The winner was announced today!

Straight from Syracuse.com, one lucky family in central New York will be getting a new home for free, through the very popular ABC television show "Extreme Makeover:Home Edition".  The seven day project is set to begin August 18, and the winning family will be notified that day.

Naturally, the thoughts running through my head are pretty transparent:  Is it anyone I know?  Could it be in my neighborhood?  Where might I bump into Ty Pennington?  I understand volunteers are needed.  What are they looking for in volunteers?  Am I more likely to see Ty if I volunteer?

Now, don't get me wrong here - it's not that I think he's such a hottie nearly so much as I'd like to find out how smart he is.  Yes, that's right - how smart he is.  I read a bio on him years ago, and I was impressed.  In the bio he came across as a pretty pulled together guy, and I just want to find out if the author was spot on, or if he's really just a bunch of tv fluff with a cute --nevermind!!!

Anyhow... as I was saying...  how cool that the show is even going to be in town!  We don't get a lot of celebrity action around here.  Syracuse really is a pretty awesome town, if you take advantage of what we've got to offer.  I think we could use the positive publicity, to help counteract the "automatic question".  If you live here, you know what I mean.  Whenever you talk to someone from another state, what's the first question you always get asked as soon as they find out you're from Syracuse?  "Don't you get a lot of snow up there?"  It's like if you leave New York state, the first association most people have with the area are blizzards that last for months on end.  The inability to walk out your front door, little dogs frozen in place because they went outside to pee, we all wear plaid flannel underwear and chop our own wood to heat up the stove.  How lucky can we be that the show is being filmed in hot and sticky August, but being shown in November?  A little mental association here... hmm.. it's November, and there isn't snow on the ground in Syracuse...  I wonder if Ty wears plaid flannel underwear...

Well, I can honestly say that I am excited about the whole thing.  As much as I'd love a cup coffee with Ty, I'm really pretty glad to hear there's a family nearby that is going to get a fantastic and well deserved gift.  I'd like to start driving all around the county to see if I might spot some clues as to the location.  And if I see Ty in his plaid flannel underwear, you'd better believe I'll get a picture and blog about it.  That would be way cooler than my friend Michelle seeing Alec Baldwin in Target!