Eventually, I will come to grips with the fact that I am no longer a spring chicken and probably do not belong on a 24-foot ladder with a 15-foot pole saw. Today was not that day, as I up-limbed several trees needing pruning. The work was not made easier by the extreme heat combined with my choice of a long-sleeved shirt and long pants to protect my skin from the limbs falling past me. When I completed the work, I was as physically spent and left with the realization that I really should not be doing this kind of work any more. Getting old sucks. Falling off a ladder with a mini-chain saw probably sucks more.

Due to the amount of mud present, I have been reluctant to do any yard work near the river banks on our property. Today, that excuse evaporated with the arrival of the pictured muck boots. I was relieved when I slipped them on and found the fit to be good, a concern I have whenever purchasing footwear online. Unlike other new purchases, I am not looking forward to using my new boots.

Despite above-average rainfall over the past months, the level of the Sudbury River has returned to a normal level. During parts of the winter, water was present from tree line to tree line. This afternoon, I flew my drone from our patio up to Fairhaven Bay to survey the waterline. Note to self: I think it would be very cool to record my altitude and geolocation so that I can return to this same vantage point for future photos illustrating the changing look of the river through the seasons. I ended the flight with an aerial selfie.

Something I have been meaning to do for some time now is to replace our mailbox with a more substantial one and to replace the cross members on the post we share with neighbors. The old ones were rotting and not level. The new box is more in keeping with the modern design of our house and I like the way the large numbers appear on the door.

During one of my many trips from the mailbox to my shop for a forgotten tool or needed fastener, I encountered this Eastern Milk Snake crossing the driveway. These snakes are non-poisonous, non-venomous, have tiny teeth, and are docile unless provoked. It was odd to encounter one during the day as they are primarily nocturnal hunters. They are a welcome member of our local ecosystem feeding primarily on mice, other small mammals, snakes, birds, bird eggs, slugs, and other invertebrates.

We hosted a Euro Cup finals viewing party in the afternoon with the kids. Maya came with her boyfriend, Owen, and flatmate Zoe. Nicolai arrived with amp soccer teammate Musa, and Kyle was solo. Jeanine was only slightly interested in the match but did think to take a picture of the assembled group. While studying the image, I have tried with no success to locate Owen’s head. His left foot can be seen in a black sock.

Discovered in early 2023, pictured above are three of five musket balls that were unearthed in Minute Man National Park. These musket balls were found near the Old North Bridge on the eastern side of the Concord River where British soldiers formed up to resist the colonial militia when the “shot heard round the world” was fired. The British used standardized musket ball sizes while the colonists cast their own to match their specific rifles (40 to 70 caliber). Only later in the war did the Colonial army begin to standardize as well. This difference and where they were found offer compelling evidence that they were fired at the British by the Minutemen. Striations on the musket balls confirmed they were fired rather than dropped.

Today, for the first time, they went on public display at Minute Man National Park where Jeanine and I were first in line to see them this morning. It is fascinating to live in a place with such a rich history of our nation.

Mulching was the order of business this morning. Jeanine had 4 cubic yards of finely chopped leaf mulch delivered earlier this week and we have been installing it in 2 hour shifts. Today it was my turn as she prepared food for an evening gathering we hosted. Nicolai joined us for the party and chipped in as our expert “Tangerita” maker and guacamole chef.

At Formlabs, where Maya works, you know you have “arrived” when you get “photochopped”. A picture taken of you at work is distributed to the photochop group and is edited into several outrageous and funny versions that are then circulated within the team. The original image shows Maya and a colleague presenting a soon-to-be-released new product. Regrettably, I am not at liberty to show that photo. The chopped version, however, requires no explanation. Go Maya!

Jeanine borrowed a page from Maya’s playbook and offered to puppy-sit for a friend so she could get a dog fix. I was invited to join the fun but was busy with several projects. One was to build a simple open box to hold small cloth hand towels. We use these to replace paper towels and wash them when soiled. They have been sitting on our kitchen counter in an undersized store-bought box for months and it irks me to see them stuffed inside. I used box joints for the new box and started the project by fabricating a simple jig to cut them. It still needs another finishing coat but I already like the appearance of the joints. Now that I have the box joint jig, I can see knocking out several other storage boxes for the kitchen.

It is hard to believe but this is my 9000th post. That works out to one per day for nearly 25 years. In fact, it has only been 19 years and a couple of months. In the early years of the blog, I posted each picture as a standalone post, sometimes several in one day. Later, I switched to a single post per day which explains the discrepancy.

Jeanine and I spent a good portion of the morning weeding and mulching our newly planted yard. It is tedious work and the key is to do a little bit every day rather than trying to get it all done at once. This is especially true on really hot days like we have been experiencing for the past week. So far, most of our plants are doing very well, the one exception being our elephant ear hostas which have succumbed to the nourishment of our local deer population. Fortunately, our smaller hostas do not appear to be on their dining menu.

Over the years, I have been adding only cordless handheld power tools to my shop. It is hard to quantify just how much easier and more pleasurable they are to use without having to worry about cord management. Today, I put several corded tools up for sale for which I now have cordless equivalents or no longer use. I was motivated by the discovery that several companies now make tools that are compatible with the DeWALT battery system in which I am heavily invested. To justify a new tool purchase, I feel the need to sell tools that I use infrequently. New tools arriving shortly include a cordless soldering iron, cordless hot melt glue gun, and cordless plastic welding gun.

Nico has been named to the U.S. Amputee Soccer Men’s Team that will travel to Honduras in September for the inaugural Gold Cup which will include the national teams from Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. Although it will likely conflict with my own soccer schedule, I think I would like to attend this tournament.

It is hard to believe but our second child will be thirty years old starting tomorrow. We celebrated today with an outdoor feast that included family and friends. Nico reminds us all how to live in the moment and to suck the marrow out of life. He is the Lead Educator for the Bionic Project, captain of the USA National Amputee Soccer Team, and all-time leading scorer for the US, a brand ambassador for Arc’teryx, a board member of the American Amputee Soccer Association, and assistant soccer coach for Regis College. He was the first to summit Mount Kilimanjaro on crutches, has been a guest on the Ellen Degeneres Show, and has received numerous awards, including a Heros Among Us from the Boston Celtics, and was named an Honorary Captain of the New England Revolution Soccer Team. We are very proud of him and can’t wait to see what he does next.

Jeanine and I had little trouble agreeing on the design of our new house since we share a common aesthetic for architecture. The same cannot be said for artwork. On this front we are off to a slow start, often finding it difficult to agree. That was not the case for the pictured sculpture that was created by my mother. We both love it. We also agreed that it needed a stand to elevate it from the floor. Today, I fashioned one by extending the contours of the sculpture’s base using a lamination of leftover LVL studs. I think my mother would have been very pleased with this solution.

The galette has its roots in French cuisine and dates back to ancient times. The term “galette” comes from the French word “galet,” meaning a flat, round stone, which reflects the flat and round shape of the pastry. Historically, galettes were simple, rustic cakes made from coarse grains, often served as a staple food.

In Brittany, a region in France, galettes made from buckwheat flour became popular, especially for savory versions filled with ingredients like cheese, meats, and vegetables. Over time, the concept of the galette evolved, and sweet versions with fruits and other fillings became common.

The modern galette, known for its free-form and rustic appearance, is celebrated for its versatility and ease of preparation. Pictured above is one of two galettes prepared by Jeanine for a dinner party we attended this evening. And yes, they were as delicious as they looked.

Jeanine and I traveled to Medford this afternoon for a 4th of July barbecue with Kyle. We lounged on his partially completed patio, enjoying burgers, salad, watermelon, and homemade strawberry and lemon sorbet that Jeanine prepared. Before dessert, we took a long stroll around the lake in nearby Fellsmere Park where waterfowl outnumbered people and the soothing sound of the fountains was in stark contrast to exploding firecrackers that peppered the tranquility. Nico joined us after dinner, having just flown back from his western states road trip, and regaled us with tales of his travels. Maya is on Nantucket staying with several of her high school girlfriends and we hope to see her on Sunday when we will be gathering again to celebrate Nico’s birthday.