O, Mr. Noah. O, Mr. Noah

Rain with widespread drizzle... Patchy fog...Rain with widespread drizzle... Patchy fog... Rain... Patchy fog and widespread drizzle in the morning... Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of rain... Mostly cloudy with a 50 percent chance of showers... Mostly cloudy... A chance of showers and thunderstorms... Patchy fog after midnight... , so sayeth the National Weather Service for the next four days.

The weather is taking charge of most conversations. Each of the local shows includes a substantial segment about this stretch of cold, rainy, and often windy weather. The weather on the Island hasn't been much better. It's good weather to work in a cubicle far from any windows.

I received an email from a recruiter who has a job lead. I'm pleased and grateful, but think that I'll not pursue it. There are a few key words and phrases in the job description (pre-IPO, fast-paced, aggressive) that suggest a lot of long hours, in addition to the longer commute. Time was, and not long ago, I'd jump at this opportunity. I'm not jumping. Sometime maybe, but not now.

It's important to make sure that what you say/write is what you mean.

Years ago I worked for a manager who said that, when she had an important presentation to make, she'd wear a red slip. She felt more confident, no matter who was in the audience. She was a proper lady, given to wearing gray wool suits. Anyway, here's the science.

Sandra has done a great job clearing the leaves, dead hemlock needles, and fallen branches from around the camp. The place looks great. During the clean-up we'd hear neighbors on other parts of the lake using leaf blowers. It was hard work, but manual raking does a better job. If we really wanted to bring tools into the picture, how would one of these do? As I told Sandra when I was climbing through the trap door into the cellar, "Dial 9-1 and wait."

Happy Birthday, Barbara.