Blog Archives

The Cheese Apocalypse

1/14/2014

Cheese apocalypse of 2014 is now right around the corner. Kraft Foods has announced that there is a shortage of Velveeta on the East Coast. Ohhh my God, what will I do now? How will the Super Bowl snack table be complete without a gooey bowl of my secret recipe dip? Now I have heard the rumors from the street, there has been a rush on the supermarkets to purchase that big blob of goodness. Old ladies have been trampled in the isle and there are stories of Black Friday craziness circulating everywhere.

Being the good trained scout that I am with a history of always trying to be prepared, I tried to remain calm and figure out a plan that would get me out of this madness. What will I do when I get to the supermarket and there is no Velveeta to be found on the shelf? Would the Dairy man accept a bribe? Should I play hard ball and lie like I have a big connection? There has to be a secret stash hidden away from the mad rush of shoppers that are all there trying to get their fix. How will anyone’s Super Bowl snack table be complete this year without a gooey bowl of the dip?

So I took that trip to the store and can you imagine my surprise when I got there? The stuff was there. It was standing out like fresh fruit that was ready to be picked. The only thing that was missing was the “On Sale” price that should have been part of the supermarkets draw for everyone’s pre Super Bowl shopping list.

And then it dawned on me. If you remember, last year, we supposedly wouldn’t have enough wings for Super Bowl parties. That shortage never came to fruition. Those Damned Doomsday Yackers are trying to create a backup at the cash registers. I think I’m starting to see a pattern here.

My Ship Came In

1/13/2014

And tonight, I was not stuck at the Airport ...Thank you John, The Best beer in the world !!!!!! The Alchemist

Next

1/13/2014

That's right you Haters..........We beat the Colts like a Boss

First Trappist Brewery in U.S.

1/12/2014

America is getting its first officially sanctioned Trappist brewery in the United States. The St. Joseph’s Abbey of Spencer, Massachusetts will now be adding brewing to its daily routine. The abbey already sells the line of Trappist preserves, and has done so, since 1954. St Joseph’s has announced their planes to brew 10,000 bbl per year. The first beer will be a Pater, a type of beer made by Belgian breweries. It should be available at retailers by the middle of next week.They have described it as a golden-hued, full-bodied ale.

Trappist monks throughout Europe brew many different types of beer's. From pale ales, dark brown doubles, blonde triples, white biers and strong, dark ales. With so much variety, you could hardly use the word Trappist to describe a particular style of beer. The label guarantees the monastic origin of the product as well as the fact that they measure up to the quality and traditional standards rooted in the monastic life of a Trappist community. They are very proud of crafting products that are considered to be consistently well made, and very flavorful.

Reciprocal Snowmobile Weekend

1/10/2014

Snowmobile enthusiasts can enjoy the trails in neighboring states during a special reciprocal weekend shared by New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. The dates for the upcoming reciprocal weekend are January 31, February 1 and February 2, 2014 All snowmobiles legally registered in Vermont , Maine or New Hampshire will be able to operate on each states trails during the three-day open weekend.

For information on snowmobiling in New Hampshire,  check it out

For information on snowmobiling in Maine,    check it out

For information on snowmobiling in Vermont,   check it out

Cold

1/8/2014

Again last night, we got blasted by the deep freeze weather that came in late Monday. We started that day with Dense Fog, and then it changed over to rain. Then the Polar Vortex came roaring back into the neighborhood. Not as bad as last week, but still Cold.

About half of the US population had been placed under a wind chill warning or cold weather advisory during the last five days. This weather pattern has engulfed the country from the Western Prairies to the Deep South and up to the East Coast.

There have been some pretty crazy examples from all over the country as to how cold it really is. But for me, the biggest are the temperatures, which got as low as, -52 in Montana and -40 to -50 range in parts of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Can you believe that the Mars Rover sends back daily temperature readings from the Red Planet that range from -25 to -31 degrees?

This morning, our temperature is again barley over zero and with the wind chill, it’s about minus 8. The weatherman’s prediction has the cold snap easing a bit today. He also stated that the temperature will again start to rise above the freezing mark by the weekend. Which begs me to ask the obvious, at what time?

It’s beginning to feel like a Sci-Fi movie with those extreme swings in the weather, a battle of good against evil.

Also, For those of you that are adventurous in this cold. A Northern Light alert has been issued for the next two nights. Strong possibility of seeing them if you are at the right location.

Thinkin Spring with no Bling

1/7/2014

Yes indeed...With all this crazy weather that has now engulfed most of the country, I think its time to take a cruise to a warm location. There is this one cruise line that is looking pretty good right now to just get away from this cold.

Its all Inclusive for your drinks.

And they make great Ports of Call

Words of Winter

1/6/2014

There have been more words used to describe the winter that we are experiencing in New England than I can ever remember. During the last few weeks, we have seen more changes than Gisele used to do at a fashion show. I figured I would throw a few back out there and see if you can remember the dateline.

Sunny, Balmy, Raining, Cool, Snow Flurries, Nor’easter, Bitterly Cold, Arctic Air Mass, Below Zero, Wind Chill Advisory, Polar vortex and today’s newest addition to the words of winter is…Dense Fog Advisory.

Most of the snow that was on the ground from 4 days ago is now gone. The rain and 50 degree temperatures that we saw today made sure of that. The koi pond in my yard is again thawed out from its icy winter cover and I am very happy about that.

And here it comes...The annual slow slide into the long days of winter. Generally we will see partly cloudy days that are offset by a few days of brilliant sun. Temperatures that will stay in the 20s and the nights will be clear and at times very cold. But nothing as compared to those painfully cold days we saw here a few days ago.

Brrrrrrr

1/4/2014

The weatherman predicted that the storm was coming and boy did it ever. A New Years Nor’easter has arrived and all I can say is what a way to start off the year. Thursday morning, we woke up to find a new snowfall, had covered the ground. That was just a warm up for the big show that was about to happen next. The snow continued to fall lightly all day, later in the day the storm kicked up in intensity and the temperature started to drop like a rock.

On Friday morning, I got up at 5:00 a.m. only to find out that a lot more snow had fallen from the day before. It was going to take me a little time to shovel out before I went to work. The temperature was 0 and the streets were deeply coated in a white frosting that was very powdery.

I believe that this snowfall will be here for the rest of the winter. There are parts of the state that did get about two feet of snow. That was pale as compared to the cold temperatures we had outside when I woke up this morning. I can’t tell you the last time I remember it being this cold.

In reality, I think we set a new record for cold. Last night at Westover AFB, the temperature was -17 degrees. On today’s menu of life, we will feature, clear skies with a side dish of cold. Right now the temperature is -10 degrees and there is no wind chill factor.

I am one of the lucky ones, because on a day like this, I remember back when I saw these guys live. Sounds as good today as it did so long ago. Let the countdown to spring now begin.

Let it Begin

1/1/2014

Well here we are, starting off a brand New Year. It’s going to get tough with the Holidays now over and the real fun of winter about to get underway. Last year we were lulled into a false sense of winter when January was unseasonably warm.

Punxsutawney Phil even projected that last winter would end early because he did not see his shadow on Groundhogs Day. In reality, we got snow and then more snow through February and into late March.

That brings me to now; the weather here in Western Mass has been a little crazy for the last week and a half. We had snow on the ground before Christmas and then came the rain with temperatures that climbed up to the low 60s. Last night it dropped back down to the teens with a wind chill factor that gave us single digits of cold……The weatherman predicts it won't get any better, the next couple of days will bring on a change for the worse. We have a snow storm projected for tomorrow night and it is expected to end Friday morning.

The temps will then drop to 10 below zero. That’s what I heard this morning on the weather report. Have I told you all how much I hate the bitter cold of winter? For more years than I care to remember, I wake up early every day and use that time to get my mind right with the world. I read the news on the internet and enjoy a hot coffee. I think I should change my plans for Friday morning, coffee first, snow shoveling next, head out into a blizzard and go to work.

We'll see.