A New Year's Day alternative: Old Time Hockey

By Joseph Turkos

Instead of spending this New Year’s Day watching a bunch of meaningless college bowl games, here’s a better way to spend your time while nursing that New Year’s Eve hangover: Watch hockey. The NHL Winter Classic to be more specific.

Now I know it’s hard for many Philadelphia fans, except for the hard core puck heads, to watch a hockey game that doesn’t include the Flyers, who -- as of this post -- are 0-2 on their current Western swing. But the Winter Classic is something special.

This year’s game will pit the host Blackhawks (20-6-7) against the Detroit Red Wings (23-7-5).

Played on an outdoor rink, the first installment of the classic took place on New Year’s Day 2008 at Buffalo’s Ralph Wilson Stadium where the Buffalo Sabers hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins. A great idea by the NHL brass, this wasn’t the first time that the NHL experimented with regular-season outdoor play.

In November of 2003, the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Montreal Canadians in the Heritage Classic. That game was played at Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium in temperatures that hovered around -22 degrees. Talk about Old Time hockey.

Professional hockey players from all points north talk about growing up playing hockey on frozen ponds, an experience that escaped many hockey fans.

Growing up in Northeastern Pennsylvania in the late 70’s and early 80’s, I wasn’t exposed to too much hockey. At that time there were few organized leagues and the game wasn’t played at the high school level. But armed with a hockey stick given to me by my uncle and sporting my new ice skates (the figure-skating kind), I, along with a few friends, would head to the local basketball court that, during the winter, was flooded and doubled as a hockey rink. There we would attempt to play ice hockey. The experience still resonates in my mind.

The play wasn’t pretty or highly skilled, but it was fun, especially when it snowed. And while I never had plans of playing organized hockey, the experience helped to cement my interest in the game.

I watched last year’s classic and with the snow falling, the thoughts of my early, albeit crude, hockey experience rushed back like a slap shot.

The first puck will drop on this year New Year’s Day classic at 1 p.m. on the configured rink at Chicago’s Wrigley Field. Unfortunately snow isn’t in the forecast. But with temperatures expected in low 30s and with two of the Original Six teams on the ice, we’re sure to see an exciting, well-played and entertaining hockey game.

And don’t forget, Penn State and USC kick off at 5 p.m.

Second Savior: Niittymaki saves Saturday for Flyers

By Joseph Turkos

Flyers fans may have wanted to ask for their hats back after prematurely celebrating an apparent hat trick by Jeff Carter in the third period of the Flyers’ 7-1 thrashing of the Washington Capitals Saturday at the Wachovia Center.

It turns out that all they had to do was wait another eight minutes until Scott Hartnell’s goal, his 13th of the season and third of the game, prompted a second shower of hats.

When Carter appeared to bat in a floating puck in the third period of Saturday’s game, the sellout crowd began throwing their hats on the ice. It turned out that the goal was actually scored by Hartnell.

In addition to the five goals scored by Carter (24) and Hartnell, the Flyers also received goals from Joffrey Lupul (11) and Simon Gagne (17), as the Flyers dismissed the Southeast-leading Capitals.

Saturday’s game possessed every component of an exciting hockey game: scoring, great goalie play and fighting. And boy, was there ever fighting.

At times the game had the feel of the movie Slap Shot, just without the Hansen Brothers. But then again, Donald Brashear may be the next best thing.

Brasher, the former Flyer, was involved in six on-ice altercations Saturday, including two fights, two roughing penalties, an unsportsmanlike conduct and a game misconduct.

The third fight of the game (between the Flyers’ recent call up, Josh Gratton, and the Caps Matt Bradley) exemplified the frustration of Washington. That frustration was no doubt the lingering effect of last year’s first-round loss to the Flyers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup playoffs last season. The Capitals may have been looking to prove something on Saturday. A fact that was not lost on Flyers head coach John Stevens.

“We ended their season last year. There was a lot of motivation for them,” Stevens said. “They felt like we stole something from them and they wanted to make amends.”

And as for the Capitals All-Star winger Alexander Ovechkin, he may as well have spent Saturday in Cuba, welcoming his countrymen as Russian warships entered Havana Bay.

Ovechkin, the league’s third leading scorer (43), was held to one shot on the day. And of his three hits, he ended up on his backside twice.

But the true star of the game was Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki. Niittymaki, starting his second game in a row after Marty Biron missed the game with the flu, faced down 48 shots. Washington shot on goal 25 times in the first period alone, breaking the record Flyers’ home record for allowing shots on goal, 22, which was sent Dec. 28, 1975 against Boston.

“I have seen him good but he was great,” Stevens said of Niittymaki.

With the Flyers leading 1-0 in the first period, Washington went on the power play three times, but Niittymaki kept the Flyers in the game, turning away shot after shot.

“He was sensational and when your goalie plays that well early and he allows your team to regroup, he was the reason we won,” Stevens said.

After yielding five goals in the Flyers’ 5-2 loss to Montreal Thursday night, snapping the Flyers’ five-game winning streak, Niittymaki’s strong start on Saturday allowed him to leave Thursday behind.

“You just have to go save-by-save and I looked up and it was twenty-something saves, so I actually think it was good for me after the Montreal game.” Niittymaki said. “And I got a few good saves to start feeling better.’’

A short memory is a valuable asset for a goalie to have. It’s even more valuable if he’s your backup.

Comments can also be mailed to jturkos@ingnews.com

It ain't over 'til ... you know

By Joe Turkos

Watch out Broadway Blueshirts, the Philadelphia Flyers are playing their best hockey of the season. Their latest victim: Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Flyers skated past the Pens, 6-3, in a Saturday matinee at the Wachovia Center.

Finally, the play on the ice was more interesting than watching security escort two groups of Penguins’ fans from section 219 or listening to the boos every time Crosby touched the puck.

The Flyers (15-7-6) entered Saturday’s game tied for second place in the Atlantic Division with the Penguins (16-9-4) with 38 points, just four points behind the division-leading New York Rangers (19-11-2) 40 points.

After Joffrey Lupul’s wrap around goal just over five minutes into the first period, it was clear that the team was not going to experience a hangover from Thursday’s night’s come-from-behind victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.

Against Carolina, the Flyers trailed the Hurricanes, 5-1, heading into the third period. The Flyers tied the game on a goal by Simon Gagne (15) with 1:84 to play. Gagne also scored the game-winning goal in the shootout.

Interestingly enough, on Saturday, the Flyers led the Penguins by a score of 5-1 after two periods. The thought of Thursday sat in the back of the minds of some of the players and their coach.

“In a hockey game you never relax until it’s over,” Flyers coach John Stevens said.

“Now that power plays are so dangerous and there are so many good offensive players in the game certainly tonight we knew that we had to keep playing the same. Hopefully close it out and we did.”

Even though Pittsburgh cut the Flyers lead in half by the end of regulation, the Flyers received power play goals from Mike Knuble (12) Jeff Carter (21) to stave off the Pittsburgh threat. One of Pittsburgh’s third-period goals also came via the power play.

With the win over Pittsburgh, the Flyers increased their winning steak to four games, this after starting the season at 0-3-3. And while Thursday’s win may have been exciting and may have carried over into Saturday, continually having to come from behind isn’t something to make a habit.

“It was a great comeback but it’s not something we’re gonna do all the time. Maybe it’s possible once or twice a year,” Lupul said of Thursday’s victory.

“It was a good game but it’s also a good lesson to our team and a lot of teams. The way the NHL is now with penalty calls and stuff, the game is never over.”

Lesson learned.

More sad news

Manayunk-born character actor Robert Prosky passed away this week. While for the past 50 years, Prosky lived in Washington DC, he never really forgot his roots. Earlier this year, Prosky appeared at the Walnut St. Theater in a production of Arthur Miller's The Price. Prosky believed it was one of Price's most unrated works. He performed with his town sons John and Andy.
Prosky when in town would hold a Q&A night for fans. One year, he gave it at Old Academy Players. He was surprised to learn that they had kept all programs from shows he performed in.
"There were shows I don't even remember doing," Prosky said in February.
Throughout his long career, Prosky fielded many questions but I believe I got him with one he couldn't answer. He seemed pretty appreciative of the challenge.
I took up an invitation by Prosky to visit him backstage after a performance of The Price. As I waited in line to go to the green room, I told a lady there I had been invited by Mr. Prosky. She was polite if not a little bemused. It was Mrs. Prosky.
I personally delivered the story I wrote from our phone interview. Prosky was gracious and quiet almost contemplative. Boy, could he act.
Our prayers and thoughts go out to the Prosky family.

Save A Prayer

We learned today that Brian Hickey, of City Paper fame, was seriously injured in hit-and-run incident in New Jersey over the Thanksgiving holiday. Hickey, who lives in East Falls, had left City Paper after a four and half year stint to be the campaign manager for John Dougherty's failed State Senate run.
I read Hickey's column in my early days. I've even knocked back a few with the man himself, notably during Fellow Fallser Matt McClure filed bid for a City Council nomination. We last corresponded during Obama run for the Presidency.
We send out prayers and sympathy to Hickey and his wife and hope he pulls through soon. I'll keep the Jaegermeister cold for you.

Weekend Whirligig

A lot going on this weekend. Citizens For a No Kill Philadelphia are based here in Roxborough. Garrett Elwood is sincere in his desire for Philly to reach this goal.
Also tonight, there will be a tree lighting ceremony in Canal View Park in Manayunk. Our favorite politicians, City Councilman Curtis Jones Jr and State Rep. Kathy Manderino are said to be making an appearance. For more details on Classic Holidays in Manayunk, click here.

Personally, I'll see you at the Flat Rock Saloon, have a Christmas beer. Holidays are finally here.

Gobble! Gobble!

The Hooters are back in town playing their Pre-Thanksgiving concert at the Electric Factory. Last year, they gave out their newest album "Time Stand Still". This time around they are releasing a double-live album, "Both Sides Live", half was which was taken from their performance at last year's concert. Hooray!!! Stay tuned Black Friday and I'll let you know about some things happening events out and about Our Town.
For now here's Christopher Titus talking about a Thanksgiving and his mom. Be thankful you're not from his family. Happy Thanksgiving!

Farewell, Madam Councilwoman

As you may already know, former fourth district councilwoman Carol Ann Campbell had died. She was a polarizing figure in the district in the city at large. She could be viewed as a valued leader or as a symbol of the Philadelphia's old politics, depends on who you asked. Plenty has been written about her. I often noted her lack of presence during her re-election campaign. (Except for the one time she actually attended a debate with her two Democratic nomination rivals.) Here is what came from the Office of Councilman Curtis Jones Jr.

"Today is a sad day in Philadelphia. A titan has transitioned. She was well respected by friend and foe alike. During her tenure in City Council she was responsible for several important pieces of legislation including the creation of the Committee of the Disabled and being a staunch advocate for the handicapped and creating the 4th District Basic System Repair Program. She was an advocate for the less fortunate. She challenged the status quo and had a distinguished career learning her trade from her late father Edgar Campbell. She will be forever considered as an advocate for those things she believed in."

Scarlet Fever!

In the end, it was worth the waiting. Plus Icy Hot helps relieve the aches and pains.

Curtis making out like a bandit.

Fourth District Councilman and rabid review fan, Curtis Jones Jr (seen right with his chief of staff, Al Spivey Jr) has really been making out like a bandit this sports season. Unlike his predecessor, current Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, Jones has been winning friendly wagers with his counterparts in Milwaukee, Los Angeles and may even take some treasure from Tampa Bay, Arrrrr!.

The sausages from Milwaukee were delicious and the Dodger Dogs and pumpkin bread from Los Angeles should arrive soon. Now, Councilman Jones sets his eyes (and mouth) to Tampa. He communicated with Councilman John Dingfelder of Tampa, Florida yesterday to talk about the game and make another friendly wager. Councilman Jones will again put up a 6 foot cheesesteak and a case of Tastykakes against some of Tampa’s favorites, Cuban sandwiches and guava pastries. Both Councilmen represent the 4th District of their respective cities.
“We certainly admire the Rays worst to first transformation. After all, Philadelphia is a city of underdogs. However, the Rays have met their match in the 2008 Phillies. I expect the Phillies to win in 5. The great people of Philadelphia deserve this victory and celebration,” said Councilman Jones.
Councilman Curtis Jones Jr. and Councilman John Dingfelder both represent the 4th District of their respective cities. Jones is the Chairman of the Transportation and Public Utilities Committee. Dingfelder is Chairman of Tampa’s City Council Transportation Committee.

Now Curtis, please remember not to be greedy and take a page from your presidential candidate pick and spread the wealth around.

Joyeux Noël!

I am usually a purist about the order of my holidays. (So take down those Christmas decorations right now, it's not even November.) But anyway, Joe Sixpack aka Don Russell's latest Beer tome is about the coming holiday. (See cover right). This book is more about tradition and those holiday rarities than his first one. His first makes a great bar hop planner. (Also incidentally both books make a great gift and are very reasonably priced.) Still breezing though my copy and will try to have more later on this week.

Ghost walking, jive talking

With the great holiday blitz coming up this seemed a appropriate. Tegan and Sara are playing the Electric Factory tonight. Get your tickets, here!

More pics and vids from St. John's.

Proust!

The great Philly Oktoberfest 2008 will be happening this weekend. Tickets range from teetotaling $15 to the VIP whopper at $75. Being the great beer lover, I sprang for a ticket; but also this event is a good cause. No, not to perpetuate the memory of the Kaiser or ogle drunken wenches (although both these events may occur). But part of proceeds support breast cancer research. But other charities will be getting a boost from the day's sloshing and sauerkraut. I have already made my reservations long before I found this on the interwebs from Rev. Jim St. George.

"Saint Miriam will be the recipient of the charity proceeds from the upcoming Philly Oktoberfest 2008! The event will be held on this coming Saturday from 1PM until 5 at the 23rd Street Armory at 22 S 23rd Street."

This church is a great place. Rev. St. George is a true man of faith. You can the feature I wrote earlier this year, here

Tickets are still available on the Philly Oktoberfest website. See you all there.

Play On

There has been an all-volunteer effort to restore one of the last Hope-Jones pipe organ at St. John the Baptist Church Church organist gave us a tour of the organ and even the chamber inside.

Tripping the Light Fantastic!

The Society Hill Dance Academy opened its newest location in Manayunk last week with great enthusiasm. Academy Director Shana Vitoff has an infectious bubbly personality and her staff are excellent. The school is located at the Manayunk Train Station. Here, U.S. National Finalists Mazen and Magda perform a demonstration for guests at the Grand Opening. You can read more about them in this week's edition on Sept. 24.

Win, Curtis, Win

Well, seems Curtis Jones (seen right pushing mayor Nutter during the Soapbox Derby) and the rest of City Council are seriously getting heated over at Dilworth Plaza. Fresh on my desk comes this:

Freshman Councilmembers Challenge Their Senior Colleagues to a Match to Determine Which Council Office is the Greatest

PHILADELPHIA, PA – In a battle royal to determine once and for all which council office is the greatest, freshman councilmembers Bill Green, Maria Quiñones-Sánchez and Curtis Jones, Jr., have challenged their council colleagues to the “The Happiness Edition City Council Challenge.”
On Friday, September 19, the Delaware Valley Chapter of Variety, the children’s charity, will hold its Old Newsboys’ Day event where the “Happiness Edition” paper will be sold for $1 to raise money for disabled children. Council offices will compete among themselves to see who can sell the most copies of the paper. The winning office will be award the “City Council Cup of Champions.”
“While other council offices spend the summer preparing legislation for the fall, my staff has been relentlessly training for Old Newsboys’ Day,” said Councilman Bill Green.
Not all council offices are worried about Councilman Green's preparation. “The air is so thin on the 5th floor of City Hall that I doubt anyone up there has the stamina to win this,” predicted Councilman Curtis Jones, Jr. “The real competition will be between the 3rd and 4th floor offices.”
The Happiness Edition City Council Challenge will begin with a kickoff rally in Dilworth Plaza at 10:00 AM on Friday, September 19th. Council offices will then have between 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM to sell the Happiness Edition papers.

Now, we like Councilman Green but Curtis gives such better sound bites. Besides Curtis is no slouch either, he has the best, most diverse district in the city. But how this will affect play is still undetermined. Sell, Curtis, Sell.

Another round of Stupid Human Tricks...

The event claims rain or shine. As of 6 a.m. this morning, work crews were putting the finishing touches on a set up that began on WEDNESDAY. IN that time, Red Bull has not gained any fans that live in The Wall. Last night a tractor trailer carrying a jumbo-tron parked on a sidewalk doing some damage to private property.
One resident said that having the bike race was enough of an inconvenience.
The media gates open very soon (10 a.m.) and I am headed out to get my press pass. On the itinerary, Mayor Michael Nutter is supposed to be going down in a cart around 1:30 p.m. We'll see what happens in this weather.


UPDATED - 11 a.m. - Things are beginning to take shape in Pit Row. Teams are together already in costume. All things Red Bull are a go along Lyceum Ave-Levering St. But the power of human creativity and pinch of lunacy also prevails. Take of example Team Big Bertha (right). As you can see, the guys have created a great likeness of a birthing mother. But has anyone noticed, said driver will be going down the head first. Sweet.

All things Philly and Pop are not neglected. Team Philly Pride, who was featured a few weeks ago in The Review, are handing out Dum Dums and Peanut Chews. The Porkchop Express has the Philly Phanatic on a Platter. Flying Ninja Monkeys are going down as the Ghostbusters. The team is handing out marshmallows in an effort to get out the text vote.

Despite the threat of inclement weather, it seems to be shaping up to a good time. Red Bull officials are keeping the track clear of rogue hay. The track could still be a little slick from last night's rainstorm. Races begin at 1 p.m.

UPDATE - 5 p.m. - Large crowds, inclement weather and possible repeated runs up and down The Wall have kept this reporter from making hourly reports onto this space. The weather held until noon when the skies opened up on the crowds of people in Manayunk. I couldn't tell who was the bigger sucker the crowds or the reporters who were covering the event. (At least, Medics and police were making overtime pay, so they were possibly the overall winners of the day.)

According to the emcee of the day, the downpour was perfect for soapbox racing...if you enjoy crashes. Out of the total 36 cars participating in the event, a quarter of them did not even make past Fleming St. Included in that group was NBC 10s Tim Furlong and his so-called 'Flying Peacock'. The race did feature some spectacular crashes from cars. 'The Originators', composed of a Nintendo box and paper-mache heads of Mario and Luigi, flipped over decapitating the face of Nintendo Corp. The head of Luigi was later found on the pike of a home on Tower St. and Lyceum Ave. (see right)
"Dr. Strangebox" made a spectacular crash at the Tower St. turn. Sadly many cars 'taco-ed' their wheels, such as Philly2night. and Rocky Car-Go-A...barely making it off the ramp.

But for every crash, wreck and slowpoke (of which there were a few), there were some speed demons along the track including Philly and Manayunk beloved mayor, Michael A. Nutter.
"Nutter is the winner," said one fan.
Nutter was given the specialty-built Red Bull Can car. Nutter was helped along my his councilmanic successor, Curtis Jones Jr., who also waved the green flag starting the event.
"This is a car built by the Secret Service for me," said Nutter.

The neighborhood was well represented in this event by three times including the first car down the hill, 'Philly Pride', who gave a decent account of themselves.
"I was on the brakes," said John Wiggins. "I shouldn't of held them down so long by the time we got the Tower St they were worn off. So I said 'Aim for the Hay'"
Along with Pride, Jebidiah's Journey, hailing from East Falls, came down faster than any Amish would on any given day. Rounding out the group was 'Killa Bees', Emmett McGinn drove his team's creation day. He was also celebrating his 27th Birthday in style. Well Done!
But in the end, end it was experience that mattered. Team 'Deuces Wild', who placed second last year in Providence, RI, took the top spot with their mix of Wacko Jacko (Michael Jackson) and his children. In Second Place, was 'Great Scott' with their back to the future theme, and the Wizz Kids took third.
But for all this fun and frivolity, the event was bittersweet. Lack of communication between residents and organizers lead to some friction during the set up phase. But it was shear stupidity that really was the problem.

Early in the day, people hoping for a vantage point for the race climbed up the rocks at Tower Street before the wall. Many people do it during the Bike Race. Well, it has never rained on the day of the bike race. This day, Mother Nature more than made up for that oversight.
Before the race started Police and medics were called over to the rocks to aid a man who face-planted. The man was seriously injured. Many people called for help and made a corridor to transport the inured man. After this incident, police warned people off the rocks. The crowd gave an ovation to the medic teams on their return.
"I still have that guys blood in my pockets," said one medic.
One police officer, who should be commended, used the crowd to keep an eye on the area, making sure no else else climbed up. When people did, this little crowd of people would chant a certain obscenity in their direction.

If being soaked to the bone was not enough, many had soaked their brain as well. Broken beer bottles, crushed cans and plastic cups litter the sidewalk. In defense of one group, they had the presence of mind to clean up after themselves. Sadly, not everyone was like that.
If this was bad enough, people without patients were publicly urinating along the wall.
But many of these same incident mar the bike race. Hopefully, the spirit and the fun of the event itself outweighed the negativity that follows it. Unlike the bike race, this was a one-and-done event. There are many people in the neighborhood who are thankful for this small mercy.

We shall double our efforts...

Moff Jerjerod spoke those words in the travesty known as Return of the Jedi. Anyway the Red Bull empire have been touting this event so some time now. They are so into this that they even weed-whacked the wall. Not even the city does that for the annual bike race. Sadly, this doesn't seem to be making up for this lack of communication from Red Bull regarding when and where things will be closed off. Here's some previews of the set up.

Holy Crap!

Seems I am neglecting my duties as a blogger. Oh well, I'll just become the Rip Van Winkle of Journalism then. Just wake up and be like 'what the media is liberalized? who knew?' It's September already...how those months just fly by.


Things to watch out for coming up, Community Day Fair, Soapbox Derby (there is one if you haven't watching television-taking mass transit-walking through the city), Fringe Festival events, autumn and Rosh Hashanah.

Speaking of music...

Seeing these two acts tonight at the Mann; they need no introduction.

COOTIES!!!!!!

This story trolled along our desk late on Monday (Deadline Day, D-Day also known DON'T F@*&$ING TALK TO BERNIE DAY). So it didn't get a mention in this week's paper. According to the press release, GIRLS ROCK PHILLY is 'a unique all-female summer camp dedicated to rock music, the first of its kind in Philadelphia. This week, 52 girls from the Delaware Valley are participating in Girls Rock Philly. The week-long day camp is for junior rockers ages 9 through 17.'
The camp will culminate in a concert at Girard College. Two of the girls are from Roxborough. So imagine our surprise this week, when our fairy godmother/ex babysitter, Amy Quinn, posted dispatches from her niece, Jenn, who is attending the camp. The posts can be found here or Citizen Mom or Phawker where incidentally Quinn is editrix. But now the question remains, who is the other chicka from ROX-MYK?

UPDATED! - According to God-mama Quinn, the other girl from the neighborhood is Jenn's Friend Carissa. The duo will be playing with their bands mates this Saturday, for more info, click the Girls Rock Philly link provided above.

To the boats, we have entered the Doldrums

The summer doldrums got you down, vacation come and gone or not yet arrived. We know how you feel...

Ashes to Ashes...

The famed Domino Diner, located at Domino La and Umbria St., caught fire sometime in the early hours of July 28. According to early reports, fire crews had the blaze under control in a short amount of time. Members of the Fire Marshall's office were still investigating the cause of the fire at rush hour this morning. Check back later for more info.

UPDATE- The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but sources close to The Review have said that the building has been unoccupied from a number of months and the business is almost $1 million in debt. More on this as the investigation progresses.

Merchandising, merchandising, where the real money from the movie is made.

Mel Brooks was being quite honest when he said those words in his Sci-Fi spoof Spaceballs. Here, in the Office, a lot of merchandise flows through our doors and lands straight into our waste bins.
of course, plenty of these things are often books distributed by a self-publishing house. A giant ego stroke for the author, if someone is daft enough to review their published piece of tripe. But every so often, the office sees a diamond in the rough. Reputable publishing house Simon and Schuster, usually through their subdivision, Touchstone, send us something worth reading. Some selections include Will Thomas' Victorian thrillers, Bill Giles Memoir and even a cookbook from the Sneaky Chef.

But that is not all that we receive in this office. Just this week, I received mail from Queen Elizabeth I herself. Apparently, she is alive and well and lives at 2775 Lebanon Rd., Manheim, Pa 17545. So either that was the exact location of the acclaimed Fountain of Youth or I received yet another press packet from the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire. If you bet on the latter, you'd be right.
But all was strange and mysterious about this one. They had changed tactics and instead of a brown manila envelope I received a tube.

What could be inside? Was it a trap? If it was It was a stupid one, thankfully I wear glasses or I may have followed Christopher Marlowe to the grave. As a promotional item, they enclosed a pen in the shape of a broadsword which may come in handy because I hear the rodents are taking up armed rebellion again.

But It still isn't one of the most interesting pieces that have been sent to this office. Thanks to the marketing department ofEastern State Penitentiary, I am the proud owner of a blue satin yarmulke.
But the most tasty gift came from Mrs. Fields, they sent a tin of cookies.

Take a Hike

Heading out tonight to check out the Friends of the Wissahickon Sustainable Trails Initiative. Should be an interesting time, FOW does a lot of good for Fairmount Park and the Wissahickon Creek. I am also hoping there will be some woodland creatures out so I can shoot them...on camera.

WOW! What a year!

In all the excitement of the newsroom and the festivities of the month we forgot another milestone. Reviewing: The Blog turned 1 on July 3. So Happy Anniversary to us.

July 4 parade pictures that DID NOT make it into the Review this week