Penguins & Cheescake

The weekend is almost upon us, and I can't wait for it to begin!

I have a very busy and exciting weekend ahead of me, including an entire day spent downtown on Sunday. My dad and I have tickets to the Penguins game, and afterwards, we'll be eating dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in the South Side Works (pictured at left). Mmm, hockey and cheesecake. Two of my absolute favorite things!

I love watching hockey games at the Consol Energy Center and chowing down on delicious cuisine, but I also love simply being downtown. It's no secret that I love the 'Burgh, and I truly enjoy every opportunity I get to hang out in the city. I love watching all the fans walk towards the arena on a "hockey afternoon in Pittsburgh." While the sports are certainly one of the best things about the 'Burgh (besides the baseball team that shall not be named), I think the unity the teams cause is even better. Thousands of people joining together and cheering for their favorite team in a beautiful new rink is an amazing thing to see. Sure, sports teams in all cities bring fans together, but the unity of fans is even more apparent in the 'Burgh.

Meanwhile, the Cheesecake Factory brings people for different reasons, such as hungry tummies and chocolate cravings. My mouth starts watering simply thinking about their food, but I also look forward to walking around the South Side Works. All of the shops are unique and interesting, and they provide a great distraction while waiting for a table at the restaurant. Additionally, the views of the skyline from across the river are some of the best in the 'Burgh!

I'll be posting some pictures from my Sunday in the city next week, so stay tuned!

Craving Pamela's.....

One of my favorite places in Pittsburgh is Pamela's Diner. The pancakes...crepes...home fries...ahhh it's all so good! If you have never been there, you need to go! Right now! Drop everything and go to Pamela's! Ok, you probably can't do that, but you really should make plans to stop by Pamela's for breakfast or lunch sometime soon. There are six locations in the Pittsburgh area so I'm sure you can find one close to you!

My inspiration for this very tasty blog post strangely came from a Denny's commercial that I saw last night! Denny's must have paid NBC some serious dough for all the commercials they ran during Saturday Night Live last night. Anyways, after I saw all the commercials last night I got a craving for pancakes. Not Denny's pancakes, Pamela's pancakes! I guess the commercials' didn't have the effect on me that they were meant to. Unfortunately, I had to settle for King's pancakes this morning, which are not even comparable to the delectable hotcakes at Pamela's. But my dad did promise a trip to Pamela's very soon, and I can't wait! I'm getting hungry just thinking about it!

The home of the best pancakes in the 'Burgh gained national attention when President Obama stopped by on a campaign stop in Pittsburgh. The future Commander-in-Chief was so fond of the Pamela's pancakes and home fries that he asked the diner's owners to prepare breakfast at the White House! After overcoming some obstacles (like the differences between the grills at Pamela's and the grills at the White House), they made a delicious breakfast for a Memorial Day event in D.C. Apparently 'Burghers aren't the only ones who love eating breakfast at Pamela's!

I hope I made you very hungry! Now, go mark "breakfast at Pamela's" on your calendar :)

Yada, yada, yada

He was the star of one of the most popular sitcoms in television history, and now he's coming to Pittsburgh! Jerry Seinfeld won't be bringing George, Kramer and Elaine with him, but he will be bringing his hilarious sense of humor. One of America's favorite stand-up comedians will be in Pittsburgh on April 23 for two shows -- one at 7:00 and the other at 9:00. The first show sold out quickly so the second show was added to accommodate all the Pittsburghers who want to see the Superman obsessed comedian.

Even though I was a young tyke during the iconic show's run, I'm still a huge fan. I grew up watching reruns of the show with my parents, especially my Seinfeld obsessed dad. For a "show about nothing," it has left a pretty big impact on my life. I always look forward to watching the show with my dad and cracking up at the gang's crazy antics. I really, really want to go see Seinfeld live with my dad and bond while laughing over his jokes about everyday life! Looks like I better get my tickets fast before they're sold out for the second show...

Simply Golden

Normally, I don't get very excited about the Academy Awards. Of course, I enjoy seeing all the celebs' gorgeous dresses and all the men looking dapper in their suits but typically the Oscars are a long, boring affair that I could care less about. Here's a few reasons why:
-They start too late and take WAY too long.
-All the movies are "critically acclaimed" pieces that real people don't actually see (usually).
-The winners' speeches are ridiculously long and boring.
-I just don't care.

However, this year is different because of two major factors:
Factor A) The hosts -- James Franco and Anne Hathaway. They're both young, attractive and likable actors, and I am truly looking forward to seeing them host Hollywood's biggest night. For those reasons, I think the Academy's selection of the two actors was superb. And of course, having them as hosts will bring in a slew of young viewers who wouldn't normally watch the Oscars -- like me!
Factor B) The movies -- For the first time ever, I have seen three of the movies nominated for Best Picture. The King's Speech (Simply superb, Colin Firth better win that Oscar), The Social Network (It was so much more than just "The Facebook movie" and also, Andrew Garfield is REALLY attractive) and of course, Toy Story 3 (best. movie. ever.) I genuinely care about the biggest award of the night because I want one of the three movies that I've seen and fallen in love with to win. And while I haven't seen Black Swan (and never plan to) or 127 Hours, I care about those movies because I like the actors who star in them (Natalie Portman and James Franco respectively). Granted, I like Natalie Portman because I loved No Strings Attached and I like James Franco because he's gorgeous, but hey, I'm still rooting for them.

I know that the Oscars don't have a lot to do with Pittsburgh, but I didn't title this post Far Away from the Burgh because one of the Best Picture nominees has a big connection to the Burgh. The hiker portrayed by James Franco in 127 Hours is Carnegie Mellon graduate Aron Ralston. He will give the commencement speech at the university's graduation ceremony on May 15. That's another reason to root for James Franco and 127 Hours! Look for more posts about the Burgh later this week, and until then enjoy all of the Oscar hoopla!

Left: James Franco and Right: Aron Ralston (Yes, I managed to get two pictures of James Franco in one post.)

P.S. Check out collegehumor.com's hilarious article "Honest Movie Titles: Oscars 2011." My personal favorite is their Toy Story 3 title. So. True.

Don't you want a blog post?

Hello, Internet. It's been awhile!

When I realized that it's been a week since my last blog post, I knew that I had to post immediately! Not much has happened in the 'Burgh in the last week, and lately I've had a minor case of writer's block. So here's some randomness from the City of Champions...

*Wait, did I just type that "not much has happened in the 'Burgh in the last week"?! Oops! FAIL. Unless you have been living under a rock somewhere in Boyce Park the last seven days, you know that the Penguins made some blockbuster moves. A) Defenseman Alex Goligoski was booted to Dallas in exchange for left winger James Neal and defenseman Matt Niskanen. B) Alex Kovalev is headed back to the 'Burgh after he was acquired from the Senators for a conditional 2011 7th round draft pick. Woot, woot! If only Siddo and Geno were healthy...
But wait! Because the Pens don't have enough star players on the injured reserve list (yep, that's Internet sarcasm), defenseman Brooks Orpik will now be out four weeks with a broken finger. First my Sidney, now my Brooksy! Oh my, being a Pens fan is truly an exciting, yet stressful time right now! Because we can't seem to remember how to win either.

Anyways...

*Looks like that whole "new Batman movie filming in the 'Burgh" thing is pretty legit. One of the recent posts on That's Church posted a picture of Dark Knight producer Christopher Nolan chilling on Smithfield Street. Not a big deal. (Again with the Internet sarcasm) Now, with all the current drama with the Pittsburgh film office, this whole thing has still not been confirmed. But the director's chilling in the 'Burgh which sure seems like a good sign. Cue the Batmobile!

And that is all. Hope your Over the Hills fix has been satisfied!

P.S. Yes, this post's title was inspired by this week's episode of Glee. Lea Michele and Darren Criss sang an awesome version of "Don't You Want Me." Oh, to sing as well as those two can...
Check the full scene out below:



...And that's really all!

The Off Season

Now that their season has come to an end, the Steelers have begun their six month off season. But they're not the only ones in Pittsburgh relishing in the offseason.

It's also the off season for Pittsburgh's three amusement parks - Kennywood, Idlewild and Sandcastle!

Today's issue of the Tribune Review featured an interesting article about Kennywood and the other parks in their winter off season. It was very cool to read about what workers at the parks do during the winter and how they prepare for the upcoming summer months. Be sure to check out the article while you're waiting for Kennywood to open once again!

Pittsburgh = Gotham City

Da na na na na na....Batman!

Looks like Batman will be landing in the 'Burgh to film the latest installment of the movie series, The Dark Knight Rises. The movie will be filming in both Pittsburgh and Los Angeles this summer and will wrap up in New York in November. Christian Bale will be reprising his role as the title character, Bruce Wayne, and big name stars Anne Hathaway and Joseph Gordon-Levitt will co-star in the third movie in the series. Hathaway is set to play Catwoman, but Gordon-Levitt's role is yet to be determined. Although, MTV has some ideas about who he could play. Stay tuned for more info on the 'Burgh's transformation into Gotham City!