Royalty w/o 3/4 in review

Monday morning before I went to work I woke up bright and early after getting a little less than three hours sleep because I had to go to Avis to return the Dodge Avenger I rented for the weekend. I drove 549 miles safely.

After work I came home and I made dinner. After I ate, I went out and I did my laundry. It was a long tiring day to say the least.

Tuesday night after work I went out to the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. The King decided to go to the Nassau Coliseum to see the Islanders with our friend Frank Anichiarico instead. With that being said, I wound up meeting up with our pal Vincent Ascanio who took the King's place. The Devils were hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning. I wound up getting a pulled pork sandwich at the arena for dinner.

As for the game we saw, the Lightning scored the first four goals of the game as they lead, 4-0 midway into the third period. The Devils made a late comeback attempt as they scored a shorthanded goal and a power play goal to slice the deficit in half at 4-2 with 4:45 to go. They couldn't get any closer as the Lightning added a late empty net goal to escape with a 5-2 victory. As a result, the crowd of 15,229 went home unhappy.

Wednesday after work I went to downtown Brooklyn to see the quarterfinals of the Northeast Conference Tournament as the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds were hosting the Quinnipiac Bobcats at the Wellness Recreation. Athletic Center aka the WRAC.

Before the game I went to 2 Bros Pizza and I had a few slices. While I was there I ran into my pal David Sack who was there with his friend Andrew who he introduced me to. They had a few slices too. Once we were done we all walked down a few blocks to go to the game. When I got inside I met up with the King, Vincent Ascanio and our friend Larry Peim who was there to see his alma mater play again.

As for the game we saw, the Blackbirds got off to a slow start. They trailed the Bobcats, 47-43 at halftime. In the second half, the Blackbirds fought back as they hung tough. Late in the game, they went ahead for good as they went on to defeat the Bobcats, 91-83 to advance to the next round.

After the game, we all celebrated the victory with a post game meal at Junior's Restaurant which is only a few blocks away. Larry treated me for my birthday. I was very grateful & thankful for his kindness. I wound up have a corned beef and pastrami combo with steak fries. He did the same while the King and Vincent had steak burgers. It capped off a great night.

Thursday night after work I went back to the Prudential Center to see the Devils take on the Buffalo Sabres. This time I met up with the King and our pal Mike Carroll aka Sabre Mike. Our road trip buddies, Andrew Kulyk and Peter Farrell from Buffalo were there with us in spirit. As for dinner, I wound getting chicken tenders and fries at the Rock.

As for the game we saw, after a scoreless first period, the Sabres took the lead 7:56 into the second period as Thomas Vanek lit the lamp to make it 1-0 Buffalo. Two minutes later, the Sabres went up 2-0 as Brian Flynn put one in the net. It stayed that way until there was six and a half minutes left in regulation time when Adam Henrique of the Devils broke the shutout to make it 2-1 with a power play goal. The Devils pulled goalie Johan Hedberg to have an extra attacker in hopes of tying the game. Shortly thereafter, the Devils got the equalizer as Patrik Elias scored to tie the game at two with 1:06 left in regulation. The game went into overtime but since neither team was able to score, so the game was decided by a shootout. The Devils wound up prevailing in the skills competition which sent the sellout crowd of 17,625 happy except for the number of Sabre fans who were there to see their team play.

Friday night after work I went to downtown Brooklyn. This time I went to the Barclays Center to see the Nets play the Washington Wizards.

Before the game, I went to McDonald's in the Atlantic Center Mall to have my pre game meal. When I got done I walked back over to the arena and I went inside. I met up with the King and our pal Al Linderman who was there as well.

As for the game we saw, the Nets raced out to a 22-2 lead & they lead 38-14 after the first quarter. Deron Williams lead the way as he was on fire from beyond the three point line. In the second quarter, the Nets added a few points to their lead as they went into the locker room up, 59-33. In the third quarter, the Wizards made a comeback attempt as they cut the Nets' lead to 16, 74-58. In the fourth quarter, the Nets maintained their lead as they went to beat the Wizards, 95-78.

As for Deron Williams, he hit 9 three pointers in the first half to set an NBA record. He wound up finishing the game with 42 points. His teammate Reggie Evans had a triple double if you will. He scored 11 points, he missed 11 free throws and he grabbed a career high 24 rebounds.

Saturday late in the morning the King and I took public transportation to the Nassau Coliseum to see the Islanders play the Capitals in an afternoon affair.

We wound up meeting up with our pals Mike Carroll, Manny Morales and Joe Rossi who was at the game with his adorable daughter Grace who was all dressed up in Islander gear. It was great to see them again.
As for the game we saw, the Islanders scored first midway through the first period as Josh Bailey buried the puck to make it 1-0. In the second period, the Capitals evened the score at one 1:26 into the period when Mathieu Perreault scored a power play goal. The Islanders went back ahead, 2-1 midway through when Casey Cizikas scored. In the third period, the Capitals got the equalizer as Nicklas Backstrom found the net 7:09 into the period. Shortly thereafter, the Islanders got a break as the Capitals committed penalties that gave the Islanders a golden opportunity to take the lead and they took full advantage of it. They got two power play goals from John Tavares who scored twice in a 30 second span to put the game away. Frans Nielsen added a shorthanded goal later in the period to give the Islanders a 5-2 victory.

After the game, the King & I went to Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks play the Utah Jazz.

As for the game we saw, the Knicks were missing Amar'e Stoudemire who hurt his knee and he's going to miss six weeks. In addition, Carmelo Anthony didn't play. Regardless the rest of the Knicks came to play and they wound up blowing away the Jazz, 113-84.

After the game, we went to Donovan's Pub in Woodside which is now under new management. We met up with our pal Bryan Gilligan who joined us for a post game meal.

Sunday I got to relax and catch up on things around the house during the day. Once I got done, I made dinner then the King and I went to Newark, NJ to see the Devils play the Winnipeg Jets at the Prudential Center.

As for the game we saw, the Devils took a 2-0 lead midway through the first period then the Jets scored a late goal to cut the lead to 2-1. In the second period, the Jets tied it up late at two. The two teams failed to score in the third period and in the extra session. As a result, the game was decided in a shootout again. This time Patrik Elias of the Devils scored in the skills competition to gave the Devils the 3-2 win as the sellout crowd went home happy.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty spends my special day in Baltimore/Washington DC seeing an another basketball doubleheader!

After saying goodbye to Frank Anichiarico and Mike Carroll who went back home to NYC, the King and I drove to Aberdeen, Maryland where we spent the night at Super 8.

In the morning we got up and we drove 30 miles to Baltimore and we met up with our friends Peter & Carmen Agnew at the Eichenkranz Restaurant for breakfast to start my special day.

We got to see Rose who waited on us. As always it was a pleasure to see her again. We got to enjoy breakfast and each other's company. After we ate, Rose surprised me when she brought out an ice cream sundae with a candle in it to celebrate my birthday. It was an unexpected thoughtful touch. As a result, I felt extra special. She caught me off guard.

After we finished eating, we said goodbye to Peter & Carmen. I want to thank them for making the time to join us while we were in the area.

Prince at Reitz Arena

The King and I got back in the car and we drove over to Loyola University of Maryland. We went to the Reitz Arena which is the home of the Loyola (MD) Greyhounds of the MAAC Conference. They were playing the Manhattan Jaspers.

As for the game we saw, the Jaspers took an early lead but that was short lived as the Greyhounds raced past them to take a 39-35 lead at halftime. In the second half, the Greyhounds extended their lead to 13 with 13:19 to go in the game. The Jaspers made a comeback but it fell short as the Greyhounds held on to win the game, 63-61 before a crowd of 1,324 who were in attendance.

Erik Etherly of the Greyhounds led the way as he scored a game high 30 points.

After the game, we drove towards Washington DC. We stopped off at Walmart to do some shopping since we had some time on our hands.

When we were done we drove to the Verizon Center in downtown DC where we went to see the Washington Wizards host the Philadelphia 76ers. Thanks to Peter Agnew who gave us a parking pass we got to park the car in the garage that's connected to the arena. As a result, we got in and out of the area fast.
After we parked the car, we took a walk over to Burger King which was a few blocks away for a pre game meal. Since we weren't that hungry, we decided that would suffice to hold us over. It would have been nice to gone somewhere better but given the circumstances, it wasn't that important.

Once we were done we went back to the Verizon Center to see the game.

Prince at Verizon Center

As for the game we saw, the Wizards got off to a good start as they led the 76ers, 26-22 after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the 76ers sliced into the lead as the Wizards led by just one at the intermission, 50-49. In the third quarter, the Wizards regained their four point lead as they led, 72-68. In the fourth quarter, the 76ers took a late lead at 87-84 but they failed to score in the last few minutes as the Wizards scored the last six points of the game to beat them, 90-87.

After the game, we drove back home and we got back at 1:33AM.

Overall I had a great day and I want to personally thank everybody who acknowledged my special day via e-mail, text messages, Twitter and/or Facebook. I was bombarded all day and I felt overwhelmed but I was grateful for all the love I was shown throughout the day. I know I'm truly blessed.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty w/o 11/26 in review

Monday morning I went to work for a half a day. After work, I went to the doctor for my annual exam. Thankfully I got a clean bill of health.

After my check up, I went to Avis and I rented a car for the day so I could drive to Philadelphia to see Monday night football between the Eagles and the Carolina Panthers.

I picked up a Ford Focus and then I drove back home to pick up the King. I also arranged to meet up with my pal Eddie Pelle who wanted to go to the game as well.

We got down to the sports complex area around 6:45PM. Before we went to park the car we stopped off at Burger King for a pre game meal.

Once we were done we parked the car and we walked over towards Lincoln Financial Field. We stopped off at Holiday Inn first because Eddie had to pick up a ticket he had bought on Stub Hub. After that, we walked over to go inside to see the game. The King waited to meet up with our buddy Andrew Van Cleve who was on his way after he put his kids to sleep. They got tickets and they went in. I had a club seat with our pal Frankie Centola who I met inside.

As for the game we saw, the Eagles got the ball first and they drove down the field but their drive stalled and they wound up settling for a 36 yard field goal by kicker Alex Henery with 11:12 left to gave the Eagles an early 3-0 lead. The Panthers responded on their first drive of the night as they drove down the field 72 yards which culminated with a 24 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Cam Newton. The Panthers led, 7-3 with 6:12 left in the first quarter. After stopping the Eagles, the Panthers got the ball back and they scored again. This time Cam Newton threw a 43 yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brandon LaFell to extend the Panthers' lead to 14-3 with 3:36 left.

The Eagles took the kickoff and they went down the field but they stalled again and they settled for another field goal. This time from 41 yards out as Alex Henery split the uprights to make it a 14-6 game with 14:15 left in the second quarter. After stopping the Panthers, the Eagles got the ball back and thanks to running back Bryce Brown they got closer as he ran 65 yards for a touchdown to make it 14-12. The Eagles decided to go for two to try and tie the game but it was unsuccessful with 10:56 left until halftime. Later in the quarter with 3:20 left the Eagles took the lead, 15-14 thanks again to the right foot of Alex Henery who booted a 45 yard field goal. It stayed that way as both teams headed to the locker room.

In the third quarter, the Panthers took the kickoff to start the second half. They started at their own 5 yard line. Cam Newton drove his team down the field and he dove into the end zone to cap it off from a yard out to give his team the lead again at 21-15. The Eagles fought back again as they went back ahead with 3:30 left in the quarter as Bryce Brown scored again. This time he ran in from 5 yards out to give the Eagles a 22-21 lead.

In the fourth quarter, the Panthers got a 23 yard field goal from Graham Gano to make a 24-22 in favor of Carolina. The Panthers padded their lead with 4:40 left as Cam Newton ran in again. This time from two yards out to make the score 30-22. Graham Gano missed the extra point which gave the Eagles a glamor of hope. Unfortunately for them, they couldn't score anymore and that's the way it ended. Bryce Brown of the Eagles had a memorable night as he ran for 178 yards on the ground. Unfortunately he fumbled twice which cost his team along the way. Hope for his sake, he learns from his mistakes.

After the game, we all met at the car and I drove Andrew Van Cleve home then I took Frankie to his mother's house where he was spending the night. I dropped off Eddie at his job then I took the King and I home we got in around 2:30AM.

Tuesday morning before I went to work I went to Avis to return the car I rented. 260 miles were safely driven.

After work I came home to catch up on some much needed rest.

Wednesday night after work I went to downtown Brooklyn to see college basketball at LIU. The Blackbirds were hosting the Columbia Lions. After I went to McDonald's for dinner, I met up with the King at the Wellness Center where LIU plays its home games. We went inside and we had plenty of company. We were joined by ours pals Phil Butleman, David Sack, Vincent Ascanio, Larry Peim and Frank Anichiarico.
As for the game we saw, the Blackbirds picked up their first win of the season after losing their first four games. They won, 70-61. Julian Boyd led the way with 19 points. His teammates Jamal Olasewere and Jason Brickman added 16 points each to pace the Blackbirds. As for the Lions, Mark Cisco had 18 points in the losing cause.

Thursday night after work I went out to Jamaica, Queens to see the St. John's Red Storm play at Carnesecca Arena which is on their campus. They were hosting the Gamecocks from South Carolina in the SEC/Big East Challenge. On the way there, I stopped off at Popeye's for some fried chicken. When I was done, I got back on the bus and I met up with the King outside the arena. We got tickets and we went inside.

As for the game we saw, the Red Storm raced out to a big lead which grew as the game wore on. Guard D'Angelo Harrison led the way for the Red Storm as he poured in 26 points as they went on to blow away the Gamecocks, 89-65.

Friday after work I went to Madison Square Garden where I saw the Knicks play the Washington Wizards.
As for the game I saw, the Knicks made fast work of the lowly Wizards who finally won their first game a few nights earlier at home. On this night, it wasn't meant for the Wizards to make it two in a row. The Knicks took it to them early and often. The Knicks led by 9 after the first quarter. They were up by 11 at halftime. They pulled away in the third quarter as they went up by 21. That's how it ended as the Knicks won by 21, 108-87. Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith paced the Knicks with 20 points each.

Saturday morning I did my laundry. Later in the afternoon, the King and I took a ride on Metro North up to Bridgeport, Connecticut so we could see some AHL hockey since the NHL is still locked out.
We went to the Webster Bank Arena where we saw the Bridgeport Sound Tigers host the Worcester Sharks.

As for the game we saw, the Worcester Sharks lead 2-1 after a fight filled first period. After a scoreless and fightless second period, the Sound Tigers got the equalizer 2:51 into the third period to tie the game at two as Nino Niederreiter found the net. With 6:08 left in the third, Worcester regained the lead at 3-2 when Tim Kennedy scored his second goal of the game for the Sharks. The Sound Tigers evened the score once again with just 2:28 left in regulation time as Brock Nelson scored on a late power play. After a scoreless overtime session, the game was decided by a shootout. The Sharks wound up beating the Sound Tigers in the skills competition to give the Sharks a 4-3 victory.

Sunday the King and I met up with our friends Frank Anichiarico, Michael Abrams and Larry Peim who picked us up in Midtown Manhattan and he drove us out to MetLife Stadium where we went to see the Jets play the Cardinals.

When we got out there, we met up with Andrew Van Cleve who came up from Philadelphia and Rich Wolber aka Staten Island Rich who also came to the game.

As for the game we saw, it was a poor display of football to say the least. It got so bad that the Jet fans got their wish when head coach Rex Ryan decided to pull quarterback Mark Sanchez. He put in backup Greg McElroy in his place with 4:48 left in the third quarter with the Jets trailing 3-0. During his brief stint, he threw his first NFL touchdown pass to Jeff Cumberland from a yard out with 14:55 left in the fourth quarter to give the Jets a 7-3 lead. The Cardinals got a 35 yard field goal from former Jet kicker Jay Feely with 10:39 left to make it a 7-6 game. The Jets decided to run out the clock when they got down to the one yard line so they could preserve the ugly 7-6 victory.

After the game, Larry drove us back to Manhattan and we all went out for dinner at Jackson's Hole which is the home of the 7 ounce burger. We all enjoyed our burgers and each other's company.

With that, another week of sports travel has come and gone.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty is going to Delaware, Washington DC & Cleveland over the first weekend of November!

Here's the game plan:

I'm renting a car Saturday morning November 3rd from Avis for the weekend.

I'll be driving to Delaware then to Washington DC after that I'll be heading to Cleveland before returning home late Sunday night.

Saturday, November 3rd Towson Tigers at Delaware Blue Hens 12 Noon

                                     Celtics at Wizards 7PM

Sunday, October 21st Ravens at Browns 1PM

I hope to meet up with Rick Morris of the FDH Lounge as well as some other special guests from his media alliance network. If I do, it's definitely going to be a thrill.

If you're interested in going on this exclusive getaway royalty style just let me know so I can arrange to have you join me.

It's going to be a blast so why not come for a "royal" ride.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty entertains special people at Prudential Center for Nets Basketball!

Don Allen, his Grandson Jack and I 

When I was going to the Nassau Coliseum to see the Islanders play the Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins back on March 31st, I got a call from my good friend Peter Agnew from Baltimore. He asked me if I could help out an old friend of his. I told Peter without hesitation absolutely. He said I'll have my friend Don Allen get in touch with you by e-mail. I told him that sounds like a plan.

With that being said, that Monday I got an e-mail from Don. He told me he wanted to take his 18 year old grandson Jack to some sporting events during the week because he came up from Northern Virginia to visit and he wants to spend some quality time with him.

Peter had told him about the King and I. He said these guys see more sporting events live than anybody he knows. They can guide you along the best.

With that being said, I replied back to Don's initial e-mail he sent me and we got the ball rolling towards making this dream a reality. I gave Don a number of options to choose from. Mind you Don isn't a sports fan so he didn't know exactly what I was talking about. I asked him what teams his grandson Jack liked. He told me he likes the Islanders, the Knicks, the Nets and the Mets.

With that being said, I went to work to figure out a way to accomodate Jack's needs and wants since his grandpa Don was willing to go for the ride and have a great time regardless of where they wound up going to.

I told him tickets shouldn't be hard to find to see these teams play except for the Knicks. Luckily I had a few extra Knick tickets available so I told Don we'll work out a fair deal so you can spend Easter Sunday at Madison Square Garden with your grandson Jack when the Knicks play the Chicago Bulls in the afternoon.
In addition, he said he wanted to go to see the Nets and Mets play since I told him they were home too. We wrote each other back and forth so we could arrange to meet up since I was going to the Net game that Friday night at the Prudential Center after work.

Since it was Good Friday, I got out of work early at 3PM. I told Don I want to go home fast after work and then I could meet him near the Prudential Center for the Net game. He wrote back to me and said unless you have a prior commitment I want to treat you for dinner. I was beside myself to say the least. I gathered myself and I gave him a few options. He said how about we meet up at the Edison Ale House which is right next to the Prudential Center at 5:30PM. I said you got a deal. I'll see you there then. Being such a precise planner, I managed to arrive there right at 5:30PM. I got to meet and greet Don and Jack who were already seated at a table. Before we ordered our food, Don and I conversed. He said he looked at my blog. I was speechless for a moment. He said just from reading it I know you're a sensitive person. I agreed with him. I told him I am especially when it comes to different people's needs and wants. I have a marketing degree and I practice what I preach. I'm an upfront and honest person. That's who I am. He continued to praise me based on my writing ability. I felt so proud.

Meanwhile his grandson Jack was sitting there taking this in. He unfortunately didn't have much to say. I knew he had a problem which made me even that much more willing to bend over backwards to do whatever I needed to in order to make him happy.

After we enjoyed a delicious meal together, we walked out to look for a few tickets for Don and Jack so they could get into the building to see the Nets play the Washington Wizards. After a few minutes, I saw a familiar face, my friend Bob aka Doc as we know him was there. He tried to help me get them tickets. Moments later a security guard by the door said he had some extra tickets. He was so kind to give them to us. I already had one. So now we were all set. Don was totally beside himself watching me in action.
We all went inside. Jack said he wanted to sit downstairs. With Doc's assistance, Jack's request was fulfilled. We wound up sitting 13 rows up from the Net bench in section 10. A royal upgrade indeed.
As for the game we saw, the Nets found a team they could beat as they ran past the Wizards, 110-98.

After the game, I took the Path train back to Lower Manhattan where Don lives part time since he's semi retired he said, he has three different places to call home. One here in Battery Park, another near his daughter, Jack's mom in Northern Virginia and another place in Italy. He was a very interesting gentleman to say the least.

We parted ways for the night but we arranged to meet at Citi Field on Saturday afternoon so Jack could see the Mets play.

Stay tuned for the other special posts I'm going to do about the continuation of that plus the rest of the amazing holiday weekend I enjoyed.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

A Royal Birthday Celebration for the Prince!

Prince at the Pavilion

After I got out of work Friday night it was time to start the royal celebration.

I met my parents in Astoria where I now live and we went out for dinner at Romano's Famous Pizza and Gyro. They serve Greek cuisine. It was a great way to reunite with my parents and I got to have a nice meal too.

Afterwards I went home to rest up for the busy weekend I had lined up.

I got up Saturday morning which was my birthday and I took public transportation out to where I used to live so I could go to Avis to pick up a car for the weekend. I did get treated to some royal treatment as the MTA didn't let me wait too long for the buses and trains I needed to take in order to get there.

I wound up renting a Crown Victoria which had plenty of room. I got in touch with my pal Eddie Pelle who was on his way to the Philadelphia area via public transportation from Long Island. He was also going to Villanova, Pennsylvania to see the Wildcats play the Cincinnati Bearcats in a college basketball game. The King and I were doing the same.

I called Eddie when I got into the car. He said he was in Queens so I arranged to meet him after I went back home to pick up the King. It worked out well as we got him by the entrance to the Queensboro Bridge and away we went.

We arrived in Villanova around 1:40PM which gave us enough time to get ready for the 2PM tip off.
We also met up with Andrew Van Cleve aka the Ultimate Sports Fan and his son Dylan aka the Ultimate Sports Baby.

I love seeing the "USB" if you will. He's adorable and he's getting so big.

Ironically we were all visiting the Pavilion, which is the home of the Villanova Wildcats' basketball team on campus for the first time. They play a handful of games there. They play the rest at the Wells Fargo Center where the Flyers and 76ers play.

It was a thrill to finally see a game there. It was very intimate since it only holds 6,500 people. The seating area is comprised of mainly benches that are very close to the action.

As for the game we saw, it was a competitive one right throughout. The Wildcats who are having a bad season wound up coming up short as the Bearcats of Cincinnati beat them, 72-68.

After the game, we said goodbye to Andrew and Dylan. They went home. Eddie, the King and I continued on to Washington DC where we went to see the Wizards play the Cavaliers at 7PM.

We stopped off in Baltimore first so we could pick up our friends Peter and Carmen Agnew. We got them just after 6PM. Thankfully Peter had a parking pass for the garage that's connected to the Verizon Center since we had no margin for error as we arrived right at game time. In addition, Peter arranged to get us all free tickets for the game. He always asks us to come down so I looked at the schedule once the lockout ended and this was the perfect time to go there.

As for the game we saw, the Wizards they've had a horrible season so far but on this night they found a way to win, 101-98. It worked out well for our friend Eddie who said this was the first time he had ever seen the Wizards win live. I was glad to help arrange for him to join us.

After the game, we drove Peter and Carmen back home. They live right near Looney's Pub, where we went to get a late dinner since we were all very hungry. The burger and chicken wings we had we tremendous as usual.

After we ate we dropped Eddie off at the Amtrak station because he wanted to get back home to see some college basketball in NYC on Sunday.

The King and I drove 30 miles to Aberdeen to Super 8 where we spent the night. We arrived there around 2:30AM.

We got some sleep then we got up in the morning and we drove back to Baltimore to have breakfast with Peter and Carmen at another of our favorite eateries in the area, Eichenkranz Restaurant which is located in a local neighborhood.

We were served by Rose, who loved my accent. Needless to say, the food, the service and the company were priceless and well worth driving the extra miles for.

After we parted ways with Peter and Carmen, we headed towards Philadelphia where we were seeing the 76ers play the Bulls at 7PM.

Since we had plenty of time to kill, we decided to stop off at the Hollywood Casino which was conveniently on the way in Perryville, Maryland off exit 93 on I-95.

We spent a few hours there pressing our luck on the slot machines. I had some luck but the King didn't. Regardless it was entertaining experience.

We got back in the car and we drove to the City of Brotherly Love. We arrived there around 4:30PM. It worked out well because we got to meet up with our friend Rich Wolber aka Staten Island Rich who took a Chinese bus from NYC to join us for the 76er game. We went to the bus terminal and we picked him up.

On the way to the Wells Fargo Center, we stopped off at the Oregon Diner to have dinner before the game.
I thoroughly enjoyed my meal there. You can't beat the value you get there. I had broiled flounder with crab meat stuffing which came with two sides and a small cup of soup along with rolls and cornbread for a mere $9.99. They have a nice variety of food items for that price that they offer everyday.

After I stuffed my belly, we drove over to the arena which is right nearby.

We met up with our friend Frankie Centola who got us tickets for the 76er game. We also were joined by Andrew Van Cleve who got a ticket outside on the lower level from a buddy of Joakim Noah, who plays center for the Bulls.

At halftime, I got a royal upgrade as I went down to sit with Andrew who had a few empty seats by him.
As for the game we saw, the 76ers led into the fourth quarter but the Bulls led by their superstar guard Derrick Rose who had 35 points and 8 assists held off a late 76er push to win 96-91. Joakim Noah had 11 points and 18 rebounds to help the cause.

After the game, I drove Rich back home to Staten Island. I got him back just before midnight. I proceeded to drive the King to work at the Post Office at Grand Central Station. I got him there at 12:40AM so he had plenty of time to relax and unwind since he starts at 2AM.

I finally arrived home just before 1AM. I went to sleep and I returned the car in the morning.

I want to thank everybody who remembered my special day. I had a blast all weekend long.

Thank you for reading and following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman