I Did It Again

 I screwed up two ways this time.

First of all, by not publishing yesterday I neglected to mention Sue and David's 34th anniversary.  Sorry kids.

However, I spent a rather unexciting weekend as parking attendant, soil skid mover, lawn maintainer and a bit of gardener.  Not worth posting.  That's my excuse.

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Today was the busiest of all and I spent most of the time helping helpless people park.  There are some really stupid drivers in the world 😓, but they buy plants so they can't be all bad 😅.

And then came the second screwup.  I got the fork lift stuck again.

Just so you know, I didn't tip the skid.  Mother Nature did that last year.  But, with Ewen's help we got the fork lift out, moved the skid that tipped, and I was able to get the full skid at the back and bring it up front for sale.  Life is never dull!

I'm on my first rye and coke, so things are more humorous now.  They'll be even better after the next one!

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Blue Jays won their second game in a row!!!  I think they're toast as far as any World Series action, but sometimes fun to watch.

Stay well.

Wayne and Shuster?

 Today was golf day for the Dofasco League.  Unfortunately, Matt and Gary were not well enough to join us, so I invited John Buckley to fill in again.

Some of you know John.  Some of you know Al Knapp.  Some of you know both.  And now they know each other.  And you can guess the rest of the story.  Calvin and I couldn't stop laughing at their repartee.   Reminded me of Wayne and Shuster (I know that a lot of my readers won't know who they were).

It was a beautiful day for golf, although we didn't do the game justice.  Probably having too much fun with our good friends.

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As requested, Monica sent me a picture of her parking performance today.

Hope you approve of my parking job!!!!

Monica, I approve.  And I hear that you and your friend could hardly fit into the car after you loaded it with plants!  I definitely approve of that!  Thanks, and enjoy your ferns!

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Stay well.

Stuck

 Cut the grass as planned yesterday, but I got the mower stuck in a wet area (looked dry before I made a mess of it).  Sean came out to give me a push out.  After I finished my cutting I took four bags of soil (broken or ripped bags that can't be sold) and built up the low spot.  Added some grass seed and solved the problem (or moved it to a different location).

A few days ago I got the lift truck stuck in some loose gravel while moving soil skids to enlarge the parking area.  That time I had to ask Ewen to haul me out with the tractor.

I imagine when I walk in the door my grandsons ask themselves "What has Grandpa done this time?"  But Sean hasn't fired me yet so we carry on.

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Today was a mixed bag of duties.  Parking attendant until I got the four lines of cars organized, thanks to some cooperative customers.  Then replenished and reorganized the soil skids along the driveway.  Dumped some more broken bags of soil in low spots in the back field.  Cut a bit of grass that I had missed yesterday.  Routine.

Stay well.

I'm In Demand

 I spent my time at the greenhouse this weekend as a parking attendant - felt good to achieve my full potential.  Mother's Day weekend increased the traffic by quite a bit - exceeding our parking capacity at times yesterday.

When I arrived this morning, things were a bit messy.  The cars on the right should have been in line with the white car at the front.  And the ones on the left should have been lined up with the dark van.

Once we got that straightened out I was able to add one more row down the centre and accommodate the crowd for the day.

But I took a 15 minute lunch break to enjoy the pizza that the boss provided for staff.  And when I got back, they were parking down the driveway..........

.............while the parking lot was half empty.

Straightened that out with some waving and smiling.  The best part is that the customers who are here want to be here and enjoy the plants that they buy.  Makes for lots of good friendly waves when they leave.

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David sent the following picture to me today.  It's a coyote den that he and Charlie found in the back field.  The mother coyote was growling in the den while they were there.

Mother Nature doing her thing.

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Tomorrow it's back to golf.  Tuesday cut the lawns.  Wednesday some gardening.  Thursday golf.  Friday gardening.  Weekend cut grass and parking.  And so it goes.

Stay well.

A Bad Plant

 If any of you see a plant like this in your gardens, with its dainty white flowers, get rid of it FAST!

It's garlic mustard and it is toxic for other plants.  Particularly the Trillium.  When David purchased the farm there were lots of beautiful red Trilliums along the edge of the escarpment.  No more.  Just lots of garlic mustard.

Now, the only red Trillium on the property is this one.

Today I weeded and mulched the petals.

Then I got going on the lawns.  In May, they need cutting every four days.  While I was in that process, I came across a pair of Canada Grease who looked like they were planning a family.

There is no way I'm going to wait for 30 days to cut the grass again, so I chased them off.

When I was a young boy, Jack Miner was a hero.  He created a bird sanctuary that was credited with saving the geese, who at that time were diminishing in numbers.  These days I think he did too good a job!

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The Leafs have started to dismantle and reorganize after the sad end to their season.  Based on how the Blue Jays are playing, they'll be doing those things long before their season is officially over!

Stay brave.  Stay well.

Wounded

Joyce is the young lady celebrating a birthday today.   Have a great day!

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Enjoyed a sunny golf day (the opposite of an absent someone's forecast).  Calvin and I were joined by John Buckley.  Despite being mortally wounded......that's blood on my pant leg......I only let John beat me by one stroke.  Of course we're not going to publish our scores - too embarrassing!

Apparently, when I banged my leg getting the golf clubs out of the car it started bleeding (my leg, not the car Al) and kept bleeding for a while thanks to the blood thinners I'm on, but I didn't notice it.

We were joined by several other beings while on the course. 

Seems to me that a brood of 15 goslings is overdoing it a bit!

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That's today's news.  Stay well.

Optimist Robots

 At our Optimist meeting tonight we were entertained by the Orchard Park High School Robotics Team.

This year they have won two divisional championships, an Ontario championship and, as you can see on the banner, the Galileo World divisional championship.

Nice to see that Arcelor Mittal Dofasco is one of their sponsors (as is our club).

As a guy whose major accomplishment in high school was making a pair of wooden bookends, I have some difficulty relating to these young geniuses.  Very impressive!

Also impressive is the fact that we inducted four new members to our club tonight - and we're close to our 70th anniversary (I've only been involved for 64 of them).  When many clubs are failing, ours is thriving.  We'll be able to continue our good work thanks to these new, energetic members.

Stay well.

Friends and Turtles

 Ten years ago today, Doc Jewett asked three Dofasco guys to accompany him to the Burlington Performing Arts Centre for a show that Doc wanted to see.  We were held up in the lobby for a bit as Doc chatted with a lady, and we all wondered where that would lead.  Fast forward to today and Doc and Nadine are celebrating the anniversary of that event.  Congratulations my friends!

Fate does some interesting things to relationships as Mardi and I can attest.  

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I displayed all of my talents today at Trillium Hill.  Landscape architect, lawn maintenance, parking attendant, fork lift operator, farm labour.  But, probably most important, conservation officer.

I came across Toby Turtle while cutting the grass.  He had been crossing from the neighbour's pond to David's pond.  Stopped and squatted when I approached on the mower.

He measured over two feet long from his snout to the tip of his tail.

I backed the mower off and he resumed his journey.

But, don't tell Sarah-Jean or she won't want to swim in the pond!

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Stay well folks.

A birthday and a dance.

 We had a great weekend.  Yesterday morning we headed to Forest (near Sarnia) to help Sandy celebrate her 80th birthday.

Mardi and Sandy have been good friends for the majority of their lives.

Her family did a fantastic job of honouring the matriarch of the family.  Started with lunch and continued through dinner (we missed that part) and finished with breakfast this morning.

Mardi and I stayed overnight at the Forest Golf Hotel (no golf) and rejoined the group for breakfast.

Then we made a two hour drive to Kincardine and had lunch at the Erie Belle Restaurant.  Their cod fish and chips were excellent - reminded us of our trip to Newfoundland!

Then it was down the street to the Kincardine Legion, where our buddy Doc and the Lighthouse Swing Band were playing from 2 to 5.

That's Doc on the left.

Lots of dancing.  Seems like I have less problems staying upright when I dance better than I walk (fell flat out on Friday at the greenhouse).

We'll be back Doc, hopefully with other dancers.  The schedule folks, is shown below.

Stay well folks.

Driver Required

 Today was son David's 64th birthday.  I think that means I'm getting really old!  

Wished him all the best yesterday because today I was heading to Chippewa Creek for golf.  But it was not much fun.  It was cart path only for the carts, and I'm not smart enough to hit the ball near the path, so I did a lot of walking back and forth.

Only lasted 15 holes before I called it a day.  Al lasted 16, Matt 17.  Only Calvin (who was walking - but not sideways like the rest of us) finished 18.  

Better days ahead!

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Our vacation at Orange Lake for 2025 has now been booked.  We're in a 2 bedroom, in a high rise in the River Island village (where the water park is) from January 5 to February 28.  Love our timeshare!

The next step is to find someone to share the driving on the way down with me in exchange for some vacation time with us.  Mardi hates the drive down and intends to fly.  Any volunteers?

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Watched my second hockey game in years tonight.  Leafs have won both games.  Perhaps I'd better watch the next one too.

Stay well.

Ribs

Yesterday, I was impressed with Gary and Jill completing 58 years.

Today, my heroes are my childhood buddy Wayne and Judy who are marking their 63rd anniversary.  Awesome!

Doc and Nadine are also celebrating an anniversary today.  Six is not as big a number, but still a happy day.  See you in Kincardine on Sunday folks.

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I only spent an hour and a half at the greenhouse today.  Busy day planned.  But, I managed to clean up and mulch one garden.

And, planted some spent Tulips in another garden.  You won't see the results of that until next spring.

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Matt and Maureen joined us this afternoon for a game of Skip-Bo.  For some reason the ladies won 😠.

Then we headed to Chuck's Roadhouse to see if the rib special was as good as the steaks we previously enjoyed.

You get this plate, a full rack, for $15.00 on Wednesdays.  Sorry, I started eating before I took the picture.

The verdict from Matt - a 9.  He rates Miller's Ale House in Florida as a 10.  Considering that Miller's $15.99 price converts to over $22 Canadian that's not a bad rating.  And he will be returning.

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Stay well.

58 Years!

 A significant event to celebrate today - the 58th anniversary of Jill and Gary Parker.  Awesome!  First of all, you have to live a long time, and then you have to stay in love as well (of course Jill had to be a saint to make that possible - nuff said).  

Most of the world can't duplicate that achievement!  Mardi and I are happy with just 20 and counting.

Our dear friends are celebrating with a family vacation in Portugal that includes their kids with their significant others, and their two beautiful granddaughters.  Well done my good friends!

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Despite the overnight rain, I was able to cut the grass at the greenhouse today.  While I accomplished that, Mardi was tending to Boston Fern baskets, which are now ready for sale.

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Tomorrow I plan to book our Florida vacation for 2025.  Don't know which President will be in charge by then.  Should be interesting.

We also have cards and dinner planned with Maureen and Matt.  And I will try to squeeze a massage at the Ontario College of Health and Technology somewhere in that time frame.  Boy, it's difficult being popular!

Stay well my friends.

Mixed Feelings

 We had a quiet weekend.  Yesterday we attended the visitation for Lona Dykshoorn, a close friend of Mardi's since their children were young.

A beautiful lady both inside and out.  She was slowly taken from us by Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Paul and Lona were also members of the Optimist Club and we spent many enjoyable hours in their company.  She has been, and will be, missed.

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Today was a more positive one.  I got to golf with son David (and my friends) for the first time this year.  And they paid me to play with them!  

We pay for Dog Meats (land closest on a par three green and make par) which I somehow did twice today, while no one else managed to even hit the green.  Not a normal result for sure.

Then, I came closest to my predicted score.  These two feats let me come home $32 richer.  

Thanks guys 😊!  See you next week!

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And tonight, the Blue Jays won, looking like a real team for a change.  After a couple of recent debacles I was ready to give up on them (I don't have the blind patience of a Maple Leaf fan who is prepared to keep taking it on the chin - sorry Steve).  Exciting and fun to watch tonight.

Tomorrow it's back to cutting grass.  Stay well.

Gardening

Back to work today.   Mardi was with me and spent a couple of hours cleaning and rewinding Passion Flowers in the greenhouse, while I worked outside.  'Twas a cold but sunny day.  Worked in a parka.

My routine these days, when the lawns don't need attention, will be to dig up and move a wagon load of sod from the tree line, and then work on the gardens.

That's what happened today.  And this is the garden that got the attention.  A wagon load of weeds, grass and debris removed, and two bags of mulch added.  The Day Lilies are coming along nicely.

More of the same planned for tomorrow.

Stay well.

Beautiful Scars

 I took the day off today.  Spent a sleepless night with nerve pain in my right arm and then got up to a cool, wet day.  So I vegged out for most of the day.

But not all of it.  Headed to the bank to pay the balance of my income tax and it was really amazing!  By the time the cashier had hit the entry button, Trudeau had already spent it.  Can't wait to get rid of that meathead!

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Tonight we headed to Theatre Aquarius to see Tom Wilson's musical, "Beautiful Scars".  Well worth seeing!

It's a moving recount of his search for identity after being adopted.  Well written and very well performed.  He eventually discovers his Mohawk ancestry and the mother who was forced to give him up.

I expected it to have a dark side, but it was well balanced and, in the end, positive.  Powerful music and excellent voices.

I bought a copy of his book before we left the theatre.

The show carries on until May 11.  Check it out.

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And we enjoyed a full moon on the ride home.  Sort of capped the night off properly.

Stay well.

Steaks and Sod

 For her birthday, Mardi and I enjoyed dinner at Chuck's Roadhouse last night.  Chose that spot because their steaks are the best tasting beef that I've had in years.  Worth checking out!

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Managed to put in three hours at the greenhouse today, but only one of those hours dealing with sod - the old body has its limits.  My agenda for this year includes a lot more sod removal, but I've got the rest of the summer to pick away at it.

And, if I complete the agenda, it will be another three or four years before it needs to be done again.  That's fortunate because, although I hate to admit it, this is probably the last year that I will be interested in digging and moving sod.   

Fortunately, there's lots of lawns, gardens and odd jobs to keep me busy.

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Back at it tomorrow.

Stay well.

 Tomorrow is Mardi's birthday.  It's hard to believe, but we've now been together for just over one quarter of her life (of course, she's still a spring chicken).

When I pointed out the above fact to her, Mardi said "it seems longer than that" 😕

We laugh together, make life easy for each other, and stay positive.

I'm a happy man!  Thanks my love!  Enjoy your day.

And thanks to Ed (the matchmaker).

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Gardening

Enjoyed some cake at the greenhouse to celebrate the birthday of Allison, one of David's young ladies, .  Her actual birthday is Sunday, which happens to also be the birthday of another famous lady, whom I happen to live with.  But you'll be hearing more about that later.

Then, I did some miscellaneous jobs at the greenhouse.  Took a cart wheel to Ace Tire for a new tube (Barbara and Jo-Anne, I had a nice chat with Gary while I waited for his guy to do the work).

Monica won't be happy to hear that I broke up a Cactus plant and created eight new ones.  Used thick gloves and a wrench to separate them so I didn't suffer Monica's thorn fate.  They'll be ready for next year's sales.  

And finally, went back to the sod moving project.  Once I get to the other side of the trees I'll be ready for the spent Tulip plants.

A later project will be moving the Daffodils when they are finished for the year.  They're slowly being surrounded as the pine trees spread, so I'll widen the gardens and move them out a foot or two.

That should last maybe four years before it needs to be repeated, which may not be my problem to worry about😴.

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If we can stay awake we'll watch the Blue Jays play in San Diego tonight.

Stay well.

Wings

 Dug sod for an hour or so before my body told me to give it up.  I'm giving the pine trees a bit more room to spread and also preparing for the chance that some tulip plants may expire before they sell.  Planted there, they'll make things look better next year.

The sod is being reused back of the rink to fill in some low spots.

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Tonight we headed to Teddy's in Grimsby to meet with Al and Liz, and Gary and Jill, for wings and things.  I was afraid to take a picture - I was sure that Al would break the camera.  Sorry about that.

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Nothing special planned for tomorrow.  I may take a day or so off from the blog.

Stay well.

A Day Off

 It's Matt's turn to celebrate old age today.  All the best my friend.   Your birthday hint will appear below.

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The day started out dreary, damp and breezy, so I dumped my gardening plans and took the day off.

Mardi and I had lunch with Joyce.  We tried Chuck's Roadhouse on Centennial Parkway.  

A nice visit, and the steaks were great.

We didn't try the ribs, but they have a rib special on Wednesdays.  A full rack for $15.99, the normal price of half a rack.  Go for it Matt.

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Blue Jays lost to the Yankees, but their home stand was great and they are starting to look like the team we expected.

Stay well.

Routine

 Cut a couple of acres of grass.

Watched the Blue Jays win against the Yankees.

Beautiful day.

Stay well.

Keeping Tabs On Friends

 The Monday golf group started the season today - with a bowling match!  Pretty sad results!  Sort of sets the tone for our golf scores this season.

But we did enjoy a nice lunch together at Jake's Grill and Oyster House.

Our golf season opens on Monday at Cambridge Golf Course.  Who cares about the scores?   It's just nice to get together with my friends again.  

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While I was there, Calvin gave me a gift for Mardi.

Almost five pounds of aluminum tabs.  A wonderful contribution to the wheelchair project that Mardi is helping with.  Thanks Calvin!

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Tomorrow it's back to work.

Stay well.

A Fig Forest

 Today we celebrate the birthday of Sean Cowie, the husband of my niece Robin.  Judy, please pass on our best wishes.

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Finished my painting today.  

Then I grabbed some tulips from the garden centre that were too open to be saleable and fixed up one of the front gardens.

They'll keep the garden looking decent until the perennial Veronica can get going - they're only up about a half inch right now.

Then I cut the front lawns.  While I was doing that, Mardi was working in the fig forest, cleaning plants.

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Watching TV the last four days has been pretty good.  

Four days of the Masters golf tournament in which the pros displayed amazing skill.  A tough course made almost impossible due to high winds, yet they did their best to tame it.  Scheffler won, going away.  Incredible skill.

Then, the Blue Jays won two of three against the Colorado Rockies. 

Nice to watch. 

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Stay well. 

They Also Serve Who Sit And Wait

 Did some more painting this morning.  Just one more coat and I can take off my paint duds.

Then I repaired a bench that was collapsing as a result of husbands sitting there waiting for their wives to finish shopping.

Decided that they deserved something better, so I brought in two Muskoka chairs and a small table.

From there they can see when their wives finish shopping and, in the meantime, watch Henry in the corner put together his flower arrangements.  Maybe they'll buy one for their sweetheart.  That's a win/win!

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Stay well.

High Society

 Today we have two birthday girls.  Daughter-in-law Sue and 21 year old  granddaughter Reggie.  Best wishes to both!

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We enjoyed two social events today.  First off, Barb Gallina joined us for lunch.  We had a very nice visit.

Tonight, Pat and Carol dropped in for card and dice games.  Lots of laughs.

Oh, and I'm still painting.

Stay well.

Optimism

 More of the same this morning.  Some painting and some gardening.

Tonight we attended our Optimist meeting which was election night for the officers who take over in October.  And based on the results, the club should be in line for another successful year.

But the highlight of the night was the presentation of the Soup Can trophy to the winner of the Soup Fest, a new event this year.  Guy Pancoast, on the right, was the winner.

Quite a trophy!

Our club will soon celebrate its 70th year of serving the community.  A significant milestone.

Stay well.

On to Tomorrow

 Nothing exciting to report.  Did some more painting and started on one of the gardens out front.  But I do want to acknowledge the birthday of my nephew, Stefan Murray.  All the best Stefan.

Stay well folks.  Despite what the Pentecostals say, the world is not ending, eclipse or not.

A Wacky Eclipse

 Today's birthday boy is A.J. who is celebrating in Mexico.  All the best to Mardi's younger son.

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The sign is finished.  From this...........

...........to this (the S in Wednesday is supposed to be dark green - it will happen.)

I decided that if you're going to have a Wacky sale, you should also have a wacky sign.  My expectation is that more people will notice it and drive in on that special sale day.

David marks down items that have too much inventory, end of run plants, and those that are looking a bit tired.  Check it out - you know what day!

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We got lucky with the eclipse.  The cloud cover was sporadic but we saw what had been advertised.

There was quite a gathering outside the Shoreliner.

My phone camera let in too much light so this is the picture I got during the full eclipse.

But another resident had a newer, better phone and sent the following to us.

Pretty neat!  I hope that the rest of you had similar luck with the weather.

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Stay well.

Another One

 

Does anyone need a spare charging cable for an Acer computer?  Free to a good home.

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Sue and David invited Mardi and me to their family celebration of Sean's 30th birthday.

Malcolm and Sarah-Jean made it home for the event.  Ewen joined in by phone video.

The celebrity (reluctantly) enjoyed the attention.

Grandpa was proud.  A special night with my new boss and his family.  (Sorry about the bruise on my lip - either I got in a fight at Chuggies last night or a chicken wing attacked me - I have no knowledge of the event.)

Next week Mardi and I have five more family birthdays to celebrate.  July must have been a fun month for our folks 😇.

Stay well my friends.