My car buried in the snow, December 26, 2010	Smokey - The Queen of the apartment
Me (circa Summer 2009)	Flags and dock all prepared for memorial service for fallen firefighter (September 2011)

Update for April/May 2012

Friday, May 18, 2012 1:15am EDT

Well another season has started on Fire Island and I am deep in it.  Lots to do.  Lots going on with the Fire Department, Dock and of course work.  And that does not even start to factor in Heritage of Pride too.  We launched a new web site and darn does it look good.  This week I had to take an additional day off of work to finish up the hose testing on Tuesday.  Poor Smokey (my cat) was rather upset but then she got over it.  She got to sleep with me Tuesday night and Wednesday night before I headed back out here.  Anyway, I have finished my computer work and am winding down and about to head off to bed.  Got a lot of things to do in the morning.

Monday, May 14, 2012 9pm EDT

I am on Fire Island.  Spent the entire day working on the hose testing for the department.  Had a meeting in the city that I had to back out of.  We still have 3 hose houses left to test.  Other than that, have been very busy.  Got the house opened up.  But just a lot of work.  

Sunday, May 6, 2012 6am AST Phoenix Airport

Here early.  Flight is full.  First time I ever checked in at the counter and the computer tells me that they maybe in an over sold situation and would I be interested in taking a later flight?  Well, I know there later flight would put me in very late so said no.  Just want to get back home now and Matt will be waiting at the airport for me so that I can get home and see Smokey.  Had a good time at the coronation last night.  Reconnected with lots of friends from here and near here.  Have a full week of events with the dock out in Cherry Grove and opening of my house as well.  Also have an executive board meeting for NYC Pride on Monday night so no rest this coming week at all.  The new web site for NYC Pride really looks good.  Have not had time to really use the web site much but the few spots I have really look nice.  Only 40 days now until the start of PRIDE in NYC.

Thursday, May 3, 2012 Mesa, Arizona

Had a great day.  It's mom's birthday so my sister called and sang to her.  We had some excellent pork chops and double stuffed potatoes for dinner then we played cards.  I won both games which was really rare for me.  Everyone seemed to have a good time.  Week with mom is coming to a close but I had a great time.  Just relaxing, seeing my friend Ken and enjoying the quiet time at mom's.

Sunday, April 29, 2012 8:25am AST Mesa, Arizona

Headed out to the swap meet with Mom to do some shopping and looking around before it gets to hot here in Arizona.  Nice weather.  Much better than the 60 degree weather we were having as a high with low in the high 30's.

Saturday, April 28, 2012 10pm AST Mesa, Arizona

At my mom's home here in Mesa.  Had a great day with her and now just settling in.  We have a full day of activities planned for Sunday already.  Should be fun.

Saturday, April 28, 2012 5:20am EDT Newark-Liberty International Airport

Ok, so I made it to the airport just fine. Everything is rebranded United here.  Sitting out at the end of C84 which is clear out at the end.  Lots of interesting flights leaving around me.  A flight to LA.  Other than that, I saw Aruba and Antigua at another gate.  I am sitting across from my gate and this one goes to San Salvador.  Matt drove me to the airport.  He is going to take care of Smokey while I am away. She was happy that I fed her before I left.  Ok, off to Phoenix for a week.  Looking forward to a fun trip.

Sunday, April 22, 2012 4:15pm EDT

Wow, as I get ready to jet my way across the country next week on my annual trip to see my mom.  I realized that I have not updated this blog for a spell.  So I am taking a break to bring this up to date with tidbits of worthless information that someone might feel is important.  Or just someone who might be just reading this for fun.  You never know.  Lets see.  Well had an interesting time on the Martha Washington bridge a few weeks back.  That is the lower level of the George Washington bridge.  I was in the center lane as this Jeep was in the left lane.  Suddenly, her entire front axle breaks and her right front tire kicks out toward me and she hits the pavement kicking out sparks everywhere.  I slowed to get behind her, hit the emergency lights and stop.  She is really shaken up. There is another car there that was right behind her, he stops too.  She did a great job of keeping the Jeep in the same lane and not loosing it.  So here I am trying to call 911 and get help and direct traffic right after the approach.  So it's a bit weird.  The bridge is swaying as I am standing on it as cars zip past at 60 mph.  I get a flare out and wave people over out of our lane.  Drivers are real jerks at times.  After about 15 minutes, the Port Authority Police arrive and take over.

We had a nice Brush Fire in the Meadowlands. It started just 3.2 miles away from my work.  The picture from my window is below on the left.  It was a good sized one but they got the upper hand.  With this being Earth Day today, I should point out that the fire actually was good for the Meadowlands.  It's natures way of clearing out the old growth brush and renew itself.  The fire crews kept it in check to make sure it did not get to big and cause any damage to any structures.  Not like the ones out in Long Island.  The weather has been so dry and we were about 8" short of rain for the year.  Everything was ready to burn.  This weekends rain last night and today will really help us.  We needed a good soaker.

 

Brush fire in the Meadowlands as seen from my office	55 Aeon Walk - A new house being built in Cherry Grove