Nick D'Andrea 1932-2007

My Great-Uncle Nick passed away Thursday at the age of 74. I don't want to make this an obituary so much as a remembrance of the great things that I remember about him. Uncle Nicky stayed single throughout his life, which made him a rich man. He lived 2 doors down from my grandparents, and he would always have Mary and myself down to show us his new technology. The first time I ever saw a personal computer, a Porcshe, and an answering machine, it was at Uncle Nick's. He also owned a drum set which he would let us play, and a speed boat at Lake Wallenpaupack that he would let us "drive" at an early age. He was much more than material things, of course, as he was very giving and generous. The most famous thing my Uncle Nick was known for was his Christmas Eve parties. After everyone ate dinner at their respective places, Uncle Nicky would have 60 of his closest relatives over to his house for a party that was always something special, and he took care of everything himself. He was also a Big Brother for many years, telling us as recently as this Christmas how he still kept in touch with all 3 boys, now grown men, in whose life he made a significant difference. He will be missed by all who knew him.

11th Annual St. Patty's Party

Mari & Ian hosted another excellent and memorable St. Patrick's Day party at their house. It was an intimate gathering of old friends, and it was a blast. Karaoke, dancing, and a little (OK, alot!) of the Irish spirits were had.



Mari, Ian, Sharon and myself are the sole survivors of the first party in 1996 at Penn State. Hard to believe how much time has gone by.

But the more things change...




The more they stay the same!



Happy St. Pat's everyone!

Spring Training Trip Days 3 through 5

The rest of our trip through Florida was great. We went to Port St Lucie on Saturday to see the Dodgers and Mets, amazingly the first time I've see these two rivals play each other. The Dodgers won in the ninth inning, 5-2.

Sunday was melancholy for me, as it was most likely the last time I will see the Dodgers in their 60-year home of Vero Beach. We got their very early and watched the pitchers take batting practice, and got plenty of autographs as they made their way to the stadium. And I got two of '80's favorites, Ken Howell and Mariano Duncan.

The game itself was a downer, as the Dodgers lost 4-1 against the Braves. So many great players have played on this field, I am happy to have seen a few of them in two trips here.

We finished our trip back where we started on Monday, in Orlando. We watched the Nationals get crushed by the Braves 14-5. I have a feeling I'm going to see alot of these guys in Woodbridge this year.

We had a great time in Florida, and certainly did not want to come back to the cold and crappy DC area. Life has to resume sometime, I suppose.

Spring Training Trip Day 2- Vero Beach

It was so great to return to the Dodgers' spring training home for the first time in 4 years. Staci had a great start to the day, as I noticed her favorite player Ryan Zimmerman signing autographs. We both got him to sign, and Staci got a picture with him. She was in heaven. While I didn't get any of the big names I was looking for, I did get one of my favorite old-timers Manny Mota to sign. It was a beautiful day at the park, and we had great seats right behind home plate. And the Dodgers beat the Nats 12-7 in a pretty exciting game. The only downside was finding out that longtime Brooklyn Dodger and World Series hero Clem Labine had passed away that morning. I suppose if you have to hear bad news like that, it should be in a place where Clem was so beloved. Tomorrow: Port St Lucie, home of the Mets.

Spring Training Trip Day 1-Orlando

Spring is officially here, as Staci & I enjoyed the first game of the season. We arrived from cold & crappy DC to sunny Orlando very early this morning. Since we didn't have alot planned, we got the Braves' stadium 3 hours early. We got to watch all of batting practice, and we got one autograph (Wilson Betemeit- not bad). It was my annual re-awakening as the first pitch was thrown. Life can begin again! Our seats were great, and we got to talk to an older couple who were Dodger fans as well. Excpet for the mild sun poisoning suffered by both of us, and the Dodgers' 7-2 loss, it was a pretty good start to what should be an exciting 5 days. Tomorrow: on to one of my baseball Meccas: Vero Beach!