Crime in suburbia

From The Landmark (subscription required):

Holden

Monday, April 6

11:08 a.m. Jackknifed tractor trailer unit on Lincoln Ave.
11:32 a.m. Raccoon in yard on Valley Hill Dr.
12:14 p.m. Raccoon in garage on Wachusett St., possibly rabid
11:54 p.m. Dead beaver on Main St.

Tuesday, April 7

2:56 a.m. Worcester requests notification to Holden resident that his restaurant caught on fire
8:40 a.m. Pothole next to manhole cover on Main St.
9:02 a.m. Vehicle in lot on Main St. that doesn't belong there
9:19 a.m. Business concerned about solicitor claiming they are associated with Holden office
2:36 p.m. Group of solicitors without permits on Nola Dr.
8:02 p.m. Report of larceny from business on Main St.; individual wanting to return same items twice
8:06 p.m. Caller about dog tied out all day on Avery Rd.
9:30 p.m. Two callers inquiring if individual has been reported missing

Wednesday, April 8

10:20 a.m. Inquiry about issues at Trout Brook
2:45 p.m. Census bureau will be in town for six to eight weeks
3:37 p.m. Post office reports patron upset about construction, made scene then left
4:29 p.m. Report of possible loitering at high school; okay, parties waiting for a ride
7:20 p.m. Individual suspected in theft is back in Main St. business

Thursday, April 9

3:50 a.m. Fluid trail from business on Main St. to Valley Hill Rd.
11:38 a.m. Animal problem on Hunter Circle
5:04 p.m. Caller reports egging car received was actually paint
5:18 p.m. Tree branch removed from travel lane on Main St..

Friday, April 10

12:46 p.m. Suspicious motor vehicle in lot at pool on Salisbury St.
7:58 p.m. 911 call from Cutler Rd.; homeowner says did not call and hung up twice
10:08 a.m. Report of two dogs missing from Princeton St. residence
12:50 p.m. Abandoned car in middle of parking lot at library; appears to have slipped out of gear; will wait an hour for owner before towing
3:06 p.m. Main St. business owner advises of manhole in parking lot leaking water/sewage; water department advised
5:32 p.m. Report of two kids in vehicle in Big Y parking lot, possibly rolling a joint
6:13 p.m. Report of kids skateboarding at business on Main St.
8:03 p.m. Caller asking about what happened at her home on Woodhaven earlier in the day

Saturday, April 11

2:42 a.m. Worcester PD reports party that was involved in accident in that city might be in Holden, car has door hanging off; no contact

Sunday, April 12

2:29 a.m. Suspicious person walking near state police barracks
7:44 a.m. Report of truck taking wood from new development on Preservation Lane
11:22 a.m. Low-hanging wire on Salisbury St.
12:07 p.m. Water leak in basement coming from pipe from Bullard St.; water department advised
7:46 p.m. Multiple reports of bear in area of Quinapoxet St./Windy Ridge Rd.

Paxton

Monday, April 6

9:44 a.m. Area of Anna Maria College, car struck deer

Tuesday, April 7

3:35 p.m. Grove St. resident reporting a missing tan/white collie
9:18 p.m. Dead cat in the road, West St.

Wednesday, April 8

3:31 p.m. Dirty tap water, Shanandoah Dr. Work was being done on water pipe. Problem should clear up on its own.

Thursday, April 9

8:09 a.m. Report of several males walking through the neighborhood, handing out Splenda samples. Also a white van with NC plates. Advised subjects they must check in with dispatch.

Friday, April 10

10:31 a.m. Large log in roadway, Pleasant St. by the American Legion
10:49 a.m. Caller reporting two males with metal detectors walking the perimeter of Congregational Church. Church gave them permission to be there.
2:16 p.m. Walk-in reporting tree branches in road by DPW barn
6:26 p.m. Worcester PD advising of possible erratic driver on Pleasant St.
9:04 p.m. Erratic vehicle on Pleasant St.

Sunday, April 12

12:00 p.m. Lost dog, brown/white, near Maple St.
1:40 p.m. Dog found near Town Hall

Princeton

Monday, April 6

8:27 a.m. Traffic safety hazard, Sterling Rd.
7:00 p.m. Assist highway department, Rte. 140 North
10:20 p.m. Open gate, Mountain Rd.

Tuesday, April 7

6:59 a.m. Disturbance, gun shots, Mountain Rd.
5:00 p.m. Public service, Town Hall Dr.

Wednesday, April 8

11:35 a.m. Officer investigation, Westminster Rd.
2:45 p.m. Officer investigation, Ball Hill Rd.
3:39 p.m. Public service, Mountain Rd.

Thursday, April 9

9:29 a.m. Erratically operated motor vehicle, Sterling Rd.
2:32 p.m. Suspicious motor vehicle, Sterling Rd.
3:01 p.m. Erratically operated motor vehicle, Mountain Rd.

Friday, April 10

9:55 a.m. Assist fire department, Jefferson Rd.
2:00 p.m. Suspicious person, Westminster Rd.

Saturday, April 11

3:58 p.m. Public service, Rte. 140 North
4:34 p.m. Request for animal control officer, Wheeler Rd.

Sunday April 12

1:15 a.m. Assist other police department. Hubbardston Rd.
2:15 a.m. Assist other police department, Worcester Rd.
4:18 a.m. Request for light department, Worcester Rd.
5:09 a.m. Request for highway department, Worcester Rd.
8:03 p.m. Assist animal control officer, Coal Kiln Rd.
8:45 p.m. Suspicious incident, Boylston Ave./Connor Ln.
11:07 p.m. Request for animal control officer, Coal Kiln Rd.

Rutland

Monday, April 6

8:27 a.m. Complaint about yellow utility truck pulling Jake brake making a lot of noise in neighborhood, Pleasantdale Rd.
3:34 p.m. Tree fell knocking down wires, Cloverdale Ln./ Sassawanna Rd.
4:10 p.m. Person into station to speak with an officer, Main St.
6:41 p.m. Caller reporting gunshots in area of Bernard Rd.

Wednesday, April 8

6:51 a.m. Person reporting cow on wrong side of the fence, Pommogussett Rd.
10:40 a.m. Complaints about large trucks using Jake brake unnecessarily, Pleasantdale Rd.
11:50 a.m. Person complaining about neighbor dumping yard waste debris and duck waste over wall onto his property, Rolling Ridge Rd.

Thursday, April 9

8:46 a.m. Report of large sheep running down Pleasantdale Rd.
4:00 p.m. Person came to station to speak with an officer,Main St.
4:55 p.m. Person wants to speak with an officer about ongoing issue with neighbors, East County Rd.
5:27 p.m. Tree in roadway, Glendale Rd./Campbell St.
5:45 p.m. Plymouth Police Department reporting a person accidentally lost a box from his truck, Bethany Dr.
7:08 p.m. Suspicious vehicle parked at the Rail Trail, Rte. 122

Friday, April 10

10:14 a.m. Person in to station be fingerprinted, Main St.

Saturday, April 11

8:16 a.m. Report of baby moose in roadway, East County Rd.
5:28 p.m. Person came to station to speak with an officer, Main St.

Sunday, April 12

10:49 a.m. Caller reports cars parked on both sides of Main St.
6:37 p.m. Person reporting annoying phone calls between kids, Stevens Way

Sterling

Monday, April 6

12:05 a.m. Report of male sitting on guardrail in front of restaurant, Leominster Rd.
10:53 a.m. Complaint about dog that chases person walking on Sherwood Dr.
1:00 p.m. Raccoon roaming the area of overpass on I-190, climbed over chainlink fence to get to roadway from Princeton Rd.
5:49 p.m. Medium sized white dog loose on Stuart Rd./ Meetinghouse Hill Rd.
9:06 p.m. Report of lost yellow Lab, Taft Rd.

Thursday, April 9

11:51 a.m. Report of dog bite, Chace Hill Rd.
1:37 p.m. Possible rabid raccoon on porch of home on Redemption Rock Trl.
2:17 p.m. Person saw cat in window of home that recently had a fire, Waushacum Ave./School St.

Friday, April 10

10:30 a.m. Large black dog wandering onto property on Princeton Rd.
2:54 p.m. Report of missing Springer spaniel, Gates Rd.

Saturday, April 11

8:20 a.m. Suspicious motor vehicle with female sitting in it on property on East Park Rd.
5:20 p.m. Report of two people in vehicle in parking lot behind café on Main St.

Life is good ...

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If people would just have 'merkin names, we'd be fine.

As I've often said, my wife really had to love me to grab a name such as Hakkarainen.
My family anglicized the pronunciation of our name, letting Hakk sound like 'hack,' rather than 'hahk' or 'huck' (hence, my father's nickname) and shifting the emphasis from the first syllable to the third, where rain sound like, well, 'rain,' rather than 'rye-n.' So, huck-a-rye-nen (with appropriate throat-clearing sounds after the first and before the third syllables) becomes hakk-a-rain-en.
Naturally, most folks, on first take, will say Hakkarainian, moving us 2000km southeast from Finland to Armenia.
I will, of course, also answer to "Mr. Er-ah-um-hakk-a...."
But, enough of that.
A Texas legislator has an idea, originally directed at Chinese immigrants - change your names so that they're easier for Americans pronounce. (Legend has it that many immigrants' names were changed when they arrived in the United States, but this seems less likely. More often, as was the case on my father's birth cetificate, errors and changes were made by local town or school clerks.)
Or, we could learn how to pronounce the names. Granted this is more work and, goodness knows, our poor American brains can't handle much more. Nevertheless, the Wall Street Journal has an article about a couple of web resources, www.howtosaythatname.com and www.pronouncenames.com, that will help you pronounce foreign first and surnames. The databases are still works-in-progress, but they're a step in the right direction.

And now for something completely different, Raymond Luxury Yacht (YouTube video).

He was a friend of mine

Dan died in a car crash in Oklahoma on Sunday, a long way from home.
He was, at once, smart, angry, loving, drunk and ashamed, sober and proud, funny, mean-spirited, fiercely loyal, a dark star of emotional distance.
"Don't be sorry. Change," he used to say, ultimately unable to do either for himself.
As his wife, Alice, noted, we don't have to worry about him any more. That part of the pain has stopped, for us, for him. All the unfinished business, of tearful memories, joyful recollections, financial chaos, and perhaps a few more lurking secrets, well, that what the rest of time is for.
Death comes mid-sentence.

Dogs and us

The nation is much relieved to know that the Obama family now has a dog, a Portuguese water dog name Bo. The First Puppy is a gift from Sen. Ted Kennedy (no jokes about water, Chappaquiddick, please).
Meanwhile, over at both Kennedy's and Obama's alma mater, Harvard scientists are scientists are studying if and how dogs think.
One of the Harvard scientists studying dog behavior observed, generally about dogs, "If you have an animal and it's more than that, it's truly a member of your family, you see things every day that you don't have the ability to explain or describe, but you know how important it is to you."
Now, we love our dog in particular and, for the most part, dogs in general. Nevertheless, some dogs seem destined to take undue chances with their Darwinian fate.
To wit, when a UK dog had an operation to treat a suspected tumor, doctors discovered that the dog's stomach contained "17 garments, including nine socks, four gloves and a stocking." The family had been wondering where their laundry had gone to. The teen-aged son had first noticed that his rubber gloves went missing two years ago.

Happy 90th, Woody

Five years of RoasterBoy

It started here.
Want to know how to make God laugh? Talk about your plans for the future.
More later.