'OH OH,' THERE'S SOME NUDE GUYS IN THIS POST:))

FRASER 65 DIVISION AT H.M.C.S. CORNWALLIS NEAR DIGBY NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA...DECEMBER 1965  (click picks to enlarge)

Turned out to be another hot & humid cooker of a day.  Half an hour this morning with my grass trimmer & another half our trimming & tying up shrubs & that was it for me.  Strapped myself into my recliner, cranked up the A/C, clicked our 3 blade fan into high gear & hung on to the arms of my chair for the rest of the day.

Tonight's photos are a bit of a walk down memory lane for me.  Boot Camp 1965.  In the top photo of all the guys you can find me just left of center & down a bit & kneeling.  I put a dot on my helmet & one on the guy to my right.  His name is 'Oily' & I will tell you about him a little further on:))

THAT'S ME ON THE TOP....OUT OF THE 8 GUYS IN THIS PIC I CAN REMEMBER 6 OF THEIR NAMES...JOHNSON, SCOTTY, McFADDEN, WONG, MIDDLETON, CURRY

Seems I sure did shorten up the summer in my post Sunday night.  Instead of typing in the 'beginning' of August I typed in the 'end' of August.  Amazing how time fly flies when your anxiously awaiting an RV departure date.  I have since corrected the typing error.  Also in yesterday's post I mentioned about reading blogs for 3 or 4 hours each day.  I should have mentioned I also spend a good chunk of that time writing my own blog going back & forth copying links, etc.

We are in an active search now for our next & newest best member of the Bayfield Bunch.  My post a few weeks ago entitled, OH HOW I MISS THE BEST PALS I HAVEN'T MET YET opened the door for us to begin talking about & then begin doing something about finding another best Pal.  That was back on July 18th & Kelly has found a number of area sites on the internet from pet rescue places to private owners.

ME & MY BEST BUDDY, 'PORKY BOYLE'.... I HEARD THAT PORKY DIED IN A HOUSE FIRE UP IN ELLIOT LAKE ONTARIO MANY YEARS AGO..... 

It is important  to find a dog that will be compatible with the Motormouse so that basically rules out a rambunctious young poopy puppy.  We are thinking at least 1 to 4 years old, not too big & not too small.  Preferably a rescue dog that we can make a loving home for.  A Pal in need of some TLC.

YEP, AND I EVEN HAD A GIRL BACK HOME  IN MY OLD HOMETOWN TO WRITE TO TOO  ............ (HEY GARY B, I THINK YOU KNOW THAT GIRL:))

Each day Kelly checks the area sites & we look at the photos & read the dog histories.  I find it difficult looking at the dog photos because I feel so sorry for each & every one & want to bring them all home & make them feel wanted & loved.  I think there has always been something within me that connects with the feelings of all those poor homeless animals.  We saw a 4 year old black & white border collie that caught our eye last week but found out this morning through an email that a home was found for her on Sunday.  We called about a year & half old Lab but the call hasn't been returned so the Lab is probably gone.  Kelly kind of fancies an Australian Sheepdog.  I will just love whoever we find:))  Our search continues:))

I'M AT RIGHT REAR CENTER...OTHER GUYS ARE ROYSTON, SLATER , JOHNSON & McFADDEN IN THE HORIZONTAL POSITION

I bought my first camera nearly 46 years ago & I think it might have been a Hanimex.  I do know it was a 35mm & I know exactly where I was when I bought it.  It was the fall of 1965 & I was in Naval boot camp at H.M.C.S. Cornwallis near Digby, Nova Scotia.  I bought my camera at a commercial store on the base.  No idea what it cost but I do know the cheapest film I could buy on the base at the time was black & white.  I can't remember what possessed me to buy the camera because I don't have any recollection of a photography interest any time before that.

When I now look at my photo album from those days I see a lot of young familiar faces that once made up our Fraser 65 Division. We were 63 energetic guys with a lot of kibitzing & shenanigans up our sleeves.  I turned 21 while in Boot Camp & was the third oldest guy in the Division.  We were a lot of friends & best buddies for those 4 months we all trained hard together.  

OUR TAKE ON THE 'BEATLES' WITH ME ON THE RIGHT...AND WHERE DID WE GET OUR MOP TOPS?   WELL, THEY ARE REAL MOPS PROPPED UP ON OUR HEADS FROM BEHIND 

I was everywhere with that camera taking photos of all the guys & our every day barracks life.  One night about midnight I was startled awake by one of the guys telling me to grab my camera because they were 'going to get Oily!!'   Oily was the name given to one of the guys from Vancouver who would never take a shower.  Nice enough fella & all that but for some reason he wouldn't pile into the showers every morning like the rest of us.  So, one night about half a dozen guys got together, grabbed Oily out of his bed & dragged him kicking across the darkened barracks floor round the corner & into the showers.  And, that's where I came in with my camera.

 
Below is the one photo I took that I felt was kind of acceptable to put into the post tonight.  Yes, you will see some buns but that is about it.  You will notice the fella on the right holding a brush.  That is what we called a 'Pusser Brush' & was used for general cleaning purposes.  Three of the guys had these brushes & when they soaped up Oily those guys went to work on him with the Pusser brushes.  There was a lot of hooting, hollering & howling mixed with a bunch of commotion in the shower but the 'barracks watch guy' that night was in on it so no alarm was raised.  The outcome of 'Oily's Midnight Scrub' was that he became the first fella to hit the water every morning thereafter:))  I often wonder whatever became of old Oily.  Last I heard of him about 44 years ago he was a Stoker on one our East Coast Destroyers. 

SCRUBBING UP OILY IN THE SHOWER 

When we all finished basic training just before Christmas, our tight knit Fraser 65 division split up with the guys scattering all across Canada to various bases & further training courses.  We all said our good-byes on the last day in camp & the only guy I ever saw again was Porky Boyle.  Two days after leaving boot camp I was in Miami Beach on my first official leave.  But, that's another whole story:))

THE LAST PARAGRAPH:  I had to really think about putting that photo in of 'Oily's Scrub' because in this day & age one just never knows who one is going to offend with whatever, whenever.  Oh well....................

GROANER'S CORNER:((   A guy was telling about this girl Sue who disguised herself as a man and joined the Navy. "But, wait a minute," said his friend, "She'll have to dress with the boys and shower with them, too, won't she?"  "Sure," replied the guy.  "Well, won't they find out?"  The guy shrugged. "Who's gonna tell?"

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EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

OUR

PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The

only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.

MY WEEKLY SUNDAY MORNING MOTORCYCLE RIDE WAS RAINED OUT:((

The lingering rains pretty well washed out any ideas of heading out for a motorcycle run earlier this morning.  When the sun finally appeared in late morning the humidity level skyrocketed and that was it for me as far as going outside.  A really poor night's sleep meant I wasted most of my day dozing in my chair.  I actually did something I rarely do.  I watched a couple of DVD's from start to finish.  No, not movies, one was all about the history of Aircraft Carriers & the other one about the evolution of Jet Fighter Aircraft.  Yep, them's is my kinds of interests alright.  Oh, & I did a load of laundry & the dishes too:))

 

CORA, WHY DOES YOUR DAD CALL YOU MOTORMOUSE?

Well, here we are already at the beginning of August.  For Full Timers it may just be the end of another month but for we Snow Birds it marks one less month to a Southern departure date.  In our case, 10 weeks:))  The very welcome cooler Autumn air will roll in soon marking a change in routines & behaviors.  Squirrels will be lining nests & gathering nuts. (and my birdseed!!) Many feathered friends will begin drawing up early flight plans & AL will be dusting off his old annual checklists for loading up the Motor Home.  Even carrying a pencil out & putting it in the rig is a smiling step forward.

I THINK THIS PHOTO IS SOMEHOW SELF EXPLANATORY  

So far, our immediate travel plans & destination upon leaving Bayfield are the same.  We will make a bee line for somewhere in Southwestern Colorado.  When & where we will go from there is anybody's guess & that's one of the great things we both enjoy about our style of RVing.  No plans, no reservations & no commitments.   Oh ya....IMHO:))

A SCENIC RURAL STOP ALONG THE WAY & YES, THAT IS A LITTLE ORANGE MONKEY ON THE BACK OF THE BIKE.....HE'S MY BACKUP:)) 

Took a break from Blog reading today.  I usually spend at least 3 to 4 hours out of every day reading & trying to stay caught up with my fellow Bloggers latest posts but it just gets to be a little much after awhile.  It seems the more blogs I read the more new blogs I come across & it just becomes a seemingly never ending list.  Kelly only ever reads 3 or 4 blogs & is not in the habit of leaving comments very often.  She also reads her newspapers & financial sites on line every morning as well.   I was once kind of a newspaper guy but kicked that habit nearly 10 years ago & haven't read a newspaper since.

I LOVE THESE LITTLE QUIET COUNTRY ROAD PHOTO SAFARIS 

When we lived at the old Weenie Roast Ranch, our Stratford Beacon Herald newspaper, wrapped in a plastic sleeve, was delivered & tossed into our driveway every day.  Max liked to run up the laneway, pick up the newspaper & bring it back to us dropping it on the porch just as proud as he could be.

THE LAST PARAGRAPH(s): This is actually my second post today.  The first one was about some recent comment pettiness here in Blog Land.  Thought better about it & scrapped the post.  Nope, I told myself, you have maintained the high road all along with this person so just stay right where you are AL & keep your thoughts & opinions to yourself. 

In the end when all is said & done, opinions have been expressed, thoughts exchanged & nerve endings stepped on, the bottom line still remains the same......'We are all responsible for our own feelings.' IMHO.

'THE PIER' IN GRAND BEND, ONTARIO 

GROANER'S CORNER:((   An aged farmer and his wife were leaning against the edge of their pig-pen when the old woman wistfully recalled that the next week would mark their golden wedding anniversary.
"Let's have a party, Homer," she suggested. "Let's kill a pig."
The farmer scratched his grizzled head. "Gee, Ethel," he finally answered, "I don't see why the pig should take the blame for something that happened fifty years ago."

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EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.

VERY CLOSE CALL FOR MY NIKON D90 TODAY!!

Our morning sky was as blue as blue as blue can be with not a cloud to be seen.  I was a bit concerned about my Uncle Harry so threw my cameras into the Jeep & figured I would do a little photo Safari in the Mitchell area & drop in to see him.  He seemed a tad better than just a couple days ago but he is on morphine injections now & that is making him a bit groggy & very tired.

ACRES & ACRES OF CORN AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE  (NIKON D90 AT 18mm) 

Our Jeepster doesn't have A/C & by the time I left the Nursing Home the air & humidity had really heated up.  Doddled along some country roads on the way home gathering together a few photos here & there. 

LOOKS LIKE THESE GREAT BLUE HERONS HAVE FOUND THEMSELVES A FAVORITE FISHING HOLE  (NIKON D40 at 300mm) 

I was startled by a very low flying helicopter that seemed to pop right out of a corn field beside me.  I quickly made a U turn & pulled off to the side of the road & jumped out with both cameras in hand to see where the Chopper had gone. 

CROP DUSTING A CORN FIELD  (ALL HELICOPTER SHOTS WITH NIKON D40)  

Spotted it approaching quickly from my left skimming a corn field.  Decided to crack off a few shots with my 70-300mm telephoto lens on my D40 first & it was here where I made one of my classic stupid mistakes. 

ANY LOW FLYER'S WORST NIGHTMARE..............POWER LINES!!!!

In my hurry to catch the fast approaching Chopper I set my Nikon D90 on the hood of the Jeep & proceeded to get a few shots off with the D40 as the Helicopter swooped up out of the cornfield right in front of me.  It was then that I saw it was a 'crop duster.'

Watched him make a tight banking U turn about a 100 feet off the deck & head back down on top of the corn field heading the other way.  I quickly decided to re-park the Jeep off the road better & wait for the Chopper to come back.  There was a cross road about an eighth of a mile ahead so drove down there, made a U turn & came back up to where I had been before & pulled off the road completely.  I reached over to the passenger seat to grab my D90.....but it wasn't there.  Of course it wasn't there AL because you had left it sitting on the hood of the Jeep!!!!!!! 

Would you believe the camera was still sitting in the exact same spot close up to the windshield right where I had left it.  I couldn't believe my luck & I couldn't believe I had not seen it on the hood!!  I said a very grateful 'thank you' to the great camera God in the sky & went about taking a few more picks of the Chopper.  I totally know enough not to make a stupid mistake like that but in the excitement & haste of the moment I went ahead & made the mistake anyway.  So, photo tip of the day.....never ever set your camera on your vehicle!!!!

Today we welcome Wasim as the Bayfield Bunch's 308th Blog Follower.  Welcome aboard Wasim & with a little bit of luck we'll have the big wheels rolling Westward by mid October.

BROWN EYED SUSAN'S ALONGSIDE THE ROAD  (NIKON D40 at 300mm)   

I particularly enjoyed JERRY'S walk down music's memory lane in his Friday post.  Remember the days when music just had a nice way of making you feel better no matter what was bothering you.  And Kelly just brought it to my attention that Donna over at TRAVELS IN THERAPY posted a blog on music as well tonight.  Donna...you go girl:))  You will not only find both these post's interesting but you may find the comments interesting as well.  

NIKON D90 

I had begun several times to write an explanation about Friday night's 'Last Paragraph' segment & then just gave up in frustration.  What's the point.  People are going to believe what they want to believe & that's all there is to it.   A commenter left this following comment & I will just let it speak for what I thought I clearly said......

"It seems that Gypsy and others have taken your statement to mean that you are not going back to the Southwest. I think I understand you have given up on the idea of BUYING a place in the Southwest.  I tend to support that decision. Leaving property vacant in that area for six months would be inviting big problems. My parents sold out and moved after 3-4 break-ins and that was back in the 1970s. It is far worse now. When I last visited my cousins, near the Ranch that you house sit, they advised me not to go walking in the early morning hours. To much danger of crossing paths with drug smugglers that will shoot first and talk later. This is not media hype but rather a warning from people that have lived there 24/7/365 since the 1940s."  (Thanks Ed)

THE LAST PARAGRAPH: Yes, we will be returning to the great American Southwest this winter & for as many winters as we possible can.  We love dat place:))

GROANER'S CORNER:))    A farmer was milking his cow. He was just starting to get a good rhythm going when a bug flew into the barn and started circling his head. Suddenly, the bug flew into the cow's ear. The farmer didn't think much about it, until the bug squirted out into his bucket. It went in one ear and out the udder.

---------------------------------------------------------------
EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.