A LIGHT DUSTING OF WET SNOW TODAY MADE THINGS FEEL A BIT LIKE CHRISTMAS

STARTING TO LOOK A BIT CHRISTMASY AROUND HERE FIRST THING THIS MORNING 

Snowing lightly when we woke up this morning & we later cut our morning walk in half due to a wet snow falling from the sky.  This cold & damp is not good weather for the arthritis in my legs & I was very aware of that this morning.  These are more Novemberesque days than mid October days.

GRAND BEND IS A SHORT 20 MINUTES DRIVE SOUTH OF US & THIS IS WHAT THE YACHT CLUB’S WEATHER CAM SHOWED THIS MORNING AT 9 A.M……YA, WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE ALRIGHT

Nicest thing about the cold outside is the warm inside & it just so happens to be the beginning of that time of year again.  And what better way to make that warm inside even nicer than to bake up a bunch of raisin bran muffins & molasses cookies.  Imagine coming in from the damp cold outside to the wonderful warm aroma of muffins & cookies baking.  For experienced muffin eaters like Pheebs & I it was quite a windfall & we managed to snitch 3 muffins right off the bat before Kelly caught us sneaking back for a forth.  Yep, we loves our muffins alright & these muffins & cookies are the best of the best ever:))  By the way those muffins & cookies will be heading south with us…….if there’s any left by then that is. 

ALWAYS SO PRETTY SEEING LARGE SNOWFLAKES SLOWLY FALLING STRAIGHT DOWN

<<< SNOWY SUMAC LEAVES & NOTICE THE FAHRENHEIT TEMPERATURE

Fellow RV Bloggers & friends Caron & Chris from Travels With CC & Dixie along with their dog Trixie moved into our Park Friday.  They bought themselves a nice house at the far end & have an excellent location next to a forest setting.  Full timing for the past 4 years in the their 35' Class A Motorhome they felt it was time to add the security of a home base & switch their southern winter travels into Snow Bird mode.  Maybe not the nicest first day for them with all this wet snow coming down but with all the pine trees around it sure can get mighty pretty in here real fast & it was actually nice today to see the large snow flakes drifting lazily to the ground.  Matter of fact the first time I ever saw this Park years ago was at night & it was like driving into a Disney like winter Wonderland.  It's one of those memories that will always stay with me. 

A LIGHT DUSTING OF SNOW IN OUR FRONT YARD

A TOUCH OF WET SNOW HAS OUR RED BUD & BASS TREE LEAVES DROOPING

AND THIS IS WHAT THE DAY LOOKED LIKE FROM INSIDE THE MOTORHOME TODAY

All & all it turned out be a relaxing stay in the house day & in light of the busy ramped up days & weeks ahead it was kind of nice to be basking in kind of a floating nothingness today.  A week from tonight I have no idea just exactly where we will be except to say somewhere this side of Chicago & quite possibly in a CRACKER BARREL parking lot somewhere.  Looking forward to getting a Cracker Barrel or two under our belts again.  Been about 6 & a half months since our last CB stop.  And yes it's safe to say both Kelly & I are true Crackle Barrel fans.  Like the food & like the old time ambience with that big crackling fireplace in each Crackle Barrel restaurant.

SNOW FALLING LAZILY THROUGH THE PINES…..♪♪♪♪ SLEIGH RIDE ♪♪♪♪

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A bit out-dated but interesting mergers anyway……….

Below are some of the latest rumors from Wall Street. In the wake of the AOL/Time Warner deal, here are the latest mergers we can expect to see:

Hale Business Systems, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Fuller Brush, and W.R. Grace Company merge to become Hale-Mary-Fuller-Grace.

Polygram Records, Warner Brothers, and Keebler Crackers merge to become Polly-Warner-Cracker.

3M and Goodyear merge to become MMMGood.

John Deere and Abitibi-Price merge to become Deere-Abi.

Zippo Manufacturing, Audi Motors, Dofasco, and Dakota Mining merge to become Zip-Audi-Do-Da.

Honeywell, Imasco, and Home Oil merge to become Honey-I'm-Home.

Denison Mines, and Alliance and Metal Mining merge to become Mine-All-Mine.

Federal Express and UPS merge to become FED-UP.

Fairchild Electronics and Honeywell Computers will merge and become Fairwell-Honeychild.

3M, J.C.Penney and the Canadian Opera Company will merge and become 3-Penney-Opera.

Knott's Berry Farm & National Organization of Women will merge and become Knott-NOW!

THINKING BACK ON NEARLY A DECADE OF WONDERFUL SNOW BIRD YEARS

Our weather today has been very strange with sun one minute & sleeting rain the next.  Kelly was in Goderich & just missed what a downtown store employee called a ‘possible’ mini-tornado but did get a cell phone shot of the Canadian Legion building with a bunch of bricks torn off the side wall.  Aside from branches down I haven’t heard of any other damage.  Likely just strong gusting winds coming in off the lake.

 

A SECTION OF BRICKS HAVE FALLEN FROM THE ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION BUILDING….KELLY’S PHOTO

 

SLEET ON THE GROUND TODAY & SNOW IS BEING MENTIONED IN THE FORECAST NOW FOR THE WEEK-END

Question was asked, Do we regret anything about choosing an RV Snow Bird lifestyle over the past 9 years & the short answer to that is 'NO'.  Yes we would have more money in our pockets right now had we decided to be 'stay at home' people during the winter months but we decided a long time ago that kind of lifestyle was not for us & we set our sights on RV travels early on.  In fact it was soon after we met back in the summer of 1993 that we both discovered an adventurous traveling spirit in each other.  We knew we had different ideas than most folks & together we could maybe one day pull some of those ideas together.  And we did.  In 1998 we bought a 79 17' Class C Dodge Centurion & that little blister got us started with week-end trips to Ontario's Pinery Provincial Park & up along the Georgian Bay shores.  In 2001 it was a 1991 24' Prowler Travel Trailer with which we spent a number of week-ends at the Pinery & a week at Killbear Provincial Park in the Muskokas.  Wasn't until 2006 our dream finally came alive & we began our Snow Bird Travels in earnest to the South-west first heading out with a 2004 GMC Sierra hauling a 2005 28' Rockwood 5th Wheel then 6 months later switching to a 2003 33' Class A Damon Challenger Motorhome.  And like they say the rest is history & for long time readers you know the rest of the story from there...............:))

A FEW ADDITIONAL PHOTOS FROM THURSDAY MORNINGS WALK ALONG GODERICH’S WATERFRONT

ROUGH WATERS MAKE FOR A GOOD TRAINING DAY ONBOARD THIS CANADIAN COAST GUARD VESSEL

MAN-MADE STONE BREAKWATERS DOT THE SHORELINE PRESERVING GODERICH’S PRISTINE BEACHES

MANY LONG AGO SHIPWRECKS HAVE OCCURRED ALONG THESE SHORES & THIS PIECE OF WASHED UP DRIFTWOOD IN THE FOREGROUND LOOKED LIKE IT ONCE HAD A MANUFACTURED SHAPE TO IT & I’M THINKING IT MAY VERY WELL HAVE BEEN PART OF AN OLD WOODEN SAILING VESSEL AT ONE TIME

THE PLACE AT THE SOUTH END OF THE DOG PARK I LIKE TO CALL ‘PIRATES COVE’

Nothing can replace the memories we have made & the places we have been & things we have seen these past bunch of years.  Have met a few great people along the way as well but most of all I think it is the sheer fact we made & still do make the effort each winter season to get out there in this big beautiful land of ours & be a part of something special & something different.  End of days will come soon enough but we try to keep one step ahead of that as best we can by not falling into a sedentary lifestyle.  Yes there are hazards & perils & discouraging days traveling but the rewards are much greater in the end.  We've stood on the rim of the Grand Canyon, walked the pathways through Bryce Canyon & hiked trails in Zion.  We have walked in the footsteps of Cochise & Geronimo in the Chiricahua Mountains & strolled the streets of Tombstone Arizona.  Hiked into Fort Bowie, stuck our feet under the fence between Mexico & the U.S. more than once.  Been to the Pink Store in Las Palamas Mexico & got into a bit of trouble in Sonora Mexico one time.  Been to Kitt Peak in Arizona to look at all the telescopes, walked around the Davis-Monthan airbase in Tucson on New Years day onetime.  Have attended the largest RV rally in the world pretty well every year we've been in the Quartzsite area.  We didn't catch the 3:10 to Yuma but have been in Yuma a bunch of times.  Been to the shores of California's Salton Sea & boondocked in both the Mojave & Sonoran deserts.  Been through Nevada's Death Valley several times & camped out in Lone Pine California’s Alabama Hills.  Did Ranch Sitting for a few years just a 20 minute drive from the Mexican border near Douglas Arizona.  Scuffed our Jeep’s tires on the rocks of Moab Utah, threw snowballs in New Mexico’s Emery Pass & many times kept look-out in Roswell for Aliens while passing through.  We’ve done the long miles across Texas, driven through a Louisiana Swamp or two, traveled our tires on the Natchez Trace & waved numerous times to Elvis as we by-passed the west side of Memphis Tennessee.  Both Indianapolis & Chicago have chewed us up & spit out out more than once & we have stood in the shadow of Mount Rushmore.  Traveled the North Route overtop Lake Superior & had a close up look at the Wawa Goose.  Even walked the grounds of Canada’s favorite sitcom, Corner Gas.  Managed to get ourselves lost in the Ozarks one time & have travelled sections of the famed Route 66.  Made our way through the forests of Arkansas & the flats of Oklahoma.  Wandered the casinos of Las Vegas.  Kansas winds once pulled our side awning out & Colorado’s Rocky Mountains gave us some grief more than once.  Rolled our tires through both North & South Dakota with even a few miles put on in both Wyoming & Montana.  Of course I could keep on going, & going, & going here but I don't think there's enough ink left in my keyboard to type it all out.   But the majority of all those places & adventures have been recorded of course & are all right here in words & photos in my 2,766 posts stretching back as far as 2006/07.  Not daily posts for the first few years but many posts since then nonetheless.  Wonder what we would have seen sitting in the house here in Bayfield these past 9 wintery seasons.  I’m guessing a lot of television…………..:))

One day we will no longer have an RV & we will once again be forced either by health concerns or financial restrictions to again spend our winters at home here in Canada.  Maybe a 2 week vacation in Florida or something.  Fly down, fly back & that’s it.  For me the adventure will be gone then & the only thing left from our great RV lifestyle will be my memories, my writings, & my many photos.  Sure glad I decided way back when to record all these marvellous, marvellous, days………………………..:))

OVER YONDER THIS SIDE OF THOSE COLORFUL MAPLE TREES STRETCHES THE LONG LINE OF LAKESHORE INUKSHUKS

Pretty quiet day around our house today as our unpredictable weather pretty much kept us inside.   Think our temperatures hung around the 45F mark so with all the rain it felt cold & damp outside.  That’s the kind of cold & damp that just gets right inside you & you never get comfortably warm.  Noticed dark eyed Juncos on our bird feeding platform today & I wonder if their early return from the high North is a harbinger of an early winter.  More sleet tonight again as I publish this now………………………..

  GROANER’S CORNER:((  A young couple moved into a new neighborhood.
The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbor hanging the wash outside.  "That laundry is not very clean," she said. "She doesn't know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap." Her husband looked on, but remained silent.  Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments.  About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband: "Look, she has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this?"  The husband said, "I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows."

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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.

THIS UPCOMING 2015/16 WINTER SEASON WILL BE OUR 10TH RV SNOW BIRDING YEAR & WE’RE HOPING THERE WILL BE MORE TO COME:))

This winter will mark our 10th Snow Bird year traveling to & around the great American South-west.  Seems so long ago now back in the Fall of 2006 when we were rushing around trying to decide what kind of an RV to buy, where to go, & how long to stay wherever it might be we ended up.  We were true Newbies & we had the enthusiasm & excitement to show for it.  A lot of changes have taken place in these past 10 years & we have made our fair share of right & wrong decisions.  Going with a solar system in our second season was one of the best RVing decisions we ever made while downsizing RV's several times a few years ago was a bit of a stumble for us.  Buying our Congress house in 2012 was a right thing to do & we're hoping our decision to sell the house this winter will go down as one of our better decisions as well.  If Kelly & I were American citizens things would be much simpler & we wouldn't be selling it but as Canadians we feel for various reasons the time is right.  I did mention the reasons for our decision in a previous post which I will re-post here…………With the exchange on the Canadian/American dollar we feel the time is financially right to let it go.  We also feel with the uncertain economy & an unknown shaky future shaping up across the land it would be wise for us to pool our resources back here in Canada.  If things suddenly take a bad turn we do not want to get stuck owning a house south of the border & for whatever reason not be able to return to it.  And may I add we both have some looming health issues which may be of some concern in the not to distant future as well.  Our travel insurance rates have been escalating dramatically each year & one little medical bump in the night for either one of us could financially put an abrupt end to our travels at any time.

THE TOP SIDE OF GODERICH’S SIFTO SALT MINE
Despite a sour 10 day weather forecast a few days ago we sure had us a bonus Autumn morning with periods of sun & cloud.   Pheebs & I took ourselves for a drive up to Goderich & down around the harbor for a relaxing walk along Lake Huron's shoreline.  Nice to see & hear large rolling waves crashing upon the rocks & sandy beach.  Winds were cool while the sun felt warm.  Reminded me very much of our winter days in the South-west.  





On our morning walk we had noticed someone had thrown out a pile of good usable lumber so upon our return from Goderich I hooked up our utility trailer & headed down to our Park's recycle area & began sorting through the pile.  Loaded up a bunch of 16' 1x3's & some 2x4's.  Perfectly good lumber & I just couldn't see leaving it there to rot.  I’m guessing there were at least 60 or 70 good pieces there & the more I dug through the pile the more lumber I found & loaded up.  Soon became apparent there was a lot more there than I first thought.  Not being good at building things I knew I couldn't use this lumber but I knew someone who could.  Took a trailer load to my good friend Richard's house & backed into the driveway.  Yup Richard could use it alright so we unloaded it all & headed back to the recycle area for another half load.  Richard is one of those fellas who can build anything & build it well. 

TOOK ME AWHILE TO SORT THROUGH THIS PILE OF USABLE LUMBER

ARRIVING BACK AT OUR PARK THIS MORNING
Kelly loaded more things into the rig today as we count the days down.  I was careful not to fill the Jeep with gas this morning.  Don't want to end up next Friday with the weight of a lot of unnecessary gas.  Not good for towing.  A bit unusual for this time of year but we had thunder storms roll in off the lake late this afternoon bringing with them wind & rain.


A GAGGLE OF GEESE MAKING THEIR WAY ALONG THE SHORELINE

WHEN I TOOK THIS PHOTO TODAY I DID NOT SEE THE BEE ON THE SNAIL & IT WASN’T UNTIL I CROPPED THE PHOTO I SPOTTED IT



Read on-line a few days ago the Mayor of Goderich has said despite a pending lawsuit the Inukshuks along the beach are not going to be taken down.  Mayor said they will let winter storms deal with the Inukshuks.

  
Sad to receive an email Wednesday night from fellow RV Blogger Glenda at Casita Escapes saying her husband of 20 years Jeff had passed away due to complications of Diverticulitis.  Glenda & Jeff have been full-timing for years & we first met them back in January of 2013 when they dropped into see us at our house in Congress Arizona.  We last saw them just this past winter when they boondocked for a time down at the end of Ghost Town Road about half a mile from us in Congress.  Glenda, in her email said, “I will continue to live a nomadic life as long as possible, pulling my little white egg around. . .once I learn how to hook up to the trailer & then back it where I want it”.  All the best Glenda, sorry to hear about Jeff & we may cross trails with you again somewhere out in the mountains & deserts of the great South-west.

GLENDA & JEFF SET UP THEIR CASITA IN OUR SIDE YARD

JEFF SETS UP THEIR SATELLITE DISH
I think one would be very hard pressed to find a nicer town along the Lake Huron shoreline than Goderich.  For sure they have the most scenically interesting & greatest beach area .  Not big enough to be a city, not small enough to be a Village but Goderich fits nicely in between the two with the emphasis being on ‘town’.  Grand old homes here & the community competes & has won awards in the ‘communities in bloom’ contest.  In 2012, Goderich was a National Finalist in that competition. Depending on who tells the story, either Queen Victoria or Queen Elizabeth II called Goderich, Ontario, "the prettiest town in Canada.  However, it seems there never was a royal visit, but don't let that stop you from visiting Goderich”.  I’m thinking Goderich’s population might be somewhere around 8,000 now.  Each time I come to Goderich which can be once or twice a week I like it more all the time.  Kelly & I have said if we ever decide to move into a town some day it would likely be Goderich.

JUST ONE OF THE MANY MANY REASONS I HAPPEN TO THINK GODERICH ONTARIO WOULD BE GREAT PLACE TO LIVE
And as I post this tonight we have thunder & lightning going on as well as heavy rains coming down.  I have a feeling we may wake up to a much colder day Friday & there was mention of snow flurries at some point in the next day or two:((  But warming up again next week:))  OMG we’ve got hail pounding down right now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LOOKING INLAND FROM THE LAKE WHILE HIKING ALONG IN THE DOG WALKING AREA
GROANER’S CORNER:((  The new family in the neighborhood overslept and their six-year-old daughter missed her school bus.  The father, though late for work himself, had to drive her. Since he did not know the way, he said that she would have to direct him to the school.  They rode several blocks before she told him to turn the first time, several more blocks before she indicated another turn. Up one street & down another this went on for 20 minutes - but when they finally reached the school, it proved to be only a short distance from their home.  The father, much annoyed, asked his daughter why she'd led him around in such a circle.  The child explained, "That's the way the school bus goes, Daddy. It's the only way I know."