At jury duty in downtown Tucson. The room I'm sitting in is a sauna. Sad face.

Right Said Fred

I'm a big fan of Twitter.  I use it a lot.

One of the most fun and random parts of Twitter that I've enjoyed is not only interacting with people and sharing info about random things but also the occasional celebrity encounter.

I'm followed by Mary Ellen Rasjkub (Chloe on the Fox TV show "24", she follows a small group of people so that makes that extra cool), have swapped Tweets with Shaquille O'Neal, and today there was a new celebrity Twitter encounter:  Right Said Fred!

I mentioned them in a Tweet I posted earlier today and they apparently found it in a search and replied to it (even though I didn't @ reply them because it was for someone else).

I've played "I'm Too Sexy" at various radio stations for nearly 20 years.  It was a fun moment!

They're on Twitter @TheFreds.

I'm Too Sexy for my shirt... so sexy it hurts...

Smoke and dust over Tucson

Wildfires continue to burn in southern Arizona.

This evening we had a combination of smoke and dust due to winds.  The smoke was from a new wildfire burning near Sells, Arizona (the Boboquivari Fire).  The combination made for some awful air quality but some spectacular and unusual photos.

Sunset looking west from east Tucson. The sun is still up and its a cloudless day.

Its hard to believe there's a sun there and its just dust and smoke.

Looking north. You can barely make out the outline of the mountains.

Zoomed in, still can barely make out the outline of the Rincon mountains.

Another photo looking north. There are mountains behind all the dust and smoke... somewhere!

This was the next day to show you the difference. Mountains clearly visible.

Anthony's cupcakes

Anthony baked this morning!

Rainbow cupcakes with white frosting and rainbow sprinkles.

They are delicious!

Cupcakes!

Buddy's Grill at Grant and Swan closing

There are many restaurants I have not eaten at in Tucson during my ten years here.  One of them I haven't eaten at multiple times is Buddy's Grill.

The food was good and they were open later than some sit down restaurants and it was in a great location in northeast midtown.

I learned this afternoon thanks to Twitter (I learn a lot thanks to Twitter) that its closing after being at Grant and Swan for a number of years.  They apparently have a second location at Valencia and Houghton that is doing well and will remain open.

Here's the note posted on the Buddy's Grill Facebook page detailing the closure:

"A HUGE THANK YOU to all of the folks that have joined us on Grant and Swan over the last 21 years. Unfortunately we will be closing our doors tonight for the last time. We are part of the microcosm of what's happening all over the United States with small business and the economy. We are family owned and operated and consider Buddy's our home and welcomed you all in as guests not customers because to us, that is what you have always been. Thank you for an amazing run at our Grant and Swan location.

THE SILVER LINING... we have found a home on the east side of Tucson on Houghton and Valencia for the last 3 years and that location will remain open and is flourishing. Please consider making the drive out for your favorites. You will see familiar faces and of course the Owens family there to welcome you in with open arms!
Again, we can't thank you all enough for your loyalty all these years. You could've gone anywhere and your chose our place. We are forever grateful. God bless you all! The Buddy's Grill family."

RIP Grant and Swan Buddy's Grill.  You will be missed!

KGUN 9 Morning Blend

I was on the Morning Blend on KGUN 9 TV today!

Topics included my hair and chicKEN choking. (See the previous post with the San Diego ChicKEN).

The photos:

Its a couch! Time to lie down (on live TV)

Zzzzzz. Sleeping on television rules.

I was describing how large my, um, well... you know... is.

I'm on TV... on TV!

A behind the scenes behind the camera photo.

The Famous San Diego ChicKEN

One of the unique part of my job is meeting random famous people (and characters).

Check out my Celebrity Photo Page at the top of this blog if you want to see a collection of the famous I've met.

Yesterday I added one more:  The Famous San Diego Chicken who is in town for a Tucson Padres baseball game.

The photos:

The San Diego Chicken visits with Ann and Alex on the KGUN 9 Morning Blend
(their studio is right down the hall from my desk)

The San Diego Chicken dances with the CW Green Man. The chicken dance!

The CW Green Man gets air!

Ken Carr, San Diego Chicken, CW Green Man

I'm not choking the chicken. The chicken is choking me!

A bobcat in the conference room

Usually the most ferocious thing in the radio station conference room is my co-workers!

We had a visit today from a bobcat.  It was on a leash but nonetheless it was the first time in my 24 year media career I've been in a conference room with a bobcat.

The Kenparazzi photos:

Please don't eat me! I just want to take your picture! (his name is Wilbur)

Mmmm. Finger.

I won at Cosmic Bingo!

I like to go play Cosmic Bingo.  I won a bingo one time and so did four other people so I got 20 dollars for my win.  After playing for nearly three years that was exciting.

And then...

I won on Saturday night!  The 100 dollar prize for the game!

Here I am... a proud Cosmic Bingo winner at Casino Del Sol!

I wondered why I didn't sleep well last night. The top sheet on the bed came untucked. Ruined the bed's delicate balance!

Death of a high school friend

I went to high school in Kearney, Nebraska at Kearney High School.

I didn't have a lot of friends from my own class.  Most of them were from the class one year younger.

One friend (I use the term friend loosely here) I had who I was in Cub Scouts in Junior High with and we hung out at each other's houses a couple of times and I had a few classes with was Jeff Harris.  We were in the same graduating class (1984) at Kearney High.  I don't remember him that well (It was the early 1980's, it was a looooong time ago!) but he was a decent kid from my recollection.

I was reminded of him today when one of my Facebook friends, who was in the same graduating class as I was in 1984, posted "RIP Jeff Harris" on her page today.

His last name is different now (Smith) for some unknown reason.  He passed away on May 29 at a hospital in Omaha.

His birthdate was one day before mine, same year.  He lived in a rural area of Nebraska according to his obituary which I looked up in the local paper (kearneyhub.com) online.

It occured to me today that I will end up finding out about more people I went to high school with who pass away.  Its a part of getting older I suppose.

I don't have particularly fond memories of my high school experience.  I was a very average student who was a little too creative for his own good.  Which explains why my current career suits me so well.

Finding out about Jeff's death today made me pause for a moment.  I hope he lived a good and happy life.

Kenparazzi Classic: Chunky Blue Cheese

Did you know there is salad dressing named after me?

KEN'S Salad Dressing.

A photo from March 12, 2008 of Ken's Chunky Blue Cheese.

Feel free to put my Chunky Blue Cheese on your salad.  (That sounds as naughty as I thought it would).

Kenparazzi Classic: Diamondbacks Sept 10 2007

My friend Andres and I went to the Arizona Diamondbacks game on September 10, 2007.

A couple of photos from the game:

Andres and I

The best part of any baseball game: The hot dogs!