The Squamidian Report – Mar. 30 /19
 
Issue #879

Including:
From Lorne
From Russ
The Ontarion

Hi All,

Drove them to the train. They are gone and on their way back to KW. Yup. After enjoying our warm sunny summer weather Lorne and Cindy’s time was up. Last Tuesday morning we headed for the train station where I dropped them off with enough time on their hands to feel relaxed yet not enough for them to get into too much trouble. While here they enjoyed Horseshoe Bay, Porteau Cove, the Pemberton Valley and of course the gondola. For the first few days they were here we also had the little grandchildren who are very friendly and out going, then the girls went home for about 4 days and then were back up here till after the travelers left. It was great that each end of the current generations could interact. And now, with all of them gone, the house is so wonderfully quiet.
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With a quiet house and the absence of cayos and confusion, I finally had a chance to pull the cover off the bike. She was still there, shinny and waiting. I checked fluids, tire pressure and so on as one should. Then, obviously, I went to the insurance place and got my insurance and license sticker. And because it was nice and warm and sunny out, I fired her up and went for a short toot. My first one of the year. That first ride of the year is always important. The feel of the bike must be checked, the workings of the brakes, the lights, the horn must all be checked. The confidence of the rider must also be checked. Funny, each year the ‘rider’, being me, tends to a bit extra cautious around all that imposing traffic on the roads. I’ve always found the best way to deal with it is to assume I’m invisible and ride accordingly.

I did find one item in need of repair. The rear shocks on the bike are air shocks and there is a small valve hidden behind the left hand saddle bag for filling and setting the air pressure. There was no air pressure. When I would try to pump up the shocks my pump gauge wouldn’t even move. When I was out on that first run I stopped at our local bike mechanic and asked him about it. He told be what to look for so I could figure out why no pressure. If it were the actual shocks, they’d need replacing. If it were in the plumbing, that could be fixed. I then found that a tiny little air tube running from the valve to the right hand shock was broken. The mech didn’t have any tubing in stock but I was able to pick some up at the local industrial hardware store. Once home it took a few minutes to remove the seat so I could route the new tubing and then another few to cut and install the new tube. Pump up the shocks, test the connections with liquid soap, put the seat back on and the job was done. A little toot down to Horseshoe Bay was of course in order. And thats it for me for this week.
doug
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From Lorne

Obviously Sue hasn’t told Doug we have been here all weak or he would have noted his annoyance in last week’s issue. As he mentioned, the weather has been very warm and sunny. Cooler now but more seasonal. After our daily morning ride up through the clouds  we have been enjoying doing absolutely nothing but sitting in the warm sun or shade on the rear deck and watching the Stellar’s jays grabbing their food we leave for them on the deck railings. Doug’s cousinWarren and his wife, Rochelle joined us Saturday evening, played their guitars and we all filled up on Sue’s excellent cooking.  To-morrow, Monday. The day we pack,  bathe and otherwise prepare for the journey home on Tues. There are showers on the train but the shower at Doug’s is much more personal and private.  Did I mention that the cabin assigned us on the train was somewhat bigger than  the rest? Only because it only had one coat of paint rather than 2 like all the others.

This it it. The last installment until we are back home end of March or early April depending on how often our passenger train is delayed because of the vast amount of freight pounding and thundering their way across the country. Mostly returning the empties because nothing much is produced here in Canada except grain, oil and timber. We have had the company of 2 little girls most of the time. My great grandchildren, Kyra and Olivia. Doug and Sue’s grandchildren and Ryan and Lauren’s children.  The solitude of 234 Old Chicopee will be deafening. Yes, I now made the round trip by a gondola car to the Lodge 60 times and my pass is good until March, 2020.

Lorne

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From Russ

Who, me?

When I moved up here to Point Clark nine years ago, I joined the Anglican Church we used to attend on Summer weekends while at our old cottage. Since my dear wife died in 2010, word spread that I was an ‘available’ widower and, almost at once I was ‘fair game’ for the five widows, and one divorcee in our congregation. The latter was the most ‘aggressive’ in her relentless pursuit, and I finally had to serve her written notice of “cease & desist”- a gentler way of telling her to “back off!”

Now, the widows ‘moved into position’; we were accustomed to meet at the local restaurant after the Sunday Service, and I was often the only male in the group. The servers began calling me “Cassinova”. When I let it be known I was not interested in a relationship (and I knew they were ‘just after my body’), one-by-one they gave up and left our church.

One joined an Anglican church in Port Albert; another moved into a Senior’s Home, and joined the United Church in Ripley; one joined a fitness club and works off her ‘passion’ that-a-way; another moved to New Brunswick to be ‘as far away as possible’. The 5th one has ‘hung-in-there’, (and is NOT after my bod) and just wants a friend, and we’ve been close friends ever since.

Greg and Bettie, and my other son Mac, and his wife, Marie think Theresa and I ‘have something going on’, as we ‘bum’ a ride together to and from church, as neither Theresa nor I are licensed; and I often pick her up in my Cub Cadet (no lic. Req.), and we go to ‘brunch’ together. People who see us together -  talk.
If our Priest found out I was the ‘cause’ of the divorcee, and four widows leaving his already small ‘flock’, he’d have me excommunicated!
 
Me: I will need a building permit.
Greg, Bettie, Mac and Marie: Why?
Theresa is moving in with me, and she wants her own apartment. She prefers a two-level basement unit, so the contractor will have to dig plenty deep, well below the water table, but that’s OK with her - - she likes it cool and damp with an indoor swimming pool.
 
“That otta hold ‘em”
 
Your old Uncle Russ, who’ll never marry nor own another dog again.
PS “never” is a l o n g time (stay tuned)
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THE ONTARION REPORT

Hello everyone!
Well, we’re finally getting closer to putting the shovels and snow blower away but I’m not going to do it quite yet, just in case we get another late season bash of snow! Seeing a few motorcycles on the roads around KW makes me even more anxious to bring the MG out of storage but sure as heck if I do get it out of the garage it’ll start to snow. I think I’ll wait another week or two!

There’s not much in the way of news around KW lately other than a few armed robberies and one or two house fires. The Waterloo Regional Police are getting better at locating and arresting major crime committers lately. They managed with the help of the London Police Department to arrest the 35 year old man that shot two people a few months ago in front of a nightclub on King St in Waterloo. They charged him with aggravated assault instead of attempted murder! If you ask me they should have charged him with the attempt murder charge. Maybe they didn’t have quite enough evidence to make the stronger charge stick so they went with what they could prove. It seems that rough people from out of town are committing most of these major crimes here in KW. They figure the two men that shot the fellow in the back of the head at King and Pandora St 6 months ago were from the Toronto area since they fled east on the 401 and exited that highway at Mississauga. I guess these perpetrators are thinking that KW is an easy mark when it comes to getting away with robberies etc. Let’s hope that things quiet down a bit when it comes to the nicer weather this year. I heard that Chicago has 70 shootings a week on the average. Sure hope we don’t get anywhere near that sort of record here in Kitchener.
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With March going out like a lamb I sure hope April is a nice warm month to start off the season of spring! After a rough winter like the one we just had it would be great to have a lovely warm spring and summer season! I can’t wait to start mowing the lawn and enjoying the sunshine and warmth of summer, not to mention enjoying cruises in the MGB. I know I’ve been harping a little on that topic but after an arctic winter like ours, I can’t help having thoughts of enjoying the MG as soon as possible. I spoke to a mechanic in Waterloo today who thinks he has a solution to the oil leak I’ve been experiencing in the MG. He’s going to take a look at the underside of the MG on April 11th and hopefully he’ll solve my oil leak problem once and for all.

Well, I’m afraid that this weeks Ontarion is short and sweet. I’m running low on material for a change so have a good weekend and be kind to one another!

That’s about it for this week!
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>
From the errors of others, a wise man corrects his own!
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Have a good one..
the doug
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