Cloudy, Cool and a Visit

This morning was cloudy and cool but at least there was no rain so got in my 20 minute walk. It remained cloudy all morning so we watched TV and did internet stuff. Gordon’s friend, Leroy was talking to him via internet so he went to Leroy’s for 11:30 a.m.

I hung around the RV, watched TV, had a shower, called One World Assist, the insurance carrier for our US travel medical insurance as the hospital is indicating that they have no contract with our insurer and therefore they can bill us for the amount over and above what the insurance paid. This time I got to speak to a really nice lady who indicated that their group doing the negotiations was contacting the hospital again to get this straightened out. She is to contact me on Friday with an update. Sure hope we are both healthy this winter when we’re away. We have gone with the same insurer for the winter and I know having worked in Auto Claims for 26 years that these things don’t happen over night but I would really like to see the end of this! I think other than the hospital all the other carriers have accepted the negotiated amounts as I haven’t heard from anyone else.

Since I didn’t take any photos today I’m featuring a few that Gordon has taken lately while we’ve been here in Ottawa. A couple were taken here in the park and the others are Ottawa scenes taken at night.

The Alexandra Bridge

The Museum of Civilization with Parliament Hill in the background

Tonight we went to Margie and John’s for a visit before we leave Ottawa for some short trips. We haven’t decided exactly where yet but are thinking of Quebec City and then Montreal. If so, we’ll probably leave Sunday morning so we can get through Montreal on Sunday when the traffic will hopefully be better. The only problem is it’s supposed to rain on Sunday. Unfortunately Danica had just left so we missed her but while we were there, Nick dropped in on his way back from Pembroke with the ambulance so it was good to see him especially since he was in uniform. I also got a beautiful bright green vest which was an exchange gift from one I got on my birthday that didn’t fit. Thanks again to Margie, John and Danica.

Margie was on vacation last week and she and John took a couple of days and went to Quebec City. They brought us a whole bunch of literature and brochures which is one of the reasons we are probably going there and also because it’s a place Gordon has wanted to go back to with his camera.

We got back in time to watch the season premiere of Criminal Minds.

I often find myself quoting my father or saying “Dad would have said this”. Here’s a little poem he used to recite when we were kids:

A wonderful bird is the pelican

His bill will hold more than his belican

He can take in his beak

Enough food for a week

But I’m damned if I know how the helican.

I always thought it was cute and true! The pelican was one of Dad’s favourite birds when he went to Florida. He came back with all sorts of pelican knickknacks and I’m sure we all had them in our houses.

A Visit and More Errands

I woke up to rain this morning so although I’m not a fair weather walker and if it’s just sprinkling I will go however this was rain, so no walk. It’s supposed to rain most of the week too so we may not be leaving here on Friday (unless our spot has been rented out to someone else).

We got an email yesterday from our friend from Ohio, Mel. He and Janice visited us here in June. Since then Janice has had some rather serious medical problems and has recently had surgery and is in the hospital. We are thinking of her and hoping she gets well soon! Pictured above is Mel and Janice at the Museum of Science and Technology that I took when we visited there in June.

I took my extra Nexium last night and my throat is already improving. I can swallow now without it hurting so I will take two per day for the next week. My body aches seem to be gone but I’m still not feeling 100% and I don’t think the rain helps.

Around 11:00 a.m. the rain stopped and the sun came out. YEAH! A friend of mine from my former employer, Breconridge dropped by to see us at lunch time. It was good to see John again and have a chat. I had seen him when I went into work in May but it’s not the same. He is envious of our lifestyle and has been checking out the Titanium since we went on the road in 2004. He needs an MPRV for his motorcycle though.

After John left, I went to take my sneakers back to Sears as they bother my back but the outlet for Sears in Bells Corners wouldn’t take them back as I had worn them. So off I went to WalMart in Barrhaven and got what I needed to get, stopped at our vet on Greenbank to tell him to close our file then went to the Sears Home Store where they did take back my sneakers. On my way to Barrhaven I was going south on Richmond Road and just before the Esso station there was a little fawn on the side of the road. He was so cute.

From there, home I went, then went out for my walk that I missed this morning. It was partly cloudy for most of my walk and the pictures above and below reflect that but it was very pleasant outside. I also stopped at the office to find out where you go when you go through the gate at the back of the property (like Alice through the looking glass?) They told me not to go back there as that’s where they throw brush and stuff but I’ve already been back there and there is a trail. One of the maintenance guys said it will take you right to Carling Avenue if you don’t get lost but they don’t recommend walking in there as it’s NCC property however there isn’t a NO TRESPASSING sign.

A Nothing Monday

It was cloudy and fairly warm on my walk this morning. I didn’t really feel like going as I’m still not feeling all that well but I went, then went out and got some errands done so this afternoon I’ve been resting. I still feel achy and my throat is sore which usually means my GERD is acting up so I’ll be increasing my Nexium today. Don’t think that has anything to do with the achy feeling though.

I have been keeping my fruit outside in a hanging basket but Gordon had to bring it in early this morning as there was a little raccoon that was trying to help himself in the wee hours. I guess I’ll have to keep it inside until we’re out of raccoon territory. In the southern US, you see RVs all the time with fruit hanging from them. I had put it outside as we were getting fruit flies and they are really annoying!

Nothing else to write about for today. Hope I feel better tomorrow.

Not Much Going On Today!

Today has been mostly cloudy with a few sunny breaks and some wind. When I walked this morning it was cloudy but fairly warm. I walked farther than usual. I guess that gave me the energy to do the vacuuming and wash the floors this morning.

Gordon tried his farm fresh eggs this morning but said he didn’t see much difference.

After lunch I sat outside for a while but it didn’t seem to be that kind of day. It was warm when the sun came out but cool with the wind when there was no sun so I came back inside and spent some time on the computer.

Late this afternoon I started feeling achy from the back of my neck, all down my back and into my legs. My doctor has always said for body aches, take Tylenol so I’ve done that and I think it’s a little better but I’m still feeling kind of yucky.

No photos today so I’ve borrowed one from Gordon again.

Running Around

Fog over the fields this morning at 7:00 a.m.

Carp Farmer's Market

Our RV taken from the visitor's parking area this morning

This morning I was up at the crack of dawn - 6:30 a.m. as we were going to the Carp Farmer's Market. We were told to get there early. I didn't get my walk or my breakfast first thing as usual but instead headed to Carp, taking some photos along the way as we had patchy fog. We arrived well before opening time and just wandered around. Our purpose for being there was to buy farm fresh eggs. My husband has been bugging me about this for some time. So now we have them, so what do we do? We go out for breakfast. After we finished at the Farmer's Market, other than the eggs I also bought butter tarts which I have been told are excellent and some brussel sprouts for dinner.

We then headed east on the Queensway to downtown but traffic was backing up at Carling Avenue because of construction so we got off and took Richmond Road into town. Lots of construction everywhere! We had breakfast at Woody's on Elgin Street and got a table right in the window. Shortly after we arrived they opened the windows so it was almost like eating on a patio. We returned home via the Ottawa River Parkway, very beautiful this morning and stopped to pick up my new sneakers at the Sears catalogue office. They had notified me by email late yesterday that they were in. On our way south on Pinecrest, the truck turned 100,000 km. From there, we headed home and spent the afternoon relaxing.

We had a nice dinner of whipped potatoes, fresh brussel sprouts and barbecued pork tenderloin with tapioca pudding and strawberries for dessert for Gordon's birthday.

A beautiful day today, mostly sunny.

On a sadder note, it's one month today since Bib left us.........

Happy 60th Birthday to My Wonderful Husband!

Friday Errands

This is a photo of Grace and Luke that Michelle sent to us.

Another cloudy, not very nice morning but at least it wasn’t raining at all for my walk. After breakfast I got the laundry together and headed over to the campground Laundromat but it seemed that was everyone else’s plan today too. I was only able to get one machine so when that load was finished washing I packed it all up and went to the Laundromat at Britannia. It’s the first time I’ve been at that one and I wouldn’t recommend it. Some of the washers say $1.75 but they won’t work unless you put $2.00 in them. They are very finicky about quarters, some don’t work and their dryers take FOREVER to dry! The washing machines do appear to do a nice whitening job though. Some Laundromats don’t. I think I’ll either wait for the facilities here in the future or find another Laundromat.

This afternoon I decided that I wanted the awning out so we went out to get some tie down straps. We had three. We need two for the awning which hasn’t been out since we arrived here and one for each satellite dish so we went in search of two more as one of them doesn’t work very well anymore. We went to Canadian Tire, too expensive; Zellers, no price on them even taking them to the price reader. So we went to Home Depot and made our purchase there. Now we need to buy another corkscrew stake but didn’t think of that till we got home. Gordon put the awning out anyway and used the stake that we bought at Quartzsite.

Gordon went downtown this evening to take some night shots of Ottawa while I decided to stay home and watch TV.

More dentistry and Errands!

L to R: Grace, Faith and Luke

Luke

Some red leaves that I saw on my morning walk

This morning it was misty with a light drizzle when I went for my walk. I thought I might see some wildlife so I walked within the campground but the only wildlife I saw were some squirrels, crows and a few dogs being walked by their masters.

Gordon had to go to his dentist this morning to get an impression and get the tooth put on his lower plate so I watched TV, then had a nap. This afternoon we had to go back to pick up his denture so we went early and got the truck plates renewed as there is a Ministry location at Westgate Shopping Centre. That over with, we headed back home. Not an easy task as Carling Avenue is all ripped up. We wound up going out Merivale Road to Baseline and through Bells Corners to Moodie.

It’s been overcast and a bit rainy all day. I was hoping it would clear up. Maybe tomorrow!

Yesterday we got photos of the kids from Michelle so I have posted a couple of them above. The girls sure like to stick out their tongues!

I had made chicken cacciatore yesterday so we had that for dinner tonight. Yummy!

Doctor, Dentist & Visit

Well, today marks the end of the beautiful days. I woke up to intermittent rain but not being a fair weather walker, away I went. I managed to get a 15 minute walk in without getting too wet. It's supposed to clear up by Friday.

Gordon had an 11:00 a.m. doctor’s appointment this morning followed by my 1:00 p.m. dentist appointment so we headed out for those. We decided that we would stay at this campground another week. I think we’re getting lazy with spending a month in locations this month and after only a week, it seems too soon to move.

We got doctor and dentist appointments overwith and all my sensitive teeth were fixed by painting some kind of resin over them. The enamel is eroding which is causing sensitivity. I’m always thinking she’s going to want to do something drastic and every time I come away from her office very happy with what she’s done and usually without much pain!

After we got home, I did some interneting and returned some emails.Then read for a while until the usual happens when I’m reading, I get sleepy but it’s a day to be sleepy. It’s a steady rain and very misty out. The RV was quite damp when we got home so we got the heater going and it’s doing better. I hate going out in the evening this time of year when it’s raining as the dampness just seems to seep inside. We could run the furnace but that depletes propane and we’re paying a fortune to stay here at this campground so using the electricity!

Tonight Margie and John came over for a visit. John brought a John-designed foam pillow for our bathroom sink for traveling. It should cushion the sink it just fine!

Getting TV Satellite a New Setup & More Errands

Wow! Three nice sunny fall days in a row. I got up a little later this morning at about 8:15 a.m. and it was still pretty cold out but had a nice walk just the same.

I was a bit headachey this morning, sat in my massaging cushion but although it seemed to help my back didn’t help my headache. Gordon gave me a shoulder massage as the massage cushion doesn’t really do shoulders and that and an Excedrin helped. I don’t like to take Excedrin because of stomach problems but sometimes it’s the only thing that helps.

This afternoon I went out to pick up some groceries and stopped at Hazeldean Mall. The Source there had a tripod for satellite dishes so they put it aside as I said my husband would have to look at it. When I got home Gordon went out to see it while I took a nice hot shower at the campground showers. He bought the tripod, a meter for setting up the TV dish. Then he went back out to buy a pole to put into the tripod to have something to attach the dish to. When he came back he took the TV dish off the ladder and put it on the tripod. It’s much easier to maneuver the dish on the ground than when it’s on the ladder.

Not much else for tonight, just TV and thinking about going to the dentist tomorrow!

I didn't take any photos today so I borrowed one from Gordon that he took of one of the monkeys at the zoo in Peterborough last week.

A Nice Early Fall Day

This is Bree. She might look real, but she's not!

This is a photo I took on my walk this morning. It's pretty even with the power lines!

Another beautiful morning for walking. Last night Gordon had to fast as he had blood work to be done this morning. He has also had a tooth that’s been bothering him so we went to his dentist’s office and she fit him in. He had the tooth removed and has to go back on Thursday when the dentist will take his lower denture and have the new tooth put on so he can pick the denture up Thursday afternoon.

I didn’t say much about my new poodle (stuffed) last night but Danica got me the poodle so I wouldn’t be lonely for Bib. She tried to get an apricot one but wasn’t successful. This poodle is black and has pink bows in her hair so we have determined, it’s female. Last night when I was thinking about it, I kept thinking ‘Breeze’ so I’ve decided to call her ‘Bree’ not after the character on Desperate Housewives but because of the breeze (like wind). She’s so cute and cuddly and you don’t have to feed her, walk her or listen to her whine. However, she does make a lousy watch dog!

This afternoon the sun was shining and there was a breeze so I sat outside in my lawnchair in the sun and read for a while. It was actually quite hot in the sun. Late in the afternoon I went for another walk with my camera. I took some photos but none that were great.

Errands, Presents & Dinner!

This is Jasper, Margie & John's wire-haired terrier.

This is the group minus myhusband who was also taking a photo and John who was doing the kitchen cleanup.

It was sunny and 7C (46F) when I got up just before 8:00 a.m. today. Fall is definitely in the air, at least this week. The sun was warm though and I had a beautiful walk out on Corkstown Road. It’s closed at the March Road end right now for construction so there’s no traffic. The sign for the road closure is just to the west of the campground and there’s only one farmhouse past there. I saw a couple of deer cross Corkstown in the distance. It was a perfect morning to walk.

After breakfast I went out to do some errands. Pepsi was on at Shoppers today only for $1.77 for 6 bottles so I had to stock up. Gordon is a pepsiholic! I also got some photos processed for Nick and Becky and Margie and John to give to them tonight as we’re going there for dinner for our birthdays. Gordon had processed six of them when we were in Lindsay so I had printed them out on our printer and I think it did a better job than Loblaws processing especially since I bought the photo paper.

We arrived at my sister’s place around 3:45 p.m. and Nick and Becky arrived shortly after followed by Danica and her friend, Jeff. We all sat around and had a nice chat, Gordon and I opened our presents. We got some very useful things including clothing for me and gift certificates from John and Margie for fuel, a stuffed poodle and a notebook from Danica and gift certificates for restaurants from Nick and Becky. Some very thoughtful gifts. Thanks everyone!

Nick and Becky also had their wedding photos from the photographer. She took some beautiful photos. Unfortunately we don't have room for photos so we had to be content with looking.

Margie had a bit of a catastrophe when cooking dinner. The heating element in her stove burnt out causing sparks so our turkey was cooked on the barbecue and was excellent. It was yummy to have stuffing. I love stuffing! Nick and Becky also brought a blueberry pie for dessert and Margie made strawberry fluff. I haven’t had fluff for ages. Mom used to make raspberry fluff all the time.

We got home shortly after 9:00 p.m. tired and stuffed!

Happy Birthday to Me!

This is a cropped photo of the blue jays

This is our new massaging cushion

I'm 58 years old today! I can't believe I'm that old!

This morning dawned damp and cool but I still went for my walk. Not a very nice day for my birthday weatherwise but there have been worse like our first year of RVing in 2004, it poured rain all day from one of the hurricanes that was passing through.

This morning we went to Carlingwood Shopping Centre to see if we could get the sneakers that Gordon wants. They didn’t have them in the store so we’ll have to order them from the catalogue. We also tried to find a tripod for our StarChoice dish at The Source but they didn’t have anything. We had a coffee at the Food Court, then stopped at GNC to get some stuff. While there, Gordon had a free massage in the massage chair that they’ve had in their store for a long time and suggested we buy one as we both have back problems so this is my (our) birthday present as Gordon’s birthday is next Saturday. The price with my GNC Gold Card was fairly reasonable. See it pictured above.

We came home for lunch and settled down to watch ‘Bite the Bullet’ with Candace Bergen and Gene Hackman. It turned out not to be something we wanted to watch so Gordon went for a nap and I watched some sitcoms till I fell asleep so I turned off the TV and then couldn’t sleep so went for my second walk of the day around the campground. The sun was out so I walked back into the area that’s now closed off hoping to see some deer but all I saw was a groundhog and on the way back near our campsite, two bluejays on the grass. I took photos but they were too far away for my camera.

Tonight we just relaxed and watched a movie on TV.

Back in Ottawa

Today was a beautiful sunny day with some cloudy periods. We packed up and left Double M RV Resort and Campground at 10:43 a.m. and arrived in our campsite at Ottawa Municipal Campground at 2:45 p.m. We were set up by about 4:00 p.m. just in time for the cloud to set in. We sat outside in our lawn chairs for a while to get cooled off as it had gotten to be 27C (81F) on our arrival. It hasn’t been that warm in Lindsay for a while.

The trip was a good one with only one car holding Gordon up enough so he had to pass her (on a 2 lane highway). It’s pretty bad when a 38 foot fifth wheel passes a car for going too slow! She was the type of driver that would slow down, then speed up again, really annoying! Anyway, someone on one of Gordon’s forums had asked him the other day if people up in our area painted their barns or not. So, on the way to Ottawa I surveyed the barns along Highway 7 and over twice as many barns are unpainted as are painted. That’s today’s little bit of trivia.

It’s quite windy here so we’re not putting out the awning tonight. The ground is really hard with underlying rock so it’s difficult to get the stakes in the ground to hold the awning. Maybe tomorrow! We got a thunderstorm around 5:30 p.m. so we got set up just in time.

We're back in the same site that we were in when we stayed here in June.

Boat Trip!

Betty and I in the bow rider just after we got gas in Bobcaygeon (photo by Gordon)

The photos below are some of the scenes taken on our trip today. You can see with the rocks in the pictures that we are in the Canadian Shield.

The entrance to Catalina Bay is only 28 feet wide!

The plan today if the weather was nice enough and Sturgeon Lake wasn’t too rough was to go out in the boat. Gordon had never gone through a lock so I thought that we would go through a lock, toodle around a bit in another lake and come back. Betty called early this morning and indicated that all systems were go. When we got to the cottage we found out that Garth had decided to take us to Catalina Bay where we were to go last Wednesday but couldn’t because of the weather.

So with layers of clothing on (it wasn’t that warm at 10:00 a.m.) we headed out. Sturgeon Lake was fairly calm and got to Bobcaygeon. The lockmaster saw us coming and opened the gates almost right away. Another boat came in behind us so it took no time at all for us to get through the locks. Garth stopped to get some charts of the area we were going to but they didn’t have what he wanted so we headed into Pigeon Lake, then Big Bald Lake and Little Bald Lake and got to Catalina Bay without much of a problem. However when we got there we found out that Crocodile Bob’s is now only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The plan had been to have lunch there and head back. It only took 45 minutes from the time we pulled into Pigeon Lake to get to Catalina Bay so we headed back to have lunch in Bobcaygeon. Again, on the return trip we had little problem finding our way, stopped for gas, got through the lock as after Labour Day they close at 3:30 p.m. and then went to the El Toro for lunch. Wouldn’t recommend it but it’s just across the street from the lock so it was a nice location. Betty and I took a quick look through some of the shops and she bought a T-shirt that she had looked at when we were there a couple of weeks ago.

Sturgeon Lake was getting pretty choppy as we headed home from Bobcaygeon and I got a little wet but it’s better to get wet on the way home than on the way on an outing!

We saw a couple of osprey which Gordon photographed and some loons but other than seagulls no other bird life.

We arrived back at the cottage at about 4:00 p.m., only stayed for a few minutes and then headed home to get started packing up. We got some gray water dumped so we can do dishes and stuff tonight as we’ve been full for a few days, packed up chairs, BBQ etc. so we’ve got a head start on tomorrow morning for our return to Ottawa.

Happy Birthday to Michelle, Lots of Errands and Dinner at Pleasant Point!

Betty and Garth on their dock at sunset

Our name plaque is finally up!

Misty morning on the Scugog River

Happy Birthday Michelle! Gordon’s daughter turns 30 something today so he called her this morning to wish her well. Their son, Luke (almost 4 months old) apparently wasn’t thinking of his Mommy when he woke her up about twice last night!

Busy day today! I started out by getting up about an hour early. There was a possibility that we would be going for a boat ride but it all depended on the weather and Betty was to call me around 8:15 a.m. I looked outside and it was foggy. Not a good sign for a boat ride. Gordon was out taking photos so I walked around the park and took some as well and then went on my walk. I was back in lots of time for the phone call. No boat ride today – 70% chance of rain. I had no sooner finished the call than it did start to rain but it didn’t rain much. So, tomorrow is supposed to be a nicer day so we are going to try for our boat ride tomorrow.

I called this morning and got our medical appointments set up for next year for our annual physical, got a dentist appointment for me for next week and called Brian Sanderson at Sanderson Insurance to get our US travel insurance.

Since tomorrow is sort of planned and I wanted to get laundry done, I packed up the laundry and headed to the Laundromat. After that was done, I stopped at a First Choice Haircutters and got my hair cut. I again thought about getting bangs and again decided against it. It’s taken so long for them to grow out that if I decide I don’t like them, it will take another 3-4 years to grow them out again. Then I went into Lindsay and got our US medical insurance cards from Sanderson Insurance as they are located here in Lindsay. This is the same company that had our insurance last year and they paid up for my hospital stay in Cincinnati and it was the same price as last year. But, you have to be stable with no changes in medication or anything for 6 months. I’m ok (at least at this point) but Gordon started another medication in June so we’ll have to keep our fingers crossed there. If you’re not stable for 6 months, you’re not covered (for that malady). Then I stopped and got some more groceries and came home.

When Betty and I were out shopping yesterday my back started to bother me again. I’ve been hearing things about how to wear a backpack properly for the school kids lately on TV so wondered if my purse might be creating a problem. I started carrying it in my hand and my back was much better. So, I’ve shortened the strap and hopefully that will help. If not, I’ll have to think about downsizing my purse. After about 50 years of carrying a purse that has everything in it you need, that would be very difficult.

We arrived at the cottage just before 5:00 p.m. and went for a walk down by the boathouse as Betty said their blue heron had returned. We did find him but he flew off just as we arrived. We had a really nice dinner and showed Betty and Garth some photos of the grandchildren as I had taken my computer over to show them information on a condo they hope to rent for two months this winter.

We got home around 9:00 p.m. Lights out! Tomorrow will be another full day!

Shopping in Port Perry

Another cloudy day. I’m starting to feel like Texas in the winter of 04/05 when all we got for about three weeks was cloud!

Gordon hung our plaque with our names on it this morning. Not bad – it’s only taken since Mesa, AZ to get it done. It’s hanging quite low right now as we have to adjust the front end to make the RV level so the front end is quite low.

Today, Betty picked me up at Double M RV Resort at 1:15 p.m. and we went shopping in Port Perry. Port Perry is a pretty little town but it’s not on the Trent-Severn Waterway. We didn’t buy much but it was a nice afternoon. We sat outside at a little coffee shop in town and had a coffee. It didn’t rain and the sun came out on our way home.

Our time here in Lindsay is coming to a close. It’s been great to spend some time with Betty. They are planning on being in Florida for February and March 2007 so we may see them there!

No photos today. I didn't even take my camera with me as it was so cloudy.

Lift Locks and Zoo

This is photo #1 the boat is in position

Photo #2 you see the boat basin coming down and the other basin going up

Photo #3 the basin the boat is in is now lower and is almost in position to release the boat

Photo #4 - the boat continues on its merry way!

Barbary sheep at the Riverview Park & Zoo. He's so cute up there on his perch

Vietnamese pot-bellied pig

Today was mostly cloudy and about 19C (66F). A lot of people were leaving the campground today. Summer holidays are over and the leaves are starting to turn. It seems awfully early this year. Gordon had mentioned a while ago that he wanted to go to see the lift locks at Peterborough but we hadn’t done it yet so I suggested we go today even though it was cloudy.

So about 10:30 a.m. we headed for Peterborough (about 22 miles) and drove to the lift locks. The sun came out! Just as we were walking toward the locks the loud speaker came on announcing that the locks would be operating soon as there was a boat in the lock waiting to be brought down. So, we were just in time. We got photos of the lock moving and then the boat moving on down the canal. Interesting. We then stopped at the Chamber of Commerce as we had seen a sign for a zoo. We found out where the Riverview Park and Zoo was located and that it’s free! So off we went. It’s a nice little zoo and has a huge playground. Not a lot of animals but a couple of really big camels, cute little monkeys, some deer, emus, kangaroos, a pot bellied pig and some donkeys. There were other animals and reptiles as well.

We got home about 2:30 p.m. just in time for a nap.

Wimpy's

Today when I took my walk it was raining but not that heavily so I didn’t need an umbrella. If it had been that heavy, I wouldn’t have walked.

I was just settling into my book when Betty called to see if we wanted to go out for breakfast. We had eaten but since by the time we got there it would be almost lunch time, we went for it. Gordon had photoshoped one of Betty’s photos of their Amazon cruise to fit their Christmas card so we stopped at Staples to get it printed and met them at Wimpy’s. Wimpy’s is a 50’s diner and has all kinds of coke memorabilia around. Gordon’s topic for his photo club this month is Coca Cola so he photographed a lot of the stuff that they had.

We had breakfast and a chat and then went our separate ways.We stopped at Valu Mart and I picked up makings for a stew. It’s that kind of weather again! When I got home I made the stew and put it on the stove to simmer for a couple of hours. We won’t be having dinner tonight as we went out today but it’s better when it sits for a day.

The rain had stopped by the time we returned to the campground so Gordon put the awning out again and after my food prep, I did some interneting and then settled down with my book. I’m reading John Sandford’s Dead Watch. It’s also a pretty good book Betty brought me another one by Lee Child called The Hard Way. I want to get all the hardcover books read so I can give them to Danica before we leave to head south. They take up lots more room and are heavier than paperbacks.

The rest of the day was a quiet one.

I didn't take any photos today so the one above is from our trip on Wednesday to Six Foot Bay.

Ernesto Arrives as Forecast

Red lawn chairs in a row (taken by Gordon this week)

The campground is pretty full this weekend

This morning was cloudy and cool but at least it wasn’t raining yet. I did my walk around the park instead of on the road and noticed that most seasonal people are here this weekend. Also you will see from the photo that there are lots of tents and tent trailers around. The park is pretty much full this weekend.

Ernesto arrived in the form of rain and some wind just after 12 noon as predicted by the weather forecaster. The plan today had been to go to a corn roast at a cottage down the way from Betty & Garth’s, however with the rain and the corn roast to be held outside, we decided to stay at home and try to keep warm. With the electric heater on, it keeps the cold at bay but we don’t run it if we’re going to be out so unless we put the furnace on it would be very cold and damp if we were out all afternoon and evening.

I had purchased a camp toaster some time ago, I think I wrote about it when I bought it and today was the first time I used it. It works quite well so I had a BLT for lunch. I don’t crave toast very often but today seemed like a really good day for it.

Just before dinner, Gordon decided that we should put the awning up in case the wind picked up during the night. It’s bad enough to have to put the awning up in the rain let alone in the dark too.

I had an accordion file to hold maps and tourist books from different states and provinces which would no longer close so I went through that and disposed of things not needed. I took the maps and put an elastic band around them. Hopefully we’ll be able to carry them in the truck so they will be there when we need them.Other than organizing maps, reading, naps and TV, not much got accomplished today.

Expenses for August

It was cool, sunny and beautiful this morning, a beautiful day for my walk. An older lady with her dog that I see on my walk almost every morning said that I should have a dog to walk with me. I managed to tell her about why I wasn’t walking with a dog without breaking down. Everyone I talk to like this including my on-line friend, Peggi say we should get another one but we’ve decided not to while we’re traveling.

This morning I went into Lindsay to pick up some groceries so I could make my Calico Beans for the corn roast tomorrow night at neighbours of Betty & Garth’s. It doesn’t sound like the weather is going to be very nice. Rain is predicted for the next few days from Hurricane Ernesto so I guess there is a possibility that the corn roast won’t happen.

This afternoon I decided to take advantage of the nice day and the sunshine and sat outside till about 4:30 p.m. Then I came in and made the Calico Beans and put them in the crockpot to cook overnight.

Since yesterday was the end of the month, below are our expenses.

Campground Fees - $594.28

Groceries - $347.16

Laundry - $32.75

Wine/Spirits - $48.45

Entertainment - $9.91

Snacks - $7.50

Eating Out - $117.20

Fuel for Truck - $250.25

Propane - $0.00

Dog Food/Vet etc - $310.66

Repairs/Service/RV/Truck - $94.47

Misc - $414.89

Insurance - $151.04

Internet/TV - $207.96

Cell Phones - $110.00

Medical/Dental - $59.62

Gifts - $50.00

Total for August - $2,806.14

Great month for expenses! This is mainly due to eating a lot of meals at Betty & Garth’s. The vet bills of course were more this month than before. We were charged for two months for our satellite internet as we weren’t charged last month. We’re also now on a two month contract so it’s $10.00 plus taxes cheaper per month. Eating out increased this month as Betty and I have been having lunch out when we go on our shopping sprees. Our Misc. items included purchasing the receiver for our StarChoice TV and I also bought ink for the printer.

September definitely won’t be within budget as I will be purchasing our travel insurance for this winter and we won’t be getting monthly rates as we’ll be staying a week or two in Ottawa and then probably moving elsewhere yet to be determined. There has also been talk of needing new tires for the truck which will also be a big expense. We’ll have to decide if they will last through the winter as I don’t want to have to buy them in the US and pay taxes and duty on them.

No photos today, just relaxing!

A Relaxing Thursday

Today was just a relaxing day. I napped on the couch this morning but as it got warmer outside I moved to my lawnchair and spent most of the afternoon out there reading 'Judge and Jury' by James Patterson. I finished the book and it was pretty good but I'm a James Patterson fan.

Around 5:00 p.m. Gordon decided he had to go into town to Bulk Barn to get some candy. He’s a candy fiend and he says he’s been without any for several days. While he was gone I whipped up a meatloaf for dinner.


That’s about it for today!.

Today’s photo was taken by Gordon a couple of days ago at sunrise.

A Day's Outing with Betty and Garth

This is the card that Betty & Garth gave us for our anniversary and our photo.

See the little chipmunk peeking out from the crack in the sidewalk? There were at least two of them that appeared to be living in that crack.

Gordon, Sandra, Betty & Garth with Sandy Lake in the background

Today was partly cloudy and cool 13C (55F) when I went out for my walk. The plan today was to go to the cottage and take a boat ride over to Catalina Bay Resort where they have a restaurant called Crocodile Bill’s for lunch. It’s located on Big Bald Lake which meant we would have to go through the locks at Bobcaygeon.

Since it was quite cool this morning we dressed in layers and headed for the cottage. Sturgeon Lake however had other ideas for our day as it was quite choppy. Sturgeon is quite a large lake and is often quite choppy which meant that the chances of us getting wet were very good. Before we arrived Betty and Garth had decided that we would not go by boat but would take a road trip. Bummer! Oh well, another day for the boat! Too bad we were dressed for boating!

We headed out and stopped at a couple of restaurants in Buckhorn to see if they could accommodate Gordon’s diet. One looked promising but it wasn’t on the lake. We headed toward Sandy Lake, a pretty glacial lake about 5 miles from Buckhorn and on the way back stopped at a place called Six Foot Bay. Garth had played golf here at one time. It’s a pretty area, has large cottages on the water and an RV park as well as a restaurant which had a huge plate of nachos that Gordon could eat. The food was very good and Betty paid for our anniversary (which is November 5th but we will be somewhere on our way south by then).

We then headed to Curve Lake which is on an Indian Reserve. They have a Pow Wow every year in September so we drove to the area where they have the Pow Wow and it looked like they were participating in a mini Indian Ceremony for CHEX 5:30 News as they were there with cameras. We took a few photos before someone told us we couldn’t take photos of an Indian Ceremony. It was quite interesting watching them do their dance. We then stopped at the Whetung Ojibwa Crafts and Art Gallery. I bought a couple of little bracelets there but there were some really pretty Indian blankets and lots of art and jewelry of all kinds as well as moccasins and all sorts of gifts. From there we went to Young’s Point, a little town on Clear Lake. Lock 27 is at Young’s Point so we walked across the lock and around the little town area a bit and then came back and looked in their Trading Post while Betty and Garth had some Kawartha ice cream. After the huge lunch we had I can’t imagine where they put it! They sell everything there from clothing to furniture to stuffed lifelike looking cats. Nothing called to me however so I managed to escape without buying anything.

From there we headed back to the cottage where we took our leave of Betty and Garth and headed home, both of us very tired again!

Shopping in Lindsay and The Canadian Shield

It was cloudy this morning and since I was spending the day shopping with Betty I decided to forego my walk to see how my back lasts throughout the day without the morning punishment. I do find that walking quickly doesn’t bother my back nearly so much as strolling along and stopping to shop or just standing, that really kills it.

I met Betty at the Lindsay Square Mall and looked around there and the plaza with Dollarama and then shopped Kent Street. We had lunch at The Grand in Lindsay and sat outside on the patio. They have probably the best taco salad I’ve ever eaten. I bought a butterfly book with the gift card I got when I left Breconridge and I still have some $ left on it.

I got home around 5:15 p.m. My back is killing me so skipping my morning walk didn’t help!

No photos taken today so I have included one I took yesterday of part of the Canadian Shield.

The Canadian Shield is the largest of Canada's 7 physical regions. This area completely surrounds the Hudson's Bay in the shape of a horse shoe. It mainly is rock that was once mountains millions of years ago. Through the process of erosion, water, ice, glaciers from the Ice Age, and wind wore down this rock so that it became flatter. Over these millions of years rivers, rapids, trees like the fir, pine and spruce love it here but the shallowness of the soil wouldn't work for plants that have a deep root system. lakes and valleys have been carved out by the force of nature. All these beautiful sources of water add to the tourism and recreation (camping) industry but at the same time it sure made it difficult to create a transportation system. When all of the erosion was finished, the rock was very close to the surface. As a matter of fact there isn't a great depth of soil. Trees like the fir, pine and spruce love it here but the shallowness of the soil wouldn't work for plants that have a deep root system.

Petroglyphs Provincial Park

McGinnis Lake in Petroglyphs Provincial Park

This is the building that houses the petroglyphs.

This is the Village Inn and Spa in Lakefield where we had lunch at their pub called The Thirsty Loon.

This is me at The Thirsty Loon (taken by Gordon).

Today was bright and sunny again. I got up at 8:00 a.m. and went for my walk. It was 19C (66F) so it was quite enjoyable. I actually jogged for a short way.

This morning as I mentioned yesterday, the plan was to go into Lindsay for the groceries I didn’t get yesterday as the store was too busy. However, it was such a beautiful day we decided to go for a drive as we haven’t seen much of the area this month (on our own). So we headed generally northeast stopping in Lakefield for lunch at The Thirsty Loon. We walked around Lakefield and got some maps and information at the local Chamber of Commerce.

Then on to Petroglyphs Provincial Park. We had stopped there last year but there was no one in the booth so after paying $9.91 (???? Not $10.00, go figure) we headed to the petroglyphs. It was a short walk from the parking lot but on our way there were signs saying that this was an Indian spiritual area therefore we couldn’t take any photos. We weren’t impressed! They have built a steel and glass building to house the petroglyphs so I took a photo of that but was disappointed that we couldn’t take any inside. The petroglyphs were quite good. Probably better than the ones we saw in New Mexico but there was no problem with taking photos there.

After that we stopped at McGinnis Lake which is also within the park and took some photos there. It was very pretty and reminded me of Pink Lake in Gatineau Park.

Stony Lake is apparently a very pretty lake in this area but it's hard to actually see it as there are cottages and trees that surround it but Gordon did hike down to a public beach and got some photos so you’ll have to go to his site to see them. Click on the links on the right. By that time, my back was finished for the day.

We started to head towards Buckhorn but it was getting late so decided to turn around and return home through Lakefield and Bridgeport again so we arrived home just before 6:00 p.m.

Lousy Weather Today

Today has been a lousy day weatherwise. I did manage to get I a short walk this morning between rain showers. On top of the rain it’s been very humid and misty for most of the day.

It was in the plan today to get the laundry done. For it only being a week, I had lots of laundry so trucked on into Lindsay to the Laundromat I was at last week. Again no one was there till I was packing up to leave. The one bad thing about this Laundromat is no washroom. I thought maybe since it’s also a gas station that the convenience store would have one but the cashier said that he had let someone use it and they put paper towel down the toilet and it was plugged. So after my clothes were in the dryer I went over to Loblaws to use their facilities. Not too convenient but the washrooms in Laundromats are usually not very clean anyway.

After laundry I stopped at National Grocers and picked up a few things. Checked out the new Dollar Store in that plaza. It’s more like a department store than a dollar store. I was going to hit Food Basics too but the parking lot was full. Then I remembered it was Sunday and the place would be a zoo so I decided I’d go back in tomorrow.

This afternoon we also had to dump the tanks. The sewer is too high so the sewage doesn’t flow properly out of the hose so it’s a two person not-very-nice job and the sewer is quite a ways from the RV so we have to use two hoses connected. The connection usually leaks so we use a plastic bag to catch the leakage. Also not nice!

After that we headed to the campground showers. They have a lot of water pressure so I find it good especially for rinsing my hair.

The sun did come out around dinner time so hopefully tomorrow will be nicer.

We spent the evening watching Pirates of the Caribbean.

I didn't take any photos today so borrowed one from Gordon that he took when we were near Carleton Place.