Sunday, February 28, 2010

Hello on Sunday

Dear Friends,



Max woke up around 6 AM on Saturday morning with his normal smile. Max and I tried to be pretty quiet, but it only lasted for an hour or so before Linda heard me talking loudly to Max. I went out to do a little snow blowing while Max and Linda bonded. I woke up most of the neighborhood when I started up the snow blower.



Our son called to say that Kyla made it to Boston at 11:30 PM on Friday. Kevin and Kyla were both going to come to the Berkshires until he received a telephone called about the small air plane crash in Belize. The person Mike Casey, his wife, and their two young children, and their experienced pilot all perished in the crash. Kevin was totally devastated. He went to his friend’s destination wedding several years ago. I imagine that Kevin will be involved in the funeral in some capacity.



This tragedy is another example of my philosophy that life is so unpredictable that enjoy it while you can. Give your loved ones hugs each day, and keep your friends close by.



On a happier note, Kyla did arrive in Pittsfield a little after noon. I missed her arrival since I was in the kitchen helping to prepare for the 500 person Polenta, chicken or venison dinner at the Berkshire Hills Country Club. I came home one tired buckaroo at 8:30 PM. I lasted one hour before I headed off to bed.



While I was doing my thing, Kyla, Linda, and Max entertained three sets of friends, Judie Culver, Nicole DiSimoni and her one year old Eva, and the Lampiasi’s with their couple month old daughter. I did arrive home to visit with the Lampiasi’s.



I am not sure what the time frame is for Kyla and Max to head back to East Boston. All I do know is that Linda has a Red Hat brunch at a local restaurant, and then the Red Hatter’s are going to a play at the Shakespeare and Company theater complex in Lenox. This is the first time that she has been out of the house since we picked up Max on Monday night in East Boston.



I was supposed to attend an ice-fishing derby at 6 AM this morning at Pontoosuc Lake, but I am still trying to recover from the full day that I had on Saturday. I will return to the frozen ponds sometime next week.



While at the Polenta dinner, I saw so many of my former students. The volunteer servers, who were hospital personnel, had to come into the kitchen to pick up the food. One former female student even remembered Linda’s maiden name because she was a student in Linda’s biology class in the early 70’s before we got married. Does this mean that Linda and I are old?



I am in charge of rescuing Max this morning once again. I have the baby monitor on right now, and it is sitting next to me and the lap top. Max and his little Lamby doll are out like a light. I forgot to mention that the two dogs are with us. It is rather difficult for the long hair Dachshund to go dashing through 10 inches of snow. Short legs do have its disadvantages whether you are a dog or a human. Also my Bobcat story has Kyla being a little gun shy about letting the Dachshund out at night unattended.

Kyla said that Boston had no snow. She said that about 20 miles from Exit 2, which is her exit to get off, snow appeared everywhere. She agreed that it was a winter wonderland in Pittsfield.



Well, I have to grab another coffee and try and read the local newspaper before Max wakes up. I will have to wait until the other adults wake up before I can get to the Boston Globe.

Have a great Sunday.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Hello on Saturday Morning

Dear Friends,



We had another pleasant day with our grandchild. When we both went down for an afternoon nap, Max slept an hour, but I slept for 2.5 hours.



I am guessing that Max will be up in a little over an hour.

We are not sure if Kyla got back to Boston yesterday by way of Chicago after her direct flight got cancelled. The news reported that over 1000 flights got cancelled.

Kyla will be coming to pick up her son at some point today. She might even stay over on Saturday, and leave for Boston on Sunday.



It is like a winter wonderland outside right now. The snow showers continued all day long on Friday, but our snow showers gave us at least 8 inches of snow. We might have missed the second storm, but the wrap around circulation of the low pressure system just seems to be grinding out more and more snow even though it is of the light variety. We are still in a winter Strom Warning until 7 PM this evening.



Social Calendar – I am socially engaged today, but Linda is not. Today is Women Imaging and Endoscopy Center Polenta Dinner at the Berkshire Hills Country Club. I have to report to the kitchen at 10 AM. We are making everything fresh form scratch; the sauce, polenta, donated venison, and sausages (purchased), and salad. I am not sure where the desserts are coming from. We will be serving over 500 people.

I won’t see Linda until after the kitchen gets cleaned up which I hope is not too long after 8:30 PM.



Neither of us made it to the concert last evening. A friend came by and picked up our tickets. He was going to try and sell them at the door. I am hoping that he might have sold at least one of the tickets at the door.



Linda posted some more pictures of our grandchild on her face book, and she has already picked up some rave reviews.



I finally sat down last evening and watched the Olympics with Linda since there was no ice skating events scheduled. I didn’t stay up as late as she did.



Observation – It has been very pleasant for us to have our grandchild with us, but his parents really miss him so much. When we had our first son, Linda and I went on a camping trip with another couple. My parents took care of Michael. When we arrived home, my mother said that Michael kept on pointing to the picture of Linda and I which were hanging on the wall in her house. The guilt of leaving our child for an extended period of time was pretty much overwhelming. Our Depression Era / World War II generation of parents would never have left their child for 2 weeks while their parents had a grand old time. We only left our children one other time which was on our tenth anniversary when we went to Aruba with another couple. That trip and things that happened to our children, and who baby sat for them is a whole other story.



Have a great Weekend.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 26, 2010

Hello on Friday Morning

Dear Friends,



We had another pleasant day of taking care of our grandchild. He smiled from the time he woke up until the time he went to bed time. It is hard to believe that Max has been with us since 6 PM on Monday evening. This baby is so good that you would love to have a house full of them.



Linda and I have been discussing what to do with Max since Kyla will be returning from her conference this evening. As I went to bed, while Linda was watching the Olympics, I think we decided to keep Max another day. We were thinking that one of his parents could come to the Berkshires to pick him up on Saturday morning.



We have some strong winds blowing as I type this e-mail along with a mixture of rain and snow which is predicted to fall for today. We are also in a Winter Storm Warning for this evening with 2 to 4 inches of snow predicted to fall about the same time as the start of the Wolftones Concert (8 PM).

If we do keep Max for another day, I will represent the family at the Wolftones Concert unless the roads are treacherous.



Politics – The Health Care Summit wasn’t too productive on Thursday. The Republicans and some of the American public want the President’s proposal just slowly fall by the wayside. The Clintons gave up their fight quicker that this President.

I see where Sarah Palin will be the headline speaker for an NRA (National Rifle Association). This group could be called the National Republican Association. This group convinces their loyal followers that the Democrats want to take away their guns. If you want to belong to most of the local Sportsmen’s Clubs in our area, you must belong to the NRA. I belonged to the NRA for a year or so before I decided that I can’t accept their beliefs. The NRA also tries to mix God, and the Bible with their Guns.

Can Sarah Palin be the new Charleton Heston?



Our beautiful snow fall from the other day has shrunk so much due to the all day rain of yesterday. Most of my driveway is right down to the blacktop. We wanted this second storm to be all snow. How many storms go from East to West instead of the other way around? This definitely has been the wackiest winter for most of the Country. Some friends, who winter at Hilton Head, said that it has been so far from the normal temperatures that they too are wearing jackets.



I fired up the Electronic Pressure Cooker for the first time (since we got it as a gift for Christmas) yesterday. It worked as predicted. I cooked a pot roast dinner in the machine instead of doing so in the crock pot. For those people who can’t wait 8 to 10 hours for a meal to be cooked, then this is the device for you. The 3.5 pound pot roast came out just as tender as when I use the crock pot, but it took so much less time.

I do like the searing feature on the machine. Most recipes would like to you sear the meat or poultry product before you cook it in a crock pot, Pressure Cooker, or in a pot in the oven. When you don’t have to dirty another pan to do so, that is an advantage.

The cook book that we purchased, and the cook book which came with our pressure cooker were in conflict with on another. I had to cook my pot roast for 99 minutes, but the recipe in the cook book which we purchased said to cook the meat 45 minutes. You must follow the time lines for the Pressure cooker that you own. All the other times for cooking meats and vegetables in are the same in both cook books. I even called a Cusinart Hotline and asked if the 99 minutes was correct for Pot Roast. The pleasant representative said “Yes!”

What about the vegetables? I had to shut the machine off at the end of 99 minutes, and put in the vegetables (right on top of the meat). I had to restart the machine and set the timer for 8 minutes which is the cooking time for most vegetables unless you want them a bit more firm. After I took out the vegetables, and the meat, Linda used the remaining liquid in the pot and she made it into a tasty gravy. You use the simmer cycle for the gravy making.



We have a friend who still uses her pressure cooker which is just like the ones our parents used, and like the ones which Linda and I eventually got rid of. Her husband bought her one of these electronic machines, and she returned it thinking that it was too complicated. Maybe the next time that she and her husband visit us, I will cook the whole meal in our pressure cooker. What really is so different is that you don’t her the tick, tick which come from the old pressure cookers. You don’t have to turn the heat up or down when the pressure is attained like you do with the antique pressure cookers. This is all done electronically. All you do is set either high or low pressure, set the time, and hit the start button. The machine beeps when the cooking is done. Releasing the pressure is so much safer on these machines compared to the old ones.

The question is would I use it again? I am already thinking about doing some country style ribs, or some baby back ribs. I was thinking about how long it took to do the Chicken Cacciatore in the Crock Pot. I could have it done is less than an hour for the same results. There are also some excellent rice recipes as well as many soups which I could cook using this pressure cooker.



Well, I have to get the newspaper from the driveway, and grab another cup of coffee before Max wakes up. I am hoping that the wind doesn’t wake him up too early!

Have a great weekend!

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Hello on Thursday

Dear Friends,



My Wednesday started by me putting on Max’s diaper backwards. When Linda changed his diaper after breakfast there was a little leakage because of my mistake. Oh Darn!

I don’t know what it is with me and diapers. I did the same thing with Isabelle the last time that we were visiting in Kansas.



All the events that Linda had booked in have been cancelled so far. Her Tuesday Mah Jongg, yesterday’s BONCO session, and today’s Book Club dinner / meeting has been cancelled too. It must be sign that I have some baby sitting deficiencies. Like I said previously, I am good at entertaining grandchildren.

I am supposed to help out with a Pasta dinner this evening, but I already told a friend that I was not available. I think that I will stay home anyways, and help out taking care of Max.



The heavy wet snow did fall for most of the day on Wednesday. I had to go out side and do some snow removal a couple of times. I am so thankful that I have a plow guy for the driveway especially when the snow is wet and heavy. When I looked out the window just now, I see that I have a big bank of snow at the bottom of the driveway. I thought our guy came to do the driveway after the city plow came down the street, but it looks like the city guys must have made one more sweep. Oh Darn again!

I did take Max for a short ride in his toddler sled until it started to rain.



We are too warm to get an all day snow event today. The line of the latest snow storm is west of Albany, New York. Those areas are going to get all the snow. We are starting off with a little snow then all rain here in the Berkshires. The streets in Pittsfield will be one slushy mess before this storm is over. I am guessing that schools in our county should be open today.



The Chicken Cacciatore over spaghetti was wonderful. I used bone in legs and thighs which fell off of the bone by the time that we ate supper. I was going to invite a friend and his wife for supper, but it is kind of hectic when you have a 6 month old.

Actually we have it down to a routine for us when we eat supper. We feed the child first around 5:30 PM. About 30 or 40 minutes later, when we decide to eat, we put him in his booster chair, and he sits with us at the dinner table. Linda has some apple sauce, or a crushed banana, and she feeds him in between bites of her own meal. I usually eat quicker than Linda so that I clean up Max, and take him out of the booster chair so that Linda can finish her meal.



I don’t know how a single person can do what Linda and I have been doing for a couple of days. I know that they have youth on their side, but raising a child seems to require another set of hands.



I did get to watch the American Hockey team make it to the next round of the Olympics. It was on live during the mid afternoon on Wednesday.



My sister called from sunny Florida yesterday. She said that they are on a mini vacation, and that her husband is not on a business conference. They are staying with friends who rent a three bedroom house in Florida for the winter months. They are in the Ormand Beach area. She was sitting by the pool at the complex where they were staying. She said that it was so relaxing. She even said that many of her physical ailments weren’t bothering her at all. I have always said that when you relieve the stress the body responds almost miracle like. People and cars do last longer in Florida (or warmer climates)!



Kevin, and Kyla do miss their child, but they know that Max has the best baby sitters that he has ever had.

Kevin called yesterday, and said that he had mostly rain in East Boston while we were getting mostly snow.



Linda has booked in a flight to see our Isabelle in Kansas. It appears that we will be in Kansas for Easter.

This also means that we will be available to help Kevin and Kyla when they close on their house at the end of March, and when they make the move from East Boston to North Tewksbury. There is nothing but joy in the Curley home right now!



Supper Menu for this evening – I am not sure if I am going to fire up the crock pot or try cooking something in our electronic pressure cooker which we received for Christmas, but haven’t used yet. We purchased a cook book for electronic pressure cookers, and it arrived yesterday. The author is one of the guys who does do the demonstration of kitchen products on the “In the Kitchen with Dave” program which airs every Sunday from noon until 2 PM on QVC. I read through some of the recipes in his book yesterday when Max was napping. I am psyched for using the pressure cooker. What takes 8 to 10 hours in the crock pot, takes 60 or 70 minutes in the pressure cooker for the same results. For the vegetable portion of the meal, you take the meat out of the pressure cooker after its cooking cycle is over and cover in with foil. You then put the vegetables in the pressure cooker and then cook for 5 minutes.

The book is called “Slow Food Fast”, and the author is Bob Warden. I think that it is a “must” book for people who own this type of pressure cooker.



Teacher Firing in Rhode Island – Do you think that firing the whole staff in a school was a good decision? Every school has its “no so good” teachers, but could this school system find just one good teacher among the staff? Of course, you blame the school teachers for this failing school. I want to know the make of the students who entered that school. I want to know that when these students were born, was it into a loving family who worked with them from birth to school age and beyond. Did the parents read to them before they went off to bed most nights? Did the parents discipline their children when they, for example, threw their food on the floor from the high chair when they were done eating? Did the parents help them with their school work, school projects, or check to see if homework was completed? As the children got older did the parents direct their child into some physical activity, sport like fishing, hunting, camping trips, musical instrument, etc, instead of letting them play video games? Did the parents limit their children’s television viewing? Did the parents have an idea of who their children were socializing with? Did the parents monitor the time which they went out with friends as they got older?

Our whole circle of friends and family has done what I mentioned above, and their children have turned out quite well. They all might not have loved school, but they all eventually found their niche in life. As they begin to have their own children, I can see their newborns off to a great start. You wouldn’t have to fire the whole staff in a school if parents did what they are supposed to do when they bring a child into this world.



Well, I better get the newspaper, and have a second cup of coffee before the action begins.

Have a great day whether your weather is nice or foul!

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Hello on Wednesday Morning

Dear Friends,



Tuesday was our first full day with our grandchild. Linda did most of the baby work, but I entertained him a lot!

This is the first child among family and friends who is not afraid of me. I hope that it continues this way. It probably due to the fact that his father wears facial hair during the winter months and therefore Max has seen a hairy creature four out of the six months since his birth.



Good thing that the host of Linda’s Tuesday’s Mah Jongg cancelled the session. The roads were fine in the morning, but not during the afternoon.

When I left for my 1 PM meeting the roads were just wet. As the meeting came to a close, it was snowing quite heavily. I had to get the snow off of the car before I headed home. The roads were slippery and I was so happy to make it home without any incidents.

While at the meeting, where most of us are grandparents, one lady told me that one of her grand daughters is at the Olympics, and working as a nanny. She is a nanny (just for the Olympics) of a locally born woman and her husband who are producers of the “Today Show.” This family lives in New York City.

I had the temporary nanny in my Math class.

The child whom she is working with is in the middle of “potty training.” I am not sure if I can handle this part of the job.



The current snow is about to end within a couple of hours. Another storm is forming with cold air coming from the west, and warm moist air coming up the coast. We are getting another round of snow when the air masses collide.

We did have a lull around supper time, so I did some snow blowing of the sidewalks, and I made paths to my bird feeders in my back yard. I will be out there again this morning after the snow comes to an end. As I look out the sliding glass doors to my deck, the snow on the deck railing looks to be about 9 inches high. We still have a few more inches of the white stuff to fall before this first storm is over. Higher elevations in the Berkshires picked up a foot or more of snow.



My father was on the roads the same time that I was. He struggled to get his car up Dublin Hill, but he eventually got his car up the hill and into his garage. I told him to stay home, and cancel his doctor’s appointment for today. I am not sure about Mom’s dental appointment for Thursday.



We received two telephone calls from family memebers in Florida yesterday. My sister is with her husband in Orlando. He is at a business conference, and my sister was enjoying the warm weather.

The second call was from Max’s mother. She is at a work related conference which sounded interesting; “How to recognize and deal with White Collar crime!” As a forensic accountant, it is definitely in her field of interest. The conference is in Miami (South Beach) which is even warmer than Orlando. The views are better too, and this is from personal experience!

Kyla was doing okay about leaving her child for a few days until she saw that a woman, who was attending the conference, had brought her new born. The longing pains began!



Social Calendar – I am not engaged today, but Linda has BONCO. It seems that the lady who hosts the February gathering always has to deal with bad weather. If the session is not cancelled, I will be putting Max to bed. There was some talk of me bringing Max to the beginning of the session so that her BONCO friends can see Max in person instead of in photos.



News – The testimony from Toyota car owners during the congressional hearings was heart wrenching. The Toyota Company has a lot of work to do to regain customers. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Mr. Toyoda (spelling is correct) falls on his sword over this.



Military News – It appears that the Navy has decided to allow women on submarines. A confined situation with men and woman working close to one another could cause a few problems. I hope the military is reading for the change. The engineers will have to redesign the living quarters, and bathroom and shower facilities. Oh, I almost forgot about the “Don’t ask, Don’t Tell” individuals will be on the submarine too. Can all of the individuals stay focused on their mission, and not be caught up in all the distractions? Time will tell!



The crock pot pork shoulder turned out wonderful. Last night we had a vegetable and potato with pieces of the pork.

Today we will have some pulled pork sandwiches.

The meat turned our so good, that I might head off to the grocery store, and pick up a couple more of the meats before the sale is over.



This is my quiet time before Max wakes up. Yesterday he woke up a little after 7 AM. Yes, he woke up with his usual smile. It is like he is saying “Thank You for getting me out of my crib!”



Well, I have to put on my boots and get my newspaper in the driveway.

I will have just enough time to have a second cup of coffee, and finish the newspaper before Max wakes up.

Max and I will be dashing in the snow before this day is over. I am so glad that I bought those sleds when both sons and their families were home for Christmas.



Have great Wednesday

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Hello on Tuesday Morning

Dear Friends,



We picked up our grandchild from East Boston (soon to be a resident of North Tewksbury) on Monday. We arrived in East Boston around 4:30 PM. We had some food from our son’s restaurant, packed up the stuff which a 6 month old requires, and headed back to Pittsfield at 6 PM. The traffic heading west to Pittsfield wasn’t too bad. Max was his usual good self, and slept all the way on the ride to our home.

When we arrived home at 8:30 PM, he woke up for some play time, and bottle just before bedtime. Max and I went to bed around 10 PM while Linda stayed up to watch the Olympics. His usual bedtime goes from 7:30 PM until 6 or 7 AM.



The nervous parents called just about the time that we got back to Pittsfield. I was wondering what their lives are going to be like without their child for a few days. I think that this might be the first time that they will be away from their child for several days. My philosophy that “Separation is Good” doesn’t apply in all situations.



Weather Channel Predictions – Even though things might change, the forecasters are saying 1 to 3 inches of snow for today and another 5 to 8 inches for tomorrow. The numbers are shrinking as I type this message. It looks like Max will be doing a little sledding before we take him back to Boston on Friday.



Social Calendar – Linda has her usual Tuesday Mah Jongg session weather permitting. I have a 1 PM REAM (Retired Educator Association of Massachusetts) meeting at the Berkshire Mall. Max has now become part of the social calendar that Linda and I have. The plan right now is that Max will be with me for my 1 PM meeting. What will really be nice is that instead of taking out a photo album of the grandchildren, I won’t need any photographs because I will have one of the real things with me!



We are firing up the crock pot today. One of our local supermarkets has a sale on Pork Shoulders for $1 per pound. This cut of meat makes for some great pulled pork sandwiches.

Besides the one we are preparing today, I sealed (Food Saver Seal a Meal device) 3 more, and put them in our freezer.

Since we will be busy taking care of our grandchild, our crock pot will be getting a work out. This device is good for busy people who have a limited amount of time (and energy) to cook suppers.



Politics – I was glad to see that the newly elected Republican from Massachusetts decided to vote with the Democrats on a jobs issue. Maybe there is some hope that the voters in Massachusetts elected a good person for Ted Kennedy’s position. My fear is that Republican leaders won’t let Scott Brown vote this way too many times.



Well, I have to grab a cup of coffee, and read the local newspaper before Max wakes up. I am on the early shift with respect to taking care of Max. The nice thing is that some of his naps coincide with my naps especially the one in the afternoon.



Have a great Tuesday.

You know what the Curley’s will be doing today.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Monday, February 22, 2010

Hello on Monday Morning

Dear Friends,



Our Sunday went exactly as planned.



We spent the morning reading the Boston Globe, and the Berkshire Eagle. I made us some healthy French toast with real maple syrup.



We headed off to the ITAM for the 1 PM officers’ meeting. We made it through the regular membership meeting which took place from 2:30 PM until 3:45 PM. The joy in this meeting is that Linda and I have two more months of meetings before we give up our officer positions in the ITAM. This means that the third Sunday of every month will be totally free for Linda and I. We will still attend ITAM functions like the Polenta Dinner on March 11, 2010, or other dinner dances, and fund raisers, but we will not be officers anymore.



After the ITAM we headed to our friend’s home in Dalton. At 5 PM, we headed for our evening dinner and a concert in Northampton. The restaurant that we went to was new for me. They make their own pasta, and their own desserts. We had a leisurely dinner especially since the waitress took her time serving us even though the place wasn’t busy at all on a Sunday night. Everything which they served was very good except for one appetizer that I wouldn’t recommend. Yes, I would go back to this place in a heart beat!



After supper, we walked to the Calvin Theater which was a block from the restaurant. The Pink Floyd (Pink Floyd Experience) concert was okay. The couple whom we were with was aficionados of the group which played most the original Pink Floyd songs. They were not impressed with this group. I thought the concert was pretty good except for the young adult who spilled his beer on my jacket.

It was midnight by the time my head hit the pillow. Linda stayed up to watch the Olympic coverage.



Speaking of the Olympics, I will have to watch some replays of the U.S. Hockey team’s victory over Canada, and Bode Miller winning a gold medal in skiing.



Weather -- As the children return to school today, it does appear that we might have a stormy week. We could get some significant snow over the next 3 or 4 days. The weather people keep talking about the rain / snow line. We in the Berkshires will be flirting with this line. The trouble days are Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Our son and his family in Kansas had a snow event on Sunday which they said that they enjoyed.



Our baby sitting gig this week might be in jeopardy, but Linda and I are going to East Boston today to visit our grandchild whether he will stay in East Boston, or whether we will take to the Berkshires for a multi day visit.



Linda also has been working on securing airplane tickets to Kansas for some time frame in March. We have to visit our other grandchild, Isabelle, before her new brother arrives in mid May.



Also, we would like to be around for the closing on the house which Kevin and Kyla have decided to purchase in North Tewksbury. The date is not quite firm, but Kevin told us it would take place at the end of March or early April. I am not volunteering to lift heavy boxes or the monster television that Kevin and I carried up two flights of narrow stairs in their two floor apartment above the restaurant. My heavy lifting days are over. I can lift the grandchild, and that is about it.



Well, I have to do a few quiet activities, fill up the gas tank in my car, and get rid of some of my ice-fishing clothes which I have sprawled in the back seat of my Subaru.

Have a great week and work or play.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Hello on Sunday Morning

Dear Friends,



Another day went pretty much as planned.



After making a late morning breakfast of French toast for the both of us, I deiced that I should go off and see dear old Mom at the nursing home. When I arrived at Mom’s room, I noticed that her roommate’s portion of the room looked totally empty. Her roommate passed away during Friday at some point. She had been a resident of the nursing home for 13 years. Before her roommate passed away she even told my mother that my mother has been the best roommate that she has had.



To make appositive out of the situation, I asked the nurse if they could change Mom’s bed to the one closest to the window. She said that she could make it happen.



While at the nursing home, I decided to visit a former teacher colleague of mine. I went to his room, but I didn’t see his name on the nameplate outside of the door. I went to the nurse’s station, and I was told that my friend was discharged from the nursing home to the hospital. The nurse couldn’t provide any details, but I got the feeling that the hospital might be the last stop for my friend.

After this failed attempt of visiting someone who I knew at the nursing home, I saw an old friend from the neighborhood where we lived when were first married. He was wheeling his mom to his car. He takes her out for car rides on the weekend. The woman and I know each other, and I was wondering why she didn’t say “Hello” to me. Her son said that her mother’s mind has left her.

I then headed off to visit another person who is a friend of the family. I finally was able to communicate with a person who does have all of her mental faculties. What also was nice was the fact that there is some hope that this friend will be returning to her home.

While visiting my mother, my father and sister happened to show up too.



Our evening dinner party went extremely well. Much fun and merriment took place. The hosts prepared a wonderful meal. The main meat was a stuffed pork loin. It was cooked to perfection. We started off with a wonderful squash soup. We had a twice baked potato and green beans to go along with the pork as well as a healthy salad. One of the guests is a professional cake maker. Her carrot cake was a big hit for dessert. The party broke up around 10:30 PM.

At one point in the evening, the hostess pointed out that all four couple have last names beginning with the letter “C”. We are now known as “The Four C’s.”



As I was telling my friends my nursing home stories, we all agreed that the partying which we were doing that evening should take place as often as possible. We better enjoy life as much as we can while we still have our health. What I observe at the nursing home appears to be a preview of coming attractions!



Social Calendar – No we don’t have a quiet day on tap. Linda and I will be heading off to our monthly ITAM meeting. We will be there for the officer’s portion of the meeting, but we have to leave before the regular meeting starts. We have to do this because we are heading off to dinner and a concert in a town about 40 minutes from Pittsfield.



Weather – I see where my son and his family in Kansas might be picking up some snow today. We are still on track for getting some snow during the middle of this upcoming week. The coastal waters will get mostly rain.



Well, I have to read the Sunday newspapers.

Have a great Sunday.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Hello on Saturday Morning

Dear Friends,



We had another pleasant day on Friday.

With all my talk about the different sets of friends whom we have, we ended up at the Shamrock alone last evening. We were shocked when we entered the Shamrock at 6:30 PM thinking that the place would be crowded for this prime time. Not! The bar was empty except for the wife of the owner, two other guys, and us. When I put our names down, and I wrote the word,” hold” next to our name. We like to have a beverage at the bar, and play a few games of Keno before we get seated. We each placed our bet, and Linda wins $100 on the first game. I wasn’t as lucky as she was for the five games which we played, but I did end up winning $2.50 with respect to my original bet. Essentially we had fun, and the lottery commission paid for our dinner and drinks. Linda made sure that she went next door and bought lottery tickets for the big lottery games where we could win millions.

Her luck really started at home during the afternoon when she won $50 on some scratch tickets.



One guy at the bar went to leave and his car keys were missing. A guy sitting next to him walked off with his keys by accident. Luckily he had a spare key. He was going off to search for the guy (and wife and son). They were off to another establishment. Hopefully the guy was successful in getting his keys back.



Well, we listened to the Tiger Woods “Mea Culpa” at 11 AM on Friday. All the sports analysts responded to his 15 minute prepared statement. The best analysis took place on the “Larry King Live Show” at 9 PM last evening. One of the panel members is the wife (African American) of a professional athlete. She said that she would have left Tiger a long time when the transgressions starting surfacing. Another analyst of African American heritage said that he didn’t believe all the stuff that Tiger said about the accident. He didn’t think that Tiger was sincere in his confessions.

The president of the PGA sort of leaned toward Tiger because he knows that the ratings for golf are in the toilet when Tiger is not playing.

I still can’t get over Tiger’s wife using a golf club to help him get out of the car after the crash. We poor people would have our wives coming at us with a frying pan if we did some of the things which Tiger has done. The only part of the speech that I did believe is when he said that it was his entire fault, and that he hurt his wife and children. It is sad that you have to explain to the whole world what he did or did not do, but that is the price of fame.



Social Calendar – A 6 PM house party is the only thing that we have on our social calendar today. Linda is going to whip up a small appetizer for the event. I think that there will be 8 of us at this house party. It should be a fun time!



Weather – They are still talking about us getting snow on Tuesday into Wednesday for us people in the Northeast. Good thing that we are picking up the grandchild from East Boston on Monday night before the snow arrives. Kyla is supposed to fly out to her conference on Tuesday evening. That flight could be delayed a bit. I am not sure if Boston will get snow or rain or a mixed precipitation.



Sports – I try and sit down to watch the Olympics with Linda, but it is not working. We did watch some skiing together when we got home from the Shamrock. I bolted when the ice-dancing began. Ice-Dancing is like going to a chick flick from my perspective.



I am heading off to Retro Fitness for the 6 AM opening. I have to burn off some of the bad calories which I consumed last evening, and make room for some of my food and beverage transgressions at tonight’s dinner party.



Have a great weekend.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 19, 2010

Hello on Friday Morning

Dear Friends,



We had a pleasant, but quiet day on Thursday.

After an early morning workout at Retro Fitness, I pretty much stayed in the house all day, and finished savoring another book

Linda spent her time relaxing until her 6 PM gathering of her girlfriends who are the ones who are going on the late June trip to Cape Cod. There were a little over 20 of them.

My Chicken Novena turned out well. I could eat chicken 7 days a week. The Queen doesn’t like chicken as much as I do.



I am heading off to Retro Fitness this morning. I will be there when the doors open at 4:30 AM.

I better find some time to visit Mom in the nursing home since we have a busy weekend.

I will mostly likely need an afternoon nap.



We have already mentally booked in supper at the Shamrock Restaurant & Pub.



Observation -- Since I mentioned going to the Shamrock, I was thinking about another subject brought on by the confusion of us going out on Ash Wednesday. One might get the impression that we tier our friends with respect to going out. We have different sets of friends who have different sets of issues. Some friends have parents living with them, some friends do a lot of baby sitting for their grandchildren, some friends have parents in the nursing home, some friends do a lot of volunteering, some friends can go to the movies during the day during the middle of the week, and there are single ones who enjoy going out, but who might feel a little awkward when surrounded by couples who talk about their children or grandchildren. We have one set of friends who have no children or grandchildren living locally. The last set of friends are the ones who we usually go out with because they say “Yes” to most of our invitations, or we say “Yes” to their invitations. If you think that this is a form of a tier system, then so be it. Do the Curley’s have too many sets of friends?

The Curley’s would just like to go out with happy people who can enjoy a couple hours of fun and merriment. Maybe more people should invite the Curley’s out instead of the other way around!



Sports – I was a day off with respect to Tiger making his prepared statement. It takes place at 11 AM today.



Weather – We might be getting snow storm in the Northeast on late Monday night, and going into Tuesday. We have a baby sitting gig for our grandchild Max, next week. We are picking him up on Monday night from East Boston. He will be staying with us in the Berkshires until Friday.



Well, I have to finish my coffee, and get to the gym.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Hello on Wednesday Morning

Dear Friends,



We finally picked up some snow. I am guessing that we picked up a little over 6 inches of the white stuff. It is like a winter wonderland outside.

I need to fire up the snow blower to do our side walks, and paths to my bird feeders. I have to wait until the neighborhood wakes up. Oh Darn!

We are in for several days of snow showers.

Our friends in Atlanta will be enjoying a day in the low forties. The cool temperatures are not what they bargained for when they moved to Atlanta.



The Pasta dinner went well last evening. My UNICO brothers in the kitchen, and the organizers of the event were a little nervous that people wouldn’t show up, but they did even though it was snowing intensely from about 3:30 PM until 6 PM.

It was another crowd which was close to 200 people. By the time that we cleaned up the Italian American Club hall, and kitchen, it was close to 7:30 PM. The Italian American Club is only 3 miles from our home which means that it was an early night for my friend and I.



Social Calendar – Our calendar indicates that we have a free day, but Linda and I have to do a bunch of errands. One of the errands is to purchase a car seat at Target. Linda has done the research, and we will pick one up today. Yes, we do have friends and relatives who own car seats, but the borrowing and returning of them is a pain especially when you need the car seat at the same time.

We have a baby sitting gig next week for our 6 month old East Boston grandchild. We will be picking him up in East Boston, and he will be vacationing with us in the Berkshires for a few days. His Mom has a work related conference out of town, and Kevin has to work in his restaurant.

Linda also called the police department. We will be making an appointment to have the car seat installed properly. One of the policemen is assigned to this task. I know what you are thinking! Why don’t you do this task yourself? Our cars are so old that we have to use a special clip to hook the car seat up with the seat belts. I have tried and tried to secure car seats tightly, but I haven’t mastered the technique. Our grandchild would be rocking a rolling down the length of the Mass Pike, which is not good.



One of my Italian friends finally started using a crock pot. He had some friends over and decided to cook for them. He made his sauce in the crock pot. He received rave reviews from his guests.



Speaking of food today is a day of fast and abstinence (no meat) for most people of the Christian faith. Linda and I haven’t discussed our main meal selection for today. It will be some form of a fish or seafood product or maybe a nice a casserole of homemade baked Macaroni & Cheese. I am leaning toward a scallop dinner at the Highland Restaurant in Pittsfield.

Linda and I used to go there every time Kevin had a Wednesday night hockey game in Pittsfield when he was in high school.



Observation – I am trying to feel sorry for the climber who authorities tried to rescue, but they found him dead in the crater of a volcano. I think that the family of the guy should pay every cent spent on the rescue attempt. It is a tragedy that he died, but I can’t feel any sympathy. When a person engages in a risking adventure like ice-climbing, rock climbing, skiing in avalanche prone areas, etc., the person has to accept the dangers that go along with the adrenaline rush of accomplishing the goal. It is like me engaging in the sport of ice-fishing. I could go on the ice when there is two inches of ice, but I know that not all the ice forms in an exact 2 inch layer. I, being of a sound mind, would never venture out onto the ice unless there is at least 6 inches of ice. Anything less than 6 inches, and I would be risking my life. Driving a car or truck on the ice is a whole other issue.

With respect to the original guy of my observation, you have to have special insurance if you are involved in risky activities before the insurance company will pay off a claim to the beneficiary.



My father called yesterday, and told me that the nursing home lost my mother’s teeth. It is not a pretty sight seeing your 93 year old mother gumming her food. My mom has an appointment to get them replaced soon. Our family really doesn’t need this bump in the road.



Well, I have to read the local newspaper, and do some quiet activities before cranking up the snow blower, and taking out the garbage. Our plow guy has already done our driveway.



Have a great Wednesday.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Hello on Fat Tuesday

Dear Friends,



Our Monday went as planned.

Linda’s Mah Jongg game went from 1 PM until almost 4 PM.

I took a nap from 1 PM until 3 PM. I was making up for some lost sleep over this past weekend.



My UNICO meeting went well. We went to a restaurant (Jimmy’s Restaurant) where we have never been to for a meeting. The restaurant is normally closed on Monday so the owner loved it when we sent a few bucks his way in this difficult economy. One of the owners is French and the other is Italian.

One of the waitresses was one of my old students. She said “Hello Mr. Curley.” I couldn’t remember her name, but luckily she was so busy that I didn’t have time to strike up a conversation.



We are socially engaged today even though we are in for a light snow event in the Northeast. It is snowing right, and the weather prognosticators are talking about 5 to 8 inches of the white stuff for us in the Berkshires.

Linda’s Mah Jongg group cancelled today’s session, but one of the players really wants to play. She tried to talk Linda into changing her mind. As I listened into her telephone conversation, it was “Let’s wait until the morning to see what the weather is doing!” Linda kept telling her that she doesn’t drive in the snow. I think the lady was willing to pick up the Mah Jongg players and take them to the home of the woman hosting the party. She has a jeep Cherokee!



At the UNICO meeting, the person in charge of Fund Raisers made some comment that he expects my friend and me to help out with the Boys and Girls Club fundraiser this evening at the Italian American Club. I am picking my friend up at 4 PM today unless we hear the event is cancelled. Like I said before, my friend, whose is also my neighbor, and I know our way around the kitchen. I passed this trait onto both of my sons.



Observation – I was reading an article in my AARP magazine about the actor Michael Douglas. I think that it was supposed to be one of those articles how the rich and famous can be happily married. As I read the details of his life, I actually was disgusted. He divorces his first wife after 25 years of years of marriage (produced one son who is hooked on drugs), and marries a woman 25 years younger than he is. He has a couple of children from the new wife, and he tells the magazine how happy he is. His in laws are a few years younger than he is. He even said he thanked the drug makers for creating Viagra, Cialis, etc. If this actor is supposed to be a role model for marriage, and relationships, I just want to gag!



On a different note with respect to relationships, Tiger made the news once again. A woman from one of his transgressions admitted during an interview that she got pregnant twice during the three year affair that she had with Tiger. One pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, and the seconded ended when the woman had an abortion.



Today is Fat Tuesday. For you Catholics, have you decided what you are going to give up for Lent?



Well, I have to put on my boots, and retrieve my newspaper from the bottom of the driveway.

Have a great Tuesday, and enjoy the snow if you are in the Northeast.

For our friends in northwest Florida, I do hope that it does warm up a bit in your area.

For our friends who live in Atlanta, you might as well have stayed in the Northeast with respect to the winter that you have been having.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Monday, February 15, 2010

Hello on Monday from the Berkshires

Dear Friends,



The Valentine’s Dinner and Cabaret Show last evening went well. Linda and I were the first ones there. Some of my friends would have turned right around, and gone to the first floor dinning area and bar, and waited until some one else to arrive. Not the Curley’s, under my direction. We went directly to the bar on this second floor room where the dinner and the show were being held. A person, not the regular bartender, got behind the bar and poured us a glass of white wine. Since this guy was out of his element, and didn’t even have a cash box set up, he gave us the wine for free. You see, sometimes “Early is Good!”

When I say that we were there early, we actually we were right on time for the start of the 6:30 PM cocktail hour which was the way it was advertised. The whole evening contained a series of mismanaged incidents which this place is notorious for. As Linda and I were driving home from the show, we said that they could use the help from our teaching experience. We could never walk into a classroom unprepared. If you didn’t take care of details before your classes began, you were in for a very long day.

The food was touted as a Chinese buffet. The names of what you saw on the serving table didn’t match up. The head of a duck on the platter of overcooked duck products frighten a few of us. We did manage to find sustenance in some of the food products. The desserts were okay, and a glass of champagne was part of the sweets portion of the dinner.

The question is would we go back next year? If we did go out on Valentine’s Day with the couple whom we went with, it definitely would not be at this place.



I am the only one socially engaged today. I have a 6 PM UNICO membership meeting at a local restaurant.

Linda will expect a day of rest and relaxation from our long weekend. Linda will be watching the Olympics. Last night she was watching ice-skating as I headed off to bed.



I have to find time for a workout at Retro Fitness. I think that I will go when Linda wakes up. This means I will be at the gym when there are more distractions than usual. Oh Darn!



Our Tuesday social calendar might be in jeopardy. We are supposed to get a couple inches of a mid afternoon snow event. A couple of the Mah Jongg players don’t drive when it is snowing including the Queen

I am not sure if the Pasta Fund Raiser for Tuesday at 5:30 PM might be postponed too if the roads are dangerous.



The weekend, which we made it through, had so many positives. To see your offspring going through the process of searching for their first home in the suburbs was kind of fun to observe. To see them so happy, and mentally planning of how it is going to work out.

Commuting to work is about to change. Kevin won’t have the luxury of walking down the stairs from their apartment which is right above the restaurant. Kyla can’t just walk a block or so to the train station from the restaurant to go to her place of work in downtown Boston. They have been living with one car, but that changed yesterday when Kyla got Kevin a Valentine’s gift of a new car. The commute from the suburbs takes about 25 minutes depending on the traffic. The Brodeur’s, who drove on Route 93 every day of their long teaching careers to get to their respective schools, told them the best times to travel to avoid traffic problems. Kevin and Kyla will have to use Route 93 to get to work,

Then there is the baby sitting issue. Luckily, there is a day care center not too far from the end of their street. Ginny Brodeur, who lives a street away from where Kevin and Kyla will be living, has graciously volunteered to do a pick up at the day care center if Kyla gets tied up at work.

Family and friends prove that they are the link to help us get through the little bumps in the road of life.



While I was catching up with the local newspapers, I saw an article in the fish and game portion of the Sunday newspaper. Two friends, from a neighboring town, were ice-fishing for Northern Pike on Onota Lake. On the same day, about an hour apart, they each caught a Pike. One was 29 pounds, and the other was 26 pounds. I told Linda that if I ever caught a fish that large, I would have it mounted. She was worried that I would put it on a living room wall. I told her that it would go in my “Man Cave.”



Well, I have to do some quiet activities, one of which is to put away some of the food products which we purchased at Costco’s on the way home from the Brodeur’s yesterday. This is not going to be a noisy activity since the noise will take place in the storage room in the basement.



Have a great week at work or play.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Hello on Saturday

Dear Friends,

We had a Friday that went exactly as planned. We went from Pittsfield to East Boston. Our grandson must have known that we were coming to visit because he fought taking his afternoon nap.

We did not eat food from Kevin's restaurant. Kyla decided to be a domestic goddess, and prepared supper for us. It was some great chicken concoction over rice with asparagus as our vegetable.

In less than an hour we are going one street over from the Brodeur's to go through the house that Kevin and Kyla plan on purchasing. The word is that the inspector is very thorough so that it won't be just a quick run through which is a good thing. Kyla might be heading back to Boston with Kevin to do some errands, and possibly some work related stuff. We will be taking care of Max while they both do their thing. Marilyn, who used to live in Tewksbury, has already called a friend from their old neighborhood, and they will be doing lunch together.
Ginny Brodeur has already left for the Community College where she teaches a one day a week class on Saturday from 9 AM until 2 PM. Linda will be in charge of setting up supper since Ginny doesn't come home until almost 3 PM. There will be nine of us at the supper table this evening.Kevin, Kylka, Linda and me, the Brodeur's, the Brodeur son and his wife, and Marilyn Gerardi. The menu is set. We are having a low sodium spiral ham, coleslaw, and baked beans. There should be a lot of good food, fun and merriment before this evening is over.

I was the first one up this morning which is pretty much normal, but I couldn't get on the computer because it is in the bedroom where Linda and I are sleeping.
I forgot to mention that yesterday was my 500th blog which I have written. If you are ever away, you can google "The Curley Lad", and you can read my daily thoughts.

Our grandchild was his usual bundle of joy when we visited with him on Friday. He still sleeps 12 hours per night 7:30 PM until 7:30 AM along with a morning and afternoon nap. He got a clean bill of health from the pediatrician the other day. No teeth have popped out yet, but some should any day now.

If Kevin and Kyla do purchase this house, there is a day care center 500 yards from the end of their street. There is also an elementary school 400 yards from the end of their street. Linda and I are hoping that the inspection goes well. It will be nice being able to visit the Brodeur's and the Curley's at the same time.

Well, I have to cut this e-mail short, and freshen up for the first adventure of the day.
Talk to you soon! The Curley Lad

Friday, February 12, 2010

Hello on Friday Morning

Dear Friends,



Our Thursday went as planned.



Linda enjoyed the almost 8 hours of peace and quiet when I was gone from the house working the Pasta Fund Raiser. I arrived at the Italian American Club at 1 PM to see if they needed help setting up the hall. I got to the club about the same time that the head chef arrived with all the food products. The head chef for this event is one of my UNICO brothers. He and his wife are the people who organized the PHS French Club fundraiser since they have a son going on the trip to France during the April vacation.

Whenever you work one of these events, you never know how many people whom you are cooking for. I set the hall up for 160. Well, we ended up with close to 200 people. Three or four of us UNICO guys were in the kitchen doing what each of us do best. I didn’t realize that they didn’t need servers because the French students were assigned that task.

I was the runner. I had to check to see if they needed more pasta, meatballs (they were homemade), and salad, and bread on the buffet line. The mom and dad’s of the students provided some excellent homemade desserts. When I got home from the event, I was so tired that I went to bed.



Today we are leaving Pittsfield at 1 PM. Linda, a friend, whose husband is on a business trip, and I will be departing from Pittsfield at 1 PM. We have decided to go directly to East Boston to visit with our grandchild, and his mom and dad. We are going to have supper from our son’s restaurant in East Boston. When our grandchild heads off to bed for the evening, usually around 7:30 PM, we will head off to the Brodeur’s, who live in Tewksbury, which is where we will be staying for Friday and Saturday night. We mentally have our Saturday all set, but we are flexible if things change.



The weather this winter has been really crazy. Atlanta is getting 3 to 5 inches of snow right now, and we get only a dusting from the last mid Atlantic storm. Places like Washington, D.C. and Baltimore have record snow fall amounts, yet we in Massachusetts have had a below normal snow total. We also have been stuck in a cold spell with highs in the 20’s for a good portion of the winter. The cold air has been blocking any attempt of the snow reaching our area. The weather channel says that we will reach a high no greater than 27 degrees today. Do you think the people in Washington, D.C. believe in Global warming?

The people in Vancouver, where the Olympic Ceremony will be held this evening, might believe in Global Warming since they had to truck in tons of snow for one of the venues. Vancouver has been very similar to our snow starved region in the Northeast.



Observation – Our radio talk show host friend has one of those Toyota hybrid cars. He said that before the recall, he was having problems with his new car. He said that when he applied the brakes, the car would make a loud banging noise. He took the car to the dealer a couple of times, but they couldn’t find anything wrong with the car.

I can still hear the sad interview with a lady whose husband got killed in a car crash due to a faulty system in their Toyota. When the police investigated the accident, it was determined to be driver error, well not anymore. How about all those car crashes in parking decks when the people claimed sudden acceleration was the cause, We all laughed at the pictures, and concluded that it was an error by the driver, I will bet that the crash could have been caused by the defects in the car.

Can you imagine the numerous law suits of all the people who have been in accidents while driving defective Toyota products? I want to know how long that Toyota knew of the problem before they “came clean.”



Well, today is the start of the weekend.

Valentines Day is on Sunday.

The Queen has already made plans with another couple to go out Sunday night to one of those places which has a dinner show. How could I say “No” since it is Valentines Day?

This means that we leave Tewksbury no later than noon on Sunday. When we get home, we drop our bags off and relax for a couple of hours, and then head out the door once again.

Mold, mildew, and moss can never grow on our shoes because we are never in one place long enough for the stuff to grow.



Have a great weekend!

I hope that yours is less hectic than ours. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Hello on Thursday

Dear Friends,



The weathermen on the local channels apologized for their miscalculations for what was supposed to be a snow event. We got the ground coated with about an inch of snow. Schools in the county shut their doors in anticipation of a snowy event, but it never happened. A few schools did stay open, and their superintendents seemed to have made the correct call.

Another storm is brewing, and we will see if it reaches us in the Berkshires.



Our crock pot beef stew was so good. If we could bottle or can it, we would become part of the rich and famous. I decided to fire up my bread machine, and I made prepared a bread called “Peter’s Winter Bread.” It came out perfect!



I am the only one socially engaged this evening. There is one of those Pasta Fund Raisers at the Italian American Club. I am going to see if they need my help. I will probably be part of the serving line. We start serving at 5:30 PM.

Linda doesn’t have any social commitments. I tried to encourage her to call up a girlfriend, and go off and see a “Chick Flick”. There are a couple being shown at our local theaters.



Politics – The snow has shut down Washington for three days so there isn’t much going on.



Observation – While on the treadmill at Retro Fitness, I had the television on. When the channels that I was surfing around on went to a commercial, all there was were advertisements for Valentine gifts. You can send your Valentine a Teddy Bear, a Candy Gram, a Pajama gram, Strawberries dipped in Chocolate, or give her a box of Chocolates. You could send a dozen roses, or arrange a Spa day for her. From a man’s perspective, have you males figured out what your Valentine really wants?

If we had endless funds, I think that I would do a three or four day getaway to an exotic place, or maybe a Cruise to the Caribbean. A nice romantic dinner at one of our favorite restaurants could be another option, but we have done that in the past.

Well, none of the above is happening in Curley world. We will be heading east this weekend to be with our East Boston grandchild, and his parents. Our grandchild is the best Valentine gift that Linda and I can have. He is our little Teddy bear. He is sweeter than the finest chocolates that we can find. I would rather spend money on our grandchild than on a dozen of over priced roses which have a limited life span.

Our other Valentine is in Kansas. We are working on flight plans to visit her and her parents soon.

We will also spending time visiting our friends, the Brodeur’s.

Spending time with family and friends is the best Valentine gift that a person can give and receive.

Finally, the warm and fuzzy feeling that happens on Valentine’s day should last all year long, and not just on one day of the year. If you don’t work on it during the year, you won’t have someone to celebrate Valentine’s Day with when it does arrive.



Retro Fitness was quiet this morning. I was the first one in the place at 4:30 AM. A few distractions arrived after 5 AM.



Have a great Thursday!

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Hello on Wednesday Morning

Dear Friends,



Our Tuesday went exactly as planned. The Mah Jongg ladies enjoyed the crock pot vegetable soup, which Linda whipped up and the jalapeño bread which I made in my bread machine.



Our 6 PM Irish Sister City meeting went well also. We ended up at Patrick’s Pub after the meeting for some food and merriment. We were home before 9 PM.



We are in a winter storm watch, but we are in the 5 to 10 inch range before the snow is over by the end of today. We are actually behind in snow fall amounts for this year.



We have the crock pot fired up once again. We have the traditional “snow day beef stew” brewing as I write this e-mail.

After sending my daily blog, I have to do the minutes for last night’s Irish Sister City meeting.



We will be so busy from March 8 through March 15 when our guests (2 females) from our Irish Sister City arrive in Pittsfield. We have meetings, lunch dates, and three covered dish dinners, Polenta dinner at the ITAM, and an Irish American Club’s St. Patrick’s Day dinner dance, and gatherings at some local Pub’s. I am exhausted just thinking about the agenda of events for this short period of time. All this doesn’t even include the events on St. Patrick ’s Day itself which we will be attending.

I won’t even have time to take our guests ice-fishing.



Observation – I want to return to my Dunkin Donuts experience so that I can relay another story that I listened on the other day. There were two guys sitting close enough that I could hear what they were saying. One guy was drinking coffee, and the other guy was just sitting there. They seemed like they were members of a local group similar to Alcoholic’s Anonymous. They were talking about not liking the leader of the group who runs the meetings. They also had reservations about the people who sponsored them. They both talked about having issues related to alcohol, but the group that they attend deals with people who have all types of addictions.

I guess the point that really struck home was that we have such needy people right here in the United States. I am not sure whether we take care of our own countrymen as well as we do for people in other countries who experience natural disasters.

When I first walked into the Pub last evening, my retired friend, who said that he was bored, was sitting at the bar eating supper alone. He told me that he tried volunteering at the Salvation Army on Tuesday. He said that the sadness that he saw in one day would rip your heart apart. This one guy came into the Salvation Army for a bag of groceries from the food pantry. The guy was trying to take care of two children on his own. He had a minimum wage job. The mother of his children was not in the picture any more because she got hooked on drugs. The poor guy told my bored friend that he didn’t know how he could survive each day without places like the Salvation Army. Of course, here is our group of Irish Sister City friends out at a packed restaurant on a Tuesday night paying for a fun evening of food and beverages while this poor guy isn’t sure where his next meal is coming from. The guilt was overwhelming for me!



This is why I keep saying to myself that “Life is Good!” I really appreciate how lucky that our lives have been from birth through the present time. My hot water tank problem in my finished off basement seems so trivial when compared to the life and death issues of so many people.



Well, it looks the snow issue is a sure thing for us in the Berkshires. It appears that the Science Fair that we are supposed to judge this evening might be canceled. If the schools do have a snow day, all evening activities like a science fair and sporting contests, etc. get canceled too.



Have to go and do my next quiet task – The minutes of last night’s meeting.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Hello on Tuesday Morning

Dear Friends,



I accomplished all of my tasks on Monday. I had to go back to our Tax preparer because I forgot a couple of documents. I do this every year.

My UNICO meting went well. I picked up another pasta dinner at which I volunteer my kitchen and serving talents.



Linda is hosting her Tuesday Mah Jongg session at our house. A crock pot soup is on the menu. I am making a loaf of bread in my bread machine. I usually dine with the ladies, and do some errands when they start playing at noon time.

We are also engaged this evening at 6 PM. We have our monthly Pittsfield Irish Sister Committee Meeting at the Pittsfield Library. There appears to be a full agenda so we will be there for at least an hour.



Weather – Our local weather prognosticators say that we are on the fringe of tomorrows mid Atlantic snow storm. The local guy is predicting a dusting, but of course if the track of the storm changes, we could get more. I am guessing that we will be getting the lower amount of snow or possibly nothing at all. The weather channel right now says 3 to 5 inches on Wednesday which is in conflict with the local guy.



Politics – The word on the street is that Sarah Palin is going to take a run at the Presidency when the President’s term is up in a few years. I think that her old hair do makes her stand out from the rest of the field. If the election were to take place today, I think that she would have a good chance of winning the election. The President needs to have a couple victories with respect to some of his proposals, or he could possibly be a one term President.



Observation – Yesterday, I had some time to waste in between the oil change and the meeting with the Tax Preparation person. I decided to stop at Dunkin Donuts for a coffee. Yes, I actually spent money to purchase a coffee. It hurt so much paying $2.13 for large coffee. I took my coffee to a quiet part of Dunkin Donuts, and started to read the local newspaper.

While I was just sitting there minding my own business, and not wanting to talk to anybody, a guy sits down two tables away. He starts up a conversation. He was sitting there without any Dunkin Donuts products. I must appear like this approachable guy who anyone can talk to.

I found out that this nice Jewish man was living in adult public housing at a place in Pittsfield called Columbia Arms. He used to live in Myrtle Beach until he had a heart attack several years ago. He came back to this area because he has relatives living here. He said that his relatives never stop in to see him. He said that he was an osteopathy doctor. He also said that there are some mentally ill people who live in public housing. As an example, he said that there is this one crazy woman who calls the police, and claims that everyone whom she comes in contact with touches her inappropriately, or she cries rape. The UPS guy delivered a package to her the other day. She called the police, and said that she was raped. The police are very familiar with this wacky woman.

I finally asked this guy, “What do you do all day?” He said that he volunteers taking some of the elderly to doctor’s appointment or to free meals at one of the local Temples. When I left the place, I did see his car which was parked next to mine. His license plates had an Lv (means livery) on it so I surmised that everything he told me was the truth. If you saw the way that this guy had parked his car, you would never ride with him. The front bumper of his car was within one inch of the brick building next to Dunkin Donuts.

I am not going to this downtown Dunkin Donuts for the rest of my adult life.

I listened in on a conversation of some other interesting people at Dunkin Donuts, but I will save that story for another time.



I just returned from Retro Fitness. When you skip a couple of days, the workout routine takes a bit more effort. There were no distractions at all when I left at 5:30 AM.

Well, I have to check my bread which is cooking in the bread machine. I told Linda that if the bread didn’t come out great that I was heading off to the grocery store before the ladies arrived at 11:30 AM.





Have a great Tuesday!

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Monday, February 8, 2010

Hello on Monday Morning

Dear Friends,



The Curley’s had a very nice Super Bowl Party. Only two male friends stayed until the game was over.



The clean up was relatively easy since most of the food was consumed. The sausage and home made meat balls that we prepared in a crock pot, and the crock pot of chili brought by other friends were a big hit. We also had wings, one set were home made, and the others were purchased. Even the guy who brought the prepared wings liked the home made wings the best. I think there might be two of the purchased wings left. Of course, there was the usual chips and dips, nuts, etc.

All of us who were convinced that the Colts were going to win the game had our bubble burst. The wife of a couple, who we invited last minute to join us for the festivities, won our little football pool. I bet that they were glad that they decided to make it to the party.



Linda and I want to thank all of you who attended the party. It would have been kind of boring if I was “man cave” watching this game alone. It is good to have a nice set of friends like you guys. Mark next year’s Super Bowl on your calendar.

The only thing that could change is that if Kevin and Kyla move into a house. I am guessing that we will be invited to a Super Bowl Party at their house. It might be time to pass the party torch on to the younger generation.



Can you imagine what it must have been like on Bourbon Street last night in New Orleans? The partying must have gone on all night long.



The results of the game just convince me once again to never listen to all the sports’ talking heads. One writer for the Boston Globe on Sunday said that he couldn’t figure out how the Colts could lose the game. He was convinced that the Colts were the superior team. I wonder what he has to say in his column today.



Not too many commercials during the Super Bowl were memorable.



I believe that I am the only one who is socially engaged today. My day starts with an 8 AM oil change appointment for the Subaru, a 10 AM visit with our tax preparer, and a 6 PM UNICO board meeting.

For Linda, I have a feeling this will be a “leave me alone”, and “don’t bug me, or ask me any questions”, etc type of day for her. She deserves a day like this for sure!



The weather continues to be windy and cool. It is 15 degrees right now, and we will reach the middle 20’s. The weather channel is tracking another storm. The areas of the mid Atlantic states, which got hit over the weekend, are in for another 5 to 8 inches of snow. We will be getting some snow this time. It starts on Tuesday night into Wednesday. The local weather prognosticators said that we are going to get snow, but it is not a snowmageddon event. There is a chance that the dome of cold air, which kept us snow free over the weekend, can do the same thing for this upcoming storm.



Politics – I see where Sarah Palin has let her hair down. I liked her old hair style more than the current one. She still is spouting the same old stuff that she did when she was running for Vice President for the Republican Party.



Observation – Life without football has begun. The question for me is whether I have the interest to watch the upcoming Olympics. I know that Linda will be watching the ice-skating for sure. She even made the comment yesterday that if she ever won the lottery she would go to the Olympics for sure. I am not excited about the Olympics as she is, but I suppose it would be neat to be at the venue for the particular sport which you are watching.

If I won the lottery, I would want to attend the Super Bowl!



I do want to return to the frozen ponds, but I have such a busy week that I will have to wait until next week.



Well, have a great week at work or play.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Hello on Super Bowl Sunday

Dear Friends,



It is another one of those “To travel hopefully is better than to arrive” days.

Do you think that Super Bowl Sunday is just another reason to have a party?

Everyone on my daily blog is invited to the party, but I know that my relatives and friends from Florida, Ohio, or from the eastern end of the State aren’t coming to the party because they have to go to work on Monday. Maybe some day in my lifetime, the Super Bowl will take place on a Saturday night instead of on a Sunday night.



Taking care of the details is the most difficult job of having a party (as well as the clean up). Trying to anticipate everything that is needed to host a party so that Linda and I don’t have to go up and down the cellars stairs is not as easy at it seems. In the end, it is all worth the effort!



After having so many parties, I know what kind of beverage that each of the party goers likes.

The same thing holds true for food. One person may not like onions, and another person may not like spicy food. For iron stomach Fran, there is pretty much nothing that I will skip unless it is the ones which I am allergic too (clams, mussels, oysters only, no other fish or ocean products.)



I just got through setting up a crock pot full of Super Bowl food. The epicurean delights should be ready when the guests arrive.



The talking heads from the sports’ world have been analyzing this game from top to bottom. The analyzing will continue all day long and right up until kick off. I don’t know about my readers, but I am tired of it all. Let’s play the game!

A majority of the talking heads are leaning toward a Cots win. The Colts are favored by 5 points as of yesterday. Most of my friends would like to see the Saints win since they have never been in a Super Bowl. I am still picking the Colts to win.



“Snowmageddon” is a new word coined by our President at a meeting of Democratic Leaders on Saturday.



We couldn’t believe how much snow the northern mid Atlantic regions picked up as we had a sunny but cool and dry day here in the Northeast.

There is a storm brewing for us on Wednesday in the Northeast.



Wednesday night, Linda and I agreed to judge a Science Fair Contest at my former High School. It always seems to snow on the day of this Science Fair. The make up date is the following Wednesday, but we are tied up on this date.



According to a USA Today report the other day, 51 % of people watching the Super Bowl are more interested in the commercials than they are in the game itself. I think that is great that football fans, and non football fans can actually exist in the same room at the same time. Just think if we could do this with respect to our Congress. A lot of positive results could happen.



Well, I hope that you all have a great Sunday.

There will be much fun and merriment before this day is over in the Curley household.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Hello on Saturday Morning

Dear Friends,



Hope that you all had a pleasant Friday.



The one hour radio program that we were on went well. Linda was a little fearful of going on the program, but the radio host put her at ease. She only kicked me once as a warning to be careful when I responded to a particular question from the host of this daily show. I think that she might be willing to go back on the radio talk show in the future.

I never did get a chance to tell the public of some of the upcoming events of the Italian and Irish Clubs which we belong to. I will save that for another guest appearance.



Linda and I can’t believe that the current snow storm didn’t leave a single drop of the white stuff in our region. Washington, D.C. doesn’t need to have 2 feet of snow on the ground. We would have loved to have been snow bound here in the Berkshires. Not all of our friends agree with our position!



We are in for another day in the 20’s. My turtle necks and wool sweaters have been getting a workout this winter.

I have to find some time to return to the frozen ponds. The hot water tank affair really did cut into my ice-fishing.



We have another busy week coming up, and I am not sure if I can spend a single day on the ice.

Looking on the positive side, the nights have been so cold, that the ice will take a long time to melt. There is still a good deal of ice-fishing left for this season.



After the radio program, we had a pleasant lunch at a nearby restaurant. Our lunch turned out so much better than the evening meal.



We did have to go to Walmart to pick up a couple of home related items.



We joined another couple for supper at one of the Italian restaurants in Pittsfield. Only the men were happy with their meals. The ladies ordered Chicken Parmesan. The Chicken is supposed to be breaded, fried and then baked with a cheese topping. Boiled or poached chicken turned them both off. Linda and her friend make a better Chicken Parmesan than the meals which they served us at this place. The pizza, which we had as an appetizer, was the best part of the meal.

Home cooked meals are still the best. My male friend and I just have to convince our wives. Our wives current position on this matter is that they spent their younger days in the kitchen preparing meals for the growing family, and now it is time to be waited on as we enter the golden years. What a difference a generation makes!



Our Super Bowl party is starting to come together. Some people have already told us what they are making and bringing for food. It will be a fun day of consuming high calorie foods and beverages. Linda and I did watch a Friday program on how to watch your calories as well as the low calorie foods which we should have at such a party. We know what to do, but we (mostly me) don’t think that we can follow the suggested guidelines.

We are not sure of the head count, but I am guessing it will be in the 15 to 20 range. It could go higher if our friend’s adult children are able to attend the party. For me, “the more the merrier” is the rule of thumb.



We are prepping two items today, one of which will be going in a crock pot. The paper products and beverages (both alcohol and non alcohol variety) are all set. We didn’t purchase paper products with the logos of the teams which are in the Super Bowl. The prices for such products were outrageous at Walmart. If you see an NFL logo on any product, you will be paying more for the item. 12 paper plates with a Colts or Saints logo was too much for the Curley’s. If the Patriots were playing, you could get by with paper products which are Red, White, and Blue.

The doors open at our house at 4 PM, but I am guessing some people might not arrive until 5 PM except for a few diehard party goers like myself.. I will be watching the Lakers vs Celtics game which has a 2:30 PM start time. My neighbors will be at the game in Boston. I am hoping that they stop into our party on the way home. If they see cars in our driveway, the party will still be going on.



Politics – None since they had to take the President out of Washington with the predicted snow storm.



News – I haven’t read the news yet, but I did hear this on the radio yesterday. An 11 year old girl from Massachusetts had a baby the other day. My first thoughts were, “Why is an 11 year old even having sex at all?”



Well, I want to start preparing one of the items for the Super Bowl Party, but I can’t. Is using an electric hand mixer a quiet activity?



Have a great Saturday and Sunday.

The Curley’s are off to a good start.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 5, 2010

Hello on Friday Morning

Dear Friends,



I started my morning at Retro Fitness. I decided to be there when the doors open at 4:30 AM. About half way through my routine today, the full figured women, and the muscle bound guys filtered in. It was a pleasant workout overall.



Even though I went there a little later yesterday and there were very little distractions, the rising sun turned out to be a problem. One bank of treadmills faces the eastern sky. The sun was directly in my eyes. There is a television screen on each treadmill, but it didn’t help with respect to blocking out the sun. It would not have been a problem if I was a little height challenged. Eventually, I did get on a machine with my back to the sun.



It was nice to go into my “Man Cave” last evening with a plate of delivered Chinese food, and a new book. I ended up falling asleep during the Boston Bruin Hockey game. The Bruins have lost their 9th game in a row.



Social Calendar – We have to prepare a couple items for our Super Bowl Party on Sunday before we head off to do the noon time radio program at a local station. Linda is a little nervous about doing the program, but I am looking forward to it. She knows that I love such things, and she sometimes calls me “The Babbler”. She knows that I can talk for ever, and I often don’t know when to stop babbling! I think that I inherited part of this trait from my father.

We will probably hook up with another couple or two for supper tonight if all goes well.



Politics / News – I see where they are going to charge one of those bailout bankers with criminal charges. My Republican and Independent voter friends were correct about being cautious about giving money to these bankers. Even though some good did come out of the taxpayer bailout, not all people can be trusted when you hand them bags of money.

I also see where those people who got arrested for trying to supposedly save the Haitian children want the United States Government to intervene on their behalf. As I was treadmilling along this morning while watching CNN news, details came out about some of the people arrested. A few of the individuals arrested may be worth saving, but the rest should take the punishment doled out by the Haitian government.



More people watch the Super Bowl for the commercials than for the game itself. One of Linda’s friends wants to arrange a session of Mah Jongg since her husband and one of his friends are all set to watch the football game in her home. Most of the friends whom she plays with will be at our Super Bowl Party along with other women who don’t know how to play the game. Now you might be thinking that I should invite this woman and her friends, but we would need a larger house to accommodate everyone. Linda is always afraid that when we have a party that I would invite the world. Can I help it if our circle of friends is a bit large?



Observation – While out doing errands yesterday afternoon, I was observing people driving while talking on their cell phones. The 10 or so drivers which I saw were female. One lady zoomed through the parking lot of this strip mall that we were in at a seemingly lightening speed. She never looked left or right as I was going down a row of cars. She was going across several rows not paying any attention to people or cars. If she had hit a car or person, I would have willingly testified against her at a trial.

I started thinking about which sex talks the most on cell phones while driving. If I had to vote yesterday, it would have been females.

We are getting very close to having a law passed in Massachusetts banning talking on cell phone while driving, or at least banning texting while driving. They did a study that showed that the using of a cell phone while driving is almost as bad as driving when intoxicated (.08 in Massachusetts). I must admit that I don’t do well at driving while using the cell phone.



Our son in Boston and his wife are getting closer to owning their own home. We might be going east next weekend to Boston to go through the house which they are considering to purchase. They were working on getting an appointment with a certified inspector for next Saturday. Linda and I will be there if it all works out.

Purchasing your first home is an exciting event. Going from an apartment to a house is nice especially when the little ones start arriving.



I got distracted by the hot water tank problem, and forgot that I had live bait in my bucket in the garage. When I checked the bait yesterday, they were deceased. The water in the bucket had changed into a solid block of ice. Death by freezing was the diagnosis. I needed hot water to dissolve the ice so that I could get at the remains. The garbage disposal is a wonderful device for certain things.

Talking about fish, how about the guy doing a little kite sailing in the ocean in Florida? The description of how the wind died, and then he was attacked by sharks (and he eventually died) convinces me that this is another sport that I would do only on fresh water ponds, and not in the ocean. I don’t blame the sharks because they probably thought that this guy was a seal which is a staple in their diet.



Well, I have to read the local newspaper, and the USA Today. I picked up the USA Today knowing that they would have a separate section just on the Super Bowl. My guess was correct.

Have a great weekend.

Hope that you team wins the Super Bowl.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Hello on Thursday Morning

Dear Friends,



The saga in the cellar still continues. Yesterday the Restoration guy and the Claims Adjuster were both here at the same time. Holes have been punched into the interior walls of our storage area in the basement, and fans are hopefully drying up certain portions of the cellar where moisture has still been detected. The stuff which we had to take off of the walls, are still spread out over the couches, tables, and the portion of the floor which received no water damage. They both assured us that things will be back to normal for our Super Bowl Party on Sunday. We hope so!

If the hole drilled in the sheet rock does solve the moisture problem, the insurance company does have someone come in, and fill in the holes.



We spent another pleasant day together on Wednesday. Linda used her domestic goddess skills and prepared a lemon chicken dish. Some mashed potatoes, and broccoli crowns made for a delightful supper. Every time she goes through the effort of making a gourmet meal, I tell her how much money we saved by not going out to eat. She is not in agreement with my form of logic. Whatever happened to housewives being in the kitchen, and actually enjoying while preparing meals for their loving husband?



Could you believe the landlord, and his tenant fighting over a baseball size meteor which fell from space into the tenement’s place? They have to go to court to see who legally owns the meteor.



Kevin and Kyla are looking at houses. They almost narrowed it down to their first choice.

Their search got me to thinking about the first house which we moved into in Pittsfield at the southern end of city. We left a $125 per month rented apartment with the heat, and utilities as part of the rental fee to move into our first house. Our first house was nice, but we had one bathroom, and no garage, and a basement which I eventually finished off. I remember taking my father through the place, and he wasn’t totally excited about our selection. Linda and I (mostly me) am not going to interfere with Kevin and Kyla’s selection of their first house

We spent 12 years in our first until we sold it to a former student and her husband in 1985. This means that will have been in our current house for 25 years this coming August. Where did all the time go?



I finished savoring the book from our local author which I purchased on Sunday. I liked his first one a little more.



I didn’t go to the gym this morning. I think that I will go to Retro Fitness after the Restoration Guy shows up at our doorstep at 10 AM today. I am so hoping that his electronic moisture detecting device shows very low or almost no moisture in the target areas. The rugs are completely dry. I can’t return stuff to the walls because the fans are too powerful.



Weather – We are going to be grazed by a coastal storm this Saturday. I dome of cold air is going to push the storm out to sea. Things can change, but it is too early to tell what is really going to happen.



Politics – The new senator from Massachusetts has risen to star status, and he hasn’t even proved himself. They already have him as a possible candidate for President. For me, he is just another pretty face. Every time that I turn on the television, he is being interviewed by some member of the media. Sarah Palin—You step aside for the big boy!



I wish that I was invited to the Hooters Pool Party in Florida while they are preparing for the Super Bowl. Talk about distractions!



We have to go off and do some errands which we postponed on Wednesday.

Have a great Thursday!

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Hello on Wednesday Morning

Dear Friends,



The heat is back on. We didn’t go through the gas company. My local plumber and his assistant did the job in less than an hour. I should have gone to him on Saturday when the hot water tank died. It was a learning lesson for the Curley’s.

The jet engine sounding fans are still going. I wasn’t able to return the basement back to normal on Tuesday. The restoration guy said that he was still detecting water, but it was in the wall, and not on the carpeting. It will be 72 hours of fan blowing, and dehumidifying as of today. If he thinks that there is still much moisture in the walls, then he turns this fact over to Liberty Mutual Claims. The adjuster is coming on Friday.

I was willing to pay the plumber when the job was completed, but he is going to send a bill. He likes to put all this stuff on his computer.



It is like a winter wonderland right now. The dusting of snow has covered up the dirty snow. The snow showers should cease at some time this morning.



I can’t believe that they won’t allow tailgating at the Super Bowl in Florida. The terrorist threat is to blame for this!

Partying will not be a problem at the Annual Curley Super Bowl Party. Our guests will be arriving at 4 PM. Some of the people who have to work on Monday will probably last until a little after half time, but there still will be a good deal of fun and merriment for several hours. Anyone who doesn’t like football can at least enjoy the socialization, and the commercials. On Monday morning, the commercials get analyzed just as much as the game itself. The Budweiser commercials usually end up being the winners.



Politics / News – I went to the CNN Webpage, but it was same old same old. One article which did peak my interest was the recanting of the Autism Study. There is no link between immunization and autism. I wouldn’t want my child in school to be sitting next to a non immunized child.



Observation – As I was driving my car to Retro Fitness on Tuesday, I was thinking about the Toyota incident. Can you imagine all the lawyers seeking clients for people who have been in car crashes due to sudden acceleration problem? The lawyers and clients are going to make some serious bucks out of this mess. I want to know how long that Toyota knew that there was a design problem before that they came clean.



While Linda was at Mah Jongg yesterday, I tired making a small batch of wings from a Food Channel recipe. The wings came out good, but I had to spend a good deal of time in the kitchen even though the recipe was simple. I made them come out crispy with this recipe which bakes them, but I concluded that it might have been easier just to purchase them all prepared at a local supermarket, or a restaurant.

The best wings and drum sticks that I have ever made were on the grill, and by using a device that Linda picked for me after the grilling season was over. If I used the device in the house, the oven would have been one greasy mess, and the smell of chicken would have permeated the house.



Well, it is time for me to go to the gym.

Yesterday the guy was late opening the gym. The regulars were not happy.

Retired people have a different concept of time unless it is with respect to going to wakes, funerals, and early bird specials.

Have a great Wednesday in whatever part of the country that you are located in.

Talk to you soon. Then Curley Lad