Listen to My Most Recent Radio Interview on WCNS THIS Saturday morning ONLINE!!!

The jaunty chef guy who oversees the making of the Potato Patch fries at Kennywood

Mike Krcil is a rock star (figuratively speaking), an award-winning broadcaster, and a really great guy.  What makes him a rock star is that he asked to interview me for my book, helping to get the word out about it in the Greater Pittsburgh area (where a chunk of the parks I visited reside) and hopefully getting folks interested in doing their own vintage amusement park road trips.

So make a nice latte, cozy up to your computer, and give the interview a listen THIS SATURDAY (that's tomorrow, May 18) at 9:30 Eastern.  You can do so by clicking on this link at the appropriate time:

http://1480wcns.com/talkblock.htm

It's part of the Saturday Talk Block on 1480 WCNS.  Mike and I chat about Western Pennsylvania parks like Kennywood and Idlewild, and I also give some hints about parks to visit in other regions of the U.S.  And at the very end of the 30-minute interview, I give out a holler about how YOU can help save a vintage park in peril, the awesomely historic Rye Playland.

Take some time and tune in tomorrow!!!  Your soul will smile.

Blog, blogger, bloggy! Pick a little, cut a little, add a little more.

Hot doggy!  I've been going through my entire string of blog posts, from the very first one, to make sure I don't forget to add relevent ones to my book.  It took me three hours today - read, write, edit, cut and paste -- repeat!  It's messy work, but I believe it will add even more texture to the finished product.

Speaking of messy...

Here's my beloved, taking down number seventeen of approximately twenty-four wings at Lakemont Park back in the early stages of Road Tripping.....

Sunday on the Blog with Photos!

Lakemont Park's Choo Choo train, which winds around a peaceful pond, taking you back in time to a gentler place. The park got quieter, the colors seemed more vibrant. Truly one of the more magical mometns on my Roadtrip.

Astrologically-speaking, it's a great time to go on the Road Trip

The next leg of the Road Trip is nigh. And energies seem very high across the board (yes, do allow me to wax esoteric here for a bit).

Yesterday was a bumper day, when I learned about some things that were otherwise hidden that are of great benefit, when I got a great response from one of my "parks to be visited", and when I also launched my new blog on my voice-over career. Then this morning I found an email newsletter from a particular astrologer whom I tend to agree with and/or glean great things from. Read this:

The mix of Uranian-Aquarius and Aries energies this week gives us a sample of the herky jerky energy to come. In this transmission from the Akashic Records, the energies for February are described as jerks forward. Writes, Jen Eramith, "It is very similar to the feeling of climbing onto a roller coaster and sitting down in your seat, buckling up and when the roller coaster first starts to move, it jerks you forward."

Pretty crazy, huh? I mean, this is exactly the kind of energy that's needed when going on my trips. I actually embrace it. A little herky jerkiness here and there makes me feel alive, reminds me of my mortality, gives me that little wake-up call about my journey and its importance.

Photo: Leap-the-Dips coaster at Lakemont Park. Opened in 1902. Oldest operating roller coaster in the world. Yes, it has that golden "herky jerky" moment.

My CafePress store, The Vintage Amusement Fun Shop, is up and open for business!

Who wouldn't want this cutie emblazoned on a t-shirt, a mug, a mousepad, even your underwear? Actually, if you purchase an item with the image of the Devil's Den devil on it, proceeds will go directly to the reconditioning of Conneaut Lake Park's Blue Streak rollercoaster!!

Items in the store presently are culled from images I've taken at Kennywood, Del Grosso's and Lakemont. And the Conneaut Lake beauty pictured above. I also have my book's title, "The Cotton Candy Road Trip" available on everything from sweatshirts to Sigg water bottles.

Check back often as I'll be adding more designs in the coming days:

http://www.cafepress.com/vintagepark

going up in the scary cage...

Ever ride the Bobsled ride (called the Helter Skelter by the British, don't you know), where you get locked up, caged-in, really, in the little metal car and it goes "click-click-click" on its chain into the tube part that's VERY narrow and then you pop up out into the light and circle on down and back to the world as you know it?

This picture was taken at Lakemont Park inside that very ride, inside its scary, narrow tube. Not for the squeamish (me), but definitely for someone like my hubby, who gleefully jumped in, took off, snapped the photos, and screamed like a little girl in a pink tafetta dress on the way down.

Not for the Squeamish...

While visiting Lakemont Park last August, we stumbled upon their Wingfest. Judging from the photo, you could easily say that my sweet hubby first stumbled upon it, then in it, finally rolling about through and through it. I'm not the hot wing connoisseur, but even I was taken aback by the scope and variety of wingage. From jalapeno to mango to savory and saucy, Lakemont's wing tribute had something for everybody.

And mostly anything for Ben.

Some breathing space. And a request.

Oprah gets it. Every month in her magazine, she devotes a full two pages to something beautiful: the ocean at sunset, a field of lavender, a verdant mountainside. It's a lovely way to let her reader simply dissolve and get lost in the image, to have a virtual vacation while sitting on the sofa.

Today, I'd like to offer the same: a sample of the vibrant landscaping found at Lakemont Park in Altoona, PA. Please enjoy.

Now here's my request: if you have even ten dollars to spare, please send a donation to the Red Cross so the people of Haiti will have all the help they can get. Right now, many of them are not able to focus on anything beautiful. Much of what was beautiful has been destroyed by the earthquake. Their main focus is survival.

Please contact the Red Cross or Oxfam and give what you can.

Peace -- Pam