A COLD RAINY DAY DRIVE FOR KELLY AND I TO SCHMIDTSVILLE AND BACK

 YOUNG GREEN AND WHITE POPLAR TREE LEAVES ARE BACKGROUNDED BY RED AND ORANGE MAPLE TREE LEAVES

Kelly had a bone density appointment at Goderich's Alexandra Marine Hospital for 8:30 a.m. this morning so we were up earlier than usual.  At 10 a.m. with pouring rain pelting down it was just Kelly and I in the Subaru heading east to Wellesley Ontario to meet our good friends Richard and Gayle at a restaurant they really like called Schmidtsville.  Maybe not the nicest day for a drive but it at least got us out of the house for a few hours.  And, we needed that.  Walking through the front door of the Schmidtsville Restaurant I was right away reminded of a favorite eatery of ours south of the border called Cracker Barrel.  The food and service were great and of course, we all ate too much.  The meal included dessert too.  Pie all the way around.  Raspberry Custard for Richard, Banana Cream for Gayle, Pecan for Kelly, and Apple Schnitz for me.  Always nice to talk to Gayle and Richard and next week Richard and I will be heading out on another one of our always enjoyable country road coffee tours:))  After a breeze through the gift shop after our dinner, we said our goodbyes at about 1:30 with Richard and Gayle heading off in a southerly direction for St. Marys and Kelly and I motoring west to Bayfield 57 miles away.  Nice uneventful drive except for it raining all the way home.  And at posting time tonight.....yup, it's still raining:((

 YET ANOTHER COLD AND WET RAINY START TO THE DAY

 THOSE SPLOTCHES ON THE WINDSHIELD ARE RAINDROPS WELL ON THEIR WAY TO BECOMING SNOWFLAKES

HEY I RECOGNIZE THAT DARK VAN OVER THERE PARKED IN FRONT OF SCHMIDTSVILLE

 YEP, SURE REMINDS ME OF CRACKER BARREL ALRIGHT

 THAT'S KELLY ON THE RIGHT HEADING FOR OUR COZY CORNER TABLE

 ALMOST HOME THIS AFTERNOON AND IT IS STILL RAINING.....SOME PLACES IN OUR AREA HAVE ALREADY HAD A DUSTING OF SNOW

Since this cold wet weather has set in, our front yard bird traffic has increased and the feathery little critters have had me on the run keeping the feeders topped up.  I think I have got them all spoiled and I am sure they are quite smartly taking advantage of that.  But I don't mind, I enjoy seeing them every day and helping the little guys out on these cold wet days.    

 I THINK THIS LITTLE CHIPMUNK HAS ABOUT TEN POUNDS OF BIRDSEED IN ITS CHEEK POUCH

Ellen's Groove:)) In this short clip, you can really see Ellen's progression, excitement, and bubbliness.  You can tell by her facial expressions and body rhythm how much she is truly getting into the groove with her bass guitar.   Groovin:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  You might be a redneck if:

-You are still holding on to Confederate money because you think the South will rise again.
-You consider pork and beans to be a gourmet food.
-You can amuse yourself for more than an hour with a fly swatter.
-You have to go down to the creek to take a bath.
-You participate in the "who can spit tobacco the farthest contest".
-You roll you hair with soup cans and wash it once a year.
-You've never paid for a haircut.
-You consider a three piece suit to be: a pair of overalls, a plaid flannel shirt and thermal underwear.
-There is a sheet hanging in your closet and a gun rack hanging in your truck.
-You think the Mountain Men in Deliverance were just "misunderstood".

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You miss one car payment and everything outside sounds like a tow truck.

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COLD WET AND RAINY ON THIS 'BIG SHIPS' KIND OF DAY

Twas a cold icy rain a falling this morning as Pheebs and I splashed our way to Goderich in the Jeep.  We sure had to keep the heater cranked.  At the time of publishing this tonight, we are only 8 degrees Fahrenheit above freezing.  Yuk!!  

 RAINED ALL THE WAY TO GODERICH AND BACK

Arriving in Goderich is was a McDonalds coffee to go and then down to the harbor we went.  Three large freighters in port with the Algoma Compass at the Goderich Salt Mine and the Barbro G along with the Cuyahoga at the Goderich Grain Terminal The Barbro G is a large ocean-going vessel and I don't think I had seen it before.

 HMMMMM, REMINDS ME OF 'FISH&SHIPS':))

From the Goderich harbor's south side we slipped over to the north side and then later headed for Walmart where I had to get a prescription renewed.  From there it was over to Canadian Tire for some furnace filters as well as coffee filters.  It rained all the way to Goderich this morning, the whole time we were there, and then all the way home again.  Cold, wet, and miserable.  And we're only halfway through October.  Rain for Wednesday and Thursday is predicted as well.  At the time of posting this tonight, it was still pouring rain and our front yard frog pond is almost full of water again.  I am not at my best in cold wet windy weather like this:(( Rumor has it that Saturday will be sunny and 70F:))))) 

 THESE VIEWS ARE FROM THE NORTH SIDE OF THE HARBOR

THE CUYAHOGA CERTAINLY HAS HAD ITSELF A FEW SCRAPES OVER THE YEARS

 THE PORT HOLES AND SLANTED BACK SMOKESTACK REMIND ME OF AN OLD TRAMP STEAMER

 GODERICH'S HARBOR TUG

 LOOKS LIKE A NUMBER OF FISHING BOATS ARE SNUGGED IN FOR THE WINTER

I haven't been an avid television watcher for a number of years now.  With the exception of one show at the moment, there is nothing I regularly look forward to watching.  Nothing interests me.  Situation comedy?  Nope, where do you go after Seinfeld, Cheers, and Corner Gas??  Dramas?  Never!!!!  Supposed reality shows?? No way!!!! The History Channel, documentary, and Smithsonian channels have good stuff sometimes but nothing I follow unless I stumble across it.  Movies?? Not really.  I snap on the news channel a few times a day to check on where the world is with the latest madness levels but that is about it.  However, there is one show at this time of year that comes on the History channel at 9 p.m. Sunday nights that I look forward to with great anticipation and interest.  It's in its third year now and my open-minded curiosity about the show and related matters stem from many of the books I have been reading these past couple of years.  In a number of those books, a ranch in Utah has been popping up, cross-referenced, and tied in with a number of other things.  I am of course talking about a show called, 'The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch.'  I find the production not only very intriguing but I find it very credible as well.  The actual events take place and are filmed during the summer months on the ranch and then edited and presented in 11 episodes for television starting in September and ending in November.  I generally prefer this type of information presented in a documentary format but I make an exception with this show and understand the need to stoke and promote an entertaining human interest style.

 A HERD OF CATTLE TRY TO SHELTER ALONG THE BUSH LINE FROM THE COLD WIND AND RAIN

Ellen's Groove:)) Even though she gets a little discaboobelated, Ellen is excited and having a fun time trying to keep up with this fast-paced Beach Boys song, I Get Around.    

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Did you know it gets so hot in Arizona that Roadrunners have to use pot holders to pull Lizards out of the ground & ranchers have to feed their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying hard boiled eggs.

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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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