In Which I Score Some More Swag and I Make Patti Jo's Day

A while back, my buddy Jason sent me a rather cryptic message in which he informed me that I should watch my mail for a package.  Over the course of the next few days, he peppered me with more notes with tracking numbers and checking for updates on whether I had received anything, and generally firing up my curiosity.

Yesterday, two packages arrived.

Why are the addresses blocked out?  To prove my excellent skill with Paint, that's why.

In the smaller box was my Paul Castle Bobble Head, which I totally scored when they called me for an interview.  I would still have done the interview without the Bobble Head, but it's another one of the things that totally made this adventure worthwhile.  It now sits on the mantel.

It's kind of like he arrived in a foam sarcophagus, which is a word I don't get to use very often.
Sarcophagus.   

The other package was more intriguing.  I knew it was from Jason, so I documented the process so that he could experience the moment with me.  And also, I like it when people send me awesome stuff, so maybe it would inspire others to do the same.  Hint hint.

It was soft, but not soft like a gummy bear that has been in my pocket all day.
More soft like I hope there isn't a lung in here because my wife'll kill me if I ordered another one.

I attempted the traditional opening of the package with my teeth, but only for show.
I have astoundingly brittle teeth.  Mind bogglingly really.

At this point, I had to hand the camera to my lovely wife so I could get into this thing.  I thought I would have to use scissors, but modern packaging turns out to have nice points where you can tear it open.  Why can't DVD's come packaged like this?

OooOOOOOoooH!

This is what I look like with a bag on my hand. True story.

And there it is!  Das Snow*blower!  On a t-shirt!  It's awesome!
See my face?  It's a happy face!

Big thanks go out to my friend Jason, who I was totally friends with BEFORE he got a pool, so it counts as real.  Incidentally, and here's a shameless plug for his gig.  The man sells cars and his last name is Carr, so it was like it was preordained.  I kind of wish his last name had been SpaceRocket though.  Seriously, if you're  from back home and you haven't gone to talk to Jason, go.  He's good people. And I'm not just saying that because he sent me and my wife awesome t-shirts (wife not pictured).  I'm saying it because he also let me hang out in his pool AND his father taught me how to swim.

I also have to give exceptional kudos to my friend Julia, who created the image of "Das Snow*blower".  I wasn't able to get in touch with Julia while I was writing this, so hopefully I can find out if she has a website I can link to.  I will say that she's a registered massage therapist and I bet she rocks at it, though do to geographical restrictions and my discomfort with being manhandled (or womanhandled, I'm an equal-awkward-opportunity-handled kind of person) I have no personal experience to speak of.  I'm basing this entirely upon our friendship and her skills with Photoshop.  We go way back to the university days.  Really, I have pictures to prove it.

But yesterday wasn't just about getting free stuff.  It was also about making the front page of the Telegraph-Journal, the Saint John paper.  And by making the front page, I mean literally accounting for about one third of the front page.

It's amazing what a professional photographer can do, isn't it? 

There are two things I'd like to draw your attention to.

First, that is 62" TV beside my head.  My head is huge.  Okay, not really.  It's actually the Kobo that my lovely wife gave me for an early Christmas present.  I was so happy about it that when Victor the  Photographer arrived, I said "I can put the ad up like this if you want it in the picture!"

The second thing is the unfortunate nature of headlines.  Let me blow that up for you.

Damn.

Thanks for crushing my dreams Telegraph-Journal.

Finally, I had an awesome time talking with my new friend Jaymee Splude on the air at 590 CJCW in Sussex, NB.  Jaymee was the only radio interview that we couldn't coordinate, which made me awfully sad. But thankfully, we were able to reconnect this evening!

Best of all, yours truly got to do the honours and draw the name of the winner of the turkey of the day!  So congratulations Patti Jo Adair!  YOU. WON. A. TURKEY!!!!!!

It sounded better on the air I think.

Anyway, I had a blast talking with Jaymee, and would happily do it again (hint, hint? I've only got so many seconds of fame left and I have to streeeeetch them out!).

And Patti Jo, you'll be pleased to know that I resisted pronouncing your name "Patteeyo".  I know my lovely wife was relieved.

Have a great weekend Blognostifans!