Geauga Lake is a wasteland

Being nostalgic is my worst trait as a human being. And I’m still trying to come to grips with that reality.

So today we take a trip down memory lane, to a land so desecrated and abandoned that its current state is fascinating only for what it once was.

I made a handful of trips to Geauga Lake in northeast Ohio as a kid numerous times in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The Wave and water slides are what still stands out to me most. But it appears those good times were expendable as they no longer stand at all.

In 2007 the doors to what remained of Geauga Lake closed forever. Check out this video from DiJi Aerial Media to experience what it looks like today.

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Looking back at ‘Trouble Man’ with Robert Hooks and Marvin Gaye

I’d been hip to the soundtrack by Marvin Gaye for years.

But it wasn’t until late Saturday that I sat still long enough to watch 1972’s Trouble Man starring Robert Hooks as the original Mr. T.

For starters, the title track by Gaye is a classic in his collection. Be sure to check the video and give it a listen down below.

As for the film, Hooks nails it as an all-around badass-for-hire who’s not to be messed with while playing things cool and confident, even in the most dire of situations.

It’s surprising how the character and film are not as highly regarded in its genre as others from the time period.

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My Top 30 Songs From 2015

I wouldn’t consider this list an absolute “best of” when talking about the songs that came out in 2015. But I can certainly say that I would play each and every one of these tracks on my show if I were still doing the college radio thing at WPRK.

Those were some damn good times, by the way. I miss spinning tunes in that dusty old basement.

There’s plenty of albums I’ve yet to get around to listening to from 2015, so I’m sure I’ll come across plenty more gems to add to this list at another time. For now, enjoy this collection of tracks that abused the speakers in my house and car the most over the past twelve months.

(Also, check out the extended list on Spotify)

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Sometimes I dress up like Santa Claus

I tried like hell to hold back tears the first time I dressed up as Santa Claus to entertain kids at an income-restricted apartment community in Orlando.

A little girl told me, while sitting on my lap as I was dressed for the part, that all she wanted for Christmas were shoes for her little brother. A young boy said he just wanted for his mom to be happy while another boy asked to receive nothing at all.

Similar requests were made in between the typical interactions of kids asking Santa for toys and gadgets they’ll lose interest in by February.

It was the looks in the eyes of parents and grandparents that made my heart ache most as they soaked up whatever joy these kids were experiencing.

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Scott Weiland is dead and nobody is really all that surprised about it

Scott Weiland is dead.

Anyone that knows a thing of two about Scott Weiland is hardly surprised by the news that spread throughout the world early Friday.

Over the course of a decade Weiland fronted Stone Temple Pilots, which built a massive following in the midst of a transition from the grunge era of the early 1990s to the stadium rock scene that followed.

Truthfully, I was lukewarm to STP’s arrival when their 1992 debut Core was put in rotation. The song “Plush” was just too much of a Pearl Jam ripoff for me to ever embrace. But then 1994’s Purple arrived and caught my attention with its layers of depth and groove. In 1996 Tiny Music… Songs From the Vatican Gift Shop took the madness to an unprecedented level, and at that point I found myself in way over my head in the band’s psychedelic rollicking.

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Edmonton Eskimos beat Ottawa RedBlacks in 103rd CFL Grey Cup

One of these days I might actually learn the rules of the Canadian Football League. Though that’s unlikely to happen until I intend to watch more than maybe one game per year.

The 103rd edition of the CFL Grey Cup was played Sunday in Winnipeg and I watched it live on television. Even while having the option to turn to the NFL or college and pro basketball.

Here’s all you need to know: the Edmonton Eskimos claimed its 14th title in a 26-20 come-from-behind win over the Ottawa RedBlacks.

Do you have nine or so minutes to spare? If so you’ll want to give these CFL Grey Cup highlights a look. You might be impressed, if not a little confused as a neighboring American.

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Beastie Boys live in Glasgow, Scotland

You really missed out if you never experienced the Beastie Boys live in concert.

I saw them twice back in the 1990s, first on May 17, 1995 during the Ill Communication tour and again on August 14, 1998 in support of Hello Nasty. Two times seems far too few now that I think about it.

But I’ll never forget the shenanigans shared on the way to and from the Convocation Center in Cleveland, Ohio each trip. Remind me to tell you all about it the next time we see each other.

Until then, relive the Glasgow, Scotland show from 1999 featuring Ad-Rock, MCA, Mike D and Mix Master Mike. I just did, and it was pretty damn great.

Blueprint: Persevere w/ Perspective

I planned to share my disbelief regarding what took place Friday in Paris, then I realized anything I wrote would be best served encompassing the issue as a whole.

That wasn’t going to happen. We just don’t have much time for that nowadays. But the magnitude of the tragedy, much like any other that’s happened during our existence, is a hard reality to digest when confronted with it.

I can’t imagine attempting to pick up and carry on from such tragedy. Or living with the imagery of horror that was witnessed firsthand.

Imagine having to persevere in search of a new perspective. It’s certainly something to think about. Allow Columbus, Ohio’s Blueprint to take you down that path…

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AC/DC released “Dirty Deeds Done Dirty Cheap” at right time

I’m not much of an AC/DC fan. Don’t love them. Don’t hate them. But they did hold my ear at different parts in my life.

One album stands out among the rest.

I was introduced to Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap more than 20 years ago. And I believe it contains two of the band’s best songs.

Aside from the title track – a fitting classic in its own right – “Ain’t No Fun (Waiting Round To Be A Millionaire)” and “Ride On” remain at the pinnacle for me.

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It’s been an eventful three months since we last met

My life changed drastically three months ago.

After years of grinding my way through freelance writing assignments and radio shows, I finally latched on full-time as a multimedia sports reporter at the Orlando Sentinel newspaper. There, the grind carries on.

I’ve been busy since the end of July on the high school and local sports beat at the Sentinel, which encompasses much more than you’d care to read about at this point.

The exciting part has been the high school football coverage we’ve been doing for the 76 area programs (yes, 76 high school football teams) through print and online video features.

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Mashup Music Monday: Pink Floyd & Bee Gees in “Stayin’ Alive in the Wall”

It’s unexplainable.

That’s really the only way to explain how “Another Brick on the Wall (Part 2)” by Pink Floyd and “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees can coexist into one fascinating song.

Just know that where there’s brain-washed kids marching in a single file line circa The Wall there’s gonna be John Travolta working the butterfly collar via Saturday Night Fever.

Brillant mashup from Wax Audio.

Brazilian icons Kaká and Oscar Schmidt share Orlando City moment

SANFORD, Fla. – When it comes to sports in Brazil there’s no bigger name in soccer than Ricardo Kaká and no bigger basketball icon than Oscar Schmidt.

On Tuesday at the Orlando City Soccer Club’s training facility the two friends took a moment to chat while Schmidt was in town with family just as Kaká was preparing to head out for a U.S. Open Cup match in Chicago.

Kaká presented the Naismith Memorial Basketball and FIBA hall of famer with a personalized No. 14 OCSC jersey before the two shared stories of how they met many years ago.

( – Click here for J.C.’s story on Orlando City SC for Orlando Sentinel – )

Kaká, a former FIFA World Player of the Year, is in his first season in Major League Soccer. He’ll captain the MLS All-Stars against Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur next Wednesday.

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Ken Stabler one of six players to throw 7 interceptions in NFL game

The passing of former Oakland Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler at the age of 69 is likely to revive old debates over The Snake’s Pro Football Hall of Fame worthiness.

There’s room for argument on both sides of the table. I mean, the Hall’s selection committee named Stabler a second-team member of its All-Decade Team of the 1970s, despite 24 interceptions thrown in 1975 and 30 in 1978. They were clearly impressed once upon a time.

Stabler finished his 15-year NFL career (11 as a starter with three teams) in the shadows of contemporaries such as Terry Bradshaw, Roger Staubach, Bob Griese and Fran Tarkenton, each immortalized in Canton, Ohio.

But what about Kenny? He led Oakland to a 69-26-1 regular season record in the 1970s and finished with 96 wins in all after wrapping up a career with the Houston Oilers and lowly New Orleans Saints.

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Austin Dillon walks away from horrific NASCAR wreck at Daytona

More shocking than the footage below is that the driver on the wrong end of this wreck early Monday at Daytona International Speedway actually walked away in one piece.

Austin Dillon and his No. 3 stock car went airborne into the fencing just before 2:45 a.m. late Sunday along the final stretch of the Coke Zero 400.

Kevin Harvick clipped the back end of Denny Hamlin, spinning the No. 11 car around and into Dillon, who was then hit by Brad Keselowski upon returning to the track while upside down.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the race, which did not get underway until after 11 p.m. after being delayed by rain. But it’ll be how the race ended, with the No. 3 car caught up in a horrific wreck at Daytona, that’s going to have people talking about the sport this week.

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Kendrick Lamar – “Alright”

One of the best songs on one of the most creative albums of the year comes off even better in video form.

Kendrick Lamar released imagery for “Alright” earlier this week, a horn-infused and repenting track produced by Pharrell Williams and Sounwave. The black and white video, directed by Colin Tilley, pushes the same type of buttons the To Pimp a Butterfly album has already evoked from listeners.

It’s a refreshing seven minutes of cinema. You’ll want to run this one back a few times.