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WPRO's Steve Klamkin took a picture of the flag during a news conference about work zone safety Friday morning.

1. Local news reporter is the one that found that found the flag in the DOT garage, yet the story on their website ran as an AP item.

2. Just in case you didn’t know which side of the Civil War Rhode Island was on.

Transportation Director Peter Alviti told WPRO that hanging the flag was “stupid” and “not allowed.” He said it sends an improper message that won’t be tolerated.

A 2015 massacre at a South Carolina church sparked discussions nationwide about whether it was appropriate to display the Confederate flag.

Rhode Island was in the union.

Neighbors have filed a lawsuit saying the town Planning Board exceeded its authority when it gave permission for the school, which they say will cause traffic problems on their dead-end street.

Neighbors. AMIRIGHT?

Their neighbors in East Bridgewater have sued to keep the school out, contending that the local Planning Board exceeded its authority when it gave permission for the school. The neighbors on Old Country Farm Road say the school, which caters to students who have been bullied or did poorly in larger settings, will cause traffic problems on their small dead-end street.

The case is pending in Massachusetts Land Court, where a conference is scheduled for April.

School founder Katy Shamitz, who moved to the former llama farm with her family in 2014, said some of her neighbors have been less than welcoming in other ways, too. One woman went to court in February asking for a restraining order against Rob Shamitz, her husband, to keep him from waving to her and her daughters when he drove by. A judge in Brockton District Court denied that request in March.

The repair shop I take my car to as a drive-in intake bay that temporarily holds up to three cars in series while service advisors talk to customers and enter into computers what needs to be done before taking the cars out the other end of the bay to the lot to wait to be serviced. The intake bay has an overhead door that opens automatically when a car pulls up to it. The door is clear plexiglass, so it’s easy for a driver to see if there is room in the bay to pull in before actually pulling up to the door and opening it.

This morning I pull in and take the third and last spot in the intake bay. I get out of my car and see that there are only two service advisors working, so it’s going to be a bit of a wait. Almost immediately a guy pulls up to the overhead door behind me, opening it, and just parks there waiting with the door open. The door waits a few seconds, starts to close, but sees that there is still a car parked in front of it, so immediately reopens. The guy keeps his car parked there. The door keeps repeating this stuttering closing/opening. The guy keeps his car parked there. There is plenty of space for him to back up. It’s 6°F (-14°C) this morning. The service advisors visibly sigh and pull on their coats. I grin wryly and shake my head at the guy. He sees all this. He does not back up.

I tell one of the service advisors that when the guy does finally get to pull in, they should keep the door open while he’s being processed. She laughs, but ultimately doesn’t do it. I leave unsatisfied. They will probably call me shortly to tell me my car needs $1,000 in repairs.

Happy New Year!

I ended 2016 by hitting 200,000 miles (321 868 km) on the Forester. I did it in 13 years, 4 months.

I’m going to hold them to this.

And now I’m going to change the subject and post this photo of me as a toddler at my grandparents’ house drinking a Budweiser.

One odd thing about the funeral yesterday was that after the graveside ceremony had concluded, the cemetery staff immediately started the process of lowering the casket, before the mourners even dispersed. I’d never seen that before. At first I thought that it was because the temperature was only 15° and they wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, but then they said that they do that routinely so that the family knows for sure that the tomb was sealed properly. I’ve been to ceremonies at this cemetery before and not seen that, and so I wonder what happened that prompted the change in policy.

My grandmother has lived in the same house for the last 70 years. She’s the only person that I’ve been calling with the same telephone number since I was old enough to dial a phone. Now I have no reason to dial that number again. It seems weird that I’m thinking about that.

Yesterday we laid my grandmother to rest. She was an amazing, kind woman who never had a bad word to say about anyone. Everyone who knew her loved her. She lived to 95, and I feel very fortunate that I was able to have her around for so long. I’ll miss her.

This morning I’m going though some old photos. I found this one that my grandfather took of her on a gondola in Venice. I like it a lot.

Here’s a screenshot of some construction plans from 1970 for a sewer main near a bridge replacement design we’re working on. I can tell you that some major features of the landscape no longer exist. Thankfully.