A Life Sentence With Sven

 Congratulations to Jill for surviving 56 years of marriage to Gary/Sven/Andy/Ned/etc.  All the best to both of our good friends!

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I joined Mardi and Judy for their yard sale run today.  Slim pickings, but it was nice to spend time together with Judy.  We got caught up on her family highlights.

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Blue Jays 2 - Astros 1.  Another good game and another save for Jordan Romano.  George Springer got both Toronto runs - two homers.

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Why pay for psychotherapy when there are so many phone numbers to call where they play calming music and tell you every two minutes how important you are to them?

Stay well.

Red Dress Day - May 5

 It's getting to be that time of year again, and a Charlie Brown cartoon explains it eloquently.

Snoopy: Do all fairy tales begin with "Once upon a time?"

Charlie: No, many of them begin "If I am elected, I promise".

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They're grinding the new cement smooth on the balconies.  Lots of noise once again, but it's progress.

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Mardi and I attended Theatre Aquarius tonight.  Really didn't know what to expect.  The title was "The Hours That Remain" and the brief description in the program didn't give too many clues.

It started slowly and seemed a bit disjointed, about a husband and wife and her sister.  It wasn't until mid show that we began to realize what was going on.  A gut-wrenching experience!  I won't go into details because some of you may be intending to see it, but murdered and missing Indigenous women are the focus.  A "red dress" performance.  Left us emotionally drained.

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Speaking of emotionally drained, we got home in time to see the last three innings as the Blue Jays lost 10 to 7 to the Houston Astros.  

Nuts!

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Stay well.

Some Good, Some Bad and Some Ugly

 A happy day and a sad one.

First, happy birthday greetings to Julie Taylor who has reached a round number today.  All the best!

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The sad part is that this is also National Day of Mourning, respecting those who have been killed at work.  And just two days ago a man was killed at Janco Steel on Arvin Avenue, by a forklift (Bullivant & Associates does their safety training).

Fifty-two and a bit years ago our dad was killed at Dofasco when an underfloor oil cooled transformer blew up.  He and another man were covered in burning oil.  The other man died a few hours later.  Dad lasted almost two days.

Our mother had three kids to support and was five months pregnant.  I don't know how she held it all together.  And it was a rude awakening to manhood for a 14 year old.

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Saw a brown fox in the fields behind the greenhouse today.  My first sighting of one of those on David's farm.  But too far away and too quick for a picture.

Did some grass cutting cleanup while Mardi helped trim back the Passion Flower pots.  What a trooper!

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There is a bit of a (hopefully) well meaning backlash to do with Canada supplying arms to Ukraine, because one of the battalions is called the AZOV and it has a reputation of being antisemite and espousing nazi views.  The backlash is suggesting that we stop sending help to the Ukraine.

None of us are in favour of nazi beliefs, but let's give our heads a shake.  These people are trying to wrest their country back from the brutal Russian war criminals who are destroying it and killing civilians indiscriminately and deliberately.  We need to keep helping as long as the Ukraine needs us.

There will be time to sort the good guys from the bad when this is over.

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Blue Jays 1 - Boston 0.  Another well played game.

Unfortunately, the Raptors didn't fare as well.  They were eliminated by the Pacers 132 - 97.

Stay well.

The Rural Philosopher

 Happy birthday to Mardi's neice Dorothy who turned 9 today.  Best wishes.

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With my leg acting up I've spent more time doing easier things, one of which is reading a book that Joyce passed along, titled "Don Harron - A Parent Contradiction".

It was written by his daughter Martha, and based on the details I assume it was with his help, back in 1988.  Those who remember Charlie Farquharson, the rural philosopher, will enjoy this book.  About every second page I break out in laughter.  His daughter is every bit as funny as he was.  But there are some rough moments too.

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Optimist meeting tonight and after our election of officers we played progressive euchre.

Unfortunately, Mardi and I were not too progressive.  But it was a fun night.

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Red Sox 7 - Blue Jays 1.  'nuff said.

Keep breathing.

The Fern Resort

 More noise on the balcony, but we are making progress.  Today they poured cement to repair the sections that had been removed.

We may be able to use the balcony again by summer😎.

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Cut some more grass at the greenhouse resort today.

And, for the Boston Fern fans, here is how they are looking now.

They're hanging from the ceiling, on carts, on the floor.  Thousands!

I'll let you folks know when David starts to ship so you will have a good choice.  

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Blue Jays 6 = Red Sox 5.  A great comeback win - what a team!

Stay well.

A Winning NIght

 Baseball - Blue Jays 6 and Red Sox.  Grand Slam for Bo Bichette.

Basketball - Raptors 103 and 76ers 88.  A great comeback - down 3 games to none, now 3 - 2.  Keep it going!

Wordle - Bud 4😀 and Mardi 5😢.  Things are a bit "askew".

What a day!

Keep breathing!

Spring Has Sprung

 I forgot to mention Wayne's birthday yesterday.   Sorry my friend.  Hope you had a good day.

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Mardi and I headed to the greenhouse today.  I cut the grass, while she deadheaded the geranium plugs.

It was a beautiful day, and mother nature has noticed.  The Daffodils are opening up.

This Magnolia bush is showing colour.

We have two, same variety, Magnolias, but the older, bigger one always takes a week or two longer to get started.  Don't know why.

And the Dwarf Forsythia is starting to show colour too.

Forsythia can get away from you because it is so fast growing, but the dwarf variety only needs minor pruning each year.  The plants above have been there for several years.

The Tulip Tree that I planted last year is about to open up as well.  Should be a nice show!

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Blue Jays lost the game today in the bottom of the tenth.  Houston 8 - Blue Jays 7.  Jordan Romero's string of saved games has come to an end.

Tomorrow they're home to Boston.

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Stay well.

A TV Day

 Chickened out on the work front again.  The leg is improving, but not reliable yet.  Hopefully I'll be able to ride the mower tomorrow.

Watched the Blue Jays win 3 - 2 over the Houston Astros.  The Jays are now 5 games over .500 having won 10 and lost 5.  Fun to watch.

And Al's Raptors won today.  They're down 3 games to 1 in their playoff series against Philadelphia, but still have hope.

Keep breathing.  Warmer days are coming.

Got All Wired Up

 Went for my annual ECG today.  Got the green light to live it up for another year.

Blue Jays 4 - Houston Astros 3.  Another great game and another save for Romano.

Stay well.

Happy Birthday Mardi

 It's the birthday of the woman I love.  

Jill Parker asked me to show my efforts at making a homemade cake for the occasion.  I decided to try my hand at cheesecake this time.  A bit rough, but for my first attempt I think that it's pretty good.

Queen Elizabeth isn't the only special person today!

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The bad news is that I then got kicked out of the house.  Some of Mardi's golf partners showed up and they didn't want to eat the remains of her Bailey's Irish Cream cake in front of me.  It was for my own good.😒

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But, when I came back, I discovered that Rose couldn't attend because of Covid and Monica had to inspect and approve tiles for her kitchen, so there was cake left over (thanks ladies!).

And an Italian Margarita.

Had a nice visit with Mardi's golfing friends.

Maureen, Barb and Therese.

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Blue Jays 3 - Red Sox 2.  Kevin Gausman pitched 8 terrific innings and Jordan Romano (on his 29th birthday - same age as Mardi) made his 30th consecutive save, extending his Blue Jays record.

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And then, it was off to the Fallsview Casino, our first visit since before Covid.  I won about as much as Mardi lost, so we split the winnings.  We'll try again when her lucky stars line up.

Stay well.

Balcony

A noisy day today as they drilled into the balconies to attach the frames for the cement that is to come.

 Ours has been done, except for the corner.  Maybe tomorrow for that one.  

But the cement will probably wait until all of the balconies on our side of the building are ready.

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Watched the documentary, "Here We Are: Come From Away" that documented the twin tower destruction through to when some of the Newfoundland folks got to see the play in New York City.  Pretty moving story!

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Blue Jays 6 - Red Sox 1.  That's more like it!

Stay well.  Keep breathing.

A Rest Day

 Took a day off to give the back and leg a break.  The leg is slowly improving - nerve damage issues take some time.  Just have two weeks before our first golf league outing so I'm being careful.

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Boston Red Sox 2 - Blue Jays 1.  They lost it on a throwing error.  Frustrating!

But I bet the Raptors fans feel even worse.  They're not doing well at all yet in the playoffs.

Stay well.

Pot Pourri

 We headed to the greenhouse this morning.  I spread some weed and crabgrass preventer in some lawn areas that crabgrass had overtaken in previous years.

Meanwhile, Mardi was deadheading geranium plugs.

While the plants are young, every 45 minutes the overhead sprayers come on for a few seconds.

Mardi got caught once in the spray but I missed the picture and she wouldn't pose for a repeat 😕.  Party pooper!

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After seeing yesterday's Newfoundland pictures, Matt has booked Gatherall's boat tour for their June trip.  So, to help him, I'm including a few more pictures of our trip.

Gros Morne, which was once a fiord, but is now a beautiful lake.

The view of the entrance to St. John's harbour from Signal Hill (wear a sweater or jacket - it's chilly up there).

And, a second world war battery at Cape Spear, most easterly point in North America, to fend off the Germans.

Gannets - they have the most graceful and the prettiest flight path in the avian world!  At St. Mary's Ecological Reserve.

And Matt, don't forget to stop at the restaurant at the junction of the road to the Reserve (don't remember it's name - just the delicious fresh caught Cod).

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No Jays game today.  Damn!

Stay well.

Easter Sunday

Matt celebrated a birthday today.  A happy birthday shoutout to our good friend!

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As advertised, we headed to Diane and Greg's, to be joined by Rhiannon, Bonnie, Steve, A.J., Michelle and Reggie, for Easter dinner.  A lovely afternoon of conversation, food and drink!  Lots to eat and drink, including Mardi's marvelous cake.

Hey Al, I've got good news and bad news.  The good news?  There was left over cake.  The bad news?  Mardi has plans for it and they don't include you or me.  Sorry pal!

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I didn't take any pictures today, but one of the conversations was about visits to Newfoundland.  And I promised Steve that I would send some pictures from our whale watching expedition.  So, rather than work on two emails I have decided to inflict those pics on all of you.

We went out of Bay Bulls (south of St. John's) on Gatherall's boat.

And found some whales that wanted to entertain us.

They circled the boat, doing tail slaps, dives, and snorkeling for over half an hour.

A special show and a unique life experience!

While we were on the island we visited L'Anse Aux Meadows and met one of Sven's countrymen.

Saw an iceberg.

And ate a Capelin.

Matt and Maureen have a trip to Newfoundland planned for this summer.  Someday, hopefully, Mardi and I will be able to return to our favourite province.

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Blue Jays 4 - Athletics 3.  Missed seeing the game due to the festivities.  Watched the highlights on "Blue Jays in 30" and saw Alex Manoah win his second start, and Jordan Romano extend his save streak.

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Stay well. 

Cake To Die For

 Admittedly a figure of speech, but it is AWESOME!

Mardi did a top chef job today.

The cake contains Bailey's Irish Cream!  Light and OMG tasty!

And the icing contains Bailey's as well!

A work of art!

The cake is pretty too.

This cake is going to Hagersville tomorrow for Easter dinner with Mardi's brothers and their families.

Sorry Al, there will be no leftovers.

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Oakland Athletics 7 - Blue Jays 5.  Unfortunately a strike zone three feet wide did the Jays in.

And it's confirmed that two Ukraine missiles sunk the Russian warship.  Well done.  Unfortunately, Putin will be even more evil in seeking retribution as a result.

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Keep breathing.  Stay well.

Squirrels and Nuts

 We met Al and Liz at Gage Park and enjoyed coffee and butter tarts together before the rain and strong wind began.  Squirrels were shy today.  The nuts only saw about three of them.

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Our provincial riding has traditionally gone NDP.  But with Paul Miller being kicked out of their caucus because of racism, this time our votes might count.

Miller says he will run as an independent.  If so, he will likely split the NDP vote with their new candidate Zaigham Butt.

That will make it a very interesting race.  The Liberals have nominated Jason Farr, well known in the city,  and the conservatives have picked the equally well known Neil Lumsden (formerly of the Tiger-Cats).

Whoever makes it will probably be a better representative for us than Miller has been.  Things are looking up.

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Blue Jays 4 - Oakland 1.  A good start from Stripling, another homer (#5, best in baseball) by Vladdy, a 3rd win by reliever Adam Cimber, and a record 28th consecutive save by Canadian Jordan Romano.  They are fun to watch.

Stay well.  

Day Off

 Today was Sean Cowie's birthday.  Although we didn't realize it, he figured in both Mardi's and my life before we met.  Sean was a good friend of Greg and A.J. and spent a lot of time at their house as a teenager.  And he married my niece Robin.  All the best Sean!

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Mardi spent some time at the greenhouse, deadheading some geranium plugs.  I took the day off - the back and leg are bitching a bit the last few days.

But I did go for my monthly blood letting, to make sure that the rat poison is doing its thing.  No problem - the rat is right on target.

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Blue Jays game in New York had a long rain delay so I'm late reporting tonight.  They lost 0-3.

Tomorrow is a squirrel counting day.  Stay well.

A Good Day

 Finished my laundry room shelving project today.  Got an 'attaboy' from my love.

Tonight was an Optimist meeting.  We inducted three new members!  Quite unbelievable in this Covid regime - we've only just been allowed to resume meeting in our building.  We're now at 47 members and ready to do our work in the community.

Mardi had to take a pass tonight.  The church choir had a practice in preparation for Easter Sunday.

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Blue Jays 6 - Yankees 4.  Vladdy was four for four - three home runs and a double.  And a great catch to end the game.  Fun to watch!

Stay well.  Having good health is the slowest way to die.

Shot Again

 Reggie is 19 today.  Sue is a little big older😉.  Best wishes to both!

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Stopped in at the greenhouse to deliver a card for Sue and a ham that they won on Friday.  The hams weren't big this year, but all of our supporters were winners.  Happy time.

David and crew are finishing up a couple of Lily orders today, but I escaped.  I've got work to do at home on the laundry room.

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Our big excitement for the day was getting our fourth vaccine shots, all Moderna.  We'll still mask up when in close quarters with folk we don't know, but feel pretty safe right now.  Hope all you young folks get your shots too when possible.

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Blue Jays 3 - Yankees 0.  Good pitching.  Great defensive plays.

Stay well.

Multitasking

 Spent the afternoon doing four things at once.  Painting a few coats on the shelves I've built for the laundry room was the first.

Switching between watching the Masters and the Blue Jays game were two others.  And between the Blue Jays and the end of the Masters, a hockey game.  Very tiring!

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Blue Jays lost to Texas 6-12.

Tiger finished the four rounds of the Masters, well back but still an amazing performance!  And Scottie Scheffler won, his fourth victory in his last six tournaments.  Incredible!

And, in the hockey game, Reggie's team won 3-1.

Reggie is the last of our grandchildren who is still playing organized hockey.  But this will be her last year - Sheridan is calling.

And we'll be mentioning her again tomorrow.  Stay tuned.

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Keep breathing.

It's Almost Over

 Today's birthday boy is  my nephew Stefan Murray.  Best wishes!

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This, and a similar number on the other side of the greenhouse, is about all that is left of the Easter Lily crop.

It's been an ugly harvest time!  Two of David's regulars had retired, a couple of  us (Ken and I) had grown older and more feeble, the lead hand had to leave at the beginning when his wife was diagnosed with lung cancer, and the totally useless temporary crew wasted time and money.  And the Lilies didn't all have the correct number of blooms.

Fortunately, Sean stepped up as the foreman of the crew and made things happen while David was out in the truck.  Impressive for a proud grandfather to watch!  

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Our balcony made some progress today.

At least it was quiet!

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Blue Jays 4 - Texas Rangers 3.   Just 160 games to go!

Tiger finished his round at the Masters and sits at 6 over par.  Still, quite an accomplishment.

Stay well.  Keep breathing.

Sausage in the First

 Happy birthday to A.J. today.  Birthdays are coming fast and furious in April.

Got a Jacquie Lawson card today that I think was sent by Ed and Rose to David and then made its way to me.  I laughed all the way through!  It shows Lilys growing and ends with the line "Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise."   True words in the Lily drama.  

Well, part of the darkness is gone - David has dumped the temporary crew.  Hard to believe that people could be that useless!

Mardi and I did another two hours today before our bodies said "enough".  I'll be back at the greenhouse tomorrow though.

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Monica, if your cactus looks like this it should be OK.  

At this time of year it looks sad, but in a couple of months beautiful flowers will appear and the plant will grow new segments.

Two years ago I took spent florets off the cactus and stuck them in pots.  After they start to sprout new growth this spring some of them will be ready for sale.

Nature's bounty!

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Tiger Woods made the cut at the Masters.  What a display of skill, determination and pain control.  Will be interesting to see if he can still play on that leg tomorrow.

And, after being down 7-0, the Blue Jays won the opening game of the season 10-8 over the Texas Rangers.  Just 161 games to go!

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Tonight was the Optimist Club's Ham Roll.  Our group took home 12 hams!  Winners will be notified.

Mardi and I were joined by Monica and Jim.

The best part of the evening was the Pig Races.

And Mardi was a big winner.

It was nice to be able to get people out to support our projects once again.

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Stay well.

Cake Day

 First, an update from yesterday.  When I got home from the greenhouse they were working on the balcony above, cutting out the base plates from the railings that had been removed.  That balcony floor is our ceiling.  The noise was incredible!

But we were prepared.

Got a smile from the two guys who were doing the work as we toasted them with our drinks.

So, this is how our balcony looks now, with the rubble from the one above.

The rebar is still there, so they will just patch around it.

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Yesterday, Malcolm suggested that I should honour Tartan Day, but I held off until today for a reason.  Today, Sean is 28, and here's the reason that I held off.

I gave Sean my Craig Clan tartan tuxedo a couple of years ago.  I didn't see many opportunities to wear it again, and he was the only grandson that it would fit.  Looks good Sean!  Happy 28th birthday!

(No, he didn't wear it to work today - this pic was in the archives.)

Sue provided the birthday cake/cupcakes to celebrate.

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Mardi and I put in four hours at the greenhouse today.  Putting stickers on pot covers for Lilies and then stickers on Boston Fern baskets.  In the midst of the Lily chaos, some idiot ordered 450 Ferns! (Relax Monica, yours are still OK.) 

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Judy's cataract surgery was a great success.  Well done.

Tiger looked pretty good today.  Not likely to win, and may not be physically up to four days of walking the hilly Augusta course, but it's good to see him playing again.

Stay well.  Keep breathing.