Syrian Siren

Secretary of State John Kerry says the evidence is clear and irrefutable that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on its own people.
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So... let's see it.   Let's hear the details.  Just because Kerry says it.... doesn't make it true.   He's been known to bend the truth before if you look at his record, and before one more American kid is asked to go in harm's way over a civil war in Syria... show us the facts.  Because Kerry saying that he knows just doesn't cut it.

Putin of Russia says that Kerry is wrong.... that Assad has not used the weapons.
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This alone should tell us to stand down.
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Britain is not on board either.
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The Policing of human atrocities should be the purview of the United Nations.  It shouldn't be an excuse for a failing American administration to divert attention from its own shortcomings.   And that is exactly what this smells like.
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Obama says that he didn't state that Syria crossed the red line.... that the world said it.  So let the world take some action here.   Maybe the United Arab League should take the lead.

The Dems will say that Bush did the same thing in Iraq, but that is not even close.  Britain and a large consortium of nations were active in that decision.  Not here.

Obama and Kerry are sounding a siren here, and something stinks.  They couldn't get the facts straight about Benghazi, but here the facts are supposed to be crystal clear.

 So show us the evidence that you claim to have seen.

Conference Calls on the iPhone

I was wondering how you can make conference calls on the iPhone and found the following instructions on the WEB.

The iPhone lets you merge up to five calls at a time to turn them into a conference call. Making a conference call on your iPhone may be easier than getting those same five people in a room at the same time.
Start by making a call and then placing the caller on hold. Tap Add Call to make another call and then Merge Calls to bring everybody together. Repeat this exercise to add the other calls.
Here are some other conference call tidbits:

• iPhone is actually a two-line phone, and one of the available lines can be involved in a conference call.
• If you want to drop a call from a conference, tap Conference and then tap the red circle with the little picture of the phone in it that appears next to the call. Tap End Call to make that caller go bye-bye.
• You can speak privately (one-on-one) with one of the callers in a conference. Tap Conference, and then tap Private next to the caller you want to go hush-hush with. Tap Merge Calls to bring the caller back into the Conference so everyone can hear him or her.
• You can add a new incoming caller to an existing conference call by tapping Hold Call + Answer followed by Merge Calls.

Katelyn and Brady Got Married

Peeps....
Yesterday, my daughter, Katelyn Nestor, became Mrs. Brady Boyle.


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We partied hardy with a bunch of you up at the Crane Estate in Ipswich, and I have to admit that I've lost a couple of dance moves over the last ten years.
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But the whole event came off without a hitch.... a total success by all accounts. 
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From the ceremony in the Italianate Garden, to the Appetizers and Raw Bar, to the fantastic band, Beantown, to the meal catered by Vinwood....  just a happy and memorable occasion.
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Even the weather complied... a beautiful, dry, New England September day.
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The love shown by Katelyn and Brady powered the whole event.  A lifetime memory.

Back Home

Rock Stars

To cap off the end of the week last Friday, at Nanepashemet Telecom, our new mega customer called us "Rock Stars" and said that we had "surpassed all expectations".
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Granted, we are certain to screw up some stuff on this account, and piss people off, but I thought that I should memorialize these comments.
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You don't get them everyday, and you should savor the moments when they are received.
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.... so ..... I'm savoring.

Grateful

I'd be a liar if I didn't admit that I was stressed out by Katelyn's Wedding this summer. I really had no idea how it would be financed.   But God and the Universe kicked in with an answer and I'm grateful that, once again, I've been provided with the resources to pull this off.
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Like I said.... I'm grateful.
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But one of these times, I'd like to be  fully equipped to meet the financial challenges that get hurled my way, rather than relying on the mind over matter deals that I am usually dealt with.
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Chances are... I'll get drunk at the Wedding.... enjoying the open bar a little too much.

Streak Week

It's hard to believe that it was only 7 days ago when Jim Lundgren showed up in my driveway all winded on his bike while in the middle of a Beverly to Marblehead and back circuit. Jim's buffness and discipline was inspirational to say the least, and Monday late morning I decided to drag my sedentary, overweight, Irish-American advanced middle-aged carcass down the street in an attempted two mile jog.

The jog deteriorated into a waddle almost immediately. Seven days later, with the soreness and blisters to show for it, I have repeated this jog/waddle daily... to various grades of pain and humiliation.

I've had to endure the laughter of friends passing by, a bit of hooting and hollering, having firm hard body young females trot past wishing me a nice day, and a few other degrading and annoying incidents which I choose not to disclose here. But not once, have I flipped the Bird to any of these perpetrators. That should count for something....

Today, with my FB Friends as witnesses, I extend the Streak to 7 days in a row. There will be no mention of speed or Lbs. lost for the time being, because those things would probably get my ego in gear and cause me to step things up. Past track team glories can not be recalled at this crucial juncture as the need to take things slow and steady is paramount in an effort to avoid blowing out a knee, or pulling a calf muscle.

I appreciate all of the likes and comments I've received and I'm not even pissed at Lundgren. After all this is not my old college roommate, Robert Towne, running an off road ultra-marathon, or Grade and High School classmate, Christos Laganos, hiking the Appalachian Trail. This is a two mile Waddle/Jog, with a capital WAD.

Day 6 of the Streak

I feel like I've created a Monster. MOAM Style.
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Last Monday, maybe to take the pressure off of the Nanepashemet Telecom pace, and maybe because I was impressed by the biking of my old friend, Jim Lundgren, I went for a 2 mile jog, that was definitely more waddle than jog.   Naturally I noted the event in Facebook.
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And I repeated this for the next four days, creating a streak.
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The remarkable thing here is that I haven't hurt myself.   Normally over the years, I've been injured in these comeback attempts because I would tend to push or extend the mileage, then I would throw out my back or something.  
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But the great thing here is that I feel just like I did when I first started a cross country season in school... real sore and with blisters on my heals.   This is attributed to taking things nice and slow.... accepting the fact that I look like an out of shape blob waddling down the road and not trying to relive past glories.
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Posting the streak of workouts in Facebook has created a whole new dynamic.  It's a great incentive to continue and hopefully create a habit of getting out and sweating off 500 calories or so every day.  Putting yourself out there is a risk of greater embarrassment by breaking the Streak in front of my FB Friends.
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Today is Day 6 of the streak.... a little Saturday yardwork, then a run before getting ready for Kelsey O'Shea's graduation cookout.  If I can keep this up

Lobster Roll

To my friends who like to make fun of my fishing ability.... fair enough.

But Nobody can mock my prowness in pulling lobster traps, and then converting the catch to a grilled and buttered Lobster Roll roll.