Happy Birthday Mal!!

Just wanted to take a little time out of the finals craziness (which thankfully, is almost over!) to wish Mal a happy birthday! For the past eight years, I've been fortunate enough to call Mal one of my best friends. She's one of the most incredible people I've ever met and part of our family.

It's amazing to me that I'm heading out to the Lou in two weeks to watch her graduate from WashU, considering I can still remember showing up at her house and kidnapping her all those years ago. (That should get some interesting reactions.) But as exciting as it'll be to head out to St. Louis, it's equally exciting that she'll be moving on to Cleveland after graduation!

Enjoy your big day, Mallorie, and I'll see ya soon!

Bending the rules...

So, admittedly, this isn't a blog post of my own. But this is Sarah's fantastic account of last night's french fry debacle. I still want my fries!!

The final countdown

Alright, I know. It's been almost a month and a half since I've blogged. So let's get a few things straight:
1) Yeah, I've been kicked off Jerry and Tammy's blog.
2) No, I'm not going to tell you what "take it to the next level" means, because I was stuck on the boat the whole time.
3) If you don't understand 2, I'm not telling you. You should know by now.
4) The Pirates SUCK. You don't have to tell me. It's only the 14th year in a row, it'll turn around soon enough.

Now that we've got that cleared up, let's move on.

It's absolutely unbelievable to think this is the final week of law school. Absolutely amazing. After 20 years of school, there's four more days of class left ever. And, if you've been around me lately, you know that I'm not too happy about it. Now, don't get me wrong, it's not that I'm not excited about finishing school - it's been about as stressful as 3 years could possibly be. Even though we're all heading off to careers we've killed ourselves for over the past three years, and though this is what I've wanted for so many years, it all seems so final. What's it gonna be like after the bar? Honestly, I can't even conceive of the 9-to-5 routine (or maybe better said, the 9-to-7 routine) that's awaiting me.

It's the change.

It's not being in school anymore. It's working all day every day, instead of classes for 3 hours of a day (of course, this is assuming there's a job coming sooner rather than later). It's G-Man. It's lunch in the Cafe. It's finding a new place to live. It's being completely independent.

But most importantly, it's the change of having made so many great friends, and then having Jerry (eventually), Tammy, Rene, Danielle, Ben, Greg, John and countless others scatter off all over the country in a few short weeks. I've been so fortunate to meet so many fantastic people here, but after the next 4 weeks, they're all going to be gone. I don't even like to think about it. (So blogging about it probably isn't going to help.) Really, I don't know why it's so different from graduating from Allegheny. I met so many great people there, but it isn't the same as it is now. Maybe it's because I knew I had three more years to put the real world off. I really can't stand it this time around - it just bothers me to no end.

But, I guess the good news is that it's still almost four weeks away. And that means we've all got one more month to "take it to the next level" and enjoy our last dose of craziness before the real world hits once and for all. So when I inevitably don't blog for the next four weeks and graduation comes and goes, it'll be time for a new era when I talk to you next...ready or not.

Take it to the next level, senor!

After months and months of waiting, the cruise is finally here!! So, the blog'll be taking a little siesta while I'm off soaking in the Caribbean sun. If you're feeling cold or depressed, just look here and you'll warm up. And you'll probably hate me.

Before I go, though, here's a couple quick links to read while I'm gone. First, saw this in USA Today yesterday, and, considering my odd obsession with Laguna, you knew I'd have to read it. Second, read this one the other day. Just strange. Was this something people really spent time researching? There's gotta be better things to do with your time. So I'll talk to y'all in a week. I'm sure there's gonna be plenty of stories to tell!

Greetings from the 'Burgh

I've traveled west for the weekend. Fortunately, everything here is going well! I thought I'd give you a little entertainment to make my absence go by a little quicker...

http://espn.go.com/outdoors/general/news/2006/0221/2338668.html

(Also, take a look at Jerry & Tammy's new blog. It's the next best thing to my dream of them having their own reality show.)

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Always be careful where you snorkel...

Following up on yesterday's "snorkeling" away message. Since when did Center become the ghetto??


Student teacher faces drug rap
Tom Fontaine And Bill Vidonic
02/19/2006

CENTER TWP.- A student teacher who started working at Center Area High School earlier this month was arrested Thursday, accused of snorting OxyContin in a classroom with students present.

Anthony D. Zuccaro, 30, of 113 Kara Place Road, Independence Township, was charged with one count each of drug possession and possession of drug paraphernalia. Center Township police said Zuccaro also possessed painkillers hydrocodone and tramadol, and the anti-psychotic drug Seroquel.

"I believe he's going to have to rethink his career aspirations," said district Superintendent Daniel J. Matsook.

According to police reports, Zuccaro, who had been a student at Robert Morris University in Moon Township, was in a classroom full of students around 9:30 a.m. Thursday when he removed a pill bottle from one of his socks and took out an unknown number of pills.

Police said Zuccaro, who did not have a prescription for any of the medication, crushed the pills with his foot and then snorted the powder through a straw.

Center Police Chief Barry Kramer said he didn't think any students saw Zuccaro snorting the OxyContin. Instead, Kramer said, a teacher, whom he did not identify, apparently found some of the crushed drugs in the classroom and notified Center Principal Anthony Mendicino, who then informed the district's police resource officer.

The discovery of the powder confirmed suspicions that some staff members had had about the student teacher, Mendicino said.

"There was suspicion because (staff) had observed erratic behavior from him over the course of the week. Thank goodness our faculty was on guard and we were able to find out what was going on," Mendicino said.

In a closed-door meeting in Mendicino's office Thursday morning, Zuccaro said he had been snorting pills at the school for three days, police and school officials said.

Matsook said Zuccaro, who had been teaching in the high school's business department, told those in Mendicino's office that he was "under some stress keeping up with his responsibilities as a student teacher."

Zuccaro will no longer have that stress to deal with.Center school officials said Zuccaro's student-teaching stint, which was to run through April, has been terminated, and Robert Morris spokesman Mike Rick said Zuccaro is "no longer enrolled as a student" at the university. It was unclear whether Zuccaro was thrown out of the university or he withdrew on his own.

Mendicino said Zuccaro has bachelor's and master's degrees and was in the processing of seeking an additional teaching certification. In a prepared statement, Rick said that Robert Morris "regrets that this incident occurred" and would "cooperate fully with Center Township law enforcement officials on any investigation."

Charges will be mailed to Zuccaro. No one answered the door at his home Friday afternoon.

This is the second time within a week that someone has been arrested in the Center Area School District. On Feb. 9, police arrested Phillip D. Winkle, 32, of Center Township and charged him with four counts of invasion of privacy after fellow custodians found a hole drilled into a wall of a girls restroom in the middle school.

Center police said Winkle had been videotaping females since around the Christmas break through the hole in the wall.

Winkle is free on bond, awaiting a preliminary hearing, while police continue to view videotapes seized from his home last week, in an attempt to determine how many people are on them.

If you wanna buy me a late birthday present, you REALLY have a lot of options.

After I thought Bayside High offered the finest variety of t-shirts, Ryan passes along this site for me. So many shirts, so little money...

Kelly Kapowski, will you be my valentine?

While I could be blogging about Valentine's Day, I've got a lot more important business to discuss with you, the faithful blog reader.

As you may or may not be aware, I'm obsessed with Saved by the Bell. Obsessed enough that I watch it every morning. At least twice. So, when Val told me about this amazing Saved by the Bell trivia link, you knew I'd be hooked.

(Yes, I scored 9 out of 10 on the Kelly Kapowski quiz. And yes, I knew that Stacy's college boyfriend was Craig Strand. No wonder I'm doing this post on Valentine's Day. What's your point?)

Maybe even more importantly, I thought it'd be tough to top the shirt I've had my eye on for quite awhile, but, I think this site tops them all. My only reaction was, "OH. MY. GOD."

Oh where have you gone, Kelly Kapowski...

We never wanted you anyway...

One last update to Beaver County's most infamous fan. Hope he's not going to Center...


Student in Broncos jersey switches schools
Monday, February 13, 2006

A Beaver Falls high school student who complained that a teacher forced him to sit on the floor during a midterm exam -- for wearing a Denver Broncos jersey -- has left the school district after what his father said was continued harassment and silence from students.

"He doesn't feel wanted," Brian Vannoy said of his son, Joshua. "I just want him to be happy in school."

Joshua Vannoy, 17, enrolled at a new school Friday, his father said. Brian Vannoy would not identify the school.

Big Beaver Falls Area School District officials could not be reached for comment.

Joshua, a junior, stopped going to Beaver Falls High School after he said his honors ethnic-relations teacher John Kelly, a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, forced him to take the midterm sitting on the floor and encouraged other students to pelt him with wads of paper.

Joshua wore the jersey of retired Broncos quarterback John Elway to class Jan. 20, two days before the Steelers beat the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game.

Vannoy returned Jan. 30 with an escort. He dropped Kelly's class for a study hall but he faced stony silence and some comments, though no threats of physical violence, his father said.

"He gave it a while," Brian Vannoy said. "But it just wasn't getting any better."

SUPER STEELERS!!!!!

Wow. After 25 years (and 1 week), I finally got to see my Steelers win the Super Bowl and get that one for the thumb! I made the trek through the snow back to the 'Burgh. A big thanks to the 'rents, Ben, Ryan, and Chris for making it a party that I'll never forget.

As a sports fan, it's always your dream to see your favorite team come through and win it all. I guess as a Steeler fan, when we've been so close so many times, you've always got hope that we'll pull through, but it's never come to be. I can't tell you how many times me & Ryan have talked about what it'd be like if the Steelers or Pirates actually won a championship. Everyone who's older was spoiled by winning all the time in the '70s, so there was kind of a disconnect there. I think I asked my dad about five times last night how any of them got through 4 championships when just 1 was so stressful. But now, that's gone, and we're the champions! After watching everyone else, now it's OUR guys holding the trophy, it's OUR guys going to Disney World, it's OUR city having the Super Bowl parade. It's hard to know how to react. All we can do is party!

Even as I'm sitting here with my Super Bowl championship shirt on, it's only starting to sink in. What happens now? Does this mean we don't have to worry about the 4 championship games anymore? Tom Brady? Neil O'Donnell? Larry Brown?

But the best part is there's plenty of time to figure all that out. And there's never gonna be one like this again. For now, it's time to celebrate the Bus, Big Ben, and Hines for giving me the highlight of my sports fan life.

So for one last time this year, HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO!!! And let's make it #6 next year!

Whatever happened to predictability?

Ex-Full House Star: I Was Hooked on Meth
Wednesday Feb 01, 2006 2:55pm EST

By Stephen M. Silverman

Former Full House actress Jodie Sweetin has made startling admission: she once had a daily methamphetamine habit.

The problems began when Full House ended its run in 1995, the actress told Good Morning America on Wednesday. "There is a certain sense of loss when a series ends. It is kind of hard to figure out who you are when you've lost your job at age 13, when that was basically how you identified yourself," says Sweetin, 24, who played Stephanie Tanner on the series.

Seeking a "normal" life, Sweetin attended high school and college, and was married by age 20 – to a Los Angeles policeman. But two years ago, feeling bored and being unemployed, she says she began experimenting with drugs and got hooked on meth.

After a three-day "lost" weekend, reportedly followed by an intervention staged by her former Full House costars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, John Stamos and Bob Saget, Sweetin checked herself in to the Promises rehab facility for six weeks of intense treatment.

Sweetin now owns up to "living a total double life," she tells GMA. "I was married to a police officer – we are going through a divorce right now – he had no idea."

As for the future? "I want to make movies, TV series, wherever the career takes me," she says. "I really hope this isn't the last people hear of me. In fact, I would like to make this a footnote in my career, not the end."


-- Where's DJ Tanner when you need her?

Go Phil!

3 MORE DAYS!

Birthday-Palooza's come and gone...

...but what better way to spend the big quarter century than with Birthday-Palooza (look at me with my high-tech Flickr links :-P) weekend! Kicking off with the surprise Mike visit Thursday for Rene's birthday, a wild and crazy Green Eggs night at Hardware Bar Friday, presents, pizza, poker, and Twister Saturday, and dinner with Mom and Dad and the gang Sunday, it was a weekend to remember.

It's hard to belive that I'm really 25. Seems so adult-ish. It seems that everything here has gone so fast. I feel like it was only yesterday that I came to Carlisle, wondering how the entire law school experience would be. And now, with just a few months before we graduate and less than six months to the bar, I've been thinking more and more what it's going to be like when July finally comes. After all, this time next year we'll all be off in our separate directions in our new careers. But I've been so lucky to make such amazing friends and share in so many crazy times since I've been here. And yeah, the "real world" is definitely more than a little intimidating right now, but we're all in it together.

Thanks for a great weekend guys!

Is it Sunday yet?

Well, as we get closer to Super Bowl Sunday (5 more days!), I thought I'd give you some Steeler entertainment to make the countdown go by a little bit faster...

http://www.steelerbaby.com

This cracked me up. Personally, I recommend the "hope" one.


And, because I hate to leave you, the faithful blog reader, hanging, here's an update on Beaver County's most beloved Broncos fan...

After a long week, Beaver Falls students puts his feet up
Larissa Theodore, Times Staff
01/29/2006

BIG BEAVER - Running his fingers across the leather, Joshua Vannoy, 17, admired his new recliner Friday, leaning back to adjust and readjust the seat, and inspect the swanky armrest cup holders.

Minutes before deliverymen from Poland, Ohio, parked a furniture truck in front of his home in Big Beaver, Vannoy knew he was getting a surprise. But he had no idea he was getting an exclusively designed $3,100 recliner from one of his favorite quarterbacks, John Elway. The special gift was sent from the Denver Broncos legend, who maintains that no Elway fan should have to sit on the floor, according to Jennifer Maguire, a spokeswoman for Bassett, manufacturer of the chair.

"I'm speechless. I don't know what to say, but 'Thank you, Mr. Elway. Thank you,' " a cheery Vannoy said from the chair, his family watching from across the room."I'm sorry, Josh. I don't think it matches the living room," joked his mother, Virginia.

The chair came about a week after a story made national headlines that Vannoy, a junior at Beaver Falls High School, was forced by his honors ethnic relations teacher, John Kelly, to take a midterm exam on the floor because he was wearing a No. 7 John Elway Denver Broncos jersey.

Vannoy, an honors student with a 3.8 grade-point average, said he felt dehumanized when Kelly, a Steelers fan, directed students to throw wads of notebook paper at Vannoy during class as he took his test. Despite rumors to the contrary, the Vannoy family said it hasn't received Super Bowl tickets or any other perk until now. Vannoy hasn't been to school since the incident happened Jan. 20, but he plans to return Monday.

His parents and their lawyer, Nick Frisk III, met Friday with Big Beaver Falls Area School District officials to discuss the situation, and school officials encouraged Vannoy to return to school. Vannoy said he'll make up his mind over the weekend whether he will continue with Kelly's class for the remainder of the school year to earn a full credit or take a study hall and earn a half-credit for the year. The teen wants to graduate with high honors, and if drops the class, he'll have to modify his schedule next year to make up for the lost half-credit.

But that's not the family's biggest concern. They said they worry about threats he's received from students and hope he'll be safe when he returns from his week off. It'll start with the school bus at 6:30 a.m. Monday."He's a big boy. I think he can take care of himself," his mother said.

The Vannoys said they didn't know whether Kelly would be disciplined. The school board plans to meet soon to discuss and consider the facts before making any decisions. Vannoy plans to spend the weekend catching up on homework, but doesn't mind putting it all behind him.

"I'm relieved it's finally starting to end so I can get back in school and start my education," he said.

Happy Birthday Rene!

Well, the day's come where Rene hits the big quarter-century! If you see her around school today, pay no attention to her creakin' and crackin' bones. For a person of her advanced age, it's normal. I can't even imagine being *that* old.

Here's to the two Birthday-Palooza rockstars - here's to a crazy birthday weekend!!

What it means to be from the 'Burgh...

So here goes the first real post. As advertised, I've gotta devote the post to your favorite AFC Champions and mine, the Steelers. If you don't think we're a little crazy about our team, check these two stories out...

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06024/643226.stm

And you thought it was tough enough being Jake Plummer.

Second,
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs05/news/story?id=2304689

Now, if you really want to understand how crazy we are, on the Post-Gazette's website, wearing white jerseys was the top breaking news story of the day. Seemingly lesser news includes Alito being sent to the Senate, Mario Lemieux retiring (!), and the WV governor going to Congress about mine safety.

And to think, the Super Bowl's still 12 days away. So yes, we're crazy and proud of it. There's no place I'd rather be from.

First post

Well, I broke down and joined the world of the blogs. Thanks to Ben for the title! (play on words, play on Guster a bit) I'm gonna try to be one of those people who actually do update the blog at least semi-regularly. I'm sure there's a lot of Steelers stuff coming your way, at least until the Super Bowl's over. So it could be a little boring for you non-Pittsburghers. Hang in there with me.