Zune!

Because Beth was so good this year Santa brought her a Zune MP3 player!

The Zune pictured here as the small white box on the table is equipped with a 30G hard drive and a 3 1/2 inch color screen. It can store 7500 music titles, pictures and will play 14 hours of videos. It is also wireless to tranfer data between Zunes. Synchronized to her laptop Beth can download music and movies from the internet.

She is the "coolest" Aunt!

For more on the Zune visit: http://www.zune.net/en-US

Not Again!!!

I love my new human companions so very much. They treat me the best however why do they insist on making me wear this foolish looking hat at this time of year?

Do they think I enjoy this? I look so stupid and Thelma and Louise laugh at me!

Don't tell anyone but I buried that hat in the back yard today where no one will find it!

Chappell's Restaurant N Kansas City

While in Kansas City we ate lunch everyday at Chappell's Restaurant. The owner Jim Chappell was fantastic to us each day that we visited.

If your in Kansas City don't miss kunch at Chappell's.

In 1986 Chappell's started out as a cozy little political/sports bar and grill. In the 18 years since, visitors, athletes, news people, and television stations from all over the world have come to find their particular sport and piece of memorabilia in which they are interested. The owner, Jim Chappell, has created a restaurant that is both comfortable and casual. From the beginning, the restaurant served such good food that the demand caused expansion, renovation and two more expansions. The "cozy little bar" now seats 235 serving everything from the popular Zagat raved, half-pound hamburger to steaks. People get excited about the memorabilia, but it is the good food that brings them back.Jim's hobby for collecting became a passion and the restaurant is chock full of sports memorabilia. Customers usually find it and an eager owner/host who willingly leads them around the restaurant showing and explaining the awesome memorabilia. Customers are welcome to look at the many items on display and tour the restaurant at their leisure. Jim would love to meet and talk with you, so if you have any questions, be sure to ask.

Frankendog!

Our beloved Louise was diagnosed with a hard lump mass under her right arm while at the vets last week for a bath. The vet suggested that it be removed as soon as possible so today she had surgery!

The mass was removed and there was no sign that it had spread to her limp nodes so for now she is out of danger. The mass was sent for tests and we'll have those results after the holidays.

Frankendog is resting comfortably!

Christmas Party Fun.

Our annual Christmas Bunko party was held last Saturday night at Cortney and Brad's house.

I was time to eat, drink and be merry! We had a great time. The Bunko punch was very good this year also, lol!

Christmas Bunko

Joe and Richard were the big time money winners at this years Christmas Bunko party.

Joe of Team Viagra promised to take all the Viagra Team to lunch with his winnings however we haven't heard a word from him since he sobered up, lol! I wonder if he forgot?

2006 Chevy Impala!

Here's a picture of the front end of our new 2006 Chevy Impala just before driving it off the lot.

I programmed the XM satellite radio last night via XM's web site which sent a signal down from the satellite activating our system. We now have 24o static free stations that will continue from state to state without a lost signal! Technology is a wonderful thing!

My New Car!

Well it finally happened! After 16 years and 316 thousand miles it became time to retire my 1990 Acura Integra. The Integra will be donated to the local Woman's Center as a tax write off. I truly hope that wonderful little red car can bring happyness and hope to a desperate woman in need.

The Intergra's replacement is this 2006 Chevy Impala. Over the last year I have driven many rental cars and none impressed me as much as the Impala did.

The Impala has been changing, morphing, and maturing with the vagaries of the market since 1958 when the first one showed up as a coupe and convertible.
Now, the Chevrolet Impala has been substantially upgraded for 2006. The 2006 Impala features new and very attractive exterior styling, a new interior, and a choice of three new engines.
The new Impala is a comfortable and convenient car, roomy, easy to get in, with big grab-style door handles. It's a practical sedan with Innovative flip-and-fold back seats and folding rear seatbacks. And it comes well-equipped with safety features, including side-curtain airbags. The Impala LT best exemplifies the model line, especially when ordered with the larger, 3.9-liter engine, which delivers responsive performance. The LTZ upgrades with leather, a very nice XM Satellite Radio setup and other convenience features.
An inexpensive pricing structure with loads of rebates on it puts the new Impala on the shopping list for family sedans. Impala competes with the Ford Five Hundred, Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and Nissan Altima.

And "YES" to answer your question, I did sleep in it last night, lol!!!!!

My Older Brother!

My older brother who lives up north visited me in Kansas City today for lunch. Most of our lunch time conversation concerned his "Naughty and Nice List" and of course his gift list for this year!

Sunset Over Kansas

Beautiful picture of the sunset this evening in Kansas City.

Kansas City traces its beginnings to 1821, the year Missouri was admitted to the Union.
In that year a Frenchman from St. Louis, Francois Chouteau, came up the Missouri River and established a trading post on the waterway about three miles below the great bend in the river, now the Northeast Industrial District. After being flooded out in 1826, he rebuilt on higher ground at the foot of what is now Troost Avenue. Chouteau and several other French families who joined him constituted the first non-Indian settlement in Kansas City.

McCoy also found a rock ledge on the south shore of the Missouri River that formed a natural landing for river boats. Until that time, Independence, Mo., has been the best spot for transferring supplies from the river route to the land routes westward. The water route was faster and easier than shipping by land, and McCoy reasoned that if supplies could be floated to his landing -- about 22 miles farther west than Independence -- even the four-mile trip overland to Westport would cut the land haul by 18 miles.

Legend has it that the new owners held a meeting at which one of the subjects was a name for their new township. After rejecting such ideas as Port Fonda, Rabbitville and Possum Trot, they decided to name it the Town of Kansas, after the Kansa Indians who inhabited the area.
The town retained that name when it was incorporated and granted a charter by Jackson County June 1, 1850. (When it was incorporated by the state Feb. 22, 1853, it became the City of Kansas, and in 1889, it officially became known as Kansas City.)

For more visit: http://www.kcmo.org/kcmo.nsf/web/home?opendocument

Out My Window in Kansas City.

Sunday morning outside my hotel window is a beautiful picture of the Country Club Plaza.

The Plaza’s popularity and reputation has been recognized around the country. The entire 15-block district, with more than 150 shops and dozens of fine restaurants, makes The Country Club Plaza Kansas City’s premier retail, dining and entertainment destination.Shoppers will recognize fine stores like Anthropologie and Tiffany & Co. Original Kansas City stores like Halls and Tivol give local flavor to the Plaza’s reputation as a national fashion center. Pleasant surprises can be found along each block – from tiny shoe boutiques to delicious chocolatiers, couture clothiers, stylish salons and fine jewelry.Contemporary American to Kansas City steaks, authentic Italian to cosmopolitan Mexican are all a part of the Plaza experience. Whether it’s the hot spot that caters to the late crowd or a quiet courtyard café, the Plaza restaurants offer an atmosphere that no other district can duplicate.The Plaza is kept lively with a year-round calendar of music and special events, including the famous Plaza Lights and the widely recognized Plaza Art Fair.With its rich history, fine dining, superb shopping and entertaining activities throughout the year, it is understandable that the Country Club Plaza is the Midwest’s premier destination.

For more visit: http://www.countryclubplaza.com

Snow in Kansas City!

This picture was taken while on approach to the Kansas City International Airport last Saturday!

Kansas City had received 9" of the white stuff four days before our arrival to begin Spar/CVS training camp.

Strange Cloud Over Woodstock!

Today while checking the mailbox I was confronted by this strange cloud formation north of our neighborhood. Looking like the eye of a hurricane or an alien invasion it was quite the sight!

Greencastle PA Train Station

While visiting the CVS in Greencastle PA last week I visited the town train station. Now the headquarters of the local Scouts it's a beautiful example of 1900 train station design.

The Scout headquarters occupies a building erected by the Cumberland Valley Railroad as a passenger station in the course of the construction of its double-track "highline" through Greencastle in the period of 1906-1908. Prior to that time, since railroad service to the town began in 1839, all freight and passenger traffic had followed a route along Carlisle Street through the Public Square.
The first passenger station was on the west side of the Square in the north part of what was known as the Western Auto Store, owned by Carl Carbaugh. Later it was moved to the site of what is now the Citizens National Bark building on the east side of North Carlisle Street, where it remained until 1900, when a new station was built on the site of what until recently was the Dr. G. A. Sowell home on the west side of North Carlisle Street.
On February 5, 1906, for a consideration of $10,000, Greencastle's borough council granted the Railroad permission to build the "highline" along a route just west of Jefferson Street, the new line to accommodate all except local freight traffic. The project involved construction of the overhead head bridge at the north end of town and overpasses on Franklin, Baltimore, and Madison Streets as well as construction of a new passenger station near the intersection of Baltimore and Jefferson Streets.
The new station, representing the latest in passenger station design went into service on Sunday, February 7, 1909, at 12:45 p.m.., when passenger train No. 6, with Jacob Talhelm as engineer and Jacob Stouffer as conductor pulled up at the station on the northbound track as nearly 500 people cheered.
Built of brick and stone, the new station had a flaring canopy over the platform to the west, and a portico on the east side with steps descending toward Jefferson Street. The main approach was by a winding walk which led up the hill from Baltimore Street through the landscaped grounds. South of the Building was an open area for horse-drawn vehicles, railed to prevent them. from falling down the hill.

For more visit: http://www.greencastlemuseum.org/Local_History/scout_building.htm