Well, it took longer than I expected for it to arrive, but First Dunk 2013, my first swim of the season, finally happened today. When we had a couple of really warm days in early April, I was hoping / expecting that it would lead to my first April swim in a number of years. But then the next six weeks turned back into "early March" and, despite the pool being opened, with the solar panels soaking up whatever sunshine we had, the water temps stayed mostly in the low 60s.
Today, however, with the air temperature in the mid-70s and our Temperature Team of floating thermometers all in agreement that the water had reached at least 71 degrees (72, according to the optimistic CPO Sharkey), I took the first dunk.
Tonight the temperatures are supposed to dip down to the lower 40s, so, I suspect, the water will be back in the 60s tomorrow. But, as the saying goes, one must make hay while the sun shines, which I did... and so the 2013 pool season is officially under way.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Iron Man, Iron Man, Does Whatever an Iron Can
Last week, Laurie was named B103's "Listener of the Day" and won a t-shirt (and a chance for the $5,000 grand prize). Okay, so when I heard it announced, the deejay called her "Laurie Roziskis," but we know it was her.
This week, she won a raffle sponsored by I-Con, the Long Island Sci-Fi and Comics Convention Without a Home, and got two tickets to an advance 3-D screening of "Iron Man 3."
Upon hearing this news, Sammi and I had the same response: "Go buy a lottery ticket!"
So, last evening, we were in line with a large group of fellow winners (from the I-Con raffle as well as ones run by two other LI radio stations), the vast majority of whom were young enough to be our children, at the nearby theater.
How was the movie? In the words of Laurie, self-proclaimed as "not a fan of the genre" and never a reader of comic books: "Four stars. A hoot and a half! I would have paid to see this!"
And from yours truly, who has read Iron Man from the earliest days in Tales of Suspense through the most of the '90s, "It was lots of fun!" The film's spin on The Mandarin, one of Iron Man's earliest foes, is great, and the continuity among the other Marvel films, most specifically "The Avengers," is reminiscent of the early Marvel days when Stan Lee did his best to make readers feel like all the heroes were existing in a single, consistent world.
One thing I noticed: Like last year's "The Dark Knight Rises," in which Bruce Wayne spent an awful lot of time not being Batman, Tony Stark spends a long stretch of the film not being Iron Man. But the Tony portions of the film are quite entertaining, filled with clever dialogue as well as action that shows you he never stops being the hero.
Two quick notes: The ever-present Stan Lee cameo is a very quick one this time; blink and you might "Miss" it. (Once you see it, you'll get the joke.) And, as always, stay through the twelve miles of credits for the end scene; it's worth the wait.
In conclusion, two thumbs up from us. Go see it.
And while you're doing that, we're going to go get Laurie a Mega-Millions ticket.
This week, she won a raffle sponsored by I-Con, the Long Island Sci-Fi and Comics Convention Without a Home, and got two tickets to an advance 3-D screening of "Iron Man 3."
Upon hearing this news, Sammi and I had the same response: "Go buy a lottery ticket!"
So, last evening, we were in line with a large group of fellow winners (from the I-Con raffle as well as ones run by two other LI radio stations), the vast majority of whom were young enough to be our children, at the nearby theater.
How was the movie? In the words of Laurie, self-proclaimed as "not a fan of the genre" and never a reader of comic books: "Four stars. A hoot and a half! I would have paid to see this!"
And from yours truly, who has read Iron Man from the earliest days in Tales of Suspense through the most of the '90s, "It was lots of fun!" The film's spin on The Mandarin, one of Iron Man's earliest foes, is great, and the continuity among the other Marvel films, most specifically "The Avengers," is reminiscent of the early Marvel days when Stan Lee did his best to make readers feel like all the heroes were existing in a single, consistent world.
One thing I noticed: Like last year's "The Dark Knight Rises," in which Bruce Wayne spent an awful lot of time not being Batman, Tony Stark spends a long stretch of the film not being Iron Man. But the Tony portions of the film are quite entertaining, filled with clever dialogue as well as action that shows you he never stops being the hero.
Two quick notes: The ever-present Stan Lee cameo is a very quick one this time; blink and you might "Miss" it. (Once you see it, you'll get the joke.) And, as always, stay through the twelve miles of credits for the end scene; it's worth the wait.
In conclusion, two thumbs up from us. Go see it.
And while you're doing that, we're going to go get Laurie a Mega-Millions ticket.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Busy Weekend
Laurie and I spent our Saturday babysitting Alex so that Chuck and Rebecca could attend a wedding. As with other times when we've been there, the little man prefers staying awake and being the center of attention to sleeping. He did sneak a power nap in when I took him out for a walk around the neighborhood and took another between his late afternoon snack and dinner.
Sunday was one of those days where doing one chore led to another and another and another. I had to replace a section of the fence in the back yard that had rotted away. In the abstract, it's fairly straightforward, but since it was a section that was behind a large evergreen, it became a challenge of maneuvering, with some strategic trimming and the removal of the thorny vine that grows out of our neighbor's yard and into the bushes.
Once I had that done, I had a few slats left over, so I decided to replace a some that were in need in another part of the yard. These, at least, were not behind a bush.
Then it was on to gardening chores. The compost we've been "growing" in a trash can was transferred to the vegetable beds. The bags of potting soil went into the giant pots for the basil. The bags of mulch were spread.
A profusion of dandelions had sprouted in various places around the yard and I had pulled up a few near the veggie beds. Now I was on a roll, so I decided to dig up the rest of them. There turned out to be more of them than I thought, as I realized when I saw how full the trash can was when I was done.
Then it was on to pool-related chores. Chlorine added, skimmers emptied, Robby the Robot (our automatic vacuum) bag cleaned out. Yes, the pool is open and, according to our Temperature Team, the water is about 65 degrees. Had the air been a bit warmer yesterday, it might have been the occasion for First Dunk 2013, but that was not the case.
The shed was next. The poolside umbrellas came out for the season; the remaining fence slats went in. Snow shovels were moved to the back; the rake and lawn mower moved to the front.
I thought I was finished as I gathered up the various tools I'd been using, but I noticed a nail on the steps that needed a couple of taps with the hammer. This, of course, led to a walk around the deck, tapping any and all other nails that needed it.
With the list of backyard chores exhausted, I took the tools inside. Some of them are kept in the basement, where a basket of clean laundry was ready to go upstairs. And you can just imagine what that led to...
 |
| Alex models his tasty spring jacket |
Once I had that done, I had a few slats left over, so I decided to replace a some that were in need in another part of the yard. These, at least, were not behind a bush.
Then it was on to gardening chores. The compost we've been "growing" in a trash can was transferred to the vegetable beds. The bags of potting soil went into the giant pots for the basil. The bags of mulch were spread.
A profusion of dandelions had sprouted in various places around the yard and I had pulled up a few near the veggie beds. Now I was on a roll, so I decided to dig up the rest of them. There turned out to be more of them than I thought, as I realized when I saw how full the trash can was when I was done.
Then it was on to pool-related chores. Chlorine added, skimmers emptied, Robby the Robot (our automatic vacuum) bag cleaned out. Yes, the pool is open and, according to our Temperature Team, the water is about 65 degrees. Had the air been a bit warmer yesterday, it might have been the occasion for First Dunk 2013, but that was not the case.
The shed was next. The poolside umbrellas came out for the season; the remaining fence slats went in. Snow shovels were moved to the back; the rake and lawn mower moved to the front.
I thought I was finished as I gathered up the various tools I'd been using, but I noticed a nail on the steps that needed a couple of taps with the hammer. This, of course, led to a walk around the deck, tapping any and all other nails that needed it.
With the list of backyard chores exhausted, I took the tools inside. Some of them are kept in the basement, where a basket of clean laundry was ready to go upstairs. And you can just imagine what that led to...
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
All the Trees Are Gone
When we bought our house some thirty-eight and a half years ago, we were surrounded by large old trees. An oak tree stood on the front lawn, along with the two maples at curbside. There was another oak and another maple in the back yard. In addition, our next door neighbors on one side had an oak and two more maples in front of their house while the neighbors on the other had yet another maple.
One by one, the trees came down. The oak in the back yard went first, so long ago that I don't even recall what happened that resulted in its removal. The oak in the front was next, the victim of a caterpillar infestation that had us bombarded by the squirmy things every time the wind blew.
The maple in the back yard was removed as part of our back yard redo. By that point, a large part of it was overhanging both our roof and the neighbor's and no one was happy about the potential damage it would do in a major storm.
Somewhere along the way, the oak next door and the maple on the other side were taken down, both victims of old age and rot.
In 2011, Hurricane Irene took out one of the two maples next door. It fell over and ended up resting on the power lines across the street. With that one down, our neighbors opted to have the second one removed as well.
Which left only our two maples... until Hurricane Sandy took out one, along with the power lines, and left us in the dark for six days. (The full account of our Post-Sandy adventures can be found here, here, here and here.)
What we did not notice immediately, though it became obvious later, was that the top of the other maple had been snapped off by Sandy's winds. What remained was not a happy tree and, in fact, when the Town of Oyster Bay inspector came to determine what needed to be done, he marked it for eventual removal.
Today, the tree has been cut down to the stump and all the pieces removed. It is only a matter of time before the stump is ground down and the sidewalk is all repaired, leaving no sign it had ever been there.
Our block, which was once home to all those massive trees, now has only a couple of much younger ones that are perhaps twelve feet tall. We will miss the shade that the two maples gave the house on summer afternoons and the picturesque view of a light snow resting on the branches.
But I'm not going to miss all the leaves in the fall.
One by one, the trees came down. The oak in the back yard went first, so long ago that I don't even recall what happened that resulted in its removal. The oak in the front was next, the victim of a caterpillar infestation that had us bombarded by the squirmy things every time the wind blew.
The maple in the back yard was removed as part of our back yard redo. By that point, a large part of it was overhanging both our roof and the neighbor's and no one was happy about the potential damage it would do in a major storm.
Somewhere along the way, the oak next door and the maple on the other side were taken down, both victims of old age and rot.
In 2011, Hurricane Irene took out one of the two maples next door. It fell over and ended up resting on the power lines across the street. With that one down, our neighbors opted to have the second one removed as well.
Which left only our two maples... until Hurricane Sandy took out one, along with the power lines, and left us in the dark for six days. (The full account of our Post-Sandy adventures can be found here, here, here and here.)
What we did not notice immediately, though it became obvious later, was that the top of the other maple had been snapped off by Sandy's winds. What remained was not a happy tree and, in fact, when the Town of Oyster Bay inspector came to determine what needed to be done, he marked it for eventual removal.
Today, the tree has been cut down to the stump and all the pieces removed. It is only a matter of time before the stump is ground down and the sidewalk is all repaired, leaving no sign it had ever been there.
Our block, which was once home to all those massive trees, now has only a couple of much younger ones that are perhaps twelve feet tall. We will miss the shade that the two maples gave the house on summer afternoons and the picturesque view of a light snow resting on the branches.
But I'm not going to miss all the leaves in the fall.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Two-Thirds of the Way
I was born seven years too late to celebrate a birthday on the whimsical date of 4/4/44. As a result, I have had to look towards finally doing so when 2044 rolls around.
Yes, I know I'll be 93 then. I probably won't be playing as much volleyball as I do now. Or riding my bicycle to work. But I hope to be a lot closer to being caught up on reading all the books I've collected over the years.
In any case, as of today, I'm exactly two-thirds of the way there.
Yes, I know I'll be 93 then. I probably won't be playing as much volleyball as I do now. Or riding my bicycle to work. But I hope to be a lot closer to being caught up on reading all the books I've collected over the years.
In any case, as of today, I'm exactly two-thirds of the way there.
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