HANGING OUT WITH TONY SIRAGUSA

My good friend Vinny Pipitone, flew Tony Siragusa's amphibian plane down to Pompano, Fl, a couple of days ago. WOW.....what a beautiful plane! Tony Siragusa, one of the owners, was in town to hang out and invited us to join him and Vinny for the afternoon. My girlfriend's son, Jimmy, was sooooo excited to meet a Super Bowl champion, and get his photo taken with him! Tony was such a gracious guy, and we had a great time hanging out with him. Thanks Tony for making Jimmy's day!

NO REASON FOR THIS............

Yesterday as I was heading up I-95 towards Pompano Beach, FL, I was stuck in traffic for almost an hour due to a traffic accident. As I approached the accident, it was apparent that NO ONE was directing traffic. SIX, yes SIX, lanes of traffic were blocked, and traffic was backed up for MILES. What amazed me though when I was passing the accident, (which was 90% cleaned up and involved a motorcycle and a car) was the number of policemen and state troopers all "palling around" with each other with little regard for the massive traffic jam they had behind them. What was even more amazing was that two of the blocked lanes on I-95 were CLEAR, yet blocked off! This is unacceptable. Why is it that our police want US to move accident vehicles off the road so as not to impede traffic, but they have NO problem creating the biggest traffic jams around?

SFO SEA LIONS

Recently when I was in San Francisco (SFO), I went to Fisherman's Wharf and had the opportunity to view the sea lions. They are quite a sight to behold! Most of them are just lying around sunning themselves, while others are yelling at the top of their lungs. It's pretty hilarious. They vary in size but I'm willing to bet some of them top the scales at a 1000 pounds or so. If you get to the wharf, head out to Pier 39 and check them out! Have fun! I've attached a small video clip for your viewing.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARIA

Well, today my girlfriend advanced another year in her life. She's catching up with me rapidly..........;-) But............she's aging very well. So, I guess we're both not getting older, we're getting better! Happy Birthday Maria! Smooooch!

TRANQUILITY

Here's a shot I took at a friend of mines home in New Jersey. This beautiful little trout stream runs right in front of his property. It's absolutely gorgeous in this part of the country, and the sounds are so peaceful and serene. It's almost as if you're in another world. Hard to believe the hustle and bustle of New York City is less than a 45 minute drive away. But to be honest, I'd still rather live in Hollywood, Florida!!!! :-)

100 YARDS DIFFERENCE

A couple of weeks ago I went to the beach here in Hollywood. It's amazing the number of folks on the beach in one section versus another. Here's a look at what just 100 yards made. Quite a difference, eh? At any rate, ANYWHERE on the beach, crowded or not, beats sitting inside during all the cold weather up north. Ahhhh, crowded beaches are wonderful regardless of the time of year!

ONLY ON A PLANE

When I was commuting home from Newark the other day, I had the pleasure of flying on one of our planes with the "new video on demand" on the back of each seat. Decided to play some games and wound up playing a "slot machine" on the game console. Won this nice little "jackpot" of $3000! Now if I could just do that in a REAL casino I'd be happy!

WATCHING PLANES

When I was growing up, I was ALWAYS craning my head around to look for airplanes. After all these years of taking photos and being around planes, it's nice to see other "fanatics" who enjoy my passion as much as I do. Here's a shot I took of a bunch of plane photographers/spotters, waiting near the end of the runway in Fort Lauderdale (FLL). This parking lot is always crowded with folks wanting to watch and hear the planes take off and land. Some even bring ladders to get unobstructed photos/views. Pretty neat!

WHAT A ROCKET LOOKS LIKE

My girlfriend is always trying to challenge my "50 year old" brain, so for Christmas she got me "Brain Age 2" for my Ninetendo DS. So far I've reached "rocket speed" only twice.........but still a thrill nonetheless! I've mastered the airplane speed on several of the games, but the rocket has been pretty elusive so far, UNTIL NOW!!! So, for those of you that haven't seen the "rocket speed" icon, here it is!!!

ACRYLIC STEERING WHEEL

Check out this car that was parked in Hollywood last week. Acrylic steering wheel and all. I think they had a couple of bodies in the trunk because the front of this baby was just about airborne. It's always amazed me the amount of money and effort some people will put into their cars, but when you look at them, they look like the dickens. Good thing every one's priorities are different. ;-)

ANIMAL LOVER

My girlfriends son Jimmy LOVES animals, as does her daughter, Adriana. Jimmy just happened to find these cute little "doggies" to pet while at the car show the other day. I see this guy wheeling his dogs around all the time here in Hollywood. One question though.........just how many dogs can you fit in a cart like this???? ;-)

FUNKY BIKE

Check out this "motorcycle" that was at the car show this past weekend in Hollywood, FL. It has a beer bottle feeding into the gas tank, along with a "water valve", which I'm not sure what either one does, but the bike DID run (on what I'm not sure). Looks like it could be quite an interesting machine when its finished. I'll keep you posted if I see it at the car show again. If the builder is as quick at working on it as I am with my condo renovations, it could be YEARS before we see a finished product..........LOL

CLOWNING AROUND

Here's a shot from the auto show in Hollywood this past Sunday. Always nice to get out and have a little fun. Maria and Jimmy (my girlfriend and her son), decided to do the "face" thing. Ahhhh.........the things we do to get our photo taken!!

VIBRANT COLORS ON THE BEACH

The beach always has nice shots available for the taking. Here's a shot of a beach umbrella that caught my eye. The colors are so vibrant and bright.....and it just begged for me to "capture" it in a photo. I took a shot a few days ago of some blue umbrellas that you can see in a previous post. Who'd have ever thought beach umbrellas would make for such nice pictures?

VIEW FROM THE COCKPIT

I'm often asked if our view from the cockpit is much better than the "side windows" that passengers get to look out of. Of course our view is better. We have approximately 180 degrees of visibility from the cockpit, and it does make for some incredible views. Here's a shot I took right before we entered the clouds. It's a photo of our shadow. I've become accustomed to looking for views like this because they make for interesting "conversation shots". What do you think?

THEY CLOSED MY ROAD

Jeez, what a way to start off the new year!!! I was on an overnight in Columbus, OH (CMH), and when I was flicking through the channels on the TV in my hotel room, I noticed "MY ROAD" had been closed. What a letdown!!! No big deal you say? Have you ever had YOUR road closed? Why, they didn't even ask me if they could shut my road down, for crying out loud!!!! I guess the good news though, is that I didn't even know I HAD a road in Columbus, OH, soooooooo, I'll just leave it at that! ;-) Hope every one's new year is off to a great start!!!