The day after today: Hail and high winds deep in the coal region of PA

I swear I was just in a scene from the DAY AFTER TOMORROW. A monster storm just rolled through with tornado warnings and severe storm alerts.. Hail, high winds.. Saw no funnel clouds or dogs floating by my window with witches on brooms, so that’s a plus.. but word on the ‘net’ is that Danville, PA, got socked with so much hail that windshields are broken all over town..

Here is how big they were 

It may sound a little cliche at this point, and you can blame it on global warming or earth changes or manmade chemtrails, but I think weather is getting stronger. Maybe not ‘worse’ in the sense that it’s widespread, but where storms do pop up they gain so much strength so fast that it makes you truly wonder if the tails of tribulation to come across our planet are true.

There was one blast of thunder that was so loud, so deep, it sounded like a train literally tore open the house and ran through .. Mutley the Dog ran from his normal hiding spot under a desk to the closet floor and attempting to squeeze in between a pair of my jeans and the wall…

Safe here in the coal mines of PA still, though. Lots of flooding and broken trees, but life will go on. 

Always could be worse.

IMAGE: Twitter / DannyReeseWx

If you’ve ever driven to the Bloomsburg fair in Pennsylvania, you may know where this photo was taken. It is from 1901—long before a highway was in the location that a train was then..

I love looking at old photos, such as these.. I can stare for hours and try to figure out what was going through the minds of the cloak-laden men and women of yesterday..

In our modern times, America is filled with dilapidated structures, broken down bridges, and pothole infested highways. Trains are dead.. Malls are dying. The nation is shifting into a lower standard of living. But at one time this nation was thriving.. But here’s some images of the past. It wasn’t great for all, and sometimes for no one.. But these photos of yesterday showcase perfectly that the nation was in its youth and alive with energy and vibrancy. .. 

FINAL FAIR NIGHT. UNTIL NEXT YEAR, BLOOMSBURG FAIR, IT'S BEEN REAL

The harvest moon is bright in the sky.. you can see your breath as it rises into the night air. Amazing time to be alive.. an amazing time for a fair.

There is something special about a little fair in Bloomsburg, PA. It’s actually quite a big. It’s a fair with flare. And tonight, as the chill of autumn descends over a landscape that was recently burdened with summer and sin, it’s a much nicer landscape to view.

All the food has been fried. And people are fried, too. It’s been a long week for carnies and ‘freaks’ and geeks with sneaks. But it’s been real, that’s for sure.

And reality stays the same at the Bloomsburg Fair. What was there in 1940 is pretty much there today. That is the amazing part of it all. It’s like each year picks up where the previous year left off..

I recall older days when a fuller family went to the fair. I remember warm afternoons under the sun and cold nights—I even remember a late 1980s night when my cousin and I jammed ourselves into a phone booth to stay warm. Yes, those phone booths are gone now. Replacing them? Mind-numbed zombies watching their phones instead of the surroundings.

The fair doesn’t change much. The people who go to it do, however.
But..
In the nighttime air, under that harvest moon, families still walk together, children still laugh in awe at the sights and smells and sounds. And lovers still embrace by a gate, leaving the fair, glancing back, and saying ‘see you next year’ with a wink and a smile.

Bloomsburg Fair 2012. END.
To be continued.

Balloons litter the sky.. the ground.. and they caused a blackout of power at the stage tonight at the Bloomsburg Fair. All in a a good first day, don’t you think?

Fair time. Vendors armed with food. Bloomsburg Fair 2012.

THE ULTIMATE SIGN OF AUTUMN FOR ME

If tonight’s not fair weather I don’t know what is. Good luck *starting tomorrow* to the great Bloomsburg Fair. Hope people show up in the hundreds of thousands… It was cancelled by a flood last year for the first time in 100+ years.  The first time. Think about that.

So that is what makes this year’s fair all the better. 

Give me the Gyros (though I don’t eat them) and the halushki.. give me the freak shows and the Native American bands.. give me then bleenies and the snake-girl! I want it all! 

I want the cheap knock off ShamWows.. I want the bizarre people selling honey. I want the crazy man selling pianos. I want it all!

Give me the grease, the guy in the trash can who follows people around, the pigs and cows and the dog show for $.50.. Kenny Rogers will be there, too. Can’t beat that, right?

For Coal Regioners who understand this fair, it’s an amazing time. Think about this.. since the 1800s people have been going to Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, for the biggest fair in the state. I have been going since 1980 when I was born. And all through time, lovers kissed under cold starlit nights, families laughed while playing games .. children were in awe of the show. It’s back again. 

So I wish them good weather and great memories.

The Bloomsburg Fair’s 157th fair is set to begin after a long hiatus due to earth changes. Glad it’s back!

The fair that will never be, 2011.. it was supposed to start this weekend. Due to a natural disaster, it’s on hold. For another year. For the first time in almost two centuries. That’s massive.

I am still upset.

For the first time in 157 years the Bloomsburg Fair is canceled. Just not right… I know the flood..the misery.. but my God, just not right at all.

Some depressing news, to me at least

Due to the flood, this year’s Bloomsburg Fair is off… Sad to see it not be happening. Very sad indeed… First time in fair history… 157 years later……

Meanwhile in Pennsylvania...

Flood waters are receding, leaving a massive mess of mud and grime behind. Cleanup begins.
Cleanup in Columbia County
Water is Receding in Schuylkill County
Evacuation Order Lifted for Some Luzerne Co. Residents
Harrisburg and Midstate residents start to rebuild homes, lives after flooding
But just as the cleanup beings, this still occurring: Dozens more families on the west end of town had to be evacuated overnight Friday due to an ammonia leak at Windsor Foods that began wafting over homes

Meanwhile in Pennsylvania...

True devastation in Bloomsburg: 25% of town under water .. worst flooding since early 1900s

True devastation in Bloomsburg: 25% of town under water .. worst flooding since early 1900s

This is the site of the upcoming (hopefully) Bloomsburg Fair. Vendors were set to begin setting up this weekend.. no official word coming on the September 24 start date…..

Flood water are leading to very desperate situations in Pennsylvania

25% of Bloomsburg is flooded— this is some of the worst flooding since 1904.. parts of Nanticoke are so inundated with water that entire buildings are covered.. Streams that drain into Susquehanna River are backing up and now endangering neighborhoods that weren’t in danger of flooding.. There are houses floating down rivers and being destroyed as they cannot make under bridges..City Island in Harrisburg is covered.. Front Street in Harrisburg is flooded..Shipoke flooded.

As Obama speaks to the nation about the economy, another catastrophic economic disaster occurring...

Flooding in Northeastern Pennsylvania.. God bless the cities along the Susquehanna River.. the from Wilkes Barre on down to Harrisburg and all the way to York and Lancaster. Everything washing away tonight.. 

Another economic disaster. Another natural disaster..

No way home… Looking at a flooded Bloomsburg, PA.. Wondering what to do now..

A view from a window.. Bloomsburg, PA

Best links to follow the floods in Pennsylvania

Wilkes Barre, PA: http://www.timesleader.com/

Hazleton, PA: http://standardspeaker.com/

Bloomsburg, PA: http://www.pressenterpriseonline.com/

Pottsville: http://republicanherald.com/

Harrisburg, PA: http://www.pennlive.com/

York, PA: http://www.yorkdispatch.com/

Lancaster, PA: http://lancasteronline.com/

TV: 
WNEP: http://www.wnep.com/

WGAL: http://wgal.com/

More to come.. 

Welcome to the town of Bloomsburg. Stay for a while…

And yes, I'm also worried about the Bloomsburg Fair

The greatest time of autumn is coming. Bloomsburg Fair season.. already the fair delayed vendors from setting up 9/11.. I certainly hope whatever rain and mud leftovers remain after waters subside can be cleaned .. and hopefully in time for the start of the great annual autumnal brilliance of pig pens and fried foods called the Bloomsburg Fair.