Thinking Ahead

Shimano Thunnus 16000 Reel/Fisherman's Outfitter 7' Custom 20-50# Rod Combo.

We have two of these babies, just waiting for fishing season to begin. Maybe Vona won't be the only one catching tuna next summer.

Rockett's Party

Nice time.
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Mike and Trish have great style and have created a beautiful home - multiple textures, beautiful moulding and paneling, stepped down levels, really tasteful enlarged phots of their family, and an interesting floor plan.
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Great food and cocktails - I definitely had too much of both by the way I feel this morning.

Lifetime Cable Channel

Channel for women. Chick Flick heaven.
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Kill me now.
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Every freaking movie is the same.
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The woman is neglected by her husband, meets a sexy guy and has an affair, sexy guy turns out to be a psycho and terrorizes the women's family, the women ends up killing the sexy guy.
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If you've ever seen one that's different let me know, but I won't be waiting.

Melting Lead

So many of you have asked the same question recently.... How are you going to melt the lead for the centerboard and rudder weights?
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It's a harmless question, although somewhat tedious when you ask it over and over again. So please take note here and stop emailing me.
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A circle was cut in the stock, and a slot routed in the center of the circle to secure the poured lead in the plywood.
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Then very small lead shot pellets were melted in a cast iron pot using the turkey propane fryer. The pellets melted within 10 minutes or so to a shiny melted liquid with some solid impurities. The impurities were scooped from the pot using a wooden scrap.
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A piece of sheet metal was clamped to the bottom of the stock, and the molten lead poured into the void until it exceeded the top. The lead cooled within twenty minutes, and when cool to the touch was planed and sanded until smooth with the plywood surface.
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Then the lead insert was coated with fiberglass cloth and epoxy.
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Now that you know, go melt lead for your own rudder!!

Saturday Prospects

It's 25 degress outside. I just lit a fire in the fireplace, burning scraps from the kitchen remodel and the Tender work.
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Looks like Joanne may be settling in for a long day of Chick Flicks. I'm now officially motivated to get out to the garage and work on the Tender.
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This might be the perfect day to melt the lead pellets for insertion into the centerboard for weight.
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I'll be placing the lead shot pellets into a small cast iron pot, then using the turkey fryer to melt the pellets into molten lead for pouring into a 3" diameter hole drilled through the bottom of the centerboard. After it cools and solidifies completely, the lead has to be smoothed with a scraper, the voids filled with epoxy, then the whole centerboard has to be fiberglassed and epoxied.
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Should be an interesting process, plus it will serve the noble purpose of sidestepping the Chick Flicks.
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If I can avoid lead poisoning, we should make it to the Rockett's Xmas Party tonight.

Bali Hai

Lunch at Bali Hai in Lynnfield, MA is quickly becoming "de rigeur" for aspiring peeps.
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Get there early to grab a parking spot.
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I highly recommend the "No. 32" combo special.
The chicken fingers are my favorite, with the boneless spareribs a close second.
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Also, the pork fried rice with no onions is a fine epicurious choice.

Blogaphobia

Fear of Blogs, Blogging and Bloggers. The first known victim is Tom DiMatteo of Concord, MA.
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As far as we know, the only reliable treatment is constant mentioning of the Nanepashemet Blog and potential blog topics.
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All of you Catholics out there, say a Rosary for Tom.

Instant Winter

It's cold here in Chicago, 4 degrees, lots of snow on the ground.

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Doesn't matter though. Us Darwin guys are sizzling hot.

Chicago Stop

I'm sitting here at the Courtyard Marriott in Schaumburg, Ill., keeping the faith with the Peeps.
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Don't you wish you were me?
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It just doesn't get any better than this.
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BTW, as I left the office today, I noticed a worried look on Brooke Lutrelle's face. As you must know by now, Brooke is one of our Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week. Normally, I could care less if one of the Peeps seems a little stressed out, but Brooke is a Peep that I actually like, so I am a bit concerned.
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Just so you know Brooke, you were chosen because you met one of the following criteria this week.

You did something Annoying, Stupid or Inspiring, you are not dead, you are not an animal or you gave me the gift of Lagavulin.

I'll give you a hint, it was not annoying or stupid. You can figure out the rest.

Dave and I also met a nice lady at the Manchester, NH Airport who told us stories of her trips to the beach. A prime candidate for POTW next week.

Another Thursday - POTW Time

The Hysteria surrounding the selection of Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week has got to stop.
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It is not the end of life as we know it if you are not chosen.
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Chances are, you'll never be a POTW and you are ruining your pitiful life by your constant whining and complaining. Face it, you just might not be good enough. Accept your station in life as a lesser being, and you'll be better off in the long run.
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Now for this week's selections.....

NANEPASHEMET PEEPS OF THE WEEK 5

• Sparky Spillane
• Kerry Woods
• Brooke Lutrelle
• Geoghan Coogan
• Lou Tarmey
• The Chinese Waitress at Bali Hai

That's it.
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The rest of you can lick your wounds and ponder the consequences of yet another week of unfulfillment.

Moonshadow on Schedule

Mike Rockett and Sparky Spillane are on board to start Dec. 13. No doubt in the world that the Stramski project will be a show piece as well as built on time.

A Happy Birthday

The Darwin group gave me a nice cake for my birthday. A thoughtful gesture. Joanne made me prime rib and lobster for dinner and gave me a paper shredder from Staples. Not sure what she had in mind on the shredder gift. My in-laws gave me a nice Home Depot gift card. All three kids called me as well as my mother, brother and niece. It was the nicest birthday ever.
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I'm 54 today. I used to think that the fifties were old. Not now.
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If I died tomorrow, there would be no regrets. I never feel that there were things that I didn't try. I was not afraid to try stuff, not afraid of failure or mistakes. Making decisions was never a problem for me. This morning on TV, Maria Shriver, a Kennedy and wife of Arnold Schwartzernegger, said that all successful people have been told no, and have had failures in their life.
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The weird thing is that you can fail over and over, but you are ultimately judged by your success. Babe Ruth led the major leagues in strikeouts as well as home runs. Nobody calls him the Strikeout King.
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My family and friends constitute my definition of success. Money and possessions are hollow in comparison to the quality of your family and friends.
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As I look back, there are things that I could have done differently. And my actions by no means produced the intended results in a number of key incidents. There were advances as well as fallout, for me, and other people. But I can sincerely say that anything I did, I did in good faith, with no ill will or underhanded intent. Thus, no regrets, and a thankfulness for the insight that each action taught me.
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But I think that I have a lot more things to do. Telecom and Darwin, Sundance, the Tender and Boats, the Blog, my kids and future grandkids, Joanne, fishing, real estate deals - there are a ton of things left to do - things to experience - things to prove - things to enjoy.
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Trying stuff in good faith is the key. Success or failure just makes it interesting.
I'm not done trying yet.