IT HELPS ME EACH DAY TO KEEP MY AGE AT BAY

OH DARN IT'S SNOWING IN OUR FRONT YARD AGAIN

We've always had soft lighting in our front yard by the frog pond but the southwest corner of our yard has always been on the dark side.  With Kelly putting up more outdoor Christmas lights I figured I'd better get on the band wagon and help out with a few Christmas lighting ideas of my own so it was off to the Canadian Tire Store in Goderich this morning to browse their Christmas lights.  Found a couple colorful rotating Noma lights and chucked them in the Jeep.  

SPOTTED THE CANADIAN COAST GUARD SHIP LIMNOS IN GODERICH'S HARBOR THIS MORNING

THE FISHING AND TUGBOAT PIER IS STILL SLIGHTLY UNDER WATER

Next over to Walmart for a few things plus a few double AA and triple AAA batteries.  Had looked at batteries in Canadian Tire but was staggered by the price.  It seems every time I buy batteries they are about double the price of last time I bought batteries.  And here's another thing that really bugs me about those types of batteries.  There was a time when one could buy a pack of two.  But  oh-no now they have these mega-packs with enough batteries in them to lift an aircraft off the ground.  So anyway I managed to find a pack of 4 Triple AAA's and a pack of 6 Double AA Energizers.  Way more batteries than I really need for now.  I go to the cashier and she politely and in a most helpful manner suggests I could save myself some serious dollars if I were to get the larger packs on sale.  Well Okay then so back I go and sure enough there are the ones on sale I missed.  So instead of paying nearly $20 I was able to save about $4 and go home with 36 batteries instead of the 9 batteries I had originally picked up.  Now I have about 32 batteries more than I had set out to buy.  I thanked the lady cashier and told her my wife will really be proud of me when I get home and tell her about saving some big bucks.  "Of course." I told the lady, "I will have to tell my wife 'another woman' was involved in my good fortune."  I don't know who's face was redder when I left the store, hers or mine.

THIS SHORELINE RESTORATION IS TAKING PLACE AT THE NORTH END OF ST. CHRISTOPHERS BEACH ALONSIDE THE HARBOR'S SOUTH PIER

When I pulled the Jeep into Goderich's south end car wash about ten this morning it was cloudy and when I backed it out five minutes later I backed it out into sunlight.  Oh now nice when things like that happen.  Twenty minutes later we were home and I set about hooking up our new Noma lights in the front yard.  I really enjoyed feeling the warmth of today's sun beaming through our sunroom windows but just as I was about to take Pheebs for a sunny afternoon walk it was like somebody up and shook a snow globe.  Within 5 minutes our ground was white and it just kept coming down.  At the time of posting tonight all is clear.

TRUCKS ARE HAULING IN VARIOUS SIZES OF ROCK TO FILL IN AND BUILD UP ERODED SHORELINE AREAS....DID YA SEE PHEEBS?

SHORELINE RECONSTRUCTION MATERIALS ARE SHOWING UP

One of the main reasons for adding 'Memory Lane', 'Foibles and Fumbles' and 'Al's Favs' to my blog is simply to keep myself busy, to challenge my mind to rid itself of the ever advancing age related cobwebs.  Digging back through Bayfield Bunch archives, trying to find photos on external hard drives, locating old photo albums, pieces of music, etc. then pulling them all together may not sound like much for many folks but for me and my aging mind it's getting to be a real effort but it's one I must continue every day.  Repetition is the key for me.  Where once my mind could have slipped through these procedures reasonably well I now find myself sitting at my keyboard in blank mode at times completely forgetting how to do something I had just done minutes before.  As frustrating as it is at times there is an enjoyment in re-visiting days gone by whether by photos or words.  It's a form of therapy for me I suppose and also a way to keep at bay the daily weaving of new cobwebs.  Not an easy feat anymore.

CANADA GEESE HANGING AROUND THE GODERICH GRAIN ELEVATORS WAITING FOR TRUCKS LOADED WITH CORN TO COME IN AND SPILL A LITTLE BIT OF THEIR LOAD

Adding to the above paragraph I find myself leaving cupboard doors open, heading inside or outside to either do or get something.  It is regularly a challenge when I have to stop and try to remember what I'm doing or where I'm going.  I say to myself, 'Okay I know I've come outside here to get something but what the hell was it I came outside to get.  There was a time when these little slips of memory were thought of as normal, laughable, and not to be taken too seriously.  Another 'ha-ha' moment to be shared with friends.  That is not the case now.  It's not funny or laughable for me anymore and I find I am not only frustrated but angry for these continuous daily slip ups and memory lapses.  I've always been critical of myself but not as much as I have been recently.  Always something going on with all of us eh...…...

ALWAYS AMAZES ME HOW SEAGULLS CAN FLY AROUND WITHOUT THEIR HEADS ATTACHED AND STILL FIND A POST TO LAND ON

::Memory Lane::  In keeping with the Fort (Camp) Rucker and Mary Kidder Rak homestead theme from two posts ago tonight's Memory Lane takes us back to a day when I posted, We Are At The Ranch...But Our Jeep Is 63 Miles Away.  It was January 10th 2012.  I do have to apologize for some of the underexposed photos in this post but fixed the worst ones and put them into a photo album entitled Fort Rucker and Aunt Jean.  Bear with me on of this folks because some of this 'Google Photo' and Google Album stuff is either a relearning curve for me or something totally new to me.  But we're getting there and putting these 'Memory Lane' and 'Al's Favs' along with 'Foibles and Fumbles' posts together with my blog is helping me each day to keep my age at bay.

SOMETIMES I HAVE A LITTLE DIFFICULTY LOCATING MY COFFEE

::Al's Favs:: Sleep Early Rise by Weatherman.  

GROANER'S CORNER:((  The symphony orchestra was performing Beethoven's Ninth.  In the piece, there's a long passage, about 20 minutes, during which the bass violinists have nothing to do.  Rather than sit around that whole time looking stupid, some bassists decided to sneak offstage and go to the tavern next door for a quick one.  After slamming several beers in quick succession, one of them looked at his watch and said, "Hey! We need to get back!"  "No need to panic," said a fellow bassist. "I thought we might need some extra time, so I tied the last few pages of the conductor's score together with string. It'll take him a few minutes to get it untangled."  A few moments later they staggered back to the concert hall and took their places in the orchestra.  About this time, a member of the audience noticed the conductor seemed a bit edgy and said as much to her companion.  "Well, of course," said her companion. "Don't you see? It's the bottom of the Ninth, the score is tied, and the bassists are loaded."
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Hebert was being examined by the family doctor who, after carefully examining said, "Yes, it is chronic evil which has deprived you of health and happiness."  "Shh!" cautioned Hebert. "For heaven's sake doc, speak softly as the wife is sitting in the next room."
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