Just Passin Through

Apologies to all for being a little late with this one. Lovely wife-o-mine met this handsoem chap at the big name coffee shop near our house. He's a current Pittsburgher, unlike me who's an ex-patriate, and was simply visiting friends.

GO PENS!

Montgomery Mall, MD 1

Had successfully dodged Holiday shopping, but had a return to make. Mall was busier than I expected, but I found a space. What you can't see in this picture is the Steeler helmut in the upper left section of the window and the penguins sticker in the lower left section of the window. Oh yeah, while leaving the mall later (read below) I met this car's owner.

Retail Clues

It might seem lame to feature merchandise in a mall, but take a close look at this pic and consider this. The sales guy told me only the slow moving shirts get the yellow sales tags. Note that, here in sunny Maryland, none of the Black and Gold jerseys are marked down!

Montgomery Mall, MD 2

So, I'm finally leaving the mall and I meet this gentleman. At first he's a little shy, but let's me take his picture. When I give my blog address card, he perks up and tells me where to find his car...the one with FL plates you've seen above.

Flags Over 95

Here I am, minding my own business, driving home down Interstate RT 95 between Baltimore and Washington early on the day after Christmas and what to my wondering eyes does appear? 2 great flowing Steeler flags on a black suv! I'm not saying I put any other drivers in danger trying to get these shots, but let's just say I'm glad there weren't any cops around!

Aspen Hill, MD - Classic Black on Black

Daughter dearest's friend Emily made this sight while they were out doing...whatever college girls do on break! Dani then "phoned it in", taking a phone pic and mms-ing it to me. I love technology.

95 South between Baltimore and DC

Wife Vicki jokes that she risked her life for this shot. If you've ever driven south on 95 in rush hour, you'd understand. Displaying the popular SUV tire logo, this one resembles an earlier catch made in our friend Magic's neighborhood.

Connecticut Ave - Mid-Dec

The white logo isn;t seen very often, but here the reason is obvious. As stylish as classic black and gold is, this use of white on white draws the eye. This was was a team effort of my wife and me.

Chevy Chase - New Friend

So, I'd been holding off on one "sighting" I knew was a home run. I'd been past this place and knew there was a large Steeler flag in the yard, tastefully balanced by the decorated SUV. My plan was to post this house as my Holiday entry. But when I got there, the flag was gone! I got out my camera anyway (the new D-60) and as I was taking the above pic, the owner sauntered up to see what I was doing. That was how I met Darryl. And how I learned the fate of his flag. Seems like some local Redskins fans didn't take kindly to their 23-6 loss. So they took the flag.
Darryl promises to call when the replacement arrives. He expects it in time for the playoffs.

Happy Holidays anyway!

Fredonia, NY

So the bug is contagious! Friend Michelle recently facebooked me, proudly proclaiming that she "paparazzied" this guy in her computer lab. The distinctive Pirates "P" make for a great look, with it's (way) old-school type face against a jet black background. Proving, even Fredonia University isn't safe from the Burgh influence.

Silver Spring, MD

You'll never know who'll walk into the local deli on a saturday night. A dad came in with his Steeler's jacketed son. Vicki approached them about a picture and we found out they weren't even from Pittsburgh. The young man simply knows a great team when he sees it.

Northfield, NJ

What do you do when you're lost in Southern Jersey on a horribly rainy night? Pull into a gas station to ask directions. And when you see the car window Hines Ward decoration? Ask if you can buy it for your daughter. But it isn't for sale, it belongs to one of the employees.
Even in Eagles country, you can't keep a Steeler fan down!

Pittsburgh on NPR - 12/4/2008

100-Year-Old Gears Up For Obama's Inauguration

And she's from Pittsburgh! I heard this story on my way home fomr work onmy local NPR station, WAMU. It just so happened to follow a story about the Detroit Lions' most historic losing season.

Lillian Allen of Pittsburgh was born before many blacks and all women could vote. She's worked for better equal rights her whole life and now she's headed to DC for the Inauguration of our country's first black president.

Enjoy the whole story here...

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97770913&sc=emaf