J-E-T-S Brett! Brett! Brett!

I couldn't do it...I just couldn't do it...

When we lasted visited me talking about Brett Favre, I spewed so much hate and vitriol towards good ol' number 4, I probably fast-tracked my ticket to hell...

But I was bitter, I was lashing out....and I knew that when push came to shove, I would fold like a cheap suit...

So when Sunday rolled around and Jen and I were getting ready to go to the Jets-Cardinals game at the Meadowlands, Jen suggested that I wear my Favre Packers jersey.

I had planned to boo the crap out of Brett, but as soon as I pulled the jersey on, we all knew that wasn't going to happen...

So we went to the game, and while we were waiting to get in, the NFL Network pulled Jen and I aside and told us they were filming people talking about the most exciting NFL moment they'd ever seen.

Well I signed up immediately. Because I knew the story I was going to tell. The one about how I was on the sidelines when the 49ers stole...yep, STOLE a game from the Packers...1999...playoffs...at the Stick...late in the game, Pack is up, and Jerry Rice fumbles the ball...yep, FUMBLES THE BALL...only the refs don't call it, the Niners keep the ball, and Steve Young hits a young Terrell Owens in the end zone to win the game for SF...

Tough moment for me, but still a great NFL moment. Anyways, they videotaped me telling the story...they're going to pick like the top 50 and put them up on NFL.com...if it goes up, I'll let everyone know...

So we got inside and got to our seats (right on the 40 yard line...perfect) and then watched the Air Show take off....I was immediately rooting for the Jets, and made a few friends in the section who thought it was cool that I'd be rooting for number 4 even those he isn't playing for the Pack...

Most know by now...Favre threw for 6....SIX touchdowns....and no one was cheering louder than I was...

So I'm a hypocrite...I admit it....but I'm rooting for Number 4 this year...even though he's not on my team anymore....

So...better get used to hearing this.....

J---E---T---S---Brett! Brett! BRETT!!!!

Mike

Mom & Dad Weiss' NYC Visit

We had a wonderful time with my parents! We had a great visit. I took the picture of them above in Brooklyn standing under the bridge. The Brooklyn Bridge, the east river, and the Manhattan skyline is behind them. That area is known as DUMBO. Down Under the Manhattan Brooklyn Bridge Over Crossing. There's your lesson for the day. :)

I took them over to my work.. here they are on the News set. My desk is just to the left of the the set behind the glass.



We took them to Dinosaur BBQ in Harlem. Here we are standing outside...

They toured the city on a double-decker bus for 2 days. Now they know more about the city then we do!!!

On Saturday morning they took Mike and I on the Brooklyn tour with them. Afterwards we had Grimaldi's Pizza.

Another thing they did while they were being New York Tourists... They went to Ellis Island. Ellis Island is where Immigrants arrived before being granted entrance into the United States. My Grandfather , My Dad's dad immigrated this way. Ellis Island is now a museum where you can look up old manifests and discover all the details of how your relatives came to this country.

My parents were able to find my Grandfather Sam Weiss. He came over a ship called the Roon in 1909. He was only 13 years old , but he told them he was 15. You had to be 15 in order to come by yourself. We learned his height, weight, eye color, ethnicity and even how much money he had on him. He also had to give them his Occupation. He was a barrel maker also known as a Cooper. That's right, in the ships manifest it lists his occupation as a Cooper.

In 1950, Sam Weiss along with his wife and 2 kids (my Dad and my Uncle Art) all moved out west to California and then Arizona.

My Grandfather died before I was born.

Who could of have imagined, almost 100 years later, his granddaughter would move back to New York City with a dog named Cooper and live on Cooper street.

It kind of gives you chills, huh?

Ironically, Mike's sister named Cooper. I guess it was fate that I met and married Mike.

xoxo

Jen

One Year Ago Today (A Jen Post)

One year ago today I moved to NYC… I flew out here scared, intimidated and by myself. I had to start my new job and find an apartment. Wow how time flies…. I never thought I'd know my way around, learn how to do my job or even make friends. A couple weeks later I found a place to live and Mike and Cooper moved out and slowly but surely we've learned the lay of the land and had an amazing time doing it.


Anyhow, just felt like reflecting- Wow- 1 year! I wonder how many more years we'll have in this Crazy City?


On another note,


Guess who decided to make a last minute visit to NYC???


My Parents!


They called on Sunday asked what we were doing next weekend then booked their tickets. They fly in tomorrow- Wednesday!


We are sooooooooooo excited!


Here's how they plan on spending their time here


Wednesday


Arrive at 7:30pm- We'll have dinner up in our neighborhood- probably order in- My dad loves the Chinese food place n our street.


Thursday
Mike and I have to work and Mom & Dad will take a double-decker bus tour of the city http://www.coachusa.com/newyorksightseeing/


Cooper guards the house

Friday
Mike and I have to work and Mom & Dad will tour the Natural History Museum and re-visit spots from their tour on Thursday that they would have liked to spend more time at.


Cooper guards the house


For Dinner we're going to the best BBQ in the city - Dinosaur BBQ in Harlem- It's awesome http://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/


Saturday



We'll have breakfast somewhere fun on the Upper Westside


Then we'll head to Brooklyn! We'll walk across the Brooklyn Bridge -its a really fun activity- It will be the 3rd time I've done it.


We'll have NY's Best Pizza - Grimaldi's - It's awesome http://www.grimaldis.com/


Then we'll have a cab take us to the hospital my dad was born at and the apartment he lived in when he was just a baby before his fam moved out west.


Cooper guards the house



Then we'll had back to my hood- because I'm sure we'll be exhausted.


Sunday


We're renting a car and heading to the Hampton's for the day


Cooper gets to come play!



Monday


They Fly home with wonderful memories of their spontaneous trip to NYC

Long Time No Blog --A Jen Post

Hi Guys!

It's been awhile since I've blogged.. many apologies!

I had an amazing experience at the DNC in Denver. I really felt like I was a part of history.

While I was in Denver, Mike got in touch w/ my boss and got me the Monday after our anniversary off and planned a surprise trip. All I knew was we were renting a car, Cooper got to come, and we were leaving Saturday morning.

Or actual anniversary was on Thursday. 3 years! Can you believe it? What's even crazier is it's almost been a year that we've lived in NY!

Anyhow, Thursday was our actual anniversary. We both had to work and we had dinner that night at the Boathouse in Central Park. It was beautiful and great food!

That Saturday we left for our trip. We were off to Lake Placid in upstate New York. It was about a 4 hour drive from the city. We drove upstate through the Catskills and ended up in the Adirondacks. (Both are Mountain ranges for those of you west coasters that only know Tahoe)

Lake Placid is best known for hosting the Winter Olympics in 1932 and 1980. I would describe it like Lake Tahoe, but with the charm you find on the streets of Carmel.

We shopped and wandered around main street and toured the Olympic Venue Sites...Here are Mike and Cooper in front of the Olympic Center... this building houses the 1932 and 1980 hockey arenas.... Home of the "Miracle on Ice."

One of the highlights of the trip.. we did the "Bobsled Experience" down the 1980 track. You have a professional driver and break man ride with you, the bobsleds are on wheels in the Summer and Blades in the winter. Think 'Cool Running's.'

These are the Olympic ski jumps.. don't you wonder how this sport came about? Do you think some guys were in a pub one night and said "hey- wouldn't it be cool to build 24 story tall ramp and have skiers do jumps and flips off them?"

We drove up Whiteface Mountain and had a picnic half way up.

At the top of the Mountain there is a castle that you can hike up to the very top. Guess who didn't think he'd need a jacket!?! It was freezing!

This is Cooper the bobsledding dog...

Things I learned on the trip?

Did you know fly fishing doesn't mean that fish fly out of the lake at you? I always thought it meant that fish jumped out of the water and you had to stand on the back of the boat with a net to catch them. Anyhow.. I saw all these fly fishing signs in town and was nervous if we went near the lake fish may attack us. Then Mike told me fly fishing is when people wade into the water to catch fish that way... My vision is way cooler.

Beware of Flying Fish!

xoxo

Jen

It Comes In Threes...

They say celebrity deaths come in threes. And this past week was no exception as the entertainment/news industry lost three greats. Some people might not consider the three men that passed away "legends," but they were exemplary in their field, in my mind...and deserve praise for their abilities to inform and entertain.


We'll start with Jerry Reed...who is Jerry Reed, many of you ask? Well, Jerry Reed is a country singer probably most famously known for appearing in the "Smokey and the Bandit" movies with Burt Reynolds....one of his most famous songs comes from the soundtrack to that movie. Dave Knight and I always joke about Jerry and this song...and my absolute love for it.






Along with that song, Jerry Reed hit it big with other stuff like "Amos Moses", "When You're Hot, You're Hot", and my favorite, "She Got The Gold Mine, I Got The Shaft."


Younger audiences got to see Jerry perform in the "Waterboy" as the threatening coach that gets his ass kicked by Adam Sandler. All in all, Jerry Reed was a tireless entertainer, and he deserves to be remembered as one of the greats of country music.


The second man to pass away was Don LaFontaine, a man whom most people have always heard, but never seen until recent years. LaFontaine was "the voice of movie trailers," lending his pipes to thousands of movies, TV shows, and commercials. I'd say more, but here's a really good interview with him conducted a few years ago...





And here's where most people finally learned what the guy looked like...probably one of the funniest Geico ads out there.





Poor guy died from complications of a collapsed lung at the age of 68. Movie trailers won't ever sound the same...


The final man who took his final bow in recent days was Ike Pappas, and if you're a newsguy, you know Ike Pappas. Ike was a veteran of CBS News for years, and he most famous "story" came when he was front and center for history in 1963. Ike Pappas was one of several men covering the transport of Lee Harvey Oswald when Jack Ruby opened fire on him. In fact, Ruby actually SHOVED Pappas out of the way and then shot Oswald. Here's his live radio call...unbelievable...





All in all, three great men who deserved to be remembered at the top of their industries...


Mike