Canuckville: Useless Matter That Doesn't Really Matter

Due to the weather we had yesterday; are having today; and will be getting again tomorrow, all outdoor activities have been cancelled until further notice!!!!

There will be no tilling of the garden plot, mowing of the grass, laying of stones so shed can be moved to new location or hauling of items to the dump which are no longer needed. Also any notion of planting anything at this time will be considered an act of futility.

The good news is there is no more rain in the forecast until next Friday and Saturday!!!

Well the weekend is coming to a close, I’m home and the trip is done for this time. I was anxious to get home and play with my Meow Meows and they were happy to see me also. Lots of purring and leg rubbing and petting going on for a bit. Spoiled cats but they love it and I don’t mind spoiling them. Even though the trips are a nice break, it always feels good to get back home.

It was getting pretty hot outside and the AC felt good inside so I sat around for a bit after unloading the truck and played with the cats some more and fooled around on the computer. Well the work wasn’t going to get don’t unless I got out and got r done so  out I went to tackle a few projects.

I got out the mower and did the backyard because it was getting to be a jungle out there. I plan on moving one of the sheds to a new location and changing the garden spot a bit. There was a lot of roundup to be done along the fence and a few other places. I cleaned up the leftover debris from the garden area so now all I have to do is get out the tiller and work up the soil. Running late this year because of the cold weather (weekend getaways don’t help either) hanging on but I’ll have something growing before long.

I thought about putting my new patio bench together but decided to wait until I moved the shed and did some more cleanup. Time to get out at night and get a fire going in the chimnea. Patio swing, table and chairs still need to go out and get put together. Looks like I’ll be keeping myself busy for awhile.

Having done what I figured to be enough for one day, I went back inside and laid down for a bit and caught a little nap. After not going to sleep until late the night before, the trip, and the unloading of the truck and the yardwork I was ready for a rest. Soon I was up again and was getting hungry. I wasn’t sure what I really wanted or even if I felt like fixing anything but as usual I get into the kitchen and before long I’m going at it like crazy. I did come up with a little grub and now after eating I’m ready to take another nap but not before doing a load of laundry. After eating out all weekend and having someone else do the cooking, it’s hard to get back into the groove but I didn’t do too bad. I had some corn on the cob so I cooked up 4 ears and grilled a nice big juicy rib eye steak. To go with that I had some 4 bean salad and to wash it down, I got out one of those wonderful IBC root beers I bought down south.

Ah life is still good and now tomorrow it’s back to work for a week until Canada Day the following week. Two days on, one day off and two more on. Kind of a weird week but it should be alright.

Ok that’s it for today so in just a short time I’ll be where I should be.

Well here it is before the crack of dawn and this hillbilly is up and rarin’ to go. I piddled around in my room for a bit and played a bit on the computer before I’d had enough and had to get out into the world. Off I go to find some breakfast. I had planned on trying a different place but believe it or not, it wasn’t open yet. I’m not talking in the middle of the night here but rather around 7am! Geez do you believe that. They were open finally as I was making my way back to the motel but anyway I went to the Village Inn where I usually go when here and as usual breakfast was good. Nothing fancy, just some old eggs and juice and coffee.

I had the most bubbly waitress ever. She came to the table and introduced herself all full of smiles and even told me she was in a really good mood this morning. Now I ask you, how often does this happen? Being the somewhat nosey type, I asked her why she was in such a mood. She said it had been a great weekend because the family had gotten together for Father’s Day which also was her brother’s and niece’s birthdays and also someone else's wedding anniversary and I think something else, but I don’t remember exactly. She said they had this huge cake that read “Happy Everything Everybody”. Heck sounds like they had everything but a family reunion this weekend. I suffered through my meal as I’ve done so many times in the past and then headed back to my room.

I didn’t stay long in the room because on the way I noticed people setting up for the Opening Day of the Farmer’s Market which was one of the main reasons for me being here. My friends weren’t up yet but these city folk like to sleep too much for me so off I went to the market alone. There was less than half the usual vendors there but enough to make it interesting and they had the usual musicans playing on stage. The lady with the Kuchens was there and that was all I needed to see. I headed straight for her stand to load up on these most delicious treats. As soon as I walked up there she smiled really big and said “Oh I remember you. You are the one from West Virginia who lives in Canada”. I laughed and said to her that I was probably a hard person to forget since I’m probably the only one who ever comes there and buys Kuchens by the bag full. Well not to mention my charming personality and good looks too ya know. She is such a nice lady and it was good to see her again. Only thing I had to say at the point is “do you have a bag?”. I loaded up with $56.00 worth of goodies and talked for a bit with her and then made my way around to the rest of the vendors. It was a beautiful morning and it felt good to be out walking around the market. I just love this old part of Grand Forks. Even my friends who never did go into this part of town much said it doesn’t feel like the Grand Forks they are use to. I think it is like the owner of the motel said, this place has a heart beat. My friend said that usually you are out at a store or locked up into your room, but here you can leave your vehicle at your room and just wander around in a beautiful relaxing setting with everything right there at your fingertips. I guess us hillbillies know where to go sometimes.

Wasn’t crowded at all but I couldn’t figure out who that was following me around all day.

I brought my goodies back to my room and put them in the fridge and then went to my friend’s room and beat their door down to see if they were up. By this time it was a little after 9am and they had just started stirring a bit. I patiently waited for them to get ready and then it was off to the market again since they hadn’t been there and the lady had her 85 year old mother with her so I was there to help her along. FINALLY we get to the market and they went to the Kuchen stand and loaded up a bag themselves. We walked around letting her mother just take her time looking over what was there and then it was off to the races again. We went in separate directions but I caught up with them at K Mart a few  hours later. I knew what part of town they would be in and I felt like looking around a bit more. My friend Marina said to me that they had split one of the small Kuchens between them and boy was it ever good. They wanted more and said they would have to come back. Another friend from home was down for the day picking up some items for her house so I got to see her also. After K Mart we all went over and had some ice cream at the Cold Stone Creamery. I had never been there and let me tell you this place is fantastic. Usually the people behind the counter are flipping spoons and ice cream into the air and doing all sorts of crazy stuff but today we had a couple of ninnies that probably didn’t like working on a weekend so there was no show. They have all sorts of flavors of ice cream and yogurt with fruit, nuts, berries, sprinkles and whatever to make over 11.5 million…YES 11.5 million… different combinations of flavors. I loved how they just took this big blob of ice cream and threw it down on this cold stone counter and worked it like pizza dough, mixing all the ingredients together while making this fantastic ice cream treat. I had the Strawberry Blonde and was it ever good with all those nice strawberries, nut crunchies, whipping cream and it looked like a touch of butterscotch syrup all mixed together with this made fresh daily ice cream…Oh My!!!!

The rest of the group was going to run around in a few more stores and then we had all planned to go for dinner later before they headed home. I went back to my room and when they called later this evening I declined the offer to go to dinner because I simply had no more room in the tummy for food so I thought I would give it a break. Maybe later this evening I’ll walk over to the Blue Moose and have a crab cake sandwich and some ice cold liquid refreshment. If not then I’ll just relax and tomorrow morning get up and head back home to my meow meows because I’m sure they have missed me.

So it was a great day weather wise and friend wise and it’s been a really great weekend. Just the sort of thing a person needs from time to time to get away from the daily routine of things and just chill.

I’ll go home and put my nice bench together and then it will be time to really get serious with the yard and finish up both the front and the back so that I can sit around either alone or with friends and barbeque or relax in front of the chimnea with a nice fire going and some ice cold IBC root beer which I stocked up on while in K Mart. Wish I could get this root beer at home so I wouldn’t have to drive 2 1/2 hours to get some but it gives me an excuse to go somewhere. Doesn’t take much of an excuse to get me to go anywhere it seems and besides I can’t seem to get enough of driving this big old Dodge truck of mine. This thing is just such a dream and even with that nice 390 HP Hemi under the hood, I only used a quarter of a tank of gas getting here and riding around the first day. Speaking of gas, what’s up with the price from one border to the other?? I fill up at home for $1.07 a liter which it takes 3.875 of to make a gallon. I come down here and it’s $2.59 a gallon. Ok if my math is correct that makes my gas at home $4.05 per gallon compared to the $2.95 a gallon here. Does it cost that much for a gas tanker to cross the border??

Boy these Americans have cheap beer, wine, cigarettes, and gas compared to us in Canada. I guess since I don’t drink that much and don’t smoke, I can afford the luxury of putting gas in my truck especially since I don’t have all the medical bills the Americans have.

Regardless…Life is Good so I’m not complaining.

I guess the next blog will be from the other side of the border.

Down here? Where the heck is he now? I’m in Grand Forks, Mn (east Grand forks) staying at the Plaza Motel again. Thought while I wasn’t doing anything, I’d sit in my room and begin this blog. I have a friend and her mother coming down later this evening and they will be staying at the same motel. Had hoped another couple from back home would be able to come also but prior commitments prevented them from making the trip this time. Don’t worry because I’m sure they will be along the next trip. It really feels good in my room with the AC blasting because it’s hotter than blazes outside. Well maybe not that bad but it sure feels like it. Temperature right now is 82 and yesterday on my trip home it was 84, so why am I whining? Guess I’m just a sissy.

After arriving and paying for my room I went out to get a bite to eat. For lunch I went to the Ground Round which is a popular place in these parts and I hadn’t been there for several years. The food was always good and it still is. I decided to go with the burgers today so I ordered up their Bruschetta Burger. Wow was it ever good! A 1/2 pound of perfectly grilled hamburger with freshly prepared bruschetta, mozzarella cheese, lettuce, onion and pickle on a fresh ciabatta bun. There is a 1/4 pound version also but I went for the gusto. Served with an order of fries and a soda pop to wash it down with….nummmy. Also I’m sure everyone has noticed how a burger never looks the same when you get it as it does on TV or the menu. Well not at the Ground Round. This looked so good I actually thought it was too good looking to eat. Don’t worry, I got over that in about 1/2 a second. Man when you put the thing together and stacked it, it was huge.

My mitts are pretty big but look at this thing after I almost dislocated my jawbone trying to get my mouth open wide enough to bite it. Ok who is that snickering in the background?

Next I came back to the motel, got my key and unloaded my suitcase and laptop and then off I went again. This time I made a stop at Widman’s Candy Store just a few blocks from here. This is the home of the world famous chocolate potato chip. When they say chocolate, they mean chocolate. The smell of chocolate was the strongest of any place of this kind I had ever been in. They have lots of candies but chocolate is the main ingredient. They have chocolate everything. They’ve got it covered – with chocolate…Potato chips are the most popular item – regularly shipped all over the world – but Widman’s Candy Shop dips all kinds of things in chocolate, including toffee, blueberries, sunflower seeds, pickles, olives and even jalapeno peppers. Gives a whole new meaning to Hot Chocolate eh? I bought some chips and some of their citrus slices in lemon, lime, orange, and peach. Also I bought a box of vanilla chocolates for my friend and her mother. I even got to sample anything I thought I might like to buy. A chocoholic would never stand a chance in this place. The pricing really surprised me too. I bought a quarter pound each of the slices (total 1 lb), a half pound of the chocolate covered chips, and a half pound of the vanilla chocolates and my bill only came to $23.00. Man you could get fat for cheap in there.

Tonight after my friends arrive we are going out to dinner at the Bronze Boot.

The place has been there for over 50 years and my friend and her mom and dad use to go there when she was a kid. She still likes to have everyone believe she is still a kid but I know how old she is. I’ll leave it at that. I’ve never been there myself so this will be a first and I’m looking forward to it. I had planned on going to another restaurant when I was coming by myself but they will be going back home tomorrow and I’m staying until Sunday so maybe I’ll try the other place on Saturday night.

Other than hitting the dollar store…remember ain’t a trip without going to a dollar store especially when you can get bottled water and snacks for next to nothing there. Oh and I went to Menard’s and picked up a couple of garden hose splice kits and while I was there I saw this root beer by Sprecher. I’m normally a fan of IBC because to me that is the best and still is but this Sprecher is really good stuff. I like root beer especially with a good barbeque so sometimes I try different brands. This one ranks up there around 2nd or 3rd place on my root beer poll.

I also bought this bench I had been looking at for the backyard. It was only $85.00 down here and over a hundred back home. Something nice to sit on when you don’t feel like getting out one of your chairs and the seat lifts up for storage. I can lounge on it while cooking on my barbeque grill and store wood for the chimnea under the seat.

Ok time for a nap while waiting on everyone else to arrive and then dinner and then I’ll finish off this blog.

Well the Bronze Boot was great. A great bottle of wine or two or three at our table. The tossed salad was good, the stuffed baked potato was great, and the rib eye was absolutely fabulous! Geez I had to come back in here and add that the French Onion soup with all that cheesy crusty stuff on the top was also so good. A really great meal and then it was back to the motel. We sat outside at one of the many tables around the place and had another glass or two of wine. It was a really nice evening with a good breeze blowing. The owner and his wife came by and talked to us before they headed home after being at the American Legion across the street dancing. They are such a nice couple. Also BJ the manager who emailed me to thank me for mentioning the motel in one of my blogs after my first stay here. Now it’s late and time for all normal people to go to bed…I’m of course an exception as usual but I won’t be up long after this blog.

Tomorrow hopefully will be a nice day because I will be heading for the Farmer’s Market right up the street and browsing around a few stores. Never know when there might be a bargain lurking out there. So until the next episode, that’s it for today. I hope everyone out here had a great day and now it will be the weekend so enjoy it.

A Ceilidh (pronounced “Kay Lay”) is a social gathering where Scottish or Irish music and dance takes place. There are several co-workers of Scottish decent and every year they have a gathering to raise money for the Transcona and District Pipe Band.

Ellen and I went one year and really had a great time. I haven’t been since but tonight it appears I will once again be a part of the festivities. There will be music from a band which another co-worker plays in along with the Bag Pipe and Drum Core. It is a really good gathering and I’ve always liked the bagpipes. This year it is being held at the Belgian Club on Provencher Avenue here in Winnipeg. The Belgian Club has been around for over 100 years and I’ve been there several times myself. I have a good friend who is the President of the club and he is a really great fellow. I met him at another friends house during one of the many dinner outings I seem to get involved in and he has been there quite a few times since then. He even made sure my truck got home and put in the garage while I was in the hospital last December. I’m looking forward to seeing him again tonight. Good food, good entertainment, and good people. Proves to be another a great evening in Winnipeg.

I’m not Scottish so I won’t be wearing a Kilt thank goodness. Wouldn’t want to embarrass anyone by showing off my beautiful legs. Oh yeah you laugh, but you just don’t know.

Until then I guess I will spend the day working around the house and getting the grass mowed and other projects providing the weather cooperates. It’s suppose to be nice but who knows? It does however seem to be getting warm again. Thank goodness because June is slipping away.

Need I say anymore? Here it is June…YES JUNE!!! and if we aren’t freezing to death, we are soaking wet.

Can’t get any yard work done…can’t set out any plants for fear of frost…can’t keep the truck clean…it’s just no fun being or going anywhere. Oh well maybe next summer will be better.

Better go out to the garage and refresh myself on how to start and operate my snow blower. Don’t want to have to run to the store and buy one because I can’t remember how to operate it like I did with my lawnmower.

Well I’m not sure what’s going on with the weather but things are a bit crazy if you ask me. I went out for breakfast this morning and it was COLD. I checked the calendar again and yes it was the 6th of June. As I was talking to some of the others waiting for the restaurant to open, I was surprised to learn that it was –4 in some locations with heavy frost. Friday it was snowing in Gimili which isn’t that far from here. Things are down right nuts. I came home after breakfast and some running around and decided that maybe I should mow the lawn and do some yard work. I had to put on an extra shirt before doing so and it stayed on  until I was done.

The first thing I did was mow the grass and then I got out the weed trimmer to cleanup around the edges. No more than getting a good start on that and the weed trimmer quit working. It was back to the garage to see what the problem was. After completely pulling the thing apart I found a broken wire at the motor. A quick repair and then reassemble and back at the trimming again. Next I pulled up the old wooden landscaping from around the flower garden in front of the house and replaced them with landscaping edge stones I had in the back. They are the interlocking type that can go around corners and curves. I must admit they looked a lot better than the wood. Tomorrow I’ll go out and level out the dirt in the flower bed and put some more new dirt in. There are some plants in there already but maybe I will put a few more in…undecided just yet.

Next I went and leveled up the central air condition unit. Over time one side of it had settled and it wasn’t anywhere near level which isn’t good for it or the bearings on the fan. I thought maybe it would be a real hassle but it didn’t turn out to be so bad after all. Another job well done.

Maybe out for breakfast again this morning (yep it’s the 7th of June now) and then if it isn’t freezing cold or snowing I have a few more projects I would like to tackle. Later this evening I’ve been invited to a friend’s for a barbeque so if I don’t work until I hurt myself, I’ll go and partake of some good food there.

If this weather keeps up, I’m going to have to run a heater to the toilet. It was darn cold out there this morning.

Not being myself lately, I’ve let things go a bit. Most of the neighbors have cut their grass and planted flowers but I hadn’t done anything with my yard. Some were sorry they put out plants with this crazy weather we’ve been having but they had at least cut their grass. I came home earlier this week and got the lawnmower out to get the battery charged and ready to go. As with the last 3 years, it showed charged when I plugged it in, but this time nothing was happening. The light on the charger was green so I unplugged it and tried to get the mower going but nothing was happening. It’s a battery operated mower and has been just the greatest and never have I had a problem with it. I pulled down the handle and pushed the button but nothing happened. I checked to see if the reel was stuck but that was in good order. Oh well I’ll fool with it later. The next day when I arrived home I got out of the truck and played with it some more. Still nothing so I left it sitting again. I had come to the conclusion that the battery must be dead and done for because a lot of these type mowers say that the battery will take but so many charges. Looking around for a battery wasn’t getting me anywhere and the grass was getting taller. I decided to start looking for a gas mower since I had sold mine a few years ago because this battery one was doing such a great job. Looking around I found some that were really cheap so until I could do something (if anything could be done) with the battery one I was going to go get a gas powered one again. I managed to find a few online at some local places at the amazing price of around $140 to $150 so this was the way I was going to go.

Up bright and early as usual this morning I went to Wal Mart to start to see what they had in the way of mowers since they were open all night and it was just after 5am. No crowd so I went browsing. The cheapest thing they had was another battery one for $200 and that made me wonder because the one I have was over $300 so was this one much good. I’ll look around some more. So off I went to one of my favorite eateries for some breakfast. Having filled my tummy it was off once again to find a mower. I stopped and had the truck washed on the way and then hit the first store where I had seen a mower for $140. Forget that!!! Nearest thing to that price was one for $279. This trend went on from one store to another. I was beginning to believe that only one of any of these stores had these mowers for the cheap price and it must have been in some remote location. I’m sure they had one in stock at one of their stores in order to be able to advertise it but it sure wasn’t in this town. Finally at Canadian Tire (seems they win a lot) I found a nice one that was really built good and sturdy for only $178. I thought about it for a few seconds and then threw it on my cart and off to the check out I headed. I was stopped by this lady and her young son on my way to the check-out. They had a fairly full cart and the young lad was having a bit of trouble maneuvering it. She told him to move over and let me through which was nice but I noticed she had two containers of the same laundry detergent I use in the cart. I have been using it for several years now and it really works great so I asked her if it was cheaper here than at Costco. She said it was on sale for $15 which is $4 cheaper than Costco. Canadian tire wins again. It’s called ECOS and it’s environment friendly and she said she just loves it also, so I back tracked and picked up two bottles to stick in the store room even though I still had one that was over half full at home.

Just in case you might be interested in reading about this and other products made by these people, here is a link to check out. http://www.deliciousorganics.com/products/ecos.htm#Liquid%20Laundry%20Detergent

Ok I was happy with my purchases so it was off to the house to do some damage to the yard. Arriving home and parking the truck in the garage I dropped the tailgate and proceeded to put my new mower together. In no time I was mowing the yard and I even noticed people walking on my side of the street again afterwards. I guess they were avoiding my yard because they weren’t sure what might be lurking in that tall grass. Next I got the weed eater out and did the trimming. As I was hanging the weed eater up in it’s charger (yep it’s battery operated also) I noticed this little orange key like thing sitting on the pressure washer which is where I keep the mower and weed eater plugged in for charging. As soon as I saw it the lights went on! I said to myself “I’m not that stupid am I” but I’m afraid I was. When you unplug the charger from the mower, you are suppose to insert this little orange thingy into where the charger plugs in and then the mower will run. I took it and plugged it into my battery mower and it ran like it always has.

Man did I ever feel like the dummy of the year. Here I had fooled with the thing off and on all week and now had run all over town and purchased a new mower only to find there was absolutely nothing wrong with the one I had! I shouldn’t even be telling anyone this because this is the dumbest thing I have done in a long time. Maybe it’s time for me to sign up for a spot in an old folks home. This has to be a beginning sign of senility. Well there is always a bright side I guess. Now I have a mower for the front yard and another for the back. I had better get a name tag made up for myself because I just might need it before long.

Well at least I know where my head is now.

Gotta get some new tee shirts also.

Anyone need a new lawnmower?

Yesterday I received a return email from the Farmer’s Market in Grand Forks, North Dakota concerning their opening date. It has been confirmed that June 20th is the official opening day. I smell another southbound trip and I can smell those Kuchens already. The email stated that Karen’s Kuchens has already paid for their spot. Even though things will be a little sparse as of yet until the produce really starts to roll in, there are usually lots of other things going on there so hopefully a lot of other vendors will be there for opening day. Not that I need these little German custard fruit filled pie like treats, it’s just that I have to have some if you know what I mean.

Oh and did I mention some of the other morsels of unforgettable goodness they usually have out there to tempt even the strongest of will powers?

I wasn’t sure so just in case you didn’t know, I’ll let you in on a bit of it. Those ever so sticky, get this mess all over and in me cinnamon buns and that ever so good banana nut bread and of course those I must stay away from blueberry filled, make me fat goodies. What the heck, they took all that trouble to make them, the least someone could do is eat them…right?

I’m sure lots of you remember the 3 weekends in a row excursion to get Scooter and bring him home mess that went on last year. Well this is where the little feller came from and maybe if I get lucky they will have his playmates which someone had snagged before I got back. Also the fishing bear is another addition I would like to bring home to sit outside by the front door. Here they are, Scooter (which I have) his playmates and the bear I would like to have. If not this trip I’m sure I will bag all of them before the season is over.

I will probably end up at the Plaza Motel right down the street again so I can jump up out of bed, hit the sidewalk running (well maybe a brisk walk) and I'll be there while they are setting up all the while looting and plundering through their wares, getting in the way and being a general nuisance. I figure they will get over it as soon as they see that green money I’ll be giving them.

So even if everyone isn’t there, the summer is young and there will be lots going on later. This place is just a beehive of activity when in full swing and there are lots of things to see. Can’t bring the produce back across the border but the important stuff, the nummy, sticky, gooey, in your tummy stuff you can have. That’s what I’m going to be after.

The list goes on but I think you get the picture. I like it and it’s in the middle of such a nice looking old town full of shops, restaurants and tons of things to do and see.

See ya there.

Well this day really turned out to be a bummer. First I get up and it starts to rain. Ok I’m almost certain that it is going to rain from now until the snow falls again. Seems that way anyhow. I just except it and go off to work. For some reason (probably from me being too efficient) things were slow this morning until the truck from the factory was to arrive. Could have been before noon or could have been after. I just wasn’t in the mood to stand around killing time so jokingly I stated “well see you tomorrow” and the response was “excellent buddy”, so off I went. It was a good day to take off because it was too wet and nasty to do anything outside so I went to the dollar store and grocery store for a few items. I came home and started a roast in the Crockpot, fixed something to eat and now it’s over for the rest of the day. Time to lay down and watch some TV until I grow tired and drift off to sleep. I’ve taken off before from work rather than stand around looking stupid so this was nothing new. Maybe I should just retire but then what would I do. I have it set up with my financial people to tentatively retire on the 1st of November but I know that I will have to find some little something to do so I don’t know about that just yet. Guess I could become a professional shopper maybe because I’m pretty good at that. I don’t know but I am sure about one thing and that is that my truck is going to remain dirty because every time I wash it the next day it rains. Might as well stop washing it. Anyway it has been a super unproductive day but what’s a guy to do. I hope everyone else is getting as tired of this mess called weather as I am. Ok that’s it for the day so until next time, enjoy the wet.