THE CASE OF THE MYSTERIOUS BLOOD SPOTS ON OUR FLOOR

 WITH THE HIGH WATER LEVEL OF OUR PARK'S POND  THIS LITTLE PINE TREE IS NEARLY UNDERWATER

A welcome sunny start to the day but it didn't last.  I don't know where the windchill factor landed but it definitely felt cold and damp to me.  My tolerance for winter's cold and summer's heat and humidity seems to be getting less and less with each passing year now.  However, Pheebs and I still made it out for a Jeep ride this morning and a brisk walk this afternoon.

 THE PLUS SIDE OF NO SNOW IS THE EASE OF WALKING ON BARE GROUND

 WE CAME ACROSS THESE LARGE PAW PRINTS ON OUR WALK

 THAT'S THE TOE OF MY BOOT FOR COMPARISON

 THERE IS A SLIGHT SKIFF OF ICE ON THE NORTH END OF OUR PARK'S POND

 SMALL AIR POCKETS UNDER THE ICE

 IT LOOKS LIKE DUCKWEED FROZEN IN PLACE

After supper each night Pheebs likes to go out for a pee.  Sometimes she goes out into the yard by herself and sometimes Kelly goes out with her.  Last night Kelly went out with her for a couple minutes.  Seeing them coming back in I jumped up from the computer and dashed into our spare room to hide on Pheebs because as soon as she comes in the door she comes racing down the hall looking for me.  It's our little game of hide and seek we play.  The only problem this time was that in my haste I stubbed my toes on the door jam going into the spare room.  Ouch, ouch, and more ouch.  Pheebs found me pretty quick because I was still standing in the spare room doorway grimacing.  A minute later the pain began to slowly diminish roar so I headed down the hall to the kitchen and fixed myself up a decalf coffee.  While the coffee was brewing I headed back to the sunroom and finished editing my post for the day.  Back to the kitchen I went, picked up my coffee and headed back to the sunroom to publish my post.  The pain in my left foot was gone was pretty much gone and I wasn't thinking about it much.  Ten minutes later I took my empty coffee cup back to the kitchen and it was then that I noticed a couple of orangy spots about the size of a quarter on the floor near the fridge.  I asked Kelly if she had spilled something on the floor.  Ketchup, chili sauce or whatever.  She said no and came out of the living room right away to have a look.  She hadn't even gotten near the fridge when she saw light orangy/red spots on the floor as well.  I looked down and holy smokes there were more spots around the kitchen table and where I was standing and each one was still about quarter size.  We figured right away it was blood and there was only one conclusion.  Pheebs.  We quickly got a flashlight and checked her paws.  Nothing.  Kelly checked her all over while I, with another flashlight, began following the blood spots all the way down the hall and into the sunroom.  We didn't count all the spots but there were easily 30 or more of them and even under my computer chair.  It was still a mystery where these quarter-size spots had come from.  I grabbed a wet paper towel and began wiping them up.  I was about halfway down the hall wiping up a spot near the bathroom door when I turned around and saw more spots right behind me where I had just cleaned up spots.  What the heck was going on!!  I walked back out in the kitchen and Kelly said Pheebs was fine and the pale blood spots had to be coming from somewhere else.  And then I remembered stubbing my toes.  I lifted my foot up and sure enough, there was blood around the toe area of my sock.  Well, to shorten up the story, we finished cleaning the floor and I finally got around to putting a bandage on my toe.  It's the one next to my baby toe and I will probably lose the nail by the looks of it.  It wasn't painful anymore so I didn't make much of a fuss about it because you know how men can make such a fuss about things like that!!  Well, at least it gave me something to write about tonight and the best outcome from all this is that it wasn't Pheebs that was bleeding:))

 THERE IS SOMETHING MISSING IN THESE CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS KELLY PUT UP...CAN YOU GUESS WHAT IT IS

THE MISSING ELEMENT IS......'SNOW':))))

Ellen's World:)) In this video. Ellen plays a bit at the beginning before she and her dad talk about a wireless guitar and bass system.  It's the interaction between Ellen and her dad that I found charming as well as funny.  I had a chuckle at Ellen's impromptu actions and especially near the end when she threw a second punch at the Xvive U2 guitar gizmo.  Check out Wireless.  And, while on the subject of music here is one of my favorite early 70's songs done by Greg Lake who was once part of Emmerson Lake and Palmer.  The song is From The Beginning.  Greg Lake passed away on December 7th, 2016.  This early 70's era and its music still hold many emotional memories for me.  I was living in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley then and it was an adventurous and very turbulent time in my life..................    

 FOR ME, IT'S STILL NICE TO SEE 'GREEN' AT THIS TIME OF YEAR

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Comments made in the year 1955!

I'll tell you one thing if things keep going the way they are, it’s going
to be impossible to buy a week’s groceries for $10.00.

Have you seen the new cars coming out next year?
It won't be long before $1,000.00 will only buy a used one.

If cigarettes keep going up in price, I'm going to quit; 20 cents a pack
is ridiculous.

Did you hear the post office is thinking about charging
7 cents just to mail a letter.

If they raise the minimum wage to $1.00, nobody will be
able to hire outside help at the store.

When I first started driving, who would have thought gas
would someday cost more than 20 cents a gallon.
Guess we'd be better off leaving the car in the garage

I'm afraid to send my kids to the movies any more. Ever since
they let Clark Gable get by with saying DAMN in GONE WITH THE
WIND, it seems every new movie has either HELL or DAMN in it.

I read the other day where some scientist thinks it's possible to put a
man on the moon by the end of the century. They even have some
fellows they call astronauts preparing for it down in Texas.

Did you see where some baseball player just signed a contract for
$50,000 a year just to play ball? It wouldn't surprise me if someday
they'll be making more than the President.

I never thought I'd see the day all our kitchen appliances would
be electric. They're even making electric typewriters now.

It's too bad things are so tough nowadays. I see where a few
married women are having to work to make ends meet.

It won't be long before young couples are going to have to hire
someone to watch their kids so they can both work.

I'm afraid the Volkswagen car is going to open the door to a whole
lot of foreign business.

Thank goodness I won't live to see the day when the Government
takes half our income in taxes. I sometimes wonder if we are
electing the best people to government.

The fast food restaurant is convenient for a quick meal, but I seriously
doubt they will ever catch on.

There is no sense going on short trips anymore for a weekend.
It costs nearly $2.00 a night to stay in a motel.

No one can afford to be sick anymore. At $15.00 a day in
the hospital, it's too rich for my blood.

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UP TO AND DOWN TO AND OVER TO AND A PERCEIVED CRAZY GUY MIGHT LIVE HERE!!

 WITH HER HOLDS LADEN WITH ROCK SALT THE  ALGOMA INNOVATOR UNDER A CLOUDY SKY  LEAVES THE PORT OF GODERICH LATE THIS MORNING

When reading a map, north is always at the top and south is at the bottom.  East is on the right-hand side of the map and West is on the left.  So, whatever is above your present location is 'up' and anything south of your location is 'down'.  Therefore, when Pheebs and I went to Goderich this morning from our Bayfield location we went 'up to' Goderich.  A few weeks ago we went 'down to' Grand Bend.  If we go West we go 'over to' the lake and East 'over to' the town of Clinton or any other locations East of us.  Bayfield is a mile or so southwest of us but we never say we are going 'up' or 'down' or 'over' to Bayfield.  We just simply 'go to' Bayfield.  Ya, I know, it confuses me too so I guess that's why I mentioned it.  

HARDY FOLKS OUT BRAVING THE ICY COLD WINDS COMING IN ACROSS LAKE HURON

 'HURRY UP MOM AND DAD IT'S FREEZING OUT HERE

 FISHING BOATS SAFELY SNUGGLED INTO GODERICH'S INNER HARBOR FOR THE WINTER

 SPOTTED THE ALGOMA INTREPID DOCKED AT THE GODERICH SALT MINE 

I sometimes wonder if in our Bayfield Pines Park I am maybe thought of as kind of a crazy guy.  And, I can tell you that there is some merit in that.  We often have people walking by with their dogs, etc.  If at any time someone is going by and it is the same time I have just spotted a squirrel on our birdfeeder they might see me come flying out our sunroom door with arms flailing and making loud 'phisssing' noises as well as possibly using some slightly loud blue letter words.  They don't see the squirrel of course but they see the crazy guy waving his arms and maybe even throwing something like a shoe.  Yes, I've done that.  Sometimes walking by they might hear someone talking in our front yard and yes that is me again.  It may look like I am the only one there, but I'm not.  If they were to look closer they would see I am talking to Pheebs who is somewhere near me.  And yes, I always talk to Pheebs.  Some days they may be audibly alerted to a few rather loud and unsavory #!!*% words.  Those are the times I have hit my finger with a hammer or banged my head on something.  Maybe dropped a rock on my foot or slammed an engine hood on my hand.  Maybe the lawn mower won't start, maybe I can't find the screwdriver I had in my hand six seconds ago, or forgotten what I was doing the instant I turn my back on whatever it was I was doing.  Maybe the zipper is stuck on my winter coat and I can't undo it.  Ya, that one will fry me up real good every time.  Maybe I'm filling a bird feeder and the feeder tips over or when I'm trying to put a stepladder up to a tree and a branch keeps getting in my way forcing me to move the ladder which then proceeds to fold itself up with my fingers painfully pinched in the folding up mechanism!!  Or, I wonder who was walking by our house the day I left a bin door open on our motor home then proceeded to drive ahead, catch the bin door on a pine tree and rip it right off.  Or the day I couldn't get the engine hood of our Jeep Wrangler open and threw my baseball cap on the ground and jumped on it.  Yes indeed, I wonder who was walking by that day.  So, when you add these few of many things up I too would have to agree....I think maybe there might be a crazy guy living in the house!!

PHEEBS AND I HAD TO CAREFULLY MANEUVER OUR WAY THROUGH A HERD OF GEESE ON THE ROAD

Well, that's about enough out of me for another day I'd say.  And remember, if you happen to be walking past our house and think it's a Gorilla you hear, I can well assure you it is just silly me being my usual pain in the rear:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  An elderly woman walked into the local country church. The friendly usher greeted her at the door and helped her up the flight of steps. "Where would you like to sit?" he asked politely. "The front row please." she answered. "You really don't want to do that", the usher said. "The pastor is really boring." "Do you happen to know who I am?" the woman inquired."No." he said. "I'm the pastor's mother," she replied indignantly. "Do you know who I am?" he asked. "No." she said. "Good," he answered.

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How was your blind date?" a college student asked her roommate.  "Terrible!" the roommate answered. "He showed up in his 1932 Rolls Royce."  "Wow! That's a very expensive car. What's so bad about that?"
"He was the original owner."

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AND IT'S BEEN RIGHT UNDER OUR NOSES ALL THE TIME

Wind and rain this morning so it was just a quick spin into Bayfield and back for us guys.  A few Christmas photos along Bayfield's Main street and that was it.  Only a couple of squirrels in the yard today and no squirrels on the bird station feeder when we got up but, early this afternoon I heard a thump, looked up, and there was a squirrel on the feeder.  Unfortunately, I did not see where it parachuted in from.  Despite watching the feeder closely there were no more attempts for the rest of the day.

The rain finally quit by late morning and our temperatures began dropping.  I bundled up for an afternoon walk around the pond but the icy wind kept us from going any farther.

 A FEW DIVING DUCK ON THE COLD CHOPPY WATERS OF THE BAYFIELD RIVER

 AND THIS SUMS UP WHAT OUR MORNING LOOKED LIKE

We have a large LG smart TV but like a computer, we have never really utilized all its smartness.  Kelly decided this afternoon to see what else it had to offer besides just the hum-drum TV channels and I was quite pleased with what she found on the YouTube channel.  I can now watch all the seasons of 'Road To Avonlea' as well as Anne of Green Gables.  Not only that but there is a ton of great music as well as a wealth of quality productions dealing with the Cosmos.  Plus a million tons of other stuff.  I've been familiar with YouTube on my computer for a long time but didn't realize we could tap into all that groovy stuff on our large-screen TV with its big theatre sound.  And it's been right under our noses all the time.  I'm hoping this newfound source of entertainment will play a part in helping me to make it through yet another long and miserably cold dark and dull winter.

 BLUE JAY

 MALE CARDINAL

 FEMALE CARDINAL

 DARK EYED JUNCO

 FEMALE CARDINAL

 BY GOLLY THERE'S KELLY OUTSIDE WORKING ON SOME CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

Ellen's Groove:)) I may have posted this before but for anyone interested, here is Ellen's Story as told and narrated by Ellen's dad, Hovak Alaverdyan.  You will see Hovak playing an acoustic guitar beside Ellen's crib when she was still barely able to stand up.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A husband was having great difficulty getting along with his wife – nothing but arguing and friction – so he decided to consult a marriage counselor. After they had talked for a while, the counselor said, “I suggest that you run five miles each day for a week. Then please call me back.”  A week later the counselor received a call from the husband, “Well,” asked the counselor, “how are things going with you and your wife?  “How should I know?” said the husband. “I’m thirty-five miles away.”

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Teacher: I hope I didn't just see you looking at Harry's paper, Raymond!  Raymond: I hope so too, teacher!

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A woman was walking along the beach when she stumbled upon a genie's lamp. She picked it up and rubbed it. Lo-and-behold a genie appeared. The amazed woman asked if she got three wishes.  The Genie said, "Nope. Due to inflation, constant downsizing, low wages in third-world countries, and fierce global competition, I can only grant you one wish.  So, what'll it be?"  The woman didn't hesitate.  She said, "I want peace in the Middle East. See this map? I want these countries to stop fighting with each other."  The Genie looked at the map and exclaimed, "Gadzooks, lady! These countries have been at war for thousands of years. I'm good, but not THAT good! I don't think it can be done. Make another wish."  The woman thought for a minute. She said, "Well, I've been trying to find the right husband. You know, one that's considerate and fun likes to cook and helps with the housecleaning, has a great sense of humor and gets along with my family, doesn't watch sports all the time, and is faithful. That's what I wish for. A good mate."  The Genie let out a long sigh and said, "Let me see that map again."

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