Jim "Bugsy" Porreca

It has been several days now since the passing of Jim. I really feel the need to let those who didn't know Jim understand a little about him. Having been in HHS and playing football and all that goes with it you have an opportunity to be exposed to many types of people. Jim was and will always be special. Very few go thru life with the type of attitude that Jim had.
In the football days Jim was known as "Rockhead" and for those that played with him it was obvious why. Later on he became a huge fan of Bugsy Malone from wrestling fame and the name stuck. Jim was the type of guy who really never said anything bad about someone. He might get mad at you but that was always short.
It is at a time like the one that happened with Jim when friends step to the forefront and do the right thing. I am not going to mention names, for 2 reasons, I don't know theem all and I don't want to slight anyone. For those of you who were with "Bugsy" and stepped up you all need to be commended and congratulated for you efforts. Most importantly you all need to be thanked.
I had the good fortune of speaking with Bob Tomaso at Bugsy's wake, along with Kathy Winant Clark and hearing stories of Jim's valiant fight and struggle. I know that they were there for Jim along with so many others. One story they told, was that never once did Jim complain and that speaks volumes of Jim. That goes back to what I said previously about Jim not saying a bad word about anyone.

Rest in peace Bugsy. You will never be forgotten.

Lucy Lu Needs Help

For those who may or may not be following the Adventures of Lucy Lu, she is in need. She has recently lost her J O B,and that stinks. With the economy being slow I bet she is having some difficulty in finding employment. From the video she did on the Tropical Storm, I suggest she not go to work for the weather channel. First of all her boss must be a clown for firing her. How dumb is that, had to be a jealous women. Anyway lets do some words of encouragement for her. And wish her well in whatever life throws at her.
I think she tremendous potential in writing a book. She can make it simple and fun and write in for children. Be creative is her Lucy Lu adventures.

Reunion Fever Catching On

Congratulation to the 70's Reunion Committee. I hear that there are group of folks from the 80's who are now discussing having a decade of the 80's reunion. Were it not for the drive, focus and dedication of the 70's reunion committee this idea may have never come to be. From the buzz,excitement,energy and whatever word you want to use generated by our reunion, the 80's are looking into it. I think this is awesome. One can only hope that they will confer with the 70's committee for help. In doing that they will be able to start with the knowledge that "our" committee has developed in making the event a huge success.

Good luck to the Decade of the 80's and hopefully you will have as much fun as we did.

AARP

Having just received the latest issue of the AARP Magazine, my attention was immediately caught by an article titled 50 Reason to Love Being 50+. So I read the article and was laughing a t some of the reason,however,Number 40 spoke of attending school reunions. The writer spoke of the early class reunions as being just an old rerun of a few years gone past and that once you are over 50,as 60% of our Decade is, you look at and appreciate the reunions that much more. At this age there really is no need for showing off and strutting your stuff.  We are now able to laugh and joke about a lot of the crazy and stupid things we did,which at the time were anything but crazy and stupid.

For those of us who admit to being 50+, it's only getting better and for those of you about to get here, you have much to look forward to. Oh and  don't be afraid to admit you received your copy of AARP.

I also sent a letter to the editor about our Decade of the 70's Reunions.

Blue Anchor and other memories

There has been some talk of the Blue Anchor of late. I for one have some of the best memories of my life there. It was at the Blue Anchor that I really honed my skills in playing basketball, well at least I think they were skills. I remember playing one on one with Kevin "Cazzie" Dolan or James "Fish" McNamara to mention a couple. There were many nights and afternoons spent on that small court at the Anchor.
Of course one can never forget the card games and just listening to the jukebox, do they still have those. Several songs just jump out at me, Signs by the Five Man Electrical Band and Brick House by Earth Wind and Fire. Who can ever forget those summer nights just hanging out there and being with friends. Maybe doing a little drinking and partying.
We also cannot forget "The Path". Boy what crazy things happened there. I know in this politically correct world you're not supposed to say this but I'm going to as it has meaning to the memory, what about "Retard Hill". Or even those late night skinny dipping at Oakdale. One of my best memories was the initiation into the Anchor at Oakdale, all covered with eggs,peanut butter and whatever else and having to roll around in the sand and then go into the lake. WOW.
Do they still do these harmless fun things or have they all gone away? Too bad because they sure were fun and no-one got hurt.

Hudson Happenings

Sean actually sparked a thought for me. He asked how the real estate market is in Hudson and Columbia County, to be brief they are two differant animals. Hudson has that SoHo,Village kind of feeling beginning to really take over and the County is strongly influenced by weekenders.

Anyway my thought here is to give a few examples of how Hudson in particular is and has changed. The old church on the corner of 6th and Columbia has been bought and word is the Manager of Lenny Kravitz is putting a recording studio there. The old dress shop on 4th and Columbia is also a recording/music store. Just around the croner at the old bus garage an absolutely beautiful restaurant/night club is being built, also has recording for the music acts. I took a brief tour of the place a few weeks ago and all I can say is WOW. Hudson has never seen anything like it,ever. It has live entertainment,restaurant,bar on the 1st floor and a banquet facility upstairs. Of course there is Mexican Radio,Cia Maia,Swoon,Vico to name a few Restaurants, a new one called pm, just wine and tappas there. Waren Street has less and less antique shops and more and more art galleries and specialty stores. I think this is a great change. There can be just so many antique shops, at one time there was near 70 of them. The river front is being developed into public parks and public use, awesome idea.

I'm sure I forgot some and hopefully others will chime in here and let everyone know what they have seen as far as changes. There certainly is more to come, a Hotel in the 500 block of Warren Street is being discussed another new building is planned for 5th and Warren on the empty lot, proves to be interesting. There has been talk of a micro-brewery coming to town as well as talk of a whiskey distillery(all just talk right now).

Also Sean to answer your question, real estate in Columbia County as a whole has certainly slowed like the rest of the country. There, however, have been spurts of steady business. It will bounce back and continue to move forward. Hudson is without saying, unique, as we all know. It has a very long main strip,Warren Street, offering a 1 mile long business district with pretty pristine store fronts.

Think it's right now

I think I fixed the problem. You may have to repost anything you did before.
I saw what Sean was talking about and I have attempted to fix it. Hope this worked