COULDN'T DO AN AFTERNOON WALK TODAY

GODERICH BOARDWALKERS WERE DRESSED WARMLY THIS MORNING ALONGSIDE THE COLD WATERS OF LAKE HURON

A  big bright sunny day morning saw Pheebs and I headed to Goderich.  Gas, coffee to go, and down to the harbor.  Saw a large ship maneuvering in the inner harbor.  It was basically making a U-turn to get saddled up to the grain dock.  This ship was different from the usual fare of vessels in the Goderich harbor.  It had two tall structures on its main deck and when I went to the ship's website for an explanation it showed an older photo of the Blair McKeil without those odd tall structures.  I had never seen this ship in the harbor before.  

 TURNING AROUND IN GODERICH'S INNER HARBOR AND YEP, THAT'S OUR JEEP LIBERTY WITH PHEEBS INSIDE HOLDING DOWN THE FORT

 THEY DO THIS BY USING THEIR BOW AND STERN THRUSTERS

 I FIGURE THAT TALL THING MUST BE SOME KIND OF LIFTING DEVICE

 I WONDER IF THAT IS THE CAPTAIN KEEPING A CLOSE EYE ON THE TURN

 A CREW MEMBER ACTS AS LOOKOUT AS THE SHIP MANEUVERS TOWARDS THE GODERICH GRAIN TERMINAL

 PAUSING FOR A CHAT ALONG THE BOARDWALK BETWEEN THE HARBOR AND ROTARY COVE

 IT'S OBVIOUS THAT DOGGY HAS NO INTEREST IN THE CONVERSATION

WORKERS PREPARING FLOWER BEDS FOR THE SEASON

 TAKING A BREAK ON A CHILLY MORNING IN THE HARBOR

A drive out to Rotary Cove netted me a few more pictures.  Our next stop was Walmart for a few things and then it was off for home we went snapping a few more pics along the way.

 ROADSIDE TULIPS ON OUR WAY HOME

 LILAC TREES ARE BEGINNING TO BLOOM

 FARMERS ARE BUSY

It was an afternoon of puttering in the front yard doing a little bit of this and a little bit of that.  Moved some rocks around and relocated some stuff.  My right leg (not my hip) was giving me a hard time so I finally had to give up my puttering and head inside to give my leg a rest.  Couldn't do an afternoon walk today:((

 OUR FERNS ARE ALREADY NEARLY FOUR FEET TALL

If anyone in Goderich is missing a black and white pussy cat, Pheebs and saw one with a collar with a couple tinkle bells attached at 9:30 this morning.  It was at the foot of the bluffs in the large gravel parking lot where the old train station was once located in the harbor area.  I took some photos of it but it was wary of Pheebs.

Al's Music Box:)) You Never Can Tell  I like this version of the song by a young Emmy Lou Harris.  "You Never Can Tell", also known as "C'est La Vie" or "Teenage Wedding".   It is a song written by Chuck Berry in the early 1960s.  The song tells about the wedding of two teenagers and their lifestyle afterward. Living in a modest apartment furnished with items bought on sale at Sears, Roebuck, and Co., including a Coolerator brand refrigerator, the young man finds work and they begin to enjoy relative prosperity. Eventually, they purchase a "souped-up jitney" (an automobile modified for high performance) and travel to New Orleans, where their wedding had taken place, to celebrate their anniversary. Each verse ends with the refrain, "C'est La Vie," say the old folks, 'it goes to show you never can tell.'" The piano melody was influenced by Mitchell Torok's 1953 hit "Caribbean".

 OUR FRONT YARD JUNGLE IS QUICKLY TAKING SHAPE FOR ANOTHER SEASON

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A musical director was having a lot of trouble with one drummer. He talked and talked and talked with the drummer, but his performance simply didn't improve.  Finally, before the whole orchestra, he said, "When a musician just can't handle his instrument and doesn't improve when given help, they take away the instrument, and give him two sticks, and make him a drummer."  A stage whisper was heard from the percussion section: "And if he can't handle even that, they take away one of his sticks and make him a conductor."

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- She said she was approaching forty, and I couldn't help wondering from what direction

Q: What is the definition of diplomacy?
A: The ability to tell a person to go to hell in such a way that they look forward to the trip.

Q: What happens when a Buddhist becomes totally absorbed with the computer he is working with?
A: He enters Nerdvana.

- Worry is interest paid on trouble before it is due.

- If the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then lefties are the only ones in their right mind.

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A tour bus load full of noisy tourists arrives at Runnymede, England.  They gather around the guide who says, "This is the spot where the barons forced King John to sign the Magna Carta."  A man pushing his way to the front of the crowd asks, "When did that happen?"  "1215," answers the guide.
The man looks at his watch and says, "Shoot! Just missed it by a half hour!"

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AND WITH EACH PASSING YEAR SPRING BECOMES MORE PRECIOUS THAN EVER

 WE HAD A TOUCH OF FOG ROLL IN OFF LAKE HURON THIS MORNING

Woke up to an overcast dull and dreary-looking Sunday morning. (finished it in sunshine) The kind of morning that made me want to sink deeper into my recliner, close my eyes, and dream of better days gone by.  However, it was what it was and Pheebs and I were soon up and out the door.  After she and Kelly had had their daily morning walk of course.  Well, at least it wasn't raining and there wasn't six inches of snow on the ground.

 THE MORNING STARTED OUT CLEAR

 OLD LONESOME

 A WILD TURKEY MAKES IT'S WAY ACROSS A FARMER'S FIELD

 TWO VERY DISTANT HORSES

 A MISTY DRIZZLE SETTLES IN

With a slight misty drizzle in the air, we slowly made our way around a few country roads northeast of our Park.  The mist eventually turned into a rolling fog and I saw a few cars driving with headlights on.  When a large land mass sits right next to a large water mass like Lake Huron, and with temperature fluctuations in the Spring and Fall, fog can quickly materialize along the shoreline with the prevailing northwesterly winds moving it slowly inland.  Pheebs and I were in the clear and wandering southward when I could see the fog bank approaching across a field on our right hand side.  It tumbled closer, over the fence, up the ditch and gently engulfed us.  And then, it just as quickly dissipated.  I don't think I've ever physically seen a moving fog bank like that before.  How nice I thought, to experience something different for a change.   Now, if I could just spot one of those darned elusive UFOs and get some clear pictures of it!!

 'I THINK THERE'S FOG HEADING OUR WAY DAD'

Kelly had mentioned yesterday about driving a short 10 miles to the Farmers Dell in Brucefield.  She had a hankering for Fish Tacos but by the time we planned to go she wasn't feeling well so we put if off.  A better day today so away the three of us went.  I'm not big on Tacos or fish so it was a hamburger with the works and a small fries for me.  We followed our lunch up with two butter pecan ice cream cones.  Everything was good but it was the ice cream I liked the best.  I liked it enough that I didn't even drip any on my shirt or pants.  Very unusual indeed.   

 THAT'S OUR WHITE CAR AT THE FARMER'S DELL

 KELLY ORDERS US UP SOME GRUB

 AND HERE SHE COMES NOW

 'I SMELL FOOD DAD'

 'NOT FAIR DAD, MOM'S MOT SHARING'

 IT'S QUITE AND EXTENSIVE MENU THEY HAVE HERE AT THE FARMERS DELL

 AND LOOK AT THAT, THE FARMER'S DELL HAS BEEN HERE SINCE 1956

AND I ALMOST FORGOT TO INCLUDE THIS PHOTO OF MY BUTTER PECAN CONE WHICH WAS BIGGER THAN THIS UNTIL I GOT MY FACE INTO IT 

 HERE COMES THE ICE CREAM

Home again and feeling a tad tired, I climbed into my sunroom recliner with the intention of reading for a while.  It was 3 p.m. and I never even got the cover open.  Somehow the clock jumped ahead to shortly after 5 p.m. and Pheebs woke me up by bumping against my chair wanting to get me up and out for an afternoon walk.  And so, minutes later, away we went over to and around the Park's pond.  It turned out to be a five-turtle walk but I didn't take any photos.  Sometimes I  just like to go for a brisker walk-walk instead of my usual slower camera walk.  Sure is nice to be outside on these invigorating and slightly cooler Spring days.  I think we got up to 57 today.  A pleasant change from Saturday's heat and humidity.    

 THIS LOVELY FARM PROPERTY IS OUR PARK'S CLOSEST NEIGHBOR 

There is something else about Spring that makes it so special and that is the sounds of Spring.  A couple of days ago working in the front yard I was serenaded by a whole host of Red Winged Blackbirds.   I don't know if they were having some kind of a feathered convention or not, but there was a lot of them and how great it was to hear their calls.  Also, at night all we have to do is open our door to hear the chorus of Peeper Frogs as well as the rattling hockey whistle sounds of Tree Frogs.  And the Crows of course are always a sound of early Spring.  Add to the mix, Cardinals, Robins, Blue Jays, Woodpeckers, and the twittering and tweeting of so many other small birds.  The honking of Canada Geese overhead is almost a daily thing here in the Spring.  After the dead silence of winter months, it is electrifying to hear so many songbirds in the trees now.  It is the birds that bring back life and hope to so many of us who struggle through the dregs of the long winter months.  Yes indeed, Spring is truly in the air and with each passing year it becomes more precious than ever:)) 

 A TOUCH OUT OF FOCUS BUT I HAVE INCLUDED IT ANYWAY

 AND KUDOS TO OUR PARK'S HARD-WORKING  VOLUNTEER GROUP WHO GO OUT OF THEIR WAY TO KEEP OUR PARK LOOKING SO GREAT

A Blast From Our Past: You Are So Big And I Am So Small May 4th, 2009.  Facebook threw me this memory today. 

Al's Music Box:)) Yesterday Once More was written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis, is a hit song by the Carpenters from their 1973 album Now & then. Thematically the song concerns reminiscing about songs of a generation gone by. It segues into a long medley, consisting of eight covers of 1960s tunes incorporated into a faux oldies radio program. The work takes up the entire B-side of the album.  The single version of the song peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was kept from the number 1 spot by "Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown" by Jim Croce. It was the duo's fifth number-two hit and makes them the act with the second-most number-two hits on the chart behind Madonna. The song also peaked at number 1 on the easy listening chart, becoming their eighth number 1 on that chart in four years.  It is the Carpenters' biggest-selling record worldwide and their best-selling single in the UK, peaking at number 2.  Richard Carpenter stated, in a Japanese documentary, that it was his favorite of all the songs that he had written. He has performed an instrumental version at concerts.  According to Cash Box, on June 2, 1973, "Yesterday Once More" was the highest-debuting single at No. 71. By August 4, it had reached No. 1.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A teacher was giving a lesson on the circulation of the blood. Trying to make the matter clearer, he said: “Now, students, if I stood on my head the blood, as you know, would run into it, and I should turn red in the face.”  “Yes, sir,” the boys said.  “Then why is it that while I am standing upright in the ordinary position the blood doesn't run into my feet?”  A little fellow shouted, “‘It's because yer feet ain't empty.”

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- Why are goldfish orange?  The water makes them rusty!

- Who held the baby octopus for ransom?
Squidnappers!

- What game do fish like playing the most?  Name that tuna!

- What is a dolphin's favorite TV show?  Whale of fortune!

- If electricity comes from electrons... does that mean that morality comes from morons?

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The young boy protested vigorously when his mother asked him to take his little sister along fishing. “The last time she came,” he objected, “I didn’t catch a single fish.” “I’ll talk to her,” his mother said, “and I promise this time she won’t make any noise.”  “It wasn’t the noise, Mom,” the boy replied. “She ate all my bait.”
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