PHEEBS & I CHASED A MORNING STORM AND I LATER SAT AND WAITING FOR ONE TO BLOW IN OFF THE LAKE

WITH THOSE SNOW CAPPED MOUNTAINS IN THE BACKGROUND COULD THIS BE COLORADO??  NOPE, THIS IS BAYFIELD’S PIONEER PARK AND THOSE ARE DARK STORM CLOUDS IN THE BACKGROUND LATE THIS AFTERNOON

Sorry for all the confusion regarding the posting of my blog Sunday night.  Still a big mystery as to what happened so my fingers are crossed that publishing tonight’s post will go alright.  Some of the dates are mixed up so here is my official Sunday post link..... Oh So That's What Richard And Al Were Up To Last Thursday Morning  Eh. And a big thanks to Kelly for finding it and the other 3 missing posts. 

PHEEBS AND I STARTED OFF CHASING A STORM THIS MORNING

ROADS WET SO WE’RE GETTING CLOSER

AHHHHH YES THERE’S THE RAIN FINALLY

When our A/C kicked on at 7 a.m. this morning I knew that was probably a pretty good indication Pheebs and I would not be out for a walk anywhere.  Kelly said Pheebs was already dragging herself along in the humidity when they were out for a walk earlier.  About 7:30 I heard the first roll of thunder coming in off the lake and a quick check of our live radar weather feed confirmed a storm cell was headed in our general direction.  Half an hour later with more cracks of thunder Pheebs and loaded ourselves into the Jeep and headed north towards Goderich in hopes of catching the storm and grabbing some photos.  Roads turned from dry to wet about half way there and by the time we reached Goodrich the storm had blown through leaving a bucket load of rain behind.  Puddles in the parking lots.  We cruised down around the harbor and despite it raining lightly I was able to get Pheebs out for a short walk close to the Jeep.  Sun popped out in a few spots and the humidity immediately went up so after a couple quick errand stops we headed back home.  It wasn't even 10 o'clock and our outside activities were already pretty much over for the day.  Absolutely hate when that happens!!  Severe thunderstorm watch was issued this afternoon.

RAIN DIDN’T SCARE OFF THESE HARDY WORKERS OR THE FOLKS BELOW SITTING IN A GAZEBO BY THE LAKE

THE CUYAHOGA WAS IN PORT THIS MORNING AND THE AFT SECTION OF THIS SHIP ALWAYS REMINDS ME OF AN OLD TRAMP STEAMER SOMEWHERE IN THE OLD CHINA SEA WITH HUMPHRY BOGART AND LAUREN BECALL ONBOARD ……. CIRCA LATE 1930’S

DESPITE A STRIKE STILL GOING ON AT THE SIFTO SALT MINE PLANT EXPANSION IS STILL CONTINUING

I HAVE A FEELING THIS MAY BE A NEW ELEVATOR SHAFT GOING DOWN INTO THE MINE

I FELL OFF THE PIER INTO THE HARBOR AND WHILE MAKING MY WAY BACK UP TO THE SURFACE I TOOK THIS PHOTO OF A TREE BRANCH HANGING OUT OVER THE WATER………OKAY, OKAY, SO THAT DIDN’T HAPPEN……IT’S REALLY SOME KIND OF GREEN PLANT GROWING OUT OF A CRACK IN THE DOCK AND BACKGROUNDED BY THE HARBOR’S DEEP BLUE WATERS

With the afternoon thunderstorm watch in mind I checked our live radar feed and saw storm cells forming up over Eastern Michigan and starting across the lake.  One appeared headed for Bayfield so I grabbed my camera and headed on over to Bayfield's Pioneer Park hoping for some ominously dark storm cloud photos.  I did get a few shots but not the big dark menacing tornado laced ones I was looking for.  Ended up coming back home after half an hour.

ZIPPING INTO BAYFIELD LATE THIS AFTERNOON I COULD SEE TALL CUMULUS CLOUDS BUILDING TO THE SOUTH

STORM CLOUDS GATHERING OVER THE LAKE TO THE WEST

WITH THE FIRST PEELS OF THUNDER BOATERS HEAD FOR SHORE

THESE TEENERS  GATHERED ON THE HULL OF AN OLD SHIPWRECK HAVING FUN OF COURSE AND COULDN’T CARE LESS ABOUT A POTENTIAL STORM ….. STORM SCHMORM WHO CARES

WHERE ONCE THE LAKE AND SKY WERE ONE I NOTICED A PENCIL THIN DARK BLUE LINE FORMING ACROSS THE HORIZON….OH-OH, MAYBE A SUNAMI WAVE??

TOOK ME A FEW MINUTES TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT WAS

SLOWLY APROACHING LAND IT FINALLY DAWNED ON ME WHAT WAS HAPPENING

WIND ON THE WATER BLOWING IN AHEAD OF THE STORM

MINUTES BEFORE NOT A LEAF STIRRED IN THE LATE AFTERNOON’S HOT AND HUMID STILL AIR

THE WINDS SOON SWEPT IN ROLLING UP THE TALL BLUFFS RUSTLING OVERHEAD BRANCHES BEHIND ME

AND I SAW A MADCAP FUZZY HEADED WOODPECKER RACING ACROSS THE SKY HEADING SOUTH

Well I just went and did what I had set out not to do.  I did not want to write this post with a lot of photos in it in case it didn’t publish again tonight.  Well, I haven’t ever been very good at listening to myself so here goes………………..

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Jon's working at the lumberyard, pushing a tree through the buzz saw, and accidentally shears off all ten of his fingers. He goes to the emergency room.  The doctor says, "Yuck! Well, give me the fingers, and I'll see what I can do."  Jon says, "I haven't got the fingers."  The doctor says, "What do you mean, you haven't got the fingers? It's 1998. We've got microsurgery and all kinds of incredible techniques. I could have put them back on and made you like new. Why didn't you bring the fingers?"  Jon says, "Well, heck, Doc, I just couldn't seem to pick 'em up."

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A man and his wife were making their first doctor visit, the wife being pregnant with their first child.  After everything checked out, the doctor took a small stamp and stamped the wife's stomach with indelible ink.  The couple was curious about what the stamp was for, so when they got home, the husband got out his magnifying glass to try to see what it was.  In very tiny letters, the stamp said, "When you can read this without a magnifying glass, come back and see me."

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Why does the bride always wear white? Because it's good for the dishwasher to match the fridge and  stove.

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BLOG TEST

OH-OH……..It seems something has happened to my blog!!

OH, SO THAT IS WHAT AL AND RICHARD WERE UP TO

It’s a long walk from our house to our good friends Richard and Gayle's house and it took us all of 35 seconds to make the arduous flat walk journey this morning.  Now that the deal is done I can tell you they have bought themselves a 2002 32’ Georgetown Class A Motorhome.  And that’s where Richard and I were this past Thursday morning when I was a bit secretive as to what we were up to.  I didn’t want to let the cat out of the bag until it was all a done deal.  It was just the absolute right priced Motorhome for the absolute right minded people at the very absolute right time.  A big huge thank you goes out to Ron Krauter from Four Seasons Performance in Grand Bend for making this ‘great deal’ happen for Gayle and Richard.  Just a super knowledgeable and caring guy and if anyone is looking for honesty and integrity in buying an RV Ron is your guy to talk with.  We’ve known Ron over 11 years now and have never met a fairer or nicer person to do business with.  If you happen to drop in there just tell him the ‘Bayfield Bunch’ sent ya:))

IN PARKHILL ONTARIO LAST THURSDAY WE LOCATED THE MOTORHOME, JUMPED OUT OF RICHARD’S VAN LIKE A COUPLE EXCITED TEEN-AGERS AND HAD US A LOOK SEE

‘OH BOY OH BOY OH BOY’

RICHARD DROVE THE RIG TWO THIRDS OF THE WAY BACK TO GRAND BEND AND I DROVE IT THE LAST THIRD….HERE I AM IN THE RIG WITH RICHARD LEADING THE WAY

BACK AT RON’S PLACEI THINK THE BOYS ARE TALKING TURKEY HERE

RICHARD ON THE LEFT AND RON ON THE RIGHT

Needless to say there’s lots of excitement over at Gayle and Richards right now and we had ourselves a long coffee break with them in their Georgie Motorhome this morning.  Kelly hadn’t seen the rig so a tour was in order.  I had seen and driven the coach part way when Richard and I picked it up in Parkhill Ontario Thursday and brought it back to Ron’s place in Grand Bend.  Their Georgetown is almost identical to our Triple E Commander in graphics and color.  Richard and Gayle are not new to RVing having had a couple Class C RV’s years ago as well as a new Monaco.  They are so much looking forward to the freedom of the open road again.

RICHARD ROLLS INTO THE PARK WITH THE BIG GEORGETOWN FRIDAY NIGHT

BACKS IT INTO THEIR DRIVEWAY

AND IT’S HOME:))

Not wanting to spend any time outside due to the heat today I used my indoor time constructively on the computer to geographically travel myself to a number of places we have never been but will be traveling too in a couple months.   Checking ahead along our route for State Parks, Passport America Parks, Points of Interest, scenic bi-ways, etc, I have started computer files on South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and northern California.  Checked out average temperatures for September and October in various areas along the way and I was happy to read they consider it the ‘off season’ out there.  Hopefully less people and traffic.  Last time we traveled through South Dakota four years ago from north to south we did see Mount Rushmore but missed the Badlands and other area attractions.  Stayed at a nice little RV Park in Sturgis for a couple days but Kelly was feeling sick and I wasn't feeling much better so we pulled up stakes, pointed the rig’s nose south, put the pedal to the metal, and headed straight for our house in Congress which we had at that time.  We plan to travel differently this year from recent years in that we hope to make more use of RV and State Parks along the way.  Less Walmarts.  And because most of our travels will be through areas we have never been we hope to spend more time sightseeing along the way like we did in our earlier RV travels. When we reach Oregon we plan to do the coastal route from north to south down into California.  In hindsight I wished we had thought to do this trip last winter then this year do Idaho and Oregon's interior.  Oh well, maybe if this winter goes alright we could think of that next year.  And there I go getting waaaaaaay ahead of myself again..…….:))

HOSTA FLOWER

 

WATER SPIDERS

TWO OF OUR THREE POND FISH

DESPITE OUR AREAS DRYNESS WE HAVE MUSHROOMS GROWING NEAR THE FROG POND

Another hot day coming up Monday so Pheebs and I will have to get out early if we’re going to get a walk in.  She doesn’t like this kind of hot weather any better than I do.  I think it’s supposed to cool off a bit Tuesday.  If I was an American citizen I probably would have pulled up stakes a long time ago and maybe moved to northern New Mexico somewhere for the summers and spent the winters RVing in Arizona and California.

ONE OF OUR FRONT YARD’S NEON FROG MONSTERS

GROANER’S CORNER:(( If you are from the northern states and planning on visiting or moving to the south, there are a few things you should know that will help you adapt to the difference in life styles:
1. If you run your car into a ditch, don't panic. Four men in a four-wheel-drive pickup truck with a 12-pack of beer and a tow chain will be along shortly. Don't try to help them, just stay out of their way. This is what they live for.
2. Don't be surprised to find movie rentals and bait in the same store. Do not buy food at this store.
3. Remember: "Y'all" is singular, "All y'all" is plural, and "All y'alls'" is plural possessive.
4. Get used to hearing "You ain't from around here, are ya?"
5. You may hear a Southerner say "Oughta!" to a dog or child. This is short for "Y'all oughta not do that!" and is the equivalent of saying "No!"
6. Don't be worried about not understanding what people are saying; they can't understand you, either.
7. The first Southern expression to creep into a transplanted Northerner's vocabulary is the adjective "big ol'," as in "big ol' truck " or "big ol' boy." Most Northerners begin their new Southern-influenced dialect this way. All of them are in denial about it.
8. The proper pronunciation you learned in school is no longer proper.
9. Be advised that "He needed killin'" is a valid defense here.
10. If you hear a Southerner exclaim "Hey, y'all, watch this," stay out of the way. These are likely to be the last words he'll ever say.
11. If there is the prediction of the slightest chance of even the smallest accumulation of snow, your presence is required at the local grocery store. It doesn't matter whether you need anything or not. You just have to go there.
12. When you come upon a person driving 15 mph down the middle of the road, remember that most folks here learn to drive on a John Deere, and that this is the proper speed and position for that vehicle.

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Little Johnny's new baby brother was screaming up a storm.Johnny asked his mom, “Where’d he come from?”“He came from heaven, Johnny.”“Wow! I can see why they threw him out!”

MORNING COFFEE WITH MY BUDDY JIM AND A FEW THOUGHTS ON WHY WE LIKE BEING SNOWBIRDS

Really enjoying these cooler early morning starts.  With temperatures around 61F I was able to comfortably slip outside and do a little yard work puttering first thing.  Kelly headed off to Stratford around 9 to run a few errands and I rolled out about an hour later all by myself.  Pheebe held the fort while I slipped on over to Seaforth Ontario to have a coffee with my good buddy Jim (Lifetime Sentences) at Tim Hortons coffee shop.    Jim's younger brother passed away several weeks ago and Jim has had a hectic few weeks.  It was time to sit down and unwind a bit over a cup or two of coffee.  As it turned out we each stretched out a single cup of coffee over three hours.  But oh those hard plastic bench seats are so torturous to sit on without moving for all those hours.  On the way home I thought I was going to have to get my jack knife out and cut my legs off just to give myself a break.

 

‘HE’S TAKING PICTURES AGAIN BERTHA’……’I THINK YOUR RIGHT ELMER’

Must say the Sun seemed to shine a little brighter today now that we have dealt with our RV travel situation and finally made some decisions.  Indecision is one of those stressful things that just keeps gnawing and gnawing at a person until a decision is finally made.  We now have some forward thinking and planning to do.  A goal if you will.  I like when that happens and one's mind comes alive again with a new project ahead.  With my travel hat once again dusted off and my mind focusing on our pre-travel days ahead I marveled at how my mind immediately set to work clearing out all the old gathered cobwebs making room for new plans, challenges, and organizing things with a lot of attention being paid to refreshingly new thoughts and ideas.  Lots to do in the coming weeks ahead and I am looking forward to that.  Driving to Seaforth this morning all those constraining cobwebs literally blew right out my ears and I had to wind the window down to let out all the resulting dust.

ALTHOUGH LATE THIS YEAR WE DO HAVE A FEW PRICKLY PEAR CACTUS BLOOMING

CLEMATIS

One of the great advantages of being a Snowbird are those two times each year when we excitedly look forward to the immediate lifestyle change that occurs.  Once in the Fall and once in the Spring.  Over most of our past years of RV travels I have always with great anticipation looked forward to leaving for the great American Southwest in Autumn and returning home in the Spring.  It has been those two total changes that has kept me from becoming bored out of my tree.  For the first 6 years of traveling I looked forward more to leaving than coming home but in the last 5 years and especially the last couple years I have to admit we have both looked very much more forward to coming home in the Spring.  As I've said before in previous posts it is the total change of scenery twice a year that I really like and look forward to.  Where we live here in Bayfield and where we travel around in the southwest is like being on two different Planets with each Planet being totally different from the other in it's own beautiful way.  It has always been about the change of homes and lifestyles as well.  Not stuck in a house all year round and not stuck in an RV all year round either. Yes it will be nice to be back on the road going somewhere again and even nicer to be coming home again after another long trip.  As travelers would tell me years ago when transporting them to and from Pearson International Airport in Toronto...….."It's nice to go away but it's even nicer coming home".  Took me a long time to understand that one but I do understand it now.  So in the meantime I'm very much looking forward to our upcoming travels so that I can again look forward to coming home again.  Crazy huh:))

POND HYACINTH I THINK

FROG OF COURSE

Ended up my day without any photos so again had to quickly scramble outside and grab myself a few snaps before the Sun went down.  We’re sure lucky to have a yard with so many photo opportunities when needed.  And by the way if anyone has any tips on things to see, places to go, and things to do in the northwest we would appreciate hearing from you.  Thanks to Tuesday night’s comments we have already started a file for gather up travel information.

I THINK THIS FLOWER IS CALLED A HELENIUM

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Two drunks are driving down the highway, drinking their beer. All of a sudden the driver notices lights flashing in his mirror; the cops are on his tail. His buddy says, "What are we going to do?" The driver says, "Don't worry. Just do exactly what I tell you and everything will work out perfectly. First, peel the labels off our beer bottles and we'll each stick one on our forehead. Then shove the bottles underneath the seat, and let me do the talking." They pull over and the cop walks up to the car. He looks at them kind of funny, but asks to see the guy's driver's license. And he asks him, "Have you been drinking?" "Oh, no, sir," the driver replies. "I noticed you weaving back and forth across the highway. Are you *sure* you haven't been drinking?" the cop asks. "Oh, no, sir," the drunk answers. "We haven't had a thing to drink tonight." "Well, I've got to ask you," says the cop, "What on earth are those things on your forehead?" "That's easy, Officer," says the drunk. "You see, we're both alcoholics, and we're on the patch."

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A woman surgeon was disturbed about the high cost of her car repair."This is ridiculous!" she said, "charging me five hundred dollars to grind the valves and put in new piston rings.""Not really said the garage’s service manager, just think about it. You are a surgeon and should know that an automobile engine is just as complicated as a human body. The mechanic who serviced your car is just as skilled as you are.""Is that so? Well, let me see him grind valves while the engine is running."

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