Party On

Seen at the feeder this morning....

• Common Grackle
• Downy Woodpecker
• House Finch
• 2 Blue Jays
• Chickadees
• Tufted Titmouse
• a flock of about 50 Sparrows (no exaggeration)
• Mourning Dove
• ....and the freaking squirrel.

It's like a Homecoming celebration.

Cool Bird

I shouldn't pick favorites, but it's hard not to especially like the chickadees.
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They are bold and will land on the feeder despite a flock of aggressive sparrows.
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They don't sit on the feeder and hog seeds, but fly to it, pick up one or two seeds, and quickly fly to a nearby tree branch.
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Their calls are distinctive, like their names..."Chickadee, dee, dee."
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Researchers claim that the number of "dees" indicate an alarm of a threat in the area to other chickadees in the flock. The more "dees", the bigger the threat.
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They hang out with other cool birds like the tufted titmouse.
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Some of the many reasons to like the Chickadee.
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What??? You don't have a favorite bird??? Why don't you get a life!

T-Shirt Phenomonon

I ordered some T-shirts for Nanepashemet Project Management today.
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It always amazes me how effective shirts can be as customer or vendor giveaways. Grown professionals, who sport varied accomplishments and command substantial salaries, get all excited when you give them a free shirt. I know I do.
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If business keeps up at the current rate, we'll be handing out plenty of Nanepashemet T-Shirts.
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Which gives me an idea.....
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How much do you think people would pay for a POTW shirt??? The demand would probably be so high that I'd have to go to Asian manufacturers to handle the volume. Peeps would be hanging around my house worse than a Harry Potter book release.
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It probably wouldn't be worth the pandemonium and hysteria.

Deck Views

With the deck substantially completed, I reinstated the bird feeder and the birds returned in force. This morning Tufted Titmouses, Chickadees, and a flock of Sparrows were the guests for a breakfast of bird seed. It's neat to see the different and distinct characteristics of the separate species. Each approaches the feeder and acts differently.
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I'm pretty happy with the way that the deck railing and cap came out. It's how I originally visualized that it would look, but took a long time to materialize it. Now I'm going to stain the pressure treated deck planking with a dark, water resistant stain.
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I had envisioned a laminated and curved stair railing, but the mahogany 2x4 that I bought from Moynihan Lumber, for a totally different purpose, fit the bill nicely. It still has to be epoxy coated and varnished.

Onward and Upward

I politely declined an invite to Falls Church. Now is a time to remain positive and focused.

Milestone Burgers

So I'm headed back from Hartford when Joanne calls and tells me that she's on her way to North Conway. I'm stuck in Marblehead this week, at least until after Wed. with business obligations. The first challenge was dinner tonight.
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Sure I could get a pizza at Vesuvius, but I was feeling a little lazy from driving to and from Connecticut. When I checked out the freezer, there was a fresh box of Bubba Burgers and we also had some sesame rolls. Dilemma solved.
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Fired up the gas grill, threw on two Bubba's, took out cheddar cheese, pepperoni slices and peach mango salsa. All this on the sesame rolls and a little salt an pepper produced some of the best burgers consumed in my slightly overweight, middle aged life.
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I bet my dinner was way better than Joanne's.
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Frozen Bubba Burgers are something that you should check into.

Smart Business

Down in Hartford, Ct. this morning after setting up a small project. Panera Bread has the right idea - free internet. It makes you want to stop when ordinarily you would be dead heading to your final destination.
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I'll be checking my email, after having an asiago cheese bagel and a hot chocolate, then back to Marblehead to work on the business plan.

The End is the Beginning

Finished the deck rail today. I even built the banister on the deck stair. Then the decking and painted railings were power washed. It all came out pretty good, but now the window and house trim look crappy in comparison. They have to be painted.
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And the area below the deck has to be completely overhauled.
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It never ends... but I guess it's not supposed to.

Fireside

What is it about sitting around an outside fire into the night that feels so satisfying???
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It must be something primeval in the human psyche.
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Starring into the fire in the deck chimura with a Dark and Stormy or a Lagavulin.... or both in short succession.... makes for a most enjoyable evening.

Tender Under Sail

Tommy O'Shea took these action photos of the Tender under sail.

Note to Self : Sailing is freaking hard.... Especially if you have no idea what the hell you are doing.

Breezy Saturday

It's a bright, cool, breezy late summer Saturday. High tide is around 3:00 PM. A perfect time to really test out the sailing abilities of the Tender.
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I'll use the morning to sand and put a coat of UV vanish on the deck cap. Then I'll fix the damage to the Tender seat that happened when Jim Peabody slipped getting in last week. By that time, it should be time to go sailing.

Threat of Success

I love it when someone doubts that we can succeed in business. It's better than high octane gasoline in the motivation engine.
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Living well is the best revenge.
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I'm thinking we will be very vengeful.
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BTW - it is not the sentiment that we will fail as much as the fearful knowledge that we will succeed that prompts our doubting friend. Success by others while the backbiters plot has to be threatening indeed.