The Eyes Have It

A new book is in the sidebar. Once again - cats! Homer's Odyssey is more than a cute cat story, it's a cute blind cat story and much more. Check it out and see the incredible amount Homer has to teach about life and faith.

Then there's Wanda the Psychic. She's a local business woman. A few months ago, I noticed that Wanda was being dropped off at her 'office' and she was on crutches. Don't you think a smart psychic would have seen THAT coming and avoided it? Just the other day, the ambulance horn sounded. There were sirens and flashing lights in abundance as the emergency vehicles arrived to carry out one of Wanda's clients. Two reasons I will not be visiting Wanda the Psychic.

Mr. Snowmanaroundthehouse

Just so y'all know...he's still hanging in! Albeit painfully so.

1 for every 600

This is the ratio that 'A' heard on the television today.

1 for every 600 attending the inauguration ceremony of Barack Obama, today, in Washington D.C.

They approximate that there were 1.8 million in attendance.

That means that there were approximately 3,000 Port-a-Lets for the inauguration.

Wow!

Now aside from all of that............

Snow, snow, and more. It was STILL snowing today. Wasn't suppose to, but no one told Mother Nature. Not a lot, thankfully. When did this batch start? Sunday? Enough is enough.

THAT envelope went in the mail today. Held my breath and did it. Don't like it.

A set of keys was delivered yesterday. Big job. No bucks until it's picked up next week, but that's okay. The keys were delivered by a middle man. Same guy brought a set a few months ago, acting as a middle man for a still undisclosed technician. I think I know what's up with that. Can you guess?

Another set of keys arrived via UPS this afternoon, right before some guests arrived for a visit. The guests brought a gift certificate for me as a thank you for some stuff I'd done for them. It was an unexpected BIG treat and a done deal so I couldn't refuse. I'll be finishing off all the woodwork that still needs to be completed on my house - and there will probably be more left on the certificate for some new tools!

I'm working my way, sort of speed reading, through the book for the Music Book Group on Sunday. Thursday, I go for a very much needed haircut. I haven't had it cut for nearly six months...gotta look good for PR Sunday!

May my business do as well as the portable toilet business did today!

Catching Up

I decided that I'd better get to writing a post before dickiebo disowned me...or worse. There are just times that I haven't felt very inspired to write anything. It's not that I haven't anything to say or to write about, it's that I can't seem to motivate myself to get started on it. Overdoing other things, I guess.

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A week ago was the first Old Firehouse Craft Fair for this year. At 8:30 am, I hauled myself and my gear downtown. Actually, my mom did the hauling of my gear and me. She was there to give me a hand setting up. Then she left for most of the day, returning only to give me a break around lunch time and helping me pack up at the end. The fair lasted from 10 am until 4 pm. Being as it was very poorly advertised (read 'next to nil'), attendance was slimmer than I had hoped. As you know, Mary and Beth came down and they made my first sales of the day! Later in the afternoon I sold some more packages of notecards and a couple more easel minis. So, not as profitable as I had hoped and I will be modifying my items for sale. The next fair will be on July 5 and I'll be there. I'm adding two or three new products to my inventory. One of which is still in 'development' but I'll whisper the idea to you as long as you promise to spread the word! Added to the product line will be wearable oil paintings. I am in the process of creating necklaces featuring original oil paintings on ivory (authentic elephant ivory reclaimed from old piano keys). There may be another new product or two, but all will still focus on oil paintings of regional scenes.

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Other stuff...My participation in 'Pay It Forward' is nearly done. One person that I nominated did not respond to my address request but it is understandable why. The 'gift' is still here, waiting, just in case.

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Key work is still coming in on a somewhat regular basis. Friday I shipped out two finished sets.
One went to God, the other to Jesus. They both had addresses with a view.

Truly.

My mom said that I'd better hope they liked my work!

So as to be able to remember to notify them when their keys would arrive, I wrote the information on the back of a business card from the shipping company. It read:

God Weds
Jesus Mon

The company name on the flip side is ESP.

Left the shipper's hoping I didn't lose the card someplace along the sidewalk. Might scare the person who would find it!

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Oh rats! Yes, indeed. And I've named him Junior. Mom called to me a few evenings ago to look out her back window. Lo and behold, there was an enormous rat darting in and out from under the fence in to my mom's garden. He was eating the birdseed that had fallen to the ground from the feeder. We don't like this one bit, folks. We like chipmunks. We like squirrels. But mice and fat rats....NO!

Sooooooooo, today we headed for the hardware store to see what there was to see in the 'rid yourself of rodents' department. There's not much. First item was the monstrous spring-loaded trap. Not an option. Might catch Chippy or Son of Squirt instead. Then there were the sticky traps and we ruled them out for the same reason. We could have purchased a humane trap, but then what does one do with a live rat? Can't really release it many places for it to thrive. We thought and thought and then very reluctantly opted for poison. Now, no lectures about what these poisons do. I know what they do. I don't like what they do. But THIS IS A RAT. We had located Junior's home nestled down and between the roots of an old tree stump. Today, while Junior slept, we inserted a poison briquette in his home. We covered it and the opening well with plastic weighted down with granite. We wanted to make sure that no cats (or squirrels or chipmunks) could get to the poison. Hopefully, tonight will be Junior's last supper.

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And finally...upon the suggestion of a few colleagues, I've written a story for publication. Watch for updates.

The Promenade, The Boulevard

A while back dickiebo posted some pictures that were a visual play on the similarities between Sumner, New Zealand and his home of Mumbles, Wales. And then just a few days ago he posted some photos that were taken while he and B were walking along the Promenade in Mumbles.

One in particular caught my eye.

This is dickiebo's photo along the Promenade. After seeing dickiebo's, I went to nearby Gloucester, MA and took this photo to offer in return! This is The Boulevard. And if it seems a tad blurry, there's a reason. When I stood out there to take the photo, the temperature was about 25°F with winds gusting to 40mph! I had to lean against the railing to try to keep the camera steady.

Of course the tide being out on the east side of the Atlantic MUST mean that it was in on the west side....LOL

Tonsa Turds

I just thought that this would be an appropriate post to follow the last one!

My mom and I were taking a scenic tour through the streets of Rockport the other evening. Just to annoy the tourists, and to try to get a pic of a local cop "out of cruiser" for dickiebo, I drove down to the end of Bearskin Neck and back. Always fun to inch up behind unsuspecting tourists who haven't a clue that cars are allowed, could've wiped out dozens (snicker). Anyway, we survived the trip out the "Neck" and headed up Main Street. For some reason, I looked over at the Art Association as we passed by, and lo and behold....Look Ma, giant turds! It's got to be an homage to all the freely roaming dogs of Rockport.

Here's another view...somewhat less turd-like. Yet I would like to make a couple comments. My camera was held straight to the world. The front lawn of the Art Association is sloped. Wouldn't you think that a professional would display this piece better. I really think that the whole thing should have been leveled in some manner or displayed directly on the grass (more snickers). Actually, I think the whole piece should at least be hidden indoors. Fantastic turd-like color, though!

The Wild Life

I've been noticing the increase in wildlife this year. That also has me thinking about the differences between here on Cape Ann and "back home" in Florida. I like Florida wildlife. I don't mean 'gators. We didn't have many of those in our neighborhood! We frequently saw nifty things like possum and armadillo. The possum were naturally curious and would peer in the screen door at night. Sort of startling to see this HUGE, white, ratlike face staring at you with it's pink beady eyes. Armadillo have to be one of the strangest. Just like little, slow moving tanks until they argued with traffic. Armadillo were possibly the most often seen "road-kill".

Then, of course, the birds. My favorite was Eubie, "our" white heron. Eubie was named after Eubie Blake, the famous piano player. That's because every time I had a piano in the workshop that I was playing, Eubie (the bird) would walk right in and listen. He'd stand a bit sideways to me and tilt his head in the direction of the music.

Here's a picture of Eubie standing on the roof rack of my mini-van.

We found out that white herons really enjoy hot dogs! They will walk right in to the kitchen if you let them. We also found out that they will NOT eat giant grasshoppers. Seems that nothing will. Yep, folks, we had grasshoppers sooooo big and sooooo brightly colored that we called them "Nukers". They hatched by the thousands in the garden each June as cute little black hoppers. By July they were as big as a cat and ugly. They were bright green and red and yellow, with just a few spots of black. And guess what? They could even fly a short distance....very short, and okay, they weren't quite as big as a cat, but I challenge you to have the nerve to squish one. They liked to munch on broad-leafed plants like philodendron.

So ......more birds.....our woodpeckers were giants, too. Our street was lined with Washingtonian palms. You can see the better part of one behind Eubie. The woodpeckers loved them. Too much! These trees were about 80 years old and near the end of their life. Woodpeckers would attack them, repeatedly drilling holes around and around the trunk. The next big storm would come along and over the tree would go! Most everyone on the street had planted new palms in anticipation of the demise of the old.

Not all the critters in Florida were big. Squirrels were scrawny compared to their northern counterparts. I guess it's because they don't need insulation from the cold. Here's a picture of the squirrel that comes for breakfast each morning in Rockport. "Squirt" had finished his meal and had decided to put his butt in the dish and relax. In this picture he is watching the sparrows, and Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal, flitting to the bird feeder that is beyond his capabilities to dine from. Eventually he fell asleep with his butt in the dish.

I wish there was a way to have my camera ready and then to be able to take photos while I'm driving. Probably not a good idea, though. In the last week or so I've seen 3 wild turkeys along Nugent Stretch. Two, on separate occasions, ran across the road in front of me, and today, there was a large male turkey walking alongside the road. Yesterday, on my way home from a tuning job near the golf course in East Gloucester, a cute little bunny ran in front of me. Then of course last Fall was the large buck.

Now, all of this wildlife talk is just a preview for my next post. AND.....that post will be about the surprise.

Just Ducky and a Puzzle

First the poor ducky. What would possess someone to keep a duck, all by itself, in a dog crate, in their front yard? This duck lives alone on Main Street. I don't get it. Why?




















And now the puzzle. Can't you solve it? What is this? Located at the top of Summit Avenue on Poole's Hill. This is now on town property. There was a large house located nearby at the turn of the century. Gee, now I have to say around 1900 (rather than the last turn)! The property was given to the town (I don't know when). It became the Leander Haskins Hospital. When the hospital closed, the buildings were demolished. The largest "mound" of granite rocks is about 7 feet tall. I have asked many longtime and life long residents. I have asked at the historic society. Some folks didn't even know these existed. Any ideas?

My Two Cents Worth

Well, first off, the title. I found a whopping two pennies today. My former dad-in-law once said that he was working towards an hourly salary that would exceed the value of the time spent picking up "found" change.

Hmmmmmm.....so I figured it out. It took me 2 seconds to pick up one of the pennies. Your actual time may vary. So, at my rate, I would earn 30 cents/minute. This translates to $18 per hour. Why did I pick them up?

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Amanda has been sick this week. Her patience is soooooo low. It makes her a whining pain in the rear. (I'm trying to be nice in my description)

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As you may recall, I had caught up on a lot of work and decided to work on some house stuff. Every time that happens and I just get started on "non-work" stuff, well.....work comes in. Four sets of keys this week! I'm still working on the melodeon in between, and then some great to look forward to news........

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FP called on Wednesday and asked, "Are you ready for that player piano?" YIPPEEEEEE! Our "jointly owned" 1910, 64/88 note, upright Baldwin player piano was loaded up for the trip north on Wednesday afternoon. It will make some transit stops before it arrives. I'm soooo excited. Thank you FP for letting me take care of it once again (and finish the work I started on it). Now while this is great news, it too created yet more work. Remember the new deck I wrote about and about creating "roll in" access for pianos and reed organs?

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Thursday I took some measurements and headed for our local Ace Hardware and Smith Lumber. 3 - 2X4X8's, 2 - 1X6X8's, 1 - 4X8 19/32 exterior sheathing cut to 2 - 2X8's, and one box of 2" drywall screws (I had some 2.5s), for building the removable "bridge" from the right of way to the deck. I finished building it this morning. I've gone outside and prepared the fence section along the right of way for removal. Tomorrow, I'll buy 4 galvanized angle brackets. They will be installed on the fence posts and the rails will be drilled so that the section can be held in place by the insertion of four "pins". The entire section will be made removable. Then I'll be removing the larger section of decorative fence that is part of the deck. Later, when the new deck is built, there will be a gate in the deck section. Sometime in the next few days I'll haul the "bridge" up from the workshop and do a test fit, just in case any modifications are needed. So, when needed I'll have access by bridge, at all other times it will look exactly as it does now, fence intact, no bridge, a section of deck-fence that will swing like a gate.

Did I mention how excited I am? Thanks a million times over FP.

PS With this post I'm going use and try to remember to use in the future the "labels" feature offered with Blogspot.