Happy Holidays to all our friends and family!!!! 2012 has been an incredibly fun and adventurous year for us. During 2012, we took some more trips to some neat places, and attended various autograph/nostalgia conventions. A late addition from last year, Helen passed her Claims Investigator exam and was promoted to the permanent position of Claims Investigator. In January we attended the presentation of the Sci-Fi Radio Show, “The Intergalactic Nemesis” at the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank, NJ, and we ate at JBJ Soul Kitchen. February was Helen’s big 50th Birthday and we celebrated it in the “Big Apple” for a weekend where we saw the famous magician Steve Cohen at the Waldorf, saw the Broadway hit, “Wicked”, and enjoyed an entertaining meal at “Ellens Stardust Diner”. In March we attended the “Monstermania Convention” in Cherry Hill, NJ and also in March we visited the Thomas Edison National Historic Park in West Orange, NJ. April brought us our first time attending the “Cincinnati Old Time Radio & Nostalgia Convention” in Blue Ash, Ohio where we hung out with some good friends, and also spent time with our buddies from the “Radio Once More” internet radio station. While in that part of the country, we visited two more state capitals, Columbus, Ohio and Indianapolis, Indiana. Also in April we had a few “Nyuks” while we attended another Three Stooges Fan Club Meeting in Ft. Washington, PA. A June wedding brought us to Austin, Texas to witness the union of our niece Katie Holmes-Springs and her husband Sean. While there we saw the famous Austin bats as they flew out for a night of feeding. In July, Helen & I participated in the first of three 5K walks in 2012. The first was the “Philly Color Run” in beautiful, historical Philadelphia where everyone starts out with clean white shirts and by the end of the race, the participants become a “Cavalcade of Colors”. Also in July, we took a Starr Bus Tour to Mount Vernon in Virginia to visit the historical home of George and Martha Washington. In August we again attended the “Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention” in Hunt Valley, Maryland where we met many celebrities including Ron Ely, Jay North, James Darren, and Shirley Jones. We also got to see more of our convention friends including the wonderful gang from “Radio Once More”. Also in August, we attended our second “Monstermania Convention” of the year, again in Cherry Hill. We participated in our second color run in September, this time in Englishtown, New Jersey for the “New Jersey Color Run”. Also in September, we took a Starr Tour Carnival Canadian Cruise and toured Saint John, New Brunswick and Halifax, Nova Scotia and enjoyed some relaxation aboard the “Carnival Glory”. Helen & I along with her team “Helen`s Hikers” participated for the 8th time in the “Walk for Hope” in September to cure woman`s cancers which started at Campbell`s Field in Camden, led across the Ben Franklin Bridge and ended at Headhouse Square in Philadelphia. We took another Starr Bus Tour in October to the Sleepy Hollow, New York area where we saw the “Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze”, visited the Lyndhurst Mansion, and toured “Sunnyside”, the home of Washington Irving. Also in October we attended another Chiller Theatre Expo in Parsippany, NJ and met quite a few celebrities including, Valerie Harper, Lee Majors, Penny Marshall, and Joan Collins. Helen & I added another state capital to our list in November when we visited the capitol building in Dover, Delaware.
As always, many photos of these outings are posted on our Flickr page which is linked to our home page at www.JohnnyHolmes.net. We are hoping next year to take a Hawaiian Cruise to celebrate our 10th Wedding Anniversary in 2013.
Again, we wish you all a Wonderful Holiday Season and a Happy New Year in 2013. Please keep in touch!!! Our very best to all of you!!!
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The Holmsey Blog 