Slurpees and Hot Dogs

A naked upper nazareth man was taken in by police and will be charged with simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, aggravated assault on a police officer, criminal mischief, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. According to the LehighValleyLive.com article the man was causing quite a scene at the 7-Eleven on 191 near East Lawn.
According to the article, when police arrived, the man yelled, "Let's go coppers," jumped up on the hood of the police cruiser and kicked the windshield. After ignoring police commands to get on the ground and control himself. He was shocked with a Taser when he charged at a police officer. The man was completely naked at the time.

Here are some "fun facts" as they are listed on 7-Eleven, Inc.'s website:

• July 11 (7/11) is the official birthday of the 7-Eleven® convenience store chain.


• A typical 7-Eleven store in the United States has between 2,400 and 3,000 square feet, and carries about 2,500 different items


• 7-Eleven stores sell almost 26 million gallons of fountain drinks a year – enough to fill 65 Olympic-size swimming pools.


• Blueberry is at the top of the hill as the best-selling muffin in 7-Eleven stores across the country. And customers #1 pick for a donut is glazed.


• The most Slurpee® beverages are sold in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in Canada, followed by Detroit, Michigan. But the #1 Slurpee store in the world is located in Kennewick, Wash.


• 7-Eleven was the first convenience store to sell pre-paid phone cards.

Tatamy Kid Nailed by Colbert

Monday's The Colbert Report featured a riveting expose` on the Tatamy boy who got his Nazareth Library card revoked after having his photo appear in a local newspaper. Fear public library system.

Interesting tidbit: just learned the interior shots of the "Nazareth" library were filmed in a New Jersey library.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Nailed 'Em - Library Crime
http://www.colbertnation.com/
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Tasers

"Let me tell you something, funny boy... You know that little stamp? The one that says Nazareth Memorial Library? Well, that may not mean anything to you, but that means a lot to me. One whole helluva lot. Sure, go ahead, laugh if you want to. I've seen your type before -- flashy, making the scene, flaunting convention. Yeah, I know what you're thinking... Why's this guy making such a big stink about old library books? Let me give you a hint, junior. Maybe we can live without libraries, people like you and me.... Maybe. Sure, we're too old to change the world. What about that kid, sitting down, opening a book right now in a branch of the local library and finding pictures of pee-pees and wee-wees in The Cat in the Hat and The Five Chinese Brothers. Doesn't he deserve better? Look, if you think this is about overdue fines and missing books, you'd better think again. This is about that kid's right to read a book without getting his mind warped. Or maybe that turns you on, Seinfeld... Maybe that's how you get your kicks... You and your goodtime buddies... I've got a flash for you, joy boy. Partytime is over."

An Interview with author Scott Morro

In 2006, local author Scott Morro took a little local history, a dash of The Goonies, and a bit of Back to the Future and blended it all together into a clever young adults book called The Cross Over. In the book, our beloved Indian Tower becomes a time machine, shooting a group of kids back to Nazareth 1746 where they befriend a young Whitefield House resident and try to get back home. We caught up with Scott and he humored us with an e-mail interview and shared some cool pictures of The Tower.




Weird Nazareth: What inspired you to choose Nazareth, and in particular the Indian Tower, as the setting for this book?

Scott Morro: Well, Nazareth is a hotbed of paranormal activity, so it made perfect sense to… Actually, I grew up in Nazareth [on Spring Street] near Pep’s Place and Santo’s Market. I went to Nazareth High School and lived there my whole life until I got married and moved to Bethlehem. The Indian Tower is a place my friends and I used to visit as kids. We’d climb the tower and watch the races [at the Nazareth Speedway] with binoculars. You could only see 3 turns, but it was free and we liked it. Plus, I always thought the place was creepy [&] cool. Just something about it, ya know… The idea for the book came about when my family and I were visiting the Holy Family cemetery on Father’s Day a few years back. My youngest son, Ryan, who was 4 at the time, pointed up to the tower from the cemetery and said, “What’s that, daddy?” He and my oldest son sprinted for the tower and we began to look around. I explained what it was and some of the history I knew. My family got back in the car, but I stayed and began taking a closer look at the tower, the monument and the plaques nearby. The idea for the book formed as I was standing there. I went to the library and did some research and I spent time at the Whitefield House reading and researching as well. A former curator there, Mark Turdo, photo-copied a diary written by a girl who stayed at the [Whitefiled House] during the time period I was going to write about and that was a big help. After reading the diary and going over my notes, I sat with my laptop and wrote. About 7 weeks later I was finished with the initial draft. Then it was on to edit and make some changes before sending it off to my publisher.

WN: It seems you had been aware of the existence of time travel for some time. Why did it take you so long to reveal it to the world?

SM: Drunken stupor from too many cans of Guinness…Abducted by aliens at Potts Doggie Shop on Broad Street…I seriously don’t know. I’ve used time travel in two other young adult novels, one out now (What’s Brewing in Boston) and one currently being shopped to publishers (The Moravian Enigma). [What’s Brewing in Boston] takes two brothers back in time to assist with the Boston Tea Party, while [The Moravian Enigma] is a scavenger hunt/National Treasure/DaVinci Code type book set in Nazareth and Bethlehem, where the main character and his best friend search for treasure buried by George Washington during the American Revolution. How’d ya like the shameless plug for my other stuff??? I love the idea of time travel and would love to experience it myself. As much as I’m a sports freak (Go Yankees), I love history too. There’s something cool about how you can weave fact and fiction and, in essence, take that journey just like your characters have in the books.

WN: If the Indian Tower were still a functioning time machine, where and when would you travel to, given the chance?

SM: Wow…good question! Do I have to choose just one place? I’d go back to New York and Nazareth of the 1930’s, 1940’s, and 1950’s to see Yankees greats of the past play and to see what life was like for my parents and grandparents. I’d travel to Baltimore of the 1830’s and 1840’s so I could meet Edgar Allan Poe, one of my favorite writers. Maybe we could hook up and write a creepy time travel story together…I’d go to Iowa and do that “Field of Dreams” corn-thing and see where the ball-players go…I’d go to Ford’s Theater and sit in the crowd with Abe Lincoln the night he was shot. Maybe stop John Wilkes Booth if I was feeling brave enough…Too many more to mention…

WN: Our readers are interested in the unusual and quirky side of the Nazareth. Having grown up there, what are some of the odd things that you remember about the town?

SM: I remember hearing about ghosts and creepy shit going on at Black Rock near the pool. I remember hearing scary stories about ghosts at Gracedale…AND I actually experienced some “stuff” while I worked there a few years when I was going to college. I also remember hearing about a murder of two kids, twins I think, in the 1950’s. I’ve actually started to do research for a book on that event. Other than that, not much…But I’d loved to hear what you and your readers have to share…

WN: Are you doing any writing right now?

SM: Aside from the answers to these questions, ya mean??? I’m working on three projects at the moment: I’m working on a young adult book about bullying in a middle school. Originally it was titled ECLIPSE, but since that Stephanie Meyer chick, ya know, the one who wrote the TWILIGHT series, stole that title already, I re-named it RAY OF SUNSHINE, based on a character’s nickname. I’m working on another [young adult] novel about a young man who goes off to Iraq and writes letters back and forth with a cousin of his here in America. There’s still LOTS to do with that one. My wife’s been after me to do an A to Z book about Nazareth and, as I said above, I’m really interested in doing an adult book about the murder of those twins…I mean adult as in “for adults,” not with porn and that type of “adult.” So far, though, the internet has been a bust when it comes to unearthing info on the case. I think I’m headed back to the library and to search micro film. I think it took place in the 1950’s and the kids were named Schaffer or Shafer…something like that. I believe they were abducted near Mitchell Avenue, by high school and their bodies were found in Black Rock. Again, I could have my facts jumbled, but I remember it being a bid deal. My dad, who works at the Post Office, brought it up to me recently and talked about it as a book idea. I loved it! I just need to get the research stared and start writing. Who knows, maybe I’ll solve the thing and CSI: Nazareth will be born…

WN: Thanks, Scott!

Scott’s author website is http://www.publishedauthors.net/scottmorro/index.html. You can see photos, read samples of his books, and find lots of information. He says he is available for school visits and lectures and says you can e-mail him at morro23@rcn.com

You can buy Scott’s books at Amazon.com or check the “links” section of his website. You can also check the Nazareth Memorial Library.

Tree Love in Nazareth

At WeirdNazareth.com we love trees. In fact, we have a whole section dedicated to Nazareth's weird trees. As the Express-Times reports, a woman was found heavily intoxicated, hugging a tree Friday night on Broad Street after having stumbled out of a nearby bar. Her husband, who was also intoxicated, was busy helping his wife by searching for her missing teeth in the middle of the road. The couple was charged with public drunkenness.

There was no word on whether or not the teeth were found or if they were smashed by a passing car. There was also no word on the status of the tree.

You can read the cleverly-titled Express Times article here: Woman vomits in street, hugs tree and falls over in Nazareth

Bath Woman Competes in Pretzel Contest and Loses

She may have lost but she is a winner in our eyes. As the Williamsburg-Yorktown Daily reports, Kendra Hoffman of Bath was one of only 6 finalists in the Pretzel Coaster Build-off Contest at Busch Gardens (sponsored by Snyders of Hanover). On Wednesday she was in Virginia competing to build a replica of Apollo’s Chariot out of pretzels within the 3 hour time limit. She competed valiantly but did not win. Kendra, Weird Nazareth salutes you.

You can see a tiny little picture of the coaster that made her a finalist here: LINK

News Articles:

Lots of pretzels + a little glue = prize-winning roller coaster (Daily Press)

Bath Woman Falls Short in Pretzel Contest (Morning Call)

Bath Builder Shapes Pretzels into Winning Coaster (Morning Call)

Special Feature! LAWN ORNAMENT SAFARI

Lawn ornaments are a great way to personalize your space. They say a lot about you. Some lawn ornaments are very literal in their message; they may say “welcome” or “I love gardening.” They can also be more subtle; a wooden boy-peeing-on-a-tree says the home owner is fun-loving or has bladder issues. A gazing ball says that the owner is likely introspective, spiritual, or is s sucker for those Lillian Vernon catalogs. To the left you can see one of my own lawn ornaments: a ceramic garden gnome with hairy legs. I don't really know what this says about me.

As a special Summer feature on Weird Nazareth we have created a virtual safari of local lawn ornaments*. We surveyed the entire borough’s front yards** to find the best selection of yard chotchkeys in town. Although there are some pretty impressive pockets here and there, the most concentrated and awe-inspiring gallery of front lawn ornaments occurs in the area blocked off by Forrest Dr., W. North St., High St., and North Green St. Those living in this area really know how to decorate a front yard.
So settle in, crank up the volume, and enjoy the video below.

*Bird baths don't count. Neither do flags or decorative stepping stones...
**Some people put their lawn ornaments on their front porch.

Thanks to: Nancy W., for letting me borrow photos without knowing what I would be using them for.

July 4th Kazoo Concert

At least the kazoos were free again. The July 4th celebration at Memorial Park started off with a kazoo concert. In years past, this was a kazoo parade down Main St. However, as the Express Times reports it was changed to a stationary concert this year to respect the elderly, and otherwise uncoordinated, musicians.

The concert was largely in-tune and on-melody. From my count, I'd say there were about 125 kazoo blowers. Three patriotic tunes were kazooed: Yankee Doodle, This Land is Our Land, and You're a Grand Ole Flag. Although there were a few shouts from the audience of "Free Bird!" and "Tenth Avenue Freezeout!," crowd requests were ignored by the conductor. Here is a short video of the concert: