A WALK IN THE BANNOCKBURN CONSERVATION AREA TODAY

 SPRINGTIME ON A FOREST FLOOR 

With sunshine and slowly rising temperatures I wasn't long in getting myself outside and on the end of my lawn rake and pitchfork.  Spent another couple of enjoyable hours on my Spring clean-up project.  More broken pine branches picked up, and more pine needles and leaves raked up.  Because of the severe winter storms this season, the annual Spring clean-up is bigger than usual.

HEADING OUT ON OUR AFTERNOON WALK 

 CREEKS IN THE AREA WERE FAST FLOWING AND OVER THEIR BANKS

 WOODSY TAKING PICS WITH HER PHONE

Early this afternoon with Pheebs in the front seat and Woodsy in the back seat we headed off to the Bannockburn Conservation Area for an early Spring walk on the boardwalk.  Pheebs did well, although she did not race around all over the place smelling things like she once did.

 LOTS OF FOREST SMELLS FOR PHEEBS

 UNABLE TO JUMP BACK UP ONTO THE BOARDWALK I HAD TO SLIP DOWN AND LIFT HER BACK UP

 THIS OLD STAIRWAY LEADS UP TO A  BEAUTIFUL OLD HARDWOOD FOREST WITH A MEANDERING SCENIC LOOP TRAIL 

WOODSY HEADS UP THE STEPS TO HAVE A LOOK AT THE HARDWOOD FOREST

 PHEEBS WANTED TO FOLLOW BUT I STAYED BACK WITH HER FIGURING CLIMB  WOULD BE TOO HARD ON HER

From Bannockburn, we headed over to Hensall Ontario and stopped at a well-known place called, Metzger Meats.  From there with a few packages of sausage in hand it was back home we went.  I was in need of a good sit down and a rest.  Happens to me every Spring when I reactivate muscles I haven't used for the past 5 months.  It's a good feeling, I welcome it, and I'm not complaining:))   

 FAST WATER FLOWING UNDERNEATH THE BOARDWALK

 MOTHER NATURE'S LOOP

 WHILE TAKING A PICTURE OF THE FAST-FLOWING WATER FROM THE BOARDWALK, A RARE HURON COUNTY RIVER SHARK SUDDENLY APPEARED OUT OF THE WATER 

 WITH A HANDFUL OF CORN,  LORRAINE (WOODSY) GETS VERY CLOSE TO ONE OF OUR FRONT-YARD BUNNIES LATER THIS AFTERNOON

Al's Music Box:))  A Fool Such As I is a popular song written by Bill Trader and published in 1952. The recording by Elvis Presley was a platinum record. Initially released as B-side to "I Need Your Love tonight ", it reached number one in the UK as an A-side single. Presley's recording reached number two in the United States (stalled behind the Fleetwoods' "Come Softly to Me.The song  was recorded on June 10, 1958, at RCA's Studio B, Nashville, while Presley was on leave from the Army. The recording featured guitar by Hank Garland, Chet Atkins, bass by Bob Moore, drums by D.J. Fontana and Buddy Harman and piano by Floyd Cramer and backing vocal by the Jordanaires, with the bass voice provided by, Ray Walker.  It reached number sixteen on the R&B charts.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Did You Ever Wonder About The Following::

- Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens our skin?
- Why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?
- Why don't you ever see the headline "Psychic Wins Lottery"?
- Why is "abbreviated" such a long word?
- Why is it that doctors call what they do "practice"?
- Why is it that to stop Microsoft Windows, you have to click on "Start"?
- Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons?
- Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?
-Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour?
-Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?
-When dog food has new and improved taste, who tests it?
- Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes!!!!!!!?
-Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections?
- You know that indestructible black box that is used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of that stuff?
-Why don't sheep shrink when it rains?
-Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together?
-If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?
-If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?

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- You know what really makes me throw up?  A dartboard on a ceiling.

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Doctor: "I've got some bad news and some really bad news. The bad news is you only have a week to live."  

Patient: "What could be worse news than that?"

Doctor: "I've been trying to contact you for the last 6 days."

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Al's Doggy World

Meanings::

Kelly's Corner

 KELLY TALKING TO OUR GOOD BAYFIELD FRIENDS GORD AND KATHY WEST OF YUMA ARIZONA WHILE PHEEBS HAS HERSELF A GOOD ROLL IN THE DESERT DUST

Al's Art Gallery

TODAY I PUT ALL THE LITTLE GUYS INTO OUR FRONT YARD FROG POND

 A PAIR OF CANADA GEESE ON OUR PARK'S POND THIS AFTERNOON AS SEEN THROUGH JETS OF WATER

Our power flipped off and on sometime in the night so I had clocks and light timers to reset again.  No car ride for Pheebs and I this morning because I knew the country roads would be a quagmire after yesterday's heavy rains.  Instead, I hit the ground running hoping to get the remainder of my paths raked up on this sunny and pleasant 54F day.  Well, that was not to be.  Wednesday's high winds, rain, freezing rain, and ice did a lot of damage to the pine trees.  There were broken branches down everywhere with some of them up against neighbor Monica's house.  Luckily, none required a chainsaw but I did have to use my Swede saw to cut some of the branches up to move them.  I stacked up more piles of broken branches by the side of the road.  Great exercise I told myself and of course I was right.  Felt good to be outside in the fresh air just simply doing something on a nice Spring day.  Bring er on I thought to myself with a smile on my face as I gave the retreating old Man Winter another swift kick to the backside!!  Okay, I could have said ass but thought the better of it:))

MY BROKEN PINE BRANCH PILES ARE GROWING BIGGER

 I HAD INTENDED TO RAKE THIS PATHWAY THIS MORNING BUT THERE WAS TOO MUCH DEBRIS ON IT

BROKEN BRANCHES UP AGAINST NEIGHBOR MONICA'S HOUSE THIS MORNING NEEDED MY ATTENTION

 OUR SINGLE CROCUS FLOWER HAS FINALLY BLOOMED

Having cleaned the front yard frog pond a couple days ago and with today's sunshine, I thought it would be a perfect time to get all my little rubber ducks out of their cardboard box where they had been since last December.  When Kelly was so sick near the end I bought the little yellow ducks at Walmart one day to cheer myself up.  Today, I put all the little guys into our front yard frog pond which was my original idea.

THE GUYS WERE VERY HAPPY TO GET OUT OF THE CARDBOARD BOX AND INTO THE POND TODAY

ALL TEN OF THEM IN THE POND

 THEY SEEMED A LITTLE DISORIENTED AT FIRST

 OH-OH, THEY'VE SPLIT INTO TWO SOCIAL GROUPS

 BUT, I THINK THEY ARE TALKING OVER THEIR DIFFERENCES

 OH YAY, THEY HAVE RESOLVED THEIR DIFFERENCES AND ARE ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY AGAIN

My haircut at the Bayfield Village Clippers went well so hopefully I won't need another haircut for the next 6 months.  It sure felt cold on my newly shaved bald head when I stepped outside.  Okay, okay, a belated 'April Fools' eh:))  Home again, I continued with the storm damage clean-up mostly across the road, and after a mid-afternoon sit-down coffee break, Pheebs and I headed off for a walk around the Park's pond with a necessary stop at the Rest-a-Bit' bench.  Even heard some 'Peeper' frogs along the way.  Our sunshine stayed for most of the day and how nice it was to throw the doors and windows open to the fresh Spring breeze wafting its way through the house.  I don't want to depress myself by telling you about the disappointing 14-day weather forecast coming up....so I won't.  But, here's the good news....Woodsy rolled in late this afternoon:))))))

 YESTERDAY'S RAIN HAS SWOLLEN THE POND AND THE BROWN CHOCOLATE MILK LOOK IS BECAUSE OF SOIL WASHED OFF A FARMER'S FIELDS EAST OF THE PARK

 NICE TO SEE THE PARK'S WATER FOUNTAIN UP AND RUNNING FOR ANOTHER SEASON

 A PAIR OF CANADA GEESE KEEPING A LOW PROFILE ON THE OPPOSITE BANK HOPING PHEEBS AND I WON'T SEE THEM

 TOO LATE, THERE THEY GO INTO THE WATER

 LOOKING AT THE GEESE THROUGH THE PARK'S WATERFALL

 AND THERE SHE IS......MY VERY MUCH MOST FAVORITIST GIRL:))))

Al's Music Box:))  Don't Forbid Me by Pat Boone is a popular song written by Charles Singleton.  Among Singleton's huge number of compositions was "Trying to Get to You", which had previously been recorded by Elvis Presley at Sun Records. In 1957, "Don't Forbid Me" was a number 1 hit for Pat Boone, and also peaked at number 10 on the Most Played R&B in Juke Boxes chart.  Pat Boone's recording and 1957 hit record though came with a little luck. The demo was first sent to Elvis Presley, who revealed this during the Million Dollar Quartet jam session in December 1956. As he recalled, "Have you heard Pat Boone's new record, called 'Don't Forbid Me'? It was written for me, it was sent to me, it stayed over at my house for ages, man I never did even see it. Too much junk around." Presley then took the acoustic guitar he was playing and ran down a couple of terrific versions by himself to demonstrate to the others how he might have done it. It would remain lost with the other Sun Records tapes of that magical session for the next 24 years.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Dumb Instructions

- “Warning: May contain nuts.” — On a package of peanuts.
- “Do not eat.” — On a slip of paper in a stereo box, referring to the styrofoam packing.

- “Warning: Misuse may cause injury or death.” — Stamped on the metal barrel of a .22 calibre rifle.

- “Turn off motor before using this product.” — On the packaging for a chain saw file, used to sharpen the cutting teeth on the chain.
- “Not to be used as a personal flotation device.” — On a 6×10 inch inflatable picture frame.
- “Do not put in mouth.” — On a box of bottle rockets.
- “Please remove before driving.” — On the back of a cardboard windshield (for keeping the car from getting too hot when parked).
- “Remove plastic before eating.” — On the wrapper of a Fruit Roll-Up snack.
- “Not dishwasher safe.” — On a remote control for a TV.
- “For lifting purposes only.” — On the box for a car jack.
- “Do not put lit candles on phone.” — On the instructions for a cordless phone.
- “Warning! This is not underwear! Do not attempt to put in pants.” — On the packaging for a wristwatch.
- “Do not recharge, put in backwards, or use.” — On a battery.

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- I built a model of Mount Everest.  My son asked, “Is it to scale?”  I replied, “No... it’s to look at.”

- I dont have attitude, I've got a personality you can't handle.

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A passerby noticed a couple of city workers working along the city sidewalks. The man was quite impressed with their hard work, but he couldn't understand what they were doing.  Finally, he approached the workers and asked, "I appreciate how hard you're both working, but what the heck are you doing?  It seems that one of you digs a hole, and then the other guy immediately fills it back up again.   One of the city workers explained, "The third guy who plants the trees is off sick today."

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Al'sDoggy World

Meanings::

Kelly's Corner

 RETURNING FROM THE SOUTHWEST EACH YEAR WE ALWAYS STOPPED IN FOREST ONTARIO FOR A LAST COFFEE BEFORE ARRIVING HOME....THIS WAS MARCH 6TH, 2017

Al's Art Gallery