Curb Appeal

Joey's new mattress forces us to do a little cleaning. One vacuum cleaner bag later we have conquered the red shag tumbleweeds. New platform bed frame due in a few weeks.

Skip-Bo and Steak Tips

This is Skip-Bo. It's a card game that we played at Stacey and Dave's house.
This is Dave-Bo. He's the stud who grilled our meat. Next time he will smoke it.

f%$#ing cold

Petey is adorably warm under her Bucky.

It's 8 degrees tonight with a wind chill of wtf cold.

you be careful out among them English

Had a work function tonight. We won the scavenger hunt held at the Lowell Brewery. We cheated. I don't feel bad about it.

As a prize I get lunch served to me and get to sit in the VP of HR's office for a day.

This is Ed. He is a funny dude, but the other day he had bad gas in his office.

Don't mess with Trudi

She may not be wearing her favorite doo rag but Trudi is still a force to be reckoned with.

The crowd is shocked by her vulgarity...


Happy birthday, Joey! Make 17 a year to remember (no offspring required)!!

The return of OLIVIA

The girl that both our boys have had childhood crushes on returns to Newburyport to watch the Ipswich Boys Basketball team lose another tight one.

I felt a bit like a perv taking Olivia's picture in the hall of Newburyport High School. Especially when she shouted "Facebook me that picture!" as I was walking away.

Rainy days and Mondays...

Torrential rain today meant a wet basement and a new leaky bedroom window.
This is how I felt about it:

Bill isn't handy

Bill does not unclog the slow draining toilet.

Joey and Dad Day

Joey and I went to the University of Connecticut to watch the Huskies basketball team upset the top ranked Texas Longhorns.

Here are a few notes:

* This was the best display of fired up fans we've ever seen live

* UCONN is in the middle of no f%$#ing where. It's out as a possible college for Joey. Too remote

* I love spending time with Joey. I miss my one on one time with Bret, too. I think that makes me appreciate and savor my time with Joey more

* He tortured me with his foot odor and sneaky gas a few times during our 6 hours in the car today

I'm beat. It's a good tired, but I'm tired.

Good night monkeys.

New meaning to the Happy Meal

Two all beef peckers, special sauce......

Had our first McDonald's lunch in months. Lamyoung told us about the sex toy party she went to last weekend.

I would only kill the bad man

Other Monkey goes Amish hochmoot.

slow picture day

Got a spiffy new bamboo (ish) blind for the 3rd floor bathroom.

If it's as see-through as the ones in the living room then Laura is in for quite a man show.

"I just don't understand how anyone intelligent could disagree with my views..."

Tonight we anxiously await the outcome of the Massachusetts' senate election...TBD!

the simple things in life ...

....can amuse Jen for hours

That's cold, baby....

Newburyport after today's storm.

World's worst babysitter leaves the kids stroller outside during a snow storm.

F%$#ing Squirrels

The squirrel family, angry at having been tossed out of the attic, has taken to violence on our birdfeeders. They are no longer content with eating our bird seed. The upped the anti by ripping the feeder off of its chains.

big night out

Jennie gets ready for our big night in the city. We stayed overnight at The Bullfinch, had dinner with Dan and Chris at the Beehive and listened to some cool live jazz at Wally's.

We're a bit groggy today.

F%$#ing Kirby

Weighs in at 275lbs, it has hoses that rarely stay together and costs more than a vacation in the Bahamas.

The Kirby sucks.

There Will Be Cheese

No Lit Festival meeting would be complete without wine and cheese. Tonight's agenda - Beaujolais, Brillat-Savarin and volunteers....in that order.

boys night - alone....

Jennie watched movies with the girls, Mom wasn't feeling good, Joey had a late practice ..... Bill all alone.

First stop .... 2 guys smoke shop.

Closed. Damn.

Second stop .... Seacoast Cigars and Accessories.

Talked to Mike and then Randy for over an hour while watching the Celtics and The Jersey Shore while smoking a lovely cigar.

Note the use of the word "misguided"

I found this description about the superstition of putting your hat on the bed. Jennie will burn my hats after reading the last sentence.

"While a bit unclear of its exact origin, it seems the expression comes from a time when people believed that evil spirits lived in the hair. This misguided notion was likely fueled from the static electricity that would discharge in the air when taking a hat off in a warm, dry environment. So goes the superstition, don’t lay your hat where you’re going to lay your head because evil spirits spill out from hats. Of course this doesn’t make much sense. But then again, superstitions seldom do. Another twist on this misguided notion is one of sanitary origins. Keeping the hat off from the bed also meant keeping lice from infesting the hat or the bed."

Orange

Orange is an Ableman color.

Mac, Cheese & Lobster competition

Last night I asked our Russian waitress if the Mac-Cheese & Lobster at The River Merrimac rivaled 10 Center Street's. She must have told the owner because I think they put a whole lobster in there. Jen and I split the left overs today.

Local Lunch

Every Saturday for the past 3 years we've been going to the Purple Onion to share the buffalo chicken wrap. In the winter I have tomato soup too. As Petey would say, "Viva la Puerple Onion!"

A very peculiar boy

“After another moment's silence, she mumbled that I was peculiar, that that was probably why she loved me but that one day I might disgust her for the very same reason”

Family Dinner

It's been a long time since we ate together as a family....looks like Bill forgot how....

Mr.F*&%#ing Integrity

Ipswich loses to Masco. Our friend and referee for tonights game, Trey Lewis, couldn't do us a solid by giving us a few extra calls.

Beans beans they're good for your heart....

Bill didn't have a very smooth post holiday transition back at work. Not only did his boss make fun of his pink sweater but his lunch of pork chop and baked beans exploded in the office microwave. Then he has to come home to have Jen upset that he didn't photograph the carnage.
Instead we have this still life of chickens, beans, and a replica of a major award.

Last Day of Vacation

Out to lunch at Fowles...trying to keep that vacation feeling alive for a few more hours.
36 hours of snow in Newburyport looks like this:

Loved having Bret and his clan around for the week

That said, I'm beginning to look like an aging Eddie Munster...

Save Plum Island...from dancin' fools like Jen

A two day storm rocks New England. Plum Island is already under siege from the erosive forces of nature - now here is Jen doing a not-so-soft shoe....

The hardest part about skating is the ice

Skating at the Mall. Vintage New England and a beautiful first day of the year.

Petey Bella

Petey woke up from a night of dreaming of Edward after our midnight viewing of Twilight.