This is one of the days that I am glad that my kids are off to college. In other words I don’t have to watch my back the whole day and night like I use to when they were littler. Now that I think about it I kind of miss those days.

I was going to put Rochester in the lead with some big hyped up typing but then I started thinking about it. What if a journalist happen to stop by which they do every now and then and see it. Then write about it on their blog or worse yet write an article in one of the local newspapers. Then of course with the news being so big that Syracuse is losing the contest the AP picks it up meaning several other papers pick up the story and so on. I could only imagine the emails I would get when at the end of the night I write APRIL FOOLS! Yeah I know, I’m a sissy man!

I don’t know if I have ever typed about what I thought was one of my better April Fools day practical jokes or not but here it is.

Years ago when the dinosaurs walked the earth, maybe not that many years ago but along time ago I had a room mate who had to get up for work a couple hours before I did. I ended up setting the alarm and clocks something like 2 hours ahead of time on her. I also switched the hair conditioner with shampoo and the shampoo with hair conditioner. If I was smart I would have just stuck with the shampoo and hair conditioner joke but You all know I’m not that smart. Anyways she washed her hair with conditioner and conditioned it with shampoo like planned.

Here is where the practical joke accidentally went a little hay wire. My intention was to tell my roommate right before she left for work that the time was wrong and that she had another couple of hours before work started. That was my intention but what ended up happening was that I fell back to sleep and she ended up going to work 2 hours ahead of time only to find the parking lot empty and the doors locked, lol. Normally it was just a little dark out and she couldn’t figure out why it was really dark out until she heard the time on the radio I think it was. Anyways it all turned out OK after a few slaps on the back of the head because she was kind of happy that she got to go back to bed for another hour and a half or something like that.

The moral of this story??? Have a blast today young and old! I do have to wonder how many times “your shoes are untied” or “your zipper is down” will be used today and will work? Right now I’m thinking of what to pull on my roommate. The problem is she is 77 years old and not in the best of health. The best I can come up with is maybe switching her oxygen with helium. That could be good for a laugh or two. I”M KIDDING!!! I would never do that. Helium is way too expensive these days.

Oh yeah! Rochester continues to slip closer to Syracuse. As of today they are only 4 inches away from the Cuse. Go Rochester!!! Have Fun April Fools Day All!

I just went to Google at http://www.google.com/ and had to use a flashlight to see around. Anyways today/tonight is the day that the lights and other electric powered products should be turned off for an hour. I believe between 8pm – 9pm is the set time but doing it anytime today or tonight will bring attention to the world wide energy conservation awareness.

Read More About Earth Hour at http://www7.earthhourus.org/

Have a Great Day and an Hour of Darkness All!

I was going to title this blog, “March Goes Out Like A Lion”, but with some hints at another storm heading our way on Monday, this month isn’t over just quiet yet.

Well this storm didn’t come in as big as I noted the models were showing back on Sunday, but it is still looking to pad the numbers for everyone tonight into tomorrow. Heavy, wet, slushy snow what a treat for all!

General idea is 4-8 for Buffalo and Rochester (depending on the water content of the snow, could actually go as high as 10 inches but not very likely). 3-5 for Syracuse and Albany. And 1-3 for Bingo, depening on how much sleet mixes in there.

With that said if Buffalo and Rochester can get the upper end of 8 inches and Syracuse stays light with only 3 or 4 we will be looking at an even closer race heading into the final month. Sure is a fun race this year!

Is it time for another snow dance or a Spring dance. It’s that time of the year where we normally start getting more and more of what I call teaser days. You know when the sun shines bright and the temperatures go into the 50’s and 60’s. We have had a few sunny days but so far it’s been staying pretty cold still. The normal temps for this time of the season range from around 44 F – 48 F for the Golden Snowball cities.

The question is are you ready for Spring or should Winter drag on? Leave a comment if you have a minute as to what you prefer to see. I think I might know the answer to this one though. Personally I would like to see the season end with one BIG storm of a foot or more and who ever has the most wins. Looking at last year though we had a storm come through around April 15th – 16th http://goldensnowball.com/2007/04/song-stuck-in-my-head.html Of course right after that we had some decent days with temps in or around 70 degrees.

Right now it’s sunny in the Syracuse area but it looks like that might not last. Looking to the west there is some precipitation going on. Buffalo and Rochester might have a chance to melt away some of the lead Syracuse has if they can keep it to mostly snow and not just rain. The way I figure if it’s going to be cold and cloudy we might as well get snow instead of a cold rain. If the sun is going to be shining then bring on the 50’s and 60’s. Have a great week all!

It’s time to break out the shorts sandals and T-shirts now that Spring has arrived, I think. Does anyone know what time did (does) Spring begin here in the North East???

Just a heads up before any articles come out about the Golden Snowball contest. The contest DOES NOT END the first day of spring. It ends the last day of April when the threat of any snowfall has pretty much diminished by then. The contest continues and it is still up for grabs and it’s still a tight race between Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse. Last place is still pretty close also between Binghamton and Albany.

Just the sound of Spring sounds pretty good even though there is no sign of spring weather in the air doesn’t it? More to come a bit later!

High fives to all of the Syracuse women’s basketball team for making the 2008 NCAA tournament this season. OK maybe not high fives because with a couple of the taller ladies if we both jumped to do high fives the chances are I can’t even reach their hands. Not to mention I can’t jump to high either. Syracuse who drew a number 7 seed in the women’s NCAA tournament will be playing the Hartford Hawks I believe at 2:00 pm on Saturday the 22nd. You can get all the information on the ladies team at http://www.syracuse.com/today/index.ssf/2008/03/syracuse_women_rewarded_with_n.html along with printable brackets for the womens NCAA tournament.

Speaking of the NCAA tournaments Sre and Weatherman from the Golden Snowball forum have set up a NCAA Mens Basketball Bracket Challenge contest which is open to everyone. The normal prize is an electronic pat on the back to the winner. They did the same thing for the bowl games during the football season which was fun. They pitted the Golden Snowball entries against the In The Clutch entries to make it even more fun. I made my picks last night which I am sure they are all copying right now and you can make yours anytime you want to as long as they are made before Noon on Thursday.

It’s easy and it only takes a few minutes to pick your teams the way they have it set up. All you need is a user name. It really is that easy. Go to http://www.intheclutch.x10hosting.com/ncaabbracket/entry.htm and enter a user name, just click on the team you like and when your done just click the submit picks button at the bottom and good luck if you enter. If your looking for a good sports forum to just hang out at without a lot of flaming then check out their forum at http://intheclutch.net/ . Once again here is the web page to play in the Men’s NCAA Bracket Challenge Contest at InTheClutch http://www.intheclutch.x10hosting.com/ncaabbracket/index.htm

Good luck to the Syracuse men’s basketball team which will play Robert Morris tonight at the Dome in the Nit tournament. The SU men’s team drew a number 1 seed which means if they keep on winning they will be playing 3 games at home I believe. If your down about them not making the NCAA tourney this season then it’s time to get over it. These kids will be coming out to play tonight with all heart and it will be a good game. If you have a chance to make it to the game then go cheer them on. The chances are your going to get a decent seat and get a good look at what this team can do. Have a great day all and GO CUSE!!!