WELL HERE WE ARE ALMOST INTO THE THIRD WEEK OF OCTOBER

Heard on the news the Canada/US border closure has been extended to November 21rst as expected.  Today we received an interesting email from our RV Travel Insurance Company.  *** ATTENTION ALL SNOWBIRDS ***Sanderson Travel Insurance now offers COVID-19 coverage for those clients wanting to travel to the USA this fall and winter.  FYI...As a recommendation for you all, if you are wanting to still travel south this winter and are in need of bringing your vehicle or RV/Trailer with you, please get in touch with the company called "uscanadaautotransport" and they can arrange to have your vehicle delivered to your location door to door service.  www.uscanadaautotransport.com  

1-800-466-6935

MORNING'S GOLDEN GLOW UPON THE LAND

Sorry about the black and white borders partially around my photos below.....I think the Sanderson format I inserted had something to do with that

Sunlight beaming through our pine trees this morning went a long way in perking up my spirits.  Pheebs and I slipped out the door and headed east directly into the Sun.  No destination in mind but we did find ourselves in the Hullett Marsh before too long.  Nice to see and hear some birdlife and no hunter's guns.  Beautiful sunny morning with no wind as we took ourselves for a walk alongside Whistler Pool.

ONE OF MY FAVORITE AREAS IN THE MARSH

MORNING MIST

Autumn colors are still peeking and our countryside is ablaze with pastels and hues of gold and crimson.  Burgundies, yellows, greens, and rustic browns were etched everywhere against our deep blue crisp October sky.  It is the serene but unsettling calm before the coming winter storms.

Pheebs and I took the Winnie-Spirit for a run over to Clinton and back today.  I wanted to give the black tank one more good flush before winter so had added a couple buckets of water with a mild cleaning solution to give it a good slosh on the way there.  Gas gauge was down to a quarter so I put in $100 and that brought the gauge up to three-quarters.  That should be enough to get us to the border if they ever open it again someday.  We are trying to remain as cautiously optimistic about our chances of traveling south again at some point.

GASSING UP IN CLINTON

MY UNFLAPPABLE FURRY LITTLE NAVIGATOR IS FEELING A BIT SNOOZY ON THE WAY HOME

FARMERS ARE WORKING ON THE CORN HARVEST NOW

Well here we are almost into the final week of October.  Eighteen years ago at this time Kelly and I were in a very excited state of mind.  We were in the final weeks of moving from the Weenie Roast Ranch near Fullarton Ontario to our digs here at the Five Seasons just outside of Bayfield.  Although still living in the old farmhouse we already had a few pieces of furniture moved into our new to us place and I had already begun digging in our center flower bed out front.  We were able to do these things because nobody was living in the unit.  In fact, nobody had lived in it for the previous 3 years.  Yes exciting times indeed back then and we finally moved in lock, stock, and barrel on Halloween night of 2002.  And we did the whole move ourselves:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( You are on a horse, galloping at a constant speed. On your right side is a sharp drop off, and on your left side is an elephant traveling at the same speed as you. Directly in front of you is another galloping horse but your horse is unable to overtake it. Behind you is a lion running at the same speed as you and the horse in front of you. What must you do to safely get out of this highly dangerous situation? Get your drunk ass off the merry-go-round!

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HYPOTHETICALLY THINKING ABOUT MOVING BY STAYING RIGHT HERE IN OUR PARK

THIS NEW SECTION OF PARK ROAD IS NEAR US AND AT THE FAR END ON THE LEFT IS MY 'FAVORITE LOT SPOT'

Cold, cloudy, gray, and damp at 42F this morning.  At least it wasn't raining.  Leaves are still looking nice but my camera remained idle.  I don't always find these dull-looking cold and damp depressing days very inspiring.

LUCKILY I HAVE A FEW LEFT OVER FILE PHOTOS FROM LAST WEEK

Having finished up 23 books about the Vietnam war I switched to something different last week and am now reading, Confession: Our Hidden Alien Encounters Revealed.  Needless to say, there is a lot of food for realistic thought in this book.  Although there is a very fine line between fact and fiction when it comes to the subject of UFO's (Unidentified Flying Objects) I do lean heavily towards the belief of other beings in our Universe and beyond.  How naïve to think we are the only ones out here.  An open mind to this whole subject is priority.  Despite never having seen a UFO, I do believe they are in our skies and controlled by something far beyond our imagination and comprehension.  I do believe there is a power out there far beyond our understanding and I do not think it has anything to do with man's commonly scattered religious beliefs.

I am beginning to look forward to my early afternoon snoozes.  It seems within minutes of being swallowed up by my big overstuffed cushy recliner I am off to la-la land in no time at all.  And it is what I find in la-la land that makes my little siestas so appealing.  Many times I am transported to an almost Harry Potter-like land of mystically magical things.  Today's afternoon dreams centered around an old train station somewhere waiting and watching for a train that never did appear.  I saw Pheebs running across a field with a big pumpkin in her mouth and many times I looked down those train tracks for the train.  There were silent travelers moving to and fro through and around the train station.  At one point I was on a bicycle atop a hill looking far off across a valley hoping to catch a glimpse of the coming locomotive pulling its line of cars.  It seems I was waiting for someone on that train.  Yes, a nice way to spend a few hours of the day I'd say.  Following my early afternoon snoozes, I generally feel energized enough to take Pheebs for a walk.  And so it was today as we headed off  along the trail on another Autumn day with a few thoughts on my mind about our future right here in our Park.

As I have said before, our Park here is like a big beautiful ship foundering in a stormy sea of uncertainty.  Our ship lost its helmsman about a year ago and right now there is no steady hand at the wheel to guide our Park through these heavy seas.  We are being tossed about by all the elements at play with the result being the future of our lovely big ship and we the resident passengers sailing aboard her facing a shaky and uncertain future.  That uncertain future led me to some more hypothetical thinking on our walk this afternoon.  'What If' our Park were to be sold to a solid reputable and reliable company who decided to put additional new (not expensive high end) homes in here.  'What If' we were able to sell our place and move to one of the newer homes being built on a lot of our choice at an ideal spot better than where we are now.  We like our Park and we like this whole area of southwestern Ontario our Park is located in and we would rather not have to leave this area.....so I see this idea as the next best thing?  Our unit is aging and although we are on a large corner lot we would love to be further back in the forest without neighbors on 3 of 4 sides.  And I figure I have found just that spot which would actually be another corner lot.  All this is a fanciful thinking of course but by golly it's not impossible.  Improbable maybe, but not impossible.  If what I said were to happen in the next year or two I have already determined a few months ago just where that 'favorite spot' of mine would be.  Pheebs and I walked past that spot again on our afternoon walk today.    

MY FAVORITE LOT SPOT IS OVER THERE ON THE LEFT WHERE THOSE FIRST YELLOW LEAVES ARE VISIBLE

RIGHT OVER THERE IS WHERE I FIGURE WOULD BE A GOOD SPOT FOR A NEW HOUSE

THIS IS WHAT THAT LOT LOOKS LIKE RIGHT NOW

And as always on this day each year, I include a link regarding a special day in my life which took place 41 years ago.  It was a life-saving game changer for me.  One Day At A Time

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A man died and arrived at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter greets him and says, "Welcome. Come walk with me and I'll show you where you'll be staying."  As they're walking along the path he notices clocks on the Golden Fence of Heaven. He asks St. Peter, "What are all those clocks for?"  St. Peter replies, "They're clocks for every person in the world. They click once for each time you lie."  By the time they reach where the man is staying, he asks out of curiosity, "I didn't see any politicians clocks. Where are they kept?"  St. Peter calmly replies, "People here use them as fans."

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Mahatma Gandhi often walked barefoot which produced an impressive set of callouses on his feet. He also ate very little, making him rather frail and with his odd diet he often suffered from bad breath. This made him a super calloused fragile mystic hexed with halitosis.

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WHEN WE CAN GET ALL EXCITED ABOUT OUR LITTLE RIG ALL OVER AGAIN

OUR PARK'S POND AREA LAST THURSDAY AFTERNOON

It was a late start to our morning when Kelly had yet another poor night's sleep due to Pruritus which is directly related to her Primary Billary Cirrhosis liver condition.  She has been dealing with this for quite a while and the itching is not only lasting longer now but is increasing in intensity and area.  She has been using prescribed medicines and creams but they only do so much for so long.  Cold compresses and ice only bring relief for a short while.  It's always worse at night and seriously affects her sleep.  Normally up shortly before 6 a.m. she slept until 8 o'clock this morning which has to be a first for her.  Kelly has an appointment at London's University Hospital for an ultra-sound in January with a follow-up phone call with her liver Doctor in February.

Pheebs and I followed an overcast rainy 50F morning into Bayfield and back.  Didn't have any desire to head off down any country roads.  Noticed a lot of fishermen on the banks of the Bayfield River and around the south pier.  They sure have a lot of determination those folks standing out there in the cold rain.

ROUGH LAKE HURON WATERS ALONG BAYFIELD'S SHORELINE

FISHERMEN BUNDLED UP AGAINST FRIDAY MORNING'S ICY WINDS

DESPITE THIS MORNINGS RAIN I SAW A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT FISHING

THIS JUST GOES TO SHOW ALL FISHERMEN ARE NOT MEN 

'WELL BILL I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS CRAPPY RAIN AND I'M GOING HOME'

THIS SOGGY PERSON EVEN BRAVED THE ELEMENTS TO TAKE A PHOTO OF THE LAKE'S ROUGH WATER ERODING EVEN MORE OF BAYFIELD'S BEACH

I would say about two-thirds of all boats are out of the water now and sitting on their storage stands scattered around the harbor area.  A few 'For Sale' signs on the boats and by Winter's end I'm sure there will be more.  That always seems to be the pattern.  Looks like the curb work at Bayfield's new Tim Horton sight is done.  Machines are leveling out the lot and I'm guessing they will be paving very soon.  An impossible thought occurred to me though. I wonder if they might be open by Christmas??  Did you notice how I played it safe there by not predicting Christmas of what year.

FRIDAY MORNING THIS BOAT OWNER HEADS FOR THE 'BOATLIFT' WHERE THEY TAKE BOATS OUT OF THE WATER

THIS IS ONE OF TWO BOAT LIFTING DEVICES IN THE HARBOR

THIS TRUCK BACKS A TRAILER UNDER THE BOAT LIFT, SECURES THE BOAT THEN DRIVES IT OFF TO ITS STORAGE PLACE

BOATS ARE PARKED TIGHTLY TOGETHER

SOME BOATS ARE WRAPPED IN HUGE TARPAULINS

MOST BOATS ARE STORED JUST AS THEY ARE

THIS BOAT IS A LONG WAY FROM HOME

For a change of pace, it was pizza for supper.  Kelly ordered up an 'Admiral Bayfield' pizza from Pizza by the Square and I picked it up.  Notice I said 'I'.  Had Pheebs come along the two of us would have been wrestling over that pizza all the way home.  Pizza was great.  Forgot to take a picture of that square pizza George.

THIS IS THE SECOND BOATLIFT IN BAYFIELD'S HARBOR

I'LL BET THIS BOAT WILL BE THE FIRST ONE LIFTED OUT OF THE WATER EARLY MONDAY MORNING

BOAT BOWS ABOVE AND BOAT BUTTS BELOW

ALWAYS LOVED BOTH HENRY MANCINI AND ANDY WILLIAMS VERSIONS OF THE THE SONG 'MOON RIVER'

Every once in a while I feel very honored when someone thinks well enough of my photos to use one of them for a good purpose.  And that is just what Mary McKenzie from Missouri did with one of my bird photos.  Mary chose to paint a Blue Jay photo I had taken several weeks ago through our sunroom window and I can honestly say her painting is much better than my photo.  A great job on that painting Mary and I thank you so very much for being a long-time blog reader:))

MARY'S PAINTING ON THE LEFT AND MY PHOTO  ON THE RIGHT

I think it's almost safe to say we won't be getting out with our little Winnie Spirit again this fall.  Weather's not looking that good for the coming weeks so I think we'll just go ahead and winterize it and keep our fingers crossed for an early Spring when we can get all excited about our little rig all over again:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( At my granddaughter's wedding reception, the DJ polled the guests to see who had been married longest. It turned out to be my husband and me. The DJ asked us, "What advice would you give to the newly married couple?"  I said, "The three most important words in a marriage are, ''You're probably right.'  Everyone then looked at my husband. He said, "She's probably right."

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A man rushed into the doctor's office and shouted, "Doctor! I think I'm shrinking!"
The doctor calmly responded, "Now, settle down. You'll just have to be a little patient."

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A woman answered her front door and saw a little boy holding a list.
"Ma'am," he explained, "I'm on a scavenger hunt, and I still need three grains of wheat, a pork-chop bone and a piece of used carbon paper so I can earn a dollar."
"Wow," the woman replied. "Who sent you on such a challenging hunt?"
"My babysitter's boyfriend."

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