Hanging with Rich

The 2018 Pizza Awards..... I think I get pizza to eat about once per week. I love it. Most everybody does. Maybe because it's like eating fresh baked bread. Maybe it's the melted cheese. The sauce, the toppings. Who knows? Some people say pizza became popular in America starting in the 1890's with the influx of Italian immigrants to America. Others say that after World War II the G.I's brought the tasty treat back with them from Europe. Either way, pizza is now more popular in America than it is in Italy. People even like to make it at home. My son even makes a good pizza, including the dough. But it's a big project. Most people get carry out for the convenience. But what changed the pizza landscape in America forever was the opening of several pizza chains across America. Pizza Hut started with their brand in 1958, (too greasy). Little Caesars in 1959, (cardboard crust). Domino's in 1960, (fast), and Papa John's in 1989 (foul mouthed owner). ...

My 5 Favorite Baseball Hall of Famers..... The Baseball Hall of Fame is in Cooperstown, New York. It is part museum, part church of baseball, and part fantasyland. It is a small town in upstate New York that is so picture perfect that you think you're in a baseball movie. It's not just the museum. The whole village is dedicated to baseball.  Any baseball fan would be thrilled to visit. Cooperstown , NY. As pretty as a picture. In a couple of weeks it will be induction weekend. That's the highlight of the year in Cooperstown. Former Cleveland Indian Jim Thome will be part of the induction class. I am hoping to go to that. But it's a busy time of the year so we'll see if that works out. The Baseball Hal of Fame is, in my opinion, far and away the best major sports Hall of Fame. Part of the reason is because Baseball is such an old sport. Abe Lincoln knew what baseball was. Statistics have been kept since those days. While the game has changed somewhat, fans...

It's On! We're Cruising - Take 2..... How hard can it be to take a cruise? Maybe harder than you think. Regular readers may remember that last year, for our 40th Anniversary, my wife and I had planned to go on our first cruise. We haven't done much international travel, and had never been on a cruise ship. So we decided to try it. MSC Seaside We researched the cruise lines, and locations and decided  on a Caribbean cruise with the MSC line. MSC is an Italian cruise line that in recent years has made it to the new world. While European in style, the ships appear to be most elegant. Everything was set. Airline tickets to Miami - check. New suitcase - check. Hurricane Irma - check. That's right. One of the most powerful and destructive storms in history was tearing it's way across the Atlantic and headed for Miami. We followed The Weather Channel like it was a soap opera. We were hoping for the best, but we knew what would happen. The cruise line cancelled o...

Concentration Detention Camps for Kids - Here in America..... Way back in the day, I would take my kids for rides to see fun or unusual places. One time we came upon a very unusual sight near the outskirts of the airport. There was a building that looked like a small school. It even had a playground on the outside. But it had a high fence along the perimeter with razor wire on top. WTH? Was this to keep people out, or to keep what was on the inside in? These were the days when the X-Files were popular on tv. So I told my kids it was a school for "alien-human hybrids". But now it could be used to incarcerate kids of illegal immigrants. Kids in cages in Texas. I wish this was fake. In recent weeks, the government has rounded up groups of illegal immigrants. These are people that don't have the paperwork to be in this country. But contrary to some people's opinion, these people don't come here to rape and plunder the Americans. They come here to work. They g...