Find The Critter

Can you find the critter in the first pic below - 

Believe it or not, he gave himself away by the crunch, crunch, crunching from the nut he was gnawing on. Clearly, he was not concerned about hiding, rather his focus was on filling his belly and who can blame him -

A Red Squirrel, one of my favorites!

I’ve Got Unpackable Levels Of Enthusiasm!

“Moving boxes, because apparently I need all this stuff after all.”

I scored myself about 30 odd sized boxes off of Facebook Marketplace!

No more excuses. Seems I have my work cut out for me...

A Blast From The Past

My grandfather worked for Union Carbide in South Charleston, West Virginia for 41 years!

"Charlie Frye (with an "e") came here over 41 years ago. He spent 30 days in AX and 30 days in the catalyst, then went to ethanol operations for 24 years,  Since '69, Charlie has been in polyols as foreman on "C" shift. The Frye's have two children and four grandchildren"

Below is a picture of my grandfather at his 40-year celebration party -

 To be a fly on the wall...

Money Can't Buy Happiness

Rejoice Always

This Squirrel Is Nuts!

I took these pics yesterday of a grey squirrel sitting atop one of my back deck posts eating a nut of some sort -

The odd thing about this is that there are NO trees within 50'-60' feet and the deck just isn't an easy place to access or one that I would have thought a critter would find inviting or safe.

So, this dude had to cross the pool areas chain link fence - guessing by going under, then make it's way to the deck, up 12 stairs or scale the banister and then climb atop the 6' post.

The dude looked content and comfortable up there.  Well, until he spied me taking his picture, then he got camera shy, reversed direction down the post, down the banister and scurried out under the rear gate door and up into the peach tree.

Honestly, I think these critters are just screwing with me on purpose...

My Sunday Game Time Decisions

I'll admit it, I did watch some of the New England Patriots game yesterday.  Call me a fair weather fan if you'd like but they're winning, which makes watching the games more tolerable for me.

Plus it gave me an excuse to brake out the above snackies and a couple ice cold wobble-pops virtually guilt free, YUM!

They're Here!

The Lincoln Street Asian Lady Beetle invasion has begun!

Perhaps cute don't be fooled, these are NOT Ladybugs. Rather, they're false ladybugs otherwise known as Asian Lady Beetles.

Although they look similar, their size, color, and markings can help you tell the difference. 

The easiest way to tell Asian lady beetles apart from ladybugs at a glance is to look for the white “M.” Asian lady beetles have a distinctive, highly visible M-shaped black marking on their otherwise-white heads. This marking varies in size, thickness, and shape, but it’s always there, so look for the “M”, which you can clearly see in these pics -

Similar to ladybugs, Asian lady beetles feed on aphids and other insects that munch on plants. This means that although they can be a nuisance, they can still be a gardener’s friend.

However, these bugs won’t bid a happy goodbye after gardening season is over. They’re prone to swarming, and prefer to overwinter inside homes. Once they’re finished feasting on aphids, they will crowd on reflective surfaces like windows and sliding glass doors. If they have the opportunity, Asian lady beetles will invade your home -

The last week or so, when the temps during the day climb (mid 50ish), these beetles have started swarming the south side of my house!  There's not as many as the Boxelder beetles but certainly more than a handful.

I swat the Boxelder beetles every chance I get!  They're too messy but these Lady Beetles I leave alone.  They're too cute and likeable.

Amen!

An Oddity, Pricey Too!

Came across this Facebook Marketplace posting this morning for a wasp's paper nest -

"$50 or best offer. You cut down. In tree."

You can't make this stuff up!

I can certainly see offering something like this up to a teacher or a program geared towards kids, and I understand people are in a tough spot these days, but $50.00 really?!

Of course the add doesn't say how high up in the tree this nest is but looks like it's up there.

It's just a very weird posting.

Is it me?

Bottom's Up...

I picked myself up a memento yesterday, an "Entering Franklin" town mug -

Just what I needed more crap, but guessing it'll have a bit more meaning down the road.

This is what you get (can purchase) after having spent 26 year living in the same town.

A consolation prize if you will...

A Cooking I Done Did!

I did a bit of baking yesterday and made the following, which I haven't had in quite a while

Had a hanker'n for some cornbread -

And Tuna casserole -

However, I opted to use chicken in place of the tuna and changed it up a tad by using cream of broccoli soup, adding some corn, loads of fresh garlic, several types of cheeses and topping it off with some crushed potato chips.

Perhaps, not the healthiest meal but it was darn delicious and hit the spot!

Also, I now have plenty of leftovers.

Reminiscence Of A Mail Carrier

Views from the backroom of the Millis post office.

These pics show a calm, clean and organized work area but don't be fooled, come 8AM on any given morning this room is complete chaos. Racks, dollies and pallets loaded with mail, magazines and packages all being sorted with mail clerks scurrying and mail carriers sorting and casing mail.

This first pic is the "case" for route 7, the route I primarily did for the last several months of my tenure -

Here is the case for route 10, which is referred to as the auxiliary route.  Meaning it's the smallest route in the Millis PO, spans two towns; Millis and Norfolk, and made up of odd stops. I learned on this route, spending most of my early months on it -

Although, not labeled, below is the case for route 8.  This is the route I was mentored on and learned on when starting out as a mail carrier, and would often fill in on when the regular carrier was out.  Of the three routes I did, this was the largest with the most stops and typically up there as one of the routes that has the most packages per day.  It was also the most challenging of routes because of it's size, number of stops and the convoluted house numbering order - 

The orange bins, which are older and used mostly by the "rural" carriers, are known as "pumpkins" and where the clerks place the packages for each route. Most mornings these bins are usually full, overflowing actually, with packages stacked along side them -

The blue bins below are the new "pumpkins". These are used by the "city" carriers.  The flat wooden cart, of which there are many, are used by the carriers to bring the trayed, sorted mail out to the LLV mail trucks for loading -

The unofficial USPS mail carriers creed -

"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds."

Outdoor Chores Completed!

** Update **

Okay, now it's official!

As of today my yard is now 99.5% winterized and put to bed!

Patio furniture stowed, hoses drained and stowed, and took the deck sail down and stowed!

I got my wires crossed thinking this past Monday was the day the town was to pickup the yard waste, however, it's actually next Monday, the 10th. So, my mistake actually worked to my advantage and allowed me to add more bags.

So, I added (8) more leaf bags to the pile, making the total now (44)!

Today, I mowed my entire lawn for the last time this season, making it the 19th time.  What I like to do with the last mowing is to lower the mower deck, so instead of #6, I cut it on #4; nice and short.  Hoping this helps prevent the remaining leaves from getting caught up in the grass and instead make them easier to get blown away.

Here are a couple pics of the freshly mowed side and back lawns.

Also, this year I took a different approach to pruning the (14) tall ornamental grasses I have around the pool and yard.  In years past I would tie them up, then cut each down at the base; (14) easy to move bundles.  However, since I no longer have a way to get these big bulky bundles down to the recycling center, this year I cut then down in handfuls, then cut them up in 6"-8" lengths into the brown yard recycling bags and simply added them to the pile at the end of the driveway.

Not ideal! A lot of work and a lot of time to do it this way but at the end of the day they'll all be gone come Monday, so I'm gonna take it as a win.

I have one planter with a still flowering annual that I couldn't dump out, so this is the .05% remaining to be completely outside winterized.

I ended the day by rearraigning the garage a bit, which then allowed me to pull my car in, where it will be parked out of the elements for the winter months.

Phew, "Calgon take me away"....

Reseeding Obstacle Course

The little bit of grass that I have in the fenced in pool area happens to also be where Ms. Trixie does her "business".  I don't have a before pic but as you might imagine her urine killed much of grass where she "goes".

About 2 months ago I planted the last of the grass seed I had in the dead grass area, then laid a scrap piece of wire on top in an effort to keep Ms. Trixie from "watering" it 😁

You can see the wire fencing in the below pic and how nicely, and green, the new grass has done, for now.  It will all be killed off again once I remove the wire -

It's comical to watch Ms. Trixie when she tries to walk on the wire. She stumbles and fumbles and almost trips at time as she tries to get off of it.  It's like she forgets it's there but not all the time. She's definitely my dog and takes after me in many ways, the poor thing.

For example, below she successfully navigated the wire, walking around the edges, to eventually (OMG the drama and time it takes for her to decide where and the position she needs to be in is maddening, especially when it's 2AM) cop-a-squat and take herself a poop 💩 -

 

I assured her that I (prolly) wouldn't be posting her compromising pic for all to see, so Shh, this will be our little secret.

STOP! Enough Already

My USPS delivered mail from yesterday -

(6) pieces and ALL mass mailing junk!

I tear these items up and right into the trash they go, never looking at any of it.

What a waste of resources and the mail carriers time, as each piece need to handled multiple times before even being delivered. Since most of this junk mail is addressed, it forces the carrier to stop at each and every mailbox, thus extending his\her day and why you often see mail carriers out late and well after dark.

The USPS, the whores that they are, luv this junk for the money it generates for them,  They do NOT care about the waste it creates, the mail carriers time and effort to sort and deliver, nor the customers who simply do NOT want to receive this annoying ka-ka, and do as I do and immediately toss it all into the trash.

The USPS mail has become just as annoying and bothersome as email spam and general advertisements!  Whether it be on regular TV, e.g. an NFL game, a paid services, e.g. Netflix or simply accessing the Internet to read an article, e.g. Foxnews!

All incessant, overbearing and unwanted.

I would be interested to see a break down of how much work or responses these solicitations actually generate and if they're even worth the expense.

Thirty-Six!

(36) is the final number of leaf bags that I jam-packed filled, plus (1) full green landscape barrel, that are all curbside and awaiting pickup today!  

My neighbor across the street spent most of this past weekend out raking and filling leaf bags also, which are curbside for today's pickup!

It's nice having, some, neighbors that take pride in their yards and put in the effort to rake.

I see it as being neighborly; an obligation of sorts, to do my part to clean up my yard of as many leaves as possible. After all it does suck when you do all the work to have a clean yard, only to have the neighbors leaves blow into my yard because they're lazy and can't be bothered to put in the effort. I agree it's hard work and not much fun, however, it's also a necessary evil, and one of many being a homeowner.

You can see in the second picture above, the leaf covered lawn to the right of my across-the-street neighbors, oodles of leaf bags. One windy day could very well blow a majority of those leaves next door, even into my clean yard.

C'mon neighbors keep up!

Support Our Veterans

I hemmed and hawed long enough.

I finally went through all the items; clothes, bedding, towels, etc., that I've been setting aside this past year for donation, bagged it all up and scheduled a pickup this past Wednesday.

I support the Vietnam Veterans of America organization and have been donating to them for many, many years now -

They came just before lunch and took all the bagged items. Oddly, for some reason, they did not take the Bundt cake dish in the box and left that behind.

It's nice to have these items picked up and out of the way.

Hope they all go to good use!

Poppity Pop Pop Yum!

Welcome November!

With Thanksgiving fast approaching it's time to visit Trader Joe's to pick yourself up a bag or two or more of their seasonal Thanksgiving stuffing seasoned popcorn, SO flipp'n good but addicting!

I'm a fan of Trader Joe's and shop there often for my basic staples, e.g. produce, milk and egg type things. 

Last year I stumbled upon this popcorn, took a chance and purchased a single bag because I wasn't sure what to expect. Turns out it's delicious but when I went back for more, they were sold out and apparently quite popular.

So, being a seasonal item and all, I was SOL, that darn Murphy strikes again, CURSES!

But NOT this year, no sir!

I picked up these two bags earlier in the week - one bag has already been consumed, HEHEHE, and I'll be making another stop at TJ's early next week to grab a couple more.

Just a side note - I refuse to read the ingredients list on this popcorn, as I'm sure these are not the best snacks for you.  However, being good on what I eat most of the time, and these being seasonal, I'm giving myself a free pass to enjoy these guilt free!

Now I need a toothpick!