Guess what... it's still snowing in Ohio! So while the rest of us SW fans in the northern part of the Buckeye state wait for spring to arrive, the alternative is to plan on roadtrips to other parts of the region where "partly cloudy" isn't a way of life.

Meanwhile, where the sun actually DOES shine, the Dayton area members of Rebel Legion and 501st got a chance to be part of a very fun AND educational event called TechFest.

TechFest is a program to get kids excited about math, science and engineering so that they take math and science courses and possibly become our next generation of scientists and engineers. One of the presenters was from the Mars Society (http://www.marssociety.org/portal) to talk to about Mars exploration/travel. So why not combine a little bit of science fact with science fiction (like you haven't flipped open your cell phone and yelled "beam me up Scotty") by having the character from Star Wars serve as tour guides for the kids. Overall, it was a fun and educational day for both the kids and us, for example:

Lesson #1: "Mandolorians are NOT 'Power Rangers" "
Correct: Cause Power Rangers don't get eaten by the Sarlacc

TechFest pictures

Well as they say, "now you know... and knowing is half the battle. (GI JOE)"

So March typcially means a chance to do just that "march" in our local St. Patricks Day parades; always a good time. Except that for us Clevelanders... they schedule the parade for March 17th (a Monday) every year (pretty SNAFU if you ask me) So what's a Shamrock Shake drinking rebel to do?

Well, we got an invite to join our fellow MWB rebels and Great Lakes Garrison in the 50th annual Corktown (Detroit's oldest neighborhood) St. Patricks Day parade.

I've made the roadtrip up to Detroit for Corktown before (good time) but with gas prices what they are, I couldn't do it alone... so a bunch of us rented a mini-van (later dubbed "REBEL AIR" ) and shuttled a small rebel force into Michigan Wolverine territory.

Lesson #2: If you call "shotgun" in the van... that means when we stop for directions, YOU are also "navigator" and have to talk to the locals... even if they don't have a clue where we are.

As I mentioned, I've trooped with alot of these guys before, but not since they formed their own garrison. I have to make this very clear: the guys from GLG were some of the most welcoming and friendly troopers I've had the chance to work with. Can't say enough about how cool the GLG guys were to us rebels (and OSU Buckeyes no less). GLG even asked MWB to take the lead (in THEIR city... in THEIR parade) with the Midwest Base banner leading the way... having a garrison put that kinda trust in me and MWB left a BIG impression with me. This was how EVERY event should be IMHO, frell politics and just get out there and troop!

For the rebel side, it was good to see Paul (qui-gon32) again, so soon after he came down for LX, and some familiar faces from the boards. As for the passengers of "REBEL AIR" ... at first i was nervous cause it was me and (in Battlestar terms) a bunch of "nuggets" (new guys) who'd never done a parade event. Again, the "nuggets" IMPRESSED the heck out of me. Not only did they handle themselves just fine in a parade that feels more like Mardi Gras then St. Patricks Day (but in a GOOD way) but I can't think of a time either in the car or at the event where my guys weren't chatting with new friends or just laughing at something.

Lesson #3: "Judge me by my size do you?" applies to belching contests.

St. Patricks Day (Detroit) photos

We're already planning another "REBEL AIR" roadtrip up north for Motor City Comic Con... I'll keep ya posted, cause it's coming up on "convention season" (duck season, convention season....FIRE!)

have I mentioned I get a little silly when it's snowing here in Ohio?