Sean's Ramblings 2021 Year In Review

In my early days of blogging, I found someone who made an end of the year blog post where they took the first few lines of the first entry of each month to create a random and interesting summary of the year. I liked the idea, and this is now the 17th time I've done this.

January: 25 years ago last month, the film Sudden Death starring Jean-Claude Van Damme was released in American theaters. I'm sure that some people may disagree with this, but the film is basically Die Hard at a hockey game/arena. 

February: In February 2009, I created the first of four annual Best Pittsburgh Sports Blog Tournaments. This was a time when the blog scene exploded, and the goal of the tournament was to highlight the outstanding writing and work by so many people.

March: I feel like I'm spending much of my time in the bathroom these days. No, I'm not bringing back any TMI Thursday posts about bathroom stories from my younger days. This is about potty training three year old Luigi.

April: With the 2021 baseball season starting today, I asked people to share their predictions for the Pittsburgh Pirates. While I’ve done similar predictions posts over the years about the Steelers, Penguins, Pirates, the 2020 elections, and even the entire 2020s decade, this might be my favorite group of participants yet. 

May: Sure, Trevor Lawrence was selected #1 overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars at the recent NFL draft, but can he throw two footballs perfectly at the exact same time like three year old Luigi?

June: I thought I would share some pictures from the last month or so. I'm not sure if I mentioned this earlier, but The Moose and Pedro Tulo have been back to in-person school four days a week for about two months now. Therefore, it's just me and Luigi (and Ziggy) at home between the time we drop the older kids off at school in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon. 

July: I recently purchased a subscription to SiriusXM satellite radio since I expect to be in the car a lot more than I have been over the last year plus. 

August: My wife and I celebrated our anniversary by getting an extremely rare night away from the kids. We stayed at a very nice hotel, and when they saw it was our anniversary, the front desk staff said they would send something to our room.

September: The 20th anniversary of 9/11 is this Saturday, and there will probably be many TV shows, videos, and articles to commemorate this tragedy. I realized that I never really shared where I was on 9/11, so I thought I would do that now.

October: I'm going to share something that only a few people know. It's something that I never discuss and thought went away completely. I was reminded a few weeks ago about this though when I got a letter in the mail.

November: Today is election day in Virginia, and I think that I speak for Virginians and those in the DC area in that we’re looking forward to not seeing anymore political advertisements.

December: Our cat Ziggy turned 13 several months ago. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers as a kitten but has largely stayed out of the spotlight since his retirement. Now, he's going big. He's running for president of France!

That's my year in review. Have a Happy New Year!

Sean's Ramblings 2020 Year In Review

This is my 16th(!) annual year in review where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month to create a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2020. This is different than my best of and worst of post from a few days ago. Well, let's see how this turns out:

January: Happy New Year everyone! I hope that your 2020 is off to a good start.

February: I hate not writing. I've written Sean's Ramblings for over 15 years now, and I get in the pattern of writing a new post every few days. It bothers me that it's been two weeks since my last post. So today, I'm going to share the primary reason why I've had this break. My kids!

March: I like my neighborhood. It's a community of about 1,800 condos, townhouses, and single-family homes in Northern Virginia built around an 18-hold golf course. The fact that I can say that I live on (or across the street from) a golf course sounds much more fancy than it is.

April: Even before we've been staying at home, but especially since we're here 24/7, I've played a fun game around the house called "Turning Off Lights in Rooms Where There Are No People." I have the high score!

May: I've listened to the Ya Jagoff! podcast since its inception several years ago. For me, it's a fun way to stay connected to my hometown of Pittsburgh and to hear about some of the fun activities and events happening and people of the 'Burgh.

June: On Saturday night, I turned on the TV expecting to watch a movie or show. Instead, I watched coverage of protests occurring throughout the country.

July: In June of 2019 DJ Bonics became possibly the first DJ to perform the national anthem. The former Pittsburgher and Wiz Khalifa DJ (and University of Pittsburgh graduate) lives in Minneapolis now and performed this at a Minnesota Twins game. 

August: Although I'm not the target audience, I checked out a recent online blogging event organized by BlogHer. What stood out for me the most from the various speakers was that your blog should personify yourself, and more importantly, you should create your own niche.

September: Three deaths occurred over the last few days that impacted me and many, many, many others. The first was the passing of actor Chadwick Boseman at only 43 years old from colon cancer.

October: I have read many, many books to my kids over the last decade. There are ones that I enjoy reading like pretty much anything by Dr. Seuss and Eric Carle. 

November: So you may have heard that there are national elections on Tuesday. It's the biggest Presidential election in our lifetime. Well, at least until 2024. While there are numerous polls available for just about every local, state, and national race, I decided to ask an esteemed group of panelists for their thoughts and predictions on a variety of topics.

December: I've thought about writing this post for several months now. I even started a draft in early October, but I never got around to finishing it. I just want to write a blog post about my life, and I guess this is it.

Well, that's my year in review of Sean's Ramblings.You can click here to see my year in review since 2005. Here's to a much better 2021!

Sean's Ramblings 2019 Year In Review

Welcome to my 15th (yes, you read that right) annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2019. Please note that these are not my picks for best of and worst of 2019. That will be a separate blog post coming soon. This is simply a summary (sort of) of Sean's Ramblings in 2019.

January: The biggest story in Pittsburgh sports clearly involves the son of now former Riverhounds assistant coach Mark Pulisic. If you haven’t heard, Chelsea signed his son Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund for approximately $73 million. Not too shabby.

February: It's been a busy month so far due to forming an exploratory committee to run for President. Apparently, donors aren't all that interested in contributing to a campaign of someone with no political experience or name recognition.

March: Actor Luke Perry passed away earlier this week at the way-to-young age of 52. Perry is best known for his role as Dylan McKay on Beverly Hills 90210.

April: I'm so glad that I'm on my community's email list. I mean, usually the posts have no relevance to me, but every once in a while, something entertaining comes out. Enter Rob (not his real name).

May: In November 2018, Ariana Grande released the song Thank U, Next. The song was Grande’s first number one single on the US Billboard Hot 100 and topped the charts in 12 countries. Basically, this was a massive hit. The reason I bring up this up today is because of the song’s first line:

Thought I'd end up with Sean / But he wasn't a match.

June: The 38th annual Celebrate Fairfax took place over the weekend and this was my 18th festival. Based on the time I’ve spent at the festival, I can now vote (which I’m actually going to do today).

July: One of my favorite topics to write about on Sean’s Ramblings has been attending live sports events and concerts. From Max Scherzer’s no-hitter (and nearly perfect game) to Fleetwood Mac and Paul McCartney shows to my hockey road trips, it’s fun to look back at events I’ve attended over the years.

August: A good friend of my in-laws is a huge Pittsburgh Pirates fan. He even got to be the Pirates alumni manager for a day at a Spring Training game about a decade ago where Terry Francona (the Phillies manager at the time) ribbed him since they were from neighboring towns in Butler County.

September: Over the years, I've had various posts about "Celebrities in Pittsburgh Gear" (like these) and "Pittsburgh Athletes with World-Renowned Athletes" or PAWRA (like these). This post, based on the following picture, doesn't fit either of these categories though.

October: I was born and raised in Pittsburgh. Sports was definitely a big part of my life growing up and continues to be today. I’ve been fortunate to see both the Penguins and Steelers become champions. I’ve also lived in Northern Virginia, just outside Washington DC, for over 18 years.

November: If you follow sports or the internet, you’re probably already aware of the situation that occurred last week at the website Deadspin.

December: Before I begin this post, I want to share some alternate titles. I Barely Survived Frozen 2. Or How Seeing Frozen 2 Almost Ended My Life.

That's my year of writing Sean's Ramblings. You can click on previous year in review posts here.


Photo of Luke Perry in 2001 by Leslie Hassler/AP
Photo of Jerome Bettis and the Jonas Brothers from Colin Dunlap

Sean's Ramblings 2018 Year In Review

Welcome to my 14th (yes, 14th!) annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2018. Please note that these are not my picks for best of and worst of 2018 since I posted that last week. This is simply a summary of 2018.

January: Happy New Year! Even though we're now into the second week of 2018, since this is my first post of the year, I find it completely appropriate to include a Happy New Year message.

February: Using only one hand has been quite difficult. While I can type and drive with only my left hand, it's the little things that are bothering me. I cut myself shaving four times yesterday. I can't tie my shoes or put in my contact lenses. Opening Ziploc bags are also tough. Putting toothpaste on a toothbrush is impossible. And of course, I'm not going to be able to pick up 4 month-old Luigi for many weeks.

March: Here are some of the things going on in my life captured in pictures. Please note that I am not a photographer and do not play one on the internet, and these pictures were all taken using my phone.

April: On Monday, the Pittsburgh Pirates defeated the Minnesota Twins 5-4 to remain undefeated through four games of the 2018 season. The Pirates scored all five runs in the first inning with four courtesy of a grand slam by one of the newest Pirates, Colin Moran.

May: Back in 2010 (again, this blog is old), I wrote a post celebrating the fact that the Washington Capitals lost a playoff series. Why am I bringing this up today, 8 years later? Last week, I was featured in a Washington Post article where I said I felt a little sympathy for the Caps (in response to the question of if I feel sympathy for the Caps).

June: Today's video is "Sober Up," the very cool song by AJR.

July: In September 1998, the sports world centered around Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and the single-season home run record. I lived in San Diego at the time and attended the Cubs-Padres game where Sosa hit #63.

August: Seemingly overnight, craft breweries have exploded in Northern Virginia.

September: Over the weekend, we took a trip to the National Capital Trolley Museum in Colesville, Maryland. It's a small venue with a room of about a dozen trolleys/streetcars, and then you can take a ride on one of the streetcars.

October: Sean’s Ramblings is generally a light-hearted blog, and I try to inject some humor in most of the posts. Sure, I may be the only person who finds some of my posts funny, but after 13+ years, I haven’t been canceled yet. (Just checking...can a blog get cancelled? And if I do get cancelled, can WordPress or another platform pick me up?)

November: When I knew that I was going to be in Charleston, South Carolina, I decided that I wanted to attend Shabbat services at Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim, one of the oldest synagogues in the United States. The congregation was founded in 1749 with the current sanctuary built in 1840. After the tragic shootings at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, I definitely wanted to attend Friday night Shabbat services.

December: Happy Hanukkah for those of you who are celebrating! 2018 marks a milestone year in the Hanukkah tradition. It’s now been 20 years that pickles have been part of Hanukkah festivities.

And that's basically my blog for 2018. Well, except for all of the posts about my kids and being a father.

Have a Happy New Year!

Sean's Ramblings 2017 Year In Review

Welcome to my 13th (yes, 13th!) annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2017. Please note that this is not my picks for best of/worst of 2017 since I posted that last week. This is simply a summary of 2017.

January: Happy New Year! Today, you're going to get three rants for the price of one (assuming that you're paying for this blog...which you're not, so you're just getting three rants).

February: Welcome to a brand new edition of Sean analyzing current song lyrics. The songs below are all near the top of the charts and all used lyrics that are inspired by 80s movies.

March: Over the weekend, President Trump sent out the following tweet.

April: We've established that I'm often out of touch, one of the last people to adjust to new technology, and basically, unhip. (Unless it's hip to be square, and then I think I'm okay. If you don't understand this reference, go to Google and search for Huey Lewis and The News greatest hits.)

May: Although my sports focus right now is on the Penguins-Capitals series, the NFL draft took place last week, so I thought I would share my thoughts about the Steelers draft picks. Please note that this isn't exactly an in-depth, analytic blog post. It's slightly different.

June: Twenty years ago last month, the Spice Girls were proclaiming Girl Power (while also telling us what they want, what they really, really want) and Hanson's MMMBop was about to take over the country. Meanwhile, I graduated from college. I nearly missed this anniversary except for a former mentor/supervisor posting something on Facebook about Ithaca College's Senior Splash.

July: In the early 90s, it was impossible to avoid Boyz II Men. They performed ballads such as "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday," "End of the Road," and "I'll Make Love To You" that was played at every wedding, graduation ceremony, and prom.

August: This is Halsey. (It sounds cooler if you say it like "This is Jeopardy.")

September: In the Taylor Swift-Katy Perry rivalry, I'm Team Katy. Despite the fact that she was awful hosting Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards (we can blame the writers, right?), I think we can all agree that it would be much more fun to hang out with Perry over Swift

October: These are depressing times. In the past month, hurricanes Harvey and Irma devastated Texas and Florida respectively. Then, Hurricane Maria absolutely destroyed much of Puerto Rico.

November: When you write over 2,800 blog posts in nearly 13 years, you tend to have some overlapping topics. Therefore, some of this post expands on previous posts though I have some thoughts/notes on fatherhood, Pittsburgh sports media, and Ithaca College too.

December: Woodland Hills High School, just outside the Pittsburgh's city limits, is probably best known for two things: football where the team has been to the WPIAL playoffs for 22 consecutive years and produced nearly a dozen NFL players including Jason Taylor, Rob Gronkowski, and Steve Breaston and musical theater where the school has won countless Gene Kelly Awards for Excellence in High School Musical Theater.

And that's basically my blog for 2017. Well, except for the part about having a new son. That was pretty significant.

Have a Happy New Year!

Sean's Ramblings 2016 Year In Review (Sort Of)

Welcome to my 12th (yes, 12th!) annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2016. Please note that this is not my State of the Ramblings (that comes next month) or my picks for best of/worst of 2016 (that will be later this week). This is simply a summary.

January: Ryan Seacrest, Carson Daly and Pitbull all counted down to start 2016 on national television, but I know that the new year can't truly begin for all us until we know the top visitors to Sean's Ramblings in 2015.

February: Wegmans celebrated its 100th birthday this weekend by giving away lots of samples, grocery bags and birthday cake. (My 1.5 year old - Pedro Tulo - loved the sheet cake.)

March: What a scary headline. The American political system has become extremely partisan with little getting done in Washington, so many voters are looking for a political outsider.

April: Today’s post comes from Jenilee Dunson, a geek, otaku, and lover of all things kawaii (I have no idea what this means) who also writes about video games, anime, tech and toys at Geeky Sweetie.

May: I promise that this post isn't too political. I went out on Monday night to play trivia and to watch game three of the Pens-Caps series.

June: You may or may not remember the singer Mike Posner.

July: Season 69 of the Learned League ended last week, and I dominated questions related to television where I got 9 of 10 correct.

August: Ron Lippock runs the PGH Sports Daily website and also sends out Pittsburgh Sports Daily Bulletin e-mails with links to blogs and articles about, you guessed it, Pittsburgh sports.

September: Tuesday marked the first day of kindergarten for The Moose (my five year old) and first day of preschool for Pedro Tulo (my two year old). Naturally, there was a lot to do in the days and weeks leading up to the start of the school year.

October: With Rosh Hashanah starting later this evening, I wanted to wish everyone a very Happy New Year. To get everyone in the holiday spirit, I thought I would share a quick story.

November: Halloween with young kids can be really fun. It can also be very frustrating.

December: I recently found a $100 US treasury bond that I received in 2001, apparently as a gift for graduating from graduate school.

Some sports, some fatherhood stuff, some politics, and some pop culture. That seems about right.

Sean's Ramblings 2015 Year In Review (Sort Of)

Welcome to my 11th annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2015.

January: Happy 2015! Now that 2014 is complete, it's time for my annual post where I share data about Sean's Ramblings visitors and how people find this blog.

February: Happy Tuesday everyone! Let's get right to the trivia today. Your challenge is to answer the questions based on the pictures below.

March: I don't understand Maroon 5. I mean, I understand that they have a string of catchy pop hits, but they're as big as they are solely because of Adam Levine.

April: Today’s post comes from Stephen of the Crank Crank Revolution, and is part of a special day of shenanigans from other Pittsburgh Bloggers. You can see my post over on Jelly Jars where I share a never-written about story about trying to impress my wife by biking on our honeymoon.

May: I received a message in my Spam folder recently from someone named BadGirl28. Yes, it really was a Spam folder. Anyway, I was curious about why BadGirl28 went by BadGirl28.

June: There hasn't been a Trivia Tuesday here in a while, and this one is unique. Your challenge is to answer these very random questions.

July: Meow Mix isn't saying anything, but I can see what's happening. They are discontinuing the wet cat food that Ziggy eats. I used to purchase Ziggy's wet food at Target, but they stopped carrying his specific food a few months ago.

August: I watched a lot of wrestling when I was in middle school/junior high. Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, The Junkyard Dog, The Ultimate Warrior, The British Bulldogs, King Kong Bundy, Hacksaw Jim Duggan and so many others including Rowdy Roddy Piper who passed away on Friday at the age of 61.

September: We went to a birthday party at a park on Sunday, and as we were leaving, I noticed that a youth group that I was involved in during high school was setting up in a nearby pavilion. I approached one of the girls, who was probably about 16, and had the following conversation.

October: One of my favorite events of the year, the Fall for Fairfax KidsFest, takes place this weekend (Saturday, 10/3 & Sunday, 10/4) at the Fairfax County Government Center. This free event is a huge hit for my kids.

November: Many years ago, I was somewhat of a political junkie. I majored in politics, organized a successful voter registration drive in college and had internships with my Congressman and a State Senator. Like many people, though, I got tired of all of the partisan fighting.

December: I received a coupon pamphlet in the mail recently featuring ads and deals for local businesses. While there didn't seem to be anything worthwhile, I couldn't help but notice this ad on the cover.

While this was a "summary" of my blog in 2015, I encourage you to check out my Best and Worst of 2015 post.

Have a very Happy New Year!

2014 Sean's Ramblings Year In Review

Welcome to my 10th annual (yes, 10th! More on this in a few weeks) year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2014. Please note that this is not my last post of 2015. I'll have another entry or two to close out 2014.

January - Happy New Year everyone! Anytime that a picture of someone wearing a Pittsburgh sports logo or discussion of Pittsburgh appears in a major magazine, I'm going to blog about it (see Emma Watson and the New Girl cast).

February - It's the Monday after the Super Bowl and Groundhog Day, so I'll keep today's post short and simple.

March - As I'm typing this on Sunday evening, the Federal Government and every school in the DC area announced that they are closed on Monday even though it is calm outside right now.

April - Today’s post comes from Tyler of YinZSTER, and is part of a special day of shenanigans from other Pittsburgh Bloggers. You can see my post over on Small-Town Dad, where I write about preparing to be a new father again.

May - With a new child, it's time to find a bigger home for the family. While I'm not really looking to leave the DC area, there are two job openings in Los Angeles that interest me: the head coaching job for the Los Angeles Lakers and being the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.

June - Did you realize that it is now June? That means Celebrate Fairfax!, Northern Virginia’s largest community-wide celebration, is set to take place THIS WEEKEND (June 6-8, 2014) at the Fairfax County Government Center.

July - As a global national social-media influencer, I was invited to attend Gifford's Good Times Ice Cream Tour Ice Cream Social at Dulles Golf Center & Sports Park.

August - Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez is struggling. Actually, that may be an understatement. Alvarez seems to have lost the ability to accurately throw the ball to first base.

September - Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison officially retired over the weekend. While I have never been an NFL quarterback or even played one on the internet, I would think that Harrison would be at the top of the list of defensive players I didn't want to play against.*

October - As a soccer referee (and probably every other type of referee), you are required to dress professionally. There is no room for individuality when you put on your yellow shirt and pull up your black socks with white stripes by your knees.

November - Did you vote today? If so, good for you. If not, there's still time to read this and go to your local polling station.

December - One of my son's favorite books these days is Dr. Seuss' One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. When he wants us to read this book, he simply asks for Green Fish. I don't know why.

I hope that you enjoyed Sean's Ramblings in 2014 (though I'm not done yet)! Thanks again for your support.

* This post is particularly funny since Harrison came out of retirement and will start against the Ravens in the playoffs on Saturday.

2013 Sean's Ramblings Year In Review

Welcome to my 9th annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2013.

January - Have you ever wondered who visits Sean's Ramblings and how they found this blog? No? Really, it's just me?

February - With the Super Bowl over, it's time to turn our attention to hockey, college basketball and even baseball's Spring Training. Dan, who formally announced his retirement from blogging and one of the people who inspired me to start Sean's Ramblings, passed on this story from last week.

March - We're going all the way to Kuwait for the first video.

April - Today's post comes from Ya Jagoff! ,and is part of a special day of shenanigans from other Pittsburgh Bloggers. Enjoy (and make sure to read all the way to the bottom to see where you can find my guest post)!

May - Although I'm not in the market for a new home, it never hurts to look, right? I've lived in Northern Virginia for almost 12 years, so staying in the Washington DC area makes sense. Obviously, I would want something bigger than where I currently live.

June - The Pittsburgh Penguins are in the Eastern Conference Finals and the Pittsburgh Pirates are tied for the second best record in the majors. Therefore I'm writing about, um, the Pittsburgh Steelers today. I recently received an e-mail from NFLShop.com selling Steelers swimwear.

July - Although this video is a month old, how often have you seen Thomas Dolby perform "She Blinded Me With Science" with astronaut Buzz Aldrin?

August - Although I've followed the Pittsburgh Pirates as closely as ever, I've avoided writing this blog post for many weeks. After collapses in both 2011 and 2012, my fear is that the Pirates will collapse again as soon as I write about the team's success.

September - My son starts his first day of preschool today. It's a brand new place for him with teachers and other kids he has never met. Plus, instead of sleeping in a crib or pack-and-play, he's going to sleep on a mat for the first time.

October - Today should be a happy day as the Pittsburgh Pirates are playing in their first playoff game since 1992. After 20 straight losing seasons, it has been an extraordinary year watching Andrew McCutchen stake his claim as the National League MVP, Pedro Alvarez tie for the league title in home runs, and the pitching staff seemingly always getting key outs. Unfortunately, one of the biggest Pirates fans I know, my cousin Bob, passed away Friday night.

November - You may have noticed that I don't update Sean's Ramblings nearly as often as I used to. I could share a variety of excuses, but really, it's President Obama's fault.

December - You've seen matryoshka dolls (I looked up the name), or Russian nesting dolls, where there are dolls of decreasing size placed inside other dolls. Personally, I think these are really cool. I have no idea where my aunt found this but she gave me one of former Pittsburgh Penguin great Jaromir Jagr.

I hope that you enjoyed Sean's Ramblings in 2013! Thanks for your support, and I'll "see" you here in 2014. Have a Happy New Year!

2012 Sean's Ramblings Year In Review

Welcome to my 8th annual (yes 8th!) year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2012.

January - Although the Steelers defeated the Cleveland Browns 13-9 Sunday, the Baltimore win against the Cincinnati Bengals means that the Ravens earned the AFC North Division title and a first round bye.

February - You're familiar with the nursery rhyme Row, Row, Row Your Boat, right? If not (and seriously, how can you not know this song?), here are the lyrics

March - Celebrate Fairfax, Northern Virginia’s largest festival, announced its headliners for the 30th annual event taking place on June 8-10 at the Fairfax County Government Center. I am quite excited by the line-up.

April - I’m on a neighborhood message board which is often useful but can sometimes be a little ridiculous. Take a look at the messages from last week with some of my commentary.

May - We haven’t had many responses to Trivia Tuesday recently. Are the questions too easy or too difficult? Regardless, I sense that you’ll do well this week.

June - We recently visited New Jersey for the Memorial Day weekend and had a great time. That’s not of the point of this post, though. New Jersey is one of the last places (along with Oregon, I believe) that requires full service when you get gasoline.

July - During the summer between my Junior and Senior years of college, I worked as an intern for Congressman Mike Doyle at one of his Western Pennsylvania offices.

August - The Pittsburgh Pirates continued their amazing season by acquiring three new members to the team on Monday night and Tuesday. Most analysts never thought the Pirates would be so aggressive in adding these players to help the team compete for the playoffs for the first time since 1992, but the team has proved critics wrong all season.

September - Dear US Open, First, let me congratulate you on another exciting US Open. Now that I got the obligatory nice sentence out of the way, let’s get down to business.

October - While I'm not sure if I'm truly ready to make Trivia Tuesday a weekly feature again, I found this fun game titled Know Your States. Your challenge is simply (or not so simply) to place the U.S. state on the map

November - Although my wife doesn’t like being the subject of many blog posts, she thought that I should share this story about her recent trip to our neighborhood grocery store.

December - I apologize for posting my picks a little late today. Of course, if you're using my picks for your own personal gambling, then I'm really sorry.

There you go. Have a Happy New Year everyone!

2011 Sean's Ramblings Year In Review

Welcome to my 7th annual year in review, where I take the first few lines of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and interesting (maybe?) summary of 2011.

January - Welcome to my 6th annual year in review, where I take the first line or two of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2010. (Sean’s note: Perhaps I should make sure that I post this year in review post in December of each year.)

February - There are icy conditions in part of the Washington DC area today. Therefore, the local television stations show school and government delays and closures on the bottom of the screen.

March - (If you're looking for the final four round of the best Pittsburgh sports blog tournament, please scroll down to the next post.)

I have an amazing idea for a name that tune edition of Trivia Tuesday.

April - This week's Trivia Tuesday is quite simple. Where is Sean and when is he coming back? Just know that I am still around. Overwhelmed and tired, but still around.

May - On Saturday, we went on our first date night since our baby arrived. We planned on going to dinner followed by watching a movie, but what movie to see.

June - When I started this blog 6+ years ago, I planned on using seansramblings.blogspot.com as the website address. Unfortunately, someone named Sean from Oxford, Mississippi already had this domain name, so my website address is missing the "S" in Sean's (well, the 2nd S).

July - If you're working today, I'm sure that you don't feel like working following the long holiday weekend. Therefore, I present to you several Sporcle quizzes to help you get through the day.

August - It seems like only days ago when I wrote about my excitement of the return of Debbie Gibson. After seeing her performance on Friday's Good Morning America, I'm not as enthusiastic.

September - The White House announced last night that President Obama will address a joint session of Congress on Thursday, September 8th regarding his plan for jobs and to improve the economy. While I appreciate President Obama presenting information on his plan on the biggest political stage available, doesn't anyone in the administration have a calendar?

October - I recently passed the six-month mark of being a father which has been a wonderful, tiring, and life-changing experience. Since I don’t feel like writing about the Steelers today, I figured that I’d share my recent experiences of fatherhood.

November - After giving my son a spoonful of baby food, specifically apples, I asked him the following question:

Me: How do you like them apples?

Kid: (No response)

December - Congratulations to Debi V for winning the Orient Watch. Debi V was commenter #5 and wants to go on a fun vacation this holiday season.

Trivia, Debbie Gibson, life as a new father, weather, Pittsburgh sports and more? Looks and sounds like a typical year at Sean’s Ramblings where I write about a wide variety of topics. On behalf of me and everyone else here at Sean's Ramblings (that would still be me), thank you very much for reading, commenting and for your continued support. Have a Happy New Year!

2010 Sean's Ramblings Year In Review

Welcome to my 6th annual year in review, where I take the first line or two of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2010.

January - Welcome to my first post of 2010! I posed this question back in August, but I think it's time for us to come to a consensus on what to call 2010. I'm leaning towards either 10 or twenty-ten.

February - Between the Grammy Awards and the Penguins and Pitt games, Sunday was a good television day.

March - In an extremely close championship, Bucs Dugout defeated WHYGAVS 50.7% to 49.3% to win the 2nd annual Best Pittsburgh Sports Blog Tournament. Bucs Dugout joins last year’s winner, The Pensblog, in the pantheon of Pittsburgh sports blogs.

April - I figure TMI Thursday is as an appropriate time and place as any to make an announcement. After 1,525 posts over 5+ years, I am ending my time at Sean’s Ramblings. (Sean's note: If you didn't figure it out, this post was an April's Fools joke.)

May - Here are some links to start your week. Instead of receiving $5.9 million in 1999, due to a cash shortage, the Mets worked out a deal to defer Bobby Bonilla's salary. Therefore, the Mets will pay Bobby Bo $1,193,248.20 every July 1 from 2011 to 2035. That's nearly $30 million. Good for him.

June - Welcome to June! I'm sure that you could be outside enjoying the nice weather (assuming that the weather is nice in your neighborhood today) or even working. However, coming off the holiday weekend, wouldn't you rather see how well you know the past decade?

July - While working as a soccer referee on Wednesday night, there was an ice cream truck in the parking lot. After running around on a warm, summer day, there's nothing like a refreshing treat from the ice cream truck. Plus, the familiar music of the ice cream truck takes you back to when you were a kid.

August - I spent the past few days in Tucson, Arizona, so I thought I would share my thoughts about the trip. Everyone said that even though Tucson would be hot, it would be a dry heat. Well, there was actually some humidity since it is Monsoon season. There's also a southern Arizona city named Dragoon, so yes, there was a monsoon in Dragoon.

September - Although TMI Thursdays are a thing of the past, I figure that this story about my health may qualify as too much information. A few weeks ago, I had some discomfort on my right side. I thought that I may have had an appendicitis, but I figured that I would have been in significantly more pain if that was the case.

October - A significant portion of my family is from East Liverpool, Ohio, most famous for being the "Pottery Capital of the World" and the hometown of former Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz.

November - In November 2009, I grew a moustache for Movember to benefit the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Livestrong Foundation. This November, I am participating in NaBloPoMo, National Blog Posting Month.

December - Have you ever noticed that local news seems to have “Breaking News” nearly every day?


As usual, it seems like I wrote about a wide variety of topics. On behalf of me and everyone else here at Sean's Ramblings (that would still be me), thank you very much for reading, commenting and for your continued support. Have a Happy New Year!

2009 Year In Review

Welcome to my 5th annual year in review, where I take the first line or two of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2009.

January - I wasn’t planning on posting today, but since it is Thursday, I figured I would share a quick story. After eating too many dairy products over the past day or two (mmm...cheese) coupled with some alcohol last night, I managed to clog my first toilet of 2009 even with a courtesy flush.

February - Are you spending the day waiting for Super Bowl XLIII to begin? Here are some links, especially if you’re a Steelers fan, to help you pass the time until kick-off.

March - Ashley Diparlo and Becky Emmers of WTAE's Pittsburgh Channel website are awesome. They are even more awesome for including the Best Pittsburgh Sports Blog Tournament on their Links N'@ video.

April - I’m writing this on Tuesday night since my computer is going to be one of many to explode on Wednesday from the Conficker worm.* Should be fun! Hopefully, the world isn’t going to end and you’re able to read this.

May - The Virginia Lottery has a great advertising campaign at some Metro stations. It’s a simple electronic billboard with bright red numbers indicating the current jackpot for Mega Millions.

June - I was awake earlier Sunday than I am during the work week since I was scheduled to referee several adult co-ed soccer games. There were thunderstorms in the middle of the night, but the phone lines and websites of the referee assigner, soccer league and county all indicated that the field was open.

July - Now that I wrote about my gamblings experience in Vegas, I thought I would share notes from the rest of my vacation. I spotted Alexander Ovechkin lying out at the Bally's pool with an attractive female companion.

August - A conductor in Lithuania created an orchestral piece to accompany Nora, the piano playing cat. Enjoy!

September - Here is your opportunity to relive game six of the 1991 Stanley Cup Finals between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota North Stars.

October - It seems like the Penguins were raising the Stanley Cup only yesterday, yet the NHL regular season starts tonight. Yes, really. I’m being serious.

November - Is it a turn-on or turn-off to see someone with Lucky Charms in their grocery store cart?

December - After last week's difficult A-List actress edition, this may be one of the easier versions of Trivia Tuesday. Your challenge is to name the three letter airport code to the 10 busiest airports in the United States.

As usual, it seems like I wrote about a wide variety of topics. We got a TMI Thursday and a Trivia Tuesday mixed in with some Pittsburgh sports, my life as a soccer referee, our Vegas vacation and a question that scholars have debated for decades.

On behalf of me and everyone else here at Sean's Ramblings (that would still be me), thank you very much for reading, commenting and for your continued support. Have a Happy New Year!

2008 Year in Review

Welcome to my 4th annual year in review, where I take the first line or two of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2008.

January: New Year’s Day used to be one of the best days of the year as a sports fan.

February: Are you just sitting around your home waiting for the game to start?

March: Did you know that this week (March 3-9, 2008) is National Procrastination Week?

April: In preparing for the upcoming vacation, we thought it might be about time to join the 21st century and purchase a digital camera.

May: In addition to more upbeat stories about the economy and the fact that Rev. Jeremiah Wright won’t go away, one of the major news items this week was the Miley Cyrus pictures taken by Annie Leibovitz for Vanity Fair.

June: I have watched each of the first four games of the Stanley Cup Finals in a different state.

July: What do I have in common with Hillary Clinton? A: Shots of Crown Royal

August: So I’m at my fancy Chicago hotel where internet service costs $13+ per day.

September: During my recent visit to CVS Pharmacy, I noticed that they have this new little scanner where you can check the prices of your items and scan your ExtraCare rewards card for a coupon.

October: I have a problem with Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin and it has nothing to do with her political views.

November: I’m going on about five hours of sleep after attending Monday night’s Pittsburgh Steelers-Washington Redskins game.

December: I’m going to do things a little different for this week’s Steelers recap.

As usual, it seems like I wrote about a wide variety of topics, although sports tended to be the predominant subject. A little bit more politics than usual which should be expected seeing that there was an election this year.

On behalf of everyone here at Sean's Ramblings (that would be me), thank you very much for reading and your continued support. Have a Happy New Year!

2007 In Review

Welcome to my 3rd annual year in review, where I take the first line or two of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting summary of 2007.

January: Our friends have a terrific and lovable dog named Hershey, pictured here. Hershey has been entered in the Dog Show USA contest, and she needs your vote!

February: When I went to my doctor's office last month, he suggested that I take Omega-3 Fatty Acid pills (I've talked about this before) and exercise to help my cholesterol.

March: I received a call from my college earlier this week for its annual student phonathon program. They were asking for money, which is fine since I’m glad to contribute a little.

April: Happy belated National Procrastination Week! National Procrastination Week took place the first full week of March, so I hope that you had a productive, or not so productive week!

May: Since I missed Ben & Jerry’s free scoop day a few weeks ago, I wanted to let everyone know that tomorrow (Wednesday, May 2) is 31-cent scoop night at Baskin Robbins.

June: I’ve been away for a few days, so I have not had the opportunity to write. It may also be tough to write this week between the Pirates-Nationals series and the Celebrate Fairfax festival.

July: The following were the top stories on Yahoo News today as of 12:42 p.m. EDT: Bush and Putin meet to discuss ties.

August: In celebration of an undefeated regular season, my ultimate frisbee team went to Rio Grande Café, a local Mexican chain, last night for food and drinks.

September: I watched a few hours of the US Open on Saturday and was really impressed with the young Americans John Isner and Donald Young.

October: This was a huge sports weekend, and I plan on writing about the Steelers, Pitt, Steve Breaston, fantasy football, fantasy baseball and much more later today or tomorrow.

November: I am writing live from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Yesterday, I arrived at the Albuquerque airport and traveled north on Interstate 25 towards Santa Fe.

December: I’m back from the 2007 hockey road trip, just in time to watch the Steelers-Bengals game.

Based on my summary, the first line of many of my posts have nothing to do the rest of my entry, especially for February. As usual, it seems like I wrote about a wide variety of topics.

Look for some exciting entries to start 2008. On behalf of everyone here at Sean's Ramblings (that would be me), have a Happy New Year!

Year In Review

Welcome to my 2nd annual year in review, where I take the first line of the first entry of each month in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting review of 2006. Here goes:

January: Sarah already touched on some of this, but it was really sad watching Dick Clark last night on New Year's Rockin' Eve.

February: I really, really thought about taking the five hour drive from the DC area to Punxsutawney tonight so I can make it in time for Groundhog's Day.

March: By now, I'm sure that you've seen the AP story and video about the briefing President Bush received by FEMA and Max Mayfield of the National Hurricane Center prior to Hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.

April: Go green, go gold, fight, fight, fight!! GO MASON!!

May: I just have a few quick notes from this weekend's NFL draft related to the Steelers and more.

June: Tomorrow (Friday, June 2nd) the Steelers are being honored at the White House for their Super Bowl victory.

July: We made the trip to the Burgh this weekend and attended our first Pirate game of the season.

August: 25 years ago today, "Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles aired on MTV.

September: Pittsburgh Mayor Bob O'Connor died last night from his battle with brain cancer.

October: With the Steelers on a bye this week, I figured now would be a good time for this monthly feature.

November: Flavor Flav is expecting his seventh kid and I am shocked that the mother is not Deelishis, the winner of Flavor of Love 2.

December: I'm on the mailing list for The Kennedy Center and recently received information about the musical "The Light in the Piazza," which won six 2005 Tony Awards.

This seems like a good representation of 2006. A nice mixture of sports, pop culture and current events. Have a Happy New Year!

Year in Review

The other night, I decided to click the "next blog" feature at the top right of the page to see what else was out there. I found this idea on one blog for a year in review to take the first line of the first entry of each month and post them in order to produce a random and (hopefully) interesting review of 2005. Here goes:

January: Over the past few months, I have had a lot of free time at work.

February: If you're reading this on February 2nd, Happy Groundhog Day!

March: It's nice to know that other people living in the DC area can make fun of people's reaction to (or threat of) snow.

April: I am leaving for Chicago today for my fantasy baseball league draft.

May: Congratulations to Sarah and Gobo on the impending arrival of their new blog, I mean baby. :)

June: Congrats to Ravens running back, Jamal Lewis on being released from jail today after serving four months for being a part of a drug deal.

July: Since I still haven't figured out how to fix the large gap between the headline and text, I'm probably going to change templates over the weekend.

August: At this time exactly one year ago, I was in the pool and hot tub at the Hilton Garden Inn in Southpointe/Pittsburgh, PA. And in less than three hours from this time one year ago today, I got married. :)

September: The pictures tonight of people dead or dying on the streets of New Orleans and thousands of people needing medical attention, food and water is awful to watch and is even more amazing to know that this is happening in this country.

October: Thank you ABC for showing the premier of Commander in Chief again since I missed it on Tuesday.

November: Trick: We didn't have any kids last night.
Treat: I guess that means candy for me and people at work.

December: I know it has been a week since Thanksgiving, but I wanted to share a story about the day. My primary contribution to helping with the Thanksgiving meal was to go to the store and buy the ingredients.