Tony the Balloon Guy

For the third year, I (Tony the Balloon Guy) will be at the Rotary Club’s annual Family Night in New Port Richey in February. What a great group of people. And not just because they keep hiring me (and thus, putting food in the mouths of my family and animals!). They’re just fun to be with. And they do good things.

Last year, in addition to the family night, they hired me to do a birthday party. Well, a half-birthday party. It was a party for a young guy, eight years old, if I remember right, who was battling brain cancer, and maybe wasn’t looking at his next actual birthday.

And what a party. It was in the same pavilion where the big Family Nights are held, and there were bounce houses, a magician doing a show, all kinds of food…

The birthday boy was in good spirits, surrounded by family and lots of other kids. I remember he wanted me to make him a Spider-Man dog. Not a dog. Not Spider-Man. But a Spider-Man dog. To date, that’s still a one-of-a-kind sculpture for me. And I made him a big candle-topped birthday cake out of balloons as well.

Maybe if you’re looking to meet new people and do some good things for the community, you’d benefit from looking into the Rotary Club.

Have a fun day!

www.TonyTheBalloonGuy.com

I (Tony the Balloon Guy) was making balloons for a family of regulars at Anthony’s Italian Restaurant (isn’t that a Billy Joel song?) in Trinity (isn’t that kind of the fancy part of New Port Richey?), and a little girl told me about the musician there.

WHAT? There’s a musician at Anthony’s?

I talked to Rich, the owner, and he confirmed that there’s a talented and entertaining keyboard artist there on Wednesday nights. Said the guy (also named Tony, I believe, but no relation), entertains the older folks and the little ones alike – sometimes has them dancing between the tables even!

As a keyboard wannabe myself, I’d love to see him, but I’m at Golden Corral up in Brooksville Wednesday nights.

However, if YOU are down in Pasco County on Wednesdays, and don’t feel like driving up to Hernando County to eat at Golden Corral, swing over to Anthony’s, have some delicious Italian food (go, Ernie!) in a really nice atmosphere, and enjoy the show.

Then go back to Anthony’s on a Thursday night, between six and eight, and we’ll entertain you with balloons and face painting. Or balloons OR face painting. Up to you.

Tony the Balloon Guy, Tony the musician, Anthony’s Italian Restaurant… anyone see a theme here?

Anyway, see you there!

www.TonyTheBalloonGuy.com

Last week at Golden Corral in Brooksville (come see us – we’re there every Wednesday from 5-7, and usually later), a large party of folks asked me (Tony the Balloon Guy) to make a “bride crown” for a young lady.

I twisted a bunch of long white balloons around each other and curved them into elegant arches atop a simple helmet, then placed a small pink heart on the top, in the middle. All the time I was working, there was laughter, and cries of, “Oh yes, you WILL wear it,” and “I can’t believe everyone is LOOKING!”

With the crown on the bride’s head, another lady rose to her feet and called out to the restaurant, “She’s getting MARRIED on Friday!”

To which there was great applause, and quite a bit of bridal blushing.

It’s nice to be part of other people’s celebrations and happy moments.

www.TonyTheBalloonGuy.com

This past weekend Phyllis (the Face Painter) and I (Tony the Balloon Guy) entertained at Village Cadillac Toyota in Homosassa Springs. The event planner who hired us set up a tent to give away delicious-smelling hot dogs and burgers, Phyllis painted kids inside, and I roamed around doing balloons and creating laughs (and a little bit of applause now and then, thank you very much!).

We’ve done car dealerships before, in Brandon, Orlando… we even drove to Jacksonville once a week for a few months (a six-hour round trip!) to entertain at Toyota and Kia dealerships. I was at a Chrysler dealership for six hours every Saturday for more than a year once.

Balloons and face painting and car selling are a good match. You can’t always leave your kids home when you need a car, but car shopping ain’t that much fun for the little ones. Why not have someone to entertain them?

At the Cadillac dealership Saturday, there were more grown-ups than kids, by far, but the majority of them wanted balloons! Flowers and puppies and bears were especially popular with the ladies. But I also made a few Gators dressed in orange and blue (the Gators are national champions again!), a black and gold Steeler carrying a football (they won, too!) for one of the sales guys, and some swords for a few bemused older gents.

We’ll be back at that dealership on January 24th if you want to come by. Get some yummy food. Have your face painted. Get a balloon. Look at the new models. The cars are looking sharp. Even if you don’t buy one, you’ll see how nice the folks are, and you’ll have a place to come back to when you’re ready for a car. E-mail me at info@tonytheballoonguy.com if you need directions.

And if you need entertainment for your business, or your public event, or your party…

www.TonyTheBalloonGuy.com

Last night at Golden Corral in Brooksville (where we are on Wednesdays, 5-7 p.m., and usually later), I was making balloons for a family in the far back conference room that is kind of separate from the rest of the restaurant.

A young girl, a regular customer, burst in and shouted angrily across the room, “Tony the Balloon Guy! Where is your WIFE?!?”

“I don’t know – I can’t keep track of her,” I called back. “But last time I saw her, she was straight across the restaurant, not at her regular table.”

The girl turned and left. I looked at the family I was entertaining.

“Don’t worry,” I said. “She just wants her face painted. We dont owe her money.”

Wednesdays at Golden Corral are fun. You should join us!

www.TonyTheBalloonGuy.com