# New england trip



## MesquiteMan (Oct 19, 2010)

Hello everyone  I am on my way to New England for a week and thought I would try to do mobile updates here, at least for the first couple of days! Today through Thursday I will be driving all over visiting a number of IAP friends I have never met.   This evening I plan to have dinner with Gin-n-Tonic and Wolftat. Then tomorrow it is off to spend the afternoon with Greggas and then to dinner with HSTurnungs. Then Thursday I will visit with ThomJ and Greenmtguy. Then next week i hope to stop in and visit Turbowagon on the way back to the airport  Then on the way home I fly back through Chicago and hope to vist Ed4Copies and PRPrincess!

Anyway I am sitting here at 39,000 feet using airline wifi, bored off my butt!  At least I have IAP!!!  Here is a pic for proof!


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 19, 2010)

Different pic


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## Constant Laubscher (Oct 19, 2010)

How about a smile?:biggrin: Relax and enjoy time off.


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## maxwell_smart007 (Oct 19, 2010)

Man, that must be uncomfortable...

Tell your pilot to stop doing barrel rolls!


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## keithkarl2007 (Oct 19, 2010)

awh my neck :biggrin::biggrin:


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 19, 2010)

maxwell_smart007 said:
			
		

> Man, that must be uncomfortable...
> 
> Tell your pilot to stop doing barrel rolls!



I wish he would stop


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 19, 2010)

I think I finally got him straightened out!!


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## johncrane (Oct 19, 2010)

Ud be lost with out that cap i recon Curtis! any way mate enjoy ya time off, should be good meeting the other pen mad members don't forget to post some photos.


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## Rick_G (Oct 19, 2010)

We got pictures so we know it's happening.  Sounds like a fun trip, relax, enjoy the scenery and have fun.


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## Lenny (Oct 19, 2010)

Have A GREAT trip!


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## Woodlvr (Oct 19, 2010)

That is real boredom. No laptop to watch a movie on to kill the time? Enjoy your vacation.


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## turbowagon (Oct 19, 2010)

Have a safe trip!  Hope you can swing by on the 25th.

- Joe


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 20, 2010)

I just got in from having dinner with gin-n-tonic and wolftat in Waterbury, CT. We had a great dinner and a good visit and it was really nice to finally put some faces with some names I have known for long time.

Tomorrow I head back north a ways to spend the afternoon with Greggas and possibly Rchan. Looking forward to another bit of good conversation was more IAP members.

Here is a picture from dinner tonight of gin-n-tonic (left)  and wolftat (right).  I was not able to get in the picture but oh well you guys already saw my picture today!


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## alphageek (Oct 21, 2010)

Hey wheres the pictures?  We were visiting people vicariously through you!   Your promise of mobile updates didn't even make it 24 hours!  LOL...

Hope you're enjoying your trip!


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## ed4copies (Oct 21, 2010)

Poor ol' Gin N'Tonic looks like he's waisting (sic) away to nothingness!!!

Nice to see Neil, too!!!

Keep em coming, Curtis!!1


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## wolftat (Oct 21, 2010)

I got to admit, it was a very pleasant evening and was great to meet you Curtis.


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## greenmtnguy (Oct 21, 2010)

*Curtis in Vermont*

Curtis teaches Tom's dog Zip how to Texas two step.

 

Curtis and TomJ in Fairlee Vermont. I met Curtis and Tom at Tom's house for a short visit. I was looking for J.R. Ewing with longhorns on the hood, but Curtis was a regular guy. 



 

And Zip can do the two step.


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## glycerine (Oct 21, 2010)

Are those all turning tools he's got back there???  holy moly!

If you're ever in the D.C. area, let me know.  As many IAP members as there are around here, I've only met one in person.


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## greenmtnguy (Oct 21, 2010)

Woodcarving tools. That is about half of them. Had to crop the photo.


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## ThomJ (Oct 21, 2010)

It was great meeting Curtis. Oh & always a pleasure to see Alton. Now I can't get the dog to stop 2 stepping.


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 21, 2010)

Sorry I have not had time to bore everyone with my updates! Been doing a little driving! I have only driven 685 +/- miles in the last 2 days and have met 7 IAP members so far! After leaving Waterbury, CT, I drove up to North Easton, MA to meet Greggas. I was very honored to also have Rchan63 take the afternoon off of work to drive down and meet up with us. We had a wonderful lunch and the $2 tour of North Easton from Greg. then it was back to his shop to look at his incredible wood collection! I swear that guy has a wood addiction problem!

Greg kept trying to give me some of every kind of wood that he had but being a damn stubborn Texan, I did not take any! The three of us were able to spend most of the afternoon talking pens and just shooting the breeze.

I found out that Greg and I have a lot in common, so much so that Greg said that if I was a girl, he would have wanted to date me! At that point I got a little worried and was not sure about spending the afternoon cooped up in his basement! Thankfully, Richard was there to protect me!! I am still not sure about them Mass folks! I already knew that Greg was a builder but come to find out, we both also design most of the homes we build. Greg is on his city's Planning and Zoning Commission and so am I. We also have a passion for wood.

Richard was a great guy as well. He was eager to learn and hopefully, I was able to give him so good suggestions on a CA finish as well as a couple of other things. Thanks again, Richard, for thinking enough to take the day off to meet me. That was a real honor!

I then left Greg's house at about 6 pm and drove up to Londonderry, NH and had dinner with HSTurnings. Matt was easy to talk to and we ended up basically getting kicked out of the restaurant! Our waiter was a little light in the loafers and I think he had an eye for Matt! He even drew the little smiley face on the receipt, knowing that Matt was going to pay! 
Sorry I did not get any pics of Matt but I did not want our waiter to think he and I were "together"!

I then drove on back to Manchester, NH and stayed the night. I got up this morning and returned my rental car and met my mom at the airport. I got to spend an hour or so visiting with her before her flight, then I took her car and headed north to Vermont.

After a nice scenic drive, I ended up at this crotchety old fart's house name ThomJ! Greenmtguy had said he was going to try to come down and low and behold, he too was there. Man, what an honor again. Dang, I really feel loved first having Richard take the day off than having Alton drive 1.5 hours to meet me!

Thomas, Alton, and I sat around shooting the breeze for a few hours, talking about everything from politics to pens! Of course, we also had to gripe and moan a little about the growing pains of IAP and some of the silly little feuds that end up happening here. Thomas' little dog was not at all interested in being my friend (he was not mean, he just did not like Texans, I guess!) so I made it a point that I was going to win him over before I left! Sure enough, by the end of the visit, he was playing with me and having a good time. Still would not let me pet him but certainly a lot more comfortable with me being there.

We then ended up in Thomas' shop and got to see his incredible collection of carving tools. Man, Thomas is one hell of a carver! He had a really super cool moose carving that he did that was really impressive. Not big but great detail and realism.

I left Thomas' house with some cool Vermont soapstone blanks from Alton as well as some FOG wood. It was really good meeting both of them as well.

Then I hit the road even further north and got to West Burke, VT at about 5pm. My mom had not told my dad I was coming. He thought he was just going to have to be by himself for the 4 days she is gone. He was surprised to see her car come driving up the driveway and thought maybe she had missed her flight! I came in and he was VERY surprised to see me. Man was he excited! He has not had a lot of energy and my mom says he mainly just sits around in his chair all day and hardly gets out. That sure changed when I got here! He could not stop talking and has already planned the next few days and where we are going! We plan to just drive around and enjoy the scenery for a next few days and enjoy some time together. I fear his days are numbered so this will be a great opportunity to spend some quality time with just him and myself.

I know one thing, it is too damn cold up here for a warm blooded Texan! Currently, it is 35 degrees F with a low expected of 21. Tomorrow's high is expected to be 40. This afternoon I talked to my wife who is visiting her brother and his wife and new baby on the Texas coast. At 4 pm Texas time, they were at the beach and Katie, my 4 year old daughter, was swimming and playing in the surf he first time. Yes, she was wearing a life jacket, even though she can swim, BTW. I talked to my foreman who is is running siding on a home I have under construction this evening and it was 91 there today!

That is it for the updates for now. I hope to be able to stop by and visit Turbowagon on the way back to the Manchester airport on Monday morning and then I connect in Chicago and am planning to skip my connecting flight and meet and visit with Ed and Dawn if they can get away. Then it will be back to the normal old grind in hot as hell Texas!


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 21, 2010)

Greggas and myself


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## HSTurning (Oct 21, 2010)

I also got to meet Curtis last night.  No photo didnt happen I know.  I personally tend to try to stay out of the photos.  I thought about it later and I think I did most of the talking.  Curtis dont like the weather around here that much.  Looked like he wanted a big thick goose down coat.  
I was good to put a face and personality with the screen name.  Hope you enjoy the rest of your trip.


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 22, 2010)

Yeah, pretty funny with Matt.  First thing he said after we had a few minutes to get to know each other..."you are not the hard ass I thought"!  Also, Neil thought I was taller than he expected.  Funny little thing there...when Neil was pulling up to the hotel I was staying at, he said he saw a guy walking down the street with a cowboy hat and boots and thought for sure that must be me!  Sorry Neil, I don't even own a cowboy hat or any boots nor do I own a horse!!


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 22, 2010)

Not much color left but great scenery nonetheless.


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## ThomJ (Oct 22, 2010)

I think there is going to be a block of ice formally known as Curtis, before his time in VT is up.  White "sunshine" in the forecast for tomorrow


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## el_d (Oct 22, 2010)

Have fun Curtis Sounds Like a good time but probably tiring. Be carefull with the northern climate and show them your southern hospitality, even if your not at your home. But most importantly enjoy the time with your father.


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## phillywood (Oct 22, 2010)

Curtis, you must have had some Cactus in your pocket that you made Tom's dog nervous that he wouldn't warm up to you. The poor thing never seen any cactus.:biggrin:


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 22, 2010)

Woke up to a dusting of snow that had everything covered in a thin layer. It then melted off quickly but it is now snowing again! Currently 36.7 degrees f at noon!  They say this is God's country and I certainly agree from a beauty standpoint but if it is truely God's country, then God must be an Eskimo!!


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## Padre (Oct 22, 2010)

MesquiteMan said:


> Woke up to a dusting of snow that had everything covered in a thin layer. It then melted off quickly but it is now snowing again! Currently 36.7 degrees f at noon!  They say this is God's country and I certainly agree from a beauty standpoint but if it is truely God's country, then God must be an Eskimo!!



Oh, we New Englander's forgot to tell you?  LOL>  I am sorry I missed my opportunity to meet with you Curtis, I really wanted to but the orothopedic surgeon had other ideas. :frown:

Next time  you are up we will definitely have lunch, or dinner, or brunch, or breakfast.


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## greenmtnguy (Oct 22, 2010)

Curtis,
It's not snow until there are a few inches. Before that it is heavy frost


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## wolftat (Oct 22, 2010)

We have a saying up here,"If you don't like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes and it will change".


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## phillywood (Oct 22, 2010)

wolftat said:


> We have a saying up here,"If you don't like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes and it will change".


Neil, ask Curtis what we say here in TX, just about eh same thing ,but different meaning. Youguys talk about cold, we talk about humidity and heat.


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## OKLAHOMAN (Oct 22, 2010)

wolftat said:


> We have a saying up here,"If you don't like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes and it will change".


 
That's Oklahoma's official motto:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:


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## greggas (Oct 22, 2010)

Damn the camera DOES adds 40 lbs!


Curtis, are the slopes open yet?

BTW, I thought you asked me to dance...not the other way around???

After reading that you did take wood up north I no longer wish to date!


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## Lenny (Oct 22, 2010)

New England ... where you can scrape frost off your windshield in the morning and by afternoon need to run the AC! 
Keep on posting Curtis! It's nice to be able to meet/put faces to names, of some of the members, vicariously through you.


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## alphageek (Oct 22, 2010)

Lenny said:
			
		

> New England ... where you can scrape frost off your windshield in the morning and by afternoon need to run the AC!
> Keep on posting Curtis! It's nice to be able to meet/put faces to names, of some of the members, vicariously through you.



Huh... I thought that was just in Wisconsin!   Nice to know we are not alone with weather like that.


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## maxwell_smart007 (Oct 22, 2010)

That beats Northern Ontario - where you scrape the ice off your windshield in the morning...and again in the afternoon...and then call a cab because the truck won't start!  

Looks like a fun trip thus far!


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## Gin N' Tonic (Oct 22, 2010)

ed4copies said:


> Poor ol' Gin N'Tonic looks like he's waisting (sic) away to nothingness!!!
> 
> Nice to see Neil, too!!!
> 
> Keep em coming, Curtis!!1



Either you are kidding or you are trying to be a comedian, either way it's not working. I lost some weight and then I turned around and found it again. 
I'm trying to lose weight because I'm a borderline diabetic but so far I've only manager to get to 280, which is far from "waisting"


It was nice to see Curtis "in the flesh"; He's a lot uglier in person though :wink:. He's also taller than I thought proving that they really do stack $#!T that high in Texas. It was also nice to see Neil and rekindle a friendship.


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 22, 2010)

My dad and I got to spend the afternoon driving around the countryside taking in the scenery.  The leaves are all pretty much off the trees so it is not as pretty as it is with the fall colors but still nice anyway.  We drove out to Willoughby Lake which is just down the road, then up towards Canada.  I do not have a current passport so we could not visit the fine country of Canada but we were within a couple of miles!  We then drove west towards Jay Mountain Ski Area and got into snow that was actually sticking on the ground over there.  We then went up over a couple of passes on a dirt road and ended up back on the pavement near Orleans, VT.  Then back south to the house.  Here are a couple of pics I took with my iPhone.  I was took a bunch of better ones with my real camera but Sony uses a proprietary cable and I forgot it at home so those are not currently accessible.

The view from my the deck on my parent's cabin






Lake Willoughby





View of the snow on Jay Peak Ski Area from a farmer's field.  Not enough to ski yet but getting there!






A little better view of Jay Peak






Snow along the road near my parent's place this morning






This was Vermont's first snow of the season according to some of the locals.


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## MesquiteMan (Oct 26, 2010)

Well, I made it back home today so this will be my last update on this thread.

I left my Dad's house Monday morning at 8am and drove through the Kancamangus Highway to meet up with Turbowagon in Silver Lake, NH.  Joe and I had a great visit and I got to see his new home, his basement shop, and some of his really good looking pens!  Joe has his CA finish down but said it takes him a long time so I started describing my method.  Next thing you know, Joe has talked me into showing him on his lathe!

After that demo, we drove up to Conway and Joe bought my lunch at a great restaurant and we got to chat for a while.  On the way to the restaurant, Joe pulled over to show me a nice lake with a good photo op.  Unfortunately, the weather was not real nice but we still got a few good pics. 

I was supposed to be back in Manchester, NH by 1:30 to pick up my mom at the airport but she had called earlier and said she had missed her flight from Tennessee due to traffic.  No problem at all!  That just gave me more time.  I took a look at a map and realized that I was only 60 or so miles from Old Orchard Beach, Maine where Leap lives so I gave Phil a call and low and behold, he had the day off.  I hopped in the car and took off for Maine, arriving around 4:30.  Phil was a great guy and I got to see his shop and his super huge air compressor!  Man, that thing could air up a blimp!  Phil and I talked shop for an our or so and then it was off back to Manchester, NH to pick up my mom at the airport.

Before I left Phil's house, I realized that he lived about 2 miles from the Atlantic Ocean.  Having never been to the Atlantic that far north, I just had to make a quick detour!  Got to make a quick walk o the beach and then it was off, driving way too fast to pick up my mom!

After picking up my mom and getting to have dinner with her, I checked in to Super 8 for a short night sleep before hopping on the plane at 6:30 am this morning.  My flight connected in Chicago Midway and if you saw the news, you know that Chicago had some REALLY bad weather.  Fortunately, I think I beat most of it as we only had to be in a holding pattern for 45 minutes or so.  Man was it bumpy up there!  We landed and thankfully, my connection to Austin was also circling so I did not miss that flight.  I hopped on the plan and we made it out right before the worst of the storm hit.  Thank God!  I heard on the news that around 300 flights were canceled or significantly delayed after we left in the Chicago area so I just barely made it out.

Got home this afternoon to my loving wife and 4.5 year old daughter who really missed her daddy!  It was a great trip, I got to meet a total of 9 IAP members and got to spend some wonderful one on one time with my dad.  Now it is back to the real world!

The IAP members I was able to meet:
Gin-n-tonic
Wolftat
Greggas
Rchan63
HSTurning
Greenmtguy
ThomJ
Turbowagon
LEAP

Thank you all for your wonderful hospitality and for showing me a great time!  It was wonderful to finally put faces with some of the names I have know here for a while.  If any of you guys are ever in Texas, please let me know so I can reciprocate!


Turbowagon and I at the scenic lake






Crossing into Maine






The Atlantic Ocean in Old Orchard Beach, ME


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