HOT AND HUMID BUT DID MANAGE TO GET A FEW THINGS DONE DESPITE THE UNCOMFORTABLE HEAT

EVERYTIME I AM IN THE FRONT YARD I AM ALWAYS BEING CLOSELY WATCHED

Wow, outside this morning at 7:15 with a short sleeve shirt on can ya believe it.  Minutes later I was once again as one with our power washer.  Half an hour later our front porch was finally finished.  Tuesday morning Pheebs and went to Goderich with the idea of picking up a final 4 bags of Mulch but as luck would have it I spied a Goldflame Spirea shrub at a decent price and that of course distracted me and absorbed my attention.  We left the Canadian Tire store 10 minutes later with the Spirea plant.  This morning we were back in the Jeep again on our way to the Canadian Tire store to pick up 4 bags of mulch.  Aren’t you glad your not me!!

BY THE LOOKS OF THAT DUST I’D SAY FIELDS ARE NOW DRY ENOUGH FOR THE FARMERS TO GET BACK ON THE LAND

A swing down around the harbor and beach netted us a few photos and we weren’t long in heading on back home.  Planted the Spirea we had brought home the day before and spread a bit of mulch around.  Seeings how I had the power washer sitting in the driveway I gave the Jeep a good squirt.  After that I opened up a gallon of deck stain and got myself busy staining the older deck boards on the covered section of our back porch.  Although those planks are about 14 years old they are still in excellent shape from when I built that deck way back in 2003 I think it was.

MAMA AND PAPA GOOSE TAKING THE KIDS TO THE BEACH FOR THEIR FIRST SWIM

GREAT LAKES FREIGHTER ‘CAPTAIN HENRY JACKMAN’ IN FOR A LOAD OF SALT

A COMBINATION OF SAND AND CLAY ARE THE REASON FOR THE GRAY WATERS CLOSE TO SHORE

SPRING IS ALWAYS SUCH A PRETTY TIME OF YEAR

Turned out hot and humid today but thank heavens we had a blustery southwest wind blowing which made being outside tolerable.  I was Ok staining the shaded back deck on the north side of the house.  I plan to stain the front porch deck next but will have to do that in the early morning before the sun gets up to high.  Crawling around on my hands in knees in a baking sun is not my idea of a pleasant thing to do.

THE BACK DECK STAINING WENT WELL THIS MORNING AND I THINK THE STAIN COLOR MATCHES THE NEW DECK EXTENSION COLOR BEHIND ME PRETTY GOOD

I’m guessing today’s warm winds carried a lot of waiting songbirds across Lake Erie and Kelly thought she saw a Baltimore Oriole in our front yard.  I was hearing a lot joyous tweeting coming from our surrounding pine trees telling me some of the songbirds are already here.  It is so nice this time of year to throw open windows and doors to the lovely sounds of Spring songbirds flitting about in the trees.

PLANTED THE GOLDFLAME SPIREA

WITH ALL THE GREEN IN OUR GARDENS I WANTED SOMETHING OF DIFFERENT COLOR AND THE GOLDFLAME SPIREA FITS THE BILL

THAT’S MY RED HANDLE GARDEN RAKE IN THE BACKGROUND

NOTICE THE TRILLIUMS BETWEEN THE GREEN HOSTAS AND THE SPIREA PLANT

The day ended up way too hot and humid for us and we had to kick on the A/C around 3 this afternoon.  Had all our fans going as well and I think we made it up to about 85F today.  About 4 o’clock I had to drag myself in the house and throw my sorry old sack of bones into the shower.  Long showers are true lifesavers and one of my favorite things.  I think my biggest bug-a-boo about our winter RV boon-docking in the southwest is the limited water supply.  Yes I know about those short ‘scrub-scrub-rinse-rinse military showers but I hate those things.  I think this winter instead of towing the Jeep around we’ll just tow a big water tanker behind us.

A GROUP OF TULIPS ON THE WAY DOWN TO THE HARBOR

And ‘Pat Richards’ I just remembered your question in our Shout Box from a couple days ago.  For me to remember something from a couple days ago is an amazing feat in itself.  You asked about my ‘smoothie recipe.  Well here it is……Sounds Yukky-Tastes Yummy.  I wrote this post in 2009 so here’s a quick update.  I quite drinking those shakes around 2015 I think and I have no idea what my reason was.  Anyway I resumed them again about a month and half ago and I am right back into the routine.  Everything is the same except I haven’t been adding the flax seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp hearts, oat bran or wheat germ.  No reason really, just haven’t got around to picking up that stuff.  I still add oatmeal though as well as a good dash of cinnamon now too.  For my ‘You Tube’ version you can find me HERE.  Just scroll down the blog until you find the You Tube thingy where it says Sounds Yukky But Tastes Yummy:))

A DOWNY WOODPECKER IN THE YARD TODAY

‘DARN’ I am being sucked back into the TV news again.  Instead of having an occasional quick peak about all the drama going on in U.S. politics I am finding myself clicking on the TV at the top of the hour sometimes then sitting there for too long a period of time listening to all the latest foofaraw.  What a circus you guys got going on down there and I don’t know where or if it will ever end.  If you need a break from all that come on up to Canada where our politics are guaranteed to put you to sleep in 5 minutes or less.

‘HEY CUTEY WANNA MAKE SOME BABY FROGS’

‘STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU SLIPPERY SWAMP SLIME’!!

‘AWWW NUTS’!!

GROANER’S CORNER:((  More Pilot Errors
Actual exchanges between pilots and control towers:::
Tower: "Eastern 702, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on frequency 124.7"
Eastern 702: "Tower, Eastern 702 switching to Departure. By the way,after we lifted off we saw some kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway."
Tower: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff behind Eastern 702, contact Departure on frequency 124.7. Did you copy that report from Eastern 702?"
BR Continental 635: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, roger; and yes, we copied Eastern... we've already notified our caterers."
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One day the pilot of a Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold short of the active runway while a DC-8 landed. The DC-8 landed, rolled out, turned around, and taxied back past the Cherokee.
Some quick-witted comedian in the DC-8 crew got on the radio and said, "What a cute little plane. Did you make it all by yourself?"
The Cherokee pilot, not about to let the insult go by, came back and said: "I made it out of DC-8 parts and pieces. Another landing like yours and I'll have enough parts for another whole plane."
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The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are renowned as a short-tempered lot. They not only expect one to know one's gate parking location, but how to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747) listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747... call sign Speedbird 206.
Speedbird 206: "Frankfurt, Speedbird 206! clear of active runway."
Ground: "Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Alpha One-Seven."
The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a stop.
Ground: "Speedbird, do you not know where you are going?"
Speedbird 206: "Stand by, Ground, I'm looking up our gate location now."
Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206, have you not been to Frankfurt before?"
Speedbird 206 (coolly): "Yes, half a dozen times in 1944, but it was dark, and I didn't land."
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While taxiing at London 's Gatwick Airport , the crew of a US Air flight departing for Ft. Lauderdale made a wrong turn and came nose to nose with a United 727. An irate female ground controller lashed out at the US Air crew, screaming: "US Air 2771, where the hell are you going? I told you to turn right onto Charlie taxiway! You turned right on Delta! Stop right there. I know it's difficult for you to tell the difference between C and D, but get it right!"
Continuing her rage to the embarrassed crew, she was now shouting hysterically: "God! Now you've screwed everything up! It'll take forever to sort this out! You stay right there and don't move till I tell you to! You can expect progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour, and I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I tell you, and how I tell you! You got that, US Air 2771?"
"Yes, ma'am," the humbled crew responded.
Naturally, the ground control communications frequency fell terribly silent after the verbal bashing of US Air 2771. Nobody wanted to chance engaging the irate ground controller in her current state of mind. Tension in every cockpit out around Gatwick was definitely running high. Just then an unknown pilot broke the silence and keyed his microphone, asking:
"Wasn't I married to you once?"
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A Pan Am 727 flight, waiting for start clearance in Munich , overheard the following:
Lufthansa (in German): "Ground, what is our start clearance time?"
Ground (in English): "If you want an answer you must speak in English."
Lufthansa (in English): "I am a German, flying a German airplane, in Germany. Why must I speak English?"
Unknown voice from another plane (in a beautiful British accent): "Because you lost the bloody war!"

USING PAPER TOWELS TO CLEAN UP MY MESS

 OH DEAR, I HOPE THIS FELLA ISN'T THINKING OF JUMPING OFF THE BAYFIELD PIER

So who knew that spinach comes in frozen cubes.  Well, certainly not this guy but thanks to a good friend in Stratford I found that out when she left a Facebook comment about my Yummy-Yuck morning shakes.  I have been using spinach leaves.  As soon as I use up my pile of Popeye spinach I'll be heading off to Walmart to see if I can find me any of them there icy cubes.  And in a comment on my Monday post, a reader wondered about sugar in the orange juice I use.  The brand I buy is called 'Simply Orange' and it has a label on it saying 'No Sugar Added'.  Now we all know how deceiving labels like that can be but here's something interesting.  Up until a couple years ago, I'd be lucky if I drank two small glasses of orange juice a year.  And that's no exaggeration.  Now, I'm not sure exactly when and why it was that I glommed onto orange juice but it's my second favorite drink after skim milk. I easily drink a couple small glasses of orange juice a day now and I'm still maintaining my weight.  In fact, one of my favorite smoothie drinks is simply mixing orange juice and skim milk.  One-third milk and two-thirds orange juice.  Ya, Ya, I know....sounds yukky but guess what....it tastes yummy.  Well, at least to me it does.  However, I only drank one-third of my shake this morning.  And why is that you might ask?  Well, two-thirds of my shake ended up on the kitchen floor.  I had just poured my ingredients out of the blender into my plastic glass when I decided to move my one-cup coffee maker back into its place.  I did that and as I moved back my right elbow hit and tipped over my full veggie shake glass on the counter.  Quickly uprighting the glass with a sliver of my concoction left in the bottom, I promptly took my hand and scooped it along the countertop funneling what was left of my shake off the edge of the counter into my near-empty glass.  By doing that I retrieved a third of my shake. Well, I at least figured that was better than nothing.  I then used up a number of paper towels cleaning up the vomit-looking mess on the floor.  And that was how I sorta kinda started my day.  From that point on the Gremlins had me on the run. 

 OH GEEEZZZZ, NOW IT NOT ONLY SOUNDS YUKKY IT EVEN LOOKS YUKKY TOO

I could hear the wind roaring through our tall pine trees even before we had pulled back the living room curtains.  The wind made it sound very cold outside and if it were not for Pheebs pushing me out the door on days like this I would be tempted to just sink back even deeper into my recliner and just stay there for the rest of the day.  However, I am fortunate enough each and every day to have a furry little inspiration to get me up and on my way.

A FEW MORE CHRISTMASY FRONT PORCH DECORATIONS ALONG THE WAY THIS MORNING

Skies darkened enough this morning that our outside timer switched all our Christmas lights on.  Temperature today was 28F with a 15F wind chill factor and that did not make for a very enthusiastic outing.  We did slip into Bayfield for a drive down around the harbor, through the village, and then home again. 

 THIS MORNINGS' COLD WINTERY WEATHER DOESN'T SEEM TO BE BOTHERING THIS GUY

 DECISIONS DECISIONS 

 OH OH THERE HE GOES

 HE DISAPPEARED IN THE  ROUGH WAVES

 IT WAS ABOUT HERE WHEN I THOUGHT I MIGHT HAVE TO MAKE MY FIRST 911 CALL OF EVER.....BUT THEN.....I SAW A DARK SPECK AND ITS ALMOST DEAD CENTER IN THIS PHOTO

AND BY GOLLY THERE HE IS

 I GUESS HE'S GOING TO BE OKAY NOW:))

 I NOTICED THIS MORNING THEY HAVE PAINTED THE YELLOW CENTER LINE ON THE APPROACHES TO THE NEW BAYFIELD BRIDGE AS WELL AS ACROSS THE BRIDGE ITSELF....THOSE ORANGE TARPS ALONG THE SIDES OF THE BRIDGE PROBABLY HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE BRIDGES RAILINGS

Okay, so how many of us are going to rush outside at the end of the day today to soak up that extra couple minutes of daylight as we finally begin our slow swing into winter's ever-lengthening days:))  Oh-Oh, but then they start getting shorter again two-thirds of the way through June:((   Now how's that for some up and down thinking a few days before Christmas eh.

 THESE GUYS SURE ARE KEEPING ME ON MY TOES

GROANER'S CORNER:((  It's almost 2022, I've been around several decades and I'm wore out, and I still have so many unanswered questions!!!! I haven’t found out who let the dogs out...where’s the beef...how to get to Sesame Street... why Dora doesn’t just use Google Maps...Why do all flavors of fruit loops taste exactly the same, or how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop......why eggs are packaged in a flimsy carton, but batteries are secured in plastic that’s tough as nails...what does the fox say... why “abbreviated” is such a long word; or why is there a D in ‘fridge’ but not in refrigerator... why lemon juice is made with artificial flavor yet dish-washing liquid is made with real lemons... why they sterilize the needle for lethal injections... and, why do you have to “put your two cents in” but it’s only a “penny for your thoughts” where’s that extra penny going to... why does The Alphabet Song and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star have the same tune... why did you just try to sing those two previous songs... and just what exactly is Victoria’s secret? and where is Waldo?... Can you hear me now?...and do you really think I am this witty?? ... I actually got this from a friend, who stole it from her brother’s girlfriend’s, uncle’s cousin who lived next door to an old class mate’s mailman.

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MAYBE NEXT YEAR EH:))

I've been doing my Yummy-Yukky shakes on and off for close to 25 years now.  I go along mixing up and drinking these breakfast shakes for maybe a couple years at a time then I might quit for a year or so before starting them up again.  I think it was last winter sometime when I tired of the shakes for the umpteenth time and changed my morning routine to drinking Glucerna.  Glurcerna is like Ensure but it's better for anyone with diabetes concerns.  This morning I once again resumed my shakes.  And here's what I do.  In a blender (not a juicer) I toss in half a banana, 1 cored apple with pealings, half a scoop of vanilla-flavored Whey Protein powder, and a smattering of oatmeal flakes.  To that, I add a sprig of celery, half a dozen small spinach leaves, and 1 romaine lettuce leaf. (I may add a couple more veggies but not carrots because they have too much sugar in them) I then pour in half a glass of skim milk and half a glass of orange juice.  I hit the blender switch for 10 seconds or so and everything is liquified.  I pour that out into a tall glass and I'm good to go.  If we have strawberries or blueberries handy I will add them to the shake as well.  Next time I'm at the supermarket I will pick up some flax and sunflowers seeds as well.  I mix them together in a coffee bean grinder and that mixture will go into my shakes too.  So there you have it.....Sounds Yukky-Tastes Yummy.  And believe me, if it didn't taste good I sure as heck wouldn't be drinking it!!

 THE YELLOW DIGGING MACHINE IS GONE FROM BAYFIELD'S BEACH SO I GUESS WHATEVER THEY WERE DOING THERE.......IS DONE

 ROUGH LAKE HURON WATERS

 THE WIND CHILL FACTOR DIDN'T BOTHER THESE LADIES THIS MORNING

 I THINK THE BAYFIELD OUTDOOR COFFEE CLUB IS GROWING

 LOOKS LIKE THEY ARE MAYBE WORKING ON THE CONCRETE ROADSIDES ON THE BRIDGE

Overcast skies this morning with a 24F wind chill factor so there wasn't any walking for Pheebs and I.  With Christmas in mind, we took a drive into the village (Bayfield) and I kept my eye out for some colorful Christmas decorations.  And how nice to see the sun out this afternoon with temps coming up to about 35F with very little wind.  I actually saw some melting going on in our front yard:))

 THAT TREE IIN SOMEBODY'S YARD IS A COLORADO BLUE SPRUCE

 NOT ALL HOUSES HAVE CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS BUT THEY STILL HAVE SOME COLOR

 THAT'S LAKE HURON WAY OUT THERE

Just think, in a couple days the Earth will begin its slow southward axis tilt and our days will once again begin to grow in length.  Now, how's that for a nice thought.  And a month from now we might very well be into the January thaw only a week and a half from the first of February which of course is the shortest month of the year.  Ahhhh yes, good thoughts indeed.

I recently finished three books by author Delores Cannon.  'Keepers Of The Garden', 'The Custodians', and 'Between Death and Life'.  I am about to start a fourth book by this author called 'The Convoluted Universe'.  I have found these books fascinating, eye-opening, difficult to understand at times, and a real challenge to my mind.  Quote: {To maintain an open mind is extremely difficult but it is the only way to search for ultimate knowledge}

With a very well deserved smirk on my face, I watched one of our front yard black squirrels finally figure out a way to get on the new feeder.  No panic on my part this time as I grinned quite gleefully at Squirrelly's futile attempts to get at the birdseed.  He tried two times unsuccessfully to get into that feeder but had to give up and jump to the ground.  Now, keep in mind, I like the squirrels and I do feed the little guys corn throughout the winter.  Below are a couple short videos.  Squirrelly trying to get into the feeder and a few birds at our bird feeder station.  Okay, the videos didn't work so I'll maybe try them again tomorrow.  Hey, somebody just said they worked:))  Well, it shows you how much I know:((

Please bear with me as I try to get the hang of this video stuff.  Although I've had the means to try videography before I just haven't had a big interest in it so these efforts of mine will be on the shaky side of things until I can at least get a better beginner's handle on it. 

Had we left for the southwest this past Saturday as planned, we would likely be overnighting somewhere in Arkansas tonight.  Oh well, maybe next year eh:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((    Seeing her friend Marcia wearing a new locket, Ashley asks if there is a memento of some sort inside.  “Yes,” says Marcia, “a lock of my husband’s hair.”  “But Larry’s still alive?”  “I know, but his hair is gone.”

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It’s been raining for days now and my husband seems very depressed by it.  He keeps standing by the window, staring. If it continues, I’m going to have to let him in.

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