IT CERTAINLY IS AN UPHILL BATTLE

 THIS PLACE IS FOR SALE NEARBY, JUST DOWN THE ROAD FROM OUR PARK....NOW IF I COULD JUST WIN A LOTTERY

I guess in a psychological way, my mind was trying to hurry the winter along today by telling me it was Wednesday, when in fact it was Tuesday.  But how did I know it was Tuesday?  Easy, I heard the garbage truck come rumbling down the road early this morning.  However, five minutes after the garbage truck was gone, my mind, ever looking after me as best it can, convinced me all over again that it was Wednesday.  I'm glad tomorrow is Saturday!! 

A CHUNK OF SNOW  HANGING AROUND ON THE BACK DECK

 IT'S A GOOD THING WE HAD AN EARLY JANUARY THAW OR THE SNOW LOAD ON THIS SHED ROOF WOULD HAVE BEEN TWICE AS DEEP

 A FEW PICS ALONG OLD BAYFIELD ROAD ON MY WAY BACK FROM BAYFIELD A COUPLE DAYS AGO

 ONE OF SEVERAL NICE HOMES ALONG THE WAY

 THESE FOLKS HAVE A LONG DRIVEWAY

It had been a few days since I last shoveled any snow.  Not wanting to seize up from inactivity, I grabbed my shovel and took it for a walk around outside, moving an accumulated couple of inches of the white stuff.  Back inside, I was again on the exercise bike, working at getting the cobwebs out of my legs.  It certainly is an uphill battle.

 iIT'S REALLY NEAT THAT I CAN READ MY KINDLE WHILE PEDALLING

INSTEAD OF HOLDING ONTO THE HANDLE BARS, I PREFER TO GRIP MY HANDS ON THE BARS ON EACH SIDE OF THE SEAT

THE SEAT HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT KNOB.....OKAY OKAY SO I WAS REALLY SHORT ON PHOTOS TODAY...SORRY

And it was 66 years ago today that the phrase, The Day The Music Died' was coined.  Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper died in a wintery corn field plane crash in the State of Iowa. 

----------------------------------

Al's Music Box:(( Think It Over by Buddy Holly.

 A NICE HOUSE AND PROPERTY IN BAYFIELD

GROANER'S CORNER:(( In light of the rising frequency of human - grizzly bear conflicts, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game is advising hikers, hunters, and fishermen to take extra precautions and keep alert of bears while in the field. They advise that outdoorsmen wear noisy little bells on their clothing so as not to startle bears that aren't expecting them. They also advise outdoorsmen to carry pepper spray with them in case of an encounter with a bear. It is also a good idea to watch out for fresh signs of bear activity. Outdoorsmen should recognize the difference between black bear and grizzly bear dung. Black bear dung is smaller and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur. Grizzly bear dung has little bells in it and smells like pepper.

------------------------------------

How do you make sure you always remember your wife’s birthday?  Forget it just once!!

------------------------------------

An explorer walked into a clearing and was surprised to see a pigmy standing beside a huge dead elephant. "Did you kill that?" he asked. The pigmy answered: "Yes". "How could a little bloke like you kill something as huge as that?" "I killed it with my club," replied the pigmy. "That's amazing," said the explorer. "How big's your club?" The pigmy replied: "There's about 150 of us."
------------------------------------------

Al's Doggy World

Meanings::

Al's Art Gallery

OH-OH AND YET ANOTHER SERIOUS DIFFERENCE OF OPINIONS BETWEEN CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES

The inevitable conflict between Canada and the United States began shortly after sunrise this morning, and it started with a difference of opinion between two prominent figures from both of these countries.  One on each side of the border!!  The issue revolved around an immediate environmental issue.  Both opposing Prognosticators stood on firm ground with their opinions, and there was no room for negotiations.  It was Groundhog Day after all, and Canada's Wiarton Willy, not seeing his shadow earlier today, confidently declared it would be an early Spring.  However, south of the border, America's Punxsutawney Phil, seeing his shadow, adamantly declared there would definitely be six more weeks of Winter.  It was immediately obvious that two of the world's greatest countries were at loggerheads...... I don't know folks, with our once closely united countries becoming further and further apart on so many things these days, it does not bode well for any kind of future togetherness.  It is now an uncertain future we two countries face, and I think the picture below of Punxsutawney Phil sums it quite well.

AND HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED TO PUNXSUTNEY PHIL FOR SPEAKING UP AND STANDING HIS GROUND

Needing to pick up a prescription at the Walmart Pharmacy, I toddled off to Goderich this morning.  A Hoar Frost overnight left tree limbs coated with something called Hoar Frost.  Hoar Frost is a deposit of interlocking leathery ice crystals that form directly from water vapor to solid on freezing surfaces, skipping the liquid phase.  Occurring on calm, clear, and cold nights, it creates delicate, white, fern-like structures on trees, branches, and fences, often resembling white hair. 

Picking up a coffee to go at McD's I headed down to the harbor.  I'm glad they have decided to keep the road plowed out to Rotary Cove.  A lot of people like to drive out and turn around there. 

A DIFFERENCE OF SEASONS HERE BETWEEN THE SIGN AND THE SNOW

 THE TUGBOAT OCEAN A SIMARD WORKING TO KEEP  THE CHANNEL  OPEN BETWEEN THE LAKE AND THE HARBOR

 THIS PHOTO FROM A HIGHER VANTAGE POINT SHOWS THE TUGBOAT WORKING HARD TO KEEP THE NARROW CHANNEL BETWEEN THE LAKE AND HARBOR FREE OF ICE FOR LARGE SHIPS COMING AND GOING

 THIS PHOTO SHOWS THE OPEN WATER OF LAKE HURON AND THE SALT MINE ON THE RIGHT WITH THE TUGBOAT IN BETWEEN CLEARING THE LONG NARROW CHANNEL

From the south side of the harbor, I slipped over to the north side closer to the two large ships anchored there for the winter.

TWO LARGE SHIPS ARE SPENDING THE WINTER ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE HARBOR 

 FISHING BOATS ARE SPENDING THE WINTER HERE AS WELL

THAT IS THE MASSIVE BOW OF THE OAKGLEN

 IT HAS A BULBOUS NOSE ON IT WHICH IS GENERALLY NOT SEEN UNDER THE WATER

 THE ?? ALMOST LOOKS LIKE IT'S BEACHED ITSELF ON AN ICEBERG

Al's Music Box:: Wicked Game by Chris Isaak

I TOOK THESE TWO FULL MOON PHOTOS THROUGH MY LIVING ROOM WINDOW SUNDAY NIGHT

GROANER'S CORNER:(( The Mensa Test::

This is a test for Intelligent People. I have determined that you qualify. The following short quiz consists of 4 questions and will tell you if you are qualified to be a professional. Scroll down for each answer. The questions are NOT that difficult. But don't scroll down UNTIL you have answered the question!
1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
The correct answer is: Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe, and close the door. This question tested whether you tend to do simple things in an overly complicated way.

2. How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
Did you say, Open the refrigerator, put in the elephant, and close the Refrigerator?
Wrong Answer.
Correct Answer: Open the refrigerator, take out the giraffe, Put in the elephant and close the door. This tested your ability to think through the repercussions of your previous actions.

3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals attend....except one. Which animal does not attend?
Correct Answer: The Elephant.
The elephant is in the refrigerator. You just put him in there.
This tested your memory.
Okay, even if you did not answer the first three questions correctly, you still have one more chance to show your true abilities.

4. There is a river you must cross, but it is used by crocodiles, and you do not have a boat. How do you manage?
Correct Answer: You jump into the river and swim across.
Have you not been listening?
All the crocodiles are attending the animal conference.
This tests whether you learn quickly from your mistakes.
According to Anderson Consulting Worldwide, around 90% of the professionals they tested got all questions wrong, but many preschoolers got several correct answers.
AndersonConsulting says this conclusively disproves the theory that most professionals have the brains of a four-year-old.
------------------------------------------------

A gentleman entered a busy florist shop that displayed a large sign that read "Say It With Flowers." "Wrap up one rose," he told the florist. "Only one?" the florist asked. "Just one," the customer replied. "I'm a man of few words."

-------------------------------------------

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and then He rested.

Then God created man, and then they both rested.
Then God created woman, and since then neither God nor man has ever rested.

-------------------------------------------

Al's Doggy World

Meanings::

Al's Art Gallery