K-Mart Carousel

K-Mart Carousel
Rt. 309 - Wilkes-Barre, PA
These kiddie rides must have been built out of titanium.  This one has been sitting outside of K-Mart in Wilkes-Barre for at least 20 years.  It's sat in rain and snow and whatever other weather Northeast PA has to throw at it and it still works.

It's Delicious... Scrumptious... Outstanding!

Oh Henry
Ollie's Bargain Outlet - Wilkes-Barre, PA
I just found the biggest stash of Oh Henry bars this side of Sue Ellen Mischke's kitchen cupboards.  This should keep me stocked for new hire training through the rest of the year.

100% Villain

I finally got my Marty Scurll shirt.

Eye Eye, Captain

Lens Crafters
Wyoming Valley Mall - Wilkes-Barre, PA
They took a picture of my retina during my eye exam, so I snapped a picture of it on their screen.  The mouse pointer is not part of my eyeball.

Hunting For A Hologram

Boppin' Berry Hologram
Hi-C (1990)
I found this hologram on a piece of cardboard in an old box of baseball cards that I've had since I was a kid.  It's about the size of a baseball card, and when I found it, I vaguely remember cutting it off of a carton of juice boxes, but I couldn't remember the brand or the flavor.

I did a little digging and found this advertisement from the early 90's that answered most of my questions.  It turns out that this is the logo of a music-themed strawberry drink from Hi-C that was called Boppin' Berry.

I wasn't able to find any pictures of the carton with the hologram, but I did find two references to it.  The first was on a label from a 46 oz can of Boppin' Berry from 1990.  Consumers could send in the proof of purchase from the label to receive holograms of the two musical-themed flavors, Boppin' Berry and Jammin' Apple along with a 25 cent coupon.

 

The Boston Globe (September 23, 1990)

The second clue, and the one that confirmed that I cut this hologram off of a carton when I was ten years old, came from this newspaper ad which tells customers to look for free holograms on specially marked 9 packs of Boppin' Berry and Jammin' Apple juice boxes.  Still haven't found any pictures of the package itself or of the Jammin' Apple hologram, but I'm keeping a look out for it.

Dinner At Graziano's

Dad took us out to Graziano's for dinner.  I had the chicken marsala, and it was delicious as always.

Drink Soda And Collect Zombies

Unlock The Walkers promotion
Mountain Dew (2017)
This promotion began in conjunction with the start of the eighth season of The Walking Dead last October.  If you download The Walking Dead Encounters app and scan a specially labeled bottle of Mountain Dew, the walker will come to life (or is it afterlife) through augmented reality.  There are 20 walkers that you can collect in all.

Real Tacos In NEPA

Juanitas Restaurant
Wilkes-Barre, PA
I found a place in Northeast PA that serves tacos like they do in El Paso.

Fishing For Pierogies

Pierogies
Long John Silvers (2018)
I was born and grew up in Pennsylvania where pierogies are available at every grocery store and quite a few restaurants.  It wasn't until I was in the sixth grade when I moved to Florida that I learned that they're considered a regional food.  I just assumed everyone knew what pierogies were.  Sure they're Polish, but spaghetti is Italian and everyone knows that that is, right?

Fast forward to 2018 and I'm shocked to see them as a side dish at a national fast food chain.  I'm not sure if they're at every Long John Silvers, but I'm happy that I can pick up a bowl of pierogies for less than a buck.

El Torito Arrives In Style

It's going to be an interesting season...
Source: MLB.com

Scratch n' Sniff Chicken Love

Scratch n' Sniff Valentines
Kentucky Fried Chicken (2018)
Is it just me, or is the one on the bottom right a little bit disturbing?  These valentines come free with the purchase of a $10 Chicken Share meal.

A Valentine That's Just Too Sweeeet

WCW / nWo Valentines
Paper Magic Group (1998)
Found these at the Hometown Farmer's Market a few years back and I wish I would have bought 'em.  Is there a better way to say "I love you" than with a cardboard photograph of a smiling Randy Savage?

Spooky Sushi

Red Devil, Black Dragon and Vampire Roll
Five Star - Hazleton, PA

The Sound Of Silence

Gallery of Sound
Laurel Mall - Hazleton, PA
There were three record stores in Hazleton in the 90's - Camelot, The Wall and Joe Nardone's Gallery of Sound.  The latter was by far the best of the three, and it lasted the longest.  I've been buying music there since they were at Valmont Plaza when I was a teenager.  It was the only place that I ever found the Smashing Pumpkins Black Sessions and Nirvana Outcesticide albums in the days before music downloading; when buying things over the internet was a subject for documentaries about future technologies.  It's where I went to pre-order albums and to complete my George Carlin collection.  They had the best selection of guitar magazines and they were only place to find vinyl outside of a pawn shop.

The chain hasn't gone out of business.  There are still at least two Gallery of Sound shops still in operation, and both are within driving distance of Hazleton, but it represents the end of an era.  There are no more record stores in town.

Jason Kelce - Philadelphia Hero

Jason Kelce
Center - Philadelphia Eagles
His athleticism and grit made him an All Pro and a Super Bowl Champion. His spirit made him a Philadelphia living legend. In six minutes, Jason Kelce embodied everything that this city is about - raw, passionate, in your face, and above all else, genuine.

I've been all over the country.  While there are plenty of places I've enjoyed being, Philadelphia is unique because it doesn't know how to be phony.  We may be gritty.  We may piss you off.  You may hate us, but you'll never wonder who we really are.  Take it or leave it.

No one likes us.  We don't care.

Happy National Pizza Day

National Pizza Week ad
Standard Speaker (1991)
In honor of National Pizza Day, here are the Hazleton specials from National Pizza Week thirty years ago.  This area used to have a lot of pizza parlors.  We still have a few, but it's nothing like it was in the 20th century.

Believe in Yourself

Solid words of wisdom from the hero of the 1986 World Series.

Happy birthday, Mookie.

Midnight Ice Cream

Midnight Cookies & Cream
Haagen-Dazs (2018)
So, you want more ice cream? Yeah, we can handle that!  This is a new limited edition flavor that is essentially Cookies & Cream, but with a chocolate ice cream base instead of vanilla.  Very tasty!

So Cheesy...

Fly Eagles Fly

Ready for the Super Bowl at the Cinema and Drafthouse.

Tomorrow...

Lincoln Financial Field
Philadelphia, PA
Tomorrow is the big day.

Farewell to the Chief

Farewell to the Chief
Major League Baseball and the Cleveland Indians have announced that the Chief Wahoo logo will be retired after the 2018 season.

I'll always be a Phillies fan, but if I had to pick an American League team to root for, it would be Cleveland.  I've had fond feelings for the Indians since I watched Major League for the first time, and some of my favorite Phillies have also spent time with Cleveland, especially Jim Thome, Cliff Lee and Charlie Manuel (and now Carlos Santana).  Glad to see them moving on from a clearly offensive logo and toward a bright future in which we don't need offensive, race-based mascots.

Jágr Bomb

Jaromír Jágr
This past Sunday marks the end of an NHL career that has lasted over a quarter century.  Right wing legend Jaromír Jágr was assigned by the Calgary Flames to Rytíři Kladno of the Extraliga in the Czech Republic.  Also, as Kotaku pointed out, he is the last remaining player to appear in the 16 bit classic NHL '94.