KELLY IS FEELING BETTER

Surprisingly, we had a wee touch of sunshine this morning and not too much rain all day.  In fact, we ended the day under sunny skies.  I didn't take any Tylenol Saturday to see how my hip would feel today.  Aside from a few tweaks and twinges I had no pain on our walk this morning or this afternoon and my leg and hip have been fine all day.  I will continue to take the Glucosamine and Chondroitin as suggested.  Kelly is feeling better and had her fifth good night's sleep in a row. 

 IT WAS A SQUISHY SQUSHY WALK ON THIS MUDDY GRAVEL ROAD THIS MORNING

 COLOR IS BEGINNING TO APPEAR IN THE TREE TOPS ALONG THE ROADSIDE FORESTS

 FOREST GROUND COVERS ARE GREENING UP

 THE FOREST FLOOR

'S

I SPOTTED THIS PROFILE OF AN ELUSIVE WOODEN SWAMP GATOR'S HEAD LOOKING LEFT

 YES, I WOULD SAY SPRING IS WELL UNDER WAY AT A NEIGHBORING FARM

Al's Music Box:))   A double whammy tonight!!  Stairway To Heaven by Led Zeppelin from the album 'Led Zeppelin IV'.  1971 And don't miss this superb tribute to the members of Led Zeppelin's Stairway To Heaven by the band Heart.  Stairway To Heaven Kennedy Center Tribute

GROANER'S CORNER:( There was a tradesman, a painter named Jack, who was very interested in making a dollar where he could. So he often would thin down his paint to make it go a wee bit further. As it happened, he got away with this for some time. Eventually the local church decided to do a big restoration project. Jack put in a painting bid and, because his price was so competitive, he got the job. And so he started, erecting the trestles and putting up the planks, and buying the paint and thinning it down with turpentine.Jack was up on the scaffolding, painting away, the job nearly done, when suddenly there was a horrendous clap of thunder. The sky opened and the rain poured down, washing the thin paint from all over the church and knocking Jack off the scaffold to land on the lawn. Jack was no fool. He knew this was a judgment from the Almighty, so he fell on his knees and cried, "Oh, God! Forgive me! What should I do?" And from the thunder, a mighty Voice spoke, "Repaint! Repaint! And thin no more!"

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What do you call it when your mother's sisters all gather at a funeral to avenge your death?  Vigil Aunties

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What's the difference between a rock guitarist and a jazz guitarist? The rock guitarist plays 3 chords for 1,000 people while the jazz guitarist plays 1,000 chords for 3 people.

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WENT OUT FOR A LATE LUNCH

 SHADES OF OLD BAYFIELD

A grey rainy day.  Kelly's youngest son Ben, drove over from Cambridge today for a visit.  Nice to see him.  We all went out for a late lunch at Renegades in Bayfield...........

Al's Music Box:)) Just Came Back by Colin James from the album 'Sudden Stop'.  1990  Okay you Rockers, strap in but don't let the first 48 seconds of this one fool you.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Scientists at Rolls Royce built a gun specifically to launch dead chickens at the windshields of airliners and military jets all traveling at maximum velocity. The idea was to simulate the frequent incidents of collisions with airborne fowl to test the strength of the windshields.  American engineers heard about the gun and were eager to test it on the windshields of their new high-speed trains. Arrangements were made, and a gun was sent to the American engineers.  When the gun was fired, the engineers stood shocked as the chicken hurled out of the barrel, crashed into the shatterproof shield, smashed it to smithereens, blasted through the control console, snapped the engineer's backrest in two and embedded itself in the back wall of the cabin like an arrow shot from a bow..  The horrified engineers sent Rolls Royce the disastrous results of the experiment, along with the designs of the windshield and begged the British scientists for suggestions.  Rolls Royce responded with a one-line memo:  Defrost the chicken.

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- What did the dancer feel after a week of non-stop rehearsals?  The agony of de-feet.

- What do you call dancing by the sink?
Tap dancing.
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I NEVER SUSPECTED I WAS THAT TIRED

 IN OUR PARK'S HARDWOOD FOREST THIS MORNING LOOKING FOR TRILLIUMS

The cloudy gray morning didn't leave me with much inspiration earlier today.  It was an hour's ride through the countryside for Pheebs and I with a stop at Richard and Gayles to see how they were doing.  All was okay there as Richard brewed up some coffee.  Kelly had her fourth good night's sleep so her days are feeling a tad better.  An intermittent light rain front finally reached us just before noon and we've been a wee bit on the wet side ever since.

 LOCAL FARMERS ARE BUSY ON THEIR LAND PREPARING FIELDS FOR PLANTING NEXT MONTH

 A LONE SHEEP AND HORSE WERE THE ONLY ANIMALS WE SAW ON OUR JEEP RIDE

 A PATCH OF WILD DAFFODILS IN THE COUNTRYSIDE

 IN OUR PARK'S FOREST I DIDN'T FIND THE MULTITUDE OF TRILLIUMS I HAD SEEN IN PREVIOUS YEARS

I don't have an afternoon siesta every afternoon and when I do it's maybe twenty to forty minutes.  I slipped into my sunroom recliner with my Kindle book in hand this afternoon and glanced at the clock.  It was 12:45.  The next time I looked at that clock it was 3:45 and my book was still open on my chest on the same page I had opened it three hours previously.  I knew I had felt unusually tired this morning when Pheebs and I were out for our Jeep ride, but I never suspected I was that tired.  I guess maybe it was the last couple of weeks catching up with me..........

 I SEE A LITTLE FACE ASLEEP HERE IN A PILE OF LEAVES AT THE BASE OF A PINE TREE IN OUR PARK

Al's Music Box:)) Ferry Cross The Mersey by Gerry And The Pacemakers from the album 'Ferry Cross The Mersey'.  1964

 A FARMER'S CABIN IN THE WOODS AWAITS THE FAMILIES HAPPY SUMMER ACTIVITIES

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Tom is applying for a job as a signalman for the local railroad and is told to meet the inspector at the signal box.  The inspector decides to give Tom a pop quiz, asking: "What would you do if you realized that two trains were heading towards each other on the same track?"  Tom says: "I would switch one train to another track."  "What if the lever broke?" asks the inspector.  "Then I'd run down to the tracks and use the manual lever down there," answers Tom.  "What if that had been struck by lightning?" challenges the inspector.  "Then," Tom continued, "I'd run back up here and use the phone to call the next signal box."  "What if the phone was busy?"  "In that case," Tom argued, "I'd run to the street level and use the public phone near the station."  "What if that had been vandalized?"  "Oh well," said Tom, "in that case I would run into town and get my Uncle Leo.  This puzzled the inspector, so he asked "Why would you do that?"  "Because my Uncle Leo has never seen a big train wreck."

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AND THAT PRETTY WELL TOOK CARE OF ANOTHER DAY

I LOVE WATCHING THE CHIPMUNKS SCURRYING ABOUT IN OUR FRONT YARD 

Just me in the Subaru under sunny blue skies this morning heading to Goderich's Alexandra Marine Hospital for a few hip X-rays. I was in and out of there in about 15 minutes with 3 of those minutes spent on the table for two X-rays.  Home again, I switched into the Jeep, loaded up Pheebs and we headed out to our country road spot for a brisk morning walk.  Home for a second time, I hauled out my vehicle cleaning stuff and spent about an hour cleaning Subie.  With our running back and forth to London these past few weeks it had gotten a little dirty both inside and out.  An afternoon walk with Pheebs around the Park pond and that pretty well took care of another day..............

 WE HAVE PRIMROSE BLOOMING

 OUR HOSTAS ARE SPIKING UP THROUGH THE GROUND

 GARDEN LIGHTS

 A LONE BURGUNDY TRILLIUM IN OUR FRONT YARD

Al's Music Box:)) Run For The Roses by Dan Fogelberg from the album 'The Innocent Age'.  1980

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Health inspector: "I'm afraid you have too many roaches in here."  Restaurant owner: "How many am I allowed?"

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A mother takes her son to a psychiatrist and says, “Doctor, I'd like you to evaluate my 13-year-old son.”  “He's suffering from a transient psychosis with an intermittent rage disorder, punctuated by episodic radical mood swings, but his prognosis is good for full recovery.”  “How can you say all that without even meeting him?”  “Didn't you say he was 13?”

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KELLY'S LAST PLASMAPHERESIS TREATMENT TODAY

 IT WAS A NICE AFTERNOON FOR A WALK IN A LONDON FOREST

Not surprisingly, I had a few of my medical appointments mixed up.  It was this morning I had to go for the blood work and not Thursday morning.  And Thursday is my X-rays and not Friday.  It's a good thing Kelly keeps track of things.  My short-term memory is practically non-existent and I consider it a minor miracle when I wake up some mornings actually remembering who I am.

 MORE ENCOURAGING SIGNS OF SPRING TODAY

 FORSYTHIA

Under cold cloudy skies, I was at the Dynacare Lab this morning on the early side and was actually in and out of there before I was even due to be there.  Home again, the Subaru had hardly cooled off when all three of us were in it again and heading for London's Victoria Hospital.  It was 11 a.m. and Kelly had an appointment at 12:30 a.m. for her hopefully last plasmapheresis treatment.

 HEADING TO LONDON UNDER COOL CLOUDY SKIES

 PHEEBS AND I DROP KELLY OFF

Dropping Kelly off at 12:15 Pheebs and I hustled over to the nature area behind Parkwood Hospital and minutes later we were out of the car and onto another trail.  Cold today but not as cold as Monday when we had flecks of snow in the air.  I had planned to re-walk the north shoreline trail of Walkers pond but that idea was quickly thwarted when we found the pathway still too muddy.

 HEADING OFF ON THIS TRAIL WE DIDN'T GET TOO FAR

 THE TRAIL WAS STILL TOO MUDDY

 I THINK IT WAS TOO CHILLY FOR THESE MAGNOLIA BLOSSOMS TO OPEN

 HEADING DOWN TO THE WATER'S EDGE AT THE EAST END OF WALKERS POND

 A GRAY AND AND MOODY SKY REFLECTED IN WALKERS POND

 A TOUCH OF EARLY AFTERNOON SUNSHINE ON THE POND

Doubling back a short distance we re-walked another area where the Veteran's memorial bench is located as well as three old cement foundations from days of buildings past.

 VETERAN'S MEMORIAL BENCH

 I LOVE TAKING CANDID PHOTOS OF PEOPLE JUST BEING THEMSELVES

 WHEN THESE THREE YOUNG FELLOWS APPROACHED, PHEEBS RAN UP TO GREET THEM BUT THE FELLOW ON THE LEFT WITH A FISHING POLE WAS SCARED OF HER AND RAN AROUND BEHIND HIS TWO BUDDIES WHO NEVER ACKNOWLEDGED PHEEBS FRIENDLINESS

 PHEEBS AND I HEEDED THIS SIGN AND DIDN'T FOLLOW THIS TRAIL UNTIL WE BLUNDERED INTO IT LATER ON FOR A SECOND TIME IN TWO DAYS

Almost back to the car I spotted another faint trail leading off into the hardwood bush so off we went on that one to see what we could see.  It doubled around and joined the 'dogs must be on a leash' trail so we only walked a short distance on that one before I spotted another trail leading off in the general direction we were wanting to go.

 SPOTTED ANOTHER SMALL SIDE TRAIL SO OFF WE WENT

 PHEEBS BLAZES THE TRAIL AHEAD

 IT WASN'T LONG BEFORE WE BLUNDERED INTO THE 'DOG LEASH' TRAIL (FOREGROUND)

 A WELL-WORN TRAIL INDEED

 PHEEBS SOMETIMES WANDERS OFF THE PATH

 SPOTTED ANOTHER SIDE TRAIL WHICH  QUICKLY GOT US OFF THE 'DOG LEASH'' TRAIL

 PHEEBS SCOUTS THE WAY AHEAD

 SHE ALWAYS KEEPS ME IN SIGHT AND MAKES SURE I AM STILL COMING

 TWO DAYS AGO WE CAME THROUGH HERE FROM THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION AND I HAD TO BE VERY CAREFUL COMING DOWN THE MUDDY GRADE

 I HAD NO PROBLEM WITH MY RIGHT LEG OR HIP AND POWERED RIGHT UP THIS GRADE

 THIS IS A NEW SECTION OF TRAIL FOR US

 CAME ACROSS THIS TAG ON A FENCE AND YOU CAN SEE THE TREE BELOW

I didn't take my cane on this walk and despite some steep little grades along the trail I once again never had any problems with my hip or right leg.  We encountered a number of muddy spots but were able to circumnavigate them.  Well, at least I was, while Pheebs just plowed right through the mud like it wasn't even there.  Some parts of the trail were the same parts we had walked a couple days ago and most parts were new.  We eventually found our way back to the green grass of the two large ball diamonds and from there to the car on the other side.  Our energized walk had lasted one hour and ten minutes and was the best thing for my legs.

 THE PATH WE WERE FOLLOWING LED OUT OF THE FOREST INTO A FIELD

 I THINK THAT MIGHT BE THE CORE OF DOWNTOWN LONDON ON THE FAR HORIZON

 THE PATH AHEAD LED IN A DIRECTION I DIDN'T WANT TO GO SO WE TURNED AROUND HERE AND RE-ENTERED THE FOREST

 WE CAME ACROSS THE GREEN CROP OF MAYAPPLES

 MAKING OUR WAY BACK THROUGH THE FOREST AND BEGINNING TO SEE MORE SUNLIGHT

 LUCKILY, THIS MAJOR WATER HOLE HAD DRIED UP

 ANOTHER NARROW SIDE TRAIL WITH A LOT OF SNAIL SHELLS ALONG THE WAY

 FINALLY, WE MADE IT BACK TO THE DOUBLE BASEBALL DIAMOND AREA

We reached the car at 1:40 p.m. and slipped into our waiting routine of me reading and Pheebs snoozing.  It was 2:35 when my cell rang with Kelly on the other end saying she was ready to be picked up.  Pheebs and I were there minutes later and we were once again on our way home with a quick stop at Wendys on Adelaide Street.  By this time the skies were clearing and we had a nice-looking blue sky drive all the way home.  We rolled into our driveway at 4:35 this afternoon.  Mission accomplished:))

ON OUR WAY BACK TO PICK UP MOM AT THE HOSPITAL

 'YAAAAAY':))

 HEADING UP ADELAIDE STREET WE SPOTTED THIS SIGN DEPICTING THE NEW RAILWAY UNDERPASS

 IT WAS NICE TO BE HEADING HOME WITH NO FURTHER  LONDON MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS FOR AWHILE

 GOTTA LOVE THOSE BLUE SKIES AND ESPECIALLY SO AT THIS TIME OF YEAR

It's a good feeling knowing we do not have to run back to London in a couple days and with today being Kelly's last plasmapheresis treatment we may not be back there again but......the last thing the nurse said to Kelly today was that 'depending how long the itching stays at bay, Kelly may have to come back on a weekly basis'.  Encouragingly, Kelly had another itch-free night last night.      

 KELLY HOLDS HER BLOOD PLASMA BAG WITH ALL THE TOXINS IN IT

 AND THESE WERE HER BANDAGED ARMS TODAY

 AND THIS ON THE BACK OF KELLYS SHIRT TODAY SAYS IT ALL

A friend of mine inquired about my thoughts on why my hip and leg were not hurting me at the moment and I am again able to walk without pain.  My Nurse Practitioner told me last week to begin taking Tylenol 1000mg 3 times a day and Glucosamine 1500 mg once a day for 6 to 8 weeks to see if it helps.  That is my only explanation as to why I have been able to walk and move around without pain in my leg.  I can still feel occasional tweaks and twinges and that is enough to remind me not to push my luck by doing something stupid.  We'll see what tomorrow's X-rays turn up............

 ONE OF THE OLD VETERANS  ABANDONED HOSPITAL BUILDINGS STILL STANDS IN THE AREA WHERE PHEEBS AND I PARK

 AND OF COURSE, WHERE THERE ARE OLD ABANDONED BUILDINGS THERE IS ALWAYS SOME FORM OF GRAFFITI

Al's Music Box:)) Call Me The Breeze by JJ Cale from the album 'Naturally'.  1971

 THE CLOSER WE GOT TO HOME THIS AFTERNOON THE BETTER IT FELT:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A blind man walks into a store.  He grabs his guide dog by the tail and lifts it into the air then spins it around his head.  The store clerk, alarmed by this strange behavior said, "Can I help you?"…. "Nope, I'm just looking around."

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What did the train conductor say to the kangaroo?  “Hop on!”

What animal jumps when it walks and sits when it stands?  A kangaroo

What’s a kangaroo’s favorite candy?Lollihops

What do you get if you cross a kangaroo and a sheep?  A woolly good jumper

What kind of music do kangaroos listen to?Hip-hop

What do you get when you mix an elephant and a kangaroo?  Big holes all over Australia

A spider, a snake, and a kangaroo walk into a bar...It’s a normal day in Australia

In Antarctica, a little kangaroo is sitting with some penguins, sneezing and grumbling, “Stupid student exchange program"!!

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