Friend Encounters: Magglio Ordonez, Kailee and Erin

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

Baseball is back. With that announcement, my nephew Contributor Extraordinaire Matt Parker sent me a perfect picture for today.
Back in the summer of 2004, Matt's future wife Erin and sister Kailee went on the field at and met Chicago White Sox outfielder Magglio Ordonez. Matt quotes Erin as saying, "He was so cute."
Unfortunately for Erin, Kailee and Sox fans, this would be Ordonez's last season with the Sox. After the season, he signed as a free agent with the Detroit Tigers.
Ordonez played seven seasons with the Tigers, for 15 total seasons in MLB. He had 2,156 hits, 294 HRs and a .309 batting average. That would put him in the Hall of the Very Good.
Like Erin, I was also a fan of Ordonez, although not particularly a fan of the Sox then. I would have liked to see Ordonez finish his career with the Sox. It would have been cool to see him and Paul Konerko together for so many years.
While Ordonez bailed out of Chicago, Erin eventually signed as a free agent with Matt. They now are raising their beautiful little girl Delaney to be a Sox fan. Looking ahead, I wonder who Delaney will find "cute" on the team. Perhaps Nick Madrigal? Garrett Crochet? Only time will tell. Maybe someday in about 15 years, we will all find out when Delaney has her own encounter with a Sox player.

Kailee, Magglio Ordonez and Erin in Chicago, IL-Summer 2004.

Happy Birthday Big Money

Today is my nephew Matt Parker's birthday.  It is an important one.  It is his last birthday as a single man.  Matt will be getting married to Erin in October.

Matt and Erin knew each other as kids, but started dating when Matt moved back to Chicago from Houston.  They got engaged and are about to really start their lives together.

Next week in Las Vegas, we will celebrate Matt's birthday and his upcoming nuptials.  Pai Gow, Sunday NFL action, silly bets and lots of fun will be shared by all of us.  Then, one month later, we will all gather again at Matt and Erin's wedding, where we will celebrate again.  This is going to be a month of goodness.

I would do anything to beat Matt in our silly bets.  I am just that petty.  On the other end though, I love this kid (young man) and would do anything for him.

Happy birthday Matt.  Enjoy your day with your bride-to-be.  See you soon out west!

Erin Galligan and Matt Parker in Chicago, IL-Summer 2013.

Friendly Encounters

This is a regular series about friends who have met celebs.

My sister Jean's family went to Michigan and came back with a Friendly Encounter.  Okay, I am sure they went up for other reasons and have their own memories, but for the purpose of this blog, the Friendly Encounter is the goal.
While in Michigan, they attended the International Cherry Pit Spitting Contest.  Brian "Young Gun" Krause took top honors for the second consecutive year.  Brian spit a cherry pit 66 feet, 1.25 inches, in beating the field, which included his father Rick "Pellet Gun" Krause (a 16 time winner).  Brian now has nine titles and the world record of 93 feet 6.5 inches.
The Parker contingent got into the cherry pit spitting action.  The winner of that sectional was Kyle Kolb, Sam's boyfriend and a deserving champion.
My only problem with Kyle is that he wins too much.  Kyle (with teammates or solo) has won at bags, Wii games and other games which I would like to forget.  Then again, I am used to getting beat by the Parker contingent.  Oh well, it's all about fun, right?  Yeah right!
Anyway, they all had a great time in Michigan and eagerly posed with Rick Krause to gain their Friendly Encounter!

Kyle Kolb (aka the Champ) in Eau Claire, MI-July 2011.

Sam Parker, Kyle Kolb, Rick Krause, Matt Parker and Erin Galligan in Eau Claire, MI-July 2011.

Congratulations Erin!

I am a bit late on two counts, but I hope that doesn't diminish any of the sentiments which will follow.  The subject of today's post deserves a hearty congratulations and best wishes on her future endeavors.
Erin Galligan, girlfriend of my nephew Matt, recently celebrated her birthday.  I hope she was able to fully enjoy it, despite being on the middle of her college graduation preparation.
Last weekend, Erin graduated with honors from the University of Illinois with a degree in Kinesiology.  Yesterday, Erin started her journey in continuing her education, with a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree as her goal.  That will take a few years of hard work and dedication, but I have no doubt Erin will excel in her quest.  She should be proud of her accomplishment and excited about her future! 
Erin is a great young lady and it has been great getting to know her a bit.  I really wish her the best of luck along the way to reaching all of her goals.  I am sure she will succeed and I think she'll have fun along the way, too.
During all of the graduation madness, Erin and Matt posed by the Alma Mater statue at the U of I.  What a great picture.
Take a bow, Erin...you deserve to be proud and we are all proud of you!

Matt Parker, the Alma Mater Statue and Erin Galligan in Urbana, IL-May 2011.

Friendly Encounters

This is a weekly feature highlighting friends who have met celebs.

My nephew Matt is probably the most ardent pursuer of Friendly Encounters opportunities.  Some day, I will do a statistical breakdown of FE participants.  Matt has even gotten his girlfriend Erin involved in this quest on several occasions.
Today, I am featuring a picture they sent from the Thanksgiving Day parade.  I can't believe they met Johnny Depp.  I have followed Depp since his days on 21 Jump Street (before Matt or Erin were even born).
Fortunately for the young couple, Depp was in his Pirates role and not his earlier role as Edward Scissorhands.  That could have been a bit dicey.

Erin Galligan, "Johnny Depp" and Matt Parker in IL-December 2010.

Friendly Encounters

This is a weekly feature highlighting friends who have met celebs.

When we last saw Erin Galligan, she was with my nephew Matt and a Blue Man (from the Blue Man Group, obviously). Despite some bad puns that I wrote, Erin recently sent me a photo from her latest celebrity encounter.
Erin and her family went to the premiere of Sex and the City 2 and then to the Hollywood Palms in Naperville (IL). Actor Willie Garson was there signing autographs and taking pictures (no doubt hoping to land here in a Friendly Encounter).
Garson is a veteran actor, having appeared in more than 50 movies and on many television shows. He had a recurring role on the tv version of Sex and the City, as well as a role in the big screen versions. He currently can be seen on the USA network show White Collar.
What a lovely photo. They all look so happy. Thanks to Erin for sharing this shot.

Marianne, Kailee, Willie Garson, Shannon and Erin in Naperville, IL-Summer 2010.

Friendly Encounters

This is another in a series of meetings of my friends and celebs.

My nephew Matt Parker is a loyal reader and contributor to Johngy's Beat. He is always alert for a Friendly Encounter.
We have previously seen his girlfriend Erin Galligan on Friendly Encounters with her family and Ozzie Guillen of the Chicago White Sox. It has taken a while, but we finally got Erin to make another appearance here.
Matt and Erin recently attended a performance of the Blue Man Group. They enjoyed the show and thankfully did not don the blue face paint themselves (although maybe Matt might want to consider it...oh just kidding, Big Money).
Anyway, after the performance, Matt and Erin made sure to grab a photo with one of the Blue Men. Which one, I wonder? I am sure their goal was a 'couple' appearance on Friendly Encounters (as opposed to a nice memento of a wonderful evening). Hey, they have their priorities right!
I hope they enjoy this piece. If not, I guess I'd be left to feel blue (sorry I just couldn't stop myself).

Erin Galligan, Blue Man and Matt Parker in IL-January 2010.

Friendly Encounters

This is another in a series of meetings of my friends and celebs.

I have only recently met Erin Galligan, but my sister's family has known the Galligan family for quite a while. My nephew Matt (Big Money) and Erin are now dating (and I think they make a nice couple). Erin and her whole family are big White Sox fans.
Erin's uncle Marty and aunt Cathy won a silent auction and received tickets to a game and the opportunity to meet the players during batting practice. For real fans, it doesn't get much better!
This was in 2004, which was Ozzie Guillen's first year of managing the team. Little did anyone know that the next season Guillen would win AL Manager of the Year for leading the Sox to the 2005 championship!
By the way, in keeping with the tradition of 2 of my favorite bloggers (White Sox Cards and 78 Topps Cards), Don Cooper (pitching coach) is one of the 2 people in the background.

Kailee Galligan (sister), uncle Marty, Ozzie Guillen, Erin and aunt Cathy at US Cellular Field in Chicago, IL-May 2004.