The Tao Of Paul

Things I will never forget about the passing of family members:
At my mothers wake, a relative we had not seen in years asked where her “kisses” were from her grown nieces and nephews. My Polish Grandmother, never known for mincing words, said if she wanted a kiss she could come over and kiss her ass. Gram was great.

My older sister and I standing in the parking lot during my Father’s wake eating Korean Pancakes with Wild Vegetables that a coworker had brought with him, while reminiscing about growing up with Dad.

When my grandmother passed away, my two aunts were deciding on which jewelry my grandmother should have on during the viewing. Picking up a pair of dangly earrings, one said to the other, “How do these look?” while holding them to her ears and tilting her head back, as if prone.

Disrespectful? Not to the guest of honor. I am sure that they all would have approved of what went on. They had all moved on to whatever waits. What happens after your demise is of little consequence to you.
Which makes me wonder why after some local celebrity dies, why do people fall head over heels trying to outdo each other with eulogies and commemorations?
Jimmy Griffin was the subject of ridicule during the recent County Executive primaries. Less than one year later people are singing his praises and trying to name a ballpark after him.

Tim Russert. Local boy that made it to the big time. Seemed like a nice enough guy, bragged about his hometown, had a show that didn’t do much for me personally. There will be a stretch of road named after him. There is a petition to name an airport after him, similar to what was done for Presidents. There has been talk about putting him on the Wall of Fame in Ralph Wilson Stadium because he was a great fan.
Is this overkill? Are we doing this just to make ourselves feel better, to grab a piece of his fame for the city, ourselves?
Sometimes I think these actions are less respectful than frivolities at a wake. Too much adulation can weaken its intended purpose.

Almost there. My part is but a small one, but the events themselves are getting pretty big, and I am excited. And I will breathe a sigh of relief/ have a bit of a letdown when it is all over.
My son leaves day after tomorrow for school. he is very pumped about it, and I am happy that he is doing something he really wants. But it has been great having him home, and I will miss the backyard “bonfire & brew” ritual. At least I can drive 6 hours to visit now instead of driving cross country.
Bright side?
For Father’s Day my son & daughter teamed up to give me my ideal theatre package. No, not tickets to Shea’s, or Irish Classical, nothing like that. My idea of the perfect package.
Passes to the Transit, and goodies to eat!

I know most of you are thinking Allentown Art Festival! I certainly would like to go.
And many of you are making plans for Father’s Day on Sunday.
I’ve got that beat.
Before any festival or family gathering, I get to participate in one of those homeowner rituals we all know and love:
Replacing the wax closet seal in the downstairs bathroom. A simple, quick, clean, and easy task. Due to my luck with all things plumbing, I will wait until there are no spectators, go downstairs with a bottle of Crown Royal, and get down to the repairing and swearing.

We get the Gazette every morning. My wife reads interesting parts to me as we drive to work. Our favorite part? The BLOTTER!
You can’t make some of this stuff up, it’s so good. First one brings up memories of the old Cheech & Chong movies:

Police said Potenzo’s vehicle was in the left turn lane on Niagara Street, waiting to turn onto the Seymour Street bridge, when an officer saw the two men smoking what appeared to be a marijuana pipe.
Forbes looked out the passenger side window, noticing the officer, and he and Potenzo began making furtive movements to hide the marijuana, the report said. Police eventually found three marijuana bags in Potenzo’s vehicle.

And you wonder if the paper gets cash for “Product Placement” in their reports. As an example, we don’t just read that the individual had an open container, we read that he had “an open can of Bud Ice Beer”. I guess anything for a buck, ya know?

Can’t wait for tomorrow’s installment.

To my lovely daughter who turns 26 today. She who brings joy to my heart every time I see her. She who would bring more joy to my heart if she came over and watered her vegetable garden.

Happy Birthday Ria!

A little something worth watching

Come join us celebrate our Buffalo. I’ll be there, and I hope you will too.

Apparently the seemingly endless primary/steel cage match is over. I found Hillary to be well, brittle. Not a trait I would want in a president. I am pretty sure I will be seeing a fair amount of “Vote for me because the other guy is bad” from McCain.

Dr. James Williams is still in Buffalo. Can’t we find another city and trade him for like a 6th round pick?

This song and dance about the Hit & Run is absurd. Channel 2 asked the tough question “Is Lynch getting special treatment because of his star status”?
My question to the media would be “Would you clowns be all over this like seagulls on a french fry at McDonalds if it wasn’t someone with star status?”

And now I’m off to work. Y’all have a fun day…