Montauk Monster?!?!

This is from 1010wins.com. What do you think? I think it is a fake.

Posted: Thursday, 31 July 2008 6:28AMUnidentified Creature Washes Up on Montauk Beach
MONTAUK, N.Y. (1010 WINS) -- Somebody call Scooby Doo!It looks like Long Island has got a creature of its very own. Locals spotted and photographed the dead - and as of yet unidentified - beast after it washed up on a Montauk beach July 12.Alice Stockton-Rossini reports:
It's kinda brownish with a beak that resembles a lobster claw and has pointy white teeth. It's been dubbed the 'Montauk Monster.'Jenna Hewitt, 26, and Rachel Goldberg, 29, both of Montauk told Newsday they were looking for a spot to sit on the beach when they saw 'The Monster.'"We didn't know what it was," she said. "We joked that maybe it was something from Plum Island."The thing is, nobody knows what it is yet, but the east end of Long Island has been buzzing with theories.Some think it's a sea turtle without a shell, others say it could be a raccoon or perhaps a rodent. A few people even think it's some sort of evil demon.William Wise, director of Stony Brook University's Living Marine Resources Institute took a look at the photo and told Newsday he thinks it's a fake."A talented someone got very creative with latex," Wise said.Asked to take his best guess he said he thinks it could be a dog or coyote that was diseased and in the water too long.Photo courtesy Jenna Hewitt

Down the Shore

I spent a day “down the Jersey shore” this past weekend. We stayed in Ortley Beach at a house my brother and sister-in law rented for the week. We went down on Sunday and came home Monday night. Before we left we went to the boardwalk in Seaside Heights. I felt like I was in a time warp back to the 80’s. I can’t believe you can still get an airbrushed T-shirt (I thought they were gay back then- let alone now). I was walking around looking at all the people, who some would call freaks. I couldn’t help but think that I was one of those freaks back then with my long hair and earrings and what not. Of course the whole area was packed with the ever present “bennies”. All you see are a bunch of Tony’s and Joey’s walking shirtless showing off their muscles. One big change that is very noticeable is the water. It is so much cleaner than back then. You could actually look down and see your feet clearly. No trip to the shore would be complete for me without a cheese steak on the boardwalk. I remember getting a cheese steak sandwich with real steak piled high and dripping with melted cheddar cheese sauce. My mouth was watering as I waited for it, but what I got was a steak-um sandwich with two slices of white American cheese. What a disappointment. Oh well, at least I still have the memories.

Stewart leaving JGR

Tony Stewart announced he is leaving Gibbs racing to become an owner/driver in 2009. He is joining Haas/CNC which will now be Stewart-Haas. I think this is a big mistake. It has already been proven that owner/drivers can’t really make it in NASCAR today. A few drivers who come to mind are, Ricky Rudd and Michael Waltrip. I also remember Dave Marcus had to hang it up. Some people may argue the fact that they are not as talented a driver as Tony Stewart, but driving is a full time job and owning a race team is a full time job; albeit Stewart is going to be half owner. If it were so easy to do both, why haven’t more drivers tried to do it? Tony Stewart is my wife’s favorite driver but I do not really care for him so I have mixed feelings about the whole deal. I guess we’ll see if it works in 2009.

Cigars

One of my hobbies is smoking cigars. I can’t afford to smoke the premiums so I used to get them from Thompson Cigars via the internet. When I first started getting them, I got good quality cigars plus some freebies with my orders. The last few orders I got from them were less than good quality. In fact, they were bad. The last order I got was so bad (they were hard as a rock when I got them and several were split) that I returned them for a new batch. Even though I bought the cheap ones I still spent $80 because I bought three bundles. The replacement bundles were not fresh either. I was able to salvage a majority of them. This was the first time I returned anything to them and when I called them to tell them that, the customer service rep was very rude. I told him I was going to take my business elsewhere due to the lack of customer service and several shipments of stale cigars. His response was basically go ahead. That was about 4 years ago. To this day I order my cigars from JR Cigars. Mostly from the web site because in New Jersey there are only 2 stores and they are both about an hour away from me. I still can’t afford the premiums so I get the JR alternatives. Although they are not as good as the premiums, they are still a very good smoke. I would not recommend Thompson to anyone but I highly recommend JR Cigar. In fact, if you go to the store in Whippany NJ, they have a bar that you can have a beer or drink with your cigar. They also have a lounge area with couches and chairs. You can also shop in their store for anything from cigar lighters and ash trays to golf shirts and ties and everything in between. When I lived in north Jersey I went there just about every two weeks to stock up. Now I have to resort to the internet for my order and have a beer with my cigar at home, with the occasional trip to the Whippany store. Now, if you’ll excuse me I have to go place an order. Happy smoking…

The power of a blog

Sunscreen ban at Yankee stadium update. The below article is from nj.com; however I am still out $10. Oh well.

Yankees lift ban on bringing sunscreen into stadium
by The Associated Press
Tuesday July 22, 2008, 12:45 PM
NEW YORK - Go ahead, Yankees fans. Slather on that SPF 45 -- sunscreen is now legal in Yankee Stadium.
The baseball team has lifted a ban on plastic containers of sunscreen at their ballpark after deciding "not to be as stringent," team spokesman Jason Zillo said today.
Sports teams around the country started restricting what fans could bring into stadiums after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
The Yankees' website lists bans on backpacks, briefcases, coolers, large purses, laptop computers and video cameras. Bottles and cans also are on the forbidden list, but the sunscreen question is not specifically addressed.
The New York Post reported today that Yankees fans were hot and bothered over the weekend because of a crackdown on sunscreen.
The newspaper said security guards confiscated garbage bags full of the stuff at entrances to the stadium when the team played Saturday and Sunday day games in 90-plus weather.
Zillo said the Yankees have banned sunscreen containers larger than 3 ounces for several years but the restriction was eased in the last few days and sunscreen is now permitted.
Major League Baseball, which promotes skin-cancer prevention through its "Play Sun Smart" program, leaves security measures up to teams. The Mets, allows sunscreen.
See more in Yankees

Sunblock ban @ Yankee stadium

There is a story in todays New York Post on the sunblock ban at Yankee stadium. Below is the link to the story. I am quoted in it. I hope this does not count as my "15 minutes". :-)

http://www.nypost.com/seven/07222008/news/regionalnews/sunblockheads__at_the_stadium_120930.htm

Grandma Madeline Brandon turning 100!!

In August we are going to a birthday party for my wife’s friend’s grandmother. She will be 100 years-old. Let me tell you, she is not one of those soon-to-be 100 years-olds that are in a wheelchair and hooked up to all kinds of machines and just sitting in a corner of a room. Madeline may not be able to get around like she did a few years ago but she still has all her faculties about her and is still sharp as a tack. So I started to think of something to buy a 100 year-old woman. I was going to get her roller blades or perhaps an X-Box. Or what about a football?? Seriously, what do you get a woman who is turning 100?
Here are some facts of the year she was born- 1908
Theodore Roosevelt was president
A subway linking New York’s Brooklyn and Manhattan opened.
The 1st US postage stamps in rolls were issued.
The forty-sixth star was added to the U.S. flag, signifying Oklahoma’s admission to statehood.
Wireless Radio Broadcasting was patented by Nathan B. Stubblefield.
Henry Ford’s first Model T rolled off the assembly line.
General Motors filed papers of incorporation.
The Chicago Cubs won the Baseball World Series (and are still waiting for another one).
Harley Davidson was 5 years-old.

Born in 1908
Bette Davis
Buddy Ebsen
Ethel Merman
Ian Fleming (James Bond author)
Jimmy Stewart
Mel Blanc
Don Ameche
Milton Berle
Nelson Rockefeller
Lyndon B. Johnson
Grandma Madeline Brandon

New Jersey

Gov. Corzine (from here on out will be referred to as Gov. Corslime) has been threatening to raise the tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway for some time now. I don’t know about you but I take the Parkway every day home from work and already pay $1.10 one way. I couldn’t imagine using the Turnpike twice a day now, let alone if/when the tolls go up. Instead of hurting the already over taxed people of New Jersey (we have the highest in the nation property taxes) for money problems our leaders are responsible for, not the people of New Jersey, why not lease advertising space on the Turnpike and Parkway. Lord knows we sit in enough traffic every day to read any and all advertising. Here’s my idea; instead of going through the Essex Toll Plaza or the Toms River Toll Plaza, you would go through the “Verizon Wireless Essex Toll Plaza” or the “Nike Toms River Toll Plaza”. This way, New Jersey will get some money and the tolls won’t have to go up as much as Gov. Corslime wants them to. I’m sure there are more ways to save and generate money if people started to think of them. We have to do something before the people of New Jersey are taxed and tolled out of the state- which may not necessarily be a bad thing. 

YankeeStadium

I went to the Yankee game yesterday with my wife, her parents, and her brother, his wife and their two kids. The last game at the stadium I went to was about five years ago. I could not believe the price for food and drinks. They were selling Fosters beer 24 oz. cups for $12.50!!!! But if you didn't want to or couldn't afford to shell out $12.50 for one beer, there was a cheaper alternative. You could get a Bud or Miller for a low low $8.50 for a 12 oz. bottle. I watch two guys in front of us spend $90 on beer and they only had about 4 or 5 each. It wasn't just the price of beer. We bought 6 bottles of water, two bags of peanuts and two bags of sunflowers seeds for $12.00. The exact same thing inside the stadium would have been $50. As I was standing in line for my $5.00 hot dog, people were complaining about the price of beer mostly, yet when it was their turn to order, they all got beer. I don't know which is worse, charging that much for beer or complaining that it is ridiculous yet buying it anyway. It just shows that no matter what they charge, there will always be someone there to pay it. Oh yeah, I had a can of sunblock on me which I was not allowed to bring in. I was told no cans- it was a spray can. So I had to put on my sunblock then either go all the way back to the car then wait in the long line (again) in the blistering sun and heat or toss my $10 new can of sun block. I tossed it because I did not want to wait a second time. So, someone from the stadium or the Yankees owes me $10 or a new can of sunblock.

Here is a picture of Baileigh after a day at the pool. Not sure if you can see her due to the camo. :-)

Greatest Yankee ever???

Whitey Ford? Yogi Berra? Babe Ruth? Joe DiMaggio? Mickey Mantel? Who is the greatest Yankee of all time? Let me hear from you who you think it is.

Garlic

With the rising cost of everything these days, I am always looking for ways to save money. Since I love to cook and I love garlic (I put it in almost everything I cook), I decided to try growing it. I thought there was garlic and that’s it but when I started to research it, I was blown away to see how many different verities there are. I found a web site, thegarlicstore.com, and I found everything I needed to know about planting, growing and harvesting garlic. I even bought garlic from them. You can use garlic from the food store but it is not as good as the garlic from a grower. It is very easy. All you do is break up the bulb into cloves. Leave the paper on the cloves and bury them in the ground in September or October. The following July they are ready for harvesting. I planted German Red and Italian Purple last October. I already pulled the German Red and used it. I have about 24 bulbs of the German Red and I didn’t even harvest the Italian Purple yet. I won’t have to buy garlic for a long time. I am going to take the 2 biggest bulbs of each variety and save them for planting next fall. Now my garden consists of garlic, tomatoes (a few types), Jalapeño peppers and basil. Each year I add something new.

One of my thoughts.....

My mind does not work like many people’s mind. I think of things that some would say are a bit odd. This is just a sample of things I think about from time to time. I recently got into wine and was looking it up on the computer to see if I should drink it chilled or not. One site I read said red wine should be served at “room temperature”. Now, if I was to drink it in my kitchen, it would be about 71 degrees. Yet if I am going to drink it downstairs in my TV room, that would be about 65 degrees. Or better yet, what if I was to drink it outside. Then what?? So, what is “room temperature”?

Vizio High Def TV

For as long as I can remember, I wanted an LCD high def TV with surround sound. They were always too expensive and decided to wait until the prices came down a bit- just like everything else. (I remember my first CD player from the early 80’s. Almost $400 and played 1 CD at a time) The prices did not come down as much as I had hoped. Someone told me about a company called Vizio. At first I balked at the thought of a “low end” high def TV but my brother-in-law got one and said he loves it. The one thing I heard was it had poor sound quality. I asked my broth-in-law about it and he said he has a surround sound system so he does not use the TV’s speakers because he heard the same thing. I finally had enough money to buy a 32” Sony LCD high def but I kept looking at the Vizio at Costco. After about 2 months of thinking and doing research, I bought a Vizio. Since I bought the “low end” brand, I was able to afford a 42”- which has to go on top of the entertainment center. I also bought a Samsung surround sound system. I have had the whole set up for about 3 months or so and I am extremely satisfied with it. The surround sound system has an up-converting DVD player which makes ordinary DVD’s look high def. With high def and surround sound booming, it is hard to watch regular TV. My only regret is not getting it earlier.

No fluke.....

Went fishing on Saturday. Took the wife and daughter and met my brother-in-law and his three kids at the pier. We were fluke fishing but came up empty. I did manage to catch a pretty big sea robbin though. Of course I threw it back. We also caught a couple of crabs (too small to keep) and about 20 lbs. of seaweed. My daughter had a great time and that made the fishless day worth it. A bad day of fishing still beats a day of yard work.

Jambalya

I spent the 4th of July at the in-laws. They have a big inground pool and we spend a lot of time there. My daughter LOVES swimming. I usually man the grill for appetizers and/or lunch. Sometimes I even bring my smoker over there and smoke some babyback ribs with a homemade rub and BBQ sauce. This time I wanted to do something different so I tried my hand at jambalaya. At the risk of patting myself on the back, it was really good. It is now going to be a new tradition, my 4th of July jambalaya, which I call, jambaJULYa. The recipe below is the one I used. You can make is as hot as you want and use chicken instead of shrimp. In fact, next time I might use chicken. We finished it off with a couple of good cigars and a glass or two (or three) of a German Riesling wine. Well…..enjoy.

JAMBAJULYA
Ingredients
· 2 tbsp vegetable oil
· 1 lb andouille, chorizo, or other smoked sausage, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices
· 2 cups chopped onions
· 3/4 cup chopped bell peppers
· 3/4 cup chopped celery
· salt + cayenne to taste
· 1 cup long-grain white rice
· 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) whole tomatoes, chopped, with juice
· 1 tbsp chopped garlic
· 2 cups water
· 4 bay leaves
· 1/4 tsp dried thyme
· 1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
· 1/4 cup chopped green onions
Directions
1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan or an large-cast iron Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook for 2 minutes. Add onions, bell peppers, and celery. Season with salt and cayenne to taste and saute for 6 to 8 minutes or until golden, wilted and soft.
2. Add the rice and stir to coat evenly. Add the tomatoes with their juices, the garlic, bay leaves and water, thyme. Cover and cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes.
3. Season shrimp with salt and cayenne in a mixing bowl . Add to mixture and cook for 10 more minutes. Cook until rice is tender, liquid is absorbed and shrimp is pink.
4. Remove from heat and let stand, covered for about 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Stir in the green onions and serve. Makes 6 servings

Fireworks

Just like anyone else, I enjoy a good fireworks show….when done by professionals in a safe environment. What I do not like is when people do them in front of their house with no regard for their neighbor’s safety or the fact that they might find them annoying. I live on a cul-de-sac with a school’s ball field at the end of the street. It seems that somebody is setting off fireworks all year long. It annoys me around the Fourth of July let alone in September or March. I remember when I was a kid growing up in Jersey City, NJ there were always fireworks going off around the Fourth of July. It was also expected sometimes on News years Eve. But pretty much quiet the rest of the year. As I get older I can’t help but wonder if they annoyed me as kid and I just don’t remember or if I am turning into the man on the block that kept the kids balls when they went into his yard?? I hope it is not the latter of the two. With that said, have a happy and safe 4th of July.