T-shirt #255: Patriots 1996 AFC Champs

I thought this shirt, another one from my father (Thanks, Dad!), would be a good one to wear for the beginning of the Patriots season. And watching the Pats game today was a great end to an awesome weekend…

I started Friday by taking my “Little” bowling in Shrewsbury. We were definitely the two youngest people there, and had an awesome time. Afterwards he wanted to go to That’s E! (a store in Worcester with used video games, DVDs, toys, and comic books), so he didn’t have to twist my arm too much! Friday night it was fun time with JB and CO. We went to Owen O’Leary’s in Southboro (renamed “The Skellig” in E-lationship) and watched a movie afterwards.

Saturday, JB and I went to Fenway for a Red Cross blood drive. There were a bunch of nurses and Star Wars people in attendance (Darth Vader, a stormtrooper, Han, and Chewie), so there wasn’t much to complain about. I also got a free t-shirt out of the deal! After Fenway, it was off to the BC-Kent State football game. BC won handily, and I made my friend Patrick’s son laugh about 253 times (Apparently he had been asking all week about “seeing Uncle Dave”).

Today, I had to rise early, but it was well worth it. My awesome father gave me his Bruins season ticket holder passes to skate at the Fleet Center. I met Patrick there, and we had a great time (see pictures and video)…thanks again, Dad! After the skate, it was off to my friend Scott’s to watch the Patriots game and to see his first baby, an adorable daughter. As if the weekend couldn’t get any better, the place Scott decided to order food from had my favorite sandwich of all time – The Fat Chicken (a sandwich with chicken fingers, French fries, and mozzarella sticks)…I am trying to eat better, but not today!

T-shirt #254: NEW YORK FUCKIN CITY

Nine years ago, I was at the start of my first week as lead teacher of a residential special education school. I was covering for the math teacher who was finishing the two weeks notice he had given his previous job. After the first period, students that had just been in their social studies class came into math class and told me what they had just watched (If the students had behaved and were finished their work, sometimes for the last 5 minutes of class they would watch CNN to keep up with current events). One of them told me they had seen “a plane hit a building in New York”. After I questioned them, I eventually learned that it was a “big jet” that had hit one of the “really tall buildings” in New York. In the middle of class, the lead clinician took me out in the hall and told me what had actually happened. I was stunned. During lunch, all of the teachers crowded around the TV and learned more details about the attacks. In a fog for the rest of the day, we managed to get through the rest of the classes trying to tell the students we would talk about what happened when we knew more. I got back to my apartment in Waltham and was glued to the TV until my aunt invited everyone over for dinner. I remember seeing my nephew (then not even 2) running around the yard and wondering when he would be taught about what had happened that day. I felt the sorrow our whole nation felt, but felt lucky to be surrounded by my loving family.

I thought this shirt (donated by my awesome sister Megan…thanks, Meg!) would be a perfect shirt to wear on 9/11. Although I usually view New York through the eyes of a sports rival, the events of nine years ago helped put those rivalries into perspective…hockey, baseball, football…they really are just games. New York showed us how to come together, help each other, and begin to heal.

Do the terrorists think they succeeded in attacking our way of life? Well, I am wearing a “NEW YORK FUCKIN CITY” shirt.

Remembering all those who lost their lives and lost loved ones 9 years ago…

T-shirt #253: Up Up, Down Down, Left Right, Left Right, B, A, Start (Contra Code)

It’s amazing how some things just stick in your brain, isn’t it? For me and many, many guys (yes, I’m sure there are some girls who remember too) my age, we all remember the code for Contra that got you 120 guys. Not only was Contra one of the first games to have a secret code, it was one of the first two-player co-op games I remember playing (Double Dragon comes to mind, too). The spread gun, of course, was the best one to have while playing Contra (which on occasion, might have caused an argument here and there as to who got to have that gun). The level with the spikes coming down that you had to time perfectly friggin’ sucked. The “3D” levels where you had to crouch, jump and shoot down the hallway at the same time were awesome (although when the dudes started throwing grenades at you it kinda sucked). Of course, at the end, blowing up the huge alien heart was the best (especially how it started to beat faster and faster as you got closer to killing it). The challenge to Contra was trying to beat it without the code…which, without yelling at my sister Megan, I did (she knows what this means).

If you are jonesin’ for some Contra, you can play it free here (http://www.nesplay.com/play/Contra.html), and if you like this shirt that I got at 6 Dollar Shirts (http://www.6dollarshirts.com/t-shirts), it’s here (http://6dollarshirts.com/t-shirts/Contra-Code-p-11247.html). Have a great weekend!

T-shirt #252: Trident and Dentyne

Yeah, I know you’re jealous of my gum shirt. My nephew picked this out for me when he went shopping with my sister Carolyn…thanks for all the shirts, you two! I tried to find the specific kinds of gum on the shirt at the local CVS, but could only find the one pictured with me.

I don’t have many gum stories, but one definitely comes to mind. I was very young, sharing a room with my two brothers, and wasn’t feeling well. I had some grape Hubba Bubba gum earlier, and for some reason swallowed it. When I got sick, up came the Hubba Bubba again (which I was convinced was what made me sick). Although that part is nasty, the funny part (according to my mother) was what I was saying when I was puking (into the bed pan she was holding for me)…”All in the pan, all in the pan, all in the pan…I’m all tired out.”

Oh, one other story just came to mind. When I chew gum, sometimes I forget about it and end up chewing rather loudly (chomping is more like it). One time, at one of my sister Megan’s plays, this dude in front of me very quietly and kindly asked me if I could chew a little more quietly…woops! Although not gum related, I have to share another story that happened at one of my sister’s plays. She was a freshman and was in one of the senior’s one-act plays. It was a comedy, and of course, my sister was hilarious. The play after Megan’s was much more dark and dramatic and our grandmother (who didn’t like to turn her hearing aids on) turned to my mother and said (so anyone within 3 rows could hear), “Well, this one is kinda dull!”…woops again!

I tried finding a Family Guy gum related clip online, but had no luck. But as Peter said, “You know what I haven’t had in a while? Big League Chew.”

T-shirt #251: FOR SQUIRRELS (EXAMPLE)

I made this shirt specifically for today.

A little over 15 years ago, my sister Carolyn told me about this band she had seen. She loved them and was lucky enough to hang out with the band after the show. She told me that the guys were awesome, and the singer was an amazing person she thought would be one of my best friends if we ever met.

Then, exactly 15 years ago today, For Squirrels was driving back to Florida from a show they had done in New York. One of the van’s tires blew; the van turned over, and crashed. The singer (Jack Vigliatura, 21 years old), bassist (Bill White, 23 years old), and tour manager (Tim Bender, 23 years old) all died at the scene. It was right before their first major-label record, Example, was going to be released.

Since the tragedy, I have enjoyed listening to For Squirrels music while wondering about future CDs the world was robbed from hearing. I went with my sister to see them play in 1996, but (as my sister and the surviving band members would figure out) it simply wasn’t For Squirrels (although I do really enjoy their follow-up band Subrosa’s Never Bet The Devil Your Head album).

Later that year, a memorial was dedicated to Jack at the home he grew up in located in Spencer, MA. I went with Carolyn, and even though I had never met Jack, it was a real emotional experience. Fighting hard to hold back the tears, I read a poem I wrote called “The Mighty J.V.”. I could tell how much this guy meant to everyone there, and the tragedy of what happened hit me hard. Some of Jack’s relatives wanted a copy of the poem and told me they really enjoyed it, which made me feel better for my teary recital. My sister and I also wandered around the neighborhood a bit and saw Bay Path Road and Smithville Road, (names in a For Squirrels album and song) which was really cool.

A copy of my poem eventually made it to Jack’s father, and he wrote my sister telling her how much it meant to him. He also included a rare CD that had an unreleased For Squirrel’s song “Van Gogh” on it, which made me very happy. When my first volume of poetry was published, I made sure Mr. Vigliatura got a copy of it. A few years ago when he was looking to publish his own book, he called me and we talked for a while. I felt lucky to be able to tell him how much Jack’s music means to me and how I feel closer to Jack every time I play “Mighty K.C.” on my guitar.

It has been 15 years since the horrible accident, but For Squirrels music will always be a part of my life. I thank Carolyn for always being an awesome sister and telling me about great bands and For Squirrels for making some of my favorite music. You guys will always live on…

Here are some For Squirrels related things I hope you enjoy:

The Mighty J.V. by David H. McGrath

We stand in doubt,

At half mast for the flag boy,

Not knowing what to do, say, or think.

When I come face to face with Fate

What should I ask?

How could you take the sun?

How could you steal this light?

And what are we to say?

I can only hear the echo of a lost voice,

The static of an unknown frequency.

He's singing of his future,

By the grace of God he went-

Great or grave unknown.

And, what are we to do?

Thoughts come to me of

What could have been.

Why did Destiny take from us

This success waiting to happen?

And, what are we to think?

I challenge defenseless Destiny

With my barrage of questions,

But I get no answer.

Questions remain,

A circle of thoughts with no reason or answer

Asking why did this happen?

Why, why, why?

And, what are we to do?

I wish I had known you, she said we would have been best friends…

http://www.forsquirrels.net/

And their video for Mighty K.C.:

T-shirt #250: Etnies with Ryan Sheckler autograph

Go here for my latest autographed t-shirt donated by Etnies: T-shirt #363: Etnies Ryan Sheckler Autograph (#3)

This shirt was donated to me by Etnies (thanks Christi and Rob!), and I couldn’t believe it when I heard it was on its way!

If you don’t know who Ryan Sheckler is, you can check him out here: http://www.ryansheckler.com/bio

He just won his third gold medal in skateboarding at the X Games this year, and you can watch him doing that here: http://www.ryansheckler.com/videos/post/sheckler-skates-at-x-games-16

For more Etnies stuff, go here: http://etnies.com/

And the auction for this shirt (with $$ going to Hope Lodge) is here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320587360678#ht_500wt_1154

The only skateboarding related story I can think of is loving the skateboarding scenes from Back to the Future and how everyone in my grade wanted a purple-splatter Valterra skateboard like Marty McFly. That’s all I got…

T-shirt #249: New Jersey Devils 1995 Stanley Cup Champs

This shirt is a donation from my friend Christi (thanks again!), and I knew I had to wear it before the hockey season started. I hope seeing me in anything other than a Bruins shirt wasn’t too shocking to anyone!

This shirt reminds me of May 1995, and the first round playoff series between the Bruin and Devils. The series started on May 7, 1995 and the Bruins lost 5-0. I was in the middle of finals and at the peak of my problem drinking, and consumed everything alcoholic that was in the apartment. Like the Bruins had played, I just didn’t care anymore.

The next day, my friend Drew came to the rescue. I hadn’t thrown up that much and after seeing all the empty bottles, Drew was pretty sure I had alcohol poisoning. He took me to the hospital, and they gave me charcoal to soak up the rest of the alcohol. My parents came to see me in the hospital and although I had already given them plenty of reasons to yell at me because of my drinking, they only showed support and love. My doctor and parents both wanted me to go to rehab (which I had been to a year earlier), but I had no desire to. I did realize one thing: If I didn’t want something like this to happen again, I had to stop drinking.

With a bad attitude, I told my parents I would go to McLean’s, but wasn’t going to put any effort into recovery. I think I was more pissed at myself than anything else. When we got there, my attitude changed. I realized I had to try and get something out of it while I was there, and told my mom everything was going to be okay. Unfortunately, the Bruins’ fate was out of my control.

As I continued my rehab, the B’s fell down 3 games to 2. My father came to visit me one day with really bad news that reminded me hockey is just a game (yeah, I said it). While I was in the hospital getting treated for my alcohol poisoning, a friend of mine had passed away. His name was Justin, and I had met him three years earlier while we were both getting treated for cancer. He was a great, bright, funny kid and we would request to be in the same room when we were in the hospital at the same time. Justin had asked his mother to call me so he could see me when things started looking bad, but I was too busy being stupid and selfish in the ER. Shocked by the news, I threw the closest chair I could find and retreated to my room at McLean’s.

I knew I would never be able to forgive myself for not being there for Justin, but I also knew that I couldn’t let drinking prevent me from being there for someone again. At one of my inpatient AA meetings, another struggling alcohol abuser said something that made my future with drinking certain. The 30something-year-old said “My name is _______, and this is my 8^th time in rehab.” I told myself I never wanted to say that, ever. And I knew there was only one way that was going to happen: never drink again. And, I haven’t.

On May 14, I was one week into rehab and the Bruins were playing the Devils in game 5. It was the last official hockey game at the Boston Garden, and the Bruins lost 3-2. Adam Oates score the last goal (see picture by my dad), and the Devils advanced to the next round. Although the Bruins (like they had every year of my life) failed to win the Stanley Cup, I finally won my two-year battle with drinking. Looking forward to the Bruins finally coming through for me and my family…