JoePa Lives: The Paterno Table at Texas Roadhouse

It was a day that featured yard work, and a quick trip into town, and (sadly) elevated wildfire danger due to windy and dry conditions. In the morning, I pulled a bunch of dead jewelweed out of the backyard and tossed it to the edges so my husband could do a final mow and run the gas out of the mower. Which he did. We are done now with yard mowing for the year. I'm not sure we've ever had to mow in November before!

I also started removing and storing items from the butterfly gardens. I've learned over the years that it is easier and much more pleasant to do these tasks while it is still warm, rather than waiting until we hit the colder temps, when it's less pleasant on the paws.

In the afternoon, we ran some errands and enjoyed a late lunch at the Texas Roadhouse, which has become something of a local favorite. Quite by accident, we were seated at what is apparently the JoePa - that is to say, Joe Paterno - table. It is a small booth located at the furthest point distant from the front door.

It is adorned with Penn State Nittany Lion flags, and footballs, and a gorgeous blue-and-white lamp, and quite a few historic photos, including a really lovely one of Joe and Sue Paterno, laughing together. So here is a photo of the Paterno table, as we got up to leave.

In October, the restaurant had a charity promotion: if you donated $5 or more to a breast cancer charity, they'd give you a coupon for a free appetizer (you have to buy a regular price adult meal to use it, which we did - husband ordered a steak dinner). I used my free appetizer coupon to order the "killer ribs" basket. 

They were offering another such charity promotion, but for veterans this time, and so I did the $5 donation again, and got ANOTHER coupon for a free appetizer for next time! Maybe I'll order the potato skins. Hmm. Something to look forward to!

In less happy news, we got home only to discover that there was a major brush fire burning on Canoe Creek Mountain. Now, you may recall that we were just THERE THE DAY BEFORE. The fire began around 4 p.m. They were having trouble getting fire engines into the area so they were sending in helicopters.

Of course, local roads were disrupted, including route 22, which is basically the only way to get across that mountain! I am typing this story as of the next day. The winds died down overnight and the helicopters went in. The initial report from the area Saturday morning was that the fire had been contained. Preliminary rejoicing turned out to be optimistic.

As it turns out, the fire at Canoe Creek has NOT been contained. By mid-day Saturday, the breezes began carrying the fire westward. Crews continue to battle the blaze, as of this posting. If you are going to Canoe Creek, the ranger advises you to wear a MASK due to all of the smoke!

Now, let us PRAY FOR RAIN!!!

Our soundtrack song for this image has to be about football. I know Monday night football is pro football, not college. But here is a football song I adore, sung by Chris Stapleton: Monday night football theme, featuring Chris, Cindy B. Santana, and Snoop Dogg. You'll see quite a few Terrible Towels and black-and-gold jerseys in this video, representing our house's favorite pro team: the Pittsburgh Steelers, of course!

More Joe Paterno blips here:
No Ordinary Joe
Waiting in Line to Pay Their Respects to Joe
I Was One of the People Who Loved You - from Amy
"You Can Go Home Now" - Memorial for Joe