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The
Squamidian Report – Oct. 8 / 22
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Of This And Past Issues Issue
#1063 From
Rosemary
Hey There, Our late summer and early fall weather has been so nice that it is a bit scary. It simply should not be this warm and this dry at this time of year. After a very late start to the nice weather season, we all got our wishes, but, at a very big cost. Drought is a real problem in many areas of BC. Forest fires continue to burn, and so on. Mind you, its been a great late summer for riding a motorcycle except that at times it was too hot. And, on many days that I’d have liked to be out on the bike I had to stay home because of the renovation contractor being here. Another thing that has put a damper on being out on the bike is the endless carnage on the roads. Drivers seem to be getting more stupid by the day. You can’t go from here to Horseshoe Bay without having to check the road reports to be sure the highway hasn’t been closed due to a crash. And if there are no crashes, there will inevitably be delays due to construction. I tried to do a ride to Lillooet the other day and got half way over the Duffy only to find that construction had a section down to 1 lane, alternating traffic and that the wait times were about an hour. To heck with that. I did a U-turn and headed back for home. It really didn’t matter because Lillooet was the excuse, not the destination. I had tried to do a ride to ‘The Bay’ a day or so earlier. The highway was reported to be clear of any issues. As I rode south through Britannia, a whole hurd of police cruisers went flying by, southbound. Continuing on up the hill I realized that there had been no oncoming traffic for a while. Continuing on further, to the top of Furry Creek hill where I could see south out the Sound, there was no traffic at all headed my way. That made me nervous because it meant the highway was blocked at some point. There are very few placed on this highway where you can get turned around as there are no intersecting roads and most of the highway has a concrete center barrier that keeps opposing traffic from running head on into each other’s lane. Just as you enter the Lion’s Bay section there is an off ramp for Brunswick Beach and I decided to take that so I could get turned around and head back for home. Good thing I did. Around one of the next bends was a crash that had the highway closed for the rest of the day. Vehicles were stuck there for hours. And this kind of thing just keeps on happening. Not fun at all. So, as I’ve said, riding has been a bit frustrating this year. But, the year’s not over so I’ll hopefully get a few more clicks in the saddle before the weather does an 180 degree swing and the cold and wet settles in for the next 6 months. * A note from Nova Scotia Sus… they are still without power in her area of rural Nova Scotia but she will have some great stories for us once she can get back on line. * About 3 weeks ago or so I posted the link to my little video of the Lightfoot song called ‘Long Way Back Home’. At the time I promised to have an audio version ready at some point in the future. Well, the future is here, because here it is. (the audio recording) doug **** From Rosemary I was struck by Dougs dog sitting story. I was especially interested in his description of the wee lassie and how, being so small, she has to work at keeping up with the pack, while avoiding being stepped on. Well, my daughter, Adrienne, is a veterinary technician. Her vet boss and his fairly recent second wife, Marnie, have 7 dogs. One is a small female something or other who just had 5 puppies. The seventh dog is a 4 year old Great Dane whom the vet brought along with him to this second marriage. Marnie, who is childless, will not sell or give away any of the puppies. They are her children. The vet, who feels his house is up to the rafters in dogs, offered Lucy, the Great Dane, to Adrienne, who was thrilled. Marnie hit the roof. Apparently a huge battle ensued between Marnie and the vet. Marnie said, "How dare you try to give away one of my children?" The vet said, "It's MY dog. I can do what I like with her". Ach, that did not go over well. The vet and Adrienne hatched a plan. They told Marnie that Adrienne was thinking about getting a dog and that maybe Marnie would agree to letting her take Lucy on a fairly regular basis just to see if a dog would be a good idea for her family. Marnie finally agreed to this because, deep down, she knows Lucy would be happier with Adrienne's family. Lucy would be in a rural town with lots of space, 2 children to play with, and rarely be left alone. Marnie also does not like the fact that Lucy can easily reach any food item left close to the edge of a counter. They are calling this arrangement "shared custody" but the secret hope is to wean Marnie off of Lucy as Lucy spends more and more time with Adrienne. Now, I am listening to this story on the phone, as Adrienne, breathless with excitement, tells me all about it. I ask her, "What about the new kitten you just adopted?" Well, the little mite is holding her own with the new, uh, step-sister, according to Adrienne. So, David and I go off to Adrienne's to check out this new family member. We walk in the door. I look around and can't see a dog. Figure it's tied up outside. Adrienne points to the couch where an enormous animal is snuggled into a blanket on the couch. "Oh my god!" I exclaim. Lucy lifts her head, eases herself off the couch, and walks quietly over to greet me. I fall in love. She is the sweetest, most gentle giant ever. Adrienne grins and says, ''And she doesn't smell like a dog!" I check that out, and by golly it's true! I am now firmly on the side of Adienne and the vet, hoping that eventually Marnie will latch onto another child. I've attached a photo of Adrienne and Lucy which gives you an idea of the size of this animal. Oh, and she and the kitten are now best friends. Rosemary  **** From Russ
Visitors They arrived about 2:00PM and brought two Poodles with them - one was beige, the other black, one was named Henry the other was not. We enjoyed an outside visit on the deck with summer-like temperatures. The dogs were well-behaved, so their 'care-givers' let them run loose. They mostly romped around my back yard, but being 'hunters' by nature, they periodically chased a bird, or squirrel and had to be called back. They were fun to watch, and so very obedient. It got to be late, and Sharon and Gary "S" had to drive all the way home to Kitchener, so I offered to take them out to eat before they had to leave for home. The little restaurant here in the 'Point' has been taken over by new management, and I'm told the food is very good if not a wee bit expensive. My treat - so away we (dogs & all) head for the local grub-house. Sharon in the back seat of their tiny car suddenly announced, "Henry threw up on the seat!" Gary, who 'worships' his tiny sports-car - panicked. "CAN YOU WIPE IT UP?" he hollered. To which Sharon meekly replied (as though it were her fault) "Yes - most of it" We were half way to the restaurant and Gary didn't know if he should carry on and maybe get some stuff from them to wash the vomit (which had soaked into the seams of the expensive fabric), or drive all the way back to my place. We went back home where Sharon was able to do a better job of cleaning-up. Now, picture this: while Sharon was busy with the unpleasant task, Gary stood, facing away, holding the leashed dogs - in rigid, total silence - he never turned around until she said, "There - I got it all" I thought he made her feel totally responsible for the accident. I felt sorry for her, but said nothing - what could I have said? The restaurant didn't open until 5:00PM. We sat in silence. Somebodies tummy growled. More silence. Finally someone came out to tell us we could go in now - and we quickly went inside. I had been in the facility when it was run by the previous tenants, and the entrance-way was always dirty - it was enough to turn people away. What a pleasant sight! Everything was clean & bright - all new tables & chairs - but there was nobody but us three in the place! Now, a man appeared and politely welcomed us, and led us to a table for four. When seated he recited a lengthy menu of exotic entres - none of which was anything we were accustomed to eating. GEEZE! This is a "high class establishment" in a middle class neighborhood! Their sign outside indicated a "Special" called Smashed-burgers, I asked him what that was, to which he replied (in a 'snooty manner"), "This is our famous burger, blablabla, served with blabla, and garnished with blabla" It was the cheapest thing on the menu - that's what we ordered. I must admit, it was delicious - about 5 inches thick - so juicy it ran all over your fries. "And what are we having to drink?" asked 'snobby', Gary ordered coffee, Sharon and I water, and as he placed the water on the table he said in his way of indicating we were somehow 'beneath him', "We must remain hydrated must we not?" The bill came to $73 - most I ever paid for 3 hamburgers with fries, and one coffee!! Note: Last week I wrote an article on "Tipping fatigue", where the 'machine they bring you has questions asking you what 'tip' will you be adding - 10%, 15%, 20%, other? THAT pisses-me-off! I DON'T add a tip! Other than the outrageous prices, the food likely IS good, but, where will they find customers foolish enough to think they are dining in an up-scale- establishment?? Once bitten, twice shy, I won't be bitten again!
Russ. **** From Carol
Hi All, we had a busy time last weekend. Al & I had gone up to Wiarton on the Wednesday to take care of some repair issues at the house. On Friday brother Tim, on his motorcycle, Gale & Dave came up. The weather was beautiful and Tim barbequed beef tenderloin for us. Gale and I had food trays to prepare and cake to make as there was a surprise birthday party at Gary’s in Owen Sound for Evelyn’s 70th on the Saturday. Evelyn was totally surprised, you should have seen her face. Tim headed straight home from the party as the weather was to turn cooler. Gale & Dave had to leave Wiarton first thing Sunday morning. Jessica’s father passed away and the visitation was Sunday and, of course, they needed to support poor Jessica and Jenna. Jenna lost her other grandfather just 5 days later. We also had to leave Wiarton first thing Sunday as I had another birthday cake and cupcakes to ice and take over to the Homestead by 2:00. Beth was never able to celebrate her 50th birthday because of Covid. Jamie decided to throw a birthday party for her on her birthday last Sunday calling the gathering “Beth is finally playing with a full deck”. I feel old enough being 72 but being the mother of a 52 year old makes me feel even older. Beth also took the brave step of leaving her job of 22 years at KW Hab to start a new position at Conestoga College that started the next day. The party gave some of her old co-workers a chance to say goodbye and the rest of us to celebrate with her. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are having our big meal on Saturday at Beth & Jamie’s place. I couldn’t find a decent size turkey that wasn’t fat infused, OK they call them butter infused but fat is fat. I will be cooking 2 smaller ones. The trick to moist turkey meat, without adding fat, is to cook the turkey with the breast down. The dark meat bastes the white and neither becomes dry or greasy. I guess the browned turkey breast on a platter looks nice but since the cutting will be done before putting the meat on the table we don’t worry about having the bird with the back up. I also cook the birds hot. Whatever your meal consists of I hope you are able to share it with those you love. And when you are thinking of things to be grateful for this Thanksgiving you can add having the Squid back at the top of the list. We are so glad Doug, Russ, Greg came back and so many others are now contributing. Carol **** From Lauren
MAUI TRIP DAY 1: We were fortunate enough to be able to tag along for a work trip that Ryan was going on & departed for Maui on September 22nd. We decided to go in a few days earlier to be able to spend a week on the island & our friend Beth (who is part of Ryan’s work crew) also joined us. Because we were on an evening flight, by the time we arrived at our Condo in Kihei, it was 1:30am the following morning Hawaii time (4:30am in Vancouver), needless to say we were all pretty exhausted & fell into bed! DAY 2: We were obviously jetlagged, so we woke up at around 5am, but tried sleeping for a few more hours before getting up & going out to get some much needed COFFEE & food. There was a café that had breakfast items as well as shaved ice (Ryan’s favourite), which was a huge hit with the kids (possibly more so with Ryan, as he has mentioned several times that shaved ice is the only reason he goes to Hawaii). We spent the rest of the day buying some groceries, & just hanging out at the condo enjoying the pool (the kids favourite activity)! DAY 3: We went to the Maui ocean centre, which was really cool! It’s a fantastic aquarium with an underwater tunnel which the kids enjoyed as they watched fish, sharks, rays etc., swimming above & around them. The last part of the aquarium ends with a 3D movie of humpback whales filmed locally in Maui, which was pretty spectacular! We then drove to Lahaina to Kaanapali beach where we had intended to snorkel, but the waves were too rough & the ocean water was very brown (which can be caused by the water being temporarily compromised by water runoff that carries excessive sediment from storms, of which there were several before we arrived). We decided that it wasn’t safe enough to try snorkel because the kids would not be able to & visibility would be very poor. We had ice cream & then headed back to our condo to swim. DAY 4: The highlight of the trip for Ryan & I was when we went to Haleakala volcano, which was approximately a 1.5 hour drive up to the summit, at an elevation of over 10,000 feet, with many switchbacks (which Ryan & Doug would have enjoyed riding their Harley’s up & down)! Somehow, the kids & I managed to avoid getting carsick, maybe because we were too busy looking at the scenery outside & not focusing on the drive. Once we got to the top of the summit, the views were literally out of this world (it resembled Mars as I would imagine it to look because of how it is depicted in sci-fi movies)! We were above the clouds at this point & the scenery was amazing! There were several viewpoints & a little hill we climbed up to get an even better view of the crater & once up there, we realized that there were hiking trails on & around the actual crater. Ryan & I desperately wanted to hike, but unfortunately, it was super hot, & we neglected to put sunblock on earlier. The kids probably would not have been able to hike either, nor did they want to. Also on the summit, is the Haleakala astronomical research observatory, which, according to Google is dubbed “Science City.” A bit of an astronomy lesson, but some of “Science city’s” many accomplishments so far have been of the detection of 19 near-Earth asteroids—the highest number of asteroids monitored in a single night—and the tracking of Venus. Most recently, Maui’s loftiest peak saw the unveiling of what has been called the biggest digital map of the cosmos—an assemblage of data that showcases three billion stars, galaxies, and other celestial objects. **A side note on the observatory & volcano… I think Doug would have enjoyed it immensely & far more than any of us, because of his love for geography, geology & astronomy.** DAY 5: This was where our time in Kihei ended. We started our road trip towards Kapalua where we would be staying at the Ritz Carlton (Ryan’s work gig was being held here). After breakfast at a place in Lahaina called “Slappy cakes” (where you can make your own pancakes at the table, they have a built-in griddles), Beth drove us to the hotel to check in & they left to return the rental car back to the airport where they would then get a shuttle back with some of the arriving crew. The kids & I went to our room, got into our bathing suits & went out to explore. We wandered down to the gorgeous beach & then headed back to the pool where we spent several hours swimming until Ryan returned. That evening, we went for salads & burgers at the very expensive “Beach hut” restaurant, which cost more than a small bag of groceries! DAY 6: We spent the morning exploring again, we went on a mini walk around the area & surrounding residential neighbourhood. We then went to get some food (at the “cheap” café/grocery store which would be our go-to for the next few days) & stocked up on some snack & food items that we could eat in the hotel room. We avoided eating at or ordering anything from the hotel & just drank our free bottled water from the room; it was just too expensive to comprehend spending that kind of money on food/drinks. We did splurge that night though & went for a nice Italian dinner with a couple of the crew members, but thereafter it was back to being “cheap!” DAY 7: The kids & I were on our own as Ryan had to work, so we spent most of the day at the pool again before briefly visiting Ryan during the band’s sound check. We weren’t allowed to attend the show that night because it was a corporate event & no kids were allowed, but could hear the band playing from our hotel room, so kind of had a free mini concert. DAY 8: This was departure day, but because our flight was a red eye, we only had to check out of the hotel room at 6pm. We went to the cheap café for breakfast & then went back to the hotel room to get ready for the pool. We spent a few hours swimming & lazing around before going back to our room to pack & get ready to depart. Once we got to the airport & through security, we discovered that there was not much open at that time, so had a very mediocre dinner & then boarded our flight for home. The kids were pretty exhausted by then, they both eventually fell asleep on the flight, but Ryan & I didn’t fare so well. We arrived back in Vancouver at approximately 6:30am the following morning, got our car, luggage & headed home. Once home, we forced two very tired (in denial) little girls to go to bed for a nap (thank goodness it was the long weekend) & then Ryan & I finally had a nap too. It was a short, but very sweet trip to Maui & we would love to go again, however we will definitely make it longer next time & stay in a condo which was way more practical & much less expensive than the Ritz! Lauren **** The Ontarion
Hello everyone! Well, I’m writing this weeks Ontarion a day later than usual. The reason is that I’ve been recovering from a fall in my garage! On Wednesday I was taking a tray full of soggy rotten vegetables that were quite heavy out to place them in our “Green” bin in the garage. Since our garage is quite full of car parts with Adam having them on the floor of the garage while he works on his Mini Cooper. Consequently there are many obstacles that must be avoided as one walks through the garage and with the tray in front of me sort of blocking my vision of such things, I didn’t see a large plastic tub filled with stray items! Unfortunately I tripped over the tub and fell face first onto the concrete garage floor, vegetables and all! I was quite dazed but knowing that Carole and Adam were sitting on the porch and the garage door was open I called out for help several times and they both came running to my aid! I was lying in a mess of smashed rotten vegetables and blood from my damaged forehead! Adam lifted me to my feet while Carole held a cloth on my bleeding head once again! It seems that I can’t help tripping over stuff and taking headers onto either concrete or metal items these days! With my head taking the worst of such dives to the floor or wherever! On Wednesday it was solid concrete! Luckily I didn’t crack either my head of the garage floor! I held the cloth on my wound until Carole managed to place a bandage on the bleeding gash in my head! Adam suggested they take me to St Mary’s Hospital once again for a check up just to make sure there was no other unseen damage to my head. Carole drove me to the Emergency Dept and I told her to just go home as I know that such visits usually take several hours! I said I’d phone her when they finished patching me up again! This is be coming a bad habit! So once I was settled in and sitting in the waiting area, Carole went home as there was no sense in her sitting there for however many hours this visit would take! As it turned out, I was there for almost 8 hours! The Doctor, when I finally got seen by one, wanted to do a full series of tests on every part of me that hurt to make sure nothing was either broken of otherwise seriously injured! First he booked me for a CT Scan on my head and neck to make sure I didn’t have a concussion or damage to a vertebrae in my neck as I told him my neck was quite stiff! Then I had to go back into the waiting area to sit for another two hours to wait for the results of those tests. When I finally asked the nurse to check on the results, she discovered that one of the CT Scans on my head didn’t work out so the doctor came to me and said they had to repeat the Scan again! So back down to the CT Scan room I went for another kick at the cat! This time it worked but It still took another hour for the results of that test to come back! Then, he wanted to do an x-ray on the little finger of my right hand when he noticed it was turning black from the impact of the fall, he thought it was broken! So, down I had to go for the x-ray on the finger. After another hour of waiting for those results he came to me and told me that he wanted an x-ray of my left knee as I had an injury to that as well when he checked me over. Carole had placed a bandage on the knee since it was injured in the fall as well. The Doctor noticed that I was limping on the way to the CT Scan so he thought I might have cracked my knee cap and wanted to x-ray that as well. That of course took another trip to the x-ray room! Sheesh!!! I thought it would never end. Finally after 8 hours of waiting and starving for food he called me into a side room and I immediately thought the worst of course! I figured he was going to tell me they were going to keep me overnight with a concussion or worse! However, it was all good news, he said that all of the tests were negative and I could finally call for someone to come and pick me up to go home! Whew!!! Finally some good news and I was patched up for release! Luckily Adam picked me up and I was on the way home again! The results of the fall are evident in the photograph that Carole took of my face. I’ve attached that photo to this weeks column so you can see what a whack on the face and head I was subjected to this time! Carole said they are going to wrap me in a big rubber suit so if I happen to fall again I’ll just bounce around rather than injure myself again! LOL! I’d likely look like one of those guys on the police bomb squads on TV in their protective suits! Hahahahaaaa……! SO, that’s why I had to take an extra day or two of rest before writing this weeks report! I’m still bruised and battered but I’ll soon recover and try to be more sure footed next time I’m doing anything like walking more than 5 feet at a time! LOL! 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 time in The Ontarion Report! Bye for now…..Greg PS: No stitches this time at least! Just a dandy of a black eye and a bad headache!  **** Take
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