Black squirrels are commonplace in Western MA and red ones in Northeast CT.

https://www.sweetstreet.com/desserts/cheesecake-delivery-boston/

When I was in 3rd or 4th grade and geography was still taught, I remember our textbook had a picture of Worcester in it. The caption under that picture said, "Worcester Massachusetts, the industrial capital of the world." It said Worcester's claim to fame was having more manufacturing per square mile than any other place on the planet. Worcester at the time had steel mills, shoe manufactures, plastics factories, envelope factories, textile mills, foundries, factories that made precision measure devices, a factory that made industrial scales, another that made textile looms. There were hundreds of small shops that made just about every type of small goods. There were three major baking companies, one of which made only pies. The largest employers that I remember were Norton Abrasives, Wyman Gordon, Heald Machine, Crompton and Knowles, Reed and Prince, Curtis and Marble, Washburn Steel and Wire, Brown Shoe, David Clark Co and Orbit Co both made products for the space program. Pullman standard built train cars, White and Bagley made Oilzum products which were high quality lubricants, Dapol plastics, Harrington Richardson made guns for WWII and Viet Nam. The repurposed mill buildings in Worcester and the ruins and scars of old manufacturing sites represent only a small percentage of the factories that once existed. Every three decker in Worcester was built as cheap housing for mill workers. There's still hundreds of those standing but thousands that disappeared as the city declined and tried to reshape it self. When 290 went in whole neighborhoods disappeared and Worcester has many empty back streets where mills once stood. Every large neighborhood in Worcester except the west side housed manufacturing. Very little remains. I prefaced your answer with all of this to give you an idea of the enormity of Worcester's industrial past which began in the 1800s. The boom time began during WWII and ended in the mid to late 70s. During that time Worcester had one of the fastest growing middle class in the country and what is no suburban was once rural. I want to add that all of the major manufacturers contributed billions in endowments to many of Worcester colleges and universities and large amounts to the Arts.

Worcester is a huge brown field, remediation is expensive and what would be the point?

What you're talking about takes money, Worcester's tax base isn't enough to pay all it's bills. Worcester has tried and failed many times through many schemes to bring in money makers all ended up losers. Worcester's bread and butter was industry, it's gone and ain't never coming back. The city could offer free land and a five year tax moratorium to businesses and no one would take it. Even the Casinos aren't interested. Worcester's lucky, other industrial cities have fared much worse, like Gary Indiana, Detroit, Akron Ohio and hundreds of others. The homeless in SF and LA are migrants from the rust belt because staying in those mid west cities meant death. Worcester's my old home town and I lived there during the boom time and it's just so sad that there doesn't seem to be a way to fix what it's become. What would bring in large amounts of Federal money?

Don't know about NH but Massachusetts makes it ridiculously difficult to evict anyone. There's no shortage of low life freeloaders out there who game the system. By the time a landlord gets relief from a court ordered eviction they are out many thousands of dollars and most likely their property is trashed. Essentially these type of people are squatters and the laws regarding that are equally insane. When I lived in Florida, an eviction was a matter of a call to the local PD and the evictees were gone in 24 hrs. A little harsh but effective. If a landlord struggles for a year with a legitimate eviction, the next tenants will be paying a whole lot more up front and monthly after that.

Shrewsbury St was the Worcester's Little Italy, Green Island, hemmed in by Millbury St, Quinsigamond Ave and Green Island Blvd, was Polish, Vernon Hill was Lithuanian, Main South was densely Irish but also somewhat Franco American, Greendale was predominantly Swedish, Water St, Columbia St, Harrison St and Providence St hemmed in the Jewish section. Worcester's west side was once inhabited by wealthy WASPS but many Jews eventually migrated there. Summer St and the area that is now Plummley Village was mostly Blacks. Hispanics came late to Worcester, (mid 1960s) and then only Cubans who were the only Caribbean representatives until the 1970s. This is based on my recollections from the 50s,60s,70s. Worcester certainly had many other ethnic groups but the numbers did not rise enough to cover broad areas and did not own ethnic businesses. Worcester hasn't had ethnically dense areas for a long time.

What a nice memory. When I was a kid you had to go to a beach town to find arcades. Worcester had a few in the 80s, one on Cambridge St and one on James St. Are kids so different now that arcades will disappear like so many other things?

I've been around long enough to know that up until now there is no set pattern in our winters. They have been trending warmer but not consistently. So for some of us this winter has been a nice break from the usual cold and snowy. If the trend continues for a few more winters, I'd be concerned but it could still be New England just being New England. We are very fortunate to live here. The last major blizzard was in 78, hurricanes usually brush by us, we've had a couple of tornadoes but not a single earthquake.

I don't know about tours, probably not, liability is a big thing these days. I'm a Polar Seltzer fan, I was a soda junky until I discovered seltzer. I still like soda but like that seltzer has no calories. I've tried a few different brands but I think Polar is the best. My favorites are the Lime and the Ginger Lime Mule. Any other Polar Seltzer fans? Favorites?

It does have that 1960s spy movie vibe doesn't it? If it ever came on the market what could it be repurposed as?

Starting with how you were selected, think of a bingo spinner. I've been called up five times, I know people who have never been called and are now exempt. Every time is different, you can be picked early or late or not at all. If it's a busy day, one way or the other you'll be there all day. You get a lunch break. Once we were dismissed right after lunch. Out of the five times I served I only sat on two juries. One of those cases was a conspiracy case, it was very interesting and we convicted. After that case I, all of the boredom and inconvenience didn't matter anymore because I got to see something our government does right. Everyone in that jury room that day were completely different people. Different genders, race, ethnicities and political views but we were of one mind in our deliberations with no dissent and justice was served.

I normally wouldn't pay that much but it's my retirement car, I'm never buying another vehicle.

It's possible that it varies from one area to another.

Yikes!!! Sounds like a grind, I'll bet working from home is like a dream come true. It's insane what things cost now.

If you do opt for a career in a fire fighting, don't wait too long, the cut off is 34.

Yeah the price is a little steep but I bought a vehicle a few years ago that was nothing special and it was $40,000. I think the EV presently makes sense as an urban, short trip vehicle but the logistics involved for all the long range stuff is years away from being workable. Also the fact that electricity is generated from fossil fuels makes it a zero sum thing environmentally. What's not coming out of a tail pipe here is still coming out where ever electricity is generated. My hope is that AI will solve our energy problems.

That kind of makes the case for EVs.

I can see their point from a business perspective but also a social one. Good execs know their people and how to get the most from them. Will the day come when your employment from hire to the end occurs without ever having been in the physical presence of those with whom you work?

I'm 100% human and sort of a work voyeur. I retired when Covid became an issue because being a senior I was in a risk group. So I missed out on telecommuting and am curious about what seems to be the dawn of a new and exciting change in the work world. My career began before the age of the PCs. We had large, slow and limited main frame computers. The closest thing to a printer were the plotters that generated something like blueprints. We didn't have virtual anything and if something couldn't be resolved by a phone it meant traveling to meet with the customer. I love to travel but business travel sucks. So what I'm getting at is that I and some of you are witnesses to the end of the way we have done business for quite a long time. You are on the edge of something very different, exciting and with so much potential. If that doesn't spin your wheels, I'll be excited for you.

Are all your teammates also remote? If so why not have a work chat room, a virtual place where you can discuss business and socialize.

Wow, good for you. 4k buys a really nice vacation or a lot of smaller fun adventures. Cheers and Blue Skies!

Hi, I have friends who are educators who have left the profession for various reasons. Mostly it was over policy issues. They have all found employment doing other things but all agonized over the decision and are dealing with heartbreak. The consensus with them was they hated working from home during the pandemic. Care to add?

That's too bad. They ought to have play dates for docile doggies.

I think there needs to be some ground rules laid here. Extra work should mean extra compensation. Working from home is fairly new and I think it could go off the rails if there isn't some contractual elements added.