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The
Squamidian Report – Nov. 9 / 24
Online Versions Of This And Past Issues (Choose the year and then the date for the online issue you want) Issue
#1172 The Ontarion Russ Al Doug
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From Greg – The Ontarion
Hi folks After all was said and done in last weeks Ontarion, iwasout blowing the leaves again two days later and to my surprise, a by law officer came walking up to me on our side street boulevard and smiled as he approached! He asked if I was going to leave the leaves on the road? I told him what had happened two days before and he just chuckled! He said, “actually, I stopped to give you some information!” He said that when it was on the cities schedule for them to pick up the leaves at our address, I could blow the leaves to the curb on either side of the street up to 2 weeks before that time! That, I could have left the leaves on the curb roadside the two days prior to that day and it would have been perfectly ok to let the city come by for them! He then checked his schedule with our address and said to blow the leaves to the curb and leave them there. Since our city pick up is due on the 12th of November! SO, my irate neighbour had no right to complain the other day! I said it’s too bad the Jerk wasn’t around to hear what the official word was! Oh well, Maybe next year I’ll let him call the city and complain! Then, he’ll know the actual by law! I thanked the officer for stopping by and giving me the correct info! He. Smiled and said, “you’re welcome, any time, next time just call my office and we’ll set your neighbour straight!” SO, THE LEAVES ARE STILL BY THE CURB and will be there until the city comes by to clean them up on the 12th of this month! So endeth the story! Take care everyone and be safe! Greg ****
From Russ
November? Just returned from a bike ride dressed as I would be in early September! Can't believe we are into November but except for the incredible weather, all the signs of approaching winter are here. What follows is a slightly altered little rhyme> No birds, no bees, no flowers, no leaves left on the trees, but when I step outside I'm up to my knees in dead leaves, by geese! As I ride about in Point Clark I see many of those special leaf-bags in front of several homes - as I slowly ride by I count the fine efforts of my neighbors; 1,2,3,4, and 1,2,3,4,5,6 - and one driveway has 12 bags stuffed with leaves ready to be picked-up by township trucks and taken to a place where they make compost of them. Then, my fine neighbors purchase the compost and spread it on their lawns, and gardens. Does that make sense? Several years ago when people were encouraged to compost their grass, kitchen waste, and leaves, etc., the township was giving composters to anyone at no cost. Everyone I know took advantage of the 'freebees', including me - yes, I still have mine tucked away, out-of-sight behind the "outhouse". There are several good reasons why I no longer use my composter, and many reasons why I don't use the outhouse! Reasons these things have been abandoned: let's start with the composter; skunks love kitchen waste, especially eggshells, and they'll stop at nothing to get at the stuff - they can't open the top of the container, so they simply dig under it and eat their fill. There is no bottom to these containers. I tried everything to discourage the little creatures, like placing the container on concrete slabs! No, that was a failure as they simply dug under the slabs. Next, I placed huge rocks all around the container - the skunks treated the rocks the same as the concrete slabs! Not to mention the raccoons - they simply opened the top and hopped- in for their 'late night dining'. Result? Haven't used the composter in 12 years. Now a word about the 'outhouse'; many of you know I designed the toilet on the night-shift while sitting in the police cruiser during a quiet spell. I took my 'plans' to Boyer Lumber in Waterloo - they cut the pieces to my measurements - I hauled the pre-cut toilet to my cottage in Point Clark, assembled it, and every piece fit exactly. It was to be a "two-holler" (like most outhouses of the day) - one hole for adults and one for small butts and children. Had no trouble cutting the size of the adult hole as I was very familiar with same, but the child size hole baffled me. Then, I remembered my wife had a small butt, and she sat on the toilet seat while I took a pencil and drew all around her circumference. Perfect fit! We used the outhouse for several years, until we got the luxury of 'indoor plumbing'! Those of you who lived through this experience know well how cold the seat can be in early spring, late fall, and all winter-long!! Yes, it still sits there, 30 long feet from the cottage, and just far enough to get soaked when it decides to rain when you decide to pee. We haven't used the outhouse for many years (so why don't we remove it?), because it has a 'special place' in my heart. Outhouses are now "outlawed" in Point Clark, but mine is grandfathered and will stand unmolested until my passing. Winter is just around the corner - I can't stand the thought of sitting on that cold, cold wooden seat at age 95+
Russ. ****
An Update From Al Carol had her surgery and is doing well! She had been slowly bleeding inside for months and then started throwing up constantly on an empty stomach. When she was readmitted to the hospital she was given a med. to stop the bleeding and then had 2 blood transfusions for low hemoglobin. Occasionally after hiatus hernia operations the muscle at the bottom of the stomach contracts and food moves very slowly causing a hard back-up. Since the stomach was by-passed for 5 months, the problem wasn’t discovered until they did a radioactive imaging test over 6 hours to diagnose said problem. The surgeon operated laposcopically to cut open the muscle and was pleased with the results. She is getting nutrition through the iv and if things go well can have clear fluids on Monday and then home soon. I hope and pray this will be the end of this night-mare, Take care every-one. Al. **** From Doug
Hey There, Last weekend saw about half a foot of snow accumulate at the gondola lodge. Nothing new about that, but what was fun was watching the Australian kids react to it. There is currently a group of kids working there from Australia who have NEVER seen snow. They are all from the Perth area or from the steamy northern tropical section of that country. So, snow was a really big deal for them. They were supposed to be manning the coffee bar and other food services positions but kept abandoning their posts and running outside giggling and chuckling like 3-yr olds at a Christmas party. It was very entertaining just to sit there by the fire and observe them. Then, on Monday, there was another deposit of about half a foot of snow, but this time it was heavy wet stuff. The new kids working in Operations were handed shovels and told to start shoveling the decks. That started off as fun for them but they soon learned that heavy wet snow is not nice light power snow. The stuff sets up like concrete. Those kids were exhausted after a short time of trying to shovel the stuff. I was funny watching them and their feeble attempts to remove the wet snow. After a while a more senior staff member brought out one of the snow blowers and did short work of removing the snow as the shocked Aussies looked on. Again, entertaining and fun to watch. Most of the labor level staff there is made up of kids traveling the world. They spend 6 months, or a year, or whatever in a given country based on their work visas. They seem to come on waves, first from one country, then from another. A group of Europeans just left not that long ago and this new group of Aussies are now trying to figure things out. Again, entertaining and fun to watch. * Sadly, I’ve had my Harley Sportster out for it’s last ride of the season. It’s insurance runs out on the 11th and we have settled back into a rainy period so riding opportunities are washing away fast. It was a really nice ride. I bundled up for the 7 degree C temps and headed down to Horseshoe Bay. Those Harley engines run hot and therefore, they really like cold temperatures. She purred like a kitten and wanted to go, and to keep on going. Even being an old fart in his mid 70’s, I had to keep an eye on the speedometer and keep her reined in. She wanted to play with the hills and curves on this highway. Alas, after topping up the fuel tank on the way home, I was back into my garage and the Sportster was again tucked up against the back wall with here cover pulled over her. Very sad. On the up-side, the Enfield is still insured and is in fact insured all winter. She is a very different bike as compared to the Harley, has very different tires, and as long as it’s above freezing and the roads are not slippery, there is no reason she can’t come out and play. I can always dress for the cold so I do have that to look forward to over the next few months as we all await for spring. Some of you may have seen this pic I took this week of the sun, snow, and clouds on the mountains.
Doug ****
Have
a
Good One ****
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