Category Archives: Massachusetts

Some This and That and a Map

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This and That

We finally had a week of nice weather. Temps in the 70’s & even 80’s. Low humidity. Sunshine and a breeze. Prefect days And I was on vacation! How did I get so lucky? So how did I spend my vacation? Did I take an exotic vacation? Did I bust out my camera and go adventuring? Nope. I sorted and cleaned and still didn’t get everything done. But I made a dent. At least now I don’t look quite so much like a participant on an episode of Hoarders.

With the nice weather I wasn’t afraid to re-pot my Thanksgiving Cactus and move it outside.

That may save it’s life. Balboa was fixated on it and pruned (chewed on it)  it every day. I started some cat grass for him and hope that by fall when I bring the cactus back inside that he’ll be over it. 

 

Boxes – Gone

I crushed up the Chewy boxes and dragged them out to the recycle bin. There will be more but at least for the week I got my Livingroom back. I don’t mind stepping over the boxes as long as the cats are playing with  them but when they stop – out go the boxes.

 

And speaking of boxes. I cleaned out my file cabinet and packed up my taxes and bank statements so I can start filing all the paper that’s piled on my desk. Hey folks, we’re in the age of digital! What ever happened to a paperless society?

Travel

I follow several consumer and travel websites. I’m still not convinced that this is a good year to travel. Restrictions are being lifted all over. Next week Massachusetts is removing all COVID restrictions. The most recent advisory that I’ve seen on domestic travel  says we’ll still need  to mask up to fly but if you are fully vaccinated that’s about the only time you’ll need a mask. You won’t need a negative COVID test either.  The exception might be Hawaii. I haven’t seen an update on their restrictions yet. 

One issue that I’m still seeing in the news is the rental car shortage. In fact I recently heard a car dealership advertising that even new car purchases are being affected by the car shortage! I’ve been hearing of rental prices of over $1000 for a 1 week rental and that wasn’t a high end luxury vehicle either. That rental was from Fort Lauderdale airport. Rental car charges are one of my biggest expenses when I travel so I’m watching that closely. As rental companies restock their inventories I’m sure those fees will come down.  Until then I’ll wait.

The Map

I finished adding photos of the states I’ve visited to the map.

 

There are 4 states that I’m debating about.  Years ago I went to a drum and bugle corp. competition in Allentown PA. I remember it rained and our tent leaked. It wasn’t a fun trip but still I was there. I don’t have any pictures and I don’t feel like I really got a feel for the state.  

South Carolina is another one. My brother got married in South Carolina. My sister-in-law is from Charleston  and I attended their wedding. I bet I could get a wedding picture from them to mark off South Carolina but there’s so much about that state that I want to explore that I’m reluctant to take it off the list.

#3 is Illinois. Again it’s a really old trip and it was for work. I had a week long training in Chicago. It was my first ever work trip and one of my first times on a plane.  There wasn’t much sight seeing. I was too introverted at the time and remember being kind of overwhelmed.  No pictures of that trip either.

Last but not least was my brother’s retirement from the Navy in Kenosha Wisconsin. I think I have a few pictures of my brother in his dress whites in a photo album. 

Although technically these 4 states meet my criteria I didn’t really get much sight seeing done. What do you think? Should I add a picture (google has plenty) or leave them as “still to be visited”?

 

 

We’ve Played this Game Before

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We’ve Played this Game Before

Have you ever seen those games of lists on Facebook. You know the ones. They ask you things like how many of the following list of books you’ve read or how many classic films you’ve seen. There’s even a list of foods you hate! Well I was trying to visit all 50 states but I kind of got off track. So let’s play another version of the game called How Many states have you visited?

Rules of the GameWe've Played this game before

For a state to count you must have spent time there. You can’t count changing planes even if you do have a long layover. No you need to spend at least one full day there. Even better is a weekend or a vacation. For example, I had changed planes in Washington DC many times but I couldn’t cross Washington DC off the list until I spent a long weekend exploring the National Mall and looking at frozen cherry blossoms. If I truly want to experience the Cherry Blossoms I’ll need to go back but I can put a check by Washington DC.

The List of States

  1. Alabama – No
  2. Alaska – Yes- Breathtaking and majestic. Loved the glaciers
  3. Arizona – Yes- Sedona and Red Rock Country. I took my first helicopter ride in Arizona.
  4. Arkansas – No
  5. California – Yes but not for vacation (I spent 3 days in San Diego at a business convention)
  6. Colorado- No
  7. Connecticut – Yes (I spent a weekend in Old Saybrook but I don’t remember why)
  8. Delaware – No
  9. Florida – Yes- Love Florida, too bad it’s going to be underwater because of Global Warming. I go often to enjoy it while I can.
  10. Georgia – Yes The Georgia Aquarium is huge and don’t forget to go to the World of Coca Cola
  11. Hawaii –  Yes  Oahu, Big Island and Maui. Still need to go to Kauai. Best time is February when the whales put on quite a show. I also snorkeled with Manta Rays and watched Kilauea prepare to blow her top.
  12. Idaho – No
  13. Illinois- Yes But I need to go again. It was a business trip to Chicago, one of the first times I’d ever been on an airplane (a long time ago) I don’t remember much.
  14. Indiana – No
  15. Iowa – No
  16. Kansas – No
  17. Kentucky – No
  18. Louisiana – Yes, New Orleans. Great food!
  19. Maine – Yes Saw my first wild Moose there
  20. Maryland – Yes Went to the Navel Academy in Annapolis when my brother was a midshipman.
  21. Massachusetts – Yes I guess I can say Yes. I live in Massachusetts
  22. Michigan – No
  23. Minnesota – No
  24. Mississippi – No
  25. Missouri – No
  26. Montana- No
  27. Nebraska – No
  28. Nevada- Yes – Vegas Baby!  Great Shows Great Food Fun Times
  29. New Hampshire – Yes I explored the White Mountains
  30. New Jersey – No
  31. New Mexico – No
  32. New York – Yes My childhood home plus I have visited Niagara Falls several times
  33. North Carolina – No
  34. North Dakota – No
  35. Ohio -No
  36. Oklahoma – No
  37. Oregon – No
  38. Pennsylvania- No
  39. Rhode Island – Yes- Walked the cliff walk and visited the Mansions. Even went to a black tie ball in one
  40. South Carolina- Yes My brother’s wedding
  41. South Dakota – Yes That was an awesome vacation- So much to do there!
  42. Tennessee – Yes – Stayed in Gatlinburg and visited Pigeon Forge. Skipped Dollywood
  43. Texas – Yes – San Antonio. Stayed right on the River Walk
  44. Utah – No
  45. Vermont – Yes Maple Syrup anyone?
  46. Virginia – Yes Colonial Williamsburg and Busch Garden Christmas Town
  47. Washington State- Yes Spent a week on a business trip in Seattle. Took pictures from the top of the space needle and visited Chihuly Gardens
  48. West Virginia – No
  49. Wisconsin – Yes Say Cheese. Actually My brother’s retirement party from the Navy was held in Kenosha
  50. Wyoming – Yes One of my favorite places. Jackson Hole (Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone)
  51. Washington DC – Yes, On a frozen , icy weekend (as mentioned above)

Now Its Your Turn

What does your list look like? How Many states have you visited? Which of my “No” States should I visit next?

 

It’s a Banner Year for Fall Colors

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Fall Colors Abound

The fall foliage colors are amazing this year. Being in southern New England they just started turning this week but they began peaking last week in the more northern states. My cousin got to head north  to Maine and New Hampshire and shared some beautiful video on Face Book. If you have a minute you can check out her video here.    https://www.facebook.com/kathy.collins.7127/videos/10214903348962786/?t=0        In Southeastern Massachusetts we’ve had a no’reaster sitting off the coast of Nantucket all week. Lots of rain and high winds have made leaf peeping locally a bit of a challenge. Now if you like taking pictures in the rain- go for it. I’ve been a little too busy to mess with rain gear but it hasn’t stopped me from admiring the color changes.

Last Chance for 2019

Just as my cousin headed north for her vacation I’m heading south. I’m heading to the Florida Keys so today is the last chance I’ll have to get any fall foliage photos for this year. It looks like it’s stopped raining so maybe I’ll get lucky.  I think I can spare an hour to go poking around before I finish my packing. What do you think of these?

Leaf Peeping locally

I didn’t plan my vacation very well but it was the only time I could get in at the resort I wanted. Sometimes you just have to take what you can get. The newscasters have been talking about the colors along the Mohawk Trail this year and out toward the Berkshires. I won’t have time to make that drive but these photos from Raynham and Easton aren’t bad if I do say so. This is what I get to see everyday as I commute to work. Not a bad view. Of course I had to swing by the Norton Reservoir. That was always a pretty spot. It used to be on my drive when I worked in Foxboro.  I do miss that. I guess that’s all for now. Catch you all on the weekend.

A Sure Sign Of Fall

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New England Colors 2018

Its a Sure Sign Of Fall

Turkeys behind the office- Canton MA 2019

A sure sign that its fall in New England isn’t just the colorful foliage. Its the return of the turkeys. Some communities have reported the turkeys all year ’round but I usually see them in the fall.  How brave these birds are …or maybe stupid…to show up right before the big day. You know the one, pie, stuffing green bean casserole and oh yeah, that big bird in the middle of the table ready for carving. Do you suppose these wild birds know that we use turkeys that we grew just for the purpose of eating? 

Wild Turkeys Canton MA Oct 2019

Wild Turkeys are Mean

The wild turkeys we have around here are bold and aggressive. They have been known to trap motorists in their cars. They are either stupid or very brave as they show no fear of humans. Me, I’m kind of on the fence. I’ve been threatened by more Canada Geese than I have Turkeys. I like to photograph them. Now that I know they are back I plan to bring the good camera with me instead of relying my cell phone camera. I love when the males start strutting around, fanning their tails and displaying for all the lady turkeys.

Strange Turkey Behaviors

There was a turkey video that made it on to an Animal Planet show and I recently saw it again on “Strange Evidence”. Filmed in Randolph MA it seems to show a satanic turkey ritual. Why not? Randolph Is  only  a hop skip and jump from Salem MA. Why not a Coven of Turkeys?

Watch Out Turkeys

So all you Turkeys out there whether wild or witches BEWARE.  Turkey hunting season is upon us. Yes here in MA we can start defending ourselves on October 22. There are still some folks who prefer a wild turkey rather than domestic turkey for the center piece of their Thanksgiving table. 

 

Looks Like I’m back in Business

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I’m Back

I’m back online and ready to start sharing stories again. What an adventure this was. I’m still playing the password game. I also found out what happened to my old computer. It wasn’t a virus. It was Windows 10. Somehow the upgrade that I kept refusing managed to slip past me. Once it hit my old computer it was the begining of the end. I watched my old faithful electronic friend die a slow death. I lost files and apps and eventually the on/off functionality.  It was a frustrating and “painful” process.

My New Computer

I settled on a Dell computer this time. It has the same memory as my old one. I purchased it at Best Buy in Mansfield but they only had the floor model in stock. They found another one in stock for me at a Best Buy store in North Attleboro. I went to North Attleboro on that Saturday to pick it up but found out that I had to take it across the store to the Geek Squad section. It hadn’t been set up yet. I haven’t set up a new computer in years and when I did the new one at work last month I had the IT guy right there to handle all the data transfer. My work computer came from our home office with all of the apps installed. I am so spoiled. Anyway I figured I’d have Geek Squad do the same thing for me.

Geek Squad

Years ago I used Geek Squad to set up my computer. I had them come to my home and hook it up too. I hated the job they did and stayed away from them after that but I really didn’t want to deal with the set up this time. I’d set it up at home but with my sick computer holding photos and data I really didn’t want to mess with it. I left my new computer with a copy of a quicken application and the security software and headed home. It took 2 days  and I got a call the computer was ready. Now I disconnected the old one and headed back. If I’d understood the process I’d have given them the old computer the first time but I was still using it (or trying). In another 2 days the data transfer was done from my old computer.

Its finally home

When I finally picked up the new computer I made an appointment so there  was no waiting. The Geek Squad associate set up my computer right there in the store and showed me what was done. We went through all the data transfer so I could confirm it was correct and all there. In all my dealings with them they were professional and respectful. It was an amazingly good experience. Well done Geek Squad! Now I just have to finish downloading the remaining applications and I’ll be back in business.

Thank you!

Thanks to all my followers for hanging in there with me. We’re getting close to having some new and ( I think)  interesting posts…like an erupting volcano! Now if I can just remember all my passwords!

Lava Lake Glow