Could we have asked for better weather for an October weekend?! Even Friday I was driving around with my windows cracked open. Then Saturday and Sunday somehow WAY surpassed it!!! I went and toured the houses in downtown Akron with my mom and my car said it was approaching 80 degrees!!! 

Can we have this all winter long (except Christmas Eve and Day)??? I'd rather have this in January and February than the feet of snow we had last year! The only complaint I have about this weekend is that trick or treat is this coming weekend. This would have been perfect to sit outside passing out candy.

Right now, my phone says partly cloudy and a high of 64 for Saturday. Hopefully that holds up...fingers crossed.

The last two houses in Downtown Akron are being torn down this coming Monday, October 24th. They were built in the 1890s and are owned by St Bernard Catholic Church (which is a BEAUTIFUL church inside if you've never been). The church is going to use the property the houses sit on for a new, yet-to-be-determined purpose.

Over the years, the houses have been used as a women's shelter, a convent, and other uses. The public will have an opportunity to tour the homes one last time this Sunday afternoon, October 23rd from 3-6pm.

I plan to stop by sometime on Sunday and take a peek at Akron history. If you are interested, the houses are located at the corner of High & State streets in downtown Akron. Don't let this opportunity pass you by!

Year 23 of Bosom Buddies is in the books! Great turnout, great artists, and a great time for everyone! As always, Sarah will have totals in the coming days. Thank you to everyone who came out for this special event. I hope you had as much fun as I did. See you next year!!!

So it ended tonight. The Guardians fell to the Yankees in Game 5 of the ALCS 5-1. As we are so used to saying as Cleveland sports fans - "There's always next year." Next up, the Cavs start their new season tomorrow night in Toronto. After that is another road game in Chicago, before the home opener Sunday night vs. Washington. 

While Baseball is my favorite sport, Basketball is a close second. I hope the Cavs will give us something to get excited about this year. I'm sure it won't be on the level of 2016, but what could be?! GO CAVS!

It is of course the season for scary movies. On Sunday, I watched "Halloween Ends". This is supposedly the final in the series that goes back 44 years to 1978. Jamie Lee Curtis once again stars in this film, trying to to FINALLY end (how many times is this now? lol) her fight against Michael Myers. I am a big fan of the "Halloween" movies, but I found this one leaving something to be desired.

For full disclosure: I have not seen the previous two films that were released. I was told that was not neccessary to still enjoy this new film - and I agree. While I thought overall the movie wasn't too bad, there was so much of the movie NOT spent on Myers, I found it difficult to remember I was watching a Strode/Myers "Halloween" movie. I still found the movie enjoyable and am glad I watched it. My main takeaway is that if this REALLY IS the last movie in the series, I feel they could have found a way to end a nearly 50 year old story and make the viewer feel more sastisfied.

Maybe it isn't truly "the end?"

While I'm not a big fan of the NFL, I do enjoy me some college football! I do not have allegiance to any one team, I just enjoy watching the game. The closest thing to a favorite team I have would be Tennessee. My family has been going on vacation to the Smoky Mountains for almost 25 years, and we now own a vacation home in the area - so East Tennessee kinda feels like a second home to me.

This weekend, the Vols hosted Alabama...WOW!! What a game! I only listened to/watched the 2nd half. By then the game was back and forth, frustrating yet exciting, and an epic game of college football. Tennessee ended up winning 52-49 in a heart-stopper. This win also pushed the Vols to #3 in the AP Poll - right behind Ohio State. It was definitely a game that is an example of why college football can be so thrilling!

Earlier this week we lost another entertainment legend, Angela Lansbury. She was 96 years old...just 5 days away from her 97th birthday! What a career she had. From her first role at 19 in "Gaslight" (1944) to her last role at 96 in the "Knives Out" sequel "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" (2022), which will be released next month.

Of course she was very well known for her work on Broadway. I'm of the generation that was introduced to her as Mrs. Potts in "The Beauty & the Beast". Her other big role of course was as Mrs. Jessica Fletcher on "Murder She Wrote" for 12 seasons!!! I am a big fan of mystery/who dunnit tv shows, theater, and movies. I never watched "Murder" while it was on the air, but my Grandma did. It still is shown everyday on Cozi TV (Channel 3.3 locally) at 6 & 7am. Sometimes I'll watch when I get home from work.

As with Betty White, I always thought of her as America's Grandmother (even though she was British).

Rest in Peace Angela Lansbury.

Some might (and have) called my TV watching habits odd. I do not have cable, just rabbit ears and streaming. My favorite shows to watch are shows (especially sitcoms) from the 80s and 90s I watched growing up. I will stream those quite a bit with SOME live TV thrown in.

However, my two favorites to stream 24 hours via Pluto TV:

1. Bob Barker era episodes of "The Price is Right"

2. Robert Stack era episodes of "Unsolved Mysteries"

Now, I have loved TPIR since I was young and staying home sick from school like the rest of us. My love for the show grew in high school and college...then Bob retired while I was in college. I like Drew Carey, but it's just not the same for me. I was so happy to learn I could stream episodes from the Bob Barker era! Now, these are shows from the early 1980s when Johnny Olson, Dian Parkinson, Holly Hallstrom (my favorite model), and Janice Pennington were still on the show. Cars cost roughly $6,500-$8,000! It's so fun to watch these old episodes of one of my favorite game shows.

Next is Robert Stack on "Unsolved Mysteries". When I was about 6 or 7 years old, the theme song for this show SCARED ME TO DEATH!!! Again, Robert Stack IS the host of this show. It's just not the same without him. He had the voice, the presence, and the right attitude for the show. It's so interesting to look back at these old cases and see what has been solved by now (they still have a website to send in tips), and think about what may have happend with those that are still unsolved.

October 11th is National Coming Out Day. Today, I thought I'd share a bit about my story. I started to realize I was different somewhere in middle school. I realized I was gay in high school, but it really took me until my early 20s to fully accept who I am. I came out to friends and family at the age of 22.

It was the Spring Semester of my senior year in college...the very last one before I was to graduate. The year was 2009. We just had the financial crisis of 2008, and I was dealing with coming to accept who I was and freaking out that I'd be a college grad who couldn't find a job. I ended up suffering severe depression for quite a time. Luckily I got counseling and was able to get past all of that.

Thankfully, everyone from friends, to family, to co-workers have been extremely wonderful toward me. I know that many people aren't so lucky. I feel so grateful to have had the experiences I have had to this point and I am so happy where my life is at right now. If you know someone who is going through the process of coming out (it is a process), be supportive. They need all of the love and support they can have.

Baseball always has and always will be my favorite sport. Being October, it's time for some postseason Baseball...and the Guardians are a part of it! Whether it's a Wild Card game against Tampa, or the World Series against the best team from the other league, October Baseball just has a different feeling to it.

I will always associate the playoffs with 1995 vs. Atlanta, 1997 vs. Florida (now Miami), and 2016 vs. the Chicago Cubs. I mean, how could I not? The three times we've made it to the series in my lifetime. Now that we are taking on New York in the next round, these games can still be as electrifying as the 2016 series, just months after the Cavs ended our championship drought. 

To be fair and honest, I don't believe we are going all the way. HOWEVER, let's just enjoy the ride while it lasts! GO GUARDS!!!