September 1st

“Mercury Forecast LOVELY WEATHER hitting 30 degrees each day for the next few. “

Today was my men’s league at Turner Valley. I love the group, I love the format and I love the side games and playing partners. I DO NOT LIKE THE COURSE. I cannot play this course and score well. It is a mind thing as the fairways are wide enough, but I have not had one good game there. After golfing what I think was a exceptionally good game. Yesterday I was hoping for a great day here. That stopped after the first hole. I try and hard to make sure to never complain about aches and pains as it is annoying that old poeple just like talking about that and the weather. So I won’t go into that other than say my side back issue that I need a Sebastian fix every once in awhile was a factor. You score poorly on the first hole it sort of sets up the game as a catchup and is always a factor .

I had one slice yesterday and today every hole I was struggling to keep in bounds and it fact lost three balls on different holes. Even my normal good shots on the fairway were not working. Needless to say I did not win any money in the game but I did win $2 in a side corner game. It is a love hate relationship I have with Turner Valley and I may look at what to do next year. After my ” free” rounds from my retainership is done TV is not cheap and in fact is too expensive for the course especially if it doesn’t fit the eye. I used to score well here but not one game this year lower than a mid 80’s score and in fact the only course where I have scored over a 100 on in the last few years.

A fun gathering after the golf. TV has wonderful salads I enjoy and I threw in an additional side and it is great. Great company with my three normal playing partners.

A fun day but poor golf day.

Thought of the Day

We learn so many things from golf, especially the way to suffer.

September 2- 11th

We have our Oasis early Halloween this weekend which is always fun and I will try to post some pics and then on Monday I head out fishing to ROE Lake Sask landing in a float plane.

I am positive 6 hours north of Lloydminster I won’t have cell service so I will post when I get back. GOAL is a 20 pound plus Pike and a 20 pound Lake Trout and I will be extremely happy. I would say anything over 40 inches is getting close to that size.

Time will tell.

It should be an great Sept as we have a few things going on already planned.

• Oasis Carnival and early Halloween
• Week long fly in fishing to Roe Lake SK
• Jackie’s birthday
• Golf game scheduled for Kananaskis.
• 6 friends or family birthdays or anniversaries.
• Pulling up the garden to see our success.

Plus anything else that comes up .

We arrived late Friday afternoon after picking up groceries. What a beauty of a day. We cleaned and organized in preparation of the weekend. After losing to Jackie getting Wordle in three we decided to set up decorations. Our plan works great as we share the decorations with Tor and add to it each year. I hung them up and they look great. Now candy handouts are before dark which I hate as the kids don’t get as scared but it makes it nice for them to be warm and not too afraid. Speaking of warmth at 33 degrees a kid in a costume is going to struggle.

it cooled down around 8pm so we started to bag candy. We were generous in portion sizing so only bagged 175 treat bags. We have two unopened bags to use if we run low.

A beautiful cool evening. Quiet dark cool in a comfy bed makes life great.

A $2 breakfast of coffee, sausage, and pancakes is awesome. Pain Releive Jet Spray hopefully has results.

We got a good deal for our cruise to Alaska. I will pay the deposit asap and have 6 months to set cash aside. I will book the kids flights and hotel for Disney when I get back from fishing. It will be a fun trip having Christmas with Disneyland and Mesa included.

MUSIC drives me nuts. In the country and having to listen to music all day doesnt make sense. Luckily it is only on weekends. I would sign a petition banning music at all campgrounds, backyards, golf courses,condo’s, and bass at stoplights. I can’t hear the nice rumble of a cars exhaust over the bang bang.

Starting to heat up. With as many people out here I may run my genset for the a/c as the main box is going to HOT and if that happens power can be blacked out for an hour or more as they cool. Passive aggressive side of me thinking it will drown out the music. Lol

I am back !!

First let me say I had a wonderful fun fishing trip. I left Calgary around 1pm to meet Alfred in Edmonton around 4pm. As usual Hwy 2 was busy, make that super busy as it was the last day of the log weekend. Bumper and bumper at 120 kh/m and wouldn’t you know it accidents. Drivers amazing me. Two accidents heading south with stopped traffic for miles. Getting near Leduc and getting lower on gas then dead stopped on highway. I was stuck for at least an hour and watching the gauge getting lower and lower and worried about running out. In fact a young women was walking with her young kids and was at least a 2 miles past where I saw them start. FINALLY off again. I whipped into Leduc and got gas at $1.25 a liter. Awesome.

Arrived and picked up Alfred and knowing we would arrive in Lloyd a bit later than originally thought. Highway work on the Yellowhead slowed us a bit but we still made good time. I decided a quick stop at Vegreville for supper was in order. We found a McDonalds in the Wal-Mart store to have supper. Here is a McDonald that was very poor. The Kiosk ordering system didn’t print a receipt to give you a pick up number and I had to ask the clerk who said they knew it was broke and then gave me a number for pickup. Then the ice maker didn’t work. This store needs help.

We went to leave and whipped into the Walmart washroom. I have NEVER seen such a scene. Some person literally exploded in the can. Shit exploded in the toilet, back of it and up the walls and floor. The worst mess ever. I do have to say that Walmart staff after being told did react quickly and closed the room. I do not know if the individual survived the incident.

Our Welcome to Lloydminster event. I had tried to load the address in my GPS before leaving that Alfred had sent me but it couldn’t it so I thought I would use Google Maps when we got to Lloyd. It struggled also but we had a point to get to so headed that way. It was close but and near but not correct. It was dark out and we were trying to see the house numbers, (hint: house numbers need to be lite) We were in a crescent and shone the lights on one house then turned around to see another. All of a sudden, this guy knocks on my window. Startles me a bit but I am thinking, there is a mass knife killer out here and he can’t see me through my tinted windows, and he has enough guts to knock on my window. Two things, first he reeked of pot and second, he was very angry. I did understand and apologized. WELCOME TO LLOYDMINSTER. After a bit he calmed down and offered assistance knowing we were looking for an address. We had SK instead of AB as the location. We found it within minutes. And now I know YES, my lights are bright enough to annoy people. Perfect they work.

Jim is Mary’s brother. He has a beautiful home in Lloyd and quite large with lots of room as we were spending the night before heading out. Jim’s wife coughed a lot while we talking to her in the living room. I held my breath as it didn’t sound good. Alfred that night explained she has COPD. Made me feel better. Funny how a cough can scare you.

We were up at 5am and readied to head out as soon as our fourth showed up. With four we decided to take one vehicle to save on gas as we could fit everything in his truck. Our fourth named George had a 2010 Tundra with 500,000 kms and the baldest rear tires I have ever seen on a vehicle. Not really safe especially driving 4.5 hours north of LLoyd with very few communities on the way and ending up in an Indigenous community. We made it though. Luckily.

It was interesting as the first stop for gas one guy forgot his credit cards at home and at the second stop another thought he left his wallet in the cabin on our return. Timing ! LOL

In the small community where we were taking off in the plane from Buffalo Narrows in the general store they had a self serve Tim Hortons. A box of doughnuts and coffee’s for the guys and a hot chocolate for myself as it didn’t have an Icecap machine.

We loaded up out turbo prop Otter plane. We had in our luggage with us and a 6500 watt generator and 10 horse boat motor. I have been in a few float plane rides and I have to say this pilot was the best ever. His take-off and landings were superb . So smooth you didn’t even know it happened. The air was a little rough during our ride and if anyone had any issues with movement it would have thrown them. In fact we heard of past flights were 4 out 6 people puked into what ever they could find. I am lucky as I enjoy the rough ride. We had a 80 mile ( as the crow flies to the lake) ride .

It is amazing country. Lakes and lakes, trees and marsh everywhere. You couldn’t walk out of here as at every turn you would need to walk around a lake. Interesting as Buffalo Narrows is squeezed in between to huge bodies of water being Peter Pond Lake and Churchill Lake and i didn’t see a connecting river. Odd.

Arriving at Roe Lake we pull up to the cabin. This is a cabin co owned by 10 guys and operated for personal use only. It is quaint and rustic but it is perfect and every amenity you would ever need.. Can you imagine the only way to bring material in is by float plane. Rustic but nice, more than sufficient and workable. I loved it.

Weather– We were on this trip from Monday to Saturday ( 6 days) and the only warm non windy days were the first and last. In fact with these two days removed 10 degrees was our high temperature. Lows at zero to 1 or 2 degrees. The one day I had my shirt on, my golf wind breaker, my plaid lined hoodie jacket covered with my rain jacket and a life jacket. I used many pocket hand warmers as my fingers turned white pretty fast holding a fish to remove them and just holding the rod. The winds at least 30 km/h even on the days we were fishing caused all kinds of issues. You would catch a fish and throw the motor into neutral to bring it in and before you knew it you were crashing against rocks. One day the white caps were so big we couldn’t fish.

Lake- a beautiful place in the world. A smaller lake where I will guess it is about 5 miles long by 3 miles wide ( no info on the net about this) It has crystal clear water, no weeds, no algae and appears not to be too deep in center. It the MOST DANGEROUS lake I have been on though especially with wind. Rock lines edges and multiple protruding boulders just under the water or just breaking the surface that are very difficult to see. In fact our host who has fished this lake for 26 years hit his prop 3 times and we hit ours once. Alfred straightened them by removing them and pounding them straight and filing. Huge boulders lining the edges as we entered and existed the river feeding the lake. On the east end of the lake there is one smaller sandy beach. There are only 4 cabins on this lake. One of these is a large house and a owner with bundles of money. He has the sandy beach. We stopped over to check it out and he has a Pontoon leisure party boat with a 150 hp motor, two 16ft alum fishing boats decked out, a Kubota backhoe tractor and a skid steer all on his property that all had to be flown in by helicopter or plane as even winter access isn’t really available. He even had a wood fire heated hot tub in the back yard. He is living the good life for sure. The lake has a river and a waterfall entering it. The rich cabin guys even built a lookout deck above it.

Cabin- I loved Jim’s cabin. It is a true ” cabin” but is prefect. A large deck with a outside sitting and kitchen area, a full functioning kitchen inside with a gas fridge, stove, a living room with seating and a futon, a 6 person bunk bed house, a master suite, a bathroom with shower, and a mudroom with a fold down bed. Hot and cold water drawn from the lake. Full electrical by using the 6500 gensets. Two large storage sheds, 3 fishing boats, wonderful dock that cost 12K as it was needed for the float plane to tie up to, and a perfect bay location. It is perfect !

Fishing- The reason we came here is fishing. We caught a lot of fish and we ate a lot of fish. Jim would cook them in oil with a beer batter and they were excellent. Not a single bone found by any of us. We had two full meals with fish that were excellent and brought back the maximum we were allowed. Sask is a little better than Alberta as their conservation officers must be a little smarter as they only require a small piece of skin left on each fillet not like Alberta requiring the full fish head etc. The Jack are awesome here. No slime what so ever. The clean cold water is perfect. We were allowed to bring 12 trout back but were only able to catch one even though it was a 8 pounder. Here is the only disappointing thing about the trip. This far up north with very little fishing done ( 4 cabins only and no access) the expectation was greater than achieved. Both Alfred & I brought heavy gear for large Jack and large trout. This means trolling only and in most cases going deep. The lake didn’t accommodate this. Our other two people on the trip used standard fishing gear I am going to say the average Jack caught lately in Alberta normal lakes is the 4 – 6 pounders with the odd larger one thrown in like Fred’s 20 pounder. There are a few 8 pounders thrown in. Disappointed as our keepers were all between 6 and 8 pounds. Perhaps overall a little larger but not by much and with little fishing on the lake surprising. The experience though more than made up for the lack of size.

Food- Our host Jim was amazing. We had some perfect meals on the trip. We had our first night big fish fry along with home made French Fries. We had bacon & eggs with toast for breakfast and we had sausages and eggs for another. We had wonderful burgers and home made fries for another supper. One night while Jim & Alfred were cleaning fish I BBQ’d smokies, beans, sautéed onions, and corn on the cob. For one breakfast I cooked scrambled eggs with a new discovery for me. Jim bought a small cartoon with 9 full eggs in it with an expiry of 2026. Talk about an easy way to transport eggs and they tasted just like normal. What you can find when looking for something different. Jim also found a beer batter for our fish that he used that was excellent. Perfect meals. We had shore lunches most days which were great.

A whole week with 4 guys and I didn’t hear snoring from anyone. Either they didn’t snore or I slept well. LOL

On the Thursday when it was too windy to go out as the lake had high white caps on it we had a “rum” day and “repair” day. Alfred and I repaired the wheelbarrow drilling new axle holes. George picked at least 5 pounds of blue berries and found a lost pigtail for the remote start on the genset. Alfred, Jim and I spent at least two hours or more and failed at making it work. The pigtail was missing it’s end plug in-cap. It had 4 colored wires so lots of combos to try.24 if my math is right and we could not find it. We tried every combo possible we thought and ended up leaving it being able to stop remotely but not to start it up. It was odd. I little repair to the eaves screening, deck boards, a check on the ripped apart old party boat and the day flies by. Constant wind all day.

The last day is cleanup day to get it ready for the next owner and friends visit. We all worked cleaning up. We had the tentative time of arrival. We got fooled. I was washing out the boats, putting seats and life jackets away when the plane arrived one hour early. I had swept and mopped the cabin except for the kitchen/ living room area as we were still going in and out. I rushed the boat job and ran back to the cabin to finish as the new people were unloading. Two guys had brought their wives and I wanted to make sure Jim had left the place clean. The floor has to dry a bit after mopping and I got lucky as the ladies for a one week trip had enough luggage to stay all winter it kept them done at the dock unloading so I got it done.

Another excellent take off and heading back to Buffalo Narrows. The first stop back is where the wallet went missing by a guest. LOL A few eats for a lunch and on the road again. The tires made it all the way back again. Luckily.

I LOVED THE TRIP. It was a lot of fun with good people. I most likely would not go back as the fishing even though abundant are not proper sized as I can catch the same size in a lake in Alberta without a license cost, air ride cost etc. The experience though is worth the cost.

The amount of bugs on the Jeep is unbelievable. It must be their last stand before winter death.

I dropped off Alfred and headed home expecting to be home about 11:30 or so.

Just before the Ponoka turnoff a car I was following was serving in his lane. I held back thinking maybe texting but after a few miles it was obvious he was drunk. I hate whiners, squealers, snitches etc but he was a dangerous person on the road so I decided to call 911 and report a drunk driver sighting. In my mind this should have triggered an immediate emergency situation. Anyone that knows me knows I have the highest regard and respect for our policeman except for the traffic division. This is the entry level position where officers have to get past their overblown power tripping ego’s, lack of respect for the common person, have no common sense and only want to pretend they saved the world by generating ticket revenue.

THE BLACKFALDS, PONOKO RCMP IN MY OPINION ARE THE MOST INCOMPETENT OFFICERS I HAVE EVER SEEN ,AND IS BEYOND COMPREHENSION. I am shocked, disappointed and angry at their lack of urgency and basic common sense.

I phoned and the 911 operator patched me threw to the RCMP. The officer was great taking my information, name, phone number, type of vehicle I was driving etc and told me he would forward the info to the Blackfalds division. A few minutes later I receive a call from the RCMP and again I go thru the info including the license number of the drink driver. He says stay behind and safe and they will dispatch and let me know. I followed this drunk all the way watching him weave and luckily hitting no one. Just before Red Deer I see a cop in the crossover. I expect to see him pull in front of me and follow the drunk to verify but the cop never moved. They knew I was driving a Red Jeep. One simple phone call to me and we could have got the guy. I had no number to call back as it showed private number on my phone from the previous call. I passed and waited for a call and nothing. The guys turns off at Hwy 11 and I said forget it I need gas and to get home. It still makes me angry. I have little tolerance for incompetence and stupidity from the general population but to have it from our police and them, not take seriously the risk of a drunk, killing someone is unfathomable. Telling my tale to Jackie I stated I guess I won’t phone ever again she straightened me out by saying you did the right thing and should again and let what ever happens rest on them not you. Logical !

It is still hard to believe that wouldn’t have phoned even a hour later to see what was going on !! I am still shocked.

Nice to be home. Daisy met me at the door and licked me like crazy. I love that dog. Jackie gave me a kiss so she is alright too. LOL

Thought of the Day

Isn’t it funny how Red, White and Blue represent freedom until they are flashing behind you.

September 11th to 13th

We met Alan & MaryAnn at Peter’s Memorial tree this morning. The trees are struggling a bit with lack of water but Peter’s is doing well. He was an excellent gardener so we need it to do well. Time sure flies as it has been 4 years since Peter died.

After this we went over to Audrey’s for a quick visit as Alan is heading off for a cruise on Monday night. We ordered lunch from Tim’s. I love Tim’s but their menu for a lunch or supper sucks. Their food could only be described as poor. Jackie picked me up a loaded Chili. Chili is one item that is good. This loaded chili is new and a person would think ok, chili with sour cream, chives, cheese would be good. This thing SUCKS. it is tiny, it has Quinoa in it and some other stuff and tastes horrible. I like most foods but this bad. You don’t even get a bun with it. I am all for technology but Tim’s food app needs work as you can’t order anything special like Ice Cap made with choc milk or a white side bun etc. so it doesn’t really work to help a person much. I learned a lesson today not to order a loaded Chili. LOL A lesson a day is a good thing.

My Stamps similar to my Flames just continue to win for me. Fred is requiring a full semi load of beer to meet his betting losses and I am looking forward to the Brinks truck showing up with Keith’s losses for me.

Today we were heading out to Kananaskis for golf with Jeff & Wendy. We loaded everyone up in the car including 10 water bottles and I decided to take 22x to avoid construction. It was a nice drive out there. The weather stated it was to hit a high of 17 on one app and 22 on another. I was the only one wearing sandals and shorts. IT IS SUMMER. Being a Alberta Senior the rate is very good for the quality of course. I hadn’t golfed for at least 10 days and still had my sore back muscle so I didn’t expect great things. I did ok but not great. The wind came up and really chilled the air. I was warm enough but I did need to put on my wind breaker and it was cool enough my Reynaud’s acted up so I had to use pocket warmers. My finger go pure white and numb. Weird thing really. I had a customer at Logic Lumber who used to wear gloves even in the summer in the office.

We ( I believe, lol) had a great time. Great course, funny people. joking and just a fun day.

We ended up eating and just like last time the food was excellent. It is on the pricey side as every place is lately but great views, location and taste you can’t go wrong. We even had the waitress a cousin of Wendy’s from Saskatchewan.

Not a deck day today. I wore shorts as summer is far from over but just a little nippy today. busy time and a fun time for a last few days and now I just need to get caught all up on a bunch of stuff. Time and health, the only two things that really are important.

Thought of the Day

Yes an optimist can be wrong the same was as a pessimist but trust me he will be a lot happier.

September 14th

” Mercury Forecast Edmonton 23 degrees, Calgary 21 degrees”

It has been so smoky for the last few days it hurts the eyes and throat. I am thinking we charge BC a environmental surcharge for their damage to our air. Perhaps a Class Action negative health lawsuit could work.

I first whipped to the Depot and picked up a couple of light bulbs we needed and a fridge filter. My eyes need more light at night and the tri-lights keep burning out so I went with something I never said I would do and bought 100 w cool white bulbs. The test will be tonight.

I drove out to the lot and started to work away. I fixed up all of the fishing stuff sorting out what was Fred’s and putting my stuff back in my box. I had to phone Fred via a video call to figure what was his. I returned my borrowed small tackle box to Corey later. I did all of my normal stuff like cutting the grass, dead head the flowers, clean up, water etc. It was an enjoyable day.

Remember what I said about stupid people. Can you believe what a dumb pecker this is. He was just pounding away on my fence post. A dried out, treated post. I guess they exist across all species. LOL

I did the end of season cleaning on the garden. I loaded up my cache to bring home to wash them all up. The carrots are the perfect size. I brought home carrots, lettuce, leeks, and radishes. Not an over abundance but the soil I will make sure is a lot better next year.

A good day and fun day.

I was just thinking how much changed in the week I was away. The Queen died, new Prime Minister in England, new Leader of the Conservative Party, Trudeau punishing small business again with a stat holiday, the knife welding Sask boys all dead and Ukraine taking back land.

Ouch !! the market takes a huge HIT. It would be so nice if it would just stay consistent. I think that is the only thing I don’t like about retirement. Each month the total assets become less and a market hit looks worse with no way to build it back up. Jackie’s working has been a huge help but is limited. I may have to do a Ralph Klein next year and look at every subscription, Prime, credit cards, gifts etc and do a reset as it is funny as how a few bucks here and there each month add up fast.

A huge money spending month this Sept with a little time to spread the hurt over a couple of months a bit. We have our Alaska cruise booked with deposit paid and money set aside, we have our family (7 people plus us) Disneyland trip flights booked and paid, fly in fishing trip done, plus I need a set of tires for the Flex and decide what I am going to do for Jackie’s birthday. Some fun times ahead. To see the look of amazement on a kids face when they see Mickey Mouse is priceless. Having said that Disney tickets are more than a 10 day cruise. Go figure.

It is funny to watch how a dog learns. Daisy has learned if the house phone rings chances are, someone will be coming thru the door in a few minutes. It took a while but she now will only stare and get excited but not bark if someone passes on the sidewalk. I am saying she maybe the smartest dog in the world but I am biased.

I had a Facebook connection with an old school friend. He said he wouldn’t recognize me. I agree people change but the mirror keeps answering me ” Larry ” when I say “Mirror Mirror on the wall who is the handsomest of all.” So I must not have changed that much.

Sure a little less hair, nose appears larger, eyes the same, I can’t see anyone not knowing this is the same guy. These pics are 47 years difference. 18 yrs old for the first one.

Remember I only joined Facebook when Jessica had the food truck issues to get rid of a few trolls but it has connected me with some old faces of the past which is awesome.

“Memories”

The one event this high school connection mentioned was a trip to the Drayton Valley Rodeo. This was in about 1973 or 1974 when I had a 1963 Nova SS. Dad had literally pounded out the shock tunnels so we could fit a V8 into it. It came from the factory with a in-line 6 cylinder which is a lot narrower. A light car weighing 2600 pounds with a V8 in it was quick. (a 2022 mustang weighs over 3800 pounds) I had put shackles on the rear to get a lifted rear which was the thing to do and it had cut out wheel wheels to fit larger tires. My brother Alfred had an almost new set of G60-15 (10 inches wide) tires that he gave me to use. I burnt these down to nothing in a month. At the rodeo it rained, and the parking lot was in a field. People were getting stuck everywhere. I had my friends get out to push me as we couldn’t move. I dropped the clutch a little hard and pushed the gas a little hard resulting in my friends totally getting saturated with mud. Rooster tails flying from my wide tires covering the car and people along with my friends taking the brunt of it. I will say it was fun. Not so much for them.

Wordle in two tonight !!!!

I am disappointed in myself this year as I have seen no improvement in my golf game. I thought I would get better when I first retired but I guess I have to live with the talent I was given and except I will not be a really good player. I would have really liked to become a single digit capper but I don’t think that will happen. It all comes down to the tee box and not losing a ball. Hit it on the fairway and score high 70’s lose a ball or two and low 90’s is my curse.

Thought of the Day

Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind it doesn’t matter. ” mark twain”

September 15th

” Mercury Forecast Edmonton 22 degrees rain, Calgary 23 degrees”

The smoke continues and funny how it affects the eyes and throat. I am going to sue ! LOL

Today was my last official game of the year with my men’s group. I was lucky enough this year that I paid for my golf games and even made money. It was a nice day today so I wanted to do good. I took an extra pill as my back just isn’t loose enough.

I golfed very well the front nine and would have been below 40 expect for an error. The back nine I feel apart on. BUT i won big money again today and am just waiting the for the money purse list to show me my money.

Here are my money winning holes. I have a Gross Skin Birdie on #4, I have a Net Skin Eagle on #4 and a Net Skin Eagle on #7 and Deuce on #7. We had 40 players this round so I am hoping about $60 or so. Time will tell.

Two bad I lost it on the back nine as I was leading my flight for most of the game until Hole 14. Lost balls !!!! Willows !!!!

A nice soup and sandwich special at the clubhouse to end the season for another fun year. I enjoy my partners, the format but struggle with course every time.

Wordle in 5 for me and Jackie in 4. Darn !

Thought of the Day

No matter how bad you are playing you could always play worse.

Sept 16 and the Special Day of Sept 17th

“Mercury Forecast Edmonton 22 degrees Calgary 22 degrees”

Beautiful fall weather with a cold tip coming for 2 to 3 days and back up to normal again. I real lousy spring then a fantastic summer and fall so far.

Banking, shopping and car washing is about all I did today. Nice to have just a chill day. Lots of work getting 12 hours of driving bugs off the front.

Super deal on winterizing antifreeze so I bought it early.

Both Jackie & I failed today at Wordle. I believe only the second ever for both of us. Tricky word with too many combo’s

Flowers for Jackie’s birthday on the counter and a gift hidden and going out for supper should be fun tomorrow night.

Yes today is my lovely bride’s birthday. I have known Jackie now for 46 years. I was very lucky to meet her and had to work hard to get her to like me. She played hard to get. She is a special girl and here is hoping she has a wonderful day.

Being a true gentleman, I can’t say how old she is, but she looks pretty darn good to me for any age.

Happy Birthday Jackie. If you think about you still may half your age left to have additional birthdays. Go for it!

We had a relaxing day as Jackie is a day older now. Off to Toscana Grill for supper to celebrate Jackie’s birthday.

Timing was right that Corey, Victoria, Jackson and Audrey could join us. This our second time here and I like it. The decor, the space between tables, the food is excellent, pricing is reasonable and the service very good. Tonight, one small thing I would have liked different that I could easily have asked for was ground pepper on the dishes. Our waitress was new but did an excellent job. We had quite the collection of food choices with everyone stating it was awesome. Penne with sausage, Penne with scallops and shrimp, Sirloin steak, ravioli, and fettuccini with seafood. I am not a fan of mixing seafood with anything as the fish smell and taste wrecks the deliciousness of any sauce and the entire table is forced to smell it like a bad fart. But people love it and if that is what they like go for it. Interesting as a society we tend to not follow biblical protocol when it comes to food choices. It is said in the Leviticus 11:9-10 that fish and other living creatures in the waters that has no fins and scales are detestable to man. Therefore, do not eat such kind of fish. Pork is also mentioned as an unclean food. I understand the fish thing but even though a pig is a dirty animal you can’t but help love the taste of their meat and our modern way of raising them has eliminated the passing of illness to us. Interesting also why there is a negative reaction for some people when in contact with fish. Between the risk of having your throat swell and not be able to breathe and the smell telling you this is not good it is still eaten. The body knows.

It was a great meal and fun time together. Jessica and Penny are super busy with the food truck but we were still able to facetime with them for a long time.

Another year older, perhaps wiser and still looking good and enjoying life.

Thought of the Day

Happy birthday! I am so glad you celebrated this birthday the way you celebrated the first one, naked and screaming. LOL

Sept 18/19th

” Mercury Forecast Edmonton 12 degrees, Calgary 13 degrees rain “

You can tell fall is getting close. Cooler nights and not so warm days.

Jackie & I spent the day at Oasis and it was nice and very relaxing. Daisy even had fun waiting for someone to walk by. I did a bit of maintenance of the flowers, grass and checked out a system for the door on my bar. And then we just relaxed, read, sat and talked to neighbors.

I BBQ some pork chops for supper, and we sat outside while eating until the temperature dropped off and then headed home. I would describe the day as excellent.

Wordle and Big Brother finished off the night.

This morning I watched the Queen thing for a bit but bored quickly. Boy is that a slow possession. They do like pageantry and live in the past a bit over there. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the monarchy fall apart now. Charles is in a tough spot with the Queens popularity and him being perceived as stiff, cold and not engaged. It really doesn’t serve any purpose in today’s world other than a tourist draw. Having said that I believe they need to protect this heritage, preserve it, as it is a grand showing of the British Empire from years ago and to lose that would be a huge loss of history. It is too bad we didn’t have anything in Canada of such magnitude for us to attach to.

Since it was raining, I finished off my August numbers for my budgeting. Ouch ! Over $1200 of gas in August (a couple of motorhome fills), $1000 worth of tree trimming, and $1000 again for two people’s groceries is sick and a $1000 worth of golf. Things are expensive. What hurts most is the market hit while expenses higher than normal.

First evaluation game for Jackson tonight. I watched very closely and the difference between all of the kids was very minimal. I saw one or two kids from each that that bot better and a couple on the weaker side but the bulk of the are pretty equal. Jackson tried hard and I thought did quite well. A couple more evaluation games and the players will be placed at the level fitting to them. I would not want to be the guys picking it is that close.

Tonight’s game did make me smile. The “woke” generation has caused this league to change its name from Blackfoot Chiefs to the Wolverines. I am positive the natives would be proud not upset but that is the world we live in now. The reason I smiled is many last players wore their last year uniform which they were not supposed to. A fun thing to watch and between watching hockey and the 8-degree temperature you know winter is coming.

Wordle in 4 tonight. A dumb word that I did not know the meaning of.

Thought of the Day

The problem with winter sports is that-follow me closely here- is they take place in WINTER

September 20th

” Mercury Forecast Edmonton 15 degrees, Calgary 15 degrees”

Sunny but cooler than anyone would like. I love fall but would like at least 18 to 20 degrees.

Today was fire alarm testing. Noisy or what with the alarms going off over and over again. Better safe than sorry but yearly is a waste of time and money.

With all of the attention with the Queens death and Prince Charles taking over here is an interesting picture. This is a picture of the owner of Igloo Building Supplies Don Stewart visiting Alexander Falls with Prince Charles in 1975.

Very cool to be connected with the Prince.

I saw the old Dakota tonight of Larry Geddes/Corey/mine. Still running well. The cap is gone and a roof rack for a work truck is on it. Still looks good. It has to be close to 400K now.

Thought of the Day

When you buy $200 worth of food and then order take out as you don’t feel like cooking.

Sept 21/22nd

” Mercury Forecast cooler Edmonton 18 degrees Calgary 17 degrees “

Well, we have our fall temperatures. Now I love fall but it is hard to determine what to wear for the conditions as they change so fast and often.

Sunny and not a cloud in the sky. It was supposed to get to 17 today but think we failed on that. But still a nice fall day.

Today we were golfing with Jeff & Wendy at the Wintergreen Golf Course. This is one of my favorites but expensive. One of the most expensive courses we played this year. It is beautiful and one would think they are in Radium; it has that feel and look about it. Great elevated holes and plenty of water and trees that cause trouble. It is funny as it is 127 slope versus 123 for Turner Valley. I can score away better here. There are a few oddities with Turner. First willows to lose your ball in. Second trees with the under bush not removed and one thing that drives me nuts is three holes that are not Par 3’s and you can’t use your driver. In my mind that is just POOR design. Especially on a Par 5 it is just plain dumb. But that is the way it is.

Great day and a lot of fun. Some great shots and poor shots by everyone. Wendy was a hurting unit and shouldn’t be playing she is so crippled. I played very well today scoring low 80’s and that is with 6 -3 putts. I NEED TO GET BETTER AT PUTTING. I read correct or believe I do, normally have the weight correct but I do find with the progressive lenses I struggle to see the hole accurately. I could remove my glasses for putting but it takes too long for my eyes to adjust back to no lenses. I will figure it out. Another 70’s game wasted due to one thing. Putting !

Notice the handicap flag on Jeff & Wendy’s cart. This is when you know you are getting older when your friends are flying the handicap flag. On Thursday in my men’s league one of my playing partners uses it and now with Wendy not being able to walk she needs it. That is my girl in the front of the picture dancing to her cart. Jackie & I are so lucky we have no issues as of yet that require one of these. My personality type would struggle asking for one anyways.

After an enjoyable day golfing, we decided to go to the Italian Farmhouse in Bragg Creek. I will say again the atmosphere and the food here, are amazing. We all had a wonderful supper. I just love the ambience of this old house. You need to try it if you have never been. Jeff & Wendy are always fun people to go out with. It was funny though tonight when Jeff was deciding on his wine and Wendy was a little short with him. Made Jackie & I smile but we understood with the pain she was in it isn’t fun. I was impressed with Jeff’s handling of the situation, and it shows why they are able to be happily married.

Great golf, awesome food, fun friends and another wonderful day in the books.

I packed my lunch and headed out to the lot. It never ever reached the high they promised but it was a nice fall day. I had to throw a few Geraniums out as the frost got to them and one other kind of plant, but the balance is still fine. The normal things with cutting the grass, trimming plus I trimmed the chokecherry trees. I don’t want them to get extra tall. This drives the growth of shooters but I prefer them this way. I had to stand at the top of a 8ft ladder and pull the branches down to cut their height. They look good now. Organized and cleaned and then dug up 4 plants of Ornamental Grasses. Our neighbors are getting a deck built and needed to remove these. The dirt I dug these out of and where I planted was like rock it was so packed. I took a couple of plants to Tor’s place for them to use. Extremely hard digging. I watered them good and will look up if starter fertilizer is needed this time of year.

I won tonight getting Wordle in two. That doesn’t happen too often, in two I mean.

Thought of the Day

“Paingry: A state of anger caused by long term pain.”

Sept 23rd

“Mercury Forecast Edmonton 20 degrees, Calgary 19 degrees”

While it is now fall it is really still summer. 19 degrees is wonderful. Today we were golfing at Murfield Lakes in Lyalta. The day started off a little overcast but soon the sun started to shine brightly and it was very nice. Now remember we are in Southern Alberta so wouldn’t you know it the wind started up and it cooled down a few degrees fast. It stayed windy for most of the game which is unfortunate but still overall a beautiful fall day. I was the only one wearing shorts again. Why?

The course was in impeccable shape, fairways and greens. I like this course as the holes are distinct and varied enough it keeps it very interesting. If it wasn’t for the 40 min drive, we would golf it more often. Jeff & Wendy beat us to the course, and we were lucky enough to start one tee time sooner. It was a fast game as we hardly had to wait.

There were some off games today. I know Jackie had 110 which is higher for her, but her drives and second shots struggled a bit. The Graces were off today also not playing up to their potential. Wendy seemed to putt well, and her injured knee/hip didn’t appear to hurt her as much today. This happens some days and you just wonder why. What I like is, it is handled very well, and they get through it. There will always be the next game to do better. I was very pleased with my game. The greens are tricky, and I had 3 – 3 putts but only one poor hole where I had a triple bogie. I ended up with an 81 and would have been in the 70’s except for the dumb mistakes on Hole 17. Especially when I consider I had a few lip outs.

Relatively nice weather, fun friends to golf with, some good golf and some bad shots but an very enjoyable day.

We stopped at the clubhouse and their special was Philly Cheese Steak with Caesar Salad for $10. Cheaper than a Mc Donalds meal and ten times better. Fitting ending to the night.

We whipped over to pick Daisy up and watched the final game for Federer and it was too bad he didn’t win. Doubles isn’t his thing, but it was still fun to watch. I did have to smile a bit as he ducked to keep getting hit by the ball. He is European.

Then at his final farewell on TV, I was surprised and disappointed by my fellow TV watcher’s behavior. Men for years have been dealing with the need to control emotions to appear manly and not to show weakness. Here poor Roger is overcome with emotion as his career is ending and is brought to tears and they are laughing at him. Nadal also was very emotional. It just seems wrong that they can laugh at a man that is emotional yet expect a male to be strong and not succumb to feelings or emotions. Yet empathy is required. It is another example of the struggle men have trying to figure what the expectation from women is. And we wonder why male suicides are 4 times that of women. It is impossible to have it both ways. Either the male is allowed to be emotional, express love, have feelings and show empathy or the male is unattached, no emotions, stern and unsympathetic. Women !

Wordle in 3 for me and 4 for Jackie.

Thought of the Day

Most women cry from the outside to save themselves inside, while most men kill themselves by crying inside to save their outlook reputation.

September 24th -26th

” Mercury Forecast Edmonton 24 degrees, Calgary 23 degrees”

I got busy and missed a couple of days so I will “recall” a bit.

It was a low-key weekend. I did watch a lot of the President’s Cup Golf event. The LIV sure has impacted the caliber of player now at the PGA tournaments. I loved it and laughed when Tom Kim did his dance after winning his leg. It was hilarious and I even copied him in a day or so later which I will expand on.

I loaded the Princess Cruise app on my phone and downloaded most of needed documents and needed info into it. I ordered our Medallions for door entry, ship boarding, room charging and asked for them to be held until we embark rather than in the mail. The app does have it’s issues that I found a work around to and I discovered a LOT of poeple have had the same issues. Why these large companies roll out a web page without absolute thorough testing it is beyond me. Then I remember JELD-WEN rolling out an inventory management program that they created in house that was a disaster and refusing not to set it aside for a while but push thru it and i think they are just as bad if not worse. I had to count inventory myself on items before ordering as it did not have levels or history. I had hair before their disastrous employment f this software. I ran excess inventory for quite a period as I refused to be short of stock. Making money is all about the stock turns but keeping customers happy during a self-inflicted chaos was more important to me. I loved when we were Henderson’s as if I had a software issue a quick phone call to our IT guy Ken Wilkie and it was fixed asap rush pdq rfn. He was amazing.

I got that all done, paid a whack of bills and transferred money around.

We had a wonderful BBQ supper.

Jackie and I spent the day out at the lot, and it was splendid. Sunny warm, quiet and peaceful. Daisy had a blast visiting with people that would give her treats just because she knew them. Plus getting to watch people walk by is always fun. It is what I call the perfect relaxing day.

We came home for supper and had Audreey over for supper. Chicken, Pork and Beef Kabobs were on the menu plus fried potatoes and salad. The perfect summer meal. I love my Kitchen Aid digital thermometer. With chicken it works perfect so you can have juicy chicken without drying it out and to safely cook it thru.

Another season of Big Brother with the wrong contestant winning. Taylor should not have won the event and it is even more surprising for her to win fan favorite. I disliked her and cannot believe the America fan would vote for her JUST because she was a woman and black. Disappointing! Reminds me of the laughing/crying fiasco I experienced.

I headed out after coffee and catch up, to the lot today to get some more work done. I made an entry door, continuously hinged it, barrel bolted it and applied handles. I had to pull out the table saw to trim down my door to fit. Now it still looks great, and we have an access panel to a resin box to store cushions and covers in. Love it!

I finished it after a few hours and went to start touchup and painting (I hate paint) then an epiphany hit me, and I thought I should go golfing. I could have done Oasis but with-it not being GPS marked or stick marked it really is a course just for fun and won’t really help your game. Sooo I phoned Speargrass and she said if you can be here in 15 min, I have a threesome going out. I was there in 10 minutes. LOL

Three nice guys to golf with. The small world saying came into play again as one guy used to be the neighbor of Jim Thorogood (owner of Totem) and the other pulls his 5th wheel down and stays at Viewpoint for the last few years. It is a small world.

No wind for Speargrass is unbelievable and nice and sunny is wonderful. Speargrass has spent a lot of money this year on thier course. They always have great greens but now they have added a Sprung Structure for banquets, all new signage on every hole that look fantastic and a GPS system in all of the carts. AND they keep their rates reasonable which is one of my knocks against Turner Valley.

Great weather, nice golfing partners and we are off from the blue tees. The young son a big man was a long ball hitter as was his Dad. Thier distance overall the game was either 20 yards further or 20 yards shorter depending on how well each of us hit the ball. The front nine I played extremely well with 4 Par’s and 2 Birdies ending up 1 over Par. I did not take any pills today and after working all morning and golfing my back starting tightening up. I had 8 perfect drives and one slice on the front but on the back nine I had only 3 perfect drives and mistakes made on the other 6 holes. I struggled to keep the scoring down but only had one triple boogie and ended the back nine with a 44.

HOLE 14 at 134 yards elevated tee box and sand bunkers all in front was the scene of my SECOND HOLE IN ONE. 6 inches in front and then in. A marvelous thing. I told my partners which all were excited as it was their first hole in one they have seen that my middle name was KIM and just like Tom Kim at the Presidents Cup I had to dance. LOL

It is 12,500 to 1 odds to make such a shot and my last one was in 2009 so it looks like year 2035 is going to be a good year. Like the Stanley Cup being elusive for so many many people, some never get a hole in one in their lifetime and are real good golfers. I am looking for my third now on Wednesday. LOL

My drink tab was for 4 people at only was $60. Yahoo ! another inexpensive hole in one experience.

Wordle in 5 , Jackie in 4. I had three first try and just couldn’t find the combo. I was expecting in two by getting three first shot, but it wasn’t to be.

I have just considered a name change. I know want to be identified as Larry ACE CRIB Kim Willard. I see nothing wrong with labelling myself with a new name that is much true to my real self. No Mister, just Larry ACE as a shortened version. Wheee !

Thought of the Day

What did the dentist say to the patient dressed up in his golf clothes.? Open wider please it appears you have a hole in one. “groan I know”

September 27th

” Mercury Forecast Edmonton 27 degrees, Calgary 30 degrees”

Utility bills for here and Arizona keep coming in. Tax bill for Arizona. Re-sent our credit card info for Princess, as we needed to change cards to the one with cancellation and trip insurance on it for our cruise bill. I also paid the house insurance for Arizona but was not successful at getting a reduction. Every angle I had didn’t work. LOL

I finished off the cruise papers and sent them in plus completed the Medallion App for Princess so all set until the final payment is due in Feb and 120 days out, we can book our excursions.

Hotel is booked, rental car is booked and the flights for everyone are all booked for our Disneyland Trip this Christmas.

Nice to get this all completed. I have two events yet to finalize which are booking our May Long event and our Christmas decoration 2-day event. I know what we are doing for May which is different again this year that I hope everyone will like. I have my flow-charts ready for my decoration get together and hopefully will get plenty of volunteers as it is big undertaking. I am hoping two days but it could be up to 4 days depending.

Friends of ours have decided to sell their place at our resort in Mesa. It is an exceptional nice place and just listed. They may have had it only for 3 years, but the price has doubled. Jackie and I bought our home in this place not once thinking about the cost or return. Investment return was never a consideration as we only considered it an investment in a lifestyle and personal enjoyment. Besides being one of the best resorts in Mesa it is also one of the most social places you could ever want. Everyday there are fun interaction between new poeple and old friends.

Our biggest consideration when we bought this place is the fact YOU CANNOT BUY A TWO-WEEK CRUISE SHIP OR ALL INCLUSION VACATION FOR TWO WEEKS FOR LESS THAN WE PAY TO BE ABLE TO STAY 6 MONTHS. I am positive the social interaction, physical activity during warm weather in winter WILL contribute to a longer life. Everyone has to make their own personal choices, but this decision does surprise me.

We love the fact that Fred &Terry continue to want to enjoy the Arizona life. I love the company, the drinks, the games and enjoyment of having a long-term friend there with us. Jackie and I have no plans whatsoever about selling as it one of the most enjoyable things we experience. Jackie and I get to golf ( 3 times a week apprx) which lubricates the joints, moves the muscles, enjoy the sun, nights out eating and the gatherings plus trying a new tourist spot each year.

In fact, it is almost October and I am already looking forward to heading south. I know Daisy loves it also.

Close to the last game at Turner Valley with my three guys that I have played with all year. I was extremely happy with my golf today. In fact, it was one of the first times I have played Turner Valley without losing a ball off the tee. I ended up the low score of the group and that is with a 10 on one hole. Not off the tee but water ball on 14th screwed me losing two balls in the water. Still ended up with an 85 due to a lot of Pars and birdies. I loved the good golfing. I loved collecting money from my guys also.

Another great retirement day thoroughly enjoyed and quite successful

Thought of the Day

Retirement is just a never-ending vacation!

Sept 29-30th

it

It always amazes me how the weather can be warm one day and so cool the next. I pre entered in most of my Septv numbers as it was raining out a bit. Two cool days and back to a pretty decent Oct with slightly higher than average temperatures.

Friday we had a good game worth Jeff & Wendy at Lakeside. I like the course but today found it in a bit of rough shape. The fairways were a little worse for wear. It is still a nice course playing around 6200 yards. We show up at the clubhouse and it v was a lot cooler than I expected. I wore shorts as I refuse to let summer go. I can’t say the same for partners.

I had to use pocket warmers though as my hands kept turning white and numb.

It still was a fun day of golf and here is my take. Jeff I thought drove the ball better today than most. Jackie struggled with a lot of shots today. Wendy played pretty steady but not her usual stellar performance and I was semi ok. I am OK with this as the conditions were far far from perfect.

A great meal at the clubhouse after to finish off a nice COOL day.

Thought of the Day

Think hot to be cool on a cold day