Monday, February 28, 2011

Hello on Monday

Dear Friends,

Our Sunday went pretty much as planned.

I stopped in Lee to visit my father on the way to pick up the Culver's at Bradley International Airport in Hartford, Connecticut. My dad appeared to be in good spirits.

I had to park my car in short term parking because the Culver luggage became a problem. The night of the flight cancellation, they were told that their luggage would be on their Sunday flight home. Not! The bag claim carousel went round and round without their luggage. They had to go to baggage claim, and try and find where their luggage was. After stand in a long line, they were told that their luggage was still in Atlanta. The Delta Airlines baggage claim agent said that they would deliver their luggage to the Culver home. The Culver's learned a valuable lesson in all of this confusion. In your carry on bag, always carry a clean set of underwear, a shirt / blouse, and maybe an extra pair of socks. Staying two days in a hotel, or at a friend's home like they did, in the same set of clothes could be quite uncomfortable. Also, wearing the comfortable, but not necessarily cute footwear, is a real must. She found out that wearing open toe sandals didn't work well as we arrived home in their unplowed driveway.

While I was doing the pick up, Linda was picked up with her shopping buddy, and they went to grocery store so that Linda could pick up a prescription. She had intended to purchase some fruit for me as well as the prescription, but the pain started to kick in. Her and her girlfriend, went across the street from the grocery store to the 99 Restaurant. The pain intensified, and she couldn't enjoy her lunch. Her lunch became her supper. I was home when she arrived from her adventure. Pain medication became the only thing on her mind. The Hernia surgery looks like it is going to put a damper on her activities for the upcoming week. I know that one of these days she will wake up pain free, but it looks like it won't be soon.

As far as how I did at caregiving on Sunday, I might have earned another "D". She made her own breakfast when I was snow blowing. Lunch was semi fun because she finally left the house after multiple days of being cooped up in a house. Supper she prepared her own supper of left overs.

I will try and be more attentive today, but I have a 1 PM Retired Educator Association of Massachusetts meeting. I can't skip the meeting since I am President of the Berkshire County Chapter of REAM.

Linda's ability to attend her Tuesday Mah Jongg session doesn't look promising. I don' t want her driving a car while on pain medication. Sitting in a chair for several hours is physically impossible for her right now. Oh Darn!

The Oscars -- Did any of my readers stay up and watch the Oscars? The pre game started at 7 PM which was when I went into my man Cave.

At 7 PM, I watched 60 minutes on CBS. a segment of the program was based on espionage. China has stolen all of our secrets on weapons including our nuclear weapons. They steal all of technology on everything which we create in the United States. Of course, they have to have help from our own people on the inside. After watching this program, I am convinced that execution is the only way to deal with spies against our country. Yes, those are harsh words coming from a Liberal Democrat. Yes, I am giving up my Christian values of forgiveness.

The second of segment of 60 Minutes was based on people whom have a terminal illness like ALS, etc., believing that special procedures by snake oil type of doctors and sales people can cure them of their disease. 60 minutes had these frauds on videos, and they still stuck with their positions that what they were doing could cure these desperate people. One family sold their house ($150, 000), and paid for the useless procedures. The bad guys even had a fee structure if you had less money to spend on the procedure.

After 60 minutes was over, I watched the Boston Bruins win their 5th game in a row while reading a book on my I Pad.

I just got through skimming our local newspaper, and I found a positive article about one of my former students. I am pretty sure that he graduated from C.W. Post College on Long Island, which is the college which I graduated from. Joey Esposito has hit the big time. He is writing and reviewing Comic Books. He created his own comic book called "Footprints" which is a four issue miniseries about Bigfoot as a mystery solver. I remember Joey as a pretty good, quiet, and hard working student in my Advance Mathematics Class ( Trig and Functions as it used to be called). Joey is working and living in Los Angeles. This article was so much better than reading about some of my former students who make the police briefs.

One of the fires last week in New York was traced to a Voodoo experience. A Shaman was hired by a woman to do a procedure to bring the woman better luck in her life. Her first good luck was to have sex with the Shaman. Candles might have eventually caused the fire that burned out many people out of apartment building.

Linda just woke up, and she is is really aching once again. I had to make a piece of toast so that she can take a pain pill. She really doesn't want to keep taking taking them, but the pain seems to be never ending. She might need to give the doctor a call today to see if what she experiencing is normal.

Our military son appears to heading for a base in the United States, and not in a foreign country. This was good news for Linda and I.

I did something dumb yesterday. I set a pair of gloves on the rear window wipers of the Kia after doing the morning snow blowing. When I left the house, I forgot that they were there. I drove down the street with the gloves balancing on the wipers. The last glove fell off when I turned on the rear wipers a mile from our home. I saw the glove fly off the rear window, and go bouncing down the street. I was on a busy road, and couldn't stop the car to retrieve the one glove. I really don't know where and when the first glove fell off the car. Good thing that these gloves were relatively inexpensive.

Have a great week at work or play.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Hello on Sunday Morning

Dear Friends,

Hope that you all had a pleasant Saturday.

I was better at caregiving on Saturday, but there is still room for improvement. Linda is still hurting when she gets up and moves around. She is trying to decrease the pain medication, but it hasn't been easy. One pill every 5 or six hours isn't to bad, but pain pills do mess up your internal plumbing. I did make breakfast and supper for Linda, but I did take a nap around lunch time. That was the only meal which she had to fen for herself.

It is a balmy 26 degrees right now. We did get a few inches of snow. Our plow guy already did our driveway. When the neighborhood wakes up, I will fire up snow blower.

I will be leaving the house around 11 AM and be heading to Bradley Airport to pick up the Culver's. Any precipitation should be over today. I hope that their flight from Atlanta to Hartford has no delays.

I did get an okay from the kitchen chief that me missing this fundraiser will be okay. He did ask if I would be in the kitchen for the March 5, 2011 Women's Imaging Center Polenta Dinner which UNICO prepares. I told him that I would be there for sure. Linda has already made plans to attend an Irish Concert at the Colonial that same night. She will partying with the Gormalley's.

I see where the youth in China want to start a protest, but their government is ruthless when it comes to protesters. China has already shut down their Internet in anticipation of any protests. Maybe the people of these countries who treat their people terribly realize that their political base and future is in jeopardy.

I received my Time magazine on Saturday. There is a great article of how Germany has turned around their economy. They have opened up their factories, and gotten people back to work. They are exporting almost as much of their homemade products as China is doing. The workers have made many concessions, and they are working for less money. Germany has increased spending on Research and Development. The German people are purchasing more products which have "Made in Germany" labels on them. Germany is doing the best of all the Euro nations. The United States and the other faltering Euro Nations are looking at the German Model of economic recovery. While in the car on Friday, I heard on the radio that the youth of Ireland are leaving Ireland for greener pastures. A few years ago their economy was so good, and jobs were plentiful that the young people could make a living in their country.

Sports -- I was asleep, and missed the Boston Bruins, and the Boston Celtics win their respective contests on Saturday night. They were playing west coast teams. When games start after 10 PM, there is no way that I will be up watching the sporting contest.

Observation --This is another one of those days that Linda and I would be counting every hour, minute, and second in anticipation of going back to the classroom after a week long school vacation. The students are actually kind of listless because they have been sleeping until noon for a week straight. First period at the high school level starts around 7:25 AM. I always had thoughts of providing each student with those airline size pillows until about 11 AM. Waking up the students, and trying to motivate them after a week long vacation is when teachers really earn their pay. It is amazing how much students forget in during a week of almost no brain activity. From Christmas until the summer recess is the most difficult time for teachers. When the snow goes away, and temperatures outside rise, trying to get the students to stay focused, a to be productive is even a greater challenge. Even though the teacher might not have an 8 hour day like the average worker, a lot of stuff gets done during the time which we work. We can't shut our classroom door, and tell a secretary to hold all of our calls because we are a little tired. Coffee breaks are almost non existent. At the high school level, we had four minutes in between classes. Trying to go to a restroom, and be back while your students are entering the classroom was a big challenge. If a student wanted to ask a question at the end of class, a bathroom stop had to be postponed until the end of the next class. The purpose of this observation was to point out that every person has a job that requires different skills. Linda and I were happy with what we did for over 30 years. There must be people that go to work each day not liking what they are doing. I think that some people are jealous that we retired with some pretty good and earned benefits.
When any young people read my words of wisdom, make sure that you choose your life's occupation wisely. When you are young, you want to earn a lot of money, but keep in mind that retirement is not as far away as you might think. You have to prepare for your retirement as soon as you enter the world of work. I remember walking into the Men's faculty room in 1968 listening to a bunch of older teachers and administrators taking about retirement. Retirement wasn't even in my vocabulary. Within in a what appeared to be a blink of an eye, here Linda and I are now among the retired.

Well I have to skim the Sunday newspapers.
Have a great Sunday.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 25, 2011

Hello on Friday

Dear Friends,

Linda is up right now. She had me whip a piece of toast so that she could take a pain pill. She can't wait for the pill to kick in because she is hurting. It appears that she won't be doing jumping jacks today. It also appears that she could never make it through the WolfTones concert unless she was under the influence of pain killers. When the pain pill does kick in, she usually starts to fall asleep. Linda is not having a good start to this day.

I feel great!

I don't mind being the caregiver since Linda spent a lot of time taking care of me when I had quadriceps tendon surgery in January of 2006. She was my caregiver for months not days. I couldn't drive a car which added another dimension to care giving. Wearing a leg brace for months added a further dimension of Linda's taking care of me.
Linda is mobile which I wasn't for weeks.

I will be the only one leaving the house today. I have to sign some papers at the tax preparation guy's office.
I am going on the Radio Talk Show program at noontime to discuss unions. I called up the radio talk show program on Thursday, and the host on WBRK 1340 on your AM dial said that he wanted to continue the discussion today.

It does appear that I will represent the Curley's at the WolfTones concert this evening. The concert won't begin until after 8:30 PM even though the tickets say it starts at 8 PM. Irish time always has a leeway of 30 to 45 minutes. The Irish people don't rush through life like some of us Americans do.

Weather -- Our weather people are scrambling right now because the rain snow line has changed. We have more snow predicted than what they thought we were getting as of last evening's news. Linda and I would rather have snow. The snow on the ground right now is plowable.
I just went outside to get the local newspaper, and it is a winter wonderland. The snow is heavy and it is sticking to all the trees. It is beautiful outside right now.

We have one set friends coming back from a week in Costa Rica today.

Another set of friends is supposed to be driving this weekend to do one of those food tasting events for prospective brides. Their daughter is getting married in 2012. I hope that the weather doesn't interrupt their plans.

I see where the Republicans in the Wisconsin Assembly have voted to strip the Unions of their bargaining rights.
This is a bad sign for all unions across the nation. I compare it to what we are seeing in the Middle East. One nation begins a revolt, and other nations follow suit.

I was also thinking about the four people on the yacht who were killed by Somali pirates. Why would you be in Somali Pirate waters trying to pass out bibles? It is like swimming in shark infested waters after you have cut yourself.

Sports - The Celtics made some trade moves before the deadline. Can you imagine being on a team which is heading to the playoffs, and then the next minute you get traded? Sports is definitely a business. Job security is always tentative.
Tiger Woods continues to struggle to regain his top ranking in the world.

I see where Hugh Hefner and his wife to be have set a summer time wedding date. I still can't believe that that an 84 year old guy is going to marry a 24 year old woman. I am trying to figure out what they have in common. I would think that Hugh would need to take a jar of Viagra per day to keep up with a 24 year old woman. Maybe they just hold hands.

Food Tip -- The crock pot pot beef roast was wonderful for supper last evening. Crock pot food can be kind of boring unless you add the proper spices and flavors which Linda is good at. Our Aero Garden herbs come in very handy when cooking any kinds of foods.
While reading my Cook's Magazine, I found an interesting article about slow cooking. They did an experiment using two six pound rib roasts. They cooked one at 250 degrees, and the other at 450 degrees until the internal temperatures reached 125 degrees which is medium rare. The slow cooked roast lost 9 % of it's weight. The roast cooked at the high temperature lost almost 25 % of it weight. What this means is " proteins shrink less and express less moisture and fat when cooked at moderate temperatures than at high heat." This means that what you are cooking slowly has more flavor. This is exactly why we are going to keep using our crock pot.

Well, I have to go back to care giving, and set up things for Linda for when I need to leave the house. The pain pill kicked in because Linda is fast asleep.

Have a great weekend!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Hello on Thursday

Dear Friends,

Hope that your Wednesday turned out to be a pleasant one. Ours had some twists and turns.

Me taking Linda to an doctor's appointment was a true statement, but it wasn't for a routine check up. Across from our Berkshire Medical Center is a place called the Crane Center. This a place where day surgeries of no more than 30 minutes take place. You go in, have some minor surgery, and you are sent home. Well, it didn't work out that way for Linda on Wednesday. You all know that I like to be at places early, we were at the Center, and were the first in line at 6 AM. After a few minutes, a nurse comes in the waiting room, and gets Linda. Linda gets prepped for surgery which starts a little after 8 AM. She is given a local anesthetic. The procedure was supposed to take about 15 minutes. After surgery, your are given about 30 or 40 minutes of recovery time, and they send you on your way. I see other people going through the way it is supposed to work. A nurse usually comes out and gets family members as their loved one is in recovery. I ask myself, how come no nurse or doctor has come out and gotten me? At a little after 11 AM, a nurse and finally a doctor comes out to tell me why things took so long. During the simple surgery, they discovered that Linda had a hernia, not what they were 95 % sure that she was diagnosed with having. A hernia is no big deal to repair, but the doctor said that if he knew that he was repairing a hernia, he would have done so in the regular hospital. The doctors and nursing staff did say that Linda's surgery made for a very interesting day for all of them at the Crane Center. We finally left the Crane Center at 12:30 PM. We went off to our favorite pharmacy, and picked up some pain medication. We finally arrived home a little after 1 PM.
Because Linda's procedure took longer than planned, every person that had the same doctor who worked on Linda had their surgery delayed. This delay involved at least 7 or 8 people.

When we arrived home, I set Linda up with liquids, pain medication, heating pad, and made her a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch. French toast was her supper time meal.
She dozed on and off until she went to bed.

She woke up at 5 AM today which is highly unusual. She is hurting quite a bit today because hernia surgery requires cutting through muscle. It will take several days before she is pain free.

I did represent the Curley family at a 4 PM wake on Wednesday. You also know that I like to attend wakes early. I went in before 4 PM , and left the wake at a little after 4 PM. At least 10 other people went to through the wake line before I got there.

Today, I will be at Linda's beck and call. I don't do well at care giving, but I will give it a good shot today.

Weather - We have a wintry mix coming in late tonight. It does look like we will get more rain than snow unless the snow / rain line changes.

Did you ever notice that what ever is going on in the world has no relevance when you are dealing with issues of a loved one?

Have a great day at work or play.
You know what the Curley's will be doing.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Hello on Tuesday

Dear Friends,

My aching back gave me a little trouble on President's Day. I tried using a heating pad, and sitting in a lounge chair while catching up on some magazine reading, but if I moved a certain way, I felt a twinge in my lower back. Lying flat in bed was the best solution.

Linda and I did leave the house about the same time last evening. She went out to do a little recreational shopping, and have supper with a girlfriend.

I picked up a neighbor, who is a UNICO member, and we headed off to our membership meeting which was at Jimmy's Restaurant. This is a moderate priced Italian restaurant which is normally closed on Monday, but opened up just for our organization. Yes, the owner and I are on a first named basis. He is one of these guys who gives back to the community when called upon to do so.

The food at our dinner meeting was wonderful. The meat was a fork tender and thinly sliced pot roast with green beans and mashed potatoes with a delicious brown gravy. We had pasta, and salad before the main meal was served. We had a homemade marble cake with chocolate frosting for dessert.

Every time we have a board meeting or a membership meeting there is always news of extra events that we picked up. I had to add two more to our social calendar when I arrived home last evening.

The first event which I had to add is a March 31, 2011 UNICO celebrity bar tending event at the Heritage Tavern in Lenox. I worked a 45 minute shift last year, and I will most likely be asked to work the event this year. I am also hoping that I can bring in a table full of friends for this Thursday night. The bar tender tips, and a percentage of a person's food bill go towards the UNICO general fund.

The second event is on May 15, 2011 at Berkshire Hills for the wife of one of our own members. She is one of us baby boomers who has been battling Alzheimer's disease for the past four or five years. She is in a really bad state right now.

My friend that I went to the meeting with is Chairperson of our UNICO Charity Board. The requests for real help just keep on coming in. Our $10,000 Charity Board budget has been used up as of last night's meeting. We have to do some fundraisers for ourselves wto keep pace with the requests.

Speaking of requests, my services in the kitchen and on the floor of the ITAM Fundraiser this weekend are needed. This is for a lady who played a big role in Pittsfield's Relay for Life who is now fighting for her own life. Her cancer returned, and her days on this earth are numbered right now. She has a child.
Our UNICO person in charge of the food preparation wants me to be there around 9 AM on Sunday. He is making the sauce from scratch, and it will require some chopping and dicing of special ingredients which he puts in his sauce. I still will be working the buffet table for the most part. UNICO is serving food from 1 to 4 PM. A group from the Jimmy Fund takes over from 4 to 9 PM. There will be a live band, and all kinds of raffles. I really hope that our community comes out in huge numbers.

I had originally planned to enter an ice fishing derby on Pontoosuc Lake for a former Irish American Club member who died of cancer. The Tom Wren memorial tournament starts at 6 AM and goes until 2 PM. I thought that UNICO was serving food at 4:30 PM which meant that I could go to the derby and to the fundraiser. Not!

Linda has her Tuesday Mah Jongg session today. I would go ice fishing, but I need to take care of my back. I have to be pain free by Sunday. My plan for today is to sit on my butt, and read a book on my I Pad.

It is a cool 6 degrees right now with the weather person saying that we should reach the low to middle 20's for a high today.
We might have another winter storm brewing for Friday. It is too early to tell the I pact right now.

Wednesday is going to be a picture perfect day to go ice fishing, but I am taking Linda to a doctor's appointment. The doctor's office is calling us today to tell us when she needs to report.

Wednesday night is Linda's knitting group gathering at Panera Bread.

We have the WolfeTones Concert on Thursday night at Wahconah.

As you see, " the no moss growing under the feet" of the Curley's continues to be a way of life for Linda and me.

I didn't see anything that jumped out at me in the news except for oil prices going up because of the middle east conflicts. Higher gasoline prices, and higher prices for food will really take a toll on the average American.
There was an article in USA Today which said that the rich are getting more comfortable to spending their money on high priced ticket items. As the rich get richer, the rest of us get poorer. I think that I have heard this line before!

Have a great Tuesday!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Monday, February 21, 2011

Hello on President's Day

Dear Friends,

Does Guinness beer have healing power? I had strained my back hauling my ice-fishing gear in and out of my car during the three days which I spent on frozen ponds. This morning my back feels so much better than it did as we left Tewksbury on Sunday morning. I am not completely pain free, but I can move around today with a little more ease. l am going to just relax today, and sit in my lounge chair and read a book on my I Pad. I do have a UNICO membership meeting at 6 PM at a local restaurant this evening.
If the roads aren't bad today Linda might do some recreational shopping with a girlfriend who has the day off of work since it is President's Day
Last evening's surprise birthday party for a 90 year old Irish friend turned out very well. Patrick's
Pub did another superb job with food, and serving beverages for a packed party room. The Rakish Paddy band provided music for the party. Wine and beer were complimentary throughout the evening. Linda was my designated driver as the party came to an end.







For some reason, I hit a button and sent my blog before I finished composing it.

The global news had nothing that peaked my interest.

It was nice to see a twenty year old won the Daytona 500. This got me thinking how good our reflexes use to be at that age. We gain wisdom as we get older, but the brain / reaction system in our bodies definitely slows down.

I am watching a report on television right now which claims that Americans are drinking less than the nations throughout the world. The report also claims that 1/3 of our nation doesn't consume alcohol at all. Nations like Germany and Russia are among the leaders in alcohol consumption.

On that note, I will end my blog for this Monday.

Have a great week at work or play.

Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 18, 2011

Hello on Friday

Dear Friends,

Another day went as planned in Curley world.
I once again was the first one to leave the house on Thursday. I was on the ice and all set up for ice-fishing by 7:30 AM. I was the only person on the ice for a couple of hours until about 9 AM. It was a beautiful day to be out on the ice. The sun was shinning so intensely as the temperatures rose to about 50 degrees that I took off a wool sweater. I definitely didn't need long underwear, and layers of clothes. I did get a couple of flags, but no fish. I did get a pretty good sun tan.

While I was doing my thing, Linda was enjoying the solitude. She did eventually leave the house to make a grocery run, but we didn't need much since we are heading east in a few short hours.

I was able to take a nap after ice-fishing.

Linda left the house to go off to her pot luck dinner with bunch of girlfriends at 5:30 PM. I waited until 7:30 PM before headed off to Patrick's Pub. There was much fun at Linda's and my event. Rakish Paddy did an excellent job recording a CD while our table of ten or so people cheered them on.

This Saturday is the 2nd annual Seavey Pond Ice-Fishing Derby. This is not a sanctioned Derby. This is just a gathering among friends at a small pond in Windham, New Hampshire. We started this Derby last year. There was so much food, fun, and merriment last year that we decided that it should be an annual event. Todd Brodeur, Linda's godson, built a home which overlooks the pond. This home will be our home base. We won't be so lucky with warm weather for the derby. The forecast is temperatures in the low 30's with 25 to 35 mile per hour winds.

I didn't see many news worthy events as I scanned CNN and USA Today on line.
If you are a leader in the Arab nations, and if you have been in power for a lot of years, your job might be coming to an end. We Americans taught the rest of the world how to protest. Do you think that places like North Korea, and China will allow their people the right to protest? Democracy is a wonderful thing, but it does come with a price!

We are staying at Kevin and Kyla's on Friday and Saturday night, and then it is back to the Berkshires on Sunday morning. We have a Sunday night party at Patrick's Pub. Does anyone detect a party theme in the lives of Linda and me?

Well, I have to make a list of items which I need to pack for the Derby. This will be the first time that the Kia will hold my Ice-Fishing equipment. Could this be the start of a beautiful thing?

Have a great weekend.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Hello on Thursday

Dear Friends,

My day went exactly as planned on Wednesday. I arrived on the frozen lake a little later than I normally would. There was plenty of ice, but it was kind of funky. It was in layers. The bottom of the ice was a solid 7 or 8 inches of ice. The next few layers was ice formed by compacted snow from our multiple snow storms. It wasn't a firm 18 inches of solid ice which we have had for the past few years. Good thing that I packed my ice creepers because the parking lot that I normally use at the end of Narragansett Ave was a sheet of ice. I thought that I would have to walk through several inches of snow, but that wasn't the case.
I only got two flags all day long. One flag went up in the morning. The fish beat up the bait, but I didn't catch whatever was toying with the bait. The second flag went up during the middle of the afternoon just as I got a call to nature, and had my coat, and jump suit unzipped. There was some kind of small fish going around in circles and toying with the bait. I missed him too.
When I picked up my tip ups around 3:30 PM, every bait on the five tip ups had teeth marks on them. I must have been in an area which had some small fish. I was using larger bait because I really wanted to catch a big old Northern Pike.
I am going back to the lake once again as soon as daylight arrives.

Linda had a pleasant day without me being around for 5 or 6 hours. She did spend a good portion of the time on the telephone either calling friends, or receiving telephone calls from them. She had fun with her knitting group last night at Panera Bread.

Social Calendar -- My day will go from ice-fishing, taking a late afternoon nap, and heading off to Patrick's Pub to be cheering on a local band Rakish Paddy who will be recording an album during their gig this evening. I will be there around the 8 PM time frame.
Linda would normally be with me this evening, but she is booked into a potluck dinner with a bunch of girlfriends. The girlfriend who is hosting the party actually lives a few houses away from the parking lot where I will be going this morning.

Weather -- It was nice on the ice yesterday morning when the sun was out. Later on in the day the wind picked up, and the clouds rolled in, and it got chilly. I got a pretty good wind burn from being out on the ice yesterday.
It is a balmy 28 degrees right now, and we will reach 47 degrees later on today. It won't be that sunny today, but not wearing so many layers will be a real pleasure.

Sports -- I never made it through to the end of the Celtics game, but the Celtics did win the game. The fresh air that I got while ice fishing can really tire a person out especially when you are a baby boomer.
Our parents always told us to get out of the house, and go outside and play. They knew that good old fresh air was like taking a sleeping pill, but with no side effects. I am not sure if this generation can get their children off of the couch, and away from their electronic toys, and into the fresh air like I was yesterday.

A Catholic Church in a northern Berkshire town has been closed for 782 days, but the parishioners have been holding a vigil both day and night in the Church ever since it was closed. They made all kinds of appeals to the Vatican to reopen the Church. They finally got news yesterday that the Church is on the path to being reopened. Our local newspaper sort of jumped the gun, and said that the Church was going to open for sure, but it is still has to get an okay from the Bishop of our Diocese.

I see where a Pennsylvania teacher's blog got her fired from her job as a high school teacher. She said that her students were "out of control, whiners, rude, use foul language, etc., who want to negotiate grades instead of earning them." Welcome to the world of anyone who thinks teaching is an easy job with great benefits. Linda and I have had students and classes which are just like what this teacher has described. Your job as a teacher is to try and change the above mentioned attitudes which is not very easy. Sometimes even the honors' students want a good grade without putting in the time and effort.
Here we are again when a person asks Linda and me if we miss teaching. A day on the ice with me not catching a single fish is less stressful than returning to the classroom. Do you think that Linda wants to give up her 4 or 5 hour session of Mah Jongg on Tuesday's, her knitting group on Wednesday nights, etc. to return to the classroom?

Politics -- Our Republican Senator from Massachusetts, Scott Brown, said that he was abused by a step father.

Michael Vick decided not to go on the Oprah Winfrey show. He and his agent probably figured out that he could get himself in a whole bunch of trouble going back when he was arrested for the dog fighting affair, and the two years which he spent in Federal Prison in Leavenworth, Kansas.

After I arrived home from my ice fishing adventure, I took and shower and headed off to the Italian American Club to see if they needed help for another pasta fund raiser. The guy running this fund raiser, the head chef at Cranwell Resort & Spa, said that he didn't need my help. I came home and had a Chicken Novena since Linda was at Panera Bread with her knitting group.

Yes, I am up early once again because I fell asleep to early. I will make my peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and see if I can grab a couple hours of sleep before I leave for ice fishing.

Have a great Thursday.
You know that Linda and I will be having a great day for sure.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Hello on Wednesday

Dear Friends,

I should be sleeping like most normal human being are doing right now, but my aching body woke me up. Ibuprofen didn't have much effect so I decided to get up, and write my daily blog.

Linda had fun before and during her Tuesday Mah Jongg session. While she was gone, I did some bathroom cleaning which wasn't a lot of fun. My version of clean is never as good as the Queen's is. I did try and squeeze in a nap before going to work at the pasta fund raiser. I didn't do well at that either.

It was the pasta fundraiser that tuckered me out. We set up the Italian American Club for 180 people, but we served 250 + people. Some of the people had to take their pasta down in the members' bar area because the main floor was packed. We have already decided that with a crowd this large, we will have to move the fundraiser to the ITAM next year which has larger facilities, and a bigger parking lot.

It is a balmy 12 degrees right now, but our weather prognosticators have the temperature rebounding to the 39 degree mark.

This would be a great day for me to drop in a few tip ups at Pontoosuc Lake, and see if I could hook into a large Northern Pike. If I don't catch any fish, I would get a great sun tan as I commune with nature.

How about the Germans purchasing the New York Stock Exchange? How can we let another country take over an American institution?

Our clothes all have foreign labels on them. Budweiser is owned by a foreign conglomerate. Foreign countries make a lot of our tools. Construction vehicles often have Japanese names on them. Many of our cars are produced in foreign countries. Do you think that we could ever return to good old made in America products?

Everything that has been happening in Egypt is a mirror image of what our country went through when we sent the British packing in the middle of the 1700 hundreds. There always is some sort of revolution when the average worker feels used and abused by the government which is in power.

The drug problem is another scourge across America. In the USA Today newspaper, they showed a 2 million dollar high tech submarine which the drug dealers are using to get the drugs from Columbia, to Mexico, and eventually to the United States.
If more people were working, or like me volunteering, they would come home from work so exhausted that they wouldn't even think about drugs. Too many people have a lot of free time on their hands, and they dabble in drugs thinking that it will make them happy.
Our country has in part become like the Roman Empire. We have become fat and lazy, and the "barbarians" have already started to make their move.

On a happier note, I do have a totally free day. Linda doesn't have to leave the house until she heads off to Panera Bread at 6 PM to hook up with her Wednesday night knitting group. I think that there is another pasta fundraiser at the Italian American Club this evening, but I need a break. Pontoosuc Lake is calling me. I think that I might let the temperature rise a bit before going ice fishing.

Sports -- My Boston Bruins lost a third game in a row. The Celtics play this evening. I see where Peyton Manning and Michael Vick got the franchise tags put on them so that they won't leave their current teams, and sign with another team. Did you see the mug shot of former Patriot Laurence Maroney who got arrested on a gun and drug charge over the weekend?
If the NFL players association and the owners can't reach an agreement, the players could go on strike. Life without football could be a real problem for many of us in the fall.

My Sports Illustrated Swim Suit edition arrived in the mail yesterday. I concentrate on the articles in this edition.
What I really enjoy is the letters to the editor the following week from people who want to cancel their subscription because of this issue. Some people will send letters asking what the swim suit issue has to do with sports? Swimming is a sport. Let's face it, Sex cells what ever the product a company wants to market. What these young and vibrant women have to realize is that beauty gets altered a bit as we age. Just capture the moment because beauty can leave you in what seems like a heart beat. I would love to have the body that I had when I was 21 years old. I just wish that I had the wisdom that I have now in that 21 year old body.

Have a great Wednesday at work or play.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Hello on Tuesday Morning

Dear Friends,

Hope that all of you had a wonderful Valentines Day like Linda and I had. We did absolutely nothing all day long.

I was the only one who had to leave the house for a UNICO Board meeting. The supposedly short meeting ended up being one hour and twenty minutes long. Good thing that our plans were to have Chinese Food delivered to the house.

What a difference a day makes? Yesterday, we got a hint of spring as the temperatures in the Berkshires almost hit the 50 degree mark. We had some serious melting. The temperatures dropped overnight and it 10 degrees right now with the wind blowing. We might not hit 20 degrees today. Yesterday reminded me of when the sap is running. You want the sap flowing during the day, and cool nights to stop the flowing. We will rebound tomorrow with temperatures which can melt snow, but the rest of the week seems to have an up and down pattern. Yesterday might have had some people thinking that they could put away their snow blowers and shovels, but there is still a great deal of winter left.

I read the local newspaper before starting this e-mail. Pittsfield has some dumb people just like the ones I can read about in USA Today, or by reading CNN on line. A parking meter person, aspiring to be a policeman some day, just put an end to his dream. He was out the other evening a Pittsfield Bar called the Home Plate, which some of my local readers might know. He became a little feisty as the 2 AM closing time started to arrive. The bar owner had to call the police, and the guy was arrested after a brief struggle.

I see where Lady Gaga, Madonna's replacement, said that she smokes a lot of Pot while she creates her songs. I think that she smokes a lot pot all day long!

Poor Tiger Woods, it wasn't bad enough that he shot a 75 the last day of the tournament in Dubai, but he is going to be fined for spitting while playing golf. This "no spitting" is a rule in European Golf. Kick them while their down is still in effect!

Some student at Pittsfield High School started a fire in one of the bathrooms, and the school had to be emptied. I think someone wanted to go outside since the temperatures were so high. It also could be that the culprit wanted to see his girlfriend. Do Linda and I miss things like this?
I remember one of these incidents at my high school. The student at Taconic pulled the fire alarm when the temperatures were in the teens. This is another case where "Stupid people shouldn't breed!"

Talking about another blunder in the Berkshires, a person did a little tweeting while he was a juror in a sex abuse case where the defendant was defrocked priest. The Tweeter had to be removed as a juror. The messy case finally did end with the defrocked priest judged guilty of sexually assaulting to boys who are now in their 30's. The defrocked priest could get life in prison. Do you wonder why some many Churches have had to shut their doors?

I also saw in the local news where a hill town cancelled a weekend ice fishing derby for kids. The reason was too much snow as well as the ice being too thick. This situation is similar to when ski areas shut down because they claim to have too much snow?

Social Calendar -- Even though this is a normal Tuesday Mah Jong Session for Linda, today has a little twist. The husband of today's session told the Mah Jongg ladies to go directly to a restaurant which is located a quarter of a mile from the host home in Cheshire. The ladies can order whatever they want from the menu at the restaurant, and he will pick up the tab. This is like having a second Valentines Day present.

Speaking of Valentines Day, I did get the Queen a little bauble from our favorite Jewelry Store. A lot of guys like to take their wives out to dinner, but if they are like me who likes to eat, it is like a dual treat! I mentally try and do the flower routine, but the darn flowers die too soon. We were so poor growing up that purchasing food (a hunk of meat of some sort) took a higher priority than buying flowers. Like I always say, when you have been with someone for almost forty years, Valentines Day isn't just one day of the year. I couldn't live without my Valentine.

I was all set to have several hours of uninterrupted pleasure savoring a book on my kindle app on my I Pad. Not!
UNICO is preparing food (Pasta Dinner) for the Girls Club Basketball Traveling Team. I will be working the floor / buffet line making sure all of the details are taken care of. This is my specialty since I tend no to be a shy individual. My friend, and radio talk show host, said that he would announce the event today on his three hour live program. He said that he and his lovely wife might even attend the event. If anything we do in the community has anything to do with kids, or people in need, my friend does everything he can to support what is going on.

Politics -- The Republicans are already attacking the proposed cuts which President Obama has presented to Congress. I guess the Democrats would do the same thing if we had a Republican President.

Well, I have to do some quiet activities since the Queen is still in a state of slumber. Have a great Tuesday. Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Monday, February 14, 2011

Happy Valentines Day from Pittsfield

Dear Friends,

Happy Valentines Day for all my fans who receive my daily blog.

I hope that you have a wonderful day whether you have a significant other or not to share it with.

Our celebration started last night at Mario's Restaurant located just over the Massachusetts State line in Lebanon, New York. We were with the Culver's celebrating her 50 something birthday. We were seated earlier than our 6:30 PM reservation. The small place was packed including their small bar area. The Culver's live only 15 minutes away from the place, but they have never been to this restaurant. I didn't read the fine print which said the price fix meals are not available for holidays.
There was a one page special menu. Shortly after we were seated, the waitress brought us some beverages. While she was putting a basket of bread on our table, she knocked over my pint beer glass. The beer ended up going over Linda's lap, and some fell into Linda's pocket book which was on the floor. After we cleaned up the mess, and got things returned to normal, we placed our food order. We all ordered something different. I stayed away from beef, and I had a wonderful baked salmon with all the fixings. The birthday girl had a lamb shank that she really loved. She took some home because she was a little embarrassed to pick up the shank and suck the few remaining morsels of meat off of the bone. Her husband had a veal parmesan. Linda ordered Veal Oscar I think. We were all set to order Tiramisu and a special heart shaped chocolate mousse, and four spoons to share the desserts. They ran out of Tiramisu. The birthday girl almost had a heart attack because she had found out that all desserts are made at the restaurant. Since she was a former Home Economic Teacher in another life, she always asks if the desserts are homemade.
I somewhat blame the birthday girl and my wife for us missing the Tiramisu. Linda recognized another couple who our friends of all of us, and they had to go over and socialize with them. The waitress observed that they were chatting up a storm, and arrived late to take our dessert order. Oh Darn!

The husband mentioned above and I dodged another bullet on Sunday afternoon. Linda and Judie went to that 3:00 PM matinee and Barrington Stage II. When Linda came home, she said that John and I would have hated the homemade musical. John was home dealing with some snow on the ground because they hired a crew to shovel the snow off of their roof.
I was home watching the Boston Celtics win a hard fought game that came right down to the wire. My Boston Bruins weren't so lucky, and they lost their second game in a row.

Speaking of sports, Tiger faltered on the last day of the Dubai golf tournament, and came in 20th place. His demise can be compared to the Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire.

It is 42 degrees outside right now. The melting has begun. We have one cold day scheduled for Tuesday, and then we have a week of 40 degree weather.

Speaking of weather, I watched the weather channel for a few minutes when we arrived home from the restaurant. One of the weather guys was responding to a comment from a person who said that the weather people "should not mix politics with science". The person who made the comment was upset because he has been surrounded with snow, and cold weather for months, and he doesn't want to hear about Global Warming. The weather guy said that 90 % of the scientists believe that our planet is warming up no matter if we have had one of the worst winters on record. The warming of our planet can be measured. Yes, weather is cyclical as some of my readers firmly believe, but I believe that there is a connection with global warming and the weird weather events that our happening around the world.

Social Calendar -- I am the only one scheduled to leave the house today. No one wanted to switch our UNICO board meeting which starts at 6 PM. The President of our UNICO chapter said that the meeting would be a short one just in case some of the board members might have Valentine Day Plans.
We know several people whose significant others are preparing a special meal for their Valentine. This subject never came up in our house. Oh Darn!

Our local newspaper did an article on singles who are 55 years old and older. Pittsfield was voted the number one place in the country to be for that age group. One of our friends was
pictured twice in the article, and quoted several times. Like he said, he chose to be single, and to partake in the single life style. He his in his early 60's, and he directs our local senior citizen center. I would imagine that he might be getting a few telephone calls today or in the near future from some interested admirers since everyone in Berkshire County know where he works.

Well, I have to finish my morning routine, and tackle a few household projects. Have a very Happy Valentines Day, and pace yourself eating chocolate.
I still have a ways to go with respect to the savoring aspect.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Hello on Sunday

Dear Friends,

It was a quiet day for us on Saturday.
I left the house first once again to bond with the people returning bottles and cans in one of our Super Markets. I don't know why I do this because there are some Liquor Stores where you bring in the returnables in a clear bag, and just tell the clerk how many bottle and cans that you have. I usually get a beer and soda bath as I do my returns at the grocery store, but I do meet some interesting people. I had a little over $6 when I finished my task.

Linda did lunch with a girlfriend, and did a little recreational shopping. I wove in a nap during the late afternoon thinking that we might go somewhere for supper. Well, it was date night at home. Leftovers were on the menu. Linda and I watched a whole bunch of on demand policeman programs until I started to fade around 10 PM.

Politics -- I got to thinking about the crisis in Egypt. Even though their President resigned, change won't occur as fast as the people want it to happen. I am hoping a newly elected government remains an ally of the United States. Every piece of military equipment that Egypt is using has been supplied by the United States.
The rest of the world has been engaged in the usual mayhem and murder that appears to be a daily occurrence.

Weather -- It is a balmy 17 degrees right now in Pittsfield with snow flurries and possible rain mixed in for the the afternoon, and into the evening. This coming week looks like it will be the beginning of a winter time thaw.
Yesterday, we had a quick snow squall move through the Berkshires. All the dirty snow got covered up.
My friend who just retired will be enjoying 60 + degree weather in Georgia. He will be playing golf for sure today.

Social Calendar -- Linda won a couple tickets the other day by being the first caller on a radio program. The play is a Valentines Day special. I did tell Linda that I would go with her if she couldn't find a female friend to go with. As luck would have it, she found a friend. Linda and her girlfriend are going to the 3 PM Matinee at the Barrington Stage Theater. Linda's girlfriend did ask her husband if he wanted to go to the play, but he said that he had no desire to go. He was a little gun shy because the last play that they went to was a real dud. Linda and I were invited to that dud of a play, but we had more fun at the Mohegan Sun Casino.

After the play, Linda is coming home to get me. We are going out with the above mentioned couple to celebrate her girlfriend's birthday. We have 6:30 PM reservations at a restaurant which has those price fixed dinners. We tried to make reservations for 6:00 PM, but they were all booked for that hour. What an easy birthdate to remember from a husband's perspective, the day before Valentines Day.

We have another one of those weeks coming up where either one or both of us will be going out every night of the week. Even our weekend is booked in.

I see where Boston has set up a Pot Hole App for it residents. You can report a pot hole by way of using this app and the city will send out a crew to fill in the pot hole. Every city and town in the Northeast should be doing the same thing. The roads in Pittsfield not only have pot holes everywhere, but almost every manhole on our roads have become big pot holes too. I was wondering if that there was a particular art to installing man hole covers so that they won't become a hazard in the winter time.

Well, I have to read the Sunday newspapers, and decide when I will head off to Retro Fitness. I want to avoid the beautiful people. I missed the 6 AM start for today.

Have a great Sunday!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Hello on Saturday

Dear Friends,

Hope that your Friday went well. I left the house first and headed off to the nursing home to visit dear old mom. She knew that I was her son when I walked into her room. She even told her roommate that I was her son. About 15 minutes later, she asked me how that we were related. It is so sad to see your mom deteriorate mentally right in front of you.
After the visit with Mom, I headed to the family home in Lee to see how dear old dad was doing. Let me say that he is managing, but mentally he is not doing well. He keeps on telling me that he feels like a widower. I can really feel his pain.

On an upbeat note, Linda and I had a pleasant day on Friday. I was able to take an afternoon nap. For supper we ended up at the Shamrock Restaurant and Pub. They were shut down for two weeks while the owners were on a beach in Aruba. They have a time share unit in Aruba, and they have been making this two week trip for years. We dined with our friend who had cataract surgery on Thursday. She can see objects that she hasn't been able to see for years. Cataract surgery has been perfected over years, and there is no reason to hesitate to get your eyes fixed. Our friend even said that everything is brighter now since she has had the surgery. This statement indicates how bad that her eyes really were.

Politics -- I see where the Republicans are coming out with a list of cuts. They are proposing to eliminate many things that we Democrats support. They want to get rid of The Corporation of Public Broadcasting because they think that they are too liberal. They want to reduce the FDA to dangerous levels which would create a situation so that the reduced number of food inspectors won't be able to monitor the meat packing industry, etc. The Republicans don't believe in Global warming so their solution is to get rid of this agency. Public housing is another agency which they want to eliminate. Instead of tweaking an agency, eliminating abuses, etc., the Republican solution is to eliminate the particular agency. We all know of people who have taken advantage a particular social agency, but is eliminating the agency the best approach?

Social Calendar -- We aren't booked into anything today, but we usually end up doing something with another couple or two.
Sunday we have a couple items on our social calendar.

A week from today, we will be at the Eastern end of the State. We have the Second Annual Seavey Pond Ice Fishing Derby. It will be based out of Todd and Anitra's home in Windham, New Hampshire. Their new home, which Todd built, will be the first time that Linda and I have seen it. The Brodeur home overlooks the pond. Next Saturday should be a fun time.
We will be doing some grilling and chilling on the ice with Todd, some neighbors, and some friend's of the Brodeur's. We will be trying to catch bass, pickerel, and perch on this small hidden pond. Prizes will be rewarded.
Kevin said that he would try and work his schedule so that he could attend the event. He lost so many days because of the snow in the Northeast, I am not sure if he could take time off from the restaurant business. Our plan right now is to head to Kevin and Kyla's place on Friday. We haven't seen their son Max in over a month. Linda and I can't wait to give him a lot of hugs. Actually, anyone receiving this email can join us on the ice for some food, fun, and merriment.

Even though it is 6 degrees right now, we will hit the 30 degree plus range along with snow showers both today and tomorrow. A warm up is just around the corner.

Have a great weekend.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 11, 2011

Hello on Friday

Dear Friends,

It is a balmy eight degrees below zero as I begin this blog. Once we get by today, we will have several days in a row where the temperatures will hit day time high in the 30's. I am not sure what is going to happen when melting begins to occur since we have so much snow, and none of the storm drains are visible or open. Melting snow and ice on roofs are another problem.

Linda and I made it through a long day on Thursday. Linda left for her Red Hat breakfast which took place at 9:30 AM. I was listening a the Radio Auction as she was socializing. I made no purchases while she was socializing. She arrived home in time to pick me up so that we could take a friend to her cataract surgery. This takes 2.5 hours for the whole process, but the actual insertion of a new lens in a person's eye takes only a few minutes. As we were on the way home, our friend said that her vision was the best that it was since she was 5 years old. Linda and I thought that our friend should have had this procedure done several years ago. She will need a pair of Walmart reading glasses, but at least her nose won't be touching the page of what she is reading.

We had time to go home and freshen up before heading off to the science fair judging. This was a 4 to 7 PM affair for Linda, but not for me. I completed my judging by 6 PM. Linda got into teaching mode, and I had to drag her away from the judging. Each of us was assigned three student projects to evaluate. I stopped at every student project which looked interesting. Linda treated every student project like she was grading a Biology Lab report. She was writing comments on the side of the evaluation sheet, and she actually needed more paper to do so. Each of the 50 judges received a goody bag. The best two items in the bag were a beautiful pen, and a heart shaped box of chocolates. If Linda wasn't present, she would have gotten that box of chocolates as a Valentines gift from me. Every male judge who was not with their spouse was thinking alone the same lines.

Our car was parked in front of Patrick's Pub, but we didn't have the energy to even go inside after the Science Contest. We just got into to our car, and headed straight home.

As were were driving home I got to thinking how lucky we are to be close to every store, and
Pub that we like. From our house, I can go between two to five miles, and I can reach multiple grocery stores, restaurants, Pubs, Walmart, Home Depot, downtown Pittsfield, and our schools. A few miles more, and we can be at the Berkshire Mall. We are 12 miles from the Massachusetts Turnpike, and we are pretty close to the New York State Thruway. Some of our friends don't like to be so close to their neighbors, but when our children were at home playing sports, it was so convenient to be close to everything.
I guess having several acres of land, and not being close to your neighbors has it's advantages.
The only negative is that as we get older, I would have no desire to maintain the property like I did when I was younger. Also, I like the idea that when you invite the neighbors over for a party, cookout, etc., they can walk to your house.

I was watching an article on the Today's Show about hockey rinks. This article peeked my interest because our son Kevin played youth hockey, and four years of High School hockey. The article focused on students who were getting sick at these local rinks. The Hockey Players were getting sick because of Carbon Monoxide. The Carbon Monoxide was coming from the Zamboni machine which prepares the ice for hockey, figure skating clubs, and public skating. They brought in an engineer with all these air quality testing devices. After one Zamboni cleaning of a particular rink, and the use of a gasoline powered edging device, the carbon monoxide levels were so bad that they had to clear the rink. Many of these non professional rinks throughout the nation have little or no ventilation. The long term breathing of carbon monoxide, whether you get sick or not, can have effects on your body.

Politics -- I was amazed about how wonderful people thought that President Reagan, as they celebrated what would have been his 100th birthday, was during his terms as President. He was good at making you feel good, but I wasn't fond of his "Trickle Down" economics theory. We teacher retirees in Massachusetts are still reeling from decision that collecting a State pension and social security benefits classified us as double dippers. Many of us teachers chose to work second jobs so that we could partake in social security benefits as well as our pensions. President Reagan put and end to that dream. During his last term as President, they hid the fact that President Reagan was experiencing the beginnings of Alzheimer's disease.

Linda is leaving the house first today. I had her body maintenance procedure booked in on the incorrect day. It takes place today at 10:30 AM. Linda will come home in time to accompany me to a 1:30 PM doctor's appointment. When I see a doctor, I need her with me so that I don't forget what the doctor tells me. She always likes to ask questions that I would never think of.

Well, this is the start of an unusually light weekend for the Curley's. For the rest of February, and most of March, we don't have a single weekend free. Have a great weekend!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Hello on Thursday

Dear Friends,

I went with Linda to her doctor's appointment, and I never left the house after that. Linda did go off to socialize with her knitting group on Wednesday night.

While I was sitting in the main lobby of the medical arts complex waiting for Linda to get some blood drawn, I plopped myself down in a chair and just people watched. There was a guy sitting next to me that proceeded to tell me his life's story. I don't know what it is, but total strangers have an urge to strike up conversations with me even when I don't initiate the conversation. I found out that this guy and his wife live about 20 minutes from Pittsfield in a place called Williamstown. While driving his wife to the hospital, his muffler fell off of his car, and he lost the heat in the car. The guy has beaten throat cancer, and has been cancer free for 28 days. He has had three back operations, and he is on disability. He was forced to retire as a mechanic when he was 58 years old. He is now 70 years old. Since his disability insurance wasn't much, he worked at a C B radio repair shop in New Hampshire off of Route 495. While working at this business, his income was under the table. He lived in New Hampshire during the week, and came home on weekends. Sometimes I feel like a priest (or a psychiatrist) because it seems like people want to confess their sins to me or they are seeking psychological help. Do I really project that image?

We have a busy day on tap for today. Linda leaves the house first with a morning body maintenance procedure. We then are taking a friend to a doctor so that she can have cataract surgery on her second eye. Her appointment is in a neighboring town about 20 minutes from her house. She has to be there at 12:30 PM. Linda and I will do lunch while she is being worked on.
After we drop the lady back to her home, we have to freshen up because we are off to judge a high school science fair at 4 PM. The science fair will take place at the Berkshire Museum which is about 150 paces from Patrick's Pub. We might stop at the Pub after the science fair. It doesn't appear that I will be able to squeeze in an afternoon nap on this day.

We have another day of very little snow melting. We will hit a high of 20 degrees, but then the temperatures will hover around zero tonight. We don't have any major snow events in the forecast for the next several days.

Valentines Day - Well the big day is coming up on Monday. The Chocolate stores, the Jewelry stores, the Restaurants, and the Floral Shops, Spa places, etc. are gearing up for the big day. Valentines day is a lot like Christmas. Why can't that warm and fuzzy feeling that you get by being with loved ones be a year long event? I appreciate my spouse every day of the year. I don't need a special day to remind me of that. If you don't have a friend to share the day with, give yourself a treat.
Linda keeps a hidden stash of chocolate away from me because I just can resist having more than a couple of pieces. She had a couple bowls of Chocolate put out for the Super Bowl party. She went in my man cave and removed them the day after the party. She knew that I would gobble them up instead of savoring them like she does.

While Linda was at Panera Bread last evening, I watched a very exciting Boston Bruins Hockey game. The Bruins finally beat their arch rivals, the Montreal Canadians. It took them 8 goals to win the game, and it was non stop action as soon as the puck was dropped at 7 PM. This rivalry can be compared the the Red Sox versus Yankee one. Speaking of the Red Sox, they loaded up the truck with baseball gear , and headed to their preseason home in Fort Myers, Florida. My cousin and his wife live in Fort Meyers. Maybe Linda and I should stay with them for a few days, and catch some Red Sox games.

I see where a married Republican politician from New York State got himself in trouble using the Internet. He posted a picture of himself on Craigslist, and said that he was divorced, and looking for a new woman in his life. His stupidity cost him his career, and will probably destroy his marriage. Are the brains of some men located in a different part of their body?

Speaking of men, I think that I threw out the Swim Suit edition of Sports Illustrated in my rush to put my paper recycle materials out with the trash yesterday.

Well, I hope that all of my readers have a great Thursday.
You know what Linda and I will be doing.
Talk to you soon.
The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Hello on Wednesday

Dear Friends,

Hope that your Tuesday went well because ours went exactly as planned.

I did my usual snow blowing after the Queen woke up. When that task was accomplished, I helped Linda set up for her Tuesday Mah Jongg session. I left as three ladies joined Linda for a bring your own food for Lunch / Mah Jongg began. Three of the regulars were unable to play. One lady is recovering from surgery, one had a cold, and the third person tries to find warmer climates in which to spend the winter. Being into the 50's is better than then nine degrees which it is right now in Pittsfield. Linda and I both agreed that we would be in places closer to the equator so that there would be in no danger of being coolish.

The hour long radio program went very well.
On the way home, I stopped at the Italian American Club because they were having another pasta fundraiser, and I asked the person in charge if my services were required. I told the person that I had an Irish Sister City Meeting that I could not miss. He said that he had enough workers. This fundraiser was for the Pittsfield High School Cheerleaders who will be going to a National Competition.

I had time to take an afternoon nap which I really needed since I was up so early.

At 5:30 PM we headed off to the Library for our Irish Sister City meeting. This meeting lasted for one hour and 20 minutes. After this action packed meeting, several of us went off to Patrick's Pub for some food, fun, and merriment. Linda and I lasted until about 10 PM. I went directly to bed and tried to read a book which I just started. You all know that I wasn't too successful in that endeavor.

One of my friends went off and purchased 40 incandescent light bulbs after he read my observation comments in Tuesday's email.

Observation - While doing the radio program with my UNICO president, I always ask him how his electrical business is going because times were tough when the housing and construction business took a nose dive. He said that his electrical business has changed during the last few weeks into a snow removal business. He and his crew started off doing the snow removal for a friend's home. Some neighbors on the street saw them doing snow removal, and asked them to do their roof. All of a sudden, the snow removal snowballed into a whole new business. My friend has a cherry picker too. My friend did say that this snow removal takes a lot of work to do. His crew also removes the ice from the gutters which requires a good deal of ice chopping. Linda said that she read about a poor man's version of removing snow from roofs. There is a special salt designed for roofs. You put the salt in pantyhose, and toss them up on your roof. I am trying to visualize what this will look like as Mother Nature goes from Winter to Spring.

I am debating whether to accompany Linda to a doctor's appointment. She has a 9:00 AM appointment, but they want her to arrive early to fill out paperwork.

If the hospital has wi-fi access, I will go. I have to do the minutes for the Sister Meeting last evening. This will take some time to do since the meeting went for over an hour.

Have a great Wednesday.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Hello on Tuesday

Dear Friends,


It is a winter wonder land outside right now. All the dirty snow has been covered up by the light snow fall. If I could get Linda outside before the front moves out and the winds start up, she would get some great pictures for sure.



Even though the Super Bowl is over, I still can't get the Patriots out of my mind. They had the Coach of the Year, and the Best Quarterback of the Year, but the team couldn't make it to the Super Bowl. I hope that this situation gives the team motivation next year to go all the way.


I was supposed to be the only one who left the house on Tuesday. I went to the Tax Preparation guy at 10 AM, bought some salt for our iced up driveway and sidewalks, spread the Eco friendly salt, cleaned up my man cave, and started to read a book that I had read before.
Linda was in her sweats just relaxing as planned until she received a 4 PM email reminding her of a gathering at Panera bread at 5:45 PM. This gathering was just for a few close girl friends, and not her Wednesday night knitting group.


Today Linda is hosting Mah Jongg. It was cancelled last week due to weather. The snow, which started around 11:00 PM last night, shouldn't be bad enough to cancel today's game. Time will tell if today's session is still a go or not.


I am on a local radio (1340 on your AM dial) today at noontime. The UNICO president and I will be discussing upcoming Italian events.


Whether or not Mah Jongg is played, Linda and I will be attending a 6 PM meeting of the Pittsfield Irish Sister Committee. Our meetings are held in the Conference Room of the Pittsfield Public Library.


I see where the British Royal couple is leaning toward Sicily as their honeymoon destination. Everyone seems to like what Italians have to offer.


Observation -- I was wondering whether my readers are aware that the incandescent light bulb is just about ready to be phased out of our lives. Some people are starting to hoard them, which I am tempted to do. California has already banned them. We have a few fluorescent lights scatter throughout the house, but every 3 way bulb in our house is a 50-100-150 watt incandescent bulb. The Curley's like their house well lit. Some of those energy saving bulbs just don't give us enough light. When we visit some friends and relatives, they function with almost no light at all. As they get a little older, and their vision starts to deteriorate, they will wish that they had incandescent lights.
Sometimes when we are visiting these homes, we feel like we need to bring night vision goggles. A few of these homes have light fixtures that can handle a three way bulb, but the owners put in the 60 watt size. Did you ever try and read in bed with a 60 watt bulb?


Well, I have to do some very quiet activities at this very early hour. I think that I will need a morning nap to get me through the rest of the day's activities.


Have a great Tuesday!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Monday, February 7, 2011

Hello on Monday Morning

Dear Friends,

Hope that your Super Bowl Sunday went as well as ours did. There was much food, fun, and merriment at our party.
A person who knows nothing about football, and who could care less about the game, won our modest football pool. Linda called her last night after the game was over, and told the West Stockbridge resident that she won the $34 pool.

The winner of the pool got me thinking about people whom could care less about the sport. Our local Sunday newspaper had an article about the Packer and Steeler fans in Berkshire County. There was also an article of people who have no interest in the Super Bowl, and what they were going to be doing on this big day. One person, who happens to be the Cultural Director for
Pittsfield, said that she was going to a less crowded movie. Do you think if I invited her to the Curley Party next year that she would attend? There were several people at our party who don't enjoy football, but do like getting invited to a party no matter what the theme is. If you invite Linda and I to a party, we would do our best show up, and party with the hosts and other guests.

Have the words of the Star Spangled Banner changed just for the Super Bowl?

How about the 1200 people who had ticket issues for the Super Bowl?

We were pleased that most of the people who were invited to our party did show up. We were also pleased that people who couldn't make the party notified us.
We were also happy that the food which people brought to the party had very few duplications. My asking people to bring a pot luck dish without telling Linda and I what they were bringing worked out very well.
Our pulled pork didn't work out to be a big hit. Linda is trying to figure out what to do with the leftover pulled pork. There must be some kind of soup or casserole dish that she can whip up.

The last few guests, who stayed until the game was over, helped us clean up which saved Linda and I a great deal of work. I have to empty the garbage, take care of bottle and cans, and do a little vacuuming to get my Man Cave back to normal.

I am the only one leaving the house today. Linda wants to relax, and try and rejuvenate her tired body. I have a 10 AM appointment with our Tax Preparation guy. I hope that when the numbers are crunched, we at least break even. Writing out a check to the IRS is so painful.

Linda and I are so happy that we stayed home on Saturday night. A friend of a friend came out of a restaurant, and fell and broke her hip. Her friends took her to the hospital which was about three miles from the emergency room of Berkshire Medical Center. They operated on the woman, and her hip was pinned back together. The woman is in her middle 50's.
Some other friends attended a Mass that we were supposed to attend. After Mass was over, the parking lots and sidewalks were coated with ice. One friend spent a good portion of time getting people to their cars. At one point, he and his lady friend took car mats out of his truck so people could walk on them.

We have some nuisance snow coming tonight right into the morning commute. Right now our weather guys are predicting 3 to 6 inches of light snow. The weather channel says we are getting less snow.

We still have ice on our roads and sidewalks. I was so nervous for our guests trying to manage our icy driveway and sidewalks. I put down salt twice on Sunday with no appreciable effect.
Our next door neighbor fell carrying a party pizza while on the path from his house to our house. The pizza never hit the ground according to our neighbor. I was really nervous for one of our guests who is a disabled Vietnam Vet who walks with a cane.
I am going out this morning to get the newspaper with those ice grippers attached to my footwear for a second day in a row. All of us would rather have snow than ice.

Our friend who just retired played golf with his son in Atlanta yesterday. He said that the temperatures reached into the 60's while playing golf, and he said that he was sweating while playing golf. The only time that I have been sweating is while at the gym, or shoveling snow, chopping ice, using a roof rake, etc.

I can't wait to see how our son's party worked out. I think that I am going to do several racks of ribs next year, but I have to get Kevin's dry rib recipe if he would share it with his dear old dad.

The commercials during the Super Bowl were fun to watch. Some were great, and others were real duds. It is difficult to imagine that these companies hire advertising agencies big bucks to create these commercials. If the commercials are a real dud, like several of them were, the companies should get a refund.

Well, I have to venture outside and get the local newspaper.
Have a great week at work or play.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Hello on Super Bowl Sunday

Dear Friends,

Hope that your Saturday went well. Ours didn't go as planned because of the weather. The rain, and freezing rain caused a slippery mess so we didn't go out after I did a few errands. I knew that we were in trouble weather wise because the front steps, the sidewalks leading to the driveway, and the driveway itself were solid sheets of ice as I gave up trying to go to the mailbox at the bottom of our driveway.
I see that the driveway right now has a coating on snow on it, but the snow is just hiding the ice. I will put some ice gripers on my footwear when I retrieve the Sunday newspapers from the driveway.

We had some leftover beef stew for supper to help us get through the long day of being housebound. We were supposed to go to a neighboring town for a fund raiser, but we decided that the roads were too treacherous. A girlfriend of Linda's happened to be out on the roads when the freezing rain was coating our roads. She followed a City truck home which was spreading salt and sand. I am guessing that there might have been a few fender benders on Saturday.

Well, today is Super Bowl Sunday. I was going to watch the game alone, but I changed my mind a day ago. I decided that I couldn't make it through the game alone even if I stop watching the game after half time. Linda said that it was okay to invite a few friends to keep me company.

I must have passed on the Party gene to my son in Tewksbury. He is having a party at his house. He showed a picture of three full racks of ribs which have been dry rubbed that he will be cooking for his guests. He has already gotten some positive comments from his Facebook friends. One friend said that he was " putting on the feedbag" in anticipation of diving into those ribs. When you are invited to a party, and the family is in the restaurant business, you really have something to look forward too.
Linda and I would be heading east to Kevin and Kyla's party in a heartbeat if we didn't have such a busy week coming up.

We are supposed to be above freezing when our guests arrive for the game, but we will be heading into the teens toward the end of the game.
The strange weather has really put a damper on the Super Bowl which is being held in Texas. They have been experiencing snowy and icing conditions all week long. The restaurants have been taking a hit since the fans weren't able to make it to all the week long festivities. Snow and Ice falling off the dome of the stadium has injured people. Travel has been a nightmare. Even though the fans will be watching the game in a domed stadium, snow, ice, and freezing rain will be greeting those fans when the game is over. Just think that in a few years the game will be played in an open stadium where the Jets and Giants play their home games.
After the not so good things which are happening in Dallas, the NFL might want to consider having all games in places like Miami, Florida. Even if it is cold in Miami, it will still be a heat wave for people who have to deal with snow and ice all winter long.

I would like to see the Packers win because I don't like the quarter back of the Steelers because I think that he really did assault that girl. Even though he wasn't convicted of the crime, the NFL wouldn't have suspended him for the first four games of the regular season if he was totally blameless.

Observation -- I experienced one of those days yesterday which makes me appreciate what Linda goes through when she goes off to do a few errands. I needed two items at a grocery store which was having a sale on the meat. I also was looking for some particular heavy duty plastic glassware which I have purchased in this store before. I head directly to the meat section of the grocery store, and the cut of meat which was supposed to arrive on Saturday wasn't there. I get a raincheck. I go to the party and paper product isle, and the plastic glasses which I wanted were not there.
I go off to a second grocery store, and the meat that I was looking for looked awful. I left the store empty-handed. I forgot to go down the isle that has the plastic glasses which I wanted.
I drive to a third grocery store, but couldn't find a parking place so I went to a fourth grocery store. I did find the meat that I was looking for. A butcher friend at this grocery store sees me pawing over the meat and asks me what I was looking for. He said that he would find one in the back for me. He cuts a large one in half, packages it up, and give me a 10 cents per pound discount.
Linda calls just as my friend brings out the meat specially prepared for me. While I was traveling all over Pittsfield, she got on the telephone and called the parent grocery store of the first one which I went to. This fifth grocery store set aside two monster pieces of meat at the sale price of $1 per pound. Linda tells me to just put back the meat that my butcher friend just got through preparing for me. I could't return the meat. The guilt was overwhelming, and I got in line, and purchased the meat at this store.
I forgot about the plastic glasses again.
I get in my car just as the roads are getting slippery, and head to the fifth grocery store to pick up the meat which they have waiting for me. I did remember that I was supposed to get plastic glasses, but this store was out of them too. On the way home, I stop at a wholesale warehouse store which I know have the plastic glasses which I am looking for. I finally arrive home with the two items which I went off to get.
In summary, I had to go to 6 stores to get two items. I can't imagine Linda going shopping with her coupons along with a mile long grocery list. I really, really appreciate what Linda does for me.

One of the pieces of meat has been in the crock pot all night long. When it is done and semi cooled, I will strip the meat, and use it for pulled pork sliders for the Super Bowl Party. I am hoping that the pulled pork sliders will be a big hit for the party.

Well, I have to do some quiet activities, skim the Sunday newspapers, and do some gathering of tax stuff. I have a date with the Tax Man at 10 AM on Monday morning.

Have a great day on this Super Bowl Sunday.
The highlight of most Super Bowls are the commercials, and not even the game.
I can't wait for the game to start. If our guests arrive around the scheduled starting time of the party, we will have 2.5 hours to socialize before the kickoff.

Talk to you soon.
The Curley Lad

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Hello on Saturday

Dear Friends,


Our Friday went okay with a few bumps along the way.
We had mentally planned to do errands, attend a wake, go to a Mayoral reception at our City Hall, and attend a welcome dinner at the ITAM Lodge for our Italian Sister City Guests.


I received a cell phone call that the flight from Washington, D.C. To Logan airport was delayed. I was not part of the pick up of our Italian Sister City guests, but I was pressed into action. I was asked to drive to Westfield, about a 40 minute drive from Pittsfield, and pick up our guests.
The driver of the original pick up' who lives in Westfield, had planned a family trip to the Boston Celtic Game. The Curley Lad dropped off Linda and a carload of groceries home, and I headed East on the Mass Pike.
I did get our guests to the Mayoral reception, helped them check into their hotel, and got them to the reception / Welcome buffet dinner at the ITAM.
Linda had to take my car to the Wake, which I missed, and drive herself to the Welcome dinner.
We did sit together at the ITAM.
Linda left for home first. I followed shortly after I found out someone else was dropping off our guests at the hotel.


We are not involved with our Italian guests today except for attending a four PM Mass at St. Mark's.


We are supposed to go out tonight with another couple or two at a Tavern in Lenox. We have another wintry mix heading our way today. If it is icy this evening, we are staying home.
Our guests also asked to be driven to Boston toward the end of the day because they have a 9:00 AM flight back to Italy on Sunday morning. They were nervous about the wintry mix which we will be getting today.


I am leaving the house before Linda gets up today. We went to two grocery stores before the change in plans happened. We went to this one store for some pork, which was on sale, that we use for making pulled pork sandwiches. The meet manager was new, and he under ordered this particular cut of pork. He told us that a new supply was coming in today.


Well, I have to do some quiet chores, and do my first errand of the day.
Have great weekend.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Friday, February 4, 2011

Hello on Friday

Dear Friends,


This week really flew by. I can't believe that it is Friday already.


I decided to use the roof rake yesterday, and remove some of the snow from the garage roof. I only did one side of the roof, and I will tackle the other side soon.


Linda and I did go off and do couple of errands on Thursday. We took the paperwork saying that we are alive and well to get notarized so that our pension checks will keep on coming once a month.


Linda had fun at her Red Hat gathering at Zucco's restaurant last evening. I too had fun at Patrick's Pub last evening listening to the Jazz Ambassadors playing their music from 6:30 PM until 9:30 PM. I left a table of friends a little after 11 PM.


I walked into Patrick's a little after 6 PM. The place was packed including the room which we had the party in for our friend who just retired. If there is a recession, it sure didn't look like it in this place.


When I first arrived at Patrick's, I sat at the bar. I sat next to one of my former students from the 70's. He is currently a contractor who has made it to the big time. He has had a couple of girlfriends, but never got married. He is 57 years old, and enjoying life to the fullest.


Another couple walked in and sat next to us. The husband had Linda as his Biology Teacher before Linda and I became a couple. He said that he didn't remember much Biology. What he did remember was one of those big jars of frogs in formaldehyde (a chemical which they stopped using). No one in his class wanted to stick their hands in this jar to take out some frogs for the dissection class. This student told me that he didn't hesitate to stick his hands in that jar, and grab a frog for each student in the class.
This former student of both Linda and I owns a rental business which includes tent rentals for outdoor parties. He is another success story.


I don't have to drive to Logan Airport today to pick up our three Italian guests from our Sister City in Italy. Another friend and his son will be doing the pick up.
I was all set to stop a my son's restaurant, and feed our guests or at least pick up some sandwiches for the 2.5 hour ride home.


My services might be required after the Mayoral reception in Pittsfield. Our guests might need transportation to the hotel as well as to the Welcome Dinner at the ITAM is evening. Linda and I also have to squeeze in a wake for the father of a friend who used to live next door to us. His father was over 100 years old. I do remember one time when my friend's parents drove into our driveway by mistake since the color of our houses are quite similar. His mom died a few years ago. The local newspaper did an article about them on their 75th wedding anniversary. Do you think that my friend has those longevity genes too?


Weather -- We have another nuisance storm heading our way on Saturday. Another wintry mix including a 2 to 4 inch snow fall. My snow blower needs a little time off, but Mother Nature doesn't seem to let it happen.


We are booked in for both Saturday and Sunday.
We have another busy week coming up next week including judging a High School Science Fair at our Berkshire Museum.
One of these days we will learn the "No" word, but I don't think that it will happen soon.
Linda likes it when we are stuck in the house when a winter storm is coming because all commitments usually get cancelled.


My friend who just retired left for Georgia(driving his car) at 3 AM on Thursday morning. He is probably in Georgia right now. The only problem is that he is not going into warm weather. He will be heading into the storm which will reach us on Saturday. He might be dealing with freezing rain and cool temperatures right now. He also had to take off his studded snow tires which are illegal in most southern States. His wife is still here in the Berkshires. She will be retiring soon, and she will fly to Atlanta to be with him. Luckily they have a nice neighbor who will take care of snow removal while they are in Georgia.


Have a great weekend!
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Hello on Thursday

Dear Friends,

Hope that your Ground Hogs Day went as well as ours did.
My only outdoor adventure was to do a little snow blowing, and go to our mailbox, located at the end of our driveway, and get the mail.
By the time the storm reached the Berkshires, it had lost it's punch.
I just looked out the front door, and saw that we picked up an inch of snow last night, but the city plows created another mountain of snow at the end of the driveway.
Our plow guy doesn't do our driveway unless the snow fall is 3 inches or more. This means that I will have to fire up the snow blower for a third consecutive day.

My friend who just retired the other day has had enough of this endless snow. He is driving to Georgia today.
He is heading into a weekend of not so nice weather in the region where his son lives, and where our friend has a second home. He can't rethink his plans because he is on the road already.

Our neighbors did come over for some of that Crock Pot Beef Stew. We almost talked them into using our spare bedrooms. Their hard wood floor in the kitchen was being resurfaced, and the odor from the varnish has permeated their house. They didn't take us up on our offer. Oh Darn!

Sports - I see where the Boston / New England sports teams haters have another thing to make themselves more upset with. Besides Tom Brady winning Quarterback of the Year, we have to add Bill Belichik as Coach of the Year. I am stilling reeling from the fact that the Patriots didn't even make it to the Super Bowl.
Speaking of the Super Bowl, the media event and the party tents outside the Stadium are doing so in cold and icy weather. It will be in the lower 60's by Super Bowl Sunday.
Yesterday we received some more grocery fliers in the local newspaper. Of course the fliers are all aimed at people having Super Bowl parties. I was feeling sad that I wasn't having a party at our house this year. Do you think that I made a mistake by canceling our Annual Super Bowl Party? I almost felt like changing my mind even though the Super Bowl is couple of days away.




Weather -- It will be cold and sunny today, but another winter event is heading this way for Saturday. Boston might be a little more wet than us in the Berkshires.
A roof collapse at the eastern of the State made National News yesterday. The Roof Collapse did so on some small airplanes, and one helicopter. A flat roof, which is cheaper to build, just couldn't handle the unusual amount of snow which we have had this year.
It is a balmy 13 degrees as I compose this e-mail. We will reach the 20 degree mark for the high of the day.

Social Calendar -- We have to do a couple of errands today, one of which, is to verify at we are alive so that the Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System will keep sending our Pension Checks.
We are socially engaged is evening, but we are going in different directions. Linda has a Red Hat event at a local restaurant, and I am going to Patrick's Pub to listen to a local band who is trying to pick up a few donations to help defray the cost of a trip to Istanbul Turkey. Our Irish Sister City friend and Band Leader believes that world peace can be achieved through music instead of constant conflicts and bloodshed. If you knew this former student of mine, you would know that he is truly sincere.

World News -- Egypt is still in turmoil. The President of this Country formed a group of protesters who support him. This means that we have people from the same country fighting each other. I still think that the current President should find a way to gracefully resign from his position, and have his people vote for a new President.

I have noticed that when there is a weather event people are committing less crimes. Chicago got the worst of the latest storm, and yet it was the calmest as far as crimes went for a day or so. How could the drug dealers and the people selling their bodies even stand on any street corners with the wind blowing as hard as it was in Chicago over the past few days?

Well I have to finish my morning routine.
Have a great Thursday.
Linda and I will be having one for sure.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Hello on Wednesday

Dear Friends,


Happy Ground Hogs Day!
I hope that the ground hog remains in hibernation because his hole in the ground has to be buried in snow.
Some of the creatures are starting to build snow forts to protect themselves from the elements.
For the past few nights there have been rabbit footprints on the top of the front steps. Even my furry friends are looking for a warm place to stay.


This day has particular significance for Linda and I. This is the day so many years ago that I mentioned to Linda that we would either go ice-fishing or pick out an engagement ring depending on the weather. It was kind of dumb / immature for me to even think that ice-fishing would be what we were doing on that day. Actually I do remember that it was very cold on that day. I guess that I told my two sons that story so many times that my sons never made it a choice between a sport or searching for an engagement ring.
Here we are almost 40 years later, and we are still happily married.


The snow after round one yesterday was about 6 inches deep. I went out to do my usual sidewalks, and paths to the bird feeders at the same time that my plow guy arrived to do driveway.
Round two started around midnight but I don't think that we are getting as much snow as they predicted. I do see a huge pile of snow at the bottom of our driveway caused when the city plows went down the street.
I hope there is no changeover to sleet or freezing rain, but we are right on the snow / sleet line.
I might have to use the snow rake on the garage today.
Pittsfield has already made the decision tom close the schools. I am guessing that the rest of the County will most likely follow suit.


Kevin was home with Max on Tuesday which is Kevin's usual day off. He hadn't figured how he was going to get the snow off of his driveway as of yesterday.
His restaurant continues to take a hit because of the never ending snow. I am watching a Boston news channel right now. It appears Boston will get more ice along with their snow. Logan Airport has pretty much shut down.
I am guessing that Max's daycare will shut down since most the schools in the area are closed.
If Linda and I lived closer to Kevin and Kyla, we could be helping out with childcare in these emergency situations.


The Boston Channel just showed a video of a contractor whose company dumped forty truck loads of snow into the Merrimack River this past weekend. This company is in big trouble with the EPA. There just aren't any places to dump the snow.


We might be shoveling more snow this weekend even though it won't be a great amount. The joy is never ending for all of us in the Northeast.


We had some friends who were doing one of those four day getaways (leave their elementary school children to the baby sitters) to some warmer climates. Their flight got cancelled, and the travel agent was trying to get them out as soon as possible. They never called their airlines like Linda and I did to see if they could get out before the storm hit. This situation is another example of why flying during the wintertime in the Northeast is not a good proposition.
I did hear a radio report from a travel agent who said that his business was booming. The people who are tired of dealing with snow are calling up in record numbers, and asking the travel agents to find them warm places to go. The agent said that cost wasn't even a factor for many of these people.


Speaking of money, the Stock Market rose above the 12000 mark. Somebody has to be making money even if it is not you and me.


The Egyptian President said that he isn't going to run for office when his term is over. His people want him to resign right now. The United States does a good job helping (spending American Dollars) to get these people elected to office because they support Democratic ideals. The United States needs a little work with respect making sure that these leaders don't stay in office too long or otherwise the people will revolt.


I missed the Boston Bruins and the Boston Celtics contests last evening because I was savoring a book. Both teams won their respective contests.
Tom Brady was named Quarterback of the Year even though he didn't take his team to the Super Bowl.


Linda's Mah Jong Ladies started calling before 9 AM on Tuesday. Nobody wanted to drive on the snow covered roads.


The Crock Pot Chicken Soup turned out spectacular. We ate it for lunch and supper.
Before we went to bed last night, we set up some Beef Stew in the Crock Pot. Our next door neighbors might be joining us for supper.


A friend sent us an email from Florida. He was taking a walk in 80 degree weather. During the past year, they sold their house in New Jersey (including their snow blower), and moved to Florida. I told him that Linda and I love the Four Seasons, and we were enjoying the snow event.


Well, I have to put on some boots and get the local newspaper off of the driveway.
Have a great Wednesday.
Talk to you soon. The Curley Lad