Owls and Optimism

 Headed to the greenhouse to see if the Snowy Owl that David talked about was around.  Headed to the back of the property and took Jake along for the walk.

Didn't see a darn thing, except for some Canada Geese overhead.  But the salt lick has had some visitors.  It's considerably smaller than when David placed it here.

I did hear a Killdeer call.  Won't be long before they lay their eggs on the barren ground.  Fortunately they pick a relatively infertile spot so I can spot and avoid them when I'm cutting the grass.

The garden centre is getting more plants, and they're being displayed on some of the benches that I painted.  Things are taking shape.

These last two pictures look a little cloudy.  I was having some difficulty keeping them from fogging up after coming in from the cold.  Sorry.

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

"Attended" an Optimist meeting with Mardi tonight via Zoom.  We got kudos for selling six cards for the Ham Roll.  Second best was four cards.  Thanks for your support.

Two high school students read essays they had written for the Optimist Essay contest.  We should be getting copies of them soon and I will pass along the one that finished higher at the District level.  It was very well done.

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

Another eleven days and we're 80% protected from the virus.  Feels good.

Stay well.

Odds and Ends

 We start with some not so good news.  Kathryn has some symptoms that could be either Covid or the flu.  Her doctor has scheduled her for a test tomorrow.  Fingers crossed!

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

Went to the greenhouse today, but not to work - the shoulder is still a bit tender.  Delivered his winning Ham Roll gift card to Sandro and said hi to Sean and the others.

Then I headed for the LCBO to pick up two boxes of "cardbordeau".  Selected Pellers Cabernet Sauvignon and Pellers Chardonnay.  We're certainly not wine snobs!

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

A few days ago I tried to explain my approach to discrimination, but the wording was clumsy.  I would have been better to just quote Martin Luther King's famous speech:

   "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in         their nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their   skin, but by the content of their character".

That is what I aspire to.  To judge people only by the content of their character. 

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

David saw a Snowy Owl at the greenhouse today.  The second annual visit that we're aware of.  Probably won't stay around for another day but I might just go tomorrow and hang out with my camera in case.

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

And we end with some good news.  Tomorrow is their 6th anniversary for Roger and Lynn.  Seems like just yesterday when she dragged him out of the ocean in Hawaii.  Best wishes from Mardi and me.

Stay well.

Vaccinations

 Thanks for the positive thoughts about our vaccinations.  It appears that a lot of our friends are now scheduled (that's what happens when you travel with the geriatric crowd).

I also received a message sent privately from a "friend" that I am (probably foolishly) sharing with you.  

"I didn’t want to embarrass you in front of all your friends, but I thought Mardi looked good and stoic, but you looked a little tentative.  Don’t be a weenie and let the side down!

 Jim"

Well Jim, my arm did hurt a bit today, but at least I didn't look as bad as the soccer player.

For those who don't watch soccer, they dive a lot!

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

Took it easy today.  The arm discomfort went away for both of us.  

Watched the Blue Jays' final spring training game, a 13-7 victory over the Phillies.  A good send off for their regular season which starts on Thursday.  Can't wait!

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

Should be OK for some digging at the greenhouse tomorrow.

Stay well.  

We've Been Shot

 Headed to the Grimsby Y this morning for our Moderna shots.

Lots of winding steps past paramedics and other staff to get to the site shown above, but everyone was in good spirits.  A happy occasion for the many volunteers, as well as the shooters and the shootees.

The shot itself was much quicker than I've seen on TV and painless.  Sat for the requisite 15 minutes afterwards and then headed for WalMart to pick up a new colour cartridge for the printer.  Had to stand in line in the rain for about five minutes before they let us in, but somehow that didn't dampen our spirits.

It will take a couple of weeks for the protection to kick in so we still have to be cautious.  Too bad, because I was so looking forward to giving Ron King a hug (you'd have to be on a separate golf thread to get the gist of that comment).

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

My item regarding discrimination in yesterday's blog didn't come out quite the way I intended.  We'll address that topic again in the future.

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

A Canadian did well once again in golf.  Michael Gligic came in tied for fourth in the Dominican under difficult weather conditions.  A bit more skill on his short game will get him into the winner's circle.

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

Stay well.  Hope those of you who are still waiting get your shots soon.

Easter Lilies

I have been sent the following link by both Calvin and Wayne.  It gives a comparison of the various vaccines that are on the market.  Very enlightening and reassuring.  Thanks guys.

 https://youtu.be/K3odScka55A

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

Congratulations to the folks who won prizes in the Optimist Ham Roll:

Sandro Cervoni, Rada Buckley, Mark Richardson, Kathryn Craig, Greg Lougheed and yours truly on the cards we sold.  

Mardi's brother, Steve Lougheed, has been our biggest contributor but was blanked once again on our cards.  Apparently he hedged his bets this year by also supporting A.J. and picked up a win on one of A.J.'s cards.  Well done group!

Thanks for supporting the Stoney Creek Optimist Club in our efforts to help the community.

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

Finished raking the gravel off the grass today.  Did you know that you can get a blister on your thumb while raking, even if you're wearing sturdy gloves?  Damn!

Next project will be to trim the sod around the pine trees that line the driveway.  That will start Monday (tomorrow Mardi and I are getting "shot" so we'll take it easy).

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

David is having a great Lily season, a marked contrast to last year!

His customers stood by their commitments, he filled them all, and had more demand than supply.  Looks like one of the Niagara area growers had some kind of crop failure.  Many of their customers came to David to see if he could provide additional plants.

So, no freebies at the end of the driveway this year.  But, there are still great bargains in the garden centre if you're happy with three bloom plants........

What the heck - just buy two or three!

There are also prime candidates for sale........

Let's hope the rest of the 2021 season goes as well!

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

Getting excited about the needle tomorrow.  Stay well.

Vacations

 It's now been over a year since I dashed home from Florida at the beginning of the pandemic.  I'm getting itchy feet as I suspect the rest of you are as well.  So today we're going to talk about vacations.  

So far, Mardi and I are booked into two golf excursions this year, both at Pike Lake - in July with Kathy Gruhl and friends who used to golf at Byrncliff in New York State, and in September with Matt and the folks who used to golf at Sawmill Creek near Sarnia.

Normally we would spend a week or two in New Bern at the end of October/beginning of November but, because of the virus, Mardi is cool to the idea so that's a no go. 

But we do have three free days each year with our Holiday Inn Club timeshare package and they only have resorts in the U.S.  Last year we had to forego that one, but we hope to take advantage sometime in the fall with a short trip to their Lake Geneva resort in Wisconsin.

Which takes us up to our usual winter vacation at Orange Lake in Kissimmee, Florida.  This year we are going to start it a little differently.  We plan to leave Stoney Creek on December 30th with the Cincinnati area as our first day target.  On the 31st we head to Laurel, Mississippi, the home of the HGTV show Home Town.  New Year's Eve in Ben and Erin's home town watching the Pine Cone Drop and fireworks, eat at Pearl's Diner (featured on the show), explore the town the next morning, and then head for New Orleans.

A week in a one bedroom unit in Holiday Inn Club's New Orleans Resort, which is located across the street from the French Quarter, has been booked.  And at the end of April the booking window opens for us to book a two bedroom unit at Orange Lake for the rest of January and February (the week in New Orleans and the seven weeks at Orange Lake are all provided by the two resale weeks we bought on the internet several years ago).  Family and friends often join us during this time for a week's vacation at our beautiful resort (two 18 hole golf courses, two 9 hole golf courses, several eating
spots and pools everywhere).

This is Sven (Gary Parker) on the 5th tee of one of the courses.  One of the units we own is in the background across the water.

And this is the one we stayed at last year.

That takes us to Saturday, February 26.  Then, we will move to a house that Matt and Maureen have rented.  There for two weeks, following which we mail Mardi and Maureen home.  Calvin and his friend Gordon will join us for the last two weeks for a guys' golf vacation.

Sometime next summer, if Barbara and Jo-Ann are still interested, we plan a three week tour of the Maritimes, including Newfoundland.

OK, now I feel better.  Something to look forward to.

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

Stay calm.  Be positive.  Stay well.

Discrimination

I have been wanting to comment on the racial attacks on Asians in the U.S. while also wondering about what was happening to them here in Canada.  For guidance I asked my friend Calvin about his experiences.  He sent back the following thoughtful note and has given me permission to share it.

"It seems that since the Atlanta shootings have made the news, reports are being made public about other racist attacks made here in Canada. Growing up in Quebec, unfortunately the environment is not friendly towards anybody who is not a multi generation born white Quebecer. Local indigenous members have been discriminated against for generations and as time goes by, there is no improvement. When you think about it, these Quebecers were immigrants at some time in history but their memory is selective. It is apparent that people with a limited level of intellect and common sense are now blaming Asians as being responsible for the COVID pandemic regardless of any connection to China. You will notice that the attacks seem to be directed towards the elderly and females as they are less likely to retaliate for any attack which demonstrates how spineless these cowardly attacks are. 

I have not been a victim of any attack or racism which is probably because I am a male and I do not venture out very often but this is a sad indication of how our society has evolved whereby citizens who venture outside of their homes must be vigilant and aware of their environment to ward off any possible attack whether it be physical or verbal. I wonder if the Spanish were subjected to this type of attacks 100 years ago when the Spanish Flu pandemic was responsible for many deaths. 

I believe that the names of these attackers should be made public as was done with the man who conducted a racist rant in an Asian supermarket in Mississauga last year to shame them and demonstrate to their family, friends, and neighbours as to what type of person they are and to change their behaviour and thought process, this is not acceptable to anyone regardless of race, ethnicity, or religious beliefs. In Quebec, I saw this treatment directed towards indigenous people and we are also seeing how they are being treated by the healthcare system. 

Let's hope by these attacks being made public, people will take their heads out of the sand and finally accept that this is a problem that needs rectification. 

Calvin"

Trudeau and Legault both kept their heads in the sand and cried foul when Quebec was accused recently of being racist.  But the evidence shows that race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, and I might add language, do receive a French supremacy response.

And I agree with Calvin that it is people with a limited level of intellect and common sense who are the main culprits.  But, the rest of us are somewhat complicit by not speaking up for, and protecting, the victims.

Of course, none of this is involved in the treatment that we give to Calvin on the golf course.  He's fair game there just like the rest of us.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Calvin.

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

Mardi got her pretty red convertible out of storage this morning, so she now gets to park in our underground spot and my pretty red van is banished to the above ground lot 😞.  Talk about discrimination!

The old Hyundai now moves to the junky back of her office lot (it's Asian after all 😉).  

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

I'm really getting itchy feet about vacations.  That's a topic for tomorrow.

Just three days to go for Mardi and me.  Stay well.

Old Golfer

 Spent some time at the greenhouse raking again.  Another day should do it (that's a Bud day, about two hours - I'm still in spring training).

The Turkey Vultures are back from their winter hiatus, soaring overhead.  So far they're ignoring me - I'm not ripe enough yet.

Weather was wonderful, 20C with little breeze.  However, on the way home, when I got near the lake, the temperature dropped to 8C.

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

Here's an item for my golfing friends.  Thanks Wayne.

http://player.vimeo.com/video/117588730?color=cc0025 <http://player.vimeo.com/video/117588730?color=cc0025>

And while we're on the topic of golf, I had been wondering if our group would be able to go to Byrncliff in upper New York state for our annual golf excursion.  We missed last year because of the coronavirus, and this year the concerns were that not everyone would have completed their vaccination shots, the border might still be closed or, if it was open, we might have to quarantine upon return.

Kathy Gruhl has resolved the issue for us.  Looks like we'll be heading to Pike Lake, which is up around Mount Forest.  Supporting a Canadian course and saving money in the process.  I'm OK with that.  I can golf equally poorly in either country!

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

Chipped a tooth today.  I won't bother to have it fixed until August, after my vaccination protocol is complete.

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

Stay well.

A Productive Day

 Painted and installed the pantry shelves.

Gave Al Knapp a hard time.

Quite a productive day actually 😇.

Five days to go.

Stay well.

Getting Shot

 Spent a bit of time at the greenhouse cutting the new pantry shelves.  They are in the process of being painted now.

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

More of my (old) friends are now able to book their vaccination appointments.  As Al Knapp says, there is an unexpected feeling of relief when that happens.  I assume there will be an even larger feeling when the jab actually happens.  Mardi and I have just six days to go.

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

While I'm talking about my friends, particularly my golfing friends, I think the following picture will give you a good idea about them.  They fit the description.

Quite frankly, they should be able to tell the difference.  The hole in the ground is the one with the flag.

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

Stay well.

Topiary

 Put some of the dislodged sod back in place and dumped another load of gravel out back.

Then, I concentrated on the signature topiary display and trimmed it back.  It's taken a few years for the three yew plants to fill in the gaps, but we're pretty well there now.

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

Then, home again to watch the Blue Jays lose to the Yankees, and an Aussie win the Honda Classic.  Once again, a Canadian ended up in the top ten, this time Adam Hadwin in a tie for eighth.

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

Mardi wants two more shelves for the pantry, so that project will begin tomorrow.

Stay well.

Day of Happiness

 It's an important day - The United Nations' International Day of Happiness. One happy household we know of today is in Brantford, as my sister-in-law Lynn celebrates her birthday.  Best wishes Lynn.  Say hi to my brother for me.

My nephew (once removed? he's the son of my niece) Jeff Marshall is also celebrating a birthday.  Congratulations Jeff.

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

Another proof that this is a happy day:

The garden centre is open!  But not yet regular hours.  If you're planning to visit, check out their Facebook page first to see when they're open.

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

Spent about an hour and a half working on the driveway.  Lots of gravel to rake off the grass.

And down front, even some sod was lifted.

But, I discovered that it had grown over the pavement, so I decided to complete the reveal.

A load of sod moved to a different location, and two loads of dirt and gravel moved to a low spot back by the pond.

That was enough for the body on the first day.  Bought some rye and headed home to watch the Blue Jays (who won).  Slept through the last inning.

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

Be safe.  Be happy.  Be well.

Ginger Snaps

The baker was busy this morning.  While I went grocery shopping, she made a batch of ginger cookies.  Awesome!

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

And, we had a puzzle exchange today.  Plus a few of Mardi's ginger cookies for Kathryn to enjoy.

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

Otherwise, a quiet day.  Watched golf and HGTV.

Tomorrow is International Day Of Happiness.  You are forewarned.

Stay calm.  Be patient. Be well.

A Winter Job

First item of business is to wish Mardi's cousin, Jill Prentice, a happy birthday.  All the best!

Second item is to wish the same for Sylvie Couture, Steve and Bonnie's granddaughter, on her ninth birthday.

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

Took the feather in to the Picture Palace to have it properly framed (ready in two weeks) and then headed for the greenhouse.

The Easter Lily frenzy is underway.  David has a crew of temps boxing them for shipment and continues to make trips to the freezer.  Controlled chaos!

With just 10 days to go until needle time I don't want to mix in with the outsiders so I attempted to move some sod from around the trees along the driveway.  That didn't last long - the shovel hit frozen ground about an inch down.  Maybe by this weekend it will be possible.

But, I do have another small job.  The front half of the driveway has been paved, but the back half is still gravel.  When the driveway was plowed by the winter roads maintenance and snow removal crew, i.e. David, some gravel got picked up and it was all dumped in several spots along the side of the driveway on the grass.  Now that the snow has melted the gravel remains. I'll have to spend a bit of time raking it back off the grass.  Maybe tomorrow.

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

Thanks to Rick Hillier for the job he has done on the vaccine project.  Not his fault that Canada doesn't have its own vaccine production facility.  

Stay well.

St. Patrick's Day

 Happy St. Patrick's Day!

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Mardi has completed her most recent puzzle.  I thought the leaves would be the hardest part, but she claims that the racoon masks were the biggest challenge.

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

Received a nice surprise today.

The Governor of our Optimist District sent this feather to me in recognition of my 60 years service to Optimism.  I will have it framed, with the accompanying letter, and it will take a place of honour with my native artifacts.

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

Eleven days to go.  Stay well.

Daylight Saving Time

 Having some trouble with Daylight Saving Time.  Got up at 2 a.m., having not been able to get to sleep.  Back to bed at 3, slept in till 10 a.m.  It's tough not having a schedule that requires an alarm clock.

Hopefully tonight will go better.

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

Mardi and I intend to get out and about tomorrow.  Other than that, nothing to report.

Stay well.

Vaccination Appointment

 Started out this morning on the Ontario website.  I was the 51,601 person to get in line and at that moment there were 25,262 ahead of me and an hour to wait.  So, I did.

The screen was updated every minute or so and a little figure marched across the screen as things progressed.

My turn came up and I entered the required information.  Easy breezy.  But, then I got a message "Form has been tampered with".

Mardi was on her machine as well and a couple of minutes later she got the same message.

So, Mardi got on the phone and I tried online again.  This time I just had to wait 13 minutes before I got the "Form has been tampered with" message.  After waiting 27 minutes Mardi finally got through on the phone and was advised that they were getting the same message.  The system is screwed up.  Are we surprised?

I'll update sometime.

Canadian Golfer

 Have you guys tried this?

Not!

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

Congratulations to Canadian golfer Corey Conners for finishing 7th today in the Players Championship, following a 3rd place finish in his previous tournament, the Arnold Palmer Invitational.  Well done.

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

Slow news day.  Stay well.

What to do?

 

Back to Work

 Following up on yesterday's item, Kathryn has been told that she will be back to work next week.  And her boss has bought a new toy for her to use.

The blue one in front is the new one.  Looks like fun!

The one behind is the first machine she was trained on.

Well done Kathryn!

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

That's it for today.  Stay well.

Women's Day (a bit late)

 Yesterday I gave kudos to David for what he has accomplished.  Today it's the girls' turn.

When Barbara and Jo-Ann were very young their parents split up.  To make ends meet, Jean took on two jobs leaving Barbara to be the "mother" at far too young an age.

Their father was a member of the Oneida clan of the Six Nations, and they have experienced racism during their lifetime.  That's the main reason that I react so strongly about discrimination issues.

They went to work after high school, but eventually went back as mature students to complete their B.A., Law Degree and finally, Master of Law.

They worked for a time for the elected council of Six Nations but, after being on the front lines of the conflict between traditional adherents and the elected council, eventually left for Ottawa where they worked for the Federal Government.  Both are now retired.

Mardi and I have decorated our condo to honour their heritage.

We had planned to take them on a "Maritime Meander" in 2020, but the pandemic killed those plans.  This year doesn't look promising either.  So 2022 will be the new target.

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

Daughter Kathryn has faced her own share of obstacles in life.  She was born at home in fetal distress and as a result has a profound hearing loss.  She is not deaf - she hears low sounds better than the rest of us - she can hear a train coming long before we detect the sound.  But she has never heard a bird sing - all the high notes are missing.  Sounds like "s", "f", etc. are not audible, so she has to try to fill in the blanks of the part words she hears.  

Kathryn taught herself to lip read but for the past year that has been an impossible task due to masking.

She also suffered an acquired head injury that causes tremors but she has somehow managed to deal with that as well.

I am really pleased that she has found happiness in her landscaping job and was glad to help her in a small way recently as she moved into her new apartment.

I think I would describe our family, including Mardi, as "achievers".  Deal with the challenges, shake them off and move on.  One step at a time toward the next goal.  I am proud of every one of them.

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

My "friend" Barry sent me the following message: 

Need a gift idea for Mardi anytime soon? 

I made the mistake of showing the message to Mardi and she sent out the following response:

Thanks Barry.  We girls worked hard to get our games up to speed and are proud Bees.  

Here is just a little of my memora"bee"lia 

Thanks for helping her to rub it in Barry!

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

Today is National Day of Observance for Canadians who died of Covid-19.  I don't know anyone who fits that category.  Let's keep it that way!

Stay well.

Farming

 They found another bench at the greenhouse, so today I painted it and then packed up the paint, brush and turpentine (the last benches were steel and needed Tremclad).

The mild temperature today (my van registered 20C) was, no doubt, welcomed by most of you, but it created a bit of havoc at the greenhouse.  The lilies are maturing faster than David's crew can get them on carts so he can transport them to the cooler.  Just one of the joys of farming, a profession for which I would not have the temperament.  Every time David triumphs over one of nature's, or man's, disasters my admiration for what he has accomplished grows.

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

Since this is tax season, I'm forwarding an item sent to me by Dave Jewett.

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We're a day closer to being vaccinated (whenever that may be) so stay safe.  Stay well.

A Quiet Day

 Nothing newsworthy today.

Stay well.

The Firm

 A couple more thoughts following the Harry and Meghan show.

I wonder if the palace will follow up on the "bully" investigation regarding Meghan after what she revealed?  Does anybody remember the palace having an investigation after Andrew had been raping underage girls?

David had a thought:  Perhaps when the palace heard that Harry was dating a biracial woman they might have considered sending everybody for sensitivity training.  I agree - England is the cradle of slave trading after all, and the British are certainly very racist.  But would they have absorbed the message?

Another question:  Harry says he loves his grandma and they remain in contact.  But if she is really the Queen, couldn't she have stepped in to help them?  Or is she just a figurehead that the staff and the tabloid media can manipulate?  And, by the way, has she bothered to visit Phillip while he's in hospital?

Sad end to the monarchy!  It's definitely over for me.  Forget replacing the Governor General - just eliminate this historical claptrap.

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

Joyce has updated my list of vaccinated people.  Apparently Rose Strecker has been vaccinated because she is a Personal Support Worker for her dad who is in a retirement home.  Thanks Joyce - that's five people in total.

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

Helped Kathryn a bit this morning, drilling a hole in her book case to enable her electonics to be placed there, and then taking furnishings she doesn't need to Value Village.

Then did my painting at the greenhouse.

Had to get the car washed afterwards because I parked under a bird perch.  The van hood had a lot of white on it.

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

Stay well.

The Crown

 Congratulations to my good friend and golf buddy Ron King who has had his first vaccine shot.  I now know four people (Barbara, Jo-Ann, Monica and Ron) who are in that category.  Progress!

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

An update on our Skip-Bo games.  After over a year, Mardi's total score is 26,475, while mine is 26,470, a difference of 5, or 0.0002%.

But she has won more games, 34 to 29, by being more devious.  I know you're not surprised.

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

I still have 2 or 3 weeks of painting ahead of me, but tomorrow will be the last day indoors.  David needs the space for plants.

So, I'll paint four more of these tomorrow and that will be it for a while.

I should be able to find other things to do in the meantime.  If not, Jake always likes to go for walks.

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

Congratulations to Canadian Corey Connors, who came in third in the Arnold Palmer tournament.  Quite a performance!

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

And quite a performance from Harry and Meghan as well.  The Oprah show was excellent and presents a believable story of what they went through.

They were very careful in their comments but it is clear that Prince Charles is very much the idiot we expected.  And I believe that Harry's exit from the Firm was inevitable from the time that his mother died.  My guess?  Harry and Meghan are lucky to be on their own and will be together longer than Charles will ever reign.

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

Stay well.

Benches

 With the hutch in the rear view mirror, I got back at the painting of David's benches.  Seems like this has been going on for a long time, and as soon as I complete a batch he magically brings in more.

Next month, golf and gardening start up so I need to keep at the painting in the meantime.

That's my news for today.  Stay well.

A.J. came over this morning to help me lift the top back onto the buffet/hutch.  I rehung the doors and Mardi replaced her pinwheel crystal.  Then we stepped back to take a look.

Before............

..........and after.

It no longer dominates the room.  And it's brighter and more friendly.  Mission accomplished.

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

Nothing much more to report.  Stay well.
 

"The Firm"

A beautiful day, and as David Feherty said at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, "The only way you could ruin a day like this is to play golf." 

But, instead, I stayed home today and finished painting the buffet/hutch.  Now I just need to replace the hardware and then wait for a strong back to show up and help me put the top section back in place.

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

I don't know about the rest of you, but I am quite ambivalent about the monarchy these days.  The Queen has had a long, decent reign, but "the firm" is an anachronism in today's world, and she is somewhat hidebound in her approach to her family situations - remember how she treated Diana, and is now treating Harry and Meghan.

She says that now they aren't in the Royal family, they can't do charitable work.  If that is true for them, I guess I should give up my Optimist Club activities as well. 

Just because they are descended from ancient German warlords doesn't make the "Royal family" that special!

You can think what you want about Harry and Meghan, but surely they deserve some freedom to be real people.  Their upcoming interview with Oprah has been scheduled for some time, but now the crummy British press is asking if they should be doing this when Prince Phillip is in hospital.  Give me a break!

And now they're checking into whether Meghan was a bully.  If you were subject to crap from the stuffy, racist "Royal" staff, perhaps you'd be pushing back too.

When Charles becomes King, I think the whole deck of cards is going to collapse.

In the meantime, how about Harry for Governor General?

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

Meantime, Qanon is rescheduling the crowning of Trump.

Stay well.  Stay sane.

Queen Bee

 There may be a few of you who don't know the background on the Queen Bee.  Mardi is part of a golf foursome who call themselves the "Bees".  The connotation is that each of them have beaten their husbands in a golf match.

It happened to me first, and I called her a name which inspired the name "Bees" (don't know why I'm confessing this!).

As the first member of that group, Mardi was dubbed the Queen Bee.  And today, at the card table, she really rubbed it in by wearing her Queen Bee shirt with their logo.  The arrogance of the woman!

Needless to say, I got trounced once again.

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

Tomorrow, the Qanon folks are planning to blow up the U.S. Capital and reinstall their cult hero as President.  Stay tuned!

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

Spring is just around the corner.  Stay positive.  Stay well.

Trickery

 Editor's Note:  The author did not lie about his lack of card playing yesterday.  At the time the blog was posted he had, indeed, abstained.  What he didn't consider was the evil intent of the Queen Bee, aka "the witch", who later enticed him into a game of Skip-Bo and then soundly trounced him.

Sadly, he didn't learn his lesson.  The whipping continued today.

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

Speaking of the Queen Bee, she continued, and completed, her Wandering Jew cutting project today.

Needless to say, I stayed away from her scissors.

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

Easter Lillies don't specifically bloom when you want them to, so when they are just about ready to burst out.....

...they are loaded onto carts and sent to the cooler, to stall their growth.

Then, a few days before Easter they are retrieved and packed for shipment, timed to open just after they arrive.  Not sure where David's orders will be going this year, but Florida and the gulf states are typical recipients.  Last year, as you may recall, they were given away at the end of his driveway.  I hope the goodwill from that gesture remains strong this year.

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

Have to go now.  I'm being called to the card table.

Stay well.

d

A Better Day

 A much better day.  Didn't play cards.

Mardi took cuttings.  I painted.

Stay well.