I MISS THE NIGHT SKY:((

Another bonus day as I toured around the beautiful Autumn countryside shuffling folks here & there with the mobility van.  Profusions of yellows, golds & crimsons are breaking out everywhere.   A great day & it was after dark when I got home tonight again.

ALL OF THE PHOTOS WERE TAKEN TODAY AROUND THE BEN MILLER INN.  Luckily I had to go right through Ben Miller between passenger stops & had enough time to pull over for a few pics

And it was well after dark by the time I finished my last mobility van run Saturday night as well.   I am reminded of something I have been missing so much these past few years.  The night sky!!  When we lived in the old farm house 10 years ago we had a clear view of the ebony velvet sky overhead with twinkling stars from horizon to horizon.  I would be outside with my telescope set up & my sky charts laid out illuminated by a soft red light.  I taught myself the night sky, it's stars & it's constellations.  Every night Max & I walked down the quiet country road out front of the old farm marveling at the the nocturnal beauty all around us.  Night time was by far my favorite part of the day. 

AUTUMN REFLECTIONS

We are surrounded by pine trees now & it's rare for me to see the night sky anymore unless it's a small patch through the trees.  Saturday night, driving through the countryside I was once again reminded of a favorite part of my life I have been missing.  A glance out my side window showed me my old summer night constellation friends, Sagittarius & Scorpios, in all their starry beauty.  I would sooooooo much like to be living back out in the country again but I'm afraid it's probably not going to happen.  Things are just getting to late now.  

It is only while we are traveling 5 months of the year that I get to see & spend some time under nature's big dark canopy.  It's one of the many things I love so much about the American southwest with it's wide open spaces & diamond studded night skies.  And it's another reason I prefer to be well away from all sources of light pollution.  Towns, cities, campgrounds & RV Parks all have street lights, spot lights, security lights, headlights, etc.  Did you know there are people living in cities who have never seen the majesty of the night sky.  It's true. 

 

A cool desert night with millions of pin point stars shimmering overhead for as far as the eye can see, glowing embers in a campfire with the lonely wails of coyotes in the nearby hills is not most people's cup of tea, but it sure is mine.

Back here in Ontario I could get in the car each night & drive a few miles to resume my stargazing but it just isn't the same.  A car parked alongside a gravel road with a guy standing outside with his nose stuck up in the air with stars in his eyes always draws suspicion from passing cars & not only that, but vehicles with blazing headlights destroy the ambience of a beautiful darkened & serene world that most people never see or even take an interest in.  The beauty of the night is a whole different world altogether & I miss it sooooooo much.

GROANER'S CORNER:((   The American President was in the Oval Office when his telephone rang.  "Hallo, Mr. President " a heavily accented voice said. This is Archie, up'ere at the Harp Seal Pub in Badger's Cove, Newfoundland, Canada eh?  I am callin' to tells ya dat we are officially declaring war on you eh!"  "Well Archie," The President replied, "This is indeed important news! How big is your army?"  "Right now," said Archie, after a moments calculation "there is me, me cousin Harold, me next-door-neighbor Mick, and the whole dart team from the pub. That makes eight!" 
The President paused. "I must tell you Archie, that I have one million men in my army waiting to move on my command."  "Holy jeez," said Archie. "I'll have ta call ya back!"
Sure enough, the next day, Archie called again. "Mr. President, the war is still on! We have managed to acquire some infantry equipment!"  "And what equipment would that be Archie?", the President asked. "Well sir, we have two combines, a bulldozer, and Harry's farm tractor."  The President sighed. "I must tell you Archie, that I have 16,000 tanks and 14,000 armoured personnel carriers. Also, I've increased my army to one and a half million since we last spoke."
"Lard T'underin' Jaysus, bye", said Archie, "I'll be getting back to ya"  Sure enough, Archie rang again the next day. "Mr. President, the war is still on! We have managed to git ourselves airborne! We up an' modified Harrigan's ultra-light wit a couple of shotguns in the cockpit, and four byes from the Legion have joined us as well!" 
The President was silent for a minute then cleared his throat. "I must tell you Archie that I have 10,000 bombers and 20,000 fighter planes. My military complex is surrounded by laser-guided, surface-to-air missile sites. And since we last spoke, I've increased my army to TWO MILLION!"  "Jeysus, Mary and Joseph," said Archie,"I'll have ta call youse back."  Sure enough, Archie called again the next day. "Mr President! I am sorry to have to tell you dat we have had to call off dis 'ere war."  "I'm sorry to hear that" said the American President. "Why the sudden change of heart?"
"Well, sir," said Archie, "we've all sat ourselves down and had a long chat over a bunch of pints, and come to realize dat dere's no way we can feed two million prisoners."

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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/

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

A BUSY WORKING DAY

It is the sounds of Spring I hear on my morning walks now.  Dozens, maybe hundreds of Robins are massing in a section of woods along the trail.  I have seen this before & am sure they are gathering to soon make the long journey south.  Crows & Blue Jays have been vocal & high overhead the whirring wings & honking calls of Canada Geese are forming up flight patterns for their journey south as well.  It is the time of Snow Birds:))

It has been a very busy working afternoon as I transported elderly folks with the mobility van to friends & families homes for Thanksgiving celebrations.  I'm home now for a couple hours & then it's off again to pick the folks up & return them to their respective residences.  I will be too tired to wrestle a blog out of myself by the time I get home later tonight so I'll just do the blog now before supper.  Another busy day tomorrow.

It's best I don't write blogs when I'm tired anyway because as you may have noticed, I can get a little cranky with my keyboard.....:((

Would like to welcome 2 new blog supporters.  Welcome to CRUSIN2SOME along with JOHN & AILEEN.  Appreciate your support folks.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Six retired Floridians were playing poker in the condo clubhouse when Meyerwitz loses $500 on a single hand, clutches his chest, and
drops dead at the table.  Showing respect for their fallen comrade, the other five continue
playing standing up.   Finklestien looks around and asks, "So, who's gonna tell his wife?"  They cut the cards. Goldberg picks the two of clubs and has to carry
the news.  They tell him to be discreet, be gentle, don't make a bad situation any worse.
"Discreet? I'm the most discreet person you'll ever meet. Discretion is my middle name. Leave it to me." Goldberg goes over to the Meyerwitz apartment and knocks on the door.
The wife answers thru the door and asks what he wants?  Goldberg declares: "Your husband just lost $500 in a poker game
and is afraid to come home."  "Tell him to drop dead!" yells the wife.  "OK, I'll go tell him." says Goldberg.................................

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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/

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

THE FALL HARVEST IS IN FULL SWING

Boy, it's sure hard to not start the post off sounding like a weather report all the time when we're having such great Autumn days, so I won't tell you about the sunshine & warm temps.  I won't tell you about the clear crisp starry night's & the profusion of color breaking out along our bush lines in the countryside now.  Nope, not going to tell ya about any of that at all!!

I was busy with the mobility van today bustling around the town of Goderich here & there.  Tomorrow is another busy day as well as Sunday & Monday.  And, it looks like I'm going to be busy all next week filling in for a driver taking some holidays in a nearby town.  Suits me just fine because I'm happy to be busy doing something useful.

THIS CORN IS READY TO BE HARVESTED

Didn't have any photos for today's blog but managed to grab a few on my home from work.  Farmers are busy harvesting the bean crop right now & a few have started on the corn.  Driving through the countryside, swirls of dust are visible in the fields as the big combines make their way across the dry landscape.  Perfect weather for the farming community.

DRY DUSTY FIELDS ARE MUCH FRIENDLIER THAN MUDDY RAIN SOAKED FIELDS!!

It's not easy making the decision to buy an RV whether it be for week-end only use, Snow Birding to warmer climates in the south in winter or just plain living in an RV year round like the full timing folks do.  It's a huge decision that is not made lightly.  Hop on over to BRUCE & MARGIE'S FULL TIME JOURNEY & have a realistic look at what decisions like that involve.

COMPANY SPONSORED CORN TEST PLOTS

I would have to say that some of my favorite thought provoking posts have always been one's that ask questions & make people think.  A post like Margie's lays it on the line & not only looks at the positive side of things, but the realistic side as well.   I like posts that cut to the chase & talk about real RVing issues & concerns.  And I especially like it when writer's are able to wind their own personalities into the post.  For me, it just makes the reading more believable.  If not, it just ends up being a magazine article.  We can find all kinds of generic RV magazine articles anywhere but it just seems better when we know something about the writer & we can understand better what it is they are saying & why they are saying it.  Emotions add a personal touch & give the writer's post, warmth.  Not a lot of warmth in a magazine article!!

THOSE GREEN BINS ARE LOADED WITH BEANS & WILL SOON BE TRANSFERRED TO LARGE TRUCKS

Another thing I look for in a blog is originality & creativity or has the blogger overloaded their site with advertisements?   I have a tendency to slide right on by those kind.  Has the blogger loaded their site with time worn second hand slogans & sayings?  I'm sure lots of folks like that but I have to just keep on going.  I steer clear of the dancing bears & pulsing Pelican blogs & whenever I hear Willy Nelson's 'On the Road Again' blasting out of my speakers I am out of there like herd of turtles in a cloud of heifer dust.  Nothing against Willy Nelson but I prefer to listen to Willy on my own terms at my own time & that goes for all music on blogsites. 

A YOUNG FARMER HEADS IN WITH HIS MIGHTY STEED TO DO BATTLE WITH THE BEANS!!

I always like to see RV bloggers doing their own photography instead of using pics from the internet.  Again, it's more personal, more believable & adds warmth to the person behind the writing.  It makes your blog look real & not like an advertisement for Schmuckers Wonderful Sunset Cream!!  RV'ers have chosen the lifestyle for a reason, so get out there with your camera & share with the rest of us some of those wonderful reasons:))

Anyway, I don't know how I got off on all this, so rather than chasing me down, just blame Margie for writing the kind of post I like to read.  Remember, I said I like blogs that are thought provoking & that is just what Margie's blog did to me......it provoked me into some thinking again................Oh Dear!!

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A few points to ponder...

I want to die peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather.  Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.

If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.

Evening news is where they begin with 'Good evening,' and then proceed to tell you why it isn't.

How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire.

Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut and still think they are sexy.

The voices in my head may not be real, but they sure have some good ideas!

And Al's personal favorite......You're never too old to learn something stupid:))

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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/

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

KELLY TAKES THE MOTOR HOME FOR A SPIN

NICE AUTUMN DAY FOR ORGANIZING THE RIG

Some of you folks may remember my post a couple months ago, 'some days are diamonds & some days are stones.'  Well, I had myself a  bit of stone day on Wednesday & by the time I got to the computer I just didn't have enough creative spark left in me to pull a post out of myself.  Nothing serious, just another one of those days some of us realistic thinking people have.  I even broke my hat!!  I was so frustrated with myself.  I couldn't get the Jeep hood open no matter how hard I tried so in a fit of frustration I whipped off my hat & threw it on the ground.  No, I didn't jump on it but the metal clasp at the back of my hat did break & I ended up having to cut the useless strap off with a scissors.  Hat still fits fine but now I have to go around strapless:((  And yes, I did manage to finally get the Jeep hood open & no, nothing wrong with the Jeep......just me:((

  

BUSTED HAT & THESE ARE THE 3D GLASSES KELLY & WORE TO WATCH 'AVATAR' IN SIERRA VISTA ARIZONA LAST WINTER.  My review of that movie is here ..... AVATAR
We had a beautiful fall day going on & Kelly had some time off so figured it was a good time to acquaint her with the driver's seat in the Motor Home.  Kelly has driven school buses as long or longer than our rig so I
knew it wouldn't be much of a problem for her to drive the Motor Home.  Gas was low in the rig so we headed off for Goderich to pick up some fuel.  I am not a good passenger in anybodies vehicle regardless of who is driving so it's always a challenge for me to keep myself from screaming.  I have always
been a driver & not a co-pilot.  In fact I have habit of always hogging the steering wheel & doing all the driving.  I once had two friends physically remove me from behind the wheel of a pick truck on a Pennsylvania turnpike
because I was hogging the wheel & wouldn't let either one of them drive!!  
    
HEY LADY, THAT CELL PHONE STUFF IS ILLEGAL HERE IN ONTARIO!!!!

A couple of the roads we took today were very narrow with skinny shoulders so needless to say, I had my moments.  But Kelly did fine just as I knew she would.  We filled up the rigs propane tank & threw a hundred dollars into the gas tank.  I knew that would be enough to get us the 10 miles or so back to Bayfield:))

 
HEY, QUIT LOOKING OVER MY SHOULDER BUDDY!!

I spent the rest of the fine afternoon vacuuming the rigs bins & scrubbing them out with soap & water.  Did a lot of rearranging again  & decided to get rid of a lot of stuff we've been carrying around & never seemed to use.  Would you
believe I had a bag with 33 bungee cords in it & I had enough various ropes stored away to outfit a full blown 3 master sailing ship.

 

WHAT THE HECK'S WITH ALL THOSE ROPES             
The two tires we had put on Wednesday are BFG's (BFGoodrich) & I understand BFG is a division or is owned by Michelin.  Quite a difference in tread depth between the old & new tires.  The tire guys said our back tires will be just fine for another season.  Personally, I would have liked to replace
them as well but at nearly $400 a tire it was too cost prohibitive this year.

    

           

THE OLD GOODYEAR & THE NEW BFG

 

Our Motor Home is built on a Workhorse Chassis which means it has a Chevrolet V-8, 8.1 Vortec gasoline engine coupled with an Allison transmission.  As I understand it, the Workhorse chassis is a slight step up from the more traditional Ford V-10 cylinder engines with the Vortec having more power etc.  Anyway, there has been problems with the Workhorse Chassis brakes & a huge confusing recall has been going on for the past couple of years.  Within the last month & the last couple weeks it has finally become organized to the point where we can finally get our rig into a Canadian facility & have our potential Workhorse brake problem fixed.  We have never had a problem with the brakes but apparently they can fail without warning.  Kelly phoned a Workhorse authorized dealer in Sarnia Ontario this afternoon & the wheels are in motion for me to take the rig to Sarnia in a couple weeks to get the work done.  We've been worrying about those brakes ever since we heard about the recall so it will be nice to finally get that worry behind us.  The fix is free so that is a much appreciated bonus.

THINK I'LL TAKE A DIP, OOOH WATERS TOO COLD....I'M OUGHTA HERE!! 

Welcome to blog supporter JOE64  Nice to have you aboard Joe.  I don't understand the German language but I do get the gist of your site & I did recognize photos of Ontario.

Kelly whooped up a big Thanksgiving turkey dinner tonight which was totally delicious.  We don't normally have big meals like that but my birthday today may have had something to do with it.  I generally try to keep it a low key day but it somehow squeaked out again.  A big thanks to all the Facebook folks & others for their best wishes.  Awwwww shucks..................

  SUMAC SHADOWS ON THE RIG >>>>>

 
GROANER'S CORNER:((  A man who'd just died is delivered to a local mortuary wearing an expensive, expertly tailored black suit.
The female blonde mortician asks the deceased's wife how she would like the body dressed. She points out that the man does look good in the black suit he is already wearing.  The widow, however, says that she always thought her husband looked his best in blue, and that she wants him in a blue suit. She gives the Blonde mortician a blank check and says, 'I don't care what it costs, but please have my husband in a blue suit for the viewing.'  The woman returns the next day for the wake. To her delight, she finds her husband dressed in a gorgeous blue suit with a subtle chalk stripe; the suit fits him perfectly...  She says to the mortician, 'Whatever this cost, I'm very satisfied.. You did an excellent job and I'm very grateful. How much did you spend?'
To her astonishment, the blonde mortician presents her with the blank check. 'There's no charge,' she says.  'No, really, I must compensate you for the cost of that exquisite blue suit!' she says.  'Honestly, ma'am,' the blonde says, 'it cost nothing. You see, a deceased gentleman of about your husband's size was brought in shortly after you left yesterday, and he was wearing an attractive blue suit. I asked his wife if she minded him going to his grave wearing a black suit instead, and she said it made no difference as long as he looked nice.'
'So I just switched the heads.'

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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/

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

HAVE A NICE DAY

TOUCHDOWN FOR GOOSE SQUADRON

Took the Motor Home to a local tire shop this afternoon & had 2 new front tires put on.  Rather than totally bore you with the rest of my mundane day & the details of how many crappy magazines I leafed through in my two hour tire wait I'll just wrap this up by saying we had a nice sunny Autumn day........10-4!!

ME & MY CHIEF EDITOR

GROANER'S CORNER:(( 

Two red heads are walking down the  street. One notices a compact on the sidewalk and leans down to pick it  up.  She opens it, looks in the mirror and says, "Hmm, this person looks familiar."  The second red head says, "Here, let me see!" So the first red head  hands her the compact.  The second one looks in the mirror and says, "You  dummy, it's me!"

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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/

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

KELLY PUTS THE JEEP THROUGH IT'S PACES

I can always tell when Thanksgiving is approaching.  Kelly comes home a few days ahead with a dead turkey under her arm.  Not one of those big walloping 300 pounders mind you but just a small enough bird we
both can lift by hand into the oven.  Generally just the two of us here for the week-end because it's a busy time for Kelly at Deer Park Lodge & this year I will be working the whole week-end as well.  
      
GOLFING GROUNDS OF THE MAITLAND COUNTRY CLUB 
We slipped down to Mitchell this morning to visit my Uncle Harry.  He is doing fine but was getting a little concerned that his hair was getting too long & he didn't want the other residents calling him a long haired hippy.  Kelly took her trusty scissors along & soon the deed was done & Harry was looking like a million bucks again.

A LITTLE OFF THE TOP PLEASE
Until today Kelly hadn't driven the Jeep so decided to drive back from Mitchell.  She did very well & it wasn't really a problem for her.  I told her there would be a noticeable difference when she drove the Santa Fe again.   Compared to the Jeep, the Santa Fe seems sluggish & spongy.  The Jeep just has a way of winning people over with it's quirky little bouncing ways.
              
THE JEEP WAS NO PROBLEM FOR THIS GAL
GYPSY has herself a bubbling pot of excitement brewing over there in Sacramento, California.  Not only did she finally sell her 5th wheel trailer a few days ago but this morning she kicked her problematic AT&T out the door, signed up with Verizon & set herself up with a complete new Mifi system.  Last I heard she had to get a seat belt installed on her computer chair to keep her safely secured during her new high speed internet surfing.  Seems like Gypsy went from the stone age to the jet age in a matter of hours:)) 

JUST HAVING A GOOSE OF A DAY
I see we have two new blog supporters.....or do we!!  First let me welcome msucheermom.  Thank you for taking an interest in the Bayfield Bunch & I feel confident you are a true blog follower.  I'm not so sure about our 173rd follower though.  Is this a true supporter??  I am always a little leery when things are not written in English & looking at this person's site I suspect it is a young person.  RVing is generally not of interest to young people.  If you are on the up & up adriane, then I welcome you to the Bayfield Bunch:))
 
THE MENESETUNG RR BRIDGE ATOP IT'S TALL TRESTLES as seen from near the point where the Maitland River flows into Lake Huron

GROANER'S CORNER:(( 
Little Johnny's neighbors had a baby. Unfortunately the baby, was born without ears. When the mother and new baby came home from the hospital, Johnny's family was invited over to see the baby.
Before they left their house, Little Johnny's dad had a talk with him and explained that the baby had no ears. His dad also told him that if he so much as mentioned anything about the baby's missing ears or even said the word "ears" he would get the spanking of his life when they came back home. Little Johnny told his dad he understood completely. When Johnny looked in the crib he said," What a beautiful baby."
The mother said, "Why, thank you, Little Johnny."
Johnny said, "He has beautiful little feet and beautiful little hands, cute little nose and really beautiful eyes. Can he see?"
"Yes, the mother replied, "we are so thankful. The doctor said he will have 20/20 vision "
"That's great," said little Johnny, "cuz he'd be crap-outta-luck if he needed glasses."
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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/

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