Jagoff Does Not Equal Friendly

Friendly: adjective. Like a friend; kind; characteristic of or befitting a friend; showing friendship.

To use in a sentence: I thought I would find friendly in Pittsburgh.

Reality: Friendly in Pittsburgh is... eh...not so much.

Ok, well, its a far cry from South Florida. BUT... they need a lot of work up here. My perfect perception in my little perfect Pittsburgh bubble keeps deflating faster than our gas prices are rising here (over 20 cents in the last week!)

I recently went down to the strip to do a little sightseeing and shopping. Not sure if you remember me telling you or not, but this is another area where you see black and yellow for miles. The most recent thing I have been seeing are shirts with this:

So I decided to start up a convo with one of the guys selling them in bulk (or so it seemed). This is how it went:

Me: "So, just out of curiosity, what does the hand symbol mean?"

The Jagoff: "If you dont know then I aint telling you.."

Me: "How am I supposed to know if you wont tell me?" I think this is a completely legit question.

The Jagoff: as he shakes his head "Go watch the movie 'Dude Wheres My Car."

Me: Really? Dude Wheres My Car? Ashton Kutcher's so-called claim to fame stoner flick that I was humored by at the age of about 21? And this man... who was probably 30 years my senior... is telling me to watch it just to understand their stupid hand signal? My thought? If you have to go all the way back to a crappy movie such as 'Dude Wheres My Car" to find the meaning of what Pittsburghers like to do with their hands at baseball games, it must not be too special. I walk away, calling him a jagoff under my breath.

Then, like a fool, I came home and looked up the video. Quite frankly, I still dont get it. If you do... please fill me in.

Needless to say, this dude on the strip is not the first rude one I have encountered here. I guess we are all human and we all have bad days. And... it is evident that we all like to take it out on other people. Even in Pittsburgh.

Hang on... Im switching subjects...

If I were in South Florida this time of year, it would probably be hot. Super hot. Humid. Super humid. And there would be thunderstorms every single afternoon. Big dark clouds that would roll in from the west just in time to flood the roads for rush hour. My entire life I have hated this time of year.

However, it has been B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L. here in my new city. It is in the high 70's/low 80's during the day and in the 50's at night. The trees are beginning to turn...  

though I keep hearing that it is a bit early for that to be happening. Personally, I think we are going to have a rough winter this year. I say this because I think mother nature is going to test me... you know, since everyone says I wont be able to handle winter. No matter what she brings, I am ready for her. Bring it on, ol' lady.  

Because it has been so beautiful out, I have spent alot of time exploring. This past weekend we spent 6.5 hours at Kennywood. For those of you who dont know what that is... its an amusement park that has apparently been around forever. In fact, I believe they have one the oldest wooden rollercoasters in the U.S. that is still functioning. Did I go on it? No way, Jose. You put those 3 words in the same sentence and I am hauling booty the other way... Oldest. Wooden. Rollercoaster. I. think. not... With a H-E-Double hockey sticks NO!

The park itself was neat, though. It was small and homey. Lots to see.... a parade full of marching bands, shows of kids singing (Steelers & Pirates songs, of course), a strange creepy girl (I think) dressed in leopard and acting like one who scared me out of the bathroom (thats a story for another day...), cheap eats (I devoured a bunch of cotton candy and Im not ashamed to say so), laser shows, rides, fair games (where you can win stuffed prizes that come in... you guessed it... black and yellow). It was just a good night out with good memories. Apparently it is something that all Pittsburghers have grown up doing. I felt like I was one of them that night... only friendlier.

And last but not least.... I must share the new song that I learned. Enjoy! (And laugh)... CLICK HERE!!

"Im one of those regular weird people" ~ Janis Joplin