Brigita's Blog: July 2008

You can tell it's summer time when many festivals are being held in the area.  One of them is the Blueberry Festival in Bethlehem, PA.  It is a 3 day celebration of blueberries, music, food and family fun.

It will be held from July 18th through the 20th.  The hours are from 2PM - 8PM on Friday, 11AM - 8PM on Saturday and Sunday from 11AM - 7PM.

The event will occur at the Burnside plantation in Bethlehem.  Admission is $8, $7 for senior citizens, $4 for children ages 12 - 16 and children 11 and under get in for free.  An all festival pass may be purchase for $15.  The tickets may be purchased at www.ticketweb.com or at festival admissions.

Plenty of ample parking will be available at the Martin Towers lot on 8th Ave. for $3.  A shuttle will be provided for the handicapped.

For more information on the event, visit www.historicbethlehem.org or call 1-800-368-8687.

Nazareth Days??  What are Nazareth Days??

In Nazareth, PA, an event is held every year during the 3rd weekend (Friday and Saturday) in July and it is called Nazareth Days. 

On Friday, the local merchants participate in a sidewalk sale.  As you stroll down the streets checking out the sale  merchandise, you can also smell popcorn (you can get for FREE) and hot dogs (at a good price).  You can also get ice cream (25c) to cool off with.

Friday night, there is a good old fashioned block party with a live band. 

On Saturday, in addition to the sidewalk sales, there will also be a road rally (4:30PM).

You can also hop onto the trolley and take a ride over to the Nazareth Boro Park for more activities.  Feel like walking?  No problem.  The park is only a few blocks from downtown Nazareth.

At the park there will be arts and crafts, flea market, food, car show and, for the finale, a huge fireworks display at 10PM.

The wonderful thing about Nazareth Days is that all of this is FREE. 

So, come on out to Nazareth Days, meet your friends and neighbors, and join in on the fun.

Hope to see you there!!

As more and more foreclosures escalate and home owners are forced out of their homes, pets end up abandoned in the homes with little food and water.  The former homeowners assume a real estate agent or bank official will be by the home to inspect it, but in most instances that is not the case.  Pets end up with no food or water in hot or freezing homes with utilities shut off. 

Some owners make attempts to place their beloved pets in no kill shelters or pet rescues, but most end up turned away.  Most of these shelters are already filled to capacity.

On June 25th, Jan Marie Bennett, a West Valley REALTOR and broker, along with several other animal loving REALTORS, formed and incorporated and non-profit organization called "Lost Our Home Pet Foundation". 

Through the foundation, foster homes are found for abandoned animals and those surrendered by caring owners.

The Lost Our Home Foundation falls under the Prescott-based, pet rescue Circle L (Circle of Life) Ranch's 501c umbrella allowing tax-deductible donations.

Anyone interested in donating funds or apply as a foster family with the Lost Our Home Pet Foundation, contact Jan Marie Bennett at 480-226-4362.

The new U.S. Census number are in, and it shows that the Lehigh Valley is continuing to grow.

I know, you've heard the news say otherwise, but the new Census numbers are showing that the Lehigh Valley region keeps on growing. 

The population numbers were released on Thursday for 2007 and it shows that Lehigh, Northampton and Monroe Counties are amont the 10 fastest growing counties in Pennsylvania since 2000.

Monroe County ranks 3rd, with a 17.8% increase, Northampton comes in 7th, with 9.7%, and Lehigh is 10th at 7.9%.

In regard to municipalities, Allen Township in Northampton County grew faster than all but 4 of Pennsylvania's 2,566 municipalities.

So, as far as the real estate is concerned, not all areas are in a slump.  It all depends on the individual areas as to how the market is doing. 

This weekend, the Lehigh Valley wineries are holding a "Drink in the Pink" weekend.  This weekend, visitors to the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail can help cancer victims.

Just purchase a blush or rose wine from any one of the wineries, from 10AM to 5PM on Saturday, and noon to 5PM on Sunday, and $1 will be donated to the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition.  In addition, the wineries will match the dollar totals they raise from the customers and double the total the coalition will receive.

In 2006, a similar event was held and raised over $2000 for the coalition.

Special souvenir wine glasses will be offered for sale with the Wine Trail logo on 1 side and the individual wineries logo on the other for $1 per glass.

Plus, some of the wineries will be offering some assorted nibbles to accompany the wines.

For more information about the nine trail wineries, see http://www.lehighvalleywinetrail.com

Remember, this is your opportunity to purchase your favorite blush or rose wine and help the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition at the same time.

A couple of weeks ago, my Thoroughbred, Text Edition, better known as Eddie, competed at the Burgundy Hollow Horse Trials, with my friend Carina, of Serenity Farm, riding him.  They competed at the Novice level.

I do want to mention that Eddie loves to work. Jumping is his favorite part.  Show him a saddle and he is eager to go.  When he is ridden, if you show him a fence, he is rearin' to go.  He enjoys his work that much.

Anyway, Eddie always does his best when he is competing.

I thought I would share a few photos from the event.

Eddie and Carina warming up for the jumping.

Here, they are riding through the water hazard on the cross country course.

Jumping one of the jumps in the stadium course.

It had been about 7 years since Eddie competed and even longer for Carina. 

Even though it was a hot, humid, long and exhausting day, both had a blast.  I even had a great time coaching them and also volunteering at the event.

They will be competing again at Burgundy Hollow's recognized event on July 27th.  They are both looking forward to it.

Once again, the Miss Pennsylvania Beauty Pageant will be held in Nazareth, PA at the Nazareth Area HS.  All this week, the contestants will be visiting many areas in the Lehigh Valley and participating in several events.

The actual pageant will be held on Saturday, July 12th, at 8PM at the auditorium of Nazareth Area HS. 

The winner of this pageant will be going on to the Miss America contest. 

So, this week you will see many gorgeous looking girls walking around the Lehigh Valley, who will be vying for the Miss Pennsylvania title and then on to the Miss America contest.  Will be interesting to see the many talents these girls may have.

Let Freedom Ring!!

To all Active Rain members and readers:

   Celebrate our country's Birthday with pride!

Let's also dedicate a few moments to our service men and women, past and present, who have made all of this possible for us!

Have a safe and wonderful 4^th of July!!

"The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue."
Anonymous

"Don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful."
Ann Landers

"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went."
Will Rogers

"There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face." 
 Ben Williams

"A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself."
Josh Billings

"The average dog is a nicer person than the average person."
Andrew A.Rooney

"We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare.  And in return, dogs give us their all.  It's the best deal man has ever made."
M. Facklam

"Dogs love their friends and bite their enemies, quite unlike people, who are incapable of pure love and always have to mix love and hate."
Sigmund Freud

"If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain dogs I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few persons."
James Thurber

"I wonder what goes through his mind when he sees us peeing in his waterbowl."
Penny Ward Moser

"A dog teaches a boy fidelity, perseverance, and to turn around three times before lying down."
Robert Benchley

"I wonder if other dogs think poodles are members of a weird religious cult."
Rita Rudner

"Anybody who doesn't know what soap tastes like never washed a dog."
Franklin P. Jones

"If your dog is fat, you aren't getting enough exercise."
Unknown

"My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is up to $3.00 a can.  That's almost $21.00 in dog money."
Joe Weinstein

"Ever consider what they must think of us?  I mean, here we come back from a grocery store with the most amazing haul - chicken, pork, half a cow.  They must think we're the greatest hunters on earth!"
Anne Tyler

"Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea."
Robert A. Heinlein

True or false??? 

For all you trivia buffs.......

 

Can you guess which of the following are true and which are false?

  1.  Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.

  2.  Alfred Hitchcock didn't have a belly button. (I don't see how this could be true.)

  3.  A pack-a-day smoker will lose approximately 2 teeth every 10 years.

  4.  People do not get sick from cold weather; it's from being indoors a lot more.

  5.  When you sneeze, all bodily functions stop, even your heart!

  6.  Only 7 per cent of the population are lefties.

  7.  Forty people are sent to the hospital for dog bites every minute.

  8.  Babies are born without kneecaps. They don't appear until they are 2-6 years old.

  9.  The average person over 50 will have spent 5 years waiting in lines.

10.  The toothbrush was invented in 1498. 

11.  The average housefly lives for one month.

12.  40,000 Americans are injured by toilets each year.

13.  A coat hanger is 44 inches long when straightened.

14.  The average computer user blinks 7 times a minute.

15.  Your feet are bigger in the afternoon than any other time of day.

16.  Most of us have eaten a spider in our sleep.

17.  The REAL reason ostriches stick their head in the sand is to search for water.

18.  The only two animals that can see behind themselves without turning their heads are the rabbit and the parrot.

19.  John Travolta turned down the starring roles in "An Officer and a Gentleman" and "Tootsie."

20.  Michael Jackson owns the rights to the South Carolina State anthem.

21.  In most television commercials advertising milk, a mixture of white paint and a little thinner is used in place of the milk.

22.  Prince Charles and Prince William NEVER travel on the same airplane, just in case there is a crash.

23.  The first Harley Davidson motorcycle built in 1903 used a tomato can for a carburetor.

24.  Most hospitals make money by selling the umbilical cords cut from women who give birth. They are used in vein transplant surgery.

25.  Humphrey Bogart was related to Princess Diana. They were 7th cousins.

26.  If coloring weren't added to Coca-Cola, it would be green.

See answers below.

 

They are all true....Now go back and think about #16

 Have a Great Day!