Is this real?

How does this photo make you feel? 

It reminds me of a time that I never existed in. Perhaps even in a different country. Somewhere in my childhood imagination.

When I found this, I had to document it, as it has such a surreal quality to me. If I hadn't taken the photo would I have believed it existed? 

This is fronting Jimmy Stewart Street in Indiana, PA. Yes, it is named for the Jimmy Stewart you are thinking of. It is his home town and they are very proud of that fact. 

Anyway, it seems the idyllic scene for a horror movie. Perhaps if it had been a sunny day I would feel different, but it has such a sinister quality to it. Or perhaps it could be the setting of a drama that has a tragic ending. In any case, it must have a great story behind it. What do you suppose it might be?

Too bad the stairway has been closed to the public.

Come one! Come all!

This is the announcement for an art show featuring six artists, of which one is my mom. The exhibit runs from March 28th to May 9th at the River Gallery in Chelsea, Michigan. Come meet the artists on Saturday April 4th from 1 to 3 PM. This is a lovely gallery tucked between charming local businesses in a quaint small town. Chelsea is also home to The Common Grill as well as the Jeff Daniels Purple Rose Theater. (Yes, that Jeff Daniels - his home town.)

Time change has a whole new meaning...

I visited my Dad during the daylight savings time change recently. Changing the time on clocks has a whole new meaning when you have more than a handful to do. 

My Dad loves clocks and in his spare time he refurbishes them. These pictures are just a sampling of the ones that he has. They are not all running, but he had 32 on just his first floor of his home. 

Springing forward is easier as you just move the hour arm ahead one hour. The real problem is falling back. On old clocks you can not just dial back as it will damage the instrumentation. This leaves two options. You can dial ahead eleven hours (to lose one). To do this you have to let the clock chime for each hour before moving to the next hour. As you can see this would be rather time consuming (pun intended). The other option is to stop the clock for an hour and then restart it. 

In any case, you get the gist. 

McGruff Attacked!

This just in from the Associated Press:

A bus driver thought it would be funny to take a bite out of McGruff the crime dog by punching the mascot, but police said the children who witnessed the stunt where horrified.

Metro bus driver Shawn Brim, 38, climbed off a bus, adjusted the side view mirrors and then punched officer Tyrone Hardy, who was handing fliers to children on a Washington street while dressed as the crime dog, police said. After the punch, Brim got back on the bus and drove away, but was quickly pulled over on Saturday March 7th.

Hardy had a swollen right cheek, but seemed more concerned that the attack upset the kids, police said. 

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Yes, and shouldn't we all be horrified. What on earth possessed the man to do this? 

Baggy pants save a life!

Authorities say a Georgia man was saved by his pants when he climbed up a 35-foot power pole and slipped. Luckily his pants caught on the metal tower preventing his fall.

The 21-year old man from Duluth, Georgia had been drinking (surprise, surprise) and ignored pleas from his companion to stop being a jerk.

Fortunately the baggy trend seem to have a benefit. They have the ability to suspend you mid-air for 2 hours until someone can crawl up the pole to "save" you. Puts sobering up in a new perspective, doesn't it?

Ah, youth. They are the ones who are going to take care of us....

Expired pop

I gave up pop a long time ago. I didn't realize how long ago until I retrieved one from the back of my refrigerator today. I wanted something fizzy. The diet cheery coke I opened had an expiration date of Feb. 4, 2004! It tasted alright. Which begs the question... what the heck am I drinking!?