May 1- 2nd

Spring is finally coming. It I supposed to hit 25 degrees on Thursday and Friday of this week which will be welcomed with open arms. About time.

I washed the Jeep and cleaned out the inside as with the roof sitting outside all winter it was quite dirty inside. I waxed and polished it to a gleam. Love the Black Cherry Red color when it is polished.  Glossed up the tires and wheel fenders skirts and it looks like brand new ( other than the odd rock chip and scratch). I used my paint touchup kit to cover up and fix the black top. This took a few hours and I know what the Karate Kid felt like with my back and arms.

Headed to Golftown and bought my Golf Pass book as there are a lot of courses where the 2 for I deals are exceptional. I will save these for Jackie and I to head out to different courses and we will for sure use them up in BC this summer on our trips. Use this book once and it more than pays for itself.

Went to my Dodge dealership to order my new bolt and clip for the hardtop. Now this is a ripoff big time. It is a special clip so you need to order this but the Torex bolt is $11. That is just insane for a bolt that should be  $1.00. I ordered them reluctantly but next time if needed I will use a washer and bolt from Home Depot for about $3.00.

First time this year golfing with Jeff at McKenzie Meadows. This is an easy course so after  scoring another great round at 77 I am hoping for a repeat and better. I drove well and second shots if with a iron good, but all of a sudden every wedge shot in to the green became a hosel shank direct right shot. From 60 yards out bang in the water to the right or bush etc. After it happened a couple of times your mind starts to play games and it keeps happening. Worst game in 3 years after looking at my records taking a triple on 5 holes in a row. Drove perfect and 40-80 yards out and shank. First game over a 100 in 3 years. I was in disbelieve and despair. Shocked as it happened on at least nine holes.

The following morning I head to Golf town. I though my golf club grip on my putter was loose.But it turned out my putter shaft came loose. No wonder I couldn’t figure out why I missed a few putts. The club face when hitting a ball could turn.They promised to fix it today for me. Headed to the range and went through one large bucket of balls using only wedges. The first 10 balls I was shocked as the same thing kept happening. Then I started to figure it out. It was a out to in swing path needed.For what ever reason I am swinging on the wedges in to out and hitting the hosel.  I have no idea why this started to happen but even after 100 balls it sporadically showed up. Scary.  I have a game on Wednesday where I will concentrate on getting it right and my Men’s league on Thursday. I can NOT have this happen again and I know I will be tentative. If the first few go good I should be ok but another thing to remember. This golfing is complicated.

Finished off my budget for April and as thought it was ugly. $ 3000 for new tires, $5000 for HOA in Mesa, $700 for car rental in UK, plus other incidentals it hurt. This right after meeting with our planner. I am not entirely pleased with our success in withdrawing and limiting the tax implications but I always look back and say to myself I should have saved more and there would be no issue.Have I said I hate taxes. Trust me the biggest mistake a young person can make it is to load up their RRSP’s.  It is our mistake that makes me cringe every month. We have looked at every option and the gov’t making you pay the tax at 30% is ridiculous. They use our money ( loaned to them until tax payout time as on withdrawal they hold it back) and give no option to get around this.  As I have said before company pensions are worth their weight in gold and anyone with one is extremely lucky. Anyone looking for a job that should be the top priority. The unfortunate part these pensions are getting rarer and rarer to find. If you took a survey of retires you would find the bulk of early retirees have defined pensions. A couple with two pensions as an example would have close to $ 6000 a month with two pensions and CPP for each without using their own savings. Having said that I  would have never worked for a such a company as most of them are union or government. A way too much bureaucracy,politics and disincentive for creatitivity and work ethic.  But as I have always said retired poor is always better than dead. The money situation I believe will always be an issue but are we enjoying our retirement right now and what happens in the future happens. As years go by though I can see a much stricter monthly regime. There are lots of ways to save money. Golf at my courses only, drink your own beer at your house after, eat at home more often, reduce large vacation plans, and learn to enjoy the free things like sitting in our chairs looking at the lake and playing cards. I am looking forward to that a bit. Funny how each month after doing my budget I start to think about this.

I will work on getting the boat and motorhome all ready for spring later this week.

“Memories”

Jasper Trip

For our wedding anniversary we took a trip to Jasper for the weekend . Audrey and Alan were to look after our girls for the weekend. Two funny things happened on this trip that will be remembered for ever.

First on one of our excursions we head out to Maligne Lake for the day and decided to rent  canoe. Now neither of us had prior canoe experience.  The canoe was tied up to the dock which is good as getting in one isn’t exactly a stable landing spot. Jackie gets in first and faces the front. I get in and sit down. I am looking straight at Jackie.  Makes it a little difficult to paddle. We look again at each other and start killing ourselves laughing as we figured out this wasn’t going to work.

Second on arriving home we discover that Audrey was ill and in bed all weekend and poor Alan was the babysitter in charge. Having so much time with the girls he thought he would have  fun with them. As soon as we enter the house Jessica & Victoria run up to me and in unison say ” Daddy is a wimp and Uncle Alan is a he-man”  A great brainwashing trick on two poor innocent children. lol I am sure he was glad to see us though. Good job Alan. The girls when ever they thought they would try to be funny would repeat this. LOL

Cooking mushrooms, onions, hash browns and pork chops while sitting on our deck in the sun. Life is good.! Life is great !

Thought of the Day

“The trick is to stop thinking of  it as YOUR money ” — Revenue Canada

April 3rd

My part came in so I headed to the dealer to pick it up and since it was due I may as well get my free life time oil change deal I received when I bought the JEEP.

MY RANT

Car Dealerships

First let me say I have a friend that used to own a dealership and knowing him and his personality I believe he is/would have been an exception to what most of us experience today.This is a generalization but most people have a negative outlook about car dealerships.

First thing that will pop into peoples head is the USED CAR SALESMAN. Typically a little bit of a show-off, obnoxious, louder and very aggressive. Get past that the most negative experience is the dollar amount of a trade-in they give. On the open market there is huge difference between the two pricing. Some people just like not having to deal with selling a vehicle and take the easy out and loose tons of money. No one should trade in a vehicle to a dealer.

Second is the service department. Too upsell has become every industries life line. It increases profits and in some cases it is believed to help increase customer loyalty and the feeling of being looked after. BUT in the auto industry it means paying for things you DONT really need. Give me a bigger French fry and I get some value, give me a transmission flush with half of the manufactures recommended mileage and you have accomplished nothing but wasted money and perhaps even did damage by stirring up the oil sediment.

ie Todays recommendation at $2100 when in reality nothing needs done and is only about half of the mileage recommended by the manufacturer.

Third is the parts departments insane markup of pricing. Any aftermarket product is half and in a lot of cases of better quality. It is bordering on racketeering on exclusive usage products with the excessive mark ups.

ie My bolt I bought ( exclusive item ) was $11.00 when a similar one at Home Depot is 99 cents.

I am not going to mention the dealership that I deal with in particular but I have had the same tendencies at each one I have dealt with and have heard from others with the same experience no matter what brand of vehicle.

Here is my beef. Last year while getting my “free oil change” I was left with a few decisions to make on some maintenance issues. First let me say when I paid for oil changes it was recommended to come back every 5ooo kilometers. Now that it is free it is every 10ooo kilometers. Go figure ! Second when I first bought my Jeep the FREE change was just that. Now I am hit with an environmental fee that they say is government mandated and they can not, not charge it. Last year it was recommended I needed new tires as they were down to 4/32″ and one at 3/32″. I went into the shop and looked at them closely and said I do not need tires ! Today the EXACT tires with an additional 10ooo kms on them were at 7/32″  WHAT !!! And I still don’t need them replaced. LOL  I received a complete list of the recommended fluid changes and a recommended windshield change. IF I would have gone ahead it would have totalled $2100. I said NO. I then came home and checked the Jeep manual and none of the conditions are met to recommend any of the changes they say I need. A personal belief of mine is that a lot of these CAN do more harm than good by dislodging a piece that could block something  and or not really needing the change. In a closed sealed environment only contamination of water, dirt or heat break down will cause the need for a change. And in NO way ever at 50ooo kms.  Today it was recommended I need a wheel alignment. I had a wheel alignment done last year and another station. I ask the kid ” I need a wheel alignment ? Did you check the specs ? Are they out?  Kid- “well no sir but it is recommended it be done at 50,ooo kms” My response ” How can you make a recommendation to have something fixed without even checking to see if it needs repaired? Silence.

Ask to see any part recommended for change whether it  fluid ( to see if it discolored) or a steering part etc. You want to know if the part is in fact in need of replacement. Now we can all guess that the manufacturer in a effort to help their dealer network gain profits will recommend on the light side of tolerance for maintenance but it is a lot better than greedy dealerships scheduling on their own.

For an example a recommended transmission change. I have 50,ooo kms on it and the manual is suggesting at 169,ooo kms. This is blatant upselling. It is a shame to deceive the public knowingly for the sake of profit. 

Crooked is the best word to describe the experience. I feel for younger ladies, older men and women and gullible people not questioning. 

There has been investigations into gas price fixing, dental charging and I think an in depth study into manipulation for profit based on service cycles and needs should be done

BUT THAT IS JUST ME !

A friend and fellow employee Paul B. of JELD-WEN was in town tonight so Jeff, and I along with Paul met at Heatherglen to play a round. The weather was wonderful and the golf course in great shape. It was a great to see Paul and we had a lot of fun golfing. Nice to listen how the market has changed and where people have moved to etc. Lots of changes ! Glad I made it out before the chaos. Paul is currently working for a great smaller family owned window manufacturer out of Winkler MB with some unique great products. He will be able to make slow inroads with these in some of the accounts he knows.

Paul’s first game of the year and he scored 80. He has such a wonderful fluid swing and rarely makes a mistake. Jeff had a steady game and it is the beginning of season for him. I had another horrible game. The last game I had all of a sudden I started to hosel shank my wedges and every wedge shot today I was fighting it. Pulling them left as a over correction or shanking them. When you have one major flaw in your game you are screwed as you start to change club selection and think a way too much on every shot. It wasn’t a good night. Yet it was still a blast getting out and having fun. Hopefully once a month we will get Paul out when he makes his trip this way.

Jeff and I went over to the Bull & Finch for beer and wings and to watch the ALBERTA OILERS. Now some will same the Alberta Oilers what you talking about. Think of the name change the Phoenix Coyote’s went thru when they changed to the Arizona Coyote’s. I am sure the Oilers are considering the same thing with all of the Oiler fans in Calgary. They did not play a full game and it came back to bite them big time. Next game is do or die unfortunately  which this series should not be down to. At least it was a short overtime.

I had fun with the waitress again asking for a 3/4 pint of draft beer. She didn’t get it so I had to explain. You are selling pints of beer but the glasses only hold 14 ounces. Why ?

Thought of the Day

I know beer is the answer but I forget what the question was !

May the Fourth be with you !

This staying up until midnight and then having to get up at 7 :30 am is tiring. Got ready and headed to Turner Valley. The drive is absolute amazing with the white covered mountains. My team today were players that I hadn’t played with before. Three of us were 12, 13 , 14 handicappers and a 6 capper.

Let me start with the end. Another horrible game. I only had one hosel shank but just played lousy. I would have a wonderful long drive and it would bounce one way and be under a tree. It would bounce and be behind a bush. I had to take so many punch shots to get back to the fairway it was maddening. Plus just not hitting the ball crisp. I am getting a little frustrated as I was playing exceptional in Mesa except for about a week spell  but as soon as I have come back I have had only one great game, two ok games and two horrible games. I hate to not get better, I hate the scary feeling over every shot and I am not happy with the way I am playing. No excuses, no reason, cant figure it out but it is becoming very very frustrating.

Having said that it was an enjoyable day with three great guys. The other two equal cappers didn’t have stellar games but played ok and our captain played marvelous ending up with a 74.

Next time.

We all sat on the patio deck and had a soup and sandwich along with a few jugs of beer to end a great day of golf in the 26 degree sun.

I am writing this at home on my deck where the temperature is 26 degrees and sunny with no wind. Finally summer is here !

I am out of the loop a bit not working any more but I JUST found out a year late though that one of those customers that were like friends had passed away. The owner of Trochu Home Building Centre was one of my favorite accounts. Phil had an amazing sense of humour and we just clicked. I invited him to as many company golf outings as I could.  Even though his store was on the small side due to the location he was a very dedicated JELD-WEN window promoter and his volume would have surprised anyone. The community supported him big time and window volumes are created easily. One of his biggest window packages was the  largest volume single sale I had ever seen with it being over $100,000. dollars for one house.( my number is a guess as memory fails me but it was huge and most likely larger)  Phil and our rep Larry G worked endlessly on this order as it was HUGE. Loved dealing with Phil.

“Memories”

Travelling sales rep

As a rep on the road there were many times one should not be driving. Snow, rain, ice and dangerous whiteouts are only a few things that had to be dealt with. One day Larry Geddes phoned and needed me to visit with Phil in Trochu  concerning the big house project. I always was one of those guys that was like the postman and always thought driving in poor conditions was a lot more fun than on a dry road so I was more than up for the travel. Turns out on the day we were going to meet in Trochu the route that Larry had to take was snow covered and I am not sure of the circumstance but it ended up Larry hit the ditch. Now Larry is a very good driver, and over the years has driven on a lot of precarious roads, is cautious enough and daring enough when needed but something went very wrong this day. He required a tow truck and a heated garage for hours and hours for the jam packed snow under and in the hood compartment to melt. I always took pleasure in teasing Larry about his driving after that.  We had to reschedule our meeting. LOL

Big Tee

Trochu is home of the worlds largest golf tee right as you enter the town.  This tee was on display at the ATB Financial Golf tournament at the Sirocco Golf course in Calgary in 2009. Phil was my guest to play in a pro-am with the Canadian Tour players  as JELD-WEN was a secondary sponsor of the tournament . Trochu won this 40ft wood peg by entering a contest and people voting on their submission. I am sure after Phil saw it his eyes lit up as Trochu now could be on the same playing field as the Egg in Vegreville or the Spaceship in Vulcan. That is how Trochu got it’s landmark and I am sure Phil had a big part in getting it.

I tried to book this course and campground this year for our annual May Long weekend event but it is one of those difficult ones to get a hold of early enough to reserve. I phoned in April and actually got to speak to someone which is the hardest part but they were already booked up. Maybe next year

Thought of the Day

It’s only when we truly know and understand that we have limited time on this earth and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up, that we will live each day to the fullest as if it were the only one we had. Think about the fact when you talk to someone it maybe the last time you ever hear from them.  Life is short and we all “pretend” we have more important things to do than just live.

May 5th Cinco De Mayo Day

Funny how a celebration of a war victory has turned into a major Mexican Party holiday. Eat lots of taco’s today.

I think on Dec 18th each year Canada needs a party to celebrate our defeat of the Americans troops trying to invade Canada. War of 1812 if you missed the connection. A big Canadian party each year I am sure would antagonize them a little. LOL

I installed my new bolt and clip in Jeep.

Jackson and Victoria came over for a visit. Lots of jumping, lego building and destruction, swimming in the hot tub and playing at the neighbor hood playground. Jackson wanted to swim badly but it is funny how kids think. He didn’t bring his trunks and it was a difficult time to convince him wearing his undershorts was fine. They look like trunks.  BBQ’d hotdogs for lunch. Blew bubbles off the deck and watched them float away. A very nice visit and fun time. We even had the best popsicles to end the day.

We had our light supper after a walk around the neighborhood and then readied ourselves for the Oiler game. It was another great game and quite exciting especially the last 5 mins of regular time. Again the Oiler’s were their own worst enemy and are on the brink of elimination next game. One can say it is because they are young and inexperienced which is true but just watching them it is disappointing to see the lack of real effort. McDavid is the most over rated player on the team. He is useless in the playoffs and only won the point race because his competitors were injured. Getzlaf is amazing !!  I hope the Oilers come out flying and play a complete game and take this to seven even though I did predict a 6 game series and a loss by them.

Thought of the Day

Winning is not everything but the effort it takes to win is !!  

May 6th

First speeding ticket came in the mail in a long time. I knew I got this but couldn’t slow and didn’t slow down. I was coming around the corner on Barlow off the freeway when a rock flew up and hit my windshield. I am searching all over for the chip when I see a cop car parked on the side of the road. I slam my brakes but too late. I knew it was coming but it is annoying as I have a cracked shield now and a ticket. My own fault. MAN are tickets expensive now. AND they do not make people slow down as they are strictly a money grab. I was caught 81 kms in a 60 kms. ( that is dangerous. a human can run that fast as the difference, LOL ) and the ticket is $175.00 . Photo radar is one of those difficult ones to beat in court so I may have to just anti up. That is two to three golfs game worth.

Ok after a bit of research I have decided to fight this ticket. My goal is to have it reduced to 11kms over the speed limit and reducing the dollar amount in half by pleading guilty to “fake” charge.. Here is my logic and findings. There has been confusion on multiple interchanges between the provincial government owning the Deerfoot Trail and the City owning the branches and the signage of each. First the 60 kph sign is a left over speed limit sign from 2004 before the interchange was completed. Second the 60kph limit is only in effect from the Deerfoot Trail to 114ave and then goes up to the 70kph as normal on the Barlow. The section in question is a very short section a few hundred yards. To have a speed drop of 40kph from a 100 to 60 is unreasonable. To have a radar set up in this location is blatant misuse and abuse of the purpose of photo radar. I accept the fact I was going over the limit by 11kph but was continuing to slow as a traffic light was coming up on 114th ave.  The radar was set up there for the sole purpose of generating income not  increasing the safety on the roads.  My hope is the court appointed justice sees it the same way. But having said all that I believe it is in the best interests of them always reducing the ticket. It acknowledges the fact of guilt, it saves the cops from having to show up, it save the judges time to listen to a case which is your right and then charge as guilty when it it all can be done fast efficiently and everyone is happy. That’s my theory anyways.  My preparation will contain pictures of the road, the speed limit signs, and google map for distances form the freeway to 114ave.  If there was a document other than my statement of a accident free driving record over 42 years it would help. I will let you know my success. Don’t mess with the seniors when it comes to money out of their pocket. LOL

Thought of the Day

Age doesn’t determine who is right, it only determines who is left.

May 7-8th

Had a nice visit with Jessica, Penny and August yesterday. Their place is looking awesome and we helped them install a new house sign which looks great. A cool day yesterday all day with rain most if the day. They didn’t have a wheelbarrow or anything to mix the ready mix in so I packed in the mix around the sign and will let it set itself. Not my preferred method but what do you do.

A few easy days coming up.
Today Corey and I worked 7 hours at Audrey’s house and still didn’t finish putting in all of the doors, casing and baseboard. As always when dealing with a reno and a 30 year old building things aren’t want they appear. We had some walls a way out of plumb. Causing a lot of issues trying to get the molding to lay flush on the wall and doors to be plumb to the wall cavity. We also had rough openings , all different, that caused us issues as we had to cut jamb down, then we had to cut the doors down with the carpet edge.  We had to cut out molding around tile edging and we had to deal the baseboard situation. PL400 and silicone !! All said a lot more work then we thought but not that much left. I did make an ordering mistake and ordered the inside trim for the bifolds. Da ! Brain fart. The baseboard is an issue but removing as much of the crap on the backs and by turning them over to have a smooth edge up they are working out ok but a lot more work than ever expected. The doors are looking fantastic in the unit and brings it into the modern world.

Had my golf game with Jeff at Turner Valley. I drove fantastic again with long straight drives ( one slice right but playable) but on the first hole a 300 yard drive with 68 yards to the pin and a sand wedge comes out. HOSEL SHANK in the water. This is becoming more than frustration it is now panic and fear when I have a wedge in my hands. For the first nine holes very wedge ( S wedge, P wedge, A wedge) all did the same thing and the score kept adding up. I have studied and I know the correction but I cant seem to get it to work. I was golfing so well scoring high 70’s and low 80’s and this happens. The back nine I played it short to every hole and came in with a 8 iron or a long bump and run approach and didn’t have the issues but I need to correct this. I had to make a  Walmart ball run due to the shanks. I am a very patient person but this is getting to me.

Ended up in the 90’s but it was ugly. Good thing the beer, company and food after the game were great.

Worked on the motorhome a bit today and went buying a few groceries.

Thought of the Day

With our new NDP government they have given me the idea that I am not having a easy day but I am having a ENERGY SAVING DAY .

May 10th

Trump does it again and fires the FBI director. I like the fact Trump pulls no punches and if he isn’t happy with something does something about it. I am sure there are a few people in that circle that are much better employees now as they will be trying to save their own skin.  This one is odd as Comey I believe he did help Trump get elected with the email release. But he wouldn’t back up the wiretapping theory and seemed bent on proving a Russian connection.

NDP government just about got in BC. The Liberals hang on but by a thread that will make them an very ineffective government. I didn’t care for Clark anyways on her support  of the Native land rights when it cane to the pipeline, environmental policy and a way to liberal social policy. I was a little surprised as I thought the NDP would win for sure as BC forever has been our “socialist” province. We had Quebec and BC in left field and then the rest of Canada. With the huge immigrant vote particular in the lower mainland I thought for sure the NDP would win. The rest of the province must have all voted LIberal for the seat count to be so even. It is amazing to me the shift towards such a socialist society. To have everything of importance, education, medical, payscales, job creation, social welfare all ran and dictated byt the government is not good. What a  lot of people fail to understand is socialism is one step away from communism. Young people, environmentalists, immigrants,all lean towards this as they believe it rewards them with greater benefits. We should sent of them over to places like Sweden or Finland. They will get their free university, free medical but will be living in a 600 sq ft condo alongside the brain surgeon, and side walk cleaner. It de-incentifies individuals to achieve more.

Went to the driving range to work on my hosel shank and MAN am I happy. I believe I have it fixed. I shot over 150 balls mostly with my four wedges to figure out what went wrong and distances. I BELEIVE I have the issue fixed but distances are hard until you get on the course. If the first wedge shot on the course tonight goes correctly I will be very pleased and will have a good game. Over the years I have heard that your golf swing is the same for all clubs. WRONG and I will adamantly rebuke that. There is a driver swing, there is a iron swing, and a wedge swing and a putter swing. All different. All different.  Mostly due to the length of the shaft. Think about it, there is at least 6 inches different between driver and 60 degree. Impossible to swing the same. For me the mistake was a needed to be a little more outside in swing path. Otherwise I hit the hozel and straight right. 1/2 inch from being perfect but killed me. I have FIXED that by just a slowly take away straight back. I am very happy to figure this out for myself and will test it tonight. Even if the distance isn’t perfect tonight the aim is all I am worried about without a shank.

It is funny there are a few words in golf that are no one wants to talk about. A shank, a woff, a hook, a slice, a duff, the yips and a yank.

Beautiful day sitting on the deck researching, writing, investigating and enjoying. The big game on tonight for two teams. Both the Washington and Oiler teams are in game seven.

 

“Memories”

Near first Date

I don’t remember if this was the first time Jackie and I were alone or not but if not the first time very very near. Jackie wasn’t feeling well and being the nice guy I am I said I would come over to visit her at her house as she was all alone.

We had a fun time talking, laughing and kidding each other. She had a little dog named Sadie that was a mental case. We were sitting on the couch when I tried to put my arm behind Jackie. Sadie jumps at me and bites me in the cheek. Never liked that dog ever. Worst thing is, this dog turned out to be my dowry when I married Jackie.

As Jackie’s family had two dogs there were a few dog bones laying on the floor in the kitchen. Jackie was in the kitchen when I walked in and she innocently asks me ” Do you wanna bone ? ” Takes me by surprise as we really just met. She realized her mistake and both of us killed ourselves laughing. In hindsight my kind of girl. LOL

Thought of the Day

Ever have that first date where you ask the party to text or phone you when they get home and they never do ?

Good thing too as they must have been homeless !

May 11th

Jeff and I had a great game of golf again with it being under 3 hours as there were very few people on the course. My driving range practise did wonders as not one shank tonight. I played quite well ending with an 84 which I will take any time. Jeff is still working out a few things but is striking the ball good. A few more rounds he will settle in and we know how fickle golf is.

After a fun round of golf we head to the Bull for drinks and to watch the Oiler game. We saw the last part of the Penguins game which I guess for some worked out fine but I was sorting of hoping the Caps could pull it off. They didn’t as it seems the Penguins have their number . Watching these two teams play is so far better than our division it is amazing.

Hopes on the Oilers pulling off number 7 ending fairly fast. The first period the Oiler’s played great and then nothing. 3 shots in the second period with your season on the line. The Ducks by far were the better team this time and the final score indicated that. McDavid is the most over rated player in history. Yes he won the points title but second place by 2 points from a player with 20 less games played. Conner get 100 points in a season. Wayne gets 92 goals in a season. Not even in the same league. And the playoffs showed his weaknesses. Good player but far far from great. Beer and late night with late food isn’t great for sleeping.

I ask you are the Oilers any further than the Flames. NO we are both out just that Edmonton made a few more bucks with the extra games.

Up and out for my men’s league. It was one of those days , again, with it being my second worst score of the year. No shanks, a lot of bad bad luck .Must have been the beer and wings making me weak that threw my game. I would hit a good drive and be under a tree or bush. In the trap right up against the edge. Right fade in the water. I didn’t get a break. But driving wasn’t great and in fact the worst for a long long time and I missed a lot of 3 to 4 foot putts that I shouldn’t have.  I am beginning to find this game a little frustrating. LOL I just wasn’t concentrating today for some reason. I didn’t seem in to it and this is always the game I look forward to each Thursday. Perhaps dehydration. Perhaps tired. A little less skill than I would like or just one of those days.

Came home and sat on the deck in the sun at 24 degrees while making supper. Still having fun.

Thought of the Day

I have to learn to enjoy the successes I have and not be too hard on myself when things don’t go well. Just relax and enjoy what part of it you can .

May 12th

Up and out of the house to work on Audrey’s place again with Corey. Another  3 hours and still not done as we kept running into issues. We had to rip casing to fit, bifold rough openings were a way out of square, and a lot of notching as we ran into tile baseboards. Other option would have been to rent a tile saw and butt up the tile but that is another few hours of work and would mean a rental of a tile cutter, grouting and edging. The funniest thing we ran into the whole time is the deck is so narrow we had the saw on the deck and our bodies inside the house to cut the trim. Not a perfect cutting  situation but we made it work. In the hallway we had a corner with the old mahogany base we had to change out and we ran into another corner were we had 11/16 pine base butted to 9/16 mdf base. It drove me crazy so I whipped to Home Depot to get 16ft of base to fix up some of the issues. We fixed up the corners were we could with a mitre and the correct trim sizing. Turned out today again taking a lot lot longer than anticipated with all of the unique circumstances. I will finish off the balance Saturday morning but I do have to say the trim and doors do look great. If only I was given another $1000 bucks you won’t recognize the  place.

Corey, Victoria, Jackson, Jackie and I headed out Nanton to golf their course today as we both had 2 for 1 coupons. I love Turner Valley but I have played four different courses in Calgary this year and every one of them has nicer greens than ours. I am very disappointed in our greens shape and someone should be held accountable. Nanton’s greens were fantastic. The fairways lush and the course with the sand traps in tip top shape. It has been years since I played here but I always liked the course. We all had fun and everyone played quite well. Corey with a 93 only caused by a few lost balls played well. Victoria hit the ball a mile and Jackie played quite well considering she has played very little this year. I was happy with my game today ending with an 81 especially knowing in my mind where I left a few shots. Jackson had fun teeing off with his driver and putting with us on the green. We only had to let a twosome go past us. The weather was beautiful until we got to the 12th hole when the breeze picked up and the cloud moved in. Lucky I am 60 as I had to pull out my golfing VEST and put it on to stay warm. Yes I wore a vest and was ok with it. LOL

After our game we thought we would have supper in the clubhouse. I remembered their burgers were fantastic from years ago so we were comfortable staying. We had different dishes that all were excellent. Fish & chips were great, wraps were great and the steak sandwich perfect. Along with the Ceaser drink’s what better way than to spend a Friday evening than with family, fun and food.

Great day but as I write this I am tired and I see Jackie sleeping with her mouth open in her favorite chair.

Cor & Tor are going to pick up Mom from Edmonton on Saturday night and bring her to our place for a visit with us, and Tor and Jessica. I think she will enjoy it. I am sure glad I never inherited Mom’s sleep gene as I don’t like to get up early and I don’t like to go to bed late. Mom can go to bed at midnight and wakes up a 6 am. I count sleep as one of the better pleasures in life and should be enjoyed. To be sleepy all day or just to have a feeling of being tired I hate and that is an easy thing to fix.

Thought of the Day

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be normal. Do those people even have any fun ?

May 13th

Started at Audrey’s first thing this morning. Again as usual it took a lot longer than thought with all of the different situations that come up. It took about 4 hours to finish the baseboard, the casing, knobs on bifolds, adjustments and clean up. I can say it had made a huge difference and brings the home into looking current. I would change out all of the lighting but that is only my preferred look and not the people that live there.

I will go back when I get time coming up to Drytex the trim work, return extra casing and Dap the edges of all the trim.

Looking great !

Watched a bit of the Players which is always fun as I golfed that course and remember it vividly. Les Schwartz of Home Hdwe Stettler and I played both courses at Sawgrass the first as a company event pro-am and the second at the TPC Valley course on our own. That trip was amazing. Sawgrass is a difficult course and it is fun to see the pro’s struggle.  When we were there the rough was at least 8 inches deep. You couldn’t see your ball when it was 2 ft off the fairway.I thought we did fine though. This 17th hole was a fun hole to play.

Jackie picked up supper and we relaxed.

Victoria picked up Mom and they are on the road coming to Calgary. Mom will stay with us for a couple of days and we will get a visit in with Pen, Jess and August along with Cor, Tor and Jackson. I am sure Jackson will keep Mom entertained on the ride down.

Picked up a card and a container of flowers for Mom’s deck for Mothers Day. Hopefully she will like them and hope they aren’t a hindrance having to water each day.

With Mom here and the weather looking bad there may not be any golf this week until Thursday morning and then Friday at Haunted Lakes.

Thought of the Day

I am sure Mother’s Day is always more enjoyable than the labour to be able to celebrate it.

May 14th

Mother’s Day

One of those important days today. As you know without  a mother we wouldn’t be here. Plus they do give most people the comfort as a youngster we need.

Mom arrived at midnight and we went straight to bed. That is late for most people. Unfortunately Mom has a sciatica nerve issue right now that is very painful and making it difficult to walk. And after a 3 hour ride down from Edmonton that only compounds the issue.

Up in the morning and as it was Mother’s day I made eggs, toast and bacon along with a smoothie for breakfast. Nothing beats a great breakfast. We readied ourselves and headed for a road trip to Lethbridge to visit Jessica, Penny and August.

A warm sunny drive and enjoyable. We had a great visit with them and then headed to Boston Pizza. Now any restaurant on Mother’s Day at lunch time is going to be busy. We got sooo lucky as the Boston Pizza we picked and the timing was perfect. We got right in. I love Boston Pizza.  For years we took the girls there every Friday night after work. I had the wonderful Penne again. This time I had virgin Ceasars which were fantastic.

Mom enjoyed a further visit and enjoyed the house tour. August was entertaining as always.

A nice fun enjoyable Mother’s Day

Thought of the Day

Mother’s Day- I love it we don’t have to say out loud that I am your favorite child.

May 15th

Up early this morning at meeting Victoria & Jackson at Ricky’s for breakfast. I love Ricky’s breakfast as the quantity and quality is always great. This time I had the hash browns with the sour crème and onions. Loaded hash browns are awesome. We all had wonderful breakfasts that we all enjoyed. We stayed there for a long time as we were having fun.

I dropped off Victoria & Jackson and Mom and I headed out on Hwy 22x to Elbow Falls. Lots of trailers being hauled out there already and this is Monday. We stopped at the Falls and they as usual were excellent. I love the falls but have noticed already the size of them are changing. The flood did make a huge a difference. No picnic tables which is a drag. Mom did excellent with her walking considering the steps we needed to take. The sun was shining but it was still a little cooler.

After the falls we headed to the world famous McKay Ice Cream in Cochrane. The first time with no line up. Love the ice cream. This time I had a double scoop Tiger & Chocolate Chunk with a chocolate dipped waffle cone.  We sat outside in the sun and enjoyed the cones.

We came home and visited while Jackie was working away in her office. I made mashed potatoes, roast chicken, gravy, sweet peas and a garden salad. Tried for a home cooked meal for her.

After supper we headed to the school yard to watch Jackson play Tee Ball. It was looking a little tentative weather wise so we dressed up Mom with a JELD-WEN jacket, her hat in case it rained and armed with a chair to sit on.

Watching kids play is so much fun. Enviably  some kids are playing in their own little world half the time. Kids skipping, playing games in the sand etc instead of concentrating. Jackson had a great hit sending it a mile. His other hit still worked but wasn’t a long hit. He swings very hard. And he throws very hard, so hard in fact that on a throw to home base it hit his friend in the mouth and gave him a full set of lips.  It was a fun night watching him and hopefully he liked us watching him.

We had a fun time watching. We didn’t get wet . And no mosquitos which was awesome.

Thought of the Day

Sports- Hard work beats talent every time when talent doesn’t work hard.

May 16th

Up this morning and made pancakes for breakfast. Love pancakes and syrup.

We visited for a while and then packed up to head back to Edmonton. It was a nice drive with very little traffic. We had a quick pit stop in Red Deer and re hit the highway. We made it to Edmonton around 1 :30pm and decided to go to Harvey’s for lunch. Love the poutine and the burgers at Harvey’s.

Helped Mom settle in, took off her light covers and she cleaned them and the top of the cupboards. Visited for awhile and then headed home.

Heavy rain most of the way from Edmonton to Calgary. When ever it rains you find two totally different drivers. The slow cautious idiot that is an accident waiting to happen and the maniac that can’t really see but still drives at 140kmph. Still a uneventful drive.

We hope Mom had a fun time.

Thought of the Day

I am not an early bird or night owl. I am some form of tired pigeon.

May 17th

Had my “normal” morning by watching the news in bed. I enjoy this every morning and Jackie bringing me my breakfast in bed each day is a treat.

Up and out the door to work on the motorhome. I had been procrastinating this as the temperatures had been hovering quite low. I picked a COLD day to fix it up. It was so cold my Renaud’s even acted up which is twice in the last couple of months. Odd. Just means I am meant to live in a warmer climate than Calgary.

Washed out all the lines. Filled and emptied the tank and ran all the taps to get the antifreeze out of the system. Usually the first time out the water still is slippery/oily to the touch though. I put new batteries in the alarms and clocks after testing them. I moved things around a bit and started the genset, the furnaces, hot water heater and fridge to check on everything.

I then headed to Kal tire for a re-torque on the tires. Get there and no torque wrench as it takes 500 ft pounds of torque. I phoned another Kal tire and the same thing. This is after when I had the commercial Kal Tire service rep tell me to get them re-torqued before 150kms at ANY Kal Tire.  Finally the young lady gives me an address of a Kal Tire that is relatively close that has the wrench. A little annoying and very time wasting running around.

Went to Safeway at loaded up. The first of the year bill is always huge as you buy things that will last all year or at least two or three trips. Got all of this out away plus a few clothes and we are ready.

After golfing tomorrow I will finish up the last details including a liquor store stop for my Italian Wine.

I was lucky with my reservation at Haunted Lakes. I am going to review this place as excellent. I had to cancel one spot as Ron & Merle cant make it this year and she didn’t charge me any penalty.  She had a waiting list of people hoping there would be a cancellation.  I see nothing wrong with a penalty as she could have lost income but she was extremely accommodating. That is the one pit fall if a reservation fee is applied and not enough notice given. I remember one year I had to pay for a spot three nights and it sat empty. The weather this year SO FAR is looking awesome for our event. I have booked the tee times also but will see about changing the Sunday time to 3pm as I have a 2 for 1 coupon form my Golf Pass book as most likely will Keith as he buys the same book every year. It is an amazing deal as you use it once and it is paid for itself. I do cherry pick and only use it and go to courses where there is a 2 for 1. A free cart or bucket of balls is a joke.

It amazes me our course doesn’t use this book as I know a lot of people that for a 2 for 1 would come check it out. You have to promote if you want to increase revenue.

Jeff & Wendy invited us for supper as a post Birthday party. Very very generous of them. They choose the Pampa Brazilian Steakhouse which turned out to be a wonderful choice. A little smaller than the last Brazilian house I ate at but the selection in the salad bar was great and tasty. The skewers of meat were fantastic and the servers were quite steady in their delivery. Loads of meat and tasty. The sirloin steak by far was the best but all of the other were great. Chicken hearts don’t fit my liking but the other chicken and pork cuts were awesome. We all were stuffed. We had a traditional Brazilian drink with different juices that was fantastic A little on the sweet side but tasty. Along with Stella beer and deserts we had a super filling supper. Jeff ordered a special drink that was a 4 foot pour to let it breathe. Very very good tasting.

A wonderful night and an exceptional generous gift from Jeff & Wendy.

Thought of the Day

Hanging out with old friends and saying ” Remember when ?”

May 18th

Up and out to Turner Valley. The mountains with the new snow looked amazing. Got out to the course and we had 1 hour frost delay. I had great player partners today. I have to say this Turner Valley course even though I love it is harder than most. Rare to finish a round without losing a ball. Today again just a little off. Lost balls and three putts killed me. Out of the four players I finished second best but I know I can beat this course. It will happen !

Picked up the motorhome and went to the dump station. Finished off loading and we are ready!

On a sad note you guys know how I feel about a dog. They are man’s best friend and more. I feel bad for Jessica & Penny as they had to put down Nellie. Nellie was the most wonderful dog and was Jessica’s only room mate for years. I am sure they were lots of tears, talking and joy that happened with Nellie. The walks, the trips, the experiences and joy of having a best bud. Nellie lived a wonderful life for 11 years. She was the kindest big dog. Over 100 pounds and I never heard a growl out of her ever out of anger.  Hope you enjoy doggie heaven. To Jessica it hurts for a long time, the memories will make you smile, laugh and giggle with the things that happened with her but Nellie will no longer be in pain. Remember her the wonderful friend she was.

I will not post anything until Tuesday . Have a great long weekend !

Thought of the Day

Dogs lives are too short. Their only fault really. Remember some angels choose fur instead of wings.

May 19th – May 22nd

May Long weekend. Jackie and I have been camping the May long weekend for  42 years.  I could probably count on one hand the years we missed. Our progression over the years was a pup tent, larger pup tent,  6 man canvas tent, tent trailer, 20 ft trailer, 32 ft trailer, 30 ft Motorhome and then our current 32 ft motorhome. Each one of our units served us well and worked perfect for us at the time. As we got a little more spoiled we kept adding features. Loved the tent trailer as it was extremely roomy with 2 queen beds and a double bed ( slept 8) but lacked a fridge and toilet.  Each trailer had special features we liked. One wish would have been if we could have afforded or want to spend the money when the kids were young to have a motor home. The motor home for us is perfect as every one is together , you can eat, sleep, go to the bathroom all while travelling compared to pulling a unit you are stuck in a cab. Our current model has every option we need from satellite dish, fireplace and built in vacuum cleaner to power awning and we plan to keep it for many years to come.

The weather for May long weekends has not been good to us over the years.  This year was one of the best weather events we have experienced. Today hitting 30 on the gauge and the only hiccup was the wind and small amount of rain on Friday night for a couple of hours and then it warmed up and disappeared.

This years event was at Haunted Lakes Campground and Golf Club.  First the campground is nice and even could be considered special with right beside water lots available. The other sites are all separated by mature popular trees. Wonderful looking lake but it is a dead lake with no fish. No algae but something and perhaps depth causing the issue with fish. If it had fish I would be there again in an instant. Power sites and a few water fill taps but no water or sewer at each site. That is no real issue. They have outdoor toilets that were kept quite clean but ladies don’t really like these. We all agreed IF they would have had nice washrooms with showers we  all would highly recommend it. It had a great playground for the kids.

Ok, experienced RVer’s we are and this is the first time EVER where we filled our tanks during the weekend. And a large motorhome has large tanks compared to most trailers. We have 84 gallons of water, 40 gallons of waste room and 42 gallons of grey room.  Yet this weekend on Sunday night we had to find a solution. The black was 3/4 full and looking down the toilet appeared to be to the brim. You get 3 ladies using the toilet with the rolls of paper and kids holding the flush handle a way too long it happens. It is a huge hassle to pack up and move to dump. We managed luckily but I was shocked. That is why a nice campsite facility washroom comes in handy.

The golf course was excellent. It was well maintained and the greens exceptional. Exceptional looking but extremely slow as I was three feet short every day on every putt. Hard to adjust. The course layout was excellent and played at 6167 yards and it played long. 200 yard plus Par 3’s and only one Par 5. Long ! I guess to sum it up there was some ugly golf scores by everyone. Not only scoring horrible but not playing well. A very close game for the Larry versus Harry challenge. We played three games with Kieth winning one and I two. 2017 is staying close and after 8 games as we have played together I am winning by one stoke and one game only. Must be those new M2 irons Keith bought. A few more games coming up.

I enjoy organizing events like this. I find it fun and interesting but this year is the first year we had a few hiccups. Communication and commitment has to be  there for everything to work out. We were so lucky as the manager of the golf course and campground was exceptional. First time we had cancellations and we had two of them. I feel for the businesses as a cancellation takes revenue right out of their pocket and a penalty should be paid. The manager on the cancellation notices had a waiting list for spots so she charged us nothing. Awesome. Tee times are booked trying to accommodate everyone’s needs. I screwed up this year as the course took  5 1/2 hours to play. The overlap for babysitting duty wouldn’t work. I will make sure next year to have more time between the men and ladies tee times to make this work. Luckily again due to having a very accommodating manager she moved tee times around for the ladies. It was compounded with commitments for a certain day but wanting to golf a different day. Again it all worked out which was great.

I thought our Italian potluck supper was amazing. We had everything and it all was incredibly good tasting. Only complaint I ate tooooo much. Everyone’s dish tasted great. My favorite and I may be a little biased was my Organic Penne with Classico Meat sauce with the addition of garlic, red, yellow and orange peppers, onions, and celery.  Plus abundance of Italian sausage. My other favorites were the large meat balls, the lasagne and especially the desert. Coaldale Bakery Cannoli which was spectacular. I also liked the wonderful Ceasers Kieth made for us.

Funny story- I bought half spicy and half mild sausage. I discovered I had to fully cook them to be able to cut them. I had Fred helping me and we discovered the hot ones had red spots of spice in them. Fred carefully cut them all up and separated them. All good. Then I  threw both plates of cut up sausage in the sauce. Oops !! But man it was good.

I remember taking a few pictures of the group sitting down eating but can’t find them. We had everyone sitting on the tables above in a long row which were covered with everything Italian including a whack of wine.

I have often said my middle name is Crib as I have a lot of luck playing this game. First Fred, Amanda and I start to have a few games. It ended up Amanda 2 wins, Larry 1 win and Fred 0 wins. Amanda beats us!

Then Keith joins us and Fred & I team up as Fred is very good at this game also. To make a long story short Fred & I lost  but we feel cheated and taken.First Keith had many drinks and heckled us. Amanda gets a 20 plus point hand. And it took us a long time to discover she had 5 card hands while we were using 4 card hands. They did skunk us I will give them that but Fred & I won 3 straight legit wins. A fun card game that just turned out wrong ! Next time.

The first night Jackie & I didn’t  get much sleep. The ‘boys” had a fun night at the campfire. The unfortunate part for us was it was only 5 ft from our bedroom and in a RV the sound travels through it easily. They decided to stay up to 4 am around the fire and as the drinking took it’s affect the voices got louder. But no music just voices which was good. I got smart and the next night didn’t have any firewood at my sight so the party had to move. LOL  You really cant say  anything as they were just having fun but I was tired in the morning. Perhaps my golf struggled due to that LOL.

The kids had a blast with the park, the beach, biking and the camping. I am hoping everyone had a great time as that is what it is about. We had Jackie, I, Jessica, Penny, August, Victoria, Corey, Jackson, Fred , Terry, Troy, Jennifer, Martin, Kate, Scarlett, Amanda, Keith, Jenny, Jason, Stephanie, Riley, Brielle, Amanda, Justin and Parker. It was our largest group to date.

I had another wonderful May long weekend with some great friends and family. I really liked the group wagon wheel instead of individual sites though so hopefully next year I can find a spot with hook ups as a group site. If we are careful we don’t need the sewer. If they have a washroom that helps. I like seeing people enjoy themselves. When it comes down to it, give  me a nice campsite with hookups, near a lake with fishing and I would prefer that over any museum, castle or tower to look at. It is also neat seeing the grandkids all having fun and loving camping as we had Keith’s, Fred’s and ours all there.

Shout out to all of the drivers this year. The highway was packed and everyone drove extremely well. I didn’t run into one stupid person doing under the speed limit. If anyone buys a RV or drives a Tinky Toy car and can’t do the posted speed limit on a long weekend they should be heavily ticketed.

Thought of the Day

Camping where you spend a small fortune to live like a homeless person.

May 23rd – 24th

Busy two days !

First I head to Canadian Tire to pick up my 2017 fishing license. While there I pick up some wax and rags for the polish I plan for the motorhome right away. First on my agenda is to figure out how the puck light under the cabinet is removed to replace a light bulb. A little tricky but now that I know no problem. Removed the lense of the back up lights to find out the bulb number. Canadian Tire- no help and no products, Napa- didn’t carry and never saw a 12 volt 2 pin and a hella bulb ,no help, Auto Village- great service, had the odd bulb with the two pins, and ordered the LED bulb replacement for the backup lights. Picked up two quarts of oil and a paper funnel to change the oil in the generator. Good thing for UTUBE as the generator wasn’t obvious in getting into it, where the drain was and filter. Drove to Woody’s RV -no help, didn’t carry generator parts but gave me the place to go. Headed to the north part of the city to the Cummin’s warehouse as they own Onan the generator manufacturer. I had the model number but when I talked to the parts department it appears my model has different filters and they needed the complete serial number also. Drove back and replaced the bulbs, tested and worked on the toilet. During the weekend with the quantity of ladies and kids we had a toilet paper log jam. First I tried to remove it with a coat hanger but it wasn’t strong enough. I used the handle end of a wiener stick  and was able to push the block down into the tank. Cleaned and sanitized the stick. I put a couple of gallons of water in the tank and two pucks that hopefully will eat up the tissue. Girls and tissues have plugged  a lot of toilets for me over the years. LOL  I a lot of running around.

It was hot out today hitting 30 degrees on my gauge. I rushed home and changed to drive out to Turner Valley for a golf game with Jeff.  He was there before me which is rare.  We teed off from the 10th hole behind a foursome. Watching these four I thought we would be in trouble. Two of the guys around 100 years old on this Par 3  at 157 yards used drivers and didn’t make the green. Oh well so nice out may as well just enjoy the warmth and the game. Having said that you can lose your focus if you are waiting too much. It wasn’t bad and we clipped along at a good pace but did have to wait on every hole. We passed them on hole 8 as they struggled again. Everyone has to learn and the right to play but you HAVE to keep up the pace of play as it affects many groups behind you. It was a beautiful night and I was quite happy with the way I golfed. I scored an 83 with a triple so things went well. Jeff had some great shots, good chips but was off on the driving tonight which can really hurt your score. A fun fun golf game.

Stopped at the Black Diamond Bar for supper and Jeff had usual burger and fries which are amazing here. I went with the Hot Beef sandwich. The food arrived and I get a hot hamburger dish in error. But it is also one of my favorites so no problem. Great food and lot’s of screens to watch hockey on.

Up to Cummins in the morning to pick up the filter and rush back to get it installed before the rain was going to hit. Used zip lock bags to catch the oil and it worked perfect. Getting the filter off was a little difficult as I didn’t have a filter wrench and only 1″ of the bottom section was showing. Luckily my plumbers adjustable pipe wrench was big enough. Oiled the top of the filter and hand tighten plus a 1/4 turn and filled the oil up. Manual said 2 quarts. I spilled a bit of oil as it does take a while to fill the new filter. Put the cap on and started it foe a couple of seconds and refilled it to the correct level. I started up the genset and let it run for about 1/2hr to burn off any oil smell. While running I ran my a/c to make sure it is working correctly.

Picked up some acrylic latex caulk ( the correct caulk for doing baseboard and trim) Dap product, some DryDex, sanding sponge from Home Depot and headed to Audrey’s. I spent 4 hours filling, sanding and am not quite finished. I also filled in some holes on the wall close to the exit and in the bathroom to make them look better. Jackie will do some touch up or repaint the entire wall.  It’s starting to look good.

Got home and had some left over Penne with sausage which was awesome. I have golfed for next week booked for Monday in a charity tournament , Tuesday night with Paul and will book Wednesday with Jeff and then my men’s league on Thursday. Most golf in one week for a long time. I was booked to go fishing but Fred due to moving and trying to organized had to cancel.

Thought of the Day

Golf is funny as you can hit a mile wide fairway 10% of the time but you can hit a 2 inch branch 90% of the time. How does that work ?

May 25th

We watched the finale of Survivor last night and the right person won. The second last tribal meeting was funny with everyone dodging a bullet and keeping themselves safe. It was an interesting show and we really enjoyed it.

Up early and headed out to Turner Valley for my men’s league. The weather was cooler but ok. It didn’t stay that way. During this round of golf we experienced everything. We had a breeze that turned into hurricane force winds causing branches to fall. We had sleet, then drizzle, then showers and finally wind driven rain. We had just a dab of sunshine during our 18 holes. This is the first time I remember when out of our group of about 30 people NO one broke 80. Everyone’s score was higher due to the conditions. Did I forget to mention my hands turned pure white ! Temperature started at about 10 degrees, went up to about 14 and down to 9 degrees. Having said all that it was still a fun day AND I won money. I won $18 for my deuce and $15 for my snip. I find this league a hard one to win money in as so many mid range cappers seem to have great game on Thursday.  Sandbagging #@$*^ . LOL  I could score my best game at TV and still be out of the money as net 64, to 67 happen each week. Perhaps a handicap based on the score from Thursday games only would fix that. LOL

Headed to Costco and Sobeys to get groceries. I like Costco, I like the pricing etc but EVERYTHING is too big. A large family would benefit but we don’t even have enough room in our fridge.

Thought of the Day

Water hazards were no problem today. The ball just skips over ice .

May 26th

Up early this morning. Filled in my blood donation forms and headed to the Blood Services for my donation. Blood pressure ( I suffer from white coat syndrome) was the best ever when being checked knowing that in a few minutes a huge needle is about to plunge into my hard to find vein. Temperature was perfect and questionnaire filled out correctly. Then a very out of the ordinary test. My hemoglobin level was just over the minimum testing for iron. Extremely odd as I have had too high of iron most of time. I was advised they would allow my donation this time but to wait a bit for the next one to increase the iron count. Weird things happen. Everything else went well this time.

Then off to the court house to talk to a officer of the court. This is not a judgment, isn’t racist but is true observation. I was waiting with 30 people to see the Justice of the Peace and it was a weird feeling as myself and a old hippy were the only Caucasians in the group. I have to say the new Canadians are very clever at taking advantage of programs to save money. Either that or they like to speed and I find that difficult to comprehend as white knuckle driving is more commonly seen. My name was called and I talked to the JP. I was successful in reducing my ticket from $179 down to $109.

Today was one of those days that I enjoy. My nurse at Blood Service check in was exceptional and we had a lot of fun teasing each other. My needle stabbing nurse was funny and had a great sense of humour. My court house administration clerk was very friendly and my JP exceptional. I think him and I solved all of the traffic issues. Out of the conversation I had some work to do. I contacted 311 City of Calgary and Carmac which is the management company of the Deerfoot to discuss the possibility that an incorrect speed limit sign was posted. They promised to get back to me after doing their due diligence. I tried to contact the police radar division as if they really believe in photo radar to have a rogue cop “trapping” drivers in a unfair zone isn’t in their best interests if they don’t want the cash cow stigma to be attached to photo radar. I will see where this all ends up.

It was one of those days where everyone I met was so pleasant, kind, understanding, helpful and friendly.

I went to the movie house this afternoon with Jackson & Victory to see Guardians of the Galaxy. The movie was amazing. Funny, lots of innuendo, and tons  of action. A fun movie that we all enjoyed !! The buttered popcorn and pop where pretty good also.

“Memories”

Cruising

On our Panama cruise they had a ping pong tournament. I used to be very good at this game. Very good. I entered the contest which was winner stays in loser out one game. My challenger was an elder Chinese lady. I must have met the 1930 China champion as she kicked my butt so fast I didn’t even get warmed up !

Same cruise Jessica and I had a blast winning a few contests. Jessica is very good at “Name that Tune” so with her answering 90% of the questions we won some nice “gifts: from Princess.

Thought off the Day

A simple Hello can lead you to meet some pretty friendly people that all so different and unique. 

May 27th -28th

A very special day today. 8 years ago today I had my first HOLE in ONE at Speargrass Golf Club. The registry has the incorrect date for some reason. It was May 27th 2009 at 5:10pm at Speargrass with Jeff Grace. A nice shot with a easy A wedge, hit the green, one hop and in the hole. We were the last tee time of the night so the beer tab was $20. A fun night and a great feeling. Odds are 12,500 to 1 in making a hole in one. I have come close by inches but remain at one. Having said that I know of average golfers with three and great golfers with none so I am pleased. I am looking forward to the next one !!

https://nationalholeinoneregistry.com/look-up/?id_lookup=40662&date=1243382400&firstname=larry&l_name=willard&course_name=speargrass&course_city=&holesinone=

Beautiful sunny day today. Jackie and I enjoyed a very relaxing day. We went grocery shopping. Read books and checked out things in the sun on our deck and relaxed. It was a very nice day and night.

Up in the morning and ran to the store to ready ourselves for England.  I bought a pair of slip on Sketchers to wear on the plane. The look great, ten times more comfortable than shoes, they breathe and they are slip on for boarding ease. Jackie got a pair also to wear on the plane. I will being my sandals which I hope to wear 99% of time but having a comfortable pair of shoes maybe nice the odd time.  Picked up a new case for Jackie’s phone. I am thinking I won’t bring my phone as I am tired of the huge cell expenses. I won’t bring my laptop or tablet as the UK is strict on these form certain countries and after Manchester I am sure going thru customs is a lot easier without one. I will update this at one time when we get back unless I go to the library and use theirs with their Wifi.  Jackie also picked up some dividers for her suitcase to help pack. When we got home she tried her clothes in her suitcase to see about sizing. Three week trip in a carry on isn’t that easy especially when going to a country like England where they don’t have the facilitates to bathe everyday. As I need to wash my hair everyday I bite the bullet and had my hair cut shorter today. Funny thing the barber actually nicked me. Go figure. We have everything from our end figured out. Umbrella’s, wind jackets,  waterproof shoes, pants, sweaters, layering clothes we should be fine in England. I will bring my camera to take pictures and load them when we get home. Another wonderful day in paradise. I picked out all of my clothes for the trip and have everything ready and or organized to get done before.

Fish & Chips tonight to warm up to England .

Fred phoned and invited me to come fish near his place but the timing was just off by a day.He thought his condo deal would be a done deal and not able to fish but they have a little delay happening. Knowing our fishing trip to Pinehurst was cancelled I booked my week up. Monday I have a Charity Golf event, Tuesday I am with Jackie at TV as Paul had to cancel due to some life changes, Wednesday with Jeff and Mackenzie and Thursday is my men’s league. Friday and the weekend I am planning to build the Pergola in Lethbridge.

Thought of the Day

A women’s mind is cleaner than a guys. That’s because they change it a way more often.

May 29-30th

Busy time the last few days. But as usual wonderful days including the weather.

On Monday I golfed in the Drive for Thrive Charity Golf Tournament . This is the third annual event and the third year I have attended. I was fortunate enough to be invited by Ray Laberge from Totem Building Supplies. Ray and I have had different partners each year and have a had a blast each time. First year was with Ken Crockett VP from Star Building and Mike Powell CEO of Burnco Building Products. We did well and as I said had a lot of fun for a very worthwhile cause. Second year we had Ken Crockett and Nicole Younge from Star Building.  This year we had Nicole from Star along with Kurt Westergard who used to work at Totem and now buys from Star Building. Ken had to be away at meetings so was unable attend.

Ray and I were extremely fortunate that Star Building as a Sponsor of the tournament with Ken graciously and very generously paid for our entrance fee to the event. Made it easy for us to donate at every donation hole. This was the first year at Silver Springs instead of Sundre Golf & Country. As the main organizer is Colin Robertson who was a VP with Totem Building it made sense to have at Sundre with the previous owner of Totem now owing that course. As the event has grown and to achieve larger sponsorship a change to a local course was needed. Colin is a cancer survivor and participated in the Thrive Centre program. Calgary is one of the only cancer centres like it where a professional program was designed for cancer patients to learn to live well. Mental, physical and emotional support programs specifically designed. A very worthwhile cause. Brett Willson and his company Canoe Financial where sponsors this year with Brett playing golf along with us. He had to leave early for a Predators gathering as he is part owner of that hockey team. Brett’s sister and his father live in our park in Mesa.

As a team we worked quite well together with each of us contributing something. Kurt hits a real long ball and Nicole and Ray helped with putting and chipping to the green. We were most likely far from winning as we were only -3 when the winning team was -13. Sandbaggers !!

One hole where it is speed that wins we did very well on. A long Par 4. I drive a good drive straight about 250 yards. Kurt hits a nice second shot to right beside the green but ends up sandy. Ray which hates sand had a great out shot and Nicole putts up. We holed out in 1:45 seconds with the winning team at 1 :25 seconds so we were close on that one.

Did anyone notice Ray standing on a small hill ? He looks 6 ft tall. LOL

Funny story. Colin and his team were the group in front of us. On a Par 5 we couldn’t see any group so started to hit our balls. I drove it about 280 yards over a mound in the fairway. As our two carts are moving forward we get to the top of the hill and there was Colin’s son laying on the ground with my ball a few feet away from head and Colin pacing back and forth with his phone to his ear. Our group panics. I get a sick feeling in my stomach. Kurt who had previously seen someone get hit the head was extremely stressed. We drive up to the group and they start to kill themselves laughing. @#%$# holes. LOL  The event threw our game as I am sure we could have been double digit minus par if our emotions hadn’t been played with. Funny after the fact but it sure does make you feel funny. Good on them they got us good. The timing, the situation with the hill, the long drive , the frantic phone call, pacing were all perfect for it to happen.

Sundre always had a great burger lunch and super steak supper for us. At lunch we go to the BBQ and we have a fish burger. Now I understand healthy eating with this group but to serve guys a fish burger just isn’t right. The burger was great but just not right and a little on the small side. So come supper a little worried. No problem the supper was exceptional. A small roast, veggies, mashed potatoes and salad couldn’t be any better. Awesome. Our group wasn’t lucky in the draws with only Kurt winning a man purse. No jokes here.

A very very fun day with a great group of guys for a worthwhile cause. Thanks to Ray, Colin and Ken for everything.

PS First time playing Silver Springs and it is a beautiful course with it seeming like we rae in the middle of the country not right in the city.

I was on a tear getting things ready today. First I emptied the hot water tank and fresh water tanks plus secured the wheel covers on the motorhome as we wont be using it for a month. I ordered the Cedar for Jessica’s & Penny’s Pergola and requested a delivery for Friday am. I drove all over the city to Timbertown, Windsor Plywood, Deck Store, Home Depot and Lowes and ended up at the Cedar Shop to buy the black hardware the girls wanted. Expensive at over $600 but will look awesome.

Phoned my credit and debit card companies for a travel notice. Note: some companies now say you don’t need to do it but trust me when your card doesn’t work in France you would have wished you had. Yes we have chip readers but a lot of countries are still a way behind. Phoned my car insurance company to add a rental car rider for a rental in England. Again people take risks thinking their credit card will cover etc but when in a foreign country where lawsuits can be double your coverage and for the small amount they charge to cover it is worth it. Picked up my blood pressure prescription. Measurement at Shoppers while waiting was 108/68 so on the low side but better than the 140/90 it used be. Weight loss and lack of red meat have really decreased it.

Went for visit to Sebastian our physical therapist. We have sent him numerous clients over the years and everyone agrees he is amazing. My back was hurting and I couldn’t walk 18 holes of golf so I decided to get a tune up. Sebastian is a 6ft muscle man that drives his elbow deep into your muscles, he squeezes and rubs your muscles vigorously and then takes long needles and drives them into your muscles until you feel your muscle react. Then the commercial grade Dr Ho is put on. My body is literally jumping off the table with the muscle spasms and contractions. All of this torture, all of the time knowing that I will feel like a car hit me for two days and then I will feel amazing. I remember one time Jackie had to pull me out of bed my back was so bad. A quick Sebastian torture and I jumped out like I was 20 years old.  He is worth every cent and more, he is worth every bit of pain you feel for the one hour of rehab as when he is done you will feel amazing. He is not like a quack chiropractor who the last thing he says is ” I will see you next week” Sebastian the odd time may suggest another visit but he mostly leaves it up to you to monitor. There is no other word for him than a godsend.

Paul was supposed to golf with me tonight but his company has closed one of the offices and Paul may be looking for work so had to cancel. Jackie came with me. My shoulder was killing me after being worked on but with such a beautiful night I couldn’t say no to the tee time. Jackie and I had a wonderful time, the weather was amazing, no bugs, plenty of sun, slight breeze and we finished in under 4 hours. To say my shoulder hurt was a under statement so the score wasn’t great as with some shots I just wanted it to be over. I have to golf tomorrow night also and I know it wont have settled yet but am ok with that.

Started up and let run for a bit Audrey’s car just to get it moving. I moved it up in the parking spot like intended so her fellow residents have an easier time to park and then picked up the extra material at Audrey’s to return to Regal.

I visited with Roger at Regal  Building for a bit and then headed home. Shoulder/back still very very sore but I am a trooper and must get ready to golf.

I was going to start my month end budget sheets but will do that on Monday or Tuesday.

Thought of the Day

My pain I feel for two days will be my strength I feel for two months after.

May 31st

Back still very sore but starting to feel a way better.

Took back my left over casing to Regal for credit and had a nice visit with Roger and Barry. That is a great company that I saw start from nothing to the largest interior supplier in Calgary. They offer as good of service when they were 4 staff as now when at times over 100 staff. Nice people, caring people, smart business aptitude and wonderful customer service skills. There are not many companies like this.

Had a late afternoon golf game with Jeff at McKenzie. Very sore muscles but again just not hitting well. I am getting tired of saying that. It is an expectation I have put on myself and lately I am  not meeting it  which is frustrating. The sporadic good game is good enough.

Jeff & I were hooked up with two young guys dressed like golfers and that was about it. Buy wouldn’t you know it. They had a music box in their cart. Everyone knows or if not they should know how I feel about music in certain occasions. If you are camping in the peaceful country side WHY would you need to have music blasting. It is just wrong. A golf game is meant as a quiet game during striking and putting. There is NO reason to have loud music while golfing. Jeff on the second hole told them to go ahead and play as a twosome and we would follow. I can imagine what they said to each other but it just doesn’t make any sense to go to a peaceful country type area and have music blasting. It was nice to golf as a twosome.

Thought of the Day

There are people that feel that life without music would just B flat and that is correct but as with anything there is a time and place for everything.