Seditive

That Petersen screwup really got me riled up. I think I'll have to pour a Lagavulin to calm down.

Lucky Sperm Club

Apparently, Rep. Doug Petersen from Marblehead told a group of Swampscott voters that Lynn needed good schools so that the Lynn kids could work for the "Captains of Industry" growing up in Swampscott. All these insults from a Marblehead guy.
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Now he'd doing the usual retractions... saying Lynn kids are also Captains of Industry, etc., etc.
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“There’s not a bone in my body that doesn’t think the world of Lynn public schools,” Rep. Doug Petersen (D-Marblehead) told the Herald. “There’s not a bone in my body that doesn’t think that Lynn kids won’t be captains of industry.”
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Now he's a liar as well as an elitist. Hey Dip Shit... Just shut up!!!
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As a Lynn guy who has lived in Marblehead for the last 22 years, I'm feeling that Petersen has struck some nerves, and entered a psychological place that he can never return from. He dropped his guard and let his class bigotry come to the surface.
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Coming from Marblehead, he obviously doesn't have a clue what it feels like to live in Lynn and travel through Swampscott to Marblehead, with the subtle slights and unspoken innuendos that you sense. Call it class consciousness, elitism, or whatever.... Petersen embodied the type of response that Lynn people are all too familiar with.
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Now he's getting all phoney about it.
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In the words of Bush the Elder, Marblehead is a "kinder and gentler place". I love it here, and feel blessed to have been able to bring up my kids in this Town. But I'm a Lynn guy, a graduate of Lynn English High School, a product of a lower economic stratum, who was born from hard working parents. No shame in that. No need for a low life, lucky sperm club graduate to rub my nose in it.
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Petersen can kiss my ass.

Choo Choo

The Train is leaving the station. There is so much on my plate, that even I could be intimidated. Good thing it isn't fishing season!!
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Sundance informal move is in place. Joanne and Amy Mann want me to help them. But Ryan and Countney are using my truck to move stuff into their new house this morning.
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Tyler Gill need details on our scheme to make Maddie a multi-million dollar, Paris Hilton type heiress.
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Mike Rockett is planning a road trip to look at a deal in Maine for the end of next week. Gulp!
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Tons of Nanepashemet Telecom prep work is sitting there.
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My basement tile job has been started and is screaming for attention.
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Taxes still not complete. About 8 hrs of Sundance corporate is required before that task gets a check.
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The garage has so much shit in it and needs a major reorg.
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I have to send the Nanepashemet Boatbuilding book proposal to a New York book agent who seems to have a bit of an attitude.
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.... and the Herreshoff Columbia Yacht Tender still isn't finished!!!!
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See what I mean? If I wasn't such a mountain of a man, endowed with an iron trap mind and steely determination, even I could be prone to falter. It will never happen.

LATE POTW

Yesterday was a mixed result.
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Elevator was delivered but installation is not complete...
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Couldn't get the occupancy permit because Verizon missed the schedule and didn't install the fire alarm line.
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Lunch in NH at a Mexican Restaurant was really painful.
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On the other hand, my blood pressure is fine again, a new Madison Ave. book publisher has shown interest, and our latest Nanepashemet telecom venture shows real legs.

A day of ups and downs.
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So the Peep of the Week Selection is a day late. What's the problem??? Deal with it.

ANNOUNCING
Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week 13 for 2007
Vin Burnham
Sarah Crawford
Dr. Louis Casale
Tom McMahon
Mark Vona
Paul Lynch

Let's try to end the week on an up note. Change your attitude.

POTW Day Again

Man... These Thursdays come at you fast, don't they?
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By the end of the day, Sundance will have an elevator attached... I will have had my humiliating checkup with Dr. Casale.... DiMatteo and I will have met at lunch in NH with a smart currently unnamed party... and we will have a yea or nay decision from the Marblehead Building Department about the temporary occupancy permit.
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All of this and more will happen before the solemn duty of Peep of the Week Selections is undertaken this evening.
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A lesser man would buckle under the strain.

Bring It On.

More adventures at the Marblehead Building Department.
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The ruse of observing state law and protecting the Town is getting old.
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I will get our permit for Sundance Pre-School, no matter how much it ultimately costs, and we will eventually find out which interest has been served.
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Good service by Sundance Pre-School over the years will generate the type of political support that will make all the present "public interest" actions petty by comparison. Every dog has his day.

Hotel in Salem

I've been consulting lately for the Salem Waterfront Hotel, which is ironic, because the thing I hated most about my jobs at General Dynamics and Darwin was traveling and staying in hotels.
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But the Salem Waterfront Hotel is a diamond in the rough. A great location, and beautifully appointed rooms. Mike Rockett has emerged as a brilliantly creative manager and I'm very impressed with his ideas for this great facility.
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My consulting role has been to be a catalyst to make his ideas happen.
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If I have a general Nanepashemet Peeps hoedown.... it will be at the Salem Waterfront Hotel.

Whoa

I'm tired like it was Friday.... And it's only Tues.
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I wonder what I'll feel like on Friday!!
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Working at home is tough. There is no let up. No coffee breaks. You are always on. I am an asshole boss to myself.

Hope and Humiliation

We're making a big push to get a temporary certificate of occupancy for the Sundance Pre-School from the Marblehead Building Dept. The problem is that the elevator will not be approved by the Mass Dept of Public Safety by the end of the week. Everything else is completely done though.
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It will be a crazy week, but will be a great birthday present for Joanne if we can pull it off.
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Amazingly, no takers yet for my "Trailer Assembly Raising".
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Peeps... I give and I give and I give.
I've never asked for anything from you.
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Now my simple request is for you to help me put this freaking trailer together while swilling beer and eating burgers.
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How can you ignore this plea??? I feel so humiliated.

The Fall of Rome

Saw the series conclusion of the HBO feature presentation of "Rome".
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Really well done. I think that because of its historical backdrop and the attention to detail of events that actually happened in antiquity, it is even more interesting. The acting in this series is excellent.
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Usually when a series ends, it is a bit of a letdown. I'm not looking forward to the end of the Sopranos because of this tendency. But Rome ended beautifully. I will definitely buy this series on DVD when it comes out.

Nice Visit

Maddie Gill came by for a visit and brought her parents Tyler and Liz. What a cutie!!!
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Liz and Maddie are also very cute.

Call for Peep Help

Remember the boat trailer that Joanne bought me for Christmas???
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It's still unassembled in boxes, taking up space in my garage.
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I'm thinking of staging a "Trailer Assembly Raising" modeled after an old fashioned, Amish Country Barn Raising.
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I'll buy the beer, grill some burgers, and maybe even break out the Lagavulin for any Peep who wants to participate.
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We'll set it up for Saturday, April 7 starting at 11:00 AM ... weather permitting. We'll be done by 3:00PM, because we have to go to Maddie Gill's Birthday Bash at 4:00PM. This will be a good warm up.
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Email me at jnestor@nanepashemet.com if you're interested. There is absolutely no shame or humiliation if you choose to decline. I promise I won't hold it against you.... NOT!!!!
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Pay no attention to the fine print.
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This is an equal opportunity Trailer Assembly Raising. Minorities, Handicapped, Women, Dorks, Sicilians, IRS Agents, White Men, and Democrats are encouraged to participate. Nanepashemet Project Management, Inc. takes no responsibility or liability for the potential dangers in this event.

Going Stapleless

This is the stapleless strip planking method that I am going to use on the Matinicus Peabod.
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Of course, the Herreshoff Columbia Tender still has about 40 hours of impossible to find time left for completion.

Ramp Up

For the hundreds of you who emailed me asking "What does the new Sundance ramp look like?".... here it is.
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Now get a life.

Getting There

We're on the homestretch with Operation Moonshadow.
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Rockett and Rumpf have done a great job, which was complicated by the addition of very expensive handicapped accommodations.
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I'm very proud of the way it turned out, and how all of the team members responded to the challenges.
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As usual, the end product put out by Village is outstanding.

On a Roll

Not sure what happened today, but I ripped out the basement carpet, made three dump runs, put a first coat of yellow paint on the Sundance Sign, worked out hard for 40 minutes on the Cybex, and outlined a business deal to one of my partners.
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I haven't felt this accomplished since the last time a Peep gave me a bottle of Lagavulin.
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Plus... consumed zero carbs and I lost two more pounds in my weight loss mission.
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This can't last...

OK

So the rumor is that Bechtel is going to buy GD Wireless. That explains a lot.
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Large corporations hold too much sway on the lives of individuals. It is not a good place to be. Impersonal business decisions ruin people, and are so irrational. Too Bad.
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It so easily could have been GD buying Bechtel wireless.... but for the masters of corporate speak and cover your ass. See you in Hell.

Marathoners

While we're on the topic of Crawfords, Will and Chris are training for the Boston Marathon. They decided to train in December and have logged an 18 mile run since then. Since they are good athletes, I'm sure that they will be fine, but I don't recommend crash training for the marathon.
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Ryan did well last year with limited training, but he is a physical anomaly.

Summer Prospects

We just heard the great news that Will and Lauren Crawford are expecting their first child in Sept.
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Excellent addition to the Circle of Life.
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Between Ryan and Courtney, and Will and Lauren, it will be an eventful summer.

Clarification - POTW Rules

Joanne reminds me that once again, I need to reiterate the POTW Rules. Repetition is the path to mastery, so this little exercise is not really that irritating, although you would think that all of Western Civilization would have internalized the rules by now.
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So....
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To become a Nanepashemet Peep of the Week, one has to .....

1. Be alive. (Dead people, no matter how cool, are not eligible.)

2. Be human. (Although I love animals, especially cats and birds, animals and other non-human forms of life are not eligible.)

3. Be either annoying, or inspirational, or both. (And never ask me which applies!!!)

4. Automatic selection criteria is if you have given me a bottle of Lagavulin 16 year Single Malt Scotch during the previous week. (I'm amazed how many bottles I have received because of this rule.... but it is never enough.)

It's easy enough to remember, but since I have unlimited patience with stupid questions, I absolutely have no problem repeating these rules from time to time.

Remember, there are no stupid questions... Only stupid people who ask questions.