Archive for the 'Life in General' Category



Thursday, October 25

These are the log entries made by the crew of the sailing vessel Epiphany in the hours leading up to the abandonment of the vessel.

Watch 1800-2000 (Atlantic Time) – Gary and Harry

Weather: Mostly cloudy, mid 70’s, wind easterly at 20 to 25 kts. Sea Conditions: close rollers at 10’ to 12’ with some at 15’ and breaking, coming from the east-northeast in a disturbed uneven pattern causing significant rolling with frequent yawing as bow went into the trough and stern was snapped to leeward in a violent manner, tossing gear and crew about. Quarters below were

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Rescue of the Crew of SV Epiphany

Here’s a (b)log of a sailing trip gone wrong. When asked if they’d attempt such a trip again, the participants said, “Only on a cruise ship.”

In October, a friend of mine at work, John, left for a 2-week sailing trip on a 42′ vessel, SV Epiphany. The plan was to sail from Salem, Ma., to Bermuda, and then on to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands. We all thought John (and the rest of the crew) were out of their minds. In a brief fit of good sense, John had his will redone, but the rest was madness as…

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Pantry and Recycling Protocol

A signed copy of this document hung on our refrigerator for many years until I recycled it recently. In retrospect, it did not help one little bit. In fact, the only thing that did help was having Wells scrub the stinking cat food goo from the recycling bin one hot summer day…

Rules and Guidelines for Recycling and General Pantry Protocol

Recycling

Red Recycling Bin in Pantry – Glass, Plastic (no type 3 or 6) and Cans, rinsed and relatively dry. Under no circumstances should the following items be placed in the bin: Un-rinsed, dirty, dripping, stinking…

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The Sad Demise of a Subaru SVX

So there I was, cruising down I-93 in New Hampshire heading to work, approaching the Mass. border at 70 miles/hr. in heavy traffic, listening to the radio and envisioning myself at today’s 10 a.m. meeting. Suddenly, something under the hood went BAM!. The engine died, the windshield was covered in liquid, and smoke or steam – I couldn’t tell which – billowed from every crack and crevice. Somehow, I managed to wrestle the car to the side of the road and get it stopped without the aid of hydraulics and without hitting anything.

My first thought was of the cell…

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Holiday Newsletter – 2008

January 4, 2009

Dear Friends,

Due to my laziness and a case of writer’s block, there was no holiday letter last year. I will not be permitted to get away with that two years running, so let’s play catch-up.

Since establishing our nest more than 30 years ago, Kris and I have looked forward to the day when we would complete the cycle and become “empty nesters.” The prospect has been tantalizing-just the two of us in a cozy space, living a life suddenly made simple and uncluttered. Although both boys are grown and educated, so far the only nest-like…

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Holiday Newsletter – 2008

January 4, 2009

Dear Friends,

Due to my laziness and a case of writer’s block, there was no holiday letter last year. I will not be permitted to get away with that two years running, so let’s play catch-up.

Since establishing our nest more than 30 years ago, Kris and I have looked forward to the day when we would complete the cycle and become “empty nesters.” The prospect has been tantalizing—just the two of us in a cozy space, living a life suddenly made simple and uncluttered. Although both boys are grown and educated, so far the only nest-like…

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Professional Articles and Awards (chesterh)

Agfa, my former employer, received a Technology Enabler Award from Start Magazine for my work in electronic document management.

Here are some articles about my work in document management and PDM systems.

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Holiday Newsletter – 2006

This newsletter may also be viewed in its original form as a .pdf file

Sunday, December 17, 2006
Londonderry, NH
USA

Season’s Greetings,

Today is the ideal day to write the annual holiday newsletter. Fall Sundays around here are usually dominated by football, the family room filled with rabid fans. Kris leads them in a chorus of cheers and expletives hurled at the television screen, a show of emotions that must be heard to be believed. During these times I hide in my study, performing tasks that, given the noise level, do not require much…

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Holiday Newsletter – 2005

This newsletter may be viewed in its original form as a .pdf file

Sunday, December 18, 2005
Londonderry, NH
USA

Season’s Greetings,

Well, here we are again. Time passes so quickly these days that it seems I’m always on the hook for the holiday newsletter. It’s a struggle to remember what happened since the last one…

Baby Wells is now twenty, but I still find my self clipping coupons for Pampers. Wells is a sophomore at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire, though he has made it clear that he’d rather be in a place…

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Holiday Newsletter – 2004

Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Londonderry, NH USA

Dear Friends,

I could take the easy way out and end this letter in the first sentence by saying “This year was just like last year,” but that wouldn’t be fair. You probably don’t know about last year.

I think it was some time in early March, just after we had returned from another cruise — this one to the Caribbean with Wells and his friend Dan. I was doing the previous year’s spring cleaning when I made a startling discovery. I lifted my humidor to dust it, and underneath was a…

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