Stress Reduction Operations

Yesterday was the most fun I’ve had with my clothes on in a long time and something I sorely needed after the stress of passport retrieval efforts over the past week. The fun was confined to the evening when the Keene Friend and I journeyed south to spend time with my sister and her incomparable in-laws at my favorite Irish bar – McShawn’s.

Keene Friend and My Sister at McShawn's

Keene Friend and I were also ferrying Buddy the Wonder Pooch to my sister’s house for safekeeping over the next week as I hopefully head south for a tropical spousal reunion. Buddy immediately ran into my sister’s backyard and atop her frozen pool to serve notice to the neighborhood squirrels that the law had returned. I can’t believe how much I miss having him around as I write this. He’s usually at my side as I write imploring me to finish with the damned computer and do something more constructive – like pat him.

The Senator Meeting with his Constituents

Keene Friend and I went out to dinner with my brother in law before the McShawn’s experience. This was a lot of fun also as we spent the time solving all the Red Sox’ problems as well as reliving last week’s completely awesome Super Bowl. My brother in law works in the sports media and we grilled him mercilessly for his “inside” information which he took in stride, dinner went by too quickly. The rapid quality of dinner was more than redeemed when we reached McShawn’s where we were shortly surrounded by my sister and my brother in law’s entire family. Keene Friend, known as “The Senator”, in this circle of friends was greeted like a returning hero now that he has shed his prison like work schedule.

Brother in Law and Keene Friend

We normally take over a corner table and hold forth from that strategic location. That table was already taken by a group even older than we were so we took over one side of the bar. The general consensus, first voiced by my sister, was that sitting/standing at the bar was a better alternative because it gave people the opportunity to circulate. She may be on to something there because the entire evening was spent shifting between people, catching up, and admiring the new bartender.

The New Bartender

McShawn’s was recently sold and the new owner invested in a very comely lady who is also a top notch bar tender. She took very good care of us all night and was a good sport as the inanity levels peaked late in the evening. There were two very lovely young ladies carrying around a strange looking device encased in a clear plastic container. It turns out they were Heineken representatives demonstrating a new brewing process. The bartender quickly surmised my affinity for beer and steered the young ladies in my direction since they were also providing free samples of their product. I am talking about the beer for those of you with subterranean imaginations. The bar also boasted a bevy of young Italian-American ladies (this was Rhode Island) celebrating a bachelorette party.

McShawn's With Ms. Photogenic 2015

I spent a lot of time with the very photogenic sister of my brother in law carefully avoiding any talk of the Red Sox. I did want to subject them to her arcane powers. I’m still convinced she had something to do with last season’s debacle although she continues to profess innocence.

If dinner was too fast than the night at McShawn’s may have shattered the light speed barrier because all too soon Keene Friend and I were on our way back to Charlton, Buddy-less. Keene Friend volunteered to drive which was a good thing otherwise we would still be walking back. The drive back, what I remember of it, was through a snow storm (of course) and we even stopped at my wife’s old friend, TJ Maxx, so I could properly christen the location. For the amount of money I send their way each month I should not receive any complaints.

Namesake Nephew and I Later in the Evening

I awoke this morning to another three inches of snow to clear and learn the Keene Friend had made one of his patented early morning escapes. The house is entirely too lonely but I still had a smile on my face remembering the comradery of Saturday evening at McShawn’s.

Then I learned my flight to Panama for tomorrow was cancelled because of another huge snow storm. The stress returns as I’m now waiting for a ticket agent to answer the phone, although I’ve been told several hundred times already that they value my business and appreciate my patience (if they only knew). More tomorrow on how this turns out.

Finally Success but Tempered

I was on pins and needles for the past couple days waiting to see if my Hail Mary passport procurement efforts would bear fruit. I monitored the process from afar as the company I went to reported the passport was enroute back. Shortly after noon I checked the tracking number and learned it had been left on my front porch. Based on the way my luck has been running I drove home from work to insure the winds didn’t bury it in the front yard snow.

With My New Passport

Buddy was surprised and not a little pleased with an early arrival to break his daily wait for humans. He performed some snow swimming while I retrieved the passport. The joy of the new passport is tempered with the weather reports. I needed the passport to travel on Monday morning. Yet another snow storm starts tomorrow and is supposed to run into Tuesday with 10 to 15 inches+. My only hope is that the brunt of the storm doesn’t come in until later on Monday and my flight can get out.  Was it only a couple weeks ago that I remarked on the complete lack of snow?

Brew City Yesterday With the Operations Manager Thanking My Excellent Boss

I hate having all this hovering over the prospect of reuniting with the spousal unit and tropical temperatures. Since my son and now the ABFA are flu stricken they will not be joining me today as planned. The Keene Friend is journeying south to co-pilot a Rhode Island thunder run where he is known as “the Senator” due to his resemblance to the serving Rhode Island US Senator. 

First Friday celebrations were well attended and the best boss in the world even paid for the entire party as a bon voyage gift. (just hope I get to do the voyage part) Brew City even had the Super Bowl replay on most of the screens. The waiter reported game day was crazy at the bar with the place literally exploding at game’s end. There were some very confused Japanese exchange students besieged with the requirement to high five without really understanding why.  

Running Ascended

I have come to truly loathe my driveway – it’s become a war of wills. I expect and can deal with the snow, even the constant series of storms over the past two weeks. My issue is having to clear the driveway repeatedly because the snow is so light and the winds seem to delight in putting the snow back after I dutifully clear the damned thing. Yesterday we only got four inches which is a minor inconvenience compared to the past couple weeks. I cleaned the first three inches before heading to work. I left work a little early in order to get Buddy his annual town license to be awesome and since for the second time in two weeks I forgot my wallet I had to swing by the house, expecting the last inch of snow to be coating the driveway. This is what I found (see photo). The winds had moved the light snow and filled the driveway up to the level of the snowbanks – from two to four feet high. Can a driveway be haunted? Maybe there’s an ancient Indian burial ground under the thing.

Luckily the snow remained light and was easily moved (downwind). I think I’ve fallen in love with my snow blower (again). Morale maintenance did take a fairly hard hit when I spoke with my son last night. He’s got a bad case of the flu and probably won’t be joining me this weekend, as planned. When I dutifully reported this illness to my wife I was subjected to a biting rebuke on my failures as a father. I posted a photo of my son last week which showed him in a short sleeved shirt. She knows how cold it’s been and immediately connected the dots to blame his attire for his illness. I was repeatedly asked why I allowed my nearly thirty year old son go about so lightly dressed. Things that make you go “huh?”

The Photo That Got Me Into Trouble - Somehow

Once I did get the driveway clear I snuck out for another movie – going to see Jupiter Ascending. This hasn’t received a lot of love from the critics but it was a true attempt at science fiction on a colossal scale. Mila Kunis plays a contemporary Chicago cleaning woman who’s unwittingly heir to one of the great family fortunes in a galaxy spanning empire. She’s unaware of this until Channing Tatum, sporting elven ears as a disgraced genetically enhanced soldier, shows up to rescue her from a series of alien assassination attempts. (I know most of the ladies are now wondering how Tatum could possibly be “enhanced” any further)

Since I’m a certified sci fi nerd I really liked the movie which focused, maybe a little too much on the technology of the hidden civilization which is several million years in advance of ours. The criticisms are valid as there’s a lot of stop and go and jumping around without fully fleshing out who all the players are. It’s a little bit of a mess but it’s a gloriously beautiful and textured mess. In a huge plot twist, Sean Bean is in the movie but doesn’t get killed.

I wandered away from fiction in my latest book, reading The Run of His Life, The People Versus O.J. Simpson, by Jeffrey Toobin. The title tells you all you need to know about the content. I stayed away from all OJ related media following the trial as I was as disgusted as most of America was by the verdict. I chose Toobin’s book because I heard it was the most balanced and provides a lawyer’s take on the antics of both the prosecution and defense. It related pretty much what I thought had happened but did offer some fascinating and downright scathing assessments of the people involved, especially Robert Shapiro as well as O.J. of course. He’s no less forthright in pointing out the arrogant ineptitude of the prosecution as well.

The verdict was also more understandable given the background Toobin provides on the history of racial injustice perpetrated by the LAPD upon the generation of black jurors who easily believed an astoundingly farfetched police conspiracy to frame OJ. This allowed them to ignore the literal mountain of scientific evidence that clearly established OJ as the killer. Before reading this book I might have harbored some small doubts about his guilt. They evaporated upon reading this.

Some of Toobin’s words, concerning the defense team:  “Their dilemma then, was the oldest, as well as the most common, quandary of the criminal defense attorney: What to do about a guilty client.  The answer, they decided, was race. Because of the overwhelming evidence of Simpson’s guilt, his lawyers could not undertake a defense aimed at proving his innocence-one that sought to establish, say, that some other person had committed the murders. Instead in an astonishing act of legal bravado, they sought to create for the client-a man they believed to be a killer-the mantle of victimhood.”

Best News Almanac

I was a little distracted yesterday. Not only was I churning through the bureaucracy and mortgaging significant amounts of treasure to secure a new passport but I was worried about my younger sister’s spinal surgery. I had to wait until well into the evening to hear from my sister’s fiancé. He reported that she came through the seven hour operation with flying colors and was responding well in the recovery room – able to fully move all extremities. I know he’s anxious to get her back home, hopefully as early as Saturday. Thanks to all who sent prayers and positive energy her way yesterday – it helped.

I lost basically a complete day and a half of focus to the lost passport and my excellent boss while supportive was a little nervous because I had to present an analysis to the political leadership this morning on a comprehensive review of the system. Up until sending out the emergency passport forms around noon yesterday I hadn’t even looked at the report. I’m sneakily a little proud of myself because the following four hours were the most concentrated work effort I’ve achieved in years, at least since leaving the military. I always tell people I feel a little like I’m stealing money because the work is comparatively easy to what I did in the military, so yesterday I completely earned the money – at least in the afternoon. The presentation this morning was a huge success.

Trophy Parade

As bad as the day was for me yesterday, stress wise, I turned on the TV in my office to semi-watch the Patriots championship parade in Boston. It was a reminder of the close relationship between the entire region and our sports teams. While the past decade and a half we’ve “suffered” an embarrassment of riches with the success of our teams there was nothing jaded about yesterday’s celebration and you could tell the players were genuinely moved by the outpouring of affection. Maybe this will help us re-sign Revis!

The other night in the middle of my frenzied search for the missing passport (at this point if I find the damned thing I’m going to be really pissed) I escaped the stress with a movie – seeing Project Almanac. I was genuinely surprised at how watchable this teenaged angst filled time travel story was. A group of high school nerds stumble upon a time travel device and use it to hilariously pass a test and attend a concert amongst other tasks.

Since drama was needed the budding romance between the head nerd and his dream girl is endangered by cataclysmic ripple effects. The young cast does well making this semi-believable and being likable. I thought this is exactly what hormone fueled teenagers would do with a time machine. My only complaint was the use of the “found video” technique where everything had to be filmed by one of the cast members. It was forced and more jarring than was needed because the story and the acting was enough to carry the film.

Front Yard This Morning

Since it had been more than 24 hours since I needed to use the snow blower Mother Nature hit back this morning with three additional inches coating the driveway. For the first time in a long time the storm wasn’t accompanied by brutal winds and temperatures so I was snow blowing garbed in my leisure pants which I’m sure the neighbors appreciated. The lack of winds had the snow coating all the trees which I probably would have appreciated for the natural beauty if I wasn’t so entirely sick of the white stuff. Now I hear there’s a major storm inbound at precisely the time I’m supposed to be flying out for Panama next week. That would really, really suck (just sayin). The best thing about yesterday, aside from my sister’s recovery, was a long conversation with my Cali-daughter. I’m sure she does a little jig every time she hears about more East Coast snow but she provided a much needed morale boost. That boost should be maintained tomorrow if the passport arrives but more so because the ABFA and son may be darkening my doorsteps for some long delayed Rhode Island thunder running on Saturday. That would definitely help the stress reduction effort.

My Wife (in dark dress) Seen with her Grandparents
She's Younger Here than Either of our "Kids"

Passport Perdition

My thoughts today first and foremost today are with my little sister who’s going under the knife (or whatever they use nowadays) to fix her spinal injury. A distant second would be the dilemma of my own idiocy at losing my passport five days before I’ll need it to leave the country for a few days. I returned home early yesterday because I may have the best boss in the Western World. He knew how concerned I was and sent me home a couple hours early so I could search the house for the third and fourth time (see below for how the search started).

At this point I can guess that at some point in the past year I accidentally threw the passport away – like I said – idiotic. You’ll note I’m late posting today; that would be a result of spending the morning rushing around accumulating documents to get an emergency passport issued. In the true spirit of American entrepreneurship – there are people out there ready to capitalize on garden variety morons such as myself.

I contacted the web site Google recommended and for the investment of all the money I saved with my airline ticket coup they promised me a new passport in time to travel. Since the IT folks at work overnight increased security everything took four times as long. A couple frantic phone calls to the agency and some rushed photos had me standing in front the passport agency at the Worcester post office. I then journeyed across Worcester with a sealed envelope which UPS promises to have in Chicago tonight and I’m supposed to get the new passport by Friday.

I Should Teach Buddy This
Yesterday's "Treasure" Came from the Other End Though

I thought I’d seen the last of the pot roast that Buddy absconded with on Monday night but as soon as I opened the door yesterday to start my search the all too familiar odor that assaulted my senses put a lie to that belief. Either the richness of the pot roast or the sheer amount he consumed conspired to severely impact Buddy’s digestive system and liquefied treasure awaited me – a more complete ending for the day would be hard to imagine. Buddy looked properly stricken by his deposits which at least were confined to the basement although artistically distributed. I still don’t think this will dissuade him from another counter climbing adventure should the opportunity ever present itself.

My Wife (L) With Some High School Buddies Yesterday

My wife tried to supervise the passport search from Panama with limited success. She’s always the one who finds the things I lose – usually because she’s the one who “tidied up” the item I’m looking for. She commiserated with my predicament as well as marshalling family and friends to add some tropical prayers for my sister’s surgery. She ran into some high school classmates she hadn’t seen in forty years yesterday and found out there’ll be a high school reunion a few days after I return from Panama – so at least one silver lining for the past couple days. I’m not saying I would not have relished the opportunity – well maybe I am.

At this point I’m going to focus on sending positive thoughts towards my little sister. She’s in Boston at the same time at the Patriots’ victory parade wends through the snow snarled streets in her vicinity; so maybe some other silver linings – all that joy has to help. I’m going to wait and do my taxes after I return from Panama – not in any mood to tempt fate at this point.

Snowfall Induced Funk

Halfway Through the Storm Yesterday

I find myself really down today and I cannot begin to explain it. It could be the cosmos recovering some of the height achieved Sunday night when the Butler did in the Seahawks. It’s always tough to maintain such a great natural high, especially when confronted with a completely empty house. Well a completely empty house under siege from yet another massive snow storm (17-18”) and brutal winds. Well a besieged house where my supposed best friend, Buddy the Wonder Pooch, steals half of my week’s planned lunches. Oh and I may have lost my passport with an international trip planned for Monday. The worst news of all however was a serious fall by my younger sister who watched the Super Bowl from a Boston hospital bed while awaiting spinal surgery.

My Little Sister - Pre-Fall

She was taking out the rubbish when a porch railing gave way which induced a spectacular face plant onto her driveway from the height of the porch. Her fiancé filled me in on the details yesterday and I spoke with her shortly thereafter. A snow bank may have saved her life but she did severely lacerate her face and broke her nose. One of her vertebrae is pressing on her bruised spinal cord which will require surgery tomorrow. My thoughts and prayers are with her and her stalwart fiancé.

Buddy Out Swimming in the Snow Yesterday

I was trapped in the house yesterday as the storm arrived to remind punch-drunk New Englanders that winter was still around and playing for keeps. I was smarter this time and took on the driveway in stages, going out about halfway through the storm and then again last night when the snow finally stopped. I was rewarded this morning by having to do it a third time when the winds overnight deposited two foot drifts down the length of it. I am so ready for my scheduled trip to Panama and not just for the connubial reunion which will highlight it.

The Criminal Approaches the Scene of the Crime

I followed my weekend routine yesterday with a pot roast simmering all day to serve as my lunch for the work days this week. I carved it into four containers to cool while I went out for nocturnal snow blowing. I’m not a complete idiot and placed the containers what I thought was a safe distance from the edge of the counter as a hedge against the well documented proclivities of Buddy.

Driveway This Morning - Total of 56 Inches of Snow Over Last Seven Days

He loved all the snow and spent part of the evening out swimming through the drifts while I was moving the snow around. He eventually tired and since it was brutally cold out as well I let him back in the house ahead of me. When I came in after finishing I tripped over one of the food containers my now former lunch had occupied. I don’t know how the hell he did it without jumping all the way up onto the counter but he scored two out of the four lunches. Coming into the house completely frozen and tired does not put someone in the best frame of mind to deal with this type transgression and he knew immediately he was in serious trouble. The food container had not completed its arc from the kick I delivered upon it when Buddy slunk into his kennel to contemplate his crime and continued existence, which at that point in time was not a sure thing. Damned dog just cannot control himself around food. I’m actually a little impressed on how he pulled it off.

The Snow Drift the Wind Deposited Overnight
The Driveway Was Cleared to the two Snow Posts Last Night

Finally I have a very bad habit of putting things I know I’m going to need in a special location so I’ll be able to find it. The bad part about the habit is that I invariably forget where I put that needed object. Such is the case with my passport which I haven’t used or needed in over a year but will definitely go a long way I getting me through Panamanian immigration next week, that is if I could just find it. I’ll be doing a top to bottom search of the house tonight in hopes of discovering where my moronic choice of hiding place was. Stay tuned and please say a prayer for my little sister.

Wife and the Former Mrs Cantankerous Friend Hiding Out in the Tropics 

My Daughter Posted One of her Signature Jumps From Where She Watched SuperBowl
Looks to be a Little Warmer Out in Cali

Late Night Redemption Ride

Alright – I’m still a little agitated as I sit at home as another major snow storm swirls outside. Last night was a Super Bowl for the ages as the Patriots stormed back to stun the Seahawks. I was lucky enough to watch the game at Keene Friend’s house along with Keene Friend 2, his girlfriend and son. The Cantankerous Friend came over pre-game insults before returning home. That is the way to watch football – surrounded by friends.

Post Game With Fellow Fans

The Patriots outplayed the vaunted Seahawks for most of the game except for a good chunk of the third quarter. Down by ten points entering the fourth quarter Brady went into assassin mode leading the Pats on two touchdown drives that seemed inevitable. I told the assembled group entering the 4^th quarter that the final score would be 28-24. That only happened because the football gods finally tired of tormenting the Patriots fans. They lost their last two Super Bowls because of two incredible catches – including that will shall not be uttered (the Tyree catch). Just a few yards from the scene of that crime it seemed to be happening again when a desperate Seahawks pass was perfectly defensed by the Patriots only to have the ball fall into the arms of a prostrate Seahawk receiver. With the best running back in the league and the ball on the 1 yard line it seemed like the Patriots were once again going to be deprived through a stunning turn of events. Then the impossible happened, the Seahawks chose to pass and the same rookie corner back victimized on the earlier miraculous play made an interception for the ages – game over! Malcolm Butler will never have to pay for a drink in New England again. The room erupted as several decades of maturity rapidly evaporated in the wake of the improbable turn of events. We were yelling “You mad, Bro!!” at that self-important gasbag of a publicity whore, Richard Sherman, as he trudged off the field.

The Impossible Catch

The Improbable Game Ending Interception

Gasbag Reacts

Texts were flying as family celebrations took place in Portsmouth (son/ABFA), California (Daughter), Virginia (Wingman), and Panama (wife and family). Since the current storm was inbound requiring a late night drive I had to watch the game sans adult beverages but the ending provided a high no alcohol could have hoped to contend with. This was the proverbial “most fun with my clothes on” type of event. I stayed longer than I expected after the game to bask in the afterglow of emotion both on the field and Keene Friend’s living room with the dedicated Patriots fans. It seemed like the cosmos finally noticed the scales needed to be re-balanced after the legions of Patriots haters had held sway for so long – so, incredibly and deliciously sweeeeeeet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wingman in Virgnia

Daughter Poolside in Cali 

Buddy and I eventually did have to hit the road to beat this latest storm home. The ride south to Charlton was kind of surreal. I have established a route off the main highways that winds through a bunch of small New England towns and villages. I’ve made the trip many times late at night and invariably it’s like driving through a deserted, somnambulant landscape. Not last night. It was after midnight but I passed lots of other cars on the road as fellow Patriots fans made their own way home from where they had enjoyed the game. It was a little nerve wracking because I’m sure not all of them had followed my alcohol free regimen making every oncoming car on the narrow country roads a point of concern. I also noticed virtually every house that I passed still had lights on and the flickering shadows of a TV still turned on. They like yours truly did not want the night to end – cosmic balance – indeed.

When I finally did get home I didn’t have to clear my driveway (yet) after three iterations on Saturday due to winds. Still high on emotions from the game I decided to celebrate with a couple beers while sharing texts with daughter and Wingman which made the night for me. Buddy staged a mini-protest by dutifully ignoring me since he had spent the entire game in his kennel> The dangerous mix of Keene Friend’s usual cornucopia of snacks at stalking level required that.

I watched and re-watched the highlights of the game while sharing the feelings with my far flung family. The funniest bit was learning my wife watched the game with her mother who had never seen an American football game before but was in tears along with my wife at the end. I laughed out loud at the image of my wife with her tenuous grasp of the game trying to explain it to her mother.

I get another snow day off today (thank God) as the political bosses didn’t want service out on the road with just a mere 10-15” of snow expected. I need the rest. I’ve included some additional photos below from the past weekend to catch up on some of the family’s comings and goings: son and ABFA with Wingman at his sold out Boston concert Friday night, late afternoon philosophy session with the Keene Friend at the ultimate sports bar – Scores in Keene, and my wife’s family at a pre-Super Bowl beach day at Las Lajas, Panama.  PATS RULE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Son and ABFA Friday Night

Wingman on Stage

Backstage with Son, Wingman, ABFA, and my Cousin's Son

Philosophy Majors Satruday Afternoon

My Wife's Family YEsterday

At My Favorite Beach