♪There’s Got to be a Morning After♫

Paisley, On

On Saturday, Dec. 26^th, first thing I remember was being woke up out of a deep sleep with Bill’s hand brushing my face. Well, it was more than a ‘brushing’. 😊 We were both on our backs and in his sleep he spread his arm straight out right across my face. “What?”, was my remark as I half sat up in bed. “Oh, sorry dear”, his mumbled sleepy reply. LOL

Ealy morning in Paisley
Street plows have been through

And then later in the morning

Unfortunately, that was it for me. I tossed and turned and couldn’t drop off again. It was only 4:30 or something like that. He was also up and down, in and out of bed like a yo-yo, checking the goings on out the window. Remember, we don’t often see this white stuff let alone the ‘excitement’ of street plows, sidewalk blows and industrial size blowers cleaning right outside the house! Even if we were at the Ridge, there wouldn't be this many plows going up and down our road. 

Here you have the yellow sidewalk tractor plow
Then the larger blue tractor and blower cleaning up what the yellow plow pushed out
The dump trucks take turns moving beside the blower and the boxes get filled
Repeat process
I took these pictures from inside the front room window

I know if we’d chosen the other bedroom, at the back of the house, we would have a quieter sleep and a view of the river (through the trees) BUT we wouldn’t see all this! Anyway, at 6:30 I got up to take a quick picture which wasn’t very good through the screen. Then I crawled back in bed with Bill and I know I dropped off to sleep for a blissful hour.

Bill went out with Wes and they cleaned off vehicles
and shovelled walkways etc.
Bill took these pictures

When we got up, I slipped into my new jammies, they’re so soft, and Bill got dressed. “I’m going to shovel the sidewalk”, he informed me so I went down to make my tea. He and Wes decided to have something to eat first with a coffee and they’d go out together. They were out for at least two hours, cleaning the walks, the vehicles off and shoveling out around the vehicles to get them out on the street.

This group of pictures was from his camera and his view
outside

The sidewalk plow does an awesome job leaving a width cleared enough to get a car down if you have to. We know because Wes told us he had to do that one day when he had to leave at 5:30 and the end of the lane was filled in. How handy is that? We are amazed at the diligence of these plows. Not only is it plowed, but they return with a big blower and dump truck and haul the snow away.

That's Bill out front clearing along the fence
The tractor can only get so close

Susan and I kept our eyes on them and were happy
to see them take rest breaks
The snow is fluffy but it is wet and heavy too

You can see the jacket is now undone
and soon ends up being discarded

Susan said I’ll see it all dumped where I walk, at the end of Water St. where it can flow into the river. Smart! Once the boys moved the 3 vehicles out on the street, Jim came in with his tractor and cleaned the laneway out. Bill was well-dressed when he went out but I noticed his orange coat hanging on a shovel about an hour in. Too hot, he said. The snow never stopped and they had to go over a couple of areas twice because of it.

the decorated tree looks pretty with a snowy blanket

A favourite Paisley building, now in the snow
the Pump House and Hose Tower

I stepped outside to see where they were at one point and within a minute or less, I was covered in the wet white stuff. When they came in shortly after 11, they were both soaked but felt they had done a good job. The snow seemed to have petered off a bit but hadn’t stopped yet. It looks like it could be an all-day snow. Around noon hour we went down and I made scrambled eggs and bacon for lunch.

And another favourite
The Grand Central Hotel

Upstairs, I can’t recall what we did until around 3 I went for a walk. The snow had temporarily stopped and I knew I’d kick myself later for not taking advantage of a nice day. I bundled good, even putting on my ‘snow’ (water repellant) pants over top of my stretch pants. Maybe a snow angel would happen today! Ha ha 😊 As it turned out, the walk was a tough one.

The Saugeen and Teeswater Rivers look cold

At our section of town, main area, the sidewalks were cleared but over the bridge to the north, they weren’t. I had my ski poles so wasn’t concerned about the slippery ground but it was just more difficult to walk in the 3 – 4” of fresh snow. It was so nice out, even though only -3C/27f, because there really was no wind to speak of. The snow started again and coated the parts of me that had cloth coverings.

And we heard that this place has now SOLD
along with the Fisher Mill
You've all seen pictures of it

I couldn’t walk the hill top trail along the river, although I tried, as it was almost knee deep ‘where no man had walked before’. I followed one trail in the opposite direction just to get back to a main street. The old heart was pumping today and it was a great hour-long workout. I managed just over 3 miles so I’m glad I got myself out there. When I got back, I was very hot and sweaty and couldn’t wait to get out of my outerwear.

Top left, a portrait of a tree - I love the way the snow sits on its sturdy branches
Bottom left, hidden splash of colour
top right, a closer look (my ski poles came in handy)
Bottom right, a snowy bush along the trail

It was after 4 and Bill was beginning to be concerned for me. I slipped in and upstairs which surprised him when he called “where are you? Are you okay?” My answer was “upstairs”. 😉 I’d missed his text a few minutes earlier probably because I was in the garage disrobing. I didn’t want a hot drink so instead poured myself a Disaranno on ice.

The library is snowed in - they don't open until Tuesday
and then it is by Porch pick up only (minus the porch)

The Museum is looking pretty surrounded by mature
evergreens and a happy gingerbread family

I wasn't kidding about the snow, a step further and I was up to my knees

Bill and I stretched out on the bed, he dozed from his morning workout and I read. After a few chapters, I curled up too and had my own doze. For supper tonight, I had Madame IP reheat our turkey, dressing, bean casserole and potatoes while I warmed up the gravy and corn for Bill in the microwave. I had way too much food, neither of us that hungry so dessert wasn’t required tonight. After dishes, we retired to our room until Bill went in to watch a movie at 9.

I was warm but it certainly was white out there!

These snowcovered propane tanks look like little aliens

I plan to finish my post and then pop in a movie to watch in here. I missed out on Miracle on 34^th Street and now that Christmas is over, it will wait until next year. Instead, the next one in line is The Devil Wears Prada. I hope you’ve enjoyed your Boxing Day today as we did. This morning I texted Jamie to inform him that I would not be over to clean as I originally had planned. The weather just made it too ‘iffy’. He understood. We’ll go or I’ll go on Monday as usual.

First time in a long time that I couldn't eat everything on my plate
It was good but I was stuffed

Our second winter south, we had dinner with George and Suzie
on Dec. 26, 2017
good night!

Thanks for popping around! Comments are always appreciated if you care to leave one.

The Morning After, Shuffleboard, Tripping to Town

I woke up on Wednesday, Dec. 26^th aka Boxing Day at 5 am and as I turned over noticed my nose was starting to bleed. Hmm, could be the dryness but it stopped almost immediately. I dropped off again until 6:15 and then once more until 10 to 7. Okay, now it is definitely time to get up! I have a blog post to finish. I did that and then slipped on my hoody, wind breaker and my new puffy vest. Santa did me proud this year!

So, on my walk this morning, I took the time to show you
my Christmas present
I love my puffy vest!

It was 50F/8C so a tad cool but this was the perfect combination for this morning’s walk. I don’t know how many miles I went, I’ve pretty much been meeting my personal quota most days with the exception of Christmas. I walked the park and then out to the open desert to meet the sunrise at the lower mountain. It is so pretty when it pops for the first time and if you blink, you miss it. Then I found 2 or 3 more baby stones and turned around for home.

They water the palm trees in the park every morning

I stopped and picked another orange when I walked by to get a picture of the 5 train engines across the road. Thinking of Dad with fond memories each time the whistle blows, when I’m awake to hear it. 😊 We heard Dad’s voice on Marilynne’s answering machine yesterday and that was almost a show stopper, let me tell you. We understand why she would keep it on her phone, we just weren’t expecting it. We do miss him.

A 5 engine choo choo across the highway sits and waits
for something
Maybe it was just a reminder for me to stop and 'smell the roses'

Bill had some toast and jam at 9 and I had some yogourt with a very soft banana, granola and wheat germ. Just enough to take us through until lunch time. 

I walked to meet the sunrise

And it was worth it

We headed up to the pool area with Rob and Pat for our weekly (we’re pros now!) shuffleboard game. Ron joined us on his bike and George and Suzie came today as well. There were 11 of us up there today including a score keeper and 2 spare players.

Bill caught me making my shot and Ron standing by waiting
for his turn
George, Sandy and her husband on the other court

Bill and I were partners and started off really well, winning our first game against Rob and Ron by a nice margin. We lost the second against Judy and Eddie (close game) and lost the third to George and Suzie with a ridiculous score. It is a fun game for sure and I enjoy being outdoors in the fresh air. Soon enough, my hoody and wind breaker came off because of the warm sun. The winds are back today again but gusts not quite as strong as yesterday’s – but close.

Rob watches as Bill makes his shot
Pat on the sidelines, Suzie and Judy on the right

On the way back, Pat invited us to go along to Yuma, they had a couple of errands to run so we topped up our morning nourishment with a yogourt and hopped aboard. It worked out well because we were soon needing an ink tank for our printer. These things are pricey and never ‘on sale’ so you just bite the bullet and buy them when you need them. From there we walked down to Harbor Freight and we found some instant glue. I had a pair of shoes needing the insole reglued.

Rob needed a stop at Home Depot for some wood
to fix his dining chairs

Before coming home, Rob and Bill found some wood pieces that Rob needed to repair chairs in their Silverback. Our units are not unlike a sticks and bricks home, you are always fixing something. Back home just before 1pm Bill had a light lunch and I had a bowl of chicken soup with a coffee. Filling and enough until supper time. I’ve taken farmer’s sausage out of the freezer.

This was very neat
right up at the front of the parking lot
there were 2 spaces here

I had 4 bananas with very dark skins so had promised Bill that I’d make some banana date nut bread. Today was the day. I mixed the ingredients together and poured it into the greased loaf pan. Once it was in the oven, I texted Pat to walk up with me to the garbage and maybe work on the puzzle for a while. It was 2:15 and I knew we had an hour before the bread would be baked.

They got the wood they needed

We chatted away like longtime buddies while putting pieces in and Pat chose a puzzle to bring along with us on the rest of our journey. We’re hoping to be able to work on one while in Yuma for our month stay. We’re going to try at least! The next time we looked at the time, it was 4 pm so we walked back to see if there was a decision about Happy Hour. Back home I noticed that my banana bread was done to perfection and smelled delicious.

Meanwhile, inside, Clemson pulls Bill's sweater off
the chair

 Rob and Bill were busy working on organizing their ‘tackle boxes’. This was a Santa gift for each of them, something to hold the nuts, bolts, screws and whatnots for travel. We decided to scrunch in front of George and Suzie’s coach for a drink with everyone since he was keeping an eye on their ribs on the Weber. The cool air got to me and even after moving my chair for some relief from the wind, I knew I should have taken a hot tea rather than a margarita.

And pulls it across to make his bed with it

At 5 I was chilled to the bone and needed to come home. The temperature wasn't terrible, at a nice 66F but the wind speed was coming directly at us from the NNW at 15 mph. Brr, it felt chilly and I was grateful for the warmth the Suite offered me after sunset. For supper, Bill grilled up a couple of farmer’s sausages. I had a fair bit of spaghetti squash in the fridge so cooked some with butter, cheese, salt and pepper along with a portion of Caesar salad for each of us.

Bill is prepping the drawers in his tackle box

We enjoyed dinner and after dishes, we sat watching some tv and doing some reading. I’m too distracted to get into a book these days but I continue to try. Bill sat with Clemson and gave him a quick brush, well he tried to give him a brushing. 

Let Daddy brush you

That didn’t go over too well, but just as expected. Rob came to the door to borrow some milk at just the right time. Clemson ran to him for a rescue.

Help me, Rob!

Boxing Day was another good one and there was only one box involved and Bill will enjoy filling it in the days to come. I’m hoping you had a relaxing day.

From our site, we can see the sun setting behind the storage trailers

Thank you for the visit, I hope you enjoyed it.

No Boxes Day, Quick Trip to Fry’s, More New Friends, Special Dinner at the Yates

On Tuesday, Dec. 26^th, Boxing Day, I was again awake early but didn’t get up until 7ish. Actually, the whole family got up together today! I was in bed last night around 10 feeling zonked, not sure why. Must have been my late afternoon swim.

the sky looked promising today

We had our brew while reading blogs and comments before using our new electric toothbrushes. They were the exciting part about getting cleaned up today. We haven’t used the Waterpik yet but today we’ll get it going. We both feel good about these new brushes, whether it is all in our heads or not, our teeth feel great.

The traffic was pretty much non-existent on our drive to Yuma

Bill drove us into Yuma to the Fry’s closest to us and I picked up a few groceries, very few. Spending $20 was enough to top up our points so we can get the .10 diesel fuel savings again. With a full tank right now, that will be a few days away since we’re not driving too far for the rest of the year. Hehe, sounds funny but 2018 is only a handful of days away.

We have noticed that the days are getting longer now that we are truly into winter. The down slide from short days has begun. I totally missed acknowledging the shortest day, Dec. 21^st, first day of winter, for the first time in forever. That makes sense to me even if I’ve lost you back in Yuma at Fry’s.

I nipped into the Family Dollar and picked up a couple of correction tapes so we can keep our little address book neat. I hate all the scratching out when addresses get changed. Oh, I also picked up a pack of post-it notes. I'm always wanting to jot things down so I remember to look them up online and these 2" x 2" pads are perfect.

Breakfast wrap

We left at 8:15 and were back by 9:30 so I set about making an omelette for breakfast. George has invited us to a 2^nd turkey dinner today so we will help out by providing the veggie and dressing. I’m also planning to make apple crisp for dessert with my homemade Christmas cake. We picked up a bottle of wine as well.

And there is the 40 year old recipe

After dishes, I started this post and then began baking before the day warmed up too much. I hate missing the sunshine and the sky seems to be clearing out now. When I make apple Crisp, I always use the same recipe.

This one was given to me many years ago, between 1977 and 1980 from a girlfriend. A girlfriend from the time when my husband and her boyfriend were in a band together. We lost touch when she and the boyfriend split up.

Get ready, Get Set, Go!

I’ve always had the best success with the recipe and love its sweetness. It is very well used as you can tell from the picture. So, first I prepared the apples, washing, coring, slicing but not peeling. I like the goodness and taste of the apple peel. I sprinkled them with sugar and cinnamon before spreading them in the pan.

Then the mixture of brown sugar, butter, flour and oatmeal. Yum. I covered the pan with tin foil until later today when I will bake it in my convection oven. That way it will be warm for an after dinner serving. Bill and Clemson were snoozing soundly, well, Clemson was quiet, so I took my book outside to read. The sun was nice and warm and I was hopeful for a total clearing.

Ready to bake and dishes get cleaned up throughout the process

Unfortunately, that wasn’t about to happen too soon, if at all today. I went through various stages of undress and redress today. First a tee shirt was too warm and then my camisole top was too cool. Thirdly, the flies were driving me batty so at 1 o’clock I came indoors. Feeling a bit of a nosh for something, I made Bill and I an ice cream cone. This Tillamook Raspberry Vanilla is delicious! Of course, that also means Clemson gets a treat too. Such a pest!

At 2:30 I took a walk up to the clubhouse with the book Bill just finished by Lee Child. I’d read it before so it was time to exchange. Once in the puzzle/book room, I noticed a new puzzle had been started. Oh great! With the border the only thing done, I sat down and got quite a few pieces in in the short time I was there. This is a beautiful puzzle titled Founding Fathers.

I texted Bill just before 3 to tell him where I was and to start Happy Hour without me. When I returned around 3:30 I first peeled and cut my carrots and set them in the pot and got things ready for the dressing. I walked over to George and Suzie’s with my chair and joined them and another new blogging couple. This is awesome! Dave and Cheryl from Our View from Here are staying at a park in Yuma and took a chance that George and Suzie were around and wouldn’t mind visitors.

George, Suzie, Dave, Cheryl, Bill, Empty chair

We are always happy to meet new people, new rv’ers and new bloggers. What a wonderful couple, just getting started on this whole rv’ing thing. Dave has just retired this past summer and they have a 5^th wheel Cedar Creek so has a lot of questions. We love that, all of us like to give advice and helpful tips whether it is what you use or not. They are just suggestions. I love that Dave has a notebook and writes things down to refer to later.

and the turkey looks, smells and tasted delicious!

I’m not even sure what time it was when I realized that George’s turkey was done and he’d taken it in from the Weber. I think it was just before 5 so I said goodbye and came back to turn the burner on for the carrots and celery to boil. I also put the apple crisp in the convection oven for 45 minutes. By 5:30 we were eating our terrific supper.

We had turkey, cooked by the Weber Q master, garlic mashed potatoes and gravy. Dressing, carrots w/celery, Christmas cake and apple crisp with whipped cream for dessert. Oh my! 

 Bill and I finished off our bottle of wine from last night and walked away with contented tummies. We sat around and chatted until 7:30 or so until it was time to say goodnight.

Clemson can smell the turkey on the counter

We’d left Clemson at home during our main course but I brought him back with me when I carried the dessert over. He is such a character, not liking their new ‘carpet-less’ floors he remained on the couch the whole time. He knew there was some great smelling meat somewhere and kept pawing at the coffee table for me to either feed him some or sit with him.

apple crisp, Christmas cake and whipped cream

Back home, Bill wanted to leave the few dishes I’d dirtied until morning but that didn’t appeal to me so I cleaned them up right away. Then it was time to sit and finish this post. I downloaded pictures from all 3 sources and set to work. Bill turned the tv on and tuned in to the 40^th Annual Kennedy Center Honours. It was nice, some people I knew, some I didn’t but entertaining anyway.

The 3 step process of ice cream cones at our place
Clemson watches Bill eat down to the last inch

Finally, he gets his piece

Pure enjoyment
And then he moves on to watching me finish mine

This has been a wonderful day even though we didn’t have any boxes to deal with today. Just the way we like it! Thanks to George and Suzie for the invitation to dinner tonight. We are so blessed to have great friends and to have the opportunity to meet new ones every day! So nice to meet Len, Brenda, Jean, Skip, Sue, Roger, Dave and Cheryl this Christmas!

Thank you for reading today. Feel free to leave a comment if you wish to.