I Wasn't Aware There Was An Alert System

We are Stroudsburg celebrities...

My contribution to the news... "My dog got wet"

Brilliant.

Yuula The Giraffe Scores Big

Halloween 2013: Yuula the Giraffe

The suburbs behind Main Street continue to be the spookiest and creepiest  place to trick and treat

Yuula did not seem phased by the over-the-top decor found on Thomas Street

One wants to stop and eat candy, the other wants to keep on creepin' on

Yuula went head first into Halloween. She wanted no help, braved the darkened streets (and they were dark) and was not at all slowed despite the best efforts of the candy-givers to scare the bejesus out of little children. Good for her. 

And the power of candy.

Lightening The Load-Bearings

A day of semi-progress and semi-leisure. Moving towards a goal and purging the house of unnwanteds. Like dead things. Dead thing Mikey, dead things. Now vaulted ceilings almost seem like a must in addition to a want.

After our gross-out itchy morning of heeby-jeebies and pink glass fiber we cleaned up and did a recycling run and a storage run. We are getting out moneys worth out of that unit. We could win an award I think. It's one of the things I'm most proud of in the whole world, locked behind an orange metal door on the 3rd floor of a warehouse on business 209. Check it out. 

 Lunch at Sarah's, cuz cheap and easy. They're menu leaves little to be desired, but it's conveniently located so...

The ice festival is going on. It's better that last years but, that really isn't saying much. We put Yuula on this throne to get a shot but I guess her frozen butt noticed the throne was made of ice before I could focus so you get crying baby ice queen.

We stopped in at the record shop to see what we could see. I picked up used copies of Talking Book, a Donovan comp and Nina Simone's classic covers album Here Comes The Sun. I also delved into their bargain bin where you can get 20 lps for $10. So I did. I don't mind a little nicked up cover art. My twenty included Simon & Garfunkel's Bookends, Joni Mitchell's Blue, Carpenter's Close To Me, Jackson Browne's For Everyman, Cat Stevens Teaser And The Firecat and Air Supply's Greatest Hits. Hey I needed to get to 20. Threw a few weird one and some holiday albums in and I was at the checkout, with a handful of plastic sheets to boot.

We returned home to try and do a little more excavation upstairs but didn't get all that far. Dinner, skype with aunt Dani and now the nightly Wibbly Pig viewing where of course Laura is the one who fell asleep and Yuula is wide-eyed and ready for some forward rolls.  Maybe I'll chase her into her room with some dead attic critters.

We Have A Way Of Salvaging

We made plans last night to meet the Trunks in Bethlehem for a little holiday cheer. About halfway there Laura was pushing the limits of her new phone and looked up the parking situation only to find out that there would be plenty of parking on this Wednesday evening because Christmas City was closed. A little stunned and poorly we made the snap decision to return to our Main Street and see what we could see. It ain't new but it's knew.

They had the place lit up pretty well

Yuula did some window shopping

This was hidden down a side street

The square was barren as usual but they tree stood strong and lovely

the girls were not impressed, and hungry

After exhausting every option we ended up at Sarah Street and had some delicious meals. The girls ate each others dinner and didn't finish their ice cream. They must've known how col it was outside. Then we went to Yuppie Puppie so the girls could see what they're not getting for Christmas and we could pet bunnies. Not the night we were planning on having but we have a way of salvaging.

Horrific Halloween Hilarity

At 34 this was the most fun I've had trick-or-treating, maybe ever

Halloween Lives In November Now

Surviving Sandy: Day Six

 This day, November 3rd, was the day that Halloween was pushed back to. That's fine with us. Just another reason to escape the igloo at 8 Arrowhead. Or are we now 5134 Arrowhead? I think we're both.

 Downtown Stroudsburg has some perfect trick-or-treating houses so this was gonna be great

 Yuula was has really come to love this lion costume

 Just look at this turnout!

 There were a few scary characters but Yuula kept her eyes on the prize: CANDY!

 Good thing she's too short to see these jokers

 We had to make a few stops to refuel

 Passing by another creepily wonderful house downtown

 Oooh, now a creepy tree and brick wall

 And then a slightly inappropriate and geriatric Batman roamed the street keeping the youth safe

 Some people really went the extra disgusting mile

Afterwards, we decided on Sweet Creams, since it was kind of the only place within walking distance that had power, and we love it. We are trying to run the full menu, each ordering a different sandwich and going halfsies, therefore expediting the process. This round was the Florentine Flatbread and the Smokey Mountains. Delicious. Yuula had pizza and chips. And we had ice cream. 

And then the power came back on....

Who's That Dude?

Now, I've seen the Wizard of Oz a respectable number of times, and not once do I remember this dude riding the wooden horse with Dorothy & the gang. I don't really recall a wooden horse either but I'm willing to let that slide because horses, especially wooden ones, don't demand the kind of attention I'm guessing this mystery dude would. We came across this is at some new "antique" shop down on Main street today. I'm not buying it. I'm not buying any of it.

Tagging The Alley

taken yesterday on our way out

then she fell on her head

How (Some) Mighty Have Fallen

Yay. Went for our first family outing in 2012 that didn't center around the grocery store or the baby doctor. Pure 100% recreational. Headed out to Main Street to do some Main Streeting, ya know, pick up a record, browse the antiquities, buy some baked goods, have an international lunch, read the local flare, peruse the voluminous local book shop. That kind of stuff.

Well, we got to do half of that. The record store sucks beyond recognition. I haven't been there since early last summer and they the same tired old stuff collecting dust, except for some new used Doobie Brothers lps but, c'mon.

The Turkish restaurant we love so much, because it's not only delicious but the portions are appropriately tiny and the price is right, has disappeared. No idea what happened there.

The bakery we were gonna buy a 8 foot roll at to make our 8 foot hoagie for the game tomorrow was empty inside as well. What the hell?

We did manage a remarkably tasty lunch at Sweet Creams of pita pizza, roast beef BLT, and the finest spinach artichoke dip this side the Rio Grande. We killed it and Yuula sucked every last artichoke off those chips. I drank an Arnold Palmer. And never has anyone found such pleasure in simply obeying the crosswalk.