A Bit Below Par

I bought Joanne a Motorola Cliq Android phone for her birthday.
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It has a GPS, Camcorder, Camera, Email, Internet access, all sorts of cool apps..... plus you can use it to call people.
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She looks irritated and confused.  This could backfire.  Like the time I bought her a TV for Christmas, or a kitchen stool for a previous birthday.
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Even though I'm a Mountain of a Man, it's clear that I'm below par as a gift giver.
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This is proof that even I have flaws.  I just can't dominate over every facet of life.  In some areas, I'm just like the rest of you.... or maybe even worse.

Kerry D'Orio said...

Mountain of a man..your memory is failing. The way I hear it is the stool was for mothers day! Tisk-tisk.
Some men never learn...

Silver Lining

The rain has stopped, but it is still plenty soggy.  We finally did get a little water in the basement, but not enough to cause damage.  If it wasn't for the hard working sump pump, though it would have been a whole different story.
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I feel bad for anyone affected by flood.  It can be so messy and debilitating.   The only blessing is that all of this rain in March wasn't snow.  In that case, we would have been literally buried  with up to ten feet, and completely shut down.  So, as bad as it is, it could have been so much worse.
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Isn't that the case with most of the adversities that we face?  Things can be better, but they can be so much worse.

TommyO said... 

I hear ya my brother, as I vac'd and pumped water for hours on end the other night, all I had to do was turn on the TV to see the thousands of folks a lot worse off then me. Didn't feel so bad.

Aquaponic Pricing

If I were to build an Aquaponics System for someone... a system ready to add fish and plants....the below spreadsheet would be the breakdown for a 2 waterfall, course with 3' deep 4'x5' irregular, stone lined pond, that is connected to a 4'x8' hydoponic vegetable platform.
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This is the way that I would construct my final price.  But you wouldn't see this breakdown. 
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You would see a one page sheet that says....


Complete Aquaponic System with two waterfall course, 4'x5' Pond capable of keeping Koi four seasons and adjacent integrated hydroponic growing system.
$5,000.00.  Payment in full upon completion.

So for $5,000 you would be ready to relax to a soothing waterfall, watch your  fish, and harvest hydroponically grown plants and vegetables.

It hardly seems enough.

Shroud of Turin

Lots of news today about a 3D recreation of the Shroud of Turin.
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It is not a painting, but a sort of phtotographic negative that scientists have used all types of state of the art dating scrutiny.  Evidence continues to point to an origin during New Testament times.
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If the Shroud is fake, then I would say that it is the most ingenious piece of artwork ever created.
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I tend to believe that the Shroud is the real burial cloth of Jesus.
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But it doesn't matter.  We don't need an artifact to legitimize the existence of Christ.  He has made his impact on the world... whether or not his crucifixion was imaged on his burial shroud.

Frank Iacono said....

Thanks John--wonderfully stated.

More Rainfall

It's raining again here on the North Shore of Boston.  Really soggy.  Flood conditions anywhere near rivers and ponds.  It is the wettest March on record here, but I luckily haven't had any water in the basement like in previous years.  Probably because this precip is all rain with no ice damns that ultimately caused my basement leakage.
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But the sump pump is getting a good workout.
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The rain doesn't have me depressed.... a Mountain of a Man doesn't let a few drops get him down.... but it would be nice to get a little sunshine in the mix.  Plus, I'm interested in seeing if the backyard stops being a swamp since the fallen willow trees wil not be absorbing this moisture.

Weekend Progress

I appreciate all of the calls and emails asking how the fence project came out.  It does disturb me a bit that you are so obsessed with my weekend accomplishments, but such is the circumstance of a Mountain of a Man.
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So to satisfy your pathetic obsession, please note that the fence came out fine.  I dug all of the post holes, leveled and poured the concrete, then cut and  installed the fence rails.  All that is left is to install the picketts, which shouldn't be heavy lifting, but still will require a little attention to detail.
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I was pretty much done by 4:00, showered and went to dinner, with Katelyn and Mike, who were in town to see the grandkids as well as Stevie Lewis and his beautiful wife Jill. Joanne and I took them to the new restaurant that was the former Flynnies... has a wierd name that I can't remember... but the food was good.
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Next weekend is Easter, and Mike said that he would come into Marblehead to make the pickett nailing short work.  It's supposed to rain Monday, Tuesday and Wedsnesday, but I still hope to get the shingling done before Mike gets here for the picketting job.
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In the meantime, maybe I can get the Nanepashemet Warehouse sign carved and installed.

Pisc said...

Seldom does one comes across a topper like ______from back in the Needham days. Anything you have seen or done, he had seen a bigger one or climbed a higher one. In my current position, I have met an equal to the Topper. The same generation, same middling position in the organization but self-perceived C level executive talent, same ability to stultify a conversation, its uncanny. I need to sharpen my wit for the next round of topping. Pat -  Are you saying that someone is topping the Topper?  Hard to believe.

POTW Week 12

It's sunny and cool in the thirties.  A perfect day for some FreshAyer and post hole digging.

ANNOUNCING....
Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the Twelve Week of 2010

Harvey Rowe
Lindsey Kepnes
Michael Murphy
Linda Hewitt Murray
Jean Bubon
Will Nestor

Let the fun begin.

Project Appalachia Status

Today, after a very productive morning at Nanepashemet Telecom, I got out into the backyard and took stock of what remains to be done in completing the transformation from Appalachia to New England back there.
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Still shingling to be finished, but the focus now is on the stockade fence.  I stabilized the portion where the willow tree had crashed through, leveled the post, and put some concrete mix into the post hole to mix with the rainwater.
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Repaired the fence railings by using the Kreg Jig to screw some new support boards in.
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After a visit to FreshAyer tomorrow morning, I will try to dig the last two post holes and install the railings.  Then it's just a question of installing the pickets, which I will hopefully complete on Sunday.
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There's still a chance that I can get the shingling details done before April, but unlikely, since the Nanepashemet business is starting to really pick up lately.  But as long as we have reclaimed the backyard and painted the house trim prior to fishing season starting in late May, everything will be on track.

The Last Thousand Days

Some time tomorrow, it will be 1,000 days until December 21, 2012... which the Mayans have predicted as the end of time.
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So is this our last one thousand days???
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How will you spend these last precious moments?
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I suppose that if you really believed in this doomsday stuff, you  wouldn't care about going on a diet, or learning to play the guitar, or paying your taxes....  among other things.  Probably doesn't make sense to buy a lottery ticket, or cut the grasss, or shave.
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You still should treat people right, because the Mayans didn't say anything about the afterlife being cancelled... and you don't want a lot of people pissed off with you in the hereafter.   Or at least, you don't want to piss off more than you already have.
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One good thing is that phoney liberals and their wacky bullshit won't bother me as much.  Don't care if they win the elections if they don't have any more time to screw things up.
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I will continue to Blog though.  Blogging is Life and Life is Blogging.... and we still have 1,000 days to go.

Second in Line

Joe Biden is a heartbeat from the Presidency.
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If BO keeps on smoking and gets lung cancer or something, this loose gun on deck gets to have his finger on the button.
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Dropping the F Bomb to the President on an open mike was the latest gaffe among many.  My favorite is when he tried to curb the economic panic during the Presidential campaign.

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"When the stock market crashed, Franklin D. Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the, you know, the princes of greed. He said, 'Look, here's what happened,'" Obama's running mate Joe Biden, told the "CBS Evening News."

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Except Republican Herbert Hoover was in office when the stock market crashed in October 1929. And the television wasn't invented.

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So Joe just reached in and pulled this one right out of his ass.   Brazenly inventing the facts.

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Maybe he's not an idiot. Big Maybe. But he is the Vice President.

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Loyal Dems will point to the gaffs that Sarah Palin has made.

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But the difference between Palin and Biden is that Sarah says stupid stuff when she is chided by A Holes like Katie Couric (ugh!!!). Joe says stupid stuff off the top of his head on a regular basisl with virtually no provocation.
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I know that a lot of people had strong feelings about our last VP, Dick Cheney... but Joe Biden truly scares me.

Maria Rowen said...


Maybe a well placed f-bomb can be very effective, but in most situations, ‘it’ belongs in a back room. As a matter of fact, Biden belongs in a back room. Maybe it’s just too much to expect respect and common decency in our highest-ranking, elected officials. After all…Fox News reported this morning, following the signing and the ‘say-it-ain’t-so-Joe-swearing, Obama thought it might be a good idea to have the following three letters put on a t-shirt…BFD…yup…it sure is…

Get a Grip

So for Kerry, Will, Tyler, TommyO  and a couple dozen others to name a few, who were asking what we did this weekend.... yada , yada, yada....
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If I wanted you to know... don't you think that I would have freaking told you????
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Sometimes, you have to live your own lives.  Sure, my life is fascinating and inspirational, but yours doesn't have to be so humdrum.   If you looked deeply within, you might even find something interesting in your own dull existance.  It could happen.  It's not so impossible.
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OK.  Maybe I let you down a little.   But a Mountain of a Man needs a little privacy once in awhile.  Even if it's only for a long weekend.
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The chances of it happening again soon are slight, so you can take the panic level down to a manageble decibel.

Tuna Lips said...

From the sounds of it, ye did a whole lotta nuttin'. Bully fer you. Sixer of PBR, some pork rinds, wire hanger to scritch at the mange betwixt my shoulders, and the clicker control is all Ise needs fer when yeh get down to brass tacks.

Staying Strong

The United States of America is the strongest nation in the world... by far.
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Our American economy is so huge, at a Gross Domestic Product of $54Trillion per year, that it is larger than the next four largest national economies  - Britain, China, Japan and Germany - combined!
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Our American Navy controls the oceans of the world without question.   Nothing moves between countries unless we tacitly allow it.
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The spirit of individual initiative and ingenuity that has produced this unprecedented national strength can be attacked.  It can be compromised.  It can be a subject of self loathing apology.
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But it can't be destroyed.... or even derailed.
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Not even close.
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We'll fix this health care fiasco.  We won't let the system bloat, decay, and erode like the other socialized systems.  We'll find a way before this ill thought out, abortion of a reform, ruins lives.   And we'll see the political pendulum sweep out the self loatheing hacks at the same time.
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American Strength will prevail.

Not Healthy

If the National Health Care bill was so good for us, then why would it be such a btterly contested fight?
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You would think that if we really needed this, it wouldn't have to be force fed along party lines.  It would be obvious that a huge national expenditure was needed to take care of a problem that everyone clearly saw had to be solved.
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The US has a health care policy..... that by some analysis is the best in the world.  Emergency rooms are filled with giving care to those with no insurance .  Our hospitals and physicians lead the world in the development of cures and treatments.
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Should the system be tweaked so that people don't fall through the cracks?  Absolutely. 
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But this bill is not about health care.  If it was, Congress would be working  in good faith to put together a health care policy that identifies the shortcomings and comes up with some good faith fixes.
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The fervor and zeal to tip the health care industry upside down and force massive change in a headlong rush betrays the real motive behind this bill.   Surely some Democrats feel strongly about the need for health care reform, but this is really about political power.... and forcing your will upon others.
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It is the political nature of this bill that is so abhorrent.

Maria Rowen said...
"These are the times that try men's souls" (Thomas Paine). Today has been a trying day but the revolution begins again...to the peril of the progressive poison of this POTUS. This is still America...

A Little Sun

I took advantage of the first nice 70 degree day by hitting the beach ... and getting a very uncomfortable sunburn on my shoulders, neck and face.  It's weird that you don't feel like the sun is burning you until it's too late, and you can't move without a decent amount of pain.
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As a Mountain of a Man, I naturally can handle a sunburn fairly easily... but I tend to wonder how lesser men put up with the discomfort without wincing and whinning like little girlie boys.

POTW Week 11.

This has been the longest lapse in Nanepashemet Blog Posts in a long time... maybe forever.
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For those of you who depend on this daily, I do feel badly for you and your pathetic addiction to this illogical, nonsensical rant.
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There was an excellent reason for the gap in posts, and I actually considered telling you what it is... but I don't think I will.

ANNOUNCING....

Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the 11th Week of 2010.

Ben Wallace

Robby Doyle

Will Murray

Tom Holmes

Tommy O'Shea

Dr. Anthony Costonis

I'll try not to let this thing drop again, so don't make a big thing about it.

Maria Rowen said...

The 'up and down' - 'un-official' peep-poll indicates no 'big thing' on the long lapse of posts because of Bret Baier...But...pathetic peeps still prefer the Mountain of a Man - four to one...word...!

More D and R Difference

Katelyn sent me this story which further differentiates the tendencies of Democrats and Republicans.
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A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man in a boat below.She shouted to him, "Excuse me, can you help me?
I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."


The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot Air balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feetabove sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude."

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Republican."

"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."


The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Democrat."


"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but, somehow, now it is my fault!

Tom Holmes said...

You NEVER Disappoint me! EXCELLENT!!!!

Democrats and Republicans

The problem about Democrats and Republicans is that they are both right.
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Democrats say that "it take's a village."
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Republicans say "let individuals be free to take care of themselves."
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So if you are competent and independent, the Republican side is right.
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But if you need the help of others and can't get on by yourself, the Democratic side is right.
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According to the needs and abilities of the individual, both sides are right. Sometimes government control is necessary... and sometimes freedom is the only stimulis required to solve issues.
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It makes no sense to only take the side of independent, self sufficient people when some people legitimately need the help of others. Some people need the whole freaking village, and you have to accept that.
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I'm so confused.

POTW Week 10

Former Peep of the Year Lauren Rathbone once again proves why was chosen as a POTY when she asked if she missed anything by not seeing the Peep of the Week choice last week.
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The POTW wasn't  there because the Peeps  were never picked,  Lauren.  But I'm happy to act retroactively.

ANNOUCING.... Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the 10th Week of  2010.

Lauren Rathbone
Will Crawford
Tyler Gill
Lisa Panakio Rowe
John Tierney
Brian Butler

Nice Catch Lauren.

Angling Toward Aquaponics

The steady rain this weekend put a damper on my backyard projects.

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But I had a lot of other stuff to fill the gap.  The Grandkids were over which always fills the time, and I had a real estate showing in Central Mass for some of the SuperPeeps who I can't name so that I don't jinx the deal.   And while I was out there anyway, I squeaked in an unplanned Fresh Ayer visit.

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Then Tom Holmes turned me on to the concept of aquaponics, whereby a fish pond environment is exchanged with the water from hydroponically grown vegetables, and both the fish and the plants benefit from the exchange of nutrients. 

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So I spent a good deal of the indoor down time reseaching pump systems  on the Internet and thinking of how this aquaponics system could come together.
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All I was originally thinking of doing was making a backyard waterfall and Japanese water garden... then the thought of adding fish and growing hydroponic vegetables started to make some sense.   I think I'll make a run at it this summer.
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Thanks for the idea Tom.  I'll send you some Tomatoes.

Lauren Rathbone said...

How come no peeps last week. Did I miss something?

Water Management

I'm waiting for the Grandkids to come by, and I'll be spending some time with them.   But I'd love to get some fence pole holes dug before this three day rain storm hits.  The  backyard  will be soggy and muddy for weeks after that soaking.
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Since the willow trees in the back have been gone, the water table seems to have risen considerably.  Apparently, the huge willows sucked up a tremendous amount of moisture that is no longer leaving the soil.  Even with the trees, the water table in the backyard was only two feet down or so.

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Maybe, I'll have to dig a shallow well and install a pump to use for watering this summer.  With a Japanese pond and Coi Fish to follow.  
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That would be the ultimate evolution.  From Appalachia, to a Japanese Water Garden!  I should start digging for the electrical conduits, but it already has started to rain.
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