A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

notes from my noodle

The world as we know it …

Does anybody else feel like they are living in a reality movie?

This is like The Truman Show, times a million.

A few months ago, we all heard about this COVID-19 coronavirus. It was pretty spooky, but it was far away. Though it didn’t seem those in charge were too worried about what it could become.

But, now it’s here. And it’s downright scary.

Now, let me preface this by saying I think the widespread panic is a bit crazy. We’re in a panic stage, which is never good. If we all use extreme caution, don’t put ourselves in bad spots, and use common sense, I think we’ll be fine in the long run. We can’t go bonkers.

But you have to be smart.

Hoarding toilet paper or hand sanitizer, and then trying to mark it up to ridiculous amounts of money doesn’t help. Not one bit. People need to be able to get basic supplies. Stocking your freezer with enough meat to last two years doesn’t help anybody.

It honestly makes me wonder about society as a whole.

This is a crazy illness going around. Things are being shut down. Businesses are closing — and many likely can’t afford it. People are alarmed and in a panic — and that definitely doesn’t help. We’re in uncharted waters here.

I work in two school districts, handling PR. That includes maintaining social media and websites at each. Each are putting out information as fast as possible. Most people have been thankful and appreciate how much each district is attempting to do for their communities. Some are negative and it makes me wonder about things. This is new for the schools, as well. Usually, they aren’t told to shut down to students for this long — especially now in the day of social media.

Speaking of that, the media and social media are hard to watch and look at. A human’s mind can’t grasp everything that is going on and process it that well. It’s impossible. Rumors become “truth,” and and the truth and facts gets questioned by people because they don’t want to believe it.

We have to practice self care. For me, it’s trying to process things and remain calm through it all. That doesn’t always happen. I’m a human just like anybody else. Despite thinking this reaction could be way over, I understand it. And I have fears and caution just like anybody else. What we’re doing is being done for a reason. Yes, it will inconvenience people. Yes, people will suffer. But in the end, we will get through it.

One way or another.

So practice some self care. Go for a walk and try and avoid close contact with people. Get some sun. Show social distance. Try not to feed into the hysteria and breathe. Play a game. Video chat with an old friend.

And if looking to help small businesses, see if you can buy gift cards. Or go get some takeout.

We will get through this. It might be faster than they thing; or it might be longer. But we will get through it.

Most of all, be good to one another. Basic human kindness or a smile from six feet away can go a long way.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Notes from my noodle: May 20

A couple of years ago, I did a blog post about Zander Hollander.

Earlier this year, I got a comment on the post from his nephew, who also gave me the e-mail address of his wife Phyllis. I had planned to e-mail, but didn’t really know how to approach it as Zander’s nephew had noted his uncles wasn’t in great health.

Autographed book.

Recently, a freelance writer happened upon my blog, hoping to find some info about Zander. He is working on a piece about Zander, so he’s looking for all he can get.

That made me remember the e-mail to Phyllis.

I wrote to Phyllis to see if I should forward her e-mail address and such to the writer. I also mentioned meeting them when they came to my town as part of the local book fair. She remembered, which was quite cool.

I’m going to be, in the next week or so, calling Phyllis. I’ll write a little more on the blog after that, to update my post from 2011.

With all of this, however, I went digging for some books by Zander in hopes of finding a signed one. Turns out, I have two signed books. These are very cool to have.

I love signed books and they are ones I really like to keep. So having these two is a bit of a thrill.

Check out the post linked above for the full story.

****

As much as I hate to say it, I guess I have to start working.

I’ve pointed this out on the blog before, but I’m a dreamer. So I’d be lying if I said I didn’t dream big when I purchased my Powerball ticket for the $600 million jackpot.

No winner for me.

Though there was a slight disappointment when I heard the ticket was sold in Florida, it’s also reality. Think about how many tickets were sold for that lotto. Imagine the odds of winning. I only buy one ticket, so my odds are even greater.

It still would have been cool though.

Have you ever read the stories about people who win a massive lotto and are broke in a couple of years? I can assure you that wouldn’t have been me. Many of those stories repeat themselves — the person gives away money, is silly with his spending etc.

No chance for me.

I’m not going to lie — if I won $600 million, I would have tried to spend a million in a week or so. House/land, cars, some other things. All frivolous  Why? Because I could.

After that? Back to being smart with it. Invest it. Pay off bills for myself, family and close friends. Set up some college funds for certain youngsters. Set up a charitable foundation.

Then, have it set up so I get paid weekly. A certain amount. That way, I don’t just go spending money for the sake of spending it.

Alas, that won’t happen.

So when this new summer job of mine starts in a few weeks, I’ll be heading there. And I’m OK with that.

Though $600 million would have been sweet.

****

For the past week or so, I’ve been out finding spots to place geocaches in my area. I am hosting an event this upcoming Sunday and I wanted to have some new caches available.

You can find some interesting things while doing this.

Old ball caught in a bush.

Whether it’s piles of trash, makeshift memorials, the beauty of nature, or whatever else, you never know what you’ll find.

When inspecting at a local field, an old baseball was found.

This isn’t rare. I’ve come across old baseballs many times. And they often make for good photos.

But this one was different. It wasn’t just a ball in the middle of an old field or something. It was stuck. In a bush. We didn’t remove it as we thought it seemed cool an had its place.

It also looked like it had been there for a while.

Just another interesting find while out and about with geocaching.

****

That will do it for this edition of Notes from my noodle. I’ll be back with another edition of this shortly has I have a few more things to randomly share!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Notes from my noodle: Mar. 15

It’s been quite a while since I did one of these, so it seemed like a good as time as any.

To lead off, this weekend is St. Patrick’s Day. On that beautiful day, I’ll travel down to New Jersey to hit up a disc golf tournament. This is a tournament I look forward to every year because of how clean it’s run and how fun it is.

I’m ready for some disc golf this weekend!

The March O’ St. Pat’s Madness is likely one of only two or three PDGA tournaments I’ll play in this year, so I’m excited to see the weather should at least be decent.

The other blog I run, RattlingChains.com, is also taking part as a sponsor of the event. So it’s neat to have that be part of it as well.

I’ve actually had the chance to get out and throw a few times, lately, too. I think if I can just kind of plug along and stay calm and have fun, I have a chance — to not place last!

In the end, it’s my hope this is a sign spring really is coming. Hopefully, anyway.

****

Last weekend, I was contacted by a newspaper to cover a basketball game.

I won’t lie — basketball is one of my least-favorite sports to cover. It’s probably because I’ve never been a huge fan of the game. I don’t hate basketball, but I’d rather cover other sports.

Still, when money is calling…

It’s still fun to see a byline on a story I’ve written.

So I covered a sectional championship girls game. It was a sloppy game, but the end result was pretty exciting. The final four minutes really made the game something to remember. One of the teams scored on a three-pointer to tie it with under a minute to play. Moments later, the other team came down and responded with a wide-open three to take the lead for good.

And the best part about small-school basketball? The crowds were huge. And loud. And exciting.

After the game, I did my interviews and and soon after wrote the story. It was kind of nice tapping away at a story. I sent it in and all was good. But the next day, when this paper came out (a Sunday paper), I won’t lie — it was still quite a cool rush to see a byline on a story.

Even after my last stop at a newspaper — despite a sour ending — I still get a kick out of bylines. It’s a nice feeling to see your name on something done, so I’m glad I had the chance. And I’ll appreciate the check even more!

****

OK, people, I try — note try — to eat as healthy as I can. And, for the most part, I avoid fast food.

But this time of year is hard.

Shamrock shakes rule!

Why, you may ask?

The Shamrock Shake! I absolutely love this time of year at McDonald’s when they bring these bad boys out. I’ve been a fan of Shamrock Shakes for years and I usually limit myself to two or so a year. They are, after all, filled with sugar!

I’m at three this year. I know, bad me.

But they are so damn good.

I do wish they’d go back to the old-school way of doing things — in the paper cups with the shake already mixed. It’s not the same in these plastic cups and adding the mint mix.

It’s still pretty good though.

This year, I’ve also resorted to having them done without the whipped cream and cherry, which cuts out some calories and sugar.

Anyway, the ones I’ve had this year have been fantastic. I figure on one more this year and then I’ll let them go away for another year. If you haven’t had one, I’d encourage you to get one before they are gone for the year!

****

I’ll finish this post talking about beer.

As many of you may know, I’m learning how to homebrew. I have an Irish Stout finished and I think it came out really well. And with St. Patrick’s Day coming up…

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hoohaaphotos/8560117238/in/photostream

I’ve truly enjoyed my Kiss Me Arse Irish Stout.

I’ve had some luck so far. The three that have been bottled and tried already have done really well. They’ve each received pretty good and honest reviews from friends. Nothing over the top, yet, but all pretty decent.

I also have an Irish Red bottled. As of today, it’s gone through that cycle and I can put one in the fridge to try it. Maybe that will be the beer to try when I get back from Jersey on Sunday?

It’s Irish, after all.

It’s been a fun process and I’ve slowly been stepping up from the easy process to a little harder. It’s been a heap of fun and I hope it continues.

Only time will tell.

I hope everyone has a fun and safe weekend and if you are out celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, remember to have a driver and be careful out there!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Notes from my noodle: September 25 edition

“Get busy living or get busy dying…”

I’m sure many of you may remember that quote from the Shawshank Redemption, said by Red, portrayed by Morgan Freeman.

I write this post as I listen to some big-band era swing music. It’s some pretty sweet stuff. It can get you in the mood to be creative. Though I’ll readily admit not being a fan of a lot of jazz music, there’s something about the big-band era that really works for me.

Especially the songs with the faster pace and beat. Songs like “Sing, sing, sing” by Benny Goodman. Excellent stuff. Makes me thing of the 1920s and 1930s. Gangsters. Prohibition. Suits. Cigars.

Ahhh… talk about a time in history.

Recently, I was at a friend’s wedding. During the dinner portion, the DJ played some swing music. A couple people got out and danced. It was kind of fun to watch.

I was then chatting to a friend about this era of music and noted if I could go and live in a different era, this would be the one.

Back when Zoot Suits were the norm.

And I’m not a supporter or advocate for organized crime, but there’s something about the gangsters from that era. The suits. The cars. The Tommy Guns — AKA a Chicago typewriter.

And, of course, swing music.

I’m not sure what I would have been. Maybe I’d still have been a scribe. I could see covering the Yankees or something back then for one of the many New York papers. Maybe I’d have been on the crime beat.

Heck, maybe I’d have been a gangster. Chewing a cigar and rat-a-tatting with the Tommy Gun.

Who knows.

But what an era.

I know a lot of people don’t listen to music when they write. And, for the most part, I can’t listen to music with words when writing. But tunes such as classical pieces or the swing band era can keep my mind rolling as I write.

And with the jazzy stuff I have playing tonight, it’s got me thinking of old cars (Like the Ford Model Ts and As) and the prohibition era of time. Black and white.

That’s the era I’d definitely love to be in if not for now.

And while you read the rest of this post, have a listen to a little Benny Goodman:

****

As many of you know, I’m still working on finding a job. The resumes keep going out and I can’t seem to find much. I’ve thankfully landed something on a part-time basis, but it’s basically once a week and it’s not even every week. Still, it’s something to help me along and get something more recent on the resume.

So, I’ve been looking at career changes. I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned that here before.

I recently visited a school for a program I’m highly interested in. I’m not going to spill all the beans here because I hate putting things out there until I know for sure if I’m going to do it or not. Some friends already know as I needed to see what some people thought.

My issue?

I don’t want to fail — again.

Though I realize I didn’t fail in newspapers and journalism, the industry failed me. And I don’t think it’s getting any better. And with barely anything in a retirement fund, I need something different.

I’ve watched others go the route of changing careers during the mid-life years and do well. Heck, take a peek at my brother who fully changed directions and went into teaching and now he’s a tenured teacher at a good school.

Might as well give it a go, yeah?

So, I’ve e-mailed one other school today in hopes of being able to compare the two programs. There’s a significant price differential in the program, as well as hours needed and the time frame to finish. The end result would likely be me going into business for myself. It’s something I’m thinking long and hard about.

Once I decide, believe me, I’ll share with the readers of the blog. For now, I’ll leave it with my seriously considering a massive change in career direction.

****

Speaking of writing and career things, I’ve also finally sat down to work on a couple of fictional books. These likely won’t be huge books, but I’m hoping to write them and see where it takes me.

I don’t fathom any riches here.

I need to get working on my book ideas so I can one day have a book like this!

The reality is, I’ll likely publish them on myself. If any money is made, it will basically just be a bonus. My thing is just getting it done. Then seeing about shaping it and all from there. If something bigger comes out of one of these, awesome. If not, it’s more of a goal to just do it.

My big issue with fiction is shaping the story.

I have a couple of real-life things I’m working on, too. I’m not sure if they will be full-blown books, a series here on the blog or something along the lines of an Amazon Kindle Single. But, I am hoping to work on those, too.

I need to push forward. I’ve applied and applied for things to get squashed. I guess it’s time to take the bull by the horns…

****

I went on a small trip Sunday, heading up to Ithaca to hike a bit, find some waterfalls and take a few photos.

But I also got to play disc golf for the first time since early June.

Taughannock Falls just outside of Ithaca. I took this shot Sunday during a day trip to the Ithaca area.

It was nice to get out and flip a few discs on an actual course. To be fair, it was just a nine-hole course, but it was so nice. It’s also good because I’m playing in an Ace Race in a couple of weeks. While I don’t expect to do anything major in that Ace Race, I’d at least like to know I can throw a disc well enough to get it close to baskets!

As for the day overall, it was nice.

For those of you who have never been to Ithaca, it’s a wonderful little city. The city’s motto is “Ithaca is Gorges.” There are many gorges and waterfalls to explore throughout the area, so it makes for a nice day trip.

In total, I got to see several awesome waterfalls and hiked — including the disc golf — upward of 3.5-4 miles, which is always nice to do.

I had been worried about the waterfalls and how much water would be coming off them, considering the lack of rain we’ve had all summer. Alas, recent rains made most of them vibrant falls. All but one were fun to check out and take photos of — in all their glory.

And yes, there were a few geocaches mixed in as well.

In the end, it was a good getaway from the real-world issues going on in my life. Nature can do that to you.

**** 

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the passing of a well-known local person.

Sid Levine died Sunday at the age of 99. I only knew Levine in his later years as he owned part of the Oneonta Tigers, the minor-league team I covered for six years. A quiet man, Levine was one of the nicest people I dealt with. He also was a no-nonsense person. He didn’t worry about what people though, he told you how it was.

And that’s how it should be.

He, along with co-owner Sam Nader, ran the local team up until selling in 2008. The team then left the area before the 2010 season.

I dealt with and developed a stronger relationship with Nader, now 93, but toward the end of the run of the Tigers, I also got to know Levine. He was always a gentleman and had an infectious smile. And he knew his baseball.

Nader and Levine were close friends for more than 75 years and when I visited with Nader one afternoon earlier this year, I had to come after a certain time as he and Levine still met nearly every day to chat.

Levine’s legacy in the Oneonta area will live on for a long time. But he’ll be missed, that’s for sure — for many more reasons than baseball.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Notes from my noodle: Aug. 7

My noodle has been speaking lately — and it’s asking why I haven’t written one of these in a while?

My answer? No idea.

So, here it is. For those new to the blog, this is basically a spot where I’ll write about some things that have happened or caught my eye recently, but didn’t really work as its own blog post.

For the first time in a few years, our softball season ended before reaching the league final. We’ve won our league the past two seasons, but this one was a bit of a struggle. Despite a large roster, we had issues getting some people there at times.

No three-peat for us this year.

The problem with that?

We never really had the same lineup or people in the same positions. Though we had a lot of good players, we had to move people around. That makes things hard.

Still, we finished quite strong.

We earned the fourth seed in the playoffs and opened with a 2-games-to-1 series win over the fifth seed. We then took on the top seed, who we beat last year in the final.

In the opener, we played well. Our top pitcher got hurt and I had to finish. We ended up losing, unfortunately, in a game we played really well.

I pitched Game 2 and did as well as I’ve done in a long time. We ended up losing, 5-3.

Though not all their faults, the umpiring we had in these two games was downright awful. It seems like that was a theme for most of the year. Both teams suffered from it, too. The second game really hammered us, though, as we lost three close plays where I think he was dead wrong. He also threw one of our players out of the game for “throwing a bat.” The umpire didn’t even see it. He heard the bat clip the fence on the toss (and it was a toss, I was right next to it). The guy was downright awful and was for most of the year.

Look, bad umpiring is one thing. It’s at all levels. All I ask is to be consistent. If you strike zone is a shoebox, fine. Make it both ways. These things can’t — and shouldn’t — change every inning. But with some umps, they do. And for the money they are being paid, there should be some accountability. The semifinals of the playoffs should have the two best umps, not some of the worst. We got that in our two games and I’m sure the other team will agree.

In the end, it’s all good. We still won 10 games, found some new players for the future and have an idea on how to move forward. I’m sure we’ll be right back in the thick of things next year.

****

When it comes to geocaching, I’ve gone through several phases.

The excitement of being new, the numbers hound, someone who chased first-to-finds to now, where I kind of just dig playing the game and having fun.

One thing I’ve always done, however, is plan when it comes to a bigger trip. This, too, has gone through phases. I used to be an in-depth planner and then it got to the point where I basically wrote down caches in the best order to grab to be efficient.

Every once in a while, though, I go back to the in-depth planning. This upcoming weekend is one of those times.

My current Delorme map — which will hopefully be filled in much more by the end of the weekend!

Four of us are going on an insane trip through the top of New York to fill in squares for the Delorme Challenge. For those who don’t geocache, the Delorme Challenge is based up on the New York  Atlas and Gatetteer, which is published by Delorme. In the atlas, the state is broken down into 80 squares. Your job is to find one cache in each square. Once you do, you get the coordinates to the Delorme final so you can go find that cache. My hope is to make that my 3,000th find, of which I am approaching.

At this moment, I have 63 of 80 pages filled on the Delorme map.

As long as nothing goes wacky, by the time this trip is done sometime Saturday night, I should have filled in 11 more squares and will be a mere trip to the Buffalo area to get six more squares to finish it up.

At the same time, I’ll be getting all the counties I need (sans the Buffalo-area ones) for the New York Counties Challenge.

The three others on the trip will also be filling in squares and counties, but on different levels. Some have more and some have fewer to get. We’ll also be taking a quick trip into Vermont for a few caches.

In the end, I had to go in-depth because with a trip that will eclipse 600 miles and be for more than 12-15 hours, we needed to make it as efficient as possible. We have some good caches on the list and we have a lot of quickies, too. But in the end, it will make for a memorable and fun trip with caching friends. I’ll be blogging more about this next week.

****

Speaking of geocaching, I’ve recently gone on a hiding spree. I archived some of my older caches and decided to place some new ones. Another cacher in a town not far from here has placed a whole heap, too. Hopefully with all of these new caches, some cachers will come our way to make some finds.

One of my recent hides.

See, this area isn’t easily hit by major highways and such. We’re in a rural area, so sometimes people don’t want to come here and find caches. I know one cacher who basically refuses to come to this area because all the roads are winding and such.

Their loss.

On top of the ones I’ve recently placed, I have several more to put out. I just need to find where to place them.

The hides have been fun to do. I like writing the descriptions and I like getting the notices when people find them all. It’s kind of a cool thing to know people are out finding the ones you hid and are enjoying them.

I have two caches, specifically, I need to get out. One is one I got at a cache I found and will be a “spawn” cache and the other is one I received from a fellow cacher when out in Chicago in 2011. These caches are his signature items. He gave me two, so I want to get one placed with the other remaining in my collection of sig items.

Further, I just have some other lock-n-lock containers I want to put out there!

****

As many of you know, I dig attending independent wrestling shows. One, it’s great action and usually better than what you see on television. And when it’s not better, it way worse, which makes it fun that way.

I know how hot it was for three of us to watch this card — I can’t imagine what it was like in the ring performing!

One company we watch often is 2CW, based out of Syracuse. They always put on a great show and this past Friday was no exception.

Except for one thing — it was hot!

The company returned to the Pastime Athletic Club in Syracuse for what seems like it will be the final show at this building, which is affectionately called the “2CW Arena.”

Herein lies the issue — it was hot as can be outside. Inside, which was basically a small gym, had the ring, wrestling, probably 400 fans inside and… no air conditioning.

Holy cow was it hot!

With the action going on, it got hotter as the night went on, too. It easily had to be above 100 inside.

We stayed for the whole card because we wanted to see the main event, which featured former WWE superstar John Morrison against one of the top indy stars, Sami Callihan. The match didn’t disappoint. Overall, the card as per normal, was solid. It was worth going to and watching.

I just wish it had been cooler!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!