By Joe Bullick

Have you ever sat in your favorite chair in the still of the night—no television, no radio, no computer—just listening to the clock?  Tick-tock.  A second goes by, then a minute.  That minute turns into an hour, then an hour into a day, a day into a week, a week into a month, a month into a year and before you know it there went 2007.   Was it a good year for you?  A sad one?  A happy one?

As I look back on the passage of time, it’s hard to believe that baseball is over, and football as well as hockey is in full swing.  The Super Bowl is approaching.  Will the Steelers be there?

And Christmas is over.  I hope you got the present you wanted.  One thing I wanted to do during the holidays was to go to Cleveland to see the leg lamp that glows in the wind on the house where the movie The Christmas Story was filmed.  Located in Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood, the house is now a museum, and Brian Jones has restored the three-story wooden frame house to its appearance in the movie.  It is now open for tours. 

As I think of January, I am reminded of two great people born on January 1—Paul Revere in 1736 and Betsy Ross in 1752.  There are many other things to note about the first month of the year.  The Ellis Island Immigrant Station in New York City opened in 1892.  President Calvin Coolidge died in this month in 1933 and President Theodore Roosevelt died in January of 1919.  While Presidents may have passed away in this month, a “King” was also born in it.  On January 8, 1935, Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Miss. 

If you are a baseball fan like me, you’ll remember that major league baseball’s American League adopted the designated-hitter rule in this month.  Also sports fans will note that the first Super Bowl was held in January 1967. 

For you history buffs, the first public museum in the U.S. was established in 1773 in South Carolina.  On Broadway in 1964, Hello Dolly opened this month, and don’t forget when you turn on a light that Thomas Edison received a patent for the electric incandescent lamp on January 27, 1880. 

If parades are your pleasure, then you’ll be interested to learn that the Tournament of Roses Parade held in Pasadena, Ca., was first held in January of 1886.  The first Rose Bowl game was held in 1902.  So if you’ve ever thought January to be a dull month, that’s just not so. 

I wish you a Happy New Year and a Happy January.  May you enjoy good health and may 2008 be great for you!

God Bless!

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Joe welcomes any ideas, suggestions or interesting stories.
Email him at northcon@nauticom.net. Please put "Town Crier" in the subject line of your email.

To contact Joe to schedule an appointment to tour his museum at McKnight Elementary School, call the Northern Connection office at (724) 940-2444 or email northcon@nauticom.net. Please put "Museum Tour" in the subject line.

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