Questions for Tim Thomas

I am very upset with Tim Thomas and his selfish refusal to accept our Nation's honor to visit the White House to celebrate with his teammates the Bruins Stanley Cup Championship.  Here's his statement posted to his Facebook site 

I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People.
This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government.
Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL. 
This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT

 I would like to hear from Mr. Thomas as to which parts of government he would cut immediately. What analysis would be done to guide him in his beliefs? What preparation would he undertake for implementation of his cuts? What would he do to mitigate the damage done to the nation from the unintended (or intended) consequences of draconian slashing of services. Toss those recently housed veterans on the streets! Who needs jobs programs? I've got a job stopping pucks! Are there no workhouses? Are there no jails? Oh wait, those are part of government. How about the MBTA? Maybe we can all walk to the Garden. How about the police escorts?? That's government too.

New Jersey Devils

We had a very long drive from Tampa to New Jersey.  We stayed the night in the shadow of my previous workplace, the National Security Agency (NSA) in Fort Meade, Maryland.  I wanted to make it as far as we could go past DC so we wouldn't have to deal with the morning commute. 


We ended up staying in a hotel by Newark Airport because there really aren't any hotels in downtown Newark.  It is a tough area by the Prudential Center.  We were accosted multiple times for cash by some professional beggars. I don't like Dave's licence plate, HEARDY.  I never have.  So the guy comes up to us and says, "Hey, Heardy! How are you?  Haven't seen you in a while." He said he was our mailman in New Hampshire.  I called BS and told Dave to get in the car.  Dave was still thinking he was a friend of ours!  Lol!

Here's my favorite Devils fan!

Bruins Win!

The Devils have a great arena.  They don't fill it very often however.  They have a couple of nice restaurants nearby and we were able to get parking.  I guess they need to put a better product on the ice.  

More pictures and stories to follow.  We have more to tell you but I am so excited watching the Patriots win and checking my Twitter feed for the Bruins score, that I can't write anymore!

On to Tampa

We had the luxury of an only four hour drive from Sunrise to Tampa, so we had a nice breakfast at Ally’s Comfort Café in Davie, FL.  We got great BLTs there the day before and Dave had the best grits he ever ate.  If you are in the area, check it out.

We took route 75 across the everglades.  There were such beautiful birds all through that ride.  They would be sitting on branches with their wings spread out.  They must be airing themselves.  It is a very elegant sight.  There really wasn’t a great place to stop and get pictures unfortunately.

Dave and Phil Esposito

The Tampa Bay Lightning arena is pretty cool.  Apparently the owner put about $10m into renovations.  They have a wonderful jumbotron.  Better than any I’ve seen.  Much better than the one from the Panthers arena.  The scoreboard from the old Garden was better than that!  Outside the gates they had a band playing and a general party atmosphere.  They have a statue of Phil Esposito, the father of the Lightning, outside the arena.  Pretty cool.

Tuukka

Rask's mask

Lightning Girls

Guys heading to the dressing room after the 1st period.

Quaider!

Boychuck.

Timmy!

Great seats near the bench.  See quirky things being so close to bench.  Defense sits on one end 1^st and 3^rd periods.  I could hear Doug Houda calling out defensive players names. Boychuck changes his gloves out several times a game.  Don’t know if this is every game but I suspect it is.  Thornton walks out to stick rack and grabs stick before the team comes out of the tunnel.  Again I don’t know whether this is particular to this arena, a superstition or habit.  I just really enjoyed the heck out of seeing how the sausage is made, so to speak.  Tuukka Rask was sitting at arm’s reach from me.  I decided that he is just the cutest thing ever!

Panthers

Sunrise, Florida is the home of the Florida Panthers.  According to the folks we talked to around the arena (those that didn’t work directly for the arena, mind you), the Panthers don’t have any real fans.  Now I don’t really believe that, but after the game when we walked across the street to a local establishment in search of jubilant Bruins fans and dejected Panthers fans, we found precious few souls. Most were in Bruins jerseys and there was a curious young man sporting a Burrows Vancouver jersey.  He was also not too appreciative of me asking him if he was lost. He tried to bite my hand but I waved him off!

But I digress!  We had a very long drive all day Sunday from Raleigh to Sunrise – 787 miles. Most of it on 95 South.  This was pretty boring, except that Dave insisted that we stop at South of the Border.  I drove up and down the east coast so many times, deliberately avoiding Pedro’s incessant beckonings.  It took Dave’s “C’mon, it’ll be fun” and I was there. We got a shot glass for our collection and I got a magnet that reads “Chihuahuas Rule!”  My life is complete.

Florida is a very long state.  You think you are all set when you hit Jacksonville, but not so much.  It took 3 5-hour energy drinks for Dave to get through that drive!

Bruins vs. Panthers

Dave and I headed over to the arena early in the day to do our standard recon – check for security policies for the camera and ensure we know when the doors open, etc.  We were chatting and yukking it up with security for a while, even mentioning that we are the crazy Bruins fans with the “Old Time Hockey” sign, etc.  We asked about our telephoto lens and was told that was fine.  We also were able to just walk into the arena because there was a Police vs. Fire game going on.  The arena is an icebox.  They keep it so cold, probably because of the air outside, but no flip flops for me during the game. 

So Dave and I take a cab over to the arena when it is time for the game to start.  Security lets us through, just making sure to tell us not to hold the signs over our heads too much.  We told him that we are professionals.  Only during time outs and even then, we move it and hold it sideways so the people behind us can see.  So imagine our irritation when another security person came up to us during warmups and confiscated our signs.  She said that one is not allowed to have signs larger than 2’ x 2’ in the lower bowl.  Our signs are bigger than that.  So we lost our signs for the duration of the game.  The entire section we were sitting in was full of Bruins fans.  And one very obnoxious Panthers fan.  He is apparently the only one!  He was making snarky remarks about Horton and Seidenberg which doesn’t really fly with me.  Oh I forgot to tell you that one thing they didn’t confiscate was the Stanley Cup Champion flag I had folded in my camera case that is as big as one flying over a car dealership.  I made sure I reminded Obnoxious Panther Fan that Horty and Seids brought their awesome games to contribute to the glorious Championship. Thank you very much.  The fans in Carolina said that about Seids too.  He played a few places before catching on with the Bruins. I am very glad that he is on our team. 

I was very glad to hear that Dennis Wideman was selected to the All-Star team from the Caps after he was run out of Boston.  I get very irritated when Bruins fans boo specific players on our team.  They did that in a brutal manner with Wideman – to the point where he was dealt.  It may have been the right thing to do to trade him, but I don’t believe it helps players play better to boo them in their own building.  Just my humble opinion.

Pics to follow.

Dave's The Man!

Dave’s the Man!

Did I ever tell you that the only people Dave thinks don’t like him are the ones that haven’t had the pleasure of meeting him yet? Well, the fine people we’ve met on this trip continue to validate his belief!  There were a boatload of Bruins fans at our hotel, at the game last night and most importantly at the Backyard Bistro, which served as our home base before and after the Bruins game. By the end of the night, he had high-fived, shaken hands with, and had drinks purchased by at least half of the people in the joint. Lol!!

Backyard Bistro crew earlier in the day.

Gumby and Pokey were there too!

Earlier in the day, after our breakfast odyssey and Bruins sightings, we went to the North Carolina Fairgrounds which was very close to the hotel.  Dave saw a sign for a Sports Card show and off we went.  This show was pretty cool – it had many types of collectables besides sports stuff, including comic books, dolls of all kinds, lunch boxes … you name it.  I saw a Dawn doll that I wanted so much when I was a little girl and finally was able to get.  It was the exact doll wearing the exact dress that I loved so much.  It’s funny how something so small can bring so many sweet memories flooding back.

Dawn is the girl with the pretty blue and white dress.  

We also ran into a fellow from Connecticut who takes his sports collection on the road to different shows.  It turns out that he also remembers Dave (continuing to validate Dave’s theory!)  from previous sports memorabilia shows, most notably at the Shriners’ Auditorium in Wilmington, MA.  He has a great picture from the mid-1930’s of several people from the Bruins hockey club.  One of them was the trainer at the time and at least one was a player.  He promised us he would bring more of his hockey photos with him to the next Shriners’ show so we can look them over.  Those of you have been in our basement know that we have a cool place to hang them. :)

Bruins from the 1930's.  I want to try and ID the people in the photo.

So then we head over to the RBC Center for the main event … BRUINS! Our seats were right next to the Bruins penalty box, which ironically no Bruin inhabited last night. Four rows from the glass, which gave us a great vantage point for taking pictures, although not the best place to watch a game. I prefer our seats in the balcony at TD Garden for watching games. But for a Bruins road trip, it is crucial to be close to the glass so we can ensure our signs are very visible.

Tyler Seguin from our seats with my short lens. They wouldn't let us bring our telephoto lens :(

I thought the Gecko was a Bruins fan!

Regarding my sign, I must ask a question of you. You remember my sign – it reads, “Better Than A Cruise – Road Trip 2012” and it has the logos from the four teams we are visiting.  So someone sitting next to me says, “It is much better, I bet all those people in Italy wish they were here.” I thought, “What the heck is he talking about?” Who knew there was a cruise ship lying on its side with fatalities? I felt like a big jerk.  Especially when Dave said to me that it may be insensitive to be waving that sign around. When was the last time that Dave was my moral conscience and Mr. Sensitivity????  Well, he saw the story on TV and I missed it. So I guess I am thinking about 86ing the sign.  We’ll see.

Oh and by the way, when the Captain and Crew abandon their passengers, I believe they should be shot.  But that’s my Coast Guard background I guess. Back in the early 90’s when I was stationed at Coast Guard Group Woods Hole as the Assistant Operations Officer, we had a little run in with a cruise ship running aground in Vineyard Sound.  Oh ya, it was the Queen Elizabeth II, and it hit a charted rock, scraped the bottom and then kept going.  When they finally called us to tell us they ran aground, they seemed a little indignant when our watchstander told them they had to STOP. Did you think it might be a good idea to send someone to see if you might be SINKING?? We had to arrange for launches and ferries from all over the area to take all the passengers off. That was my first “international” incident as a Public Affairs Officer.  The answering machine on my work phone had 30 messages on it before it stopped taking any more.  My favorite message was from a British journalist who asked me, “I’ve heard that the Queenie is a bit stuck.  Can you call me back?” Lol. 

It was funny how the Hurricanes fans turned from being nice and gracious before the game when they sensed their team would be annihilated by the Bruins to drooling and snarling carnivorous creatures after they won the game. As they were leaving the parking lot, you would have thought they won a playoff game or something.  They were honking and hanging out of their windows to tell us how much better their team was than ours … for that microsecond! Boom!

Back at the Backyard Bistro, the place was absolutely mobbed with a Patriots fan group that normally hangs out there, people watching a UFC fight, and then all the fans pouring out of the RBC Center.  I walked back to the hotel to put our signs and the camera away and Dave went to find us a spot to hang out.  When I got there, I couldn’t even move.  Where was Dave?  I started looking for his hat on the fringes of the crowd.  I really need to learn.  Dave was of course already sitting at the bar and somebody already bought us a round. If you were wondering why I offered to bring the gear to the hotel, I would still have been pinned to a potted plant in the corner as we speak!

It was glorious watching the Patriots beat the Broncos to make it to the AFC Conference Championship. I don’t take any particular joy from beating Tim Tebow, although I am hopeful some of the hype will die down a bit.  I can’t help but think that like all the Whos down in WhoVille, that Tim Tebow will wake up with the same smile and song in his heart. I wish him all the best and hope that he continues to use his circumstances to make others’ lives better.

There were a lot of military Bruins fans there as well because of the proximity of Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Seymour-Johnson AFB and Camp Lejeune.  I asked a young man where he was from and he said Goldsboro, NC and that he was in the Air Force.  So I told him that I had been there in 1988 for NCO Leadership School which helped strike up a nice conversation.  We also had an Army fellow walk up to us with his Dad and said “These are those hard-core Bruins fans I was telling you about from when I was up in Boston.” We ended up sharing a table with him and his girlfriend at our pre-game hangout by the Garden. Can you believe we ended up at the same place again?? What a nice guy too. He is stationed at Fort Bragg.

Dave wanted me to add that Bud Lights were $1.86 each because they were on special.  When they ran out, they actually apologized that they had to switch to the “more expensive” Miller Lights.  Price? $3.00.

After driving 800 miles today, we are a little punchy.  We took the Bell Cart with us with our luggage and forgot to return it when we went out to eat.  When we got back, we just took the cart, shoved it in the elevator and pressed the button.  I can't stop giggling about it.

Game Day! Go Bruins! Go Pats!

The Breakfast Odyssey

So one of the funniest things about travelling with David Heard, is his penchant for yummy food.  It seems like many of our quests surround the need for nourishment.  So this morning, Dave wanted to try another local breakfast cuisine kind of place.  I just asked him to do the research and find one.  So he finds this place called “The Morning Something or Other,” got the address and off we went, bypassing the free boiled eggs and serviceable crumpets at the hotel.  So we get to the place, kind of in the middle of downtown Raleigh, which looked as deserted as I would imagine were a Category 5 hurricane fast approaching. You can order a bagel there or other nosh and bring it upstairs with the coffee you can order and juggle up the stairs.  I really wanted to be supportive and excited about it, but it was way too trendy and odd for me.  Dave was just as happy to bang a u-ey and head out.  We tried to find another place to eat breakfast. None of the “Coffee Shops” were open on the weekend.  Excusez-moi?   Did I say we were in Downtown Fricken Raleigh??? But we ended up at a particularly nasty IHOP near NC State.  Food eaten.

Bruins Sightings

The lovely, but isolated RBC Center

After breakfast we headed back to the hotel to get our signs and gear to try to see the Bruins as they arrived or departed from the morning skate at the RBC Center.  Our hotel is right down the street from the arena, on Hurricane Alley Way. 

So we head over there and find the Pro Shop.  Dave is starting a collection of flags from the different arenas we have visited.  We have them from Montreal and Toronto, so we’ll pick up four more on this trip. The people here are really nice and gave us the scoop on where to see the players and offering to trade our Bs jerseys for Carolina ones. Lol! They were very happy that with the Bruins in town, they were selling out the arena. Standing room only tickets were going on sale.  Not something that happens all the time.  We found the area where the bus was parked and arrived just as the Bruins were leaving.  I saw Paille, Seguin, Thomas, Chara get on the bus.  We were actually the only Bruins fans that were there at the time, which surprised me.  The area that you can wait and see them is certainly a lot more safe than standing on Causeway Street waiting to get run over by a cab, a BOSTON cab! Help Peggy!

Here's Danny Paille smiling at his BlackBerry.

Can someone help me out here?  I think this is Jeff Skinner.  His food was getting cold but he kept signing autographs.

More help needed - is this Cam Ward?

Where the Heck Are We?

I thought when I booked the hotel closest to the arena, that there would be stuff to do in the general vicinity and that we would be able to walk around and visit.  Well, there is the RBC Center, the Comfort Suites Arena, the Backyard Bistro (Thank God!) and a Citgo station. There is nothing else. Around the corner is the NC State Veterinary School surrounded by honest to goodness cows.  I am certainly not putting down the area at all.  I enjoy a rural setting and real cows as much as anyone.  I just thought I would be able to walk around the city like we do in Boston when we go to games. Not so much! At least we found that we’ll be able to watch the Pats game at the Backyard Bistro after the Bruins game.  I’ll have to follow my twitter feed for updates. Go Bruins!! Go Patriots!

Saturday In the Morn

As you will notice this week I do not write as gooder as Maureen but I'll do my bestest. So last night we had a blast at a sports bar here in Raleigh called the BrickHouse. The beers were (on a Friday night mind you) $3.00 a piece...I know right!!!! Also did I mention it is the official New England Patriots sports bar of Raleigh N.C. and if that wasn't enough Fridays is Karaoke night. There were some gifted singers there but they all sing country and western songs! I did Great Balls of Fire and got a big applause. Time to go Maureen and I are gonna try and catch the Bruins morning skate. As Ringo Star always says "peace and love"

Day One - On To Raleigh

Our first full day on the road started out in New Jersey, right off the Turnpike at an okay Best Western.  There was a bit of sleet and lots of wind, but the day has turned out pretty sunny. At the BW breakfast there were a bunch of truck drivers in training for Dannon yogurt piled in the small breakfast area.   One of the guys was loudly telling his buddy that he was trying to pair his phone with something and it wasn’t working.  I wasn’t paying that much attention because 1) who cares? And 2) I was reading the recap on Boston.com about the glorious Bruins victory over the Habs the night before.  So I notice my blackberry going nuts in my purse and I realize that the knucklehead was trying unsuccessfully to pair with my blackberry phone.  I always keep the security on my phones so that you have to approve any pairing to keep sinister knuckleheads from doing dastardly deeds. But I couldn’t resist telling the guy, “Hey, you’ve been trying to connect to my blackberry!” All of his buddies appreciated that! Lol!

We are stopping in various places taking pictures with the Bruins Stanley Cup Championship 2011 flag and having quite the time.  It is definitely a conversation starter, even in a New Jersey Turnpike rest area.

In a lovely Virginia rest stop, they want you to remind people that Virginia is for Lovers.  We’ll have no problem with that!

We decided to stop for lunch around Fredericksburg at someplace that was more local cuisine than say Applebees. So the first exit yielded only Subway and McDonalds as choices.  I noticed that we could take Route 1 south which parallels 95 in this part of Virginia. So we took a left there instead of going back to the highway.  Well, I am so glad we did. As we were driving through very rural Virginia, we came upon a bunch of emergency vehicles in the right lane seemingly stopped, lights flashing.  They were escorting Mac McQuown, Marine for Life (There are just no Ex-Marines!) on his quest to walk to all 50 state capitals. He was on his way to Richmond, Virginia today to raise money for Wounded Warriors.  His non-profit agency, Project Foot, is dedicated to serving the families of our troops,  according to his card.  I got to shake his hand and thank him for his service and his dedication as an advocate for our Troops. Of course he never stopped walking.  (Check out charity on Charity Navigator) If you’d like to donate to his charity or just check out the website, it’s at www.marinewalking.org and www.projectfoot.org . Semper Fi, Buddy!

Although this little detour already produced a wonderful experience, we still needed to eat.  Dave thought Food Lion was a restaurant so he pulled into the parking lot, quickly realizing that it wasn’t a place to serve us yummy food. We decided to stop anyway to pick up the Advil I forgot and some other stuff.  As we were getting out of the car, the poor old guy next to us pulls into his space and slams right into the pole with the handicapped sign on it.  He didn’t hit it that hard, but it made a horrific scraping sound.  So Mama gets out of the passenger side, grabs a cart that was there, looks at the damage, shakes her head and smiles and heads into the Food Lion while Papa sheepishly follows.  Dave and I just looked at each other and smiled.  Dave immediately said, “You would have kicked my butt for that!” I thought I might be able to laugh as well, but I don’t want to test it out!

So to make a long story longer, after the pole incident, Dave looked toward the East and what appeared, like a Tebow-like beautiful apparition, was a sign that read “Virginia Barbeque.” We were sooooo there!  Excellent, tender pork sandwiches, perfectly seasoned and accompanied with delicious baked beans and cornbread for me and beer battered onion rings for Dave that were out of this world.  Between the two people behind the counter, one was a Caps fan, the other a Flyers fan.  It’s great for the sport of hockey that we can wear our Bruins garb in rural Virginia and strike up a good hockey conversation. We also got a nice picture and a few chuckles from the surprised patrons. Oh, and we haven't got our butts kicked yet.  On to Raleigh!

On Your Mark...... Get Set.......

I've been over my list five times I'm good I think anyway. Maureen is on her way home and then after she tells me what I forgot we are out of here.
Our goal tonight is to get on the other side of New York City before we call it a night.

Almost there!

Dave and I are getting so excited about our trip.  He made another "Old Time Hockey" sign for the trip.  The one we carried throughout the end of the 2010 playoffs and the Stanley Cup run in 2011 was  all hacked up.  The corners were all broken off and there was so much beer and other beverages spilled on it, that it was starting to warp.  We will memorialize it somehow because it was the Stanley Cup winning sign.  The sign that got Dave on the intro commercial to the NHL network that shows EVERY DAY!  My goodness! His head is big enough as it is.

The picture above is of Dennis Seidenberg.  He was one of the few signatures we didn't get on the Eddie Shore shirt.  So we got him at the Hanover Mall.  Yes, we drive to the South Shore to get a signature. Chara was there too.  Marchand was there later in the day, but I already had his signature.  He hadn't had his disciplinary hearing yet, but he still made the trek to meet fans.  I thought that was pretty good.

I am going to try to write something every day.  Dave will probably as well, so we may have multiple posts.  That of course doesn't mean that they'll reveal great truths, but we'll try to keep them interesting.