Montana Thoughts

While I was outside at Michele's house trying to walk off my second Christmas meal at a second house Michele's daughter saw the eagle and told me about it. I always carry a camera (a habit from my old newspaper photographer days in PA) so I grabbed it and got these pictures. I watched the eagle fly around the area and snapped a few more of him in flight that are really cool cool. I hope everyone had a Great Christmas and enjoyed time with their families. I called my family and talked to them for quite a while in between stops at friends houses.

I would like to wish everyone a very happy holiday season. I hope you all are safe and enjoy the holidays with friends and family. I will be spending the holidays with a few friends in Helena because all my family lives in Pennsylvania. I haven't visited my family in a few years so I think I will try and visit them in the coming year. I gave Michele the week off because her brother and his family are here for the Holiday's this year. They did visit about 5 years ago in the summer, but this is the first family holiday for them in 13 years. I, myself will be visiting Michele and her family along with other friends in the Helena area and I'm gonna eat all the turkey I can and even some ham too. I love the Holiday's but being single and kid less I don't have all the excitement of my own family traditions, but my adopted families out here are fun and I share in their traditions. To Michele's two daughter's I am the cool uncle that's there if they nee

It seems that old man winter is giving us another taste of winter. We are having our first day above zero since last Friday , and I heard on the news last night that we are getting more snow and sub zero temps again tomorrow night. I Can't wait. Sometimes in the winter I've been known to wear shorts and a sweatshirt around here. Last weeks weather got me getting all the extension cords gathered up in order to plug the trucks in. I also picked up a bunch of ISO Heet to keep in both vehicles. Growing up in Western Pennsylvania I was used to having some snow, but never minus 20 temps. The Winter of 1998, my first in Montana was an eye opener. The truck I drove out here didn't have a block heater in it because We didn't use them in Pennsylvania. I had no clue what they were until one sub zero day I went to start my truck and it barely turned over and didn't start. After getting a magnetic oil pan heater and letting it heat my engine for a day the truck star

I was in Helena Sunday evening enjoying a homemade pasty dinner at Michele's and after dinner we were watching The Travel Channel when the Show "Man Vs. Food" came on. In this episode they were in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; my old stomping ground before relocating to Montana. They showed some cool places that I had eaten at before, but the best one was Quaker Steak & Lube. It was awesome. I had just written a blog post here about and then I watch it on TV. Here is the link if you want to check out the places for some good food. http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Man_v_Food/ci.Pittsburgh.show?vgnextfmt=show Cool. After watching the show I wanted to go on their website and order some sauce. I haven't yet, but I plan to get myself some Christmas sauces. The bad thing is that after I get some sauces I'm going to start craving other foods that I miss like the Original " Coney Island" for the best Hot Dogs on the east Coast, "Villa Nova Inn&

I guess it's getting that time of year to put the bike away for the winter. although I have been known in the past to ride throughout the winter, but I think I'm going to take this winter off.....Maybe. It seems that motorcycles have always been a part of my life. I can remember one time when I was 7 riding through the woods near my parents house in Pennsylvania and brushing past a Crab Apple tree and getting a 2 inch thorn stuck in my finger. As I raced back to the house crying I managed to lose control of the bike, run through a fence and over my younger sister Mundy . Fortunately everyone survived, and we all continued to ride til this day. When I got older and got a street bike my mother and I rode all the time. My Father had a Harley and we all rode together touring Western Pennsylvania, and Ohio. In August 1989 my mother and I were riding and had made plans to meet my father and a few of his Harley buddies for dinner at a local restaurant. That didn't happen. My mothe

It's that time of year when I have to try and remember the address of my friends and relatives in Pennsylvania. I remember my Parents because they've lived in the same house since I was 10. I usually remember my sisters, but sometimes I forget if she lives on a street, avenue, or blvd. I always have to call mom and ask. I always have to call my friends and get their addresses because I never save the paper I wrote them on from year to year. Here in Montana it's easy because I only have about 5 people that I know that I give Christmas Cards too. I know it sounds bad, been in Montana for 10 years and only see about 5 people on weekends that are friends. Although since starting this blog I have upped the people I talk with to 7. Michele keeps telling me that I need to get out and meet people here in Great Falls. All I usually do after work is either go home and fiddle around my house, do some geocaching , and maybe take my motorcycle for a ride. Michele has a teenage dau

Well we had a good time at the Christmas Stroll. Above is a picture of the tree at the Civic Center taken with my iphone because my batteries were dead in my digital. Now I'm just stilling at work waiting for the day to be done so I can get to Helena and help my friends.

Friday is upon us which means there are only two more Friday's 'til Christmas! Damn, I better get my happy butt in gear and start shopping. Tonight Michele and I are heading to the Christmas stroll after we close up shop. I've never been to the stroll here in Great Falls even though I've lived in town for three years. Michele usually goes home to Helena Friday's after work but she decided to check out the stroll too. I am hoping for WAY more snow before Christmas. I enjoying walking in the snow either in the forests, or around dusk, I think it's really cool. This weekend I hope to do a little shopping in Helena. I'll be in Helena to visit some friends and help them decorate their house. I always get volunteered to put the lights around the roof of their house, so I hope the weather isn't below ZERO and the wind isn't too bad. Will update you all on Monday of how that went. Sunday should be the day for shopping, and I hope to get most of it done th

With the coming of December the cold decided to make it's way here. Last night we went for Hot Wings and Beer at a local Bar like we always do on Wednesday and it was bout 12 degrees when we left work. The Sting Sports Bar is always warm and friendly and I think that's part of why we go, but the best part is the Hot Wings. I have a fondness for Hot Wings and the Sting has the best ones around Great Falls. I got my first taste of Hot Wings at my first job out of high school. I worked for a family friend at his Restaurant called "Dan's Poultry". On Monday nights we would makes pounds and pounds of Hot Wings that we delivered to some local bars for Monday night football. Now Dan's sold more than just hot wings, but it was the only thing I really liked there. Their sauce was a homemade blend that was very hot and lot of people really liked it. I know after I started eating the wings, they were, and still are, my favorite food. I ate them so much that I would get s

It seems like the Holidays bring on the end of the year and kinda go by in a flash starting with Thanksgiving. I really don't have any plans for Thanksgiving, but I do think Michele and I are going to see the "Transporter 3" movie. As far as dinner I have no idea. We are heading to Billings this weekend to see a friend that moved there a while back and do some Geocaching too. We always enjoy going for drives and now that gasoline ins $1.82 a gallon we can get more "Sunday" drives in. Our friends from Deer Lodge invited us there for " TurkeyDay " but we aren't sure what our plans are. Maybe just a few TV Dinners, who knows.

I know that I haven't written in a week or so but not much is happening in my life lately. I've just been relaxing and enjoying it. I believe the latest news was that we got to do some good Geocaching two weekends ago and I always enjoy that. This past weekend I stayed with friends in East Helena and helped them remodel their kitchen. I got the job of measuring and cutting all the wood trim. My Parents used to own a small woodmill years ago so I got recruited. Upon finishing all the measuring, cuting, and mitering I helped install a new kitchen sink and water lines. I'm happy to say that there were not leaks. Well that's all the highlights for now. Will update you all again soon.

This past weekend we hauled the last load for our friends Jeff & Barb to Deer Lodge ending a few weekends of moving them from Helena to Deer Lodge. We slept a little later than I wanted to and I blamed it on getting old, but we made it out of Helena around 10am. We got to Deer Lodge and unloaded the truck and trailer for the last time. We are all thankful that the move is done. We stayed and chatted with Jeff, Barb, and Tony, Jeff's brother for awhile before heading back to Helena to drop the trailer off and then headed to Butte to see another friend Julie. Julie is a friend that we've known for about 9 years. Julie is a very interesting woman who is full of life and energy. She loves to Hitchhike the country at the spur of the moment. We always have a very hard time catching her in Butte. When we do catch her we usually go and see her. We met her at a small little house that she was painting for a friend and chatted for a while before heading to get something to eat.

Sunday morning we planned for breakfast with Michele's ex-husband Harry at Cislo's , a great little restaurant . We ended up talking after breakfast for about an hour before employing Harry to grab the cache we spotted yesterday. After logging and having Harry replace the cache we all went and looked for another before dropping Harry off at his house and getting on our way. We stopped by and visited Michele's daughter and grandson for a bit then we headed for Glacier. We were thinking that we would visit the lower area's of the park because we though that the "Going To The Sun Road" was closed for the season. At the Ranger Station we were informed that the road was open to Logan Pass and that made our day. We proceeded up the road stopping occasionally to grab a few pictures and enjoy the views. As we got closer to Logan Pass we could see a huge cloud covering the Visitor's Center. When we got the Top we were in a fog and a frost was covering the a

Just now getting around to writing about last weekend. We were heading to Kalispell to see some friends, Michele's daughter, grandson and parents for Michele's mothers 65th birthday. Michele and I started off at 6am Saturday morning leaving Great Falls and heading to Kalispell. We topped off the gas and headed on our way. We decided we would grab a few Geocaches along the way and the first cache was in Valier, MT. Valier is a sleepy little town that we often stop at for a stretch and potty breaks but we were always in a hurry and did not stop to enjoy the town. This time we stopped and got the cache and some breakfast. Our next stop was East Glacier for another quick cache, where we got help looking for the cache from the town puppy. In between petting the dog we found the cache and then we are back on our way to Kalispell. Since we were driving RIGHT past The West Glacier Entrance you know we had to stop by and check on the Park. Well maybe not Check on it, but we can

Well the weekend is upon us and I am going to enjoy it. I got Saturday off so Michele and I are heading to Kalispell to visit some friends and see her daughter and grandson. Michele's parents will also be in town celebrating Michele's mother's birthday. We will be leaving early (6am) Saturday so we can get some Geocaching in and still get to Kalispell before noon. We will see our friends and have dinner with Michele's family, and maybe see our friends after dinner. Sunday morning we will get some breakfast and head to Glacier. We haven't been to Glacier as much as we wanted this year so we always try to spend a little time there whenever we're in the area. Hopefully I will have some new pictures on my photography blog because I got a new digital camera so I will test it out this weekend

Well my friends it looks like old man winter is in the neighborhood. We had a nice Indian Summer for the last month with great temperatures but now the leavs are falling and the temperatures on dipping in the high 20's at night and the furnances are clicking on. I really don't mind the winters here. It's part of the reason I moved to Montana, along with many others. I enjoy walking in the snow as well as hiking Glacier in the snow. So we in Montana are preparing for winter.

Boats await fares on Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park Albert's house above Marysville , Montana The Old Montana Prison in Deer Lodge, Montana Well it's been a busy few weeks for us . As some of you know we have been helping our friends move from Helena to Deer Lodge the last few weeks. Last weekend we did a little Geocaching in Deer Lodge after unloading the truck and trailer. After finding the treasure we headed to the local eatery called Scharf's for some great home cooking. After eating we headed to the Montana Bar for a drink at the local watering hole before heading back to Helena. We've got one more big load left and then it should be done. As we all know, moving is a big task and very stressful, so we are talking a break this weekend. Michele and I are heading to see our friend Albert who lives above Marysville , MT. We really enjoy the time we spend in Albert's company relaxing. The Drive out of Marysville to Albert's is awesome. I r

After talking to a few of my friends in PA last night it got me thinking about how we meet them and things we learn about each other. For instance, my Best friend in PA Patrick who I've know 20 years already is just like me. We met through his brother-in-law Pat who I worked with, and later found out that Patrick worked at the same place just a different shift. The first time I met Patrick, I was invited over to Pats house where Patrick lived with Pats sister Pam. Pat had invited me up to watch movies and drink some beer but I ended up playing a game called " QIX " on Nintendo with Patrick because Pat got called out to his second job. Patrick and I because best friends and still talk today. Michele, my co-worker and I became friend over the phone. When I decided I was moving to Montana I was thinking I would just transfer from my job in PA to the same Job in Kalispell , MT. I got the number to the business in Montana and called. Michele answered the phone and we&

(Above) The Galloping Gallows (Above) The 1959 Riot (Above) A Prisoners Home (Above) Jeff The Guard and Joey The Inmate Here are just a few pictures from the Old Montana Prison. It was an interesting tour. I swear Jeff tried numerous times to leave me in a few of the cells for a long nap. Good thing you couldn't lock them because I might have been left in the solitary cells. I will try and go back in better weather and try to get some better pictures to display here. Be safe, Joe

Its the middle of the week and not much is happening. At work we are slow due to street construction(No, Not in Great Falls). After work the nights are ending sooner that they used to and that is a sure sign that summer is slipping away. I know the last few nights have been chilly when we've been out around dark. I actually had to turn the furnance on last night. Pretty soon it will be dark when I lock the store and head home at 6:00PM. Wow, what a change from getting dark around 9 or 10pm anly a month or so ago. I'm going to try and get as much motorcycle time in as I can before I have to put them away for a long winter nap. My co-worker Michele got her first motorcycle this year as a mid-life crisis(She turned 40) and has been enjoying it. She has had a little set back with it as of this post, it needs the carburetors rebuilt and we are in the process of finding parts to do that. Hopefully she'll get a little more time on it before the snow flies. This weekend I am co

Had a good weekend helping a friend and his family move to Deer Lodge. We left Helena about 9:30 with my truck loaded with boxes, furniture and people and headed west. After crossing MacDonald Pass at 6368ft we stopped at Stoners Bar in Elliston for a drink. I'm Telling you now, IF you Ever get the chance, CHECK this bar out. The Interior is really unquiue. They Support A "Bigfoot" Hunt Every year. People fly in from all over the United States for this big Event(Party). My Friend Jeff, who I am helping move just told me about it. I'm going to be at the next one! After getting back on the road, we thought we would cruise to Deer Lodge in no time because the Speed Limit is 70mph, but NO, we got behind a few cars out for a Sunday drive going55-60mph. The raod winds throght the Blackfoot River Valley and there isn't alot of places to pass. We decide to stop at Garrison and use the restrooms and stretch a little. I swear the store there has the best lemonade.It is ca

Everyone, here are a few more pictures from my files. Joe

Well The weekend is upon us and the weather is looking great so I hope everyone gets out and enjoys it. Unfortunately I have to work this Saturday, but tonight I plan to grab my camera's and hop on the motorcycle and shoot a few decent pictures around the area. I am posting a few pictures from my travels. I have a lot more and probably post more. We weekends tend to packed full and this one is no different. After work on Saturday I will be going to Helena to help a friend and his family move back to Deer Lodge in the next few weeks. Last weekend I dropped off a 16' trailer and my other truck so he and his wife could pack all week. We might even take a load over to Deer Lodge and get hime on his way. My Co-Worker lives in Helena(Yes, She drives back and forth) so, I might travel around the area with her. before returning to Great Falls. In the next few weeks I would like to get to Kalispell and see some friends up there. While I'm there, you know I gotta stop by and visit Gl

I swear the city and state have in digging up and supposedly fixing Great Falls since I moved here 3 years ago. Now they are digging up infront of where I work and business has been slow for weeks. It's so slow at work that when I we close I feel so tired because I hardly did anything all day that I just want to go home and sleep. I think the City/State should compensate my owner for the lack of Business they are causing. I swear everytime I look out the door and down the street I see guys just standing, or siting around. Joe

The Situation in Texas: I can't believe all the people who disobeyed the manditory evacuation in Texas before Ike. If you didn't listen to the Mayor's evacuation order and choose to stay there then you chose to take your own like in your hands and have no one to blame but yourself. You made your bed and don't want to sleep in it now. You should be left on your own. I think the FEMA and the National Guard should worry about the people who DID leave and the utilillies first. If you disobey a manditory order you are sayiing "To Hell With That" and you choose to stay on your own, then you should help your self. If you choose to stay in your house when there is a Huricane barreling down on you, then I have no sympathy for you. and you would not be a priority for me. People who obey the laws and who need help would be first on my list. IF you don't follow the laws, you are relying only on your self. I don't think the State of Texas should be resueing cry