Fred, Live Wires, and "the boys" from Freedom Renewable

Fred's a live wire...plus, he can identify them quickly.

My street was officially road blocked.   A police cruiser, complete with flashing blue lights and a cop, blocked the street entrance.  Well it was blocked, but, not quite blocked for everyone.  Fred had zero trouble getting though. It's not that he blends in or is invisible, quite the contrary, he has presence, Chutzpah, that positive gutsy way of doing things.  I didn't know anything was wrong on the street.  I had no clue the street was road blocked!!!!   Fred drove past the cop, past the road block and past two sets of downed wires.   Fred's first words out of his big classic blue car was, "you have wires down".   He was holding  took a tool that looked like a Tide Pen.  He waved it at one of Unitil's primary downed wires,  "that's not live" ...a few minutes later Rich, and Mark called to say the cop wasn't going to let them though.   Fred headed out to pick them up and bring them back to the house, on his way down, he  stopped at another downed wire, "but that one is" ...the cop who was in charge of not letting anyone down the street came rushing over with "get in your car, get in your car now".  The cop was no match for Fred, his comment to the cop was, "I know what I'm doing, I"m an electrician".  I would find out later that was truly an understatement...Fred is much more than "just" an electrician.  He teaches everywhere including MIT, he's a ZBA consultant, a Vietnam Vet (med flighted out during the Tet offensive),  has a heart, and the coup de grace is he's an accomplished surfer, yep' that's right a surfer dude who surf YEAR round'...this is New England..you are not talking Florida or south...he's hard core.  So that's how I met Fred, Freedom Renewable Energy's electrician, he's the kinda' guy who makes an indelible impression.

Fred and I sat at my kitchen table waiting for "the boys" as he called them.   Rich, Mark and John were not able to make it through the police road block, but within minutes Fred spotted Rich, carrying an orange can of spray paint, waking through the woods and climbing over my dog fence in the back yard!!!!!!  You are not talking a walk in park like woods.  Rich was climbing through poison ivy, gnarled bitter root vines and some dense pines about a tenth of a mile worth.  Despite downed live wires, and police barricades the guys from Freedom Renewable Energy were at my house!!!!

Rich answered all my questions, marked potential areas where the wires would be located underground, and then headed back out, climbing over the fence, into the woods and off to another appointment with another client...wow!!!!  Fred joined him but had to leave his car since the cop wasn't letting anyone out or anyone in.  

The "boys" would later arrive to say hi and walk Fred down Bartlett Street, since his car was still parked in my driveway, held hostage by the Newton Police roadblock and Unitil.  It was great to see Mark.   I would find out later that Mark was the force behind that beautiful and moving Veteran's Memorial that includes all the name of vet's who have served even in Iraq and Afghanistan, and it's kept current thanks to a fund Mark set up. It's  in McGregor Park in Derry...wow!!!  These guys have quite a history!!!!