Thursday, November 26, 2009

Word Editorial - Happy Thanksgiving

I have been asked to contribute another editorial for the Chautauqua Region Word's "Say" section. Assuming that the latest issue is available online, my musings on Thanksgiving can be found at crword.com.

I hope all of you who celebrate the holiday have an enjoyable time!

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Countdown To Being Back Home

We're headed to Rochester for the Thanksgiving holiday tonight. While there are many things I'm looking forward to (look for tomorrow's post for a link to what those things may be), there are some very Rochester-specific items that are crowding my brain in happy anticipation:

1. The promise of a garbage plate
2. Coffee at Java's
3. Seeing friends I've met in elementary school, college, and in Jamestown but who all now live in Rochester
4. Second Storie Indie Market
5. Walking along Lake Ontario with the dogs
6. WBER.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Jones Bakery & Cafe

Jamaican Me Crazy coffee at Jones Bakery and Cafe. New place in Jamestown. Love this coffee!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Petting is Serious Business

Our dogs are too freaking cute sometimes. This is Zak being all serious as Matt pets him.

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Peppermint Stick

Matt and I hit up Friendly's for lunch today in an attempt to actually spend some time together in the middle of musical crunch week.

On our way out, I had to resist the urge to press my nose against the freezer case as I spied a seasonal tasty treat.

"Ooooh! Peppermint Stick Roll!" I cried out. "We could get that and pour hot fudge all over it! Oh, it would be so good! OH MY GOD! Maybe we should just tell my mom to buy that for my very belated birthday 'cake' instead of making the banana pudding thing. So tasty!"

Matt just shook his head and said, "Um. Sure?" as he laughed at my enthusiasm for frozen treats.

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Election Day 2009 - Opposed to Unopposition

Another Election Day is here.

Without a big Presidential election to push people to the polls, I won't be surprised if voter turn-out is down around the country.

With all the races that are unopposed within our own county, I wouldn't be surprised if voter turn-out is down in this area as well.

I am not a fan of having candidates who are unopposed, even if they are members of my registered party. It tends to decrease the number of people who actually make it to the polls. For districts where maybe there are other races, this can hurt candidates who do have an opponent.

An example would be the election district where I currently reside, or any district within the city of Jamestown. The entire City Council is running unopposed. This is unprecedented in the 10 years I've lived here or for anywhere I've ever lived in my 33 years. Fortunately, I live in one of three County Legislative districts where there are two people squaring off against each other for a seat. There are six County Legislative districts that cover the City of Jamestown. This means that three of the current County Legislators are running unopposed.

So, as a city resident you could live in an election district where the only opposed races on your ballot will be the County Executive race (Incumbent Greg Edwards vs. Democrat Chuck Cornell) and State Supreme Court Justice District 8 where you vote for 3 of 4 people on the ballot.

Exciting? Hardly. It's an abomination in my opinion to have so many unopposed races at the city and county level. I believe in having a choice, especially if I am not happy with how my elected official has performed while in office. For this reason, I will be entering the most write-in votes ever in my personal voting history for every race where I am not given a choice and the person running doesn't meet my expectations.

Do I think my write-in will make a difference? Well, considering I haven't mounted a write-in campaign so that large numbers of people put down the same names as me, probably not. Although, there have been races locally where no one who showed up to the polls voted for the guy running unopposed but someone did submit a write-in vote. The guy running unopposed got quite a surprise when results were made public. My write-in effort is being done more as my personal right.

If you are registered to vote, I ask that you follow through on your civic duty and get to the polls today regardless of who is running and the types of races that are on your ballot.

For voting information and for local voting results after polls close here in Chautauqua County, visit VoteChautauqua.com.

Monday, November 02, 2009

Miscellaneous Madness

It's crunch week for the musical with Opening Night this Friday. It's worth mentioning that opening night for Jamestown Community College Uncommoner's production of "The Producers" is sold out! Tickets are still available through the JCC Box Office (aka the bookstore) for November 7-8, 13-15th, and 20-21st.

What's the news? Let's break it out headline style:

Swine Flu Hits Home

Matt has been battling something stomach bug-ish that included a fever, achy muscles, and lots of reading time in the bathroom. We don't know if it was the swine flu or just some random bug. On the other hand, our friend's daughter was officially diagnosed on Friday with Swine Flu. I'm playing keep away the best I can.

Halloween Eve Brings Out Some Ghouls

Friday night, some hooligans rifled through both of our unlocked cars in our driveway. I was initially unconcerned because I don't keep anything of value in my car. Unfortunately, Matt had left his book bag in the car overnight and that would be the one item that was stolen. It contained some old computer coding books, our joint checking account check book, and our digital camera. Fortunately, Matt had recently transferred all the pictures off the camera to his computer. Unfortunately, we had to put a freeze on our checking account until we can figure out what checks were taken so we can have those flagged by the bank. At least we can still do bill pay electronically. Live and learn.

Halloween Fun Fest a Success!

I spent most of the past few weeks finalizing plans for the city's annual Halloween Fun Fest. Aside from swine flu, a marching band trip to Syracuse, and other events making my pool of volunteers dwindle so that I was in a near panic right up to the day of the event, everything went great. We had a record crowd at the Allen Park Ice Rink. We know how to improve things for next year. Most of all, it seemed like everyone had fun.

The Producers Opens Friday!


As mentioned, this is crunch week. We had a very long tech rehearsal yesterday and are back at it every night this week. It's going to be a fun, but challenging show. There are some pesky transitions to iron out, but that's what the next few nights are for. I'm nervous in the sense that I woke up in the middle of the night mildly panicking about music I don't have under my fingers yet. That should come. I hope! My parents and a Great Aunt will be coming down for the show, which is great because they haven't seen a musical I've played pit for since I was in high school. There are other friends who are coming in from out of town to see it as well. Between that and having friends in the show, it's been a lot of fun. You can't ask for more, right?

Cutting to the Scene with the Pixie

Ten years ago, I decided to do one of the most drastic things I had ever done to my hair. I went from a long style (below collarbone) to a p...