Subject: Weekend Update: May 23-29
Date:    Tue 5/30/00 10:50am

There are far too many things that happened last week to describe them
all.  (I can hear your sighs of relief!)  I took two half days off
last week to get some work around the house under control.  I didn't;
there is still quite a bit to get done.  But mulching is done, the
garden boxes are tilled and planted, two new boxes were hammered
together and set in place, the pool fence painting was started, the
hallway trim was stained, and I got the gas-powered weed wacker to
work.  I spent the afternoon and evening on Thursday retrieving my
daughter Miranda from Eastern Nazarene College.  Jessica went to Camp
Winsor Hills to a quizzing weekend retreat.  Emily went to a birthday
party, marched in the Pepperell Memorial Day parade, and was off to
Washington D.C. this morning with her school mates.  Andrew ran a
killer substitute paper route with the help of his mom.

As a sideline to the rest of the familial drama of the week, my war
with the chipmunk continued to rage.  I found new holes around the
house. and the fur ball would taunt us by sitting in the middle of our
bird feeder, which looks like a miniature gazebo on a stick.  At least
the sand in the hole under the brick walkway was staying shut.  Like a
scene out of Caddyshack, the rodent seemed to be outsmarting me.  I
put a trap outside one of its holes; I caught a squirrel the next
morning.  Since it was Sunday morning, I opted to let the squirrel go
in the woods down on Williams St.  (Andrew followed me and told the
squirrel "I voted to drown you." - Joy had a talk with him.)  I reset
the trap near the bird feeder that looks like a gazebo on a stick.
When we got home from church, we had caught a bird, which Miranda let
go.  Finally, Andrew placed the trap close to where he saw the
chipmunk last.  We caught the persistent pest that evening.  I let him
spend the night in the cage to think about things (and give him a
really uncomfortable night) until I was to deal with him in the
morning.  I don't know what came over me, but I decided to take it a
mile down the road to Wattles Pond and let it live there.  When I
opened the cage, do you think it ran into the woods?  No!  It ran
across the street to where there were more houses. Oh well, at least
he'll be someone else's pest.  I'm hoping he doesn't have FAMILY!

On Friday afternoon of last week, I went to see Mission Impossible 2,
a "Movie Day" event that my company has sponsored for its employees
every Memorial Day Weekend friday for the last several years.  On
Saturday evening, I attended a 60th birthday party for a friend and
former boss of mine.  He had a diverse crowd with bikers and high tech
nerds mingling to give Art a good push into his 60s. (Hey, Dan!  that
sounds like you wrapped into one!)  Sunday saw a cookout with friends,
an after church evening repast with other friends.  We had another
cookout on Monday with friends too!

On Monday, Jessica Lynn Silva, age 5, was the first person to swim in
our pool.  Not to be outdone by a 5-year old, Jessica was soon joined
by her siblings, Katie and Don, Ryan Magnuson, and Andrew and Emily.
The weather was mostly cloudy (with some sun) and in the low 60s. I
don't know what the water temperature was. I guess we didn't have
enough crazy people in Pepperell that we had to import them from
Tyngsboro and Billerica.

I don't know how we fit it all in last week, but enough of that; this
week has its own demands.  

I have to get out my Sunday BYOM invitations to mark the official
opening of the Manor to our friends on Sunday afternoons, because I
know some people aren't comfortable in coming over without them.  For
my email friends who are local (or traveling this way), we open our
house every Sunday between church services for a "Bring your own meal"
(BYOM) picnic lunch and enjoyment of each others' company on the Manor
grounds. The pool is open (and even had crazy people in it yesterday).
Plants can be had (see Joy) for your yards and crops (depending on
availability and quantity), too.

Consider this your official notice.  It is nice (but not always
necessary) if we know you are coming ahead of time.  Thanks!

Mark
Mark Metcalfe, Sr. Tech Writer  ,                     ___\__      Cruisin'
Cadence Design Systems, Inc.  : \_0__,               |______\_____
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