The Squamidian Report – Mar.16 /19
 
Issue #877

Including:
From Lorne
From Russ
The Ontarion

Hi All,

Finally, some signs of spring. Or perhaps to be more precise, some signs that spring is just around the corner. The cold arctic winds have subsided. The temperatures are starting to creep up toward ‘normal’. There is warmth in the sunshine when it shines on your face. There is some sunshine in the forecast. But winter isn’t giving up without a battle. Early this week the coastal areas got hit with yet another snowstorm. The highway up to Whistler was a mess, city traffic was a mess and so on. The up-side it that we were able to do one last snowshoe trek of our mountain trail. We’ve been using crampons a lot because the packed trail becomes very icy but that morning we were met with close to a foot of mice bright white fluffy snow. There could and should be more up in the higher elevations but hopefully not down here or in the valley. Heck, by this time last year and the years before, I had the bike out and on the road. Not this year, the roads have ice and salt on them. The bike will have to wait a while longer.
*
I can’t begin to explain how utterly exhausting playing a 3-hr solo gig is except to say that it truly is utterly exhausting. Its also incredibly rewarding on a personal level. Knowing that just myself and my trusty Martin guitar (and my PA system of course) can plop ourselves down in front of a room full of people and play to our hearts content, taking a couple of short breaks for survival purposes, successfully entertain, and receive in return warm applause and comments is, well, rewarding. On both a musical level and a personal level. Knowing I can do it is pretty cool. Knowing that it is ‘liked’ by total strangers is pretty cool. Every time I do it I am proving to myself that I can.

I played that gondola gig this past Wednesday afternoon, the one that was weather out by a fierce winter wind storm a few weeks ago. I had hoped for a makeup gig and this was it. I split the afternoon into 3 sets with just a short break in between each, and had worked up a playlist of material to perform. I confess I did use the playlist, there is no way I could remember that many numbers in roughly the right order while under pressure. But thats all I used and I only used the list as a guide, adapting and adjusting based on response. I didn’t even use all the numbers on my list, there would have been enough for another set without repeating anything had the need arisen but I certainly wouldn’t have had the energy. I am quite proud to say that never once did I so much as look at any sheet music or lyric pages. Heck, I didn’t even bother to bring any along. My full musical lineup is in my head. Like I said, doing this kind of thing is exhausting. Fun, rewarding, and exhausting.

You know, this whole thing actually worked out quite well. You see, the original gig was going to be on a Sunday afternoon and had the weather cooperated and in fact been nice and sunny, that place would have been a gong-show. Sunny nice Sundays up there always are. Under those conditions I’d have had a challenge just to fine a parking spot and then I’d have had to deal with lineups for the lift. Then, the upper lodge and area would have been shoulder to shoulder people, it would have been loud and crowded inside and so on. The way it worked out was much better. More relaxed, way less people. Just enough people to make it fun and enjoyable. So, I lucked out by being weather out. Some things do work out after all.
doug
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From Lorne

By the time this appears on your screen, Cindy and I will be somewhere in the mountains of Western Canada aboard the Via Canadian on our way to Vancouver having left Toronto last Tues. evening. This is writing about the anticipated future and if the fates allow, there will be much more to tell. Now back to reality, the present. Last week brother Russel wrote about dogs and in particular, 'Pat'.  Well 'Pat' was given to me by my aunt Irene, my mother's older sister,  as a birthday present when I was 6 years old.  Said birthday falls on St. Patrick's Day, thus the name 'Pat' was bestowed upon the dog making him an Irish Airedale. Many memories about the old dog. Old because that is what he eventually became. Dogs were allowed to roam freely about the neighborhood and not neutered therefore dog fights were a common occurrence. 'Pat' was allowed to run along side the car as we would be off somewhere. Back then too, most everyone living in a semi rural area had a cow or two and would often pasture them along the road.  As we approached one tethered to a stake but standing sideways to the road and 'Pat' along side the car, ran under rather than going around. Well, that cow hunched her back and allowed a swift safe passage below. Doug permitting, my next word will originate from his home in Squamish.
Lorne
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From Russ

I'll never get another dog (Part 2)

“Dog lives are too short. Their only fault, really” Agnes Turnbull.
 
When my wife Bobby, retired from St. Paul’s College where she was Business Manager for eleven years, we moved to Cambridge to a nice condo on the banks of the Grand River. I was still working, but close to retirement also, and Bobbie was alone all week as I had a place to stay in Toronto. She was lonely and wanted another dog - -Really! She had her heart set on another Poodle, and we looked around and finally found a kennel in Linwood operated by a Mr. Brubacher. After looking at a litter of Poodle puppies, of which all were adorable, she selected a shy blond one and, picking it up – she was ‘hooked’! (I hate to tell you what we paid for it, but I can tell you he was worth his weight in gold!) She held the tiny bundle of fur asleep on her lap as we drove home, only waking when we stopped in front of our garage, setting him down for a possible pee. He didn’t want to stand up, his legs were splayed as he laid on his tummy.
“Is he all right?”, asked Bobbie. It seemed he was just shy and maybe a little frightened, but otherwise OK.

When Bobbie was a little girl she had a dog named Donny, so this new family member was also named Donny. And just like her first dog, this Donny was literally ‘attached’ to her! We had a new cage for him in the kitchen, and he was very comfortable sleeping there most of the day, but when he realized Bobby was not near him, he cried like a ‘baby’. She’d get out of bed and go down to the kitchen and try to ‘pacify her baby’. Nothing would do, but he had to sleep with her. Each night she would ‘make a bed’ for him at the foot of her bed (she was short, leaving lots of room for Donny), and they slept together for years! Was I a little jealous?
 
We built a new cottage where the old one had stood for over fifty years, and where we planned to spend our retirement. We three lived in the new cottage with all new appliances for Bobbie’s convenience, and it felt like a ‘little bit of heaven’. Only one year, and Bobbie died. That was in 2010. Now it was just Donny and me, and he kept looking for her for six months until he transferred his love to me.

Donny never slept on my bed, even though he tried. There just wasn’t enough room for him at the foot. So, I bought him his very own extra large, sheep’s wool-lined bed. My favourite place to sit is beside my picture window which faces the road and the lake. Donny tried to sit on my lap even when he was full-grown and weighing 80 pounds! I could hardly breathe. We devised a more comfortable position – he would lie with his head facing the window, his barrel chest on my lap, and his hind legs on the floor as he watched for dogs passing by. That was HIS road, and he barked loudly letting everyone know. If there was ‘no action’ on the road, his heavy head would slowly lower onto my hands, and after stroking his back for a long while, his rear legs would ‘collapse’. He would fall fast asleep in this position. He would always remind me when it was time to go to bed. He’d take a long look at me, then walk slowly into our bedroom. About twenty minuets later, he’d come out and do the same thing. When he never returned, I knew he was asleep on the floor, as he’d never get into his own bed until I came in and gave him his nightly tummy-rub and ‘smooching’. “Don’t let anything happen to you”, I pleaded as I kissed him goodnight.
Good things always come to an end. I loved that dog so very much.
 
“Your dog has ‘chronic kidney disease – he has less than six months to live”. That was a ‘shot out of the blue’!! Of course they were wrong! I simply refused to believe the ‘death sentence’ the vet had given my loving, happy, healthy, Donny. He had to be put to sleep in 2013, just 3 years after I lost my loving wife.
 
“Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal” (from a headstone in Ireland)
 
“When are you getting another dog?” people ask me.
“Never”. I could not stand the pain of another great loss.
 
I’ve almost finished the book; Loving Our Dogs by Jack Canfield & Mark Victor Hansen, and although I’ve had a few chuckles, I’ve mostly shed a few tears, as I identify with the stories. Should I stop now, while I can still resist getting another Poodle, or continue and lose all control and yield to temptation? I can think of many reasons I cannot have another dog, but only one reason I should; it would be someone to love again.
 
Russ.
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THE ONTARION REPORT

Hello everyone!
It actually looks like spring is just around the corner! We’ve had a couple of warmer days here in KW and they tell us we’re in for a few more in the next couple of weeks. By the end of March we should be well into signs of the coming spring. I’m looking forward to the warmer weather for sure this year. Last year was wasted somewhat when I had to wait for a couple of months before the MG was ready to enjoy. This year with it finally finished we’ll be out and cruising much more in the nice weather. It should be a good spring and summer for cruising with the top down!

Thinking of that, we’ve still got a ways to go before the ice and snow is all gone. They had a spot on the news tonight about making sure you don’t have a flooded basement with the spring run off. They really weren’t much help with their information though. What they said through their expert was to make sure your sump pump was working and to also be sure your eves troughs drained away from your house properly. Not much in the way of expert advice if you ask me! With the build up of ice around most houses it’s prudent to get out and chop the ice away from your foundation and also to make sure your eves troughs are clear of ice build up as well. I know that means a lot of work but that’s better advice than the “Expert” gave on the news!

With that in mind, I went to Home Depot today to pick up an ice chopper and they only had two left in stock. The price on the choppers was $49.68 plus tax! I thought better than to spend over fifty dollars on one of these manual devices and came home without one. I did however check three other stores for one of a better price and they were all out of stock on this item. Guess there’s a lot of chopping going on around KW so they’re a popular item! Not sure how I’ll rid our foundation of the ice buildup but with a watchful eye on things and a good flat blade steel shovel I should be able to keep things clear.

One of the other things that crop up when one owns a house is general maintenance on the exterior of said building. I’ve noticed that two of our “brick” window ledges have badly deteriorated over this past winter. The bricks are literally crumbling to bits from the ice formed on them over the many winters this house has been in existence. Our chimney is also falling apart at the four-foot level from the same ice problem. I guess I’ll have to call a bricklayer and have these problems rebuilt this spring. This is just part of home ownership I guess! There’s always something one has to invest in for home upkeep. Its just part of the game!

There’s no end to the cost of upkeep on anything one owns when it comes to large items. If you own a house there are expenses for upkeep and the same goes for owning a vehicle. It’s time to invest in new summer tires for our Jeep this year so there goes another thousand bucks! I liked and had a lot of faith in the BFG Long Trail TA’s that I put on the previous Jeep we owned for twelve years but when I checked into the same brand and style of tires for our present Jeep I found out that those particular tires are no longer produced by BFG. Guess I’ll have to look around for something comparable. Why is it that when a company has a good product they tend to stop making that product? Maybe they think that they are taking too long to wear out and that makes them decide to make a lesser product that wears out quicker but sells for more money. It all boils down to money in the end I guess! We had two sets of Long Trails on our previous Jeep and each set lasted many kms and about 4 years at a time. Oh well, I guess nothing lasts forever!

Two years ago I invested in a set of good winter tires and they are still like new tread-wise so I’ll likely get a few more winters out of that set. Who knows, maybe they’ll outlast me! LOL!
*
Last weekend, we put the two recycle bins out at the curb for pickup on Monday morning. Late that evening the wind picked up to a furious roar and blew the blue boxes and their contents all over the road in front of the house. In the morning I went out to pick up what I could of the contents and found that most of the paper and plastic pieces were frozen solid into the ice on the side of the street at the edge of the driveway. I couldn’t even chip the pieces out with a shovel! Hence the need for an ice chopper! Since I couldn’t find a chopper at a decent price I’ve decided to leave the frozen mess at the roadside until Mother Nature melts the ice and releases the recycle bits naturally. Maybe it’ll all flow away down the street with the runoff from the melting and someone else will pick it up! On the other hand, if the city street sweeper comes along in early spring it’ll do the job for me! LOL!

One more item that’s troubling me is a section of sidewalk in front of our house that’s sunken down about two or more inches and water collects in that spot. Rather than sending a crew out to break up the concrete and pour a new slab that’s level with the rest of the walkway they sent a crew out that packed a small ramp of asphalt at the deepest part of the sunken slab. Now there’s a nice ramp from the level part of the walkway down into the sunken section and the 2” by 5’ lake is there whenever it rains or the snow melts. What a half assed way of repairing anything if you ask me! I think I’ll have to call the city in the spring and complain that someone might twist an ankle on that ramp and maybe then they’ll fix it properly! If all else fails I’ll contact my city councilor and ask for assistance with the problem.  One way or another it’ll get done right!

This past weekend our doorbell rang at about 9am and when I went to the door, there was nobody there. I stepped out onto the porch to see if there was a parcel that had been left for us and when I did that, two men turned around at the end of our drive and walked back up to speak to me. As it turned out, one of the men who did all the talking was canvassing from door to door to promote his intent to run for political office in the upcoming federal election. He handed me a pamphlet stating his intent to run as the Liberal Candidate in our area. I couldn’t help but chuckle as I resisted giving him a good piece of my mind about all the mess happening in Ottawa these days regarding PM Trudeau and his posse! The kindest thing I could say to this fellow was “I’m afraid you’re running for the wrong party!” He agreed that there were major problems with things in Ottawa at the moment but assured me that if elected he’d do his best to improve things with regard to the present problems. I listened to him for a couple of minutes and then he asked me if I had any concerns. I said that I had too many to go into while standing in my housecoat in the cold weather but, I offered him some sound advice regarding his possible election to office. I said that if he really wanted to be a member of parliament after the upcoming election he’d be more assured of success if he’d switch his allegiance to the Conservative Party! He actually laughed and said he’d keep my suggestion in mind! He thanked me for my time and response to his visit and asked me to keep him in mind for election 8 months from now! I’ll remember his name but I doubt I’ll become a card-carrying member of the Liberal party by then!

That’s about all I have 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>
Man complicates simplicity and calls it, Progress!
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Have a good one..
the doug
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