Obama Wins First Presidential Debate!

Wohoo!

Launched!

I have finally launched Joshuabienko.com!

Whazzzz Upppp!?!?

Alright. So I took a little time off from the website. Sorry about that. I have three shows opening at the beginning of next semester so I've been very busy preparing. I'm sort of getting a handle on them at this point. My wife asked me the other day what color Ferrari we should rent to drive up to Caledonia with and it reminded me that we're getting close. One of the main things that keeps me from posting is taking the old picture from our yearbook, resizing it and then uploading it to this website so forget it. You'll have to refer to your own darn yearbook if you want the before picture. The first person you should look up is Erin Bardwell (Kissel).


(Not actual Kissel tractor)

After some deep contemplation, Erin decided that rather than staying on staff at Mom's electrolysis shop, the knowledge of how to have a great Bikini line was good enough for her, so she split hair out of there and headed to Bryant and Stratton where she earned an AOS. I do not know what that stands for but it sounds important. From there she (I feel like I can come up with something better than "split hair out of there"...maybe I'm rusty) went to St. John Fisher to earn a BS degree in Management. I think that stands for Bikini Shaving degree but I can't be sure. Nope, I googled BS and found out (after a couple of misleading things about B.S.) that it stands for a Bachelors of Science. She is now a corporate recruiter for Allied Building Products. If you need a job or are unhappy with your job you should talk to Erin, who not only enjoys getting you a job, but enjoys her own job and also enjoys the book of Job and she thinks Steve Jobs is attractive.

In September of 2004, she was married to Rick Bardwell. She moved in next store to her parents who consequently razor-burned (I should just give up) out of there to a different house. Erin and her husband now own acres of land, some barns, some barns without roofs and a tractor. She asked me if anyone had heard from Char Dickerson. I have seen Char roaming the streets of Buffalo. The last time I saw her she was running a magazine that was sort of artsy. I think she re-united with Dominique Washington who is an art student at the University of Buffalo. That's the best I can do.

Here is a picture of Erin and her husband without their tractor.



So, how many of you thought Sandy Bishop would become a highly trained Surfer who competed in last years X-Games? Well you were right if you didn't think thats what she'd do, however she is C.S.I. For real! Sandy graduated from the University of Ohio in 2004 with a Ph.D. in Chemistry. She must have learned something about Chemistry with all of that schooling because as a bonus, she landed a boyfriend (Sam) of four years. He runs a precious metals processing plant in California. For a short while Sandy shaved her head and joined the Navy as a toxicologist. That was boring so she decided to drive a bread truck or that’s what she says the LAPD's special crimes truck looks like anyway. Sandy works as a Crime Scene investigator for the LAPD. I wonder if Sandy and Kevin’s wife will be taking samples of each others hair at the reunion for further testing. Hey, what the hell, maybe Erin will join in for her mom's sake. To unwind from her stressful job, Sandy has taken up cake decorating. I know it's hard to tell where what I'm writing is actually true so maybe I should do a quick review. Sandy Bishop, Ph.D. Chemistry, boyfriend 4 years, Navy Toxicologist, LAPD crime scene unit, cake decorating, dresses up as Sydney Brisco on weekends. Here is a picture of Sandy and her boyfriend Sam and some other guy who joined in on the right.



Matt Sickles e-mailed me at about the same time Erin did. he was hoping I would post this picture of him so that we would all know he didn't turn out to be the drug addict we all thought he would be. I personally never thought Matt would be a drug addict, although I do remember him and Aaron Stidd snorting crushed up Smarties in the cafeteria. It sounds like Matt is doing very well. It must have been a tough move for him when he left Caledonia. It'd be cool if he showed up at the reunion along with the rest of the "movers". Like Chad Plummer, Josh Brown, Samant Das, Nick Coates. That’s all I can think of. If any of you can remember more names write them in the comment section. Anyway, here is a picture of Matt Sickles and his fiancé'. It's fun to see faces you haven't seen for 12 or 13 years.



I also have e-mails (no pictures) from Tim Davis, Nick Salisbury, John Freeman and a quick note from Matt Baldeck. This took me long enough to do so maybe I'll get to them later in the week.

Coming Attractions

This week, posts about Sandy Bishop the surfer girl, Erin Kissel the rancher, and Matt Sickles THE Matt Sickles. Stay tuned...

Rex

I remember being in Mr. Wilson's sixth grade class with Kevin Donaghue. That smell of strong Old Spice or whatever it was still scares me. One time, I was running down the hall (the one that led to the cafeteria and gym class) and I thought I'd show off my "ups" to Mr. Wilson who had an appreciation for basketball. As I began my flight to the imaginary basketball hoop that hung off of the doorway where I would slam it home by slapping the metal frame, the long arm or rather finger of the law caught me in mid air. It probably looked like a flagrant Charles Barkley hammering Spud Webb in mid air. My quarters went flying as Mr. Wilson reminded me to look for the assist before driving to the basket. I blame this incident for my low scoring abilities on the court. I did show an aptitude for assists though.

Kevin Donaghue usually won whenever Mr. Wilson let us shoot Nerf hoops after Science class. Of course he was almost as big as the Mammoth twin towers that were Matt Sickles and Jamie Vokes. I think Kevin's long hair in the back made ladies swoon around that age. Kevin is anxious for me to post proof of his updated hairstyle and his two new additions. No, not his chins, his two beautiful children. Here's what he sent me...

"Hi to everyone. As stated by everyone it is fun to hear about what we have all been up too, unfortunately we can't always stay in touch. If Josh posted my picture you will see that I am married with Two kids, I know it is unfreakin believable huh! I still try my best to be as immature as possible but it is getting harder and harder. I married Lisa LaRocca which you guys probably seen coming. You know I will never forget getting dumped by Leslie Hartford in the 8th grade though!!
We live in Caledonia; we bought the house I grew up in. It is really weird but also fun. My mom had sold it to some guy who lived there for 5 years but did not do much to it. The basement is still open for parties for anyone who wants to reunite. It is fun to be back home! I have to admit I am now a true towny, I even bowl weekly at Cal - Bowl! Lisa has a hard time dealing with the fact she DATED a captain on the football team and got stuck MARRIED to the captain of a bowling team,
I work as a project manager for Christa Construction, I have worked primarily in schools. Everyone has mentioned that it’s weird being a teacher, I can relate because I work primarily with the administrators, which seems just as crazy, don't remember them being my friends!
Gotta go for now, KD"

Liz Kinton

For some reason, I remember Liz Kinton reading a poem in front of Miss Macy's 5th grade room. Miss Macy at that time had not married Paul Flint (but not the custodian Paul Flint who has apparently passed away. My regards to Rich Flint and his family). I thought that poem was one of the best things I had ever heard. Then Tim Rogers pulled a baloney sandwich out of his desk and started eating it. I laughed so hard I forgot about the poem, until now.

These days, Liz is Miss Macy, just the first grade version. What was that teachers name that loved elephants? She was next to Miss Macy. Liz is teaching in Honeoye and her husband in Oakfield-Alabama, which has become a cul-de-sac of sorts for Caledonia grads. Apparently Andrea Neri and Donny Peet are also teaching there. John (Liz's husband) is also the head football coach at Oakfield Alabama. Will John and Dom ever play each other? I mean, it's no Mike verse Tige verse Tony verse Dom verse the Corser's, but it's something. Liz is six months pregnant with her first child. She is due on April 26th. The rule is, you are not allowed to call her anywhere near that date and pretend like your just saying what’s up. April is by far the best month to have a baby. Harper was born on the 18th. For all of you who still go out on Halloween night, John and Liz live right in Caledonia on Stoney Oak Circle.



Liz has left her contacts in the last comment section. If you can help her in anyway with plans for the reunion you should e-mail her your contacts so that you can get in touch. The date is going to be tough to set because no matter when it is someone won't be able to make and that stinks. I like the idea of just picking one and going with it. School begins in early August for me so I won't be at the reunion, but I will be making a trip to Caledonia this summer if any one would like to have a 10-year pre-union. More on that later.

Helloooo!

Sorry for the delay. I am a graduate student at the University of Georgia and the semester just started Monday. I'm teaching a class, assisting two artists with their labor-intensive installations, working on a thirty foot drawing of Trajan's column based on Doolhof, Hopscotch and the European Game of Goose and I have a baby and a wife who I hope to see again some time in the near future. I'm busy.

But in the mean time... why isn't anyone commenting? Do you know that this website averages 48 visitors a day? That means that like 50 people a day look at this website hoping to see a new post or a new comment or a new anything. I mean seriously, doesn't Monice LaFave look great! Doesn't that model that Dom And Leslie are hanging out with look familiar? Isn't my hairdo BEAT? So on behalf of all of you web browsers who refuse to make your presence known, I'd like to congratulate everyone on the job they've done since graduation.

I was kind of hoping that this could be a place to keep in touch so, if you'd like to leave a comment saying, "Yo, I'll be at the Masonic Temple tonight if you want to hang out and drink a forty," by all means DO! I'll try to get back to posting this weekend.

Actually Actualizing

Oh boy. It's gonna take me forever to get through all of this. Jenny Baird has eighteen nursing degrees, six different Examining license, and ten hobbies, plus she went to Ireland. Here, I'll let her tell you herself...

"I moved to Seattle for a year to basically get away from here and have some fun for a while. Then, I got my Bachelor's degree in Psych at Niagara University. I worked at Strong on the Adolescent Inpatient Psych Unit for 4 years doing counseling with teens. I loved it!! Challenging, amusing at times, and rewarding for the most part. But, after 4 years I needed a change. I went through the U of R's Accelerated Nursing Program where I graduated in May with a Bachelor's degree in Nursing. I am currently working at Strong (Wilmont Cancer Center) on the Inpatient Hematology/Oncology Unit as an RN. I love the unit and patient population. I think I was born to be a nurse (as corny as that sounds). I am actually transferring from Oncology to Labor and Delivery in March. I have always wanted to deliver babies and the opening came up so I'm going for it. I am also working on getting my Forensic Nurse Examiner license and my Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner license."

Sheesh! What a slacker. I’m just kidding. It sounds like she has found her calling. God knows caring nurses are a special sort and one that I can't see having enough of.

A couple of summers ago I came home to attend a family reunion. My brother arrived on his new Ninja motorcycle. On our way home Jer and I were in my Jeep and Jona was zooming in front of us. To our horror, Jona lost control and went flying into a field. His motorcycle hit a tree seven or eight feet from the road. We thought the worst and hoped for the best. It was terrifying. The first person on the scene was Todd Smith. It was comforting to see a familiar face. I remember asking Todd to the side if my little brother was really OK. He shook is head and smiled at me. He told me he was fine and that he'd be all right. Jona walked away from the accident with a couple of nasty cuts on his elbows but all in all he was fine. So, thank you for that Todd. It meant a lot to me.
Todd and Jenny were married in Sept. 2005 and are living happily ever after in a home on the Oatka Creek.

Cal-Mum Al-bum

"Dom! Get yo appo juice outta my butt!" Yes, fond memories indeed. The only apples Dominic is playing with these days are his own. I mean, of course the ones that his students give him to put on his desk. Dominic is teaching 8th Grade History in Lyons NY as well as leading the fearless Lyons football team. I don't know where he got the idea, but Dom is the Head football coach of the Varsity team. I hope their mascot isn't a Lion. It'd be like Dom naming his first-born Ronacelli. Things seem to be going very well for Dom who graduated from the University of Buffalo where he also played Div. 1 football for the
University of Buffalo Buffalo's (Bulls). It appears that a match up between Dom and his father is unlikely, but oh what we would do to see it. On which sideline would the rest of the family sit? Here's Dom, Leslie and some strangely good-looking model they appear to be familiar with.

Now We're Cooking

The before and after of Mr. Cracco would be a waste of time. He hasn't changed a bit. He's like Dick Clark.

I have pictures from Liz Kinton and a nice write up about what she is doing, and I have a picture of Dom and Zog and Leslie Hartford to post. I heard Brenda Grant, Linde's sister is e-mailing me pictures and I'm hoping Linde will do the same. Jenny Baird just posted down at the bottom (I could just use your wedding picture if you want Jenny) and Dennis Morrill confirmed Rex's triple chin. I have a lot of posting to do. Tim Davis posted a link at the Cal-Mum website which has helped send a bunch of people over this way. Thanks for doing that Jake. I've heard rumor of Don Peet teaching as well as Kristi Sullivan, Andrea Neri, Liz Kinton, Dom Monacelli, and heck yours truly. I taught K-6 in Queens NY before I became an Adjunct Professor in North Carolina. Perhaps we should start a teacher count. I'm going to try to post a link to an on-going list of contacts but I can't promise my HTML gifts are up to the task.

I'm working an a big project at school right now, but I'll do my best to get to posting some of this stuff later in the day. Until then we can start a new comment thread in this box discussing the etymology of the word "BARROUNT." It's like butter. Discuss.

"You No Say Daddy Me Snow Me I'll Go Blame"

That first e-mail I sent out didn't reach everybody so again, if any of you have an e-mail address of anyone from La'donia, drop them a line or send me their e-mail. Mr. True would never believe that ten years later, I was asking for class participation. The more photos and bios the better. It's fun to hear and see how every one is doing. So if you're reading this right now, but you're too nervous to send me some photos and tell me what you're up to well you, you better, I don't know, I suppose that's fine...

Fine if your a chicken!

I watched two minutes of some made for TV movie last night. Some dude was sitting in the passenger seat of a car and he was telling his buddy to update his music collection. He rattled off Metallica, AC/DC and some other band that didn't sound all that old. Fortunately, he did not say Pearl Jam or Nirvana or Weezer so I think we're all still cool, but I have to tell you, it's getting close. Before long, people will be making fun of us for knowing all of the words to "Informer."


I'm sure by now everyone has heard rumor of Tom Proctor's triumphs at the box office. If you haven't heard, Tom has been fully or partially responsible for The Matrix, Lord of the Rings, Batman Begins, The Lady Killers, The Fantastic Four, Hope Floats (I believe he was fully responsible for that) and the forth coming Celestine Prophecy, The Fountain and Charlotte's Web as well as couple of commercials (don't worry, they were probably flops). I think he is living in CA with his wife Gen and has loose plans of moving to London or maybe Scottsville, he is still deciding. Here he is with his wife in New Zealand.


Larger Pic

Remember these two?

Here's the year book pics.



Monica LaFave-VanHorn is living in Spencerport with her husband. They are running a software business together.



I'm not sure where Leslie Hartford is or what she's doing. My guess is that she is the CEO of a puppet/marionette industry. Correct me if I'm wrong but I also heard you were modeling knee high stockings. Is this true?



Again, if any of you have an e-mail address of anyone from Caledonia or from the 1996 graduating class, please forward this url (http://www.ainodelac.blogspot.com) to them. We only have a couple months before our ten year anniversary. More pictures are coming soon...

Oh, and if you have a website or a business url that you want to plug, send it to me and I'll link to it in the side bar.

Caledonia 10 Years Later

What a Chakka Hopper! Mint hair dude!

Now I know that many of you have kept in touch with each other. I know many people still live close to Caledonia, and many people visit frequently. Sadly, I do not.

I went to the Cal-Mum.com website the other day and looked through 10 year anniversary photos from the 1995 graduates. It took a couple of minutes for me to realize that it was ten years ago that I graduated. I whipped out my Cal-Mum Yearbook and looked at my photo. Holy Crap! I seriously walked around with a haircut like that ten years ago...ever!? Not that my haircut these days is much better. In fact I may be going backwards.

So, I thought I'd set up this website as a place to get in touch. If you have pictures, website links, children, wifes, husbands, jobs, anything that you can share, e-mail it to me and I'll post it. Write up a paragraph about yourself, brag your butt off, lie about your income, photoshop your new picture, send it to me and I'll post it. I'd love to know what ya'll are up to.

I'll get the ball rolling with a before and after picture, a link to my website and some of my work. I'd also like to see if any one has started to plan out our ten-year anniversary. If not maybe we can talk about it here.

Whether you graduated in 1996 or you graduated before/after it'd still be nice to hear from you. Leave a comment in the comment section just saying what you're up to. Or just play a quick game of "Six degrees to Ron Cracco." It's a pretty easy game to play whether you went to Cal-Mum or not.