Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Roamy in PA!!....


As Roamy, the roaming gnome travels the last legs of his journey, he landed here in Central Pennsylvania, a bit weary from all of his globetrotting. But we all know there is no place like gnome for the holidays, so a bit of Christmas cheer and New Year celebrations got him re-energized for his final destinations.


Roamy's bed of peanut butter fudge
made by local Amish bakers really hit the spot.
The chocolate covered whoopie pies and snickerdoodle cookies
also helped him to gain back his strength...

Roamy got to stay in a rather unique place: a theatre-turned-to-home-but-soon-to-be-home-and-theatre! The history of the building intrigued him, so a picture with a plaque made by the local historical society seemed to be a good idea...
 



Roamy really liked his stay here, but he did believe the title of
the next movie should be "Gnome With The Wind!"

Lots of history packed into this place.
"Gnown" for its amazing story of how a group of women in 1917
worked together to create this amazing building, it's cornerstone
marking its 1923 completion, its doors opening to the public in 1924.

The theatre has inspired its current owners in many ways. It is home to a family of seven very busy people, an office for a computer consulting firm bringing the meaning of "mom and pop shop" to a whole new level, and the inspiration for a blog whose words and photographs are the foundation for a cobbled memory lane. 110 Penned is how the author, Cyndy, met some of the great people that Roamy has visited, and the very reason how this meeting came to be.


Numbers that inspired words and photographs and many friendships, including Roamy.

Roamy rang in 2012 with great expectations for a wonderful new year! He knows it is going to be tough to beat the amazing experiences he had in 2011, but he is looking forward to it!


"..we've wandered many a weary foot...
seas between us broad have roared..
auld lang syne.."

While Roamy enjoyed the rest in this tranquil rural town, we thought a quick visit to the local university would help put his visit on the map in a grander scale. We visited the statue of Joe Paterno on the University Park campus of Penn State University. This would have been a must-go-to-photo-stop months ago, but now with the controversy that overshadows both Paterno and the university due to accusations of child abuse by a former football coach, a shadow looms large over the whole university. Joepa, as he is affectionally known to Penn State fans, was tangled in the ugly web of deception and forced to retire after being the head coach of the Nittany Lions for 46 years (on the sidelines at PSU for 62 years).


While Roamy really didn't care to get involved
with the details of the controversy, he could not argue that
Joe Paterno was, indeed, larger than life.

The next stop on campus was the Nittany Lion Shrine. Roamy could feel the pride and tradition of the school were as strong as its limestone icon, even if there were a few cracks.

The day began with a little snow, but then the
afternoon sun shone brightly, making it perfect for a little rock climbing.
Roamy stopped here to "paws" and catch his breath...

The holidays would not have been complete without a little of the white stuff, provided by a 'lake effect" storm. Since we are protected by the Allegheny Mountains and have a little distance from the shores of Lake Erie, we often only get a couple of inches of snow during these storms. It is the Nor' Easters that come from Roamy's New England home that really pile the stuff on...


Roamy wanted to make some snow angels, but he made this wish first...

Oh, my! Look at the time! Roamy really needs to get on his way to his next destination. We had seriously considered Mexico, but his host was going to be traveling abroad so instead he is own his way to Illinois to visit another great cyber friend, Susan.


Bon voyage, Roamy! Thanks for stopping by, and, remember: You've (always) Got a Friend in Pennsylvania!" - Cyndy

Monday, January 16, 2012

A note about Roamy -

 When I first came up with the idea to send Roamy out into the world to explore... my intention was that this blog would be a place for people to visit where we could learn a little about the new places Roamy would see as he traveled through the blogosphere from blogger to blogger. In his little box there is a note that explains this.  The destination would not have to be anything fancy.. just someplace noteworthy that would teach us a little about life in your area.. whether it was a historic landmark or a cheesefactory or museum,  a monument or famous restaurant.. etc. etc. etc...   While ALL entries are very much appreciated, the visits more often than not were turning in to a few snapshots around the bloggers home because for whatever the reason, and I know life gets in the way, the hosting blogger wasn't able to show Roamy a point of interest in their area.  Some of you put HUGE effort into your posts and we really did get to know some interesting places and facts. I have loved this journey with Roamy so much and I don't want to see it end.  But his purpose needs to be revisited.  If you are a blogger who is interested in hosting Roamy, please consider this before you take him on. Again, it doesn't have to cost a cent in fancy location choice... just a piece of knowledge, a learning experience, about where Roamy is visiting.   Making it humorous is absolutely a bonus, but not necessary.

 I need to apologize to one or two bloggers who have sent a post in the past month but it wasn't published.  I had issues with mail and they were deleted before I recovered them.  Because I don't choose where Roamy goes, I don't have your contact info to know who you were.  If you still want to post, please resend your entry and I'll accommodate.  

Thank you all for your support of Roamy's adventures... we can get the ball rolling again in the right direction if anyone has interest.  If you have Roamy in your possession right now, please keep the above in mind, and I look forward to hearing from you.   You can reach me at Karenthisoldhouse@hotmail.com

Roamy in St.Louis!

Roamy recently showed up on the doorstep of  Susan, a pharmacist  in St. Louis - below are some pictures she took of their time together..

Roamy first helped Grandpa feed the baby.

(adorable!)



Then he wanted to go to work with me at the pharmacy, so I took him along.

He made friends with Frick and Frack - our delivery guys


St Louis is known to have iffy air quality sometimes so I got him some albuterol




And finally Gnomie helped me package up a 'salad pack' of medications for use in one of our housing facilities. As you can see, this patient is on a lot of medications and Gnomie had to be very careful to put the tablets in the correct spots. He asked for a souvenir so I put a couple in his green case.

Thank you, Susan, for hosting Roamy!