SNOW CLOUDS CAN BE LIKE THAT SOMETIMES AND A DRIVE TO GRAND BEND ONTARIO

 GRAND BEND ONTARIO CANADA

Upon awakening this morning and looking out of our large east-facing living room window I could see there was only one leaf left on our Redbud tree.  And the predominant color outside was grey.  Yes, the month of November is finally showing her true color.  

 I DON'T THINK THIS CHAP WAS TOO HAPPY ABOUT THIS MORNING'S COLD AND GREY 

Well, what can I write about now that isn't humorously self-deprecating and goofily gloomy.  It is the dark season upon us for mental slippage but I am up for the challenge and shall try to keep my brightest thoughts and positive attitude foremost in mind and at the top of my 'happy face' list when composing my posts.........With morning temperatures at 39F, and for the first time in over seven months, I slipped into a pair of my lined winter pants this morning as well as a long-sleeved warm T-shirt.  Pheebs, with her 'all-season' fur coat, luckily didn't have to make any changes for the colder weather.  So, with Pheebs window down and the Jeep's heater on we took a drive into Bayfield to see if we could find the 'Sticks Library'.  A hot tip from a Bayfield resident said we could find it at 11 Louisa Street and by golly that is right where we found it.  

 A GREAT IDEA FOR DOG WALKERS PASSING THIS WAY

 YES IT WAS LOOKING QUITE NOVEMBERISH IN BAYFIELD THIS MORNING

 DESPITE THE MORNING'S COLD TEMPERATURES, THESE THREE HARDY WALKERS WERE TAKING A BREAK IN FRONT OF THE COFFEE SHOP....I FELT LIKE WINDING MY WINDOW DOWN AND SHOUTING 'HEY, DO YOU  GUYS WANT TO KNOW WHERE THE STICKS LIBRARY IS'

Feeling the need for some different scenery we decided to head on down to Grand Bend for a look around.  It's probably been nearly a year since we were last down around that way.  Choosing some back roads to reach our destination we quite unexpectedly came across a big corn dump in the ditch.  I think my heart even skipped a beat when I saw it.  Kind of like an old prospector coming across the 'Mother Lode'.  I immediately stopped and filled up my buckets.  I'm trying to decide now whether to rent a U-Haul trailer and go back for the rest:))

 HOLY WALLAPALOOZA, IT LOOKS LIKE THE MOTHER LODE OF CORN DUMPS

 A SATURDAY MORNING FARMER DISKS AND SCUFFLES UP HIS FIELD

 I THOUGHT THIS WAS AN INTERESTING TREE ROOT SYSTEM ALONGSIDE A CREEK

 IT'S BEEN A YEAR OR TWO SINCE I LAST TOOK A PHOTO OF A 'BARN BLOCK QUILT'

Oh my, how the small lakeside hamlet of Grand Bend is rapidly changing.  Number 21 highway from the main intersections heading north for about 4 blocks is all torn up.  

 THIS IS HIGHWAY 21 LOOKING SOUTH TOWARD THE BEND'S MAIN  INTERSECTION

 I HOPE THEY DON'T TEAR DOWN THE OLD COLONIAL HOTEL

Turning west onto the Bend's main drag heading down to the lake was another surprise.  A number of older buildings have been torn down and replaced with larger two and three-story modern-looking buildings.  I would say nearly a third of the old buildings are gone now and with the amount of main street reconstruction I saw going on I would say the old Grand Bend will at some point finally be replaced by the new Grand Bend.  

 TURNING RIGHT AND HEADING WEST DOWN GRAND BEND'S MAIN DRAG

 THIS IS THE NEW BEND COMING IN

 AND THIS IS THE OLD BEND GOING OUT

A ONCE SWINGING  DANCE HALL ONCE STOOD HERE WITH GUY LOMBARDO AND HIS ROYAL CANADIANS  BEING ONE OF THE BANDS..... FOR THE DANCE HALL'S INTERESTING HISTORY CLICK HERE AT COMMUNITY STORIES

 'THE TIMES THEY ARE A CHANGIN'

I really liked all the Christmas decorations and lighting I saw being set into place along Grand Bend's main street too.  With a snowy winterscape soon to be upon us, a night drive along Grand Bend's main drag will soon be a winter wonderland to see.  

 THIS MAIN STREET IS GOING TO LOOK MARVELOUS WHEN THE SNOW COMES AND TURNS EVERYTHING INTO A WINTER WONDERLAND

 ALL THIS WILL LOOK SO PRETTY WHEN IT'S ALL LIT UP AT NIGHT

 HERE'S A ONE-LEGGED HEADLESS GRAND BENDER WORKING ON THE CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

Beginning with Grand Bend's total beach reconstruction years ago this once small rag taggle wild and wooly little southwestern lakeside summer hot spot has really pulled up its socks and is transforming itself into a rather sophisticated class act.  Quite a welcome change from the loud and noisy knock-em-down and drag-em-out dusty little lakeside burg of a place I remember from the early 60's.  

 AT THE WEST END OF MAIN STREET MAKING A TURN TO THE SOUTH AT THE BEACH AREA

 THREE OF GRAND BEND'S BEACH CAMS ARE LOCATED ON THAT TOWER TO THE RIGHT

 A SOUTHERN LAKE HURON BARRACUDA

 THEY HAVE A REALLY NICE CHILDREN'S PLAYGROUND HERE AT THE BEACH

 A SHORT DECADE AGO NONE OF THIS GRASS WAS HERE

 GRAND BEND HAS DONE A GREAT JOB AT CREATING ALL THIS 

AND THIS IS NEW SINCE THE LAST TIME PHEEBS AND I WERE HERE

 AND THIS OF COURSE IS GRAND BEND'S ICONIC NORTH PIER

 THE SOUTH PIER

 A HARDY SATURDAY MORNING SURFER IN THE COLD WATERS OF LAKE HURON

 MAKES ME APPRECIATE SITTING IN THE WARM COZY JEEP WITH THE HEATER GOING

From Grand Bend, Pheebs and I once again climbed aboard a few good old country roads and made our way back to Bayfield.  Came across a few more corn spillages along the way but my buckets were already full.  Ain't it just the way of things!!  Home again, it was nice to stay inside where the air was all nice and toasty warm.  Later, while topping up the birdfeeders a passing snow cloud dumped a short feathery mist of freezing rain on me before moving on.  Snow clouds can be like that sometimes................

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Little Johnny's father took him on a fishing trip to Canada.  On returning home after catching only three fish his father says, "The way I figure it each fish cost us $400!"  Little Johnny replied, "Well, at that price it’s a good thing we didn’t catch any more of them than we did."

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If you get nostalgic about childhood camping trips you are just living in the past tents.

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A Sunday school teacher asked her second graders if anyone knew another name for God. She was picturing answers like 'Lord' or 'Almighty'.After a long moment of silence, a little boy raised his hand and said, "Howard." "Howard?" replied the confused teacher. "You know," continued the boy, "Howard be thy name."

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AKIN TO LAYING A GALLON OF HOUSE PAINT ON ITS SIDE THEN OPENING IT TO SEE WHAT'S INSIDE

Under overcast skies and windless 57F temps, Pheebs and I headed straightaway out to our country road walking spot this morning.  Both cornfields on either side of the road are now harvested and we scored another half dozen corn cobs.  Farther up the road I managed to shovel up a small amount of spilled corn.  About five parts corn and three parts gravel.  After wandering a few more country roads, we were back home shortly after 10 a.m.  Kelly had scooted off to Exeter for a dental appointment. 

IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE I LAST HAD A CUTESY COW PICTURE

I'M STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THIS LARGE RURAL BUILDING PROJECT IS ALL ABOUT

 THIS FARMER HAS GROWN HIMSELF QUITE A CROP OF SEAGULLS

With rain due later today, followed by much colder weather, my priority today was to drain our garden hoses and turn the outside water off.  Mission accomplished.  A few adjustments to our front yard bird station were needed so I stroked that off my list too.  I also had to lop off a small cedar branch that I saw a black squirrel using to launch himself into the air and land on the bird station feeder.

 EACH TIME NOW THAT i HAVE TO SCRUNCH MYSELF DOWN INTO THIS AREA BELOW OUR FRONT DECK TO TURN THE WATER EITHER ON OR OFF, IT IS GETTING HARDER FOR ME TO DO

TOP RIGHT OF CENTER IS A ROUND RED VALVE AND THAT IS WHAT I TURN TO EITHER TURN THE OUTSIDE WATER EITHER ON OR OFF

Okay, now for the paint story.  When at the Subaru dealership in Stratford Ontario for an oil change last week I decided to buy a small tube of 'crystal white pearl' automotive touch-up paint.  It's a four-stage operation and the young fellow at the service counter showed me how to use it,  Now, keep in mind that I am a 78-year-old male and it was 'last week' that the fellow demonstrated the applicator. So.....yesterday with the milder temperatures I figured I had better set about touching up a few small nicks and scratches on the Subaru.  Sitting in the sunroom at the computer I took the tube out of the box, looked at it, and barely had a clue how to use it.  Out came the magnifying glass to read the instructions on the box.  Well, not much help there so I took the tube in hand and remembered something about unscrewing one end to access a small brush.  With the exception of doing this inside instead of outside things were sort of going okay so I decided to unscrew the top to have a look at the brush and it was here I made my big dumb mistake.  Instead of holding the tube vertically upright, I was absent-mindedly holding it horizontally sideways and as soon as I unscrewed the one section......'sploosh'   I instantly dumped about $30 worth of crystal white pearl automotive paint out of the tube onto my blue jeans right leg, the back of my left shoe, the chair leg wheel, and the floor.  No, you do not want to know how much I paid for this small tube of touch-up paint in the first place!!  That of course was the first mistake in this little fiasco of mine.  I figure the mentality I used here to open this tube was akin to buying a gallon of house paint, laying it on its side on the kitchen table, and then deciding to take the lid off to see what was inside.  

 THAT'S QUITE THE CRYSTAL WHITE PEARL PIECE OF ARTWORK PERMANTELY ON MY SHOE NOW

 THE PAINT TUBE SITTING IN ITS WHITE PLASTIC HOLDER

 ALTHOUGH MOST OF THE PAINT IS WIPED UP IT'S A GOOD THING WE HAD A PLASTIC RUNNER UNDER THE CHAIR TO PROTECT THE RUG 

Well, with some recent changes on the world's stage I am feeling better about checking news headlines again.  Even feeling a little optimistic now about the future of our good neighbor south of the border.  Oh how I would love to see the two political parties come together to help and work with each other for the betterment of the entire country.  Come on America, you can do this.........:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((   The king of a small African nation had an elegant golden throne in his large grass hut. When an old friend came to visit from another nation, he was worried that the man would discover he was a king and treat him differently. He searched frantically for a place to hide the throne, but to no avail. Finally, he decided to have it wedged up in the ceiling of his hut. When his friend arrived, he went to the huts opening to greet him. Just then the ceiling started to give way, and the golden throne fell on the king, killing him.  The moral of the story is this: People who live in grass houses should not stow thrones.

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