Que guapo! It wasn't me. It was the parents of 22-month-old Odir Bonilla who took a sharpie to his face to age-progress him to how he'll probably look (adding a few wrinkles) as an old man. How cute is this kid? I couldn't believe my eyes when I first spotted him looking down the street from his stroller to see the Hispanic Parade make it's way up Hamilton Avenue in Trenton, New Jersey.

Later that same day, the "Double A" New York Yankees affiliate Trenton Thunder clinched, for the second consecutive year, the Eastern League Championship, beating the Akron (OH) Aeros. That's quite an accomplishment considering it's a player development league and if a somebody too good, he's off the team, to "Single A" or he might even get the call up to the majors.

Sunday was opening day for the Philadelphia Eagles NFL team. I'm still thrilled to be able to be on the sidelines where the players have turned from those grown-up men to those young kids. Talk about thrilling, at the end of the singing of the national anthem, Navy jets did a fly-by. You hear the faint scream of their engines grow into a very loud roar as they zoom over the stadium in about .45 seconds.


It was a stress-free day for Eagles fans. They scored on their first possession and never looked back. On their opening drive, from left, Philadelphia Eagles WR #10 DeSean Jackson, makes a big catch in the first quarter to the Rams' 20 yd line with St Louis Rams #26 Tye Hill defending.

There were other big catches, too, Here is Philadelphia Eagles WR # 83 Greg Lewis, right, hauling in a long pass in the 2nd quarter with St Louis Rams #26 Tye Hill, once again getting burnt, I mean defending on the play.

Even the Eagles' formerly ineffectual special teams made their mark. Here is #39 Quintin Demps jumping over the goal line to tip a punt back into play to be downed by teammates in the 2nd quarter.

And on the return side, rising star #10 DeSean Jackson returns a punt to the St Louis Rams 9-yd-line in the 3rd quarter. I believe that makes for what they call a short field ;)



Quarterback Donovan (healthy) McNabb threw for 361 yards...


...and he even ran (for his life) for a few.

And let's not forget the defense. "We need to talk... or maybe you need to sit down." St Louis Rams QB Marc Bulger, left of center, is sacked in the first quarter Philadelphia Eagles #98 Mike Patterson and #90 Darren Howard, right, leading to a 4th and 15.



And here's Brian Westbrook, who last year accounted for the most combined yards, catching, running. Like my son, Andy always says "Don't stand on the tracks when the train's coming."

There's a place called The Record Collector a stone's throw from my house in Bordentown, NJ. I went there last Friday after work to photograph (former Monkee) Peter Tork and his band Shoe Suede Blues appearing at The Record Collector's Living Room Concert Series. There couldn't be a much more intimate setting to experience live music. I only stayed for a few songs. My favorite was a totally unique version of "Last Train to Clarksville".



Thanks to Promoter Randy Now (shown collecting tickets) & Record Collector owners John & Sue Chrambanis. Also, while there, I ran into former Times colleague from waaaaaay back Randy Alexander. One of the things we chatted about was a concert we covered together for the paper at The Tower in Philadelphia by Keith Richards on a solo tour in nineteen something or other.

The first day back from (an all too brief) vacation was a day of festivals in Trenton, pointing out the changing demographic in the Chambersburg section of the city which was born of Italian immigration starting in the early twentieth century. New school and old school. First was the city's inaugural Ecuadorian Parade. It was quite large for the first time out, taking its place among Trenton's St. Patrick's Day Parade, Columbus Day Parade and Puerto Rican Day Parade. The Grupo de Danza Familia Unida, (dance group called United Family) from Brooklyn, New York, certainly added color.

Later in the afternoon was the continuation of a 102-year-old tradition, the procession of a statue of the Madonna and Child through the streets of Chambersburg. There remains a shrinking, but faithful core of Italian-Americans centered, as were the first immigrants, around Immaculate Conception Church.

I'm still on vacation from The Times and yesterday I took my spouse and mother-in-law to the Adventure Aquarium in Camden. I'd been there before for work and play when the The New Jersey State Aquarium opened sixteen years ago. If that's the last time you were there, you wouldn't recognize it. Now it's the appropriately-named Adventure Aquarium and there's so much more to see than there used to be. It was a delightful day!

The compression effect of a big telephoto lens (600mm) helps tell the story of how crowded the beach was on August 11 in Ocean City New Jersey.

Hello! Click the link to see a slideshow of the one-week long 500-mile charity bicycle ride from Rutland VT to Trenton NJ to raise funds and awareness for the Anchor House, a shelter in Trenton for runaway and abused teens. I'm too smart/lazy to pedal. I just drove along. This same content is also on my wedding website where the images are larger. www.MichaelMancuso.net