Berniece Tillery

My Granny passed away this morning, in peace.  She was 96 years old.  Here she is at her 90th birthday party.  She’s the short one.

I was able to get out to Texas last week to see her in the hospital after she fell in the kitchen.  We ate ice cream and watched football.  We booed the Cowboys, thought that Tennessee looked pretty good, and agreed that Bum Phillips was quite a character.  I’ll miss her.

Brent’s List of Football

Here are my fearless predictions for 2008-2009

AFC EAST – NEW ENGLAND – STILL GOOD, BUT LESS PHYSICAL OVERALL.

AFC NORTH – PITTSBURGH – I HATE PITTSBURGH.

AFC SOUTH – JACKSONVILLE – VERY PHYSICAL, INDY STARTS THEIR DESCENT.

AFC WEST – SAN DIEGO – LITTLE KNOWN FACT ABOUT THE CHARGERS: THEY HAVE NO SOUL.

AFC WILDCARD – INDY – MANNING HAS HIS WORST YEAR SINCE 2001

AFC WILDCARD – TENNESSEE – THE AFC SOUTH IS GOING TO BE AWESOME THIS YEAR.

NFC EAST – PHILADELPHIA EAGLES – DONOVAN AND ANDY PUT IT TOGETHER FOR ONE LAST YEAR OF BEING RELEVANT. THEN DONOVAN BREAKS DOWN IN WEEK 14.

NFC NORTH – DETROIT LIONS – IT HAS TO HAPPEN SOONER OR LATER.

NFC SOUTH – CAROLINA PANTHERS – HOW CAN I LOVE JOHN FOX SO MUCH WHEN HE COACHES FOR A DIVISION RIVAL. I ALSO LIKE THE WAY STEVE SMITH IS PUNCHING PEOPLE.

NFC WEST – ARIZONA – SEATTLE IS HELD TOGETHER BY SAP AND GUM. ARIZONA IS YOUNG AND SEXY. I GO WITH YOUNG AND SEXY OVER SAP AND GLUE. I JUST DO.

NFC WILDCARD – WASHINGTON REDSKINS – ONE OF THE MANY TEAMS THAT WILL BEAT UP ON DALLAS THIS YEAR

NFC WILDCARD – TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS – WITH BRETT FAVRE AT THE HELM!

SUPERBOWL: I DON’T LIKE ANY OF THE NFC TEAMS, SO I WILL JUST PICK JACKSONVILLE TO WIN UNOPPOSED.

Happy Anniversary Leslie!

Today, Leslie and I have been married for five years.  Since then, we’ve lived in four different houses in two cities.  I’ve loved every minute of it.

Thanks for sticking with me through all the mysterious illnesses, job hunts, broken bones, car accidents, moves, fantasy football drafts, nasal surgeries, federal floods, exploding water heaters, speeding tickets, and family visits.  I love you.  I’m proud to call you my wife.

Fond Memories, or, Your childhood neighborhood on COPS

When we flip through the tv schedule we always stop on the stations that mention Philadelphia or New Orleans. Mostly we see New Orleans, especially on the Food Network and the Travel Channel. Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations did an excellent episode there.

In the last few months I have been lucky enough to catch my hometown on various episodes of beloved television shows, such as: Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives, and COPS! The Dining Car, a Philadelphia diner institution, and my grandparents’ favorite after church breakfast place, was featured one evening – we were all very excited to see Northeast Philadelphia on the small screen.

But that was nothing compared to the other night when Oxford Circle, the neighborhood where Beth and I grew up, was on COPS! Woo-hoo! Two guys with mullets and tie-dye tank tops held up a pizza shop (Chevy’s Pizza – incredibly delicious Sicilian pie) and were going to hold up another pizza shop down the street. But this fabulous Northeast Philly girl called the cops and they were caught at the Sunoco station on the Boulevard next door to our old church where we went to CCD on Tuesday nights. I laughed till I cried and then called my Mom who laughed even harder. I love Philadelphia.