I WAS DOIN THE BEEPIN AND THEY WAS DOIN THE HONKIN

 OUR STREET AFTER A MORNING'S RAIN

Wind, rain, and 52F temps knocked out our morning walk so it was off to Goderich we went.  Slipped down around both the south and north sides of the harbor having a look at some construction going on.

 LOOKS LIKE WE ARE HEADING FOR SOME RAIN FIRST THING THIS MORNING

 YEP HERE COMES THE RAIN

 ROADSIDE CREEKS ARE OVERFLOWING

 WITH ALL THIS RAIN LATELY, IT'S A GOOD THING THIS FARMER KEEPS AN OLD FISHING BOAT IN HIS YARD JUST IN CASE

 HEY HOW MANY LEGS DOES A COW REALLY NEED

I had checked online a couple days ago to see if Walmart had any one-cup coffee makers in stock and it said they had one Black&Decker left.  Same as the one I have now.  So, after our harbor tour, we swung up the hill and headed for Walmart.  Well, wouldn't you know it, there was no Black&Decker one-cup coffee maker to be found.  I figure somebody walked into the store 5 minutes before I got there and grabbed that coffee maker right off the shelf.  Sound logic on my part I'd say.  Undaunted, I checked out the Canadian Tire Store next door but alas, I was foiled again.  Well, at least my current coffee maker isn't totally broke, it's half broke.  It makes half a cup of coffee and stops.  I then have to manually pour water over the coffee grounds until it dribbles out and tops up my cup.  I guess I can live with that until I'm able to track down another one-cup coffee maker somewhere, someday.

 THE ALGOMA INNOVATOR TAKING ON A LOAD OF SALT THIS MORNING

 CANADA GEESE ON THE HARBORS NORTH SIDE

 I WAS DOIN THE BEEPIN AND THEY WAS DOIN THE HONKIN

Seeing a guy coming out of Walmart this morning with shorts on I was glad I had on my lined winter pants.  There was ice in the cold rain in the form of hail.  Not a lot of hail but I could see a few pellets bouncing off the Jeep's engine hood when we were down around the harbor.

 LOOKS LIKE SOME KIND OF CONSTRUCTION OR RECONSTRUCTION GOING ON WITH THIS BOAT PIER

THE TUGBOAT OCEAN A SIMARD LEAVES ITS DOCK HEADING FOR THE HARBOR ENTRANCE

IT COULD BE HEADING OUT INTO LAKE HURON TO MEET AN INCOMING FREIGHTER

Kelly's sister Becky flew up from Florida Friday so there might be a slim chance that Kelly can catch a break and maybe head on home soon.  It's a very uncertain situation there so we'll see what happens.

 A QUIET SUNDAY MORNING HARBOR

GROANER'S CORNER:((    Mary and Jane are old friends. They have both been married to their husbands for a long time; Mary is upset because she thinks her husband doesn't find her attractive anymore.  "As I get older he doesn't bother to look at me!" Mary cries.  "I'm so sorry for you, as I get older my husband says I get more beautiful every day." replies Jane.  "Yes, but your husband's an antique dealer!"

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Q: What do you call a bunch of rabbits in a row all hopping backward?

A: A receding hare line.

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DESPITE A STRONG WEST WIND

LAKE HURON WATERS WERE A BIT ROUGH THIS MORNING

Cold overnight rains continued through most of Saturday morning knocking out our country road walk.  My one-cup coffee maker is on its last legs so it was off to Walmart for Pheebs and I to get a new one.  While there, I picked up some milk and hand soap.  Not long afterward we splashed our way home.  Carried the milk and soap in but that was all I carried in.  What about the new one-cup coffee maker??  Well, I guess it is still at Walmart.  My mind failed to remind me while there what I was really at Walmart to get so I forgot to look for it.  Ya, so what else is new eh:((

WE'VE HAD A LOT OF RAIN

THE FALL HARVEST WILL BE HELD UP A FEW DAYS DUE TO RAIN-SOAKED FIELDS

GODERICH'S ROTARY COVE AREA

 NEEDLESS TO SAY WE DIDN'T GET OUT OF THE JEEP AT GODERICH'S DOG WALKING AREA 

 AND WE EVEN MOVED SOME WATER AROUND WITH THE JEEP

 THIS IS PART OF THE BREAKWALL AT THE ENTRANCE TO GODERICH'S HARBOR

HOME AGAIN UNDER STILL RAINY SKIES

Surprisingly, skies began to slowly clear by late morning and we soon had warm sunshine beaming through our sunroom windows.  Well, for a while anyway.  Despite a strong west wind driving our 56F temperature down Pheebs and I still managed our evening walk.  I had to dress warmly against the wind but tonight's big beautiful cloud-filled skies made the walk worth it.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  What is a Grandparent::(taken from papers written by a class of 8-year-olds)

Grandparents are a lady and a man who have no little children of her own. They like other people's.

A grandfather is a man grandmother.

Grandparents don't have to do anything except be there when we come to see them.

They are so old they shouldn't play hard or run. 

It is good if they drive us to the store and have lots of money for us.

When they take us for walks, they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars.

They show us and talk to us about the color of the flowers and also why we shouldn't step on "cracks."

They don't say, "Hurry up."

Usually grandmothers are fat, but not too fat to tie your shoes.

They wear glasses and funny underwear.

They can take their teeth and gums out.

Grandparents don't have to be smart.

They have to answer questions like "why isn't God married?" and "How come dogs chase cats?"

When they read to us, they don't skip. They don't mind if we ask for the same story over again.

Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don't have television, because they are the only grown ups who like to spend time with us.

They know we should have snack-time before bedtime and they say prayers with us every time, and kiss us even when we've acted bad.

A 6 year old was asked where his grandmother lived. ''Oh,'' he said, ''She lives at the airport and when we want her we just go get her. Then when we're done having her visit, we take her back to the airport.''

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HI-HO HI-HO IT WAS OFF TO 'CAMP-OUT RV' WE AGAIN WENT

Another cloudy morning walk after overnight rains.  From there we were off on Road Trip #2 heading to Camp Out RV east of Sebringville to hopefully exchange the wrong sized anode rod for the right sized one.  With a coffee to go at Clintons Tim Hortons I decided to skip the scenic drive and head straight-away east on highway 8 to our destination.  We were soon into rain as our travels took us through the little burgs of Seaforth, Dublin, Mitchell, and Sebringville before making a right-hand turn into Camp Out.  They had the correct anode rod for our Atwood water heater.  Well, at least I hoped it was the right size this time.  Minutes later we were back on the road and this time we took the scenic route south of highway 8 back to Bayfield.  Managed a few more pics from the driver's seat along the way.

 A FEW DRIVE-BY COUNTRY PHOTOS ON OUR WAY HOME THIS MORNING

 THAT'S A CURIOUS-LOOKING ROOF STRUCTURE ON THIS NEW FARM BUILDING

 FIELDS OF NEWLY PLANTED WINTER WHEAT

 WHEN I DROVE A MOBILITY VAN A FEW YEARS AGO I TRANSPORTED AN ELDERLY LADY IN A WHEELCHAIR FROM THIS HOUSE TO HER DOCTOR APPOINTMENTS IN HENSALL HALF A DOZEN TIMES...THE HOUSE WAS AS OLD INSIDE AS IT LOOKS OUTSIDE

Home again about 11:30 I was anxious to see if the anode rod was the correct size.  I'm happy to say it was.  I didn't mind so much having to drive to Camp-Out and back a couple of times but it's the gas used that bothers me because Jeep Liberties are not known for their wonderful gas mileage.  And then there's the price of gas these days.

 KIND OF A LAZY MORNING IN THE COUNTRYSIDE

I have mentioned several times before in my posts how much I like the online magazine DesertUSA.  Been reading articles of interest in this magazine for years because so many of them are about places Kelly and I have been in the American Southwest.  The latest edition is a good example with one of its articles being Ghost Towns In Southern Arizona.  Out of the 12 places mentioned, Kelly and I have been to 8 of them.  The only 4 we didn't get to were Duquesne, Lochiel, Kofa, and the Yuma Territorial Prison.  We were close to Duquesne once and have driven near the Yuma Prison on I-8 probably a couple dozen times.  We boondocked in the Kofa Mountains half a dozen times but didn't make it the Kofa town ruins.  We have been to Fort Bowie, Courtland, Fairbank, Charleston, and the Superstition Mountain wilderness (Lost Dutchman State Park) once.  Been to and through Tombstone a dozen times or more, Pearce half a dozen times, and Gleeson 4 or 5 times.  On the right-hand side of my blog at the top of the column, you will find a 'Search' bar and if you type in the names of these ghost towns, there is a reasonable chance you can find the posts I have written about being to these places over the years.  And, below that Search bar, you will notice the words 'Blog Archive'.  Click on the down arrow and you will have access to the 4,886 posts I have written over our RVing years as well as all the posts I have written right here at home.  There are many, many miles of travels in those posts.  And of course lots of photos.  The few photos below were taken in March of 2016.  

VULTURE PEAK NEAR WICKENBURG ARIZONA

 YES TOTO, REAL LIFE COWBOYS ARE STILL ALIVE AND WELL IN ARIZONA

 KELLY, PHEEBS, AND I HAVE TRAVELED MANY BUMPY DESERT MILES ON ROADS JUST LIKE THIS

 OH NOW I MISS ARIZONA'S SONORAN DESERT

 STAGE COACH ROAD NEAR YARNELL ARIZONA WAS A FAVORITE FOR PHEEBS AND I ON OUR MORNING OUTINGS

IS IT ANY WONDER THAT I LOVE AND MISS THE AMERICAN SOUTHWEST SO MUCH

GROANER'S CORNER:((   A pastor, known for his lengthy sermons, noticed a man get up and leave during the middle of his message. The man returned just before the conclusion of the service. Afterwards, the pastor asked the man where he had gone.  "I went to get a haircut," was the reply.  "But," said the pastor, "why didn't you do that before the service?"  "Because," the gentleman said, "I didn't need one then."

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Where do you find lost silverware?  Answer: At the fork in the road.

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A psychiatrist's secretary walks into his study and says, "There's a gentleman in the waiting room asking to see you. Claims he's invisible."  The psychiatrist responds, "Tell him I can't see him."

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