GOING BANANAS

Bananas hauled me out of the house this morning.  No, bananas is not the name of a pet chicken.  Bananas is bananas.  We all know how fast bananas ripen and if your like me and eat 7 bananas a week every week you know the narrow time frame between hardened green under ripe and brown spotty over ripe.  It's quite an acquired art buying just the right colored banana at just the right time.   Example: If I was totally out of bananas which I never am I would buy two yellow bananas, two yellow green bananas and two greener bananas which theoretically should make each banana about right for the day I needed it.  Colleges should add 'banana buying 101' to their curriculums.  Also, I buy the shortest bananas I can and not those big foot long ones.  Why??  Well, each morning I put one banana in my morning shake and I've been doing this for the best part of twenty years now except during winter months when we were traveling south.  RV fridges aren't big enough for all my morning shake ingredients like romaine lettuce, carrots, and celery, etc.  So it was a morning banana run to Goderich for Pheebs and I today.  Of course it's not always just bananas we pick up it's other odds and sods as well.  And I bet when you read the title you thought I was 'going bananas'.  Well somedays that is absolutely the case!! 

GODERICH'S HARBOR HILL RETIREMENT COMMUNITY IS ADDING AN ADDITIONAL FOUR STORY WING

Our usual swing down around the harbor to make sure the shoreline construction was properly under way.  It was.  Noticed offshore ice out about half a mile with smaller ice floes in the harbor.  The Algoma Conveyer was at the salt dock.

LAKE ICE IS BUILDING ALONG THE LAKE HURON SHORELINE

BANK RESTORATION WORK IS GOING FULL TILT

THAT ICE WAS FLOATING INTO THE HARBOR FROM LEFT TO RIGHT

REFLECTIONS OF THE SALT MINE

LOOKS LIKE THE ALGOMA ENTERPRISE IS HERE FOR THE WINTER

Back up from the harbor we slid around to the lighthouse atop the bluffs and took a few photos of the lake and harbor below.

Temperatures had come up in the night to nearly thirty two degrees and with no wind in a slightly sunny sky a short walk along a snowy trail east of Goderich was doable.  Felt good to get out and get my legs moving again.

WONDER WHAT THE STORY IS BEHIND THIS PAIR OF HIKING BOOTS AT THE HEAD OF THE TRAIL

THOSE HIKING BOOTS CAN BE SEEN AT THE BASE OF THAT POST ON THE LEFT

IT WAS EASY WALKING ALONG THIS PACKED SNOWMOBILE TRACK

A SIDE TRAIL LEADS TO A FOREST

SUMAC

Home again I grabbed the snow shovel and worked on the driveway for a bit.  With temps predicted to be above freezing for a few days the snow is going to get heavy so figured I had better move more of it out of the way while I could.  Plus the exercise is good for me.

IF I WAS A BIRD ABOUT TO LAND ON OUR FEEDER THIS IS WHAT FINAL APPROACH MIGHT LOOK LIKE

Since receiving my diabetes diagnosis earlier this week I have been working once again on changing some of my eating habits.  I've done this before, lost weight, felt better, then slipped back into my old patterns again.  Same thing happened to me years ago with alcohol, cigarettes, and a heavy coffee addiction when it took me many tries before I had them all wrestled to the ground.  I switched from homogenized milk to skim milk about 35 years ago, went from bread to flat bread 25 years ago, quit sugar in coffee so long ago I can't remember, don't drink pop at all except for a root beer once a year at Los Jilbertos in Borrego Springs, California.  I've never bought a pie or cake in my life but offer me a piece of pie or slice of cake and I'll never turn it down and even sneak seconds when your not looking. I might eat two chocolate bars a year if that.  Leave a butter tart or a doughnut sitting on the counter and I'll grab it before you can turn around.  Potato chips are not my thing and when it comes to burgs and fries or bacon and eggs I'd say maybe once a month if that.  A carrot muffin most every morning is a problem but haven't had one in a week now.  Diabetes is in my family on my Dad's side.  Not sure. but his Dad (my Grandfather) was diabetic and I think he died from it.  My Dad developed diabetes in his latter years.  Anyway I am working on my problem, have reversed my recent weight gain, and have actually lost a pound on my way down the weight scale again.  I was 196 last summer and am 203 right now.  Ideally I would like to get down to about 185 or a tad lower.  We'll see what additional help the diabetic Nurse person can offer me next month.

LIKED THE COLOR OF THIS DOOR I SAW IN GODERICH THIS MORNING

::An Archive Post:: A Beehive Of Activity This Morning.  It was January 11th 2008 and we were boondocked in the desert about 6 miles south of Quartzite Arizona.  It was our second year at the annual big RV show.  A big Kansas cross-wind had ripped our awning off the coach a few months before so this day we had that old tattered awning replaced with a new one.  Also had a nice Blue Flame heater installed at the same time so it was a busy day.  And it was here a few days later we began taking out and selling our Motorhome's furniture.  (Couch, dinette, and tub chair) More about that maybe tomorrow:))  And two years ago today I posted, Kelly Comes To My Rescue In The Night.

HERE WE ARE BOONDOCKED ABOUT 6 MILES SOUTH OF QUARTZSITE ARIZONA IN JANUARY 2008

::Al's Musical Favs:: Antissa by E.S. Posthumus.  Another one where the voice grabbed me first time around.

PHEEBS ALWAYS KEEPS A CLOSE EYE ON ME WHEN I'M OUTSIDE THE JEEP TAKING PICTURES

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A man approached a local person in a village he was visiting."What's the quickest way to York?"The local scratched his head."Are you walking or driving?" he asked the stranger."I'm driving.""That's the quickest way!"
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“I live in an airport but when the security guard comes at night Heathrows me out.”---------------------------------
A man phoned to find out whether he could get insurance if the nearby volcano erupted spewing plumes of ash. They assured him he would be covered.
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COLD BUT SUNNY DAY AND 'CELEBRATION OF GEORGE'S LIFE'

I think it is the Blue Jays who eat the most birdseed each day followed closely by the many dark eyed Juncos we have coming into the feeder.  Subsequently it is our bird feeder station I in turn make the most trips to with birdseed in hand while outside.  And then there's the Squirrels.

EXIT STAGE RIGHT

Our day dawned dull and gray as the January blahs again did their best to haul me down and sink it's claws into me.  Standing in the kitchen looking out the window at our cold landscape I wavered back and forth trying to convince myself to put my hat, coat, and boots on.  I knew by starting the day sitting in the house would work against me so grumbily out the door I went with Pheebs close behind.  Soon as we got out from under all the big shady pine trees in our Park I saw right away a big bright Sun sitting about 10 degrees off the eastern horizon.  'Wowie-ka-Zowie'.

SUNRISE

SNOW PATTERNS

Pheebs and I were again off wandering a number of back country roads.  So nice to see sparkling snow under the winter Sun's dominance.  Had hoped to get out for a walk at the Bannockburn Conservation Area but with 3 cars already there we went right on by to our second back-up spot another couple miles south.  Unfortunately the dead end road hadn't been plowed and the snow was too deep even for the Jeep.  From there we headed on home enjoying the morning's sunshine all the way.

WE GENERALLY DRIVE IN TO THE TOP OF THAT FAR HILL.....BUT NOT TODAY

SNOWMOBILE TRAILS CRISS-CROSSING A FARMER'S FIELD

Noticed a CTV News article about record breaking Lake Huron water levels predicted for this summer.  Not good.  Record High Water Levels Predicted.  Also another little tidbit of local news regarding Bayfield's forever under construction Tim Horton coffee shop/gas bar/ and convenience store complex.  From Bayfield's own Bayfield Breeze here in part is the official word on the project....  The Site Superintendent for the project said:

• The interior floor has been poured.
• The framing is almost completed.
• There are some grading issues that need to be resolved prior to curb and asphalt work being started but the asphalt companies will not be opening up until around April so there is some time to have those items addressed.
• The water service connection still needs to be completed. It is assumed that this would take place in the early spring.

Due in part, no doubt, to the fact that the project has now been in the works for about 17 months rumours have developed. One of them being that there is no franchisee to take over the Tim Hortons. it is understood that Tim Hortons is still the franchise that will be occupying the southerly portion of the building with a convenience store in the north half.

 Suzie from the late George Yates's blog Our Awesome Travels has posted a Celebration Of George's Life.  George in his final weeks wrote a short summation of his life from beginning to end.  There was a lot about George that I and many others didn't know and I found his writings enjoyably revealing.  His smiling positive personality wasn't just something he happened upon in his latter years.  George was born with it, stayed with it throughout his life, and carried it with him right up and into to his final days.  Thanks for taking the time and making the effort under difficult circumstances to write that George.  I'm sure it is much appreciated out here by all the people who's lives you have affected.

THE HIGHLAND FURRY FACE GUYS WERE OUT SOAKING UP SOME SUNSHINE AS WELL AND HERE'S THE BEST PART....THEY LIVE JUST DOWN THE ROAD FROM US AT TULIP LANE FARMS

::An Archive Post:: It's that time of year again when thousands upon thousands of RV'ers head for their big Mecca destination of Quartzsite Arizona.  Biggest RV rally in the world.  We have been to that big due a number of times over the years and I always had my good and not so good things to say about it.  Over the next few days I will post about some of those days we spent there at Quartzsite each year at this time.  It was on December 20th 2008 when I posted, Not A Good Day....We Had To Move Twice!!

::Al's Musical Favs:: Secret Garden by Lotus.  Another one of my Oriental Favs.

IT'S PHEEBS:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( I called the RSPCA today and said, "I've just found a suitcase in the woods containing a fox and four cubs."  "That's terrible," she replied. "Are they moving?"  "I'm not sure, to be honest," I said, "But that would explain the suitcase."

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Carlos told his wife he wanted a musical instrument to play while sitting in the Jacuzzi. “The next day she bought him an electric guitar.”
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