January 3

We returned to work yesterday after the holidays and it’s a Friday so the consolation prize of returning to the Shop is a short week. We had some work on the books when we got back, some from our regulars and one for the HBO television show, “The Wire.” I get a kick out of the jobs for TV or films. It’s certainly more interesting than rolled angle rings or pipe railings. I drive down and pick up turkey clubs from Haussner’s for lunch and we discuss the idea of moving from Central Avenue. We’ve all thought about it and though interested, we’re all a little hesitant. It’s been a busy two days back at the Shop so we decide to keep thinking about it for a bit then make a decision.

January 14

Winter is truly here with temperatures staying below freezing today but the Shop is busy. We’ve got a mix of work for our fabrication customers and one for a new customer, Manuel Bartolo. Manuel is originally from Portugal and is a talented welder. He needs a railing curved and he came to the right place. He’s a nice guy and after this job, he’ll become a semi-regular for us. Meanwhile, Ann, Jack and I have decided to keep thinking about moving.

            I’m talking to Kim about it after work. “We’re still not sure it’s the right time but we’re gonna look into it. It’s definitely something we need to consider seriously.”

            “What do you do first? Do you call a realtor?” Kim asks as she smiles at A.J. bobbing around in his walker.

            “Ann’s going to research the process and see if she can figure out how much the building might be worth. Jack’s going to think about what kind of place would be best for our type of work and what we specifically need. What’s necessary and what we would like and then we’ll find an agent to handle it. We’re thinking of calling Adrian Sushko.” I answer as my eyes move from Kim to A.J. then to Joe who is attentively watching Spongebob Squarepants.

            Kim nods and says. “That’s the guy you went to school with and he helped sell a house for Jack before. Right?”

            “Yes. We went to elementary school together and he did help Jack before. We also have to consider which areas would be good for us to move to that would keep us close enough to our customers. It’s pretty complicated. I can’t believe we’re actually thinking about doing this. It’s been almost 100 years so the time might be right. I don’t know but it’s worth checking out the process before we decide. It could be good for us to get to a building that’s better for what we do. A bigger room would allow us to roll longer pieces for one thing but there are many reasons to leave this old building. A parking lot. This all started because we had parking issues.” I pause. “Of course, it is home. So that’s something.”  For a moment, the room is quiet but for the sounds of Spongebob.

            “I’m sure the three of you will figure it out and make the right decision.” Kim is confident. “It will work out. Don’t worry.”

            “I’ll try.” I give her a weak grin. “Worrying is one of my specialties and it’s part of my job.”

January 24

A frigid January continues in Baltimore but fortunately, no snow so far. We’ve stayed quite busy for this time of year. Today some playground parts are picked up and we finish some parts for sets for Center Stage. 

January 26

I’m watching the Super Bowl tonight and the Tampa Buccaneers defeat the Oakland Raiders 48 – 21. I have both my boys with me and I’m making clear to them how superior baseball is to football. The game is a blowout but I have a good time with my sons. Joe is still receiving occupational therapy and speech therapy at school. The progress is slow but it’s there. AJ is still a baby but I think they both enjoy the game on some level. As Kim and I get the boys to bed, I’m thinking of the Shop. We’ve got more playground stuff to do this week and a channel job for a Hindu Temple in DC. That’s a new one but we’re happy to work for any and all denominations. We even give them a break on the price because it’s a good idea to cover all your bases.

February 14

It’s Valentine’s Day and a Friday. I look forward to a nice romantic evening with Kim that will likely be interrupted by our baby and five year old. We’ll enjoy it either way though there is talk of snow this weekend. At the Shop, Rooster from American Iron picks up an order. I don’t know his real name just Rooster but he’s a good guy and my crew likes him a lot. He’s been driving for AIW for years.

February 16

It’s a cold and snowy Sunday,  snowing since last night with no signs of stopping. It’s a full blown blizzard and the stuff is piling up. Tomorrow is President’s Day and I’ve already been in touch with my brother and sister. We’re definitely closed tomorrow but we’ll have to see where we are when it stops though I already have two feet in my backyard.

February 20

After several days, we’re back to work on Central Avenue. That’s assuming shoveling snow counts as work because that’s what we do first. There are a couple of feet of snow all over the sidewalk. The morning is spent entirely on snow removal or rather piling of snow. In the afternoon, we begin some jobs for EM Systems and American Iron Works.

February 27

The snow is finally gone and that’s a relief. I’m glad it’s the end of February and this year, I’m particularly anxious for Spring. It’s a busy day in the Shop with quite a few orders completed including some work for the Johns Hopkins Chemistry Building. 

March 13

It’s a nice mild day at the corner of Pratt and Central today with temperatures reaching the low 60’s. We open the front garage door and let the sun and warmth in. The crew work on some playground parts and a few other items for our regular customers. At home, A.J is getting around in his walker more but no signs of walking on his own as yet. Joe continues his speech and occupational therapy. He speaks a little clearer and can grasp a pencil and things of that nature better. Small incremental progress and we are glad for it. We’d love some sudden radical advancement but we’ve learned that’s not how it works.

March 19

The US begins bombing Baghdad this evening and tomorrow the Iraq War will officially begin. The United States and its allies believe Saddam Hussein and his regime have weapons of mass destruction and are connected to the terrorist group, al-Qaeda. After threatening military action if Hussein did not leave Iraq, President Bush orders bombing and then a land assault. The US is joined by the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland in a coalition against Iraq and Hussein. I watch the news coverage from home and tomorrow I’ll do so on our small television in the office. As far as the Shop goes, we are busy but not swamped. A couple jobs were completed today including a rolled pipe order for sculptor Rodney Carroll.  

March 28

Rain falls steadily but slowly through lunch today. The crew are sitting on stools or buckets and eating. I’m walking among them discussing a job we’re rolling. It’s for a film called “Ladder 49” which is being filmed locally. I don’t always know when our work is being included in a television program or a movie but it’s even more rare that I know the name of the film. This time the production company fills me in. It’s a movie about firefighters and my workers are excited to hear all about it. It makes the job a bit more interesting. Everyone agrees to go see it when it’s released.

March 31

It’s Opening Day and the Baltimore Orioles defeat the Cleveland Indians 6 – 5 walking it off in 13 innings. Per tradition, we sneak out of work a little early to get home and watch. It’s a great way to end a game with Gary Matthews lining an RBI single to center and the Birds and fans celebrate. The big surprise was the brief snow squall that occurred during the game. You don’t see that on Opening Day often. Unfortunately, the Orioles will lose the next 3 games but for today, we are in first place.

April 4

Today we meet with my former schoolmate Adrian Sushko and John Moore from Long and Foster Realty. We sign a contract with them to begin the process of selling our building and finding us a new one. One that’s big enough to roll 40 ft. long material, has a parking lot and high enough ceilings for our crane system. It’s a bit overwhelming but Adrian and John are confident they can sell this place for a fair price and they can find a new home for the Joseph Kavanagh Company. 

April 9

It’s an unseasonably chilly April morning and the crew are working on orders for Bouchat Industries, Capital Welding and Irongate. Irongate is one of Jack’s customers and a new one. Most of the customers would be labeled as my customers because I spend more time in the office and on the phone. In this case, Dave from Irongate spoke to Jack first and that’s one less for me. I’m more than okay with that. I handle enough phone calls. In fact, today I get a call about an order from Gable Signs for a sign for a new Modell’s Sporting Goods Store. Meanwhile in Iraq, the Battle of Baghdad has begun. Taking the capital of Iraq is one of the final hurdles in this war. The US and its coalition have met with sparse but stiff resistance and today the capital of Iraq falls.

April 20

It’s a Sunday and I’m watching the hockey playoffs. The Washington Capitals are eliminated in the first round by the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Caps won the first two games then lost four in a row to be ousted. The last game is a 2 -1 loss in the third overtime period. A long long time to watch them lose. It’s a heart breaker but the Caps have been there before and so have their fans. Earlier this week, the US declared victory in the Iraq War though there is a great deal still unsettled. I am assuming American involvement will continue for some time.

April 30

It’s a pleasant Spring day at the Shop and the crew remain busy. We finish another job for “Ladder 49” and two orders for Codd Fabricators. We also receive some surprising news about Codd. They are going out of business. The Kauffmans are selling the building and they will be closed before the end of the year. Ann, Jack and I are pretty shocked. Codd Fabricators has been a customer for a hundred years and one of our biggest for as long as I have worked here. It’s strange to think they are closing and we are considering moving. An odd coincidence that shows how much things are changing in our industry and in Baltimore. 

May 1

Jack and Ann visit the first potential new building with Adrian. They aren’t too keen on it. It’s located on Quad Avenue which is close to my house but it’s for lease not for sale. We’re open to leasing but prefer to buy. The space also has limited parking and another bathroom would have to be added at our cost. It’s a no but we knew this was not going to be a quick search. We will move on to the next one.

May 7

It’s hump day at the Shop and we are making some more playground parts as well as finishing a heat exchanger for Carroll County General Hospital. A heat exchanger means copper tubes which means some torch work. It also reminds me of the old days as we do less and less exchangers every year. Modern heating technology has made them unnecessary. The older units still need to be repaired and serviced but those will eventually be replaced too. We also do some tube work for Codd and I’m still getting accustomed to the idea they will be gone in a few months.

May 31

It’s a Saturday night and I’m watching the Birds beat the Rangers on TV. I play with my boys a bit and talk to them about baseball throughout the game. You can never get them started early enough. The Orioles win 7-1 and that leaves them with an even record of 27-27. That’s not bad but not particularly good either. All it would take is a hot streak to move them up in the standings. After my boys are asleep and the game is done, Kim reads and I sit and think. I’m going over the last week or so at the Shop. The  volume of work has picked up as it should with summer approaching. We did some more work for my friends at Codd, a job for the Brown Center at the Maryland Institute for the Arts and then a few pieces for a company called Equine Architectural Products. They make a wide range of items for stables and for horse care in general. It’s another new thing for us but at the Joseph Kavanagh Company, we always  run into new things. It’s interesting stuff and hopefully, they become a regular or at least an occasional customer.

June 2

A new week begins with Adrian Sushko picking my brother and sister up and taking them to check out another building. This one is an old theater on Patapsco Avenue and it seems impractical from the start according to Ann and Jack. As soon as they walked in, they saw it had high ceilings which we need but there were balconies. It would take a lot of rehabbing and work to make it into our kind of building. In addition, there was no parking lot and there were residential houses close enough to inhibit trucks moving in and out. They return at lunchtime and fill me in but this one is also a no.

June 12

It’s a sunny day on Central Avenue and the summer has brought its typical uptick of work. The boys in the Shop are banging out a wide range of jobs mostly for our regulars. One of them, Turnbull Enterprises has some new samples for us to bend. They are ovular tubes and they furnish tools to bend them but I’m skeptical. Oval shapes have a lot of spots where marks or damage can appear in the bend. My brother Jack though takes it as a challenge. He works on them himself and surprisingly, they look good. Jack really knows his stuff and he handles any of the particularly challenging jobs. Turnbull picks them up and we’ll see what they say about them.

June 16

Jack’s oldest son Paul returns to the Shop for his second summer of work. He’s welcomed back with enthusiasm by both family and co-workers. The guys in the Shop took a liking to Paul and are glad to see him. He’s gotten taller and now has last summer’s experience under his belt. He’s back to work helping Mike Glenn roll on the R-3-S first thing in the morning. Paul fits in well which is important. My father always told me that’s one of the most important things as far as any crew goes, fitting in. Paul will also be the last Kavanagh to start his trade at the corner of Pratt and Central.

June 27

I’m up very late on this Friday night watching the Orioles play the Phillies. It takes 17 innings but the Birds lose. June has been a disaster for the team and they are 7 games under .500 now. The chances for a good season are dwindling. The Shop has had a better month with more work coming in than going out the door. We did quite a bit of structural work this week for our customers and one ornamental job for a new customer, Art Display. They are a company that makes displays for museums and events. We have a few customers in this field and hopefully, we’ll get more from these folks.

July 2

It’s a drizzly Wednesday afternoon in Baltimore. Ann and Jack checked out another potential building this morning and this one was an absolute no. It was located on O’Donnell Street and was in great disrepair. The roof leaked and there seemed to be water issues. We shall keep looking but it’s getting frustrating. After tomorrow, we have the four day Independence Day holiday and I look forward to the time off. We did have a nice visit with Larry Shindledecker from Colonial Iron Works today right after lunch. Larry is a fire fighter/welder. When not at the fire station, he makes railings and such for his customers. He’s a good guy and my brother, sister and I liked him from the start. We’ve done a job or two for a couple of years for him. The crew are working on some angle rings for Smitty’s Welding and a channel ring for McShane Bell. McShane is one of our older customers and the channels we roll are used to suspend bells for churches and such.

July 11

Another week ends and it’s been a busy one. The Shop finished some parts for a rigging company and some for Tools for Bending. TFB is a company which sells the tools for our Pines Bender and it’s unusual to bend something for them but they needed some samples. We also roll some aluminum angles for Antenna Research. These are recurring parts and we do them every year or so.  

July 31

We are getting close to our vacation in August and the flow of work has stayed pretty high. This week it was more structural stuff but we also finished a set of 320 copper u-bends for Eddy and Stambaugh. They are making a big heat exchanger and that’s a lot of copper so it’s a good job for us. In addition to these jobs, we gather our scrap in hampers and take it to Landsman. Landsman is a couple doors down on Central and they buy all our scrap. It’s a good thing to get done with vacation coming on. It cleans the Shop out a bit.  

August 9

It’s the last day before our summer vacation and everyone is in a good mood. Nothing like some promised time away from work to lift your spirits. We have pickups today for a few of our regulars including a job for Baltimore Steel for the Johns Hopkins Chemistry building. It’s a day full of loading trucks and then we are out the door and ready for a week of relaxation and possibly home repairs.

August 29

I’m driving down Eastern Avenue on the way home in the rain. Today’s a Friday and I’m looking forward to the weekend. Since returning from vacation, we’ve been very busy at the Shop. In my mind, I’m going over a few jobs that went out the door this week. We did a set of oval tubes for Turnbull. Clearly, they liked the samples. The boys also finished a job for the Maryland Science Center and that takes me back to being a kid or even a teenager and going there. We could hop on the bus and spend the day at the harbor. The Science Center was always a highlight.

September 7

The Baltimore Ravens open their season in Pittsburgh and lose 34-15 to the Steelers. Any loss to a team from Pittsburgh stings a little more but this is only game one. It’s a long season. Kim and I are excited but nervous as Joe starts Kindergarten tomorrow. He’ll be in a classroom with kids like him. Kids with Special Needs such as autism. We’re hoping this will increase his progress. He will receive Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy through the school now so this will be simpler at the least. He’s a sweet boy and we do see positive things in his behavior but it all is happening so slowly.

September 9

Jack and the boys in the Shop are discussing the Ravens’ loss as they take their morning break. I join them with a few job cards which I distribute. We have more work for Codd who are closing in November and that’s going to be an adjustment. They’ve been one of our best and most regular customers for decades but all things come to an end. The crew also bend some boiler tubes and some sculptural parts for Mary Ann Mears. She sent us a small maquette or model of the piece and we work from that.

September 12

It’s a rainy Friday at the Shop and a somber one. My Uncle Ed has died. We find out from Mike Glenn, one of our employees and a very good friend to Ed. If Ed had had a son, it would have been Mike. That’s how close they were. Ed’s been retired for about 15 years and his death is sudden despite his age. Ed was a real character. He was a skilled coppersmith and a good worker and in his youth, he was a jitterbug champion dancer. At the Shop, he was the guy who kept the crew in stitches a lot. He always had a story or a joke to tell. I’ll always remember him as simply “Ed.” He didn’t like being called uncle which is a somewhat Kavanagh thing to do especially at the Shop. While working together, such titles seem unnecessary and overly formal. One thing about my uncle, he treated me right and with respect from Day 1. When my father started spending more time in Ocean City and Jack or I were in charge, Ed had no issues with it at all. He was a working man and proud of it. He was predeceased by his wife and daughter. His son-in-law, Grant and his grandsons, Jeffrey and Michael are his remaining immediate family. I’ll miss Ed. He would still pop in to see everyone at the Shop periodically. Again, always with a smile and a joke or a funny tale. My Mom and Dad are in Ireland on vacation so they are unable to attend the funeral but they are well represented by us kids.

September 24

I make a few calls from my office today to arrange pickup for several orders. I speak to Donna Irish at Baltimore Steel. I let her know we have an order of flat bars ready for some bike racks at the Johns Hopkins Chemistry building. Baltimore Steel has sent several orders for Hopkins in this year and it’s contributed to a fairly strong year work wise so far. I also let Stanley at Landsman know we will have a load of scrap for him tomorrow. My brother and sister and I are trying to stay hopeful we’ll find a building suitable for our needs. Last week, another place was visited. This time on Kresson Street and it was another one that obviously would not work. There was no parking lot, the ceilings were too low and truck access would be problematic. We are keeping our fingers crossed but getting skeptical.

October 9

The Washington Capitals begin their season at home and beat the New York Islanders 6 – 1. We are all hoping for a good year from our hockey team this season and a deeper playoff run.

October 14

The Shop has received an order from CIANBRO for some stainless steel angles. They will be used for a set of water tanks. The full job will be in several phases and likely last several months. CIANBRO does work all over the East Coast but they are based out of Boston. I discuss the baseball playoffs with their rep who calls me, Chris Tibbets and he is in fact, a Red Sox fan. The Orioles finished in fourth place so no postseason for them. The Sox and the Yanks are squaring off in the American League Championship Series. I am an Orioles’ fan but I wish him luck as I can’t help but root for whoever is playing the Yankees.

October 16

Adrian Sushko calls me and tells me about a property on Lynhurst Road in Dundalk. He believes it’s pretty close to my house. I am in the middle of an estimate so I get the address from him and promise to check it out. I drive over after work and take a look. The gate is locked but it looks big enough, there’s a parking lot, room for trucks and it’s less than ten minutes from my house. I’m interested. When I get home, I call Ann then Jack and tell them how it looks.

October 23

We have received another stainless steel angle order from CIANBRO. The Red Sox lost to the Yankees in seven games so now New York is playing the underdog Florida Marlins in the World Series. As indicated on Chris’ fax, we are both pulling for the Marlins. We agree anybody but the Yankees. This is another good sized order but we also have a couple of smaller jobs in the works today including a small boat rail. After work, Jack and I meet Adrian at 8100 Lynhurst Road. Adrian has the keys to the gate and building and we walk through. It’s not perfect but it’s close enough. My brother and I like the building, the property and the location. It’s even about five minutes from the beltway. We’ll talk about it with Ann tomorrow then move forward with the realtors if she agrees.

October 25

The Florida Marlins defeat the New York Yankees to win the World Series in six games. I enjoy watching the Yanks lose and I think of Chris celebrating in Boston. Ann, Jack and I have agreed we want the Lynhurst property for the Shop. We begin that process with Adrian and John getting in touch with Schuster Concrete who owns it.

October 27

It’s a dreary Monday to start the week at the Joseph Kavanagh Company with rain falling most of the day. The crew are busy with work for some of our regulars like Lenderking Metal Products and Anchor Fence. We also roll some pipes for Atlantic Welders which will be used for the University of Maryland Green House.

October 31

Halloween is here and I am looking forward to spending it with my young sons. I will take Joe trick or treating while A.J. stays with Mom and helps hand out candy. He’ll help by staying in his chair and being cute. It’s also the end of the week so the day moves that much slower. I take a little pause as I fill out a delivery ticket for Codd Fabricators. This will be the last job we do for them as they are closing. I think of all the work we did for them just during my tenure. It’s immense and I only hope we don’t miss them too much.

November 3

Codd Fabricators has closed its doors. This company began six years before the Joseph Kavanagh Company in 1860. They’ve been customers since the early 1900’s and during my father’s time, they were our most regular and reliable customer. We have had work for them in the Shop if not every week, every other week. I will miss dealing with them. The Kauffman’s are good people and I enjoyed working with them. We wish them good luck but it is certainly a sign of changing times.

November 13

It’s a windy day and that makes it feel that much cooler in the Shop. We have expressed our interest in the Lynhurst property but we only want the center parcel that has the building. There are connected properties on both sides which we do not need. Initially Schuster wanted to sell the whole lot together but after some back and forth, we convince them to sell just the center property. Now price and process all need to be worked out. It’s a lot to negotiate and many details to sort out. While we continue to focus on acquiring the new building, the crew are hard at work. We have another set of angles to do for CIANBRO and we are gathering some material for another load of scrap for Landsman.

November 15

Today the Kavanagh’s gather for a wedding. My niece Rose Kavanagh O”Neill is marrying Jason Emerick. They are wed at St. Vincent De Paul’s and the reception is at the Savage Mill. My parents and Rose’s parents, Jim and Nancy, are very proud and it’s a beautiful wedding and a great party. My boys seem to have fun. A.J. gets passed around and held by many in the family. As an uncle, I’m very happy for Rose but it gives me pause to see this next generation grown up. I feel older but not at all in a bad way just in an old way. It’s a very nice day for all of the family and it’s always good to get us all together. 

November 26

It’s the last day before Thanksgiving and our focus is loading trucks before the holiday. The final set of angles for CIANBRO is picked up along with some U bends for Martec-Stambaugh. Gary Stambaugh has moved from Eddy’s to Martec thus the name change. He was partnered with Eddy’s Welding for a few years but I suppose he needed to do things differently. As this Wednesday drags on, everyone’s mind is on the feast tomorrow and we manage to slip out a little early and head home.

November 27

Thanksgiving day on Woodall Street, Kim, the boys and I are over early to watch the parade and begin celebrating. Our Joe loves the parade with the big balloons and fancy floats. Afterward, the food is plentiful with all the Thanksgiving trimmings including parsnips for me. It’s a great day of family, food and some football.

December 5

It’s a cold Friday in Baltimore. There was even some mixed mess of precipitation overnight. The rush to the end of the year has begun and we have quite a bit of work. Today a small rail job is finished for Diamond Iron Works including some ornate brass moldings. Solomon from Diamond comes in to pick up. The talk at the Shop is about the Ravens who have gotten hot and are pushing for the playoffs. They are hosting the Bengals on Sunday and we need all the wins we can get. 

December 11

I’m staring out at Central Avenue through the morning drizzle. The march to the holidays continues and we are working on a bunch of small jobs. Some pipe bending and sign work is completed and picked up. We have about a week and a half to go. I always wonder if we’ll get everything done but somehow we always do. 

December 23

The last work day of the year is upon us and everyone is excited. Oddly enough, the day doesn’t drag. We’re too busy getting trucks in and out. Some structural angles are picked up along with some channels and an ornamental custom lighting fixture. When the last truck is gone, so are we. Everyone rides off to the holiday.

December 25

We celebrate Christmas on Woodall Street with Kim’s family. We give the boys some gifts at home. Joe is very much in the spirit of things but A.J. is just over one year old and the significance escapes him. His older brother is more than happy to rip open presents for him. What are older brothers for? Later in the morning, we drive to Casa Dalfonzo and the holiday begins in earnest. The boys have even more gifts to open and everyone is excited to watch them and exchange our own presents. Joe is older now and though he still has his autism issues, he has learned about Christmas. Wrapping paper is torn then balled up and tossed around as toy after toy is revealed. A.J. for his part, is mostly happy to be held by his Pop. Those two share much more than a name as they had a strong bond from day one. After the cacophony of presents, there is much food to eat and Christmas music on the radio. We have a great time celebrating with Kim’s family and the boys make out quite well on the toy scale.

December 28

The Ravens host the Steelers in the final regular season game and win in overtime 13-10. They take the division with a record of 10-6 and next stop is the playoffs in January.

December 31

It’s New Year’s Eve on Charlesmont Road and Kim and I spend a quiet night with our boys. It’s usually the only holiday where it’s just us. We watch some kids’ movies and play with Joe and A.J., then they are off to sleep. Kim and I stay up to midnight and toast the New Year but soon after we’re in bed too. I think through the year as I lay trying to sleep. A.J. is not walking or talking yet but he’s only a little over one. He’s young but of course, we worry due to Joe’s situation. We tend to watch A.J. like a hawk for any signs of change or growth. He babbles some but it’s really too soon to worry. Still, it’s what you do when you have one child on the spectrum. Joe is slowly progressing. He’s talking more but the advancement is slow. One mantra we keep hearing is to be patient. It takes time and we understand that now. It doesn’t make it any easier but we do understand it. No matter what happens, they are our boys and nothing will change that. As far as the Shop goes, it was a good and busy year. Some of the busyness was due to the search for a new building. It’s hard to believe but we are planning on moving. With any luck, we’ll sign a contract next month and then it starts. It will no doubt be a long and complicated move but Ann, Jack and I feel it’s the right thing to do and the right time. Of course, our building will have to be sold. I think back to the nearly hundred years at Central Avenue and the shear volume of work is staggering. Then again, change is good and sometimes necessary. We feel this change is both.

George W. Bush is the President of the United States. Sky marshals begin riding on airplanes for protection against hijackings. The Space Shuttle Columbia is destroyed on re-entry killing seven astronauts on board. The social media network “My Space” launches. Arnold Schwarzenegger becomes Governor of California. The films “Finding Nemo”,“School of Rock” and “The Lord of the Rings: the Return of the King” are released. Bob Hope, Johnny Cash, Fred Rogers, Katherine Hepburn and Gregory Peck die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

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Table of Contents

January 2

It’s a chilly January day and the Kavanagh’s and crew return to work after the holidays. The morning break is spent chatting about Christmas and New Year’s and drinking coffee except for me. I don’t drink hot liquids or coffee in general. The day passes slowly but that’s normal when people return to the everyday. The crew finish our first jobs and another year starts at the corner of Pratt and Central.

January 18

A busy Friday at the Shop begins and everyone is talking about the Ravens. They defeated the Miami Dolphins in the first playoff round last week and they will face the Steelers this Sunday. We would all love to see a repeat of last year’s Super Bowl victory and we’ll have to beat our bitter rivals to do it. The crew are working on some bent pipes and rods and a few other things. Chris Gavin from Mandala picks up. Chris is an artist/sculptor. I seem to keep meeting more sculptors and we seem to keep doing more and more work for them. At home, Joe’s speech therapy and OT continue and he makes small strides. He speaks a little more though usually only when prompted. Autism is complicated and as we keep hearing, therapies take time.

January 24

The year has started off strong as far as work goes and that’s a good thing. This week everyone has been a bit down after the Ravens lost to the Steelers. Today even more so as a miserable drizzle falls outside. It’s that Pittsburgh and Baltimore/DC rivalry. It keeps happening but life goes on. We finish some structural work for R and R Fab, Anderson Contracting and Metropolitan Steel. We also finish set parts for Center Stage’s production of “Winter’s Tale.” I rarely know the actual play being performed so it’s cool to know in this case.

February 3

I’m home on this Sunday and watching the Super Bowl. The New England Patriots beat the Rams 20-17 and it’s a pretty good game. I enjoy it but since my son’s diagnosis, my perspective on sports has changed. I still like watching and cheering my teams on but it’s not nearly as serious as I used to think it was. A game like this without a Baltimore team playing is a little entertainment but not much more.

February 8

On this Friday night, the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah begin. Kim and I both love the Olympics and we watch as much of the games as we can each year they are held. The Shop has stayed busy with some tubes being annealed and filled for Explus and a heat exchanger for Patuxent Institution being completed today.

February 22

We finish an unusual job today. It’s a custom platform bed. We’ve done furniture before but this is a new one for me. Still, it’s a job and along with a few others, it’s out the door today.

February 24

Kim and I watch the Winter Olympics Closing Ceremonies on this Sunday evening. We enjoy the elaborate event that each hosting city presents. The games and the ceremonies are something which we both really enjoy and this year is no different. As I switch off the TV and head to bed, my thoughts are at the Shop. We have a job for Quality Erectors that is finished. I’ll have to call Butch Herbert who runs the place first thing in the morning. Butch is a good fellow. An older gentleman and someone who has always been fair and good to me. Quality is one of my favorite customers to deal with because Butch is smart and knows his stuff.

March 7

It feels like Spring at the Shop but the calendar says it’s still two weeks away. The warm temperatures have us open the front bay doors which brings in a comforting breeze. The boys are busy on a wide range of small orders. Big jobs are good and we love those but the smaller ones really keep us busy. They keep the flow of work going and money coming in.

March 20

A light rain falls all day in Baltimore. I am going over delivery tickets for Turnbull Enterprises and Eddy and Stambaugh when Kim calls me. Something we thought was true has been confirmed. Kim just left the doctor’s office and she is pregnant. I’m so happy I don’t know what to do. Our son has brought us so much joy. We are beyond thrilled and excited to add to our family. Kim and I do have some concerns, of course. We have already considered the possibility that the new baby might have autism like Joe. We feel certain Joe will be fine in time and we are confident the baby will too. As we are dealing with Joe’s situation, we’ll deal with anything for the new baby. Mostly we’re excited and anxious to meet our Joe’s little brother or sister.

April 1

It’s Opening Day in Baltimore and the Orioles welcome our longtime rivals, the New York Yankees. We beat them 10-3 and that’s a great way to start the season. A win is good but a win over the Yanks is always better. In the Shop, we’re working on a large order of playground parts for Playworld Systems and some structural pieces for Metropolitan Steel. We sneak out a little early to get home and watch the ballgame.

April 8

I’m standing in the front of the Shop during 9 o’clock break and talking to Jack and the crew about the Orioles. After that great opening day win, the Birds have dropped six in a row. Not a good start. We all agree it’s early but they need a win. The break ends and I head back into the office while the guys head back to their machines. We finish jobs for Explus, J.K. Cabinet, and TSI Architectural.

April 13

The Washington Capitals lose to the New Jersey Devils 4-3 in overtime on this Saturday night and the Caps miss the playoffs. They tally 85 points for the season but that is not enough to get to the postseason. Jack and the rest of us are disappointed but that comes with the territory. We’ll hope for a better season next time and for the Orioles to play better. They stand at 3 wins and 9 losses so far.

April 24

A cool and cloudy Hump Day is a busy one on Central Avenue. The work has stayed steady so far and with summer approaching, it should keep coming. Kim is feeling fine and no issues with her pregnancy. Joe is still receiving speech and occupational therapy. He definitely speaks more now but it still is usually only when prompted or if he wants something.

May 3

I’m watching the Orioles beat the Kansas City Royals 4-3 on a Friday night. I’m watching with Joe and explaining the intricacies of the game to him. He seems to be ambivalent but you never know. I assure him tomorrow he and I will have a fun morning watching “Super Retrovision Saturday” which is a slew of old cartoons and kids shows. These are the shows I saw as a kid and I love sharing them with my boy and he likes it too. I’m pretty sure he prefers these kids shows to baseball but I’ll work on that. With tonight’s win, the Birds improve to 14-15. They take a step closer to .500. It was a windy day in the City. No rain but crazy wind blowing through the Shop. The boys finished a job for a new customer, Art-Tech and Stone. When they called on the phone, I thought the name was Artists in Stone. Working at the Joseph Kavanagh Company does effect your hearing. We call it “Shop ears” and I’ve got them.

May 17

What felt like an extra long week ends with some pickups for IWC and LT. Engineering. Henry from I.W.C. drives up himself. He’s an older European fellow but very knowledgeable about metal work. He’s a good guy and one of those customers I particularly like. We also finish jobs for UMBC and some railings for Diamond Iron. At the end of the day, I’m thrilled to ride home and check on Kim and Joe. Kim’s pregnancy is going along fine so far but I do worry about her.

May 31

It’s a Friday night and I’m watching the Orioles play the Seattle Mariners. We get a thunderstorm after dinner but the Birds get the game in and win in walk off style 8-7. This lifts our record to 24- 28. They better get hot if they want to have any success this season. That being said, baseball is noticeably less important to me these days. I play with Joe or at least line up blocks for him to knock over. I enjoy any time with my boy. Of course, in my head I’m also thinking about the Shop. Today we finished a sign job for Pasadena Sign, some parts for Products Support and work for a few of our other regulars.

June 10

On this Monday, the Joseph Kavanagh Company hires a new employee. The sixth generation of Kavanagh’s begins working at the Shop. Jack’s oldest son Paul begins his first summer of work today. It’s the beginning of a lifelong gig for a Kavanagh. Jack is very proud and Ann and I are sure Paul will do well. I can’t help but think back to my first day which was a December Saturday in 1979. I feel a little bad for Paul. The first few days can be tough to get acclimated but he does okay. His first job is as a helper for Mike Glenn who is rolling on the R-3-S. The two of them roll some parts for John Gutierrez Studios and Eastern Exhibit. Jack and I think back to our first days and laughingly agree it could be worse for Paul. He could be working with his father. Not that our Dad was tough to work for but it’s a little intimidating.

June 25

It’s a hot and humid day at the corner of Pratt and Central. The volume of work has shot up along with the temperatures. Today we’re making some parts for a skylight company and a few of our fabrication customers. We have copper tubes for a fountain to do later in the week and we receive some pieces from Martin J. Braun. The driver needed me to sign one of our tickets for him to confirm receipt. That seems strange to me but every once in a while someone needs it. Paul seems to be fitting in quite well with the crew. He’s hot and sweaty today just like the rest of us.

July 3

It’s a scorcher at the Shop today with temperatures getting close to 100 degrees. The Kavanagh’s and crew are accustomed to working in the heat but a day like today, tests your mettle. Fortunately, tomorrow is Independence day and the start of a four day weekend. The day drags along as we roll some steel for our welding and fabing customers. As soon as the last truck picks up, we head home for the holiday.

July 10

Everyone is staying very busy at the Shop as we get closer and closer to our annual vacation in August. July is always like this but it’s the price we pay for wanting one week off. A few jobs are finished today including an order of playground parts and a piece of brass tube bent for a chandelier arm.

July 26

The crew and Jack and I are in the front of the Shop during the morning coffee break. A rain shower has just started with the boys gather around sitting on chairs or buckets. We’re discussing the Orioles who are 47-51. They can’t seem to get any consistent run of wins going. They seem stuck a little below. 500. We’re halfway through the season and running out of time to get hot. After a few moments of silence staring at the rain, I get the boys back at it. We have our usual mix of bending and rolling for fabrication and welding shops but today, we also bend a boat rail. We get these periodically. It’s usually an individual and not a business but as long as they give us the old rail or something to match, we are good.

August 9

The last Friday before vacation has arrived and we are very anxious to get out of here. A few small jobs are completed but most of the day is spent loading trucks. Around 2 pm, C & S Ornament Iron’s and Codd Fabricators’ trucks pull away and the day is over. I am thrilled and ready to spend a week with my boy and my expecting wife.

August 22

We’ve been back to work for a few days and everyone is back in the groove. We knock out a few orders for our regulars today like Turnbull and Codd. At home, Kim is trying to get Joe in Pre-K this year. It’s a complicated thing because of his autism. There are not a lot of schools with programs for kids like my boy. She will find something I’m sure. Her pregnancy is going well so far and we eye the beginning of October for the baby’s arrival.

August 30

I’m up late on this Friday night watching the Birds playing the Angels in Anaheim. They lose 6-2 and drop to 63-70. Their chances of the playoffs are gone and even a winning record seems very unlikely. A couple of years ago, this would have bothered me more but now I see sports with a lot more perspective. Joe’s diagnosis really brought to the forefront what is important and what’s not. Before bed I remember I have to call UMBC on Monday. We have a small order ready for them. It’s funny how thoughts of the Shop will often appear even at home or anywhere else. It’s the life really. It’s normal for us.

September 11

One year ago today, the world changed. The 9/11 attacks are marked with moments of silence and patriotic events around the country. America wants us to remember and we will. In fact, how could we forget? The impact and effects are still very fresh. So we pause and think and honor those who lost their lives then the day goes on. At the Shop, it’s a rather quiet somber day. Work is done but everyone’s thoughts are on what happened last year. I suspect the Joseph Kavanagh Company is very typical in this regard.

September 15

Kim has had some trouble finding a school for Joe. The first school spent a week or so with him and flat out told us, we can’t teach him. It certainly stings to hear such a thing but we have to deal with it. It feels heartbreaking but Kim, all of eight months pregnant, has kept calling and has found a school with a better program for kids like our boy. She was unrelenting and determined to find the right place for him. Next week, Joe starts at Bear Creek Elementary. We did receive some good news recently when the ultrasound revealed that Kim is having another boy. A Kavanagh family with two boys is so typical. We’re elated but we would have been just as happy with a girl. We’ve decided to name him Anthony John after his two grandfathers and we’ll call him A.J. for short. Today is a Sunday and we decide to call my parents to tell them.

“Another boy! That’s great. A little brother for Joe. I’m so happy.” Mom exclaims as I inform her. “Do you have a name picked out yet?”

I glance over to Kim across the couch from me, “Yes, we are going to call him Anthony John after both of his grandfathers.”

“Oh! I love it!” She quickly passes on the information to my Dad who also approves. “You know what you could call him for short? Tony Jack! How about that?”

Again, I turn and look at Kim. “Tony Jack? Yeah, I guess we could call him Tony Jack,” Kim does her best to suppress a laugh and I grin. “That would be a good nickname but we were going to go with A. J. Keep it simpler for him.”

Mom answers emphatically, “Oh A. J. sounds great too. I like that. Oh, we’re so happy for you both. Your wonderful family is growing. OUR family is growing.” I can see her smile and a few tears even through the phone. We catch up on a few other things then I say goodbye and hang up.

“Tony Jack?” Kim asks me smiling and with a little twinkle in her eye.

“It was an interesting idea anyway.” I chuckle then quickly realize something. “Hey, you know what?”

Kim suddenly becomes suspicious as she knows me well, “What?”

I grin broadly in that mischievous way I’ve done all my life. “A. J. is perfect. We can tell people it stands for Another Joe. I like that.”

“No.”

“Yeah, it would be great. I can be the George Foreman(who named several of his kids George) of metal bending. It makes complete sense.” I finish triumphantly.

Kim narrows her eyes at me. “No, it doesn’t make sense and we’re not telling anyone that.”

“Oh sure, take all the fun out if it.” I smile at her, then laugh and she does too. It will be A. J. standing for Anthony John though everyone knows the truth now.

September 23

The work has actually begun to pick up as the weather cools. Sometimes the impending end of year rush of jobs starts earlier. Today we finish a heat exchanger for St. Agnes Hospital, more playground parts and a few other items. The phone is ringing quite a bit as well so both Shop and office are busy. It’s a good sign for the rest of the year. In the evening, the Orioles will lose at home 5-4 in 15 innings. that’s now 6 losses in a row for a 67-89 record. The Birds have had a rough year and the end is particularly tough. They will lose 6 more to end the season on a 12 game losing streak. They finish in 4^th place.

October 3

Ann, Jack and I are eating lunch in the office with the noon news on the television. I am telling them how we had a little party at home for my son’s fifth birthday. It was low key as Kim is nine months pregnant and scheduled for a c-section next week. The crew have just completed some parts for a skatepark in Ocean City and I’m preparing to call the customer when I see a report on four shootings this morning in Maryland. They were shot from long distances like a sniper. Shootings and deaths are not that unusual to see in the news but a sniper is a little different. We watch the full report and the shootings actually started last night. The assumption is it must be one perpetrator as the MO is the same in theses shootings. I can’t believe it but it’s true and it’s happening in our state.

October 7

It’s a beautiful breezy Indian Summer day when A.J. Kavanagh is born. This delivery is a little more straight forward then Joe Jr.’s. This time Kim was able to schedule a c-section and with much less ado but just as much fanfare, our second son is born. A.J. is the second son of the second son of the second son of the second son of the second son of Patrick Kavanagh, my great-great grandfather. It’s an incredible feeling when suddenly, this small baby is ours. He’s got a full head of hair and a bit more attitude then his older brother. Kim and I hold him close crying and smiling. We are as happy as we possibly could be. I can’t believe Kim has done it again. Seeing how tough a pregnancy is, I marvel at her. We begin calling people and passing on the word that A.J. is here. I call the Shop. Ann and Jack are thrilled though busy. We are getting a lot of calls. That is typical at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. If one of us is out, the phone seems to ring more.

October 10

Kim and the boys are spending a few days at my in-laws and I am back to work. Everyone is very happy for me and most of the family came to the hospital to meet A.J. It’s been a whirlwind but I am finally back to the real world. We knock out a couple of jobs for Bengies Welding and Gischel Machine on a dreary rainy day. The rain doesn’t get me down though I’m still in new Dad mode. There’s a big smile on my face which no one can remove.

October 11

After work, I drive to Woodall Street and spend the night with my family and my in-laws. One thing we’ve noticed about Baby A.J. is he absolutely loves Anthony, his Pop. Conversely, he seems to cry a lot when my mother-in-law picks him up. Anthony finds this quite amusing and he is very much attached to his young namesake. In the evening, I watch the Washington Capitals begin their 29^th season in the NHL with a win and I hold A.J. through most of the game. The Caps defeat the Nashville Predators 5 – 4 and I’m hopeful the team can get back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in this campaign.

October 18

It’s the end of the work week and I’m anxious to get home. Kim and the boys are back from my-laws and they are waiting for me. We finished some galvanized angles for Smitty’s Welding and a few other jobs. I’m going over these jobs in my head as I drive down Pratt Street. Suddenly, I see flashing lights behind me and it’s the police. They pull me over then check my license and ask me questions. It’s odd because I see several patrol cars pulling over other drivers. I suspect this is due to the continuing sniper attacks. These started a couple of weeks ago and now there have been six deaths. Evidently, they are checking vehicles somewhat at random. I find out the next day, Jack was also stopped and checked.

October 24

The Beltway Sniper Attacks end with the arrest of John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo. I’m watching the local news from home after work and it’s a relief. This hit pretty close to home because the attacks were all MD, DC or VA but when I got pulled over by the police, it definitely felt very real and very close.

October 27

The Anaheim Angles defeat the San Francisco Giants in game 7 of the World Series to take the championship. No teams I like or dislike were involved so I was ambivalent to the winner. I was just hoping for a good close series and that’s what we got. Though I have a more laid back approach to sports these days, I enjoyed watching with my toddler and my baby. Neither seems that interested but I like to think the baseball wisdom I am passing along will be beneficial to both of them in the future.

October 31

It’s Halloween and I’m looking forward to it. I’ll take Joe around to trick or treat and those who visit our house will get to meet the baby. At the Shop, my old friend Bob Machovec comes in to pick up. Bob’s a welder and sculptor and he makes some very cool animals from found metal parts. He’s a talented artist and a good friend. He does custom table tops and furniture too. It’s always good to see him and this time I can show him baby pictures.

November 14

I am walking to the front of the Shop after handing out job cards for Western Industrial Machine and McShane Bell Foundry. One of the perks of my job is I get a lot of walking in each day. I feel like I cover the distance from Central in the front to Eden in the back at least ten times a day. For me, it counts as my daily workout.

November 21

We are a week away from Thanksgiving which is my favorite holiday. No elaborate presents or decorating just good food, family and football. I’m sure I’m not the only one on Central Avenue whose mind is on the approaching holiday but I’m not sure anyone else loves turkey like I do. Bob Machovec comes in again to pick up some bars we rolled and we finish some set parts for Center Stage today.

November 28

It’s Thanksgiving on Woodall Street. Kim and the boys and I get to my in-laws early in the morning and the house already smells of turkey and all the trimmings. Kim’s mother Linda even makes me some parsnips to continue that Kavanagh Thanksgiving tradition. No one else eats them at the house but I feel certain some day, my boys will enjoy them. It’s our first Turkey Day with A.J. and he is the center of attention followed closely by his older brother. So far, Joe has been great with the baby. He’s very excited and seems to love being a big brother. He speaks more these days but it still usually needs to be prompted or it’s rather truncated phrases. Anthony and I watch some football and that’s always fun. Unfortunately, the Ravens season has not gone well so far. They are 5-6 and the chances of making the playoffs are pretty slim. Nevertheless, it’s a very nice holiday at Casa Dalfonzo and we all have a great day.

December 6

The brutal cold of winter is arriving early this year. It’s a Friday and a chilly one to start with temperatures down to 14 degrees last night. This is how it often is in February at the corner of Pratt and Central but it’s strange for this time of year. We do have heat and that helps but each piece of steel you touch is cold, each machine you touch is cold and every truck you load is cold. It’s not pleasant but it’s the job.

December 11

It’s a rainy chilly day at the Shop but everyone sees the end of the year approaching. We’ve taken the week off between Christmas and New Year’s for decades. It’s a tradition both Kavanagh’s and crew appreciate. Today a wide range of jobs are finished from playground parts to bent channels and pipes. After each is completed, it’s on to the next as we barrel toward the holidays.

December 20

Today is Friday and the last working day of the year. Most of the day is spent waiting for trucks and loading them. Ann, Jack and I discuss an ongoing problem. We’ve noticed on some days we have cars parked in front of the building. People park then take the bus downtown. This leaves us with a parking issue. Sometimes the alley between our two buildings is taken and we need that access. We’ve changed our hours to opening at 7:30 instead of 8 am but it hasn’t helped much. It’s something we will need to sort out in the new year. Jack suggests we consider selling the building and moving to somewhere with a parking lot. This would be a major undertaking. He’s not recommending it. He’s saying we should think about it. The three of us agree to do just that while we have some time off. It’s strange to even consider it for me. Central Avenue is our home but I’ll think about it. As soon as the last truck is loaded, we head home for our Christmas break.

December 25

It’s a cold rainy Christmas on Woodall Street. Not at all a White Christmas but a wet one and a fun one. With Little Joe and now Baby A.J., it’s as festive a holiday as I have ever had. The boys are the stars of the show. Joe knows a fair bit about Christmas now and how to handle ripping off wrapping paper but it’s new to A.J. He has a cold and spends most of the day sleeping and chewing on his binky while laying on his Pop. Anthony is happy to oblige. A.J.’s presents need to be opened by others and Joe is happy to be that person.

December 31

I spend New Year’s Eve at Charlesmont Road with my wife and my two sons. It’s been a strange year but despite the world and Joe’s issues, it’s been a good one because A.J. is here. There’s something about a baby that makes us feel both grown up yet a child again. Life seems some unique combination of complicated and yet very simple. Their happiness is suddenly all that matters. It’s all Kim and I want now but finding that happiness is the challenge. More so for Joe and it’s yet to be determined for A.J. As far as the Shop goes, it was a good year as well. It was an average year financially but good because the sixth generation came to work. These sort of milestones matter to us and always have. Paul’s fitting in well as he embarks on this life. For my father, mother, brother, sister and I, it’s as if Paul has joined an exclusive club. As far as potentially moving the Shop, I have thought about it during my week off. I think we should consider it. It might be economically impossible but we won’t know until we speak to a realtor or someone in the know. We’ll have to find someone in January. For New Year’s, Kim and I enjoy a quiet night together playing with the boys until they are asleep then we even more quietly welcome the new year. As we hoped for a better one last December 31, so it is tonight. I’m pretty sure that’s normal. We’ll do more than hope. We’ll try to make it a better year and see where the chips may fall.

George Bush is the President of the United States. The Department of Homeland Security is formed. The Iraq War Resolution is passed authorizing military involvement in the WMD process. Former President Jimmy Carter wins the Nobel Peace Prize. NASA’s Odyssey probe begins mapping the surface of Mars. Kmart and US Airways file for bankruptcy. The films “Spiderman”, “The Count of Monte Cristo” and “The Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers” are released. Rosemary Clooney, James Coburn, Ted Williams, Milton Berle and Johnny Unitas die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read earlier posts, click on the Table of Contents link below:

http://Table of Contents

January 2

We return to work at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. Everyone enjoyed the holiday break but it’s time to get back to bending and rolling. Kim has been in touch with Baltimore County schools and the MD Department of Disabilities. Kim is doing her best to find some way for Joe to begin speech and occupational therapy soon. OT is recommended because people with autism often have fine motor skill issues. Joe does. It’s small things like trouble holding a pencil or crayon and being able to tie a shoe. Apparently, this is not uncommon. We are hoping this helps him move forward. We are also trying to learn all we can about autism. The services available vary widely from school to school but Joe isn’t in school yet. He will be four this year so it is coming. There are Preschool programs but not many. Kim will find something for him.

January 10

The Shop at the corner of Pratt and Central is a busy one today. We have a few jobs we are trying to finish. Those that stand out are one for the National Aquarium and another for the Everyman Theater. We’ve done set work for theaters before but Everyman is a new customer. The set work and things for museums or in this case, an aquarium, make our job a bit more interesting at least when telling others about it.

January 16

I pull into the alley on Central Avenue. There’s a very light dusting of snow as I head into the building. I don’t like snow but a dusting is not a problem at all. I grab some job cards off my desk and distribute them to the boys. We have a few jobs for our regulars but also some work for the Coast Guard and the Anne Arundel County Department of Public Works.

January 28

The Baltimore Ravens beat the New York Giants 34-7 in the Super Bowl. I’m watching along with most of Baltimore. The City is jubilant and a ticker tape parade will be held this week. The Ravens have won it all and going forward, this is definitely Ravens Country.

February 8

The Ravens and the Super Bowl have been the talk of the town for over a week. Kavanagh’s and crew have discussed it over and over, reveling in the championship. Jack is particularly happy. He’s more of a football fan than I am but I’m getting there. Hockey will always be Jack’s favorite sport. That being said, this Super Bowl was the first championship for Baltimore in almost 20 years. Most of the City got very caught up in the excitement and that includes the Kavanagh’s.

February 19

It’s chilly today and we work on jobs for J.K. Cabinet and the Baltimore Opera Company. I assume the opera parts will be used for a set or a prop but I’m not sure. At home, Kim has finally been able to schedule some speech therapy and occupational therapy for Joe. They are separate programs with one at home and the other at a therapist’s office. We’re hoping this starts him on the road to dealing with his autism. We’re still learning about it and trying to get a handle on it. It takes time.

February 23

The day starts with shoveling. Yesterday we received 3-4 inches of snow. The boys dig a path pretty fast in the front then work their way along the longer Pratt street side of the building. The rest of us get to work inside and a few jobs are knocked out including another one for the National Aquarium.

March 8

I spend a lot of time today on the phone. The telephone is one of the tools I use the most in my job. I receive and make calls to quote, to get prices on material, to arrange pickups and most of all, to make sure the customer and I are on the same page with their job. I want to be sure I do exactly what they want with their material. Most of today’s calls are to arrange shipping and local trucking for John J. Kirlin, Quality Erectors as well as several others.

March 12

A new week starts with a very rainy Monday. It reaches 50 degrees so we open the front garage door during the afternoon break. I stand alongside my crew who are seated and we stare quietly and sullenly out onto Central Avenue. It rains most of the day and it feels so perfect for a Monday. We have caught up a bit on our schedule. We still have some work but it has slowed.

March 30

Today we finish a few jobs and also send some scrap to S. H. Landsman, our neighbor. Scrap sales help us to recoup some money and get the stuff out of the building. Landsman’s shop is a couple doors down on Central so selling them our excess material is convenient. In the office, I’m updating Ann and Jack about little Joe. We’ve found a program for speech therapy for him. Joe speaks but it’s just a few words. It isn’t  as if he babbles a lot either. He mostly is quiet. Kim is handling the scheduling and the arrangement. She’s always calling agencies and trying to find any help she can for Joe. We’re excited about the speech therapy and anxious to see how it works.

April 2

Today is Opening Day in Baltimore and the Orioles beat the Red Sox 2-1. I’m happy to have baseball back and as always, hopeful for a good season, but it’s definitely less of a priority now. I’m focused on Joe and his treatment. In the Shop, we are filling some tubes with rosin for a Gable Signs job and beginning a nice order for Messick and Gray which is for the National Aquarium. We did an Aquarium job not long ago so I assume they must be doing some repairs or rehabs.

April 20

It finally feels like Spring in Baltimore. It’s a pleasant day and the boys are working on a rail job for Diamond Iron Works and a ring for McShane Bell. We roll channels into rings for McShane and the bells are suspended from the ring once installed. At home, Joe is speaking a little more but mostly with prompting. The therapist made it clear this is quite typical and we need to give this some time.

April 23

The Washington Capitals are bounced from the playoffs in the first round again by the Penguins. This time it’s six games to two. We seem to keep playing this scenario out every year. I know this has bothered Jack for a while now. Again, there’s always next year.

April 27

It’s a Friday and that is always welcome at the Shop. We don’t often work Saturdays anymore so the weekend is the respite for us all. Today we finish some museum exhibit work and some pieces for the Six Flags Amusement Park. I look forward to watching the ballgame tonight. The Birds are struggling out of the gate but I’m not as upset about it as I normally would be. Joe’s autism and our concerns for him have put thoughts about baseball and sports in general in perspective. Still, relaxing and watching a game on a Friday with my boy will be fun though the Birds are scuffling so far this season.

May 14

A new week starts with some small jobs for Diversified Welding and Ackerman & Baynes being completed. I’m busy in the office with quite a few calls. Mondays are sometimes like this. The calls will add up to more work so I’m glad the phone is ringing. We also ship an order to L & S Machine via Global Messenger.

May 24

It’s a warm and sunny Thursday and I’m writing up several job cards but my mind is on the coming Memorial Day weekend. We’ll spend Sunday at my in-laws for a cookout and Monday is a day off at home. They don’t come along often so I do look forward to a break even a one day one. Thoughts of the holiday are wiped from my head when the phone rings and it’s Don Anderson checking on an order. I tell him it’s ready then walk into the Shop to pass out the job cards.

June 7   

Today is a bit of a throwback at the Shop as we roll some copper tubes for a fountain. This type of work reminds me of the old days even before my time. The Kavanagh’s have made fountains since nearly the forming of the company in 1866. The work is done in a remarkably similar fashion. We simply have better tools and machines for it now but the process is the same. Oddly enough, it feels like a fountain around us as it rains all day in Baltimore adding up to almost two inches total. We also finish another order for Six Flags and some for our welding and fabricating customers.

June 22

The boys are pretty busy on this hot day at the Shop. The summer is often our busiest time and the heat and humidity don’t help. Fortunately, an afternoon thunderstorm cools things off. We have our usual mix of work for fabricators, welders and one for artist John Maxwell. John sculpts and makes custom furniture and other things of that nature.

July 3

This Tuesday is the day before Independence Day. That means there will be no holiday weekend,  just a one day break, so leaving early today is even more important and we are able to do so. Lee Badger of the Anvil Iron Works comes in to pick up his job. Lee is a talented blacksmith and a long time customer. When he and his partner Steve come in, they usually hang around a bit to chat and catch up. They always ask about my parents because they dealt with Dad and Mom before Ann, Jack and me. We manage to close up at 2 o’clock and everyone heads home.

July 4

It’s a stormy Independence Day on Woodall Street. Kim, Joe and I spend the day with my in-laws who always throw a nice cook out. Fortunately, the grill is under an awning and the food is good. Joe truly loves spending time with his Meemaw and Pop. We’re always watching our boy closely to see any signs of improvement or any signs of anything different. He speaks a little more but mostly he’s the same sweet little quiet boy.

July 18

On the way home from the Shop today, I hear on the radio there is a sixty car train derailment downtown. When I get to my house, I talk to Kim about it and we watch the television coverage. There is a major fire burning in the Howard Street Tunnel. This fire will burn for several days and the downtown area is basically shut down for about a week. Traffic is rerouted and the City comes to a standstill. We are fortunate to be on the other side of town. Central Avenue is only affected by an increase in traffic. The Orioles will be forced to cancel some games and it will be weeks before travel returns to normal in Baltimore.

July 25

The 90 degree plus heat hits Baltimore and it makes work on Central Avenue that much tougher. Still, the Kavanagh’s and crew have grown accustomed to it. The workers finish a sample for Long Fence and also a few sculptural pieces for the Polich Art Works in NY. We rarely receive work from someone as far away as New York but these are custom parts and we have a good reputation for doing such work. The Birds lose a doubleheader in Texas today and their record drops to 42-59. That’s a big hole and it’s likely a winning season isn’t going to happen.

August 2

Kim, Joe and I drive to Ocean City a day early for vacation. We attend a Delmarva Shorebirds game with my Mom and Dad. It’s Joe’s first ballgame. He seems very interested in everything around him. He particularly enjoys the carousel in the kids’ area but I like to think he had fun at the game too. I catch a foul ball, well rather, a foul ball bounces off the big screen TV behind us. I play it on the one hop. It’s a great souvenir. When my Mom sees I caught it, she quickly confiscates it so I don’t lose it. She feels more comfortable carrying it home in her purse. She wants to be sure it doesn’t get lost. As amusing as that sounds, that’s my Mom for you.

August 3

I’m already in Ocean City, but back home, vacation begins after several pickups at the Shop. Ann, Jack and the crew finish up and head to the annual August break from work.

August 17

Our first week of post-vacation work is finished today. This return week is usually a busy one but everyone is a little deflated. Our jobs are our jobs and we do them but we’ll take time off at home over it any day. We’re the same as everyone else. Still, this is Friday and the ride home after a long few days is a quick one.

August 31

It rains off and on for most of the day. At the very least, that keeps the humidity from being oppressive. I’m talking to Ann and Jack about my son, Joe. Kim has found a Fall program for him which includes both occupational therapy and speech therapy. My brother and sister are very supportive as always so I tell them everything that is going on. In the Shop, we complete a few orders including some set work for Center Stage.

September 6

September arrives with a burst of work which boosts our backlog past two weeks. Two weeks is just about ideal for us. This type of schedule makes scheduling and pickups work best. Today we finish some beams for Freeland Hoist. Freeland is one of those few customers who are also vendors. They service and repair our crane and chain fall systems so they get special treatment. We do our best to finish their jobs quickly and they return the favor when we have crane problems.

September 9

The Baltimore Ravens start their season by hosting the Chicago Bears. This town and this team are still celebrating a Super Bowl victory and excitement is high. The Ravens win 17-6 and people are hoping for a repeat.

September 11

I’m walking though the Shop a little after 9 am and a song on the radio is interrupted. The news breaks in to tell us a plane has crashed into the World Trade Center in NY. The boys and I stop what we’re doing and stare at the radio. I rush upstairs to the office and tell Ann. She puts on the TV and there it is live. A smokey smoldering high rise tower. I can’t believe it when moments later another plane crashes straight into the other tower. Ann, Jack and I watch in silence. What we assumed was an accident was intentional. News reporters try to explain what is happening but I don’t think they know apart from what we all can see. We watch it unfold then we decide to leave early. Everyone wants to be home but my problem is Kim is in Ocean City with Joe and her Mom. I call Kim to check on her and try to get her home. Unfortunately, tropical storm Felix is offshore and they’ve closed the bridges. They can’t leave. They watch military helicopters flying along the beaches. I am worried and I want them home. Through the day, we hear about another plane crashing into the Pentagon and another crashing in PA. This last one was crashed before it could be used in an attack. Heroic passengers intervened. It’s overwhelming and scary. The country will basically shut down for a while in order for some sense of safety to return. Baseball and football games will be postponed. There is a general malaise or a shock to everyone I know. People literally can’t believe what they’ve seen. America spends most of its next few days in front of the television. Waiting for updates. People are expecting perhaps another attack and I’m mostly worried about getting my family home.

September 13

I spend the day working but I’m happy because my father-in-law Anthony is driving to Ocean City. They’ve opened the bridges as the storm is downgraded. He gets Kim, Linda and Joe together and drives them back to Baltimore. I’m relieved. The world is still turned up side down but my wife and son are home. That helps a lot. Now, I’m like most Americans, trying to figure out what happened and what’s next. News updates are constantly flowing though I am not sure we are learning much more about it. We watch the television and listen to the reports again and again.

September 20

Things are slowly getting back to normal. News is still coming out and a major effort is underway to find out who is responsible for this horrible attack. In the Shop, the crew have been working on an order for Gable Signs and Graphics. The pieces are aluminum and they needed to be annealed and filled before rolling which means torch work. The annealing process is using direct heat to temper the metal for bending and the filling is a long process of melting rosin into a liquid and pouring it into a plugged tube. The tubes sit for about 24 hours before they can be curved. After that, the tubes are hung up on chains and several torches are used to melt the rosin back out. It’s long and laborious and most definitely hot. Still, it’s the only way to go with tubes such as these.

October 2

It is my Joe’s fourth birthday and we’re so happy for the little guy. After work, I drive home and we celebrate. There are presents for Joe and chocolate cake. Both Joe’s are happy about the cake part. It’s a small celebration with the three of us and our two dogs, Lilly Belle and Patti Cake, but it’s a good one. Joe is still not progressing very rapidly on the speech and occupational therapies. We see little changes and we’re happy about it but we’re hoping it speeds up. Our doctor and the therapists try to calm our anxiety. They tell us over and over. This takes time. We are still evaluating his limitations while trying to overcome them. It’s a process and not a fast one.

October 6

The Orioles lose to the Boston Red Sox 5-1. They finish the season 63-98 and in fourth place. I’m watching at home on a Saturday night after another birthday party for Joe at my in-laws. This game is the last in Cal Ripken Jr.’s career. He made an announcement early in the season that he was calling it quits after a very successful run in the game. He’s the embodiment of beloved by local fans. The game ends with Brady Anderson making the last out and Cal in the on deck circle. That’s baseball for you. It’s a game of inches and moments. In hockey, the Washington Capitals open their season at home by beating the New Jersey Devils handily, 6 – 1. That softens the sting of the Birds’ rough year and the end of the playing days of one of the all-time great Orioles. All this being said, my love of sports is still strong but now I know all too well, there are far more important things.

October 8

The crew spend this Monday finishing more work for Gable and a job for B and B Welding. I spend a large part of the day talking to Ann and Jack about baseball and a bit about the world. The end of the Orioles season and the end of Cal’s career are discussed. We agree it’s time for Cal but we know we’ll miss seeing #8 on the field. I also mention Barry Bonds breaking the single season home run record on Friday. Bonds’ numbers come with a lot of questions of Performance Enhancement Drugs so any enthusiasm is waned by all the rumors and speculation. Meanwhile in more important matters, the United States has invaded Afghanistan in response to the 9/11 attacks. Al-Quaeda, the terrorist group claiming responsibility for the attacks seems to be located there. The US will begin an effort to find, apprehend or destroy them.

October 19

Another week ends at Central and Pratt and we finish some parts for Charm City Skate Park and the Shakespeare Theater. Both are new customers but this is the second skate park for Charm City and the third group of set parts for the Shakespeare Theater. Hopefully, we keep hearing from them.

October 29

Halloween is getting close and that’s a big deal in my house. I was never a big “Halloween” person but my wife Kim sure loves it. She has the house very decorated and we look forward to a cavalcade of young goblins and ghouls requesting treats. I will take Joe around to trick or treat as well and I really enjoy it. At work, we are still busy and our backlog is staying strong. A few items are finished today including a recurring job for Turnbull Enterprises. The pieces are 1” Stainless Steel Pipes which we put two bends into and they are used for seats on Navy helicopters. It’s a good job for us and we do these several times a year.

November 4

It’s a sports filled Sunday for me. I watch the Ravens visit Pittsburgh and win 13-10 in the afternoon. The Baltimore/Pittsburgh rivalry is clear as this game is a dog fight and Ravens/Steelers’ games are always hard fought. In the evening, I’m watching as the Arizona Diamondbacks defeat the New York Yankees in 7 games to win the World Series. I couldn’t be happier. I had prepared myself for another year with the Yanks as champs but in the bottom of the 9^th, Luis Gonzalez hits a single and the D-backs win 3-2. They did it against Mariano Rivera which is even more shocking. I’ll take it.

November 8

We are almost two months removed from the attack and rebuilding has begun in New York. Kavanagh’s and crew discuss what we have all heard about the repairs and what’s going on in Afghanistan. The shock has somewhat worn off but there is an underlying fear or trepidation which is lingering. After this talk which is probably going on all over America, we discuss the World Series. It was a thriller and it’s recounted a few times. All of us are happy that the Yanks were the losers. I also update Ann and Jack on Joe. He’s receiving speech therapy and OT. So far, there’s not a lot of change in him but we’ve learned it will take some time. We know there’s no quick fix and we must be patient. Today we bend two flat bars for the Association of Maryland Pilots. I have no idea what they are for but it stands out as an oddball. We like the oddballs.

November 12

Another week of work starts at the Shop and it appears we shall be busy through the end of the year. Our backlog is good and we always get some glut of work before the holidays. Today Rodney Carroll comes to the Shop and picks up. Rodney is a local sculptor and we’ve done a few jobs for him. He makes large scale pieces, big stuff. He often uses a mix of water in his sculptures as well. This means rolled pipe to allow water to pass through and rolled pipe means us. Rodney is pretty business savvy too for an artist and he’s a character but he’s a good guy and a good customer.

November 22

It’s Thanksgiving on Woodall Street which is my favorite holiday. It’s mostly about family, food and football and I enjoy all three. Linda and Anthony always overdo it on the feast but that is the festive way to go. There are all of the standard holiday fare plus parsnips for me to keep that Kavanagh tradition going. Joe has a great time with his grandparents and it’s a fun day for all of us.

December 7

It’s a cool Friday and it’s Ann’s birthday so we order turkey clubs from Haussner’s for lunch. I drive down Eastern Avenue to pick them up. Haussner’s is a great restaurant and their club sandwiches are the real deal. Also at Christmas, they have the best sugar cookies. After lunch, I call Fountaincraft to arrange pick up of some copper tubes for a fountain and Mercy Hospital for pick up of a heat exchanger. It’s a busy end of the week and at 4 o’clock, I’m very happy to head home.

December 11

That rush of end of year work has arrived and we have two weeks to do it. That’s fine. We go through this every year. We’ll take the work when we can get it. For a small business, that’s what you have to do. We finish a job for Dave Hess today. Dave is another local sculptor. He’s talented and a good guy. We’ve received multiple jobs from Dave in the last several years.

December 15

It’s Christmas with the Kavanagh’s at Yogi’s Restaurant in Harford County. On this Saturday night, my parents are in town and as much of the family as possible is there. We made reservations. Not simply to be sure they aren’t too busy but to give them a heads up. There are a lot of us and it’s good to forewarn people or else we can be overwhelming. Yogi’s is a nice place, the food is good and it’s great to see everyone for the holiday. I love seeing Mom and Dad and they certainly love seeing Joe. It’s fun and as low key as any Kavanagh gathering can be.                                   

December 21

Today is the last working day of the year and everyone at Central Avenue is happy about it. The day is spent mostly waiting for trucks, loading them and occasionally looking at the clock. After a truck from Codd Fabricators pulls out of the back, we head to our holiday vacation.

December 25

Joe, Kim and I drive to Woodall Street for Christmas. My in-laws, Anthony and Linda, can’t wait for us to get there. Mostly, they can’t wait to see Joe,  and I can’t blame them. Joe is four now and he understands presents a lot better. There is a cacophony of wrapping paper being torn and boxes being pulled open. The boy has a great time and that makes all of us have a great time. After the flurry of gift exchanging, we settle in to a quiet Yule together. Christmas carols are playing on the stereo and the holiday feast is abundant and delicious. I watch some football with my father-in-law. It’s been a fun year in the NFL, as we came in as Super Bowl Champions. Now, the Ravens are headed to the playoffs again. The City is amped for this team. I enjoy watching football with Anthony. It makes the expectation of the playoffs more fun and even the holiday more festive. Christmas is a special day. It’s a family day but even more so with young kids. Their anticipation of its coming and the jubilation at its arrival. Of course, the toys help. It’s a very good holiday and we spend the night in order to give Linda and Anthony more time with Joe. Plus, Mom and Dad are tired too. We’ll drive home in the morning.

December 31

Kim and I spend a quiet evening at home with Joe on New Year’s Eve. We’re not much for going out to celebrate. We prefer being home with our boy. It’s been a very tough year. When Joe was diagnosed last year, we were shocked. This year we have started to get into the nuts and bolts of it. Diagnosis is the start. Next is further evaluation and then treatment. Treatment is therapy and teaching him specific skills then possibly medication. There is no medication for autism though many on the spectrum take Ritalin or some other pills to even them out or keep them calm. This is something we intend to avoid if possible but we will always defer to our doctor. The strange thing about autism is sometimes now that I know the meaning, I see it in Joe right away. Other times? I don’t. It’s not like a bruise or a broken bone. You can’t always see it. Besides this personal family challenge, the world has changed. The world is different after that Tuesday in September. It’s more fearful. Things we may have read or seen on the news which were a concern are now much scarier. These horrors have come home to our country. The world feels smaller and that’s usually a good thing. Not now. It’s smaller in a frightening disturbing way. I imagine most Americans feel as I do. Suddenly, we don’t need to see something to fear it. We fear the possibility of it. The possibility of terrorism. The possibility of random violence striking you or your family seemingly from nowhere and for no reason. I don’t realize yet how much the world has changed. The events of September 11, 2001 will impact all our lives henceforth. It won’t go away. The memories won’t. The fear won’t. The possibilities won’t. The world has changed but tomorrow is another day and another year. Kim and I hope it’s a better one.

George W. Bush is the President of the United States. The NEAR Shoemaker becomes the first spacecraft to land on an asteroid. Wikipedia goes online. The Department of Homeland Security is established. After the September 11 attacks, a series of envelopes containing anthrax are mailed to media outlets and government representatives. In television, Bob the Builder and the Fairly Odd Parents premier. Adult Swim begins on the Cartoon Network. The films “Shrek,” “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” and “The Fellowship of the Ring” are released. Jack Lemmon, Carroll O’Connor, John Lee Hooker, Arlene Francis, and Willie Stargell die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read prior posts/years, click on the link below:

Table of Contents

Autism is defined as a complex developmental disorder distinguished by difficulties with social interaction, verbal and non-verbal communication, and behavioral problems, including repetitive behaviors and a narrow focus of interest. It was initially a very specific diagnosis but by the year 2000, it was determined that autism affects people on a wide range or spectrum. Symptoms or behaviors associated with autism vary greatly from one individual to another making diagnosing and treatment very challenging.

                                                                                Collins Dictionary of Medicine  

                                                             

January 1

“Happy New Year!” The ball drops in Times Square and the world does not end. Kim and I kiss as do people around the world or at least in our time zone. There’s lots of confetti and celebrating and then a toast or two. Afterward, it’s sleep and then back to the grind.

January 3

The first Monday of the next millennium the Joseph Kavanagh Company is off to a busy start. Not just a busy start but a warm one. We have quite a few copper tubes to bend which must first be annealed. We have three orders for u bends for Eddy and Stambaugh and one heat exchanger to retube for Mercy Medical Center. These add up to about 170 tubes to be annealed with a torch. That’s a lot of tubes so I grab a snapper torch and do some of them myself. The winter is the best time to have such jobs. The burning propane fights off the cold and makes our work much more tolerable.

January 22

I am happy to be indoors on this cold Saturday. The Baltimore area received about an inch or so of snow on Thursday and it’s blowing around outside but none is falling. I’m spending the morning with my boy watching Super Retrovision Saturdaze. I always tell Kim to sleep in on these days while I keep Joe entertained. We watch old cartoons and kids’ shows from my childhood and we play with blocks or cars. Joe is toddling around more on his own and saying a few words now. As we had heard, sometimes the first child is slow to do these things. He’s always a happy boy and we have a great time together. The rest of the day is spent as a family with the three of us happily inside avoiding the cold. Besides our time together, my mind is on the Shop. The place never really leaves my thoughts. I know I have some calls to make on Monday. I have orders ready for two of my favorite customers, Codd Fabricators and R and R Fabrication. 

January 30

The St. Louis Rams defeat the Tennessee Titans 23-16 to win the Super Bowl. I watch at home playing with my son. We are getting more winter weather with a mix of snow and ice falling outside my window. I’m focused on my boy. I go over the basic rules of football with him always making it clear to him. Baseball is a better game. Joe’s a sweet boy and every second I can spend with him is fun. He smiles and laughs a lot when we play. He’s still more interested in watching me play with cars and blocks then doing it himself but I think that will change soon enough. He definitely enjoys knocking over the blocks I pile up. That’s his favorite.

February 8

It’s a chilly Tuesday at the corner of Pratt and Central. We’re working on some bent pipes for Turnbull Enterprises and a few other items. The year is off to a busy start and that’s a good thing. Today I receive a fax from Tom Brown at Universal Metal Products. He needs a price on some work but also leaves a nice note on it, hoping Kim and I had a nice holiday. Kim knew Tom from when she worked at Seaboard Steel. It’s always nice when people remember the person and not just the job. I make a point to mention it to Kim when I get home. 

February 11

Another week is finished at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. A light rain falls and it has been a cold week but the crew were kept busy with some sign work for Triangle Sign and the usual suspects of our local fabrication customers. We also completed some sculptural parts for Jann Rosen-Queralt. Jann teaches at the Maryland Institute College for the Arts and I’ve known her for years. We’ve done work for her occasionally as we do for other members of the faculty and students. The sculpture work can be challenging but it’s always interesting. The main issue is understanding the artist’s concept and finding the best way to help achieve their vision within the realistic parameters of our skills, our machines and the material itself. 

February 22

Today we are bending some pipes for a skate park. This is a new one on me. We’ve never done this sort of thing before but it’s still just rolling and bending pipe so we’ll be good. I’m always surprised to find another industry that requires bent or curved metal.  

February 29

It is Leap Day at 201 S. Central Avenue, the extra day we get every four years. Sadly, it’s a Tuesday and not a Saturday so Kavanagh’s and crew are busy processing orders and completing jobs. We finish some sculptural parts for Chas Colburn at Chalco Metal Works, a recurring 1” pipe bending job for Turnbull Enterprises and two aluminum tubes for the Naval Academy which I have no idea how they will be used. That’s often how it goes. Sometimes I have no idea. We just bend it.

March 10

This Friday I’m sitting at my desk in the upstairs office of the Shop and giving some thought to next week’s schedule,  but mostly I’m anxiously waiting to go home. It has been a long and busy week. We finished a fountain job for Fountaincraft, some set work for the movie Blair Witch 2,  and St. Agnes Hospital needed a replacement set of gaskets for a heat exchanger. We made the exchanger and evidently they lost the gaskets. That’s unusual. The Blair Witch 2 pipes will be used as a large bay window in the film. I remember seeing the original Blair Witch in the theater. The handheld cameras and constant motion gave me a headache but it was a fun movie. Kim liked it more than I but she’s more into horror and creepy things then I am. I told her we were doing work for the sequel and we plan on seeing this one too.

March 14

Today an order is picked up for the Kreeger Museum which is a modern art museum in Washington, D.C. We rolled some pipes for Sam Holmes who is a local artist/sculptor. We’ve worked with Sam a couple times and these parts will be used as guards or some form of protection around exhibits. We also complete a few rings for Bill Powell. He’s a designer and is working on a large coil whose application I do not know. Very typical at the Shop.

March 23

Spring is finally here but you can’t tell it by working in the Shop. It’s still the chilly icebox it can often be. The cold lingers in the building especially on a foggy dreary day like today. The boys knocked out a wide range of jobs this week. The most interesting is probably a set of rods rolled into rings for John Ruppert. John is an art teacher at the University of Maryland and also a sculptor. We have worked for him a few times in the past. He uses these rings as a top and bottom for his sculptures. The shape is made from mesh which he contours as he needs and attaches to the rings. It has something to do with negative space or some such thing. 

April 3

The Orioles host the Cleveland Indians on Opening Day in Baltimore but lose 4-1. It rains off and on through the day but they get the game in. Bartolo Colon out duels Mike Mussina. I watch from home after we close a little early because of the Birds. You can’t win them all. That’s true even on Opening Day but I’m still confident the team will have a good year. We’re not that far removed from 1997’s Eastern Division title. We’ll have to see how the season plays out.

April 12

I’m standing in the front of the Shop staring out at Central Avenue. The big garage door is open and I watch the traffic go by. I’m amused by a new customer. We have a job for Company X and I can’t help but love that name. I have no idea what they do but we’re bending some pipes for them and in my mind, I assume they are a group of secret agents or something. I expect to call Boris or Natasha on the phone but that’s not how it is. I smile then walk to the back of the building and hand out job cards to a couple of the boys. We’ve stayed steady to busy so far this year and I’m hoping for more of the same.

April 15

Saturday night I’m home watching the Orioles play the Twins in Minnesota. Cal Ripken Jr. hits three singles and joins the 3000 hit club. He becomes only the 7^th player to have 3000 hits and over 400 home runs. He’s greeted at first by coach and former teammate Eddie Murray who happens to be one of the other 7. I’m excited to see it and happy for Cal and all his fans. It’s a big number and is very much the cherry-on-the-top of a great career. I’m also happy the Birds win this game 6-4 and move one game above .500. It’s not a great start to the season but I’ll take it.

April 20

Today one of my favorite customers comes in to pick up some parts. Bob Machovec is a sculptor and welder. I’ve known Bob almost since the day I started at the Shop. He worked for his Dad as did I so we had that in common to start. Plus, he’s a guitarist. He’s picking up some rings for table tops. He makes furniture and sculpts, often using found objects. He’s talented but mostly he’s my friend. It’s always good when he visits.

April 21

The Washington Capitals are eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the first round and to add insult to injury, it is the Pittsburgh Penguins who beat them. The Caps were the # 2 seed in the Eastern Conference but it makes no difference and we are out of the playoffs early. It’s another bitter defeat at the hands of the Penguins. Jack takes it in stride again but I know he’s getting tired of these Pittsburgh/DC match ups.

April 26

Today is mostly a truck day at the Shop. A truck day is a day when the bulk of the time, the crew are loading or unloading trucks. It’s usually a bit of bad luck when five or more trucks pull in at nearly the same time but sometimes it’s due to one large load. That’s the case today as we have another big order of playground equipment ready for Playworld Systems. In merely two years, Playworld has become a very reliable customer with often big jobs for us. I hope it continues but in our game, you never really know how long this kind of run will last.

May 3

Some set pieces for the John Waters’ film Cecil B. Demented are picked up today by One Line Productions. I always love doing work for movies and television shows. It certainly makes the day a bit more interesting. When John Waters or Barry Levinson make a movie, it’s pretty common for us to get some set work from it. I know a lot of the production folks even if the name of the company is different. I know the people and they know me so we usually get something. This has been a busy week and will continue that way as we have a good mix of work including a job for the City of Bowie Water Plant to finish in the next two days.

May 30

Today is the Tuesday after Memorial Day and we are back to work on Central Avenue. This is the unofficial start to summer for many folks and we’re no different at the Shop. This is when the heat really kicks in and sweaty days are ahead. It’s also one of the markers in the baseball season. Unfortunately, May was not kind to the Orioles and they’ve dropped below .500 again. Let’s hope June is better. The crew bangs out jobs for Anderson Industrial Contracting, Codd Fabricators and Structural Steel Fabricators who are all long term local customers.

June 14

It is Hump Day meaning we are smack dab in the middle of the week. The Shop has finished a couple of jobs for Gable Signs and Graphics. This is a large sign company and when we get orders from Gable, they are usually pretty big jobs. I call and let them know they can pick up. A few other items are finished today as well. I look forward to getting home. It’s Kim’s birthday and we are going to the Boulevard Diner for dinner. The diner is close to home in Dundalk and we love the food. This will be Little Joe’s first trip. I’m sure he’ll like it.

June 28

During the 9 am coffee break, Jack and I are talking to the crew about the Orioles. They are in Boston and though they won last night, they are mired in 4^th place and 12 games under .500. I’m starting to think this may not be a successful season for the Birds. They don’t look like a playoff team. Jack and the guys in our crew agree with me. We can only hope the Orioles will get super hot after the All-Star break. Anything is possible. Soon, the crew are back at it and I’m on the phone quoting some more work and not thinking about baseball. 

July 4

It is a Tuesday and Independence Day. My family and I spend the day with my in-laws, Anthony and Linda. There are burgers, hot dogs and much more to eat. We watch an afternoon ballgame between the Orioles and the Yankees in New York. Our Birds win but not until after the Yanks storm back in the 9^th inning, scoring 3 runs. We hold on to win 7-6 but are still stuck in 4^th place. In the evening, Woodall Street offers a great view of the fireworks downtown and we watch with neighbors and Kim’s family. It’s a fun day. Joe loves it though the fireworks are a bit loud for him. We drive home and my mind is on the Shop. We have a lot to finish up this week including some channels for Anchor Fence, some u bends for Eddy and Stambaugh and a bent tube for furniture and architectural designer Eric Gronning.

July 19

It’s a very rainy day at the corner of Pratt and Central. It pours all day which does cool the place off. Next month we take our week’s vacation so late July is always a busy time. Today a very large order for Anchor Fence is picked up and jobs for R and R Fabrication, Anderson Contracting and J.C. Pardo are finished.

July 28

As we get closer and closer to August, the crew are pounding out work. No one wants anything to threaten our vacation. A particularly big Bengies job is finished. It’s heavy structural stuff and loading the truck takes over an hour but it gets it out of here. We also have several sets of u bends for Eddy and Stambaugh, another fountain job and a few others. Everyone is focused on that week off work coming up.

August 4

Vacation begins after pickups for Belsinger Sign and Codd and a set of tubes are shipped to Maxatrax Systems. Just after lunch, a thunderstorm hits and breaks up some of the humidity which I appreciate. At the end of the day, employees and owners alike are thrilled to walk out the door and drive home. On Friday, that week off looks like an eternity. Of course, by Wednesday of next week, it will feel like it flew by.

August 16

We have returned to the Shop and are back to work. There’s some grousing about it but mostly everyone catches up on how the week went. The consensus every year is it was too short and went too fast. I suspect this thinking is not unique to the Joseph Kavanagh Company. We have a full slate of work to deal with and the boys start on jobs for Fabritek, Capital Exhibit Services and several others.

August 30

The end of August means the end of the “dog days” of summer and it’s good riddance from me. I’ve never been a fan of hot weather but it’s insufferable at the Shop. As if to emphasize this coming to an end, it rains all day. I look forward to the cool fall approaching as I sit in the office writing out delivery tickets for Blair, Inc. and several other customers.

September 3

I’m watching from Charlesmont Road as the Baltimore Ravens begin their fifth season in the NFL by beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 16-0 on the road. In years past, the Baltimore Colts had a strong rivalry with the Steelers. The Pirates beat the Orioles twice in the World Series which is something I can never forget. I was at Game 7 in 1979, in fact. In hockey, our Capitals have a constant rivalry with the Penguins and now, the same intensity is developing between these two football teams. I don’t quite know what it is between Baltimore and Pittsburgh. Anyway, it’s always good to start with a win but a win in Pittsburgh is even sweeter.

September 15

The Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia begin on this Friday night. Kim and I are excited to watch. We’ve found we both share a love for and an interest in the Games. I am also going over the Shop’s week in my head. We finished some set work for Center Stage and an oddball aluminum tube job for Oceaneering,  a big company which seems to specialize in Naval work. Kim encourages me to forget about work and enjoy the Opening Ceremonies which are always elaborate and a great way to start the Games. For the next two weeks after work, it’s what’s on the television, unless the Birds or Caps are on and then I flip. We watch as much as we can. I find myself interested in some new events and sports each time the Olympics are held. I suppose that’s part of the goal besides the sense of global unity and humanity. That’s all good stuff too.

September 29

Friday is here and we’ve reached the end of another week of work. I’m ready to rush home and watch the last weekend of the Olympics with Kim. The more we watch the more we seem to like it. The crew spent time today on some pipes for U.S. Aluminate, tubes for Maxatrax and a couple of other orders for our regulars. A few minutes before 4 p.m., we head out the door and it’s the weekend.

October 1

The Orioles season comes to an end with a win over the Yankees but we finish 74-88. The Birds miss the playoffs yet again but I knew that weeks ago. It became painfully obvious through the summer. A rebuild of the team seems in order. This evening the Summer Olympics ends with a large closing ceremony. As they open the games by marching in as countries, they end them by marching in as one group. The idea of the Olympics is the notion of sport uniting the world and focusing on our similarities for a chance and not our differences. I like the idea even if it’s only for two weeks every other year. The Olympics say goodbye to Australia and prepare for the next Winter Games in Salt Lake City in 2002. Kim and I do the same. We’ll be watching.

October 2

It is my Joe’s 3^rd Birthday and we celebrate but with a decidedly smaller affair than his first two years. We take him to Friendly’s Ice Cream Parlor and eat burgers and ice cream. He gives it the thumbs up so he must like it. One of Joe’s habits is the thumbs up as a sign of approval. We’ll spend this upcoming Saturday at my in-laws and they will have their opportunity to spoil the birthday boy.

October 6

The Washington Capitals open their season at home against the Los Angeles Kings. LA wins 4-1 but the Kavanagh’s are big fans and we are undaunted. Jack and the rest of us keep the hope alive for a successful season, a long playoff run and some day, the Cup itself.

October 13

Another week comes to an end and we’ve slowed down a bit as far as the volume of work goes. That’s not always a bad thing. We are able to catch up on some cleaning, organizing our tools and putting stock material on racks. Shop work is what we call that and it does need to be done. Brief lulls in jobs give us time to do these things. As long as we have some work to do and the lull isn’t too long. In addition to our Shop work, jobs are finished for Codd Fabricators and R and R Fabrication.

October 21

It’s a very exciting day for the Kavanagh’s. My parent’s first grandchild is getting married. Maura Kavanagh O’Neill is marrying Sean Deeley. Maura is my sister Nancy’s daughter and she’s only ten years younger than I am. For a few months when she was three or so, all of them lived with us on Lakewood Avenue. I was thirteen or fourteen and Maura and I would watch cartoons together especially the Super Friends. Maura is a big Wonder Woman fan. I know her parents, Jim and Nancy, are very proud of her and my Mom and Dad are just as thrilled. Kim, Joe and I drive to St. Joseph’s Monastery for the ceremony then on to Overhills Mansion for the party. The place is packed as Sean comes from a big family as well. The food is good and a good time is had by all. My Joe looks around in wonderment for most of the party. He has fun but this is very new to him. For my part, I’m very happy for Maura or Murray as I called her when we were both younger. She’s a good person and has her head on straight. In addition, I am very impressed by her husband. To get married in the year 2000? This man will never have to guess how many years he’s been married. He’s clearly brilliant and one step ahead of most husbands out there. I tip my cap to him.

October 26

The New York Yankees beat the New York Mets to win the World Series in five games. It is the first “Subway Series” with both AL and NL Champions from New York since the Brooklyn Dodgers moved to Los Angeles. I never want to see the Yanks win a championship but it happens. I’m also disappointed in the Birds season but that also happens.

October 31

It’s a Tuesday and also Halloween so I am anxious to get home and celebrate with Joe and Kim. The Shop bangs out a couple of orders for Playworld Systems and a sign job for Belsinger. We also finish another job for a skate park ramp. This is the second one this year so maybe we’ll do more of these. Once I’m home and it’s dark enough, I take Joe trick or treating. It’s a first for me and I enjoy it. Joe doesn’t seem to grasp the concept yet but he does understand candy. Kim is a big Halloween fan which is the opposite of me. When I was a kid, we really didn’t do much on this day. Kim decorated the house well and the number of trick or treaters must be in the hundreds. Our neighborhood is very much kid friendly on this day.

November 7

Today is Election Day and per my tradition since 1988, I vote for myself. I do so with very little confidence I’ll win but as has always been the case, neither candidate, George W. Bush or Al Gore, appeals to me. The strangest part of this election is when I go to bed, the winner is not determined. When I wake up tomorrow, it still will not be determined. It’s a close race and comes down to Florida. Florida will take some time to recount dangling chads and other things. It’s a head scratcher for me. Apparently, Florida election protocols are lacking.  

November 21

I’m sitting at my desk filling out delivery tickets. We have pick ups today for Codd Fabricators and Miscellaneous Metals. I’m distracted though because Kim took Joe to our pediatrician this week and the doctor recommended he be evaluated for some developmental delays. The doctor was quite calm but did seem concerned. We have noticed Joe was slow to talk and walk but chalked it up to being a first child. Kim has made an appointment for this evaluation on December 1. We’re sure it won’t be anything major but we will do as the doctor says. If there is some issue, then we’ll know and deal with it.

November 23

Thanksgiving is here and we spend the day with Kim’s family. This is my favorite holiday. Family, food and now football are the focus of the day. We feast on turkey, dressing and more while I alone partake of some parsnips. The long standing tradition of Kavanagh’s eating parsnips on Thanksgiving is  continued even if it’s just me at our dinner. I enjoy watching some football with my father-in-law. I must admit my enthusiasm for the sport has increased with the return of the NFL to Baltimore even more so this season, as the Ravens are playing well. Their defense is stifling and keeps them in every game. We’re coming off a 27-0 shut out of the Cowboys and stand 8-4 at this point. A run to the playoffs is very possible.

November 26

It’s a Sunday night and I am doing something I used to do all the time. I’m at a concert with my friends, Tim Heaps, Ray French and Dave Muelberger. We drove up to Philadelphia to see King Crimson at the Theatre of Living Arts. Before my marriage, I attended concerts and shows all the time but not so much anymore. I had to make an exception to see Crimson, a band I admire and have wanted to see for years. I’ve had the good fortune to meet the two guitarists, Robert Fripp and Adrian Belew. My friends and I shared a beer with Belew at Max’s on Broadway one night and I spent four days in 1988 learning from Fripp and his League of Crafty Guitarists. The show is incredible but the ride home seems longer than I expected. When I get home, I’m very tired. I may still be a rocker but I am definitely getting older.

December 1

Kim and I are very nervous because Joe will be evaluated today for his apparent behavioral delays. We take him to Battle Monument School and he spends almost an hour playing with a specialist/therapist. Afterward, we meet and talk. She diagnoses Joe with autism. She tells us he will need some speech therapy, play therapy and a few other things. They don’t really know what his limitations may be at this time. It’s a long process and she is confident Joe being diagnosed early is a good thing. We listen more than we talk but tell her we’ll do whatever it takes. When we leave, Kim and I sit in the front seat of our car with Joe in the back in a car seat. Quickly, we’re both crying and I have never felt so lost in my life. We hold each other and promise to get Joe the help that will make the difference. Still deep inside, I think we know this is a serious and possibly life-altering thing. For his part, Joe glances from Kim to me from the backseat. I suppose he can’t sort out why we’re upset or crying. I look at him and I see the same smiling happy boy. From this day forward though, everything is different. Everything and every thing.

December 2

Today is a Saturday and I spend it with Kim and Joe. We’re still reeling from the news but we’re trying to absorb it all. Kim called her parents last night to tell them and they were absolutely great about it. They will be as loving and supportive as we expected. Today I call my parents in Ocean City and tell my Mom about Joe’s diagnosis. He has autism and we know it’s a serious thing but not much else.

            Her reply is pretty simple. “It won’t matter, Joe. No matter what his issues or challenges are, they won’t matter. We’ll still love him just the same. No matter what. That’s all that matters. The Love. The rest of it? Well, we’ll figure it out.”

          “You’re right. You are right.” I reply as her words sink in. “He’s my boy and that’s what’s most important and always will be.”

          “That’s it. That’s right. Now, we’re all going to learn about autism. We’re going to learn all we can and it’s going to be fine. One way or another. I’m sure of it.” Mom’s voice through the phone was every bit as honest and caring as in person. I know she’s right and I feel comforted as if she were here in the room with me.

            I take a breath then answer. “Yes, Mom. We’ll learn. We’ll learn and we’ll get Joe whatever help he needs. Whatever has to be done, will be done.”

          “That’s right, my darlin’. Don’t worry. Joe will be fine. Now you get some rest and I’m going to the library and the book store tomorrow to get some books about this. I’ll let you know what I find.” Mom reassures me then says goodbye and I do the same.

I tell Kim about the call and she agrees. Mom’s right. The love is what matters. Tomorrow my mother will find several books to buy and send to us. The learning and the work begins.

December 7

The Shop is already in end of the year rush mode. We have a little over two weeks until we shut down between Christmas and New Year’s. It’s always a bit of a mad month. Today we ship out two more big orders for Playworld Systems, a job for Arundel Recycling Center and several others.

December 13

The US Supreme Court halted a recount in Florida yesterday and this extra inning election is finally over. Al Gore concedes today and George W. Bush is declared President-Elect of the United States. The whole thing seemed ridiculous to me with debates about whether a dangling chad nullifies a vote or not but at least we now have a President-Elect.

December 22

The last working day of the year is here and our enthusiasm is boundless. It even snows. The sidewalk is lightly dusted by mid-morning. It puts everyone in more of a Christmas mood. Both Miscellaneous Metals and R and R Fabrication have multiple orders to pickup. Once those trucks are loaded, it’s the holidays and we leave.

December 25

Christmas comes to Woodall Street and we celebrate with my in-laws. Their front room is crammed with gifts and most of them are toys for Joe. Kim’s grandmother and her brother Paul and his wife Fran join us. It’s a joyous occasion and not at all tempered by Joe’s diagnosis. It’s on our minds and we will get used to it always being on our minds but we focus on the holiday and each other. Joe entertains us and we entertain him. This is what parenting is about and pretty much what family is about.

December 31

As the year comes to an end, there is playoff football in Baltimore this New Year’s Eve. This is the first NFL playoff appearance for our City since the Colts in 1977. The Ravens host the Denver Broncos and win handily 21-3. It’s onward to Tennessee to meet the Titans in the next round of the playoffs. Ravens mania is reaching a fever pitch. After the game, Kim and I prepare for a quiet New Year’s Eve with our boy. This year has been good at the Shop but not so good on the personal side. The Shop had a strong year and we did quite a bit of the fun stuff, sculptural and film work and even two skate parks. The stuff that makes the job more interesting. After the autism diagnosis, we are learning all we can about autism, reading everything  we find about it. We’re hoping Joe will be fine. His development is delayed but with services and help, he can grow and catch up to the other kids. At least that is our hope. There is so much we do not know. He’s our boy and that will never change. He’s our Joe and we love him. He’s quiet and smiling most of the time, so unaware of this problem that will try and try to define him. One of the few things we are sure of is, it won’t.

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. George W. Bush is President-Elect. America Online purchases Time Warner for 162 Billion Dollars in what is the largest corporate merger ever. The United States 2000 Census sets American population over 281 million. Microsoft releases Windows 2000. The International Space Station receives its first crew of astronauts. The final Peanuts Comic is published after the death of creator Charles M. Schulz. Hillary Clinton becomes the first First Lady to hold public office when she’s elected to the Senate from New York. After 128 years in business, Montgomery Ward closes. The films “X-Men,” “the Patriot” and “Gladiator” are released. “Dora the Explorer” and Clifford the Big Red Dog” premier on television. Walter Matthau, “Screamin’ Jay” Hawkins,  Steve Allen, Nancy Marchand and Bob Lemon die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read prior years, click on the Table of Contents link below:

Table of Contents

January 4

The Joseph Kavanagh Company begins yet another year at the corner of Pratt and Central. We moved here in 1911 and so far it has worked out pretty well. It’s 1999 now and I recall Kubrick’s film. A few years ago, 1999 seemed so far in the future but here we are. The Kavanagh’s and their crew return from our holiday vacation to a few jobs on the books including some work for Anchor Fence and Codd Fabricators. They are two of our most reliable customers and the boys get to it while I start taking calls and the year starts in earnest.

January 11

The first week after the holidays always seems to drag but now it’s our 2^nd Monday of the year and things are more or less back to normal. It’s cold and there is work to be done regardless of the temperature. We’re not particularly busy but that’s normal for January. The workers finish a couple items today including a job for Custom Metals which is part of a USPS vestibule. I don’t often know where the finished product goes so any time I am informed or see it on a drawing, I take note.

January 31

The Denver Broncos beat the Atlanta Falcons 34 – 19 in the Super Bowl. I watch the game while playing with my boy. Joe is still not walking or talking. He babbles a bit but Kim and I are unconcerned. Babies are all different and we’ve been told, it’s not so unusual for a first child to learn to walk and talk at a slower rate. Plus, he’s just a few months past one year old. I’m also thinking about the Shop. Another big order for Playworld Systems was picked up Friday. I have a good feeling about them; their work certainly helped last year and I hope it keeps up.

February 9

It’s unseasonably warm at the Shop on this Tuesday. February is usually Baltimore’s coldest month but so far the highs have been in the upper 40 degrees. As someone who hates the cold, I’ll take it. We’ve been steady if not busy to start the year and I’ll take that too. A few jobs are completed today and I fill out delivery tickets for R and R Fabricators, Dundalk Ornamental Iron Works and John Gutierrez Studios.

February 16

Another week starts on the corner of Central and Pratt with the usual assortment of rolling and bending and one holdover of ours from the distilling days. For almost 100 years, the Joseph Kavanagh Company’s main focus was the whiskey and beer industries. This ended years ago but occasionally, we get calls for some old parts such as Vanstone flanges. These are flanges for distilling systems and we made many of them in the past. My father always told me to never throw those away and sure enough, every few years we get a call for them from Seagrams. One day we shall run out but for now, they are pulled from a shelf in the upstairs machine shop and shipped out. We charge a flat rate for them and we’ll sell them as long as we’ve got them.

March 5

I sit at my desk as the afternoon slowly marches on. It’s Friday and I’m looking forward to a weekend with Kim and my Joe. The weeks seem to pass slower the older I get and Friday is often a celebrated day. I make a few calls to arrange pickups next week including one for Equipment Development Corporation or EDCO. Their order is a recurring job consisting of small steel rings from solid rods and pipes. It’s a good job for us as we’ve done this one dozens of times.

March 17

Today is St. Patrick’s Day and the warm weather continues. The temperature reaches 73 degrees today and winter is still not officially over. It sure feels over and with spring this close, my thoughts are on baseball and the Orioles. Last year was a struggle with inconsistency for the Birds and I’m hoping for a better season. At the Shop, we finish some more playground parts for Playworld Systems and orders for Codd Fabricators and Anchor Fence.

April 5

It’s Opening Day in Baltimore and the Orioles welcome the Tampa Bay Devil Rays to town. This is always an exciting day in the City and certainly at the Shop. Dreams and predictions for the year are made by both Kavanagh’s and crew. The work is still steady with orders for Baltimore Steel Erectors and Anchor Fence being started today. We’re not swamped by any means so we knock off a little early and I race home to watch the game with my boy. The Birds win 10-7. That’s an excellent start to the season.

April 19

The week begins on Central Avenue with much discussion of our sports teams. Yesterday the Washington Capitals lost 3-0 to the Buffalo Sabres to finish the season and miss the playoffs. The Caps lost the final six games to end the campaign. It stings to miss the playoffs after making it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals last year and to add insult to injury, the Orioles are off to a rough start. After winning the opener, the Birds have lost 8 of 10. It’s early but in any sport, you don’t want to fall too far back in the standings. Besides talking sports, we are working on some orders for our local fabrication customers and another set of tubes for Playworld Systems.

May 8

Today is Saturday and it has become my favorite day of the week. It’s the one day when Kim sleeps in and I get up with Little Joe in the morning. I get him changed and fix something to eat,  then we watch cartoons and play. In fact, I found some great old cartoons to watch. TV Land has begun airing something called Super Retrovision Saturdaze. All morning they broadcast old cartoons and live action kids shows from my youth. I get to share Sigmund the Sea Monster and both the Planet of the Apes and the Star Trek cartoons with my boy. Joe seems to enjoy it as much as I do. We sit on the floor and play with cars and blocks while keeping an eye on the television. Joe still prefers I stack the blocks and move the cars. He does a little of that but mostly he watches me then he sometimes will knock the blocks over. He immediately looks at me as if to say, build it back up. I do just that and pile them up again as he watches. It’s okay. He’s still only a year and a half old. He’ll get more involved soon enough, I am sure.

May 11

It’s a rainy Tuesday at the Shop but a busy one. The volume of work has shot up and we have a good bit on the books. One job today for G-S Company will end up in the Smyrna Prison in Delaware. We don’t always know the end user but this one is interesting. We did heat exchangers and a few things for Baltimore City Jail in years past but never for an out-of-state prison. I often say this about my job, it’s always something different from one to the next.

May 21

I’m putting Joe to bed on a Friday night. The Orioles beat the Texas Rangers 3-2 with catcher Charles Johnson driving in all 3 runs with a homer and a double. It was a surprisingly quick game at 2 hours and 17 minutes so my baby boy was able to stay up until the end. Once he’s asleep, I think of my day at the Shop. We finished work for Metropolitan Steel and some Red Brass and Stainless Steel Pipes for Hess Industries. The pipes are for a sculpture and they turned out pretty good. Brass can be unforgiving when you roll it. Scratches and digs are bad things to deal with but these had none. Kim and I chat before bed and I joke about what I’d be doing on a Friday before I met her. I would have been practicing with my band. Tim, Ray and I practiced nearly every day back then and any party gigs were on Saturdays. I don’t miss the craziness of those days but I do miss playing with my friends. We still get together occasionally and I tell myself one day, we’ll get back to playing. Probably when Joe is older or sometime down the road. I practice a little guitar but time to play at the house is minimal. Joe has my attention, as he should and I am happy with that.

June 11

We finish a very hot week at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. The heat of summer makes working at Central Avenue tougher but it’s not often an issue in June. The dog days of July and August came early with temperatures near 100 this week. The crew load a couple trucks in the afternoon then mercifully we all head home. I look forward to another of my Super Retrovision Saturdaze with my boy. 

June 24

Business has picked up as it does in the summer and we find ourselves with a nice two week backlog of work. This is ideal for us. We feel most comfortable with that kind of cushion in our schedule. The crew work on a pipe order for L.J. Brossoit and Sons, a heat exchanger for Egan Boiler and a few other jobs. The topic of discussion is the year 1999. Both Kavanagh’s and workers have begun reading and hearing about concerns over the year turning from 1999 to 2000. People are speculating about chaos caused by computers which can’t digitally change to the new millennium. It sounds like nonsense but people are already concerned. It’s all over the media. I hear or see something on the news about it every  day. 

July 4

This Independence Day is a Sunday and we spend it on Woodall Street with my in-laws, Anthony and Linda. My father-in-law cooks on the grill and we have burgers, hot dogs and the assorted salads to go with it all. Joe loves spending time with his grandparents and the feeling is mutual. He scoots around in his walker through the house. We’re still working on getting him to walk and talk. Some of Kim’s cousins stop by in the evening as the backyard on Woodall Street offers a great view of the downtown fireworks. It’s a fun day and the Shop is closed tomorrow so I look forward to the extra day off.

July 6

I return to work along with my brother and sister and our workers. First thing in the morning, we swap stories about our holiday. Of course, my tale is mostly about Joe but I’m still a fairly new Dad. Joe is always my star. This is the time of year we prepare for our week of vacation in August. The month of July is often hectic in order for us to get our break next month. Today we send out two small orders for C.R. Daniels and complete several other jobs for Amereihn Company and  Anderson Industrial Contracting.

July 14

We are almost halfway to our vacation and we’re doing well but still have work to do. Today a large order for Playworld Systems is picked up. This one takes some time to load the truck. The truck had some straight material on it already and that complicates things. We have to move their straight pieces and make room on the bed for our curves. It all adds up to more time but eventually, they are gone and on the road. 

July 30

It’s a rainy Friday and we are grateful for it. It’s been a sweltering month so anything that cools things down even a little is appreciated. We have one more week to go until we get some time off. This week I was able to scratch a lot of jobs off the list so we know we’ll make it.

August 4

It’s hump day and everyone is in a fine mood. Two more days until we can forget about this place for a week. This goes for the crew but not so much the Kavanagh’s. Nonetheless, we look forward to it. We finish another order for Playworld Systems and a few others including a job for Alliance Steel which is for an Evangelical Church. Churches or houses of worship of any kind get a discount. Honestly, you never know so why not hedge my bets.

August 7

My vacation begins with a Saturday spent with my boy. We watch those old kids’ shows I watched when I was a kid. We play while we watch. Of course, I do more piling up of blocks than he does. He’s much more interested in them falling down. He knocks some down himself but mostly now, he wants me to keep placing one on top of the other until they fall. He seems very interested in this development. Either way, he has fun and so do I. The rest of the week is spent with Kim and Joe. A little work around the house is done but mostly, I try to relax before I have to get back to the Shop.

August 17

After an enjoyable week at home, I return with everyone else to the corner of Pratt and Central. Grudgingly, we get back to work. Taking this week off is a nice tradition. It started in the 30s when my grandfather, Eddie took his family to Ocean City for the first time. His father was rather dubious of this idea but when Eddie took charge of the Shop, it became a regular thing for the family and our crew. Eddie was always a strong union man and despite a prickly nature he did care a great deal about his workers and laborers in general. He was one of the founders of the Coppersmith Union in Baltimore. When Eddie retired, my father kept this August week vacation going and so have Ann, Jack and I. From a pragmatic standpoint, it’s often one of the hottest weeks of the year so we get to miss that. Anyway, we get back to it and start off with jobs for Warren-Ehret and Structural Steel.

August 27

It’s a hot and sticky Friday at the Shop. I’m writing up some job cards first thing in the morning and talking to Ann and Jack. We’re talking about the Orioles. We lost last night to the Kansas City Royals and the Birds are 57- 70. The Birds are in fourth place and more than 10 games behind the Blue Jays for 3^rd place in the AL East. It looks like it would take a minor miracle to turn this season around. After hashing and rehashing the team, I hand out a few cards for Metropolitan Steel, Turnbull Enterprises and Kelco to the boys.

September 10

September brings slightly cooler temperatures and less humidity to Baltimore and we appreciate it at the Shop. Today is a Friday and I’m looking forward to the weekend. I’m sure everyone else feels the same but for me, it’s time with my boy. I can’t get enough of that. We finish a job for DOVCO and one for C & S Ornamental Iron then we each head home.

September 12

The Baltimore Ravens open their fourth season in St. Louis against the Rams. Baltimore has really taken to the Ravens. No NFL for over a decade must have made people hungry for football because the purple and black has caught on fast. The team gets thumped pretty bad. They lose 27-10 but the enthusiasm for the Ravens is only getting stronger. Meanwhile, the Orioles have won six in a row and I’m trying to stay hopeful but we are running out of season. 

September 23

The Birds have stretched their winning streak to thirteen and maybe a miracle is in order. I’m at my desk talking about the team when I get a phone call from a student at Maryland Institute College for the Arts, Johnpaul Flick. He’s finishing his studies and his final project is a sculpture of a shopping cart. He told me. “I wanted to be three again” so he designed a large size shopping cart for an adult to ride in. This is definitely something different and there are some bends which need to be made so he came to the right people. I give him a price and he’s all for it. He’ll be sending material our way. I’ll add it to our backlog and schedule when the material arrives. It’s a busy day on Central Avenue as we complete a fair few orders for our usual customers and a heat exchanger for St. Agnes Hospital.

September 27

The Orioles have managed to get hot and brought themselves within one game of .500 but that’s not enough. They have been eliminated from playoff contention and in a few days, will finish the season 78-84. It’s been a tough run all season so I’m not surprised but there is always next year. I’m confident  the Birds will step it up. We’re too busy to worry much about it. The changing of the seasons has brought some more work in for us. We’re busy in the summer but some outside work is held until the weather cools then it shows up at my door.  

October 2

Today is my Joe’s second birthday and a Saturday so we celebrate at Woodall Street with my in-laws. Joe loves the presents and in particular, tearing wrapping paper. He is the center of attention all day and rightly so. I can’t believe how the time seems to fly by. It seems like yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital and now he’s scooting around in his walker and chattering and laughing a lot. He is a fun little guy and he keeps us on our toes but I’ve learned, that’s a very big part of being a parent.

October 7

We’re busy in the Shop and today an order for Shakespeare Theater is completed. We are rolling steel bars to match some templates they brought us. The bars will be used to build a bed as part of the set. I don’t know what the play is and usually don’t,  but we do set work for several theaters in the Baltimore area. It’s not a lot of work but a few times a year. These are the jobs which make my job a little more interesting when they come along.

October 9

It’s a rainy Saturday evening but I don’t mind. I’m home watching the Washington Capitals open the season against the Los Angeles Kings at home. It’s a close game and ends in a 2-2 tie. Last year the Caps missed the playoffs and I’m definitely hoping for a return this year. I’m sure my brother feels the same way. He’s still the ultimate Caps fan and has been since the day the team formed.

October 27

The New York Yankees sweep the Atlanta Braves to win their 25^th World Series Championship. I am not particularly happy about it. I hate to see the Yanks win again but it happens. They are a storied franchise for a reason. It’s hot for October in the Shop because of some torch work. We are melting out some filled tubes for Design and Production and also annealing some aluminum angles for Antenna Research. It could be worse. We could have these jobs in July when it’s 100 degrees.

November 8

It’s a cold and windy day in Baltimore. I speak to Gary Stambaugh and he informs me that Eddy’s Welding and his company have merged to form Eddy and Stambaugh. We’ve been doing work for Stambaugh for decades. It’s usually sets of copper u bends for heat exchangers but occasionally some rolling of steel. I congratulate Gary and let him know we  have a set of tubes ready for him today. 

November 24

Today is Wednesday and the day before Thanksgiving. With thoughts of turkey, stuffing, cranberries and, of course, parsnips in our heads, we finish several jobs and spend the rest of the day loading trucks and waiting for more trucks. The day drags but we  manage to sneak out of there a little early in advance of everyone’s feast tomorrow.

November 25

It’s Thanksgiving and Kim, Joe and I spend it with her parents and her grandmother. It’s my favorite holiday mostly because of my love of turkey. My mother-in-law makes a great turkey and her gravy is something special. There is plenty of food including parsnips for me and it’s a fun family feast. I enjoy watching football with my father-in-law as Joe keeps everyone entertained sliding around in his walker. He’s a very happy boy who is usually smiling and laughing. Linda, Anthony and Dorothy (Kim’s grandmother) love every second around him and he feels the same way.

December 7

The hectic craziness that is December is upon us at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. It’s always a bit wild to try to finish all we need to do before the end of the year. It’s worse because we always take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off. I’ve grown very accustomed to it as has the crew. Today we send out another order of playground parts for Playworld Systems and Johnpaul Flick picks up the shopping cart parts. We also bend some pipes for helicopter seats for Turnbull in the Pines Bender. This job is one we do several times a year or more. Everyone in the office and the Shop is quite busy. It is the last month of the year and living up to every bit of that so far.

December 23

We have made it to the end at the Shop. The last work day of the year is here. We finish a couple of things but mostly we load trucks, ship out pieces and even return a template to Design and Production before we are able to leave. Employees and owners climb in their cars and happily say, “See you next year” then drive off in search of the Yule. 

December 25

It’s a White Christmas. Yesterday we had some light snow in the evening and it looks very festive. Fortunately, it’s not enough to cause any driving issues and after a brief time opening gifts under our tree, we head to Woodall Street. It feels very much like Christmas as we pull out front of Casa Dalfonzo and the sidewalks have a light dusting of the white stuff. Kim’s parents, her grandmother and her brother Paul are there. It’s a wonderful day of family and fun. Joe is in heaven with so many presents and so much wrapping paper to tear off and throw around. I join in on this too as I ball up the paper and toss it around. The food is good and the company better. Linda and Anthony know how to throw a party. We listen to Christmas music and watch Christmas movies like most families. It’s a wonderful holiday. We stay the night after a very festive day.

December 26

We wake up at my in-laws and spend the day with them. My father-in-law and I watch the Ravens win their final home game of the year 22-0 over the Cincinnati Bengals. Baltimore has won four in a row and is assured of its first non-losing season. They are 8-7 with one game to go on January 2^nd in New England. This is all assuming the world doesn’t come to an end and they do actually play the game. The “Y2K” panic has reached a fever pitch. Most folks aren’t too worried about it but some seem quite certain that some catastrophic event will occur when the world rings in the New Year. We discuss it with my in-laws over a day-after-Christmas lunch and they agree this thing is blown way out of proportion and nothing will happen. Later in the afternoon, Kim, Joe and I head home and I am very much looking forward to this week of vacation.

December 31

It’s New Year’s Eve and Kim and I are staying up to watch the ball drop and bring in the New Year properly. Joe is snoozing in his room quietly as we sit on the couch in front of the television. Some cheese, crackers and dip are on the coffee table to munch on as we watch. Those are mostly for me. Some snacks and beer are my standard holiday fare.

          “I guess in a few minutes, we’ll find out if the world is coming to an end.” I smile at Kim from one side of the couch to the other.

            She rolls her eyes. “People are just crazy. It’s just another year and it’s not going to be a big deal. I don’t know how people can believe this stuff”

          “Firstly, it’s not just another year, it’s another decade and another millennium. That last one doesn’t happen very often.” I reply grinning.

            Kim rolls her eyes at me. “Yes, that too but it’s not going to cause the world to stop.” She flips the television channel to Dick Clark’s New Year’s show as we get down to the last minute or so. “Tomorrow will be January 1^st just like it always is.”

            I sit back on the couch and watch the crowd at Times Square as the seconds tick away. I shrug and say “Some people seem to think computers won’t know how to get to 2000 once we’re out of the 1900’s. I’m pretty sure this isn’t as complicated for computers as people think.”

          “I know. I said it before people are crazy. It doesn’t make any sense and it’s just something else people want to get upset and weird about.” She answers, shaking her head. It’s nearly midnight and the mob of humanity screams along counting down.

            As the crowd reaches five, I say. “I guess we’re gonna find out.”

            I slide across the couch and put my arm around her and we listen, “3, 2, 1, Happ-”

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. The president is acquitted after an impeachment trial due to a tryst with intern Monica Lewinsky. Twelve students and one teacher are murdered at a high school in the Columbine massacre. Hurricane Floyd hits the East Coast and causes eight-five deaths and over six billion dollars in damage. Family Guy and Sponge Bob premier on television. The online file sharing service Napster is launched. The films “The Matrix,” “The Green Mile” and “Elmo in Grouchland” are released. Wilt Chamberlain, Madeline Kahn, Stanley Kubrick, Joe DiMaggio and Curtis Mayfield die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read earlier years, click on the link below:

Table of Contents

January 8

Another year has begun at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. Kavanagh’s and crew return to Central Avenue and get back to our duties. I enjoyed my first holiday with my son but all good things must come to an end. We had jobs on the books for our return and more have come in this week. Year 133 starts with work for a couple of our regulars, Anchor Fence and Stambaugh & Sons and several other local fabrication shops.

January 20

It’s a cold Tuesday on the corner of Pratt and Central. The crew are busy working on a mix of small jobs including orders for A.J. Sackett and J.C. Pardo. I have finally adjusted to the absence of sleep that comes with having a baby. Some days I know I am awake but in my heart, I’m napping.

January 25

The Denver Broncos defeat the defending champion Green Bay Packers 31-24 to win the Super Bowl. I watch the game with my son in my arms and explain the superiority of baseball to football to my Joe. I  tell him that we have an NFL team now in the Ravens, so our interest has increased. Joe smiles up at me quietly but I don’t think he’s really listening.

February 4

It’s Hump Day at the Shop and a cold one to boot. I’m fortunate to be sitting at my desk in the office where there is some heat. I step outside and I’m in the cold zone like Mr. Freeze from Batman. I quickly put some delivery tickets on the clipboard in the Shop before heading back to my desk. The tickets are for jobs completed for Atlas Machine, Whiting Metals and a partial order for Tinker Machining.

February 7

The Winter Olympics begin in Nagano, Japan tonight. Kim and I are very excited. My wife has become a hockey fan and she handles the overdose of baseball that is being married to me,  but the Olympics is something she genuinely enjoys. We begin a tradition of watching lots and lots of Olympic events every time the games are held.

February 24

I am standing outside the front door of the Shop watching the snow. A thin layer has already covered the sidewalk but the good news is it won’t amount to much more than that. Snow is always a concern because it can affect everyone’s commute as well as customer pickups. Fortunately, it’s no real issue today. The crew are less distracted by the snow than I am and jobs are handled like any other day including some set pieces for Center Stage. We do a job or two for them every year. Just like the movie and TV stuff, it’s more interesting than most of our jobs and something fun to mention to folks.

March 6

It’s the end of another week at the Shop and I’m looking forward to spending the weekend with my boy. I love every second with him and I think I smile more than I ever have before. The crew complete orders for R & R Fab and Belsinger Sign then start another for Metropolitan Steel. I’m sure they are anxious to get home too but the day drags a bit for all of us.

March 26

Baseball season is almost upon us and I cannot wait. Opening Day is next week and after such a good year in 1997, I’m hoping for more of the same. One big change for the Orioles is a new manager. Davey Johnson resigned after last season. Rumors of some falling out between him and ownership abound but I don’t really know. The Birds promoted Pitching Coach Ray Miller to skipper and I think he’ll do well. We knock out a few jobs this week for our usual local fab shops and one for a long distance customer, Machine Shop of Murfreesboro in NC. We also finish some work for the John Gutierrez Studio. John is a sculptor primarily but also a true metalsmith. He’s the sort of fellow I liked as soon as I met him. One day he walked into my office in an army jacket to discuss a job all the while eating Goetze’s caramels from Ann’s candy jar. Yes, you could say I liked him from the start.

March 31

It’s the Orioles’ Opening Day and like every year, Baltimore is excited. Hope springs eternal for fans and players alike. The game was postponed yesterday due to rain but it’s “Play ball” today. I rush home from work to watch with my boy. Unfortunately, the Birds lose to the Kansas City Royals 4-1. It’s disappointing but in baseball, there is always tomorrow and they will win big tomorrow 10-1.

April 8

Spring has sprung but it’s still chilly on Central Avenue. This morning’s coffee break is devoted to baseball talk. The Birds have won six in a row and they seem to be on a roll. It’s early but it’s a fine start. After the boys have had their coffee and the chat is done, it’s back to work for all of us. The crew are finishing a sign job for Gable Signs and Graphics today along with a few other small jobs.

April 22

The Shop has stayed steady if not busy through the cold months to start the year and today we do some work for Material Handling Systems, Belfort Instruments and a sign job for Belsinger Sign. Besides the enthusiasm for the beginning of the baseball season, we are also amped about the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Washington Capitals take on the Boston Bruins in the first round and win Game 1 by a final of 3-1.

May 3

It’s a sunny May Sunday and a good day for local sports. The Birds shut out the Minnesota Twins 2-0 and Caps win Game 6 in overtime to advance to the second round of the playoffs. The Caps have been bounced from the playoffs so often in the first round, it’s a thrill to see them move on. We have been waiting for a long deep run through the playoffs for a long time especially my brother Jack.

May 7

Washington’s opponent in the second round is the Ottawa Senators and tonight the Caps start things off right by winning 4-2.

May 11

A dreary drizzly Monday welcomes us back from the weekend. Jobs for Industrial Fabricators, Baltimore Marine Industries, Atlantic Welders and DOVCO are rolled then picked up. The rain deflates everyone’s mood a bit except for Jack who is excited for tonight’s hockey game. The Caps are up two games to none and he hopes for a short victorious series.

May 15

It’s a sports-filled Friday night for me. Holding my Joe, I flip all night between the Birds and the Caps. The Orioles lose to the Rays but more importantly, the Capitals advance to the Eastern Conference Finals by beating the Senators 3-0. They take the series in 5 games and it’s not very close with Washington outscoring Ottawa 18-7 overall.

May 23

I’m enjoying another night of sports. This being a Saturday night and the Eastern Conference Finals begin with the Caps taking on the Buffalo Sabres. Buffalo takes Game 1 in a shutout 2-0. I’m also watching the Orioles who snap a nine game losing streak by beating the Oakland A’s 9-1. The long string of losses is a hit to the Birds season and they drop back into the pack.

May 27

With the weather warming, the volume of work increases. It’s usually like this. Spring, summer and fall are our busiest times. The workers bend some pieces for a sculpture for Hess Industries and assorted jobs for our local contractors, welders, etc. It’s a busy week but everyone is looking forward to a day off on Monday to commemorate Memorial Day.

June 4

I’m watching the Caps take on the Buffalo Sabres in game 6 with my boy in my lap. Tomorrow is Friday so my mind is also on work. I have to make some tickets first thing for Pangborn Corporation, J. C. Pardo and R & S Machine Company. The R & S job is actually for Northrop Grumman. Even I know they are a pretty big outfit. I focus on the game and I am not disappointed. We win in overtime and the Washington Capitals are advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in their history. I am thrilled and I can not wait to see my brother tomorrow. Jack is the ultimate Caps fan and he must be on the moon.

June 9

Jack, Ann and I spend a large part of today talking about the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals for the Caps. It’s been a long time coming. The team will face the Detroit Red Wings who are favored but we are very excited. Jack can barely contain himself. In the Shop, we roll some square tubes for Metal Fabricators that are for a Pottery Barn. This is one of the rare occasions when we know where the finished product goes.

June 12

It’s a warm but rainy Friday at Central Avenue. Kavanagh’s and crew are looking forward to the weekend. It’s been a busy summer so far and today we finish some more work for John at Gutierrez Studios and a few other regulars. So far, the Caps lost both games in Detroit but we are hopeful for better results when the series heads to DC.

June 17

I turn 33 and it’s my first birthday as a Dad. I wake up with a smile on my face despite what happened last night. The Washington Capitals were swept out of the Stanley Cup Finals by the Detroit Red Wings. It’s a rueful night for the team and its fans. It’s tough to lose but to be swept hurts even more. It would have been nice to win one game at least but that’s not how it went. Jack is a little sullen but he’s pleased with the team’s performance this year and is already looking forward to next. They only have one more step to go and that is to win it all. The day is a busy one with quite a few jobs ready for pick up and one to ship, a set of pipes for the Whiting Metals Company. We do these several times a year. I’m looking forward to spending my birthday watching the Birds take on the Yankees. The Orioles have seriously dropped off the pace and need to gain some ground. We won the first two games of this match up in New York. Winning tonight would help but sadly, we lose and stay mired in fourth place now. I think to myself, the Birds need to get hot and stay hot.

June 23

It’s a hot summer day made hotter by annealing some copper tubes to be bent for Stambaugh and Sons. The crew are also rolling other items including some parts for eagle cages for a fellow named Mike McGrady. These are to protect, tag and observe the eagles. It’s another of those odd jobs we do which makes our work a little more interesting.  The Birds lose to the Mets tonight; unbeknownst to me, it starts another lengthy losing streak. This one will be eight games.

July 2

Independence Day is on a Saturday this year so we take the Friday off to observe the holiday. We wrap things up as early as possible at the Shop. We are able to leave at 2 PM and head home for our long weekend. The Orioles finally break their losing streak by beating the Marlins 5-3. Palmeiro homers and Eric Davis singles and scores a run. He starts a streak of his own. 

July 4

Independence Day is celebrated at Woodall Street. Joe is the star of the show as my in-laws and assorted other cousins of Kim’s stop by. There is the usual barbecue fare and other food to enjoy. Anthony and Linda’s yard is a great place to watch the Inner Harbor fireworks and visitors sometimes stop in just to see the large display the City puts on every year. For Joe’s part, he seems to enjoy the bright lights and colors but the booms not so much.

July 8

Today is a bit brutal at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. We have a set of 4” Square tubes we rolled for Sigma Industries. They needed to be filled before rolling and now they need to be melted out. Two snapper torches are lit and waved repeatedly along the tube to melt the hardened rosin inside. Once it starts to melt, it begins sliding out in black chunks. It’s the sort of thing that heats up the entire Shop. The men working on it are sweltering but everybody pays the price especially in July. A few other jobs are attended to including one of the recurring orders for Turnbull Enterprises. After work I watch the Birds beat the Boston Red Sox 3-2. They start yet another streak.

July 18

Today is a Saturday and I have made it a habit to let Kim sleep in as late as she wants on these days. I wake up with Joe and give him some breakfast. He and I spend the morning watching cartoons and playing on the floor. He’s not quite one year old so he often watches me play with the blocks and cars but does smile and seem to enjoy it. He doesn’t seem as interested in picking the toys up to play with but that’s okay. We have fun and he is still just a babe. In the evening, I watch the Orioles lose to the Angels 8-3. This ends a nine game winning streaks. This season has been one of many ups and downs and both winning and losing streaks. Despite their last hot streak, the club is still four games under .500 and mired in fourth place. I remain hopeful but we need to keep streaking in the win column and eliminate those runs of losses. 

July 24

With August approaching, the Shop and all its employees are looking forward to our annual summer vacation. As is always the case, we have a lot of work to get out of our building before we can take our break. Among the variety of jobs we are working on is one for the television show “Homicide.” We’ve bent a few items for the show and I always get a kick out of this sort of thing. This time it’s a set of aluminum pipes for a railing on set. Nothing fancy but it’s cool to be involved in these productions.

August 7

Vacation begins at the end of the day and everyone is guilty of a little clock watching. We ship a set of tubes to Ross Industries via UPS then the crew wait patiently for U.S. Gypsum and Blair Welding to pick up. Once those trucks are gone, so are we.

August 16

Kim, Joe and I spend a quiet Sunday together before I must return to work tomorrow. I watch the Birds beat the Indians and another streak ends. This time it’s a personal one. Eric Davis goes 0 for 3 after hitting safely in 30 games in a row. It’s a new Orioles record if you ignore the old NL Orioles who had Wee Willie Keeler who hit in 45 straight. Davis batted .400 during the streak and the team is finally a few games over .500. They have moved up to third place but are way behind the Yanks who are running away with the division. We sit seven games back of the Red Sox for the Wild Card. We have time to catch up but not a lot.

August 17

We are back to work after a much-needed vacation. We start new jobs for A.J. Sackett, Anchor Fence and U.S. Gypsum. No one is enthused to be back but the grumbling is kept to a minimum. That includes me.

August 27

The Shop has received a job for Playworld Systems. They are a large company that specializes in playground equipment. When they contacted me, we had a long discussion of our capabilities. This is our first order from them and I am hopeful this may lead to regular consistent work. I learned from my father never put too much faith in a job until you’ve got it but I can’t help but hope this leads to regular orders. In addition to Playworld Systems, we make some sculptural pieces for Sam Holmes Studio, a sample pipe for Whiting-Turner and a set of copper u-bends for Stambaugh and Sons. After work, I watch the Birds lose to Cleveland 4-1 and that’s four more losses in a row.

September 6

Things are not going well for the Orioles. We snapped a ten game losing streak two days ago but we are running out of games. Our playoff chances do not look good. On the flips side, the Ravens begin their season in the newly opened M & T Bank Stadium. Unlike Orioles Park where we rolled tons, we don’t get a great deal of work out of this one. I did find out after the fact some of our sign work earlier ended up at M & T but I have no idea who rolled the steel. It was probably some one from out of MD. That’s okay. You can’t win them all and the Ravens prove that by losing to the Steelers 20- 13. The team will go 6- 10 this year which isn’t great but it’s an improvement over last season.

September 9

Summer is essentially over and it was a busy one. The Shop still has plenty of work but the volume slows a bit. It’s a seasonal thing. During the morning coffee break, the discussion is primarily about Cardinals First Baseman Mark McGwire. He hit his 62^nd home run last night thus breaking Roger Maris’ single season record. That record has stood for my entire life and it’s impressive. I have seen him play when he was in the American League with the A’s. He’s the kind of hitter if he walks twice and hits a solo home run, you feel like you got him.

September 15

We’ve received another order for Playworld Systems and it is completed today. This one is a much bigger quantity and I’m happy to see it. I’m hoping they become regular with recurring parts to make. Those are good customers to have and they help keep the flow of work moving. Between loading Playworld’s truck and a common carrier shipment for Riggins Company to Hampton, VA, this is very much a truck day.

September 20

It’s a Sunday night and the Orioles are hosting the Yankees and the game is telecast nationally on ESPN. The Birds’ season is basically over. The last ten game losing streak put a nail in their coffin. What makes this game significant is, Cal Ripken has requested to be out of the lineup. He’s not playing in tonight’s game. Ryan Minor starts at third base and famously asks manager Ray Miller, “does Cal know?” Fans in Baltimore and all over baseball are stunned. Cal made no sign of taking a day off until he decided today. He’s saluted on the field by fans, teammates and opponents. They lose to the Yanks 5-4. The Streak ends.

September 21

The talk of the Shop is Cal ending the Streak. No one saw it coming and the whole thing is rehashed over and over. How it started, the near miss injuries including a broken nose while taking the All-Star team photo, Cal’s career and most of all, how he ended it. He always carried himself with dignity, respect and humility to the game. Fancy words but as someone who loves this game, Cal epitomized these things. Besides talking baseball, jobs are completed for Anchor Fence and Lenderking Metal Products.

October 3

It’s a Saturday and though Joe’s first birthday was yesterday, the party is today. Both sides of our family are there and Joe is the star. He seems much more interested in the wrapping paper than some of his new toys but he certainly enjoys the cake. I can’t believe it’s been a year. He’s growing every day but no signs of walking yet. It’s early for that anyway. Meanwhile, the Orioles’ season is done. They finish 35 games back of the Yankees in the East and 13 games back of Boston for the Wild Card. The Yanks finish with a staggering 114 wins on the year. It was a disappointing finish but that’s baseball. There’s always next year.

October 5

We’re back to work on a chilly Monday and we finish another big order for Playworld Systems. I have a good feeling about this new customer. They have definitely helped keep us rolling this year. A few other jobs are knocked out as well. Work does help fight off the chill and make the day go faster.

October 10

The Washington Capitals season starts and they host the Anaheim Mighty Ducks winning 1-0. Ann, Jack and I are very optimistic about the team. We made it all the way to the finals last year and we hope to return.

October 20

The Shop has a job to finish for a movie called “Runaway Bride.” They called a couple days ago and, of course, it’s a rush. It is being filmed in Berlin, MD and stars Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. They need some polished brass tube rolled for part of the set. There is a scene in a fancy store and they want shiny brass for it. They pick up and pay. I make a point of telling my parents about it. They live so close to Berlin. I’m sure they will be interested. Besides this pick up, Dave Hess comes by for some sculptural pieces along with a couple of our other regulars.

October 21

The Yankees sweep the San Diego Padres in the World Series. New York was a juggernaut this year. They rolled through the American League East then the playoffs and finally to the championship. I might not like it but the Yanks were incredible this year.

November 12

I sit at my desk in the office at Central Avenue. I’m writing up a bunch of delivery tickets but my mind is on Thanksgiving. It’s two weeks from today and it’s my favorite holiday. I love turkey and this year I’ll be watching parades with my son. He’s one year old, but I still think he’ll enjoy the balloons and such. I finish the tickets and take them out to the Shop then return to my desk and my turkey thoughts.

November 26

It is Thanksgiving and we celebrate on Woodall Street, my in-laws home. Their house is across the street from one of my customers, Stambaugh so I was familiar with the neighborhood when Kim and I started dating. I sit with my Joe and we watch floats, giant balloons and marching bands go by. Joe is sort of non-plussed about it but I enjoy it. The food is abundant and delicious. Anthony and Linda lay out a great spread. There is turkey with all the trimmings including parsnips for me. I make a point to tell them some day, Joe will probably be in on the parsnips too. He’s a Kavanagh.

November 27

Kim, Joe and I are visiting my parents in Ocean City. We left this morning after the holiday with the DalFonzo’s and now we are with my folks. Mom and Dad are happy to see us and Mom quickly scoops Joe from Kim’s arms. Mom always loves to hold the baby whoever the baby may be. She’s sitting in her chair and Dad is stationed on the piano bench leaning over, tickling and smiling at the baby. We are chatting about Joe, the Shop and baseball when the subject of “Runaway Bride” comes up. My parents did, in fact, go to Berlin during the filming but they couldn’t get very close to the set. They had lunch and watched from a distance.

“They had the streets all blocked off. It was kind of a pain but it was good for Berlin. I guess.” says my father. “We did get lunch anyway.”

“We did and we could see the cameras and other equipment set up outside but they wouldn’t let you get too close.” Mom adds as she grins down at Joe in her arms.

“It’s too bad you couldn’t get any closer but it’s probably rules they have, Mom.” Kim replies. “It’s still  must have been fun to be able to see some of it.”

Mom perks up. “Oh, we did see Richard Gere walk by. He is very handsome.” She beams at Kim and me.

Suddenly Dad straightens up and blurts out. “He had great hair. Didn’t he, Betty?” I wink and nod at Kim and she puts her head down to hide some soft chuckles.

“Ooooh he did indeed.” Mom shakes her head and the corners of her mouth curl up and she too suppresses a laugh. There’s a certain amusing random quality that my father’s comments sometimes have. The room grows quiet but for the baby’s coos and laughs.

Dad reaches over to Joe and pinches his cheek. “Boozie gitzie.” He has said this to every Kavanagh baby and none of us know quite what it means. Kim and I grin at each other and I shake my head. That’s my Dad for you. We have a great weekend. Mom and Dad love the time with Joe and we drive home on Sunday.

November 30

The Kavanagh’s and our workers return to the corner of Central and Pratt from Thanksgiving. We are all ready for the last rush to the end of the year. Another job for John at Gutierrez is rolled and one for Wamo Welding.

December 9

We have about two weeks left in the year to work and the Shop is full of things to do. Today several orders are picked up and more started. I’m a little distracted. First thing in the morning I looked at the calendar and realize yesterday was my work anniversary. The date I started at the Shop is December 8, 1979. Next year will be twenty years for me. It’s hard to believe.

December 23

It’s our final day of work before we escape for the year. Everyone is in a festive mood and looking forward to the holiday. Wilton Corporation, ABC Welding, Dundalk Ornamental Iron Works and Canam Steel pick up and we are done.

December 25

It’s Christmas on Woodall Street for us and I couldn’t be happier. Joe is again the star of the day. Presents galore and family making over him all day. Kim’s grandmother and her brother join us and Linda and Anthony. There is lots of food, Christmas music and movies to be watched. Joe seems to have a good time but he’s not talking yet. It’s still early for that and everyone tells us the first child is the slowest to talk and walk. It’s normal. I look forward to a week off. A break from work is needed but we did have a good year. It was aided by the Playworld work. I hope they become another customer we can rely on for regular orders. We’ll see. I will enjoy my week’s respite with Kim and Joe. We’ll have some great family time. I love my Saturdays with Joe and this will be like a full week of that. I’m really starting to like this fatherhood thing. I’m a rookie but I’m learning fast and I think I’m pretty good at it. That being said I have an unfair advantage. I learned from the best.

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. A tryst with intern Monica Lewinsky leads to Clinton being impeached but found innocent. Viagra is approved by the FDA to treat ED. The Teletubbies premiers in the US. Google is founded. Microsoft becomes the largest company in the world. The US Tobacco Master Settlement is reached between the US and the tobacco industry. Frank Sinatra, Flip Wilson, Ester Rolle, Jack Lord and Harry Caray die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read prior posts, click on the link below.

Table of Contents

January 2

Another year has begun for the old Shop at the corner of Pratt and Central. Kavanagh’s and crew return from their holiday vacation. It’s a quiet group that gets back to work at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. Time off between Christmas and New Year’s is a great thing but it doesn’t ease the pain of another year of labor beginning. We have a few things on the books to start 1997 including jobs for Kelco and Anchor Fence, two of our most reliable local customers.

January 26

The Green Bay Packers beat the New England Patriots 35-21 in the Super Bowl. I watch the game but with only a modicum of interest. My mind is on work tomorrow and the jobs we have lined up to start the week. We have an interesting job for a company called Runabout. We are bending parts for some restored motorized scooters. It’s always something different at the Shop. In addition, there’s another sculptural order and some angles to roll for Warren-Ehret.

February 4

We have completed a very large order for Codd Fabricators which includes rolled angles, flat bars and well over 100 round rods. It’s made for a good start to the year and when we are busy, it doesn’t seem quite as cold on that old corner in Baltimore.

February 20

Today we have more steel rods to finish for Codd Fabricators and several nice orders for rolled galvanized channels for Anchor Fence. Both are customers and Codd has almost single-handedly made this winter a busy one.

March 11

It’s a rainy chilly day and the crew are busy doing some work for Fred’s Welding, G-S Company, Fabritek and a heater for Egan Boiler. We also finish a recurring job for Turnbull Enterprises. These are 1” stainless steel pipes we bend in the Pines Bender and they are used for chairs for Navy helicopters. It’s cold for March but we know Spring is on the way and along with it to my delight, baseball.

March 21

We finish some parts for a set for Center Stage, a few small pipes for sculptor Stan Edmister and angles for Structural Steel Fab., Kelco and Dundalk Ornamental Iron. I have received some extremely important news of a very personal nature. Kim is pregnant. I can’t believe how happy and terrified I am at the same time. It’s the most exhilarating experience of my life. It’s the most on-the-fence thing I’ve ever experienced. I’m happy and excited but afraid and worried. I want to call my parents and Kim’s parents and tell everyone I know but I also want to keep it a secret that only Kim and I know. She’s happy and seems to grasp it better than I do. I try not to over think it and sort it out all at once as is my nature. I decide to just focus on one thing. I’m going to be a father.

April 2

It’s Opening Day in Baltimore and the Birds beat the Kansas City Royals 4-2. Expectations are high as the Orioles made it to the American League Championship Series last year. We can only hope we make it a bit further and it’s always good to start the season with a win. At the Shop, we work on jobs for Ackerman & Baynes, Whiting Metals, Codd, Winkler’s Inc. and Anchor Fence. The crew also make a sample piece for JAG Industries. After they review it, we may get a larger order. That’s how it goes with samples or even worse the dreaded “prototype.” These are jobs you can’t get too excited about. A potential large order after a small sample is still a gamble. It’s best to not do the first one too cheap. Sometimes it’s the only one.

April 13

I am watching the Washington Capitals final game of the year. They beat the Buffalo Sabres 8-3 but it’s bittersweet because the team will miss the playoffs for the first time since 1982. It’s a strange feeling. Hockey is a sport where after a long season, there is essentially a tournament for Lord Stanley’s Cup. As a fan, you grow accustomed to at least making the first round of that tournament.

April 23

Spring and baseball have both arrived along with warmer weather so by our luck, we have some annealing and filling to do. This heats up the place and we are thankful it’s not July. The tubes to be annealed and filled are for Bechdon Corporation. The boys also finish jobs for Wilton Corporation, a recurring order for EDCO and the production run for JAG Industries. Obviously, the sample was accepted.

May 6

It is finally hitting me that Kim and I will have a baby in the Fall. It’s an overwhelming thought. Kim seems to be a lot calmer than I am. That being said, I can’t help but be happy. Scared yes but mostly happy. I worry about her and I think that’s natural. Work is a reliable distraction. At the Shop, we are working on another recurring job. This one is for Belfort Instruments. The order consists of square aluminum tubes that must be annealed and bent in the Pines Bender. Each has two bends and must fit easily into a checking fixture which they provide along with the tubes. It’s a tricky job and there is always a good bit of tweaking at the end to get them to fit. We’ve done them before so it’s challenging but not overly so. In addition, some other items are rolled for some of our regulars and one for Stan Edmister. Stan is, to my knowledge, the first sculptor we had as a customer. We made parts for his playground sculptures in the past but this one is just a couple of pipes. The sculpture work is always interesting and it’s good to see Stan. Stan is a tall man, well over six foot and seeing him reminds me of the times I would see him and my Dad, who was more diminutive like me, discussing a job. Stan towering over my Dad but listening intently to everything he said. Stan was always very respectful of my father and they certainly liked each other.

May 17

Today is a Saturday and we celebrate Mom and Dad’s 50^th Anniversary at Kensington Parkway with all the Kavanagh’s and assorted families. Jack and Betty Kavanagh met at a Knights of Columbus Dance in the Spring of 1946. By all accounts, sparks were flying that night. A year later on May 17, 1947, they wed and began an incredible life together. They proceeded to have nine children and find a way to have each and every one feel special. No one felt left out. Honestly, you didn’t have that much time alone to feel left out but I jest. Our house at the corner of Lakewood and Jefferson was the house where all the kids congregated. As if having nine of their own wasn’t enough, my Mom and Dad welcomed our friends and treated them like they were their own. It was a special way to grow up but now, Jack and Betty Kavanagh are grandparents eleven times over with one on the way. It’s a great party and us kids, we marvel to see Mom and Dad together. Such a love. They still hold hands and flirt. They cherish their time together but want to see the children and talk to us any chance they can. The most astonishing thing to me is whenever all of us or even most of us can get together, it quickly feels like Lakewood Avenue all over again.

May 23

It’s a beautiful Friday in Baltimore and I am looking forward to the weekend. Kim and I are going to spend Saturday at my in-laws to discuss and plan all things baby. As the hours tick away, I spend most of the day on the phone, making calculations for quotes, writing up jobs, then handing them out to the crew. Mostly today’s focus is angles being rolled for Miscellaneous Metals, Warren-Ehret and Yoder Steel.

June 4

The Birds have been playing well and remain in first place. They are the talk of the town and also Central Avenue. During coffee breaks and lunch, last night’s game is discussed. This is how it is when your team is good and the excitement is infectious to fans. You can’t talk about it enough. When not talking baseball, a few of our local fab shops and welders pick up their orders through the day. Trucks for ABB Power and Combustion, R and R Fabrication and Codd Fabricators are loaded and sent on their way. It’s what we call a “truck” day. You get what you can get done but mostly it’s backing trucks in and chaining things up. The good part is it gives the crew more room on the floor and you go on to the next job.

June 17

Today is my birthday and I turn 32. We are still a few months away from zero hour when our baby will be born but the excitement is building. I feel I am as anxious, worried, nervous and excited as I could possibly be. Each day it gets more intense but I tell myself that’s normal. The Shop is working on some rails for Hezekiah’s Welding which will go to the new Washington Redskins Stadium. Hezekiah is an old customer and it looks like we’ll be bending these pipes a few times over the coming months.

July 1

Belsinger Sign Works picks up some square tubes rolled for the sign at the Harbor Inn hotel at Pier 5. Most of the time, we don’t know where our pieces might end up. Occasionally, a customer will mention it or more often it’s indicated on the drawing. It’s nice to know, if nothing more than to be able to say, we did this for that building, stadium, hotel. Whatever. The boys also complete a big order for Chesapeake Rigging and some pipes for Anderson Contracting.

July 3

Tomorrow is Independence Day and that means a barbecue at my in-laws on Woodall Street and watching the Inner Harbor fireworks from their backyard. It’s actually a pretty good view. I’m not much for fireworks but this year I think of watching them with my child. I feel the same about baseball, movies, cartoons and the Sun and the Moon. I look forward to introducing our child to all these things. We make a short day of it at the Shop. When trucks are loaded for Hezekiah’s Welding, Dan’s Welding and A.J. Sackett, we’re done and out before 2 p.m.

July 8

I am relaxing at home watching the All-Star game. The Orioles are again well represented with Alomar, Anderson and Ripken starting and two pitchers on the AL squad, Mike Mussina and Randy Myers. It’s a good game and the American League wins 3-1. I enjoy the distraction from work but it’s still on my mind. We will have four busy weeks before our vacation in August. Meanwhile, we are getting closer to the baby’s arrival and Kim is handling it so well. She’s amazing and I am sure she will be a great mom.

July 22

We’ve got a couple more weeks before our break and it has been busy. Today is a mixed bag of work including a heat exchanger for Baltimore Gas and Electric, some more pipes for our sculptor friend Stan Edmister and more rails for Hezekiah’s Welding.

August 8

We are waiting patiently on this Friday for quite a few trucks to come for their orders. We deliver an order to C.R. Daniels. They can be hauled in a car. Trucks for Anchor Fence, Wilton, L and S Welding and Design and Production show up and then we are on vacation.

August 22

There is the usual bit of grumbling and a staggering start to get back to work. That’s just from me. Not the workers. Nonetheless our vacation is over and our first week back is always a busy one. All those who called last week must be dealt with and the jobs already on the books must be knocked out as quickly as possible. Today we ship out more tubes for C.R. Daniels and jobs for Miscellaneous, Stambaugh and D-S Pipe are picked up.

August 28

I’m at my desk and taking a quick look at the sports section of the Baltimore Sun. The Birds are still in first place and have been since Opening Day. It’s been a great run so far and we’re heading toward the end of the season. My hopes and expectations are high for the club. Of course, my expectations and hopes are more focused on Kim and our son. In my mind, I keep hearing the Who song “Mrs. Walker” from Quadrophenia. “It’s a boy, Mrs. Walker. It’s a boy. A son! A son! A son!” He’s a boy. We know that now. I can barely contain myself when I think of introducing my boy to baseball, the Orioles, music, guitar. All those things I love. I am sure I’d be equally excited about a girl. I have seen the “Daddy’s Little Girl” perspective close up. My father has seven girls and he has a special relationship with them all. Another of the many things I admire about the man but there’s something about fathers and sons. I suppose it seems a little easier for me to pass on my most ridiculous dreams to a boy. I really have trouble putting my finger on it but I think of my father and my mother, I think of Kim and I and I am equal parts amazed, humbled and excited with a small amount of fear. Mostly my fear is washed away by Kim. She seems to have an understanding of it more than I. It’s been a tough pregnancy so far. She’s handled it with absolute grace apart for a penchant for late night Taco Bell, tomatoes and coffee ice cream. She’s incredible but I do worry about her. Suffice to say my attention at work is suffering a bit but I do the best I can. It’s the job and I am very used to it. Today a nice order for Center Stage is picked up and a job for Dundalk Ornamental Iron. The beat goes on.

August 31

The Baltimore Ravens open their second season at Memorial Stadium. The team has been welcomed to town with open arms. This Sunday afternoon, they face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars and lose but it’s a close one. 28-27. The Ravens were 4-12 in their inaugural season and fans are not expecting a great year but hopefully a better one.

September 5

The Shop has stayed busy most of this year. There is no doubt it is an uptick from last. Sometimes it’s because of one big job but sometimes, you are just happy and don’t question a good year. I am still very distracted at my desk as we are about a month away from D Day/my son’s birth. My brother, sister and our crew help keep me focused on the job and we crank out work for Anchor Fence, Triangle Sign and JRC Construction.

September 25

We are very close to the baby’s arrival. I haven’t slept the last few days much at all as I am on alert to head to the hospital or Taco Bell at the drop of a hat. Nonetheless, my job goes on and we finish one order for R & R Fabrication and two for Ackerman and Baynes at the Shop. Kavanagh’s and crew are all spending part of the day talking about the Birds. Last night, the Orioles clinched the American League East title for the first time since 1983 when we won it all. The team managed to stay on top of the division from day one of the season to the end. A most impressive feat only accomplished by five other teams in baseball history.

October 1

The Washington Capitals begin their season with a victory over the Maple Leafs in Toronto 4-1. Last year, the Caps missed the playoffs and we are hopeful for a bounce back year. Jack became a fan when the team was created in 1974 and bit by bit, first Ann then I, became loyal fans. The Capitals will win their first four games in a row and it’s taken as a sign of good things to come. I’m not watching the Caps though; Kim and I are at St. Joseph’s Hospital having a baby. We have been here for hours as Kim’s labor begins then abates then begins again. Kim is a trouper and I have no idea how she does it. I try to help all I can but my assistance is limited to distributing ice chips. We have the television on in the birthing room and it’s tuned to Fox so she can watch Beverly Hills 90210. Meanwhile, the Orioles are in Seattle facing the Mariners in Game 1 of the Divisional Playoffs so I’m flipping during the commercials. After all, it is a big game. When 90210 is finished, Kim rolls her eyes and tells me to go ahead and change the channel. As Kim practices her breathing and hopes for progress, the nurse and I keep an eye on the game. The Orioles have taken a lead and we are discussing it enthusiastically. The nurse is much more interested in the game than Kim is. It’s a battle of aces as Mike Mussina takes on Randy Johnson. The Birds have beaten Randy Johnson three times this year and I’m hoping they can do it one more time. We have been in this birthing suite for hours and they have finally agreed to give Kim an epidural. She tried and tried but the baby doesn’t want to come out so a Caesarean delivery is in order. The epidural is coming and my wife is trying to be patient but she’s in a lot of pain. As she catches her breath, the nurse and I are discussing the ball game. The Birds have opened up a 9-1 lead and it looks like we’re going to take Game 1.

“It’s crazy how we are the one team that can hit Randy Johnson.” I say, glancing from the game to the nurse. “We beat him three times in the regular season.”

She nods her head emphatically. “He’s one of the best but we can beat him. That’s our Orioles.”

“So far so good and Mussina has been outstanding. He’s doing a great job—” I’m suddenly interrupted by an irate Kim.

“Hey! I’m the one having a baby here. You know.” Kim glares at the nurse and me as she speaks through gritted teeth. “Can you pay attention to the pregnant person in the room?!”

I quickly answer but rather nervously. “Yes, yes. I know. We know. I’m sorry babe. The anesthesiologist should be here anytime. Do you want some ice chips?”

“To Hell with them ice chips. I need drugs. Tell them I need the epidural.” Kim fires back then turns her gaze to the nurse. “Well?”

“I’m sure. He’s on the way, Mrs. Kavanagh.” She re-assures Kim who seems skeptical.

Just then the door swings open and a doctor appears. “Hello Mr. and Mrs. Kavanagh. I’m your anesthesiologist.”

I breathe a sigh of relief and Kim immediately asks a bit suspiciously, “Are you going to give me an epidural?”

“Yes, Ma’am. I am.” He smiles down at her after giving me a sympathetic look.

Kim seems triumphant. “Yes! Yes! Finally. I need it and I love you.” She was speaking to the doctor not me but I take no offense.

Once the epidural takes effect, it’s delivery time and I get dressed in scrubs, gloves and mask.

October 2

Joseph Michael Kavanagh Junior is born at 12:28 a.m. after the Orioles beat the Seattle Mariners. Mussina out duels Johnson and I’m a Dad. Birthing isn’t something I’d want to see every day but after a few disturbing moments, the doctor hands me our baby boy. Kim and I weep though Kim is a bit out of it. I am not and I do speak to Joe. “Welcome to planet Earth. We will be your hosts.” Soon mom and son are being taken to recovery and I walk down the hall and give the good news to my in-laws. Linda and Anthony are thrilled but look at me quizzically then point to the pants of my scrubs. They have dropped to my ankles and are draped around my feet and I was none the wiser. For some reason, I feel compelled to walk behind a screen to pull them up despite having jeans on underneath. I’m in a strange but very pleasant haze. My in-laws laugh loudly and so do I. I’m out of it but so happy. Soon I am on the phone making a couple late night calls to spread the word. My brother and sisters pass it along to my parents in Ocean City. Around 2 a.m., Kim, Joe and I are in a room resting, smiling and crying. Mom and Dad are both hungry so I decide to venture out to find us something to eat and drink. I scour the hospital but must leave the neo-natal wing to find a vending machine. I get us Three Musketeers and Pepsi but the door has auto-locked behind me so I now must search for a way back in. As I cross the grounds, I look up at the moon. The enormity of it all seems to hit me and I shout, “I have a son!” I look over and see a guard at one of the doors watching me. I approach and he opens the door. Speaking quickly, I explain how my night has gone and he accepts my excuse. I am allowed entrance and he smiles at me knowingly. Perhaps he’s a dad or I am not the only one to have done such a thing. I return to Kim’s room and we eat candy and drink soda before getting some sleep. We’re parents now. We’re a family now. Another Joe Kavanagh is born. My Joe is born. Let the pigeons loose.

October 18

After several weeks recovering at my in-laws, my family is home. We’ve had a whirlwind few days with family and friends coming to meet Joe. We had many visitors at the hospital including my Mom and Dad who were so very happy to see my little guy. I was thrilled to hug my Mom and have her hold my baby. We hope things calm down a bit now that most folks have met the young man-of-the-hour. We are naive. Meanwhile, the Orioles were eliminated from the playoffs. We did beat Seattle in the Division Series but lose the American League Championship Series to the Cleveland Indians in six games. That’s baseball.

October 22

Today we finish a job for a film titled “Enemy of the State.” The movie which stars Gene Hackman and Will Smith is filmed locally and they need some pipes bent. I love doing movie work. We’ve done more than a few especially the John Waters and Barry Levinson films. These jobs break up the usual tedious work and suddenly, you are doing something interesting. We also ship two orders for Whiting Metals and some small rolled beams are picked up by Seaford Steel.

October 26

Ravens fans’ are particularly interested in today’s match up. Baltimore visits the Washington Redskins in a battle of local clubs. They play in the newly opened Fedex Field, the same stadium we bent some railings for earlier this year. The Ravens win 20-17 and if it’s one thing Baltimoreans like, it’s getting the best of DC at anything. In the evening, the Florida Marlins defeat the Cleveland Indians to win the World Series. The end of the baseball season is almost a relief though it pains me to think such a thing. The Birds went wire to wire in first place all year then started the playoffs so strong. But I’m tired and it’s been an exhausting but exhilarating couple of weeks. I am walking about with Joe in my arms. I’m trying to get him to sleep and silently tell myself, “A World Series this year would have been even less sleep. Next year.” I resume pacing and patting my boy’s back until he slips dreamily into a snooze and I follow. When I place him in his bed I sing a few bars of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” to him. You can never start too soon with baseball. I dream of throwing him a ball and taking him to games. Through my life, I honestly haven’t known many Joe’s. I’ve been Joe, Uncle Joe and obviously, Joe Kavanagh at the Shop. Now, I have my Joe.

October 27

There is a mini stock market crash around the world and there are concerns about its impact on the economy. The Dow drops 554 points but the next day 337 are gained back. The country seems to have dodged a bullet or maybe simply delayed its arrival.

November 11

It’s not winter yet but you can’t tell it by Central Avenue. It’s a cold cold day in the old building but the crew soldier on. There are pickups for Tri-Fab of PA, Structural Steel, Power and Combustion and Thrifty Iron Works today. The year continues strong and I have no reason to believe we won’t finish up the same way.

November 26

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving which is easily my favorite holiday. I love turkey but we do have a few things to finish up before the feast. Structural orders for DOVCO, Osprey Structural and Codd Fabricators are finished. After the last truck pulls out the back door onto Eden Street, we are ready to go and ready to eat.

November 27

Thanksgiving is spent on Woodall Street and everyone is hovering around the new baby. Joe Jr. is a very popular young man and is passed around all day. I also focus on eating turkey as that is the whole purpose of the holiday. It’s always a big spread and plenty to eat at Linda and Anthony’s. They include parsnips for me though no one else eats them. I assure them soon enough Little Joe will be having them as well. Our little guy adds a lot to the holiday. I may have even snuck him some turkey skin. I can’t quite remember.

December 9

The month of December is usually a wild one at 201 S. Central Avenue. We take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off each year so the weeks prior are fairly intense. We find a way to get at least four weeks worth of work done in three so we can enjoy that extra break. Today several angles are rolled for Lenderking, some 4” Pipes for D-S Pipe and tubes for another sign for Belsinger Sign Works.

December 21

The Cincinnati Bengals beat the Ravens 16-14 to finish out the 1997 season. Our football team finishes with a 6-9-1 record. It’s not particularly good but it is an improvement over last year. Fans are undaunted and the Ravens are becoming very popular in the City. Construction has begun on a new fancy football stadium near Camden Yards and I wait by the phone hoping to get some work from it. The Shop received a tremendous amount of work when Oriole Park was built but we shall see as far as this new one goes.

December 23

Again, the Kavanagh’s and crew wait patiently for the final pickups of the year. Bechdon and Huber Welding arrive in the morning while we try to finish three items for Codd Fabricators. Codd’s jobs are finished last as they are only five minutes away. We know they’ll get their truck up here in time. Once Codd is loaded, we head off to celebrate the Yule and we will return in the New Year. I’ll stop by once next week to get the mail and make sure the building is still there but otherwise, we’re done.

December 25

Christmas is upon us and it couldn’t be much sweeter. There’s a baby and that means toys, toys and more toys. My Joe is too little to quite grasp the importance of the day but he enjoys tearing wrapping paper from packages regardless of the gift. Kim and I are parents and the shock has begun to wear off. We are happy with “baby makes three.” Happier than I ever thought I could be. I have my girl and now I got my boy. Life makes a lot more sense now. It seems simpler. Keep them happy and I know I will be happy. I do dream of Joe working at the Shop some day alongside my brother’s sons. Perhaps, I’ll even have another boy to keep the Kavanagh two son tradition alive. My boys working with Jack’s boys would be such poetic justice and so in line with the Kavanagh way. We shall see and this is all assuming Joe doesn’t make it as a switch-hitting power-hitting third baseman for the Baltimore Orioles. It is always good to have a back up plan.

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. Madeline Albright becomes the first woman to serve as Secretary of State. Princess Diana is killed in a car crash in Paris. A computer, Deep Blue defeats Garry Kasparov in chess. The Lion King premiers on Broadway. The films “Titanic,” “Men in Black” and “As Good As It Gets” are released. The NASA Pathfinder successfully lands on Mars. The last Woolworth’s store closes. OJ Simpson is found liable in a civil suit filed by the families of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman. Curt Flood, Allen Ginsberg, Jimmy Stewart, Michael Hedges and James Michener die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read prior posts, click on the Table of Contents link below:

Table of Contents

January 2

The Joseph Kavanagh Company begins another year in an inauspicious way with its typical mix of fabrication and ornamental metal work. A small job for Coat of Armor Welding is finished on day one then orders for Belfort Instruments, Pardo, Warren-Ehret, R & R Fabrication and William Tarant & Sons are prepped and begun. January is a cold start to the year at the Shop. It’s the dreary start to the dreariest part of the year.

January 8

The Shop is closed for a couple of days after a blizzard rolls through Baltimore. Locally, most areas received at least fifteen inches of the stuff with some spots as much as twenty-two inches. It’s the usual pain of shoveling and then trying to get to work so we can shovel there. The City comes to a halt as the white stuff is everywhere. There are piles and piles of it all over town and streets that don’t get plowed are impassable for a week. I find out that my new wife Kim loves snow. It looks so pretty to her but for me, I think of the shoveling, the driving and the general mess of it all. That being said, she’s right. It is very pretty out.

January 26

It’s been a steady if not busy start to the year. The crew on the corner of Pratt and Central labor on, bending metal through the day as they have for many years. Today some cupro-nickel u bends are bent for RPC. They will be used in a heat exchanger and these jobs are often welcomed at the Shop. Copper means annealing which means torch work and in January that’s a good thing. These are copper and nickel combined. Ninety percent pre-annealed copper and ten percent nickel means they are malleable and no heat is necessary. It’s easier but the heat of a torch is missed in the winter. In addition to these tubes some big angles are rolled for Structural Steel in our largest machine the R-6-S.     

January 28

The Dallas Cowboys defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-11 in the Super Bowl. I watch from my home on Charlesmont Road. Kim and I have settled into a very happy life together. I’m working at the Shop and she works at Specworks, an advertising specialty company. They do a lot of promotional work for local charities. They are located five minutes from the Shop and that is very convenient. We drive to and from work together and you couldn’t find two happier newlyweds. On a Sunday, I enjoy watching the big game but mostly I enjoy being with my girl.

February 6

The cold winter continues in the old Shop. The Kavanagh’s and crew have grown accustomed to it. The building was constructed in 1910 and not made to fight off the elements like modern facilities. Jobs for Structural Steel, Miscellaneous Metals, Anderson, Ackerman and Baynes, A.K. Metal are banged out today.

February 29

It’s leap day and the enthusiasm of an extra work day in the year is lost on everyone. The boys work on some pipes for Chesapeake Rigging, R & R Fabrication, Miscellaneous Metals and Warren-Ehret. The good news is we also have a heat exchanger to make for USF & G and some U-Bends to make for Stambaugh. The annealing of the tubes for USF & G and Stambaugh heat up the place. The snapper torches blast propane and every worker or owner takes any opportunity to walk close by. You have to get some warmth wherever you can.

March 8

Today is Friday and the crew on Central Avenue can not wait until the end of the day. Friday is just about every workers favorite day of the week. The day drags by, of course, as the Shop completes orders for Whiting Metals, Pangborn, Stambaugh & Sons and more work for R & R Fabrication. R & R has been a customer for about ten years. The place is run by two brothers Jimmy and Randy Williams. They are two good fellows to deal with and a company that regularly helps to keep us rolling.

March 22

Much of the day at the old Shop is spent finishing a big Anchor Fence job and then loading the truck. Orders for Codd Fabrication and Miscellaneous Metals are picked up as well. Spring and its warmer weather have arrived and that makes work a lot more comfortable for all of us.

March 29

After another long week at the Shop, I’m home on a Friday night watching a Capitals hockey game and the news hits that the new NFL team in Baltimore will be called the Ravens. It’s a tip of the cap to Edgar Allan Poe and quickly the name catches on and though I wasn’t expecting Ravens, I like it too. The Capitals beat the Ottawa Senators 5-0 so it’s a great game to watch. Lots of goals on our side and none for theirs. I know my brother Jack, the ultimate Washington Caps fan, is enjoying this one at home.

April 2

Today is the Orioles’ Opening Day at Camden Yards. All morning we talk about the game anxiously. Hope springs eternal in baseball and for me, this year is particularly hopeful. The Orioles have signed Roberto Alomar and B.J. Surhoff to bolster the roster. Surhoff is a pure baseball player who can play multiple positions. He’s an old school player and he can hit. Alomar is one of the premier second baseman of this era. Teaming him with Ripken at short seem like almost a dream team of double play combinations. Ann, Jack and I watch the first inning from the television in the office then everyone races home to watch the rest. The Birds beat the Kansas City Royals 4-2. The enthusiasm is that much stronger when the season starts with a win.

April 10

The Birds’ hot start has continued and they win six of their first seven games. This only amps up the excitement for the season and it’s the talk of the Shop. The games are dissected during lunch and coffee breaks. As a rabid Oriole fan, I am happy and feeling confident about this club. Despite the baseball distraction, we do manage to do some work knocking out jobs for Pardo, Durrett Sheppard, Warren-Ehret and the G-S Company.

April 17

The Washington Capitals start their opening round playoff series against the Pittsburgh Penguins with a big road win 6-4. Jack is very excited and he seems hopeful this year may be the chance to beat the rival Pens and move forward toward the Stanley Cup Finals.

April 28

Once again, the Caps are eliminated from the playoffs by the Penguins. Pittsburgh wins game six in DC 3-2 and takes the series. Jack is disappointed but more irked by the fact it’s the same Pittsburgh team that the Caps just can’t seem to get past. I couldn’t agree more.

April 30

I stand in the open front garage door staring at Central Avenue. I watch traffic move along then pause as the light changes from green to red. Pratt and Central is a busy intersection especially during the work week. The crew have returned to work after their morning coffee break and some general chit chat. The Orioles and the pleasant weather dominating the talk. It’s a breezy comfortable day and the boys are rolling some steel for a rail for G-S Company, some big bars for Price Brothers and a sign for the State Highway Administration. The last one is an oddball to me. I don’t remember doing any work directly for the State Highway Admin before but we’ll bend for anybody.

May 16

It’s been one of those days where everything goes wrong. Murphy’s Law as my father liked to say. Problems with our hoist and the R-3-S Angle Roller complicate the day and I am anxious for its end as I write out delivery tickets for Fabricating and Welding, Codd and a few others. At least some jobs were finished. Mechanical breakdowns are part of life in an industrial business but they always seem to come at the most inconvenient time. I pick Kim up from her job at SpecWorks and we drive home to Dundalk.

May 30

The Shop’s crew and the Kavanagh’s are preparing for a long Memorial Day weekend. A well-earned but brief respite from the day to day. It’s another Friday and despite the clock ticking slowly, the crew finish a big structural steel order for Miscellaneous Metals as well as rolled pipe for Warren-Ehret, Whiting Metals and AS & L Industries.

June 6

The hot humid day is interrupted by a quick thunderstorm in the afternoon. The humidity breaks as the deluge of water covers the Shop and the sidewalk. Anything that cools the place off is a good thing. As the storm rages the crew finish jobs for three of our regular local customers, Winkler’s Inc., Stambaugh & Sons and Codd Fab.

June 16

It’s Father’s Day and after a couple of hours at my in-laws to celebrate with my father-in-law, I call my Dad from home and speak to him as well.  Just after hanging up, the phone rings and it’s my friend and band mate Tim Heaps. Tim tells me his father has died. The family went out for a very nice Father’s Day dinner and had a great visit. Upon returning home, Barry suffered a heart attack and he passed very quickly. It’s a shock. Barry and Madge Heaps were the band parents for Lethal Injection. For years, I saw more of them than my own parents who lived on the Eastern Shore. They put up with a lot of noise and nonsense while we practiced and played in their basement. Mr. Barry would ask about work and Miss Madge would remind me when I needed a haircut. They said and did those things my parents couldn’t because of distance. Barry and Madge also hosted our backyard concerts. The Heaps seem to relish the idea of holding these shows. There was always plenty of food and drink for guests and lots of fun for all. My friends came to call Mr. Barry the Bill Graham of Rosedale. The man loved to throw a party. He was funny and irreverent but a fine man and his loss hurts particularly because it came so fast and was so unexpected.

June 17

It’s my birthday and a Monday but I’m not even thinking about it. I tell Ann, Jack and the crew about Tim’s father. My sister and brother certainly knew Mr. Barry but most of the crew know Tim. Tim worked at the Shop part-time for a few years. I promise to pass along the details of the arrangements as soon as I hear them. I focus on the jobs laid out before me. The Shop’s work is steady and strong. Summer is usually our busiest time. Today we finish some items for F & M Machine, Miscellaneous Metals & Codd. I pick Kim up from work and when I’m home, my wife makes me cupcakes for my birthday. She really has a way about her.

June 25

I’m rushing all day from office to Shop and back. That’s a good sign but makes for a hectic day. I hand out jobs to the boys and then call customers to arrange some pick ups. By the end of the day, I feel like I walked a mile. I pick up Kim at Specworks and we head home. I’m looking forward to a night cooling off in the air conditioning.

July 9

It’s a hot Tuesday in Baltimore and certainly inside the old Shop. The crew are focused on work for quite a few of our regulars, Turnbull Enterprises, D-S Pipe, Industrial Refrigeration and a few others. I pass out jobs and write tickets but my mind is on tonight’s All-Star game. It will be played in Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadium and three Orioles will start. The double play combination of Ripken and Alomar were both voted starters while Brady Anderson will replace injured Ken Griffey Jr. During pre-game team photos, Cal Ripken is inadvertently knocked down and breaks his nose. Not to worry, Cal is ready by game time and if All-Star games counted in consecutive game strings, his remains in tact. The National League blanks the American League 6-0 but I enjoy the game. Seeing two Orioles manning the infield is a thrill for me.

July 22

Oriole fever gets that much hotter. The Orioles make a trade to bolster their lineup and bring back a former Bird from better days. Eddie Murray returns to Baltimore and is welcomed with open arms. I am beyond excited. Eddie was one of my childhood heroes. He even threw me a ball once during warmups. We were in our seats on the third base line near the tarp and lots of kids would be calling to players and asking for a ball or autograph and such. I never did. I would just call out a greeting or “have a good game” or something. One night just before heading to the dugout, Eddie looked right at me and said “Hey kid.” I looked and he threw me the ball. I caught it and was stunned. Before I could shout my thank you, Eddie was trotting into the dugout. A night and a game I will never forget. It was my Mean Joe Greene in the Coke commercial moment. To see Eddie back in the Orange and Black? That was going to be great. Eddie did not disappoint. He homered late in the game to win it and received a curtain call just like the old days. Sometimes you can go home.

July 25

In a couple of weeks, we will have our summer vacation and that adds to everyone’s motivation to get things done. The workers crank out orders for L & S Welding, Lenderking Metal Products and several others but most of my day is spent on a large angle and beam rolling quote for Miscellaneous Metals. 

August 3

The long wait for Baltimore NFL fans comes to an end on this Saturday. The Baltimore Ravens host the Philadelphia Eagles at Memorial Stadium. It’s the Ravens first preseason game and though it’s meaningless, Baltimore fans are very excited and the Ravens win 17-9.

August 7

It’s a busy and anxious Wednesday at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. Busy because we have a few jobs to finish and anxious because next week we are closed and no one wants that affected. Jobs for Turnbull, Codd and more are completed and now we are sure, everything that needs to be done will be done.

August 30

I am looking at the Orioles schedule as I sit at my desk. The Birds have some ground to make up but I  know we don’t have to win the division this year. A wild card has been added to each league which basically means the best second place team in any division will qualify for the playoffs. I’m excited because this finally could be our year. I grab a stack of job cards and head out to the Shop. We finish work for a big group of our regulars including Codd, Kelco,  Antenna Research and Ackerman & Baynes.

September 6

I’m relaxing at home on a Friday night watching the Orioles take on the Tigers at Camden Yards. The Birds are very much in the thick of it for a playoff spot. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Eddie Murray knocks one out of the park. Fans have been anticipating Eddie’s next homer for weeks. This one is number 500 and Murray becomes only the third player ever with 500 home runs and 3000 hits. He joins two of the greatest of all-time, Hank Aaron and Willie Mays in this exclusive club. I cheer and celebrate as all Orioles fans do when the balls leaves the yard. It’s not lost on anyone that this is one year to the day from Cal Ripken Jr. breaking Gehrig’s record. This game goes into extra innings and unfortunately, the Orioles lose in the 12^th.

September 11

Today I’m busy on Central Avenue as the phone keeps ringing. Most days we get a steady stream of calls but occasionally it seems if I hang up the phone, it rings right back at me. Today is such a day with customers calling to check on the status of their orders. I’m able to inform Wilton, Codd, Yoder and Anderson their jobs are completed and ready for pick up. When I hang up the phone for the last time just before 4, I quickly turn on the answering machine. We are ready to close up, lock up and get out of there.

September 25

The MLB playoffs are approaching and the race is tightening up with just a few games to play. Baseball talk fills the hours of the day at the Shop. The Kavanagh’s have been Orioles fans for 100 years, In fact, the first confirmed Baltimore Orioles game attended by my family was August 1, 1896. My great-grandfather and his brothers celebrated his birthday at the ballpark. It’s one thing to be a fan but when the team is heading toward the postseason, it gets very exciting. Between talks of hits, runs and box scores, the crew completes work for Easton Steel, Interstate Steel, Anchor Fence and the George Eckart Company.

October 6

The Washington Capitals begin their 23^rd season losing to the Chicago Blackhawks at home 5-2. Even with a loss, Jack and the rest of us are happy to see another hockey season begin. A new start means another chance to finally win that Stanley Cup that has somehow managed to avoid the team’s grasp. Jack started the Kavanagh hockey fandom over twenty years ago. Now, we are solid Caps fans though none of us are on Jack’s level of devotion.

October 10

It’s a tough day at the Shop and in Baltimore. The events of Game 1 of the ALCS are gone over in great detail. The already infamous catch/interference by a young fan, Jeffrey Maier, is discussed over and over. Everyone comes to the conclusion it would have been caught by Tony Tarasco. The defeat is a bitter one but that is baseball. Things happen and you either win or you lose. I get back to work and write up a couple of jobs. I hope we can bounce back and still take the series.

October 14

It’s a somber Monday in Baltimore as the Orioles were eliminated from the ALCS by the Yankees last night. Jack, Ann and I talk it over and it’s disappointing but that’s life. While eating my lunch, the phone on my desk rings and I answer with the standard, “Joseph Kavanagh Company.”

“Hey Joe, how’s it going?” I recognize my father’s voice immediately.

“I’m alright, Dad. How’s things down the Ocean?” I reply as I glance over to Ann who looks up from the ledger she is writing in when she hears me say Dad.

“It’s okay but it’s getting cold. I hate this damn cold weather.” He pauses a moment then quickly asks, “So what happened with the Birds?”

I sigh then speak. “They just couldn’t get it done. They lost that first game with that screwy catch. The kid reached out.”

“Oh that was crazy. It was clearly fan interference.” my father quickly interrupts me but I’m not bothered because he’s my Dad and he also agrees with me.

I grin over at Ann who smiles back, both of us knowing how Dad is. “Yep. It was very clear but they weren’t ever changing that play. Not gonna happen. Not in New York.”

“Oh Hell no. They would string up the umpire right on the field.” He chuckles briefly. “I guess it just happens sometimes. You know how it goes. Weird things happen but it’s baseball.”

I sit back a bit in my chair. “Yeah, that’s how it goes and we could have just played better. It was only one game. It may have changed the momentum and all that but we got beat.”

“Remember what Earl Weaver said about momentum in baseball. It all depends on your next pitcher.” Dad recalls one of Earl’s viewpoints on the game.

“I know. I know. We got beat plain and simple but at least we made it to the Championship Series.” I take a sip of water. “So I know you didn’t just call to talk baseball. You must have had some excuse.” I smile again and this time I hear my Dad’s laughter in the receiver.

“Well Mom needs to talk to Ann about some paperwork stuff. I just wanted to catch you first and talk about the playoffs. There’s always next year, kid. The team is going in the right direction.” He finishes with a decidedly hopeful tone in his voice.

I mouth the words “Mom wants to talk to you” to Ann then turn my attention back to my father. “Yes, there’s always next year. Let’s hope we can go a little further. That would be nice.”

“It sure would. Alright Joe, your Mom wants to talk to Ann. I gotta hand the phone to her.”

“Okay, Dad. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“Hey Darlin’.” I smile when I hear my Mom’s voice. She often calls us kids, darlin’.

I nod again to Ann and she prepares to grab the phone. “I’m okay, Mom. Busy but doing okay.”

“How’s that lovely wife of yours?” She asks.

“Kim’s great. She keeps me on the straight and narrow.” My smile broadens.

Mom answers right back. “Of course. That’s what she’s supposed to do.”

I laugh. “Well, she’s very good at it. I know you need to talk to Ann so I’ll send you over. You take care of you and Dad, okay?”

“Always. I always do and I love you and that sweet girl of yours. Give her a hug and a kiss for me then send me over to Ann.” I can almost picture Mom’s sweet smile when I hear her voice.

“You got it, Mom. I love you too.” I transfer the call to Ann who grabs the receiver and talks to Mom.

I sit for a moment in silence then I grab a stack of delivery tickets and begin filling them out. Yeah, there’s always next year.

October 31

It’s Halloween, and Kim has our house decorated to the nines. She loves the holiday and it’s an adjustment for me but a pleasant one. We never celebrated it much as kids, and as an adult, I kept my porch light out and was rarely home. It’s a new experience for me but I enjoy handing out candy especially to the little ones. Baseball season is over as the Yankees went on after defeating the Birds and took four of six from the Atlanta Braves in the World Series. It was a rueful ending for the Orioles but I still think it was a good season. I never like seeing the Yanks win it all but it hadn’t happened since 1978 so I suppose they were due. Jobs for Whiting Metals, Structural Steel and many of our regulars are worked on in the Shop. The crew are busy and they should be this time of year. We generally need to stay pretty busy from May to October. The other months are often disrupted by weather and there are the holidays. Relying on these times is a standard practice for most businesses and certainly for the Joseph Kavanagh Company.

November 5

It is election day with Democrat and incumbent Bill Clinton defeating Republican Senator Bob Dole and Independent Ross Perot, a distant third. Perot was included in the debates in 1992 but not this year after receiving far less media attention. I, of course, vote for myself and do all I can to get my wife to do the same. Only she really knows. I have been voting for myself since 1988. I have little hope of ever attaining the Executive Office but a man can dream. The other option is for either party to nominate someone I want to vote into office. Another dream.

November 8

The arrival of November always puts me in a turkey mood. My wife believes I’m much like the Darren McGavin character in the movie “A Christmas Story.” I may not be as fanatical as he is but I am close. We’re still steady at the Shop and I’m hoping it stays that way until the end of the year. Today we finish work for our usual mix of assorted welders and fabricators and one job for Center Stage.

November 24

Jack and I attend a Ravens Game at Memorial Stadium and unfortunately, we lose to the Jacksonville Jaguars 28-25 in overtime. Jack brings his sons, Paul and Patrick along as well. I haven’t been to an NFL game in over fifteen years. I went to several preseason Colts’ games when I was a kid. My Dad and Jack went to just about every game but Dad would make a point of taking me once each year. My brother is and always was a bigger football fan than I am. I’m a baseball guy. Still, I look forward to this game and it’s a good one. It’s a nice way to spend the day with my brother and his boys.

November 28

Thanksgiving has arrived and it’s my favorite holiday. No shopping or endless decorating but good food, football and family. On the drive over to Woodall Street, I go over in my head yesterday’s work schedule. Everything that needed to be handled was finished including work for Structural Steel, Anchor Fence, Miscellaneous Metal and several of our other regulars. Nothing was left hanging over the long weekend and that’s always a good thing. We have a wonderful holiday feast including a delicious turkey and I do all I can to steal some skin before it’s served. All the trimmings are there including parsnips. My mother-in-law makes a point of having them for me though no one else eats them. Before and after the food, my father-in-law and I sit and watch football. Watching football with Anthony becomes a yearly tradition. With the arrival of the Ravens, it’s that much more fun to view some NFL matchups. We have a good time no matter what game is on, though watching the Lions lose on Thanksgiving becomes a recurring theme.

December 11

It’s a cold day at the Shop and it seems winter arrived early. There is some annealing to do for a heat exchanger for East Coast Welding and that helps. Besides the heater, the workers finish stuff for Greencastle Metals, Kelco, Anchor Fence and others.

December 20

The holiday rush is on across the country and that includes 201 S. Central Avenue. Like every year, we take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off so the end of the December is always a hurried affair. I check the schedule and the calendar. We wait on trucks to pick up jobs for Mercy Hospital, Metropolitan Steel and four others before we can escape.

December 25

Christmas is here and we spend the day with Kim’s parents and her grandmother. The usual holiday trappings are in order. Lots of gifts, lots of fun and family time. It’s the end of the year and I always tend to get reflective. Kim and I are happy. The Shop is staying busy enough not to have to worry much. I see my friends often as they come by the house. I miss the band but I still have in my head, some day Tim and Ray and I will play together again. I don’t think it will be long but right now Kim and I are newlyweds and we love every minute of our time together. As my father said of my mother, she’s my girl and I want everybody to know it. So it is with Kim. I look forward to another good year at  the Joseph Kavanagh Company, a second year of Ravens’ football and another good season for the Orioles. This year took us back to the playoffs and I’m confident next year will be better. A World Series would make for a thrilling Summer and Fall. I will have that thrill next year but not necessarily because of baseball.

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. President Clinton signs the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty at the United Nations. Nintendo releases Nintendo 64 in the US. NASA launches the Mars Global Surveyor. A nail bomb explodes in Atlanta during the Summer Olympics. George Burns,  Ella Fitzgerald, Tiny Tim, Howard Rollings and Carl Sagan die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read prior years, click on the Table of Contents link below:

Table of Contents

January 3

A new year starts for the Joseph Kavanagh Company on the corner of Pratt and Central. It will be an exciting year; in October, I am getting married. I learn quickly there is much work in preparing for a wedding and a great need for a large pile of yellow pads. Design & Production calls me and they have a big job for us. It’s a large order for parts for displays for the soon-to-be-built Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. I’m excited as I love music and the thought of a lot of work coming in is always good.  We have a nice bit of work to start with jobs for DCA Food, Turnbull, C.R. Daniels and a few of our fabricator customers.

January 11

It has been a rough time for sports. Baseball is still on strike and the NHL locked its players out in the Fall in hopes of forcing a deal between owners and players. Finally, today the Lockout is over and a shortened season is planned. Soon enough  there will be games to watch. I’m still waiting on baseball to resolve their work stoppage. The crew are busy in the cold Shop bending some elbows for C.R. Daniels, rolling some pipes for Miscellaneous Metals and a few other small orders.

January 17

The Shop stays fairly busy for January with some regular work for fabricators like Marelco and Miscellaneous Metals. We also have a small job for Center Stage. I love doing things for movies and plays. It makes my job more interesting and Center Stage has something for us once or twice a year.

January 21

The first Capitals game is a tie against the Hartford Whalers. It doesn’t  matter as fans are thrilled to have games being played. Jack got his favorite sport back. Now let’s see what happens with baseball.

January 27

Skip Lepp from Design and Production comes to the Shop today and we meet face to face. He brings several orders with him and so begin months of work all for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. The scope of the job grows through the year. I knew we would have at least ten or fifteen displays to make parts for but as the year passes, the orders keep rolling in. Skip and I have hit it off well already on the phone,  but in person we match even more so. He’s a baseball fan though a dreaded Yankee fan. Still, we get on well,  making this long job and future ones move smoothly.

January 29

The San Francisco Forty-Niners beat the San Diego Chargers in the Super Bowl 49-26. I watch the game from Charlesmont Road after practice with my band Lethal Injection. With plans being made for the wedding and Kim living with me now, we have cut practices back a bit. The reality is the years together and over exposure to each other are as much the cause of our pulling back on the band as is my coming marriage. We’ve spent nearly every day together for the last 12 years and that leads to getting on each other’s nerves regularly. We still have fun but there are no plans to perform and no potential venues anyway.

February 1

February starts cold but the busy winter continues with an order for Whiting Metals shipped out today while we complete jobs for Anchor Fence and Scriba Welding. Anchor sends in their usual galvanized channels which we bend for fence rails and Scriba is also a railing though for a larger area, a section of a park or sports field.

February 7

It’s a very cold Tuesday at 201 S. Central Avenue. A day we wish we had some torch work but it’s all cold bending and rolling today. Another job for Center Stage is finished and some more galvanized channels for Anchor Fence but most of the crew are working on structural curves for Wilson Point Steel, Ackerman and Baynes, Industrial Fabricators and DOVCO. I finish going over some more drawings for Design and Production as more displays for the Rock N Roll Hall are in process.

February 19

No news on the baseball front is suddenly news. The players and owners are far apart on a deal and the league has given teams the go-ahead to use “replacement players.” These are non-union ball players who would most likely be out of the game but for this opportunity. The union and many folks call them “scabs” for crossing the picket lines and joining teams. Curiously enough, Peter Angelos the Orioles owner who is a successful union lawyer refuses to field a team of replacements. It makes the team stand out and I can imagine the other owners were none too pleased about it. Spring Training camps will open soon in Florida and Arizona but not for the Birds. The Orioles will stay in pause or strike mode.

February 22

Another load of work for the Rock and Roll Hall is finished and orders for George Eckart Company, stainless steel u bends for Stambaugh, more channels for Anchor Fence, and a long bar rail for Miscellaneous Metals make for a surprisingly busy February. The usual work is there but it’s always at a lower volume in the winter but with the Design and Production HOF jobs, this winter is rolling along well.

March 1

Springs gets closer at Central Avenue and the sun is shining as the crew move material in and out of the machines. I finish a tube sheet for a set of copper u bends for Stambaugh and write up a delivery ticket for yet another order for Design and Production, With every order from D and P, I get more excited. The idea of work of ours in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is very cool to me. I also know it’s been good for the bottom line.

March 13

The Shop is warm with the heat of torches as we complete a heat exchanger for Egan Boiler Service. Copper tubes are annealed, bent,  then trimmed. Finally, they are expanded into a steel header and the unit is done. Heaters are old school on Central Avenue as we’ve made them for decades. A few of our regular customers have orders in the Shop too, Industrial Fabricators, Ed-K Machine and Fabricating and Welding Service.

March 17

It’s St. Patrick’s Day and things are busy at the corner of Pratt and Central. More Rock N Roll work for Design and Production is completed along with a set of stainless angle rings for J.L. Marshall and several structural orders for Codd and Bengies Welding. I’m also filling out job cards for another order for D and P as well as jobs for Fabritek Company, EA Enterprises, Anchor Fence and an EDCO regular order. Equipment Development Corporation’s pipe and rod rings is a recurring job we receive once or twice a year. On the personal side, plans continue for Kim and my wedding. Long lists are made on yellow pads. They are checked and re-checked while the specifics of menu and entertainment are discussed. It’s a little over six months away so I have no wedding jitters yet though the process is much more complicated than I knew.

March 31

The Shop knocks out some angle rings for Stambaugh and Lenderking, flat bars and pipes for Codd Fabricators,  but the news of the day is the baseball strike has ended. The two sides finally come to an equitable way of making millions and sharing it, all the while returning the National Pastime to the nation. Baseball fans everywhere are elated,  including this one. The fans of Baltimore have something else on their minds though. As soon as the schedule is released, Orioles fan count the number of days until Cal Ripken could eclipse Lou Gehrig’s Consecutive Games Streak. Cal’s streak or “The Streak” as it has come to be called will have him catching and passing Gehrig in early September.

April 6

Spring has picked up right where winter stopped, we are busy at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. Jobs for several of our regular fabricator customers are completed while we bend some tubes for an exercise machine for German Health and Fitness as well. We’ve made these parts for their machines for several years. It’s a good job but not easy to make money on. The tubes are bent only slightly but we still must set up the machine with all the tools. It’s a job we can only charge so much for and the time allocated is a little tight.

April 10

We complete a job for the Maryland Science Center for one of their interactive displays. I can’t help but think of my youth spending several hours on a Saturday at the Science Center exploring the displays and playing with assorted simulations and such. I’m writing up a deliver ticket for Pardo as I think of those teenage days,  hopping on a bus and a few minutes later I was downtown. They were fun days. A call from Mike Cooney at RMC Welding breaks my thought as he needs a couple pieces rolled. After I speak to Mike, I hear from Skip Lepp with more work for the Rock and Roll Hall. That job keeps coming back and I get excited each time.

April 19

12 Monkeys Productions picks up some pipes for their upcoming movie being filmed in town. I don’t know anything about it but I love film work. It’s not until I see it a few years later that I have an appreciation for what is a strange but very entertaining movie. I always love the movie work no matter the film. The crew are busy with angles for Southern Iron Works and Lenderking Metal Products, pipes for Industrial Fabricators and another order for the Rock N Roll Hall. These are tubes which needed to be filled before rolling so everyone is happy we’re not in the heat of the summer. They will be melted out after rolling and that will mean more fire and heat from snapper blow torches.

April 26

The Orioles visit the Kansas City Royals to welcome baseball back. Some fans are vocal in their disappointment at the strike that ended last season prematurely but most are happy to have the game back. Unfortunately, the Birds lose this one 5-1. Opening up on the road has never been good for the Orioles. They will lose two more before finally notching their first victory.

May 1

The Orioles home opener is today and they are shut out handily by the Milwaukee Brewers. Ricky Bones only allows two hits and the Birds lose 7- 0. I listen on the radio from the office at the Shop for the first inning or so then we all race home and catch what we can on TV. It’s a rough start to the year but I am happy there is baseball at all. The strike gave me pause as to the future of the game but now my hopes are high the Orioles can compete and  like most Baltimoreans I look to early September for an historical feat to occur.

May 2

The NHL season comes to an end with the Capitals thumping the Pittsburgh Penguins 7-2. The Caps will face these same rival Pens in the first round of the playoffs. Jack is psyched. He knows the Caps history with the Penguins but he’s confident this year will be different. We discuss the upcoming playoffs as I write up another job for Design and Production, several standard channel orders for Anchor Fence and jobs for Rick’s Iron Works and Riggs Distler.

May 8

Another order for Design and Production is picked up today along with a job for Fabritek in Virginia. I know the D and P work will have to end soon as the Rock and Roll Hall’s opening is set for October. Still, I fill out another job card for yet another display. I pass on some quotes to Ann that we have received orders for. Anderson Industrial Contracting, Riggs Distler and Acme Iron Works have called to confirm jobs.

May 18

Yet again, the Pittsburgh Penguins knock the Washington Capitals out of the playoffs. The Caps had taken a 3-1 lead in the series but lose the final three and they are out again. This one bugs Jack a little more as he is beginning to really despise losing to Pittsburgh but in a couple days, he’s back to the ever hopeful loyal fan he has always been.

May 30

The crew and the Kavanagh’s rush out of the Shop as the long weekend is here. Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer and everyone is ready for it. Design  & Production picks up a completed order as does Warren-Ehret, L & S Welding and Miscellaneous Metals. Having Monday off seems to make Friday that much longer. We count the minutes and the hours and with a little luck and trucks arriving early enough, we shut down at 2 pm.

June 9

The Shop’s summer has started busy with jobs for many of our regulars, Kelco, G-S, Codd, and more. The amount of work has certainly been boosted by Design and Production’s displays for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We have another order ready for them today and I know we must be coming close to the end of the job.

June 19

Kim and I both celebrated our birthdays a couple days ago and I start to realize our wedding is getting closer and closer. The plans are all made and now it’s the waiting. At the Shop, I call C.R. Daniels to arrange delivery of some of the standard elbows we make for them. The boys also bang out orders for Anderson Industrial Contracting, Codd Fabricators and a carny job for Amusements of America. We have several customers in the amusement/carnival industry. If they need replacement parts for rides or something for a repair, they will show up at our door. It’s often something unusual but we pride ourselves on not being fazed by the unusual.

June 26

Another week begins at the Joseph Kavanagh Company and we remain solidly busy. First thing in the morning, Ann, Jack and I discuss the Stanley Cup Finals. The New Jersey Devils swept the Detroit Red Wings to take the Cup on Saturday. It was a strange lockout shortened season but at least they played. We go over the schedule for the week too. There are jobs for Anchor Fence, G-S Company, Codd Fab., L and S Welding, Ackerman and Baynes and Winkler’s Inc. Almost a who’s who of our regular customers. We also have a set of stainless steel u bends for Stambaugh, another small order for the Rock N Roll Hall and a set of Vanstone flanges for Seagrams is shipped. The Shop doesn’t make these flanges anymore but we have had a stack in stock for years and as Seagrams needs them, we send them out.

July 5

After our Independence Day break, the Shop is back to work and unfortunately, we have some annealing to do. Belfort Instruments sent a set of square aluminum tubes in to be bent. This is a recurring job and a tricky one. They send a fixture and the pieces must fit snugly. Before they are bent they must be annealed to become soft enough to bend. The summer is the worst time for this kind of job but that’s how it goes. In addition, we roll some pipes for Hercules Iron, and a few other things for five of our regular customers.

July 31

I sit at my desk during lunch discussing the Orioles acquisition of Bobby Bonilla with Ann and Jack. I’m convinced this will give us the big bat in the middle of the lineup that could help the Birds make up some ground in the AL East. I’m a die hard Birds’ fan almost to a fault. As far as work goes, the month has been busy with orders for Lenderking, Anchor Fence, Professional Mechanical, McShane and Pardo all being picked up last week. A few jobs are on the docket to be completed before Friday including items for Codd Fabricators, Hamilton Iron Works and a set of the standard Anchor Fence channels.

August 2

As we prepare for our week long break, a rush job hits Central Avenue. It’s yet another order for Design and Production to go to the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. Apparently, this was an add-on at the end. We will have to finish it along with orders for Ross Industries, Food Instrument Corporation and DOVCO next week.

August 4

It’s Friday and the Joseph Kavanagh Company is officially closed for vacation. I have a solid week off with just two trips to 201 S. Central Avenue to pick up the mail. I look forward to a break and some time to relax. I also note how closer and closer my wedding day is getting.

August 14

We are back to work at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. We have a unique job in house today, some bent pipes for BGE. These will go into the Calvert Cliffs Power Plant. The phone is ringing and that’s a   good sign that people missed us and they need work rolled. Several small jobs for COVCO and Cushing Manufacturing are picked up today. 

September 1

The Rock N Roll Hall of Fame opens in Cleveland. I feel some sense of pride in that we did quite a bit to help with the displays. It doesn’t escape me that this is my best chance at having some work in the Hall. A much better chance than anything I did musically ironically enough. 

September 5

It’s a cool Tuesday evening and the baseball world has all eyes on Baltimore. Tonight Cal Ripken Jr. stands one game shy of the great Lou Gehrig’s all-time consecutive games streak. It’s a sellout crowd with the California Angels in town. I’m watching from home with my friend Chris Voxakis. Kim’s bachelorette party is tonight and Chris’ girlfriend, Ellie, is a bridesmaid and off partying with Kim. I can’t for the life of me imagine missing this game for a bachelorette party but that’s my future wife for you. With the Orioles ahead after the top of the 5^th inning, the game becomes official. Highlights of Cal’s career and images of Gehrig filled screen at the ballpark. I considered myself a pretty astute fan of baseball and its history. I knew this was big but suddenly, the enormity of it, the historical importance of it truly hits home. I cheered as most of Baltimore did. Proud of the local boy and the acclaim he brought to our team and our town. The Birds win 8-0 behind a complete game shutout thrown by Scott Erickson while Cal added his own flourish by homering in the 6^th inning. After a long celebration, everyone heads home or switches off the TV, ready to do it again tomorrow.

September 6

Cal’s big night is discussed in detail the next morning at the Shop. It seems every television in the Baltimore area was tuned in to watch. Despite the excitement of what is to come tonight, we have work to do. A set of copper u bends are finished for Stambaugh along with some copper rings for Antenna Research. We also have several items for David Hess. David is a local sculptor and fabricator. After work, it’s back to Charlesmont Road to wait for a few hours until game time. The Orioles face the Angels yet again, this time with ace Mike Mussina starting. Cal homers again but in the 4^th inning in tonight’s matchup. As happened last night, when the game reaches the bottom of the 5^th and the Birds are on top, the game is official. It has happened. The nearly unthinkable, unimaginable has happened. I grew up analyzing old baseball records. What records might fall? Who in the modern era might do it? In the case of Gehrig’s record, it was set aside with no realistic chance of being broken but that’s exactly what happened at Camden Yards that night. After it sinks in and the game resumes, I call my father. We speak of how impossible we both thought this was. He agreed. Gehrig’s record seemed unassailable. I hang up and watch my team finish this one off winning 4-2. An even bigger celebration follows with Cal receiving accolades and gifts from baseball luminaries, political figures and celebrities. Cal is no longer merely called the Iron Man. He is the Iron Man.

September 15

The excitement that was Cal’s Streak has dissipated after a few days and the reality of the Orioles not making the playoffs sinks in. The Birds did their best to get back into the race but won’t make it this season. Such is life and I focus on the Shop. The crew rolled pieces for Cushing Manufactring, Pardo and Industrial Metalworks this week and all three send trucks to get their parts today. It’s a Friday and by 4 pm, we are all headed home for the weekend. 

September 22

I can feel the pressure and anticipation mounting as I get closer to my wedding. It will be five weeks from tomorrow. Final details are still being sorted but for the most part, it is all planned. Kim and her Mom filled a lot of yellow pads with details. I make some calls late in the morning to arrange pickup of material. We bent some copper u bends for Stambaugh in the air bender while we rolled pieces for the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, NSI and Miscellaneous Metals.

October 2

The Fall starts as busy as the Summer ended. The year has been boosted by the Rock N Roll Hall work but even still, we are steady moving into the cold months. Today is a mixed bag of jobs at Central Avenue. There is one for the state, the Maryland National Park and Planning Dept and the usual mix of local fabricators and welders.

October 11

I’m standing on the first floor in the Shop when we get a delivery. A sample bend from the Coast Guard. They had called and told me they had a custom pipe they wanted us to match. I take a quick look and determine we can do it. I climb the stairs to the office and write down a few notes. We’ll do it next week. We are slammed right now with lots of structural work for R and R Fabrication, Miscellaneous Metals and Morse Fabrication and Design.

October 21

Kim and I are counting the days down to our wedding. It’s one week away and on this Saturday, we have lunch with my parents. We walked together from the restaurant and paused at my parents’ car. “We have some things for you.” My mother smiled at me as Dad popped the trunk. Dad handed Mom a bag from which she produced a copper pitcher.

“This is the first pitcher I made on my own, Joe. It was how they knew you were a full coppersmith and not an apprentice anymore when you could make this.” Mom handed it to me and my eyes opened wide as I held it. It looks very familiar as iced tea was usually served from one of these at our house. Being Dad’s first meant that much more to me and I passed it over to Kim. She seemed equally happy as she could see how much it meant to me.

Mom reached farther into the bag and pulled out a small box. She gave it to me and I opened it. Inside I see what appears to be a very old pocket watch. “This belonged to your great-great grandfather, James Long. It’s been in the Kavanagh family for over 100 years.” Mom gently took the watch from my hand then opened it up. Inside is a picture of James Long’s family. “That was your great-grandmother Johanna Long Kavanagh when she was a little girl.” Mom points to the elder of two small girls in the photo.

“She was my grandmother.” Dad beamed as he looked from me to Kim. “She was a doll. So sweet. Made great peach pie.” Kim chuckled a bit at that add-on. “She gave the watch to her 2^nd son, my father. At my wedding, my mother gave it to her 2^nd son, me. Now it comes to you, Joe.”

I’m blown away by this gift and Kim’s eyes fill up when the importance of it hits us both. “One day,” Mom smiled brightly at Kim. “You’ll give this watch to your 2^nd son.”

Teary hugs are shared and I am overwhelmed with these presents. Kim and I head home knowing we are so close to the big day. Over time I will learn more about this watch that has been passed from Kavanagh to Kavanagh. The second son getting the watch is the tradition. In the old days, the oldest son would usually be president of the company and Johanna started this tradition as something special for the second son. I love it and am honored but what I do not know is the part it will play in my life and this story twenty or so years from now.

October 28

After being born 80 years to the date of the arrival of the Statue of Liberty in the US, on the anniversary of the Statue of Liberty’s dedication, I marry Kim DalFonzo. A strange coincidence of dates which I am not aware of at the time. Strange that the original Joseph Michael Kavanagh worked on Liberty and I am named for him. It’s of no importance especially on this day but eventually, it will mean something. A raucous party at the Del Capri follows the ceremony including fireworks and a great deal of rowdiness. They nearly have to kick us out of there but it certainly was a party to remember. When I get home, I flip on the World Series and watch the Atlanta Braves defeat the Cleveland Indians 1-0 to take the championship. Tomorrow Kim and I will drive to Ocean City for a few days at the Dunes Manor Hotel. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been. What makes it that much sweeter is so is Kim. We begin our life as husband and wife with a few days at the beach.

October 31

While I’m on my honeymoon, the Shop goes on with a wide range of jobs for some of our regular local customers. In addition, the custom pipes for the Coast Guard are completed and ready for pick up. It’s good to not be at work but my mind is on the place even from the beach. It happens when you are an owner.

November 6

It’s a sunny but cool Monday in Baltimore and rumors are flying. Speculation has been building for several months that an NFL team might come to town. Sure enough, Cleveland Browns owner Art Model holds a press conference at Camden Yards announcing the Browns will re-locate to Baltimore next year. The NFL will return. People are exuberant. They can not wait as the City has missed football since the Colts left in 1982. The Stallions, a Canadian football team, has played here for several years but it’s not the same as the NFL. I talk it all over with Jack and some of the boys in the crew. We wonder what the team will be called? Will they be in the same division that the Browns were? This is all hashed and re-hashed but overall, what’s important is a team is coming here. I have to break the conversation up and get everyone back to work after their coffee break. I hand out cards for A.K. Robins and two for Belfort Instruments then return to the office.

November 14

The City is still buzzing with the imminent return of the NFL to Baltimore and it’s the talk of the town including the corner of Pratt and Central. Jack has always been a big football fan and though he roots for the Stallions, a new NFL team has him stoked. I’m excited too but I’ve always been more of a baseball or hockey fan than football. My brother just plain loves sports. Winkler’s Inc. and Belsinger Sign Works are both called when those orders are finished. I quote more work for Anchor Fence and Miscellaneous Metals. That’s the essence of my job. Quoting work, turning quotes to jobs, getting jobs finished then getting them out of here and billed.

November 19

The Baltimore Stallions defeat the Calgary Stamped to win the Canadian Football League’s Grey Cup. This is a great win and a championship for Baltimore but it’s rather bittersweet. With the arrival of an NFL team, the Canadian Football franchise will no doubt be leaving the City.

November 24

It’s my first Thanksgiving as a married man and it’s a good one. The table at my in-laws house is laden with all the holiday favorites including parsnips for me. Kim nor any of her family has yet to take a liking to the root vegetable so popular among the Kavanagh’s but that’s fine. It’s more for me. After we eat, I enjoy watching some football with my father-in-law, Anthony. We talk about the team we will be getting and the old days of the Colts. Eventually, this leads to turkey sandwich time because what is Thanksgiving without a sandwich.

December 25

It’s a very Merry Christmas for me. Kim and I drive over to Woodall Street and spend the day with my in-laws. It’s reminiscent of my Christmases of old. Kim’s grandmother Dorothy is there and her brother, Paul. Presents, good food and good company make the day special. I think how fortunate I am. I have the love of my life with me and the world is my oyster. I’m finally happy. It is hard to grasp. The Shop has had a good year. The work for D & P and the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame has made a big difference. The project brought us work through most of the first half of the year and the numbers add up. Besides the financial positives, I relish the idea of some work of mine being in the Rock N Roll Hall. It’s surreal yet ironic. The band is in pause mode. I feel certain soon enough we’ll find a way to play and do our thing. I need to focus on my marriage and the Shop but Lethal Injection is not done. I put my attention to work and trying to assure a successful future for myself and now my family. I can’t help but think of family. It’s so entwined with work and the Shop. Jack has his two boys. Perhaps, some day I will have two boys and they will all work together. It will be as it has been. Family. Work. Common cause bringing all together. I suppose I dream as any newlywed dreams. Of the future but in a Kavanagh way. In a Shop way.

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. The History Channel is launched. Yahoo is incorporated. Windows 95 is released. The Million Man March is held in Washington D.C. Timothy MacVie bombs a federal building in Oklahoma City. The films “Apollo 13,” “Braveheart” and “Toy Story” premier. Dean Martin, Jerry Garcia, Mickey Mantle, Ginger Rogers and Wolfman Jack die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

To read prior years, click on this link: Table of Contents

January 3

A new year begins for the Joseph Kavanagh Company in what will be one of the coldest winters on record for Baltimore and the Eastern United States. Frigid temperatures, snow and a great deal of ice are to come in the next two months. My brother Jack, sister Ann, myself and our crew will be challenged to work through it. The Shop has some work to begin 1994 including eight  4” Sq. Steel Tubes for Whiting-Turner, several beams for Seaford Steel and jobs for Turnbull Enterprises and Thrifty Iron Works.

January 11

The Shop’s start is not particularly good but with the cold temperatures up and down the Eastern Seaboard, it has affected outside work and shipping. This in turn affects our volume of work. We bend some small tubes for Readybuilt and send out some Vanstone flanges to Seagrams. These are hold overs from the coppersmith days. We don’t manufacture them anymore but there are a few of these flanges in stock and we will sell them as needed until the last is gone.

January 26

A large ice storm hits the Baltimore area as hours of freezing rain cover several inches of snow. Travel in and out of the City is complicated and slow. We make it into the Shop after a slippery drive. We chop our way into the building and the workers set about rolling jobs for Acme Iron, Antenna Research, COVCO and Comeq. The pieces for Comeq are samples for a potential customer of theirs.

January 30

The Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills 30-13 to win their second straight Super Bowl. It’s the fourth straight Super Bowl loss for Buffalo. I am not watching but jamming with Lethal Injection and the game is of little interest to me.

February 3

The cold winter continues with another mix of precipitation covering the region, most of it sleet this time and traffic again is an issue. Trucks are slow on deliveries and the every day loading and unloading is more of a chore. Orders for Anchor Fence, Codd and a few others are handled as best we can. A copper heater is made for Johns Hopkins Hospital which means some torch work but it doesn’t bring much warmth against the frigid temperatures.

February 13

Lethal Injection spends a Sunday jamming and practicing. We play bits of the Wall and some of our originals. We have a fair catalog of songs to choose from and we are in an undecided mode as to what comes next for the band. This affects our choices of what to play and we seem to invariably radiate back to a few of our standards. After practice, I take Kim to the movies and dinner. Kim and I are dating pretty regularly and seeing each other a few times a week. She’s very special and I begin to feel we are more than a couple. We are connected and she is quickly central to my life.

February 22

We are staggering through the winter. We spend two or three days very slow then receive a glut of work to knock out. This week we have some stainless steel channels for Hoppmann Corporation and flat bars for L & S Welding and Seaford Steel to curve. Some pipes are bent in the Pines Bender for Whiting Metals while a heat exchanger is made for the Housing Authority. 

March 14

Winter is nearly officially over and I look forward to Spring. Usually the warm weather brings work and that is the hope. We complete several orders for G-S Company and some large structural pieces are rolled in the R-6-S for B & B Welding. We also ship some parts to a customer in Wisconsin. We rarely send anything that far away but on occasion, some oddball item comes from a great distance to Central Avenue and we are happy to have it.

March 21

As expected the arrival of Spring has upped our level of jobs. Today some tubes for Ken-Lee Precision  and Toper Manufacturing are attended to while flat bars for R & R Fabricators, some pipe rails for Miscellaneous Metals and a set of heavy flat bars for Anderson Contracting are all rolled and finished. We have some galvanized pipes to bend for E. A. Kaestner on Route 40 tomorrow, not an overwhelming uptick but a move in the right direction work wise.

March 30

A breezy and warm day on Central Avenue is spent finishing some pipes for Mike Cooney at RMC Welding, bending some tubes for Turnbull and Vickers. The Vickers pieces are thin walled and definitely a challenge. The bending is easy but getting them to bend without wrinkles is the tough part. We also have some big tubes to roll for Baltimore Steel Erectors and an angle ring for DOVCO. The work has come back after the frigid winter but not quite at the pace I anticipated. We’re busy but a longer backlog would be better and more reassuring.

April 4

It’s Opening Day for baseball in Baltimore as the Orioles welcome the Kansas City Royals. I watch the first inning from the Shop’s upstairs office,  then the workers and Ann, Jack and I head to our cars to drive home. I flip on the radio and follow as I drive. I pull in front of my home at Charlesmont Road and rush into the house flipping on the TV. I plop onto the couch and am immediately in the middle of the game. I have always been a faithful Birds’ fan and this is always a big day in Baltimore no matter the fortunes of the team,  but things are getting more exciting in this City. Cal Ripken Jr. is getting closer and closer to a once unfathomable record of consecutive games played. Lou Gehrig’s 2130 game streak is only a season and a half away. It could happen. A record I considered preposterous to consider passing may indeed be broken. To play in over 2000 games seems ludicrous. It’s not something you set out to do. You do it after a lot of hard work and just plain showing up to work every day. It’s rather like having a business last over one hundred years. It takes consistency and drive and most of all hard work and commitment. The Birds win this one and though the broader world of baseball and the City are focused on Cal and the Streak, as it’s called now, I am hoping for a successful season and a return to the playoffs for my home town team.

April 9

It’s a Saturday afternoon and I am at Krueger Avenue practicing with the Lethal Boys. We don’t play much as we are talking about Kurt Cobain who took his own life the day before. Cobain and the band Nirvana helped usher in a new sound to rock and roll. The grunge era would not have taken off and spread as it did without this band. His death is shocking and difficult to understand. It’s indicative of how you really never know what someone is going through. I saw it when our friend John Muldowney did the same thing last year. We all have our challenges and we all struggle to grasp and understand each other’s.

April 11

The Shop remains steady and though we could use more work, I’ll take it over the slow winter we had. Today some structural tubes are rolled for Wilton Corporation and Ryerson. The breezy spring day is heated up as the crew has some annealing to do. Aluminum angles for Acme iron and aluminum square tubes for Belfort Instruments both require some torch work. The Belfort job is a recurring set of tubes bent in the Pines bender for some meteorological balloons. We’ve done this job for a few years and it’s a tricky one with a very close tolerance.

April 16

Kim calls me on a Saturday morning. She rents a room from a friend and her apartment was burglarized and a few things stolen. She’s upset as she should be and more angry than anything else. I drive over and try to help or at least be there for her. Her parents are none too happy either. Kim’s a tough strong girl and as I watch her deal with the police and console her parents’ concerns, I come to a decision. When we have a few minutes alone, I suggest she move in with me. I feel it might be safer for her but more to the point. I suddenly know it’s the right time. Her parents are a bit skeptical but they accept it and she moves in the next day.

April 22

The news is full of word that former President Nixon has died and this quickly becomes the topic of discussion at the Shop. His legacy and the infamous ending of his term is rehashed as Ann, Jack and I have lunch. The boys in the Shop are talking about it too. We have a few pickups scheduled today for Thrifty Iron, Belfort, Erection Masters and Yoder Steel. They come in one right after another. Trucks can be a pain but it’s part of the job.A set of angle rings is rolled for Enviro Industries, a new customer but this is primarily what we call a truck day at the Joseph Kavanagh Company.

April 28

It’s a fine day for the Kavanagh’s as last night the Washington Capitals beat the Pittsburgh Penguins eliminating them from the Stanley Cup playoffs in the first round. The Caps won four of six games and anytime our team beats our arch-rivals, it’s a good thing. Jack, Ann and I discuss the series as we get through the day at the Shop. It’s been a good week with jobs being cranked out. Several pipe orders are completed for Miscellaneous Metals along with ten large structural tubes. We also finish jobs for the George Eckart Company, A.K. Robins and a heat exchanger for the Housing Authority is picked up and billed today. A very satisfying day on several fronts for us.

May 9

An emergency rush job for Codd Fabricators is rolled today. They deliver four 3” heavy wall steel pipes first thing in the morning and they are picked up before 2 p.m. Codd is our oldest customer and one of our best so they always get preferential treatment. We rolled some rectangular tubes for them a few days ago and it seems they have something for us to work on nearly every week. Our spirits are a little low as two days ago, the Caps were bumped from the playoffs. The New York Rangers beat the Caps after our thrilling defeat of the Penguins. That’s sports for you and especially how it goes for our Capitals. We have another heat exchanger to bend and assemble coming up. This one is for the Naval Academy. In addition, a couple more orders are finished for Miscellaneous Metals who are also one of our most reliable customers.

May 21

On this Saturday, I take a long expected trip with Kim and my brother Jack and his family. We are going to visit Yankee Stadium. The Birds are playing the New York Yankees in the Bronx today and we have long wanted to drive up and see a game. This is finally our opportunity to visit “enemy territory.” The ride is a long one using the Jersey Turnpike but I am fortunate, Jack drives. I offer to split the ride with him but Jack wants to do it himself. Nancy, Kim, Paul, Patrick and I chat and take in the long ride. When we get there, it’s quite the site, this venerable old park where so many baseball greats have played. I am somewhat awestruck knowing that even my father’s childhood hero and Baltimore’s own Babe Ruth played here. We don’t know what to expect from the fans but are pleasantly surprised. Those around us are very welcoming. Impressed that we drove all the way up for a game, the fans are gracious and happy to talk with us. Two fellows even buy me a beer as we talk Babe Ruth, our two teams and share our hopes that either team can best the two time defending World Series Champion Toronto Blue Jays. The Yanks win the game but I really enjoyed the day. We take the long road home and everyone is rather exhausted when we get back to Baltimore. It’s a trip and a game I won’t ever forget and I can’t wait to tell my Dad all about it. As we pull in front of my house, my thoughts go to the Shop.  I run through the schedule in my head knowing we have small flat bars for Pardo, a set of heater tubes for Stambaugh and orders for A.K. Robins and Turnbull to deal with next week.

May 30

The Kavanagh’s gather at my brother’s house on Kensington Parkway to celebrate my father’s 70^th birthday. I bring a guest, Kim. It’s her first opportunity to meet my entire family and she handles it well. The Kavanagh’s can be an overwhelming group especially at the first meeting. It’s great to see my parents and I am very excited for them to meet my girl. The sisters are equally anxious to get to know her and it’s a great party. Dad sits at the keyboard at Jack’s house and we gather around. For a couple hours, it feels like Lakewood Avenue. Music, good food and family is the focus of the party as my father would want it. He’s enjoying his retirement but wants to hear all about what’s going on at the Shop as well as our trip to Yankee Stadium. He smiles as Jack and I tell him about it, interjecting questions as we go along. Talking baseball with my Dad transports me back to my youth and all those many days spent at 33^rd Street watching our Birds play.

June 10

With the arrival of the summer heat, the volume of work finally jumps appreciably. We avoid working Saturdays to keep the backlog solid but the Shop is definitely busy. Today we complete orders for two of our regular fabrication customers, J.C. Pardo and Bengies Welding and a sign job for Belsinger Sign Works. They send material in a few times a year and we roll parts they assemble into signs for local commercial and government agencies.

June 29

The month is ending and June has been a good one. The Shop on Central Avenue has seen a fair few jobs come in and out. Our regulars have helped to bolster our year as they often do. Work for Miscellaneous Metals, Pardo, Anchor Fence and Codd are completed in addition to some structural tubes for the Wilton Corporation and a set of bent pipes for Belfort Instruments..

July 4

I celebrate Independence Day with Kim and her family on Woodall Street. I enjoy having a Monday off and Linda and Anthony throw a good party. There’s always plenty of food and fun. Neighbors and several of Kim’s cousins stop by in the evening as their backyard gives a great view of the fireworks at the Inner Harbor.

July 5

I’m back on Central Avenue after the holiday and we have a reroll job for DOVCO. Occasionally, we have to fix pieces that have been radiused improperly. Sometimes it’s our fault and sometimes the customer erred in their drawings or the dimensions have changed once the parts are in the field. In this case, it’s the latter but we still treat these jobs as a rush. No doubt, the customer’s schedule is compromised by a mistake no matter who made it and it’s best to get these dealt with quickly. We have a slate of orders to crank out this week including channels and flat bars for Miscellaneous Metals, bent bars for Turnbull, bent tubes for DCA FOOD Industries, angles for Codd, and one pipe for Superior Iron Works.

July 26

We are down to two weeks before our annual summer vacation and our schedule has tightened. A wide range of items must be finished before we can enjoy our time off. Pipes for ABC Welding, Fabricating & Welding, B & B Welding and Atlantic Welders are grouped together. This saves on some setup time. We have a rush fancy brass molded cap for Hercules Iron and a few stainless steel pieces for Sackett as well as a heat exchanger for B.G & E. It’s like this every year and we’ve grown accustomed to working harder and faster at the end of July and the very beginning of August to be able to take a week off. 

August 5

My vacation is here. This week the final jobs are picked up. Thrifty Iron, Oceaneering Technologies, Codd and the Naval Academy all have their trucks in the Shop to get those last items. Ann, Jack and I are happy for the break as are our crew. Jack and I swing the large green metal doors closed and padlock them. I’ll stop by one day next week to get the mail but otherwise, I do my best to put thoughts of work out of my mind. I look forward to some rest and some extra time with Kim.

August 12

It’s the end of my vacation week and the unthinkable happens. Major League Baseball Players go on strike and the season is halted. I can’t believe it. There have been threats of a work stoppage all season but I felt sure they would finally come to an agreement. Owners want a salary cap to gain some control of spiraling payroll and balance the competitiveness between big and small market teams. The players do not want a cap as they think much of the leagues financial issues are self-inflicted by the owners and more to the point, most teams are making profits. I call my father tonight and he is dumbfounded by it as am I. For hardcore baseball lovers like us, it stings. I make the assumption that this stoppage will be short-lived and he agrees. We are certain players will be back on the field quickly.

August 25

As usual, we are busy after our vacation. We always have to pay the price for taking that week. Two orders for Pardo including a large set of bent 1” Pipes are completed. We have an order from Yankee Engineering for some rolled angles & beams. Coming up as we finish August, there are tubes for DCA Food Industries to be bent in the Pines Bender and tubes for New England Tool & Die which will be filled with rosin before rolling. That turns up the heat in the old building. We also have a job for Center Stage coming up. It’s only a couple rolled square aluminum tubes but I love stuff for theaters just as much as I love our movie and TV work. Those are the cool things that make my job a little more interesting.

September 14

There is no joy in Mudville nor on Central Avenue as today the baseball season is canceled. I can not believe the strike has gone on this long and ending the season is unimaginable to me. I love baseball as my father and his father and his father did. It’s not just a family tradition. It’s really that I truly love the game. Since I was a boy, few things compare to the crack of the bat, the green of the field and the smell of a leather glove. For myself and other Orioles’ fans, we wonder what will happen to Cal’s Streak? Will baseball resume next season? This year teaches all fans a lesson. It’s a business. I talk to my brother and sister about it over lunch and they feel the same as I do. It’s hard to wrap my head around it and after eating we get back to work. The crew finishes some work for the G-S Company and quite a bit for R & R Fabricators. Multiple orders have flown in from this company and they are moving up onto that list of my favorites. We have a backlog of jobs on the docket including orders for Anchor Fence, McShane, Belfort Instruments and DCA Food Industries.

October 4

As we get farther into the Fall, the work has slowed but not inordinately. Today we ship some bent pipes to Whiting Metals, roll channels for L & S Welding, one flat bar for Stambaugh and four small angle for Sackett. These one piece and small jobs are not as profitable as the big orders but they keep us busy and keep the money coming in. For us, a mix of small and big jobs is always ideal.

October 21

It’s odd to be in October and not thinking of the World Series. It’s still so strange for there to be no baseball and no championship this year. Generally, the series would be the center of talk at the Shop but not this year. The crew are working on a standard ring order for Turnbull Enterprises, some ornamental brass flat bars for Criss Brothers and a few copper heater tubes for Codd Fab.

October 22

Lethal Injection visits Studio 14 where our friends Dave Muelberger and Chris Voxakis rent practice space. Dave and Chris are a two man band called Co-Intelpro. Dave is throwing his usual Halloween/ Birthday party there next week. We don’t bring our gear but come to check out the place and plan in an effort to head off any power or space issues. The room is big and the power is more than sufficient so things should be fine.

October 24

At the corner of Pratt and Central, the crew work on our usual mix of pipe bending and metal rolling. I am distracted with thoughts of our show this weekend and thoughts of Kim. I know she’s the girl for me and I think it’s time to make it permanent. I am certain of it in fact. Some stainless steel angle for Sackett and a recurring aluminum angle order for Antenna Research are processed today.

October 29

Lethal Injection joins Co-Intelpro for a party at Studio 14. Kim is there and she sits with Chris’ girlfriend and the party is packed and loud. I can’t deny it’s a cool feeling to have my girl watch us rock and roll. We play our usual set of originals, some of the Wall and assorted other RUSH, Who and other bands’ covers. We finish up joined by Dave and Chris for a rocking version of “Strawman” by Lou Reed. Unbeknownst to us, that is the last song and this is the last public performance for Lethal Injection.

October 31

I have my first real experience of Halloween on Charlesmont Road. I have always ignored the holiday and usually am not home but Kim loves Halloween and we decorate and hand out candy to a crowd of children. It turns out this neighborhood is a haven for trick or treaters. It’s fun but definitely different for me but Kim is completely in her element with all the kids.

November 1

Back at the Shop, I tell Ann and Jack all about the busy Halloween at my house last night. The volume of work is back up again as we crank out some angles for Lenderking, two sets of rolled and bent stainless steel pipes for Whiting Metals, and orders for Codd and L & S Welding.

November 10

We are heading toward my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving. I am a big turkey fan you might say. The Shop’s crew completes a set of tubes for R & R and we ship some stainless steel channels for Hoppmann Corporation. Shipping items by common carrier adds a step to a job. A common carrier is usually a closed in truck and that requires the items be stacked and secured to a pallet. It is much simpler to chain bundles together and place them on the customer’s truck but we do whatever it takes to get the jobs out of the door.

November 24

Kim and I drive to her parents on Woodall Street for Thanksgiving. This year there are parsnips as Kim’s imom, Linda, makes a point of getting them for me. I feel part of the family now. Between Kim and her Mom they sort out how to cook them & they are quite good. Besides parsnips, there are all the other basics of the holiday, turkey, potatoes, stuffing, gravy and such. The DalFonzo’s always lay out quite the spread. This day assures me I have made the right decision. I’ve decided to propose to Kim and decide to go ring shopping next week.

December 9

After work as Kim sits down and is playing with Lilly Belle, a sweet puppy I got her for her birthday this year,  I get down on bended knee and look up at her.

“Are you ready to remember this day for the rest of your life?” Her eyes widen as I pull a ring box from my pocket. She says yes and I hold my girl close as we smile and cry for we are getting married.  Afterward, calls are made to both our parents and the word spreads quickly. There will be a wedding next year.

December 13

The end of 1994 is in sight and Kavanagh’s and crew can not wait. We finish a nice order of fifty bent pipes for Richard Kudlich at Food Instruments. These are parts for a candy-making machine and the company is located on the Eastern Shore. Also jobs for Anchor Fence, Fabritek, Miscellaneous Metals and Greencastle Metals are picked up from Central Avenue as the race to Christmas is on.

December 17

My family throws a Christmas/Engagement Party at the Old Philadelphia Inn. This is a simpler way for all of us to celebrate together than Mom and Dad driving up on Christmas Day. Kim’s parents are there and they meet my parents and the rest of the family for the first time. I run down the list of those in the room, introducing them all as Linda and Anthony’s heads are spinning. I do it quickly,  barely taking a breath and I feel this is a great test. If Kim and I are still engaged after this bizarre introduction, we will probably be good. Added to the festivities is Kim telling my brother-in-law Handy how much she likes a flag hanging from the wall with a snowman on it. Ever the trickster, Handy climbs up on a chair and cuts the flag down with his trusty pen knife and gifts it to Kim. OPI doesn’t seem to notice that we leave with one of their decorations but no doubt there is some relief when my large and loud family are gone. 

December 22

The final work week of the year is the peak of the usual rush to get jobs out and picked up. We always must remember. It’s not just about finishing the job but giving the customer time to send a truck and get it out of here. Woe be the customer who is given a day or more and doesn’t pick up. It’s the yearly stress of working at the Joseph Kavanagh Company. We take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off but still want our customers to get what they need. We have some angles for Codd Fab. to finish and they are five minutes away so that’s not a problem. Also, an angle we finished for L & S Welding is picked up. In fact, in a rush I write up a delivery ticket for them after Jack has done the same. Again, it’s that anxiousness about getting everything finished and to the customer that brings an urgency to us. The final job finished is a set of flat bars or flights as they are called for J. C. Pardo. They are used in large food processing machines. At long last, we are done and the crew heads home followed by the Kavanagh’s. Christmas will soon be here.

December 25

I celebrate Christmas at Casa DalFonzo on Woodall Street. It’s a mix of gifts, good food and a lot of making wedding lists on yellow pads. Apparently, the yellow pads are a big part of planning a wedding. It’s been an interesting year personally and the Shop’s year was okay. Our billing and the volume of work were both down but that happens. We had been on a pretty good run since we took over from my father. I’m confident it’s only a blip in the road and we’ll bounce back strong next year. For me, I’m happy and in love. Finding Kim has changed my life and next year we shall embark on the grand adventure of marriage. I can’t wait but at this point I have no idea the level of planning and preparing that is needed. I’ll learn fast and trust it will all work out. No matter how it shakes out, I’ll be with Kim from now on and that’s more than good enough for me. I have finally found love at long last. Real love. True love. I must be an adult now because I’m getting married. To paraphrase my father speaking of my mother, Kim’s my girl and I want everybody to know it.

Bill Clinton is the President of the United States. The National Archives at College Park opens. The nation watches on live television as NFL great O.J. Simpson is pursued on the LA Expressway and then charged with the murder of his wife. The films “The Lion King,” “Forrest Gump” and “Pulp Fiction” are released. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Henry Mancini, Burt Lancaster, Dinah Shore and Cab Calloway die.

There are 50 states in the Union.

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