As I entered this month, I was already sick. In fact, I stayed home from work on Monday, February 1, pretty much showing that I had already accepted defeat from the month. The coughing continued through the entire week, so I stayed home again that Friday and went to the doctor. He gave me antibiotics to clear up potential bronchitis and an antihistamine to dry up the mounds of snot building up in my body parts.

In the middle of all this, I had an eye doctor appointment because I had been getting headaches and though my glasses prescription may have changed. It had slightly, so I picked out new glasses for the first time since I got them in 2004. The only highlight of this particular week was going out to eat at O’Charley’s with Kristy and Sly on Thursday the 4th, transitioning my DVD viewing from The Abbott and Costello Show to What’s Happening!!!, and the season premiere of the last season of Lost on February 2. This was the first time ever that I simply watched it as they broadcast instead of on DVD.

The week ended with more snow that Friday night, so I worked again from home on Saturday the 6th, instead of driving to Cincinnati to report sales and answer phones. That night the roads cleared up enough that I went over to Kristy and Sly’s for tacos and poker. Jamie and her kids joined us as well.

On Sunday the 7th, Kristy and Sly came over to watch the Super Bowl with me. We ordered Domino’s pizza and watched the New Orleans Saints upset the Indianapolis Colts 31-17.

The only real consistent event of February is Mom’s birthday. She turned 60 on Tuesday the 9th, but due to the weather the weekend before, and the snows that came once again on her actual birthday, we didn’t get to celebrate with her until the following weekend. I was snowed in from work once again on Wednesday the 10th.

Due to the cabin fever, once the opportunity to get out of the house came, I took it. So we had an uncharacteristic weekday gathering at Kristy and Sly’s for some Marion’s pizza, poker, and spades with Jamie, Jake, and Kat.

On Saturday the 13th, we were all finally able to get together to celebrate Mom’s birthday. Denise &Aaron and the kids came down and we met at Red Lobster by the Dayton Mall for some great seafood action. After dinner, we went back to Mom’s house for some chocolate birthday cake, Farkle (Denise won both), and to play with the kids. Megan is now taking her first steps and it was both hilarious and heartwarming to watch her take her make her way across the room to me. I went home that night to uncork my Valentine’s Day wine.

Red Lobster or not, Megan preferred pretzels

Bob and the Birthday Girl

The gang at Red Lobster

Megan is learning to walk – and delights in showing of this new talent as she heads toward me

Farkle time!

Adam and I partner up. Actually I try to talk him out of slinging the dice across the table and onto the floor

It was about this time that I realized that I was addicted to Facebook poker and really began wasting many hours gathering chips. I had also become addicted to Burger King’s double cheeseburgers and spicy chicken crisps. So that’s how I spent the following Sunday and pretty much every weeknight for the rest of the month. For those wondering why the website fell behind, that’s it!

More snow came on the 15th. We were sent home from work mid-day and I worked from home the next day again.

In a desperate attempt to do something memorable this month, I decided to get tickets to go see Wicked, which was playing at the Schuster center. My friend Kimberly Adkins was anxious to see it too, so we decided to see it together. We met up on Thursday, February 18, and attempted to get the tickets at a Kroger Ticketmaster, but alas they weren’t selling them there. We drowned our sorrows in Harp beer, buffalo dip, and salmon spread at T.J. Chumps in Miamisburg. I went home that night and purchased the tickets online.

On Friday, February 19, I had another fun wine night with my friend Jennifer. We hadn’t had one of these since August 2009, so it was a welcome return. As usual, she prepared much more food that was needed, but I loved every minute of devouring the turkey burger shooters with feta and spinach, the array of cheeses and sausages, doused by select red wines. We watched Celebrity Rehab and The Hangover as we enjoyed our delights. The dogs Rosie, Tinkerbell, and Maddie provided comic relief.

On Saturday the 20th, Kristy and Sly invited me over for a nice dinner of strip steak and rice. Jamie stopped over for a bit too, but she had a raging toothache so she was no fun. Back at home Ashleigh and Stephen were breaking up for the umpteenth time – but once again, it didn’t take.

I had a nice little in my own garage the next day when I went to take out some trash and saw a furry animal run by and hide behind the garage in the couch. As I moved the couch around and some boxes out of the way, I came to find out that it was a raccoon who had set up shop in there. I tried to prod him every which way I could, but he was a stubborn one. He even tried hiding inside the lawnmower bag. Finally, after moving my car and virtually ever item in the garage, I finally managed to get him out without getting bit.

On Saturday the 27th, I met up with Heidi and our friend and fellow BHS Class of 1990 graduate Jennifer Staffan. I was sporting the new glasses that I had finally picked up that Wednesday for the first time in the public eye (besides work of course). Get used to them because you’ll most likely be seeing them in subsequent postings.

So anyways, we met up at Sake by the Dayton Mall for some sushi. This was to celebrate Heidi’s birthday which was coming up on March 3rd. We got an array of 12 sushi rolls, which was actually a bit much. The rolls at this Sake were much heartier than the rolls at the Sake in Beavercreek. Among the delights were the Hawaiian Roll, the Spider Roll, the Jaguar Roll, the Dynamite, and the Dragon Roll. It was scrumptious – as sushi most always is.

Lots and lots of sushi

With Jennifer and Heidi at Sake

I rounded out the month on Sunday the 28th being especially lazy – with more Burger King, a couple of movies (Roy Roy, The Highland Rogue and Swing Vote), some Arrested Development, and some more Burger King. The plan was naturally to try and get back on a healthier regimen once March hit – but it would be a little slow going.

2010 will continue…

Autographs of 1997 will continue…

Sid & Marty Krofft are familiar names to children of the 70s like me. Although I was just a tad bit too young to fully appreciate the surreal genius behind such Saturday morning programming as H.R. Pufnstuf, Lidsville, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, and The Banana Splits Adventure Hour, I was completely in tune to Land of the Lost and it was certainly one of my favorite childhood shows. And incidentally, it is worth noting that the Kroffts produced The Brady Bunch Variety Hour as well.

After meeting Marty Krofft at the show, I worked my way through the remaining few celebrities, concluding with Billie Hayes, who had portrayed Witchiepoo in H.R. Pufnstuf. While at her table, I was able to witness a very fortuitous reunion as Krofft and Jerry Maren (who was a regular in another Krofft series, Lidsville) both meandered over to her. A photographer snapped a photo of them together and I quickly shoved my camera into his hand so that I could get on the amazing Krofft action.

Celebs of the 2009 Hollywood Show will continue…

By Spring of 1982, we were the proud ownes of our own beautiful ‘57 Chevy (as seen following restoration at the top of the posting). Our first outing to show off the car was a regional car show in Columbus. Although mostly faithful to the original parts and pieces, Dad did install a modern-day cassette tape deck inside the glove box. We would alternate between listening to songs from the ’50’s or sections or Laurel and Hardy dialogue captured from the films, recorded from (coincidentally enough) old Mark 56 records.

The Chevy in its original state. It had its original green paint job when we got it, and Dad was relatively faithful to the color

Denise and the new old car

A nice rainy day for restoration – the Chevy and our next acquisition, the 1968 Corvette

Dad still owns this Chevy and back in 2007, he began restoring it again. He completed it in the Spring of 2009 – this time dramatically changing the color and look of the car.

Dad and the Chevy in March 2009

1981 will continue…

Overall, this was an issue I was quite please with – other than the photos which continued to look like crap. I mimicked issues of Pratfall and Intra-Tent Journal and did what I called an Art Issue. The Art-themed meeting, which included animation featuring L&H, had already been held in May. The cover was the great drawing by Al Kilgore that graced the cover of Leonard Maltin’s Laurel and Hardy Book, and the manufactured UPC barcode, ripping off a joke found in Mad Magazine.

I am including several pages from this issue below. It was another 20 page issue (with the 20th merely being the mailing label area). Not included is the three page article I did about the visit Lisa and I made to the Block-Heads 30th Anniversary meeting in Minneapolis; the article The Great Rascal Search about John Lester Johnson, who starred as Bumbo in The Kid From Borneo (this was written by Bill Cappello); the text and one piece of art by Walter Lantz from Gee, That’s Swell Photography, and the two pages of meetings from May 5 and May 26.

Here is the entire opening editorial. The artwork at the top is something I painted as a senior in high school.

Here is a page from Gee, That’s Swell Photography. This section usually included rare photos, but since this was the art issue, I decided to use artwork. (Stan’s line “Gee, that’s swell photography” from the film Flying Dueces was actually referring to a characture of he and Ollie). The top caricature is by Fernando Llera and the bottom right sketch of Arthur Housman is by Tony Hawes. But of particular note is the drawing by my own Ashleigh.

This article about Larry Harmon, who had long been at odds with the Sons of the Desert members, might have been controversial had it had a wider circulation. I got quite a few comments on it, including from Ali Stevenson, the editor of the ITJ. She said she’d love to run a similar article, but was afraid Harmon might see it and sue.

The signed photo seen above (and in higher resolution below) was actually acquired for me by Bill Cappello, who new someone who worked for Harmon. This is actually a very prized autograph in my collection. Controversial or not, Harmon playd a huge role in Laurel and Hardy history during his lifetime.

And finally, this issue’s installment of Recent Events – which by July 4, were no longer all that recent.

And that was that. Although I began issue #17 almost immediately, for one reason or another, it didn’t see the light of day until the following Summer.

1996 will continue on a boat…