CHRISTMAS TIME IS ALMOST HERE!!!!

Nothing brings me back to Grandpa and Grandma Cawley's house on Christmas circa 1977 than Johnny Mathis "Merry Christmas" album! Sure he's a little light in the loafers but he can sing!!!! To each his own, right???? Now that I am of "legal age" I can enjoy some Baileys and hot chocolate to help celebrate baby JESUS's birthday..... Can I get an 'AMEN' from the congregation?!?!?!?!?!? Haven't tried that one yet???? DO IT!!!! It's a little messy but oh so YUMMY!!!!!

The new TV is here!!!! About time huh!?!?!? This is the one I chose. I did so much research for so long that I'm crossed eyed. Here I made it easy for you! I have all the sites you need to go to for reviews on not only TVs but all electronics.

• CNET I wrote my review on this one.

• About.com

• PC World

I can tell you all about HDMI inputs, dynamic contrast ratios, resolution, pixels and anything that has to do with an LCD TV and after reading all the customer reviews I have come to the conclusion that people will complain about ANYTHING!!! GEEZ!!!! Read some of the reviews and what people complain about and you'll see what I mean... Here it is in all of it's glory!!!


Watching sports and my shows in HD is amazing!!! You don't see the Nintendo Wii or the DVD/surround sound system yet but have no fear, they are on their way. AND!!!! I was rummaging through my workshop and found some old bunny ears, antenna, and read all about how you can hook up any old antenna to the new HDTV's and it will search for any HD signals.... Sure as heck! It found some!!!!! FOXHD and PBSHD!!!! I watched a documentary on 'Speed Week" at the Bonneville salt flats in HD!!!!! The picture blew me a way!!!!!!!! AND don't get me started on watching the NFL in HD!!!!! As my aunt Nancy would say, "JUDAS PRIEST ON A UNICYCLE!! THIS IS AWESOME!!!!".....


AND THEN! Last weekend I was talking to my neighbor, Greg I swear if he called me Drew I would think he is my cousin Marty, and he asked me about my new TV and I told him that I hooked up some bunny ears and I got a few HD channels... He then asked if I wanted the outdoor antenna that was left by the previous owners! SWEET!!! I installed that baby and BOOM!!! My TV found about 20 HD channels!!! HOT DOG!!!!!!

Here's another place you can go to learn about how all TV stations in the USA have to broadcast in HD, or as they call it DTV, in 2009.

It feels pretty good to know that it's all mine and I saved up for it..... You see, I am from the "old school" of financial thinking.... I actually save up for things I want instead of throwing it on a credit card. Those guys are evil!!!! I compare them to the Empire in Star Wars....... I guess that would make me Luke Skywalker, "I used to bullseye womp rats in my T-16 back home, they're not much bigger than two meters."!!!!! NICE!!!!! And this is Yoda........


This is Russ my step grandfather. This guy scared the holy ghost out of me when I was a kid...... He is long gone, hopefully kickin' back in heaven wearing his slippers and brown socks. I found this picture of him, he was a security guard at the Westinghouse plant in Ohio, and I modified it in Photo Shop for inspiration. Whenever I get an itch to buy something I don't have the money for I just look at that picture and I am curred of any thoughts of wasteful spending.

Hey remember my good friend Mark and his girlfriend Melissa???? You know, They met us at Michigan for the race back in June.


Look what he got her for Christmas!!!!!!!



It's a vintage 1971 Scorpion Stingerette!!!! The thing is PINK!!!!!! I'm not an expert in snowmobiling. I had to 'Google' Scorpion Stingerette to see what one was, but I guess it's a classic and was designed for women!!! Boike put it best when he said "I can see Mark at the computer giggling like a school girl when he found it on eBay." Needless to say, she is tickled pink, no pun intended, to own such a fine piece of machinery.... I have a few thoughts on this:

1. How COOL is it that she loves a vintage pink snowmobile, that has probably seen better days, her boyfriend bought her?
2. SINGER!!! Listen to me!!!! MARRY HER NOW because they don't make too many like Melissa! Plus I want to go to the wedding and talk to any of the single bridesmaids....... "Hey ladies!!! Want to hear a joke I heard from my Teamster buddy?????"
   
3. Where can I find a girl like that!?!?!?!?!? I mean really? Where are girls like that who get excited about a PINK snowmobile??? Up in Northeast Ohio? WHERE???? That my friends is one COOL A$$ GIRL!!!!!!! Mark is one lucky guy.... He's always been lucky like the time D*$%^@ W&^% let us look d%*& her s!@#$....... AHHH GOOD TIMES!!!!!! Let's just say that we saw the top of the mountain that night and it was good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
   

Speaking of dating, I had a dilemma: Join one of those online dating sites or get my septic tank pumped out. Guess which one I decided on??? You got it!!!!!! I figured it's better to have crap pumped out of my life then having it pumped in.... Know what I am saying???? Howard from yeap 'Howard's septic tank cleaning' came out. I thought it would be as bad as the time Boike had me empty out the black tank on the RV!!! NASTY!!!! Now I know what hell is like.... Heck, I think I got spinal meningitis from that little experience. YUCK!!!! Anyways, Howard had that baby all cleaned out in an 1/2 hour!!! I guess when you pump poop all day you kinda know what you are doing and pumping out a septic tank is pretty simple.

Nothing like getting your septic tanked pumped out!!! The smell alone will throw you back a few feet...

Read the side of his truck!!!! That's pretty funny I don't care who you are....


Friday night my ASU Mountaineers were playing for the 1AA championship and to enjoy the game and celebrate them winning their third championship in a row.......... I decided to splurge and get a sixer of Newcastle.... It's some of the best beer you can get and it better be for freakin' $8.50!!!!! It's a great beer and I noticed that it does not give you a bad hang over like my regular purchase PBR does. HMMMMMM..... Interesting observation but I think I will stick with my PBR that I can get a 12 pack for less than the sixer of Newcastle.

And finally, I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a happy Festivus!!!! And remember to be good for goodness sake because I have friends in high places and I can put in a good word for ya.....

WHERE EAGLES DARE!!!!!!!!

Great movie and also a gem of a song from Iron Maiden....... Actually I should say 'Where creepy things dare'!!!! Say hello to the "Andy trying to save more money" project. I'm insulating all the pipes under the house. I know, I know, I MIGHT save 3 cents over the next 20 years but it makes me feel good thinking I am energy conscious. Don't look now but this might be a project down the road.... Al Gore would be soooooooooo proud of me...... If I really cared what that hypocrite thinks.... OK so let me get off my political soap box and tell you all the fun I had in crawl space.



I have been procrastinating this forever!!! Not as much as the ditch project but it's pretty close. Here's my reason........ I hate surprises!!! As in snakes and big spiders. I waited for a nice cold night, 29 degrees to be exact, to kill off any spiders and slow down any snake that could lunge at me. Cold weather slows them down because of the whole cold blooded thing. Look I never said I was a biologist, I just know enough about them to say they are slower in the cold. If I am missing something feel free to enlighten me by sending me an email..... Back to the crawl space. They don't call it that for no reason..... I have to crawl or slither on my stomach to get around. It's not fun especially when your knees ache anyways. They have been that way since I got back after doing two tours in 'Nam'.......


Sure I may look like a complete tool but I was nice and warm.....Let me tell you, the cover alls I am wearing RULE!!!! Know what I was wearing underneath that??? NOTHING!!!! Kidding!! I was wearing shorts and a t shirt. That's how warm it keeps me..... Dig the head lamp..... Very 'coal miner' looking isn't it???? You'll be glad to know that I spent a good 4 straight hours in there..... It was cold but it's all in the name of saving money!!!! And as you know, I'm all for that.


Let's just face it.... Crawl spaces are nasty places. Hey that rhymed! Thank God I only have to go down there a few times every blue moon or so. GEEZ!!!! I can't see how coal miners do it..... I guess that's why they get paid the big bucks. AND In case you were wondering, I did not encounter any snakes or big spiders.

I usually don't get too excited this time of the year, but it might be different this time....You know why???? Not only am I going to treat myself to a big a$$ flat screen TV but my mail order bride is coming ashore in a few weeks!!! Want to see what she looks like????



Hot little number huh!?!?!?!? Her name is Olga and her bio says she likes long walks on the beach, para sailing, enjoys cooking traditional Bulgarian meals using cabbage and loves animals, preferably goats and oxen. I'm going to be one lucky man when I pick her up at the shipping dock!!!! WOO HOO!!!! Here I am emailing her.....


All kidding aside, I'm actually working on my blog.... I can do it on the comfort of my couch watching some shows that I Tivo'd thanks to my brother hooking me up with Lizzy's old laptop. SWEET MOTHER OF GOD!?!?!?! What the heck did I do before Tivo????? I actually had to watch commercials and stuff!!!! So medieval....

Speaking of Mike and Liz, I am really looking forward to the next few months, I always love chowing down at Thanksgiving!!! This year is at their house and she's a cooking MOFO!!!! That's street lingo for a really good cook...... Then we have Christmas coming up and it's pretty cool to see how riled up the kids get..... Very funny, Charlie will actually start crying if I don't get the toy out of the package fast enough for him.... Silly kid! Then we got the big day! 1-07-08 is going to be a monumental day for Andy McBride, I'm finally getting the goiter that has hampered my looks for years surgically removed...... But really, that's the day I can get my new phone!!!!!! I literally have tape holding my current phone together....


This baby has been good to me over the past 4 years. It has been dropped, kicked, squished in my pocket, left on the roof of my car, and other things that I can't remember right now. Through all of that I received a brand new Razr and within two weeks I dropped it in a urinal, don't ask, and it stopped working so I had to reactivate my trusty old LG.


BIG NEWS!!!! I have been in talks, makes it sound like we are working on a movie, with Boike about coming down in February..... It's going to be a two fold weekend!!! FIRST and foremost, we are renting a Bobcat and he is going to do what I have not been able to do for almost a year, Finish the ditch!!!!! WOO HOO!!!!!!!HECK!!!! If he can do this with his huge skid loader


he can choke slam my little old ditch.... Also that weekend is the Daytona 500 that we will be enjoying in HDTV!!! That right folks!!! I have set the time frame of my big purchase. I will have it fully operational for that weekend of racin' and beer!!!!! Did someone say REDNECK????? Anyways, I have already started prepping for the big day....


I'm running another cable to my HDTV antenna. You see they all want you to believe that you have to pay extra for HDTV. Well I got news for you! You don't! I sound like a late night infomercial.... Or a used car salesman.... "No credit? Bad credit? NO PROBLEM!!!" Let me clarify. You can get all the network stations with some good old bunny ears. ESPN and anything on cable you cannot.

So has it rained in your neck of the woods??? Yeah it hasn't rained much around here either..... I was down at the LakeLand the other day and you can really see how bad it has gotten down here....




Well I am all written out..... Talk to you around Christmas....... Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!

FORGIVE ME FATHER FOR I HAVE NOT FINISHED THE DITCH!!!!!

So I made a decision not to write a blog entry until I finished the ditch.... Well that didn't happen!!! It still is....... Shall we say, unfinished!!!!



I couldn't stand it! I had to keep all five of you updated on what's been happening in my neck of the woods. So let's see..... It has been since July since my last entry..... A lot has changed!!!!! HE HE HE HE!! Not really.......

Not sure if you saw this BUT the college I went to, Appalachian State University, pronounced Ah-pah-latch-an, beat Michigan in probably one of the greatest upsets in college football!!! Don't believe me?????? Check out the score board!!!

What a great day!!!!! The football Gods have been good to me the last couple of years, ASU has won back to back championships and beat Michigan, the most successful football program in the USA. Still waiting for the Bills to win 2 straight games but I guess they need to take baby steps and just lead a quarter of a game!!!!

I'm in my 'fire sale' mode right now.... It all started when I was in one of the spare closets and found all my old stereo equipment. WELL!!! I stood there and pondered what to do with it all... Do I donate it all to Good Will ? Then the shrewd business man in me said, "DUDE!!! Don't give it away!!!! Put this stuff on Ebay and sell it for some money!". So I proceeded to put it all for auction on Ebay. Heck some of the stuff I don't think works anymore.... BUT I'LL BE DAMNED if the stuff didn't sell in the first 24 hours I put it up!!!!! I had an old Tivo that didn't work anymore and I wrote in the description that it didn't and it still sold in 2 hours!!! The bidding wars are a riot!!!!! The last 1/2 hour of an auction is amazing!!!! The price of your item almost certainly triples with everyone bidding on it!!!!! HELLO $$$$$$$$$$$$$$. I'm at the point where I have almost sold everything... I have some speakers that I will throw on there tonight...

What am I doing with the money you ask????? Well, I have my eye on a mail order bride from Romania!!!!!! I just have to shave her back when she gets over here... KIDDING!!!!!! I'm saving the money for a big LCD HDTV, DVD/surround sound system, Nintendo Wii, new HD Tivo. Basically a new entertainment center!!!!! WOO HOO!!!

All the McBrides are doing great.... We had a family picture taken by my cousin who's a professional photographer.... PLEASE give her work!!! She needs a place to live!! She is currently living in a van down by the river!!!!


I had some great friends from WI come down for the BofA 500....





The whole Haver clan Andy, Deanna, Scott, Eve, Holly, Natalie, Heidi, Mitch, Eric, Megan and both sets of grand parents are the BEST!!!! They took good care of me in a very bad part of my life and I will never forget that!!! Dare I say, they are one of the few things that were good that came out of that whole debacle! Ask me about the FUN FUN FUN I had up there when I am three sheets in the wind..... That's the only time I will talk about it!!! HE HE HE HE HE HE!!! Pretty healthy huh?????



Let's see..... I know there's more things.....

• Spent WAY TOO MUCH money when I went up to Boone to get some ASU gear.
• At work I have talked some some very 'interesting' people on the phone. There is a reason why they are called 'sub prime' borrowers
• Bought a brand new Tivo at Big Lots for $70 BUCKS!!!! I was so excited I almost peed my pants in aisle 9!!!!
• Was told I talk funny
• Remember the 'McBride' expressway????? You know, the path I built in my back yard to the dump and race track????

Well they are clearing the land back there for some houses and the old guy that was
clearing it stopped by and had a chat with me... He said that there is a reason that he has a
no trespassing sign up. I think I got the point and immediately halted all operations on the
expressway.

• Bailey stayed with me a weekend and I spoiled the heck out of her!!!! Instead of one and 1/4 cups of food I gave her 2 cups!!! I'm soooooo bad!!!!


• I had the unpleasant experience of having my colon checked by my doctor for my annual physical. "Using your whole fist there Doc?"

• Had a little accident with the boat..... This is what happens when you don't pull up the trim all the way when you are taking the boat out of the water.....

The prop's in bad shape too!!!! I guess it's run it's course.... I had that thing rebuilt twice to save money... SHOCKER!


That's all for now y-all keep your feet on the ground and reachin' for the star!!!!

The McBride world tour is official complete!!!

Thank you!!!!
GOOD NIGHT!!!!

I told you about all the fun I had up at Boike and Mese's farm in early May, well the next stop was Michigan International Speedway!!!! Sweet baby Jesus! Did we have a blast!!!!! Boike built and I painted up some game boards for cornhole.... Don't know what the sam hell that is???? No prob, they actually have an official league and rules..... Check out my paint jobs????? Pretty sweet huh????

One is in honor of Davey Allison, God rest his soul and the other is....... The old timers will recognize that one. Yeap it's the AMC logo!!!! They had a short but sweet run in NASCAR back in the 70's...

Here we are debuting them at MIS......



It was hotter than the hubs of hell up there but it was worth it!!!!! It was a 10 hour trip up there from Boike's house in VA..... In case you are wondering it's 7 hours up to Boikes from my house.... WOO HOO!!!! I was a car/truck drivin' fool for a total of 17 hrs!!!!! My good friend Mark and his crew from Ohio met us there. DANG SINGER!!!! We have know each other since 3rd grade! That was 25 years ago!!!!! We are old!



That's him and his lovely girlfriend Melissa..... What a great girl!!! I told her that she gives me hope that there are still good ones out there....

Hey want to see what we do for the weekend when we are at the races???? Here's the answer to your question...

GOD I love racin'!!! That's our friend Hatcher with the killer shirt, "drink, pee, repeat".. He has the best shirts! Look in the back ground..... Singer's crew brought another cornhole board too.... It's painted up for Jamie McMurray who actually just won the Pepsi 400!!!! Way to go DUDE!!!!! See you in victory lane again in 2012!!!! Anyways!!!!! Kelly, who works with Singer, is a stalker, I mean, a big fan of Jamie and her dad made it for her...


And of course what race would be complete without my best bud Boike!!!!! We decided a few years a go to hit a new NASCAR track every year and we have been to Talladega, MMMMMMM DEGA! Darlington, Pocono, Martinsville and now put Michigan on the list.... Next year it's Atlanta....





This is how we watch the races!!! On top of an RV!!!!! WOO HOO!!!!! The Gariotte treated us good!!!! Yes, we call it the Gariotte because Mark's dad Gary bought this thing and spent a couple hours pulling it out of the mud. See the original owner bought it new and used it 3 freakin' times before parking it in his back yard where it sat until Gary saw it 2 years ago. People!!!! It was just sitting there for 15 years!!!!!! Gary asked the guy about it and he said that he just wanted out of his back yard. So Gary made an offer and the guy took it and the RV officially became the Gariotte that day!!!!

Here I am on the roof of that bad boy at 4am!!!!!! Didn't think I had it in me to pull an all nighter due to my age but I took one for the team..... Poor Gary, Kelly and Melissa were in there trying to sleep with us idiots up there raisin' cane. Gary finally came out and cussed us out... Seriously, I had a flashback to 1984 when Singer and I were up in his room building stuff with Legos and making too much noise and Gary coming up there to tell us to be quiet.



I know your asking what the heck I am doing with my fist and two things come to mind... Either I am demonstrating how, well you know, or I was about to give a thumbs up but Hatcher took the picture a millisecond too fast. Gee!?!?!?!?! When I put pictures of myself with that kind of explanation on here you wonder why I am still on the market!!!!!

And the last stop was the Boike LakeLand for the 4th of July festivities.... Only God knows how many years we have been going out there..... I think the last 17 years.... Ahhhh the memories!!!! There was a time when there were so many people out there that Boike would look at me and ask me if I knew these people and my response was always, " no, I thought you knew them.". I have so many great memories and pictures of July 4th gone by that I could create a site devoted to it..... But here are a few:


This was an actual wedding gift!!!!! A floating cooler!!!!!!! And here it is in action...


That's my home for the week...... Sweet huh!?!?!?!?!? The majority of the stuff in this picture, except for the truck, were given to me by previous girlfriends..... To those ladies I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything and especially the emotional baggage!!!!!! YEAH!


Any of you ladies need tickets to the gun show???????

So you want a boat huh???? Well let me tell you, they are a lot of work and money!!! A week before I took it to LakeLand, I spent a good weekend getting it ready. Here's the check list:

1. Change oil and filter.
2. Replace the impeller in the stern drive.
3. Change the gear fluid in the stern drive.
4. Charge up the battery.
5. Install all the drain plugs.
6. Make sure all the navigation lights work.
7. Clean the interior with water and bleach to kill all the mold that grew during the winter.
8. Make sure and store a life jacket for each person that the boat can handle, which is 8.
9. Make sure all the lights are working on the trailer.
10. Grease the wheel bearings on the trailer.
11. Fill it up with gas..... 25 gallon tank + mid grade gas, $3.00 = You do the math....

There are more steps I'm sure but you get the point but it's all worth it when you are just chillin' out in a quiet cove listening to some tunes and enjoying adult beverages....

And finally here is your monthly drainage ditch update... I'm pulling out of the driveway one day and I glanced over to look at the retaining wall and and noticed it's kinda veering to the right..... WHOOPS!!!!! So you know what that means??? You got it, I have to take out a few of the ties and straighten it out..... Fun stuff!!!!! I need to bite the bullet and rent a Bobcat for the weekend and be done with it.... It will make easy work of the whole thing and I know what I will say to myself after. "Why didn't I do this back in January when I started this?"

This is the reason why I am one lucky SOB!!!!!

That's me on a big a$$ skid loader!!!!!!! WOW!!! The death and destruction, Manowar song, I could with that thing if I had one!!!! This was taken last weekend while up at my best friend Boike and his lovely wife's horse farm up in VA. They have over 550 acres of fun filled land!



Dang beautiful I tell ya!!! The place is pretty old too..... Check it out!!!!! It's sooooo old that trees are growing through the old farm equipment.


They have all kinds of toys up there!!!! I spend a lot of my time working on stuff like bush hoggin' their fields!!! It's basically a huge lawn mower. This one is 10 feet... This is the one I take out...


Bush hoggin' is my moment of zen. I love it and Boike and Mese do too because they can just throw me on that thing in the morning and I bush hog all day and their fields are mowed..... AHHHHH YES!!! I marinate with my ear plugs in and straw hat. I ponder everything out there..... Let me give you an example of the stuff I think about:

• I wonder how the grass I planted is doing?
• Should I break down and pay a nice pair of prescription sunglasses or just keep on getting the cheap ones from the Dollar store?
• If my little nephew Charlie saw me on this thing he would be soooooo excited!!! That kid loves tractors!!!
  
• I wonder what my MPG were in the Civic on the way up here???
• I should not have asked that beautiful woman if I could check her for ticks... Bad pick up line! Note to self, Don't use it again.....
• WHOW fella!!! Slow down! You are going too fast and Boike told you to take it slow and easy.
• I wonder if the Sabres are going to win the cup? I hope so!!!! Man what a party that will be up in Buffalo!
• DANG!! This seat is so uncomfortable!!!! Boike really needs to get some padding for it....
  
• I really need to get the new Rush cd.... The one song I heard ROCKS!
• When I get home I need to check about switching my auto and homeowners insurance to Farm Bureau.
• Why did Boike put a plastic bag over the seat??? What's the purpose? It's definitely not making it any easier to sit on.....

You get the point... Pretty random stuff....

In all I had a great time.... Not only did I tear up the woods with the skid loader,


looks like Da Nang back in 68 after a nice round of bombing!!! Mese gave me my first riding lesson!!!!


Say hello to Blaze. He's a big boy but very gentle..... Mese taught me all the stuff just to get a horse ready to ride and then I took Blaze around in circles.... I'm not sure if I was actually directing him where to go or if he was just following Mese around because she had a pocket full of carrots.... Regardless, It was a blast!!!! Like the hat???? It's actually a helmet. When you are on a 2000 pound animal you don't want to take any chances.... I didn't want to pull a Christopher Reeves, God rest his soul.

AND!!! The grass is growing.... My R & D team, me, have come to the realization that the reason the grass is not growing in some of the areas is because the soil is just CRAP!!!!! I need to take a rototiller to it.


Well the first stop on the McBride world tour is complete and up next is Michigan International Speedway in June!!! WOO HOO!!!! I also have to get the LakeLand ready for the 4th of July.....


A HUGE tree fell out there and it needs to be cut up and the place needs to be mowed and raked so when a "certain" person comes down for the party he's not crying because he can't walk barefoot because he might step on a gum ball and hurt his delicate foot.... GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Any volunteers are welcome to join me in the fun..... Just drop me a line.