April 1st 

“Mercury Forecast   Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary -11 degrees Edmonton -12 degrees “

Cold with the wind chills last night in the low minus 20’s. This is sick. Lets see, hit us with a Pandemic, hit us with a price war on oil, hit us with very cold weather, hit us with the market plummeting, what else. Maybe something wonderful will be next.

I talked to the Lewis Estate’s Retirement Home Manager again today and I have to say I am impressed both with her professionalism, attitude and genuine concern. People like her make dealing with companies wonderful. You have an issue, you find common ground, you try to find a solution and work together to make the issue better.

She has agreed to reduce Mom’s rent by one full month in lieu of the issues concerning the leaks. This is a $4000 compromise on their part that is fair to both parties. It is appreciated. She also has a plan for the repair that is reasonable even though not easy to live with when considering the timeframe. But COVID and snowy cold weather is completely out of their hands.

I always have said you catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Strong points, reasonable solutions, reasonable compensation and the desire to help is all that is needed to accomplish anything if you have two people coming together to get something done.

I have seen so many times in my life both in business, business for self and personally where clients come in guns a blazing. Sometimes they get what they want but I would bet in most cases they could have received a lot more and had a lot less stress in getting it done. In my work life a angry customer that was combative I would get done, what was needed, but it for sure wasn’t the most I could do and the situation would be implanted in my brain for any future incidences. A customer that was reasonable I would go the extra mile and above to help and would create a long term relationship with them. At Blimpie’s the cost of giving a FREE sub for something gone wrong can’t be measured, as in most cases you will have created loyalty which will more than make up the loss with future sales. I remember at JW eating a $40K dollar window order as it was the right thing to do.

This is April Fools Day but it seems the world is not in the mood for jokes. I can understand as the world is a mess right now. The States maybe looking at 250K deaths now. We have Iran threatening the US troops, we have North Korea pushing the envelope with their missile launches and we have Russian and China covering up and being very predatory. 2020 is a nice sounding number but I am afraid it is not going to be a great year.

We have experienced painful losses and  I can see the TSX dropping even more in the coming month. I DO believe as soon as we tame this bug we will see stock growth like we have never before seen just playing catch up.  A recession can take 4 years to bounce back but as this was caused by a shutdown versus a slow down it will come back strong and fast. We all just have to remain patient.

I worked on doing my budget today.  If you are locked in your house for a period of time you sure can save money. LOL Not a fun live but you do get to save a lot.  I am expecting April with less costs also as the weather isn’t helping and we need more time to get this bug under control.

I would love spring to be here but this is a good thing as it is keeping the temptation of gathering down. That reminds I better order some Motts Clamato to be able to make a good Caesar at home.

Thought of the Day 

Why don’t toasters have a window like a oven so you can see how well done your toast is ?

April 2nd

“Mercury Forecast Mesa 26 degrees, Calgary -5 degrees Edmonton -12 degrees “

Isn’t spring wonderful in Canada. I see the low temperature this week again and shake my head. To be in the -20’s in April happens but why this year?

Having said that it maybe a good thing. Panama police now have the power to shoot people if they are breaking quarantine. Our 1 million dollar fine and 3 yrs seems light. I would like them to introduce a self isolation law with similar fines. Other than medical and groceries if you are not required to work YOU SHOULD BE AT HOME. People are taking their kids out for walks and touching bus seats, bike racks, buying candy at Mac’s, picking up fast food and not thinking they could catch the virus.

We need to go one way or the other. Full stop and reset of two to three weeks for everyone or let the virus kill as many as it does and hope it is not us or people we know. I prefer Option #1.

Our mandatory quarantine time is up today and we are able to self isolate starting tomorrow. We are going to make every effort to limit our exposure by NOT going out. I have one grocery pickup which will involve NO close contact and have to figure out a Shoppers Drug day other than that we will remain at home.

Don’t count the days, make the days count.

It is odd that Trudeau is loved by the younger generation and he is adamant in restricting leaving the home yet they are the ones you see gathering, parties , grouping together, going for walks with their kids and congregating in front of stores.  Going for a walk not near anyone else is fine and should be encouraged to keep the sanity for some but stop grouping together.

Trump tweets one suggestion that maybe even premature about oil cutbacks and the price increases. Good for him.

Sent a few emails trying to correct an issue with some prepaid visa cards.  Still going back and forth trying to get them fixed.

It is amazing to me how so many companies/agencies manage extremely poor webpages. The Alberta Govt site is putting people on a 40K queue wait list for them to sign up for a “corona” cheque. The Canadian Govt has the same issue.  The USA Census page is overloaded. Not only have they poorly planned the volumes but there are so many webpages that are so poorly designed the companies should be ashamed of themselves.I would suggest an employee of a company that has a page attempt to use it and give feedback as a “customer”  So many poor webpages it is ridiculous. I smile every time I hear a IT guy talk as they think they have done a wonderful job when in fact if they used their own designed page they would cringe. It is like the road engineer coming home on the Deerfoot Trail and saying to himself. This is a good job.

Thought of the Day 

The quarantine for 14 days has been wonderful. We have had a lot of conversations about everything I have done wrong for the past 40 years. Enlightening really.

April 3rd- 5th 

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary -3 degrees, Edmonton -6 degrees ” 

STAY AT HOME except for medical, or groceries. The world situation continues to get worse. It is sad that people aren’t understanding one visit with a friend or family member and the virus has a potential to spread and will or can kill someone. The death tolls are amazing. Even a little scary if it gets out of control like NYC or Italy, Spain. We can do better.

Trump made a stupid error in judgment when he tried to stop 3M from exporting masks. I couple of things he didn’t consider is the fact it is a humanitarian issue. The world has to help one another. Second is the fact 85% of the pulp used to make N95 masks come from British Columbia Canada.  I don’t agree often with  Trudeau but NOT to start a fight with Trump is the right strategy right now.  We have the upper hand but have to negotiate properly. I think everyone would agree he is right in trying to help the USA first but he approached it wrong.

I had to go out to Shoppers to pick up my blood pressure pills so we picked up a few things Audrey needed and dropped them off on her doorstep. The whole situation seems unreal but it is the only way to beat this thing.

Really nothing on the agenda. A couple of semi boring weeks still to go. IF the weather would cooperate I would go out to the lot to self isolate at the RV lot and do some work out there. But at this rate it looks like the snow will not leave until mid to late April.

I think most would agree that not gaining weight while quarantined isn’t easy with the lack of moving, no gym and time to sit and eat.

The city is like a ghost town with few cars around and poeple moving around. Perhaps the cold weather is a good thing in keeping people inside and not gathering in groups.

I am getting a little tired of the Covid news as it is the only item they talk about. You would think they would have heard of becoming desensitized. It still is confusing as in the 2018/2019 flu season we lost 52 people in Alberta. With Covid so far we have only lost 20 deaths. I am confused as to what is it going on.  A simple assumption is that we are  blowing this out of proportion yet when you see cities like NYC you start think it is bad. I understand the lowering of the curve  to help hospitals handle it and the characteristic of needed ventilators much more so than normal flu but it still seems odd.

There are becoming more skeptics and conspiracy theorists mostly blaming the Chinese. I sure do hope that Canada realizes we need to produce our products in case of emergencies and if that means subsidies for plants making PPE for an example we should be all for it.

This is a sign of times.

Last night Jackie & I had a game night via video call playing DICE with Jeff & Wendy. It turned out to be a lot of fun. I had to pour my own drinks and supply my own snacks. I saw Wendy and Jeff get up numerous times and not once did my glass fill itself. It was a unique way to stay connected and as I said was a lot of fun. They didn’t notice once that I wasn’t wearing any pants.

Jeffrey was the winner. I came close a few times as did the girls but couldn’t get the right dice to come up. Jackie won her one game.

More Covid news this morning. More drama with Trump not sending us masks.  He made a mistake but I am sure in the next while he will say it is ok to share. He just doesn’t play well with other kids yet.

I checked back previous years on my blog with lots of different scenarios. Some years we stayed in Mesa, one year we came back around the 5th and others in between. I saw the 30 degree weather when we stayed and I MISS it. I did see where coming back we struggled with the weather well into late April to golf some years. I see we are supposed to hit double digit temps later this week. When I say that I mean 10 degrees which is not warm by any means. I saw that in 2019 April 3rd some courses opened but they had to close a few days later for a bit. We are a long ways from opening this year.

I will park the Jeep today in it’s spot. Bring up my golf shoes and shine them up. Put away the suitcases and Christmas decoration and hopefully  something else will come up. LOL

We have to go all they way back to 2010 to have the TSX this low. That is 10 years of earnings GONE.  I do believe the uptick will be fast if we can get started as soon as possible to get back to semi normal.

I do know our world forever will now be changed as companies adjust their business model. Theatres may remove very second seat. Airplanes removing the middle seat. Large gatherings now controlled with barriers and spacing devices. A huge uptick for cleaning companies as they will be disinfecting every day .

Thought of the Day

I noticed today every time I get undressed in the bathroom my shower gets turned on.

April 6th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 28 degrees , Calgary 4 degrees Edmonton 1 degrees “

I have I said I don’t like this quarantine stuff. I am abiding by all of the rules to do my part to hopefully see the end but it looks like at least a month away. IF ONLY THE weather would get half decent I could spend my days doing something fun working out at the lot. No one around there.

I finalized my Walmart pickup grocery order this morning. It was soooo slow with the over usage of the webpage. People buying groceries and applying for aid is overwhelming the internet.

I had a message today from the bank that made me smile. They accidently paid me a interest rate on a savings account of .06% instead of my normal .045%. BUT due to the unprecedented  circumstances they will not correct it. Isn’t that nice of them . LOL  That is going the extra mile. Yahoo !

I washed my Jeep. It was quite dirty sitting in the garage all winter, well 3/4 of the winter. I had limited supplies but managed to Armor-all the flaps, running boards and tires. Looks pretty good. I polished and shined the hood but my marks from trying to remove the popular buds didn’t shine up. I will need them to be cut and polished by a detailer or go to the store when they are open . I have a polisher I use on the motorhome all of time so just need the special cutting wax.

People are being cautious which is good as I am seeing more and more people wearing face masks. Better safe than sorry.  I say this in particular as Boris Johnson of the UK just got moved into the ICU unit in England. His health had to fail fast.

We noticed 4 Robins today in our tree. Interesting facts for you guys. Most Robins migrate to Mexico or Guatemala. It is the male Robin that arrives back in Canada first with the females arriving a couple of weeks later. Notes: There favorite food is earthworms which we all know can’t be found in the winter. Along with berries. They don’t like heat hence the coming back to Alberta in the spring. The males as in most species are the colorful and exotic ones. Funny in humans that didn’t happen.  So I think I can say SPRING is slowly coming. I emphasize slowly.

Cleaned and polished my golf shoes. Added a new pair of golf socks in the bag.

Thought of the Day 

How long is this social distancing supposed to last ? Jackie keeps wanting to get in the condo.

April 7th –

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 27 degrees Calgary 3 degrees Edmonton 4 degrees “

Oh to be in Mesa right now without the Covid issue. I noticed Fat Willy’s is closed except for takeout and the 18 hole course is closed. So while warm which is wonderful most things are not open anyways.

Went for my Walmart grocery today. They have this system working so good it is incredible. Not having to shop, not having to be exposed to contaminated handles, carts etc is great. You sit in your car and they load you up. Their selection of produce is amazing. Frozen cherries and eggs were the only missing items. Trick is too book a slot right away with $50 of stuff you know you will need to get that slot and then add to the order the day before.

Who would have thought that in 2020 gas would be .57 cents a liter. That we would have 25% unemployment rate or worse. That the stock market would have plummeted. That we would be self isolating and not be able to attend weddings, funerals, see family members,birthdays or even Easter. That the entire world would be shut down. No sports. No gatherings. No concerts . It is an odd time in the world. Even Roseann Barr has come up with a conspiracy theory they are trying to get rid of the baby boomers. Wealth distribution would happen pretty fast if the we lost the richest people in the world .

I thought this guy had a brilliant idea for the kids. As you all know no one has memories of being a child so what a perfect way to have your kid have a keepsake and be able to recall what they experienced even when they are older.

This current event is on the scale of WW1, WW2, Black Plague or even the Great Depression, so being alive during this period is worth having a keepsake to look back at. Remember Y2K was supposed to end the world and we survived that.

Wonderful, but cold walk today with Jackie. Temperature today at 3 degrees but with the wind feels like -10 degrees.

Lots of groceries again so BBQ’d Baby Back Pork ribs, salad, roasted potatoes and garlic toat for supper.  Making me hungry writing this. Odd I look forward to meal times so much now for something to do. LOL

Thought of the Day 

We must all remember that classic kids song ” 5000 days has March and April, 30 days for September, June and November ,the rest have 31 except for Feb which is all alone” 

April 8th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary 2 degrees , Edmonton 3 degrees “

Is it just me or is time moving very slowly lately ?

Good news today. 

1. I had saved up the money to redo the flooring in the condo this year and now I don’t need to. I can save it for a later date.
2.  The quarantine got to Jackie and we purchased a new puppy to train while in isolation. Hence no need to replace the carpet as pups do have the odd accident.
3.  Finally a new born named after me as I thought the my name was going in the distinction pile. We are thinking LarE to be different.

We have had a puppy from day one of our marriage. We had Sadie & Penny which were two toy poodles. We then had a Cockapoo named Samson. Our last dog a Shih Tzu named Teddy died about 6 years ago. While nice not to have the headaches attached to ownership a dog just makes life better and as we are retired we can spend a lot more time with it. Being small it can fly with us on the plane, travel easily in the car, fish with me, golf with me etc. It will also “Make” you walk a lot more often. We bought Teddy right when we were working 70 hour work weeks when we had the fast food franchise and still working full time so now it should be a lot easier to handle the puppy demands. That first year to get thru is always the most difficult with training and getting them used to your behavioral habits. I was content on not having a dog but Jackie lead this charge again and I have to say I am happy about it and looking forward to it. Her real name will be Daisy LarE Willard and she is a beautiful Shorkie which is a mix of Shih Tzu and Yorkie. Her breeder describes her as sweet, playful, inquisitive and curious which is wonderful.  No mention of yappy one trait that is most annoying. We are expecting her to be a adult weight between 8 and 15 pounds. I hope on the smaller side.

Thought of the Day 

I have real empathy for all of the men right now that  have told their wives ” I will get it done when I have time ” 

April 9th 

“Mercury Forecast Mesa 22 degrees, Calgary 9 degree Edmonton 7 degrees, rain “

They promised us 12 to 14 degrees and give us not even double digit. Oh to be a weather forecaster and be able to be wrong everyday and still keep your job.

Today is my Mom’s 88th birthday.  She is doing quite well considering the last year or two of health incidences. She was in perfect shape both mentally and physically until she suffered a few TIA events which weakened her substantially. The first picture is only two years ago. Considering 88 years old she is great. Her mind still is sharp as a tack.

It is a little weird not being able to see her with the self isolation and lock down rules. We phoned this morning to sing her a happy birthday wish.

Missing Easter isn’t fun either. I love turkey dinners and Easter is usually the best. We didn’t get a turkey this year due to the shopping restrictions and our own doing so I am planning on a ham with all of the fixings on Saturday.

Is there a LUCKER guy in the world. Jeffrey Grace.

I am given a few stats here to help demonstrate the luck involved.  Odds of:

1. Getting a HOLE IN ONE in golf is 1 in 12,500
2. Getting a 29 in Crib is 1 in 216,500
3.  Getting a 6 number combo on a 6/49 ticket 1 in 13,983,316
4. Getting 6 numbers the same on 6 dice in one roll is 1 in 46,656

This is a guy that not once but TWICE in a span of about one month rolled the dice and got all 6 numbers the same. TWICE !!!  Instant win plus the bragging rights. Wendy needs to buy him a t shirt. Just look at that grin on his face . I might have to check to see if he is playing with weighted dice.

Did my weekly CDN to USD exchange today. In January before coming down it was 1.30 and today it was 1.42 .  IE   $3000 Cdn = $2112 Usd.  That is trading at 58 cents versus 70 cents in January. Now these rates are my rates from the bank and they take their piece of the pie which is about .02 cents.  The all time low was in 2002  at around 38 cents ( add the banks .02 which makes it .40 cents) which I guess we can take solace we are not there yet. That adds about 3K Cdn to my complete US budget for our HOA and utilities. Still cheap for three months living but I would like that dollar to come back strong before fall.  My paying monthly now is a big help as this is the last lump sum payment for me. The dollar averaging going forward hopefully helps a bit.

Sitting in the deck today was wonderful, Still a little cool but so nice to enjoy the sun and people watch. One young girl in shorts and a tee top on a skateboard had to be tough.  Enjoyable though just relaxing and people watching. I saw rule breakers for sure !!!

Ordered a couple of things we need for Daisy LarE that we had given away or had taken to Mesa. Even with Prime Amazon delivery is a little long but having delivery versus struggling finding and getting the product at the store level is awesome.

Questions:

1.  Will our May Long Weekend Campout be cancelled ?
2.  Will our September Cruise to Alaska be cancelled ?
3.  Will we be able to have a gathering for our 40th Anniversary in June ?
4.  Will we be able to go to Mesa in November ?
5.  Will I continue to get better looking with age ?

Thought of the Day 

Isn’t it funny how a dog begs you to throw a toy but then fights like mad not to let you get it back.

April 10th-12th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 28 degrees  Calgary 3 degrees Edmonton 1 degree snow “

Yep this temperatures sure looks like spring is here. NOT !

I checked the different levels of Covid in different countries in the world and the heat has no affect on this virus.  Hot countries are getting hit hard also so for us to expect a decline of the infection rate because spring is here like a normal flu isn’t going to happen.

You know how we all have heard stories of the old days. ie walking to school for miles in snow, food stamps, etc I am sure in the years to come when a young kid says to his parent ” I am bored” the response will be ” You should have been around in 2020. Then you would have been bored. Locked in your house for months, can’t have parties, get togethers, funerals and weddings and no toilet paper on the shelves anywhere. Then you would have been bored !”

I still have hopes the golf courses will be allowed to open.  I checked Turner Valleys webcam today and it looks like at least a foot of snow left so it will be a long time yet just for the weather.

I thought I would look back and check when I have golfed in Canada the first time for the last few years. Some due to arriving back in Canada later and some weather related.

1. 2019   April 18th  Boulder   Jeff
2. 2018   April 26th  Heatherglen Jeff
3. 2017  April 6th     Bridges    Larry
4. 2016  April 18th   Heatherglen Jackie
5. 2015 April 28th    Turner Valley Jeff
6. 2014 April 22nd    Heatherglen Jeff
7.  2013  April 2nd  Heatherglen Jeff
8.  2012 April 10th   Heatherglen Jeff
9. 2011 April 11th    Turner Valley  Jeff
10.  2010 April 5th     Heatherglen Jeff

When I was looking back the weather isn’t great in April of any year. I guess it is just bent up angst over being locked down. At least other years I could go out for a nice supper and Ceaser.  This year we are going to have to drive in separate vehicles to get to the course. Perhaps even ride in separate carts unless from the same household. Looking at the dates though and the snow outside and the 14 day forecast it will hard to push for next week which will be the 20th plus.

Waking up this morning again with another 3 or 4 inches of snow. This is supposed to be spring. Jackie feed a whack of birds this morning some bread which they loved. A little hard eating dried up frozen berries.

Nothing on the agenda today. I may break my cardinal rule and turn on the TV today.

Alan & MaryAnn stopped by to drop off some puppy stuff they had that they don’t use anymore and we had their fancy toilet seat we brought back for them from Arizona. It is just odd to have to stand 6ftt apart and be fearful of “catching” something from others.

Years ago at Henderson’s Murray B started bugging me about hugging. I was never really a hugger. I come into the branch one day and Murray along with a few others hugged and hugged me, laughing. I most likely went stiff as a board. I like to hug today but not at that time. BUT here is something. I was away ahead of my time, as look at us now, not being able to hug due to germs spreading. I knew even back then what was right and clean. LOL  I am sure if we looked up HUG in the dictionary it would state ” squeeze someone tightly in your arms as a sign of affection but quite dangerous as a germ spreader” “Action not recommended”

That Amazon is amazing. I ordered a new carrier for Daisy LarE yesterday with promised delivery this Tuesday. It arrives TODAY !  That is amazing.

I would have loved to have this for Teddy. Both sides expand and there is netting on the top and both ends also. The dog can stretch right out, be cooler and be able to see everything around her.  It sized to fit under the seat and I will just expand one side to make room for her. Awesome that it arrived before picking her up.

We had our “Easter” supper tonight. I cooked a ham that turned out spectacular . I cooked it in a water, honey, brown sugar, mustard and spice.  So sweet and juicy.

Thought of the Day

Where do you take someone that has been injured in a peek-a-poo accident ?

The ICU 

April 12th

“Mercury Forecast   Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary -3 degrees snow , Edmonton -3 degrees snow “

Big day today.

First it is Easter and I hope everyone remembers why we are celebrating this.

This would be a very different Easter for most people. No gatherings, no large turkey meal with family or friends, no church services etc. Not what we want or like but like most things it will go away. The churches really struggles now as there are many versus supporting the gatherings of people. I am sure it is times like this the lonely get more lonely and the sad more depressed. My  hopes are this will resolve itself quicker than later.

Everyday more real evidence shows how the Chinese Govt has pulled a fast one over the world with the Chinese Virus. It is beyond despicable the lives they gave up  for world wide financial gain.

Big day for us today as we picked up our new family member. She is absolutely beautiful and wonderful. Smartest and cutest dog EVER. Daisy LarE Willard

First day at home after one mistake and two times moving her to the pee pad the third time she went straight to the pad herself. That is amazing. I was playing shake a paw with her this afternoon which she loved. I cant say she does it on her own it but very close. She is so funny. Playing around , then walking a bit then falling to the floor and goes to sleep. Funny to watch.  I hid a few pieces of her food in her new kennel. It was fun watching her figure out how to get in and get out with the food after seeing it thru the screening. She maybe the smartest dog in the world. As I write this we have had her for 10 hours and she has yet to bark or yap. My kind of dog and hopefully will carry on like this. I played on the floor with her and her new toys. She is sleeping again as I write this. We are extremely happy with her.

She was incredible during the drive. Not a sound or whimper. She slept and sat on Jackie’s lap just watching everything that was going on. Inquisitive and wondering is awesome. She even held her pee the entire trip even though we tried and were ready for anything.

Tonight’s sleep will be interesting. All of our dogs have slept in our bed as I don’t like the idea of imprisonment and isolation. We all know how that feels now. She will sleep in her bed at our heads. When one of us gets up for a night time pee break for ourselves we will take her to her pad. Supposedly a dog of 2 months can hold their pee for about 3 or 4 hours so we should be ok. I have an uncanny trait of being able to fall asleep very easily when getting up in the middle of the night.

For Easter we had Jessica & family, Victoria & family, Alan & MaryAnn, Danielle & Dan, Kennedy & Chris and Audrey with Micheal along with us on a ZOOM meeting. It was a lot of fun watching everyone have their Easter meal together. The Zoom affair lasted 1 1/2 hours and was a lot fun. What is REALLY ODD only one family had a turkey meal. Way to go Penny !! Shame on you others. LOL. I picked up KFC on the way home which was close to turkey.  I miss a turkey meal. With a lots of families having one or two people not working you would have thought the dinner would have been spectacular. Being gone all day we didn’t have the time.  I may have to see if the stores put on sale a small turkey and I will get it and have a post Easter meal. I put a full Turkey meal as my favorite of anything I could ask for.

My list  in order:

1. Full Turkey meal with mashed potatoes,ham, gravy, stuffing,peas, carrots, buns, pickles,corn, buns.
2. NY or T bone Steak with fries or baked potato meal with veggies & salad
3. Pork loin meal with mashed potatoes gravy, veggies
4. Beef roast meal with mashed potatoes, gravy veggie, horse radish
5. Italian pasta & salad
6. Cottage pie with salad
7. Chili with homemade potato salad
8. Burgers with homemade potato salad.

Thought of the Day 

Just like butter melts in the warm pan, your heart will melt when a small puppy falls asleep on your lap.

April 13th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 25 degrees, Calgary 3 degrees, Edmonton 2 degrees”

Finally later this week a double digit temperature for a couple of days in a row. Maybe just maybe spring weather.

Ok first night with Daisy LarE and things went relatively well. Tired though. This is her first night in a strange place, second night without siblings bugging her and whole new experience for a baby. We had to try a few things but ended up with her sleeping between the two of us without any bed. Every three hours the alarm would go off so we could take her to her pee pad. She is doing amazing with us being successful just about every time and even having a poop on the pad again this morning. She is the smartest dog in the world . She was/is restless as most dogs turn once or twice and then fall down asleep but Daisy likes to move to a different position every few minutes. She most likely didn’t have the best sleep either. But overall a good experience and semi ok sleep. I will catch a wink each time she does as it appears she plays for an hour then sleeps for two. Jackie will try at noon to catch a nap.

As the weather isn’t great again I have no plans for today so will babysit Daisy and dognap with her. She is not a Velcro dog as she moves so much she doesn’t like to lay on your lap but prefers to be beside you. Second day without a whine or yap so lucky so far.

Already 100% successful with poops on the pad and 98% for pee. She is a very intelligent little girl.

PIC OF THE DAY

I have a few things on my agenda for this week. I have my grocery pickup from Walmart. I plan to order for curbside pickup from Depot my wood I need for another flower plantar, and my plywood to cut out my silhouettes. That is IF this cold weather goes away.

Like out of a horror movie as thousands of birds are swarming our condo.

We went for our first walk today around the block. Well WE went for a walk but Daisy LarE went for a ride in our coats. She isn’t allowed to walk until after her second set of shots. She loved seeing everything around her. Soon she will join us on her paws. She is one cute dog. We don’t allow others to pet her either as we don’t know what germs are on their hands. Weird world.

I participated in a chain letter of sorts for Quarantine Recipes. I sent along my mixture for the perfect Caesar as the quarantine dish of mine. Think about it. Fruit ( tomato) & Vegetables ( celery and tomato if so inclined) and corn, rye wheat or potatoes so it basically is a liquid healthy salad. As we know what can happen after staying in too long. The doors may not be wide enough.

No wonder the groceries stores are out of stock of everything.

Thought of the Day 

How do you know if you are stress eating or just hungry?

April 14th –

“Mercury Forecast   Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary 7 degrees snow,rain, Edmonton 7 degrees rain “

The weather continues to be ugly. Not spring like at all.

Second night a little more sleep. She was much more comfortable , relaxed a lot more and I am sure she even slept more as she acclimates to her new life. What a nice life.  Every three hour alarm and she is doing pretty good at her duties. In the middle of the night I feel this wet tongue on my arm and side and then sharp teeth nibbling at me. Sharp teeth but no pain as she can’t bite very hard. Funny little girl.

I do have to say she does help with the boredom. She can play, bite, tug a war and run around for about 1 hour than all of sudden she is curled up under the chair sound asleep. Supposedly at this age it is 15 to 18 hours of sleep a day so not worried and it gives me time to nap. Jackie was working away and came out to discover me sleeping on the couch and Daisy LarE sleeping right below me. I had to wake up quick as I didn’t want her to think this dog thing isn’t hard work.

Ordered a few things we needed from Amazon coming up both for Daisy LarE and our lot. I plan to go out there to start working on things.

Early this afternoon we planned to meet Victoria and Jackson. We went to Tim’s to get a tea & ice capp and then decided to meet at the Bow River. Unfortunately the gates were closed to the park so went into the golf course parking lot to social distance meet. It is just so strange having to be 6ft apart and not hugging Jackson. They wanted to see Daisy LarE. She can’t walk in the grass as she hasn’t had her second round of shots yet so it worked out perfect as she could run around the paved parking lot. Jackson loved her and having our get together again.

The conclusion to another day. As I write this it is pouring out. A good sign of spring and will melt the snow a lot faster. I actually don’t mind it.

CTV News did a poll for their news on golf courses. The question read ” Do you believe golf course should be an essential service ? ”  The NO won by 2 percent but if the question had been asked correctly it would have been YES by 80 percent. ” Do you believe golf courses should be listed as a non essential service but given an exception as a safe activity and mental health activity? ”

In MOST incidences Calgary wins over Edmonton in so many times. In the world rankings of the best city to live, downtown beauty, in the road system including road repair, in being a cool vibe city, winning in the last 10 years at football and hockey, having the smarts not to vote NDP or Liberal, but in the latest headlines I don’t like to see our numbers higher than Edmonton’s. This Covid is hitting Calgary hard. One unfortunate thing was Calgary being selected as  international airport to repatriate our citizens from around the world. Plus poor management at a seniors home accounting for almost 50% of the Alberta deaths is horrible. We need better control and everyone better expect to be social distancing for at least another month.

Thought of the Day 

Do you want to know how it must be for a company during the shutdown ? Remember the Titanic and the band kept playing. They are the band. 

April 15th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 27 degrees Calgary 2 degrees snow, Edmonton 3 degrees snow  “

I would still be in Mesa if not for this virus. It hurts as I miss the warmth, the golf and the social part of it. Worst part is this is the first year I submitted my 8840 form so we could stay the 180 days versus the 120 days we have stayed for the last 7 years. I needed the form as we had a cruise booked and days in the USA would count against us and I wanted to hit the better weather in early Nov and in April next year. Oh well.

Princess cruises just notified us that they are cancelling our cruise. Our ship the Grand cost $450 usd million to build in 1998. You know they would have tried everything in their power to make this go if they could with that much money on the line. They list 35 billion of assets. That is a lot of ships.Disappointed as we were so looking forward to this. They have promised us a full refund in 60 days which is good.  I will need to make different plans for Jackie’s 60th and our 40th. Campground right on a lake may have to do.  Sure does make you think about priorities when we have so many people losing their lives.

I saved spending money on new flooring until the puppy is trained now saving on the cruise. Not a bad thing with the market decrease.

Snowing big time.  Winter does not want to go away. Having said that the weather starting Friday looks awesome with mid teens every day. About time.

I have this little bundle that has to played with every minute. No reason what so ever to be bored. If you don’t play you know your socks or toes will be bit.

I am waiting until May decided on the May long weekend. First to find out IF the campground is open, if the zoo is open and how many groups still want to attend. I am sure the social distancing will stay be in place which puts a big damper on the event but it still would be fun to see everyone. No potluck for sure. Weird times !

Wasn’t it a good life to go to a movie theatre. Wasn’t it wonderful to sit on a patio with a big jug of cold beer with your freinds, wasn’t it nice to hug your grandkids when you saw them ?  This year 2020 better smarten up ! I feel for the kids wanting to have a graduation party from high school. This is a big deal and not to have it would suck. University grads will not like it either but for some reason the high school grad party is biggest. It is up there with a driver license, turning 21, getting married etc and these poor kids lose that. The numerous wedding cancellations that have to happen with people having their life changed forever.  I hope most postpone and don’t go ahead getting married. This is one of, if not the most important ,life events you will have. You want your person and you to experience the joy with others and it is something to be shared. I feel for the numerous funerals that are not happening. I hate the word “closure” and perhaps hate is not a strong enough word but to have a funeral without the loved ones involved is horrible.

I did my Walmart grocery pickup today again and another great expereince. The whole process works like a fine tuned machine. Easy order, easier reorder, great communication, awesome produce selection, ease with them loading the car and the nicest clerks working . Great experience.

I also picked up my Amazon order from Sobey’s as they have the post office depot. Another good experience with hand sanitizer and paper towel at the entrance and markings for personal spacing.. Plastic shields to protect the clerks so they are doing the most they can. Limit your exposure to be safe but I was in and out in 5 min and disinfected everything .

I think Jackie misrepresented herself. At no time in our conversation did she mention it takes 6 MONTHS for a puppy to be fully potty trained. I will need to buy a carpet cleaner instead of renting one. LOL

The WHO and China with their coverup need to be called to a tribunal and all of the facts investigated. China should be held responsible financially and be forced to pay huge dollars to countries due to their blatant cover up.

Thought of the Day

I don’t always pee on the carpet. But when I do it is right beside the pee pad. Daisy 

April 16th

Mercury Forecast Mesa 30 degrees, Calgary 9 degrees, Edmonton 10 degrees”

The year of 2020 that will be a lot different than planned. I miss the Arizona weather but having said that today it is bright and sunny, not too cool and starting to head in the right direction.

I was waiting until May 1st to decided what to do for our May Long camp out but the operators beat me to it and sent an email to me today asking for our plans. The problem is they do not know if the Zoo Park will be allowed to be open or not. Social distancing may still be place which means we have to stay in our campsite only. Fire ban but we had planned on gas fire pits anyways. I have missed very very few May Long camping trips from the time I was a young teenager.  Keith & Jenny and us ,and sometimes with a larger group always went camping on the May Long Weekend.  At that time we all were in tents and we froze our ass off a lot of times. Good thing for alcohol. When we moved to Calgary we still went as a family. A few memorable years  are going to Kananaskis with the girls and waking up to frozen glass on the counter it was so cold. Another year with a pregnant Mary Ann our propane system froze it was so cold. Alan and I had to take the tanks into a service station to thaw and refill. One year in Rocky it snowed so much we just about lost our awning. One year Ron did have his rip. The last few years we have a group of about 8 units join us for golf/camping. It was a fun event with golfing, fires, families all having a blast. I especially liked the theme pot lucks.

As a group we decided it is better to cancel our May Long Weekend Trip with the all of the unknowns. Social distancing, no public facilities, possible zoo closure, golf courses closed and on and on.

I guess it is small sacrifice in the big scheme of things but very disappointing . I do think it is best to cancel and rebook for next year. Great spot with a working zoo, fishing pond and two golf courses within 5 minutes so will try for it again..

I went for a walk with Daisy in my jacket. We need to wait for her shots before actually walking her. It was very nice out and felt good to feel the slight very slight warmth from the sun. She loved the visual and smells of the walk.

Had a fun day playing and teasing her with training thrown in. Give it a few weeks maybe a month and she should be pretty good by then. She is a sweetheart.

Still this self isolation thing gets boring. I am going to work at the lot next week while we have a few days of spring. I have a two planters to build out of cedar. I have two silhouettes to cut of plywood and I have 2 rolls of landscaping edge to separate the gravel from the grass and create a nice fluid border. Home Depot has curbside online order pickup.

I noticed the Columbia Valley golf courses are opening May 1st so you know if they let us in we will head there if our Alberta courses are closed. I know they were talking about a ban of non essential travel into BC so time will tell. Logically thinking I see no reason to  keep ours closed but it is difficult to say to one industry yea and to others no.

In fact lately or more like tonight I am leaning to opening up the full economic system June 1st at the latest. Lets take our death toll, have herd immunity the best we can, bombard the emergencies and take the hit on deaths. To have a world wide financial collapse causing 6 billion people to live in poverty and despair is not a licentious decision versus losing 200 million to a virus should make all of us  think about it. Spend every dollar on a vaccine and hope for a quick one but let the virus run it’s course still using current protocols but relaxed and the decision to the participate if they choose to partake or observe left to each person or group.  Something to think about as we are held hostage. If we learned anything about the 1918 Flu we know a second wave is coming and stronger. We can not be shuttered for a year as it took a full year for 1918 flu to disappear as it killed everyone that was weak and the rest had built up immunity and then the virus died. That flu killed 3% of the population. In todays terms that would be 228 million people. That sounds horrible but 3% so 97% can get back to living may be what it takes.

The problem is most people feel safe while self isolating and do not have the concept of an utter financial catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions that could be nearing if we don’t act or react quicker than we have.

No matter how much one hates Trump he knows we have to restart soon or face that reality. Trudeau will still be self isolating and escaping to the lake cottage in a blacked out limo.

Baked potatoe, salad and a ribeye steak tonight that has been marninating in my secret sauce for 28 hours. can’t wait. I smell the BBQ calling.

Wow what a wonderful supper. The steak not only cooked to perfection but was delicious. It has been while since I had a great baked potato which was awesome also. Trapped though as I didn’t want to run into a store just for sour cream. Darn virus.

Thought of the day 

I hate to cancel anything. I know we made plans, but that was 4 months ago and  I was younger then and full of hope.

April 17th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary 10 degrees, Edmonton 10 degrees rain” 

Speaking to my thought of the day above. I have always hated cancelling anything. I remember one time years ago I had made a commitment to set up a display at dealer. That morning it was a nasty blizzard. Now I have always enjoyed driving in adverse weather conditions as it does make driving more interesting. This day though it was bad. I got about half way and I figured with the time to get to the dealer the hours to set up and get home I needed to cancel. I did but felt very bad in doing in.  I make every effort not to change anything. So it was hard giving up the May Long Weekend.

Trudeau  is really helping us eh!  The idiot had to tie Climate change and the oil industry together by saying he is giving money to clean up orphan wells. He continues to be a such a winner.

Jackie worked a half day today on her day off. Around noon we left to go to Lethbridge to see Jessica and family that we haven’t seen since December.

We stopped at McDonalds to pick up lunch for everyone on our way thru Lethbridge. First there were over 15 cars in the line. Second it is unbelievable to me that 2 Happy Meals and 4 Mc sandwiches combo cost $48.  McDonalds used to be a cheap place to eat. LOL

It was awesome visiting with Jessica, Penny, August and Atticus. The boys were incredible staying their 6ft distance. They are well trained. We had fun sitting on their front driveway. We had foot races, watched August ride his bike and Atti playing.  August played a magic trick on us with three cups with a hidden scorpion. It was so funny as it was my turn to hide the scorpion under one cup and he was going to guess which one it was. After two failed attempts he stated ” You only get two turns” What was funny I had hid the scorpion under NONE of the  cups so he wouldn’t have found it anywhere. LOL

We stayed there a few hours. Windy but 17 above.  Daisy LarE was wonderful on the drive down and back. Good dog !

Rain is on the way back which is fine as it melts the remainder of the snow and it is refreshing.

Thought of the Day 

How to you like the ads going from” buy a Toyota” to “in this difficult unprecedented time buy a Toyota” 

April 18th

“Mercury Forecast Mesa 26 degrees Calgary 6 degrees Edmonton 8 degrees”

The weather is getting nice next week. Finally I can start to enjoy some warmth. I will work on my projects with the help of curb side pick up from Home Depot. I want too see how clever a kid is at getting a 4 x 8 3/4 plywood on my roof rack. I will let him struggle for a bit just to humor myself and then lift it up myself.

Jackie will be left alone with the Daisy. I smile to myself.

Today as it is cold again right now being dull and 5 above no plans except relaxing. Having said that I am a little tired of relaxing. Really looking forward to working outside.

I was bugging Jackie that Daisy is putting our health at risk with the lack of sleep we are getting. Just like having a baby in the house.

As the dictator of Canada this would be my Covid Plan 101

1. Full classes and school program starts May 1st and a 12 month program The day is split into two sessions. 8am to 8pm . As we have a social distance rule of 15 that means 14 students per class room. Hire close to double of the teachers to handle the extra class sessions. All casual, all sub, all trained teachers from other countries, wanting to work will be the new hires.
2.  Immediately hire all casual RN’s, all LPN’s and all foreign taught nurses to help out in hospitals and senior care homes..
3. Temperature taken, hand washing station  and health quiz taken before entrance to any public facility.
4. Mandatory masks for everyone in public.
5. Airplanes remove middle seat.
6. Movie theatres remove every second seat.  New design popcorn machines as you need popcorn at the theatre.
7. All eateries have to have 6 ft between tables, masked and gloved.
8.  As the economy has collapsed a complete restart to everything. Dismantle all unions. Restart salaries for teachers, nurses, doctors, auto workers , prior union workers to correct levels. Medical industry get tax exempt during any crisis. No CEO of a company can make more than 4 times average worker. Owners can still determine own salary based on profits. Sports and entertainment salaries completely adjusted and not tied to overall revenue. As an example for hockey, star players 200K, average 100K, new 80K plus bonuses but with a max. Sports owners must reduce ticket pricing reflective on salary changes.  Musicians paid on small percentage of sales. Actors paid on percentage of end movie revenue to a max so no one is making millions on a movie.
9.  Full defined pensions for all citizens. Full medical coverage for all citizens

Dictatorship, socialist somewhat but could turn into a good place to live for everyone. As said before we could just let this virus run it’s course and hope no one dies we know and go back to our normal living as we know it. It is a funny world.

I do know I am tired of this social distancing.

We went for a nice walk today. Daisy’s first day of being able to get a treat and it seems to be working. Three pee’s in a row on the pee pad rewarded with a treat.

Watching One World concert tonight. Why not celebrate the concert .

First Caesar since coming back to Canada. Why can’t the Americans understand the goodness of this drink.  My Tim’s ICE CAP and Caesar’s are my two favorite Canadian things. Poutine is right up there.  That reminds me I need to go to Harvey’s very soon.

The One World Concert was good entertainment. For stars though there was some pretty bad performances. Gaga was good, Rolling Stones was good, Elton was bad, Paul was bad, Taylor Swift by far was the best, Celine was ok but I can’t stand her,and John Legend was good. I think some of these old farts should just give up as they have lost their voices.

The one thing I didn’t like was the politics behind it and it was so blatant with them referencing the WHO repeatedly as a direct jibe at Trump cutting them off. You get Hollywood Democrats pushing their agenda it becomes annoying. Like having Keith Urbans wife showing up in his video.

What I did like was right up front they said they were not asking for money as that was me fear in starting to watch this.

Overall entertaining !

Thought of the Day 

You know how people always say “It’s in the last place you will look”  Of course it is.  Why would you keep looking after finding it ? 

April 19th-20th

“Mercury Forecast   Mesa 30 degrees, Calgary 13 degrees, Edmonton 16 degrees “

Mesa this week is warm. 30 is the low with 37 being the high and hitting that all week, Oh to be there now. Having said that we are  getting at least up to the mid teens a few days.

Self isolation is not my favorite thing by far. A simple task of getting material for a project becomes convoluted. But I will make it work.

Pretty good nights sleep interrupted every three hours for pee breaks and getting up at 6 am and not settling down. I even missed the morning news. I haven’t seen the trade off yet. LOL

Everyone has their hair cutting stories during this shut in. People cutting their bangs, using bowls over their head ( I saw a picture of Keith with one of these) , cuts and blood, some now growing a mullet and even the odd one that is like a Chia Pet haircut.

Here is my good friend with his Corona hairdo. Terry sent a after picture and he looks great but the first picture really is the most important one and tells the story.

Did my curbside pickup order at Home Depot today. Awesome again I receive an email when my order is picked, I drive up and phone and someone delivers my order right to my car. This had screws, nails , angle iron, glue plus deck boards and plywood. This is an awesome service. !

Yahoo ! out to the lot tomorrow. I plan to spend all day enjoying myself and working away. I will bring a lunch and drinks.

Wow what a beautiful day coming up today. It reached 20 degrees by 4pm.

Our Daisy didn’t have a good night which means we didn’t. Fun of having a puppy. Can’t wait until fully trained though.

The Home Depot curb side pickup program is awesome. I placed my order 1 hour before close last night. One hour later I received a ready for pickup confirmation. I went to the store first thing and pulled into the special parking spot. I phoned the number and 5 minutes later  a lady comes with my full cart of lumber and plywood with accessories. That is good service.

I strapped it all down as I don’t want to lose a sheet of plywood on the highway.

The lot was all dried out and I started working right away. First the tools required: tablesaw, mitre saw, compressor and brad nailer, angle grinder, tape, drill, PL400, and screws. I will say I worked for 7 hours to complete this project. looking at it I would say it is only a 3 hour deal but things have a way of taking time. I used 1/8 angle iron, 5/4 deck boards and ripped a 2 x 4 to 2 x 2’s for the support.

It takes time cutting each board, glue, brad and screw. Drilling through the angle iron I broke 2 bits. Cheap Ryobi brand.

As a Travis Tritt country song goes :

And it’s a great day to be alive
I know the sun’s still shining
When I close my eyes
There’s some hard times in the neighborhood
But why can’t every day be just this good

Best day in Canada in 2020 today. Enjoyed it very much. The quiet and a good days work. Came home and my muscles are sore. Muscles I haven’t used for a long time. A 4 x 8 sheet of 3/4 plywood seems to be a lot heavier than I remember. Super day

Today was day of reality for me. A little out of shape not moving for 4 weeks. Age does reduce one’s strength but I will never admit that. I will take this any day over being couped up.

Thought of the Day 

Sore muscles is a funny way of saying  happy pain. 

April 21st

” Mercury Forecast  Mesa 28 degrees, Calgary 20 degrees, Edmonton 21 degrees” 

Now we are talking. This is the best temperature to do anything in. I like it.

Daisy had a relatively good night today so we all slept a little better. Things are getting better and hope they will carry on like this as 3 months is a long time. Nice to sleep semi ok.

First thing was Home Depot. A line up of about 6 people and they let one in at a time when someone leaves the store. When I checked out it was very impressive as they sanitized the sku gun, touch pad and counter after every customer. Very good job at protecting their customers.

I needed another piece of angle iron to complete my flower planter and screws. A total safe shopping experience.

Finished off the planter. Forgot the battery charger so couldn’t move the Dakota to build my other planter so started on my western silhouettes.

The neighbor lady had a brilliant idea when she said it is a Saloon he should be holding a beer. A little modification and done. Lady and Man all done with just painting black and installing.

It was a lot of fun making these and I am sure I will get quite a few comments on them.

I picked up at least 100 pounds of leaves today and am still not done. Need a big wind. LOL I left the bags in front of the motor home. My hopes are that one of the workers driving by in their Gator will throw them on board.

Jackie made a wonderful supper tonight for us. I am not  a rice person as it really can’t be called a food but use lots of soy sauce it becomes quite tasty. Great meal with spiced pork chops, rice and peas.

Jessica is getting her sod in the morning  so I will head down there first thing. 5000 sg ft of sod. I have two great knives for cutting sod and will bring a couple of rakes from Victoria’s place for the day.The girls supposedly have everything else. They have a few people to help and with keeping our distance from each other by working off of different pallets we should get this done in about 4 hours.

If they are working away and doing good I may slip away and pick up a few things to temporary make the underground system I installed operational. They will still need a sprinkler as I designed the system around flower beds and trees so there will a couple of spots not getting water. I will see how I can adjust the  heads to work around this. Just makes it a whole lot easier than moving a lawn sprinkler around with a long hose attached.

Thought of the Day

As per the picture above :  Just look at the guy ,beer in hand and looking down ridden. If he would look up he would understand boobs are natures anti-depressants. 

April 22nd 

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 31 degrees, Calgary 13 degrees, Edmonton 17 degrees” 

Up and out of the house by 7 am. Today was delivery day for 5000 sg ft of sod at  Jessica’s. I figured with her 10 friends we should get it done in about 4 hours. When I arrived around 9 am the sod had just being placed around the yard. One young guy there to help. I brought with me two rakes and two pairs of gloves for anybody to use. After raking for about 10 minutes the gates opened. It was like a barn raising party from the old days. It is a Mormon town.The young kid was told by his Mom to go over and help not knowing anybody. We had cousins of cousins and 3rd cousins etc coming to help along with their kids. We stayed under the 15 person limit and made sure to keep our distance from each other. The bottled water was marked not to mix them up. Out of the group one couple had laid sod before. It was a lot of fun directing the group. I had two young guys cutting at both ends and we started laying sod in three different areas. I figured if the sod didn’t align correct as it came together in the middle we would just cut up a small piece to splice it in. There were numerous young ladies that all were amazing hard workers. I know Penny from working with her before she is an extremely hard worker. We started at about 9:15 and finished at 12:15. It only took us three hours to rake, cut and lay 5000 sg ft sod. That is wonderful.

Penny bought everyone pizza for lunch which was great. Most people left right after that. Penny & I dampened the sod and rolled the entire yard. Hopefully it rains tonight and a morning roll and they should be set. If not they should wet it pretty good and then roll it one more time. Penny measuring of the sod was spot on with only about 8 rolls left. I originally thought they had a way too much. Great job at ordering.

Now the problem is keeping the dogs and kids off it for a couple of weeks.  It feels so good on the feet. You got to have fun and hope for the best.

The weather was the perfect temperature to work in. Strong winds though. Another job all done. I just need to go to Home Depot  to get some parts to complete the irrigation system and it will be done.

Thought of the Day 

If you have never walked barefoot on grass you haven’t lived. Let your soles touch the soul of the earth. 

April 23

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 35 degrees, Calgary 13 degrees, Edmonton 16 degrees”

Four days in a row coming up in Mesa at 40 degrees. That is warm. Oh to be there and golfing in the warmth. Your muscles just relax.

Walmart again today was superb. Exactly 1/2 hr before my pick up time they email me my order is picked. I drive to Walmart and park in my spot. Phone and 5 minutes later all loaded up and gone. We had a few substitutions today. They gave 2- 1 litre jugs for 1- 4 litre and they subbed one milk at 3% MF which is no big deal. The quality of produce is incredible. I always thought their meat section was poor but I have to say I am quite impressed with it. Chicken breasts are huge and juicy, steak is exceptional and a huge pork loin I cut up was great.

Another wonderful experience.

Daisy LarE actually slept a full 5 hours before having to get up which was nice. And she was pretty good the entire night. She is one cute dog !!  My hands though are all scratched up and the odd puncture hole from her teeth. She wants to bite all of the time. It would be nice to just pet her.

Off to Depot to find fittings that will work. As I am dong this on a tight budget it makes it more difficult. I hate the fact we have fine thread, coarse thread, water hose thread, pipe thread, PVC, poly pipe and garden hose to connect all with their own design.

I got lucky I believe as I assembled it in my mind but realitiy is a whole different thing. I bought a 4 way diverter shutoff  valve made out of brass at a ridiculous price of $42. It is a life long lasting product if it doesn’t freeze which should never happen if taken care of. I have the Gardena connectors and pvc spade and thread connectors. At home after visualizing again I need one more disconnect to make it easy for winter cleanup.  I will hook it up in the next few days.

Lazy employee at the Depot today. Touch pads and sku scanner are to be sanitized after every checkout and she was on cloud nine staring into space. I did it myself before I used it and after I used it.

“MY RANT” 

1. A few rural doctors  want to give up their hospital rights as a scare tactic to try to negotiate a better contract. They will be hurting themselves as much as the communities they live in. They cannot be the only industry that doesn’t have a cutback. Rich entitled people that have forgotten the doctors Hippocratic oath as to why they went into this field.  They can be replaced easily. The average doctor in Alberta is making $305,000 a year which is  28% higher than in any other province. Our own family doctor deserves every penny though as I have seen her phone me at 9pm and even have had appointments that late. It is the newer young doctors that want everything.
2.  Nurses Union not the nurses file a grievance against the UCP for trying to stop the spread of Covid. Dr Hinshaw decided and correctly so that nurses/ caretakers can only work in one facility. Union mentality arises again instead of thinking about it. 
3.  News reporting on the billions of dollars lost in the public pensions. AIMco which next year will take over the teachers pension had an inside leak from a unknown source stating they have lost 4 billion in the market downturn. I heard one reporter stating why would they invest in a the oil and gas sector. Duh! who do think needs help.  Everyone is in the same boat and perhaps if the unions would have supported this industry instead of complaining about cutbacks etc the drop may not have been as bad. Big difference is this drop doesn’t affect the payouts for them like normal investments do to for everyone else.

We need a huge upheaval to happen in Alberta to right size us. Huge salary cutbacks for doctors, nurses, teachers and provincial union employees and politicians. We need massive cuts and yes they will hurt but have to be done. We are on track for 25% unemployment in Alberta and we have highest paid doctors in Canada wanting more money, we have the second highest paid nurses in Canada and the highest paid teachers salaries in Canada excluding the territories. Something has to give. What is amazing to me is you hear all of time that teachers need smaller class sizes. Simple fix take a pay cut and the province can hire a way more assistants. Nurses issues are they are over worked due to shortage of nurses yet we have 100’s on contract working part time that could be added to the system if a pay cut happened. You know I believe during this crisis front line nurses salary should be 1.5 times pay as they are carrying a huge burden. We can correct this later. Unions have destroyed the integrity of the average employee. To me it is unbelievable that professionals can be so me centered and not look at the bigger picture.

I have family and friends with in this grouping and for the most part they don’t tow the union lines as much at all or even come close to thinking like this as they are in the proffession to genuinely help people. I do know a couple of them that voted NDP though. I have forgiven them. 

BUT THAT IS JUST ME !

Boy this April hasn’t been kind to us. Our Sept cruise has been cancelled, our May Long weekend trip has been cancelled, K Days is cancelled, Calgary Stampede cancelled, golf courses not open,trapped in our homes and the weather has sucked. Ok I am past all of that. A  couple of wonderful things to make us all smile. Seeing Jackson, Tor and Cor, seeing Jessica, Penny, August and Atticus, working on the lot has been wonderful and getting Daisy LarE have all been good. Not spending a lot of money in the last while so put a hold on May’s withdrawals and by June hopefully the stock market will have risen a bit as all is good.

So the good as always out weighs the negative and that in itself makes me smile.

I got to see Jackson today as I was putting the rakes away. That 6ft away sucks. I would love to give him a noogie on his head or slap his butt.   He finished all of his math questions and even said triple digit adding is easy. I always liked math as it is absolute. Your answer is either right or wrong unlike most other subjects as the answer is subject to the teachers interpretation. I didn’t always care for acknowledging how I got to the answer as it doesn’t really matter if it is correct.

Fred had a neat idea to build birdhouses for something to do and had his grandkids paint them. I think they turned out fabulous and will look neat in the trees for years. Plus they should entice birds to live there. Poop on the cushions in the future ?

Fingers crossed that later this week they announce golf courses can be open. I know two guys that are chomping on the bit.

Thought of the Day 

I’d love to wait for an hour while you search for your ball. Said no golfer ever ! I only wish.LOL 

April 24th-25th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 38 degrees, Calgary 15 degrees, Edmonton 20 degrees”

A beautiful day today.  I went out to the lot first thing this morning. Lots to do which is so enjoyable. My first thing today was getting the Dakota and motor home  started. I needed to move the Dakota to do the planter box in front of the shed. Battery was dead so I brought out my battery charger. Something went wrong with it as the motherboard isn’t working. I worked under and around the truck to make this work. It all worked out perfect except I am 13″ short of 5/4 cedar deck boards. Darn. This planter looks great and also give me a lip to install my silhouettes on.

The neighbor happened to be around so I borrowed his booster cables and the Dodge started just like that. But I had to keep it rev’d about 2k as the battery was stone dead. Finally it idled down and was running like a top. Hopefully between the charge of cables and it’s alternator I will get enough juice to start next time until I can get the battery charged.

The motorhome with it’s solar charger started perfect and I let it run for about 1/2 hour.

I finished the day up but installing my lawn edge and removing the gravel from where I am going to plant sod. It is going to look wonderful.

Came home had supper and watched more episodes of Ozark. This is good series.

Daisy had a good night which meant we did to also. She actually slept in until 8 am. Proper timing and even played in bed until 9am while I watched the news. I can live with that.

First thing this morning I washed the Buick. The Shell has a new wash that is only touchless which I don’t care for as road grime is sticky and needs to be touched. Soft brush is the only option unless you want to do it manually. But Jackie bought a multi wash card so we have to use it up.

I then dropped off my sandals at the shoe repair in Midnapore. Now I love my SAS sandals as they seem to cause less back aches but at $200 a pop and only lasting 2 years it is not a good thing. The shoe repair guy and me meet every second year for a repair. Being leather isn’t the greatest either as i wear them 10 months out of the year and they do see some water with fishing or rain. I do know that they were very difficult to walk in on the Columbia Icefields as the soles were smooth like glass. Smooth soles and ice don’t mix well. They are ready on Tuesday which is good. Nice to have shops like that. Support the local guy.

Just stayed at home day. Worked on a few things learning this and that and went for a walk twice with Daisy. It will be so nice when she can walk herself. But she loves the smells and sounds.

Not liking this self isolation at all. All next week in between appointments I will work out at the lot. Time to uncover all of the furniture and power up everything.

Thought of the Day 

Whoever said you can’t buy happiness forgot about puppies ! 

April 26th-27th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa  38 degrees  Calgary 13 degrees Edmonton 18 degrees “

Day trip to Lethbridge to finish the underground sprinkler system.  It was nice out but as usual very windy. I know Lethbridge gets a lot of wind but it has moved up to Calgary also,

I looked on Utube to discover the arch and diameter settings the night before to set their heads. Getting to Jessica’s the brand was the same but a totally different system. I installed all of the heads and only got half soaked in setting them. I discovered on my own how the system worked and I have set it pretty good but with wind sometimes you really can’t tell.

Before that I worked on the control box I had dug in to the ground. I installed all of the parts I brought. As always things are never the same as you think. With 3/4 poly pipe you have no give and bend for adjustment. My manifold didn’t have straight down connections so no adjustment. My fitting also with being “forced” into place  had a small leak. I tried everything but the angles and distances I could not get it leak proof. I have to come again with a plan B.

Penny made us an awesome supper of chicken breast and mashed potatoes, Great meal.

We had to keep our distances the whole time which is not easy.

The girls turned on the system and even though a small leak in the control box the heads did a great job. I will be back !

Daisy LarE had a good sleep tonight but her wake up time is 6am. That is NOT mine by any stretch. To sleep in is heavenly and that has been stolen from me. Darn dog !  I do have to say Jackie took her for a walk around 7am.  I got to lay in for a bit.

I went to Home Depot to pick up one piece of 5/4 stock cedar I was short. Without a word of lie the lineup was 500 ft long of people 6ft apart. What happened to stay at home. Who am I to talk but I was there for important stuff. LOL  I did not wait and headed out to the lot. A quick thought hit me and I whipped into Rona Strathmore . No one there and I was out in about 10 min after checking out their plumbing section which was a joke as they had nothing I could make work at Jessica’s house.

I finished off the planter in front of the Saloon with the cedar. I then painted the under carriage of the planter and the backer board which ties everything in all together. I then painted the top ledge of the other planter box to match. Looks great. I was going to stain the cedar but between the wind and the clouds looking like to was going to rain I decided to leave it for now.

I continued to remove some gravel in prep for my lawn and moved some to fill a few pot holes.

The neighbor says the water is on so tomorrow so I may wash the gazebo and shed. Hopefully stain the cedar and start to unpack the furniture.

On the way home I decided to try Lowes for the irrigation system. I hate having to go to plan B but things happen. I do have to say Lowes isn’t even close to the Depot in trying to keep people safe. It was too busy in there and people were not keeping their distance. I found pieces that I am hoping will work. They were missing one piece but using my Plan A parts I think I can make it work. Hopefully. So now to plan another trip.

Thought of the Day 

If Plan A doesn’t work it is always comforting that the  alphabet has 26 letters so no problem. Stay Cool 

April 28th

“Mercury Forecast  Mesa 40 degrees Calgary 19 degrees Edmonton 18 degrees “

I looked up Covid 19 in Arizona to see if the heat has any affect on it.  Answer NO. When we left Arizona in March there were 24 cases of Covid. Today almost 7000. Now the heat is really starting to hit with it being over 100 degrees for days straight. I will check in another while to see if any impact.

Speaking of warmth. Calgary today set a ALL TIME RECORD. We have now set the record of 219 days straight NOT hitting 20 degrees above. Why is Calgary exempt from Global Warming ?

I had to post this picture even if it a day late. The kids just waiting for the sprinklers to pop up and get them wet. They think it is water park !

Today I headed out to another wonderful day at our lot.

I painted my two silhouettes black and installed them after a bit of sanding and fine tuning. They turned out looking great. I installed them thru the feet and used a Velcro hanger as I do not want to put a hole in my siding.

Webster dictionary- Hole in wall = leak

I hooked up the electricity today. It took me a while to remember all the idiosyncrasies of my hook ups with the correct  power box, the 30 amp Y connector hook up and power saver settings. I had to do a few adjustments but everything working. I had to carry a jigsaw with me to check each connection.

I the worked on the WiFi . A simple thing one would think but it still took me away too long. Resetting, restarting and hooking up from memory all of the connections took me a while. I will take a picture for next year.

I then moved the motor home into it’s proper spot. Used the auto leveler and put the slides out. Started up the fridge and put out all of the decorations. Still have to put away my mouse traps and rat poison.

Then on to de-winterizing the water system. Ran each faucet until nice and clear. I used bleach last year so will forgo that this time. I filled up the grey water tank to 1/2 full. I will check next time out to see if I can drink the water without any taste. I filled the black water tank 1/2 full and used the backwash connection to clean it right out. I think I have one more flush before I need our septic tank pumped out as I left it quite full over the winter not to freeze up.

I assembled and visualized my Plan B for the underground sprinkler system at Jessica’s. I think my system will work out just fine. I made up the three connectors and it shouldn’t take me long at all to complete it and have it leak free. I will plan to head there in the next couple of days.

Daisy has a favorite spot she likes to sit. She also loves to lay on the sill and watches everything going on outside. She likes the sounds and fresh air. Hearing a crow, seeing a dog or person walking keeps her interested.

The mountains on the drive home just look fantastic. You can’t beat Calgary for the view and if you like wilderness there is no place better than the foothills and mountains.

Thought of the Day 

Life is wonderful when you add mountain air, a campfire and peace & quiet. 

Addendum- Just made me think how annoying it is to have someone camping with their stereo blasting instead of enjoying the country atmosphere and sounds. We have camped since we were teenagers as a couple and never played music. Crackling fire, talking,  games, coyotes, owls, or a loon are just to wonderful to listen to. 

April  29th

“Mercury Forecast Mesa 40 degrees, Calgary 19 degrees, Edmonton 21 degrees” 

I had our caretaker check on our house in Mesa as I received my electrically bill and it seemed a way to low. He confirmed the a/c was working perfect as was the fridge. I will take the bill as is.

Another win today for me. I discovered my insurance lets me switch the motor home between my house policy for winter storage and then add the PL and PD in the spring. This saves a fair amount of money. In our discussion I joked that I should get a discount for not driving as I was asked to stay at home. Sure enough she offered me a reduced rate on all four vehicles. Saved me another $30 bucks a month. Further along in the discussion I brought up that I put only 500 kms on the Dakota a year and if I could pay insurance by the day when I need it ,it would be great. Unbelievable another yes. Now I have to plan the day before and I am only going to pay for insurance on the Dakota when I use it. Saves me another $40 a month. It is amazing what you can get if you just ask for it. Makes me think I need to talk to Telus to get a free new cell phone.

Terry said she and Tracy were going to build wood sheds out on their lot this year as a project. Well she did that by herself. I don’t know the amount of help given by Fred but this is one nice wood shed at a reasonable build price. Smartboard paneling, pull down sunshade for wood protection and pallet base. Great job. Their huge lot makes me jealous as I would love more space.

I got to bug Fred again on his IPhone. As every knows the Apple logo looks like it is missing a bite of the apple. I believe until they can figure out where that missing piece is they will continue to have issues with their products. His system which may be Telus not Apple is blocking messages but always fun to bug the Apple people. What a great job in marketing they did to sell people a more expensive phone or laptop with less features and have people believe it is a good product. One day with an Android system they would never go back but that is a hard thing to do as the Apple world is an incestuous cult like community.  To get anything to work you are forced to go to the Apple Istore, Itunes etc.  I can only hope more people will eventually see the light.

Daisy today had her shots. She was a good girl and handled it very well. Especially with all of the new rules with social distancing etc and us not being allowed to go in with her. She did get home and sleep for 3 hours after. Lucky girl.

Made plans for Lethbridge tomorrow to finish up the irrigation system with Plan B. I prefer do it right the first time but it is always harder when a restrictive budget doesn’t allow it.

A moment of vanity here. I have beautiful legs. Varicose veins runs in my family with my Mom and both siblings having large veins that aren’t pretty. I never had these luckily. Well things change. When I undressed in the bathroom and turned on the shower ( I didn’t even whisper a sweet word) I noticed on one leg a few bulging purple viens. NO !  Perhaps as time as gone on and the pants wearing the hair off my legs it is just noticeable now.  Better get a suntan quickly if summer ever comes.

What beautiful golfing weather !! Oh wait I am not allowed to golf !!!

Thought of the Day 

The world has been turned up side down. Children are demanding their parents to stay at home and self isolate instead of going out.