Why I am writing is just my way of trying
to provide you, dear reader, with a small gift.
OOOhhh -- I can't wait to see what you got me!
A (very) short respite from the troubles of the world.
A tiny escape for those who are stuck
in the humdrum of 2020
and perhaps unable to get away like they
normally might be so inclined.
Oh...it's like a virtual gift.
So, for your entertainment, or perhaps, unfortunately,
to add to your ennui
...looking up the word ennui online...
As I sat in the car, I spotted this discarded dog toy.
I thought Canada was supposed to be beautiful?
I took a familiarization flight in a Cessna
where I even got to take the controls.
Luckily, I have sous-chefs that
assist me in these endeavours.
(Yes. That's where they hang out
while I'm trying to cook and not
step on them.)
my dogs do the same thing.
Nice cooktop by the way. I'm officially jealous.
So what does one do in a pandemic
when the borders are closed
and travel is discouraged?
Well, I did go camping with my youngest DD, Kay.
sounds like a plan!
We arrived in plenty of time for
our 10am scheduled ride.
We had driven through driving rain
(as opposed to sledding through sleet?
Fighting through fog?
Inching through ice?
I'll quit now. You're welcome.)
You're writing teacher would be proud of your use of alliteration.
The story was curious enough
to be covered by the TV show
"Unsolved Mysteries".
If you're interested, I've linked
the episode below. The first 15
minutes of the program discuss
the incident.
I love the intro music for this show -- so distinguishable.
We found our campsite and...
it was a wee bit on the boggy side.
good for you for sticking it out -- I'm not a fan of camping in the mud. I HATE cleaning out the tent afterwards...and all that mud just makes it so much worse.
And no camping trip would
be complete without a campfire.
And no campfire is complete
without S'mores.
I'm pretty sure this is a legal requirement.
Shortly after we entered the tunnel,
we were met by a motorboat traveling
in the opposite direction.
that would be scary.
Notice the sign advising motorists
of the rules for traversing the tunnel
in the photo below:
does this mean you broke the rule on your way back?
When we got back to our campsite,
we were both ready to cool down
with a swim.
We headed to the beach, which we
had all to ourselves.
And we found out why.
We waded in and got as far as
about mid-thigh.
The water temperature, still early
in the year, was probably around 45F/7C.
Aren't you from Canada? This seems like something you should have known by now.
Also... when we waded out...
we each found we'd picked up
an unwanted passenger.
One leach each.
Sooooo gross.
Yikes. How did you get them off?
And another small project was
replacing the gate.
I think it turned out well enough.
Deck and gate look great!
I'll say that it was a very good burger.
Don't you think that Kay thinks so too?
And in case you were wondering...
Hot dogs won the contest.
hot dogs have a numbers advantage in that people often buy 2 or more for themselves.
Later, the kids tried jumping
from the rocks and while they
liked the lower (8-10ft) jumping
off point, Kay tried the higher (20ft)
spot but said it knocked the breath
out of her.
I settled for the lower spot, myself.
I don’t have a death wish.
I never did see the squirrel that
had scolded me.
I've often thought that a couple squirrels could really mess you up if they wanted to. They always make me a little nervous. When I was in college (university as you guys call it), I used to carry sunflower seeds in my backpack just in case some squirrels came up to me. Didn't want them to be hangry.
mmmm… Want one?
Yes. Yes, you do.
t was actually quite pretty.
It made the flames turn different
colours and lasted over half an hour!
that is pretty sweet. Looks like
amazon also carries them!
https://www.amazon.com/Mystical-Fire-Colorant-Long-Lasting-Pulsating/dp/B00AFVLVI4
I would've guessed some sort of oil formation (petrol?) But clearly that isn't the case.
In contrast, this horse (?) is
over six feet long.
I'd go with brontosaurus
The solution?
A worker, with a rope tied
around his waist (!) would
walk on the ice and chop it away.
How's that for a job?
yikes. Not my idea of fun.
Notice the Covid spaced tables.
Of course, I opted for the schnitzel.
So did Kay.
DW had chicken fingers (boring!),
while Elle had escargot.
I would have been tempted to buy one of everything just to try it all.
AND WHERE ARE THE FOOD PICS????
Oh. I also had a camel kabob.
Never had camel before.
Tasted alright.
I couldn't tell if it formerly had
one hump or two.
So I did what any good father
(who had been disturbed from his rest)
would do...
I told her a story about a giant
Grizzly bear. I'm sure it helped.
Made me laugh, anyways.
I'm evil that way.
Was it this grizzly story?
Elle's test to come back.
ETA: Just found out it was negative. Phew!)
Hooray!
I called the pool company that
installed it and they sent someone
out to look at it.
I was informed that they didn't use
that system anymore and to "fix" it
they would have to replace it at a
cost of about $2,000.
yeah -- that seems a little excessive. is it more than just replumbing it or did you lose something else?
Elle joined me and we set a goal.
We wanted to see if we could run 5K.
We signed up for a Disney
virtual 5K as an incentive.
We stuck with it, and eventually...
Wow! Congrats! That's a cool medal.
And sorry to hear about the injury -- hopefully you get/got better quickly.
And the Van Gogh exhibition
came to Winnipeg.
I took my folks (and Kay)
to go see it.
It's a dynamic display of
his works that are constantly
changing as you watch.
The paintings are projected
on the walls and the floor.
this is amazing.
Halloween was a bust.
We normally get around 120 kids,
but this year we got 12.
'Nuff said.
Ours was down a little -- but I wouldn't know for sure since I was at the Magic Kingdom for Halloween with the two youngest. Holy crap -- the line for Haunted Mansion extended all the way past the riverboat and almost got to the boat ramp for Tom Sawyer's island. Ended up walking around for a few hours and got the kids back to the Poly for dinner before passing out for the night.
And by the way…
Did you see it?
I did not -- gave it a second look through and still didn't see anything. Will have to look again.
Doesn't it though????
