KELLY'S LONDON DOCTOR PHONED HER......AND SNOW-SNOW-SNOW:((

IN DOWNTOWN BAYFIELD IT IS BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS AGAIN

After looking out our living room window first thing this morning I had no desire to go outside.  Cold, gray, and snowing with a temperature of 16F.  But, I know how much Pheebs looks forward to her morning Jeep ride so out we went anyway.  Needless to say, we didn't go too far but at least we got out and went somewhere, even if it was only into Bayfield and back.  Everything looked very Christmasy.

 ANOTHER SNOWY DRIVE INTO BAYFIELD

 A LONE WALKER AND HIS DOG ON BAYFIELD'S SOUTH PIER

Our day remained snowy, cold, and depressing.  I topped up the bird feeders but couldn't drum up any enthusiasm for walking my snow shovel around the snow paths I had previously cleared.

 I'LL BET THIS GULFSTREAM TRAVEL TRAILER IS WISHING IT WAS  DOWN SOUTH SOMEWHERE

HARD TO IMAGINE SAILBOATS WILL BE DOCKED HERE IN A FEW SHORT MONTHS

 THIS PHOTO TO ME SHOUTS OUT, STOP-STOP-STOP!!

Becoming increasingly frustrated with her medical condition Kelly, in desperation emailed her University Hospital Doctor a couple of days ago and yesterday he phoned her.  He is going to refer her to a Nephrologist for a special procedure.  Although a Nephrologist is a kidney doctor, there is a procedure similar to kidney dialysis whereupon the blood is removed from a person, cleaned of toxins, and returned.  Liver Dialysis This may or may not temporarily help with the terrible itching Kelly experiences daily.  They (Kelly and the Doctor) talked a bit about a liver transplant but it wasn't encouraging.  It was made clear to Kelly that her age is against her.  A few other things were made clear as well so for now we'll await a call from the Nephrologist Doctor and go from there.   

 SOME BAYFIELD SHOPS ARE OPEN AND ALREADY THERE ARE A COUPLE OF HARDY SHOPPERS  AT THE DOOR WITH CUPS OF HOT COFFEE OR CHOCOLATE IN HAND

 I THINK BY THE LOOK ON HIS FACE THIS FISHING BOAT CAPTAIN IS FEELING THE COLD  DEPRESSING DAY AS WELL

 IT WAS A RATHER BLEAK-LOOKING MAIN STREET IN BAYFIELD THIS MORNING

 MANY TIMES OVER THE WINTER YEARS WE HEADED SOUTH DOWN THIS HIGHWAY HEADING FOR THE GREAT AMERICAN SOUTHWEST

Nine years ago today we took Pheebs to a Veterinary Clinic in Wickenburg Arizona for her second rattlesnake anti-venom shot.  Pheebs Had An Appointment With The Vet Today

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Earl and Bubba are quietly sitting in a boat fishing, chewing tobacco and drinking beer when suddenly Bubba says, "Think I'm gonna divorce the wife... she ain't spoke to me in over 2 months."  Earl spits overboard, takes a long, slow sip of beer and says, "Better think it over... women like that are hard to find."

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What do you call a parade of rabbits hopping backwards?  A receding hare-line.

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A Sunday school teacher was teaching her young students about Noah and the ark. She asked them what they thought Noah may have done to pass the time in the ark for forty years. After waiting a few moments, the teacher suggested, “Maybe he did a lot of fishing. How about that?”One little boy gave her a funny look and said, “I don't think so. It’s kinda hard to fish with just two worms!”

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AND SO WENT ANOTHER WINTER'S DAY

 A SNOWY COLD AND WINDY MORNING AT GODERICH'S ROTARY COVE

With one prescription to drop off and two to pick up at the Walmart Pharmacy, Pheebs and I slip-slided our way to Goderich and back on this cold snowy late February morning.  

 SNOW COVERED ROADS

 I DON'T THINK THE SAP WILL BE RUNNING TODAY

 THIS FARM TRACTOR PATIENTLY AWAITS THE 'REAL' SPRING THAW

Area roads were snow-covered with a westerly wind blowing the snow around.  Despite the inclement weather it still wasn't bad enough to leave ourselves at home.  

 THE ONLY SHIP I SAW IN GODERICH'S PORT THIS MORNING WAS THE ALGOMA CONVEYOR

 THE JAGGED CHUNKS OF HARBOR ICE HAVE MELTED

 LAKE HURON HAD A COLD STORMY LOOK ABOUT HER

 A LONE PADDLER HEADS NORTH THROUGH THE ICE FLOES

 IT WILL BE A FEW MONTHS BEFORE THIS BEACH BENCH HAS ANY WARM TOASTY BUNS SITTING ON IT

 I NOTICED A FEW INUKSHUKS ALONG THE SHORELINE

With our usual Goderich routine wrapped up, we rolled out of the Walmart parking lot and headed home on snowy roads dodging through multitudes of snowflakes all the way.  

 NO, THAT IS NOT A DOWNHILL SKI RUN...IT IS THE ROAD HOME ON PORTER'S HILL LINE

 THIS PHOTO OF A FARMER CLEARING SNOW KINDA REMINDS ME OF CHRISTMAS WHICH BY THE WAY IS 304 DAYS FROM TODAY

And so went another Winter's day..............

 OUR SNOWY FRONT PORCH, DECK, AND FRONT YARD

 A MALE CARDINAL AND A DARK-EYED JUNCO ARE PUFFED UP AGAINST WINTER'S COLD WIND

GROANER'S CORNER:((  When Grandpa and Billy entered their vacation cabin, they kept the lights off until they were inside to keep from attracting insects. Still, a few fireflies followed them in. Noticing them before Grandpa did, Billy whispered, ‘It’s no use, Grandpa. The mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights.’

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THE BIG SCARY WINTER STORM THAT WAS.....OR WASN'T

ON BAYFIELD'S BEACH THIS MORNING THIS LONE PERSON STANDING ALONE WITH HER THOUGHTS REMINDED ME OF ACKER BILK'S STRANGER ON THE SHORE

Oh, 'Wonder of Wonders', we didn't lose our power.  Wednesday's snowfall turned to freezing rain Wednesday evening and we had more snow overnight but by dawn's early light this morning the big scary winter storm had passed us by and blew itself out.  No sign of it anywhere on my weather map.  Compared to many other places across the country we here in our area got off very lucky.

 LOOKS LIKE WE GOT ABOUT TWO INCHES OF SNOW FROM THE PASSING STORM

A wee drive into and around Bayfield this morning and we were home again with the first order of business being to get myself back onto the end of my snow shovel.  Luckily, Wednesday evening's freezing rain didn't turn the newly fallen two inches of snow into a solid block of ice and it was easily shovable.  More snowy days are predicted over the next couple of weeks but hey, we're only six days away from March 1rst and a month from now we'll all be one short week away from closing in on April Fool's Day.  I counted six very red male Cardinals in our front yard today and a couple days ago I saw the first Chipmunk of the year on our deck.   

One last word on the storm.  Had we not prepared for it by gathering our candles together along with the Buddy heater, camping stove, etc. etc. and etc, that storm would for sure have knocked out our area's power for at least three long days!!  It's okay neighbors, there's no need to thank us for going to all the trouble of getting out all our winter storm stuff:))    

 WITH THE BAYFIELD RIVER FREE OF ICE AGAIN A LONE FISHING BOAT HAS VENTURED IN AND TIED UP

 LOOKING SOUTH ALONG BAYFIELD'S ICY SHORELINE

Finished another book about unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) entitled UFO's For The Twentieth Century Mind: New And Expanded Edition.  This was a long 17-hour read and I found a few places very heavy to get through, but get through I did and would recommend this book to anyone interested in this subject.  Of all the books I have read on the subject, this one pretty much covers all the bases in a straightforward way.  The following statement from the book is basically its bottom line......'Although the evidence of contact is not strong scientifically, if we approach this phenomenon with as much common sense as possible, we can see that there is too much smoke to ignore the likelihood of fire.  Too many people have had too many experiences............. Started a new book today called, Dying To Be Me: My Journey from Cancer to Near Death, to True Healing, by Anita Moorjani.  I don't know where this book will lead me, but my curious mind is willing to venture forth in search of more elusive answers. 

 THIS WAS A COMMON SCENE AROUND BAYFIELD THIS MORNING

Being a very music-oriented person (not talented) all my life, I spend the vast majority of my waking hours surrounded by music.  Yes, I know I've kinda written about this subject a few times before, but here I go again.  When I go to bed at night (my living room recliner) I switch our TV to an instrumental music station on Eastlink's 904 channel called 'Stingray/The Chill Lounge'.  I set this at a low volume and the music plays all night.  When I wake up, I turn up the volume and the music plays for the rest of the day except when Kelly watches her favorite TV shows.  Putting myself together in the washroom each morning I play my cassette tapes on a 'boombox' there.  They are all tapes I made back in the 80s.  Later, when Pheebs and I leave the house and walk to the Jeep I am without music for about half a minute.  The second thing I do after starting the Jeep (or the Subaru) is tune in to my SiriusXM music 053 channel called  Downtempo/Deep House Chill'.  That music plays non-stop all the time we are out and about.  Home again and at the computer, I right away tune into my instrumentally based 'SomaFM Groove Salad' station which plays all day right up to 10 o'clock at night when I transition back to the living room.  By the way, none of these channels have commercials, DJs, or announcers.  If they did I wouldn't be listening to them!!  While at the computer I sometimes like browsing around on YouTube and checking out many of the music videos there.  If I see someone playing a bass guitar I stop and listen.  That's how I found 'Ellen's Groove'.  Today, I stumbled across a great song from 1985 I hadn't heard for a very long time.  When I first heard this song nearly four decades ago I knew there was something unique about it because the vocals and instrumentation made it so.  It was a song that seemed to take me back in time with a touch of sadness in a good way.  The group was called 'Double' and the song they had was called.....The Captain Of Her Heart.

 NICE TO SEE THE VAST EXPANSE OF LAKE HURON FREE OF ICE AND SNOW AGAIN

Fourteen years ago today, Kelly and I did a six-mile hike in Arizona's Dragoon Mountains in a rugged area known as the Cochise Stronghold.  It was a long hike for us and by the time we completed it my feet were so sore I had to take off my hiking boots and drive our Hyundai Santa Fe stick shift car back to the ranch in my sock feet.  Hiking To The Cochise Stronghold.  

 KELLY CHECKS OUR TRAIL MAP

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Please read carefully as this may help you out on this year's Income Tax!!!

Dear Sir,

I have a Benefit Question:

Many years ago, I married a widow out of love, who had a 25-year-old daughter.

After the wedding, my father, a widower, came to visit a number of times, and he fell in love with my stepdaughter.  My father eventually married her without my authorization.

As a result, my stepdaughter legally became my stepmother and my father became my son-in-law.

My father's wife (also my stepdaughter and my stepmother), gave birth to a son who is my grandchild because I am the husband of my stepdaughter's mother.  This boy is also my brother, the son of my father.

As you can see, my wife became a grandmother, because she is the mother of my father's wife.  Therefore, it appears that I am also my wife's grandchild.

A short time after these events, my wife gave birth to a son, who became my father's brother-in-law, the stepson of my father's wife, and my uncle.

My son is also my stepmother's brother, and through my stepmother, my wife has become a grandmother and I have become my own grandfather. 

In light of the above-mentioned, I would like to know the following: Am I eligible to receive childcare benefits? 

Sincerely yours,

Mohammed ......

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THE WINTER STORM IS UPON US

The big winter storm sweeping across North America is now on our doorstep.  Snowfall is increasing and I can hear the wind in the pine trees.  It's almost a guarantee that we will lose our power at some point so we have been preparing for that.  I fired up the generator in our RV to make sure it was good to go, and it was.  We have filled up jugs with water, amassed our candles, brought our Buddy Heater in with 5 propane bottles, and have our two-burner propane camping stove standing by.  I topped up all the bird feeders and charged up my Kindle, laptop, and main flashlight.  I am posting this early before everything goes black!!

GROANER'S CORNER:((   

8am: Too tired to think.

Noon: Too tired to think.

5pm: Too tired to think.

Midnight: How do dragons blow out candles?

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THANKS FOR YOUR CONTINUING INTEREST

I didn't get around to taking any photos today.  Hoping to get a walk in on this cold cloudy morning, Pheebs and I headed off to our country road walking spot.  Although we were above freezing today a westerly wind chill factor of 25F made the 36F temperature feel too cold.  Within five minutes of leaving the warm toasty Jeep, we were back to the warm toasty Jeep, and that was the end of our walk.  I will just have to be patient and wait for warmer weather.  Warm is always enjoyably good for me while winter's icy cold and summer's heat and humidity turn me into a big climate controlled inside chicken.  Thanks to everyone for your continuing interest in the Bayfield Bunch during these cold gray winter days.  Better days ahead eh:))

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GROANER'S CORNER:((   A husband and wife were driving down a country lane on their way to visit some friends. They came to a muddy patch in the road and the car became bogged. After a few minutes of trying to get the car out by themselves, they saw a young farmer coming down the lane, driving some oxen before him.  The farmer stopped when he saw the couple in trouble and offered to pull the car out of the mud for $50. The husband accepted and minutes later the car was free. The farmer turned to the husband and said, "You know, you're the tenth car I've helped out of the mud today."  The husband looks around at the fields incredulously and asks the farmer, "When do you have time to plough your land? At night?"  "No," the young farmer replied seriously, "Night is when I put the water in the hole."

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ABOVE FREEZING

How great to have another sunny day with temperatures above freezing.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( I told the carpenter not to carpet my steps…He gave me a blank stair.

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