IT WAS THE VERY MUCH MOST BEST WEATHER DAY OF THE YEAR SO FAR

 BY GOLLY ITS OUR FIRST FROG IN THE FRONT YARD FROG POND

Diffused sunlight is better than no sunlight and so it was this morning when the furry kid and I ventured out.  Having forgotten a few things in Goderich last week it was back to the harbor town we went.  Our usual routine except this morning, because it was so nice out we parked the Jeep at the end of Rotary Cove and headed off along the shoreline in the doggy walking area.  It's about half a mile to the end and back so it was good to get our legs walking.  And, it was the first morning this year that I felt a real warmth in the air even with a breezy south wind.  Hands down, it turned out to be the very much most nicest weather day of the year so far.  I wasn't long in shedding my heavy leather jacket.  What a wonderful feeling it was inside to be totally enveloped by the morning's air outside.  And, it just got better and better.  Temperature records for this day were broken.

 I DON'T KNOW WHAT THIS EARLY-GROWING CROP IS BUT IT SURE LOOKS GREEN

 DAFFODILS ALONGSIDE THE ROAD ON OUR WAY TO GODERICH

HEY, THERE'S A NEW TUGBOAT IN GODERICH'S HARBOR

 WALKING ALONG THE SHORELINE I NOTICED A ROCK PAINTED BLUE

 SHORELINE RESTORATION CONTINUES

 YOU CAN SEE THE FAINT DOG WALKING PATH IN THE FOREGROUND AND YOU CAN SEE HOW IT GOT WASHED OUT IN THE BACKGROUND 

TTHERE USED TO BE A NARROW WORN PATH THROUGH LONG UNCUT GRASS BEFORE BUT NOW  I SEE THEY ARE MOWING THE WHOLE AREA WHICH MAKES IT MUCH NICER FOR DOG WALKERS AND THAT'S PHEEBS UP THERE ON THERIGH

AT THE HIGH  LAKE WATER LEVELS THREE YEARS AGO THIS WHOLE FOREGROUND WAS UNDER WATER

 LAKE HURON'S LAKE LEVEL AT ONE TIME WAS UP TO THOSE TREES ON THE RIGHT

 A LADY SITS QUIETLY AT THE WATER'S EDGE ENJOYING HER MORNING

 AND I THINK THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN THERMOS OF COFFEE SHE HAD

From the harbor, we slipped up into town and stopped at the Saint Vincent de Paul Thrift Store where we had borrowed some medical aids before my hip surgery.  I had been carrying them around in the back of my Jeep for a couple weeks and this morning we took them back.  Another thing off my checklist.  From there it was a customary stop at Walmart before heading home.  And how nice to be driving with both front windows down today and no heater going.  

A PATCH OF FLOWERS ON A GODERICH LAWN

 THIS ABOUT SAYS IT ALL ABOUT OUR RECORD BREAKING 73F TEMPERATURE TODAY

Home again is was so nice today to have windows and doors open with the day's gentle breezes wafting through the house.  Oh, and I was finally able to wear for the first time this year.......a short sleeve shirt:))))  For anyone with a house and property, there is always a multitude of things to do in the Spring so I spent another three enjoyable three hours or so working on those multitudes.  The front yard frog pond's water level is now topped up and I have the water pump billowing water over the pond's little waterfall.  And, I spotted 3 frogs in the pond already.  I cleaned both bird baths and added fresh water.  I also set out most of our summer lawn ornaments.  Dug up a dozen bricks from an old flowerbed, burnt some trash in the burning barrel, and dug a hole for a new post in the yard.  Oh how I love being outside at this time of year happily working on all the multitudes of groovy stuff.  When the weather's nice that is:)) 

 MY DUG UP AND CLEANED UP DOZEN BRICKS

 I STILL HAVEN'T CLEANED UP THE POND YET....THE LITTLE WATERFALL IS AT THE LEFT

 THERE IS A FROG IN THE BRACKISH WATER

And, somewhere in this afternoon's yard work, Pheebs and I found time to take ourselves for a walk around the Park's pond.  Nice to see the Painted Turtles out sunning themselves again.     

 PAPA, MAMA, AND JUNIOR

We woke up to a cold house this morning and our furnace wasn't running.  No problem, Kelly to the rescue again.  She right away determined that the batteries in the thermostat were dead and quickly replaced them.  We were good to go and soon had a warm house house again.  But here's my problem, suppose it was just me here....what would have happened??  First of all, it might have taken me a couple of days to realize the furnace wasn't working.  Then, knowing it, my solution would have been simple.  I would put on a pair of wooly socks, long underwear, lined pants, a flannelette shirt with a sweater, ear muffs with a winter hat covering my head, and a pair of warm mitts.  I then would have sat here for the next eight months worrying every day about what I was going to do next winter when it got really cold:((

THIS LITTLE FELLOW IS REALLY GETTING A SNOOT FULL

An early start for the Subaru and I Wednesday morning as we head to Sarnia Ontario's Bluewater Hospital.  It is the final 'hip replacement' check with my surgeon, Dr. Anil Garach.  An X-ray will be taken for him to have a look at.  I don't expect any problems.

 A SNAPPY LITTLE THUNDER AND RAIN DRENCED STORM CELL BLEW IN OFF THE LAKE UNEXPECTEDLY AFTER SUPPER SO I JUMPED INTO THE JEEP AND CHASED IT DOWN THE ROAD

 BUT, IT WAS MOVING TOO FAST FOR ME TO CATCH IT AND I ONLY SAW THE REAR END OF IT HEADING EAST TO SMASH UP THE INLAND FOLKS

 A FAINT RAINBOW

Al's Music Box:)) High Noon by Frankie Laine was written by Dimitri Tiomkin and Ned Washington for the 1952 movie of the same name. The song won the Academy Award for the best original song.  However, Laine did not sing the soundtrack song for High Noon, which was sung by Tex Ritter, but Lane's own version (with somewhat altered lyrics, omitting the name of the antagonist, Frank Miller) was the one that became a bigger hit.  Tex Ritter's High Noon from the Movie.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  I don't always go the extra mile but when I do it's because I missed the Exit.

- I can't afford an Ancestry DNA kit to learn about my relatives, so instead I posted online that I had won the lottery.

- With the rise of self-driving vehicles, it's only a matter of time that a country song is written where the guy's truck leaves him. 

- I wanna be the level of rich where I don't get mad at beef jerky prices anymore.

- Guys, I need your help. In the middle of an argument with the wife she told me that I was right…What the hell do I do next?

Shirts I own....543.  Shirts I wear....6.  Shirts I'm willing to get rid of ....0.

- Just had my first UFO experience.  Told the wife her cooking was terrible.  Flying saucers everywhere.

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THANKS TO KELLY FOR GETTING US A COUPLE PAIRS OF LUNAR ECLIPSE GLASSES

 NOT THE USUAL ECLIPSE PHOTO BUT IT IS A QUICK SHOT OF THE SUN DURING THE ECLIPSE

'Oh-Oh', it was a solid cloud cover we woke up to this morning and I knew that was not going to bode well for this afternoon's total Moon eclipse if it didn't clear up.

 WHILE VIEWING THE ECLIPSE IN OUR FRONT YARD THIS LITTLE BUNNY CAME RIGHT UP TO MY CHAIR TO ASK ME WHAT I WAS LOOKING AT

Luckily, our skies cleared by early afternoon and our temps shot up to 67F. and that had me outside and busy in our front yard for a few hours.  Of course, I have a lot of aches and pains going on but that is normal for me every year at this time with the Spring clean-up.  No aches or pain coming from my hip though.  It's mainly my lower back and legs as per usual.  Thanks to Kelly for getting us a couple pairs of lunar eclipse glasses that made it possible to watch the eclipse this afternoon.  It wasn't complete totality here (91.1%) but it was close with just a small sliver of sunlight on the west side.  Kelly watched it from our front deck and I watched it from a gravity chair in our front yard.  For me, I enjoyed how the stillness in the air descended upon our front yard hushing all the birds and making the afternoon surreal.    

 WATCHING THE LUNAR ECLIPSE IN IT'S EARLY PHASE

 FITTING THE SUN BLOCKER GLASSES OVER MY REGULAR GLASSES

 PHEEBS WASN'T INTERESTED IN PUTTING ON A PAIR OF GLASSES

With my mood in a downward spiral during last week's cold, drab, and dreary weather I decided to continue the cheering-up of my mind through my reading.  Again, I wanted to awaken that young boy in me and have that fella once again be a part of other young people's and children's happy games and adventures.  So, I chose another book from Prince Edward Island's Lucy Maude Montgomery.  The Story Girl let my imagination romp and play through the fictional pages with Felix, Peter, Felicity, Sara Ray, Cecily, Dan, Beverly, and the Story Girl herself, Sara Stanley.  I finished the book today and haven't decided on my next read yet but in keeping with my present state of mind I'm sure it will once again be something light and breezy, flecked with humor, and of course, appealing to the much younger boy in me.  I liked my childhood, and in these times of stress, and craziness in the world, I let my mind playfully wander back to those happier days through authors and stories from people like Lucy Maude Montgomery.  Here is an example of the scenic pictures she continues to paint in my mind with each one of her books. "November dreamed that it was May.  The air was soft and mellow, with leafless beeches on the western hill.  The sere stubble fields brooded in glamour, and the sky was pearly blue.  The leaves were still thick on the apple trees, though they were russet hued, and the after-growth of grass was richly green, unharmed as yet by the nipping frost of previous nights.  The wind made a sweet, drowsy murmur in the boughs, as of bees among the apple blossoms." 

 SO NICE TO SEE SUNSHINE AND WARMER TEMPERATURES TEASING MORE AND MORE PLANTS OUT OF WINTER'S COLD GROUND

Al's Music Box:)) A Teenager In Love is a song written by Doc Pomus and partner Mort Shuman. It was originally recorded by Dion and the Belmonts, and released in March 1959.  It was commissioned byLaurie Records, originally intended for the doo-wop singing group The Mystics. Laurie Records, however, gave the song to Dion & The Belmonts instead to record, and Pomus and Shuman then quickly wrote another song, "Hushabye" for the Mystics. Dion initially thought the song sounded "wimpy", but then realized the sound the song has when the Belmonts started singing "ooh-wah" at the start of the song. "A Teenager in Love" was released with "I've Cried Before" on its B-side in April 1959. 

 A FRONT YARD ORNAMENT AND IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY YOU WILL SEE FACES IN SOME OF THOSE GLASS BEADS

GROANER'S CORNER:(( It was autumn, and the Indians on the remote reservation asked their new Chief if the winter was going to be cold or mild. Since he was an Indian Chief in a modern society, he had never been taught the old secrets, and when he looked at the sky, he couldn't tell what the weather was going to be. Nevertheless, to be on the safe side,he replied to his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect wood to be prepared.  But also being a practical leader, after several days he got an idea.He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked,  "Is the coming winter going to be cold?"  "It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold indeed," the Meteorologist at the weather service responded.  So the Chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more wood in order to be prepared.  One week later he called the National Weather Service again."Is it going to be a very cold winter?" he asked.  "Yes," the man at National Weather Service again replied,"it's going to be a very cold winter."  The Chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of wood they could find.  Two weeks later he called the National Weather Service again. "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?"  "Absolutely," the man replied. "It looks like it's going to be one of the coldest winters ever."  "How can you be so sure?" the Chief asked.  The weatherman replied, "The Indians are collecting firewood like crazy".

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- Why did the dude only smell good on the right side? He didn't know where to buy Left Guard!

- It's scary when you start making the same noises as your coffee maker.

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At school one morning the teacher asked little Johnny what he had for breakfast. Little Johnny said, well, on my way to school I came across this Apple tree, so I climbed up there and started eating apples. I guess I eat about six, said little Johnny. No, said the teacher, it’s ate! Little Johnny said well it could've been eight I don't remember.

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WE MAY GET TO SEE THE ECLIPSE OR WE MAY NOT

 THE EYE OF THE TURTLE IS UPON ME

We're on a roll.  Two sunny mornings in a row.  'Wow':))  My computer's weather station said it was only 27F when we got up.  Kelly's weather station said it was 32F.  I think I will switch to her weather station.  I like the weather better over there.

BLUE BLUE BLUE

 BLUE SKY IN THE WATER

 THE BELL TOWER OF AN OLD SCHOOL HOUSE

IF I LIVED IN THE COUNTRY I WOULD LIKE AN OLD STONE BUILDING LIKE THIS ON THE PROPERTY

With no wind this morning Pheebs and I headed out to our country road spot and for the first time since maybe last year we briskly walked our quarter mile up the gravel road and back.  I didn't need my cane and my hip felt fine.  Pheebs was happy to be out there again she was racing around like a little crazy horse.  You would have thought she was a young puppy dog.

OUR HALF-MILE WALKING SPOT

After our walk, with Pheebs window down and fine instrumental music beamed in from Sirius Satellite Radio, we dusted up a few country roads, soaked up Spring's scenery, and eventually headed home.

SOON THIS GRAY-BROWN FOREST WILL BE A GREEN GREEN AND GREEN FOREST

 AN OLD TRACTOR TIRE AND SOME TEASELS

THIS AGED DIESEL ENGINE IS WAITING FOR A GOOD SET OF STABLE WHEELS TO COME AND TAKE IT FOR A DRIVE

 TWO BLURRY WILD TURKEY PHOTOS BUT NOTICE THE COLORS ON THESE GUYS

THIS PHOTO OF A STUMP IS A MUCH CROPPED SECTION OF A MUCH LARGER PHOTO AND WHAT MY IMAGINATION SEES HERE IS A MAMMOTH PYTHON ON THE LEFT WITH JAWS AGAPE ABOUT TO BITE THE SNOUT OF A NEEDLE NOSE CROCODILE AND.....DID YOU NOTICE THE 'REAL' CANADA GOOSE??  SHE MUST HAVE A NEST THERE IN THAT OLD STUMP 

Feeling good, I was soon back outside loading up the wheelbarrow with all our usual old lawn ornaments.  I plan to make a few more minor changes to our front yard so I didn't set any yard stuff in place.  So, what are the changes??  Darned if I know but I'm sure I will think of something shortly:))

On our afternoon walk over around the Park's pond, Pheebs and I saw half a dozen painted turtles, about thirty goldfish, and one Canada Goose.

With bright sunshine beaming through our sunroom windows this afternoon it got up to 84F and I had to fire up my floor fan to cool myself down.  For me, 84F is a little much.

Checking the weather for Monday it's calling for sun and cloud so we may get to see the eclipse or we may not.  Thanks to Kelly, and speedy Amazon, we did have a pair of proper glasses arrive early this afternoon.  And no, I don't have any interest in trying to photograph the event.  There will be plenty of fine photos on the internet I'm sure.      

Al's Music Box:)) Canadian Sunset is a popular song with music by jazz pianist Eddie Heywood and lyrics by Norman Gimbel.  An instrumental version by Heywood and Hugo Winterhalter reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 7 on the R&B chart in 1956. 

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A farmer purchases an old, run-down, abandoned farm with plans to turn it into a thriving enterprise. The fields are grown over with weeds, the farmhouse is falling apart, and the fences are collapsing all around.  During his first day of work, the town preacher stops by to bless the man's work, saying, "May you and God work together to make this the farm of your dreams!"  A few months later, the preacher stops by again to call on the farmer. Lo and behold, it's like a completely different place--the farmhouse is completely rebuilt and in excellent condition, there are plenty of cattle and other livestock happily munching on feed in well-fenced pens, and the fields are filled with crops planted in neat rows.  "Amazing!" the preacher says. "Look what God and you have accomplished together!"  "Yes, reverend," says the farmer, "but remember what the farm was like when God was working it alone!"

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- Sometimes someone unexpected comes into your life out of nowhere, makes your heart race, and changes you forever.  We call those people cops.

- My luck is like a bald guy who just won a comb.

- When one door closes and another door opens, it means you are probably in prison.

- Age 60 might be the new 40 but 9 p.m. is now the new midnight.

The older I get, the earlier it gets late.

When I say 'the other day' I could be referring to any time between yesterday and fifteen years ago.

- If you enjoy yelling "What?" from the other room?  Then marriage might be for you.

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