Tony Sampas captured the heavy, wet snowflakes that fell this morning in front of Specialty Materials, Inc. at 1449 Middlesex Street
February 25th, 2011
THE ENDLESS WINTER
With apologies to the makers of the classic surfing film “The Endless Summer,” this post is a complaint about the winter that just won’t quit. This week may be the worst week of the winter, and it’s only Friday. At 8.30 pm the snow is thick in the cold air. The smushy slushy “snain” that’s underfoot will freeze tonight and be hell on the shoes and tires. On ‘CAP this morning, weatherman Al said two more small storms are coming between now and Monday, with a greater probability for rain in those guys.
I took a chance and sent the snowblower out for repair at Cason’s on Gorham Street a week ago. The machine worked, but it was making a bad sound. Turns out one of the auger blades was bent and rubbing as it turned. I knew something got screwed up in the last big storm when I sucked up a huge mudguard that had dropped off a truck and then disappeared in the snow at the bottom of my driveway. Don’t you hate that? I got the snowblower back yesterday, tuned up and ready for action. I don’t want to use it again until January 2012.
The weird late February thaw last week with temps up to 60 degrees threw everyone’s seasonal rhythms off. To slide back into the frozen valley seems worse than having had no respite. We were driving with our windows down for a couple of afternoons. There’s an astonishing circle of snow hills on the floor of the South Common where the City dumps what it picks up when clearing lots and intersections downtown, I presume—storm fallout that’s a reminder of how hard we’ve been hit this winter. That can’t be good for the playing field grass in the long run, all the salted snow. Let’s hope the South Common renovation comes along sooner than later and that we get an artificial turf surface down there that will have to be carefully cared for over the long term. No more dumping. No more carnivals.
This winter has been tough for the dogs and cats, dogs especially. Cats have the litter box thing down. Taking the dog out has been like running an obstacle course. I fell down down a couple of times, and our dog wound up on his side a couple of times when he tried to climb an icy embankment. It is funny to see a small dog walk on top of the snow pack. The problem is that the dog walker isn’t as light. Hard to follow where the pup wants to go. I stuck one of our dog’s tennis balls in the fork of a big lilac bush branch outside our back door, and we’ve been watching the ball all winter, waiting for the day when I can un-wedge it and throw it on the back lawn. That’ll be the day, Buddy Holly.
February 25th, 2011
UMass Lowell’s Meehan Sends his Own Message
Chancellor Meehan’s Inauguration Ceremony – April 4, 2008 – Members of Congress Niki Tsongas, Edward Markey and Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Chancellor Marty Meehan, Governor Deval Patrick and Fr. Nicholas Sannella
With full credit to Globe senior writer Frank Phillips, here’s his latest story on the Political Intelligence page of Boston.com. He and Marty Meehan are longtime friends - so it’s not surprising that Phillips has this “political jab to Governor Patrick” story.
UMass-Lowell Chancellor Marty Meehan is sending Governor Deval Patrick a none-too-subtle message after his fellow Democrat quashed the former congressman’s bid to become president of the entire University of Massachusetts system.
Meehan is planning to give an honorary degree this spring to Robert Manning, who quit as chairman of the UMass board of trustees late last year amid what he saw as meddling by Patrick in the presidential search.
The award was confirmed by a high-level university official; a UMass-Lowell spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment.
Manning is a UMass-Lowell grad who has gone on to run one of the country’s biggest financial services firms, Boston-based MFS Investment Management.
While he and his wife have no children, they have contributed and been devoted to the UMass system in general and UMass-Lowell in particular, leading to Manning’s role atop the system’s governing board of trustees.
Manning also was working with fellow Trustee James Karam to oversee the search to replace UMass President Jack Wilson. That search was trending toward Meehan, who members of the search committee made the strongest presentation among a group of semifinalists, before the governor and his top aides began to weigh in.
Patrick spoke generally of the need for diversity among the field of candidates, to conduct a search that not only looks but is open, and that would result in a pick with “broad wings” academically.
Meehan got the message, withdrew from the search after his name leaked, and went back to Lowell, where he has run his own alma mater since resigning from Congress in 2007.
Manning announced his board resignation a week later.
The university ended up hiring Robert Caret, president of Towson University in Maryland.
As Marty sits on a tidy sum of campaign dollars only eligible for use in a federal race, one wonders if there are more Marty-messages to be heard. Stay tuned.
This story was posted by Glen Johnson here on the Globe “Political Intelligence” page.
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