving me a stubborn snide grin.  AND he was glaring at me eye-to-eye as if challenging me.  Are you suicidal?  It was all around nasty and I was tired of Kyle’s self centered, spoiled, greedy, no-it-all attitude.  I responded as a frustrated human being and up and smacked him in the back of the head.  Was it right?  No.  Did it solve anything?  No. Did I feel better?  Kinda, but not really.

After I walked away and started to come back to reality again, I thought of my actions as well as Kyle’s.  I needed Kyle to learn from his behavior.  I simply told him he was fired from the database, but he was going to still help around the house with manual labor.  (He needed to be taught a real lesson and it was good exercise)  I also informed him that the Warmachine pieces my mom got him for Christmas and gave him early, (yes that’ part of the kids problem, he gets everything on demand, again not working for it) was going to be taken away until Christmas.  AND the WarMachine tournament in November, which is going to be a bigger point system that he was excited about, was not going to include him.  (Plus with me taking way those pieces, he wouldn’t have enough points to compete).

Did Kyle keep up that crappy defiant grin and snicker at me with an attitude?  Nope, his eyes welt up with tears of fear and disappointment.  Bingo!  I found superman’s kryptonite.  I finally outsmarted the teenager!  His stubbornness is a lot like mine was as a kid.  I knew I was bullheaded and headstrong, yet I was always considerate with my family and I was ALWAYS a hard worker when my parents needed something done.  If there was money to be made, I was ambitious and first in line.  When my parents had the sawmill, I begged them to let me work there.  I was never afraid of hard work, just laziness.  You could always count me on me to get stuff done, unlike Kyle.  He has shown that he’s not responsible and can’t be counted on, which breaks my heart to say that.  Perhaps in time as he matures it will change, at least I will do my best to help guide him.

I know I learned a lesson, violence is not a solution.  Sometimes the knowledge and ability to use it is a good way to keep peace.  When I took karate years ago, they taught us we were trained not be aggressive and fight, but to have the ability and knowledge, so when peace is threatened and those that cannot defend themselves are in harms way, we can stand up for those that aren’t able to do so for themselves.  Violence should never to used out of frustration or anger.  Lesson learned.  I too hope Kyle learned a lesson, but I have a feeling there are many more to come.  No matter how hard it will be, I care for Kyle that much and his well being that I’m willing to fight for it.

Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.  ~Andrew Carnegie

Molly & Kyle working together to get across the Ropes Course in Ligonier, Pa. for the Sacred Heart / Saint Cecilia Youth Group 4/27/13

I’m a huge fan of team building activities, you know for business functions or company outings.  They offer great benefits such as building moral, setting the cultural dynamic of a business or an organization, and allowing your team to think differently especially with problem solving and creative ideas, while working together.  Team building!

Corporate/Company:
These seemingly simple ideas are endless, yet should not be taken lightly for it really is important.  Administrating and participating in team building activities and company outings are imperative today, with the new generation taking over the workforce and those that are soon to be joining.  These young professionals interact differently, think differently and have a different concept of what an employer should offer and what they expect from his/her job.  Not to mention the work dynamic is drastically changing and in order to have a solid skilled work force, companies need to adjust culturally.

Examples:
Ideas like what?  There are so many activities that can be taken advantage of that can be as elaborate or simple as desired.  Ideas such as team races, paint ball or a computer or board game.

One concept a close friend told me about, which seemed very fun and rewarding at the same time, involved bicycles.  The participants had to separate into small groups and build a bicycle.  Yes!  An actual bike, with two wheels and brakes and all the fixings.  After it was inspected for accuracy, one of the participants had to ride their newly constructed means of transportation to the finish line, where a group of underprivileged kids were waiting to receive a brand new bike, unbeknownst to the participants before they started the journey.  Talk about a win win!

Sacred Heart / Saint Cecilia’s Youth Group team building activity in Ligonier, Pa. Ropes Course … Team Building! 4/27/13

Another team building concept I heard about involved the sense of smell.  The participants had to create a perfume scent for themselves.  Then, they were blind folded and had to walk around finding the scents to match their co-workers.  I may have butchered that one a bit, but the basic concept is there.

Regardless, team building activities should be fun and interactive.  Also, no one says you can’t focus on the company mission statement, history and/or values and not have it fun.  Sure you can!  And guess what?  If it’s interactive and challenging, a simple walk across the street can be an adventure!  Team building exercises don’t have to be just about each individual, personally.  Sure, it will obviously include their personalities, or in some cases a lack there of, and their strengths and weaknesses.  But it can also involve how they work within the company and their roll they play, in addition to how they work with co-workers.  There are many layers and different dynamics to team building.  They should be explored and these activities implemented at least once a year, or with the completion of a goal.

Scavenger Hunts:
Why am I talking about this?  I’ve had an influx of people requesting team building events or was inquiring about doing something different for a team builder exercise.  You came to the right place!

As I’ve mentioned before, Thrill of the Hunt is my company.  (Add Thrill of the Hunt to the Latrobe List, Scavenger Hunts – It’s the Thrill of the Hunt!, Scavenger Hunts – Getting Our Start At Seton Hill University & Continuing …, Doggie in Disguise Scavenger Hunt) (Select the category Thrill of the Hunt Scavenger Hunts for a complete list of blog entries written on my company).

Thrill of the Hunt builds scavenger hunts for company outings, team building activities, trade shows, fundraisers, birthday parties, bachelor/bachelorette parties and family reunions, to name a few.  Thrill of the Hunt also self hosts several scavenger hunts throughout the year, in various locations.

Sacred Heart / Saint Cecilia’s Youth Group team building Ropes Course in Ligonier, Pa. 4/27/13

Scavenger hunts are a unique way to engage all sorts of people, in any environment, for any level of participant.  Scavenger hunts can include all sorts of information or can be simply fun and trivial.

My suggestion for companies is to incorporate some company value or history.  It’s a fun way to keep the participant’s connected to the company and reinforcing the culture.  Forcing employees out of their comfort zone, either with the location of the scavenger hunt or with the challenges is the best way to make an impact.  Even though Thrill of the Hunt can build a scavenger hunt on site indoors or out, but my preference is outside at a separate location.  This allows everyone to get their head out of the office zone and clear their minds with fresh air.  My more successful company scavenger hunts forced the participants to really move through cities and towns, outside even in the cooler weather and even rain.

Team building doesn’t just stop at companies and large corporations.  No!  Personally, I think team building can be used as a way to become familiar with everyone on the team or organization.  Example, about a year ago Kyle’s youth group participated in the Ropes Course in Ligonier, Pa. You can read about the entire event at  What’s Gonna Work?  Teamwork!

To summarize, Kyle’s youth group participated in a very unique type of team building experience.  The Ropes Course!  This activity is perfect for smaller groups.

Before taking the plunge onto the obstacle, we played several team building and energetic games.  Yes, we actually got to run around and act silly, while building trust among each other in the group.  Then, after our instructors felt we were ready, we tackled the Ropes Course!

It was a serious of suspended cables, an unsteady bridge, shaky boards and a not-so-stable log walkway, all hanging about six inches off the ground.  Our mission was to figure out how to get everyone through the course without stepping on the ground and working together as a team, using everyone’s strengths and understanding everyone’s weaknesses.  Every time someone touched the ground, the entire group had to reset and start all over again, each time learning from the previous toward reaching our goal.

It took some time but we did figure it out.  Granted, we ran out of time before executing our final plan of attack, but it was a great experience regardless.  To this day it left such an impact on me, I incorporate some of the values and techniques into my scavenger hunts.

There are all sorts of team building activities that can be done, with any group of any size at any location, just pick one and try it.  It is totally worth it for the company or organization and everyone involved.  Email me for some ideas!  [email protected].

Below are a couple of videos from the Ropes Course in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.  This was just part of the course, showing how we had to figure out to help each other to get through it, leaning on everyone’s strengths.  Poor Kyle, he was working so hard to make sure he didn’t touch the ground and yet got across the log.  Good job buddy!

Nothing great in the world was accomplished without passion.  ~Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

As most may have realized, I entered my company Thrill of the Hunt in a contest, the Chase Mission Main St. Grant Contest.

What does that mean?  It means I have a shot, granted a very slim chance, at winning one of twenty prizes awarded.  It’s true, I’m a small town Latrobe start-up company in our second year, and there were roughly 35,000 participants in the 2013 contest, so the odds are not in my favor (a little Hunger Games reference).  I get it, but I also know someone, 20 small businesses to be exact, will win.  Why not try?

Before I forget and get wrapped up in the details of this contest, please vote.  If you voted, thank you so very much!  There is only one vote per person permitted and currently as of now, I only need 39 more votes to go in 10 days.

Follow this link–> http://t.co/nE2souOg8J   .

Now onto the details of this contest.

The big prize or the crème de la crème is winning the $150,000 grant (naturally I’ll have to pay all local, state and federal taxes).  In addition to the prerequisites to entering the contest, such as the number of employees, the minimum of two years in business and such, I had to complete essay questions.  I met the strict criteria with flying colors, the easy part, but the questionnaire took some time to work out.  There were several sets of questions to answer including outlining the details to how the money will be used if won.  A great way to force me to think wisely with respect to spending, on a micro and macro level, with or without winning.  Thinking this way will only help Thrill of the Hunt in the long run.

Me at the Seton Hill University Homecoming Block Party, doing a scavenger hunt for Seton Hill in Greensburg, Pa. 9/21/13

How would I use the money?  Since there are two sides to Thrill of the Hunt, the public, which are our own hosted scavenger hunt events; and the private, which include business functions, team building activities, fundraisers and parties, I addressed them both, for they work in tandem.

The money will help Thrill of the Hunt expand our public events into other cities and states.  It will also give me the resources to truly promote our events AS AN EVENT!  With every public scavenger hunt and new city we participate in, Thrill of the Hunt meets new contacts and promotes our services as a scavenger hunt adventure for private functions!  These public and private scavenger hunts give me the marketing power to promote Thrill of the Hunt with the use of Google keywords, increasing our SEO within each hosted area.  See how both sides of the house play off of each other and yet, are mutually independent?  That was not by chance but by my design.

Then, there’s the trip to Google headquarters to attend a seminar with small business experts.  Having the opportunity to tour Google alone would be amazing, not to mention speaking with these experts and making contacts, again spreading the word on Thrill of the Hunt.

As part of the benefit package, the winners will also receive a Google Chromebook laptop and a $2,000 coupon toward one market research study with Google Consumer Surveys.  All good for taking my company to the next level.

Me & Kyle administering a scavenger hunt for Thrill of the Hunt in Shadyside, Pittsburgh, Pa. 2013

I’ve done other contests in the past and lost, but going through this process is good for me personally and the company.

Last year I participated in the Intuit Big Game Small Business Contest.  Why do I take the time to do so when my time is so limited?  I enter these very hard to win contests for several reasons.

First and foremost for the opportunity to win.  They each have a very enticing draw, which will benefit Thrill of the Hunt tremendously if awarded.  Again, I’m not so blind to realize the odds, but like I said, someone has to win.  I feel if I don’t try, I am doing my company an injustice and a missed opportunity.

Plus, completing the application is a great process to go through.  It helps to reevaluate the direction of the company and truly get to the heart and soul of the business.  I mean that.  These contests ask the tough questions or ones not even considered. Like what?

Besides the typical short and long-term goals and competition, they ask ‘Why did you start the business?’, ‘What will winning mean to your company?’, “What made you want to be an entrepreneur?’, and ‘How does your company help the community?’.  Writing up the essay questions is a great way to evaluate yourself as a business owner and the company.  It also helps to really narrow your focus or confirm your business model.  Not to mention, the more that is written about your company, the better your copy sounds and is refined.

It also recharges your battery and builds excitement, reiterates why the company was started in the first place.  Keeping the passion up and going can be a challenge too.  Every little bit of encouragement helps.

Did I mention with these essay questions they are usually limited to about 1,000 to 1,500 characters?  Not words, but characters including the spaces.  Yikes, that’s right!  That in itself is very difficult and challenging, but it forces a person to really eliminate all the unwanted bull and the unnecessary words to capture the true essence of the company.  Like I said a great practice to go through.

Leko (pre Cooper) showing off his Thrill of the Hunt prizes at the Dog Gone! Scavenger Hunt in Shadyside, Pittsburgh, Pa 6/2013

Another big factor with these contests is the marketing aspect.  Yes, the national promotion of being associated with a big name, and naturally the prestige of winning under said name is a bonus, but also the indirect publicity with friends and family.  This helps to spread the word on the company to those who might not know you are in business for yourself, or may not know exactly what it is you do.  Those people who we take for granted and are often times overlooked are monumental to a company!  These contests force a person to reach out to EVERYONE, especially when it comes to the voting process, which they all seem to share.  It’s a great way to introduce a company on a very personal level without commitment.  It’s also a great excuse to continue promoting the company to those who are very aware of the business and to maintain top of mind awareness.

With these contests, they usually give marketing options and templates to use or store for future efforts.  Again, going through the activity of writing a press release or scripting and shooting a video to distribute, moves everyone out of their comfort zone and into the real world of marketing, another avenue to promote the company.

Believe it or not, all this activity and project development does take time but helps to get your thoughts together to really understand your own company.  That was always a big fear of mine, not having a clear defined message.  Working in an ad agency with an eclectic assortment of industries and companies, I’ve seen the opposite.  Believe it or not, I’m not talking about small companies but established businesses with major resources.  I’ve seen them fall short on the focus of their company or have yet to find their true niche.  Scary.

To anyone who has a start-up company, or is thinking of doing so, or is already up and running, take the time to invest in these contests.  No I’m not being paid to promote them, and yes, they are long shots, but with experience comes understanding and knowledge.  More importantly, theses exercises will get you thinking differently and out of your comfort zone.  Plus, someone has to win!

Good luck Thrill of the Hunt!  Remember, everyone needs to … Experience the Game!

Thank you to everyone who has helped me out with Thrill of the Hunt in one way or another over the years.  Your involvement has been appreciated and needed!  Most are friends and family who want to see my company succeed, but some are strangers who see potential in my business.  To everyone who voted, spread the word, sent me leads, gave advice and direction or just gave me words of encouragement, I want to send a very sincere Thank You!  I wouldn’t have made it this far without everyone’s help.

For more information on Thrill of the Hunt, visit our website at www.ThrillScavengerHunt.com or email us at [email protected].