While admiring John McCain’s VP choice, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a former runner up for Miss Alaska in the beauty contest (isn’t it about time somebody hot was on top of the ticket?), my real thought: is it really the end of summer ?  Labor Day weekend marks the unofficial end of summer, and we’re here bud.  Damn!  Summer flys, winter lingers and they have the exact number of days.  How does it happen like that?  I guess it’s because of where we have chosen to live.  There’s plenty to do around the area this weekend, so let me give you some ideas:

++ for rockers, RageFest is tonight at Water St. Music Hall.  22 bands on 2 stages, including 17 local bands like Ice Nine Kill, Remember Tomorrow and The Years Gone By.  If you’re into the local music scene, get your butt into Water St. tonight.

++ for a great movie, check American Graffiti at the Highland Park Bowl at dusk.  A true classic from the 70’s with great actors (Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfus, Ron Howard and lots more) and music.

++ for a great time at the ball park, the Red Wings are home for the final homestand tonight, Sat. & Sun.  Plenty of fireworks, fun and food (along with a couple of beers) as the Wings wind it down for ‘08.

++ for balloon fanatics:  the NYS Festival of Balloons in Dansville @ the airport on rt. 36, right off 390.

++ for marching band nuts: the Drum Corp World Championships @ PAETEC Park 2p Sat. with the finals Sun. @ 5:30.

++ for laser lovers: High Falls has the laser show 9:30 Sun. & Mon.

++ for bikers: the boys from Orange Co. Choppers will be @ the NYS Fair Sat. afternoon taping their show.

++ for pyros amongst us: the annual Ring of Fire on Canandaigua Lake Sat. night @ 9p.  Fireworks over the lake near Kershaw Park right after, and plenty of great, private firework shows along the lake throughout the night.  It’s really an amazing scene you should check out Sat. in CA.

== and finally, who doesn’t love a parade?  The city’s Labor Day Parade is Monday morning @ 11 starting @ East & Alexander.

The weather should be tremendous, so soak it up and live large all weekend.  I’ll report back Tuesday after I check out pictures of the hot new VP candidate in the race for the White House.  I’m sure they’ll be popping up everywhere.  She has a son in the Army, so bless him and God bless all of our troops worldwide.      

R U ready 4 some football?  As my former bosses Robert J. Morgan and Al Cazzasa used to say “bring it on”!  I’m pumped cuz I think all 3 of my favorite teams are going to bring it this season.  My alma mater Canandaigua will continue the fine winning tradition in the Finger Lakes East with Coach Dave Nieman at the helm.  My childhood dream team Notre Dame looks like they’ll be back in the hunt after a highly unusual ‘07 season.  When the Fighting Irish get pounded by the service academies in football….well, you know it’s an unusual event.  Nothing against Navy, Army or Air Force (because I think you know how much I respect anyone in any of these branches) but the Irish should be winning those games.  Charley Weis better bring back ND or he’s toast to the loyal alumni.  My oldest bro Thomas D. Kennedy III spent 7 years in South Bend (4 as an undergrad, 3 for law school…he’s no dummy) and instilled the love of the Fighting Irish in me.  So, I’m feeling better about our chances this year.  And for my beloved Buffalo Bills, I think this is the year we FINALLY return to the playoffs!  My friend Russ Brandon has done a great job in his first year as President and COO.  Russ started  as an intern with the Red Wings while attending St. John Fisher, and has certainly earned his way up the ladder onto the top of the NFL ranks.  He’s made some great off season moves and I think the team is poised to bring us back to playoff action in January.  The Super Bowl is a long way off, but it’s nice to dream again if you’re a Bills fan like me.

And speaking of St. John Fisher, Rusty’s alma mater (he played club ball at SJF) is ranked #6 in the pre-season USA Today rankings for NCAA Div. III college ball.  Best of luck to everybody on East Ave.  God bless football cuz we love it, and God bless our troops! 

I’m a geek!  You’re saying…”tell me something I don’t know”. I’m a political geek.  It’s largely due to my upbringing.  When you’re raised in a political family, you have two choices.  You’re either in or you’re out of politics. I chose to be on the inside.  It was the coolest thing as a kid to have your pop be the Mayor of your hometown.  I got to go to city council meetings (trust me, not that exciting), be in the parades, hang at the police and fire stations, go with my dad to the local radio station (WCGR)…stuff that was way too cool for a kid who wasn’t even into double digits yet.  Since I was the youngest of 5 in my family, I guess I was the only one who had all the extra time to do this stuff with my hero The Mayor Ham Kennedy.  So, elections were always a big deal to me.  Since he never lost an election, nor did my uncle as DA, County Judge and NY Supreme Court Justice, election night was the Super Bowl for me.  WE NEVER LOST!  What a concept to latch onto when you’re 9 years old!  So, politics is in my blood and DNA.

So, obviously I still get caught up in the political conventions (remember, I’m a geek).  When I was a kid, we would watch the coverage from gavel-to-gavel with Walter Cronkite anchoring.  It was all very exciting because in those days the nomination to run for the Office of the President wasn’t always decided before the actual meeting of the delegates.  There was always high drama, especially around the Vietnam era.  You never knew when a fight could break out on the convention floor, or chaos would take over.  Nowdays, it’s all pretty much a formality when everything is decided before the actual meeting of the minds.  It certainly takes away much of the excitement, hence the big networks have cut back to one hour of primetime coverage per night.  So, last night brought Sen. Hillary Clinton to deliver the drama.  Wearing her delicious orange pant suit to set the mood (anybody want a creamsicle with that suit?), she came through with a rousing speech, firing up her followers. Gee, it even looked like Bill was into her!  Is it me, or does it seem that the Clintons are having a hard time moving on and giving up the spotlight?  It almost seems like she wanted it to go on for another night or two.  Which, of course it will with her hubby the former Prez. having his night tonight.  Think he will state how he is the proud husband of Hillary?  Cuz I didn’t catch her say she was a proud wife last night.  She said she was “a proud mother, a proud Senator form NY, a proud american and a proud supporter of Barack Obama”.  Never said she was a “proud wife”.  Gee, was I the only one who caught that?

Anyway, while the rest of the country gets ready for back-to-school, or enjoys the final days of summer, I’ll be watching to see if the hillbilly Prez. from Arkansas says he’s a “proud husband”.  It’s about the only drama left for me.  Leave it to the Clintons to stage it that way, to keep me hooked.  Will they ever go away?  Oh, that’s right….she’s still our Senator and I’m sure Chelsea will run for office someday to keep the dream alive.  And, I’m not being bi-partisan cuz we’re also having a hard time getting John McCain off the national stage.  Hasn’t he run for President for the last 20 years or so?  He must be a political geek like me, but at least I know how many houses I own (grand total> one).  I just hope that whoever ends up in the White House takes care of our heroes properly…..God bless our troops!  

Just in case you’re wondering what I’m doing during my vacation, I went to Canada…more on that later.

Now that I’m home, I’m spending lots of quality time with Mario Kart Wii

Good times indeed.

Just returned from a fantastic weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Went to visit my former boss Bill Schoening who runs all the radio staions for my former company CBS Radio in Charlotte.  Bill became quite famous when he ran 98PXY here in the late 80’s and 90’s.  He’s now infamous down south.  Let’s just say he knows how to throw a party.  I was lucky to get the royal treatment from Bill and his all*star team down south y’all.  Charlotte is a great city, lots of great things happening, very modern and fun.  The only thing I have trouble with down there is the fact that many are still fighting the civil war.  And I’m not blaming it on the southerners.  Northern transplants are half to blame.  Neither group likes to hang with the other side.  As good ol’ Rodney King blurted out once…”can’t we all just get along?”

I got into an interesting conversation with a southern gentleman at one of our favorite hangouts named Vinnies in CNC.  I will paraphrase but I’m sure you’ll get the gist.  It won’t read as well as it sounded cuz this guy had a very, very deep southern drawl.  But here’s the transcript of our delightful talk after consuming beers together for 10 minutes (key: RN=southern redneck   M=northern Mayor):

RN: So Payte (that’s south speak for Pete), where y’all frum?

M: Rochester.

RN: Raaahchestur? Where’s that, North Carliner or South Caroliner?

M: New York.

RN: NEW YERK SEETY?

M: No sir, we’re upstate about 5 hours on Lake Ontario.

RN: (serious look on his face) Well Payte, that makes ya a yang-key (south speak for Yankee).  Only one thing wurse than that……if ya mooooove her, you a dammmmmnnnnn yang-key!

M: Nice to meet you!

After I walked away and relayed this deep, intelligent coversation to my northern buddies at the end of the bar, they responded by telling me….”what are you doing????  We don’t hang out with southerners!!!!”

So, there’s what’s wrong with the south.  Nobody trusts the next guy if you don’t sound like each other.  Doesn’t matter if you were educated at Harvard, the northern guys will still think those good ol’ boys from south of the Mason-Dixon Line are stupid, and the southern guys still think they won the war (which I believe ended long before the Bush or Clinton administrations).  It did not hold me back from havin’ a grand ol’ time however, and I shall return to try to bring ‘em all back together in the future.  As for now, it’s just good to be back home like hopefully our troops will be soon.  God bless our troops!      

So I made the leap and got my own apartment for the first time since I lived on East Avenue downtown 8 months ago.  For those of you who didn’t know, I had been living with my Fiancee in Holley over the past 8 months in a house owned by her parents.

First off I ahve to be extremely grateful to my future in-laws. You see, when my mother died a large financial issue came to my front door step. I had been going it alone up mhere for the most part, but my mom really kept me afloat financially. When she died, that went away, and they allowed me to move into their place while I sorted out my finances. I paid them rent: all of which went into a wedding fund and was MUCH less then what I was paying on East Ave. It was extremely gracious of them and I can’t explain how much I appreciate it. I don’t doubt I could have made it, but they made my life a lot easier.

That being said, at some point I need to be a man and make my own way. Now is just as good as any other time, so Jessi and I got a little place in Greece.  It’s only a 1 bedroom, so nothing ground breaking, but the place is nice and so are the people. Plus, on those days I can’t get to the Downtown Fitness Club there is a gym and pool on site. 

For the record, that does not give any of you guys a free pass to come look for me lol. I love you all, but home is my free time so please don’t use this posting to your advantage… unless you’re a hot chick LOL I’m kidding of course!

Soooooooo let me ass you a question.

How’s my ass look?

This is what it looks like… it’s called the ass bra. It was only a matter of time in this country right? I mean we’re practically all over weight, and women are coming up with different ways to make themselves look curvier and thinner every day. Push up bras, jeans so tights they prop their asses up… I’ve even seen new versions of those things that suck in your tummy. Even hiar is designed these days to make faces look thinner.

So why not an ass bra?

This product, which retails at $64 a pop, is actually called the “Double-O Push Up Thong.” Yes, it’s also a THONG. So while the woman’s ass is being propped up she also gets a nice wedgy.

I denounce this product in the name of my penis. Guys, if you took a girl home and saw THIS on her… granted you still hit it because after all your pants are off and she’s there (that’s just man honesty kids, don’t be hatin’)… would you even think about getting back with her? Better question: would you not laugh? That would probably end the night, but I think I’d bust out laughing if I saw this on a girl… then I’d hurl when her ass cheeks become un-liftified and drop to the floor like a coat on a hanger.

The possible good thing about this product, which you can purchase by CLICKING HERE, is it only allows for a woman up to size 10. Granted, for short women, a size 10 might not be a good thing, but for taller girls that’s not usually an issue. I’m not hating on your bigger chicks, but honestly if you were a size 24 and you were wearing this it would be bad. Your booty would stick out so far they’d have to put a warning car in front of you to signal wide load. Caution, this woman makes wide right Turns.
Ladies, I know you’re self conscious at times;  After all, us guys are always looking no matter what we tell you. But don’t waste $64 on this thing, just be yourself. Chances are a guy will like you more for being real. I know one of the big reasons I love my Fiancee is because she wears no makeup, no push up devices, and just is who she is… THAT is sexy.

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I just saw a CRAZY ad on TV.  Watch it and figure out what it’s for:

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Were you thinking it was an HIV awareness campaign?

Maybe one of those PSA’s where they show you how getting drunk/high makes you choose the wrong path?

Nope!

Levis 501 Jeans.

Great.

I am horrified and slightly aroused at the same time.

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I’m off to Carolina for the weekend, so please take control of the ROC while I’m gone, ok?  Here’s some ideas for ya:

++St. Mary’s Festival in Canandaigua, @ Main & Gibson.  Check out the fun, food, beer, gambling (try your luck at the famous cake booth).  Say hi to Father Mull for me, he’s a good man!

++Fairport Music & Food Festival on Lift Bridge Lane Sat. noon-dark.  3 stages with great tunes.  Stop into Mulconrys and bust on Damian for me.

++Allman Bros @ CMAS Fri @ 7p, Raggae Fest on Sun. with UB 40, Maxi Priest & more @ CMAC.

++State Fair shows that I highlighted in my “wanna rock” blog earlier.

++Finger Lakes Gaming & Race Track Musicfest Fri @ 6p on Rt. 96 Farmington.  Beck from the Buzz, Uncle Plum and 50/50.

++Lyell Musicfest on Lyell Ave. Sun 12-9.

And keep your eyes open for lots of firemen around town cuz there’s a Firefighter Convention in town.  Bless those brave ladies and gents who risk their lives for us and God bless our troops!