7 March, 2015

My Poor Chickens

Looking through the ice at the chickens hutch.

I'm wondering what is still in store for my hens and rooster. On Thursday of this week we were blessed with another of what I nave come to call, "New England Cotton." I'm guessing 5 inches worth came. Once again the weather forecasters blew the timing call, this time by about 7 hours. The schools could have had a half day at least. Several hours of freezing rain and then Ice Pellets preceded the snow. It made for a lovely but hazardous picture.

Once again the flock is stuck inside, they for the most part will not walk in the snow. Not to mention the 26 degree cold. I filled the feed trough in the hutch with some added Brussels Sprouts and Strawberry cuttings with their regular mix of Layer feed, Cracked Corn and Sun Flower seeds. Despite the incarceration for the day, they dove into the food and appeared happy. For the second day in a row, no eggs. Earlier in the week we had 3 in 2 days, and for this winter, that was something to cheer about. They will be very happy once the weather stays above the freezing mark, as will I.

Mary Agnes' 5K

Sunday March 1, 2015 saw my amazing 70 something wife run a 5K in deplorable conditions. This particular race is known as the Tim Kennard River Run. The mean temperature was 26 degrees with Rain, freezing rain and sleet. The traveled path, much of it along Riverside Drive and the mighty Wicomico River was treacherous at best. The little woman stayed upright the entire race and finished 2'nd in her age group. You are My Hero. And that snow shovel in the picture, you should see her tackle the driveway with it, thank you dear.

Where In The World is JB?

Jeff is still in Fiji and missing our wonderful winter for another clime and place. He departed the vacation island where he and Kathryn had been staying and is now in Suva working. Suva is where the U.S. Embassy is located. If all goes well I'll be picking him up at DCA mid week, next. "The Jet" is a local Suva newspaper if anyone is interested.

Kathryn returned back to the real world this week and has taken most of the week to adjust to the Jet Lag of a 17 hour time difference. Web MD has a great article on "Jet Lag" if your interested.

Sarah and "The Curse of Boston"

 

Once again Sarah was scheduled to head north to Boston this past week for her job with "Phillips Seafood."

On multiple occasion this winter Sarah has been competing with the 90 plus inches of falling snow when scheduled for a trip north. Interestingly, Boston has it's own site called "Snow Center, City of Boston."

During this trip, leaving Salisbury this past Tuesday and flying to "Logan Airport" not much went right. There were no rental cars available to start things off, so alternate transportation to Taunton Mass was arranged and a car was acquired. After conducting business in the Bay State, a drive south to New Haven in a snow storm was necessary for her next days work. She reported to me, I'm her Weather Update person, that the roads were deplorable in Conn. and the trip was an adventure.

Now keep in mind, we back here on the Eastern Shore of Maryland were starting to get our Watches and Warnings for our storm yesterday. Twenty Four hours before she was to fly out of BDL, that's Bradley International in Windsor Locks, CT. Interesting to note, where my last duty station was as a Detective with the Connecticut State Police when I retired in 1988.

Sorry about that, back on track now and Sarah's journey. All flights that she tried to gain a seat on to return to Maryland for a Friday meeting in Baltimore were either cancelled or full, there was no flying carpet to be had. Once again she got into her trusty rental on Thursday, drove south from Tolland, CT to New Haven and boarded an Amtrak train for a ride in a snow storm to Baltimore.

She would make her Friday meeting and take the "Bay Runner Shuttle" back home to Salisbury. My girls certainly put the miles on.

Sam's Reading List

The United States Air Force sends out reading lists for it's officers. Sam recently sent me the latest recommended list which is listed below. If anyone out there is interested in changing their reading habits, here's the list.

Air Commanders by John Andreas Olsen
No Place to Hide by W. Lee Warren
Cybersecurity and Cyberwar: What Everyone Needs to Know by P.W. Singer and Alan Friedman
Beer, Bacon and Bullets by Gal Luft
The Mission, the Men, and Me by Pete Blaber
Once an Eagle by Anton Myrer
Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
The Power of Professionalism by Bill Weirsma
Leadership and Self-Deception by the Arbinger Institute
Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence by Daniel Goleman
Linchpin: Are you Indispensible by Seth Godin

I'm sure Beer, Bacon and Bullets will appeal to Sam's dad Jeff.

My Daughter In-Law Beth

Beth loves Giraffes, I recently ran across this picture and just wanted to share. The snow up there in Connecticut shall end soon. I saw that in the "Farmers Almanac."

Remember, Don't Use Your Personal Mail for Business!

Have a great week, thanks for the Look See.