Blog Your Blessings Sunday XLXI

John 20: 26,27

A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."

Rain Out

If you came looking for me today, I wasn't there! It was raining too hard and it was a COLD RAIN. History tells me day long, cold, steady rain equals no money and a miserable hotdogman. A warm rain is different, but cold, diving rain aint good for hot dogs!

See you Monday-PROMISE!

OPENING DAY!!!

It was a fine early Spring day. A little crisp, but bright and sunny-a PERFECT day to start the season. I had one little glitch-left the lights on and killed the battery. Luckily I have a charger on board, so it didn't ruin my day.

I got to the spot at the usual time, got everything ready to go and served my first dogs of the day at about 10:30 AM to a guy named Jack Hoffman and his dog. Jack's a local journalist who writes for the Middlesex News and Worcester's In City Times. How fitting is it that a DOG got the first dog of the year! Here's Jack's dog munching his dog.

Here's Jack with his hot dog!

Around 11:30 the crew from BOSE showed up-like 20 of them! I had a big line for Opening Day. THANKS GUYS!

There were some new faces today, but most of the customers had eaten at the old truck. Everyone was happy to get their hot dogs and I was happy to be back. Some new faces rounded out the first day, obviously drawn in by the new sign, painted by my daughter!

I think the new spot is going to work out well. Once I get the "picnic area" up and running, I'm sure to be very busy. Right now, it's "under construction."

See you all tomorrow and "thanks for coming by!"

Bitch, I Love You

Jeff from Horizon Technology is probably my "top regular."Back at the old spot, seeing Jeff only four times a week meant something was wrong or he had a sales meeting. I don't know if Jeff will be a daily visitor at the new spot, but I am sure he'll continue to be a frequent regular.

Jeff has also hipped the guys at the California office (located in Lake Forest) to this website. They stop in and look at the site regularly and I like to have a little fun with them.

Last week, I received an email from another Jeff at Horizon Technology with the subject header: "Can You Come to Lake Forest, CA - We Roll Hard Out West N Sh*t....."

All the email contained was these two pictures:

I don't know what the hell it says on the gal's belly (please if you can translate let me know), but those look like some beefy dogs!

Anyways, I replied to Jeff but he didn't get my email, spam filters being what they are at big companies. Here was my reply:

I would LOVE to come out there, it looks really nice, but you also say stuff like "we roll hard out West N Shit," which is kind of gay!

You couldn't afford to pay for my gas to drive this beast coast to coast anyways. It would be a lot easier for you to fly east, take the entire Framingham office to lunch and leave a big tip.

You WILL be harshed on the internet.

Have a nice day!

-the Hotdogman

Just for S&G's, I googled "We Roll Hard Out West N Sh*t." and I found THIS GUY'S page. The site is strange-the guy is either a complete idiot or a comic genius! What hooked me was the site's music. I'm normally not one for music on a website, but the track "Bitch, I love you" by Black Joe Lewis caught my ear. The site is a definite WTF!?!?

So to you, Jeff in Lake Forest, I say this. The only way I roll is on a hot dog roll! NO SH*T!

Blog Your Blessings Sunday XLX: Happy Easter

John 20: 11-16

But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb;

and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying.

And they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him."

When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.

Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, "Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away."

Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him, "Teacher!"

Jesus said to her, "Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'"

Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and that He had said these things to her.

And on a lighter note, for those with children, a slice of life:

A mother was preparing pancakes for her sons, Kevin, 5, and Ryan, 3. The boys began to argue over who would get the first pancake. Their mother saw the opportunity for a moral lesson. "If Jesus were sitting here, He would say, 'Let my brother have the first pancake. I can wait.'"

Kevin turned to his younger brother and said, "Ryan, you be Jesus."

HAPPY EASTER

Toppings

The new Hot Dog Truck has far more cold storage than the old rig. This means more topping options! I'll have 7 different kinds of mustard and 8 different kinds of relish. I'll be featuring dill relish and "regular" sweet relish, plus a variety of my special pepper relishes.

"All around" will take a bit more specificity with the new options.

I'll have yellow mustard, Guldens Mustard, Dietz and Watson deli mustard, Grey Poupon, Honey Mustard, Horseradish Honey mustard and Coleman's Prepared Mustard (guaranteed to make your eyeballs sweat) available EVERY DAY. I have also added cole slaw and gooey cheese to the topping choices. The old stand byes will be back: chili, kraut, hot sauce etc. will be available too.

I'll have sauteed peppers and onions for sausages (and dogs too) . The classic tuna and Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salads will still be available for those folks who need a break from the dogs. I even plan on carrying Chourico on a limited basis.

The Hot Dog Truck will continue to offer the very best roadside food available ANYWHERE.

COME ON DOWN!

PASS!

I got my Board of Health permit this morning and I'll be good to go for next Monday!!

I originally planned on opening Thursday, but we are going to get about 4 inches of rain-not the best hot dog weather. Since Friday is Good Friday, I'll open on Monday.

After I got my permit, I went to my spot and parked the Truck. I went to neighboring businesses and introduced myself and even met the local mailman. When I came out of the office building, there were two guys waiting for dogs! One of them was a regular from the old spot. They were disappointed I didn't have anything cooking, but they vowed to return Monday.

The End of an Era

The old Hot Dog Truck got taken away to the Hot Dog Truck graveyard today. The beast of a vehicle was too far gone to fix-hence the purchase of the NEW Hot Dog Truck. I had some good times with that old truck, but I'm looking forward to working in the new truck with updated appliances, more cold storage and reliable running hot and cold water. The new truck actually drives too!

Here are the final shots of the old Hot Dog Truck as it is towed away to the hot dog truck crusher.

Test Drive

The first hot dogs of the year have been served from the Hot Dog Truck! Not to the general public though: my daughter hosted some friends for a birthday party Saturday and the dinner fare was HOT DOGS! The kids got a kick out off the new Hot Dog Truck and they each had two or three dogs. My wife and I had three each: two all around and one all around with spicy corn relish.

The increased refrigerated storage in the new Hot Dog Truck will allow me to offer and expanded condiment selection. I plan on offering slaw dogs as well as an expanded relish and mustard selection. Tomorrow I get signed off on the Board of Health and I will most likely open one week from today on Monday the 24th of March!

Beach Wedding Invitations

My wife and I were married on the beach. In the rain. Not just rain, SIDEWAYS rain. We had rented out the beach club near my parents' house which is nothing more than a large, concrete patio with a roof over it and some restrooms.

Early on the morning of my wedding my wife to be, father and I were busy putting up tarps to shield the patio from the elements. We called the tent rental people and had them bring every available heater they had, crossed our fingers and hoped for the weather to clear. It didn't.

We had originally planned for my wife to be paddled around the point in a canoe by her father to shore where we would be married. Six foot swells cancelled that idea; instead it was a mad dash from my brother's mini van to the covered patio.

All the planning was scrapped due to the weather. Dinner was a New England clambake with lobsters and steamers and the open bar was well used! Despite the weather, which cleared after dinner was served, everyone had a good time. Too bad our Beach Wedding Invitations didn't come with rain suits!

We went on a cruise for our honeymoon and went to a special reception for honeymooning couples where we swapped stories about our soggy wedding days (we were all married on the same day). One bride from Maine shared a raucous story about how "pissed off" she was to wake up to SNOW falling on her wedding day! She'd planned her very formal wedding from 1st Class Wedding Invitations down to fancy table settings and half her guests showed up in snow boots, sweaters and winter parkas.

While couples can't choose the weather for their beach weddings, they can choose Beach Wedding Invitations to be exactly how they want them. Each invitation can be customized for style, color and comes complete with response cards, announcements, reception cards AND thank you letters. Weddings can be stressful to plan, particularly if you're into managing every last detail. If you want to take the stress out of the invitation aspect, visit 1st Class Wedding Invitations and take care of that piece of planning quickly and easily. Just don't forget the umbrellas.

Blog Your Blessing Sunday XLIX

It is, at last, starting to feel like Spring. The Hot Dog Truck re-opens within a week, baseball tryouts are in two weeks and this Thursday is the first day of Spring!

Song of Solomon 2: 11,12

See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.

Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
is heard in our land.

ALMOST Ready to roll

Spring is definitely in the air. In fact, the first day of Spring is March 20, one week from today! The Hot Dog Truck is ready to roll. The refrigerator and freezer are cranking up (frozen treats will be added to Le Menu this season), the grill is spic and span and the new water heater was installed this morning. All I need is the Board of Health to sign off and I am good to go!

My original Board of Health appointment is for next Thursday, but I am going to bump it up to Monday or Tuesday so I can get going on the 20th.

STAY TUNED, we're getting close!

Let the Beatings Begin!

No, I'm not talking about the Yankees again. Although the Red Sox are sure to administer their fair share of Yankee beatings this season...

I am talking about Fantasy Baseball. I don't participate in a League, but my brother Laz does. He's the crackerjack Football Handicapper who had a stellar season on Winning Football Picks, one of my other sites.

Participating in a fantasy baseball league is a challenging prospect to say the least. The sheer volume of statistics you need to keep up with can send your head spinning! It's like managing a Major League Team (which we all believe WE could do better than the local manager). You need a fair amount of time and some good analysis tools to be a player in any fantasy baseball league.

There are lots of cool tools out there. One of the best is the new Sports Prophet fantasy baseball software. It's a completely web based system so you can log in from virtually any computer in the world. It has all the tools you need to manage your fantasy baseball team from constantly updated stats, injury reports and box scores to player management features, draft assistance and a player ranking system designed by an Uber computer PhD!

Winning a fantasy baseball league can make you money too. First prize for my brother's league is a five figure number and there's payouts for up to 20th place. I think he's been "in the money" 9 out of the ten years he's participated. He's paid for more than a few goodies with his "earnings" (as he likes to call them).

As with any GOOD tool, there is a cost to be a member of Sports Prophets. It's only $39.95 which, if you win a five figure prize, is chump change. They're having a special discount for readers of the Hot Dog Truck. When you sign up for Sports Prophets fantasy baseball software, enter the coupon code BMC200 and receive $10 off INSTANTLY.

Good Luck and LET THE BEATINGS BEGIN!

Web Fugitive

Ever wonder what's the newest thing on the Internet? New websites start up and new web companies are started every day. How the heck are you supposed to keep up with it all?

I think it's cool to get in on a new web start up early on. I started with the social networking site Bumpzee near the beginning and it has paid off well for me. My Day in the Life Community is approaching 200 members and, while they don't come close to Blog Catalog's referral numbers, the referral traffic is very strong.

But I digress.

I was talking about web start ups and how to find them. How do you find new web companies? A friend could tell you, you could read about it on some one's blog or in a forum, you could Stumble on it or you could see an ad. Those methods leave things to chance.

If you want to be on the "cutting edge" of new website knowledge, you can check out Web Fugitive, the new website about new websites. Every few days, there is a post or two about a new web start-up in any one of a variety of categories from social networking sites to sports to business. Now YOU can discover the next big thing from the get go. I think it's fun to look for companies/sites that don' have a prayer of survival too (there are a lot of hokey sites out there).

So next time you're feeling curious, give Web Fugitive a look.

Hot Dogs and Beer

Not to beat a dead horse here with the steroid issue, but I thought it was appropriate with baseball season coming. The hot dog reference didn't hurt either!

Charter High Speed for Life

I have my local cable company provide my high speed internet. We have one of those package deals: high speed internet, telephone and 863 channels of crap for one monthly fee. I couldn't survive without high speed internet. When I go to a place with DSL or (ulp) dial up internet access, I think I'm going to lose my mind!

Charter Communications is the cable provider where I have my Hot Dog Truck. Many Charter Technicians are customers, as a matter of fact. They offer high speed internet and telephone too. Charter is making a big marketing push and lovers of the Hot Dog Truck can get in on the action. One promotion they have going is a chance to win a Wii. If you've tried to buy one of these lately, you know how tough to find they can be. Click Here for a Chance to Win a Nintendo® Wii™! from Charter Communications to end your search!

Another, potentially far more valuable promotion is Charter's High Speed Internet for Life auction. They are starting a promotion that will allow people to bid, auction style, on high speed internet services for life! The starting bid is $10. The winning bidder will get high speed internet for life (as long as they remain in Charter's service area. That could be a potential bargain the likes I've never seen before! You need to live in Charter's service area to be qualified to bid, so all you hot dog lovers out there, CHECK IT OUT!

Blog Your Blessing Sunday XLVIII

It is a rainy, stay inside kind of late winter weekend. At least it's not snow, or we'd have about three feet! This has been the story of my winter. Bad weather seems to come when I need to do something critical towards moving the Hot Dog Truck towards opening. Less than two weeks until Spring....

Job 37: 6,7

He says to the snow, 'Fall on the earth,'
and to the rain shower, 'Be a mighty downpour.'

So that all men He has made may know his work,
he stops every man from his labor.

The NEW HOT DOG TRUCK!

The day finally arrived TODAY. I drove my new Hot Dog Truck home. I originally picked it up on Valentine's Day. I drove it to the sign shop before leaving for Florida. The guys over at Gemini Signs in Marlborough, MA lettered it up for me while I was basking in the Florida sun. I think they did an awesome job, check it out:

Notice the dancing Hot Dog on the side? He's on the back too!

And the front!

Looks sharp. eh?

After they finished putting the signs on, Dave Boisse and his assistant, Steve, from Any and All Automotive in Marlborough, went over the whole engine and body. They gave her a tune up, cleaned the carb out, new U joints, new rocker bushings, welded a piece of cracked frame, new brakes and a bunch of other stuff. The thing runs like-well a Hot Dog Truck, but a smooth running Hot Dog Truck!

Here's Dave and Steve with their handy work.

Dave likes to restore old cars. Here's a picture of the engine on a 1973 Chevy Pick-up he's giving a frame off restoration to. It's truly a thing of beauty. He's an ARTEEST.

The next week or so will find me cleaning up the truck and getting stocked up for the season so I'll be ready to go by the first day of Spring!

Blog Your Blessing Sunday XLVII

Sorry I missed BYB Sunday last week. I was traveling most of the day and just didn't get a chance to get a post up!

This passage always reminds me of Spring for some reason.

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

A Time for Everything

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

It's almost TIME FOR HOTDOGS! I can't wait to get back out there with my NEW TRUCK!

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