'HE FOUGHT THE GOOD FIGHT' KELLY'S DAD DIED THIS MORNING AT 11:30 A.M.

SPENCERPORT NEW YORK......2006
After a long & difficult struggle, Kelly's Dad, Frank Knapp, passed away this morning at the Hildabrandt Hospice House in Rochester, New York at the age of 91.  His loving wife of 66 years, Gene, was at his bedside as was his son Peter.  Frank was a U.S. Marine who fought his way across the beaches of Iwo Jima until being slightly injured there & returned to the States.  He spent all his working years in Spencerport New York as a dedicated U.S. postal worker delivering mail for many, many, years. In his retirement he & Kelly's Mom spent their years RVing & wintering in Florida.

FRANK & GENE WITH THEIR CLASS A MOTOR HOME VISITING US AT THE OLD FARM
 
AUGUST IN SPENCERPORT NY.....2006
I remember when we lived in the old farm house near Fullarton years ago & Frank & Gene came over from New York to spend a few days at the farm with us.  When the big Class A pulled into our long driveway I could hardly see Frank behind the steering wheel.  He was not a big man & I remember thinking, how could such a slim little guy handle such a big dinosaur of a vehicle.  But handle it he did & for many winters they would be on the road with the big Motor Home heading for their spot in Clearwater, Florida.  Despite having their toad come off the hitch one time on the Interstate & ice sliding off the Motor Home roof & smashing their Honda's windshield, nothing ever deterred Frank.  Even when he was sooooo sick the last few years, he would still pull himself up on his riding lawn mower determined to cut his own lawn.  He would take his walker & a hoe back to the garden to get rid of pesky weeds.  Sometimes he would collapse & lay on the lawn until he had enough strength back to get himself on his feet again & continue to chase after those pesky weeds.  Frank was one of those non stop hard working guys who preferred to do things himself....his way.

FRANK TENDING TO HIS BELOVED GARDEN

<<< A TRUE MARINE TO THE END
The last time I saw Frank was 3 years ago at Kelly's surprise Birthday Party at Deer Park Lodge here in Bayfield.  At the end of the surprise week-end which began on a Friday night we all met for breakfast at a country restaurant nearby on Sunday morning.   I remember as everyone was leaving, shaking Frank's hand that morning wondering if I would ever see him again.  I didn't.


FRANK AT DEER PARK LODGE
   
WE CALLED HIM, 'MR. COOL' THIS DAY:))
Kelly is so thankful she made the decision to drive over to Spencerport last Sunday morning.  She got to spend 5 full days with her Dad helping in all aspects of his care.  They had some serious moments together & they had some laughs.  Frank never lost his sense of humor, even in the final days.


FRANK STRIKES A DAPPER POSE IN HIS DRIVEWAY
Funeral arrangements are not yet complete but Kelly will be heading back to Spencerport first thing Tuesday morning.  It is a comforting feeling for everyone to know that Frank's long period of pain & suffering has finally come to a peaceful end & knowing Frank, he's probably already in the process of figuring out how he can get back home & get after those pesky weeds in his garden..............10-4


GROANER'S CORNER:((  I knew I was going bald when it took longer & longer to wash my face!!
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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

THANKS TO ALL FOR HELPING ME GET MY BLOG FOCUS BACK ON TRACK.......AGAIN!!

IF I WAS A FISH I THINK I MIGHT LIKE TO LIVE HERE

Another in a series of perfect weather days had me & the furry guys on the trail early this morning.  Two big blue Herons at one end of the pond & two small Green Back Herons at the other.  Definitely not a good place to be a frog!!

EARLY MORNING MOON IN THE FOREST

The trail through the forest has always been on the narrow side & for nearly 8 years now I always carry a hand clippers with me trimming back the wild Raspberries, vines, Goldenrod & Dogwood branches.  Earlier in the summer I noticed someone had taken the time & made the effort to go around the entire trail with a riding lawn mower & they have been doing that ever since.  I have no idea who it is & I'm sure the fella on the mower has no idea who does the branch trimming along the trail either.  We've never met.  I'm an early morning person on the trail & the mower rider may be an afternoon person but because of our love for nature each one of us has taken it upon ourselves to maintain the trail.  It is very rare for us to meet anyone on the trail in the early morning but I'm sure some Park residents do use it for strolls later in the day or early evening.  I did leave a message on our mailroom chalkboard to say 'Thanks' to whoever has been mowing the trail.

A WIDER TRAIL LEADS INTO THE PINE FOREST

I can tell I'm feeling better with each day because my energy levels are coming back up & I spent part of the morning cleaning the front driving area of the Motor Home.  Checked all four of the house batteries & found some low levels.  Time to pick up some distilled water so loaded up Checkers in the Jeep (the other guys were sleeping) & headed into town for a jug of distilled water.  Checkers is an excellent traveler & loves to go for rides anywhere, anytime.  We still have our dog loading ramp from our truck & fifth wheel days & it works really slick for loading the guys into & out of the Jeep.

   

CHECKERS WAS JEEPING IT TODAY

The afternoon was spent cleaning Motor Home bins & getting a few odd jobs taken care of.  Needed a few short power naps between jobs & the afternoon went smoothly.  Even did a little clean up on the Jeep's engine.  Years ago I used to keep the engines in some of my vehicles all sparkled up as well as the vehicle itself & it was always a sign that I especially liked that particular vehicle.  So, I guess it's safe to say me & the Jeep are big Pals:))

One of the blog sites that mysteriously vanished off our 'Blogs We Follow' list was that of a fellow we have been following for a couple years now & actually met at the Ranch last winter.  I have put Ivan's ROADTRIP 2010 back on the list again.  I may have Ivan's title wrong but I think he is a Park/Forest Ranger.  Check out Ivan's site for some great photos of his horseback trek into back country a week & a half ago in search of Grizzly Bear activity in the area after a tack shed & some horse feed storage buildings had been mauled.  Check out the scenery Ivan works in & the horses & people he works with.  Is this not one of those jobs we have all dreamt about as a kid.

HAD SOME HELP CLEANING THE BINS THIS AFTERNOON

I appreciate all the positive & caring comments & emails people sent in regarding my blog concerns in last night's post.  As some of you long time readers know, I seem to get a bad case of the blog wobbles every 5 or 6 months or so.  Nobody to blame but myself again for my insecurities from time to time.  I have blogged about this confidence problem I have before so I won't go back over all that.  Just want to say thank you to everyone who took a few minutes out of their day to help me get my de-railed blog train back on the tracks again. There was some very good advice in the comments from last night's blog & the insight in some of those comments is well worth going back to read.  Sometime in the future I will write a post about the type of confidence problem I struggle with in hopes that it may be of help to other folks with the same or similar problems.  But, I can tell you now that this blog has been instrumental in helping me overcome many of my past confidence problems & I hope to explain all that sometime in a future post.  Thanks again to all my known & unknown friends out there, you are all very special people:))  And a special thanks to Guy C for his encouraging email.

KELLY & HER DAD THIS PAST WEEK

Kelly's Dad is resting comfortably in a Rochester Hospice center for now & his condition has settled down a bit.  Kelly feels it was a good thing she managed to spend 5 days with him when she did.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( 

When U Black, U Black
When I was born, I was BLACK ,
When I grew up, I was BLACK ,
When I went in the sun, I stayed BLACK,
When I got cold, I was BLACK ,
When I was scared, I was BLACK ,
When I was sick, I was BLACK ,
And when I die, I'll still be BLACK .
              NOW, You 'white' folks....
When you're born, you're PINK,
When you grow-up, you're WHITE ,
When you go in the sun, you get RED,
When you're cold, you turn BLUE,
When you're scared, you're YELLOW,
When you get sick, you're GREEN
When you bruise, you turn PURPLE ,
And when you die, you look GRAY.
So who y'all be callin'
COLORED Folks?

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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

GREAT TO HAVE KELLY HOME AGAIN:))

NO, THAT'S NOT A PICTURE OF KELLY......IT'S A HORSE!!

An absolutely beautiful morning & the cooler 63F temp meant no bugs, flies or mosquitoes in the forest.  There is a calming & soothing magic that begins along forest trails at this time of year.  There was a feeling of peacefulness as Max, Checkers & I made our way through the still morning air of the crisp & dampened pine woods.  We just took our time along the trail taking in the sights, sounds & smells around us.  Well, Max & Checkers took in more of the smells than I did.  I still can't smell too much right now but hopefully that will resolve itself soon & I can once again be down on the trail with the guys, sniffing my way right alongside them.

NICE QUIET MORNING DRIVE

Needed a few groceries today so hauled my carcass out of the house later, threw it in the Jeep & took myself on a long round about slow country drive through our rural neighborhood slowly savoring all of nature's wonders around me.  We are so fortunate to live in such a beautiful land.

 

Despite feeling a little pooky by mid morning, I did muster up some reserves & gave the Jeep a good washing.  I was surprised to find a huge load of hardened mud underneath between the skid plate & the floor.  I was able to crawl underneath & loosen it up with a metal power bar.  By the time I was finished I had a third of a wheelbarrow loaded with mud.  The garden hose with nozzle on the 'Jet' setting took care of the rest.  That mud was ram packed in there about 6 weeks ago when we took that little 'bush tour' with the Jeep guy one night after supper.  I hadn't realized the mud had been there all this time.  It made me think again about why anyone in their right mind would take a perfectly good vehicle & deliberately run it through sink holes in a swampy bush.  So, in other words, 'what the heck was I thinking!!!!'

THIS IS THE BEST TIME OF YEAR FOR FINDING SPIDER WEBS

Kelly made it home from Spencerport NY about 1:30 this afternoon.  That is always an absolutely grueling drive through heavy Hamilton/Toronto traffic.  The situation with her Dad is very dire & grim.  Half way home she stopped to phone her Mother & see how her Dad was doing.  Shortly after she had left this morning he was taken by ambulance to an emergency Hospice center.  He will not likely return home again.  Kelly had an extremely stressful week to say the least & was so happy to get home to our quiet little forested oasis where we specialize in peace & quiet.

I have been pouring a lot of thought into this whole blog thing again & am on the verge of making some very definite changes.  I don't think I can put it off any longer if I want this blog to survive.  I have not felt comfortable with some of my content for quite awhile. There are a lot of new & fresh RV related blog sites appearing almost daily out here in blog land & I've noticed some of them really seem to be taking off quickly garnering a fast following with many comment responses.  Most of them are good blogs I guess but a few just leave me sitting here scratching my head & wondering about their content.  I have read them over & over asking myself, how did these blog's get so popular?  It sure has me taking a long hard look at my own efforts here with regards to improving my posts.

I know there are readers out there who think I shouldn't change a thing & would like me to keep the blog content as it is.  Maybe I can still do that but I have to get a whole lot smarter about how to do it if this blog is to continue.  Rants & opinions have their place & for the most part I do enjoy writing them but I sometimes go waaaaay overboard & end up shooting too many holes through the bottom of my own canoe.  For awhile now it seems the paddling has been getting harder for me & I feel my blog is becoming too heavy with opinions, too heavy with long rants & too heavy with just too much mud stuff!!  That wasn't my intent when I started out nearly 3 years ago & I feel I have lost a fair slice of my original focus. And I'm sure I have also lost a fair slice of readers as well, although the numbers show the opposite.

Anyway, amongst all this gnashing of teeth & wringing of hands I was totally surprised & heartened this afternoon when I noticed we had picked up 3 new blog Supporters all at once.  I would first like to offer a big thank-you to, ME AND MY DOG  Much appreciated, my new friend.  The name, LUVGLASS   rang a bell for me & I remembered briefly seeing that name on Twitter a couple years ago.  And, as it turns out, we were actually in email contact with this person 4 years ago in regards to a Cobb Cooker.  I see we have some mutual friends & I actually did receive a couple nice emails from these folks not too long ago.  Thanks guys.  Martha & Terry over at the GYPSY LIFE JOURNAL round out our new trio of Followers.  Thanks to all you good folks for climbing aboard as blog supporters.....you folks surely made my day:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Read this following email message carefully.  Maybe read it a second time.........

Did I like nut another to it send do to better anything  have doesn't that person a like this reading time sweet your took you since.

Were you able to make any sense out of it.........No?  OK, try reading it backwards then:))

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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

(Now read it backwards)

AN AFTERNOON CAMPFIRE

A QUIET & RELAXING BACKYARD CAMPFIRE THIS AFTERNOON

It was the best sleep I have had in years & years & years.  After downing my little Dimetapp codeine cocktail last night I went to bed shortly after 10.  Despite a short pit stop somewhere in the pre-dawn hours I slept right through to morning.  If I hadn't lost the keys to the Jeep I might even still be sleeping but in my dream world I was in the middle of a busy big city intersection trying to find my keys while cars all around were honking uncontrollably.  No wonder I woke up with a start at 5:30 this morning.  What a huge bonus it was to have actually had a good night's sleep for a change.  Made me feel like a new person this morning.

My energy lasted long enough this morning to get the doggy guys all the way around the pine trail, get the grass cut, pull some weeds & repair an electrical cord in the carport.  By early afternoon I was back in my recliner.  I have one anti-biotic pill left for Saturday so hopefully that will be the magic bullet that turns this thing around.

For readers who sometimes send in questions to bloggers & maybe do not receive a reply, be sure to read RICK'S POST this morning on, 'why.' 

If you are Motorcycle person living in the northern latitudes & would like to take your bike south with you in the winter check out RV LIFE ON WHEELS posts over the last few days to see how they are going to do it.

For all you diesel drivers out there you might want to read RETIRED ROD'S POST today & see what he has found out about the new mandatory 'Urea' technology being added by manufacturer's to their newer diesel engine truck models.  And yes, it is going to cost you money!!

Rene over at LIVE-WORK-DREAM expresses some heart felt thoughts about the realities of full timing & their new found friends in the mountains of Colorado.

Have been having some strange happenings on my side bar over the past couple weeks with things mysteriously disappearing.  This morning I noticed KAREN IN THE WOODS had vanished off our 'Blogs We Follow' list.  I have re-added Karen & I see where they are just getting into the fine points of, 'Toad Towing' for the first time.

JERRY & SUZY may be in California at the moment but big winds tore into their Escapee Park back in Benson Arizona this week doing some damage to their place & others!!

Kelly has had a difficult week in Spencerport & will be returning home tomorrow afternoon.  One day to rest up & then it's back to her very busy Deer Park Lodge job.  The latter part of August has turned out to be kind of difficult for us but at least we are heading into the all round best time of the year.  Did you realize Christmas Day is only 4 months from yesterday.  I wonder where we will all be by then................................

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Old age is when former classmates are so gray, wrinkled and bald, they don't even recognize you anymore.

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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

BETTER DAYS AHEAD.....I HOPE

EARLY SIGNS OF AUTUMN ARE UPON US

At the risk of sounding like an old broken record again I'll just say that it hasn't been the best of days.  Seems this viral thing lets me win a few & then grabs me by the britches & slams me to the ground again.  I was very encouraged by Tuesday mornings energy levels but after a rocky night again I have spent the majority of my day in the recliner somewhere between the History channels 'Tank Battles' & Al's Snoozeland.  Not much of an appetite but I did whoop up a big bowl of oatmeal this morning.  We'll see who win's tomorrow's battle......Al, or the Bug!!

And it was 10 years ago today that I worked my last day for the Stratford Airport.  That marked the end of my years there.  It also marked the end of the many hundreds of thousands of miles I spent in the madness & chaos of Canada's infamous 401 super highway.   Known for having the heaviest traffic in all of Canada, I fought my way in & out of Pearson International Airport day after day running the gauntlet of endless heavy truck traffic & frenzied drivers.  Always under heavy stress to get all my passengers to the Airport on time to catch their various flights to destinations all over the world.  Blinding winter storms day & night & punching through heavy morning fog.  Rain, sleet, freezing rain, no matter.  People had to make their flights on time or lose expensive vacations.  Business men could not afford to miss meetings in Dallas, Vancouver, Atlanta or London England.  It was an extremely stressful job but I loved it then.  I was very good at the job knowing all the shortcuts to the Airport.   And I knew the traffic patterns like the back of my hand.  I knew what other drivers were thinking & going to do before they did it & I could slip through heavy traffic like a ghost in the night.  In the nearly 13 years I worked that job off & on I do not recall ever having any of my passengers miss their flights.  It was a crazy time back then & so different from the relaxed lifestyle I live now.  To this very day I still avoid driving through major cities or heavy traffic areas............. 

GROANER'S CORNER:((   A young blonde girl in her late teens, wanting to earn some extra money for the summer, decided to hire herself out as a "handy woman" and started canvassing a nearby well-to-do neighborhood. She went to the front door of the first house and asked the owner if he had any odd jobs for her to do.   

"Well, I guess I could use somebody to paint the porch" he said. "How much will you charge me?"Delighted, the girl quickly responded, "How about $50?"  The man agreed and told her that the paint and brushes and everything she would need were in the garage. The man's wife, hearing the conversation, said to her husband, "Does she realize that our porch goes ALL the way around the house?" 

"That's a bit cynical, isn't it?" he responded.  The wife replied, "You're right. I guess I'm starting to believe all those dumb blonde jokes." A few hours later the blonde came to the door to collect her money. "You're finished already??" the startled husband asked.  

"Yes," the blonde replied, "and I even had paint left over so I gave it two coats."   Impressed, the man reached into his pocket for the $50 and handed it to her along with a $10 tip.. "Thank you," the blonde said,

"And, by the way, it's not a Porch, it's a Lexus."

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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

FEELING BETTER, BUT NOT TO WORRY....I WON'T BE LOSING MY GRUMPINESS!!

PIONEER PARK'S STAIRWAY TO THE BEACH

What a welcome bonus it was to wake up this morning in the exact same place I had gone to bed last night.  That could only mean one thing.....I had finally had myself a decent night's sleep thanks to the codeine in the Dimetapp medicine I took last night.  Am definitely feeling a bit better today & will hopefully be totally out of this thing by the time my anti-biotic program ends in another 9 days. 

Sleep has been a problem for me this past 7 or 8 years & it was one of the things discussed with my NP yesterday.  She has already scheduled me back to the Medical Center next week for blood tests regarding cholesterol etc, followed by another consultation on Sept 13th to work on my sleep disorder problem amongst other things........ Now, I think that's just about enough about all this medical stuff for awhile.  It seems my posts have become focused on this health issue over the past week & a half & I think it's time I moved myself forward.

Had the doggy guys on the trail this morning by 7:15 & when we got back I decided it was time I spent a little extra effort & fixed myself up a fine breakfast for a change.  Right from scratch I toasted myself up a nice stack of Eggo Waffles.  It sure pays off to go the extra mile for oneself once & awhile.  I can be quite a little creative food connoisseur when I want to be you know.

BAYFIELD'S MAIN BEACH CAN BE SEEN AT TOP CENTER

For lunch I squeaked myself into town & picked up a 6" Tuna sub (turning out to be quite a foody blog eh) to go & headed for Bayfield's quiet Pioneer Park which overlooks Lake Huron.  Ate two thirds of the sub & saved the rest for my furry Pals back home.  Took a few pics, drove down to the harbor, took a few more & headed back home.  It was sooooo nice to get out of the house for an hour & do something different for a change.  Am looking forward to getting the bike out for a spin again soon too.  Also realized today that I had better get scrambling on the Motor Home's preparation for this coming winter's travels.  A long list of things to be attended to & I don't want to get myself caught in a last minute crunch thing. 

A TRIO OF GUYS IN PERPETUAL MOTION:))

Noticed we have a couple new Bayfield Bunch followers on our list so would like to welcome heyduke50 aboard along with MARGIE & ROGER down there in Florida.  I do try & keep a variety of interesting posts going folks so hopefully you will find something from time to time that may perk your interest.

A CALM DAY ANCHORED JUST OFF BAYFIELD'S BEACH

And RETIRED ROD left a comment on yesterday's post that left me a bit concerned for a few seconds.  In it he say's, "And lets hope the pills get your wits back about you, and you finally get over the stuff. We need you railing on something soon. Can't have all these yes mam posts, they are not the Al we know.".......... Well, if a solution is found to my nearly decade long lack of sleep problem in the coming weeks, will this mean I may run the risk of losing my......grumpiness!! Could more sleep possibly be the end of my realistic thinking & maybe push me over the edge into that unrealistic group of positive thinkers I am always so careful to avoid.  Could it put my Cursmudgeon status into question.  Would it mean one less person in the world to objectively look at the negative side of things hoping to maintain some kind of balance with the smiley face gang on the other end of the teeter totter.  Well Rod, I can tell you this, sick or not, sleep or no sleep, I yam who I yam & that probably isn't going to change.   I will always see things as they realistically are & not as the world's do gooder's & scam artists would have us think & believe they are.  Not to worry my friend:))

THE 'BOYS' HEADING BACK FROM THE BEACH

GROANER'S CORNER:((  And remember, Never explain yourself to anyone  because the person who likes you doesn't need to hear it and the person who dislikes you won't believe you anyway.....And for sure you know your getting older when you & your teeth don't sleep together anymore!!

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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

A CALL TO THE MEDICAL CLINIC TODAY RESULTS IN.....ANTI-BIOTICS!!

AN 09 SUNRISE AT THE RANCH LAST DECEMBER (no current pics so these are from the Ranch we stay at near Douglas Az.)

By 8 o'clock this morning my fingers were busy on our desktop telephone dialing the number of the Goderich Medical Center.  Enough was enough!!  Had been optimistic yesterday about feeling a bit better but by 10 last night the coughing fits had started again & I had another miserable night.  Tuesday will mark the 11th day I have been dealing with this!!

DAILY SAND HILL CRANES

They fitted me into an early afternoon appointment with my Nurse Practitioner.  I have actually had a Doctor for the past 3 years but have never met him.  As I said before I haven't had any medical issues serious enough to see my real Doctor about. The way it is done here is a different way of doing things in the medical world.  Everyone is assigned a Nurse Practitioner (NP) who is a fully qualified registered Nurse.  It is the NP that you see when making an appointment.  She determines if your case is serious enough to require an actual Doctor.  I think it's a great idea because it saves our Doctors having to spend precious hours of their days dealing with things like sniffles, colds, bumps, scratches, sprained ankles, bee stings, prescription renewals & people overdosing on peanut butter sandwiches.  I have a great NP lady & she did consult with the Doctor this afternoon on one of the prescriptions I was prescribed.  I have now started on anti-biotics & am looking forward to a better night with a second codeine based prescription.  We'll see what the next few days bring.

OUR SPOT AT THE ARIZONA RANCH FOR THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS

Needless to say I do not have a lot to blog about tonight & the highlight of my whole day was Jeeping myself to & from Goderich this afternoon.  What a greatly simple little vehicle this Jeep is & it is precisely that which I find attractive about it.  A whole lot less stuff to go wrong with it.  No computer this & that.  The Jeep is a very easy vehicle to keep clean because there simply isn't any massive surfaces & the whole outside of the vehicle is easily reachable by hand.  The engine compartment is as I remember them years ago.  Lots of room & everything is readily accessible & easily worked on.  You would be lucky to land a fly in today's SUV engine compartments.  And, I am beginning to understand why Jeep Wranglers are referred to as toys.  What a nice piece of luck to end up at this stage of the game with something that is not only sort of practical & useful, but a fun thing to play with every time I get behind the wheel.  Almost like being a kid again.  And y'know, at nearly 66 what's so gol darn bad about that!!  There will be readers who will shake their heads & not understand...........but I do:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Did you know......

-A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory. 

-A clean desk is a sign of a cluttered desk drawer.

-A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.

-A closed mouth gathers no foot.

-A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.

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Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

"UNTIL ONE HAS LOVED AN ANIMAL, PART OF THEIR SOUL REMAINS UN-AWAKENED"

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

AL'S SMUG MUG PHOTO GALLERY http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/ (a work in progress)

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.