First Harvest

Tomorrow, I plan on getting out on the Mountain Bike early. Hopefully get about 15 miles in. Then maybe attack some paperwork and invoicing so that I'm not bogged down with that when the week hits.
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Apparently, the boys came up with three keeper lobsters from the four traps that we set this week. If that ratio holds when we get our ten trap limit out, we'll be hauling in over a dozen lobsters per week. That's a lot. More than we could find ways to consume.
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Maybe we'll be making lots of Peeps happy this summer with the thoughtful gift of fresh lobster.

Tuna Lips said...

I takes all my best clientellers to Red Lobster. Beats the shorts offa Sizzler, and I aint sayin' that cuz I was barred from that mule shack, neither.

POTW Week 21

The boys got into some mackerel this morning. That should be enough to bait the rest of the lobster traps. In the meantime, I headed up north for some serious kickback in North Conway. Even though I'll probably get some paperwork in, chilling out is at the top of the list.
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However..... I was reminded in a very annoying voicemail from Mountain of a Man, Bobby Brown, that I had neglected to select the POTW this week.
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Man.... is that irritating!!!!
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I didn't freaking forget. Maybe I just didn't get around to it yet.
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Announcing.....
Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the 21st week of 2009

Bob Brown
Mike Chandler
Emily UnGardia
Ty Hemmert
Sprague the concrete guy on Block Island
Michael "Murph"Murphy

That will teach Brown a lesson! Mountain of a Man aside, he's got to learn to curb his annoying habits.

Constant Sorrow

POTY Privilege

Apparently former Peep of the Year, Michael "Murph" Murphy, and his lovely wife, Beth, are running with a fast crowd these days.

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So do you think you are pretty cool these days, Murph?

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Have you considered the fact that the only reason that guys like Adam Sandler will take a picture with you is because you are a Former Nanepashemet Peep of the Year????

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That's right.

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Without the POTY designation, these guys wouldn't let you carry their Kleenix, and don't you forget it.
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The truth is that Sandler, Rob Schneider, and Kevin James all wish they were you.... a former Peep of the Year. And they have absolutely no chance.

Piscine Prognostication

We've got all of our fishing tackle organized as hell, and have big plans to tune up all of the loose ends on the WhaleEye.
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Got a call this morning from Patrick Piscatelli telling me of his fishing success down on the Cape this weekend. The piscine aficionado landed some blues and schoolie stripers, and was right at the verge of his enthusiasm transforming into bravado. Not that I can blame him. If I caught Blues and Stripers this early in the season, I'd be bragging my ass off.
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Tomorrow, I'm taking the CEO of a promising wireless startup in the public safety networks sector to lunch at the Boston Yacht Club. I thought I might impress him with the ambiance of Marblehead Harbor, but it appears that he lives on the Monterrey Peninsula in California, which is probably the most spectacular ocean venue that I've yet seen.
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So I'll have to find another way to impress him. Maybe with fishing stories.
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Anyway.... I predict the best fishing season ever this year. Tuna, Stipers, Blues and Lobster. Not necessarily in that order.

First Crack at Crustaceans

Ryan and Mike caught four mackeral off of the Tinker's Island Gong yesterday, so we had no excuse but to get four lobster traps baited up and dropped outside of Salem harbor this morning.
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After fishing for another hour and only coming up with one more mackeral and a monkfish, we headed back to check the traps which had only been in place for less than two hours.
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We found scates, and crabs in three of the four traps. That was an optimistic sign. Probably Wed. this week, we'll check the traps and put out three or four more. By the end of the week, all ten will be in service and we should be crawling in crustraceans.
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The whole effort was salvaged by the beautiful weather, and the beers that Tommy O'Shea so thoughtfully contributed to the effort.
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BTW, with the new fin on the lower unit of the Honda Four Stroke, the WhaleEye seems like a new engine. Planes perfectly, and idles at slow speeds with no issues.
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This could be a hell of a summer.

Unblocked

In case you were wondering, the three tumblers of Newman's Own 100% Grape Juice came through big time last night. And I do mean "came through".

Memorial Day

A beautiful Memorial Day Weekend. I hope you all get to kick back and enjoy the company of your friends and families.
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But don't lose sight of the fact that you won't be speaking German or Russian this weekend. That many have made huge sacrifices so that you could have a peaceful, stable, enjoyable weekend.
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This day always makes me reflect on my father, who was blown off of a ship in the Atlantic and survived during WWII, my grandfather, who was gassed in the trenches in France during WWI and my father-in-law who was a POW to the Chinese in the Korean War.
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Regular people like you and me, who were called to duty and made the sacrifice so that we could have a normal life. And our young people continue to serve so that terrorists who would destroy our way of life don't get the chance to implement their demented plans.
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Freedom isn't free. And some of us have had to pay a stiff price. Give them your recognition and respect this weekend.

Pisc said...

A wonderful reminder to the folks who hold forth on appeasement as peacemaking while sipping a buttery chardonnay with oak high lights and wearing the latest from Ann Taylor and Tommy Hifigger, snacking on canapes. The Barry Crowd, I bet you get a bit of that in MH.

POTW Week 20

So I get a couple hundred emails yesterday from Peeps who didn't appreciate my hourly rendition of my daily grind. They basically said that they didn't care what the hell I did, and should concentrate on cogent, and controversial commentary.
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Well..... Kiss my Royal Irish Ass!!!!!
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This Blog is not for your reading entertainment. It's not designed to make your pathetic day go a little easier. Loosely disguised as a blog about Boatbuilding, it is really all about me. By me, for me, and about me. And I'm not too thrilled that you get to read it anyway.
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Pretty annoying, which gets me to the next step in this juggernaut of a literary institution.
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ANNOUNCING.....
Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the 20th week of 2009.

Ann Swaine, the Weston Permit Lady
Jack Keough
Larry DiGiamarino
Steve Lewis
Perry Dinatale
Emily Angardia

Tomorrow, I think I'll tell you my special technique for cutting your toenails.

Advice to Barach.

This whole Obama emphasis on the "Torture" issue reminds me of Clinton's first issue "Gays in the Military." Both are non issues that I could care less about.
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It seems that when the Democrats win the big prize, they go through a "Holy Shit, What Do We Do Now" phase. They are good at strirring peoples emotions, at campaigning, but now they have to belly up and lead with some policies.
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Now Obama chooses to concentrate on the "evil Republican practice of torture." Never mind that fact that when we were under siege by radicals looking to kill anyone who takes a elevator in a major US City.
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So Peeps.... here's how I weigh in on this.
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I know that I don't usually show it, but I deeply care for each and every one of you. Even those of you who have relentlessly chosen to act like assholes. At least you are my assholes.
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So if I ran into some misguided moron hell bent on a plot to kill millions of you by crashing airliners into buildings, or igniting a nuclear blast, or causing an anthrax outbreak, I would have no problem in torturing this motherfucker over and over with every whacko method that I could devise until he gave up the details.
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That's just the way I am.
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By the way, the evil Bush administration waterboarded three people in the last eight years. That's THREE! And I understand that the technique was highly effective in eliciting information.

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How many people died in the Twin Towers???? and the Pentagon???? and herocially bringing down their own airliner headed for the White House????
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Oh yeah.... well over 4000 noncombatant Americans. Peeps like you.
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How many more of us would have bought it in Tunnels, in SmallPox epidemics, in Propane Tank explosions, in contaminated water supplies if we didn't pin the ears back on these Fuckers.
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C'mon Barach. You won the White House. Now Lead!!!! Cut the Bullshit. Your're not a phony idiot like Nancy Pelosi. Get out in front and use your inspirational abilities to get this economy swinging back.... and making sure that these medieval motherfuckers never get the chance to screw with us again.

Ringer on a Racetrack

Today was another up and early day. The Building Inspector at the Town of Brimfield, Jack Keough, is only there for two hours on Friday morning and I had to make the 1 3/4 hour drive out to the Berkshires, leaving at 7:00AM. No problem usually except for the 4:00 AM gig the previous morning.
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You know me....
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I don't bitch and I don't complain. Those traits are just not in the repetoire of a Mountain of a Man like me.
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But my concern is that these irregular starting hours have truly changed the routine that my body has been used to. In other words, I haven't had a solid waste passing in two days. That's right.... constipated..... damn constipated.
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So by the end of the day today, my last stop was to get to Costco in Danvers and pick up a couple gallons of Newman's Own Grape Juice. This stuff has treated my digestive system like a ringer on a racetrack in the past.
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After three big tumblers in the last hour..... nothing.
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I'm starting to get concerned. No Camptown Races yet. Do Dah.

Daily Grind

Started the day meeting my partner at 6:ooAM in Grafton on the MassPike, which is about 1 1/2 hours from Marblehead.
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So you do the math. Got up at 4:00AM, printed out some stuff, hit the shower and jumped in the truck for the morning ride.
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By 7:00AM, was sitting at the Charlton Town Hall, waiting for it to open at 7:30 so I could ask for the certificate of occupancy for the two sites that we built in that town. Left the files for the building inspector with the Administrator, Nancy, and went 30 miles further up the road to the Hampden County Registry of Deeds in downtown Springfield.
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The Registry is on the fourth floor of the superior court building and there were tons of plaintiffs and defendants mulling around when I arrived at 8:30 AM. The security guards made me leave my digital camera with them which I hate because it could dissappear so easily, and I really need a good digital with me at all times.
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After wading though the chainsmoking malcontents outside, I made it to the elevator and filed a decision of the Brimfield, MA Zoning Board of Appeals for recording. The stamp on the recorded docs would be proof to apply for the Building Permit in Brimfield tomorrow morning when the Building Department will be open to file between 10:00 AM and 11:30 only.
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After Springfield, I deadheaded to Chelmsford to drop up some lease docs for execution at a Burlington site. Made it by 11:00 AM and was out by 11:15 and was on the road to Weston to file a permit to but an antenna on Regis College.
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The good folks at the Weston Building Department have a lot of requirements and I found out that I had to get an original structural report from the Engineer in Downtown Boston, needed a signature from the College facilities VP on the Building permit application and needed to record a Zoning Board of Appeals decision at the Middlesex Registry of Deeds.
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So that shot to hell my chances of filing for that Building Permit today with those three hoops in front of me to jump through. Put in some calls to see if I could get the Regis College signature, and made plans to pick up the structural on Summer St in Boston. I knew that the Middlesex filing would be a pain in the ass. It always is with the parking in Cambridge and the wait at the Registry.
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Plus I had to deadhead to the Suffolk Registry of Deeds after picking up Katelyn for the passing of her South Boston Condo.
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Got to Bowdoin St. outside of Katelyn's Beacon Hill office by 12:45PM, picked up Kate and went to park down at the Govt Center Parking garage. The closing went by without a hitch which is a miracle since everything in this deal seemed to be a chore. But Katelyn waded through it all, and I'm really proud of her.
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After the passing, at 2:15. I was driving with Katelyn to her apartment in Southie and hopeing to grab a beer to celebrate and wind it down. But then I got a call from Regis saying that if I got back there within an hour and a half, I could get the permit signature that I needed. So I dropped Kate off and deadheaded to the College with a permit signature in hand by 3:30PM
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I was in a debate with myself to see if I should go back to the Weston Building Dept and plead to file without the recorded ZBA decision, but ultimately resolved to go back to Cambridge and file in the Middlesex Registry of Deeds first.
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Without a quarter in Cambridge, I took a chance at a meter and was in and out of the Registry by 4:00PM with no parking ticket. That was the fastest Middlesex filing in history. Virtually no wait.
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The gameplan now would be to retreat back to Marblehead and make a run at the Weston Builidng Department tomorrow with all of their docs in place.
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My GPS said I'd be back home by 4:30, but no freaking way with the Tobin Bridge traffic. Walked into Beverly Ave. at 5:15 pretty damn tired.
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But it was a good day. and we kicked it pretty good on the Block Island RI project today too.

Tuna Lips said...

I applaud yer runnin' hither and yonder to get stuff done. I am missin' the part about takin' some cash down for all this sweatin'. Be right kind of you to let us knows when you gots the jingle we gots comin' to us, so we can help youse congratulate yerself.

I am all above showin' the love.

Amazing Foggy Mountain Breakdown on Guitar

Shift to Adirondack

Mike's Coffee Table is now living where it was designed for.... in Mike's South Boston Condo in a renovated brick foundry. He says it looks great, and I can't wait to see it.
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While building his table, I had hoped to get some work done simultaneously on my Workbench project, but that fell by the wayside.
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Now the demand to build Kate's Adirondack chair looms forth with her condo passing due tomorrow. I want this to be a unique piece with some tenon and mortise joinery that is not common in this type of piece, and have modified my original plans to match a design that I downloaded from SketchUp.
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The first step will be to make some patterns for reproduction of all of the parts, because I think a lot of the Peeps will want one of these chairs when I get Kate's done. Joanne is already talking about getting two of them.
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I have a feeling that the Workbench will be back burnered.... and I wanted to get that done before resuming work on the Marblehead Gunning Dory. Conservatively, the Dory probably gets started in mid-summer.

Fair Warning to Fish

The WhaleEye is in the water. I don't ever remember getting my boat launched in May and got caught short when Ryan Marine put it in before Mid-Harbor finished the mooring work.
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Thankfully, we are on a temporary empty mooring in Salem Harbor while mine is being set up this week.
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So it's only a matter of time before fish and lobsters start to die.

Foggy Mountain Breakdown

How to play the banjo

Countertop Threat.

Now they are trying to sell me on the idea that my granite countertops can kill me. Researchers say that they emit radon and radiation.
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Let 'em try. I'm not scared of a damn countertop.
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Sooner or later, the researchers will come to the realization that we are not going to get out of this life alive.

Tommy McMahon said.....
Researchers are now finding that doing research causes cancer. Who knew.

Jay B Goode

Even some of my closest friends will be surprised when they learn that I'm an accomplished guitarist.
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Well, maybe not accomplished.... but I do know how to strum G and C chords.
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And I can play "Stairway to Heaven".
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But I haven't had a guitar in more than 20 years.
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Lately though, grandson Will seems to be interested in music, so I thought I'd get back into the music world and toughen up my finger tips.
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Bought a cool Alvarez RD20SC Cutaway Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar, Top Solid Spruce, Back and Side Mahogany from Amazon. It has a pickup for an amp and a built in electronic tuner.
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Will and I will be banging out "Johnny B Goode" riffs in no time.

Health Benefits

There is nothing like a power nap in the late afternoon. About 30 minutes of sleep can completely revitalize you to plow through the rest of stuff that you have on your agenda that day.
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But a lot of times, a nap is not appropriate.
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First... it is socially unacceptable in a corporate work place. Anybody caught dozing, like President Reagan years ago, is thought to be incompetent for some reason. Of course this is complete Bullshit, but I'm not going to get revved up about this.
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Second..... there is really no place that you can safely grab a power nap during the business day.
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Third.... since I'm on the road alot, a nap can be downright dangerous.
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Fourth.... there's only three things I can think of right now.
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So when I get really drowsy, especially driving hundreds of miles, I usually bang down a can of Red Bull energy drink.
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Katelyn and Ryan are all over my case about this. They say that Red Bull is bad for you. But my extensive research during 10 minutes of Internet browsing reveals that there is no obvious health risk. And it really perks me up.
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I figure the health risk of falling asleep during a 65 mph drive is a lot worse than ingesting a can of Red Bull from time to time.

WordSmith

Does Pelosi seem transparent to you? How does a partisan rock thrower like her end up as the Speaker of the House?
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A selective memory... blames everything on the evil Bush administration... now she is tap dancing around this water boarding bullshit.
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If I was a member of a group that flew planes into the NY Trade Towers and killed 4000 Americans, I'd welcome a little splash in the face compared to what I really deserve.
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Pelosi knew about the waterboarding. She is revealing her true nature with her wordsmithing denials.

Harvey Rowe said...

Right on!!!

Tuna Lips said...

Politickin' asides, I'd like to take baste miss nancy with my love honey, helps to relaxify this overwrought wench.

11:49 AM