Sunday, March 24, 2013

Spring Projects

Spring is here.  I don't care about the temperature, I'm done with winter and the cold weather as well.  And I've also rolled out my list of spring projects, few of which I can afford nor have the time to accomplish.
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Unfortunately, most of the stuff has to do with maintenance and remodeling, as well as getting the boats up to par.  The Aquaponics project is as the end of the list, and the Marblehead Gunning Dory can't even fit, so there is no real sex appeal.
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But if I can get in a good push, maybe those will see some life before summer is over.

Recommended by a Discerning Brew Critic



Thursday, March 21, 2013

Dory Power Alternative

Torqeedo Cruise 4.0 R Electric Outboard Motor Torqeedo Electric Outboard motors.

This might be the way to go with the Marblehead Gunning Dory.  They have a solar charge option and are equipped with GPS which measures the distance that you can cover with the remaining charge.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Luck of the Irish

Happy St. Patrick's Day, or Lá Fhéile Pádraig if you are conversant in Gaelic.
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This is probably the most popular unofficial American holiday, and I'm told that it is more popular here than in Ireland.
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Fully 24% of Americans claim they have some Irish descent in them, with another bump claiming the heritage on this day.  The fact that this day is so popular would have been enigmatic in the earlier days of this country when the Irish were vilified and discriminated against.
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Every Boston kid with an Irish name knows what "No Irish Need Apply" means as the Yankees sought to subjugate and hold back the surging Irish Immigrant population.  I remember my mother clearly teaching me this fact at a young age.  And if you look at the history of the Irish, the phrase "Luck of the Irish" is enigmatic to say the least.
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The brutalizaton of the Irish and attempted genocide by the British over the past three centuries, causing widespread immigration to America, Latin America and Australia was a bit high on the unlucky scale. (And for the record, the potato famine of the mid 1800's could have easily been abated by the British, who stood by and watched millions suffer without offering aid).
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Maybe the Irish are looked at as "Lucky" because they persevered over egregious treatment by the British and then the American Yankees.  All the while, keeping their spirit, music, and culture alive and vibrant.
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I guess if you have that stamina and persistence, you are indeed lucky.
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The Americans and their friends who lift a brew and toast the patron Saint of Ireland today are the prodigy and embodiment of a people who could be bent but could't be broken.
 
Erin Go Bragh!
Ireland Forever!