Upstate Living

TAILGATING AT RALPH WILSON!  Your choice of ribs, Philly Cheesesteak, pork tenderloin, a variety of brats and hot dogs, chicken, hamburgers, Buffalo Wings, and so much more.



Illegal Motion



When we made this walk last year for the Bills vs. Lions (a.k.a. Loser Bowl 2010 where they both tried to lose) we made this walk alone.  Amazing what a few wins can do!



I am now aware of breast cancer because I have seen so much pink.



Skydivers!  I think they jumped about 5 minutes early because he had the flag and all, but there was no national anthem.  They were talking about fan conduct or something on the PA and then he came onto the field.






The skydiver with the Bills flag missed the mark and crash landed.  Still, no national anthem...



Michael Vick about to have a really bad game.  Or as one sign read, "Awaiting a con-Vick-tion."



I'm not only a member of the Rochester Chapter of the Ruvell Martin Fan Club, but I'm also the president.  If you don't know who he is, he's the 5th wide receiver for the Bills and we went to the same high school in Muskegon, MI.  The last player I championed was Kyle Orton who later went on to QB both the Bears and Broncos until last weekend.  



It's not the first soldout Bills game I've been to, but it is the first one where people were actually in their seats watching the game and cheering.  Also, the first one I've attended that wasn't during a snow/rain mixture.



I hope it wasn't a long drive



Apple picking in Victor at The Apple Farm on 444



Where's the camera stick!



Fall in Upstate New York.  



Macoun or Cortland?  What am I, the scarecrow from Wizard of Oz?



Eve in Paradise picking apples.  Luckily for me, this Eve is really afraid of snakes.  We saw two this weekend and she almost had a heart attack.  



Apples by the bunches!



It's like living in a painting sometimes



Some kind of amazing tree.



So many apple trees.






This tree is struggling to hold all of them apples!



Bernardo's Pizza and Subs for lunch in Victor.  The pizza was really good and I'll have to get a sub the next time we're there because they looked awesome.  A great deal with huge portions.  The retro decor is amazing and I could look at all the old radios for hours.  



Still no salmon in the Irondequoit Creek.  None in Corbett's Glen either.  Last year, I missed seeing all the salmon coming up to spawn.  Now, it appears I'm too early.  If you see them jumping, let me know ASAP.  I can be at the creek in a matter of minutes!

Those Were Simpler Times Indeed

Nick on X-mas. We hung out with them after going to Megan's bosses party earlier. Her boss was getting ready for the party and saw Rod Blagojevich in front of his house huffing and puffing from jogging. When he walled up, he asked, "are you okay?" hoping he wasn't going to have a heart attack or something.
"Yeah! The truth will come out," says Blago.
"Oh, okay, well keep your head up." was his uplifting reply. Then a black SUV rolls up. A man yells out, "Are you okay sir." Blago nods and continues his run.
In this picture though, Nick is playing Mexican Train.


A Pickle Pult is the best kind of heat to pack.


Here's the ammo


Here's a good beer from Wisconsin. It was established in 1848 or something. It's sad when people from 1848 were remembering "Simpler Times." I imagine it going like this:
"Remember when we didn't have paved roads, sewers, and outhouse?"
"Ah yes, simpler times..."


Eric and Nick having some Pete's Pizza. A deep dish, of course, while we're celebrating New Years at Goldie's


Christie and Eric flashing the 2-double zero-9

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b37/hfipublishing/Chicago03/100_0733.jpg
Nick wearing his "BOOZ" glasses


Megan says to Mike, "Ohhhh, let's take a picture now before we look ugly!"


Eric looks like he's from some scary movie based on New Years 2009. Like "Hellraiser: New Years Resolution."


DANCE TO TETRIS AND BASEKETBALL!


This just makes it look the the best night ever! Christie, Eric, Katherine, Nick, and Megan are all so excited!


Somehow, our facial expressions are exactly the reverse of what they really were in this picture.


This is the image going on our wedding invitations...

Spent last weekend up in Muskegon visiting the parents and the grandparents. I no longer know where anything is. Did you know Target is in Fruitport and a Walmart in Norton Shores? The world is topsy-turvy...

Ronan’s Party - Round 2 + 1 Pizza Party

Thanks to Ronan for the invite to his x-mas party. It was a lot of fun.

Thanks to everyone for coming to Ronan's x-mas party. You made it lots of fun.


Megan having some of the juice mixture. Also, everyone should tell her "congratulations on your promotion!" She's now a Program Manager (? - Manager of some kind) at AIAChicago.


Frances on the same juice mixture.


Noah's shirt really isn't as crazy as my camera makes it appear...


Lush...


SME - Queen of the Coat Pile


Nothing is more embarrassing than showing up to a party and someone is wearing the same outfit...


Okay, here's the real picture of Ronan (party host), Nick (roommate), Megan (girlfriend), and Cliff (friend).


Karli and SME. Karli really made the party by bringing one of the 30 bottles of Apple Pie from the fridge.


Typical. I think Frances and I have taken about 1,000 variations of this picture since I got my digital camera a couple years ago.


Part of Karli, SME, Mike, John(?), Matt, & Matt.


This picture about sums it up. Ronan had a work party that moved to his house and he stole about 80 lbs. of chicken. Sorry Mike...


Party remains


Megan, Tyler, and Mike. Notice Megan's ninja moves as she leans out of the way of Tyler thrusting his beer.


Chicago Cultural Center dome restoration. All the Tiffany Glass has been removed for fixin' up. So, it will be another 100 years before you'll see it like this again.


If I sent out x-mas cards, this would be the image. So, Happy x-mas! I took this on Eastwood just west of Kedzie. I was over there because I found some girls purse on the train and returned it to her. It was a X-mas miracle (for her) and a good deed of the day (for me).

PIZZA PARTY!!!!

Karli showing Nick, SME, and the rest of us how to bowl on the Wii. 236 points, Karli! Are you serious?


Andrew, Katie (behind Andrew), Karli, and Nick.


This is what pizza parties are all about.


A couple of the many pizzas killed that night in 2007. It was a dark day for slices...


Andrew's new MySpace photo. I like to think in 300 years art critics will look back to the early days of the internet revolution and say "he was a great artist for the medium of his time." Most likely, they'll say, "this jerk wasted too much time on the computer..."


More Wii action after Jackass 2.5 and YouTube on the big screen TV.


Noah (hand w/ beer), Andrew, Katie, Tennessee, Angela, Brent, and Gracie!

That's about it. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas or whatever you celebrate. I'm going to New York for the holidays. If you happen to be watching the Bills/Giant game on Sunday, look for me in the crowd.

xoxo,
Mike