A LEISURELY SNOWFALL TODAY KEPT US GROUNDED & OUR BLUE JAYS ARE BACK:))

SO NICE TO SEE THE COLORFUL BLUE JAYS BACK AGAIN:))

With snow on the ground & more falling from the sky this morning it was disappointingly obvious I would not be outside doing very much of anything today.  If this was early November not only would it be disappointing but very discouraging as well but seeings how it is early April & judging from the 10-day weather forecast predicting daytime highs no lower than 40F & night time lows no lower that 33F it looks like this could very well be the last snow fall of the season.  Now that in itself is extremely if not delightfully encouraging I'd say. 

Kelly spent a big part of her day in the kitchen cooking things & making the house smell nice.  I spent part of my day in my recliner absorbing those smells & wondering what on earth she could be cooking to make things smell so nice.  I later got to eat some of those smells & finally figured it out:))

HMMMM, LOOKS LIKE A PEANUT TO ME

NAWWWW COULDN’T BE

WAIT A MINUTE YES IT IS A PEANUT… YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY:))

I did keep track of how much we spent on gas coming home from Congress Az this year & that number came out at $798 for 2,510 miles traveled.  Much cheaper than other year but of course those are American prices & that number will be higher once the exchange rate on the money is figured in.  Still, thanks to lower gas prices overall we did good. No I do not track the numbers of how many miles/kilometers to the gallon we get or the price of gas at each station or the number of gallons/liters taken onboard at each stop.  Mathematics is not my strong point nor is my interest in keeping track of those numbers.

 

YA KNOW RALPHY I DON’T LIKE YOUR ATTITUDE THIS MORNING

AND FURTHERMORE LOOK AT ME WHEN I’M TALKING TO YOU

JEEEEEEEEEZZZZZZZ!!!!

YA SURE WALK OVER TO THE CORNER & POUT NOW WILL YA!!

Been quite a few years since I have had my lined winter pants on but I’ve been wearing them for the past couple days now.  It’s not that the temperatures are bitterly cold it’s just that the cold here is agonizingly damp & it is that damp cold that plays hell with arthritis sufferers.  Lined winter pants are much better at keeping my troublesome legs warm as opposed to cold denim material found in blue jeans.  Every little bit helps. 

NOT SURE WHAT KIND OF THIS BIRD IS………….(UPDATE) JUDY & SHEILA AGREE IT’S A DARK-EYED JUNCO

Remembering back it was one year ago today we began our 2014 trip back to Bayfield Ontario from Congress Arizona.  We had our 26’ Class C 2012 Winnebago at the time & we we made our way up through North-eastern Arizona through South-eastern Utah & across southern Colorado.  Here is my post from one year ago today.  A FAR AWAY LOOK AT THE BETATAKIN RUINS & SOME SNOW IN THE AIR.  (Our leisurely snowfall today finally ended by late afternoon & most all of what fell has already melted)

THIS MORNING’S FRONT YARD

I SPILLED A BUNCH OF BIRDSEED ON TOP OF A SNOWY STUMP EARLIER TODAY SO DECIDED TO LET THIS LITTLE FELLOW CLEAN IT UP FOR ME 

GROANER’S CORNER:(( I was nervous the night my husband and I brought our three young sons to an upscale restaurant for the first time. My husband ordered a bottle Of wine with the meal. When the waitress brought it, our children became quiet as she began the ritual uncorking.  She poured a small amount for me to taste, and then our six-year-old piped up, "Mom usually drinks a lot more than that!"

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I used to think it was a silly affectation to drink different wines from different style glasses, but I have finally become a convert.  I now definitely prefer drinking hearty, macho reds from my Spiderman glass and lighter, fruity whites from my Sponge Bob glass.

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The secret to enjoying a good wine is:
1 - Open the bottle to allow it to breathe.
2 - When it does not breathe, give it mouth-to-mouth.

NICE COUNTRY DRIVE BUT A NAIL BITING FEW MINUTES FOR PHEEBS & I THIS MORNING

THESE RURAL FIELDS ARE INDICATIVE OF OUR SPRING LANDSCAPE AT THE MOMENT

Kelly took our Pontiac Sunfire & headed off to Goderich first thing to check out an early indoor Farmer’s Market plus a few other stops.  We had a cloudy overcast & the ground was still frozen so there wasn’t much I could do outside.  Not wanting to sit around Pheebs & I piled into the Jeep & took us for a Saturday morning drive.

GRAVEL ROADS WERE STILL UNTHAWED FROM THE NIGHT’S FREEZE SO NO MUD

WILDLIFE PONDS IN THE HULLETT MARSH ARE STILL FROZEN OVER EXCEPT FOR AROUND THE EDGES

First stop was in the small town of Clinton at Tim Horton’s for a coffee & carrot muffin to go.  We ambled out into the countryside around the Hullet Marsh area hoping to see some deer but the only sign of wildlife we saw later was a great Blue Heron.  Gravel roads hadn’t thawed from the night’s colder temperatures so no mud.  We didn’t do one of our longer tours but we did hit a few favorite spots before returning home around 11. 

 

Clouds cleared before noon & I noticed some ground thawing wherever the sun was shining.`That was my Q to begin our big yard clean-up.  Nice to be out on a nice warming Saturday morning raking up winter’s debris of leaves, pine needles, & small branches.  Birds singing in the surrounding tree tops & despite remaining piles of snow in the yard & driveway all was good.  Nice to be home & even nicer to have something constructive to do while at home.

WAS ABLE TO RAKE OUT & CLEAN UP ONE END OF OUR DRIVEWAY

It took a few days for the birds to discover seeds on our bird station but the first visitor was a Mourning Dove.  Next day a pair of Cardinals showed up & I noticed right away how much smaller they seemed than the pair of Cardinals we had in our backyard in Congress Az.  And the male Cardinal here does not seem to have the crested head our Congress male had.  One thing I have noticed about Cardinals whether here or in Congress is that they are always the last one’s at the feeder each night.

 

FIRST BIRD ON OUR FEEDER STATION WAS THIS MOURNING DOVE…THE PEANUTS ARE FOR THE BLUE JAYS OF WHICH I HAVE NOT SEEN ANY YET

OUR SECOND VISITOR WAS THIS MALE CARDINAL

BIRDS OF A FEATHER SHARE TOGETHER

NICE TO SEE OUR JUNCO’S BEFORE THEY HEAD BACK UP NORTH SHORTLY

With record breaking cold temperatures in our area of Southwestern Ontario this past winter we sure did some worrying down in Congress about coming home to broken water pipes & damage.  But luck was on our side this year & everything was A-OK.  But not so for Dennis & Donna from Sandwich Illinois.  You can read what they came home to here…..Came Home To A Bit Of A Problem.

Did accidentally get myself & Pheebs into a rather precariously scary situation on our drive this morning.  There is a nice old steel bridge north of Clinton that we often drive over to have a look at the Maitland River.  It’s a narrow road on the east side & I noticed as I turned in off the highway snow hadn’t melted too much in the shadow of Cedar trees on both sides of the road.  No problem I figured & put the Jeep in 4 wheel drive & besides I could see by the tracks another vehicle had been down through ahead of me at some point.  The road angles down to the river at a steep angle & it wasn’t until I had started down the short hill that I saw I was already in trouble.  Snow had melted over the last few days & the water from that melted snow had froze overnight.  I was no longer in hard crusted snow but now on a pure downhill ice stretch.  The river ahead was flooded, moving fast, & well over it’s banks.  There was no way I could back up & if the Jeep began to slide downhill on the ice I knew Pheebs & I could be in trouble if we slid off especially the left side where I saw a gap at the end of the guard rail by the fast flowing river.   The Jeep slightly lurched twice but held it’s grip on the ice as we inched along.  Saw a dirt patch to the right near the bottom where the ice ended & figured if I could get a passenger side wheel on that dirt we’d be Okay.  Easing to the right we ever so slowly managed to roll a wheel onto that dry part of the road then move a few feet further to where the ice ended & we had a solid road under all 4 tires again.  Our front wheels were only about 10 feet from the bridge.  Whew, what a nail biter that was & I was sure glad to get across that bridge to the other side & continue on what had been up to that point a nice relaxing Saturday morning drive……………

 

AT THIS POINT i SURE WAS RELIEVED TO HAVE ALL 4 JEEP TIRES ON A SOLID GRAVEL ROAD FOOTING AGAIN

IN THE SUMMER TIME ONE CAN NORMALLY WALK ACROSS THIS SHALLOW SLOW MOVING RIVER BUT WITH SPRING FLOODS IT’S A TORRENT OF WATER

We did get ourselves a few nice hours of sunshine this afternoon but the air remained cold & temps hung around the freezing mark all day.  Weatherman says we may have a few snow flurries tonight.  Cold for the next few days but looking ahead at the 10 day forecast I do see some days with low 50’s about a week & a half from now.  Greatly looking forward to that of course:))

SOON THIS WILL ALL BE GREEN & LUSH AGAIN

GROANER’S CORNER:(( I was working out the other day when I spotted a very attractive young lady entering the gym. I asked the trainer, "What machine should I use to impress that gorgeous girl over there?"  The trainer looked me up and down and said, "For you, I'd recommend using the ATM in the lobby."

GETTING THE SALT OFF

  

GOT HALF THE BACK CLEAN

Guess about all I can say about today is that I spent much of my morning washing salt off our Motorhome.   Turned the outside water on, gathered together some hoses, hauled out my pressure washer & tall stepladder & got right at it.  Did the Jeep as well.  Because of the snow I was unable to get a good hosing going on underneath the rig where it matters most so will have to wait a few more days or so before getting after that salt clinging to the underside of the Big EEE.  Spent much of the afternoon in my recliner recovering from my morning's activities.  And that was about it for me today……………

USED THE GARDEN HOSE AS WELL

 

GROANER'S CORNER:(( The driver of a car with an ice-covered windshield had several near-accidents before being stopped by a police car.  "Don't you think it would help if you cleaned the ice off the windshield?" the officer asked.  "I don't think so," was the reply. "I left my glasses at home."

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- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.

PHEEBS & I HIT THE ROAD THIS MORNING FOR A WEE JEEP DRIVE:))

LAKE HURON IS STILL ABOUT 50% COVERED IN ICE
Had been hoping for a sunny mild day but although moderately mild a cloud cover moved in by mid morning & that was the end of the sun’s warming rays for the day.  A breeze made the day feel cooler than it really needed to be.  Nevertheless I was still outside trying to help Spring along with my snow & ice removal tools.  Rain settled in later helping with the snow melt as well & here beside the great Lake Huron iceberg I think we actually got up into the high 40’s.  Further inland highs of 60F were reported.


During our last month or so in Congress as we began turning our thoughts homeward there was one thing more than anything else I was looking forward to doing once we were back to Bayfield again & it had to do with 2 things.  Pheebe & the Jeep.  Yep, it was our good old morning Jeep drives in the country that I looked forward to more than anything else.  Just throw the cameras into the Jeep, load up the little Happy Buns & away we go.  Must say I really miss our rural Ontario roads when we are away.  Miss the beautifully scenic forests, fields, hills & dales.  Just my idea of a favorite way to spend some quiet time doing something I really enjoy.  Call it a hobby if you will.  And the little Bugsy loves it too:)) 

SITTING UP QUITE PROUD IN THE JEEP’S FRONT SEAT THIS MORNING AS WE HEADED OUT FOR A DRIVE IN THE JEEP
I was running low on peanut butter so that gave Pheebs & I great excuse to pile ourselves into the Jeep late this morning & head us on over to the town of Goderich.  Stayed on pavement today because I knew our country roads would be a muddy mess & having just washed the Jeep Wednesday I wasn’t too anxious to get it all muddied up just yet.  Didn’t take me long to pick up a dozen or so grocery items plus a Tim Horton coffee to go & off we went to touch base with a few favorite spots around the town of Goderich & especially down around the harbor.

INNER HARBOR ENTRANCE IS NEARLY FREE OF ICE


GODERICH’S SIFTO SALT MINE UPPER LEFT

STILL A FAIR BIT OF ICE IN THE GODERICH HARBOR

THIS LARGE LAKE FREIGHTER HAS SPENT THE WINTER HERE AS WELL AS THE LAKE FREIGHTER BELOW


Merikay & Craig over at Merikay's Dream just celebrated their 1rst year full-timing & Merikay has some thoughts about that & looks back over the year touching on some points of difficulty.  It’s an interesting read not only for veteran full-timers but new folks starting out as well.  I always like how Merikay is straight forwardly honest with her posts & doesn’t gloss things over.  Good stuff Merikay:))

STILL A LOT OF ICE ON LAKE HURON BLOCKING GODERICH’S OUTER HARBOR ENTRANCE

LIGHTHOUSE VIEWPOINT OVERLOOKING THE ENTRANCE TO GODERICH’S HARBOR…SIFTO SALT MINE ON THE RIGHT

There is little doubt in my mind about what they say regarding Arizona’s warmer dry climate being better for arthritis sufferers & I can attest to that fact.  We’ve only been back to our colder damp climate 2 days & Wednesday afternoon & night were the worst my arthritic legs have ever been.  Not even Tylenol would take the ache away.  Much the same today as I creaked around wincing at my stiffness.  I’ve doubled up on my Arthrotec medicine but that’s not cutting it either.  Just have to be patient & wait for warmer weather & then get my legs back down to Arizona again in the Fall again.
A HAPPY LITTLE REFLECTIONS DOG
GROANER’S CORNER:(( My wife came in today and asked if I would go do some wood turning on the lathe.  "Ah," I asked, "what do you need? Maybe a new dibber or possibly a rolling pin or a vase? I have Persimmon, Hickory, Mesquite, a little bit of Walnut and a tad of Oak. What would you like?"  "Oh, I don't care. I need about six bags of shavings for the flower beds."
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- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.