T.O.

Natalie and I had the opportunity to go visit some friends in Toronto.

Dan and Dustin on Dustin's patio. We went for some Chinese food in China Town. Daina ordered a rum and coke. The waiter brought her a glass of coke filled with lemon wedges. When the mistake was pointed out, the waiter responded "remon coke" you ordered "remon coke". Good times.
This genlemen banged away at his drum to entice people to enter his store and purchase quality items from China. Daina assisted him with this task.
Obviously his plan worked, because we not only entered his store, but we also bought these sweet "2pac" gloves at a great price.

It was a great weekend!

I Heart NY!

This past week we went for a little holiday to Toronto, ON, Lancaster, PA, and New York, NY. These are a few photos from our trip (pictures from the other places will follow).

One of the first things we did was go to Hello Deli so I could meet Rupert Jee - it was quite a moment.

We were on standby to get into a Letterman taping, but they only let in 7 and I was 10th. I experienced some sadness, but I quickly got over it.

Very few people obeyed this sign in New York.


We went for a carriage ride in Central Park. It was an incredible way to see it and our driver pointed out where all of the famous people live and some of the historical buildings.




Our next stop was the Empire State Building.

The lobby was really cool...Art Deco style.

The views were amazing...it really helped me to put how massive New York is into perspective.

Trump Tower.

He has too much money.

A picture from inside St. Patrick's Cathedral across from Rockefeller Center.

This is the Rockefeller Center...we went for a tour of NBC and saw the SNL studio. They didn't allow us to take any photos inside - jerks.

Statue of Liberty.

Ground Zero.

A building beside Ground Zero.

The Naked Cowboy on Times Square. I will leave it to your discretion to follow the link.

Then came New York's night life. So much fun!

It was fleet week in New York. The streets (and bars!) were filled with men and women in uniform.


A picture I took from our cab.

This is a man we ran into on Times Square. His sign says, "Need money for beer, drugs, hooker (hey, at least I'm not bullshittin' you)."

The next morning, Natalie and I woke up early to try and get in standby for a Martha Stewart taping (she is Natalie's hero).

Not only did we get into the show, but we were seated in the vip section front row! We were so close to Martha that I could have tackled her if she added an ingredient that I disagreed with!

Our trip to New York was fantastic!

Rupert Jee!

This is from many years ago, but remains as one of the funniest things I have ever seen!

Next week we are planning a trip to New York...I can't wait to visit Rupert and enjoy one of his sanwiches!

Enjoy

Cats are the best!

Hangin' with the Parental Units

My parents came for a visit this past weekend...these are some of the fun things we did.

We went to a Tigers game.

It was a hot and sunny day. Because I am not used to it being this way so early in the year, I didn't think about putting on sunblock. This resulted in a severe sunburn on my face and arms. I will spare you from the pictures of my pain.

The Tigers got smoked 11-3, so it wasn't the best game - but we had fun anyway!

This is a cool mural of the Temptations we found on a building in downtown Detroit.

We went to Amherstburg, ON to see Fort Malden. It is situated on the east side of the Detroit River and was built by the British between 1796 and 1799. Initially the post served as a major garrison, naval base and key centre for the British Indian Department in western Upper Canada. During the war of 1812, Fort Malden was headquarters for the Right Division of the British army.

It was really cool!

So Good!

This is a video put together by some Best Buy workers. They filmed this guy trying out the demos and then did some nice editing.

I found it hilarious because I dealt with people like this when I worked retail at Dufferin Games. I had a guy, who looked similar, come into my store with a pool cue case that had an alarm on it. He said to me, "This puppy detects pressure change and movement...anybody tries to steal my baby [referring to his cue], they're done!"

I hate to admit it, but I was 1 of 80,103 in attendance!

Spectacle: 1) an object, phenomenon, or event that is seen or witnessed, especially one that is impressive, unusual, or disturbing; 2) an impressive performance or display, especially something staged as a form of entertainment; 3) somebody or something that attracts attention by being unpleasant or ridiculous.


It was all of the above. Nat and I had the pleasure of taking in Wrestlemania 23 in Detroit this past Sunday. Here we are waiting to get inside to see what is in store for us!

There were many parts of the evening that could be commented on, but I will limit them to my two favourites. I found my fellow fans, and the signs they brought with them, to be as entertaining as the event itself. as you can see, there are many!

This one was my favourite. It says, "Just Bring It!" Someone actually took the time to add "Just Bring It!" to the atmosphere.

Of course, being in the same building as Donald Trump was the best part of the whole evening. Trump and McMahon each had chosen a wrestler to represent them in a match. The loser of the match was to have his head shaved by the victor. It was clear from the beginning that Trump would never shave off his mop.

I never dreamed I would ever have the opportunity to attend a Wrestlemania. It was certainly one of those experiences that I will never forget...and I am not sure how I feel about that.

Deee-troit Basketball!

Well, we finally had the opportunity to go see the Pistons in action at the Palace. I must admit I am not the advid basketball fan I once was, but it was still great to take in a game. They really turned the game into a show...these flames ignited each time a starter made his way to the court. As you can see, we were quite a distance from the court, but it was still hot soup on the face. It was very entertaining.





In the end, it wasn't much of a game. The Pistons controlled most of it and won 96-75, so it did not come down to the last shot, as many NBA games seem to. But it was still a lot of fun and a great way to spend an evening!

Sid, would you mind throwing an Oiler jersey over your head please?

Mike (my brother), Natalie, and I went to Pittsburgh this past Sunday to watch Crosby and the Penguins against Heatley and the Senators. This is the sign that greeted us at a rest stop in Ohio. Only in America!

We were expecting Pittsburgh to be a dirty city (like Hamilton), but found that it is a beautiful city built on hills and full of trees. It was really nice!

This is a picture of the downtown skyline. We walked through it a bit, and found it to be clean and safe.

The Mellon Arena was a strange place. It is the oldest arena in the NHL.

It was a nice place to watch a game. We were up in the rafters, but it seemed like we were right over top of the ice. We were impressed with the crowd's knowledge of the game and their enthusiasm. Who wouldn't be excited cheering for this team!

It was a great game! Pittsburgh ended up winning in a shoot-out. It would be nice if the Oilers could some how acquire Crosby. He is so fun to watch. Since the Oilers are in the state they are, I have decided to cheer for The Penguins. I know this sounds wrong not cheering for a Canadian team, but I can't seem to cheer for any of them (if the Flames do well, I will never hear the end of it!), and the Penguins remind me of the Oilers back in the glory days.

This was a great road trip!