End Of The World!: Ravens

Showing posts with label Ravens. Show all posts

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Hand Painted Crab Shells Part Two

Are you ready for Christmas? Not me.........I have been extremely busy...........alot of stuff happening and has happened since the last post.

First off, the entire family converged upon Tennessee for Thanksgiving with my Mom and my sisters and their offspring. It just so happened that my birthday was the day before Thanksgiving and we celebrated that as well. Everything was wonderful and good and just cannot express how important for me that we were all together for those all too brief few days. Considering that Noodle and her husband brought my grandson with them........driving all the way from Leander, Texas......and my other daughter Mrs Moneypenny brought her entourage from Maryland...........and both of my boys rode with me and the wife from Maryland to Tennessee.......well.......let's just say that I am not only grateful, but thankful that everyone arrived safely and unscathed.....hehehe........seriously........

The Friday after Thanksgiving, me and Supernurse took a flight from Nashville to Mexico.
That's right.......Mexico.........third year in a row.........Grand Palladium Riviera Maya again.........absolutely wonderful place.........and we stayed for 12 days before returning home to Baltimore.............Whew!...........yeah, I am tired.............so bear with me on posting about the trip as I usually have in the past. Hopefully I will get to that very soon.

Upon our return home, the proverbial shit has hit the fan regarding the crab shells at the flea market. Christmas shopping has kicked in and shoppers have practically wiped out my supply of hand painted crab shells. This is a good thing and I am not complaining.........but this has also meant that I have been in a mad scramble to replace the sold shells with more shells.......which also means that I have been very busy........painting......painting......and painting crab shells. I do not want to disappoint any customers. Somehow, I have managed to keep going at it.

In regards to the crab shells. there are those that I make that I consider "must have"......and the rest are those that are specially made either from requests, pre-orders, or simply because someone challenged me or dared me to make one or two.

One of those "challenges" was the Harley-Davidson logo. There are many bikers and other assorted Harley lovers that roam the flea market. More than once, someone would approach my table and say "You don't have one with Harley on it?"......"I would buy one if you did."........well...........yes.........I DO have them now and that particular challenge has been met.

One of the "must haves" incorporates Natty Boh with the Maryland flag......very popular.

Another special request was this one. A couple wanted it for their little daughter's bedroom.

In addition to hand painted crab shells, I also make Redneck Wine Glasses. These are selling fast and I had to make 40 of them this week alone.

Football fans are not left out............even Packers fans roam around the flea market. Packers, Steelers, Redskins, Eagles, Seahawks........Giants.......even da Bears!

A really nice dude from West Virginia came by and asked me if I could paint a trout on a crab shell for him...........he was very happy.

Another request was from a firefighter from Baltimore City............he was also very happy with his crab shell.

Oh yeah........did I mention football fans?............Patriots!

Another variation of the Natty Boh/Maryland Flag crab shell.

This is yet another request........"I want one with the Colts on it".......well........to me, there is only ONE Colts that is worthy of my bother.......and that is the BALTIMORE Colts.....hehehe.

Crab shells.......it's a Maryland thing...........of course........Maryland Terps!

Lighthouses are also popular.

Believe it or not, the Orioles are a winner here.

But the most popular hand painted crab shell is this one.

I will put up some more pictures when I get.....uh....."IF" I get some spare time again before Christmas......hehehe........until then..........feel free to email me with any questions or you can post your questions here on the blog.

If you happen to like what you see and want to see more and perhaps purchase some for Christmas gifts.......or you want a Redneck Wine Glass...........come on down to the North Point Plaza Flea Market and say hello.........or even "Merry Christmas!".

If you are not local to the Baltimore area.......hmmm........I still have yet to do that Paypal thing and it is not likely that I will get to that this year. Look for it after the new year.

Ho.....Ho.....Ho!

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Another Piece Of My Mind

Here are a few odds and ends about some things that have been on my mind lately. I have also tossed in some observations that I have had that maybe you haven't had. So let's get started, shall we?

Some of you may know that there had been some talk about how our government might tax soft drinks. Another sin tax like the cigarette taxes. The spiel this time was that the consumption of soft drinks such as Coke and Pepsi contributes to obesity and thus costs us dearly in the form of higher health care costs. The specific problem was said to be diabetes and the culprit is sugar. Furthermore, they tossed in the word "children".........you know.......as in "childhood obesity" and "it's for the children". I followed the story for several months now wondering if in fact they would actually shove a new tax down our throats in the form of the Soda Tax. Not much had been mentioned in the media about it.........it kinda disappeared............nobody was saying how it was coming along..................until yesterday. Well...............not really yesterday. Yesterday, it was all over the news that drinking soft drinks "causes cancer of the pancreas". Huh?...........are you kidding me?..........I have been drinking sodas forever now and they are just now saying this?

I ain't buying it, folks. This is bullshit. Hmmmmmm..........something is odd about this "news" story..........so I did a little research. Why now?...........why are they spreading this "major discovery" now? I did a Google search for information about the proposed Soda Tax to see what was being said about it lately. I discovered that the Soda Tax was defeated in committee by lobbyists for the soft drink industry as well as other industries that are heavily related to the consumption and purchase of sodas. I think this is fantastic news..........the soda tax ain't got a chance...................right?

Wrong. When things do not go the politicians way, or when things aren't happening the way the politicians want it......well........they have to demonize things and toss in the word "children" and then proceed to incite the big scare tactic to lure common people into actually agreeing to be taxed to death. The group of thugs that were and are behind the proposed soda tax have been consorting and scheming and have now tossed the big fear tactic upon us.......thus the news story that soft drinks cause pancreatic cancer. I can see it coming now................they might even suggest that the consumption of Coke and Pepsi is the cause of excessive gas resulting in an inordinate amount of burping and flatulence, thus contributing to global warming.........you get the picture.

People better wake up and start taking action. Vote every one of these thug mobsters out of office. And don't try to tell me about some these so called "fresh faces" in politics being acceptable. Consider that now that Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon has now been replaced by Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, somebody "new" will have to fill the empty spot that Rawlings-Blake had. The "new" City Council President has been named and most people will be thinking at how he is a "fresh face" on the political scene in Baltimore...................believe it? Not me.

When asked about if she will be able to work with the new city council president, her replacement, Rawlings-Blake said that it should be no problem at all because they have been working together for over 14 years now.............!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!..................got that?...........14 years!..................new?...........fresh face?...............are you kidding me? All I can say is..............where and who are the people that live and work in Baltimore that are absolutely delighted about the past 14 years where Rawlings-Blake and her successor have been working together? The more things "CHANGE"...........remember, that was the Obama campaign mantra............the more things STAY THE SAME.

Here is a nice aerial photo of Maryland.............notice how white everything is?................it is called snow.............and there is alot of it..........and as I write this, there is yet another winter storm warning in effect and snow will begin falling again this afternoon............another 12 to 20 inches of snow is possible...........this ain't a good thing.................somebody ought to give Al Gore a shovel and send him to Baltimore...................this "global warming" crap is an insult to everyone because every person with at least a hint of common sense surely can see that Al Gore and people of his ilk are just capitalizing on a scare tactic that they have created..............the only thing that truly is scary is the fact that Al Gore was so very close to becoming President..........one can only imagine what things would have been like if he had been in control of this country. People should be sick and tired of being scammed by these blue-blooded millionaire politicians.

I saw Madonna on tv recently.........she was "performing" for the benefit of Haitian earthquake victims. To me, Madonna is simply an entertainer.......not an artist........not a musician........and certainly not all that much of an inspiration...........unless you aspire to be a media "ho". As I watched Madonna, I noticed how she has aged considerably and just how much she has begun to morph into yet another entertainer...........

.............yep..........that's right.............Judy Tenuta............at least Judy plays an accordion and doesn't pretend that she is important.......hehehe.

You may not know who this person is............his name is Reggie Nalder and he is an actor. He has been in some famous movies and television shows..........even Star Trek...........and I was under the impression that he had long since passed away after a very long career.

Back in the day.......when I worked at the old Vilma Theater as an usher, the movie "Mark Of The Devil" ran for about a month and every day I would see Reggie Nalder's face up on the big screen..................Back then, I never would have imagined that I would ever see anyone even closely resembling him..........if that would happen it surely would be one of the signs of the end of the world.....................

...........well.............guess what............it's the end of the world!

Damn if Nancy Pelosi doesn't look exactly like Reggie Nalder.

I may have mentioned this before, but U2 singer Bono looks just like Robin Williams.

The Baltimore Ravens did fairly well this past season. I noticed that the Ravens head coach, John Harbaugh looked awfully familiar to me..........I couldn't quite figure out who he looked like.......and then it hit me..............once again that old job as an usher in a movie theater gives me the answer................

...........hehehe........Billy Jack! Remember Billy Jack?

Okay.......on a more serious note............remember how George Bush was criticized for his response when he was first informed of the 9-11 attack? He was at an elementary school.......remember? People criticized him for years and kept saying that he was a puppet and could only say what others told him to say. Unless he had a script, he had difficulty coming up with a response on the fly..............hmmmmmm.

Today we have Obama.............take a gander at the picture shown above. Obama was in an elementary school...........and he ain't speaking on the fly.............in fact he hardly ever speaks without his teleprompters...........imagine that..........he brought teleprompters to an elementary school!..................are you kidding me?..............let there be no doubt that Obama is controlled by something or someone in power over him. Let there be no doubt that Obama is a very scripted president. Let there be no doubt that Obama is a puppet...........where are those that criticized Bush?..............I can tell you where they are.........they are busy trying to distract you.......they are running interference...........they are busy whining and moaning at how Sarah Palin had some "cheat" notes scribbled on the palm of her hand when she addressed the recent tea party gathering in Nashville........................oh the shock.........oh the shame............how dare Palin do such a thing?

Let's see............Obama good........everybody else bad...............it's the end of the world.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Riviera Maya Vacation - Part Five

Every year during football season it becomes a challenge to watch a Ravens game while we are out of the country. On a cruise ship, we managed to get to watch a game but not a Ravens game. In Aruba, we had to leave our resort and head for a Fridays restaurant to find a screen with our Ravens on it. This time............we were in Mexico and the Grand Palladium Resort just so happened to have a "Sport Bar" with several tv screens and one huge screen hooked up to a satellite dish............ahhhhhhh........there was hope! It was a good sign of things when we saw a picture hanging on the wall that just so happened to show the Ravens vs Steelers...........yep.....there was hope that we would be able to watch the game on Sunday. The question is.......HOW can we make sure we get the game on that big screen?........the answer was.........become good friends with the bartender......hehehe.

How important is it to encounter resort staff that actually appear to be happy that you are there?.........it is very important. It makes for a totally enjoyable time and I must say that 99% of the staff at this resort did a great job and were very hospitable. In particular, the bartender at the "Sport Bar". His name is Francisco and he went out of his way to make our time there a memorable one.

Here is Francisco and my buddy Captain Morgan..........Francisco kept the beer and the tequila flowing and he would also entertain us with assorted card tricks. Francisco also would mix drinks that we had never heard of and offer them to us to try. He would bust out a huge grin when he made a "michelita" (Sp?) which was beer with tabasco, pepper, etc....etc.............whoa!

The "Sport Bar" was a large room with lots of tv screens and sports memorabilia all over the place. There is also ping pong, pool tables, foosball, and internet available. One bar and a snack bar which served typical "sport" snacks...........like chicken wings and popcorn.

I couldn't help but notice this menu.............how could anyone order a "dry anis"?

As I mentioned, Francisco was very adept at card tricks and he spent alot of time focusing his attention our way..........of course, it wasn't very busy so he could spend the time.

Looks good doesn't it?

As I said before..............make a friend, get the Ravens Game on the big screen......hehehe.
Sadly, the Ravens lost........oh well.

Captain Morgan presented a Ravens souvenir towel to Francisco so that it can be framed and hung on the wall of the "Sport Bar". Me and Captain Morgan signed the towel. Captain Morgan just could not let it stand that the "Sport Bar" had a framed Steelers Terrible Towel hanging on the wall.........and he offered them his towel.

Okay........so there is the photo op....................

............and here is the bigger picture........hehehe.

This is Ricardo. He is one of the managers of the entertainment staff......."People Of Palladium". Ricardo was great and he also went out of his way, even interrupting his own meal, to entertain and socialize with us. Aside from his skills at his job, Ricardo also enjoyed performing card tricks and other assorted bar tricks.

Okay..........so you have four shot glasses full of beer and Ricardo has one full glass of beer and one half full glass of beer. The challenge is that Ricardo bets you that he can drink all of his beer before you can.............and you will be up to the challenge because it ain't nothing to down four shots of beer real fast. The problem is........there is one catch.............Ricardo tells you that there is only one rule..................which is that he cannot touch any of your glasses and you cannot touch any of his glasses.............and that sounds really reasonable...........so.........let's get this thing started.

Guess who won?..............................Ricardo. So how does he do it?
Hmmmmmm..........if you really want to know..........stay tuned.

Stay Tuned, folks.........Part Six is coming.........more beach!

Saturday, November 08, 2008

Aruba Trip Part Four

Sometimes, even when you are away on a trip far, far, away from home, certain things are necessary for some of us to do in order to satisfy the urges to root for the home team, the Baltimore Ravens. We tried hard to find some way to watch the football game on Sunday against the Oakland Raiders. Our hotel, the Occidental Grand, has several tv screens in the lobby, the casino, and two at the pool bar.....not to mention the tv's in each of our rooms. The problem was, the hotel did not have a satellite or cable subscription that actually had a channel that would broadcast our particular game. The only game showing at the hotel was to be the NY Giants game.........sorry.......that ain't gonna work for some of us folks from Baltimore.

We were told that TGI Fridays.......just a short walk down the road from our hotel.......would be our best bet to see our game since they have numerous screens. It was a no-brainer.......a small contingent of us proceeded to hit the road and find that TGI Friday place..........it is GAME TIME!

Upon our arrival, we immediately queried the bartender about our game........he checked with someone, came back and said "Yes!, we can get it!". Ooooooh Yeah!. He proceeded to put our game on one of the screens and we sat down at the bar. Soon a few others from our hotel showed up to join us.

One of the staff at TGI Fridays, while standing at the front door, greeted me as returned from stepping outside for a moment. She points to my shirt and smiles and says "My last name is Raven!".........Imagine that!.........this has to be an omen............what are the odds that we are in Aruba at a TGI Fridays so far away from home and somebody says their name is Raven? I just had to get a picture.

I gotta tell you, the people who work at this particular TGI Fridays were extremely friendly and helpful. I wished they had worked back at the hotel.

The two at the end of the bar were Oakland Raiders fans..........us vs. them....hehehe.....we had them out numbered. Actually they were also very friendly and appeared to have enjoyed the game even though the ultimate outcome was disappointing for them.

Don't be fooled by the guy with the Bears jersey on......he was with us..........and the Bears had a bye week. We all cheered and watched the game as we drank our drinks and ate our food. I must tell you.............these women got into the game more than the guys did............and much much louder too.....hehehe.

So what did I drink while watching the big game?..............Balashi, of course.

The game ended......the Ravens won.......we were all happy........and we headed back to our hotel.

TGI Fridays is located in an outdoor shopping center. This is how it looked from the front door of the restaurant. At the center of the photo, just past those columns, is a swimming pool.......imagine that. Also, in that same pool, is a fountain which incorporates pyrotechnics. Nice.

This is the entrance arch to the shopping center.

This is what it looks like as you approach the TGI Fridays.

Apparently, this place is rather new. It is very clean and certainly not low-budget.

One of the other restaurants in the center.

When on vacation, you have to take a photo of one of the buses.

It is very upscale and interesting here........much to look at.

This is a view along the sidewalk in front of the shopping center. I enjoy seeing good landscaping and signage.

Oh well........we stood for a few minutes and then headed down the road.

Speaking of down the road.........this is the Holiday Inn where Natalee Holloway was staying. As you probably know, she went missing......never to be found. After seeing this area and spending some time here I never ever got any impression of danger. Unless one puts themself in a dangerous situation where you are vulnerable and away from your group.......it is safe here.

As I look down the road, everything is tidy.............at times it felt like the set of that old tv show The Prisoner.

As I walked, I looked everywhere around me..........in every crook and nanny.

This is a Yellow Bus. My guess it is a cab more than it is a bus. Why don't we have these vehicles here at home?

As some of you may know, I spent a decent part of my life making signs. I also made alot of traffic signs but I never made any such as these.

Here is an employee of the shop behind her. She was just standing there and I told her that I wanted to see a nice big smile. She smiled and I snapped the picture. Sometimes you have to make people smile................perhaps she was having a bad day.

The Playa Linda hotel was two doors away from our hotel. From the front it looked rather nice.

Along the way there are various establishments such as Smokey Joe's.

We kept marching back towards our hotel............it seemed a bit different heading back......maybe it was the Balashi......hehehe.

I noticed the trees were very unusual.

Ahhhhh we are almost there........the Hyatt was next door to our hotel.

Now here is an odd looking tree.

Hooters is right across the street from the Occidental Grand......so is the Benihana. I didn't bother with going over there.............everything was paid for where we were staying.