Our holiday season was spent debriefing our 93 years young Italian grandmother/great grandmother. This year we had a house full at my Mother’s in Knoxville, Tennessee. My sister Kim, husband Don and  four of their six children, brother Tom, wife Carmen and two of their four children, brother Gary, wife Joan and daughter Amanda (24), along with myself, Amy and our one and only Michael (21). Michael constantly reminds us that he is our one and only. He always wanted a little brother or sister however it was never in the cards. His cousin Carolyn is the sister he never had, cousin David, who spent two years living with us during his college years is the brother, along with older brother JP, however that is a story for another day.   On several evening throughout the Christmas holiday Amanda, digital recorder and notepad in hand, had Granny name as many names, tell as many stories of family and friends, from her early childhood days. The sessions lasted well beyond the 1.5 hours of recording time which meant fast and furious note taking. All in all it was great to watch the younger generation take an interest in our family story, and record it for future generations.  Of particular interest was a story on our Grandfather’s side of the family. His grandfather married and had eight children before his wife suddenly passed away, then he ended up marrying his deceased wife’s sister and had another ten children to her. That really got the family tree going. Our aunt Loretta brought over passenger ship records and family immigration papers from Ellis Island. An extensive family tree dating back to the seventeen hundreds was also handed down.

My memories of Mrs. Little cannot be separated from my memories of Mr. Little and go back to the August of 1969. I got to know Pat from playing high school football on the JV squad together. We were lucky not only to have two-a-day practices, but because we were on special teams, we had a third practice, an hour or so, at 1:00 under the blazing mid day sun. It did not make much sense to go all the way, back and forth, to Boalsburg so I hung around with Pat and Kenny Grove at the Welsh Pool and Pat's house which both were near the school. After morning practice you could always count on Mrs. Little having a hot lunch ready for Mr. Little, who was one of the best butchers in town. Mr. DeLong, Mr. Little's right hand man at work, refused to allow me to bestow the title of Best Butcher in Town on Mr. Little although my Mom still swears he was. He would always have best cuts ready for her, the same time, the same day, every week for as long as I can remember. Anyway back to those hot lunches, whoever Pat drug home at lunch was expected to pull up a chair and share in that home cooking that garnered Mrs. Little my “Best Cook in Town Award”.

On Thanksgiving Eve on the Gette Farm I am sitting here reflecting on the past year's events. My son Michael is working on his fourth year at Penn State and exceeding all of Amy's and my expectations My 93 year old Italian grandmother recovered remarkably well from a fall resulting in a new hip replacement. That event gave my mother the opening she needed to move Granny from her own apartment into Mom's home and take control of the car keys. It has been a tough adjustment for both but best for all involved. 

Sunday was a beautiful fall day on the Gette Farm. The fall is my favorite of our four distinct seasons. The crisp air felt great as I worked gathering up firewood that had been cut and split the previous week. After spending the bulk of my time stacking the wood in two outdoor sheds I decided to clean out an old indoor shed to keep my smaller kindling wood dry for the upcoming winter season. 

 On what is usually one of the best weekends of the year in Happy Valley turned tragic in the blink of an eye.  Halloween weekend at Penn State holds many memories for me. We all would dress up in costumes, load up in an old Ford van I had and drive around until we see a large crowd gathered on a porch in costumes. We would pull over, park and crash the party. We would have a few beers until the host finally figured out we did belong there. Then we were off in search of  another gathering and so on and so on and so on. That was then, never a thought of DUI, hurting ourselves or worse yet an innocent person. How times have changed. Now I have a 21.5 year old who is a senior at Penn State and my worst fear is him having a few beers and getting into his car and hurting himself or some innocent person or persons. 

Well once again the tailgate activities and the day itself exceeded the football game.  The Homecoming weekend brought back an old roommate who now lives in Southern California named Debbie M.. She graduated from PSU in 1976 with a degree in Ceramic Engneering and secured her first real job at Corning Glass Works here in State College. We shared a five bedroom home in Boalsburg known as The Boalsburg House (more stories to follow). Her nickname was Maggie and she had to put up with four male roommates who had not quite mastered good housekeeping skills. Thank god I had just started dating Amy and she lent a hand at keeping the house from turning into an Animal House. After a couple of years Maggie met the father of her now three children and ended up relocating to California.  Now her middle child Amy (named after my Amy) will be graduating from PSU in Nuclear Engineering this spring. When I first met Maggie she was living in house directly across the street from the Lambia Chi fraternity house I use to hang out at. The White House housed 9 female coeds, two of whom I graduated from high school with. As you can imagine that house was a pretty popular hang out during our college years. Some great friendships were formed and even one marriage. Jeanie P., one of Maggie's roommates ended up marrying a Lambia Chi brother and one of my high school friends and classmates.  Jeanie P. comtinues to come back for Homecoming Weekend and tries to keep an eye on Maggie. It's hard to believe that thirty plus years have gone by and now our kids are graduating from PSU. Hopefully they will also form some strong bonds that will last the test of time. 

A new chapter has opened in the story of Storytrax.com President and CEO, Erin C. and wife Stephanie. Their first born, a son, came into the world at 11:20PM Sunday evening. Mother, Child and Dad are doing well and adjusting at home, sweet home. Congratulation guys and savor every minute of new parenthood. A good night’s rests is a thing of the past, however, these will be some of the best days of your lives. Now looking back 21.5 years ago, the advantage you have is being able to stand by the crib and watch the love of your life sleep peacefully. They grow up so fast and you yearn for the days of being able to check them on a whim, day or night. Before you know it you will be waiting for the grandchildren to fill the void of that empty nest. Good Luck and Best Wishes from your loyal development team.

Once again the Bill Jones Memorial Tailgate was the highlight of the Michigan game day. Loud Mouth, a fantastic band from Philipsburg entertained several hundred fans. As usual the tailgate provided a warm reception to old friends, many from as far back as grade school.  Over the years the Penn State games themselves have played second fiddle to the tailgates. New friendships formed and many more renewed each fall. This game was no different. The Philipsburg contingent showed up strong especially the Cimino family to hear Brother John entertain the crowd. Keith B. traveling from Lexington KY has not missed a home game in years. Seeing the Bailey Boys and the original McCamley family (ex wife Cheryl included). Talking to Cindy and Lisa G. brought back memories of a dear friend we lost to throat cancer 10 years ago. Larry “Leroy” Mason was Philipsburg’s eternal teenager. He even made sure that his job allowed him the summers off so he could spend time in his lounge chair near the beach at Black Mashannon State Park. By the 4th of July, Leroy had a tan most girls would kill for. To this day a memorial stone marks Leroy’s spot at the Park. That conversation sparked my visit to Leroy’s spot on a beautiful fall Sunday late afternoon. The reflections off the lake made for some great photos as the sun went down. Leroy’s friends could not have picked a more beautiful spot to memorialize his memory. The Philadelphia crew saw Little Rob J. bring 18 of his closest friends from school. Charley's crew from over Huntingdon way provided all of the logistics and support for the band and his son acted as film crew to provide video for us at a later date. Kurt B. and Drew T. kept a watchful eye on Old Bill Jones and acted as a personal security detail in order to reduce Bill’s risk management concerns given his icon status. 

Well on the eve of the Penn State-Michigan game Amy is busy preparing food for the largest tailgate of the season. The Bill Jones Memorial Tailgate (Alg’s younger brother) consists of four reserved RV spaces on the corner of Fox Hollow Road and Park Ave on the northeast corner of Beaver Stadium. Bill’s roommate from college Rob J.'s RV parked on one end and Bill’s high school friend Kurt B.'s RV parked on the other end leave two full spaces for a large tent to house all of the food and a stage to accommodate the live band that play will play from 3:00 until 7:00 before the game at 8:00. Last year’s Ohio State night game drew almost 300 guests, most not known to us, however all had a great time. There have been claims made that as a result of the fun had by all at the Bill Jones Tailgates last year; Penn State decided to ban the consumption of adult beverages at tailgates while the game is going on in the stadium.  Not only did Penn State enact a new law, Bill Jones laid the law down, no longer could we call our tailgate, “The Bill Jones Tailgate” due to the risk management issues. That was the day we laid the old Bill Jones to rest and hence the new name “The Bill Jones Memorial Tailgate”. In closing if any of you find yourself at Beaver Stadium for a football game, stop by and pay your respects to the friends of the Old Bill Jones.