A Slice of Americana Fails to Make the Final Cut.

There is perhaps nothing worse than being the last to know.

At first, I was in total disbelief, and then over the next few moments my emotions ran the gamut from disbelief, to confusion, to anger and of course denial.

So perplexed by what I was seeing, I actually had to pick up my cell phone and call a friend to get some clarification on what the heck was going on. If anyone would know the 411 on this situation, it would be my long time friend Frank Phifer; Owner, CEO and President of one of the most respected real estate appraisal and title companies in the tri state area.

As expected, Frank knew exactly what was going on and as he offered up details, my mind started to wonder.

You see it all started last weekend while on my way to watch the Philadelphia Independence play their regional rival Sky Blue FC in a Women’s Pro Soccer match.

I was at the intersection of Germantown Pike and Whitehall Road in East Norriton, Pa. waiting for the traffic light to turn green. I took a quick a glance over my left shoulder and there they were; bulldozers, dump trucks and other construction vehicles, replacing the manicured greens and lush fairways of what was once a golfing oasis.

Also gone were the trees and bushes that shaded the various portions of Wood’s Golf Center, once the Philadelphia area's only 18 hole Executive Par 3 course. The course was beautifully maintained, featuring bent grass greens, sand bunkers and ponds, giving it a "regulation feel" that appealed to golfers of all ages and abilities.

The Par 3 holes on the executive course ranged in distance from 105 to 250 yards adding up to an impressive 3076 total yards. These distances were not too intimidating for beginners, and not too excessive for seniors, and yet there was still plenty of sand and water to provide the ultimate par 54 challenge for the advanced player.

The entire course had been laser measured and given a U.S.G.A. (United States Golfing Association) short course rating of 54.7 for the men and 57.4 for the women.

Unfortunately, it now looked like a huge laser beam from a space ship had blown the whole thing up, killing every, tree, shrub and blade of grass in sight.

Gone was the 9 hole Chip and Putt course with distances ranging from 44 to 91 yards. Gone was the Center's award winning miniature golf courses which were themed around "The Adventures of Sinbad" and "The Land of Dinosaurs". Gone was the 20 acre, award winning driving range once tabbed as the biggest and best practice range in the Philadelphia area?

Yes, for just $14.99 I could purchase a monster bucket of 150 balls and continue to tee them up, load up my driver and aim for the chain link fence some 300 yards away. I think I actually even reached that fence on a few occasions.

When I first arrived in Pennsylvania back in 1990, Woody’s was my golf practice facility of choice and remained so up until about two years ago when I became unemployed and could no longer afford the luxury of playing golf.

Over the years I had taken both my sons to the driving range, par three course and mini-golf course in an attempt to teach them the game, and who can forget the numerous long drive and chipping challenges with my former golfing buddies.

Woods Golf Center first opened in 1957, and for over fifty years provided folks here in this part of Montgomery County with hours of entertainment, but now it is about to become the sight of a new $360 million dollar hospital being built by the Albert Einstein Healthcare Network (AEHN).

Apparently the 82-acre parcel of land was purchased earlier this month (July 2010) for about $25 million dollars.

The 360,000-square-foot, five-story hospital building will include a separate, 75,000-square-foot medical office building, 1,137 parking spaces in four parking areas and a dedicated traffic light controlling the new driveway entrance on Germantown Pike.

In the latter half of 2009, AEHN officials announced the hospital would open (in June 2012) with 146 beds and the ability to expand later to 218 beds. In-patient services at 172-bed Montgomery Hospital in Norristown will move to the East Norriton facility when it opens. “Ambulatory services,” including an obstetrics clinic and general medicine services, are slated to remain at two medical office buildings in Norristown.

Construction should be complete by late summer/early fall of 2012.

It’s certainly going to feel strange driving by that property in the future, but then again given the industrial revolution in this part of the county over the past decade or so, it is simply just par for the course.

As for the Wood family, thank you for the memories.

Former MLB Pitcher Curt Schilling Taking Video Games to A New Level

As a Player, former Major League Pitcher Curt Schilling was a “GAMER” in more ways than one.

On the diamond his career numbers speak for themselves; a record of 216-146, an earned run average of 3.46 to go along with 3,116 strikeouts.

In 1993 he helped guide the Philadelphia Phillies to the 1993 World Series, before actually winning the Fall Classic with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001 and again with the Boston Red Sox in 2004 and 2007.

To date, he is the only major league pitcher in history to compete in World Series games while in his 20's, 30's and 40's, retiring with a post season record of 11-2. His .846 post season winning percentage is a major league record for pitchers with at least 10 post-season decisions.

By the way, Schilling will be eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot in 2013, which of course is a Blog for another time.

Yes, the former 6 time all-star and World Series co-MVP (2001), was a GAMER, and by all accounts still is.

You see during his baseball career, Curt constantly had his nose buried in a lap top computer, we of course were led to believe it was to study the hitting tendencies and splits of opposing batters, but some of Curt’s former teammates tell me Schill was also a huge video gamer, a habit he picked up back in 1980.

One of Schilling’s favorite PC games was the EverQuest - EverQuest II saga. To give you a quick synopsis. EverQuest II is set in the fictional world of Norrath five hundred years after The Planes of Power storyline of the original EverQuest game. The gods withdrew from the world in retaliation for mortal incursions into their planes. On Norrath itself, Dark Elves and the Orcs destroyed much of Faydwer; while the Ogres, Goblins, Orcs, and Giants ravaged Antonica. Transport and communication to the moon Luclin were cut off.

See, now how do you not get caught up in a politically based story like that and not want to do something to help rectify the situation? With all joking aside, EverQuest I and II, and games like them, are widely popular among video gamers all over the world.

With this knowledge in hand, Schilling decided to combine his love of video gaming with his ability to excel in pressure packed environments by sliding head first into the competitive world of video game development.

In 2006, Schilling founded Green Monster Games, an entertainment and IP (intellectual property) Development Company which was later renamed, 38 Studios after his former MLB jersey number. The company focused on MMORPGs (Massively multiplayer online role-playing games), which of course Schilling has a personal passion for, thanks for his adventures with Everquest and Everquest II.

After leasing 30,000 sq feet of office space in downtown Maynard, Massachusetts, Schilling then had to assemble his team and if you know anything about Curt Schilling, then you know nothing but the best will do.

The 38 Studios' team includes a wide array of talent and experience. In the past, members of the team have worked on everything from movies like The Spiderwick Chronicles and A Bug's Life, to games including EverQuest II, Doom, Half-Life 2, and Lord of the Rings Online.

It has been four years now since Schilling took a leap of faith, faith that he and his company could make a difference in the gaming industry and thanks to collaborations with the likes world-renowned comic book and toy creator Todd McFarlane (http://www.spawn.com//) and best-selling fantasy author R. A. Salvatore (http://www.rasalvatore.com/), big things are about to happen for 38 Studios.

Actually, I should rephrase that by saying Big Huge things are about to happen. You see not too long ago, 38 Studios acquired Big Huge Games (http://www.bighugegames.com/). Simply put, Big Huge Games is a very successful RTS (real time strategy) game making studio.

Everything had fallen into place for 38 studios including a publishing agreement with EA (Electronic Arts), I’m pretty sure you all know who they are. As a matter of fact it is that agreement that has paved the way for 38 Studios to publish its first video game, an RPG (role playing game) that started out with the code name Project Mercury but to be released under the name Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning.

Scheduled for release in the fall of 2011, Reckoning is an epic, open-world, single-player RPG set in Amalur, a mysterious and magical new fantasy setting.

The world of Amalur was created by New York Times-bestselling author R.A. Salvatore and brought to life visually by renowned artist and Spawn creator Todd McFarlane. For more information on the release of this game and another upcoming projects by 38 studios check out the following links. (http://www.reckoningthegame.com/) and (http://www.38studios.com/).

By the way, Reckoning will be available for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. You can also follow the game on Twitter ReckoningGame and become a Facebook fan at facebook.com/ReckoningTheGame.

On the Outside Looking In, I'm Phil Andrews

A-Rod Slotted As WPS Player For the Month of June.

No one was more disappointed with Amy Rodriquez and her overall performance during her rookie season in the fledgling WPS (Women’s Pro Soccer) than Rodriguez herself. As the No. 1 overall pick of the Boston Breakers in the 2009 Draft, A-Rod managed to muster just one goal in 17 games.


What a difference a change of scenery and system has made for the former University of Southern Cal star. Since being traded from Boston to Philadelphia this off season, Rodriguez has flourished in her starting role with the expansion Independence; 7 goals and three assists in 13 games. Her goal total by they second only to four time FIFA Women’s player of the year Marta, who currently leads league table topper FC Gold Pride with 8 goals.

For her recent efforts, A-Rod has been selected as WPS Player of the Month for June in a vote by soccer media.

Last month Rodriguez notched five goals and two assists for the Independence, including two goals in a come-from-behind 3-2 victory over the Washington Freedom on June 26. Her performance throughout June helped lead Philadelphia into a solid second-place position in the WPS table behind FC Gold Pride. Rodriguez also notched a goal and an assist at the 2010 WPS All-Star Game playing for Marta XI in the side’s 5-2 win over Abby XI. She has seven goals and three assists on the season.

Rodriguez is the second Philadelphia player to be selected as the Player of the Month after midfielder Lori Lindsey won the honor in April. She is also the first player to receive unanimous first-place media voting for the award since it began in April 2009.