Sunday, December 28, 2008

My Butterfly



I snapped a picture of this Butterfly a couple years ago and it always reminds me of good times, warm weather and 1 very special person...Hope all is well with everyone that takes the time to read this silly blog..Wish you all a the best in the coming New Year...

TOM

Monday, December 22, 2008

HO Ho Hum

Can't wait for Christmas........


To be all Done.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

I need a bailout

No I haven't run a multimillion dollar industry into the ground fueled by bad management skills and greed.

I'm just trying to get into the Christmas spirit like all our elected officials who just seem to think it's
ok to Bailout a bunch of mis-managed companies with our tax dollars!!



DICK Syron

Take Richard Syron, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Freddie Mac. In the picture above he is addressing the Boston College Chief Executives.

In 2005 at the podium he warned of a "bubble" on the horizon of the real estate market with regard to falling home prices. and a dampening of the US economy.

Over cocktails I am sure he counseled his fellow execs to
get out there and get your pay now cause pretty soon the shit is gonna hit the fan !!

According to Executive PayWatch the SEC reported that in 2007, Richard F.
Syron raked in $18,289,575 in total compensation.

Not Bad for a CEO that has led his company to a 13.8 billion dollar
deficit. He was removed from his post and the US government has stepped in to "rescue the institution"

Whenever the Government steps into my life it's never been to "
rescue me". I guess Mr. Syron will have to find a new job, but at least he has that 18 Million dollars he made last year.


How about Charles O. Prince, the former Chief Executive Officer over at
Citigroup. He stepped down in November and released the statement,

"
It is my judgment that given the size of the recent losses in our mortgage- backed securities business, the only honorable course for me to take as chief executive officer is to step down."

HHHmmm, "the only honorable course" ?? It looks more like Run AWAY!!

According to Executive Pay Watch, In 2007, Charles O. Prince raked in $15,105,376 in total compensation according to the SEC. According to the
AFL-CIO's calculation method*, this CEO raked in $25,520,621 in total 2007 compensation.

Not bad for a CEO who's company just announced a 10 BILLION Dollar loss in quarterly earnings which just happens to be the biggest loss EVER in the company's history.

In 2006 Prince's base salary was a paltry 11.6 million but he was able to earn a 13.2 million dollar bonus and received 10.4 million dollars in stock options !! I sure hope he sold his stock before he left !!

As part of The Prince's compensation after stepping down, he is entitled to an office, an Executive Assistant and a car WITH driver for the next 5 years !!

I think the HONORABLE THING would be to give all that money AND the car back!!

And I thought that being a TV Weatherman was the only place you could be wrong and still get paid !!

In 2007, G. Richard Wagoner,
GM's CEO, raked in $14,415,914 in total compensation according to the SEC. According to the AFL-CIO's calculation method*, this CEO raked in $19,761,874 in total 2007 compensation.

And now they are getting their bailout courtesy of the US Taxpayer !!

And DICK is telling us he's gonna only take a salary of One Dollar....Well I am sure DICK has a couple bucks from last years salary to hold him over.

I
wonder how many CEO's of failing companies are named DICK??

Well Uncle Sam, I need a bucket full of CASH as I have made some mistakes in the past so I'm gonna need some of those TAX Dollars back???


Bucket of Cash

My bailout won't be too bad in comparison, I only need maybe 50 THOUSAND dollars, TAX FREE, and I should be ok.

More dirt on
Charley Prince: HERE

Executive Pay Watch, courtesy of the
AFL-CIO, where you can compare your salary with the CEO of your company.

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Dieting, It's not gonna be easy !!

For those who happen to get my posts in their Email, I am sorry. You just received a post that was absolutely blank !!

Quite frankly, my mind has been somewhat of a blank lately when it comes to posting something.

So I thought I'd clue you into where my mind is lately.

I'm thinking about food. ALL THE TIME !! Only I am thinking, "In order to stay under my 2100 calorie self imposed diet what can I eat ??



They smell so good coming out of the oven !!

I have to stay away from my sisters Potato Rolls, that's for sure!!



The rolls seem to be calling to me , nestled seductively in their basket and on the table next to them the Butter screams out my name !!

My goal is to lose 2 lbs a week and according to the info I have read, exercise and maintaining a 2100 calorie limit will help me do just that.


MMM, Anne's Banana Cream Pie!!

Anne's pie IS on my diet, sort of. ....

I have to avoid eating the crust, the cream and well I can eat bananas.
Today I checked the nutritional information on a chocolate bar, that's a first.

I discovered I could have 2.5 squares of dark chocolate and that it would add 60 calories to my daily tab. I gobbled it down as I haven't tasted chocolate in 3 days.

I needed it !!

So if any of you get crazy postings from me in your email, please forgive me !! I am going through food withdrawal !!


Tom's Mac and Cheese topped with crispy bacon...A real NO NO !!

I'm taking a break from cheese and fat. Someone told me the other day that cheese is addictive!!

I believe that !!

Well. I am going to munch on some baby carrots and put some laundry in !!

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving To All

My Favorite Holiday is here and I can't wait to eat !!!


See more pictures at The Boston Herald

I saw an article in the paper today with pictures of Tom Brady and his supermodel gal pal in Boston yesterday serving up Turkey Dinner for Goodwill...It's great to see him in Boston and hope that he recovers from his season ending knee injury to play next year...

Here in Boston we should all be thankful for the New England Patriot's backup Quarterback Matt Cassell, who has made this season exciting and the New England Patriots a contender in the AFC East.

Oh and let's not forget the spectacular coaching of Bill Bellichek who has had to juggle his roster around the loss of not only Tom Brady, but the season ending injuries to starters Rodney Harrison and Lawrence Maroney. With a total of 14 players on the Injured Reserve I don't think anyone in the NFL has coached with this kind of adversity and done as well as the Patriots have this year, 7-4 and in 2nd place in the AFC East.

I guess we New Englanders should be thankful for all our Sports teams, I mean it's gotten to be like we are the new Title Town USA !!

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

A Recent email, with valuable insight

To my friends who enjoy a glass of wine... and those who don't.

As Ben Franklin said: In wine there is wisdom,
in beer there is freedom,

in water there is bacteria.


In a number of carefully controlled trials, scientists have demonstrated
that if we drink 1 litre of water each day, at the end of the year we would have absorbed more than 1 kilo of Escherichia coli, (E. coli) - bacteria found in feces. In other words, we are consuming 1 kilo of poop.


However, we do NOT run that risk when drinking wine & beer (or tequila, rum, whiskey or other liquor) because alcohol has to go through a purification process of boiling, filtering and/or fermenting.
Remember:

Water = Poop,
Wine = Health
.
Therefore, it's better to drink wine and talk stupid,
than to drink water and be full of shit
.



There is no need to thank me for this valuable information: I'm doing it as a public service

Monday, November 24, 2008

No Chain Letters EVER !!

The sick , the soon to be euthanized pets, the starving children, the hopelessly sick....

I do care but please don't EVER send me another email that requires me to send it on to 6, 8 10 any number of friends in order to bring
Magic into my life,
Money, God or Luck

If that isn't plain enough just Cross Me Off the mailing list for ANY KIND OF CHAIN MAIL EVER !!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

SURPRISE



Sean with his Pie

Sean, my oldest son, lives 3000 miles away, in San Diego . So when he walked into work with his co conspirator, my nephew Dave, it took me by surprise !!

Which was the idea...

I talked to Sean last Thursday night and he told me he was going skiing !!

Dave gave me a ride into work Saturday morning and said he was going to New Hampshire with his girlfriend !!

Dave was really headed to Providence, Rhode Island to pick up Sean....

It's been a good surprise !! Sean topped it off by inviting his sister, she lives in Maine with my 3 grandchildren and my youngest, his brother Patrick , down last night for a Pre Thanksgiving warm up dinner...

And he made an Apple Pie to boot... The dinner, with pictures will be posted very soon....I just wanted to get a picture of Sean and his Pie...Note the Latticed Crust...up first !!

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Dad's 80th Birthday



The family...about 22 of us got together at a local restaurant for my Dad's 80th Birthday..



Mom and Dad



We went to Pennsylvania and brought his little sister Alice up for the celebration...She's only 36 and has Natural White Hair
.



Mom started hitting the rum a little to hard and turned into a Pirate....AAARRRRGH !

Actually I think she was a little upset she didn't get any of Dad's ice crea
m!!



Happy Birthday DAD !!

Thursday, November 06, 2008

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies....



These cookies are good for you.



There have been studies that indicate that chocolate has quite a few health benefits. It's funny but these type of "studies" always amaze me.

Have any of these researchers ever eaten chocolate?? It's one of those "No Shit Sherlock" kinda studies. Of course chocolate is healthy!!

Chocolate is made from the cocoa bean, found in pods growing from the trunk and lower branches of the Cacao Tree, Latin name 'Theobroma Cacao' meaning "food of the gods".

Food of the Gods.....Really, why would "The Gods" eat anything unhealthy?? It would be such a bad example.

If you pick cacao beans from a tree than you should consider them as being in the "Fruit and Vegetable" category of our basic food groups.

I bet mom always told you to eat ALL your fruits and vegetables??

So next time you see something chocolate, eat it, eat it for mom.

I bet it was fun being in that chocolate study!!

If anyone hears about someone doing a study on Red Wine can you let me know...I want further our scientific knowledge base and volunteer to be a case study on the effects of Red Wine...

It will probably be a little scary at first being a human guinea pig, but I am sure after a couple glasses I'll be fine.

Monday, November 03, 2008

Marrying A Boston Girl.....

Three men were sitting together bragging about how they had given their new wives duties....

The first man had married a woman from Louisiana and bragged he had told his wife she was going to do all the dishes and house cleaning. He said it took a couple days but on the third day he came home to a clean house and the dishes were all done

The second man had married a woman from Florida. He bragged that he had given his wife orders to do all the cleaning, dishes and have a meal ready for him when he came home from work. On the first day he did not see any results, the next day things seemed to be better organized and by the third day his house was clean and he came home to the smell of a huge home cooked meal.

The Third man married a girl from Boston. He explained that he had told his new wife that he expected her to keep the house clean, the dishes cleaned, the laundry washed and folded and the lawn mowed. He said the first day he didn't see anything. On the second day there was no improvement, but by the third day most of the swelling had gone down and he could see a little out of his left eye, enough to fix himself a bite to eat, load the dishwasher and call the landscaper.

Gotta love those Boston Girls !!


Got this in an email this morning (-:



Friday, October 31, 2008

Sun Sets on Marblehead

Of course the old joke here in Massachusetts for someone who might be a little slow on the uptake, a little dense, thick in the skull, a couple beers short of a six pack, has always been the reverse of the post title or "Light Dawns on Marble-Head"

But hey I was there last night and the sun sets are nice..



1. Sunset as seen through the tree!



2. Sunset with seagull, top left



3. Sundown and Clouds

Happy Halloween !!

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Celtics are Back !!


Two Tom's Hideaway Team Members were lucky enough to get into the TD BankNorth Garden last night and see the NBA Champion Boston Celtics kick off their season 2008-09 Season, get their rings and ......



Raise the newest banner..for their 17th Championship !!



Did I mention that the Celtics Dancers/Cheerleaders were there??

Such Hard working Girls !!



And Kevin Youkilis from the Boston Red Sox was there, with the Cheerleaders !!



The Celtics "Lucky" took the hand-off from Youkilis and made the basket.



They didn't call a foul on #55 Wright as he was pulling the Jersey of his own teammate , Anderson Verajo, under the hoop.

The Celtics went on to win their opening game and let's hope they can have another great season this year !!


GO CELTS !!


Monday, October 27, 2008

No Ideas

That's about all I got lately. I've been drawing a complete blank lately and have had no inspiration whatsoever with regard to my blog. The weather has taken a turn for the better and after today I'll be outside scraping and painting so I can only hope that I will be inspired to come up with something of interest !! Currently I am addicted to Tetris on Facebook !!

The New England Patriots won yesterday...(-:

I got a 10 in Trivia today !!

Tampa Bay is losing to the Phillies...(-:

The Sun is shining, for now, and the Apocalypse isn't scheduled until 2012 so I have plenty of time to come up with something.

Have a great week !!

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Fall at the Mall






My experiment in night photography has been touch and go. I snapped these from the parking lot at the North Shore Mall the other night. My Fuji Camera did not really come with any guides on the best way to use some of the features on my camera.

The top one is sorta fuzzy, but I liked the lightiong, the tree just looked like an orphan out there on the perimeter road, leaves falling off and all alone.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Red Sox vs Devil Rays.........continued GAME 7 !!

RED SOX WON!!

RED SOX WON!!


Hopefully TBS will have the complete broadcast as we had to listen to the first inning and a half due to technical difficulties.

Also I was worried when the announcers again started to concede the win to the SOX before the game was even over as they did during Game 5 at Fenway where the SOX made their historic come back ... I thought OH NO !! Now they are jinxing the SOX !!

But NO, we had theRed Sox MOJO all over the family room, old tickets, Red Sox Hats, Team Photos....Clearly the MOJO Magic is with the SOX

John Lester will pitch for the Red Sox in front of all the Tampa Bay Devil Ray fans that are now looking just a little sad and very worried.



GO SOX !!!

T.B.S. stands for Total Boston Success

Saturday, October 18, 2008

7:30 Red Sox vs Rays


Steve is watching the game
He can't close his eyes!!

After an unbelievable comeback in the American League Championship Series, the Boston Red Sox are in St Petersburg to play the young Tampa Bay Devil Ray team with a chance to tie the 7 game series 3-3.

The Red Sox were all done, at least I thought so, as did many others that I spoke with, watching the game Thursday night in Fenway , the Red Sox down by 7 runs in the 7th inning, TBS running the credits , the announcers wondering how the Devil Rays will do against the Phillies , people filing out of Fenway.......

I went to bed !!

When I woke up the miracle had happened. The Red Sox pulled of the biggest comeback in ALCS history since 1929 !!

It's game time tonight at 7:30, I want to watch but being superstitious and all I am wondering if I should just go to bed early, for luck !!

GO SOX

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Trivia Update

Here is the breakdown for Top 5 Weekly Points Leaders at Tom's Trivia Challenge. It's been a busy month as I have been up late watching the playoffs for the MLB...

Player Weekly Pts
1 lemonyellow 134
2. Johnny 121
3. Operator9 85
4. Tom 84
5. dawtch 72

A couple weeks ago I had posted a Poll asking people : If they had to choose, would they be an Alligator or a Tiger.

The Tiger was the clear choice of the majority. I am a fan of the Tiger myself and so yesterday I was a little disappointed when the Florida Gators whipped the LSU Tigers in College Football..It's ok though...I'd still choose to be a Tiger over an Alligator any day.



Alligators are part of the crocodile family, the crocodile has a wider snout and neither a re a match for the Tiger.

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Baseball, The HBO Series ROME, and Look Alikes

The Red Sox and The Devil Rays are set to start the American League Championship Series on Friday in Tampa Bay...

Speaking of Bays, I have a picture of him still in his Pirates Uniform before being traded to the Red Sox and he really


looks a
lot like the actor who plays in the HBO Series Rome:



Kevin McKidd: He plays the part of Lucious Vorenus, in the show but it sure looks like he could easily sub for Jason Bay in left field for the Red Sox ....

I'm picking the the Red Sox and the Dodger's as the teams that will make it to the World Series and the only thing I won't like about it is that we fans will have to endure Tim McCarver as the Color Guy in the Telecast Booth. The fact that FOX Sports insists on McCarver and his sidekick Joe Buck as the announcers for the World series is truly DESPICABLE !!

Here are some of Tim's insights to the Game,


1. Tim: "Something to keep in mind -- it's raining lightly. The infield could be very wet on ground balls.".... errr, you think so Tim???

2. Tim:
"Pitching is such a vital part of the game, as far as winning is concerned" ....Oh, and I bet you expect us to believe batting is important too!!

3.
2004 ALCS, Game 5? Red Sox vs. Yankees . David Ortiz hit a home run into right field. Tim: "Mt. Everest erupts again!".....too bad Mt. Everest isn't a volcano!

4.
McCarver busted out this bit of brilliance during the Red Sox/Orioles game one Saturday: "The reason we call that pitch up and in is because the arms are attached to the shoulder."..... Ummm what?

Tim has no place in a Television Booth where he can spout is inane, nonsensical "insights" to the millions of viewers who watch the game.


I found these comments and more at Tim McCarver Please Shut Up!!

If you have a minute, Contact Fox Sports with a note and ask them to replace Tim McCarver as the Voice of the World Series before it's too late....


Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Mom's Birthday and a Trivia Update

1st I'd like to say, Love you Mom !

She turned 79 Yesterday and we had a nice family dinner.

We had to tone it down a little because last weekend when we celebrated my Nephew's 21st birthday , there was mom...

Playing beer pong !!



We had to keep these party girls in check yesterday !!

Maybe we will get the beer pong table out for Dad's 80
th !!

TRIVIA UPDATE

Today we start a new month in the Tom's Trivia Challenge, it has been a a month filled with new players but we have another big win by one of our Trivia Veterans

BIG Congrats to KATHLOCK !!

Two of our newest players Lemonyellow (6wins) and Badlydrawnbhoy (3 Wins) made it into the top 10 with a great second half and have been immortalized in the Hall Of Fame !! Great Job..

Looking over the Hall Of Fame records I see that we have been doing the Trivia Contest now 6 full months !!

Thanks for playing everyone !!


Good luck this Month

Sunday, September 28, 2008

A day to remember..Mary Margaret Ahern

September 29th, 2004 was a very sad day for me and those who knew and loved Mary, she died that morning almost a year after having a terrible head injury, months of chronic pain, and fighting depression.

Funny, fiery, a beautiful girl, but over that last year of her life we only caught glimpses of the Mary we knew and loved.


12/28/1966-9/29/2004

Today, as we have for the past three years , friends and family gathered together and celebrated Mary's life, shared some of the stories , cried a little, laughed a little, it was a good day to remember , as Mary's Mom calls her, "Our Precious Butterfly"

R.I.P. My Love

Friday, September 26, 2008

Rainy Daisies

Lots of rain expected this weekend,



I guess the flowers need to shower every once in awhile.


Have a nice weekend wherever you are !

Sunday, September 21, 2008

A Birthday, Trivia Update & Weekly Winners

HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY

PIXIEPANTS




You don't look a day over 3 !!



OOOPS !!


My statistician lost last weeks stat sheet which means....I had to go back 2 weeks and so the Winner this week will be based on total points for the last 14 days...

Furthermore I have a very busy day planned so with very little Pomp and Circumstance !! Here are the leaders over the last 2 WEEKS !!


PLAYER Weekly PTS Overall Standing
1. kathlock 203 2
2. Shaun 196 3
3. sneaky 188 1
4. TheJackster 178 5
5. Badlydrawnbhoy 174 9

CONGRATS Kath, seems like last week !!

I also added a little poll up top , seems crazy but currently I see that we have a lot of "Tiger Wannabees" out there. More on that later when this Poll has ended.

Have a great week !!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Bridge to Nowhere


Click for larger size

The bridge you see was once known as the Carlton Bridge and it spanned the Kennebec River in Maine connecting the Ship Building City of Bath and the town Woolwich but it's been replaced by a new bridge, to the left of the tracks, which is named the Sagadahoc Bridge, named after the county in Maine.

Bath , home to the General Dynamics Company "Bath Iron Works", just to the right of the "bridge to nowhere you can see the cranes which are a part of the shipyard, which has built and or designed hundreds of military vessels including today's most advanced class of Destroyer.

The Works is one of Maine's largest employers.

I was trying out the Panoramic Feature on my Fuji Camera..Still working on technique !!

Have a great day

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Trivia Update, Weekly Winners

She has been there before and she's back at it again....

The winner this week is:

The Australian Phenom !!

and prolific Blogger

KATHLOCK
from Blurb from the Burbs

From Trivia Players
Isn't she adorable sitting in that sink??

Last weeks winner Sneaky was a point shy of a tie and sits in 2nd place.

From Trivia Players
That's Sneaky !!


The 3rd place finisher, with 110 points who , like a shooting star, moved from 10 place overall last week to 3rd place overall this week is:


From Trivia Players
The Jackster

Here is a breakdown of the top 5 Top Weekly Scorers for last week:

Player Total Points Overall Rank
1. kathlock 126 2
2. Sneaky 125 1
3. TheJackster 110 3
4. Shaun 96 14
5. Badlydrawnbhoy 93 28


Finally I would like to welcome 2 new players

POM and TomMorrow !

Good Luck this week to everyone !!!


Don't forget to root for "The Brady-less" New England Patriots who play the Jets and Brett Favre who I am sure everyone remembers from the movie "There's Something About Mary"

Thursday, September 11, 2008

A Birthday and Some other Odds & Ends

A Big Birthday Wish goes out to one of our many Trivia Players...


HAPPY Birthday BUNNY !!


I didn't buy you anything bunny but that's just because I don't want to spoil you.

I mean..YOU are Perfect Already !!

YOU KNOW IT !!

In other news we received a Scenic Picture from another one of our Trivia Player's

JLO went to visit one of the many Natural wonders in Scenic State of New Hampshire over the summer...


The Flume Gorge in Franconia State Park

In Sporting News:

The IQ attended last nights baseball game in San Diego where he was able to see Manny Ramirez hit 2 Home Runs and knock in 4 RBI's to POWER the LA Dodgers over the San Diego Padres to extend there lead to 3 1/2 games and remain in 1st place in their division

Too bad the Sox didn't have any power last night as they lost their game in 14 innings, The heart of the order, Youkilis, Ortiz and the affable Jason Bay combined for an anemic 0 for 14 against the 1st place Tampa Bay Devil Rays !!

And I stayed up to watch!!


Can't Wait For Sunday's Patriots Game

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Trivia Players Picture Series, The IQ


I received a Trivia Player's picture today, and he looks like a force to be reckoned with..well I don't know about that. He's certainly having some fun out there off the coast of Southern California out on Catalina Island.



The IQ also sent me this picture which gave me a good idea...

The Trivia Picture Series will be happy to post any scenic shots you may want to share from wherever you are from or maybe a vacation spot you visited recently.

You don't even have to be in the picture, but hey...wouldn't you have more fun just Striking a Pose !!

As I have said before, my EMAIL is on the sidebar

Sunday, September 07, 2008

Sneaky, Un-Covered !!

Tom's Trivia Picture Series is BACK


And it's SNEAKY !!

He hails from Swampscott, MA and is a 40 something Bartender/Writer that enjoys playing trivia at Tom's Trivia Challenge. He's been known to serve me a pretty good Grey Goose Martini and was the most recent Weekly Winner (see last post) After reading about his Weekly Win he sent me the picture above...

Thanks Sneaky, now that we can see ya, we all know what we are up against !!

If you haven't sent me a picture yet, my email is on the sidebar

Trivia Update, Weekly Winners



It's been a week filled with new players, Here is a big Tom's Hideaway welcome to:

Phantom, SheShe, Minnie, Badlydrawnbhoy, Tiff , LemonYellow and Witchbabe13

Here are the leaders for the 1st week of September, 2008 !!


Player Total Points Overall Rank
1. sneaky 117 1
2. kathlock 97 2
3. Tom 95 3
4. PG 95 4
5. Sally 82 5


For the first time Sneaky has topped the Top Point Getters list here at Tom's Trivia Challenge

BIG CONGRATS to the elusive SNEAKY !!

Of course it would be nice to put a face to the Competition and we still have a lot of players, Like Sneaky, who haven't sent in their picture for the Trivia Picture Series and I think maybe some of you may not have a picture readily available so I'll change the rules a bit.

You can send me ANY picture that you would like to represent you here in the Tom's Trivia Challenge...as long as you have permission to use the picture !!

So ideally, it's a photo you or a friend has taken, maybe a picture of a Stuffed Chicken, or icon you have made up for yourself. Send them in to my email on the sidebar here with a little info about yourself, ie. favorite color, general location or whatever you feel we might find interesting and then I'll just make up the rest before I post them with appropriate Pomp and Circumstance.

It's not going to put you on some crazy mailing list and I will not use your email for any nefarious purposes!!

If you have a blog/web page let me know so that I can tell everyone where we can find you !!