I thought this CNN Money Magazine article was pretty entertaining , considering how messed up our state is, budget-wise and other wise. The funny thing is, our area has already stooped this low. Don’t we already pay for local garbage collection through taxes? Haven’t we already outsourced some bussing, and put street lights on limited use?
If there is a way to make $$$, chances are New York State is already on top of it, and the county and city as had to make cutbacks to keep up. Maybe seceding from NYS isn’t such a bad idea after all!
I went to the press conference this morning at Darien Lake and got all the details on what’s new this year. If you’re a fan of waterparks, you’re going to love the new park!
Yes, a whole new park! Splashtown at Darien Lake will open Memorial Day weekend. The waterpark and rides will now be two different parks. Pricing details are at the Darien Lake website. The season pass is the best bet for this, as it’s still a great deal regardless.
Here’s video from the press conference announcing Splashtown with details on all the new slides and attractions. I’ll also list what’s new below…
The new attractions include…
FLOTATION STATION: A 1,024-foot lazy river! I’ve been waiting for Darien Lake to get one of these forever.
LAZY DAYS LAGOON: A second wave pool, this one with gently rolling waves as opposed to the larger waves at their Crocodile Isle wave pool. It’s actually part of Flotation Station.
SWIRL CITY SLIDE COMPLEX: Four new waterslides…
* Mister Twister – Features three funnels!
* Cannon Ball Run – A high-speed slide with a giant 40-foot “Cannon Bowl”.
* Turbo Twins – Two twisted enclosed slides with some translucent sections thrown in.
In addition to Splashtown, Darien Lake has transformed ten rooms in their Lodge On The Lake Hotel into “Forts-O-Fun” family rooms. They offer kids their own room-in-a-room with a fort-themed play and sleep space that includes its own TV and Playstation 3 console.
Darien Lake has also added 24 lakeside Brown Bear Cabins to the campsite area.
The best news of all – nothing is being removed from the park to make way for all these additions! Although Floodgate Falls (the cascading lazy river in the original waterpark) will remain out of operation again this year.
Opening day is Saturday, May 8th (with Splashtown opening Memorial Day weekend)!
Now for something from the early days of Darien Lake. I was looking through some of my parents’ old pictures and ran across these.
It was like me and my brother had our own personal paparazzi following us around. No wonder I’m not a fan of getting my picture taken now! But I have to admit, I am happy my parents took all these great 80’s pictures of Darien Lake…
Me (right) and my friend Patrick riding the Viper during its first summer in 1982.
I’m patiently waiting here for my parents to take a picture before going back on one of Darien Lake’s awesome Rainbow Mountain waterslides in June of 1980. The second slide was called Acapulco Falls and the third was Kamikaze. I can’t remember the name of the first one or the kiddie slide.
My brother (along with some random girl) riding the kiddie boats in June of 1980.
Here I am putting up with my parents telling me to freeze as I get out of the Enterprise car (now called Silver Bullet) on what I think was its second day of operation in June of 1980. Me and my Dad watched as the German mechanics did the final tests on the ride the day before. My Dad went on the ride in the afternoon that first day, while I finally got the courage to go on later that night. I even remember what I was thinking here: I just wanted to get out of the car and get back in line so I could ride again – lol.
Day 36 no smoking. I don’t want a cigarette, however, I would like to axe murder someone….anyone…jk jk. a little edgy, but, getting better. I have been running to keeep my metabolism going and so that I don’t gain weight. I went to Sneaker Advantage and Mark and the crew fitted me with an amazing pair of running shoes. They watch you walk and check your arches….very cool. Ready for some spring cleaning inside and out! How bout you?
It’s been an interesting couple of days at Star 102.5 as we finish up the Request-a-thon for the Alzheimer’s Association. Putting this event together has taught me a lot about the disease, and how many are touched by it. So many people have come up to me, or called, or emailed to tell me how they are dealing with it in their lives.
To be honest, it also brings back painful memories of my grandmother’s passing, and more recently my aunt (pictured, middle), who both suffered from vascular dementia. As far as we have come with research and development, like cancer there is no cure for Alzheimers. There are many promising drugs in the pipeline, we are tantalizingly close to finding a cure, but it is still out of reach. That is what makes an organization like the Alzheimer’s Association so important.
In addition to the ongoing research, I think knowing you have help 24/7, even if it’s just being able to call someone for support, is incredibly important. I can’t imagine being a caregiver day-in and day-out watching someone you love slipping away. That feeling of helplessness is hard enough, but there’s also the underlying fear that you might be watching a future image of yourself going through the same thing.
So, I feel good about playing Frank Sinatra, Metallica, Selena Gomez, and the Beatles back-to-back, because it’s helping us break the chain of this terrible illness, and helping keep future children from going through it too.
Ilene Graff was Marsha Owens (the Mom) on the 80’s sitcom Mr.Belvedere. The show lasted 6 seasons for a total of 117 episodes and she was one of only three of the cast to appear in every one of them (Christopher Hewitt & Brice Beckham as Mr. Belvedere & Wesley were the other two).
Shout! Factory recently released season 4 of the show on DVD. It’s only available at the Shout! Factory website.
I think this (along with season 5) was the high point for the series. This is the season where Heather & Wesley went to Atlantic City while Mr. Belvedere went wild back at the house, Marsha got her first job at a law firm, George got a job as a TV sports reporter, Kevin got his own apartment, Robert Goulet made his second appearance on the series, and Wesley had a jump-the-shark moment at summer camp.
In addition to starring in this classic 80’s sitcom, Ilene is also a singer. She had a chance to sing during part two of “The Trip” in season 4 of Mr. Belvedere. And she’ll be singing this coming weekend on the Variety Kids Telethon here in Buffalo.
The pre-telethon concert will be Saturday night at 7pm at the Bishop Timon / St. Jude Auditorium on McKinley Parkway, then the Telethon itself will be Sunday at the Adam’s Mark Hotel and broadcast live on Channel 7.
Earlier tonight, I had the chance to talk with Ilene. Here’s the full interview and a list of all the links mentioned…
Star 102.5’s most-visited blog for the last few weeks, by far, has been Rob’s. Like you, I have been looking at pictures of his new puppy, and reading about he and Linda’s first foray into pet parenthood. My only question to those two is, what took you so long?
Meanwhile, my 13 old Jack Russell Terrier, Rocky, is having a rough time. He was just diagnosed with Cushing’s Disease, which is basically an extreme imbalance between his adrenal and pituitary glands, and pretty common in older dogs. We noticed several months ago that he wasn’t himself. He’s been extraordinarily thirsty, lethargic, and unable to control his bladder for any reasonable length of time. He’s also developing a pot belly, which for an energetic dog like Rocky is unacceptable! He mopes around the house like he doesn’t know where he is half the time, and only seems able to relax by lying down on our cool ceramic tile.
There are two drugs normally prescribed for Cushing’s Disease. One has a decent track record, and no side effects, so our vet suggested we try it first. So far we’re having mixed results. A week into it he’s perked up somewhat, but his extreme thirst hasn’t gone away (he’d drink a gallon at a time if we let him), and now he has a sore on his side that won’t heal; another symptom of Cushing’s.
If this drug strikes out, the only alternative is a type of chemo, which I’m leery about because if we don’t get the dosage right, he could crash. Since Heather and I both work during the day, it’s not going to be easy to monitor his progress.
Regular readers of my blog know that Rocky’s been completely blind since 2006, having suffered from a severe case of glaucoma in both eyes. Up until now, he’s been incredibly resilient, amazing the vet with his ability to get around, up and down stairs, in and out of doorways, without sight. To have this happen on top of his blindness breaks my heart.
Anyway, reading about Rob’s new puppy brought back a lot of memories, as I try to keep my poor old dog comfortable in his final year of life. Hard to believe it’s been 13 years since we brought our own little fuzzball home for the first time.
Wondering what’s going to happen with the final few episodes of Lost? Click here for yet another great way to get the scoop on future episodes. Click on the blue highlighted area for information on each episode.
No, there’s not going to be a Mr. Belvedere themed ride at Darien Lake. Even when the show was actually on the air in the 80’s that would have been weird.
The only connection between the two is I’m mentioning something about each today. First up, Mr. Belvedere and one of the stars from the show – Ilene Graff…
The telethon will be Sunday, March 28th on Channel 7. The true kickoff though is the night before at the Bishop Timon / St. Jude Auditorium on McKinley Parkway in Buffalo. That’s when all the telethon celebrities will perform and officially kick off the Variety Kids Telethon weekend.
Ilene Graff, who played Marsha Owens (the Mom) , will be one of the celebrities this year. She’s a telethon favorite who keeps getting invited back.
I’ll talk with her Wednesday night on Star 102.5 about the upcoming telethon. And of course I can’t wait to hear her behind-the-scenes Mr. Belvedere stories!
In addition to that, I’ll be giving away DVD’s of seasons 3 & 4 of Mr. Belvedere (from shoutfactory.com) during the all request hour at 6pm.
Kind of staying with the charity thing, it’s fundraising now. That’s such a boring word. I hope I never have to be on the organizational end of that nightmare. But add roller coasters and spin rides to it and suddenly fundraising becomes interesting.
Darien Lake is helping non-profit organizations by offering discounted tickets to the park. Day tickets get sold for $19.99 and your organization keeps $5 for every one! Plus, you get two free tickets for every 50 sold. Visit the Darien Lake website for more details. But hurry, you must sign up by April 15th to participate.
Comments (4) | Posted by Rob Lucas on March 18, 2010
I haven’t updated since I’ve been back to work, and have gotten a bunch of e-mails from people needing their “Penny Puppy Pic Fix!” So here you go. And again I say, I could post 30 articles on great ways to save money, get cheaper plane fare, etc, and get some nice hits. But post a few pics of a dog sleeping…and wow…what a response!
Leave a Comment | Posted by Roger Christian on March 16, 2010
Went to Fort Lauderdale last week to visit a friend. I now realize that there are the have’s/have-nots and then me- I have frinds who have….Felt great to have the sun on my face. Finally killed off the bubonic plague of an upper respiratory infection I couldn’t kick. But, the good thing out of it was I was so sick I quit smoking! Day 24 today. Yesterday was tough for some reason. I was sooooo hungry I could have chewed my arm off. I went to the vitamin store and bought some low fat protein bars and some shake mixes. I don’t wanna gain weight. Been working out like a madman and haven’t lost a pound. Its nice out today so I will run outside. I like to run in North Buffalo along Middlesex, Meadow and Nottingham….Very nice houses!!!
Comments (2) | Posted by Rob Lucas on March 12, 2010
Last night we had our first family TV night! The timing worked out just right where Penny was just ending her day as we were watching shows we had DVR’d earlier in the week. Linda brought Penny into the living room (we are slowly letting her in there while strongly supervised…lots of tempting things for a puppy!) and popped her into her day bed. Andy Parker was right…there are a lot of great “firsts” with a puppy, and this was one of them!
For the record the shows we watched were Modern Families and Cougartown. Not sure if Penny falls into the suggested parental ratings for them. And yes, I know, how many pics can you post of a sleeping dog? But hey, I’m the doting dad, and will post as many as I can!
Steve visited out studios Wednesday morning. We get a lot of celebrities that visit our seven stations, but Steve was by far the one everyone was most excited to meet. Especially our traffic (commercial scheduling) department…
And as you can see, Steve didn’t come alone – he also had his Gold Medal with him! Which is a “he” as I learned during an interview he did with WBEN’s Barbara Burns – LOL!
Steve is very down to earth and definitely deserving of that Olympic Gold Medal (along with his entire Night Train team).
Amidst the three other interviews he did in our building, I also got the chance to talk with him for the Star 102.5 morning show. I aired the interview in three parts scattered through the morning show. Here’s the full interview.
So far so good. I’ve been exercising since January 1, so that’s well under way. Although I went jogging the last two days…the last time I ran the police were chasing me, so without that kind of motivation it was tough.
I’m getting better and healthier. And no, I didn’t give up my wine!
Amidst the three other interviews he did in our building, I also got the chance to talk with him for the Star 102.5 morning show. I aired the interview in three parts scattered through the morning show. Here’s the