Looking Beyond the Obvious

31 Oct 24

06:30 hrs

     Happy Halloween Campers! 

     Is your house all dressed for the fun? This year we added a 6x6 foot illuminated spider web littered with dolls purchased from the Sally Ann wrapped in gauze. Do you get lots of kids yelling Trick or Treat? We get about a couple hundred with some in some really good costumes. What's your favourite Halloween movie? Last night we watched the original Amityville Horror and The Omen. Outstanding movies.

     I know that some of you have been keeping a watchful eye on the happenings South of the 49th Parallel. And don't try to deny it. Hugh-ess politics has a direct impact on the Great White North so I'm sure you're paying attention. Now, regardless of which news station you watch they all tend to cut to some "expert" who explains some point of view so even the brain dead public can comprehend it. And it doesn't have to be a political point. It could be a disaster story or a puff piece because the "news" needs a pro to validate the network's position. What I find interesting is what you can see behind the the commentator. Especially, if the interview is taking place from an office or a room in a home. What's sitting on the bookshelf? Or, hanging on the wall? I'm pretty sure that the pundit has personally staged the background with items that he/she wants the observer to see. Items that are important to them, may speak for them and will reflect on them. Favoured books, authored books, children's drawings, awards recieved and funny baubles. Just about anything can be in the background but rest assured, that prior to being aired, the staff of the news organization has probably looked through the lens to see if anything in the background will not be offensive to their viewers.

     Our Jr. Couch Monkey has now completed five weeks of his Basic Training at CFB Boredom. He has told us that several people requested a voluntary release within the first couple of weeks. I guess they didn't like the military life. But then again, what the hell did they expect. It's the military. Comedian Robin Williams,  in his role as the Air Force DJ Adrian Cronauer, asked what was the difference between the army and the boy scouts? The boy scouts doesn't have artillery.

     The Ram is going into the shop. I think I had mentioned this before. Maybe not. Anyways, the Ram is a stock vehicle. No bells. No whistles. Just after i bought it I realized that I needed some off-road lighting, map lights and fog lights. My Better Half said I should get them installed. Well, there is only one place in The Valley to get the job done and the price quote was prohibitive. So, I decided to do the job myself. With the help of my Friend from Over the Hump, three sets of lights and the switches were installed. They lasted about a year or so and abruptly quit. Try as I may I could not de-snag the issue. There was no choice but to take the Ram back. A pre-inspection survey of the wiring job I had done proved that a professional would have done a much tidier job. In my defence, the lights were functional which is what I was aiming for in the first place. So, the plan is to leave the lights in place and build a new wiring harness.

The winter weather is hitting The Rock. Rain most days and if it's not raining it's pouring. The hope is that the temperature will drop to less that 7°C here in The Valley so the snow pack will start to build. The bigger the snow pack on the Beauforts the less likely of a forest fire in the summer. 

Soon the spooky decorations will come down and the Christmas boxes will come out. My Lobster has written the annual letter and as soon as the boxes are opened the cards will be mailed. We'll be expecting a full house, of sorts. Both boys and their Significant Others will be here as will be our friend The Onion. Oh Happy Days!

The Wayward Inn Word of the Day

15 Oct 24

22:00 hrs

     This is a new feature of my blog. Odd words that occasionally come up in conversation at the Wayward Inn. 

     "Table scab" - the slightly convex, dried button-like object that resembles a week old gravy/ketchup/chewed food spittle droplet that refuses to be wiped away and must be flaked off.

     Origin ..... Your's Truly nearly lost an eye when my Better Half flicked something off the table and hit me. I asked "What the hell was that?" And she replied, "That was a table scab!"

     

Happy Turkey Day

14 Oct 24

09:00 hrs

     Good Morning Dear Readers, 

Have you celebrated Thanksgiving yet? What was your main course? Turkey? Chicken? Ham? A roast of some kind? Or, did you cheap out and order Chinese food? Did you dine alone or with family? Did you invite non-family friends to your table? And, more importantly, what did you give thanks for? We celebrated the holiday with our Sr. Loin Fruit and his Significant Other as well as our Jr. Couch Monkey's Significant Other. As Jr. is away at Basic Training we have invited his S.O. over several times for meals and card games. He enjoys the invites and is always welcome.

     Speaking of Jr's Training, we got a surprise phone call from himwhen we had gone to the Pacific Pearl to watch a CFL game. His phone had called and he was borrowing someone's phone. From what he told us all is well. His bed was tossed at least once for non-conformity. He sent us the rest of his snail-mail address and we shipped him a care package consisting of his rain jacket, a spare phone, a couple handfuls of loose Cherrios and a piece of his homemade two year old hard tack. We know the package arrived on Base but haven't heard from him this week so we don't know if he has the package is in his hot little hands. 

     My Better Half was talking to a good friend from her college days. She attended our wedding and we have all gotten together whenever we can. I've always liked her for her ability to see through the bullshit and call a spade a spade and a shovel a shovel. 

     I'm feeling the need to get the trail cameras and the audio recorders Out in the Weeds. My Big Hairy Friends should be looking to stock up on food for the winter and maybe, just maybe, I'll be able get some evidence. This will also be an attempt at developing my own Base Camp. Here's hoping.