Happy Halloween from the Blacks!

This year, we'll be in Houston for the Halloween weekend. We have a sugar high filled weekend planned with Todd, Kelley, the girls, and Troy's parents. I'm sure that Wonder Woman (AKA - Abby) will save the day and make sure all the neighborhood kids will have tons of candy. Our pups will be here in Philly celebrating the holiday with our friend, Lee. I'm sure that they will miss dressing up, but their pet parent of the male gender refuses to let them wear costumes... oh, well... maybe next year!! Happy Halloween!!

Frosty the Snow-Mandy...

As we usually do, we checked the weather tonight to see what is to come for tomorrow and the rest of the week... and to our surprise, this is what we saw...

Last I checked, those little asterisks didn't mean rain. Now, I'm not sure if it will really snow, but it certainly feels cold enough. Let me paint the picture for you... I pulled up to the airport and a gust of wind blew and was blowing so hard that I couldn't pull the door shut. It was all I could do to hold it so it didn't blow off the side of the truck. It was rainy and 40 degrees, and TB is just sitting there. It was a great experience. I'm just thankful to still have our door... attached to the Tahoe.

It's so cold outside, and I don't see foresee a break in the frosty weather. From talking to our neighbor, this is an early chill that is upon us. "Last year," she says, "Thanksgiving was around 70 and sunny. So beautiful." I respond with, "I'm sorry... my lucky travels with me." She was glad to have someone to blame the unseasonably cool weather on!

I'm layering away... but it's still chilly. Anyway... as you can tell, the weather isn't ideal here in Philly. We'll make it, but if you don't see a post for a week, 10 days... two weeks... call the National Guard. We may be ice sickles!

Blustery is THE way of life...

Blustery is defined as a violent blowing, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. We experienced our first blustery day for fall in PA yesterday. We knew it was to rain, but we didn't realize that we would also experience our first Nor'easter.

For those of you, like me, who aren't really that familiar with the Nor'easter, let me give you my interpretation of the weather pattern. Continual face numbing winds, pounding rains, and leaves the size of a Volkswagen chasing you down the sidewalk. On the radar, the storm was moving both due east and north; therefore, I'm assuming that's where the name Nor'easter comes into play.

I kept waiting for Owl and Rabbit to come out with Piglett and Kanga close behind hunting Christopher Robbin to rescue Winnie the Pooh from the honey tree. There were leaves everywhere, and not just a few... but layers and layers. We saw one leaf tonight that the size of both of TB's size 11 feet put together... HUGE!!

Anyway... I've posted a few pictures on the Picasa site at www.picasaweb.google.com/mandyeblack. There are also some really pretty pictures of the fall leaves and trees in the Autumn in Philadelphia folder. I updated it a few days ago. Hope the weather is nice where you are... we are getting ready to brave the winter here... it's gonna be a challenge!

Welcome to Transylvania...

Some of you may recall the post from July, "Oh... The Places We Should Go." Well... I am happy to report that Thursday, we crossed off the second of the four. Now, I won't get to make it to each exhibit being that the Gregor Mendel exhibit has moved on to bigger and better places, but I... I mean, we... went to the Eastern State Penetentiary for the "Terror Behind The Walls" haunted house. We got our tickets for 9 PM, and dressed for the occassion... ski jackets, gloves, scarfs... the works!

We started by signing the waiver (yes... the haunted house was IN the prison that is considered a ruin, so they weren't gonna be held responsible if a large brick fell on your head). We snaked our way through the lines until at last... it was our turn!

It was so much fun. We went through cells with prisoners and the hospital wing. We went through the fog-filled, strobe light lite death row complete with inmates in orange jumpers with bags over their heads. Then they took you through the kitchen but prefaced that part with "now you are entering the kitchen. Inmates spent many days and nights in the prison sorting the fresh meat that walked... I mean, came in each day." There was a refrigerator portion that had mummies hanging in it. It was so funny! It was 40 minutes of sheer terror!

I definitely recommend it to anyone who may visit around this time of year and to any local who hasn't been. My friend, KC, went with us. I made her go first because she didn't seem to spook too easily. Granted, I lent my hand to her since I had Troy to hold onto (and so we wouldn't get lost from each other, too!), and I got a few good squeezes. She did get a bit scared once or twice, but otherwise, she was a good girl!

Here are a couple of pics from the night. There is one of KC and me on the Ghost Trolley, and then one of TB and me in front of the prison.

Ice, Ice Baby!

I feel like this nurse fairy with a really cheery disposition should come into my room, wake me up from a perfectly good somber, and say, "well, Mrs. Black, how do you feel after the first phase of your elective cryogenic freezing? The Doctor (AKA Mother Nature) said you did very well!"

This is the point where I would say, "Am I dreaming?"

Nurse Fairy: "No mam, it really was 31 degrees this morning. Your feet are perfect frozen, and until May of 2009, we'll continue to freeze you limb by limb from bottom to top until you're perfectly preserved for summer. Now if you'll just sign on the dotted line releasing her from any harm..."

Now... I ask you (the Southerners, of course), what good does it do for the temp to be 31 degrees in October?? I've heard of this happening, but never imagined it was true! This is what I saw when I cranked my truck this morning....

So, I text message my friend, KC, and tell her that this morning makes me want to fly south for the winter. She agrees that sounds nice but refuses to let me go because she and the other suckers who choose to live here do not have a warmer winter refuge! Don't think I won't hop on the first available flight on the jolly red bellied, blue bird (AKA Southwest Airlines) and head to MS every chance I get!!

So once again, I'm decked out in wool from head to toe. If I believed in reincarnation, I definitely would want to come back as a lamb. Cute, cuddly little animal with the warmest coat of all. Granted, probably wouldn't look forward to being shaved routinely to keep a human warm, but maybe I could be a sly little lamb and get out of it somehow!! Wow... there are downfalls to everything!

Anyway... all of you in the Sunny South, go and enjoy the weather. If I could package ours right now, I would... and I'd be so sweet and share with all of you!

And The Heat Is On...

Well... it finally happened. We broke down and turned on the heater this morning. I was in layers and layers of clothes AND under a blanket but was still cold. So, we did it... we turned on the heater to help warm up the apartment.

It was 48 degrees outside with about a 10 mph wind blowing... constantly. We took the pups out for their mid-morning outing, and Max is so funny. He likes the cooler weather, but he hasn't quite figured out the leaves yet. They will blow toward him, and he can't decide if they are attacking him or playing with him. He usually sniffs of them a little, but the big ones, he'll sit beside. Some are almost half his size... the leaves are huge.

Marlee has found the wonder of wildlife. If we knew how to train her, I think she'd be a fabulous field dog. She broke her pinch collar the other day and took off after a rabbit. We were so afraid she wasn't going to stop, but after the poor little bunny hid from her, she came back to finish the walk. I don't think I've ever seen her run that fast! I was scared but had to laugh... it was her first experience with wildlife. Now, when we go outside, we look for bunnies, squirrels, or anything else that might make Marlee flee!

I guess we're gonna finish our lazy Sunday with preparations for the week. We're looking at a low of 38 tonight and 45 tomorrow night. I've gotta find some sweaters... and gloves... and scarves!

Enjoy the mild temps of the South, my friends. If I could bottle a little cold PA air and send it to you, I would... you should all experience a fall in the Northeast!!

A Phriend in Philly!

I have some news, all! Troy, the pups, and I are so excited!! Our friend, Marcus, recently was offered and accepted the Manager of Ramp and Operations position her in Philly. Marcus and Troy were on the API team together and became good friends. Marcus would visit us occasionally in MS and quickly became one of Max and Marlee's favorite visitors (he gives really good belly rubs... so I've heard!).

We just want to say welcome to Marcus, and we are so excited that you'll be here in the City of Brotherly Love with us!

I'm sure that you'll be hearing about Marcus more as time goes on... my first plea to our friend... will you go to the Eastern State Penitentiary with us? I've heard it's really spooky at Halloween... comes highly recommended by the locals (and by locals, I mean the transplants who've been here for 2+ years!).

Picasa Photo Journal Update

We've added a few pictures of the changing seasons to the Picasa Photo Journal. Enjoy!

Every Dog Has Its Day...

As all of you know, our pampered pooches are a BIG part of our lives, and Pedigree understands the obsession that--for sanity's sake--we disguise as unconditional love we have for our pups. That's why they are deeming Saturday, October 11, 2008 as DOGS RULE DAY!


How can you celebrate DRD? Give your pup some extra love with an extra long belly scratch or ear scratch. Toss his or her favorite toy a few more times that normal. Take them on a longer walk or a car ride, if they like that. Buy them a new toy or new yummy treats! Pampering our pets itsn't hard, and ours rule on a daily basis!

We love our dogs and don't know what we'd do without them. If you don't have a pet, celebrate by adopting a furbaby of your own. You can contact your local animal shelter or use http://www.petfinder.com/ to find your new family member, but remember, dogs take a lot of time and need a lot of care. If you can't give your pooch the time he or she needs, just donate to the shelter and help them take care of a pup until he or she finds a good home!

Enjoy the day with your dog... we hope that you and your beloved pooch have the most pawsome day ever!

For more information on Dogs Rule Day, visit www.pedigree.com/dogsruleday

They Say It's Fall, But...

So, this week has been unseasonably cool here in the Northeast, and by unseasonably cool, I mean 12-14 degrees cooler at night and in the morning than normal. Yesterday, we woke up with a temp of 40 degrees, and this morning, it was 42. That's what we considered winter in MS! I mean, the temps would be lower in the early morning hours, and you would see frost in the mornings, but this is just fall here!

What am I going to do? I know... I'll invent a little body suit that works like an electric blanket that runs off of batteries! Yeah... that's it! Wait... I'm not an engineer... Todd, Kelley, Uncle Alex, Dave... Interested in a side job?!?

Anyway... All I know is that I am inside with a wool sweater on, and I'm still cold. I think that it's time to break out the North Face, but I'm not sure what I'll do when it's winter. The North Face is the warmest jacket that I have... the falling leaves predict a shopping trip in the near future!! Until then, I'm gonna be a sitting duck (or for effect since it's fall, a sitting crow), and stay warm inside!

Our leaves have been predicted to start turning really soon. There is one tree at my exit to City Ave that is solid red. It looks like a maple tree... it's beautiful. I want to take a ride into the more rural areas when they really start to turn the rusts and golds... autumn is such a nice time of year!