Sunday, May 20, 2018

IT WAS ABOUT A YEAR AGO NOW I RECEIVED AN ‘OMG’ EMAIL FROM A READER

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FOG IN THE VALLEY THIS MORNING

Due to cold and windy overcast skies it was a real struggle first thing this morning for me to find any motivation for getting myself out of my warm comfy recliner.  Thought about staying right where I was for the day but a 45 pound little ball of fur had other ideas.  How could I ignore that sad little face with those soft pleading brown eyes sitting on my lap with her head only inches from mine staring at me.  Well it was a clear cut case of motivation staring me right in the face.  With the magic words, ‘wanna go for Jeep ride’ Pheebs bounded off my lap almost knocking me backwards into the middle of last week.  Recovering I hurried to throw on some warm duds while the furry whirlwind raced up and down the hall trying to hurry me up.   Minutes later that happily exuberant 45 pounder and I were out the door, down the steps, and into the Jeep heading North.  Cranked on the heater and it seemed the closer we came to Goderich the foggier it appeared.  Figured that was a good sign warmer air was moving into the area.  Warmer air did arrive later but it wasn’t that warm.  As I post this tonight we are sitting at 49F.

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BLURRY BICYCLES IN THE MIST

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A coffee run down around the Goderich harbor netted us a few photos and a short walk in the cold wind.  About an hour and a half of leaving home we were back again and just in time too because Kelly was cooking up some bacon and eggs.  That was a nice break from my usual morning fare of healthy stuff.

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SAW THIS BULK CARRIER FREIGHTER NESTLING UP TO THE DOCK AT THE SIFTO SALT MINE 

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I DON’T RECALL SEEING THE ALGOMA INNOVATOR IN PORT BEFORE

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I SEE A WORKER ON DECK

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With cooler temperatures upon us I knew it was a good time to work on the Motorhome's wax job.  Won't be long and our weather will be too hot and muggy for me working outside so figured I had better keep going while the weather is workably cool.  However I ran into some discouragement today.  The wax has been going on and buffing off just fine on the 'painted surface' around the bottom of the rig but when I started on the big white fiberglass sides of the coach I ran into a problem.  Thought everything was going fine until I stood back and looked at the white sides on an angle.  Splotchy and blotchy is the best way to describe it.  Thought it was a buffing problem but no that wasn't it.  Took me awhile to figure it out but figure it out I did.  By applying the wax by hand with a small cloth I was not getting the wax on evenly and ended up having to go back again and again to touch up all the small un-waxed spots I had missed.  I may have to bite the bullet and try using the 10 inch wax applicator cloth that came with the buffer-polisher after all or maybe I will slip up to the Canadian Tire Store and pick up a proper Simoniz wax applicator pad.  One thing is for sure, a small cloth is not the way to go on a big 45 acre white fiberglass surface!!  Guess I'm too used to waxing smaller painted metal cars over the years.  This 37 foot Motorhome is a whole different bag of hammers. 

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I AM GOING TO HAVE TO RE-WAX A SIZEABLE CHUNK OF THIS WHITE FIBERGLASS SIDING FROM FRONT TO BACK

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THIS IS WHERE I PLANTED THE DAFFODILS AND TULIPS A COUPLE DAYS AGO

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Our gloomy skies began clearing late in the morning and by early afternoon we were under sunny blue skies with temps on the rise.  I'm sure there will be a lot of disgruntled soggy campers in the area out reveling in this afternoon's warm sunshine.  Well as long as they stay out of the cold northeast wind that is.

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I’M THINKING THIS LITTLE CHAP MIGHT BE A CHIPPING SPARROW

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THIS GRACKLE AND HIS BULLYING BUDDIES HAVE ALL BUT TAKEN OVER OUR BIRD FEEDING STATION

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BLACK CAP CHICKADEE

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BLUEJAY AND A FEMALE CARDINAL

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PERCHED  IN OUR FRONT YARD SUNBURST LOCUST TREE

And it was about a year ago this time I received an ‘OMG’ email.  I had to read the email over 3 times in a row to comprehend what I was reading. and make sure it wasn’t a scam.  Soon as Kelly got up that morning I showed her the email and she felt it was on the level too.  Wow, just couldn’t believe my good fortune.  My ‘OMG’ paragraph is the third one down in the post.  Click on My OMG Moment.

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GROANER'S CORNER:((  An old man, a boy and a donkey were going to town. The boy rode on the donkey and the old man walked.  As they went along they passed some people who remarked it was a shame the old man was walking and the boy was riding. The man and boy thought maybe the critics were right, so they changed positions.  Later, they passed some people that remarked, "What a shame, he makes that little boy walk." They then decided they both would walk!  Soon they passed some more people who thought they were stupid to walk when they had a decent donkey to ride.  So, they both rode the donkey.  Now they passed some people that shamed them by saying how awful to put such a load on a poor donkey.  The boy and man said they were probably right, so they decided to carry the donkey.  As they crossed a narrow bridge, they lost their grip on the donkey and he fell into the river and drowned.  The moral of the story? If you try to please everyone, you might as well kiss your ass good-bye……………

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A woman was chatting with her next-door neighbor."I feel really good today. I started out this morning with an act of unselfish generosity.  I gave a twenty dollar bill to a bum."  "You gave a bum twenty whole dollars? That'sa lot of money to just give away. What did your husband say about it?"  "Oh, he thought it was the proper thing to do. He said, 'Thanks.'"

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Saturday, May 19, 2018

MOODY MORNING BEACH WALK

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I THINK THIS BLUEJAY MAY HAVE A SLANTED VIEW OF LIFE

Our usual routine first thing in the morning is to kick on the TV and watch a half hour of CBS news before I gain control of the television and flip on my nature channel shows.  Well not so this morning. I didn’t get control of anything.  Kelly wanted to watch the Royal Wedding so I had to dig out my headphones and crack on my laptop computer music.  Occasionally I would glance overtop the screen and of course my question to myself is always the same with those kinds of English functions.  Where do all those women find those crazy circus hats and why would they stick them on their heads like that and go out in public.  Are they not aware how silly they look.  And I wonder why a bride would wear a dress so long it drags on the ground and takes two small boys to follow along behind holding up the veil.  Oh I am such a sod.  At one point I glanced up and saw Queen Elizabeth riding along in a car which of course reminded me of a post I wrote over a dozen years ago.  It's called Me and Queen Elizabeth.

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ON OUR FRIDAY MORNING SHORELINE WALK IN GODERICH I SPOTTED SOMETHING COLORFUL IN SOME GREEN GRASS AHEAD….IT WAS A FEMALE BALTIMORE ORIOLE

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I THEN SAW A FLASH OF ORANGE COLOR ABOVE THE FEMALE ORIOLE AND SAW THE MALE ORIOLE KEEPING WATCH OVER HER

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THE MALE FLITTED ABOUT KEEPING CLOSE WATCH OVER HIS FEMALE COMPANION WHO WAS BUSY GATHERING NESTING MATERIAL

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AT ONE POINT THE MALE LANDED ON THE GROUND CLOSE TO HER THEN FLEW BACK UP INTO A NEARBY SMALL TREE

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WITH NESTING MATERIAL IN HER BEAK SHE FLIES UP INTO A SHRUB NEAR THE MALE

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NOTICE THE FLARED TAIL

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SHE LOOKS BACK TO MAKE SURE I AM STAYING PUT

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THEN OFF SHE GOES FOLLOWING HER MATE HOME

Our day started off with a light drizzly rain which of course I'm sure was a big disappointment to the thousands of cottage and boat owners, merchants, tourists, and camping people.  Local merchants especially count on this big long week-end to kick start their coffers.  Luckily for Pheebs and I the rains stopped moments before we left and resumed only minutes after we got home about an hour later.

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HERE’S KELLY RELAXING WITH HER LUNCH TODAY….SHE EATS THE WEIRDEST STUFF LIKE FRUITS AND VEGITABLES….IF I HAD TO EAT THAT I WOULD HOPE SOME KIND SOUL WOULD SAY TO ME, ‘WOULD YOU LIKE FRIES WITH THAT SIR’

Our favorite Bayfield ‘Charles Street Market’ coffee stop of last year has morphed into a Bistro and moved on down the street.  However not far away is located Shopbike Coffee Roasters and it is here where we have been occasionally stopping in for a coffee to go.  I don’t do muffins anymore but they do have tasty muffins and other pastries.  Imagine my surprise when I stopped in for a coffee to go and it was ‘free’.  What??  Locally owned Bayfield Electric in conjunction with Shopbike Coffee Roasters had graciously opted to buy each customer today a coffee:))

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NABBED ME A FREE CUP OF COFFEE HERE THIS MORNING

We traveled ourselves a few miles south of Bayfield along highway 21 and turned right on Pavilion Road heading for the shores of Lake Huron.  It’s maybe only a mile to where the road ends.  Parked the Jeep and headed for a set of long weathered wooden stairs leading down to the beach.  The stairway is old and wobbles a wee bit but I’m sure it has another half dozen years left.

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IT’S A LONG WAY DOWN TO THE BEACH SO WE STOP HALF WAY FOR A 6 SECOND REST

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OF COURSE IT’S GONNA BE AN EVEN LONGER WAYS BACK UP AND BY THE TIME I GOT TO THE BOTTOM PHEEBS WAS ALREADY ON THE BEACH CHECKING THINGS OUT

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WE DECIDED TO HEAD SOUTH ALONG THE SHORE

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IT WAS KIND OF A MOODY LOOKING DAY

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‘HEY DAD WHY DON’T YOU COME BACK HERE AND SHOW ME HOW YOU FELL OVER THIS LOG AGAIN’

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OVER YON HORIZON LIES THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

In regards to my Motorhome waxing project commenter Vern asks, ‘Al do you apply the wax with the buffer or just buff it off with the machine’?  The 10 Inch Simonize Polisher I bought on sale for $39.95 comes with 2 polishing cloths, a foam wax applicator and a standard wax applicator.  I chose to put the wax on by hand and and use the machines polishing cloth to buff the wax off.  Works like a charm and I never would have started this waxing project had I not bought the 10 inch Simonize polisher.  I also purchased 2 additional polishing cloths which incidentally are machine washable.  In an email from reader Steven he wondered what wax I am using on the motorhome and if it is safe on the vinyl graphics?  To be honest Steven I never thought about the graphics so I waxed and buffed right over top of them.  So far everything seems fine but I certainly have been known for my dumb mistakes in the past.  Should note though that it is Meguiar’s ‘Marine’ wax I am using which is especially for fiberglass surfaces like boats and RV’s.

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SNIFFING HER WAY THROUGH THE BEACH’S FLOTSAM AND JETSAM

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LIKE A GIANT DINOSAUR BONE THIS WATER WORN TREE TRUNK LIES ON THE BEACH

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COTTAGE AND HOME OWNER’S BOATS

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A HOMEOWNER’S ROOFTOP IS VISIBLE TOP LEFT WHILE THEIR STAIRS ACCESS TO THE BEACH IS VISIBLE BOTTOM RIGHT

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WATER RUN-OFF FROM HIGHER LAND  POOLS BEFORE WASHING INTO LAKE HURON

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FEARLESS PHEEBS FORDS A MIGHTY STREAM

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ALONG MANY STRETCHES OF BEACH ARE THESE  JUTTING STEEL WALLS TO HELP PREVENT BEACH EROSION AND BELOW YOU CAN SEE HOW THEY WORK

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WE BEGIN OUR ASCENT UP THE LONG SET OF STEPS FROM THE BEACH

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DSC_5875‘OH NEVER MIND THE SILLY SELFIE DAD JUST FOLLOW ME I KNOW THE WAY TO THE TOP

We were back home about an hour after we left and I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning up our carport.  Dark cloudy skies were looking ominous and I didn’t want to get into more Motorhome waxing then have the skies open up and dump a load of water on the rig.  Made use of my time cleaning up our carport which had lately become kind of a catch-all for everything. 

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FEMALE BALTIMORE ORIOL ON OUR SUET FEEDER

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‘OH GOOD SHE’S ASLEEP’

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‘OH NUTS’

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BLACK CAP CHICKADEE

A fellow well known RV Blogger has passed away.  Lynne Braden from Winnie Views lost her battle with cancer May 16th.  Lynne knew she wasn't going to make it and I found her thoughts and writings near the end of her struggle thought provoking, insightful, and sincere.  Despite sometimes traveling in the same areas we never did meet this fine lady.  You can find her quality writings and photos on my side bar.

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GROANER’S CORNER:((  Hey Norma and Jim here’s one for you guys to think about next winter:))  Ski season is almost here! Hence, the following list of exercises to get you prepared:

16. Visit your local butcher and pay $30 to sit in the walk-in freezer for a half an hour. Afterwards, burn two $50 dollar bills to warm up.

15. Soak your gloves and store them in the freezer after every use.

14. Fasten a small, wide rubber band around the top half of your head before you go to bed each night.

13. If you wear glasses, begin wearing them with glue smeared on the lenses.

12. Throw away a hundred dollar bill-now.

11. Find the nearest ice rink and walk across the ice 20 times in your ski boots carrying two pairs of skis, accessory bag and poles. Pretend you are looking for your car. Sporadically drop things.

10. Place a small but angular pebble in your shoes, line them with crushed ice, and then tighten a C-clamp around your toes.

9. Buy a new pair of gloves and immediately throw one away.

8. Secure one of your ankles to a bedpost and ask a friend to run into you at high speed.

7. Go to McDonald's and insist on paying $8.50 for a hamburger. Be sure you are in the longest line.

6. Clip a lift ticket to the zipper of your jacket and ride a motorcycle fast enough to make the ticket lacerate your face.

5. Drive slowly for five hours - anywhere - as long as it's in a snowstorm and you're following an 18-wheeler.

4. Fill a blender with ice, hit the pulse button and let the spray blast your face. Leave the ice on your face until it melts. Let it drip off onto your clothes.

3. Dress up in as many clothes as you can and then proceed to take them off because you have to go to the bathroom.

2. Slam your thumb in a car door. Don't go see a doctor.

1. Repeat all of the above every Saturday and Sunday until it's time for the real thing!

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Baby 1: I'm a boy.
Baby 2: prove it.
Baby 1: Not in front of the nurse.
Baby 2: Okay The nurse just left
Baby 2: Prove it.
Baby 1: Okay look at this………’blue socks’.

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