10.15.26 Five shingles short...

     Well there you have it. Just about 98% done. In the end I'm five shingles short for the roof cap. We started the day at Lowe's getting six bundles of shingles, a 20-pound box of nails, and blades for the razor. In the end I'm glad I did it but day almost killed me. I died, time wise, around the vents on the roof. Bur compared to what it was when I first got up here I'd say I did pretty good. 

     I was hoping to get some help from the co-owner and she gave it a valiant try several times to get up on the roof. She had the first few rungs of the ladder down no problem but the thought of transitioning off of it to the roof, well that wasn't going to happen. While I could have used the extra hands up there it was okay, at least she tried. I appreciated her effort. 

     While it felt good to finish, well almost, a project like this at times it was kinda sad. This type of thing reminded me of the old firehouse days where we would get together, usually on the days off between our night tours, and help each other out with stuff like this. Projects like these would get banged out in no time. It's also the kind of Dad and son/daughter project where knowledge gets handed down, plus there's the fun of working together. But this one I had to do solo. 

     I didn't take into consideration how many shingles I would burn covering the ridge cap. So in the end I'm about five short but I found a local roofer who has a yard full of extra material. I called him and he said go pick out what you need. So that will be Friday's project, to end this project.

     Today it's off to Manasquan to help my som move into his new apartment. I can say I'm banged up from the last two days. I really can appreciate the boys, and girls, who do roofing for a living. I can tell you this, I'm starting a fund for the roof re-do down in Sun City. There's no way I'm doing that, no matter how much it costs.  

10.14.26 Great day to start the roof...

     Well I don't know if Bob Vila and Norm Abram would have done it this way but it worked for me. Around these communities there are "guys". Guys that do work and everyone loves them. As far as roofs, "the guy" comes and caulks up the roof when the Florida rooms leak, and will put on a new one when it's time. They, mostly the ladies, love their guys. They love to share when they've had a visit and had some work done. I think it's kinda like the old pool boy fantasies of yesteryear. I thought about joining the crowd and just paying the roof guy, but for $3,500 I couldn't do it. For many people the problem isn't the job, it's where do you get rid of the stuff. So they pay, or over pay.

     I've taken Luke for a walk when these roofs get replaced and it happens in short order, usually by the return trip, the four or five guys almost have it done. They have it down to a science, and a quick payday. The roof shingles run about $700, another $200 for paper and nails, and a few more bucks to get rid of the debris. So for less then $1,000 out of pocket they turn a good profit. Some days they do three or four of these. Smart dudes.

     I looked at our roof and it was time, long overdue actually. There were two roofs and the top layer of shingles were curled and like dust. So I could do two things, do it right, or do it my way. My way won. What that meant was taking off the top layer and re-roofing it. Many homes have two or three roofs so it's not out of the ordinary. The base layer was intact and almost melted to the paper and the sheathing. So I began the process.  

     Now I don't know what's wrong the above picture but it's just wrong. First I look like I'm in pain. And then my tool belt. My trusty belt that I've had for 30 + years. It's so old I can't adjust the size anymore so I guess I just wear it higher where it fits around my girth. It looks like the belt is holding all my guts in above it. I hate being built like a horse. But anyway. 

     The weather was perfect and I was working in the shade. There would be no nail gun here. It's old school with roofing nails and a hammer. I purchased a square, three bundles, of shingles to get started and ran out before I gave out. While the work wasn't hard, if I did have an old heart attack I'm sure I would have felt it.

     All the demo is done and I'll hit Lowe's in the morning for 5 more bundles of shingles and another box of nails. I was gonna but the five-pound box for $21 but cheapened out and got two one-pound boxes for $7 each. I just didn't needed pounds of extra nails laying around the house. 

     I should have it wrapped up by tomorrow afternoon and in the end it will have cost me $450. Even if it lasts me 10 years I'll be ahead of the game. I have to watch the money as the used car lot is holding my Silverado down in South Carolina. They said they would make all the repairs found during the inspection and that I could even take it back over for another once over. If you forgot what she looks like that's her below, what a beauty. 

10.13.26 Let the fall run, and the posts, begin!....

 

     It's the most wonderful time of year again. And since I'm here in New Jersey I thought I'd write about what coming. And that's fish and fish pictures on social media. Believe it or not the fish above was released because it was shot, or below the 28" minimum harvest size. I don't know if that's hand blender at the guys feet but it can't be good when used to remove hooks. 

     People say I pick on the spin, bait, and plug guys because I'm a fly fishing snob. well, maybe, but really I just love these fish and hate to see them mishandled, and killed, when they are not harvested. When fishing you never know what's going to bite, and under, a slot, or an over, so you really have to play it safe.

     These days it seems it's all about eels for the boat guys. They are usually slow trolled in current and when one of those big cow bass bite they're far from the boat. So in the end they get flogged through the water before being "gently" lifted onto the boat, photographed, and released. And with the skewering that occurs on social media guys can basically handle a half-dead or will-die bass with kid gloves so they don't get killed on-line. But some haven't got the memo and they continue to use poor practices when fishing for and then releasing striped bass. 

     And then there's those plug guys. A lot of them are my friends, and I urge them to play better. I have been there when waterside surgery occurs and there's usually silence as the blood pours out from the fish. Release mortality is a thing, for all anglers, so the better we doing the better the fish do. And then there's those trebles. I hate them. They're big, they're sharp, well maybe, and there's too many of them. 

     Imagine there used to be three on a lure, well now there's pretty much just a pair. But those tailing ones are the ones that get me. As we know striped bass like to eat head first, so many times the tail hook finds a place to get impaled into the fish, far away from it's mouth. Did you ever catch a one-eyed striped bass? That one probably lost its eye to a plug in its youth. 

     If it's not the shear size, and number, of those treble hooks, it's the barb, well barbs. If you ever have seen the gentle foot pressure applied to a bass on the sand and then the rattle out of the plug's hooks from the gullet, lips, back, or eyes, you know it's not pretty. And these days with most of the fish over slot size you know what you're fishing for before you go tight. In the end these fish will have to be released so why not help them out a bit?

     I've hear the hooks help balance the plug and changing to just one will hamper thew action in the water. Okay, but it's good for the fish you are playing catch and release with. some will take off the tailing hook and add a flag, like a teaser, off the back. That's a great step. And then some others will pinch or grind down the treble hooks, why do you need six-barbed hooks when you're fishing? These aren't calamari you're fishing for.

     Now I've inadvertently killed my share of striped bass in my years. Even the ones "that swam away strong" at times find their way belly-up down on their bottom of the drink. But fly fishermen do it good, most of the time. Single hooks, pinched barbs, short casts, and quick releases. Now yes, sometimes those tiny flies, even Beast Fleyes, find their way down the gullets of larger bass. But with some care and a pair of long hemostats flies can be removed, as long as they haven't ripped through the gill rakers, or the lungs of the fish. 

     So get ready for the migration, and the endless photos of bad practices, and half dead fish. For me, it kind of takes away from the fun of the run, but that's just the way it is these days. 

10.12.26 If you can't beat em', you have to join em'...

     As predicted New Jersey got soaked yesterday and Cape May wasn't spared from the deluge. Thankfully I installed the gutter guards and tarped the roof just the day before. Sunday saw several fall harvesty type events cancelled so there wan't much to do except ride out the rain, sit on the couch, and eat. It's Week 5 in the NFL and it was a great rainy day to watch the games, that's if you can. 

      Years ago watching TV was easy, that was before cable came around. Then your options were the basic channels, and then cable came, which had basic, or more than basic options. It was, and still is, pay to play. You the more you pay, the more options you had. Then it all changed, at least going the legal and non-pirating route. Even back then people found ways to steal TV access, and it's still around. Playing by the rules can be frustrating and expensive, and leave you without access if you don't pony up the cash for all the options to watch that one thing you're looking for. 

     I got sick and tired paying for internet and cable through Verizon last year and opted to go the Internet-Roku route. I thought that would give me what I wanted but in the end was left with no local programming and re-runs for every television show I watched in my youth. To watch anything recent we had to pay for Netflix and Amazon Prime, which from time to time would include some of the NFL games for the week. I signed up for some of the NFL packages last fall but wasn't able to see the games I wanted, when I wanted. I guess I just wasn't paying enough.

     So recently, with our move, I went with Starlink as our internet provider. I signed up for the home service and ROAM as well. The home service covers Sun City and ROAM I take on the road for Cape May and The Fly Barn. Both of those services costs me $100 per month. The other day we bought a new TV for Cape May. It's a 45-inch Smart TV which somehow has lots of channels built in including access to the several streaming services that are out there. I'm amazed it cost us $128 from WalMart. I remember when TV's that size ran well over $1,000. But, in the end, there's still no live local programming. 

     With the rain coming down in buckets and a full day of NFL games being broadcast it was a perfect day to watch, if you had access. It started with the Eagles-Jaquars game at 9am and finished with the Falcons-Ravens game on Sunday night. Yesterday morning I turned on the new TV and tried to figure out how to watch the game being broadcast from London. I quickly got frustrated as no matter where I turned it led me to one of the streaming apps. So we were left to either go somewhere or listen to it on Sirius radio, another service which I pay for. Since we are in Eagles territory down here several bars opened early but we weren't into that so we headed to the diner where we watched it for a bit before heading back home. Then came the big decision, "Should I pay or should I go", think of the song by the Clash from the 1982 song. 

     I remember settling into the couch in our friends house in Long Island. The Man-Cave is nestled in their basement and sports a huge screen TV, which when it's on, has access to just about everything you could ever want to see. That's when I learned about You Tube TV, which, I think, is the one-stop shopping place for access to everything and anything, including the NFL. So yesterday I went and checked it out. That subscription runs $89.95 a month, well maybe. 

     Now I have been frustrated during more weeks then I can count when I sit down to watch only to see that Netflix has this game, Amazon the other, and Hulu and Paramount the rest. Yes, some of the local games are on but I didn't have access. As I looked around You Tube TV they had a trial subscription before the full rate kicks in, but then there was all the add-on access. Things like NFL Sunday Ticket and NFL Red Zone which I don't know what they cover, and for how much. In the end Sunday Ticket costs $75 a month, but does it just cover Sunday's games? What about Monday and Thursday Night Football? 

     So I signed up for the free trial and took the Sunday Ticket option. Is that the right move? Am I double spending for the same access? Will I have have all-access? And, how much will I be spending a month? 

      Basically they got you by the balls. Out are the days of TV's and antennas and the only way is to pay, handsomely. Let's say your internet/cable/streaming services run you $200 a month, that's $2,400 a year, to watch TV, well to be on the computer as well. There's a ton of people out there, like me, that sign up for things, like trial memberships, only to forget and wind up being charged each month for years, without even knowing. 

     There were some really good games on yesterday, some with exciting and bizarre endings, and I got to watch them all, and I did. 14 hours of NFL, sitting there like a fat loser eating everything and anything I could get my hands on. Tonight it's the Bills and Rams and I hope I get it somewhere I'm, paying for. And of course since my searches are being tracked now I'm getting deluged with other options to watch the NFL, below is just one of them.

    They're already selling access to the Super Bowl and have added Pat McAfee to the weekly access. Who's Pat McAfee and why would I want to watch him? I wish we could just go back to the good old days, or nights. I remember turning on the TV and watching John Madden and Pat Sumerall, and then

 Al Michaels, above, announce the games, on free TV. Imagine that kids of today. 

10.11.26 Two down, one to go...

     Our second wedding took us to the banks of the Mullica River in the small community of Sweetwater, New Jersey. I got up and grabbed the above picture when I saw both photographers standing next to each other as the boys made their way down the aisle. It was a great venue, and wedding, my first officiated by a drag queen. Yes, that's the official title. 

     The queens stayed for the cocktail hour before we headed upstairs for dinner. The plan was this, 4 o'clock ceremony, 5 o'clock cocktail hour, dinner till 1030, then a bus ride for an after party that I wouldn't doubt is still going on. These boys, and their friends and families, know how to party.

     We joined in on the fun and then let the kids, and they all seemed to be kids, have their fun. After dinner and a dance we excited stage left before the fireworks display over the river, which went off at 930. Now we just have our one destination wedding left in Colorado, which we leave for on the 20th. 

     But all the time I was there I was trying to place where I actually was, and if there are striped bass in this river, this far up. So I went digging early this morning. Looking in the blog archives I 

had actually first visited the mouth of the Mullica River at the Great Bay in March 2011. The sod banks there are historically one of the first places in New Jersey where those ice-out bass first start to chew. 

     

     The Mullica is 50 miles long and travels through four counties, Camden, Burlington, Ocean, and Atlantic. As far as a striped bass fishery it has been a secret spot for the locals for decades. Yes, it's always mentioned as an early spring spot, but it's allegedly a fall and winter-over spot as well. At its deepest it's 35 feet, plenty of places to hunker down for the winter. It's a great boat river, as the pine barrens access spots are hard to come by, and fly fishing, not the easiest. The Mullica is cut hard through the mix of clay and sandy soil. 

     The question I have had when I did research on when, and where, striped bass spawn in New Jersey is if the Mullica held a spring spawn. At Sweetwater, where we were last night, the river is freshwater, where striped bass need to spawn. So the question is, are all these places that people claim hold spawning striped bass, like the Mullica, Raritan, and Navesink Rivers- are they their own strain, did they repopulate, or did they become lost, or, is there really no documented spawning going on in those rivers? Either way we know all those rivers hold striped bass, while they're visiting or lingering around. 

If you ever want to take a drive to the middle of nowhere and have a nice meal or hang at the bar and catch a game Sweetwater Marina & Riverdeck is a great place. 

While there you could hit Basto Village or Historical Smithville. If you're a gambler Atlantic City isn't too far of a ride either. 

     And today New Jersey is going to get hit with rain and wind for an extended time thanks to the remnants of Hurricane Isiaas. While Saturday was a banner fall day around there Garden State Sunday is going to be a washout, and it's looking very wet through Tuesday. 

     We were planning on re-roofing our place down here in Cape May, and we will might be able to if time allows. We don't have any leaks but I would say the roof's life has expired. 

     Due to the pitch of the roof you can't see it from the ground, and when you do see it you know it's time to go, and quick. So in order to reduce the weight of the shingles from the rain we decided to get up there and tarp it until the rain blows over.

     My thinking was by tarping it the shingles would remain brittle and would be easier to remove rather than being water logged and heavy. As I stood up there looking around some of my neighbors better borrow my ladder and do a little assessing themselves. It should be a relatively quick job the problem is like most home improvement projects is where do you get rid of the debris? And as far as cost? Incredible. Simple three-tab non-architectural roofing shingles are about $50 a bundle these days, or $150 a square. I think I'll do my Facebook Marketplace searches first before donating to the big box stores. Stay dry and enjoy Sunday around the NFL. 

10.10.26 Felt good to give it a go...

     I talked to Leif a few days ago and he said he was going to give it a shot on Friday, so I followed suit. I had found my waders, at least my stocking foot set up in the storage unit, and brought my rod and stuff up from South Carolina. It felt good to be "outfitted" for fly fishing, rather than walking around with just a rod and a collapsable stripping basket wearing tight booties. 

     I thought about walking the beach around Cape May Point but there was zero wind and it was about the top go high tide. That meant the water was probably like glass so I opted for the jetty where the Cape May Canal meets the Delaware Bay. 

      As I made my way out on the rocks I could see the glitter of rain bait as they skittered across the surface and the sun hit their scales. There was nothing in pursuit and really it was quite boring of a water to fish, but it felt good. It had been a while since I was able to air out some casts. I've gotten used to just walking around in the mud, hunting, without even casting. And when I did it was always into some type of vegetation. 

     So with no targets it was just blind casting which was fine by me. There was some tiny bait, mostly rain fish, that disrupted the calm surface. The dolphins came and went as did the boats heading out for the day.

     I stayed for about an hour before calling it a day. Theresa was waiting for me back at the ranch and I didn't want to go to the well for this. It's mid October and there was always a lull in the action during that time. It used to be you had early bass on mullet, or not, then a storm came, then the October lull, then a banner day near Halloween before the true fall run opened up in early November. Now everything seems to happen later. 

    As I left I stopped to chat with a guy who was fishing himself, just not for fish. He was Asian crab fishing in between the gaps in the jetty. I've seen guys do it before. Most go out on lower tides and flip rocks and grab them with rubber gloves or a net. Not this guy.

     He had a bag of nasty bait that he dropped down in between the rocks, let soak for a few minutes, and then scooped it up into a net. And on each drop he had about a dozen for so crabs. He uses them to fish for tog or sheepshead along the jetty. If they're big he cuts them in half, sometimes removing the claws and legs. 

     Asian crabs, or Asian shore crabs, are an invasive species that were first discovered in Cape May County in the late 1980's. They are from, well eastern Asia, and were brought to North America in the ballast water from ships that came from overseas. They can now be found from Maine down to the Carolinas. 

      The are invasive, which means not good, as when they are found, usually in big numbers, they compete for shelter and food, basically overtaking the place. But from what I hear big fish love them. 

     And today all eyes are on the first named hurricane on the 2026 season. That's Isaias who made landfall last night on the Florida Panhandle, near Pensacola. It came in hot as a Category 3 but has dropped down to a Cat 2 as it travels across the land. They aren't sure when and where

the path will actually take it but the entire southern part of the United States will get a taste, including South Carolina. Back home, they're expecting heavy rains, up to six inches, in different parts of the state. It looks like the Lowcountry could see somewhere around 3-4 inches. 

     We've missed, and will miss, the big fall weather events this year. We were down south when the nor'easter hit New Jersey last week and now are here as things go sideways back home. 

Home? Where is home even at? For the past six months we've been all over the place and we're both ready to get somewhere and stay put. It's hard to get into a life rhythm when you're sleeping in different places each week and have your clothes in a storage bin. We're not complaining a bit, as we've been blessed, we just want to sleep in our own bed and finally settle down.

10.09.26 If you're out in Cali tomorrow....

 

     If you're out in Van Nuys, California tomorrow fly fishermen and tyer, author, and friend of Bob Popovic's Al Ouattrocchi , or Al Q for short, will be holding a tribute event at the Fishermen's Spot starting around noon. He'll be joined by Kim Mutaw, who I have met at The Fly Fishing Show. They'll be tying up an assortment of Bob's most well known flies and have videos of Bob running, some of which have never been seen. 

     This event is like the one Abe Pieciak recently held last Kismet Outfitters in Edgartown, Martha's Vineyard. Events like this would make Bob proud as we continue to benefit for all of his contributions, and friendship, to those who are passionate about fly fishing. If you getting ready to fish the fall run no doubt Bob will be somewhere in the conversation, or most surely in your fly box.  

10.09.26 I knew that move coulda' killed me...

      So during our world wind tour back to New Jersey for the weddings, and visits, and to close up Cape May for the year I also made sure I followed up with my medical appointments. That would take me from Mt. Sinai in NYC last week to seeing my favorite cardiologist at Monmouth Cardiology in Eatontown. That's Dr. Jeff Osofsky who I first met in 2013 when my heart went wonky after a guided trip in the salt with another Doc, Dr. Ron Benitez.

      Dr. Ron and I fished the early morning in Deal on September 30th, HERE. During the trip my chest started to feel weird, which left my brain feeling weird as well. As a registered nurse I should have known better, but I just thought it would go away. After the four hour trip I headed home and figured I'd just sleep it off. By 7 pm I was in the ER at Monmouth Medical and on the monitor with a heart rate in the 160-180's. 

     They tried to control it with medication and the next morning was when I met Dr. Osofsky who stood over me explaining that he would like to do a synchronized cardioversion to zap my heart back into a normal sinus rhythm. I guess he scared me enough because as he was talking with me I converted, on my own, back into a normal rhythm. And since then he's been my guy.

     Like every other old guy out there I've been on a mix of antihypertensives and statins over the years for blood pressure and cholesterol control. I've had a few admissions for hypertensive crisis, 

worn a Holter monitor, and have been on the treadmill for a stress test. It's always, "It's all good, I'm not worried". He's kinda like my 9/11 Doc up at Mt. Sinai. when my CT came back, "Suspicious for primary indolent lung cancer", he too said, "I'm not worried". "Do I have lung cancer?", I asked, to which he said, "I'm not concerned, let's wait and see". Those are my kinda docs. 

     While I try to make sure I get into the office from time to time I've been that patient who makes excuses when it comes to getting meds refilled. They always do it but it was time to see Osofsky in person. With us moving down to South Carolina, where we have no Docs, it was good to get prescriptions filled, with refills, before we head home. I anticipated a quick uneventful visit.

      When I arrived it was the usual, height, weight, vitals, and a 12-lead EKG. Soon he was in sitting there with Theresa and I going through my recent labs and seeing how I was feeling. Luckily at Mt. Sinai last week they drew blood so I had stuff for him to review, which included my Lipid Panel, or cholesterol numbers. A year or so ago he started me on a statin, or cholesterol lowering med which did its job. My bad numbers went down and my good numbers went up. But I didn't want to be on a statin so I stopped, and just kept the Coenzyme Q-10 as part of my daily pill popping routine. Well I guess statins work because my numbers all went back in directions they're not supposed to go. Basically I've got butter running through my veins, and heart.

     When he got to reviewing my EKG he said, as usual, "I'm not worried but there's something here that's a little concerning". It was just a few lines in the upper right hand corner of the 12-lead EKG, "Old Inferior Infarct", followed by "Old Anterior Infarct vs Lead Placement". In laymen's terms that could mean a few things, it's nothing, or I had a heart attack, or two, and didn't know about it. 

      I've seen this in the hospital countless times. People come in for an acute cardiac event only to learn they had a previous heart attack. The same can be said for strokes, with old cerebral infarcts showing up on CT scan. An on my paper the word "ABNORMAL", in caps, stood out. 

     Old heart attacks, or myocardial infarctions, or MI's, are concerning, but there's nothing you can really do about it. As I sat there I had no chest pain, no dizziness, no palpitations. My vitals all checked out so there was no reason to head over the the ER or the Cath lab. But we needed to know, at some point, what the computer was interpreting. 

     There's heart attacks and then there's heart attacks. There's places in the heart not to have them or to have them. The hope is any blockage or damage doesn't affect the left ventricle, which is basically the big pump part of the heart. Well inferior and anterior wall MI's are all about the ventricles, with having and inferior MI's the better of the two. There's something called "The Widow Maker", which is a blockage or MI involving the LAD, or Left Anterior Descending artery, and that's when people have "The Big One". 

     So our return trip back home will be delayed as I'm now scheduled for a nuclear stress test. It's the definitive test, outside of a cardiac catheterezation, to see how blood is flowing around the 

heart and if there is ischemia, reduced blood flow, or infarction, no blood flow and cell death, to the heart muscle. 

     On the drive home back to Cape May Theresa and I tried to remember if I had any kind of event that we just brushed over. Have I exerted myself in the last few months? Yes. Have had some chest discomfort? Sure? Have I worked until the point of exhaustion? Well, let's see...

     To say I, well we, both killed ourselves to get ready for and then move might be an understatement. If I did have some kind of silent event it was most likely during the last six months. This easily goes two ways, I had a heart attack, or attacks, or not. No need to fret over it, the damage is done, or not. The NST will provide all of the answers. 

     So like I've always said here, early detection, and routine check ups are key. That's for men and women. That includes the prostate exam, colonoscopy, vitals, blood work, and an EKG. Basically all things done during a routine physical. The goal is to do some prevention, either by lifestyle changes or medication, before you have an acute event. And if there's nothing to be found as least you have a baseline if things in your body were to go sideways in the future, and then will.

     Don't wait until you can't pee, shit blood, have pain, or can't speak, before you get checked out. By then it could be too late to reverse the damage. Our bodies are working 24/7 and compensate for things that happen not under your watchful eye, nor give you symptoms. So for me, I'll be in the waiting room, sorta, waiting to see what the nuclear stress test says. The only thing is I left my sneakers back home in South Carolina, so I'll have to hit the Goodwill to find a pair, so I can get the treadmill speed and my heart rate up. Parts of my heart will either light up or not, but hey, like my Doc's always say, "I'm not worried".