Friday Diversions....

It’s mornings like this that you really enjoy retirement (yes, I’m rubbing it in) – raining, gloomy, but you can be inside, savor your Latte and ponder life at a leisurely pace.

I love this place. Yesterday on my way home from last day of work for the week (I don’t do Friday’s), there was one of those omnipresent little white pickups (toyota or whatever) driving along with a load of stuff in the back (looked like an incremental moving operation). But, in this case the load of stuff in the back included some kind of dresser, and a person perched on the side of the truck bed holding on for dear life to a big flat screen. Priorities.

Restaurateurs take note!! Hold that summer menu! Use the other white meat! Captains! Sell your boat! Get out of the head boat business now! The Maryland Department of the Environment has warned us to “stop eating, or drastically reduce…intake of rockfish and bluefish caught in local waters”. The reason is that those fish are loaded with polychlorinated biphenyls, which we know better as PCB’s. Buried in the print later on, it does say it’s okay for adults to have 8 ounces of rockfish once a month, but pregnant women, women who could become pregnant, nursing mothers, (where have we heard that before?), and children should not eat it at all. Bluefish? 8 ounces every other month, and kiddies 1 ounce every other month. “Hey Mom! What’s for dinner?’ It’s our special meal tonight junior – that one ounce serving of Bluefish!! Don’t get me wrong, this is a serious subject, and everybody should decide what's best for themselves. You gotta die of something.

The Newtowne Players are going to have a series of one act plays starting tonight, and I noted that Aaron Meisinger, known locally for being an occasional server at Brome Howard Inn, interpreting Godiah Spray at Historic St. Mary’s city, re-enactor in several events there, is featured in one of the plays. Those who know and appreciate his talents are not surprised. He’s “on” most of the time anyway. Sounds interesting..

Yesterday was that bittersweet day when the cover was removed from the gray lagoon, and now begins the summer ritual of backwashing, chemicals, chlorine tablets, Ph, Polaris mechanics, brushing, skimming, anything but swimming. Incidentally I have finally found a pool outfit (we use for opening and closing) that is really good. References supplied – e-mail at home back channel.

Being Helpful: I have a friend who is looking for a (reliable) source of used vegetable oil. Some of the local Amish families use it running machinery in their shops. Ideas? I am going to contact some of the local restaurateurs…

(Approximately) One liners:

First Friday tonight in Leonardtown.

Reports of Bollywood’s demise might be pre-mature, more research needed. Stand by.

Headline in Sports section of today’s fishwrapper: “Ryken grads move on”.

Tomorrow morning at nine, a shouting match, er, I mean the women’s final of the French Open. Mute.....

Last word on speed cameras: they are mechanical, they may be inaccurate. One alert reader suggested a modification to the auto that would spit out a ticket each time it exceeded the speed limit. passion runs high. My last shot. If we observed the speed limit, there would be no tickets, no fine money to haggle over, and fewer accidents.

DFD