The Simple Laugh Smiley Story

When I was younger, my parents owned a restaurant in Plum, PA - a suburb outside of Pittsburgh - called "The Plug 'n Piston" where the restaurant’s entire motif was actual automotive parts, as well as the menu item names. It was quite a unique family restaurant that gained much attention in the area, including many articles in the newspaper following visits by the "mystery diner", a few tapings on Pittsburgh's "Evening Magazine", and even a visit from the Exxon tiger (of Esso's slogan "Put a Tiger in Your Tank"). Not to mention, the filming of George Romero's "Creepshow" right down the street attracted the movie crew for many meals, along with a well-sealed jar of African roaches that were in the segment "They're Creeping Up On You". I'm glad that I was away at college during that visit!

Every day, my Dad would arrive at the restaurant by 6 AM, work the lunch rush, come home for a quick nap, return for the dinner hour (usually with a rubber chicken in his hand to entertain customers), then finally close the restaurant well past midnight. By the time my older sister, Beth, and I came home from school each day, my Dad was taking his well-deserved respite between the restaurant's lunch and dinner hours. At that time, we were assigned the dreaded chores, while my younger sister, Robin, practiced her A-B-Cs. Beth and I took turns performing the two most important daily chores: (1) shining my Dad's shoes; and, (2) putting double-sided adhesive tape onto my Dad's hairpiece (otherwise known to my Dad as his "rug"). Even though it was chore that did not require a lot of time nor skill, it was...well, gross since we had to remove the old, sweaty tape prior to replacing it with fresh tape. Eventually, my Dad noticed that I became a champ at spit-shining shoes, so I was relieved of "rug duty" and permanently put on shoe shine duty. What a fortunate talent that came in handy, well noticed during inspections when I joined the Army later in life.

When I launched my business in 2009, I wanted an icon within the company logo to have a huge smile, since I've always believed that my purpose in life was to make people laugh. I sketched a few ideas and made a conscious effort not to draw a head similar to the beret-wearing "Jake" associated with "Life is Good". One idea was a fun, round smiley wearing a baseball cap, but then I heard my Grandma's voice in my head saying, "Take that hat off! You're going to be bald like your father someday." With that said, I erased the ball cap and replaced it with my Dad's hairpiece. How appropriate since my Dad was the definition of laughter! I remember riding roller coasters at Kennywood Park with my Dad (even though he was not permitted due to his heart condition) and he would wave his hairpiece in the air while speeding down spine-tingling drops. And so, the secret is out...the smiley within my company logo represents pure fun and my Dad's rug, riding the wave as the tape did not hold down the Jack Rabbit's 70-foot, double-dip drop!

In the end, my Dad's entrepreneurial spirit lives within me through "The Simple Laugh", and this is my way of giving back to him, especially today as I tell this story on his birthday. I lost my Dad in 2002 to heart disease. He was only 61 years old.  What I wouldn't give to be on "rug duty" just one more time.

Happy birthday, Dad!
All of my love,
~The "son" you always wanted...Jodi


Bottoms of the "Tequila Jo's" Pint Glasses
deep-etched with the company smiley.
For more details, go to: http://www.thesimplelaugh.com/Novelties.html

Sights of Summer

It seems like yesterday that a crew showed up at our home ready to powerwash and stain our entire house and deck. It was May 5th, so I greeted the Hispanic crew with "¡Feliz Cinco de Mayo!" It was like a scene out of a Bugs Bunny cartoon when there was nothing but silence and crickets. With that, the crew dispersed, pulled equipment out of their truck and started to powerwash our cedar home. In the meantime, I grabbed a cup of coffee and walked upstairs to my home office. It never occurred to me that water may get under the single-pane windows in our older country home, until...I found water all over my desk, company paperwork and my unluckily opened organizer. A little warning would have been nice! Perhaps they were a little disgruntled by my Mexican-heritage-celebration-greeting since I learned later from their boss that they were, in fact, from El Salvador not Mexico, and El Salvadorians do not get along with Mexicans. My bad, amigos. But thank you for the close-up sight outside of my office window when you painted the window frames the next day.

It seems like yesterday that it was June when my fiancé and I wanted to have some part in our kitchen renovation, so we started tackling the walls right away. And, what conveyed when we bought this country home two years ago? Wallpaper, of course! Unlike the other wallpapered rooms, the kitchen was extra special since it had THREE layers of wallpaper. The "copper pot" border and the plaid wallpaper were both easily removed with a warm water/fabric softener cocktail. But, the surprise sight of "strawberry" wallpaper underneath the other two layers was not so easy. It's as if the house was built around this layer of wallpaper! The glue must have been applied during The Last Supper because it wasn't going anywhere - unless it took the drywall with it, and, in fact, it did. We patched and sanded all of these areas prior to painting, but it was nothing like the area we had to patch when we removed the ceiling light. Who cuts a large, rectangular hole into a kitchen ceiling to install a workshop light? Obviously, the previous owners.

It seems like yesterday that the new countertop, ceramic tile floor and stainless steel appliances were finally installed in July. I found myself with the contractors quite a bit to ensure quality work, so this was an opportune time for me to take some photos of the guys. Of course, I had to get a shot of the plumber low-crawling under the dishwasher. Unfortunately, he pulled up his shorts right before I took the shot, so the infamous "plumber crack" is not visible. I apologize. And, what's up with the knee pads? Did he have a volleyball match after work? 

And finally, it seems like yesterday that our home renovations for the summer of 2011 came to an end as we packed up for a much-needed vacation at the beach in August. We rented a home for a week on the 4x4 only Carova Beach in North Carolina (a.k.as “North Cackalacky”). However on the third day, Hurricane Irene forced evacuations along the East coast. We tried to wait it out and push the envelope as long as could, but we finally gave into the mandatory evacuation by day four when: (1) we noticed that the beach was empty; (2) the only vehicles traveling on the beach were trucks carrying plywood for boarding up homes; (3) the Sheriff pulled his truck right up to us as we were walking along the surf and told us to evacuate immediately; and, (4) county officials came to our beach house to make sure that we were packing and leaving the area away right. Geez. Oh, and the fun wasn’t over! We came home to find ourselves without power due to the hurricane. In the dark for almost a week…not a pretty sight at all.

Well, those were my very own “sights of summer”. Now, if you excuse me, I would like to close my eyes and recall my favorite sight of the summer...

 

Hold on! It's fall now, so I would like to switch out my beer for an Appletini.

In honor of Mr. Sam Vitelli

The first day of April marked the 100th birthday for my Grandpap Sam. A centenarian on April Fool's Day...Seriously?...Seriously. Since I live a few states away (and Grandpap has enough slippers to open his own slipper store), I wanted to do something special for him long distance. My Mother gave me the idea of somehow getting at least 100 birthday cards sent to him at the health center where he lives - otherwise known as "the jail", in my Grandpap's own words. [As far as I know, jails don't offer gourmet meals, special events and cute nurses!] I posted my Mother's idea right away on my Facebook page for all of my friends to see, while my sister did the same on her page. Excited responses started pouring in from all of our friends and the cards were on their way to my Grandpap...at the jailhouse.

In the meantime, a friend gave me a couple of other ideas for my Grandpap's 100th birthday celebration: (1) request a birthday greeting from the President; and, (2) have Willard Scott announce his birthday on the TODAY Show. Without hesitation, I was on the phone submitting a request via my congressman for the birthday greeting from the President. It was only two weeks before my Grandpap's birthday and I was well aware that "requests should be received at least six weeks in advance of the event date". But, I still wanted Grandpap to eventually receive the greeting from El Presidente!

Then, I went to work on my email request to Willard Scott for the on-air announcement on the "Smuckers" segment of the TODAY Show. Once again, I learned that I was behind schedule since requests should be received approximately four weeks in advance, but I still wanted to give Grandpap a shot at his 10 seconds of fame on the air. In accordance with the instructions, I submitted: my Grandpap's name, date of birth (of course, this might be helpful), mailing address (1 Prison Lane), etc., along with a recent photo (no black-and-whites from 1911) and "anything interesting about the celebrant". Without a doubt, I thought the most interesting thing about my Grandpap was the fact that he played both the trumpet and trombone in a big band for many years. I remember staying with my grandparents on weekends and Grandpap sitting there at the dinner table with a maroon velveteen jacket, white ruffled shirt, and "Sam" embroidered above the left chest pocket. I stared at my Grandpap and I was so proud knowing that he was a musician, while other grandfathers were most likely sitting at home in their LazyBoy recliners reading the newspaper. So, I hoped and prayed that my Grandpap's interesting fact was enough to get him on the show even if the submission was two weeks behind.

On the morning of Grandpap's birthday at 0830, I tuned into the TODAY Show anxiously waiting for Willard Scott's birthday announcements. One "white-top", two "white-top", three "white-top", four 'white-top", then the jelly segment ended. That's it?...only four birthday announcements?! C'mon Willard! I know that you're busy playing shuffle board at your off-site location in Florida, but you couldn't have squeezed my Grandpap in the announcements?! Perhaps next year...if Grandpap hasn't checked out of the jail. Until then, I'm sending both of my requests to the White House and Willard Scott 48 weeks in advance!

In the end, my Grandpap received a total of 107 birthday cards - seven over our goal of 100! This included a very nice congratulatory letter from Willard Scott and the last item received as #107 was an official White House greeting signed by the President and Mrs. Obama - most likely a stamp, but very much appreciated. My Mother hung every item received on the wall in Grandpap's room (jail cell) to remind him of how much he is loved...thanks to everyone.

My sister and I want to thank each and everyone of you who helped make my Grandpap's 100th birthday so memorable! Hmmm...I wonder if my niece and nephew snuck a file into Grandpap's cake so he could escape from the jail?


Signed,
Grandpap Sam's favorite grandchild,
Jodi...owner of The Simple Laugh (a trendy web store that does not sell slippers)

Remember November

The spirit of Halloween is back in its grave and our costumes were put away after a memorable night out in the city. The Cub Scout uniform and the Scooby Doo outfit can be found neatly tucked away in an orange bin with a black lid. Color-coded organization. That's how I roll with synesthesia. It's all about color.

The following day we found ourselves at Old Navy. My fiance was looking for new Fall clothes for work, while I found myself uninterested in searching for work-from-home digs. There is no need to impress the dog, the cat, and the UPS man with pressed khakis and a button-down shirt each day. While creating unique products for The Simple Laugh, it's important to remember: comfort promotes creativity! With that in mind, I browsed through cozy pants and other be-your-own-boss clothes, when all of a sudden "Feliz Navidad" came piping through the store's sound system. NO!! It seemed like yesterday that I was just watching the Shrek Halloween special on TV, "Scared Shrekless". I can still see Gingy shooting jelly beans out of his bottom cookie.

What about Thanksgiving? What about the Pilgrims, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and the turkey (or the "tofurky", in my vegan fiance's case)? What about Joey Tribbiani wearing Phoebe's maternity pants? What about the traditional Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions football games? With 2-7 records respectivley at this time, the turkey won't be the only thing suffering that day! And, what about Adam Sandler's "Thanksgiving Song"? Why isn't that song played in retail stores during the month of November?

Give us time to give thanks!

Now, I have to figure out what I'm wearing to the "Trans-Siberian Orchestra Winter Tour" performance in two days...while the first day of winter isn't for 38 more days. I might need to go back to Old Navy. In the words of Dr. Jack Shephard from "LOST"..."We have to go back! We have to go back!"

I guess I'd better prepare myself for more holiday jingles. Feliz Navidad.

Geocaching 102

I'm sure that by now you've all seen me mention "geocaching" in several of my posts. If you are not already familiar with the term, you can learn all about the worldwide sport thru geocaching.com by viewing their "Getting Started" video, or you can purchase "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Geocaching". If you're impatient like me and want to know right now, here is my quick and dirty definition: Geocaching is high-tech treasure hunting using a GPS device. Geocachers hide geocaches (waterproof containers) with treasures (chotchkies) inside, then other geocachers search for them. The geocacher takes something out, signs the log, then places something inside in return. I know what you're thinking..."What do I want with a small piece of worthless crap?" Geocaching is not so much about finding gold, it's about the hunt! Essentially, you're a high-tech pirate...minus the rape, pillage and plunder part, of course.

Most of all, geocaching forces you to explore places where you would not have normally chosen to go. My fiancé and I started geocaching in March of 2008 during our vacation to Sedona. We were so anxious to find our first geocache! And then, we learned from reading the geocache description that it was small in size and located at an elevation of 4660 feet somewhere on Bell Rock. Oh, crap! We followed the direction according to our GPS receiver as we climbed the red rock, and after a while of searching in the hot Arizona sun...there it was...a plastic container hidden in a desert tree! We were so excited, you would have thought we just found Davy Jones' Locker. But then, we didn't have to worry about others hearing our exclamation because we were so far off the beaten tourist path. We would have never had explored this part of Bell Rock and much of the Sedona area during our entire vacation if it hadn't been for geocaching.

Following the vacation, we started geocaching in our own place of residence - Germantown, Maryland. I remember downloading the coordinates from geocaching.com for the closest geocaches near our home. I couldn't believe the number of geocaches in our neighborhood that I drove by, walked by, ran by, and merely happened by every day and I didn't even know it. In fact, I learned that there was a trailhead to the Seneca Creek Greenway Trail within walking distance of our house! I lived in my home for 15 years and I never knew there was a 16-mile trail so close-by. Needless to say, this was a dream for me and my fiancé since we are trail runners. Thank you, geocaching, for introducing us to the challenge of the find!

So, step away from your Wii, your iPhone and your cozy couch, and become one with nature as a treasure hunter - ARGH! You can tweet when you get back.

Geo out,
~Jodi...Hi-Tech Pirate and owner of "The Simple Laugh" web store

For trendy geocaching apparel and accessories, go to: The Simple Laugh Shop!

Oh, Balls!

Bocce, that is. When I plan parties, I think it's very important to have activities for your guests. Keeping your guests active will not only ensure success of the event, but will somewhat force everyone to mingle and create lasting memories. Think about it...When was the last time you remembered what a great time you had sitting on the couch at a party, doing nothing but staring at people you didn't know. Not so memorable, huh? Remember the party host equation: Party + Activity(s) = Success! With this in mind, I always have karaoke at my events, but in the summer, I have outdoor activities for the guests as well. For our Housewarming Party, we built regulations size horseshoe pits that were framed with pressure-treated wood, cemented-in stakes, and filled with sand. It was definitely one of the hits of the party, yet somewhat dangerous while everyone was throwing with a cocktail in-hand. It's all fun and games until someone spills a cocktail.

Another outdoor activity that I planned for the party was bocce ball. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the sport, bocce ball is basically lawn bowling of Italian origin. As a child, my full-blooded Italian Grandparents took us to picnics where bocce ball was always played...by old, Italian men, not by the women or kids, of course. They played with their balls and talked about made men...I think. Anyway...when I bought my first home years ago, I purchased a bocce ball set from Target (correctly pronounced as "Tar-Zhay"). When I pulled out the bocce case for the Housewarming Party, I noticed that one ball was missing! It must have been lost at the final party at my previous home. How do you lose a bocce ball in a back yard of no trees and a dried creek bed? I'm sure a maroon ball would stick out like a sore thumb! Way to go, guests. I guess that I should expect that you're bound to lose *something* when there's alcohol involved.

Well, I needed a complete bocce set for the party, so I called the maker of the set, Sportcraft, to order a replacement ball. Unfortunately, I was told that Sportcraft no longer makes my specific model number...of course...so, I asked the customer service rep if she could at least find me a close match to the rest of the balls within the set. She responded that she would need a measurement so she could plug this into the search engine on her computer. I asked if she wanted the diameter, and she responded, "I don't know. I just need a measurement." Uh, okay. It was safe to assume that is what she needed, so I measured a ball from the set and gave her the measurement of 3.5". She told me that she needed the measurement to be in millimeters. Aggravated sigh. My tape measure did not have the metric system on it, so I told her that I would Google the conversion (since she was NOT willing to help me). She asked me to HURRY UP since she had other incoming calls. At this point, I wanted to measure my middle finger and give her that measurement instead. Meanwhile I purposely called on a Friday since people are usually in a good mood on the last day of work before the weekend. In this case, it obviously did not matter. Why?...Sportcraft, LTD is located in New Jersey. I'm just sayin'. Raised and born in the friendliest city in the US, Pittsburgh, I remained polite and told her that I would call back with the correct metric measurement.

I called back minutes later and received another customer service rep...thank G-d! Once again, I explained my ball replacement request. I specifically told her that I needed a 90 mm bocce ball, maroon in color with square scoring and weighing 1 lb. 9.5 oz. This rep was definitely more patient than the previous one and spent some time finding a "perfect match", so she said. Score! I was charged $7.99 for the ball plus $7.95 shipping and handling in the total amount of $15.94. I was finally done with the Sportcraft drama and I could move on to other important tasks for the party. Not so fast...don't celebrate just yet.

A week later, I received the replacement ball in the mail. Let's see...how do I sum it up? How about...@#*!! Not only was the ball the wrong color (maroon with square scoring vs. pale red with no scoring), it weighed light as a feather. Are you kidding me? And, the rep had told me that she found the perfect match!? I guess that I should feel grateful she wasn't working for Match.com when I was matched with my fiance! Return to Sportcraft drama. I called the company once again and I was told that they can only search for balls in the system according to size, no other details. I tried to explain how ball weight is so important in the game, but once again...do you think New Jersey cared? I think not. I asked for information on returning the ball and I was told that they would not pay for shipping, but they would refund me for the cost of the ball. Okay, so let me get this straight...I will pay $7.95 in shipping to return the ball, then I will be refunded $7.99 for the returned ball. In the end, I will receive 4 cents...for my aggravation. At that point, a million other "what to do with this ball" ideas popped in to my head! So, I SHOVED IT into the bag with the rest of the balls.

In the end, I learned a valuable lesson, as I hope you do too reading this post: Always keep an eye on your balls!

~Your Party Host and owner of "The Simple Laugh"

http://www.thesimplelaugh.com/

Rustic Recycling

A few weeks ago, my fiance and I built a rustic fire pit in the back yard to compliment our cedar home tucked away in the woods. During the construction, a severe storm with high winds came out of no where. When the dark sky suddenly became a scene out of a Steven Spielberg movie, we quickly dropped the field stones and started running towards the house while tree limbs and branches were falling all around us. We made it onto the back deck and then, as we safely jumped into the sunroom, a huge limb fell from the tree within the deck and just missed both of us. The stainless steel grill, however, did not make it through the storm unscathed since the limb completely took out its side table. At least it didn't land on the center of the grill where the gas tank is located. Or better yet, at least it didn't crush the two of us! After all, we needed to finish building the fire pit.

Following the frightening event, we decided to have the deck tree trimmed for safety. Our housewarming party is soon, and we couldn't help but think that falling tree parts onto the guests and into their cocktails would most likely put a damper on the event. So, we decided to get a few estimates for the trimming service right away. Unfortunately, all of the tree experts agreed that the oak could not be saved because it was, in fact, dying. We were saddened by the diagnosis because the tree was almost 50 years old and part of our new home's history. Saving the tree was not an option, but we were determined to keep the old oak in our lives somehow. Enter our creative, rustic recycling plan...given to the trained, *licensed and insured* professionals to recycle the tree trunk into a pub table and cocktail tables for the sunroom, and the hefty tree limbs into rustic seating around the new fire pit!

In the end, the old oak was dangerous and unsafe above our heads. It no longer shades us from the intense summer heat. Instead, the recycled tall oak has become a perennial conversation piece, or rather pieces, of our new home. No wood chippers invited to this party!

Now, back to planning the housewarming party and creating new T-shirt designs for TheSimpleLaugh...