Nothing slows down traffic more than a toll plaza. I saw that first-hand today on the Mass Turnpike. My travel was made quicker with the EZ-pass. The cash lanes had a long line of cars.

This part of the road did not have the high speed lanes for payment. Speed was reduced to 15 mph. It didn't effect the flow of traffic, but it would cause a problem on a high traffic day.

EZ Pass works best when you don't need to slow down. It will take a lot of money to make the process more efficient. 

Women barbers have been cutting my hair since 1977. I think they do a better job than men. Yesterday was my regular appointment to get a trim.

After the cut, she sprayed some stuff on my hair. She never does that as a rule. She combed it in place. It looked good, but too artificial. The spray stiffened my hair and froze it in place. There was no way the wind was going to blow it around. 

I was so glad to take a shower last night and wash it out. I'm in no hurry to use it again. When I was a kid, I use to put hair tonic in my hair daily. What was I thinking? 

I have many books about New York City. I should count them at some point, but it must be over 50. I'm reading one right now from the local library.

There was an interesting posting on Facebook about a NYC resident who just wrote a book about his traversing of every single block in New York City's five boroughs. It took him four years to cover 120,000 blocks over the course of 6,000 miles. He tried to walk 30-40 miles per week. The book is almost 500 pages and is filled with his interviews of local residents. 

I plan to buy this text. It will take a long time to read. I did the same for the 700 page history of Greenwich Village.   

People forget that days like today are normal for May. It's 50 degrees with drizzle. It has been like that all day. People complain that they want warm weather. The temperature is below normal for today, but things can change very quickly.

Every spring is the same. We have a stretch of warm days and then it suddenly gets cold. We will have cool and raw days in July. This is nothing new. 

I was looking at the calendar and know that it's only 22 weeks to the New York City Marathon. A lot will happen between now and then. The key is to stay healthy and run more miles. That is always the goal. It's so hard to do.

New York City is very expensive to visit. I love going there, but it gets costly for people. Everything is such a ripoff.

That is New York.

Memorial Day is always known for the mother of all traffic jams. The news reports were bad for leaving Cape Cod or driving south on Rt 93 or 95. The toll booths on those roads slow down traffic to handle cash.

The transponder is the way to go. I like having it. It won't happen to 100% of the people. There will always be a need for a cash lane.

I not sure on the exact number of books I own. I spent time yesterday afternoon organizing some of them by topic. There are so many I want to read. Too bad I can't read faster. It would make things a lot easier.

I'm trying to set up a queue of ones I want to read, but I keep digressing with another book. There is so much to read and not enough time.

You never know when something might happen. I was eating a slice of pizza last night when I realized a piece of my tooth broke. It was my upper left first molar. The tooth now has a jagged edge to it.

So far, there is no pain or discomfort. It looks like a trip to the dentist next week for a crown. I already have three of them. The teeth all broke the same way. It's been about ten years since my last one. 

Parents are too involved in managing activities for their kids. We see that especially in sports. Kids are starting way too young. 

An eleven year old girl recently qualified for the Women's US Open in golf. This is a major accomplishment at any age. The young star began playing at seven. There is nothing wrong with learning to play golf at that age, but her parents had her tutored by one of the best instructors in the country.

This was probably their long range goal. They succeeded in placing their child in a tournament that will place her under a microscope. What were they thinking? I'm sure they are very proud of themselves. They are driving the child. She's not doing it on her own. 

In the past few days, there have been stories in the news about high school seniors bringing goats to school as a prank. One story had kids breaking into the place after hours and leaving a goat running around inside. Another local high school had a student dressing one up in a t-shirt.

I fail to find any humor in these pranks. They are boorish and breaking the law in some cases. Parents want kids held accountable as long as it's not their special child. 

I became an organ donor when I renewed my driver's license last November. I put a lot of thought into it. Someone might benefit in the future.

The news had a story today about a convicted murderer who committed suicide. His mother agreed to have some of his organs donated. He was kept on life support for two days in order for everything to be harvested.

Some people may be repulsed over a convicted killer donating his organs to someone. Should the recipients be told? Getting these organs is a matter of life and death for some.

There are many controversial issues when it comes to organ donation. I don't have any problem with how this played out.  

I love reading about large scale real estate projects in Manhattan. There is so much going on with the West Side. The rail yards at 34th St are at the cutting edge of the future of New York City. There are so many exciting plans for the future.

The Big Apple is always evolving. It's never the same, but a lot of the subway system has been there for over 100 years. It's great to see the Second Ave line being built. I hope they finish it at some point. 

People who drive convertibles do it with great passion and love of their car. They usually take great care to make it look nice and shiny. They love to cruise around.

I was never into that type of car. I never liked the one sun roof I had. It was always too noisy and the sun beat down on me. I'm not into cruising around for the sake of it. If I'm in my car, I have a destination and purpose.

Landsdowne St behind Fenway Park is an interesting slice of Boston. It's mostly old parking garages and car repair shops built after the opening of Fenway in 1912. They are 2-3 floors of brick and concrete, built to last forever.

I went to a Red Sox game last night. We also went into one of the former garages that is now a night club with bowling lanes and pool tables.

It was easy to see that it was built in the 1920's as a parking garage. The facade could use a lot of work, but the inside was a massive concrete structure. It must have been quite a place when it opened in the 1920's.

I get all sorts of junk mail that will never stop after I'm gone. A lot of it comes from charities who got my name from another one. I dislike the ones that have my name and address or "current resident". 

That's what happened with the one I received from a funeral service. They offer low price cremation options. I appreciate their offer, but I would rather get buried. I wonder how they got my name. 

Life is full of bad ideas. We often don't learn from mistakes and do the same things over again. I think it's a ridiculous that New York City would even consider another bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics, but it's being proposed by Governor Cuomo. 

This time, it would be located at a rail yard in Queens. The 167 acres would include the stadium, Olympic Village and a future convention center. No costs have been discussed.

I would like to see the train yard redeveloped and a convention center built. That can be done without another lame attempt to host the Olympics. This idea needs to go away.

It was a foolish decision by NASA back in 2011 to pull the plug on the space shuttle fleet. That made us dependent on Russia to get astronauts to the International Space Station. That was working well until Russia's recent announcement that they plan to abandon the ISS after 2020.

Will NASA be ready with an alternative space craft to get there? This should be interesting. I have no doubt that NASA won't have a plan in place. This will turn into a fiasco.

There was a story in the news that barely registered concerning the breakup of a big ice sheet in Antarctica.

I hate the term "Global Warming" because it focuses on the change in the average annual temperature. I think the numbers are valid, but I'm more concerned about weather extremes.

This spring has seen some disastrous weather around the country. We are very fortunate in New England so far this year.

It does seem odd that the temperature was almost 40 degrees higher yesterday. I wonder why.

I'm on a scholarship committee for my running club. They give out six $1,000 awards annually to local high school seniors. Candidates are required to fill out an application and write an easy about "What Running Means To Me".

This is my third year on the committee. I can't get over the poor quality of the applications. Nobody knows how to print legibly. I guess they were never taught. Some of the names are hard to read. The essays are often one huge paragraph. They don't teach kids how to write either. There is a time and place for a period in a sentence. Some of this stuff is horrible. These kids are going to college! 

Some charities are relentless in their pursuit of donations. A great deal of the money raised is spent on overhead. It's great job security for those involved. 

I got a letter from a charity that I stopped giving money to. They have high administrative costs. Their letter expressed a deep concern over not hearing from me in over a year. They were hoping that everything is ok. 

What they really want is more money. They don't care about me. What a bunch of nonsense. I don't expect them to care. Their job is to raise money. They need to shake people to get it.

They were so concerned about me that they sent more address labels that I'll never use and glued a nickel to their letter. Still no money for them.  

The horrible tragedy in Virginia today involving a hot air balloon is another example of the hype and nonsense that surrounds them. They are majestic and colorful, but also dangerous. I have no desire to ever ride in one. 

This accident was typical. It hit some power lines and caused a fire. One person is dead and two are missing. Someone else can have my seat on any future rides. They do nothing for me.

People keep some pretty strange pets. I don't understand why they have such exotic creatures at times, especially if they  share their home with them.

There is a story of a guy who is suing PETCO because of a pet rat he bought there. He was bitten by it and ended up with a spinal abscess, joint inflammation and a 35 day stay in the hospital that cost him $170,000. He is obviously outraged over what happened.

What was he thinking when he bought a rat for a pet? Did he actually think that everything would go well?  

It's hard to define spring, but today I wore my first polo shirt since last October. It will only get warmer from this point forward.

I have a bunch of sweaters that need to be taken to the cleaners after a long winter. It's not cheap to do it, but it must be done.

Every year about 2.5 million Americans die. They become part of the $17 billion death industry which also provides jobs for 130,000 people.

Recent years have seen a spike in the amount of cremations. Industry figures from 2011 showed that 42% of decedents ended up being cremated. This is almost double the amount from 15 years ago. More and more people are choosing that method as their final outcome.

Some states vary in the practice. Washington (72%) and Nevada (74%) lead the nation, while Mississippi lags behind at 15.7%. 

At this point in time, I have chosen the traditional way. I already have my burial plot. 

There are some things in life that should never need rules or regulations, but that isn't always the case. It seems hard to believe that some want to be able to hunt animals using drone aircraft. New Mexico appears to be the next state to prohibit the use of drones for hunting.

Some sporting groups and animal rights activists are lining up behind this law. They support the concept of a fair chase. I agree with them. I have never hunted and have no plans to ever do so, but I believe that hunters should do so in the traditional way. The use of drones is so contrary to the entire concept. It was never meant to be this way.

I never eat desserts or sweets because I don't enjoy their taste. They are often filled with unhealthy calories and saturated fat. It's easy for me to pass on them.

The other night, I was at a dinner party and had some gelato with apple crisp. I would never eat this at home, but I decided to try it.

After reading the label on the gelato, it will probably be the last time I have it. The dessert tasted nice, but the stuff was filled with saturated fat. With that small amount, I got 30% of my daily requirement of unhealthy fat.

The American diet is filled with empty calories and saturated fat. You will never find a doctor who will tell you to increase your fat intake. 

Spring also brings the return of the obnoxious lawn signs that seem to be everywhere and promote everything. I saw one today for a charitable golf tournament in late September. Will we be forced to look at this thing every day for the next four months?

There appears to be no limitation on what they promote. I especially dislike stores that advertise sales and specials. Many times, they are left behind long after the date.

Mayor Bill De Blasio of New York City is determined to put the horse drawn carriage industry out of business. He has enlisted the help of some celebrities who claim the horses are neglected and overworked.

I agree that they should be kept off the street because they pose a public safety hazard when engaged in traffic. They should be restricted to the confines of Central Park. There is plenty of room for them there. 

The city is looking into an offer that would be tough to turn down. Each of the 68 carriage license owners would give up their current arrangement in exchange for a taxi cab medallion. The carriage license medallions are currently selling for around $200,000 compared to the yellow cab ones which go for almost $1million. 

I disagree with this plan because the money goes to the owner of the carriage license. It doesn't address the economic loss for the estimated 400 carriage drivers who generate around $19 million in annual revenue. 

I have stood next to the horses on many occasions. They appear to be well treated, although some look rather old. The carriages should continue their travels. They just need to stay off the street where they are a bad match for the crazy traffic conditions. 

Each day gets longer in terms of daylight. We see signs of spring all around us. It's already May 2nd.

I ran by a guy cutting his lawn. The smell of fresh grass clippings is one of my favorites. I'll continue to enjoy it until the final days of autumn. 

The seasons go by much too fast, but they are all the same in length.

Pretty soon, people will be complaining about the hot weather. It never fails. 

I've been procrastinating over buying a new cell phone. The one I have is over four years old and outdated. I think I may have waited too long. 

The battery will not hold a charge. It has been plugged into an outlet for the last 30 minutes, but nothing happens. I will use my back-up phone today, but still have a problem. 

I need to get my phone up and running. I may end up buying a battery for a phone that I plan to replace. I should have done this sooner.