November 12 Gathering Ground Report; Nancy's Mini Mystery

  GATHERING GROUND REPORT - NOVEMBER 12, 2025

Bill, Jo-Ann, Pete & Dave, in no particular order
(No photo provided, so we found a reasonable facsimile)

In attendance this month were Bill Wills, Jo-Ann Smith, Pete Gottschalk and Dave Ewbank.

Jerry Kimble was absent because he’s on ANOTHER VACATION!!!

This time he and Laura are in Spain and Portugal sailing on a four masted sail boat in the Med. Check out ‘Windstar Cruses’ on the net and see the sailing yachts they have.

We also talked about European River cruses. Pete G has been on two of them and recommends them totally. He liked the idea of getting off the boat every day for the excursions. It’s better than a mega ship full if drunks and kids. I mentioned my neighbor was on a mega ship as we spoke, and the unlimited drink pass was $1,000 each for the week cruse!

We have an update on Chet Biernat’s health. Chet has not been to the GG for at least 6 months. Jo-Ann took it upon herself to call his son, Fr Wayne Biernat of St Michaels church in Springfield. Fr Wayne was really happy to hear from his father’s friends. Chet had a gastric problem a while back, that required the removal of quite a bit of his intestines. He is now in recovery and living in a health facility in East Longmeadow. He’s happy and has made a few friends there. Hopefully, Fr Wayne will bring Chet to the next breakfast. Alternatively, we could have a road trip to see him.

We all had voiced our opinion on the local Internet Service Providers.

I led off by describing my four-day battle with an AI robot that Comcast calls ‘Technical Help’. These robots are of little to no help. After four days, and three trips to West Hartford store (Also no help to be found there!)

A real live person finally called me and found the problem in less that a minute. Comcast had not updated the MAC address of the new Router they sent me. Problem solved. In the meantime, I cut the cord with Xfinity TV in frustration with all the new charges and billing inaccuracies. Goodbye Xfinity.

Weather is always a topic at the breakfast. This time we talked about the chill in Florida. Jo Ann showed a picture of Iguanas falling out of trees due the cold snap. But 50 degrees in Florida, is a national emergency. Here, we play golf.

We also had a conversation about apple picking. Evidently, you can’t pick up an apple that has naturally dropped from a tree in an orchard, like Lyman Meadows or the Granby Orchards. That seems like a waste of fairly good apples.

Tim O’Connor has a couple of productive apple trees, and I’m sure his rules would not be as strict. By the way, Jerry, Pete, Ed and I visited Tim a few weeks ago in New Hampshire. He and Mary are doing fine. Our parting gift was a bag of apples each.

So much for the Nov 12th GG

Your temporary scribe,

Bill Wills

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NANCY'S MINI MYSTERY

I received this email from Nancy (Zima) Famiglietti a couple of weeks ago:

"Hi Chris,  

I have an item for the next HSD newletter.

I purchased a stein in a second hand shop.

It has the Hamilton Standard logo.

It was made by Jostens Pewter.

Do any of the alumni know the occasion and date this stein was given?

See 3 attached pictures.

Thank You,

Nancy Famiglietti"

Take a look at the pictures below.  Any guesses?  Grand prize is bragging rights!

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October 8 Gathering Ground Report

 GATHERING GROUND REPORT - OCTOBER 8, 2025

Jo was the early arrival followed by Jerry, Bill and Bart.   This was Bart's last time at the Gathering Ground this year.   He and Gerri are heading back to Florida to enjoy a more moderate winter than most of the rest of us.

Bart brought up the fact that Florida real estate is still climbing towards the clouds.   A decade or two ago, almost anyone could find a home in this state, keep some money in their pocket from their home sale in New England and enjoy a lower cost of living in a house that was considered very affordable.  Today, having any money left over from a sale in Connecticut and purchase in Florida is not something that happens very often.  Then the cost of insurance for both home and auto are way above the price in Ct.

Bill is down one motorcycle, the Harley has gone to a relative in Florida.  And he has given his Ford Explorer to a nephew who is now a very happy camper at the age of 16.   The nephew is going to trade school to be a mechanic, good thing because this Explorer has had 50% of its parts replaced, sometimes multiple times so this will be a good project for the relative.   And Bill won't have to get help picking the Harley back off of the pavement....

Bart found a Cardinal bird's nest in one of the nooks of his Simsbury home.  When the eggs hatched, within 10 days the young birds fledged and were gone.  See THIS VIDEO to see the spotted eggs and one being born.

Jo brought up the fact that the rule changed from the Wednesday after the first Tuesday, to the second Wednesday of the month.   We all know who made the rule....(Gil),  but not sure when it changed.

Jo also brought up the early cell phone story of the phone in a bag.  Hamilton had a few in the late 1988 time frame.  HERE is a link to compare to what is in your hand today.

Jerry and Bill are complete with the solar panel build at Jerry's home.   A little more electrical work is needed but there should be no problem getting it live before the "Big Beautiful Bill" cuts the rebate for these projects.   Bill was always the one at the top of the ladder showing us all that 80 is the new 75!!

Jerry borrowed a ladder to help with getting the panels to the top of the roofline of the ground mount solar structure.  A good friend was very happy that I was borrowing with the proviso that it not be returned.  It is a wood ladder, but in good shape.  So if anyone reads this and is in need of a very heavy wooden 36 foot ladder, please let me know.

Your Scribe

Jerry 

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September 10 Gathering Ground Report

  GATHERING GROUND REPORT - SEPTEMBER 10, 2025

Bart, Bill, Dave, Jo-Ann

Fall weather has brought five to the table.   Bart, Bill, Dave, Jo and Jerry.  Jo forgot about the new 8AM start time, so she was waiting for me when I arrived at 7:50 with a smile and a cup of her fav.

Bill has started a woodworking project to build two end tables.   They will be constructed out of cherry hardwood for that look that is gorgeous and clean.  Raised paneling on the sides will enhance the look and appeal.  Will wait for pictures to see progress in the following notes. 

Discussion about skylights was on the table.  JoAnn was getting tired of the manual crank open and close that she must endure to make the windows a venting situation in her sealing areas in the hot weather weeks of the summer.  Jerry commented that after the major hail storm in Granby, all of the skylights were replaced with three that have been upgraded to motorized open and close as well as a motorized shade.   This was compliments of the contractor only because the manual opening versions were sold out so he supplied these beauties.    I did share the broad smile that came on my face every time I went into this vaulted ceiling room and pressed the button to operate the three skylights.

Bill has finally inked a deal to upgrade his vehicle to the next ride for the next decade.  His sister has a toyota highlander that has become too big for her so Bill is replacing her couple of years old vehicle with a brand new smaller version and will drive back home with his new drive.   Bill's 200K+ mileage Ford Explorer will go to his nephew who is pursuing a mechanical trade school career.

Dave is still making a trip to the Brimfield Antique show.  His past multi day attendance selling and buying has evolved into a one day visit with a little looking and maybe a little buying.

Bart has made lots of progress on his Simsbury home renovation.   Windows are in, trim was not correct so, taken off and another trim put in its place.  Some siding areas have been addressed, little more to go.  Roof cleaning is complete.  Next month should give contractors enough time to have us hear from Bart that he is done.

Plumber $350 ahead with a QUICK visit to help Bill finalize connecting the new sink in Judy's kitchen.   The trades are looking good for a career where you work with your hands and get a very healthy income that  makes hard work worth it...

JoAnn and Judy went to the Pickle Festival at one of the Casinos and had a great time.   Look for this event next year, sounds like a "not to miss" event.
Check out the link HERE.

Your Scribe
Jerry 

August 13 Gathering Ground Report

 GATHERING GROUND REPORT - AUGUST 13, 2025

With a Table of four sitting at the Gathering Ground restaurant, outside temps are again in the 90's and the dew point in the high 70's.   Bart, Dave, Pete and Jerry sat around the table to again enjoy the table fare and the stories galore. 

OK, the corned beef hash is 'to die for' but does everyone have to have the same breakfast because it is that good.   Bart, Pete and Dave all ordered this same dish but changed the order by the toast selection.  One wheat, one white and one rye, all in on the corned beef,  just because I guess.

Dishwashers made a topic this AM.  All had long gone through their contractor specials that did accomplish a clean ending to the dishes and silverware.   But, they all produced enough noise that when they started everyone had to exit the kitchen in order to carry on any conversation.

AI searches were getting mixed reviews from the table.  Some missed the string of pages presented by the old Search and were now noticing that the results were brought to the screen with a paragraph structured result that most of the time was correct but sometimes seemed to miss the point.  All thought that when a more complex search string was entered the answer seemed to be more accurate.

A couple of us are planning on a trip to Europe.  So Pete brought up a tidbit that was not known by all. tipping is not expected in Europe because the bill presented at the table already includes the tip.  Most Euopeans love Americans because they usually tip on top of the bill unknowingly.

Bill has done some work at Dave's helping his kitchen to accommodate a new fridge on order but on hold as the height of the new fridge prevents it from fitting in the same space as the old fridge.  The cabinet above had to be cut and reworked.   The cabinet cutdown was accomplished as of this dining event but the doors had not been refitted.  Dave delivered the original doors today that were brought to Bill to have about 3 inches removed from the center, then glued back together and then reinstalled into the smaller door slots of the newly shrunk cabinet.

Jerry received the approved building permit for the ground mount solar panel project that was started a few months back.   Hopefully in two months a few pictures will be included to show off this project.  Again, Bill and I are taking on most of the labor, a little help from  a licensed electrician will be needed too.   Bill's favorite phase in this building project, "hey Jerry, take the dumb end of this tape measure"!   I understand.....

What is a group selfie called..............   a Usie !  

Your Scribe,

~ Jerry

July 9 Gathering Ground Report

 GATHERING GROUND REPORT - JULY 9, 2025

Dave Ewbank, Bill Wills, Pete Gottschalk, Bart Nixon

With the changing of the folks around the table over the past year, the start time  of 7:30 does not hold anymore.    This month's group made a unanimous decision to change the start time from 7:30 to 8:00 AM.   Bill, Pete, Bart, Dave and Jerry shared the table and the conversations for the morning.    

Bart is up from his Florida home for the summer, guess it's warm enough to allow his golf game to continue in Connecticut.

Bart has endeavored to refurbish a few components of his Simsbury residence.  New windows(all of them), replacing some distressed siding and then covering the entire house with a new coat of paint(long overdue was the phase I heard).  

Some comparison of insurance policies was discussed, bundling was very common, this allowed a substantial saving overall.   USAA, Amica, Travelers and AAA.  A mixed bag choice for a mixed reason.  Cost was one big driver.

Jerry did have a recent claim for homeowners. After a hail storm with roof damage, a complete shingle replacement along with 9 skylights, the financial damage was only the $1000 deductible for $30K of repair work.

Bart's doctor seems to be listening to the evening news and prescribing most of the current pharmaceuticals as seen on the news that we have to endure over and over each evening.

"Hot sauce Dave" got some discussion about the dining out experiences  while lunching at HSD.  One memory was the time a group went to the GreenDoor restaurant in Enfield.   Dave ordered a dish that was served on a metal plate heated to sizzle when the contents touched the very hot metal surface.   The contents of the dish were so hot (SPICY)that the result was a gas cloud so lethal that the experience was very similar to a gas chamber exposure when I was in boot camp, but without the gas mask!!  Everyone ducked down as the cloud came over the table and descended onto the group at the table.  Dave was non paused with his dish present, he proceeded to serve and enjoy it!!

Tom, DIck and Harry topic came around with remembrance about Tom Woodruff, DIck Wright and Harry Doughtie renting a house on Lake Congamond.  Many parties were held at this address.  Bill piped in remembering when he posted a letter to Tom, Dick and Harry with only Suffield Ct in the address field.  It was delivered to the surprise of all.

Credit freeze was discussed as an easy way to prevent ID theft and avoid going through a recovery process that is ugly and tedious.  Easy to do only with one or all of the Credit consumer reporting agencies like Equifax, etc.

Your Scribe,

Jerry

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The building is in the parking lot for HSD building Three.   

No signage yet to show what business is inside 

June 9 Gathering Ground Report; Maine Rendezvous

GATHERING GROUND REPORT - JUNE 9, 2025

 

Bill, Pete and Jerry, somehow the camera never showed up so no pics of this month's attendees at the  table.  Pete did get the corned beef with an egg on top, Yummmm!!  That is what Pete called it after tasting and that is what the wait staff wrote down for his order going back to the cook...

Solar was brought up by Jerry who has just signed a contract beating the deadline for the "Big Beautiful Bill", that will be removing the law that was passed by last administration that offers a generous rebate for green projects.

Pete had an outage with his solar setup that toasted all of his micro inverters(one per panel).   These convert the DC to AC current right at the panel.   All are in need of replacement, and this setback will require each panel to be removed to access that micro inverter.  Pete did find an insurance policy that will cover this for a small annual fee.  And he can sign up after the fact!!

Conversation about finishes was bantered around between Tung Oil and Teak Oil.  Read the label, many are diluted.  From Bill, the Teak Oil is an easier and effective finish over the two.

Bob Beisel was remembered with some smiles not about work but the sports he pursued after work, or many on the mental health days off.  Fishing and hunting were his focus during many of the months of the year.

Bill has a goal of 250K miles for his black Ford Explorer, right now in the early 240's so the horizon is looming.   He's just crossing his fingers to glide through without a major mechanical event.  Recent trip to the dealer to "just shop", while Bill was enjoying the sales pitch of a young newly minted sales person, the sales manager drove Bill's car to give him an estimate of if and when.  After returning the manager turns to Bill and explained "You REALLY NEED a new car"

For the time you are driving down the road and the thought comes to mind that you might have forgotten to close the garage door.   Wyse has come up with a solution with a camera that mounts inside of the garage that can be viewed like any other remote camera over bluetooth and WIFI with your mobile device...AND has the ability to be connected to the up and down function of the doors!!  Here is the LINK.

Your Scribe,

Jerry

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MAINE RENDEZVOUS

Chris here.... When I published Northern Notes/Chris's Corner last month, John and I were on a one-week camping trip in Maine and coastal New Brunswick.  

I left off with pictures of the charming town of St. Andrews NB.  We continued back to the states for a couple of nights in Lubec, Maine, with a side trip to Eastport, Maine.  

 

Digressing a bit here with some geography:

1.  Lubec and Eastport are only three miles apart as the crow flies, but the journey by car is almost 40 miles.

2.  While Eastport's claim to fame is that it is the easternmost CITY in the US (44.9058° N, 66.9849° W), Lubec is the easternmost TOWN  (44.8580° N, 66.9871° W).  Not sure why the distinction, as their populations are about the same at 1,200 or so.   

A quiet, early June day Eastport, Maine.  During the summer tourist season, the "city" is a stopping point for cruise ships. 

 

The happy surprise of our stay in Lubec was a phone call from Jerry and Laura Kimble on our first night, They were on their way back home from a five week trip to Nova Scotia and beyond, and decided to join us at the campground the next night.

A glass of wine before dinner, dinner in town at a restaurant overlooking the shore, and back to the campground to watch the sunset....a perfect evening, as all of our travels were coming to an end.

May 14 Gathering Ground Report

 

Bill, Pete, Jo-Ann
(photo might look familiar - it's from the April GG breakfast)

Jerry is away hiking in New Brunswick, so we had a small crew at the Gathering Ground today.    

Bill, Peter and myself enjoyed breakfast together on this cloudy Wednesday.  Not many people were eating breakfast out today. Actually, when my 'egg and cheddar on a hard roll' arrived - it was too hot to eat!  

The talk at the table today was mostly about projects, fun stories and traveling - just pleasant things.   Bill and Peter had both been to Jerry's to help out with Jerry's  equipment storage shelter.  Jerry has been planning/designing this for a while, in the future it will also hold Jerry's solar panels.  Now, it has moved from the drawing stage to the picture stage.  Posts are cemented in the ground and the framing has begun.  Its fun to hear about the updates each month.

While Peter was at Jerry's, he saw Jerry's fishing boat and was inpressed by its size.  Bill was able to delight both of us with the experience of using the ocean to transport that purchase back to Jerry's house.  Lots of laughs.  Bill has been involved with a few other boat tranfers in his life, each one is as funny as the next.

I recently installed a 'snow gate' on the far end of my raised deck.  Each year it gets harder to lift the snow and throw it over the railing.  I designed a swinging gate that opens under the main railing - without comprimising the strength of the railing.  Now, I can open the gate and push the snow right off the ledge.

We chatted about the difference between River Boat cruises and large Ocean Liner cruises. The amount of people, the variety of off boat day trips, etc.  Peter and Debbie have River Boat experience and they have enjoyed them.

On a sad note, Peter mentioned that Tom Zielinski passed away recently in Venice, FL.  Tom had been an Accountant at HSD and was one of the Continuous Improvement teachers prior to his retirement.  His obituary is on Legacy.com.

That's all for now,

Scribe of the day,     

Jo-Ann

PS..  I have asked Bill to send me a pic of Jerry's shelter - I'll forward it.  

 

April 9 Gathering Ground Report; Note from Jim Lamoin

 GATHERING GROUND REPORT - April 9, 2025

Bill Wills, Pete Gottschalk, Jo-Ann Smith, Dave Ewbank

Minus Jo-Ann, plus Jerry

Bill, JoAnn, Dave, Pete and Jerry shared some time at the Gathering Ground.  Breakfast was as always, very very good and reasonably priced, even though they did increase to cover the additional cost of those chicken eggs.  Still a deal!

I was seated next to the waitstaff and was able to see the shorthand for the breakfast orders.   I ordered a Bacon, egg and Cheddar on a hard room.   This was written at BEC and Bill used  that same shorthand for his order.  Pete's turn and his choice was the corned beef hash, single egg on top and homefries.  This was written at "Crazy Good"!  Nuff said about this dish!!
 
Bob White still has not restarted the YouCanTwo races that he paused during Covid, but Bill did recall the last race held.  Bill did manage to come in front of Bob even with a pause to tie his shoe.  Bob in his newsletter after the race did proclaim that Bob dis set his PW, his Personal Worse record.
 
Motor vehicle registration must be renewed on a regular basis.  Usually a letter will arrive in the mail with the renewal notice. In Connecticut, the renewal is done online.  Bill (without any help from any police office) realized that his renewals were not coming and discovered that both his two cars and two motorcycles were all expired.   Most were easily fixable with a visit to the online site.  But one had gone more than two years and needed an inspection before the registration could be renewed.  Bill is now in between a recent visit to the vehicle inspection station where they reported that any vehicle over 25 year old does not need an inspection and going back to the MVD to see again if this car can be registered.
 
Realtime update....I just called Bill and he did make it back to the DMV with positive results.  When the person behind the counter was challenged with the fact that this auto was over 25 years old, the inspection need disappeared!  Bill now has a new registration and also got Veterans plates for $7 dollars more.
 
Our table survey found everyone had the latest drivers license with the star showing Real ID.  This will be necessary in order to get through TSA and take a plane ride anywhere!!
 
Overseas trips, how to make phone calls or text.  Several solutions were talked about and the experience with these solutions.   WhatsApp was one, Use WIFI in your hotel that evening, signup up for a plan with international capability, pay the $10/day for your current operator's plan.  With a fair amount of experience in the different solutions, it was thought that WIFI from the hotel where you were staying was the simplest and if an urgent need arises, the $10 for a day was an easy fall back.
 
Your Scribe

Jerry

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NOTE FROM JIM LAMOIN 

Got this email from Jim Lamoin a few weeks ago, directed to Bill Wills and cc'd to me:

"Hey Bill,

I’ve been meaning to send this for a while, but you know how it is, something always comes up.  But now that News from the Hole is winding down, I thought I better get it done.  Copying Chris for the archives if you guys so choose.  

I had a great run at HSD - the absolute greatest group of people I worked with my entire career, bar none.

I usually read the NFTH using this great computer that you presented to me when I left HSD for Norden.  The photo is one my daughter took that same year (1984) looking west on a sunset way out on the bay at Cape Cod.

All the best to you and the gang.

Jim" 

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AND JUST ONE MORE PICTURE....

"The building is the latest look at HSD building three psrking lot.   Someone is constructing a large box store on this footprint." (Jerry)

March 2025 Gathering Ground Report; Reminder

 GATHERING GROUND REPORT - March 12, 2025

Got this email from Bill Wills on the afternoon of March 12:

"Well - Today's breakfast at the GG was a first.  I was the only one who showed.  I had a great conversation with myself.  We agreed on everything.  

What do we do now? 

~ Your scribe, 

      Bill"

Since most of the regulars at the monthly GG breakfast were away on other adventures, "what we do now" is post their pictures, depicting their where-abouts that day:

Colorado: Jerry Kimble with fellow skiers (L to R): Brian, Jerry, Laura, Diane
(Picture is from another ski trip, earlier this year)

Patagonia: Jo-Ann Smith 

Back in Windsor Locks: the lonely diner
(picture from prior GG breakfast)

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REMINDER: for those of you who have Facebook accounts: you may find the Hamilton Standard Friends page of interest: https://www.facebook.com/groups/588386704677508