Category: Water Under the Bridge

My daughter Elizabeth, my grand-daughter Rachael, and I visited the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden one recent Saturday afternoon. Getting there turned out to be a bigger challenge than we anticipated. Google Map took us out the Parkway to the Campbells Run exit, then southwest to the site. Right after we encountered a sign saying two miles to the Botanic Garden, we ran into another informing us that Baldwin Road was closed. No problem, we will detour down McMichael to Rennerdale and take Noblestown west to Pinkerton and we’ll be home free. This we did and were rewarded with a sign saying…

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I was saddened to learn of the passing of Bill Norcik. I was a year ahead of him at Bridgeville High School and Penn State and always considered it an honor to be considered his friend. I first became aware of Bill in the spring of 1947. I had recently become exposed to the sport of soccer in gym class and thought it might be fun to try out for the high school team, as a tenth grader. The good news is that a soccer team needs about two dozen players merely to put on a full blown practice. The…

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When my son John and his family invited me to visit them in New York, they asked me if there was anything specific I would like to do. My reply was that I would like to see and hear Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks. I had already confirmed that they played Monday and Tuesday nights at the Iguana Restaurant. I had seen Giordano and some of the men in his band at jazz festivals and have several of the Nighthawks’ records. I was also familiar with their involvement in movies – several Woody Allen films including his most recent one…

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I have just returned from an exciting long weekend in New York City, visiting John, Victoria, and Lai An. They are currently renting an apartment on 59th Street, overlooking the southern edge of Central Park. Just being with them is a treat; the sight-seeing aspect of the trip was something else. In many respects this was the classic case of small town boy in the big city . Everything there is much too big, much too fast, and much too busy for someone with my background. We crammed many more exciting adventures into four days than seem possible. The first…

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