Working at things

24 Mar 21

05:30 hrs

     Hello Dear Readers, 

     What's shaking?

     Things are progressing along here at the Wayward Inn. Day by day, week by week we are marching steadily towards summer to the point where you will find my lazing outside with a nice Cuban rum on ice. Sounds delicious doesn't it. Now add the sound and smells of food on the Flame Pit. 

     Back in the Nation's Capital The Oma-nator lost a dear friend. She was 90+ years young. Her husband had passed away six months earlier. Both of them were living in a seniors facility that was right across the street (six lanes wide) from their home. Their son resides in the house and he is battling a resurgence of leukemia. Bad news all around.

     My Sister in-Law, The Sorceress of the Golden Horseshoe, has been thwarted. A local eye doc has provided me with a potion that blocks the sharp stabbing pains that I personally have attributed to the Voodoo Doll being used down east. Additionally, she and her Lobster are pulling up roots and heading farther down the lake front. Good on them. They've been in the place for a couple of decades and its time for something easier on the body. Something with less stairs! 

     Speaking of pulling up roots, my Lobster had me yank out a couple of bushes that were either under performing or not to her liking. She has a plan to put something else in their place. I'm looking for lots of ground cover to choke out the weeds.

30 Mar 21

05:30 hrs

     Good Morning Dear Readers!

     March had come in like a Lion and two days ago it was acting like a Lion again with hail and high winds. It sure took the Valley by surprise. Since then the sun has been shining but the winds have been out of the north. I guess I can't bitch. Our Redneck Province next door went from 15°C to a full blown blizzard that caused a seventy vehicle pile up. I buddy of mine is a long haul driver who is getting long in the tooth too. Eventhough he has a gazillion miles of safe driving under his belt I worry about him sometimes. 

06:45 hrs.

     I was on my way into work and there was a line of cars behind me. All of us were turning left. After the turn I checked my mirrors and noted three of the four cars behind me all took a second left into the coffee shop on the corner. I don't know if they were purchasing just a coffee or maybe it was a full blown breakfast.  Either way I can't imagine the amount of cash these people are going through every week or month or year. Just think of it. Ar $2 for just a coffee that's $10 for the week and $40 for the month and $520 for the year. Add a few bagels and you can easily top $1000 a year. And this is the cheap place. Think how much is spent when people go to a full blown barista joint wher the prices are tripled. Now, I enjoy my coffee. I think if you were to draw a pint from me it would come out as dark roast. When i was doing the patrol job I used to buy one extra large cup from the local coffee joint per day when I was on duty. So, fourteen cups a month. And, I would make it last all day. I'm an old line servicing rat so drinking cold coffee is nothing new to me. But now, I take one thermal cup and a thermos full and even then I may not finish it. Is that amount of coffee cheaper. Sure is when I'm buying a one kilo can for $8.

09:30 hrs.

     On the drive in this morning I also noticed that the walls on the development near the Wayward Inn are stating to go up. My Lobster and I have also learned that there will be four buildings all with underground parking, between the buildings there will be a green space with a dog run and solar panels on the roof (probably a grid-tied system). There will be twenty four condos and two hundred apartments. On the ground floor of one of the buildings will be commercial space. The price tag for these units are anyone's guess but I would imagine the condos will go for $600K and the apartments will tent for $1600 a month. It's just a guess but the new units by the BIG BOX STORE are $650K and that's partly because it has the  Tiara Island Estates develipment attached to its name. Cha-ching! This brings about the notion of what is affordable housing and when will truly affordable housing going to be built here in the Valley. Right now there is no way our Sr. Couch Monkey could afford to move into one of these places. Not when he's earning just above minimum wage and working just under full time hours. Sure, he could try to work two part time jobs but the stress would kill him. He could find a roomie to cover half the rent but I'm not sure that work either. 

31 Mar 21

09:00 hrs

     Last night my Lobster, the Oma-nator and I went out to run some errands. This included measuring a bookhouse for its dimensions as I have to construct a new one. On our way back to the Wayward Inn we were driving along the ocean when traffic started to slow. We had no idea what the hold up was. It was too late in the day for construction. Maybe an accident? We rounded the corner and witnessed the Penny Boys loading a house onto a barge.  The barge was being held against the shore by several small tugs. It already had two houses on board and besides the one being loadedtbere was room for the fourth one sitting on cribbing. How big were the houses. I don't know. Single storey, 40 x 40 feet or so. Maybe the powers that be have stated the houses can no longer be stored in that place prior to being sold. I don't know but it was really cool to see how they were being moved.

     One final note. My Sr. Loin Fruit has decided to make his own hot sauce. We go through a lot of hot sauces at the Wayward Inn so he decided to make some. Of course my Lobster said that it will end up in a competition. 

     And, it will.

Another one gone

13 Mar 21

19:30 hrs

     A couple of days ago I learned that one of my very first supervisors has passed away. He was a mentor and had even taught me how to play Beer Baseball. The last time I spoke to him in person was in 1988 when I was moving from The Rock to The Peg. Since then I had learned that he was back on The Rock and then actually living near The Sages. I tried to contact him but with no luck. On hearing of his death I contacted others who had worked with him, my Friend from Over the Hump was one, and gave them the sad news. The next time some of us get together we will certainly raise several glasses.

14 Mar 21

09:00 hrs

     Yesterday, we did a bunch of yard work at the Wayward Inn. Weeds were pulled, gates were re-hung and the front porch was pressure washed. While this was happening my Better Half saw someone and their child put some books into one of our book houses. Kids books into the Kids Book House. Great. Except that not all books are of the same size and not all books fit into the book house. But, L'il Johnny just has to put the book in! Full force! All the way to the back and then close the door blowing the back off of the book house. I was not informed of this until today and when I looked out I could see the back of the book house bent outwards with the rain going inwards. I ran outside and secured the books, retrieved the necessary tools and removed the broken book house. It is sitting in the shop awaiting my attention for repairs. My Better Half and I got into a heated - well, I wouldn't call it a discussion - shall we say a conflict of points of view. She forgot to tell me which is fine but I was pissed at the ineptitude of people trying to put a eight inch wide book in a book house that's only five inches deep. These are the same fungi for brains individuals who take up two parking spots with one vehicle. I now have to come up with a plan to secure the back of the book house - it's only press board - in such a manner to protect it from the cosmically stupid!

15 Mar 21

05:45 hrs

     Have you seen Interstellar on Netflix? It a space movie, obviously. But, it is unlike any space movie that I have seen. Matthew McConaughey stars in it. And, I have to warn you there is some scientific theories you will have to wrap your head around. 

21:00 hrs

     Oh, before I forget...today was the Ides of March. I remember a Canadian comedy pair - W & S - did a skit called Rinse the Blood off My Toga. It's about Big Julie's wife telling him not to go to the Senate, advice that he ignored and he got it in the back...and in the front...and in both sides. You can find it on YouTube and it's worth watching.

     Work on  repairing the broken book house has started. I should have it completed by the end of the week. I've also started building and shaping the electronics storage container for my gear when I'm Out in the Weeds. Bionic ear, audio recorders, trail cameras, radios, etc all in one spot and in a dry lockable case.

     My latest tome has been completed and the cover has been done as well - Who Let the Gouts Out! I have sent a digital copy to a friend of mine on the continent to get his opinion. If there is you of you Dear Readers would also like to preview the book send me a message. First one wins the race

     That's all folks. Take care of yourselves and each other. 

Road Trip!

06 Mar 21

11:45 hrs

     We took a road trip north to River City mainly because the weather was nice for the drive and it was good to get out from the Wayward Inn and because my Lobster wanted a bubble tea and there is a place in River City that supposedly has the best bubble tea around. I'll have a coffee thanks. Something that I dont have to chew to drink. The Oma-nator joined us on the drive spotting lots of houses she would want to live in because their so far out in the woods. She's so much fun.

     On the way up I spotted a lot of shithole properties. These are places you normally wouldn't see because of the foliage and as a driver I would have the time to stare deep into the woods along the side of the highway. As the passenger in the back of the Better Half's wheels I saw a lot of residences that would make a professional dumpster diver smile. Trucks, cars, RV's, freezers and all of them trashed nestled against collapsed buildings that people may still be living in. 

     In River City we noted the new road work past the apartment that the Travelling Relatives used to live in is pretty well completed including a new roundabout at the intersection with the road coming off of the hill. This was a smart play as drivers always found it difficult turning onto or off of that road. There are several new apartment blocks that have gone up. Some are quite nice and are more than the maximum height allowed by the Valley's moronic building codes. I had dashed into a sports shop to check on some archery stuff. Unfortunately, the staff member I needed to speak to was occupied with another person. I'll call him later. 

     On the way home we saw quite a few trumpeter swans in the fields. In the next couple of weeks they will be winging their way back north to their breeding grounds. I have to assist the Jr. Loin Fruit in putting the plates onto the Better Half's old car. We gifted it to him. Next week I'll show him how to change a tire. 

Here's a Question!

02 Mar 21

07:30 hrs

     Good Morning Dear Readers!

     And what lovely morning it is. Mid level overcast and 1°C. We could get some precip here in the Valley as well but the winds have dropped to next to nothing. I hope your day is shaping up well. Anyways, let's get right to it shall we?

     Foibles! Call it what you will but everyone knows of someone who has a quirk, a foible or some idiosyncrasy that makes that person interesting, or unique, or odd, or a pain in the ass. Many times these acts are simply a display of the person's (un)diagnosed mental condition  - Knock Knock Knock Penny. I'm not going to point out out any specific individual's foibles I just wanted to highlight the fact that I think all of us have something that makes us human.

03 Mar 21

06:30 hrs

     The sun is starting to come up and I can see we have some high overcast clouds. Yesterday my Sr. Couch Monkey picked up the sheath for the filet knife I gave him for Christmas. He had contacted a local leather worker and had commissioned the work. It's pretty nice and moreover I'm proud that he sourced out a local artist to have the work done. 

     The massive destruction/reconstruction project at CFB Lompoc continues. I think the work is still on schedule. It's hard to tell with all the road being torn up. I've talked to the head contractor a couple of times and he has assured me that there is a method to the madness. The issue is that despite the roads being torn up they still have to be passable so people can get to work.

     Here's another question - When will the local transportation engineers pull their heads out of their ass? As seen in the local cage liner some moron in the anni g department has decided to put a pedestrian crosswalk across a three lane road. Normally, this isn't a bad thing as it would allow pedestrians to cross a road more directly than walking a half mile in one direction before crossing the road at a controlled intersection before returning a half mile on the opposite side of the road. The problem is that the selected crosdi g point is at the top of a very long hill where all drivers, myself included, tend to increase their speed when going uphill until they may be doing 20km or more over the posted speed limit. And now some bookworm engineer will expect all that traffic to come to a screaming halt when someone pushes the crosswalk button. Mark my words somebody is going to get killed! Do they need a safe way to cross the road at the point? Sure, but what they should be building is a ramped overhead walkway. I heard the idea was investigated but the cost would be close to $10 million. Well, I would rather see the money spent on an overhead walkway than some stupid bridge across the river for cyclists and our Residentially Challenged persons when one already exists one block over.

20:15 hrs

     I just finished a podcast with Sheldon. I think it went pretty good. Look for Nicola Valley Bigfoot on your favourite podcast site. He's had his own interactions when Out in the Weeds and I mentioned to him that maybe we could arrange something on the Rock or if I came through on my way to the Sages I might stay over a couple of days and check out his research area.

The Latest

25 Feb 21

06:45 hrs

     I'm currently sitting at the worksite awaiting the contractors to arrive. Yesterday was the Oma-nator's eighty-eight birthday. Chef Blaine had prepped homemade Angus beef burgers on Tuesday so all he had to do was toss them on the Flame Pit. The Jr. Loin Fruit had his veggie patties. We dined, she opened her presents and we had three games of trouble. She won two and I took the last one. She must have thanked us a gazillion times for all that we have done for her. Trust me when I day that all that we do is nothing that we wouldn't do for anyone but I think that the Oma-nator is still not used to people looking after her or doing the little things that makes her life better. It's great when I can have her smile and laugh.

     We had an armed robbery her in the Valley. Some mook assaulted and robbed a lady working the night shift after she locked up. The good news is the Queens's Cowboys have a suspect in custody. Good on them.

     I was making my lunch for the day - in my opinion any guy who relies on his Better Half to make his lunch for work deserves to eat sardine and peanut butter sandwiches - and I was watching the comedian C. Rock. I had recorded it a while ago and since I have hearing aids I have a device that broadcasts the audio to my hearing aids and it doesn't disturb anyone's sleep. The program is about a dozen years old so some parts of his act are dated but overall it is some pretty funny stuff. 

     I just heard on the radio that the Great White North will be getting another Top Dog to run the military. Two months ago the Army Guy retired. No big deal as his time was done. A Wavey Navy guy was appointed - the Head Feds like to rotate the position between the three elements - and now he has announced that he is suddenly stepping down. It is know that the Army guy is now under investigation for possible sexual assault and it was hinted that the Wavey Navy guy may be under investigation by the military's investigative service for undisclosed crimes. Whatever they are the crimes must be sufficiently embarrassing or criminal in nature for him to step down. Our YESMAN, the MND, is now searching the upper ranks for the next CDS.

26 Feb 21

08:30 hrs

     I'm not out on the jobsite today. The contractors poured the concrete yesterday and is awaiting approval to push forward.  Monday will be the next start date. So, I'm home with the Oma-nator. I've been calling the Sages more often and it seems to have lifted their spirits. They had a dump of snow the other night and a neighbour came over to dig them out. He does the driveway and the Sages shovel the walkway to the back of the house. They've offered to pay the guy and he says he dies it for the exercise. 

     Do you have slow drivers in your neighborhood? Sometimes I think they are worse than speeders. What about the people who don't know or care if they have a headlight burned out? I've seen morons in the Valley driving around at night with just their daytime running lights on thinking that those are the headlights. The issue is when the daytime lights are on the vehicle's tail lights are not so what happens is a driver approaching from behind may not know that a vehicle is in front of him. Daytime running lights are standard in vehicles sold in the Great White North but not in the Hugh-ess.

21:00 hrs

     I learned today that one of my favourite comedy shows is returning after ending seventeen years ago. It is unclear if the main character, Frasier Crane, will be accompanied by any of his former actors. I always found the original show to be witty and fresh - it was nominated for 318 awards and received 112 including 37 Emmys. 

     I have successfully mounted the truck step in the tail gate. I did it while I was at work as all I was doing was watching the contractors dig holes in the ground. I did notice that the two rungs of the ladder portion should have angular supports to strengthen the center. I would really have it collapse when someone is on it, let alone me. I do know of a fabricator who does some pretty good work. His shop is up by the office we used when I was on Puppy Patrol.

27 Feb 21

13:15 hrs

     Where has the month gone? I know it's the shortest month of the year but bang zoom it's gone already. This morning I went to the Jam Lady and bought some jams for the Oma-nator who really likes her jams. It's all organic and its local and I'm proud to support her. When I got back to the Wayward Inn I grabbed the pruner and cleaned up the blueberry bushes, the variegated apple tree and the two Saskatoon berry bushes. I picked up some de-mossing stuff and fruit/berry plant fertilizer. I'll put that on next week. Maybe this year I'll get enough to make a Saskatoon berry pie. I know that I would enjoy it. L'il Sis says she can buy Saskatoon berries by the bagful in Cowtown and that there is a huge berry orchard just outside of town. That would be a sight to see. 

     Well Kidlettes,  this blurb is done. Enjoy and be safe. Things may get worse before they get better. So hang tough.

A little late to the Game!

20 Feb 21

08:00 hrs.

     Good Morning Dear Readers!

     And what should I write about today?

     There is still plenty of snow here in the Valley but the days are warm and it's slowly going away. The evenings are still cool enough that is freezes up and frosts your car but its nothing we haven't experienced before. If I wanted to to hear whining about the weather I would listen to the news out of the Lone Star State in the Hugh-ess. Man Oh Man! Did they get whacked by the polar vortex. The temperatures in that most southern state on the Taco Gulf dipped down to what be the normal winter temperature in such notable places as EdmonChuck, The Peg or Balzac. (I just made you say ball sack.)

      The big difference is that up in the Great White North we happen know that water gets to get a bit stiff in these conditions and therefore pipes that transport water must be insulated. Additionally, did you know that 50% of the heating in the Alamo State is from natural gas and the other 50% is from electricity and 50% of the electricity is derived from gas or coal fired power plants. Oh, they have been dabbling with solar and wind farms but it seems the State Guv didn't want to cough up the extra dough for the Storm of the Century Insulation Package so when the freezing wet stuff hit the wind turbines they ground to a halt. So many people - like the entire state population - reached for the thermostats at the same time causing some brown outs and a large number of black outs. Here's the kicker - this state - in it's most protectionist fashion - has a self contained power grid. This means it does not recieve nor does it share power with its neighbours in a time of crisis through a larger grid. Like everything else the have this pervasive attitude of - IF YOU'RE NOT ONE OF US YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN! 

     Well, fine then. Neighbouring states on their northern borders got hit with the same storm but since they remembered being walloped before they simply requested extra electrical power from their other neighbors. And they even had snow removal equipment that the Lone Star State did not. It's like the tale of the ant and the grasshopper. The ant slaved through the summer and into the fall storing food for the winter knowing that there would be nothing for future if he didn't prepare while the grasshopper ate everything in sight and saved nothing for later. Winter came and the grasshopper dragged his frozen starving carcass over to the ant hill begging for food and shelter. And the ants replied Nyet and Das Vedanya you Capitalist pig dog. Now, get of my front porch! 

     Another interesting aspect of their power trouble is the costs being incurred. In this particular state you can purchase your electricity at a flat rate or with a market fluctuation rate. A flat rate means you may more than others when the average rate drops below what you're paying. The benefit for following the market in an energy rich location is you would normally pay much less than anyone around you unless of course there is a crisis! 

16:15 hrs.

     My Lobster and I got out to do some shopping. A quick run to WallyWorld, a downtown deli, The Big Box Store and the Church Dispensary. All necessary stops. Last night Chef Blaine started a crockpot full of homemade baked beans. It's been quite some time. Unfortunately,  Chef Blaine added onions so the Oma-nator will not be having any. I said that was okay to put it in because she told me she had never eaten a baked bean in her life. He didn't add any meat though so our resident Veggie, the Jr. Couch Monkey, can eat some. Mind you, I convinced Chef Blaine to cook up some Brauts for on the side. The Oma-nator will have one with her patented cuc and tater salat. Fill your books. I'm having beans.

     You have heard me use the term Residentially Challenged to better describe the homeless population in the Valley. I read a new term was Housing Deficient. I suppose it's all up to your perspective. Regardless of the term something more substantial has to be done to assist these individuals. 

     The Oma-nator's birthday is fast approaching. She will be a big Double Snowman this year and that is pretty awesome. I think for her Birthday supper Chef Blaine will make some homemade cheese burgers, which just happen to be her favorite. The last time he made them the Jr. Couch Monkey made some homemade buns which were amazing.

21 Feb 21

07:30 hrs

     The sun was up before I was! Can you believe I actually slept in? Only after an entire shift of late nights servicing aircraft would i have slept in. But, this morning I slept in. 

     Speaking of the increased amount of solar light, the solar lights ringing the gazebo over the Flame Pit stay illuminated longer in the evening. Last year I had added some micro solar lights onto the trellis at the front of the Wayward Inn. My Better Half wants me to see if I can get some for the two planter boxes we picked up last fall. We still have to set them up for planting and I think well put some veggies in them. German fingerling potatoes would be nice and maybe some grape tomatoes. 

     If you live here in the Valley you should note that the Totem Riders Motorcycle Club, like a lot of others, do carry out charitable work. This particular group collects cans and bottles and after cashing them in at the Return It Centre the Totem Riders purchase Teddy Bears and the components to make comfort kits for hospital patients. These kits will have toothbrushes, toothpaste, shaving tackle, feminine hygiene products, etc. I used to give all of my recycling to the Boy Scouts. I would gather them and take them to a scout leaders house for their bottle drives. However, after a while these leaders didn't even say thanks. The Couch Monkeys and I would sort the bottles but now they don't want to do it. The president of the club had told me that every penny of what is collected goes towards these hospital kits and if anyone wants to see the books they are welcome to take a look. For this reason I have no problems having them come to the Wayward Inn and pick up the bags of cans. If you are I interested in supporting their cause look for them on Facebook. If you have any doubts, drop me a line. I'll vouch for them.

Gifts and Trouble

12 Feb 21

14:30 hrs

     Yesterday was my Lobster's Birthday! and as Chef Blaine was working it was decided by the Queen For a Day that we would simply order some growlies for pick up. Not a bad idea really as we very rarely - as in maybe four or five times a month - have something from a restaurant. I think the Couch Monkeys have restaurant food more than we do! Last night it was Indian food from a local place. OUTSTANDING! Burned a hole in my colon! All of us really enjoyed it. Even the Oma-nator enjoyed her meal - which consisted of something other than Indian food. Gifts were given. Trouble was played. And an extremely rich chocolate cake from the Valley's Chocolatier was carved into. All was great.

     I have to give you a bit of an update. You remember from a previous blog that our friend in Hub City who had suddenly passed away and that his Lobster had been bravely fighting the Big C for the past three years. Now, she has passed away, Her son had arrived from the Lone Star State in Hub City three or four days prior to her passing. From what we were told she was in Hospice care so I'm sure that she was well cared for. We had no contact from the son - he wouldn't know us anyways. My Lobster had recieved an email from the deceased's sister. It wasn't personally addressed to us but was more of a notice that was pre-arranged to be sent out to all of their friends and relatives after she was gone. Their house will probably be sold in the coming months and the contents put into storage. As far as I know their remains - they were both cremated - were taken back to the Hugh-Ess as both of their Yard Apes live in the same City and State. 

     Driving through town I spotted another long ignored chunk of land that has finally been sold off. It's a large lot so I can imagine the developer will squeeze in four or six three storey homes into the property. More and more of the larger lots in the Valley, especially the ones with older houses on them are being bought, the house dozed and the lot carved up to maximize the profit margins. I'm pretty sure that this will likely happen with our Elderly Royal Subject when she passes. Her residence hasn't been updated it at least fifty years and the reno cost would probably be cost more than the value of the house. 

     Read any good books lately? I'm working on another Clancy. This one was written by one of the associate writers. He's actually the better of the two. Clancy had actually passed away a number of years ago and in fact I think that he was ill fro a time and it was during this illness that he trialed a couple of associate authors. Like I said one isn't too bad. But even he is not as good as Clancy because if you know the original authors works you will pick up subtle mistakes that the Kidlettes make in writing about the main characters. My Sr. Loin Fruit had given me this book as a gift. Once I am done reading it I will send it to the Bookhouse so someone else may enjoy it.

     The weather here has turned cold. About -5C, which for the Valley is like the South Pole. I know that the Prairie Boys are all laughing at us but in a couple of weeks I'll be looking forward to fishing and I don't mean through a hole on the ice.