I'LL SEE IF IT CAN DRAG SOME CHUCKLES OUT OF ME

 SNOW-LADEN PINE BOUGHS IN OUR BACKYARD

At precisely 8:07 a.m. this morning we were undeniably guaranteed an early Spring when area esteemed prognosticator and supreme GroundHog 'Wiarton Willy' in Wiarton Ontario slipped out of his burrow and did not see his shadow.  Thank heavens for gray cloudy days eh.  Had he seen his shadow that would have meant 6 more weeks of harsh Winter and I, of course, would have immediately thrown in the towel and quiveringly crawled under my bed not to be seen again until sometime late April.  Friday is predicted to be the coldest day of the year so far and immediately after that, I noticed a warming trend in the weeks ahead with next Tuesday predicted to be 41F.  Tropical I say, absolutely tropical:))))

 IT'S GREAT TO LOOK UP AND SEE BLUE SKIES THROUGH OUR PINE TREES

 THIS IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF HOW WELL OUR PARK ROADS ARE BEING MAINTAINED NOW

Kelly headed off to Goderich for blood tests this morning while Pheebs and I slipped into Bayfield to wash all the salty dirt off of what I rightly assumed was a Jeep Liberty underneath.  In my Wednesday post, I misidentified a light on Bayfield's Main Street.  I thought it was a streetlight but in fact, it was a sidewalk light.  I don't know how I missed seeing the true street lights, but I did.  Below is this morning's photo of an actual new main street light.  Again, I was glad to see the design cast the light down upon the ground and not upwards into the night sky. 

 BAYFIELD'S NEW LIGHTS ON MAIN STREET AND NOTICE HOW IT IS DESIGNED TO CAST LIGHT DOWN AND NOT UP OR SIDEWAYS

Home again I was soon heartened by a few Sun splashes landing in our front yard so I wasn't long in slipping outside to fire up my snow shovel to move some snow off the driveway.  I always have the intention of moving a small bit of snow and end up moving huge amounts of the darn stuff.  With one of our vehicles being 4-wheel drive and the other, all-wheel drive we are not worried about getting stuck in the driveway at any time so I don't use up a lot of energy trying to keep the driveway clear.  We just drive through the snow.  I bought a new snowblower about 18 years ago, used it four times, hated it, sold it.

 BRUSHING SNOW OFF SCOOTER'S NOSE TODAY

 CUSTOM CHEVYCICLES

 AND HOW'S THAT FOR A HEAVY-DUTY ICICLE

 AND LOOK AT THESE TRICKY ICICLES

 KEEPING MY LITTLE PATHS OPEN

 IN THAT WOODEN SHED IS A LOT OF OUR RV STUFF SO I ALWAYS KEEP THE ENTRANCE SHOVELLED OUT JUST IN CASE WE GOTTA GET IN THERE QUICK AND GET OURSELVES ON THE ROAD

Deciding on something lightly humorous for my next read I today began Jackie Ewing's book, Life Lessons From A Late Bloomer: Vignettes Of A Small-Town Girl.  I noticed in the above-average good reviews this author was Canadian and from a small Ontario town (Walkerton) and that is what caught my interest.  In the Preface, I liked these words by Captain Gerald Coffee, POW, Vietnam War, seven years:: "Laughter sets the spirit free through even the most tragic circumstances.  It helps us shake our heads clear, get our feet back under us and restores our sense of balance.  Humor is integral to our peace of mind and our ability to go beyond survival."  I will give the book a whirl and see if it can drag some chuckles out of me.  

 LOOKS LIKE I FORGOT TO BRING THIS LITTLE FELLOW INSIDE LAST FALL

 AND YES WE DO HAVE SOME PLASTIC YELLOW FLOWERS IN BLOOM THIS WINTER

 OUTSIDE LAWN FURNITURE AWAITS ITS TURN IN THE WARM SUMMER SUN

 SCOOTER UNDER EARLY AFTERNOON BLUE SKIES

SCOOTER TOUGHING OUT THE BEGINNING OF  A LATE AFTERNOON FAST MOVING SNOW STORM 

Fourteen years ago today we were scrambling around in the Tombstone Hills looking for old mine shafts between Sierra Vista and Tombstone, Arizona.  Hundreds Of Old Mineshafts In The Tombstone Hills.  The following day, using Kelly's American passport and switching drivers we squeaked our way onto a very large secure military base at the foot of the Huachuca mountains in Sierra Vista.  Fort Huachuca         

 A-HA...SO IT'S THE JOHN DEERE COMPANY THAT  IS RESPONSIBLE FOR BUILDING THESE GREEN ALIEN ROBOTIC SPACE PROBES....TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER EH

GROANER'S CORNER:(( The first-grade teacher was showing pictures of animals to her students to see how many they could name. She held up a picture of a lamb, and a little girl said, "That's a sheep!"  "That's right!" said the teacher. "How about THIS one?" she said, holding up a picture of the king of beasts.  "That's a lion!" answered a little boy.  "Right!" said the teacher. Then she held up a picture of a deer. No one volunteered an answer. She tried to help. "What does your mother call your father?"  Johnny said, "I know! That's a lazy old goat!"

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- Where does the one-legged waitress work? Ihop.

- What do you call two Spanish firemen?
Hose A and Hose B

 Q: Who was the wealthiest male financier in the Bible?

A: Noah. He was floating his stock while everybody else was in liquidation.

- What do you call a dude in a leather jacket? A rebel without a clue!

- Why did the dude only smell good on the right side? He didn't know where to buy Left Guard!

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I WAS EVEN INSPIRED ENOUGH TO TAKE A FEW PHOTOS TODAY

 FEMALE CARDINAL

It only took a few Sun splashes first thing this morning to haul me out of my mid-winter doldrums.  My ambition came sputtering back and my interest in things stirred.  Strange how that happens, but with me it does.  It was a Jeep ride into and around Bayfield for Pheebs and I with a cemetery walk thrown in.  But, before we could walk we had to plow a few tracks through the snow around some of the roads so we could walk comfortably and not have to do any trudging through snow.  My legs are not as trudgable as they once were.

 HOW REFRESHING TO SEE THAT PATCH OF BEAUTIFUL BLUE SKY UP THERE OUT OVER THE LAKE

 AS THE SHORELINE ICE BUILDS UP IT SOMETIMES FORMS ICE CAVES

 BOTH BAYFIELD'S PIERS ARE AGAIN BEING COATED WITH LAYERS OF ICE

 AND THE BAYFIELD RIVER IS BEGINNING TO FREEZE OVER AGAIN AS WELL

 LAYING DOWN SOME TIRE TRACKS TO MAKE WALKING EASIER

Just think, a month from right now it will be March with the shortest month of the year behind us.  Groundhog Day,  Shrove Tuesday, and Valentine's Day will have already been logged into 2023's history book.  It will be forward we will all happily look toward the approaching days of wondrous Spring.

 BAYFIELD'S MAIN STREET THIS PAST SUNDAY MORNING

 ONE OF THE AIMS IN BAYFIELD'S MAIN STREET RECONSTRUCTION WAS TO REMOVE ALL THE OVERHEAD POWER LINES AND PUT THEM UNDERGROUND......ON THE WEEKEND THE POWER POLES AND LINES CAME DOWN AND POWER WAS SWITCHED OVER TO THE UNDERGROUND SYSTEM 

DRIVING ALONG BAYFIELD'S MAIN STREET THIS MORNING IT WAS NICE TO SEE ALL THE OVERHEAD SAGGY POWER LINES GONE......DEFINITELY A BIG IMPROVEMENT

 AND I LIKE MAIN STREET'S NEW STREETLIGHTS THAT CAST  THE LIGHT ONTO THE GROUND AND NOT UP INTO THE SKY ADDING TO LIGHT POLLUTION

With sunshine beaming through our pine trees this afternoon, I moved some snow around, topped up the bird feeders, and fired up our RV just because I could.  I was even inspired enough to take a few more bird photos.

 MALE CARDINAL

 THE EAST END OF A BLUE JAY HEADING WEST

 BLUE JAY

 DARK EYED JUNCO

 NUTHATCH

 SO NICE TO SEE DAPPLED SUNLIGHT IN OUR FRONT YARD

For a change of pace in my reading I took myself back into the air again and chose, Into The Silk: 'True Stories of the Caterpillar Club'.  It is stories of airmen who baled out of aircraft over the years and survived by using Irvin-designed parachutes.  It is a history of parachutes and how they have evolved from their humble beginnings in 1929 to present-day state-of-the-art devices continuing to save lives around the world on an almost daily basis.  The book is a page-turner of harrowing high and low-altitude escapes with some of the aircraft flying faster than the speed of sound.  I finished this book today.        

 THESE SHAFTS OF SUNSHINE PERKED ME RIGHT UP

In this video bass singer, Geoff Castellucci, doing his own harmony sings Shenandoah.

 A MALE CARDINAL SOAKING UP SOME OF TODAY'S SUNSHINE

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Twenty-Six Examples of Ants::

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COLD AND GETTING COLDER

Another cold gray depressing day with even colder days on the way.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Mike and Dan are in a mental institution which has an annual contest that picks two of the best patients and gives them two questions. If they answer correctly, they are released.  Mike is called into the doctor's office first. The doctor says, Mike, what would happen if I poked out one of your eyes?  Mike says I'd be half blind.  Thats correct. What would happen if I poked out both your eyes? I'd be completely blind. The doctor tells him that he is free to go. On Mike's way out he tells Dan the questions and answers.  The doctor asks Dan, What would happen if I cut off one of your ears?  Dan says I'd be half blind.  The doctor, slightly puzzled, continues, What would happen if I cut off both your ears?  I'd be completely blind.  Dan, how can you explain why you would be blind? asks the doctor.  Well, replies Dan, my hat would fall down over my eyes.

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