POTW Week 14

It was a nice turnout at the charity auction last night that Melissa Sherwood coordinated at RockStar Fitness in Marblehead. 
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My friend Harvey Rowe did a great job describing how the event would help the "My Brother's Table" soup kitchen in Lynn where Harvey has done such inspirational work.  And my friend Mike Rockett really revved up the bidding, and literally put his money where his mouth is.  Another great job.

Announcing....
Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the 14th Week of 2010.

Mike Rockett
Harvey Rowe
Sarah McCormack
Norm Sherwood
Stephany Connolly
Tom McMahon

It's nice when something that you drag yourself out for turns out to be such a fun time.

Goofy Golfer

Once again our thoughts turn to Tiger Woods....
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He comes out after a harrowing 6 month ordeal away from his craft and shoots 4 under in the first round to be tied for 3rd in the Masters.
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That would have been a great step in his re-entry after embarassment and scandal.  That should be the story of the day.  No more.
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But then he allows a Nike ad to run with his dead father's narrative and a contrived baneful look on his face.
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Jeez Tiger... you went to Stanford.  I thought that was a good school..... but you are freaking stupid.
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Just swing the club.  None of your perverted personal life is any more than gossip and voyeurism to us.  Why the hell do we need to see you pretending to listen to your father speak from the grave????  You have completely lost your way.

Tuna Lips said...


This here feller bangin' the next door neighbors daughter and not so much as a barn burnin', well, the end of civilezatin' as we knowd it caint be far off. Before that happens, I does want to git my hoe-down on like he do whith them adult movin' picture show hore-type starlets. So much to get done.

Woodpile Delay

I had planned to move the woodpile from the side of the house to underneath the deck by this time of the week.  But like most plans, other factors caused some changes.
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The first was that pesky virus that overtook Joanne and I at the beginning of the week.  That killed Monday.  Then I had to make up the work at Nanepashemet Telecom on Tues and Wed..
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But during that time, in considering that a lot of the wood that I would be moving won't fit into the wood stove without being recut, I decided to make a cross jack chainsaw horse first.  Then I have to make a wood storage rack out of pressure treated lumber that I salvaged from a telecom shelter that we demolished.
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So when I move the pile, it won't be transferring one mess to another mess.
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My primary project for the weekend was to paint the pram, but the woodpile delay will push this off to next week.
 Former POTY, Tom McMahon said...
Yes, I know you hate being called big. But this video is why you should love it. Play it between the 5:12 - 6:15 time period.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdE1C6NaT5Q

Have a good one Big J.,
McMahon

No Nukes unless Necessary.

The US has announced that it would not be using it's nuclear weapons against countries that do not have them.
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This appears to be a plea for countries to resist a nuclear bomb development program.
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It won't work.
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Crazy regimes will continue to try to have nukes and we will find an excuse to nuke them if the occasion exists.  What we say now has no bearing on future actions, so I wish the conservative talk shows wouldn't get so freaking strung out.

Spring Season

Trees are budding.  Tomorrow the temperature is set to go to the eighties.  The Red Sox are playing the Yankees tomorrow.
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So Spring must be here.
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After this, there is only one more Spring to go.

Project Management Success

Wayne Murray, a good PM at GD from my memory, asks the following question on LinkedIn.

What is the key to being a successful Market Manager/Program Manager in todays Commercial Wireless environment?

I know that I sound presumptuous, but I really feel confident with the answer here.

You need the following elements to be a successful project manager.

• A solid knowledge of the contract work breakdown structure resonating through the market organization as well as the market customer staff.
• Production metrics tied directly to the WBS and staffed by competent professionals who are enpowered to make decisions at their staff level. 
• Metrics must reflect reasonable contract monetary milestones.

If you can line up knowledge, metrics and competence along with a healthy customer contract, you will hit program goals and achieve customer satisfaction. 

If any component is missing... the compensatory strain will ultimately affect the project.   All of these components must be looked at continuously and tweaked as necessary during the project.  That includes staff changes and contract modifications.

I have walked away from projects where the components cannot be lined up.   Better for the customer to throw stones at you at the beginning based upon an untenable situation than to slog through and with a project that cannot work and hurt your company and career... all the while screeching "I told you so".

Nobody listens to "I told you so" when a project has gone to hell.  Memories are short and corporate careers are being protected.   Take the hit up front and project your company.  Negotiating the right contract terms is 60% of project success.

Tuna Lips said...

Ise finds horse wippin' the non-acomadatin' dirt peoples is an efacaseshus way to gettin' er done. Kernel Sartoris learnt me that, back in Chickesaw County days. Kill the monkee and the hens get to layin' eggs right quick.

Give Us Barabbas

Happy Easter.
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One of my favorite holidays because it signifies spring and rebirth, and the ultimate hope.  Plus there are cool Easter movies, like "Barabbas" and "Ben Hur".
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They just don't make actors like Anthony Quinn and Charlton Heston anymore.

POTW Week 13

It was a beautiful, sunny, warm day.  Mike helped me to finish the fence, and the back of the house has officially moved from Appalachia to the North Shore of Boston.  Once all of the trim is painted it will actually look really good. 
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I'm concerned about the water table though in the backyard since the willows have been cut down.  It's like the Everglades back there.  So maybe we are moving the house from Appalachia by way of the Everglades.
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Announcing ....

Nanepashemet Peeps of the Week for the 13th week of 2010

Ben Martin's girlfriend who is from RI but I can't remember her name.

Ben Martin

Craig Murray

Mike Nestor

Rakesh Goel

Tommy O'Shea

Tomorrow is Easter.  And I will give an appropriate amount of consideration to the day, since I'm a cultural Catholic and believe in the divinity of Christ.  But I'm also going to try to move the firewood storage from the side of the house to the underside of the deck.
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Then we'll be concentrating on getting the pram and the tender ready for the season.  Hopefully the back will dry out.

Bird Seed Generosity

The other day, Stevie Lewis asked me how the action at the Feeder was.
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It dawns on me that I have been keeping this to myself and not sharing the daily Bird Feeder goings on with the multitude of you Peeps yearning to know any insignificant thing imaginable.
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So it does seem a bit selfish on my part.
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Anyway.... over the last two days, numerous Blue Jays, Sparrows, a House Finch, Chickadees and a male and female Cardinal have been observed partaking of my bird seed generosity.  I've also seen Robins and a number of Mourning Doves in the general vicinity.
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This should cover the Feeder report for the time being.

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.