AUNT JEAN IS FINALLY IN HER NEW ROOM:))))

 AUNT JEAN IS IN HER NEW ROOM:))))

It was a nice Saturday morning to be out and about.  Not too hot, not too cold.  Cool and warm always works for me.  Pheebs and I took a drive around our Park before heading out this morning.

 I DON'T KNOW WHAT THESE LOG PILES ARE EATING AT OUR PARK'S RECYCLE AREA BUT THEY SURE ARE GROWING FAST

 A LAZY SATURDAY MORNING FOR THESE PARK RESIDENTS

Slipping into Bayfield for a drive around the harbor and beach area we followed that up with a cruise along Bayfield's main street.  From there we slipped out southeast of the village to the Linwood Wildlife area, parked the car, and got our legs out for a walk.  It was mainly cloudy but skies were quickly clearing.  It is always so quiet and peaceful at this spot.  Never once over the years have we ever encountered another humanoid here.  Is it any wonder it's one of our favorite spots for a short serene walk.  

 A LATE MORNING START FOR THIS BAYFIELD TUG MANEUVERING IN THE BAYFIELD RIVER

 HEADING OUT FOR LAKE HURON'S CALM WATERS

 OUT FOR A MORNING JAUNT ON THE RIVER

 IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR FOR THESE KINDS OF SIGNS

 HOSING DOWN THE BOAT DECK

 A LONE PICNIC TABLE ON BAYFIELD'S BEACH AWAITS A FAMILY OF BEACH LOVING PICNICKERS

 MORNING COFFEE ON BAYFIELD'S MAIN STREET

Home again, I did some outside puttering making a point to stay in the shade and not move too fast or do anything strenuous because of the building humidity.  I used the leaf blower to blow tree debris and droppings off the front porch and deck and I raked up some pine needles in the backyard.  With that done, and feeling tired, I headed inside.  

 I'M VERY SATISFIED WITH SUBIE'S NEW TIRES SO FAR

This weekend was the Zurich Bean Festival and that always means one thing in this world of mine.  Craig Wilker, a long-time hometown (Tavistock) friend of mine would be dropping around for his annual visit.  Craig likes to head over from Kitchener to Zurich and stock up on a load of beans each year.  There are a few other Tavistockians in this area so Craig makes his rounds to see everyone.  One of the other Tavistock lads is Ken Seyler who for years with his wife Arlene, owned and operated Zurichs main grocery store and Supermarket.  Craig and I generally reminisce about old times and catch up with all the latest happenings in our lives.  Both Craig and I a few years back, were battling prostrate cancer at about the same time.  His treatment, as well as mine, was successful so we always compare notes on how we're doing.

 AT THE LINWOOD WILDLIFE AREA

 PHEEBS MAKES HER WAY UP A SLIGHT GRADE

 APPLE LANE

 THIS PATH LEADS TO THE PROPERTY OWNER'S FARM

Kelly's weight continues to drop and she weighed in this morning at one hundred pounds.  Tiredness has been bothering her as well as the itching.  I don't know how she does it some days but she does it...one day at a time.  Her next hospital appointment at London's University Hospital will be Sept. 6th for an endoscopy followed four days later by another stress test and a general meeting about her liver condition, treatment, and possible liver transplant.

 CLEARING SKIES OVER A CORNFIELD

 ACRES AND ACRES OF CORN STALKS

 PASSED THIS GROUP OF BICYCLERS ON OUR WAY HOME THIS MORNING

Talked to a happy Aunt Jean last night as she relaxed in her brand-new bigger and more spacious room.  With the help of Sunnyside Village staff she moved in last Tuesday and is the room's first official occupant.  The following day her good friends Pat and Debbie were there to help her with the smaller things.  Needless to say, she is quite pleased with her new digs.  Her appetite has returned to normal and she was off to play Bingo this morning at eleven.  Friends of Aunt Jean's (Joanne & Dave) also came over to help with relocating some furniture and hang some pictures for her yesterday and Joanne took some pictures which I have included.  A big thanks to Joanne for sending us the photos.  And, a side note...When we twice visited Jean in Florida a few years ago with our big Class A Motorhome it was at Joanne and Dave's place that we stayed.  They generously let us park the Big E out behind their modern barn.  Dave even quickly hustled us up a 50 amp electrical service so that we could run our rig's air conditioner.  Pretty darn nice folks I'd say and they have been so helpful and caring with Jean:))      

 JEAN IN HER FAVORITE GLIDER CHAIR

 SHE EVEN GOT A BIGGER TELEVISION IN THE DEAL AND THAT AUTOMATIC RECLINER ON THE LEFT

 SHE REALLY LIKES THE BROWN WALL TILES IN HER NEW SHOWER

 JEAN'S GOOD FRIEND JOANNE

 AND HER GOOD FRIEND DAVE 

Al's Music Box:)) Incense and Peppermints is a 1967 song by the American psychedelic rock Strawberry Alarm Clock. The song is officially credited as having been written by John S. Carter and Tim Gilbert, although it was based on an instrumental idea by band members Mark Weitz and Ed King.  It was released as a single in May 1967 by Uni Records. The song was featured in the film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery and the television series Daisy    Jones and the Six. During the recording sessions for "Incense and Peppermints," the band members expressed a dislike for the song's lyrics, which John S. Carter had written using a rhyming dictionary so the lead vocals were sung by a friend of the band, Greg Munford, who was present at the recording session. The regular vocalists in the band were relegated to providing background and harmony vocals on the record.  Band members Mark Weitz and Ed King were both denied songwriting credits by producer Frank Slay despite the fact that they contributed to the song.  The songwriting credits instead went to Carter and his songwriting partner Tim Gilbert, despite the latter not participating in the song's writing. King would go on to greater fame as a member of the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd.  The single earned a gold disc from the RIAA on December 7 for sales of one million copies.

 THERE'S AUNT JEAN WAVING...'THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR THINKING OF ME'

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A few signs your Amish teen is in trouble...

- Sometimes stays in bed until after 5 a.m.

- His name is Jebediah, but he goes by 'Jeb Daddy.'

- Uses slang expression, 'Talk to the hand, 'cause the beard ain't listening.'

- Was recently pulled over for driving under the influence of cottage cheese.

- He's wearing his big black hat backward.

- You come upon his secret stash of colored socks.

- Defiantly says, 'If I had a radio, I'd listen to rap.'
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- Why do people in Beijing smoke so many cigarettes?  To get a breath of filtered air​​.

- A sales guy rings the doorbell on a house, and the door is opened by a 12-year-old holding a glass of cognac and smoking a cigar.  The sales guy is stunned and asks,  "Is your dad home?"  The kid replies,  "What do you think?"

- I want to open a Christian tobacco store.  I'm going to call it Holy Smokes.

- My best friend tried to hide his drug dealing through a fake tobacco company and glass manufacturer.  It was all just smoke and mirrors.

- What’s another name for time off from work to have a smoke?  Taking a coughy break​ ​.
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A lady in the pet shop asks about buying a goldfish.  The salesperson asked if she needed an aquarium.  Her reply, 'I don't care what sign it is.'

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Mr Jones had a leak in the roof over his dining room, so he called a repairman to take a look at it. "When did you first notice the leak?" the repairman inquired.  Mr. Jones scowled. "Last night, when it took me two hours to finish my soup!"

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A father and son went fishing one day. While they were out in the boat, the boy suddenly became curious about the world around him. He asked his father, "How does this boat float?  The father replied, "Don't rightly know son." A little later, the boy looked at his father and asked, "How do fish breath underwater?"  Once again the father replied, "Don't rightly know son." A little later the boy asked his father, "Why is the sky blue?"  Again, the father repied. "Don't rightly know son." Finally, the boy asked his father, "Dad, do you mind my asking you all of these questions?"  The father replied, "Of course not, if you don't ask questions, you never learn nothin'."

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HAD ANOTHER X-RAY OF MY RIGHT HIP DONE TODAY

Not a lot going on today.  Kelly took Pheebs for a morning walk and then Pheebs and I headed out in Subie to dust up a few country roads.  Snapped a few pics and came home.  With my hand clippers, I trimmed back a number of overgrown small branches encroaching on some of my little trails around the house.  By 1 p.m. I could feel the humidity creeping back into the air so I hustled myself back into the house.  At 3 p.m. I was in the Goderich hospital having a couple X-rays done on my new (Feb. 13th) right hip.  By getting the X-rays done here it will save me having to drive all the way to Sarnia on September 9th for the same thing.  I am really hoping that this X-ray session is the last one.  As for 'how is my hip doing over 6 months later, the answer is great, no complaints.  And, that's about it for another gol darn ding dang day.....................  

 ROADSIDE WILDFLOWERS

 CANADA GEESE GLEANING A HARVESTED AND SCUFFLED WHEAT FIELD

A FOREST'S QUIET STREAM

Al's Music Box:)) The Letter is a song written by Wayne Carson that was first recorded by the American rock band the Box Tops in 1967. It was the group's first and most successful single, reaching number one on the record charts in the United States and Canada. It was also an international success and placed in the top ten in several other countries.  The Box Tops lead vocalist Alex Chilton sang "The Letter" in a gruff blue-eyed soul style. The song launched Chilton's career and inspired numerous cover versions. Rolling Stone magazine included the Box Tops original at number 372 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame added it to the list of the "500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll".  In 2011, the single was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.  Wayne Carson wrote "The Letter", built on an opening line suggested by his father: "Give me a ticket for an aeroplane".  Carson included the song on a demo tape he gave to Chips Moman, owner of Amerian Sound Studio in Memphis, Tennessee. When studio associate Dan Penn was looking for an opportunity to produce more, Moman suggested a local group, the DeVilles, who had a new lead singer, sixteen-year-old Alex Chilton. The other four members of the group that played on the session were Danny Smythe on drums, Richard Malone on electric guitar, John Evans on electric piano, and Russ Caccamisi on bass. Penn gave the group Carson's demo tape for some songs to work up.  With little or no rehearsal, the group arrived at American Sound to record "The Letter".  Chilton recalled:  We set up and started running the tune down.  Dan adjusted a few things on the organ sound and told the drummer not to do anything at all except the basic rhythm that was called for. No rolls, no nothin'. The bass player was playing pretty hot stuff, so he didn't mess with what the bass player was doing.  Penn added: "The guitar player had the lick right—we copied Wayne's demo. Then I asked the keyboard player to play an 'I'm a Believer type of thing".  Chilton sang the vocal live while the group was performing; Penn noted: "I coached him [Chilton] a little ... told him to say 'aer-o-plane,' told him to get a little gruff, and I didn't have to say anything else to him, he was hookin 'em, a natural singer."  He later explained, "[Chilton] picked it up exactly as I had in mind, maybe even better. I hadn't even paid any attention to how good he sang because I was busy trying to put the band together ... I had a bunch of greenhorns who'd never cut a record, including me".  About thirty takes were required for the basic track. Then Penn had Mike Leech prepare a string and horn arrangement to give it a fuller sound.  Leech recalled: "My very first string arrangement was 'The Letter', and the only reason I did that was because I knew how to write music notation ... Nobody else in the group did or I'm sure someone else would have gotten the call."  Penn also overdubbed the sound of an airplane taking off to the track from a special effects record that had been checked out from the local library.  He explained: That was a big part of the record ... When I finished it up, I played it for Chips [Moman], and he said, "That's a pretty good little rock & roll record, but you've got to take that airplane off it." I said, "If the record's going out, it's going out with the airplane on it". He said, "Okay, it's your record.  "Edwin Pouncey of the Wire described the "sampling" of the overhead jet plane as one of the more notable "pop and rock musique concrete flirtations" of the period.  The DeVilles were renamed the Box Tops and "The Letter", at only 1 minute, 58 seconds, was released by Mala Records, a subsidiary of Bell Records.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( To all the people who said I wouldn't amount to anything because of my procrastination.....just you wait!!

Knock, knock. Who’s there? Nobel. Nobel who? You got no bell, so I figured I’d knock.

- Apparently, you can’t use beef stew as a password. It’s just not stroganoff. 

- Why is a swordfish’s nose 11 inches long? Because if it was 12 inches it would be a foot. 

- What do you call a dog that can do magic? A labracadabrador.

- I want to tell you a joke about a girl who only eats plants. You’ve probably never heard of herbivore. 

- What do you call a fake noodle? An impasta.

- How do you get a country girl’s attention? A tractor. 

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Why do melons have weddings? Because they cantaloupe. 

- What do you call a cow with a twitch? Beef jerky.

- What is the most detail-oriented ocean? The Pacific.

- I used to hate facial hair. But now it’s grown on me. 

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IT WOULD HAVE PUT AN END TO A LOT OF SPECULATION

Buffalo Springfield's words from their song, For What It's Worth floated through my awakening mind earlier this morning.  Stephen Stills words, 'There's something happening here'.  'But what is ain't exactly clear'...... 'Hey, what's that sound?.  Well, my sleepy mind finally figured out that sound was our furnace running.  Geezzzz, it must be cold if Kelly snapped the furnace on.  It was 52F.

A FUNGUS GROWING ON A STUMP BESIDE OUR FRONT YARD FROG POND

 ONE OF OUR FROGS KEEPING A CLOSE EYE ON ME THIS AFTERNOON

Under bright sunny skies and warming air I drove Kelly to her 10 o'clock medical appointment at the Maitland Valley Medical Center.  Dropped her off at the main door then headed to Tim Hortons for a coffee to go and a spin down around the harbor to put in a little time.  

LAKE HURON WAVES COME ASHORE AT GODERICH'S ROTARY COVE

 A TIRED COUPLE AND THEIR DOG STOP FOR A REST ON A HILLSIDE BENCH IN THE DOG WALKING AREA....IT LOOKS LIKE ONE OF THOSE WALKERS IS A LITTLE SLEEPIER THAN THE OTHER TWO

 NICE AUGUST MORNING FOR A BIKE RIDE ALONG THE LAKESHORE

 CARRYING A BAG AND A PICK-UP STICK THIS DOG WALKER MIGHT BE PICKING UP LITTER ALONG THE WAY

 A YOUNG GULL BASKS ON THE SOUTH PIER

AN ADULT GULL NEARBY

 A COUPLE FISHERMEN IN GODERICH'S INNER HARBOR

I was back at the medical center by 10:20, parked and reading my Kindle when Kelly came out 15 minutes later.  We were hoping her Nurse Practitioner (Patricia Robinson) might have some answers for her and she did.  Having worked in a transplant unit herself she explained to Kelly that her extended abdomen is normal after having Ascites.  Ascites (ay-SITE-eez) is when too much fluid builds up in your abdomen (belly). This condition often happens in people who have cirrhosis (scarring) of the liver.  A sheet of tissue called the peritoneum covers the abdominal organs, including the stomach, bowels, liver, and kidneys. The peritoneum has two layers. Ascites happens when fluid builds up between the two layers.  Kelly's extended abdomen will remain like this.  Now, why couldn't somebody at London's University Hospital have simply explained that to her a month ago.  It would have put an end to a lot of speculation that we have had about 'her swollend abdomen.  Kelly's blood pressure was good this morning but her weight continues to drop and she weighed in this morning at 102 pounds.  She needs to get her weight back up to 110 and above for a liver transplant.  

 A FIELD OF CONE FLOWERS

Following Kelly's appointment we headed off to A&W for a bacon and eggs breakfast.  I think a good old mess of bacon and eggs, toast, coffee, and hashbrowns is probably one of my favorite simple meals.  Followed closely by peanut butter, ice cream, donuts, tarts, pie, cake, and half a dozen various flavored milkshakes.

 MORE CANADA GEESE IN THE AIR FORMING UP THEIR FLIGHT PATTERNS

With still a touch of coolness in the afternoon's breeze, Pheebs and I made it out for a walk over to and around the Park's pond.  It was a one-turtle walk.  I did see the Green-Backed Heron again but it was too quick for me to get a camera shot of him.

 POND REFLECTIONS

YES, IT WAS A ONE TURTLE WALK

Al's Music Box:)) Ring Of Fire was made popular by Johnny Cash after it appeared on his 1963 compilation album 'Ring of Fire: The Best of Johnny Cash. Written by Cash's eventual second wife, June Carter Cash, and songwriter Merle Kilgore.  Cash's version became one of the biggest hits of his career, staying at No. 1 on the country chart for seven weeks. It was certified gold by the RIAA on January 21, 2010, and has sold over 1.2 million digital downloads.  It was named the fourth greatest country song of all time by Country Music Television, while Rolling Stone called it the number one greatest country song of all time and listed it as the 87th greatest song of all time.  In 1999, the 1963 recording of the song by Johnny Cash on the Columbia Records label was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.  Most of the song is dedicated to a chorus that extends the metaphor comparing the passions of love with a "ring of firer". It describes being burned, and the flames rising, as the person continues falling for quite a distance ("down, down, down"), using the vocabulary of "falling in love". The song concludes without any resolution to the situation.

Duration: 31 second

The song was originally recorded by June's sister, Anita Carter, on her Mercury Records album Folk Songs Old and New (1963) as "(Love's) Ring of Fire". Mercury released Anita's version as a single and it was a featured "pick hit" in Billboard magazine. After hearing Anita's version, Cash claimed he had a dream where he heard the song accompanied by "Mexican horns". The mariachi horn sound had recently been popularized on American radio with 1962 hit song "The Lonely Bull" by Herb Alpert.  Cash said, "I'll give you about five or six more months, and if you don't hit with it, I'm gonna record it the way I feel it." Cash noted that adding trumpets was a change to his basic sound.  When the song failed to become a major hit for Anita, Cash recorded it his own way, adding the mariachi-style horns from his dream. This sound was later used in the song "It Ain't Me Babe", which was recorded around the same time. Mother Maybelle and the Carter sisters are prominently featured in the Cash recording singing harmony. Cash tinkered with a few of the original phrases in Anita Carter's version of the song. Cash's daughter Rosanne said, "The song is about the transformative power of love and that's what it has always meant to me and that's what it will always mean to the Cash children."

 SUNBURST LOCUST LEAVES SOFTLY ALIGHT IN OUR FRONT YARD FROG POND

GROANER'S CORNER:((  The husband and wife were playing on the ninth green when she collapsed from a heart attack. "Please dear, I need help." she said.  The husband ran off saying "I'll go get some help." A little while later he returned, picked up his club and began to line up his shot on the green.  His wife, on the ground, raised up her head and said, "I'm may be dying and you're putting?"  "Don't worry dear. I found a doctor on the second hole who said he come and help."  "The second hole??? When in the hell is he coming???"  "Hey! I told ya not to worry." he said, practice stroking his putt. "Everyone's already agreed to let him play through."

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A friend of mine is a deputy with the sheriff's department canine unit. One evening, the deputy was dispatched to the scene of a possible burglary, where he discovered the back door of a building ajar. He let the dog out of his patrol car and commanded it to enter and seek.  Jumping from the back seat, the dog headed for the building. After lunging through the doorway, the dog froze and backed out. My friend was puzzled until he investigated further and saw the sign on the building: “Veterinarian's Office.”

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Miranda likes to sing, and whenever she begins, her husband heads outside.
Hurt, she asked him, "Don't you like my singing?"  "Of course, dear," he replied. "I just want to make sure the neighbors know I'm not beating you."

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A doctor told his patient after reviewing his x-rays he needed surgery costing $5000.  The patient said he only had $500.00 and what could be done.  The doctor said, "Well, I can always touch up your x-rays."

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Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.