It takes a lot of volunteers to place flags on the graves of veterans for Memorial Day. This year, I didn't see any in two cemeteries I visited.

The other day, both cemeteries had them. It was about a week late. They look nice, but Memorial Day has passed. I wonder what happened.

I got brand new bills today from the ATM. They must have been recently printed because they were in sequential order. I will now introduce them into the money flow. Where will they end up? How long will they stay in circulation?

I had a dollar bill the other day that was in horrible condition. These 20's have never been folded.

You can always count on the government to waste money on all levels. It doesn't matter if it's local, state or federal. It just happens.

I saw a great example today in my neighborhood. A street sweeper has been attempting to clean to the curb, but that isn't happening. There are cars on both sides of the street. The sweeper is going up and down the middle of the street. Nothing is getting cleaned. 

Why don't they do this at night? It would make a lot more sense, but government doesn't work that way.

Hampton Beach is a real seasonal town. After Labor Day, it shuts down for the most part along the beach.

When I was there in December, it looked totally desolate. Today, it was vibrant and full of people enjoying the water on a warm day. 

What a difference the season makes. It looked awful when the shops were boarded up, but it was back to normal today. 

It's only a matter of time before we witness a tragedy at a gas station where customers pump their own. Too many people smoke cigarettes in the area. I see it all the time at a local convenience store.

The employees are the worst offenders. They walk a reasonable distance away, but are still flirting with disaster.

The other day, I saw a passenger get out of the car while his friend pumped gas. The guy was smoking very near the pumps.

Nothing is ever done about it because it is so prevalent. 

I would hate to be in one of those holiday traffic jams. There is a 16 mile backup on Rt 95 between York, Maine and Hampton, NH. People have no option. They are stuck there for as long as it takes.

Cape Cod is just as bad. The news had a story about building a third bridge over the canal. I heard of figure of $360 million. It will never be built at that price. Costs always get out of hand when government is involved.  

Even if they make it a toll bridge, I don't see this ever being built. 

We will never understand how gasoline prices fluctuate so much. Crude oil has a daily price on the open market, whatever it is.

America produces so much more oil now than years past. Why do prices change if we have a supply?

Nobody has the answer that would satisfy the people. 

The last few days has convinced me that I should wear long sleeves when the temperature is below 70. I went to a party this afternoon wearing short sleeves.

It was 62 degrees with a slight wind. Although it was very sunny, I felt cool when I was outside.

My living room now is at 68. I almost feel like turning on the heat, but I won't. Definitely a blanket night tonight. 

When I got home last night, I had three messages from the same woman on my answering machine. My phone number often gets confused for a local pharmacy if people transpose the digits.

She called to complain about people panhandling in front of the business. She claimed they were intimidating.

I usually get at least one call per week from someone trying to reach the pharmacy.

This person needs to check the number before she calls again. 

I see mistakes in newspapers all the time, including grammar. How does this stuff get by the proof-readers and editors? 

My local paper made a glaring error for two consecutive days on a front page obituary. They referred to the decedent's occupation as being for 22 years since 1983. That is such an obvious error. It doesn't make any sense as his accomplishments the 80's were included in the story.

It should be 32 and not 22. How did it get by on the second day? The paper looks foolish.

Laws can vary from state to state. We see that in so many areas. There needs to be more consistency.

New Jersey and Oregon are the only two states that prohibit drivers from pumping their own gas.They are trying to change the law in New Jersey, but there is great opposition from the owners of gas stations.

Many laws in America are influenced by special interest groups. This one is no different. It happens all the time. 

I commend my city for their tree planting program. They have been recognized nationally for cities planting trees. Many have thrived after ten years.

When I went out today for a walk, I saw about ten of their recent plantings. Several have holes in their leaves and look real bad. I wonder if they will survive. 

The city doesn't have have a watering program. They depend on people doing it, but these trees are not near homes.

They won't  survive without water. It was so dry when they were planted.

People throw out so many things that could be used by others. We see it all the time. Someone in my neighborhood keeps putting stuff out on the sidewalk with a sign saying that it's free.

The other day, they had a couple of tables, mattresses and cabinets. It took three days, but it was all gone this morning except for one of the mattresses.

It's good to see it getting a second life. 

I have never been white water rafting and have no desire to ever go. I saw a picture of a group of people looking like they were having a great time in the rapids. Most of them were not wearing a helmet. 

I don't understand why they would take such a big risk. Getting tossed into the water could be fatal if they struck a rock. They must assume that everything will be ok. 

People have too much sodium in their diet. It seems to be in whatever we eat, even in "healthy" foods. Tomato sauce is loaded with it, as well as ketchup.

I finally found some ketchup with almost no sodium. I put it on my burger and didn't notice any difference in the taste. This will now be my ketchup. 

Former NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg was often criticized for his advocacy of public health initiatives. He was referred to as a "nanny". A new ten year study by the city's Health Department shows significant results.

Bloomberg started with banning smoking in public places in 2002. He outlawed trans fats in eateries in 2006. He pushed for calorie counts on menus in 2007, lower sodium in 2008 and a grading system for restaurants in 2010. He was unsuccessful in his 2012 attempt to ban super-sized sodas.

The study shows that the city experienced an 11% decrease in deaths, 29% decrease in heart disease deaths and a 31 month life expectancy increase. 

I supported many of his initiatives because they made common sense. The results speak for themselves. The bigger issue is the role government should play in our lives.  

I was very impressed the other night with the menu posted at a bar on a blackboard. It wasn't the selections, but the way someone had printed it by hand in multiple colors. They did a great job. It must have taken quite a bit of time to do such great work.

If they raise their prices, they will need to do it all over again. I'm sure it will look good. 

In less than 24 hours, it got to the point of being colder than yesterday. The temperature changes daily and we have no control over that.

I'm giving up winter slowly. It was 91 degrees today when I left Haverhill to drive to the Salisbury State Reservation for a family cookout.

I wore long pants and thought it would be coller at the beach. It rose to 93 for whatever reason.

Shorts would have been a better option.

You can always count on government at all levels to enforce rules and regulations that don't make any sense.

The federal government is trying to enforce New York City into compliance with the 1965 Highway Beautification Act which limits signs to 1,200 square feet. On the surface, this makes sense, but they want to crack down on the iconic Time Square billboards. 

What are they thinking? The signs are part of the city. I can't imagine Times Square without them. 

I enjoy reading the New York Post to keep up with the news in the Big Apple. I also follow a few Facebook pages about the buildings and architecture of the city.

I don't support the latest plans for the iconic Bowery. The neighborhood has experienced gentrification. Several old buildings will be torn down to make way for housing and commercial space.

One of the buildings is from the 1790's. I don't understand how this one can be demolished.

It's part of a $45 million deal for a group of four buildings. It's all about the money. 

We had a rough winter with the record setting snow storms. People started to bore me with their constant complaining about abnormal weather.

We should be this lucky to have only snow to deal with. Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma are dealing with extreme weather. In the last 24 hours, they recorded 46 twisters. Some of them caused extreme damage to homes and businesses. 

I'll take our weather any day.  

I finally wore a short sleeve shirt today. That is a sure sign of spring. I also washed two of my three blankets and put them away until autumn. I'll keep one on my bad for cold nights. 

We will continue to vary between warm and cool days. I'm getting ready to shut my heat down for the next several months, but I'm not ready there yet.

When will people realize that renting their home or apartment to strangers is a bad idea? Airbnb sounds like a great way to save money for travelers and an opportunity for others to make money on renting out their place.

A story in the news today showed the damage done to a house by a couple who were allegedly using it for wedding guests. The place was totally trashed. This is not the first time for something like this.

Ride sharing with Uber and Lift have their own issues. More than one driver has been robbed after being set up by the perpetrator.

People are too trusting at times. Some are getting victimized in the process.

I'll never understand why people choose to get a tattoo. I don't think they look good, but people do it willingly.

There is now an issue with wrist tattoos and the new Apple watch. Those who have one on their wrist are experiencing problems with the heart rate monitor application. The sensor light has a problem with the ink. 

Apple is aware of the problem and is working on a fix. The easiest way to solve this problem is to not have any tattoos. 

I was surprised to hear the demise of the annual Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. The great Jerry Lewis hosted it for 45 years while bringing a host of stars to the living rooms of America. It was a staple of the Labor Day weekend.

Lewis quit shortly before the 2011 event. He raised a personal best of $65 million in 2008. Live television coverage had declined in recent years from the normal 21.5 hours down to only two last year.

Officials are saying that the time had come because of changes in fund raising. It was never the same after Lewis left.  

Today was the first day I was outside without wearing some type of jacket since back in October. I still had a long sleeve top on. It was only in the high 60's.

I'm not ready for polo shirts, but many are breaking out the short sleeves. Not me.