The
Squamidian Report – Oct. 19 / 13
Issue #595
Including:
The Ontarion
Hi All,
Good grief, suddenly another week has gone by and I find myself having to come up with another issue. You have no idea how hard that can be on an old brain like mine. One of the reasons the weeks are going by so fast (aside from the fact that the older you are, the faster the time goes) is that we had Kyra here all week and she keeps us so busy just trying to keep up with her that the days are just a blur. Speaking of Kyra, did you know that while washable crayons may wash off of walls and floors etc as advertised, they are not digestible. Nope, they seem to go right through and turn up as a rainbow of interesting colours at diaper changing time. I’m taking ‘the wife’s’ word on that as I’ve not actually confirmed it myself and have no intention of finding myself in a ‘confirmation’ situation.
I know we tend to talk a lot about the weather, I guess because we are all good Canadians and that’s what Canadians do. That being said, our weather has been spectacular over the last couple of weeks or so and the forecast indicates it will stay that way for a while. The nights and mornings have been chilly, right down to just above freezing but by mid afternoons we have had mid teen temps which is quite extraordinary for the west coast. By this time of year it is normally cold and wet. The coastal areas have been having dense heavy fog that has reduced visibility to zero at times, even cancelled some of the ferry sailings, but up here in Squamish and further inland it has been crystal clear. And because of that, I’ve been having some pretty nice motorcycle rides. However, there was one planned ride that didn’t pan out. The intention had been to hook up with my friend who lives in the Kootenays. We would have headed out at about the same time last Wednesday morning and met in Princeton. From there we would have ridden the old #5a up to Kamloops for the night and then I’d have headed for the coast over the Duffy and he would have headed back through the Interior. Problem was, on that morning, it was snowing on a couple of mountain passes that he would have had to ride across. Crystal clear here but rain in the valleys and snow on the passes in the Kootenays. So, seeing as to how neither of us are young and invincible anymore, we decided to scrub the ride. You can bundle up for cold temps on a bike but even the slightest chance of slippery conditions is way too high of a risk. We are old, not dumb.
One ride I did manage to do was a toot up to Pemberton and on up the Pemberton Valley. Wow, it was glorious. Clear skies, bright sunshine, mid teen temps and lots of west coast fall colours. I had intended to head up and over the Duffy for lunch in Lillooet and then back to home but I wasn’t able to get away early enough to go that far. Oh well, next time.
Oh, remember those little radio controlled helicopters I have been playing with. Well, at first little Kyra was afraid of them. I guess she thought they were giant bugs out to get here. Anyway, she is no longer afraid of them. She is still cautious and a bit reserved but as long as they don’t come directly toward her she is quite happy to watch them fly. She will happily sit and watch them fly around the house, especially the one with the little coloured lights on it. She likes watching them fly outside as well. That can only be done at night or late evening when there is no wind. They are just too light and too under powered to fly in even a slight breeze. But that’s ok, they are intended as indoor flyers. They are proving to still be a lot of inexpensive fun and entertainment. A friend of mine just bought a very expensive quad rotor that can carry his GoPro camera. That’s a whole different level of RC flying. The type he has includes some very sophisticated software that integrates with an on-board GPS and can automatically return ‘home’, or fly a pre-programmed course, self stabilize, and so on. Of course, he still needs to learn to fly it. I don’t mind crashing my little $30 machines once in a while but I’d hate to try learning on a $600 unit that was carrying a $400 camera. Anyway, lots of fun ahead.
doug
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THE ONTARION REPORT
Hello everyone!
Well, here we are in
the middle of October and still enjoying lovely weather! What a surprise to see
that the sun is still shining most days and the temperatures are hanging in at
what seem to be spring or summer like temps. We’re still enjoying our morning
cups of tea on the back yard garden swing and soaking up the morning sun. We’ve
been watching a little chipmunk scamper around the garden gathering sunflower
seeds from our Cardinal feeder for his winter stock. He’s been loading up his
fat cheeks and running his bounty across the yard and over the patio to a hole
he’s made under one end of the concrete. He disappears under the patio and
comes out a minute later with his cheeks empty once again. We’ve been watching
him do this for over a month now and he managed to empty the large bird feeder
we have on a branch of one of the garden trees. I went to the Bulk Store the
other day and picked up a kilo of peanuts still in the shell and we’ve been
placing a few of them on the patio each day so the little fellow has a variety
to choose from this winter! LOL! I haven’t seen him tucking these into his
cheeks yet but I imagine he’s having quite a time with the size of them! At least he’ll have a good stalk of
food for the winter months. We get a kick out of sitting at the patio table
with the dog “Bailey” lying on his bed beside us and the little chipmunk
doesn’t hesitate to poke around at our feet and right beside Bailey looking for
more peanuts. Lucky for the chippie that the dog can’t see or he’d be running
for his life! LOL! Bailey is getting around quite well without his site as long
as he’s at home in his familiar surroundings. He sometimes senses that another
creature is near but when he can’t see him he doesn’t react. He just lifts his
head and sniffs the air in every direction trying to figure out who or what is
there. I guess the chippie smells like nuts! LOL!
We’re just about
ready for the winter, having closed the pond and packed away most of the
smaller items that are usually sitting out on the patio and around the gardens.
We only have to pack away the patio furniture when it’s no longer nice enough
temp wise to enjoy sitting out. Last week I purchased a set of “Gutter Guards”
or screens that fit on the eves troughs to keep the leaves and other tree
matter from clogging the troughs up and causing them to over flow in the
winter. They are made of plastic and are in 36” lengths and they just snap into
place across the gutters. It was quite easy to install them and I completed the
job in just over an hour for the whole house! They are guaranteed not to allow
the leaves etc to clog the eves and will keep the ice and snow from freezing in
a block in each trough. I’m sure they’ll still allow the snow to build up over
the screens but apparently they prevent any ice and water from pushing back
under the shingles and causing leaks into the overhang of the roof. I’m looking
forward to spring and seeing how well they work. I’m getting too old to be
climbing on rooftops to unclog the gutters and down spouts every spring and
fall. I hope these “Gutter Guards” do the job the manufacturer claims they do
or I’ll be ripping them out in the spring! So far, I can see that they are
keeping the leaves out of the troughs and for the most part they blow away
after landing on the screens as claimed. We shall see come winter and spring
how well they work!
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>
He Said/She Said
He Said: “What have
you been doing with all the grocery money I’ve been giving you?”
She Said: “Turn sideways and look in the mirror!”
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Have a good one..
the doug
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