WE SAID GOOD-BYE TO OUR COMPANY TODAY & KELLY PULLS A BIT OF A FAST ONE ON ME……………..

After 3 days of cold damp weather our winds finally abated & our temperatures came up to about 60F.  No sunshine yet but how nice not to have those icy winds a blowin.  The family gang headed out for breakfast & some shopping in Bayfield this morning so I opted to stay home with Pheebs.  With skies brightening just a tad the little Happy Buns & I did take a short hours drive early this afternoon just to get out of the house for a bit.  Managed to get the Jeep muddied up enough to probably warrant a wash Monday but no problem because if it's sunny Tuesday Pheebs & I will probably go out & get it dirty all over again:))

NICE TO SEE A TOUCH OF AUTUMN GOLD

Been an awful lot of pie eating going on here Saturday & today.  Kelly baked a couple best of ever blueberry pies plus the Guelph folks brought a rhubarb/raspberry pie with them.  While typing this on my laptop today I became wedged in my recliner:((

Kelly pulled a bit of a fast one on me a few days ago but it's alright because it was an OK fast one.  As mentioned in previous posts I do not care for entering contests & especially photo contests.  Bayfield had a 2 day Photo Fest Seminar going on at the town hall this week-end with seminars, classes, etc.  It was put on by the PHOTO TOUR TREKKERS group & I actually worked for one of the group’s organizers back in the mid 80’s in Woodstock & Ingersoll Ontario.  They also had a photo contest which was open to anyone anywhere with photos of whatever.  Kelly had read about the contest & thinking it was for local folks decided to enter one of my photos.  She chose a photo I took a month ago of a Great Blue Heron atop an old tree stump in the Hullett-Marsh.  She had it blown up to 11x17 & had it matted (not framed) at BAILLIE'S in Grand Bend.  First prize was an all expense paid trip for 2 to YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK.  Of course I didn't know anything about this.  Saturday morning she slipped into Bayfield to have a look at the competition & then realized there were a number of very professional & expertly done photos there submitted by some great photographers of various locations around the world.  Needless to say my little Crane photo certainly didn't stand up to the competition but no matter it was just the thought that Kelly had taken it upon herself to do that.  She knew I would never have agreed to enter the contest but thought enough of my photo to enter it anyway.  The fact she did that means more to me than winning any kind of a prize.  Just goes to show what a caring, thoughtful, & wonderful person she truly is.  Certainly was my lucky day when we first met face to face at a little coffee shop near Doon Ontario over 22 years ago:))

PICKING CHERRY TOMATOES IN OUR BACKYARD

Our company headed for home about 4:45 p.m. & it was kinda sad knowing we may never see Ricardo's parents again.  They will be traveling back to Spain in a week or so.  Nelly & Manuel are truly soft spoken gentle people & it's easy to see where Ricardo's gentlemanly personality comes from.  And they are an adventuress couple as well.  While staying with Rebecca & their son Ricardo they have even stepped out to a few dances in the area & despite not being able to speak a word of English they are boarding a train Tuesday to go to Niagara Falls & staying for 2 days.  Pretty remarkable people I’d say.  It is often I feel a touch of sadness saying goodbye to someone.  I never show that sadness of course but it does sometimes come out here on my blog.

 

ADIOS MY FRIENDS  

Have to admit I have been in kind of a slump this past week.  I seem to have lost my travel focus.  My excitement & exuberance for our upcoming departure date has waned & my usual thoughts & plans for the upcoming winter season in the South-west have just not been in the forefront of my mind.  Can't seem to shake off my cloudy day thoughts..................... 

 

GROANER'S CORNER:((    Most of us have a bad habit we are constantly trying to break. For one woman, it's biting her fingernails.  One day she told her husband about the latest solution: press-on nails.  "Great Idea, Honey," he smiled. "Now you can eat them straight out of the box."

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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.

5 PEOPLE GO FOR A ‘FIRST TIME EVER’ RIDE IN A MOTORHOME:))

OUR COMPANY ARRIVED TODAY & WE ALL TOOK A DRIVE IN THE BIG EEE UP TO GODERICH & BACK

Here in our 5 Seasons Park it is not so much Autumn leaves we have to deal with as it is Autumn pine needles & they sure have been coming down these past few windy days.  Soon our roads & grounds will be covered in a blanket of golden needles.  Cold & windy today & it's feeling more like mid November weather than early October.  About 48F at noon today.

HERE COMES THE GANG DOWN THE DRIVEWAY FOR A RIDE IN THE BIG EEE…..L to R RICARDO, HIS DAD MANUEL & MOTHER NELLIE, LITTLE ELLA & HER MOM REBECCA & OF COURSE KELLY WITH HER HAPPY SMILING FACE:))

 

ELLA WANTED TO DRIVE BUT HER DAD WOULDN’T LET HER SO SHE GAVE ME A FACE:))

PARKED ALONGSIDE INUKSHUK BEACH

Our company which consisted of Kelly's daughter Rebecca, husband Ricardo & daughter Ella along with Ricardo's parents from Spain arrived about noon.  Nellie & Manuel do not speak a word of English but luckily Ricardo speaks Spanish, English, & a couple other languages fluently.  Rebecca is good with languages as well having taught English as a second language in Japan & Spain years ago.

<<< COULD THIS BE KELLY & LITTLE ELLA DOING THE BOOG-A-LOO ON GODERICH’S BOARD WALK ALONG THE BEACH>>  NOPE, ELLA’S JUST HELPING GRAMMA KELLY UP ONTO THE WALKWAY

Rains were not due to arrive until mid-afternoon so that allowed us some time to take a drive up to Goderich in the Motorhome.  None of the folks had ever ridden in a Motorhome before so it was quite an experience for them.  We headed for the harbor & beach area showing them the large Sifto Salt mine & luckily there was a large freighter in the harbor loading grain for them to see as well.  We drove down to the Inukshuk area, parked, & put the slides out for the gang to eat some sandwiches they had brought along.  They were all quite impressed with the Inukshuks.  From the beach we rolled the Motorhome up from the harbor & into downtown Goderich taking a couple turns around the square.  Needed some gas in case we had to run the generator a few times over the next couple weeks so picked up some fuel in the south end of Goderich before heading back to Bayfield.  Our company is staying in one of Deer Park Lodge's cabins & will be heading back to Guelph Ontario Sunday.  Ricardo’s parents who are here for a month told him today it is this Bayfield/Goderich area they like the best so far.

CHECK OUT THE LOOK ON LITTLE ELLA’S FACE AS SHE WATCHES A FLOCK OF SEA GULLS

LUNCH ON THE BOARDWALK

I’M SO HAPPY YOU CHOSE CANADA AS YOUR NEW HOME SON

RICARDO’S MOM & DAD & HIS DAD IS STILL STICKING PRETTY CLOSE TO HIS SANDWICH

Rebecca, Ricardo, Nellie, & Manuel headed over to check out their cottage at Deer Park while Ella stayed with Kelly & I having herself a big afternoon snooze.  Later in the afternoon under cold rainy skies the whole gang of us headed over to the DOCKS RESTAURANT for supper.  I debated with myself whether to go or not.  Last time there a few weeks ago the overall noise had me just about climbing the walls but then again it was still tourist season plus it was a week-end Saturday night.  Nothing wrong with the Docks or their food, it’s just me.  It’s funny how noise has become such an intolerance for me over these past bunch of years.  Oh well we all do change a bit as we age I guess………

FATHER & DAUGHTER SKIPPING STONES

AS I TELL THE STORY OF THE INUKSHUKS ON GODERICH’S BEACH REBECCA TRANSLATES IN SPANISH TO NELLIE & MANUEL

ELLA & ‘GRAMMA’ BACK THERE ON THE RECLINER AS WE HEAD BACK TO BAYFIELD

LOVED THE RIDE IN THE MOTORHOME & A GOOD TIME WAS HAD BY ALL:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( At breakfast one day, I eagerly waited for my husband to comment on my first attempt at homemade cinnamon rolls.  After several minutes with no reaction, I asked, "If I baked these commercially, how much do you think I could get for one of them?"  Without looking from his paper my husband replied, "About 10 years."

TOOK A FEW PHOTOS

A FEW OF THIS MORNING’S PHOTOS

Pheebs & I did get out for an early Jeep ride.  Took a few photos & that was about it for another day.....................

PHEEBS CHECKS OUT AN EARLY MORNING FIELD OF COWS

HULLETT-MARSH……RIGHT??

NOPE, JUST A NICE POND IN A RURAL JUNKYARD

NICE HOUSE & LOCATION…….RIGHT??

NICE HOUSE FOR SURE BUT WHAT ABOUT THAT SO CALLED ‘NICE’ LOCATION……IT’S IN THE JUNK YARD

THE GEESE ON THE POND IN THE ABOVE PHOTOS ARE ON THIS PROPERTY AS WELL ONLY OFF TO THE RIGHT

A LARGE LAKE FREIGHTER AWAITS ENTRANCE TO THE GODERICH HARBOR

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A little girl asked her mother for a dollar to give to an old lady in the park. Her mother was touched by the child's kindness, and gave her the dollar.  "There you are, my dear," said the mother. "But, tell me, isn't the lady able to work any more?"  "Oh yes," came the reply. "She sells candy."

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There's a story about the military pilot calling for a priority landing because his single-engine jet fighter was running "a bit peaked."  Air Traffic Control told the fighter jock that he was number two behind a B-52 that had one engine shut down.  "Ah," the pilot remarked, "the dreaded seven-engine approach."