HAD US A LOOK AT ANOTHER DOGGY PAL FOR PHEEBS THIS AFTERNOON, BUT……….

OUR SKY WAS A STRANGE YELLOW COLOR WHEN I WOKE UP THIS MORNING

It was the cracking thunder & heavy rains that woke me us this morning but it was the totally yellow sky that really surprised me. Yellowest sky I had ever seen. So glad I had closed the shed doors, Jeep windows & the Motorhome's door last night. Sometimes we just get lucky. Rained hard & steady for about an hour & I'm sure this is going to make area farmers very, very, happy.  Rain gage showed 3.5 inches of water & that was enough to fill both our wheelbarrow & rain barrel to the brim.   Our temps dropped to a pleasant 72F after the storm rolled on & then climbed through the day to once again break many heat records.  Turned out to be our hottest day of the year & the weatherman said….just wait till Friday:((  

THE MORNINGS YELLOW SKY GAVE AN EERIE LOOK TO OUR BACKYARD JUNGLE

Sun popped out about 9:30 & began drying the roads off. Pheebs & I piled into the rig & headed off in search of a garage called 'Redline Trucks’ on highway 8 between Clinton & Goderich. No problem finding the place but it turns out they were not equipped to handle our Motorhome's twin tail pipe job. However, the nice fella there made a phone call & suggested I head on into Clinton just a few miles down the road. Said Carter's West End Garage there could handle the job & sure enough, it could. They have 3" pipe in stock & a bender. The rig goes in next Tuesday morning for two new tail pipes. Will be glad to get that little job stroked off our list. Next will be our rough riding bedroom slide.

NOT A LOT OF ROOM TO GET THE RIG OFF THE ROAD AT CARTER’S GARAGE IN CLINTON THIS MORNING…WATCH THOSE OVERHEAD BRANCHES AL!!

Sometimes with these tricky insurance companies one has to make some outside the box decisions & we will do just that when it comes time to leave next fall. After meeting with Doc Robot this coming July 17th we should also have a better understanding as to just where I stand with my kidney stone situation. Any stones left? We will then decide how we are going to handle this medical coverage stuff with the insurance company this winter. We will also begin phoning around again shortly to see what other insurance companies have to say & how they handle their kidney stone policies.

HAD TO SUIT OURSELVES UP AGAINST THE BITING FLIES ON OUR MORNING WALK

FINALLY HAD TO PULL MY JACKET RIGHT OVER MY HEAD… WE HAVE TEMPORARILY PUT OUR MORNING WALKS ON HOLD

And, speaking of Doc Robot, I think it's about time I showed a little more respect for a quality surgeon who has specialized in the field of Urology.   His bedside manner, in my opinion, may leave a little to be desired, but after watching a video of the intricate Lithotripsy procedure he had to perform on me to laser that kidney stone to bits, I have a new respect for Dr. Bernard Bukala's highly skilled talent. Henceforth, I shall refer to him in the future as Dr. Bukala & not Doc Robot. This man is a professional surgeon & deserves the respect.......10-4:))

HAVE NEVER SEEN SO MUCH WATER IN THE PARK’S POND…THAT TREE LINE IN THE WATER IS NORMALLY AT THE WATER’S EDGE

After the kidney stone attack in Tucson last December we were left with a decision. Either cut our winter short & return to Canada immediately or continue our journey. Well, there was no way I was going to come home & sit in the house all winter so we made the decision to continue. Fortunately for me, the kidney stone pain stopped only days after getting out of the hospital & I didn't have to take any more pain pills. However, we also knew that if we continued & the pain returned, the insurance company would not cover any further medical expenses.   We were on our own. Their policy on the matter was to fly me back to Ontario & then have a driver bring our rig back to Canada if I became incapacitated. That was their stand.....or else!! It is such a tricky game we are all forced to play with these insurance companies over the years.

PHEEBE LOVES GETTING IN THE LONG GRASS & HERDING THE FROGS INTO THE POND
And don't forget SONGS TUBE as a fabulously great music site to keep handy. Happened to click on ZZ Top's 'Sharp Dressed Man' video this morning which had me rocking right out of my computer chair. Kelly & I saw ZZ Top years ago in Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. How can just two guitars & a set of drums come up with all that great sounding heavy pounding Tex/Mex rock:)) I love dat groovy stuff:))

<<< MY MOTHER’S GLIDER ROCKER CHAIR WITH MATCHING GLIDER ROCKER FOOTSTOOL BESIDE THE CHAIR

While reading Mike’s post this afternoon from MIKE & PAT'S TRAVELS, I spotted a blue chair in their living room.  The rocker looked familiar to me so I commented on Mike’s post that we had a near identical chair in our sun room.  Mike emailed me saying the blue chair in their living room was his Mothers.  Co-incidentally, the blue chair in our sun room was my Mothers too.  Mike & Pat’s summer residence is in the Black Hills just south of Custer South Dakota.  Their winter residence is just a few miles from our digs in Congress Arizona:)) ---

Happy to mention we have another Blog Follower on our list.  The Bayfield Bunch welcomes REBECCA PLAHCINSKI to our travels.  Thank you so much for the lovely email this morning Rebecca & how nice to hear of your pleasant memories at DEER PARK LODGE over the years.  Maybe Kelly & I will get to meet you there next time you are in the area:))

Had another call from our Vet this morning saying they had another stray we might be interested in so this afternoon we slipped over to Zurich to have a look at the Border Collie/Burnese Mountain mix.  Nice personality & got along with the Pheebs just fine but we had not been thinking of such a large dog.  This female was 67 pounds & still growing so with a bit of sadness in our hearts we decided to continue our search:((

PHOTO DOESN’T SHOW IT BUT THE DOG ON RIGHT WAS MUCH LARGER THAN PHEEBE…WE WOULD PREFER A DOG MORE PHEEBE’S SIZE SOMEWHERE AROUND 45 POUNDS 

GROANER’S CORNER:((  Doggy Dictionary:     
LEASH: A strap that attaches to your collar, enabling you to lead your person where you want him/her to go.

DOG BED: Any soft, clean surface, such as the white bedspread in the guest room or the newly upholstered couch in the living room.

DROOL: A liquid that, when combined with sad eyes, forces humans to give you their food. To do this properly you must sit as close as you can and get drool on the human.

SNIFF: A social custom used to greet other dogs, similar to the human exchange of business cards.

GARBAGE CAN: A container which your neighbors put out once a week to test your ingenuity. You must stand on your hind legs and try to push the lid off with your nose. If you do it right you are rewarded with margarine wrappers to shred, beef bones to consume and mouldy crusts of bread.

BICYCLES: Two-wheeled exercise machines, invented for dogs to control body fat. To get maximum aerobic benefit, you must hide behind a bush and dash out, bark loudly and run alongside for a few yards. The person then swerves and falls into the bushes, and you prance away.

DEAFNESS: This is a malady which affects dogs when their person wants them in and they want to stay out. Symptoms include staring blankly at the person, then running in the opposite direction or lying down.

THUNDER: This is a signal that the world is coming to an end. Humans remain amazingly calm during thunderstorms, so it is necessary to warn them of the danger by trembling uncontrollably, panting, rolling your eyes wildly and following at their heels.

WASTEBASKET: This is a dog toy filled with paper, envelopes and old candy wrappers. It is important to evenly distribute its contents throughout the house before your person comes home.

BATH: If you find something especially good to roll in, humans get jealous and they use this degrading form of torture to get even. Be sure to shake only when next to a person or a piece of furniture.

LEAN: Every good dog's response to the command "sit!" especially if your person is dressed for an evening out. Incredibly effective before black-tie events.

BUMP: The best way to get your human's attention when they are drinking a fresh cup of coffee or tea.

GOOSE BUMP: A manoeuvre to use as a last resort when the regular bump doesn't get the attention you require...especially effective when combined with the sniff. See above.

CHILDREN: Short humans of optimal petting height. Standing close to one assures some good petting. When running, they are good to chase. If they fall down, they are comfortable to sit on.

LOVE: A feeling of intense affection, given freely and without restriction. The best way you can show your love is to wag your tail. If you're lucky, a human will love you in return.

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- Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))

- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)

-  The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward   

- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right  now...AL.
stargeezerguy@gmail.com