An Anniversary

 We attended an Optimist meeting today.  The City still won't allow us access to our building, so we had an outdoor meeting.  Members brought food and personal items to donate to the food bank.

About twenty Optimists showed up despite the cool weather.  That's our new President, Al Wood, with the blue and white hair.

He wasn't the only one who dressed up for Hallowe'en.

We're going ahead with a virtual Turkey Roll for Christmas.

Each card wins a turkey.  Circles are $3 each (or $20 for 7 and I will throw in the extra $1.)  If you want your circles spread over more than one card I'll look after that.  E-transfers can be made to Mardi's email account. mardi@bullivant.ca 

Sorry about the commercial, but the Club still needs to help the community.

--------------------------------------------

Optimist Ed Strecker and wife Rose were there.

And afterwards the four of us headed to the Powerhouse Restaurant for lunch.

I actually think he looks better in the first picture.

This was a special get-together for Mardi and me.  Seventeen years ago today Mardi and I had our first date, and Ed was the matchmaker.  And this is the match he found for me.

We were still two days away from the dinner/dance that was to be our first date, but the weather on Hallowe'en that year was beautiful so I invited Mardi for a game of golf at Scenic Woods.  Towards the end she eased up and let me win.  Never eased up since though!

I was invited back to her house for dinner and helped hand out treats to the kids before heading home - in a daze! (Seventeen years later I'm still dazed!).

------------------------------------------

The Powerhouse Restaurant was originally a coal-fired steam electric generating plant that powered the Hamilton, Grimsby and Beamsville Electric Railway from 1894 until 1931.  It ran up Ferguson Avenue to Lawrence Road (which the railway cleared and built), crossed Red Hill Creek and then ran along King Street to the junction of Queenston Road (highway 8), and from there to Beamsville.  Our house in Fruitland was half a block from Stop 69 (it wasn't a rude number in those days).

There were passenger street cars on the line but it was also used to transport the peninsula's fruit crops, including the products of E.D. Smith.  It connected to the TH&B in Hamilton and the Grand Trunk Railway in Winona.  

That's your history lesson for today.

---------------------------------------

Stay well.  Get some fresh air.

Bobby Orr - Fallen Hero

 Same as yesterday, only with a parka and a toque.

----------------------------------------

Looks like Bobby Orr got hit in the head too many times playing hockey.  He's taken a full page ad out to praise Trump.  

Jack Nicklaus likes Trump too, but he was never my hero anyway.

-----------------------------------------

Tomorrow it's an outdoors Optimist meeting and a special commemorative day.

-----------------------------------------

Stay well.

October 29

 The usual.  Worked on a couple of gardens.  Cut grass.

--------------------------------------------

Back to the greenhouse tomorrow.  Saturday should be a more newsworthy day.

---------------------------------------------

Thanks to those who told someone they love them, including my brother!  Stay well.

The Mum Show

 Took advantage of a nice, sunny day and headed for the Hamilton Mum Show at the Gage Park greenhouses.

That's my sweetie on the other side, taking the following picture of me, standing in line.

This year you had to book a time (they're all booked up).  We weren't aware, but they also allow ten other people each half hour, so we just had to wait about 20 minutes.

The theme this year is appreciation for the Front-Line Workers.

They always have lots of exotic Mum varieties.

As you can see, some varieties look more like Dahlias than Mums.

This display might be good for Trillium Hill.

After a half hour tour of the Mum displays we headed to the Tropical Garden building.

Turtles and Koi, and a few birds inhabit the Tropical Garden.

A great way to spend an afternoon!  And it's free!  They could easily charge $10 or $20 and still keep the place full.  Well worth the time.

---------------------------------------------

Then we headed for the storage room at Mardi's business.  It's official - golf season is over!

Other years we would, just about now, be heading for two weeks of golf in North Carolina.  Not this year!

Nor will we be going to Florida at the first of the year.  So the clubs won't be going anywhere until next April.

---------------------------------------

While there, I picked up the winter wheels for the van.  Will have them mounted soon.  First time I will have installed snow tires in several years.  What does snow look like again?

----------------------------------------

Cut grass for an hour and a half to finish off the afternoon.  A satisfying day.

----------------------------------------

Stay well.  Tell someone you love them.

Dodgers In Six!

 Matt forwarded the following screen shot that is very topical given my technical difficulties with the TV.

Hopefully, the election will reboot their system!

---------------------------------------------

Started out the back door of the building heading for the greenhouse this morning, realized it was raining, turned back.  End of story.

---------------------------------------------

Dodgers are World Champions!  Best team in baseball came through in game six.  A good series to watch.  

Now I can go back to cheering for the Blue Jays, who will be in the playoff mix again next year.  Not saying they'll win the World Series, but they'll be fun to watch.

----------------------------------------------

Stay well.

Trilliums and Grandkids

 First off, a picture from yesterday when we welcomed Sarah-Jean and her friend home for reading week.

Proud Grandpa!  And as you can see, Sean and his brothers dressed up especially for their sister and the occasion.

Malcolm was sporting an appropriate Trillium around his neck.  Nice touch!

Happy times at Trillium Hill.

---------------------------------------

Today, I got another garden spiffed up and then went back to cutting grass out back.  On the way back to the greenhouse I checked out the swimming hole/fish pond.  The water has dropped about four feet over the summer, but the fish still have twelve or thirteen feet to enjoy at the other end where the escape ladder is located.

--------------------------------------

After a frustrating time trying to get the TV to unfreeze, Mardi called an expert.  Finally discovered that it was not the TV at fault but the cable box.  Shut it down and disconnected everything and when it was reconnected it behaved properly.  A pretty cheap fix.

Now we're ready for tomorrow's ball game.

---------------------------------------

We've both given up on golfing tomorrow - perhaps for the rest of the season as well, unless we get a heat wave.  So, I'll be back at the greenhouse for my usual two to four hour stint, continuing to get the lawns and gardens ready for winter.

---------------------------------------

Trump is correct about turning the corner on the coronavirus - except that the corner is bending uphill, not down.  We're experiencing the same rise in Canada, but from a much lower base.  Keep wearing those masks and keep your distance. 

Summer it over

Short and sweet tonight.  Did some cleanup on the work bench at the greenhouse and then got on the mower in the back field again.  Orange toque in place, coat and gloves - cut for about an hour before the wind and cold chilled me through.

Home for a coffee and Baileys and a nap.  

Now our living room TV has frozen and we haven't been able to get it going again.  So the game will be watched in the bedroom, and I'm still tired.  Therefore the blog is going out before the game because I'll probably be asleep by the end.

-------------------------------------

Stay well. Enjoy the roses Rada.

October 24's blog

 Headed for the greenhouse at noon.  Finished reorganizing the tool cart.

Cleaned up a couple of gardens and then cut grass on the back field for an hour or so.

Enjoyed seeing Sarah-Jean and her nursing student friend Ella, who arrived from Pembroke in the afternoon.

Ella's parents live in the U.S.  Her dad is Canadian, her mother British.  Ella enjoys dual American/Canadian citizenship.  Nice young lady!

----------------------------------------

As previously noted, the baseball game carried on into the a.m.  Crazy finish!  Series is now tied.

Mardi is happy.  I'm really ambivalent.  I was leaning towards the Rays, but chose to cheer for the Dodgers because they were cheated by the Astros in 2017.  Now I'm thinking, may the best team win.

-----------------------------------------

Stay well.  

Bench Brewing

 As advertised, we headed to wine country today, but didn't drink any wine!  Maureen and Matt had a better idea.

We chose The Bench Brewing Company in Beamsville for our lunch.

We each chose to have a "flight" of beer, and they have several choices.

My selection was American Stout, Folklore on Cherries (a sour ale finished with Montmorency Cherries) and Jordan Harbour (a Belgian Pale Ale).  Mardi chose Cherry Grove, Plum Grove and Apricot Wildwood.  

For our meal we chose Korean Rice Bowl (Mardi) and Pear and Blue Cheese Arugula Salad (for me).

A beautiful day for a great outing with good friends!  

Afterwards we headed back to Matt and Maureen's for a walk along the waterfront and then a libation to celebrate.

A wonderful way to spend a glorious day!

--------------------------------------------

Our condolences go out to Rada Buckley, who has survived 38 years of marriage to our friend John.  There should be a medal in her future.  Maybe even sainthood!

---------------------------------------------

Tomorrow we get to see Sarah-Jean who is coming home from Pembroke for reading week.  Can't wait!

---------------------------------------------

My Dodgers are up 2 games to 1 over Mardi's Rays.

---------------------------------------------

Stay well.  Laugh a lot.

A quiet day

Headed to the greenhouse today to pick up a small container of peat moss for Mardi's cactus.  Interesting that when we lived on Gateshead and the plant got a northern exposure it bloomed at Hallowe'en.  Since it now gets a western exposure it appears to be heading towards a more traditional Christmas blooming time.  We'll see how that goes.

-------------------------------------------

While I was there, it was much too wet to get the mower going, so I spent an hour or so reorganizing the tool cart.  I think that demons come in at night and move the tools around - particularly the socket wrenches and sockets.  Never put back in the right slot.

The other problem with tools not put back where they are supposed to be is that when you have an urgent need and can't find the tool, it's easier to just go out and buy another one.  Thus we have almost thirty screw drivers.

----------------------------------------

No ball game tonight so we watched the Presidential debate.  The Moderator did a better job tonight than the first one, but Trump did his best to look ridiculous.  Nevertheless, the Republican leaning TV analyst still thought he did a good job.  Let's hope the polls have it right!

-----------------------------------------

Tomorrow we were supposed to play golf at MontHill but they are still closed due to the coronavirus cases they experienced.  So we're heading to wine country with Matt and Maureen instead.  Should be a lot less stressful!

------------------------------------------

David is complaining that it took me sixty years to tell him "life is short - break the rules".  There are some things that just come naturally for David that I didn't have to explain!

-----------------------------------------

Stay well.

Shopping Day

 Exciting day today.  Went shopping with Mardi.

The Optimists are having a parking lot meeting midday on Hallowe'en and have asked members to bring things for the food bank.  So our first stop was Dollarama, for $30 worth of personal items (soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc.).

Next up was Food Basics where we filled the list we had made and each added some impulse items.  Quite a load!

--------------------------------------------

Came home and completed revising the Optimist Constitution.  Emailed it to the President.

--------------------------------------------

Watched my Dodgers lose to Mardi's Rays.  Series even.

--------------------------------------------

Happy 30th birthday to Mardi's niece Rhiannon.  

--------------------------------------------

Life is short.  Break the rules.

Disappointing Day

 We headed to MontHill today figuring that this may be our last chance to golf as a group this year.  

Due to the heavy rain they had experienced, power carts were not being allowed out.  And all of their pull carts were in use.

Undaunted, Calvin and Gary shouldered their carry bags.  I picked out four clubs that I hoped would work, and four balls that I hoped would be enough for the day...............

.....and we headed for the club house to check in.

As it turned out, it was worse than we thought.

Just as I was about to pay, they announced that a bar employee and a customer had tested positive for the coronavirus and they would be closing for a couple of days.

So, dejected, we headed back to our cars and packed our equipment away.

Matt has booked a game at MontHill for Friday for he and Maureen, Mardi and me.  That's pretty iffy right now!

---------------------------------------

The Dodgers have won the first game against the Rays.  The Universe is unfolding as it should.

---------------------------------------

Tomorrow calls for rain.  We'll see what happens.

Stay well.

Today A Rant

 Stayed home today because of the threat of rain.  Worked on the Optimist Constitution - almost finished.

-----------------------------------

Now, I have time for a RANT!

How do you like our Canadian version of racial discrimination?  Police standing by while the lives and livelihood of our indigenous people are threatened.  Don't we look like the U.S. with their police approach to the black community?

Tell me what would have happened if the indigenous people had burned down a white lobster pound!

The RCMP should be stood down!  Since they sold their souls to Disney they are nothing more than an entertainment vehicle - The Musical Ride.  Keep that and then take them out of policing altogether.

They made a mess of the serial shooter case in Nova Scotia.  Now they look totally incompetent in the Nova Scotia lobster wars.

And the government is (slowly) thinking about what to do.  Probably better though than the Conservatives, who would go in with battering rams against the natives.

I am disgusted with our country!  Liberal platitudes.  Conservative hate.  NDP dream land.  Green Party wishful thinking.  It's all crap!

----------------------------------

OK Bud, take it easy.  Your blood pressure just went up to 153/90.  Those idiots aren't worth it!

-----------------------------------

Tomorrow I have another chance to get upset - I'm golfing!

Stay well.  Stay safe.  Speak up!

World Series Time

 Finished installing the trailer hitch on my new toy.

The solid wheels should last longer than on the old wagon.  And the dump feature is much easier to use.

My task for next spring is to find a set of yard sale wheels that will fit the old wagon.  It can then be used by garden centre shoppers.

---------------------------------------

Cut grass for a couple of hours.

The land that David bought had been idle for some time, but in a former life there had been an Asparagus crop on the east side of the back field.  Some remnant plants have survived.

Tasty too!

---------------------------------------

Haven't seen any coyotes yet this year.  They haven't been hanging around like they did when David had chickens.

Haven't seen Deer or Wild Turkeys either, but they're still around.

-------------------------------------

Took my chick to The Innsville tonight.  First dinner out in quite a while.

In case you couldn't read the fine print.....

A message a lot of Republicans need to heed.

------------------------------------

It's the Dodgers and the Rays in the World Series.  Some justice here!  The Dodgers were defeated in a World Series by the cheating Astros, and the Rays were eliminated last year by the Astros.  Now they can vie for the title while the cheaters cry in their beer.

------------------------------------

Stay safe.

Goodbye Astros!

 Mardi and I visited the greenhouse today.  After enjoying coffee with David and Sue, we headed for the escarpment with Jake.  We're on the driveway to where David and Sue's new house will be, some day.

You mention "walk" to Jake and you're on the hook for a meander!

We headed to the escarpment, passing the fields of Poison Ivy.  All those pinky/red things are nasty!

Acres of them!  It's going to be a struggle to eliminate that pest!

Came back and started to put together our new dump wagon.  The old one has wheels that are finished - loose on the axle , tire separated.  Cheaper to replace the whole thing than to get new wheels!

I'll get you a picture of the wagon in action tomorrow.

---------------------------------------

Spent a bit of time on the Optimist constitution.  A work in progress.

---------------------------------------

Watched the Tampa Bay - Houston ball game, switching back and forth with the CNN special on Joe Biden.

Thankfully, the Rays beat the cheating Astros.  For those who don't follow baseball, the Astros had an elaborate scheme for viewing and telegraphing the opposing catcher's signals to their batters.  They won a World Series by cheating.  The coach lost his job, but the players who were in on the scheme got off scott free.  Glad to see them gone!

The Biden special was a winner too.  Can't wait to celebrate his election victory.  But I hope I'm wrong about Trump's white supremacist followers subsequently starting a civil war.

--------------------------------------

Stay well.

Miscellaneous

Spent three hours at the greenhouse, gardening and cutting the back field.  My routine is to do the physical work until my body complains and then cut grass for a couple of hours.  Working so far.

It was a beautiful day and the colours are still spectacular.  In the back field, the Poison Ivy is a very bright red colour.  We'll eventually have to poison it - there are acres of this pest!

----------------------------------------

My new toy is a blood pressure monitor.  Activates by 'phone (don't tell my buddies I'm playing around with technology).   We'll see if it tells me anything useful.  

----------------------------------------

The Tampa Bay Rays let me down again tonight.  After leading the series three games to none, they have now let the Houston Astros even the series.  Crossing my fingers for tomorrow.

----------------------------------------

Kathryn has shared the news that she has been hired by the landscaper she had her work term with and will be starting an apprenticeship.  Fantastic news!  Keep that Bobcat moving!

----------------------------------------

Stay well.  Stay safe.  Stay out of trouble.

Charlie Browns

 Spent some time working on the hilltop gardens today.

The latest "Charlie Brown" candidates are in the garden in the foreground - the two Junipers and a Ninebark bush, all "Wacky Wednesday" bargains.

Beyond them, a Smokebush, a berry bush that didn't have a tag, and finally, my original evergreen that started as a four foot stick with three branches.

Starting at the other (West) end, two Oak trees that were brought across the highway as acorns by squirrels and planted under our evergreens.  Then a Chestnut that squirrels planted in our Stoney Creek back yard.

A Flowering Dogwood and two Birch trees that started as pathetic sticks complete the picture.

My goal is to live long enough to see the Oaks and the Chestnut actually produce nuts.

To prove that I am an Optimist, I recently started seven Black Walnuts that I retrieved from MontHill.  Will they sprout?  And, if so, where will David let me plant them?  Can I survive until they produce nuts?

---------------------------------------

I haven't watched a ball game since the Jays were eliminated.  But I decided to watch the Tampa Bay - Houston game tonight, hoping that the cheating Astros would be eliminated.  Didn't happen, but Tampa Bay only has to win one of the next three games to get rid of them.

========================

Stay well.

A Down Day

 Took it easy today, mainly because of the rain.  So, not very much to report.

Spent some time working on a revision to the Optimist Club of Stoney Creek's constitution.  I think they asked me to contribute because I've been around the Club since Pontius Pilate was a flight cadet (or 60 years to be more exact).  They also asked Mardi, but not for the same reason obviously 😇.

--------------------------------------

Watched some of Joe Biden's Town Hall and thought that he came across as a very decent man - not a surprising result.  Saw a few clips of Trump's Town Hall - he was also not surprising, if you know what I mean.

---------------------------------------

Tomorrow promises to be sunny, but chilly.  The greenhouse is the destination.

---------------------------------------

Stay well.

Fall Colours

 A beautiful day, cool and breezy on the front nine, very comfortable on the back nine.  

Just four of us showed up today - apparently one of our guys (reportedly Sven), tried to imitate Paul Bunyon (a miniature version to be sure) splitting some wood.  Didn't work out well we are told.  Not sure what the other excuses are.

There are four par threes and four golfers.  Of those sixteen possibilities, only one ball managed to stay on the green, the orange one to the right of the pin.

 

And it was two putted for par, and a Dog Meat.  

Yours truly would like to thank Matt, Ron K, and Calvin for their contribution to my retirement fund.

------------------------------------------

Fun watching Trump's political rallies.  Just think of all those Republicans who will come down with the virus.  Interesting that the people who sit behind Trump are wearing masks for the TV cameras - the rest are not.

-------------------------------------------

Enjoy the fall colours.  I was particularly impressed with the section on Highway #6, between the airport and the 403, a route I don't normally take.   Beautiful!

--------------------------------------------

Stay well.