The Squamidian Report – Nov. 6 / 10

 

Issue #441

 

Including:

The Ontarion

 

Hi All,

 

I was going to write about it being the end of the riding season and putting the bike away but golly gee wiz, there is still a few nice riding days ahead yet to be enjoyed so I’ll put this off for another week or so. In fact, the other day we had enjoyed a nice morning walk with the dog and then the wife and her friend headed off to the city to do some shopping. I took the dog for another walk up the trails in the bush above us. The sky was clear and the sun was warm and it was beautiful. So, when I got back home I jumped on the bike and went out for an enjoyable ride. Again, warm and sunny and very pleasant. After getting home from my ride I flipped on the TV and of course it was set on the Weather Channel. Funny how us old farts like to watch the weather channel but that’s how it is. Anyway, as they were giving the current conditions across the country they talked about how it was in various places and then they mentioned Squamish. Thing is, they were telling everyone how miserable it was here and how the rain was lashing down and the wind was howling and the waves were crashing and the dark low clouds were obscuring the mountains. They even had video showing all this inclement weather. Very strange in deed. I had just come in from two nice walks and a very nice motorcycle ride. I had observed and enjoyed blue skies and warm sunshine. I have no idea where the weather network gets its information but they sure don’t get it right.

 

I’ve always known that they are way out with their forecasts but it was a bit of a surprise to find they are also way out with their observations and reporting of current conditions. I’ve often suspected that they don’t even actually know where the west coast is. After all, its not in Southern Ontario and therefore its not really part of the known universe. But I still watch their channel, if nothing else it is amusing.

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We do most of our walking as a pack of three, me, ‘the wife’, and Willow the dog. However, as I’ve already alluded to, sometimes its just one of use walking Willow and that is normally usually ‘the wife’. She took the dog out the other day for a walk down by the river, a place that the dog likes very much. Not only can she be off-leash but also she can play to her K-9 hearts content in the icy water. Well, Willow disappeared for all of two seconds into some underbrush and came out stinking to high heaven. She had found something to roll in and roll she must have done. Her eyes were bright with excitement and she was grinning from ear to ear as she proudly wore her newfound odor.

 

There may have been excitement in her eyes but the stench brought tears to ours. I had been out doing something, don’t recall what, but I got home just after ‘the wife’ and ‘Stinko-the-wonder-dog’. We had no choice, it was bath time, right then and there, NOW. So we filled a pail with warm water and shampoo and had Willow stand in the garage while we bathed her. She was remarkably tolerant and well behaved and patient as she put up with our scrubbing. A couple of good soapings and rinses and a towel drying and the smell was gone. She was a bit disappointed in that not only had we not recognized the quality and allure of her newfound line of perfume but we had denied her the opportunity to show it off to the other neighborhood dogs.

 

doug

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THE ONTARION REPORT

Hello everyone!

 

Well as most of you know, we awoke to a light blanked of snow this morning but by noon it was just wet grass and roads. We’re also in for a cold weekend but with no snow to speak of. What is encouraging is the forecast for the coming week. It’s supposed to be pure sunshine and for most of the week, above normal temperatures. Can’t ask for more than that at this time of year. I’m of course hoping for this “Indian Summer” to last until Christmas and then it can head right into spring. A pipe dream to be sure but one that I tend to think of every year at this time. Having spent 61 years in Canada I can only say that I think I’ve seen only two or three Christmases that were without snow on the 24th and 25th of December and then of course all heck broke loose and down it came! In my memory it seems the later it is that the snow strikes, the harder it strikes and the longer into spring it tends to stay. Guess there’s no getting away from winters when you live in Canada!

 

Last weekend Carole and I took a drive into Michigan with another couple that we’ve been friends with for 35 years. They now live in Petrolia and of course the border crossing is only 20 minutes west at Sarnia. The girls wanted to spend the weekend in a popular tourist- shopping district called Birch Run. It’s smack dab in the middle of northeast Michigan just off to the west of I-75 between Flint and Saginaw. When you cross the bridge into Port Huron you hop on I-69 and keep heading west till you hit I-75 and then you head north from there. Birch Run is about 2 hours from the Canadian border so it’s an easy drive on divided highway. The one sad aspect of the drive was the sight of all the deer that had been killed by vehicles and were lying on the sides and median of the highways. I counted six on the way west and north and then on the return drive there were at least a dozen more. The countryside in that part of Michigan is very flat and you can see for miles in every direction. One would think that drivers would have a good vision of any animal movement near or on the Interstate but I guess most of the deer strikes take place at dusk or early dawn and that of course is the time of day that visibility is poor. I was surprised at the number of deer hit in Michigan but when we got home on the Sunday there was an article in the Record saying that Perth County here in Southern Ontario has had the highest number of deer strikes this year it’s had in over a decade. They’ve counted over 40 collisions with vehicles so far and expect many more before this fall is over. I guess the high season for this type of accident coincides with what else, “deer hunting season”.

 

With more bush and hillier terrain than they have in Michigan we can expect more of this to go on here in Ontario. I’m not sure if deer really do freeze in their tracks when caught in the headlights of a vehicle of is that just an “Old Wives” tale? I’d say that most of the deer that get hit on the roads are moving targets and even if you do manage to avoid a collision with one, you should be aware that where there’s one deer there’s usually another right on it’s tale! The article about Perth County said that it’s usually the second deer that gets hit by the vehicle. Sad in any case and something to keep in mind when driving the rural roads at those times of day.

 

The shopping trip was either a success or a failure depending on your point of view. The ladies tend to think of success when loading bags and bags of purchases into the trunk of the car. Men tend to think of success as a shopping trip in which the ladies didn’t find much to spend their money on! LOL! Anyway, our trip was successful in that the girls did find a few good buys and said buys were items that are not found here in Ontario. It’s always good when you manage to find totally different items to bring home than you can buy here at home. Carole was happy with her purchases and she even managed to buy a couple of stylish lightweight sweatshirts for me. I’m not much on shopping for myself and am usually just happy to act as her chauffer and dinner companion on such jaunts. The weather for the weekend was sunny and mid 50’s F so it was a pleasant experience and we came home with pretty much what we went over for. We do this type of trip a few times a year and if nothing else it’s just a nice chance to get away for a couple of days even if we don’t come home with a trunk load of goods.

 

This one was a good one, the girls were happy and if the girls are happy the guys are happy! That’s success in a nutshell!

 

That’s it for this week folks! Thanks for tuning in and I’ll look forward to talking to you all again next week in The Ontarion Report!

 

Bye for now… Greg.

 

PS: Something To Think About>

Remember to turn your clocks back an hour on Sunday!

Oh yah and don’t eat yellow snow!

 

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Have a good one..

the doug

http://www.thedougsite.net

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