The Squamidian Report – Jan. 9 / 10
Issue #398
Including:
A Note From Russ & Barb
The Ontarion
Hi All,
Looks like we are too far into the New Year now to bother with turning back now. I guess that’s really not an option anyway. There does not seem to be a ‘rewind’ button on the calendar. So forward we shall move, lets get on with it.
Well now, for starters, I don’t have to take down any outdoor decorations or lighting this year. And I don’t have to endure being bugged and nagged about not taking anything down. The reason is quite simple. I didn’t get around to putting anything up outside. That sure makes life easier. There is actually a reason for not getting around to putting anything out. ‘The Wife’s’ forced retirement kind of through us a bit off balance during the lead-up to Christmas and stuff like outdoor decorations just never got addressed. Now I get the benefit of having NOT done something, not come back and haunt me.
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Last Sunday was the annual eagle counting day in the Squamish Valley. Now I don’t understand how they count or how they know that they counted any given bird once and not twice. Or how they know they didn’t miss a bird here and there. I know they didn’t count the ones that hang out along the Mamquam River, or the ones that play with the cars going by on the highway. They just count the eagles that are along the Squamish River during the counting time.
The number of eagles wintering in the Squamish Valley area has been down for the last several years. It is assumed that the reduced number of birds is a result of the reduced number of salmon returning to the local rivers. The strange thing about the non-returning salmon is that everyone points fingers at everyone else on shore and in local waters but no one is willing to address the touchy reasons. There are all sorts of rules and regulations that govern who can and can’t fish and who can and can’t do any number of things that might impact the water itself. At the local level, no one is willing to enforce any regulation if the person doing the damage in Native. But that’s a whole topic itself and one that we have been intimidated into avoiding.
There is another possible reason that no one mentions at all, international off shore fishing. The kind that is done using gigantic factory ships. The kind of ship that vacuums up every thing it encounters and leaves a vast sterile ocean in its wake. When the schools of young fish head out into the open ocean they disappear. No one really knows for sure where they go except in the most broad of terms. They spend several years doing a big circuit of the north Pacific and then hopefully return to their home stream. But they are not returning and I really don’t think anyone can blame that on some poor non-native shmuck that was caught standing beside a river holding a fishing pole.
Anyway, the fish count is down and the eagle count is down. But there are still a fair number of the big birds around. Half a dozen or so like to sit in the trees near the highway bridge over the Mamquam. They seem to like to play with the cars going by, or at least with the air turbulence that the cars kick up. They swoop down low just behind a given car and hold a position just above the height of the car roof. After following for a couple of hundred feet they shoot back up into the trees. No one in the target vehicle has any idea that a bird with a wingspan wider that most of the vehicles has chased them but the cars behind do and everyone hits the brakes. Maybe the birds are trying to cause a collision so they can dine on the leftovers, or more likely, perhaps they are just having fun chasing cars. After all, dogs do it all the time.
doug
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A Note From Russ & Barb
Hi, Everyone:
Well, here we are; just came back from a wonderful two-week Winter
Holiday ...........yes, I said "Winter Holiday" at our cottage
(house) at Point Clark on Lake Huron. I always thought this was the prettiest
and greatest place to be in the summer, having holidayed here with my parents
at their cottage since about 1938. My Dad was a High school Teacher so we
usually had two months holidays straight, until the War came, then we, my two
sisters and I all started to work, and eventually got married.
When our boys were younger, a couple of times, we trekked in through snow
banks nearly waist high, to check on the cottage. But it was great driving in
now since about 50 percent of the cottages have been made into permanent homes
like ours has, and the roads are kept plowed all winter for Retirees and people
who work at Bruce Power. We made arrangements with a local contractor to keep
our driveway open. But I ramble. What I started out to say was, as
beautiful as it is in summer, you just cannot beat the absolute beauty of
freshly fallen snow on the Evergreen trees.
Our Son Greg, lives in the little Town of
Ripley, about ten miles away in a big old home that has seen more than a
hundred Christmases. We went there for Christmas Day and had a wonderful dinner
with our Son, his Wife, Bettie, Greg’s Daughter, Colleen, her Spouse, Jeff and Colleen’s
Son, Glenn (our Greatgrandson). HOORAY!! I didn’t
have to do any dishes! I have never seen a house more beautifully and
tastefully decorated than Bettie had made hers.
The rest of the week we enjoyed walking around Point Clark.....we stuck to the plowed roads because it’s Hell pushing
a walker in deep snow. We met several people who are normally Summer
Dwellers, doing the same thing we were.
On Dec. 31st (New Years Eve.), Greg left to go back to work near Ft.
McMurray, and we all were very happy for him.......he hasn’t
worked for a year, but will resume Consulting now that the Oil Industry has
begun to reverse it’s downward trend. He has a long, taxing drive ahead
of him.........he’s done it many times before...........we Pray the weather
will cooperate. He called from Manitoba saying the roads were clear but
it was minus 38 C. Brrrrrrrrrrr!!!
Normally he flies from our local Airport, but he needs his truck out there.
Meanwhile, back at the cottage, after a short, pleasant walk, Russ
and I settled back after a nice hot Dinner and relaxed as we watched and waited
for The Ball to drop in Times Square. In the morning, the nice friendly
snowflakes had been piling up on the deck and making the huge Pine trees a
picture of beauty. However, by Sunday it became obvious that the snow
warnings from the TV Weather Station were right. Although we had planned
to stay for four or five more days, we figured we’d better start for home (we
packed up and got away at noon on Mon.), not knowing what the roads would be
like between here and Cambridge. But what do you know ?
The roads from Brussles on were dry.......NO
SNOW !
It’s surprising how quickly the medical routine catches up to you......on Tue. the doctor’s office
called Russ to come in for X-Rays. Another phone call from my Deaf/Blind technician
advised that she’d be cancelling my appointment due to freezing rain in London.
My routine nurse’s visit was today and she says I’m "holding my own".
So much for thinking we could extend our wonderful vacation at the cottage !
Greg and Bettie gave us a "cool" combination DVD/VCR for
Christmas and we’re trying to find someone to come and hook it up......no neither of us is "electronically gifted".
Now we have to be satisfied with looking down from fourteen floors to
the hustle and bustle of traffic with its pollution until the next opportunity
to get back to the cottage.
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!
Barb
Brubacher.
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THE ONTARION REPORT
Hello everyone!
Well, the holidays are over and the New Year has begun! So far so good from this end of things and we’ve got very little snow and the temps here are staying bearable. I figure that’s a plus to start 2010. The crime rate in our region is down and taxes are up, which one is a plus in your mind? I pick the lower crime rate to be the positive move.
Carole and I have decided to spend the month of February in Florida this year and wouldn’t you know it, they’re having the coldest winter since 1982. It just so happens that we were in Florida that year as well and got caught smack dab in the middle of that cold snap too! We had accepted an invitation to join another couple and their ten-year-old daughter for a two-week vacation over the Christmas holidays. They had the use of a house on a golf course in Punta Gorda and asked us to go with them. The weather was lovely when we first got there but after the first week it turned cold. It was Christmas day when we awoke to +16F on the land and +68F in the waters of the Gulf. The orange growers were burning what they call “smudge pots” in their groves to keep the orange trees from freezing and others were sprinkling water on their crops to insulate the oranges and grapefruits from the cold temps. It was quite a sight as we drove toward Orlando to visit Disney World that day.
Upon arrival at Disney World the parking lots were virtually empty. It was like we had picked the one-day of the year when the place was closed. No fear, it was open but the public decided it was too cold to run around the park that day. As we entered we got the eeriest feeling when we realized that we were almost the only people in the whole park. The streets were deserted and if it hadn’t been for the music in the park things would have been even stranger! As we strolled down Main St and into the town square we were greeted by a 75’ tall red Christmas tree made out of poinsettia plants. They were all drooping toward the base of the tree dead as a doornail from the overnight frost that had hit Orlando as well.
I guess the whole state was affected by the cold. They had shut off the water systems for the park because of the problem of frozen pipes. So there were no “water” type rides open and none of the restaurants were serving drinks and many of the meals were unavailable as well because of the lack of water to cook them in. Luckily we had taken our winter coats to Florida with us and were wearing them that day. As the day progressed the temp began to rise. By noon it was up to 60F and more people had ventured into the park. The big bonus was that we didn’t have to wait in those huge lineups to go on the rides! The sun was shining brightly and for the most part it was a very enjoyable day. It was our first Christmas away from home and after all was said and done, we agreed that it was more fun spending Christmas in Canada in the snow than in the Florida sunshine. It just didn’t seem like Christmas to be spending the day away from home. The day was not a waste and neither was the vacation but we decided that once was enough! They still had the huge Christmas Day parade down Main St and it was a lot of fun to experience it all one time as I just said but “There’s no place like home for the Holidays!” We’ve stayed home every year since and have a great story to tell about the one year that we didn’t!
I’m hoping that the month of February will see the weather warmed up to what is normal for Florida by the time Carole and I get to our destination. I don’t care if it’s not blistering hot, just as long as it’s warmer than here so we can enjoy the sunshine and less clothes and of course a few walks on the beach. We’ve got three weeks before we have to head south and that time will go by very quickly I’m sure. We’re looking forward to the vacation and I’ll be sure to report on it’s progress from Florida if I have access to a computer from there. If not, I’ll have prepared 5 weeks of Ontarions for Doug to have in reserve so my chain won’t be broken.
That’s it for this week folks!
Thanks for tuning in and I look forward to talking to you all again next time in The Ontarion Report!
Bye for now…. Greg.
PS: Something To Think About>
If the entire northern hemisphere is in a deep freeze, whatever happened to Global Warming?
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Have a good one..
the doug
The Fine Print!
The articles in these issues are the sole property of the persons writing them and should be respected as such.