May 1st– 4th

Busy the last little while and forgot to update my page. I will combine these few days in a shorter form than normal. The weather for each day has been ok but still not summer like. Windy, over cast but a decent temperature.

On Sunday Jackie headed to Lethbridge to see the girls, the boys and get a hair do. She took Daisy with her to play with Jess’s new dog Rudy and Jackson along to play with the boys. Audrey also went along for a new haircut.

I headed out to the lot and spent all day there. I did a lot of different things. I readied the motorhome to bring back to Calgary as I had an appointment for it’s annual service Monday morning. Before doing that I cleaned, organized and worked on the lot. I kept getting distracted having to talk to neighbors. Love the social aspect of this resort which I find is very similar to Viewpoint.

I hooked up the Jeep and headed home after a full day of working. The road coming out of the resort is dusty dusty. I can’t wait for the calcium to put down.

I had to park away down the street as we have a few vehicles parking in front of teh condo. It is funny how a person thinks they own the space in front of their house or condo when it is really city property. There have been heated discussions over this from people that think they are right. I always try to respect the fact it is in front of someone’s house but is public parking.

It was nice being outside all day and then relaxing after a good days work.

I drove the motorhome to Fountain Tire in the NE as they one on Blackfoot didn’t have opening for two weeks. No mechanics and covid. The same owner of both stores so I knew I could trust these guys as I have been going to them for 10 yrs plus. A lot of shops do not have a heavy duty rack to lift a large motorhome. I checked in and thought I would just waste an hour or so at Home Depot and Canadian Tire while the service was going on. But then I received a call, I had two issues that needed to be addressed that they did not know if they could finish today so I headed home.

Around 4pm ( rush hour about to start) they had it ready. The clearance lights weren’t working and they had to remove the lens from each as condensation over the winter had allowed the ground screw to corrode. I changed the lenses and they were not 100% exact. Easy fix luckily.

The guys at the new shop were shocked with the low mileage. (50Kms) . I took Daisy with me in the motorhome out to the lot. I have the storage part down pat now. Backing in easily with lining up for the stairs, slide out and tire mats.

Watched the Oiler’s game. It was a very entertaining game to watch. The Oilers lost which was my hope. I want their series to to 7 with the Oilers winning. The have some pretty blatant weaknesses but it would be great to have a second round meet against them.

Today was a golfing day with Jeff & Wendy at Muirfield Lakes. I love this course and it was immaculate with perfect greens and fairways. I though everyone played well today. Jackie played very good. I was happy. I took one triple otherwise I would have broke 80. I did find I was pulling today but managed to escape each hole. A fun course and fun to play with Jeff & Wendy with the guys together in a cart and the girls in another.

After golf we met them at the Berwick for supper and to watch the game. The food was perfect and everyone enjoyed their meal. Caeser’s, Coors Lite ( a lot) great food, friends and the perfectly played game by the Flames. We just need 3 more games out of them. We sat on the patio with a heater and TV for most of game but surprisingly the bar was only 1/2 full so we watched the 3rd period inside. We were far away from anyone but still close to a screen. I was shocked with the lack of people at the bar as it the perfect place with lots of TV’s , great food and not being able to get together for two years it didn’t make sense. The dome was sold out, 1000’s in the parking lot and a full Red Mile so it was odd but I sort of liked it but do feel for the owners.

Awesome. A real fun day.

Today I headed out the lot first thing. A long list today, Patch repair on the lawn, cushions out of the shed and on the couches and chairs, installed the four curtain surround on the gazebo, covered the deck to protect from sticky buds while away, laid down the outdoor rug, hooked up the electricity, installed a few grommet’s to hold the curtains in the wind, and put away all of my paint and stain.

I leveled the motorhome and then adjusted the HWH leveling system as a few bumps on the road had it a little off.

It was nice having lights in the shed. A cold fridge for my water was a nice benefit.

The weather was odd as it was supposed to be warm but it never achieved it’s goal.

I arrived home around 5pm and BBQ’d supper. Another nice day done.

Oilers tonight on TV.

May 6th -8th

Still spotty weather with no real warmth.

First the Oilers. A loss and two big wins. I want a 7 game series but it doesn’t look that is going to happen as the Oilers are playing extremely well. Pains me to say that. LOL

We actually listened to the game on the radio on our way home from Edmonton.

I had my Men’s league and this was the first time using the Golf Genius app which is a great app and makes it fun to see the leaderboard and for our organizer to record the scores.

First time and I heard to complaint’s for the players which is awesome as old people to like to complain. Talking medical issues, weather and complaining is a generalization but it quite accurate overall.

I did not win any money today. I played very well especially on Turner Valley. I did not lose one ball, and had some wonderful drives. Putting was difficult but i also did not hit the greens close enough to the hole. So I ended up with a score more than I wanted but I still go back to I liked the way I played, So all good.

Our tee time was set up with three Larry’s playing but one had to bow out due to medical issues. A fun day with the new app, good golfing, poor scoring and nice company.

We decided to head to Edmonton for a Mother’s Day visit. Luckily Victoria had it off and she decided to come with us. When she walked in the door Mom was surprised and excited to see her as it had been awhile.

It is hard to get something that is useful for older people so we decided a visit and supper was on the agenda. We had a great visit and while there helped Mom get a few things done she needed and couldn’t do. Makes for the perfect Mom’s Day gift by doing this. Jackie, Victoria and I helped clean up few things. The curtains in the living room and bedroom was vacuumed as was the chairs and couches. The coffee table glass edges were done along with sweeping and cleaning up the outside deck. She had a roller blind that the maintenance guy was suppose dot have fixed that sort of was funny. It was extremely hard to roll up so he removed the bottom strip that blind have to hold the straight saying it was too much weight. ( crock) I took the blind off and unfortunately the spring inside the mechanism was broke. I bent the spring to make a new hoop but it is a little short but it worked fine. It is not perfect but a lot lot easier.

I find as people age they become fussier. I have seen this in numerous people. I find for myself I like more and more food than I ever had. Perhaps a little picky with certain things but not overall. So we struggled in deciding a place for food but finally settled for one of Mom’s favorite spots form years ago the Astro restaurant which has been around forever in the west end. Great food and as usually did not disappoint. The only oddity was they do not do mashed potatoes. We decided to do pickup. A small mini rant. Boy are Edmonton’s streets in poor poor poor poor poor condition. It is like driving thru a whack the mole board game. One small error and a broken shock. The streets are a disaster yet on the way to Astro’s on 100 ave a beautiful brand new fancy building for the HSAA union building and one block further down a brand new even bigger huge brand new building is the UPE union building. It is just not right. It is Edmonton a union pro NDP city though. Forget infrastructure but take care of the union.

The veal cutlets and the steak from Astro’s were excellent. A very good supper.

On our way out we stopped for a Mother of the Year picture.

And then the drive home with as I said the Oiler game on. LOL

Love driving the Flex on the highway.

I made a miscalculation as the weather forecast has been calling for rain the last few days and it has yet to come. I fertilized the lawn on Wednesday and as the water wasn’t on yet, did not water. You can leave fertilizer on for about 24 hrs before burning your grass so I have my fingers crossed. Every time I decide to go out to the lot it appears to want to rain but hasn’t. Hopefully.

Updated Mom’s financial sheets today and everything is right on target, I mean exactly like I had budgeted for her in 2014 so that is wonderful.

Flames game tonight to watch. The game did not go as expected. Down in the series 2 to 1 is a little scary as we do have a habit of choking in the playoffs. If only Johnny on his break away would have put it in the net. There are still a few game left but it is getting to be nip and tuck now. Win the next and tie it up and everything is all good.

Thought of the Day

It’s not whether you win or lose that counts,’ probably lost ‘ If you fall, I’ll always be there.’ Focus, focus, focus! What am I, a telescope?! ‘ I intend to live forever. So far, so good. It’s all fun and games until someone loses their wiener. All great sayings LOL

May 8-9th

Weather Forecast ” Edmonton 10/8 degrees, Calgary 10/8 degrees “

I can think of one word to describe our spring of 2022 UGLY. I just want nice warm weather with a splash of rain at night.

Alan & MaryAnn were meeting us at Audrey’s place today for Mother’s Day. We picked up Tim’s and had a nice visit. Kennedy was with them and we were able to see pictures of her new home. She bought at place at Ghost Lake. First let me say I love the area and design. When we were looking to downsize we checked this place out and at the time decided it wouldn’t work. Today our decision maybe different. It was just starting then and they had no amenities so we would have had to “trust” on everything it was going to be successful. It is a very expensive place for a lot and house but it is the lifestyle they sell. Clubhouse, pool, spa, gym, sport courts, marina, beach marina etc. The homes they were selling at the time were under 1000 sq ft and $400K. Kennedy’s place is awesome and I would love to have it as it would fit our needs wonderfully. To have the lake, and proximity to Calgary is nice. To have a self contained home would be nice but the care for it while in Arizona would be an issue.

We had a nice visit with everyone and headed home for supper. We had lots of left overs which were as good as they were the first time.

We watched American Idol and the Oiler game back and forth. Both events turned out exactly like I wanted them to so everything is good.

As I am writing this I am experiencing a glitch. Computer guru guys never really get it. They have a job like the weatherman where if things go wrong it is not their fault.

Speaking of a glitch. Look at this for May again.

It is as cold out as the Oilers were last night.

Today I will finish up my spreadsheets and get a few things organized as my plans for going to the lot are out the window.

Tonight the Flames turn and they have to win.

May 10th-14th

Busy times so never updated for a couple of days so I will squish all together. A hockey takes three hours and a golf game takes 4 hours plus the after gathering.

Today we had a VIP tee time at Mckenzie Meadows with Jeff & Wendy. As i said before it is a super deal and I really like McKenzie Meadows. I have high expectations here as it is one course where I have broken 80 a few times. Today I played the 6000 yard tees trying for a real good score. Things started off quite well with pars happening a lot. Then it got real cold. We were dressed for winter golf but it still was cold. Wind and a high I believe of about 8 degrees feels like 2 degrees. Then it started to pour along with high winds so we rushed back to the clubhouse. A little wait and then back out. Mistakes took over and I ended up with a mid 80’s score. Having to deal with this I thought everyone played quite well especially Jackie’s driving.

After golf we stopped at the clubhouse for supper as we had left Daisy with Audrey. The chef at Mckenzie has always served up good food and tonight was no different.

After golfing we whipped to Victoria’ place to babysit Jackson as she was working the night shift and Corey was very lucky to get invited to Edmonton to watch a Oiler game at Rexall Place. Jackson and i watched until he had to go to bed. It is always disappointing to get to go to game and have your team lose. ( Edm fans are used to that though) It was a fun game to watch.

Jackson showed up his school project. He did an amazing job as did the teacher finding all of these small electric motors. This would be a fun thing for any kid to do. Jackson did it well.

Funny how a person really doesn’t sleep as well when away from home.

Jackie got up early to make breakfast and lunch and dropped Jackson off at school.

I got home showered and shaved and took Daisy for her hair appointment. When I arrived Igor appeared to be confused but accommodated Daisy even though he did not have a record of her appointment. Turns out we had the wrong date in our calendar. Igor was wonderful. Luckily I had a USD 20 bill left in my wallet that I tipped him with as he squished us in. Awesome.

Another hard fought Flames win. I am surprised Dallas is as good as we are. Every game has been extremely close. Just need one more win ! Jeff and I had Wendy drop us off at Berwick’s as you remember last time we went empty. Not tonight as there was a 45 min wait for a table and it was full. I question the 45 min wait as no one is going to leave teh game watching early. We quickly phoned Wendy and she returned at drove us to Dixon’s Pub. This place for Flames games was FULL Full all the time. In the past with Jeff he has won a Flames jersey here and a Canada Jr’s jersey and we used to take the bus to games. Not tonight as it was empty. Extremely odd with one bar jammed and a traditionally busy one being empty. Our win though as it was nice. Then at the period intermission they start punk music. I had to have a talk with the bartender. He stated his manager makes them do it. That is bad customer service. Anyways the second intermission we had the show to watch and get the snippets of info. Who wants to listen to music and miss the experts analogy of what is going on. Another fun game to watch. Lucky for us to be picked up as you an drink a fair amount of beer in 4 hours. I had 6 of 20 ounces which if you extrapolate from a normal beer bottle of 12 ounces equals 10 bottles. Luckily for me that isn’t a large quantity. A fun night !

Up early this morning and heading out to my men’s golf league at Turner Valley. Golfing today with Rick and Donn ( not a spelling mistake his parents just wanted him to be special). It was another quite cool day to golf with fairly strong winds. I played well enough other than putting and wedges into the green. The greens now at TV are amazing. It was much higher score than I like and funny enough all three of us ended with the same score. I am still waiting for a good score on this course. Another fun day golfing with a neat format and fun guys.

Edmonton’s Connor McDavid is one amazing player. Without him the team is pretty weak. He played amazing and they are now down to having to win the 7th game.

I went out the lot and worked all day. Thoroughly enjoyed it and accomplished a lot. I brought out the power head and vacuum cleaner and cleaned the motorhome. Dusted and wiped everywhere. De-winterized and started everything to make sure it was working proper. Hot water heater both gas and electric perfect. Fridge electric and gas working perfect. Furnaces and heat strip working perfect. A/C and generator working perfect. Everything is ready and a full day doing it all.

Jackie, Jeff & Wendy and I went to Dixon’s tonight for what we hoped was the last of Dallas. Not to be !

Again only about 1/2 full which is nice for us for Covid reasons. The food again was awesome. I had the Beef Dip which was perfect, Cottage pie and ribs all looked great that the others had. Jackie surprised us all by having Chicken Caesar salad.

Another great game as two teams so evenly matched and tonight as I said we didn’t pull it off so a Game 7 for us on Sunday which is scary.

Jackie I headed out to the lot and we both worked all day getting things done. We had a whole Jeep full of bedding to be washed along with towels and facecloths. Daisy was very good all day enjoying sitting on the dash and barking at passer by’s.

Had a great visit with our neighbors who just bought a new motor home. Nice unit and with glossy marble tiles. I was surprised to see no cracks in the grout lines. They have a double slide kitchen which is nice as it makes the living area much larger. Nice people.

Funny story. For 42 years Jackie and I have been married I have always stated I don’t need a garden as long as Safeway exists. Yet, we put our name in for a draw and we were giving a garden plot at our lot. I will nick name my garden plot Safeway to fix everything up. It is a smaller one this year so I will keep it simple with onions, radishes, lettuce and carrots. I will see how much room we have after that. I love garden potatoes and peas but they both require a bit of extra work. I think I will enjoy it.

Larry, Larry how does your garden grow ?

A great day !

Mixed emotions tonight as I want Edmonton to lose but I also want them to win to play us if we win. So I guess a win for them tonight and hope for us tomorrow.

Thought of the Day

The team with the most goals win. They just need to be a puck in the net not any verbal goal like play hard, check him etc.

May 15th

“Mercury Forecast Calgary 19 degrees, Edmonton 18 degrees ”

The second day of summer weather with a few thrown in coming up.

Well, the Oilers did it. Let me put that another way. Connor McDavid did it. He is unbelievable. In a league of his own. It was needed to win Game 7 but to play ONE player 50% of the ice time as he hit near 30 minutes is dumb. But he did it and hopefully he does not run out of gas later in round 2. Without McDavid the Oilers are at best one of the bottom teams in the league. They have him. He did it with his fellow players and they are in round two.

The Flames are in tough against Dallas. A hot goalie and tight checking. I can only hope we pull thru so we can have a Battle of Alberta. It will not be easy and in game 7 anything can happen. This is our best team in a lot of years but now it is anyone’s series to win which should not have been. Come on Flames.

I broke my bicep muscle a few years ago and chose not to get surgery. I should have had another doctors opinion at the time as I was told maybe a 10% to 20% reduction in strength. Not true. But it was all fine even though the strength of that arm is very limited. Last day in Arizona I helped a neighbor trim is huge grapefruit tree and torn some of the same hanging on muscle in the same arm. It has been a month and half and it still hurts a way too much. Like when I broke the original muscle I think this tear will take a long time to heal. Yesterday I helped another neighbor move a Freezer and caused it to even hurt more. Life is funny.

Everything is just about ready for our first camping trip this year. Jackie & I have been together for 45 years and most likely have camped the May Long weekend at least 35 times. When we had Blimpies we missed, when the kids were one maybe and the odd time in between but it is our thing. 35 years of May Long weekend I would say we have had 25 years of so so weather. We have had rain, cold, snow, hail, with the odd warm one thrown in but it is camping and it is the start of summer supposedly. Keith & Jenny have camped at least 3/4 of these times with us. Kieth showed me the luxury of a Porterhouse steak when we were teenagers. We started with a pup tent, had kids and moved to a 12 man tent so we could set up the baby playpen in the middle, moved up to a tent trailer which was awesome as they have loads of room, moved to a smaller travel trailer, larger travel trailer, a motorhome and now our Class A motorhome. Due to weather and just being out camping we had campers with flat tires, brakes burned off, tire punctures, frozen water in unit, broken awnings twice with snow and hail, collapsed tent, frozen propane tanks, switching vehicle’s to pull as one broke, and a slew of other issues all in the name of fun. BUT camping with friends, sitting around a fire, smelling like smoke, the food, the drinks is one of lives greatest pleasure to us.

I have checked the weather this year for the long weekend in Sylvan and Waterton and it is not perfect but will be fine.

So it will be another not so perfect weather event but if we can get a golf game in, sit around the fire and have a drink, and visit it will be all worth it. We are all set up for bad weather with tents, firepits, awnings etc so not what we want but we will make do.

Looking forward to it.

Thought of the Day

Spring is Sprung

May 16th-17th National Caesar Day

No forecast for today as it is SUMMER, over 20 degrees and about time, but sadly only until tomorrow.

First, I have to say I did not enjoy the hockey game last night. It was too stressful.

Jake Oettinger is a STAR literally. He was amazing and is going to be a star for a long time. Having said that Markstrom played exceptionally well also but not quite the super star performance of Jake. 64 saves is unbelievable. The Flames dominated but the game could have been easily lost. I hate game 7 sevens. LOL

I am also glad Edmonton got through as it will be an excellent Battle Of Alberta series. It will come down to, can Mike Smith stop 50 shots a night, and can the Flames contain McDavid.

We know Mike’s weaknesses as he used to play for us, then we traded him. He may have this as a spur in his bonnet. But his weakness is ,his upper blocker side, lower glove side, upper glove side , lower blocker side and 5 hole all are issues for him.

We also know how Connor can kill any team with his speed, and skill. Luckily we have Lucic and Tkachuk that wear the Oilers down along with Connor. A few big hits like the one Giordano gave Connor and we should be set.

It is going to be a fun series. May Calgary win !

Whamm ! Bamm Poww!

Today we are golfing with Jeff & Wendy at Speargrass. I am hoping for a great game as the temp is right and the course fits my eye other than the 17th hole. If I have a good score going I will use a 7 iron off the tee.

Speargrass Golf course was again in exceptional shape. The greens were SUPER fast. They caused all kinds of issues today for us. I played well enough but 3 putts and 4 putts were a killer. Jackie played very well today with close to breaking 100 and having three pars. And Wendy was the only one with a Birdie ! I though a woodpecker was in the area her knees were knocking so bad while shooting. But even through all of the vibration an excellent putt for the bird.

EVERY time we go out with Jeff & Wendy I seem to get ripped off with a smaller glass. I like to be ahead of things so we celebrated National Caesar Day one day early and my glass was so much smaller, one small slurp and it was empty, and they still had full glasses. Fun day and nice visit on the patio.

Daisy in her bag staying with us during supper was perfect. She was unbelievable all day on the course. One bunny sighting caused a bit of excitement but that was it.

Last time at Speargrass I took the shortcut home from the course and had to wait at the 4 way stop for quite awhile for Jeff & Wendy to catch up. Tonight I took the “normal” way and Jeff took an alternate route. Again it turned out we were miles ahead of them and we had busy truck traffic where we could not pass and travelled a considerable distance under the limit. This happens more than not. I remember leaving Turner Valley Golf and being just about home before Jeff hit the city limits with an alternate route. LOL

Wendy had the correct dates for the playoff games that I thought were different so I will need to adjust a couple of things. We will have a big screen thanks to Justin & Amanda and watch the Battle Games Friday night at 8:30 pm and Sunday night at 6 pm. My itinerary will need to be adjusted a bit.

Lots of fun today, great golfing with friends, great meal on the patio after, getting the correct dates for hockey and just having a great day. Retirement is the BEST.

Revised itinerary :

Friday May 20th.

Set up and get organized as each of us will arrive at a different time.

Golf for early arrivals

BATTLE OF ALBERTA game thanks to Justin, Amanda, Steward and Carrie 8:30pm

DRINKS with friends and cheering on your team. Note ( 2 families for Calgary and 5 families for the Oilers)

Saturday May 21st

Golf

Tee time for 4 people at 1:00pm

Tee time for 4 people at 1:09pm

POTLUCK at 6pm.

Remember Mediterranean Theme and cheap bottle of wine for potluck

DRINKS with friends around a campfire and me counting my money from the previous nights win.

Sunday May 22nd

Lakeside Golf Carts and Mini Golf https://lakesidegokarts.ca/… Adults and kid friendly

Visit the BIG MOO https://www.bigmooicecream.com/ Kids and adult friendly

Golf

Tee time for people at 4:00pm

Tee time for people at 4:09pm

BATTLE OF ALBERTA game 6pm.

** Note I will adjust tee times or we will golf 9 holes.

Monday May 23rd

Golf in the morning which we can book for anyone that wants.

Pack up and head home or in our case head to Waterton National Park.

Sitting on the deck with my laptop on my knees drinking my Tim’s homemade coffee in the sun you just can’t go wrong. Laughing at all of the responses to my email about the games. Unfortunately or luckily I guess depending how you look at it, the bulk of my friends support the Oilers. It is sort of like being locked up in prison knowing you are innocent. I can’t change these guys and it hurts me seeing the stress they have compounded into their lives by making a poor decision. It is like an addict where you can’t help them if they won’t help themselves so they will continue down into the abyss of sorrow once again as their dreams are snatched away by the Flames.

Daisy has her shots at the vet today and we will make a Costco run for the weekend food.

I won’t get gas at Costco again. Last week we went when I was there for my glasses and you save 4 cents a litre. 50 liters so we saved $2.00 and spent 1/2 hour in line. My time is worth more than $4 bucks an hour. Now some will same but you also save 3% on the purchase. Yes but it is a year to recover that 2.55 dollars . And you will end up spending it at Costco on bulk stuff you really don’t need. Plus the fact if you were are TRUE saver/calculator cost cutting person you could do the math that in fact you are losing. Take this into the thinking. $2.55 plus $2.00 and save in an account for year at any amount over 3% you win. I can’t buy into the Costco gas thing due to time spent and savings. These companies rely heavily on the “sheep” marketing concept where if others are doing it it must be good. Then they open their pantry and throw away tons of out dated product or they eat more as it is readily handy.

I will bring home my TONS of meat and divide it up into usable packages for each meal before freezing it. I should figure the time and baggie cost to see if this is even worth it.

For our May Long this year our potluck theme is Mediterranean dishes. I have chose a marinated pork roast recipe called Portuguese Vino Dosh along with a Mediterranean Diet Spinach Salad and an inexpensive Portuguese red wine. Can’t wait to see what everyone brings as there are so many countries to chose from.

Thought of the Day

Ever notice that just like in buffet line people overfill their plate.

May 18th

” Mercury forecast Edmonton 13 degrees, Calgary 16 degrees & 65 km wind”

First thing was to load up all of the clothes, bedding and food into the Jeep. I headed out to the lot and started to unload and organize. I will say this. We have too much stuff and junk in the motorhome, but you never know when you will need it right ?

It will take Jackie a bit to put it all in the RIGHT place. LOL I had my sandwich and worked on the power situation as my surge protector had to be reset. It keeps kicking off with a HIGH GROUND FAULT 32V error that I can’t figure what it is. I tried it in a different plus on the post and the exact same thing. There are 300 plus units and 99 percent don’t use one so I put it away and have no issue. Yet. Pain in the ass for me for a long time and annoying and I would like to know the reason and it may as simple as it being too sensitive.

Had a long talk and helped the neighbor with his propane tee valve. He got that all done.

The wind today was sick. It was gusting at least to 50 kms per hour all day. It was warm enough but exceptionally windy. Driving home it was like a small tugboat in the ocean as it was pushing everywhere.

In fact it was windy enough they had to cancel the RED LOT party outside the Dome for safety reasons. Yep, the big game tonight !

Watching the news and the disappointing news from Jason Kenny. He has decided to step down even though he officially had enough votes to stay on. The internal bickering amongst the UCP came to head. When you join two parties the Wildrose and the Progressive party it is hard to get everyone on the same page. To compound the issue you have worms like Brian Jean wading in and causing dissent. It is not so much a new leader but the fear of the Witch of The North getting back in and destroying Alberta again.

I am thinking a alternate party like the Alberta Party may get my vote, unless Danielle Smith runs for leader. I will not vote for Brian Jean with his whining, crying and being a trouble maker. He should have been not allowed to run again. The problem is once again if people start to look at alternate parties the NDP will sneak in, again, and we can not allow that to happen. I think Kenny should have stayed on and purged the party. You need to FIRE poisonous employees right away and he should have done that right at the start. The issue is the people voted in these guys and it looks poorly on the leader to get rid of them. The Conservative leadership changes both federally and provincially have been the catalyst that accounts for the reduction in support. No political leader during Covid has escaped the criticism as there was no right way to do things and to many members decided to crucify the leader.

My hope is Danielle Smith asap and everyone supports her to make the UCP strong again and win a majority to get things done. She made one huge forgivable error in her career and hopefully has learned from that.

As I said no leader in the world is doing a great job so it did surprise me Kenny quit. As an example so far in 2022, Americans have suffered through the highest inflation rate in 40 years, the highest gas prices on record and the worst start of the year for the S&P 500 since 1939. A lot is due to policy and they don’t get it.

Ready for the Rumble !

What a game. A big win. A historical win with the scoring. Three lousy goalies in one game is unheard of. It was fun and looking forward to game two.

It is a long weekend coming up and the City is soooo smart they decide to clean the streets on Friday the day before it starts. Poeple are loading their trailers and now can’t or have to work around this. Sometimes I wonder how poeple do not think in their job. Surely someone sitting in city hall could think a little before deciding Friday was the day. There are miles and miles of roads to be cleaned other than this residential street. I need to come up with a plan B now.

I picked up the motorhome today and had quite the ride home. 60 kms side winds were brutal and then my wipers blew up. The drivers side literally broke off to the side and was hanging there. I pulled over and in the wind, rain and plus 5 temperatures checked to see what was going on. TRIPLE E’s claim to fame is their craftsmanship and quality. Well, the wiper set up is neither. As the front fascia is rounded and a bar to connect the wipers is straight they kerf cut the bar for a bend and used plywood spacers for gapping. With the high winds catching the blades while driving the bar broke. I opened the access and no way to fix it on the side of the road and extremely difficult due to spacing and parts even in a better situation. The access is so limited it is crazy. I think when I get back I will remove the entire assembly and see if I can find some one to either weld aluminum or bend a steel bar to make it work. Hours of work in a very very confined spot. I will spray the windshield with Rainex and watch the weather and take my chances. I have at least secured the wiper from flopping around. Disappointed in the way this was done and surprised. In a shop it would be hours of work and you cant buy the parts so I will spend the time to see about making it right. Darn timing !

Wifi is unknown so it maybe a week before I post. I will make sure to capture the pics and antics along the way. It takes a good take to post a week and it is usually in short form as it is from memory and looking back in notes. My tablet is difficult to post on.

May 20th to 27th

“Mercury Forecast- for the most part quite good. No rain except on Friday driving up to Red Deer, so no complaints and made the week enjoyable. I would describe it as cool but dry “

It was quite a start. I Rainex’d the window in front of the condo where I parked to load up. First the garbage truck comes and struggles to get by me. Then someone new is moving into the condo and wants to park close to the front door. The street cleaners were out so no one could park on the street so it was a mess. Timing is everything is such a true statement. But, we got it all loaded, the building super asked to see how long we were going to be, so I assume a new notice restricting loading in the front. LOL

Huge wind and small amounts of rain but the RainEX worked perfect. Full tank leaving Calgary and we used a half a tank to Red Deer. To put this into perspective our trip from Red Deer to Waterton only took a 1/2 tank. 150 kms one way and 430 kms the other. Wind makes a HUGE difference. A 1/2 tank of gas today is worth $270.

As we entered Red Deer the weather started to break and was quite decent. As I entered into Meadowlands Rv a gentleman was walking out of the office. It is funny but just from phone conversations I knew this was Dale and he knew right away it was I in the motorhome. For anyone this is a wonderful campsite. Clean, spacious, quiet, on a golf course and only 5 minutes from the lake. Highly recommend it.

Carrie & Stewart were the only ones there. I sorted out all of the lots for everyone which turned out perfect. Plans are coming together.

Everyone arrived and settled in to their sites. Tonight was the hockey game and we are lucky with Carrie/Stewart and Justin/Amanda having the equipment and know how for us to watch the game outside. The temperatures were cool so we all were bundled up.

Jessica & Penny are becoming seasoned campers now which is good. A few hiccups that we were able to rectify such as a missing water hose and no propane. But with a new trailer all kinds of things are needed and the first time out is when you discover what you forgot or need. They did have a leak under their bathroom sink. Here is my take. You put away your unit in the fall and have someone winterize it and then first time using it it leaks it questions the winterizing. Having said that it could have been just movement, twisting and bad luck but it is odd. Their unit uses those new pex crimp fittings which are a replacement for the old brass/cooper press fittings. It is a less expensive way and even homes now are using them. BUT I do not like or trust them. Both require a special tool. I “cheated” and had to use a channel lock to tighten one of the girls.

All fixed so good.

I won’t talk much about the game. The one man team of the Oiler’s did it to us.

On my drive with Jessica to get propane we noticed a new Vette. I like these, I like the older ones better but the new one does have a supercar look. This one was white and ugly though. Just no pizazz whatso ever. And it didn’t even sound good when it took off.

The guys were out golfing today. My group was Alan, Keith and Jason. First let me say I like the course. It is in perfect shape and the lay out was great. Only complaint would be small greens that are turtle back in most cases. The putting killed us all. Everyone played quite well. Alan is sick as he only plays once or twice a year and on the first nine he was only 2 strokes out of first place. It was a fun course, nice weather and fun guys to play with. It was a little off day for me and ended up 2 strokes out of first place only due to two lost balls. That is at least 2 to 4 strokes difference. Jason pulled out the win. Long hitter.

Tonight was our potluck with a Mediterranean theme. Only one word to describe it. AMAZING. The dishes were so different. So good. Such a variety and LOADS of wine was consumed. I will try to list some of the dishes and hope not to forget one. Greek Salad, Spinach Salad, chicken kabobs, nan bread, Spiced pork, pasta salad, pasta swirls with marinara sauce, Italian wedding soup, sambuca, chicken wings, tiramisu, pasta filled triangles, garlic bread and I am sure a lot more. Absolutely delicious.

Today was fun day at the lake. Everyone met and we had mini golf, go cart racing and bumper cars. Everyone had a fun time and we were there for at least 5 hours.

Now to my forte go-cart racing. I love these things. This is small track, a little short and under powered carts but a lot lot of fun. In my race we had 7 single and 3 double cars on the track. I drew the back of the pack. For anyone that watches Nascar it is hard to pass everyone and work your way to the front as every car is equal speed. Our race starts and with some very tricky moves, a little luck and some skill I maneuvered all the way to the front dipping and slinking my way through to the front of the pack after one lap. That is passing 9 cars. I held this lead for every lap. Justin’s cart was faster ( less weight) and I had to hold him off the whole way. Then 2 corners before the end I got caught behind a slow moving cart and another with them squeezing me out and not wanting to “BREAK” the rules by bumping I let two cars past me. Darn ! A lot of fun and i impressed myself, maybe shocked is a better word ,to work right up to lead the pack for the entire time and hold off any challenges. You can see by the pictures the lead and lap after lap.

When we finished the race, the owner of the park came up to me while I was still in my car, unbuckling my helmet, and gave me a high five and said ” You were a mad man out there” I might add she was a very attractive 50 something lady.

A fun event that everyone enjoyed, hopefully.

After the carts we headed to the BIG MOO for ice cream. Corey was in line so offered offered to get ours. He was at least 30 people ahead of the others in our group and I still think we were close to last. Bad luck getting a newbie with no memory. She would do one cone at a time and even if they were the same would come back to get the other cone details. It was painfully slow. I feel for the girl ,us and the company as everyone has to learn but it is all about the timing. The only reason we were sort of in a hurry was the ladies had golf at 4pm and the game at 6pm so nine hole sis cutting it close.

The girls and kids went golfing at 4pm, right on time. I can only assume it was not conducive to good golf with that many kids but it may have been fun.

The girls only golfed 9 holes as the Flames game was on at 6:30 I believe. I won’t dwell on the game but the wrong team won again. !! The Oilers are not that good. We are playing badly and and having bad luck. They have the “god” of hockey as David is a one man wrecking ball. This will be their downfall relying on 1 or 2 guys too much if they get past us.

We have had a lot of things happen and as mentioned prior, the girls had a tap leak, then Keith’s hot water tank started to leak. This was an issue as it was the tank itself must have cracked as all of the fitting’s were fine. Luckily we could by-pass it with the winterizing switch but he had no hot water. Nice shower building so only dishes and you could boil water so not to bad. To add to the events Jessica gets a huge nail in her front truck tire and it is leaking air plus my wipers breaking. Drama happens, but it would be nice not to have.

Another Flames game sitting outside which was a lot fun. Except for the score again.

Everyone packed up actually quite fast and headed home in the morning. Everyone was gone by 11am. Keith’s rum I guess didn’t get to anyone.

Alan & MaryAnn along with us were heading to Waterton. We decided to stop at the new HWY 42 truck stop. This is a easy in and out compared to Gasoline Alley so it was nice. But man did it take Jackie a long time in Burger King. Another newbie but it was especially long this time. We have a great lunch and then headed south. The highway was BUSY. A long weekend always results in an extremely busy highway.

Here is where I have an issue. The police decided to pick this weekend to focus on distracted driving. Here we have the STUPIDIEST Alberta Sheriffs watching and stopping on this busy highway. Two lanes bumper to bumper literally have to slam on the brakes to avoid a collision as a cop thinks he needs his quota of tickets. Not once but twice in 5 miles these no minds pull out and pull over a car while endangering EVERY vehicle on the highway. Amazing how dumb !

I was impressed with Alan actually keeping up to us doing the speed limit all the way to Waterton. Sometimes rental homes and new to driving a bigger rig makes people drive slow. On our way home I followed Alan about a mile back and he even went over the limit. Like leading a horse to the barn they want to get their home spot in a hurry.

Beautiful country to see on the way down. I bought a year pass to the National Parks. My thinking was even if not really needed it will help with the upkeep which is amazing. In fact Waterton has a 20 million dollar new tourist info center that is beautiful.

We went for a long walk after getting all set up. This is a great campsite. Along the way we saw at least 15 deer, a beautiful river, great waterfall, nice gravel beach, clean lake and lots of popular buds in the dogs paws. We even were only a 100 yards away from a mother bear and her cubs. We were very cautious. During our walk the wind off the lake was huge. It was a little cool.

Alan & MaryAnn made us an awesome Lasagna with garlic bread supper. I love Lasagna.

We played UNO after supper in the unit as it was too cool and windy out. The dogs were awesome. I may need to change my middle name to UNO. Yes I was the big winner !

It was a nice relaxing few days as we got up and slowly made our plans. Daisy actually slept in until 9am without needing her early breakfast. Jackie did get up each morning and take her for a long walk. The Huggett’s made us a perfect breakfast this morning.

Today we did a lot of sight seeing. We checked out the whole town walking up down the blocks. I think I like Waterton better than Jasper or Banff. It does NOT have one chain store. All Ma & Pop shops which is perfect.

We took the boat cruise which surprisingly was almost full. An awesome event as we had a great cruise guide that was very informative. Interesting that Canada and the US worked together to create this park. We actually got to stop right on the border and see the cutline and monument. A 1 1/2 hr cruise that was fun. It was Daisy’s first boat ride and she did fine. The odd little shake.

Tonight we went to the Thirsty Bear Bar to watch the game. It was only about 1/4 full which we liked. Then it got packed. Turns out Earle’s restaurants had their manager’s conference in Waterton so we filled to the brim with 20 something young girls and guys. Funny when you think about it as Waterton in the off season only has a population of 50 poeple. There had to be at least 100 in this bar.

I won’t talk about the game.

I understand inflation, location, supply and demand, making profit but I think they are getting a little carried away here. $9.50 for a bottle of beer and $2.10 per chicken wing. Years ago with Darren Woods and Ed Buhnai I used to order 100 wings at a time. Here that would be $ 210.00 just for wings. Nuts.

The dogs stayed in the car and were well behaved. We think !

Today we decided to do the tourist drive thing. Our first stop was the astounding Prince of Wales Hotel. It really is majestic. When we arrived we were met at the gate by a gentleman we saw at the bar last night. He was dressed in a kilt and let me tell you he had to really hang on to it as the wind was blowing. When I say blowing I bet 80kms per hour. When I opened the Jeep door it was like being in a hurricane. The interior of the hotel is amazing with timber framing and at least 5o ft ceilings. The view nothing short of spectacular. The rooms are not to expensive at $249 when you consider the location and prestige of the hotel. I am sure the Queen most likely stayed here at some point.

We drove up to the Red Rock Canyon. This was amazing. The canyon was incredible and the path around it perfect. We then walked to Blakiston Falls. Awesome walk. They said 1km but it seemed to be a lot longer, Our next stop would have been 13kms so we turned back. Blakiston Falls was incredible and they spent a lot of money on the pathways and walks. I do know Jackie did not like the drop offs on the side of the paths and asked a couple coming up if she could have the inside track.

Then off to Cameron Lake. It is a shame how the fire has destroyed the beauty of the mountains. A wonderful drive up to the lake. The first oil well in western Canada was along our way. Bad luck producing only 1 barrel a day. At Cameron Lake the snow was piled on the sides higher than the Jeep. At least 7 ft high piles. It was completely froze over. I can see this being a huge attraction in the summer as they had tons of docks pulled up and had a huge parking space and offering boat and canoe rentals. It was in a valley very similar to Lake Lois. It was quite cool outside with the snow.

We then walked the entire town. Love it.

Today we made a supper of Roast beef, potatoes, carrots and salad. It was good and the Huggett’s brought along garlic bread. A very good supper.

Another night of UNO. I don’t really care for the name MaryAnn UNO Huggett. It just doesn’t sound right. MaryAnn was the big winner.

Up and driving home. As I previously said Alan was in a hurry going home. LOL A nice drive and easy traffic. We unloaded the motorhome as it goes in for service on Monday.

Another great adventure in the books.

I will not talk about the game. Robbed, not right and unjust and even the Oiler fans HAVE to admit it was a bad call.

Up this morning and I headed out to the lot for a full days work. It was a perfect day reaching 22 degrees. A quick stop at Home Depot for flowers. INFLATION again takes a hit. I worked all day from 10 am to 4 pm. It was fun. I raked the grass, put down soil and seed, cut it and fertilized it. While weed eating I did the neighbors also. I sprayed for weeds. I trimmed all of the shooters. I used the blower to send all of the sticky pods away. I swept the decks and cleaned off the covers. I planted all of the flowers and they turned out great. I sorted out my deck box and found a lock for some of the tools. I cleaned out the eavestroughs, set out the hoses for my irrigation, moved things around in the shed and looked at my wipers. Big job !

BBQ ribs and roast potatoes for supper and another great day done. Another great week of adventure in the books that was very enjoyable.

Thought of the Day

If it doesn’t matter who wins or loses why do we keep score. Bettman causes another Flames loss. Getting to be two many times !

May 28th

“Mercury Forecast Calgary 19 degrees, Edmonton 21 degrees”

Pretty sad having to wait until the end of May for spring to arrive but finally some decent days.

Jackie and I headed to the Depot to get a few more flowers and a few odds and ends I needed. Jackie picked up a great selection of flowers. We stopped to pick up a hoe from Cor& Tor but it is missing as the garage is a little full right now. As we pulled up Corey had pulled out a Spirea, one of may favorite plants as they did not want it so I grabbed it and will plant it out at the lot. A plant this size is $60. I picked up a rake and we will make due. Today was flower and garden day at the lot.

I have been married 42 years and always said ” as long as there is a Safeway I don’t need a garden” 42 yrs later here we are planting a garden. Inflation lol Everyone knows the taste of fresh is awesome with minimal work so we will give it a try. We have a small plot this time and if everything goes well maybe a large one next year. We shoveled, turned the soil, forgot the steer manure, raked out the stone and drenched for our seeds. Now if everything goes well we should have, lettuce, radish, carrots, onions, and potatoes. Time will tell.

We also filled all of the flower boxes so all set there. The irrigation canal has an issue so we are still not running water other than potable water. I have about an hour of set up once it is running to adjust the heads etc.

Daisy as usual was excellent but became a mess with the sticky buds from the popular.

I threw a garbage bag on the roof of the Jeep to unload at the gate but I forgot it was up there. Miles later I see it fly off the roof and land in the center of the highway. I had to stop and run back to get it but it was pretty much ripped up. I now have a pile of dirt in the back of the Jeep that will require vacuuming. When I dropped off the rake I put it with Corey’s stuff as I couldn’t get it anywhere without making a mess.

A very enjoyable day. A warm nice sunny day.

Thought of the Day

A weed is a plant that has mastered every survival skill except for learning how to grow in rows

May 29th

“Mercury Forecast Calgary 16 degrees, Edmonton 15 degrees”

Today Jackie decided house cleanup day. I will say when I came home it sure looked and smelled wonderful. A full day’s work for her. This will be the test wither the housework or the gardening affect the back worse.

At the Depot today after walking and searching everywhere I had to ask and to my dismay Home Depot is out of stock of plastic water cans. To me that is just poor buying nothing else. I had the same clerk as last time. It identified as ” She/him/they/them. I couldn’t identify what “they” were. LOL

I spent the entire day working out at the lot. I adjusted, installed new heads and drip lines around the entire lot. I am all set now when they get the irrigation up and running. We need it quickly for the gardens and flowers. I set the timer, added extra lines, and hand watered everything. I weed whacked and sprayed my lot and the neighbors for weeds.

Lots of activity out there today with everyone building, doing chores or just relaxing. I just wish WISH our weekend only neighbors would realize that NOT everyone likes to listen to music in the country. I need to start a movement against NOISE pollution ( music) It is becoming prevalent on the golf course, in people’s back yards, in cars at the street lights, at the beach and in wilderness campsites. Drives me nuts why people do not want to enjoy the peace and quiet and the peacefulness of birds, animals and the leaves blowing.

I whipped the motorhome to Guarantee RV to replace the rear leveler springs as they are taking a way to long to retract. I am going to get them to check the wipers and hopefully they have a creative mechanic that likes to work in tight places.

The new freeway #201 is still under major construction with a lot of traffic back up. It would be nice to get this ring road finished.

I don’t know about other people but I find I am TOO BUSY a way to much. I would love to go to a lake, with a quite campground and do nothing for a while. I am going to try to fit that in.

We need rain right now but I want summer weather start.

Juts one thing about the Flames loss. I am sure even though very happy the true hockey fan that understands sporting rules would agree what happened to Calgary was not right. It was a miscall and that should never have happened. NEVER disallow a goal that could be considered controversial on a team that is facing elimination. The Flames may have not won the series but they would have had an opportunity for game 6 which could have changed everything. Something for everyone to think about. Remember the final decision was by the NHL control room. Is it in the best interests of the NHL not to have Connor play another series ? Does Bettman really care about the Flames and the arena fiasco so judge against them would have been his thoughts. Remember this is teh second time a disallowed goal has affected the Flames. Lets watch now as the NHL turns on the Oiler’s as they DO NOT want a Canadian Team and a small market team to advance. Just watch.

A friend from Edmonton sent this to me which I thought was hilarious.

Next year is right!! LOL It is always fun to harass Oiler fans but this time they have one upped us.