When you need inspiration for a blog post, what better source than your Dad.

Happy Father's Day to everyone's dad, but especially to my own Dad, Richard.

We are roomies, along with my bro, Tommy. My dad was born in 1923, and has been in love all of his life with my Mom (who passed in 1994). He has five sons, one daughter, and a slew of grandkids, nephews, nieces, and greatgrandkids, along with many honorary family members that were are close as his own kin.

My dad has always been the solid, dependable worker, the go to guy, the reliability surroundung any workplace he is in, the person people tend to know deep down is the reason it all works, though many times, will deny it. My dad still always plugs on, and does it with great love and humor. Yep, plenty of hard times, but plenty of amazing successes.

Look at me.

He still keeps close to his family, both here in Philly and elsewhere, and is the first at church for wedding or funeral, for a family event, for just a nice afetrnoon with friends and relatives. He isn't first because he has to be, he is first because he feels it shows the proper respect that everyone deserves. We will be out the door for a 9 AM event that is a half hour away by 7 AM.

He loves his Phillies (yells at Charlie Manuel all the time) and always has. He loves all things Disney and family films, and in recent years, has become quite the woman, being a sucker for all the movies on Lifetime, Disney Channel, TCM. I tailor my DVD library to make sure there is always something for him to watch.

He loves his music, and even though my mother was the amazing singer in the family, my dad was pretty amazing at music himself. Much of my music loves are formed by what we listened to in the car and in the home. He is a huge fan of Andre Rieu and 40's music, as well as traditional country. However, if any of the kids and grandkids want to sing and perform death metal, Dad will be front and center cheering them on, bitching all the way, not meanly, simply beacuse we expect and love it.

His favorite film is SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, I think because it reminds him of my mom. He cries everytime he watches it, but he watches it straight through.

There is so much more, but in the end, he is our dad, and that is our blessing.

I am sure that is it so for many of you, but the cliche rings true for my dad. You should be so lucky as to have one like him.

Maybe the Phillies will win, because Charlie Manuel would never disappoint you on your day, Dad.

Lions Are Growling...My First Really Real blog post.

The first CD I ever bought was this strange CD that was essentially designed to show off the new fangled CD players in 1985.

One of the tracks was some basso profundo voice guy who simply repeated LIONS ARE GROWLING over and over, and the engineer placed it in various levels of the left / right stereo mix.

It was oddly basic, and yet it was so different and unusual.

Years before that, when I was about 7, my family got an ADMIRAL TABLETOP STEREO (1962), that came with a 33 1/3 RPM Vinyl album (remember them?).

The starting track on that tried to amaze you with the wonders of stereo. The stentorian man said THIS IS THE LEFT CHANNEL....THIS IS THE RIGHT CHANNEL....then the engineer mixed it back to mono, and did a slight of hand, with the voice claimng THIS IS THE PHANTOM THIRD CHANNEL.

Hogwash, it was mono, but the voice set us up so well, that we got fooled into thinking the ordinary was something extraordinary.

In retropsect, it really was extraordinary, because I remember it 46 years after the fact, and I remember it vividly.

So as I start to blog my thoughts, my memories, my successes, my failures, and my dreams, please realize that in all of your lives, the ordinary everyday is what gets you to those extraordinary places, and I hope my ordinary, everyday words hold something extraordinary at some point in all of your lives.

Take care.

First Things First

Welcome to my second attempt at blogging. The first is a blog built around the Dunder Mifflin Infinity branch in Allentown, (http://www.dundermifflininfinity.com ) which I am in charge of. That blog is also open to some other Allentown employees, so everyone gets to have a go, and throw some pies and confetti around, at each other,and at our favorite targets.

This blog, though, is mine, all mine, do you hear me? It is my release valve, and hopefully, yours as well, so get ready for something...what it will be, who knows?

I can tell you that I am a video retailer, enjoy a wide range of music, love films and classic TV, am a Disney freak, and have some great family members, friends, and enemies that I hope that you all enjoy meeting.

Oh, and the Phillies are WORLD FREAKING CHAMPIONS, except freaking is a different word per Chase Utley.

So, get ready to have an adventure as you read my prose, decipher my typing, and hopefuly get to know each other.

We are at the top of the hill on this rollercoaster, so hands in the air (holding onto the bar is so wussy), and here we go....soon.