March 29-31

It was rainy on Saturday morning, I was with Jenny and Helen in Quarryville for lunch. Things brightened up later in the day but the rain was back in force on Sunday. I brought the ladies into town in the morning, Helen was leaving for New Jersey via train at 10:00. She and Jenny have family there, Helen had been invited to a family function. Jenny was (somehow) not included in the invite (utterly inexplicable in my opinion but what do I know). A few years ago a similar situation occurred, Jenny stayed at my place while Helen was away. She is scheduled to return on Wednesday the 2nd at noon, Jenny will be with us until then. It's good all the way around: Helen has peace of mind knowing that her daughter isn't alone, Jenny is with those who will look out for her and of course I like having her with me because I love her. Once the train left and we came to my place we were in for the duration, the rain continued all day with sleet and snow mixed in. It finally moved out overnight, Monday was clear and chilly with strong winds (so much for March going out like a lamb). Jenny is usually in town on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays, as it happens her destination is only two blocks from where I live. She had a healthy breakfast and made her way down the street (no need for the access van), I stopped by over the lunch hour to see her. In the afternoon she walked back to my place, we spent the rest of day relaxing with baseball on TV. This day was the opening day of major league baseball season, there were no less than seven different games televised over the course of the day (and I saw at least a few moments of each of them). Take care, thanks for reading

March 24-28

Spring arrived on March 20 but apparently the weatherman didn't get the memo. Monday was clear and sunny, I had my taxes done in the morning and saw Jenny over the lunch hour. Tuesday dawned cold and raw with snow in the forecast, morning sleet did little more than make everything wet. The changeover came overnight into Wednesday, I was up around sunrise for a nature call and it was WHITE outside. It turned out to be just a light coating, by noon it was just about all melted off. On Thursday I was with Jenny at her place, we had our usual lunch date. In the evening we were at Reservoir Park for the organizational meeting for the Spring street hockey league. We had about a dozen teams represented, the tentative starting date is April 14. Friday was an ice hockey night in downtown Reading as the Royals hosted the Elmira Jackals for the ninth and final time in 2014. Ryan Cruthers got the club on the board in the first period, Kevin Walrod scored moments later to make it 2-0. A second-period tally by Sean Wiles extended the lead, Cruthers' second goal made it 4-0 in the third period. Riley Gill lost his shutout bid in the closing minutes but he recorded an assist on Cruthers' third-period score in addition to picking up the win. The victory clinches a postseason berth (for the ninth time in thirteen seasons) and improves the club's record to 41-21-3, the boys are at home on April 2nd against the Orlando Solar Bears. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 20-23

My mother's younger brother (my uncle Chester) passed away on March 14, he was 74. In recent years his health had severely deteriorated, in many ways it's remarkable he lived as long as he did. His services were on Thursday morning at the church he attended in Columbia, my mother asked me to drive her there since she had no idea where it was (I found driving directions online). I must admit to being one with no concern for religion. As a youngster my parents tried to instill it in me, I never liked it because frankly I didn't get anything out of it and I still don't. When I was thirteen years old my grandfather in Elmira passed on, my parents made the trip for the formalities and of course I had to go as well. The entire experience traumatized me to the point where I grew to hate funerals (although I don't suppose there is anybody who actually LIKES them), in my adult years I've tried to gracefully avoid them because it's just too damn depressing. When a loved one passes away I can accept that they are gone, I merely wish to remember them as they were when they were alive. When the services began I sat out in the corridor and overheard everything that was going on which was depressing enough without actually sitting inside. I saw my aunt Marilyn and my cousins before the services started, they knew I was physically present and that's all that really matters. On Friday Jenny was in town, we saw each other over the lunch break. On Saturday we had lunch together in Quarryville. Earlier in the week I had a message from old friend Phil Zangari, the APBA baseball league he supervises was having its annual draft on Sunday. The league has been going since 1978, I played in it the first six years it existed. If I'm available I attend the draft and keep track of the paperwork since having a non-participant in that role makes it easier for everyone, this was the first time I was there since 2011 (Royals games kept me away in '12 and '13). The Royals split a pair of games on the road over the weekend, they are back home on Friday the 28th. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 17-19

It snowed lightly overnight into Monday, by late morning it was almost completely melted. Jenny was supposed to come into town but her transportation cancelled, the early morning in the southern part of the county must have been more severe than in the city. She finally made it in on Tuesday, we saw each other briefly over the lunch hour (I don't get to see her everyday, any time we spend together is valuable to me). It was rainy on Wednesday with temperatures in the 50s, in the evening we were at the Arena in downtown Reading. The Gwinnett Gladiators (from Duluth, Georgia) were making their only appearance of the season, in the first period the Glads struck first for the 1-0 lead. Domenic Monardo evened it in the second period, the 1-1 tie lasted well into the third. With seven minutes left Gwinnett took the lead but the Royals replied in short order. Less than a minute later Jesse Todd scored to tie it, a few moments after that Michal Cajkowsky hit the back of the net to give the Royals the advantage. Ethan Cox's empty-netter salted away the 4-2 win, Brandon Anderson was the goalie of record. The victory was the club's twentieth on home ice and improves the overall mark to 39-20-3. The boys are next at home on Friday the 28th, three dates in April wrap up the home portion of the schedule. It was announced that the first prospective home playoff game would be on April 17 but there's a lot of hockey to be played before then. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 16

On the road early on Sunday, the ladies were along for the annual Battle Of The Badges game at the Arena. The BOB started in 2006, the Reading police and fire departments play as a fundraiser of the families of fallen officers and firefighters. Every year it is a spirited affair and this occasion was no different, the Police won it 8-6. The game started at 12:30 and ended shortly after 2:00, at 4:05 the Royals hosted the Wheeling Nailers. This was the Nailers' eighth and final regular season appearance at the Arena, they and Elmira are by far our most frequent opponents. The Royals took a 1-0 lead in the first period thanks to Yannick Tifu but the Nailers replied quickly tie it at 1-1. Domenic Monardo reestablished the Royals' lead early in the second period, it stayed 2-1 until the late going of the third when Wheeling took advantage of a break and knotted the game at 2-2. In overtime it took less than thirty seconds for the Nailers to find the net for the game-winner and the 3-2 victory, Riley Gill took the tough-luck loss. This was the Royals' second extra-time loss on home ice, Evansville won in a shootout at the Arena back in February. The club's overall mark stands at 38-20-3, 19-10-2 at home and 19-10-1 on the road. The boys are at home on Wednesday the 19th against the Gwinnett Gladiators. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 10-15

The early part of the week was remarkably warm, I had the window open (albeit with a ventilator) during daylight hours to take advantage of the fresh air. The week itself was typically slow for this time of year, with high school basketball long since concluded and spring activities not yet started it's something not the least bit out of the ordinary. The Royals won on Wednesday night in Elmira and lost in Wheeling on Friday, Saturday night saw the club in action on Santander Arena ice. This was the club's thirtieth home game and only the second time Jenny and her mother were absent, they were invited to a family birthday party. Jenny's great-grand niece Alexa turned two on Wednesday, Lexy's mother had the party on Saturday at a local eatery. Jenny was disappointed at having to miss the game because it was our annual "Saint Hat-tricks" Night game, the Royals wore special green jerseys emblematic of the holiday. Before the game fans were selected for a chance to win money in the event of a Royals hat-trick, nobody came close as four different players scored single goals in a 4-0 win over the Elmira Jackals. Sean Wiles broke the scoreless tie early in the second period, early in the third Ethan Cox and Yannick Tifu scored a minute apart to make it 3-0. Domenic Monardo added the final marker as Brandon Anderson stopped every shot he saw for his fourth shutout of the season. As a geographic rival the Jackals are one of our most frequent opponents, this was the eighth of their nine scheduled visits (they'll be back once more on the 28th). I had planned to call Jenny on the way home but she beat me to it, I was not yet out of the city limits after the game when the cell phone started ringing. She was heading to bed early since Sunday was another game day and we would be starting early. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 7-9

When the 2013-2014 ECHL schedule was released in June I noted the weekend of March 7-9 and figured it would be a workout. In thirteen years of Royals hockey I can't recall another occasion when we played home games on three consecutive days. It all started on Friday with the Wheeling Nailers as the opponent. The Nailers took a 2-0 lead in the first period before Michal Cajkovsky put the Royals on the board, in the second period goals by T.J. Syner and Cajkovsky sixty seconds apart gave the Royals the lead. Wheeling knotted it at 3-3 late in the period, early in the third Ethan Cox found the net to restore the Royals' lead. The pesky Nailers replied once more but in the final minutes Josh Brittain batted home the game-winner, Brandon Anderson was the goalie of record as the Royals took it 5-4. On Saturday night the Evansville Icemen visited for the opener of a two-game set, the Royals took this one going away 5-1. First-period markers by Brandon Blandina and Sean Wiles made it 2-0, Yannick Tifu struck twice in the second to extend the lead to four. A third-period score by Kevin Walrod put the ribbon on the package as Riley Gill picked up the win. It was a testy game and on Sunday there was carryover, several players on each club were posturing at the red line during the pregame warmup. One second into the game itself the Royals' Bryant Molle squared off with his pregame tormentor and was ejected for being the aggressor. The teams would combine for sixty-six penalty minutes and nine goals as the Royals emerged victorious 5-4. The Icemen took the early lead but two goals by Domenic Monardo and single tallies from Matt Campanale and Kevin Walrod made it 4-1 after two periods. The Icemen fought back to within 4-3 but Yannick Tifu's insurance goal squelched the comeback as Riley Gill won for the second straight day. The weekend sweep extends the club's unbeaten streak to six games, the overall mark is 36-19-2 (18-10-1 at the Arena). The boys play twice on the road during the week before returning home for another back-to-back on March 15-16. All in all the weekend was every bit the endurance test I figured it would be, not just for me but Jenny and Helen as well. By the time we were all home we were more than happy to call it a night. Take care, thanks for reading.

March 1-6

The first six days of March were largely uneventful, the only real activity of any note was Sunday afternoon soccer at the Arena. This was the final game of the Roar's inaugural season, the boys lost to Baltimore 18-2. Chris Williams scored the lone goal for the Roar as the team finishes its season at 1-19. As expected the club experienced growing pains typical of any expansion franchise, in twenty games the Roar scored 48 total goals while surrendering 178. Corey Maret was the team's leading scorer with 21 points (five two-point goals, three 3-pointers and two assists), veteran Peter Pappas and Reading native Scott Krotee were the club's goaltenders who despite the statistics performed remarkably well. Before the game the organization held its "play like the pros" program, members of a local youth soccer team scrimmaged for thirty minutes prior to the main warmup period. The Sunday weather forecast was not encouraging, it was very damp and dark in the morning. Jenny wanted to come to the game but the weather was supposed to deteriorate in the evening hours and she wasn't feeling well to begin with. She was disappointed because she wanted to participate in the autograph session after the game, I printed a team photo from the internet and had the guys sign it for her. The game started at 4:00, I looked outside around 3:30 and it was sleeting. It was still coming at halftime but when the game ended shortly after 6:00 it had stopped, the drive home was wet but no problem otherwise. There was a light dusting of snow overnight into Monday but it was apparently worse to the south, Jenny was supposed to come into town but her transportation called off. She made it in on Tuesday, we saw each other over the lunch hour. On Wednesday morning I was at the health campus for some blood work, on Thursday Jenny and I had lunch together in Quarryville. The weekend will be a busy one as the Royals are at home for a rare three-in-three. Take care, thanks for reading.