ESCAPED FROM TIM HORTONS COFFEE SHOP TO THE SAFETY OF HURON COUNTIES HULLETT MARSH….’CLOSE CALL’

ANOTHER HOUR SLOSHING AROUND IN THE HULLETT MARSH FOR PHEEBS & I THIS MORNING
 
IF I WAS A KAYAKAQUACK PERSON THIS IS WHERE I WOULD BE HANGING OUT WITH THIS GREAT AREA BEING ABOUT A 20 MINUTE DRIVE FROM HOME

Slept all night with my fingers crossed that it would be sunny this morning & not raining. You know, sometimes that crossing of fingers really works. In fact today's rains never did show up as predicted. However, not knowing that Pheebs & I were on the road early for what turned out to be a 5 hour outing for us.

COULD HEAR MANY DUCKS QUACKING WAY OUT THERE IN THE MARSH SOMEWHERE
Think I dodged a nasty bullet while waiting in a TIM HORTONS drive-thru line up this morning in Clinton Ontario.  I could have ended up on the receiving end of a morning coffee mob gone wild.  Pheebs & I were headed over to the HULLETT MARSH early & decided to grab a coffee & carrot muffin to go at Horts.  Soon as I pulled in I noticed people standing in the parking lot & a wire fence erected around the building.  Also noticed some big metal dumpsters.  What I didn’t notice was a portable Tim Hortons trailer sitting at the north end of the building.  I was soon to wish I had recognized that trailer for what it actually was.  Drove slowly around the back of the building & entered the drive-thru lane.  Only a couple cars ahead of me.  The speaker box had a big sign on it saying to proceed to a portable speaker box.  I didn’t see any other signs.  Moved ahead 20 feet & a lady came on the portable box & I placed my order.  She told me the price & I moved up to the window.  Usually they are pretty quick but the window remained closed.  Waited, waited, & waited some more.  Meanwhile in my rear view mirror I saw traffic building up.  Figured I was at the head of the usual 652 car line-up.  Well there always seems to be that many cars to me anyway.  Looking in the window I noticed something was not looking quite right inside.  Staring at the interior it dawned on me that there was no interior.  It was gone.  Looking closer I could see the inside was totally gutted right down to the bare concrete floor which even had a trench dug in it.  In my confusion I figured the ladies must be making the coffee back around the corner somewhere near the rear of the building.  Unfortunately my reasoning powers sometimes take awhile to bring me to logical conclusions.  Somewhere in the fog of my confusion I hear the distant voice of the lady in the speaker box about 2 cars behind me.  That kind of brought me out of the fog a bit & I glanced in my side mirror to see a girl in the car behind me leaning out her window waving her arm furiously & hollering at me……MOVE!!!!  In a panicked split second now laced with some real fear I suddenly understood what that trailer was I had seen pulling in.  It was the mobile Tim Hortons coffee trailer where I should have been 5 minutes before picking up my coffee.  Popped the clutch & took off around the corner like Jack the Bear.  I knew the unruly coffee stressed mob would be close on my heels with pitchforks, baseball clubs, & tire irons.  The lady in the mobile sensed my dilemma & seeing the stark terror on my face practically through my coffee & muffin through my open window as I hastily whizzed by heading for & seeking the quiet safety of the countryside nearby.  Whewwwwww, close call!!  Never, never, get between the morning coffee mob & their caffeine fix.

NOW WHY WOULD MY BRAIN SIT HERE FOR NEARLY 5 MINUTES LOOKING IN THIS WINDOW EXPECTING A COFFEE TO APPEAR????
Being back in the security of my element again Pheebs & spent about an hour in the Hullett Marsh exploring around some new areas & revisiting some old spots. Aside from a colorful bird which may have been a type of Pheasant we were not lucky enough to see too much wildlife. I thought a large bird atop a dead tree out in the Marsh was probably a Red Tail Hawk. The bird was in shadow but I took a 300mm shot of it anyway. Later in my Picasa photo editing program I cropped in close on the bird, enlarged & lightened it. Very surprised to see it appears to be a Bald Eagle. Not very often I have seen Eagles in these parts.
  

 
THE AREA WHERE YOU SEE THE JEEP WOULD MAKE A GREAT OVERNIGHTER SPOT & WINNIE WOULD FIT DOWN THAT NARROW ROAD JUST FINE
 
 
AM GUESSING THIS FELLOW AS A RING-NECKED PHEASANT (except I think somebody shot his tail feathers off)
 
With our temperature's soaring into the 70's Pheebs & I were able to cruise the countryside with windows down. Just another one of those magical Autumn days I love so much. Farmers were sure busy in their fields harvesting the bean crops. Large combines, tractors, & wagons on the roads moving about between the many bean fields. Had to keep a wary eye in my rear view mirror. We usually crawl along about 20mph enjoying nature's scenery so we have to be careful not to get mowed under by a big combine barrelling up behind us. Those young farm fellows in their big green machines do not like doddering Seniors getting in their way & holding them up.

 
 
 
 

AND SOME OF THESE FELLERS WERE REALLY RAISIN UP THE DUST
Our Autumn colors have not peaked along the bush lines yet but that may happen next week. Individual trees are sporadically turning & our countryside's Autumn colors are slowly coming alive.

 

Question in our Shout Box asks, "What is the deal now with taking meat or dog food etc. across the border A few years back it was easier to take NOTHING. You mentioned about Kelly loading the can cupboard".............We do not take any meat whatsoever, cooked or uncooked. No fruits & no vegetables. Dog food must be made in the States & remain unopened. If in doubt about something, don't take it. Rules have a habit of changing at the border & you do not want to get yourself pulled over for an agriculture check. They are no fun!! Seems there were a couple other questions from readers somewhere but they are escaping me at the moment.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( For a couple years I 've been blaming it on lack of sleep and too much pressure from my job, but now I found out the real reason: I'm tired because I'm overworked. The population of this country is 237 million. 104 million are retired. That leaves 133 million to do the work. There are 85 million in school, which leaves 48 million to do the work. Of this there are 29 million employed by the federal government, leaving 19 million to do the work. 2.8 million are in the Armed Forces, which leaves 16.2 million to do the work. Take from the total the 14,800,000 people who work for State and City Governments and that leaves 1.4 million to do the work. At any given time there are 188,000 people in hospitals, leaving 1,212,000 to do the work. Now, there are 1,211,998 people in prisons. That leaves just two people to do the work. You and me. And you're sitting at your computer reading this joke on the Bayfield Bunch blog site.  Slacker!!
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- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- 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.

A PHYSICALLY TIRING MORNING FOLLOWED BY A RELAXING AFTERNOON & ‘FIND AN OUTLET’ IS BACK ON OUR BLOG ROLL:))

ALL OF TONIGHT’S PHOTOS WERE TAKEN IN THE FOREST THIS AFTERNOON

So nice to see something early this morning I had not seen for the past 6 months. Sunrise:)) And sunrise with a wispy mist hanging low over grassy fields laden with heavy dew. Living in a pine forest here on the outskirts of Bayfield we never get to see the sunsets or sunrises. A day without a sunrise & a sunset is a day partially lost. Fortunately during the winter months we do get to see them everyday while we are in the southwest. So what got me up so early & out of the pine forest to see the sunrise you ask??

Well, I was on an overnight blood-work fast & wanted to be at the Maitland Valley Medical Clinic in Goderich as early as I could to have some of that blood hauled out of me. I've been on Crestor for the past couple months again & this will be a cholesterol check to see if Crestor is doing any good. My Nurse Practitioner said my last levels were ‘off the chart’. I was put on Crestor over a year ago but stopped taking it late last Fall when I began having pains in my hip. Whether that was related or not I have no idea. Anyway, I resumed the Crestor a couple months ago & have a Doctor's appointment on the 10th to see if this Crestor stuff is doing any good. I have my doubts but maybe I will be pleasantly surprised for a change.

Another superb 70+ sunny weather day & as soon as I returned home from the Vampire clinic I changed clothes & started hauling out the remaining logs & brush from Tuesday’s tree cutting. What a sticky mess of a job it is when working with pine trees. That pine sap just sticks to absolutely everything. A dead pine tree was also taken down at a neighbor's so I cleaned up & hauled all that wood away as well. By early afternoon I was needing to seek out my most comfortable place on the Planet. My recliner. Oh how nice to let my old Buddy envelope me in it's soft mushy cushions & oversized padded arms. Clicked on my fan, kicked back for a big stretch, & I was soon off to la la land for a short snooze………….And did my arms finally fall off after Tuesdays log hauling? Nope, they weren't even sore any more when I woke up this morning. Amazing how the body many times can repair & rejuvenate itself while we are sleeping. Wished my body could rejuvenate my achy legs but I think sore legs are simply an every day part of my life now. It didn't help that I had forgot to take my arthritic Arthrotec pill this morning either.

Kelly loaded a fair few things into the Motorhome today. Not sure what it all was but I did see the food cupboard doors open. We're slowly getting things ready to travel. Good thing to get as much done now while the weather is so nice. Long range weather forecast is calling for rain this weekend & next week.  Maybe even starting Thursday so Pheebs & I might try for a Jeep photo tour in the morning before the weather goes into the dumpster for the next bunch of days.

Not a sound in the forest this afternoon except for Pheebs & I shuffling through the growing pile of leaves on the trail. No birds, no bugs, no wind. Just a stillness over the land & us guys shuffling along. Oh how I so much appreciate this quiet world I live in today compared to years ago. Appreciate & enjoy it that is, as long as I frequent the places I prefer. No more noisy work environments, pubs, malls, traffic congestion & people people everywhere. How nice to surround myself most days with the quietness & scenic beauty of nature. It is afternoon walks like today which bring all that home to me. Doesn't have to be a spectacular mountain hike, canoeing on a serene lake, or walking a distant desert floor. Just quiet time anywhere nature abounds will work for me most every time.

Kelly mentioned to me the other day we hadn’t heard anything from Debra Argosy for quite awhile.  I checked our blog roll & she wasn’t there.  Every once in awhile in one of my purge modes I have been known to go through our blog roll list & delete older dormant blogs in an attempt to keep my list shorter.  Actually that has been a dumb thing for me to do but we won’t get into the dumb things I do.  Well not tonight anyway.  I suspect I dropped Debra’s blog when I saw she had not posted for quite awhile.  Anyway, I have Debra back on the blog roll & for all you folks who like some fire in your reading Debra very often has the heat turned right up & you can most always be guaranteed reading some great honest no holds barred opinions, rants, heart warming stories, maybe some covert animal rescues, & always a logical alternative to the so called ‘norm’.  It’s not the usual watered down blog fodder you will hear from Debra.  Here’s a Gal who thinks outside the box, see’s things for what they are & is not afraid to tell you about it.  She will get you thinking.  Check out her latest post at, TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN.  We met Debra & her partner Jim back on December 27th 2011 while Ranch sitting in McNeal Arizona.  You can read my post from that day here……. MEETING A FELLOW BLOGGER.

 

And a stunningly clear high definition 3D undersea video for you tonight. Best to view it on 'full screen'. Don't miss it................ THE OCEAN AS YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN IT

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A noted biologist, who had been studying little green frogs in a swamp, was stumped. The frog population, despite efforts at predator control, was declining at an alarming rate. A chemist at a nearby college came up with a solution: The frogs, due to a chemical change in the swamp water, simply couldn't stay coupled long enough to reproduce successfully. The chemist then brewed up a new adhesive to assist the frogs' togetherness, which included one part sodium. It seems the little green frogs needed some monosodium glue to mate.
-------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- 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.

OUR TREE REMOVAL PROJECT IS COMPLETE & MY ARMS ARE FALLING OFF

MORNING DEW DROPS SUSPENDED IN A SPIDER’S WEB ALONG WITH A SINGLE PINE NEEDLE

My slow non directional puttering about this morning suddenly kicked into overdrive when I heard the big tree cutting boom arm machine start up across the road & head for our place. Had to quickly move the rig plus Kelly's car. Hooked the utility trailer to the Jeep & moved that out of the way as well. Twenty minutes later Gord was 50 feet in the air over our back yard sawing 2 & 3 foot lengths of tree trunk & lowering them to the ground on the end of a long rope. My job today was to unhook that rope from the log, pick up the log & place it in my utility trailer. This was basically my work day as the trees slowly came down one chunk at a time.  Gord & I worked until just after 6 tonight to get that last tree finished up.  They have more trees to do in other areas of the Park starting tomorrow, but for us the job of getting the trees down is over.  The threat to our house has been removed.  Tomorrow I will load up the last of the logs in the utility trailer & clear them out of here.  Still two heavy 8 footers laying on the ground but we’ll worry about them later.  Needles to say I am tired tonight & my arms are actually a bit sore & feel like they might fall off.  Not very often that happens anymore.

GORD ROLLS IN THIS MORNING WITH THE BIG MOSSMAGATOR MACHINE

  

HE CUTS THE LOG ABOUT 2’ LONG, LOWERS IT ON A ROPE & I GO PICK IT UP & LOAD IT INTO OUR UTILITY TRAILER

 

SEEMS AS THE DAY GOT LONGER THE LOGS GOT HEAVIER

The Government shut down has directly affected MERIKAY & CRAIG'S hiking in Utah's Zion Canyon but they did get one day in & got themselves some nice photos. I like their new header photo for sure & it very much typifies Utah's scenic splendor. Is it any wonder Utah is my favorite State:))

GORD ATTACHES A ROPE BEFORE CUTTING

  

A 2 OR 3’ LOG IS CUT & LOWERED TO THE GROUND…PARK OWNER KEN CHECKS ON GORD’S FINAL CUT

Kelly found some more legitimate comments in our Spam folder today so has published them.  Remember to regularly check your spam folder folks, you may have a few comments sitting in there you didn’t know you had:))

Not a whole lot else for me to write about tonight. My mind seems to have gone into a bit of a slump these last few days. That does happen from time to time & I've never quite figured out just what causes that. It just happens.  But maybe I just had too much sawdust dropped on my head today……………………..

GROANER'S CORNER:(( And a woman once said, "Men are like a fine wine. They all start out like grapes, and it's our job to stomp on them and keep them in the dark until they mature into something you'd want to have dinner with."

-------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- 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.