webster on the web

I only got this notification yesterday afternoon, but it sounds like a fun and worthwhile event which I need to pass along.

Come to Webster Thomas High School on Feb 13th from 3 to 5 p.m. National Honor Society Seniors Ben Kazimer, Matt Hill, David Tomer and Will Johnson are hosting a Charity Ping Pong Tournament. All proceeds will go to Honor Flight, Rochester.

Honor Flight is a nonprofit organization created solely to honor America’s veterans and transports them to Washington DC to visit their Memorials free of charge. Superintendent Carm Gumina has challenged Ben to a 1-on-1 game. There will be multiple games at once and winners will receive trophies and gift cards donated by local businesses. Should be a fun time. Honor Flight reps will be on hand to help support this event.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Twitter and Instagram

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I believe that a town can’t have too many pizza places. There are so many different ways to make a pizza — lots of sauce, little sauce, thick crust, thin crust, crunchy crust, flat  pepperoni, chunk pepperoni… and then there’s WINGS! It’s nice to have a variety to choose from.

That’s why I was pleased to find out that a new pizza place opened up just a few weeks ago in the strip plaza in BayTowne by the new Walmart.  It’s called Benji’s Pizza and Grill, and it didn’t take me long to check it out.

I met one of the owners, Jim Benjamin, who told me he’s been in the restaurant business since he was a teenager, in roles from kitchen help to cook, and has run several of his own places.  Benji’s is his latest endeavor, and he has high hopes for it.

Benji’s is located in the former Jack & Jill’s daycare in the small plaza located on the north side of Brandt Point Drive (which is basically the main Walmart access road.) When Benjamin and his business partner were looking around for just the right place for the new restaurant, they really liked the location. After all, thousands of people drive by there every day to go to Walmart and the condo development. But transforming it from a child care center into a restaurant would be a lot of work.

“When we walked in, I could see the potential for building a nice open kitchen, which is what I like to do,” Benjamin said.  So they got to work and spent a full six months renovating the building,  originally hoping to open by last October.  But, he explained, “every time we knocked down a wall, we’d go, let’s knock down one more wall. It slowed us down.” They finally opened their doors the first week of January.

The result is a large (3,000 square feet), bright, uncrowded place that feels more like a family restaurant than a pizza joint, complete with a separate banquet room and some very homey decorating touches. (And a sparkling women’s restroom that might be larger than my kitchen.)

The menu features a wide variety of lunch and dinner favorites including burgers, wings, quesadillas, wraps, subs — and pizza of course. And Benjamin takes pride in the fact that he buys everything locally.

Later this spring, customers can look forward to a new ice cream room with two outside serving windows, and an enclosed outdoor seating area with a gazebo and umbrella tables.

If all that sounds very family-friendly, you’re right. That’s exactly the atmosphere that Benjamin is going for. So you won’t find a noisy bar or even any alcoholic drinks, just plenty of space for parents and kids to enjoy a nice dinner.

And don’t be surprised if Jim Benjamin himself comes over to your table and invites you to have your family photo taken under the Benji’s logo. It’s a new tradition at Benji’s, but I have a feeling it’ll be going on for a long time.

Benji’s Pizza and Grill is located at 1998 Empire Blvd. Visit them online here, on Facebook here or call them at 585-446-0600.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Twitter and Instagram

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

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Most every year at Thanksgiving, I post a long-winded list of all the things I’m thankful for. It’s an exercise that forces me to pause and think about all the little things in life that I too often taken for granted.

If we’re fortunate enough to have a roof over our heads, enough money to live comfortably, and good health, that’s really all we need. But the little things — the intangibles — are what really make life worthwhile. That’s the list I’ve posted every Thanksgiving, and which I add to every year.

This is the original list, posted in 2013:

I am thankful for:

My husband, my kids, having a nice home and enough food for the table, my cats, my karate family, my job, friends at my job, good neighbors, good health, my family’s good health, my terrific in-laws, my father, my siblings, the color and crunch of autumn leaves, flowering trees in the spring, rain on the porch roof, Easter baskets, Tiny Tigers, line-dried laundry, lilacs, Christmas Eve snow, sunshine, Friday summer nights on the porch with a beer, sunsets, thunderstorms, warm summer rains, starry nights, blankets in the winter, fires in the wood stove, weekends, Christmas lights, writing my blog, hugs, leaf piles for jumping in, crisp new sheets, the summer breeze that comes in my bedroom window, daffodils, baby giggles, holding hands with my husband, memories of my mother, picnics, camping, hot soaking baths, the WOFs, fog in the valleys, puppies and kittens, spooning, Christmas trees on Christmas morning, cinnamon buns right out of the oven, my mother’s banana bread recipe, reading a good book, the sound of crickets in summer, strangers who return my smile, warm apple pie, watching Glee with my daughter, my new Barry’s family, baby snuggles, naps, after-dinner walks, sleeping in, “Caledonia,” my kids (I know that’s a repeat, but they continue to make me proud), hiking, fuzzy pajama pants, rainbows, my cat keeping me company while I write…

Three years ago, I added:

new friends, coffee and a newspaper in the morning, Friday nights at Barry’s, cool summer sheets, birds at the bird feeder, Tom, Sarah and Mike, my kids (yes, again), writing my column, all of my readers, sunrises, making people smile, the sound of crickets, wildflowers, the aroma of fresh-baked apple pie, ice cream anytime.

Two years ago, I added:

I am thankful for my new karate family; my new Tiny Tigers; my children Sean, Sara and Erin (again); my new(ish) daughter-in-law Sarah; Tom and Nick; hanging laundry out in the middle of November; my health; the ability to run; the freedom to travel; my misfit WOF family; Irish music and my Irish music friends; getting to play roadie; touch football with my pub family; my CFC friends and workouts; going to hockey games with my family; Sunday afternoons sitting at my computer and writing.

Last year I was able to add to it AGAIN:

This year, I am thankful for my Schlegel and Plank North elementary colleagues, hugs from kindergartners, a child’s innocent smile, the Barry’s Runners, my kids (again), admiring Christmas lights on a winter run, biking the Erie Canal Trail with friends, hikes in the woods, music, silence, waking up every morning with the man I love, being able to travel, Friday nights at the pub (and occasional Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays), the smell of flowering trees in the spring, the peacefulness of a pine forest.

You’d think that would just about cover it. But life gets better every day. All you have to do is sit back and notice it.

And so I would like to add the following this year:

I am thankful for a husband who cooks, being able to wear a cape to school, helping children experience the joy of reading, having a lap cat when I type, traveling with my husband, riding my bike through strange cities, running with old friends, running with new friends, thank you notes from my readers, my new fire department friends, my kids (again) and their significant others, and being able to make a difference by doing what I love to do best — write. 

Feel free to add your own. And happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Twitter and Instagram

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.