July 17 to 23, 2016

Sunday ;  home to Maple Ridge ( Vancouver suburb ) to Duncan, Vancouver Island

Mostly sunny.  Chilly in the early morning at home.  Warm in the afternoon near the Lower Mainland / Vancouver area.  A bit humid / muggy on Vancouver Island.

Well !  HMPH !  Apparently Noodles the dog sleeps in her people's bed !  Last night about 11 PM Bo walked to our bedroom and jumped up on the bed.  Noodles followed him.  She lay down on the foot of the bed ... and didn't move for eight hours.  HA HA
HA !

We were up at 7 AM ... much too early for me ... and were heading out at 9 AM.  We drove west on Highway 3 to Hedley, then Princeton, and through Manning Provincial Park, arriving in Hope about 11:45 AM.  The Hope to Princeton section of Highway 3 is one of the most difficult and dangerous roads in BC, especially when towing a large trailer.  West of Hope, and all the way to the Lower Mainland, the road is much easier, but the traffic is congested.

At Hope we stopped at Flying J to refill with diesel and have lunch.  The Flying J at Hope is a difficult fuel station to access and egress with a large truck and trailer, somewhat in defiance of the raison d'être of Flying J's.  After refuelling, having lunch, and walking the dogs we were on our way again about 12:30, heading west from Hope on Trans-Canada Highway 1.  Between Abbotsford and Langley we turned north off the highway and crossed over the mighty Fraser River on the Golden Ears Bridge into Maple Ridge where we delivered Noodles to her owner, arriving fifty minutes earlier than planned at 2:10 PM.

We had Noodles for a bit more than twenty-five hours, and transported her about 400 km. / 250 miles.  She was an easy dog to care for, and travelled well.  Goodbye and good luck, Noodles.

We were back on the road again about 2:45 PM.  We crossed the Golden Ears Bridge over the Fraser River again and headed for the BC Ferries terminal at Tsawwassen, arriving about 3:45 PM, an hour and a quarter earlier than planned, and two hours before our ferry departure.  So ... we had an afternoon snack.  I walked the dog ... twice.  Joanne polished her nails.  I read.  Joanne did Sudoku puzzles.  Finally we boarded our ferry about 5:30 PM and the ferry departed about ten minutes late at 5:55 PM, heading for the Duke Point ferry terminal near Nanaimo on Vancouver Island.  I am typing this at 6:30 PM on the ferry ride.

As expected the ferry arrived at Duke Point on Vancouver Island about ten minutes late, at 7:55 PM.  Once off the ferry we headed south on Trans-Canada Highway 1 towards Victoria.  By 9 PM we were in Duncan, checking into the Falcon Nest Motel.  < sigh >
I was tired and hungry.  We had a late supper and went to bed.

Monday ;  Duncan to Mill Bay back to Lower Mainland by ferry then to home

Mostly sunny, humid on Vancouver Island, very warm.

This morning we received a phone call from our client at 9:30 AM.  He and his family were already at the RV park where we were delivering their trailer.  Initially they had expected to arrive mid-afternoon, but ferry scheduling difficulties forced them onto the 5:15 AM ferry this morning from Tsawwassen to Vancouver Island.  SHEESH !  They had spent the night at a motel in Abbotsford, about an hour away from the ferry terminal, so to be at the ferry terminal on time they would have left the motel by 4 AM.  SHEESH !

They were towing a boat with them from Osoyoos, and they had already been to the marina at Mill Bay, and their boat slip was not yet ready.  I was determined to finish this trailer towing job without a hitch, so as not to fall into the same category of "unreliable service provider" that the marina obviously fit into.  I failed !

We hurried to leave the motel and get to the campground.  Out of the motel in Duncan by 10 AM, south on Trans-Canada Highway 1 to Mill Bay we were at Beehive Campground by 10:30 AM.  The client and his family were not there, having gone back to the marina to expedite matters with their boat slip.  We were almost finished setting up their trailer in their campsite when they returned.  They wanted the trailer repositioned slightly in the lot, and while we were repositioning it, the client noticed a tree branch scrape on the side of the trailer, from front to back.  Really ? ! ?  I had scraped the trailer against a tree branch ? ! ?  REALLY ? ? ? ! ! !

< HUGE SIGH >  Yes, yes ... I had !  I offered an adjustment to our fee to compensate for the tree branch scrape.  The client generously declined my offer.  BUT ... this is the first time I have had a trailer towing client complaint.  And while a tree branch scrape against a trailer is really just little more than a hard scraping off of the wax on the trailer, and some tree sap residue left behind ... it's visible ... and I'm responsible !  I'm very hard on myself, and this tree branch scrape makes me feel like SHIT !

We finished setting up the trailer, the client paid the bill ( with a modest tip included ) and we were on our way by noon.  We returned to Duncan, and drove through the parking area of the motel we had stayed in last night, looking for where I might have scraped the trailer against a tree branch.  And ... < sighing heavily > ... I found it.  There was a tree that I drove beside, knowing that the trailer would lightly contact some leaves overhanging the very narrow and difficult to manoeuver driveway around the building.  Hidden just inside the soft leaves was a cut tree branch protruding out to the very edge of the leaves !

F*** ! ! !  < taking deep breath >  A lesson learned, for sure !

We continued north to the town of Ladysmith where we stopped in a shopping mall that had a Bank of Montreal.  I deposited the cash payment that I had received into the bank's ATM, then refilled Lanoire with diesel again.  There was a sign to a nearby municipal park and we decided to go there for a picnic lunch.  Transfer Beach Park was a lovely seaside park with a beach on one side of the road and a picnic area on the other side.  We sat on a park bench and had a wonderful, leisurely lunch of Sun Oven "smoked", candied salmon that I had prepared last week, on crackers with whipped cream cheese.  MMMMMM !  While Joanne returned our picnic items to the truck, Bo and I went for a short walk in the park and ... WOO-HOO ... picked wild Blackberries. 
I filled a small plastic container with Blackberries to eat later.  Bo ate his harvest as we went along.  HA HA HA !  At first he didn't realize that I was picking fruit, but when he spied some low hanging Blackberries, it was like a light bulb going off in his head.  HA HA HA !  Well done, Bo !  I hope he got less Blackberry bramble scratches on his face than I got on my hands and arms.  OUCH !

We continued north towards the ferry terminal at Duke Point ( Nanaimo ) hoping that we might be able to get onto the 3:15 PM ferry.  Our reservation was for the 5:45 PM ferry.  We arrived at the ferry terminal at 2:45 PM.  The 3:15 PM  ferry was already full. 
< sigh >  It was a long three hour wait in a hot parking lot !  We were on the ferry at 5:45 PM and arrived back at Tsawwassen ( Vancouver ) at 8 PM.  We headed east on Trans-Canada Highway 1.  At 9:10 PM we stopped at a rest area near Abbotsford and had a very late picnic supper.  It was dark by the time we left the rest area at 9:40 PM.  At 10:30 PM we stopped at Flying J in Hope to refill Lanoire with diesel again.
From Hope to home it was raining and foggy.  Very tough driving conditions in the dark on Highway 3, a dangerous section of up and down and around mountain road.  Dodged one deer.  Almost ran off the road when an oncoming tractor trailer's lights blinded me going around a tight curve.  Arrived home alive, but very tired, at 1 AM.

Tuesday ;  Mostly cloudy, mild, some rain.

This morning our neighbour Barb came over to tell me about her visit to the veterinarian in Osoyoos yesterday with her little dog, Ceilli, with the ear infection.  The ear infection was well on its way to resolution by the time she saw the veterinarian, thanks to my "diagnosis and treatment" of Ceilli on Saturday.  My "diagnosis" and "treatment" were both spot on !  Well done, Daniel.

A neighbour ( and friend ) who serves on our RV park's Board of Directors came over to see us this morning to complain on behalf of the park's rules and regulations committee about our Bupkis Barbecue which we had left on the edge of the street in front of our yard with a "FREE" sign on it after the park's recent park wide yard sale.  Not surprisingly ... I went ballistic ! ! !  In keeping with the age old tradition of shooting the messenger, I ... < ahem > ... expressed my concern with our rules and regulations committee ignoring the figuratively speaking "rapes and murders" that have been taking place within this community for ten years, with "blind eyes" turned to them, while figuratively speaking "theft of candy bars" is dealt with promptly !  Stop being so perpetually petty, people, and focus your obligations to this community on issues that really matter ! ! !

< taking a deep breath >  We immediately removed the barbecue from the edge of the street.  So quickly that our neighbour had to move her golf cart from behind our truck to keep me from driving over it as I took the truck to load the barbecue onto it.  You want the barbecue removed ? ? ?  There ! ! ! It's ****ing removed ! ! !

Gord and Marcie came over to visit for awhile in our gazebo.  Gord's mesothelioma / lung cancer treatments continue and while still ill, he is much healthier than a month ago.  About a litre ( quart for my American friends ) of "stuff" is drained out of his chest tube twice a week.

We removed the fifth wheel hitch out of the truck, and I stored all our trailer towing materials, including our little generator and air compressor.  I did quite a bit of online work on the computer, including the somewhat complicated process of moving the payment funds for transporting Noodles the dog from my u-Ship.com account to my PayPal account to our bank account < rolling eyes >.  I did job accounting for the dog transport job and the trailer transport job.  < shrug >  Reasonable profits !  The ferry expenses were huge, about $400 !

During supper and after we watched Amazing Race Canada, Trailer Park Boys, the finale of Car Crash Couples, and of course ... Shipping Wars !

Wednesday ;  Sunny and warm.

Joanne left early this morning, with Gord and Marcie in our minivan, to take Gord to Penticton Hospital for his first chemotherapy cycle.  They returned home about 5:30 PM.  The day had gone reasonably well.  And after his first chemotherapy session, Gord was feeling better than expected.

I made some phone calls this morning, taking care of business, so to speak.  I phoned a Similkameen Trailer Towing client, our insurance agency regarding our home insurance policy renewal, and the local pharmacy to order prescription refills.  I took Bo and Ozzie for a walk, and dropped off a book at the library in the clubhouse.  Back at home
I treated Ozzie's ears again.  His ear infection is persistent, and I suspect it will be
( already is ) a chronic condition.  He spent the day with Bo and me.  And he was in a cranky mood !

I "exercised" our little generator.  I did some maintenance work on the truck.  I took photos of Bupkis Barbecue I and posted online ads to get rid of it.  I did a 6000 km. inspection of the truck, in preparation for our upcoming trip to Haida Gwaii.  I read. 
I napped.  I repeated as necessary.  HA HA HA !

After Joanne returned home and unloaded some groceries, we took Bo to the dog park.  Yesterday a five foot long rattlesnake was captured near our lodge and relocated.  HMPH !  Haven't seen too many rattlesnakes in here in recent years.  As the population of the RV park has increased over the years, the rattlesnakes have become more scarce.  They're "shy" and would rather not have to encounter people and pets.

Thursday ;  Sunny and hot.  Joanne cooked a beef pot roast in the Sun Oven today.  Late in the evening we had a thunderstorm with high winds, thunder, lightning, and heavy rain.

This morning I did some yard work, then Gord and Marcie invited Joanne and me over to help them with some paperwork related to Gord's illness.  After that was done
I installed a new hand held shower hose and mount in their shower stall.

After lunch I had a nap and Joanne went into Keremeos to run errands.  After she returned home I went fishing.  Caught two Rocky Mountain Whitefish.  HMPH !  Can't seem to catch any Rainbow Trout this year.  Within twenty-four hours of placing "free barbecue" ads online, I had five e-mail responses, one phone response, and Bupkis Barbecue I was gone.  We took Bo to the dog park.  I worked on the computer, creating a spreadsheet of all of Gord's recent medical appointments in Keremeos, Oliver, Penticton, and Kelowna, along with mileage travelled, to be submitted to the Saskatchewan Worker's Compensation Board.  Easier said than done.  Marcie's records keeping ... < ahem > ... wasn't as accurate as it could have been.  Joanne created a schedule of Gord's upcoming medical appointments for them to follow while we're away for a month.

Friday ;  Mostly sunny, warm.

After getting up early to walk Bo and put the garbage out Joanne came back to bed and we slept late this morning.  This afternoon Joanne did laundry.  I went online and deleted all the ads I had placed to get rid of Bupkis Barbecue I.  I paid some bills. 
I updated my prescription records and medical expense files.

I spent much of the afternoon trying to resolve the computer problems that we have been experiencing.  We have been having great difficulty with online functionality. 
I made many unsuccessful attempts to download Google Chrome to see if that would work better than Internet Explorer.  Then I tried to download Windows 10 to see if that would work better than Windows 8.  The download is still taking place, so I don't know yet if that will help.

Saturday ;  Sunny and very warm.

Overnight I had downloaded Windows 10 to my ( primary ) laptop.  I spent much of today configuring and experimenting with Windows 10.  Yes, yes, it has solved our online functionality problems.  Leading me to believe that Microsoft has essentially abandoned Windows 8 and Internet Explorer.  HMPH !  Never did like Windows 8 anyway !

In the evening I worked on monthly computer maintenance on my primary laptop ... AND ... dug out my secondary / spare / backup laptop, and initiated a Windows 10 download to that laptop as well, since the Windows 10 free download period expires in less than a week.

DSK

July 10 to 16, 2016

Sunday ; Mix of sun and clouds, warm.

Today was supposed to be day two of our RV park's yard sale, but ... organization of the park wide yard sale was somewhat ... < ahem > ... weak, so ... there seemed to be no purchasers driving through the park today. Consequently, we sold nothing more than the three chairs Joanne sold yesterday morning.

We had a lazy day. I took Bo for a walk to the lodge (our park's name for the clubhouse) where I returned a book to the library. I did some online investment data retrieval / reconciliation / analysis. Not a bad week / month so far ! Late in the afternoon we returned Jeanine's unsold end tables to her, and we visited with her for quite awhile. I had a "ducky fight" with her little dog Charlie. It seems as if I am the only one now who gets down on the floor with Charlie and plays "tug of war" games with him. Fighting for possession of his little furry ducky is his favourite game. HA HA HA ! But ... he's getting so old that growling while playing makes him choke. HA HA HA ! Poor old Charlie !

We received an e-mail from "winter friends" of ours. Barry and Marty have a home in San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico. Barry's doctors are in Yuma, Arizona and that's where we first met them, eight or nine years ago. Marty wrote to us today to tell us that their beloved Sunny, a Cocker Spaniel that they rescued in Mexico about ten years ago has died. < sigh > Godspeed, Sunny. Your buddy Bo will miss you. Our sympathy goes out to Barry and Marty.

I barbecued baby potatoes and a thick juicy steak for supper on our new ( to us ) Weber Q barbecue. It seems as if ... and I didn't know this before ... Weber Q's are the like the Rolls Royce of barbecues. And all these years I've been contenting myself with the Chevy's of the barbecue world. Who knew ? ! ? HA HA HA ! That's kind of like when we first moved to our large house and property "out in the country" near Ottawa about twenty-one years ago, and I bought a Noma riding lawn tractor / mower, not realizing until it was too late that "nothing runs like a Deere", which all the uppity neighbours had. What a prairie boy ignoramus ! HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA !

Early this evening we discovered that our u-Ship.com bid to transport Noodles the dog had been accepted. So ... next weekend not only will we be transporting a large fifth wheel trailer from Osoyoos to Vancouver Island, but we will also be transporting Noodles the dog from Penticton to the Lower Mainland / Vancouver area. Bo will be very exited, not only to be going on a long drivey, but to have a buddy in the truck to share the adventure with. Bo LOOOOOVES trailer delivery jobs. And he LOOOOOVES ferry rides. HA HA HA !
Monday ; Mostly sunny, warm.

Joanne left at noon with Gord and Marcie in their car for an afternoon of medical appointments for Gord at Penticton Hospital. They did some grocery shopping when they were done at the hospital and arrived back home about 5:30 PM. I did preventive maintenance on the truck and minivan. I watered our composters, plants, and gardens.

After lunch I napped with Bo, then spent part of the afternoon setting up a PayPal account to enable u-Ship.com to send me my payment after we transport Noodles the dog this weekend. And in the process, I've set up the ability for any Similkameen Trailer Towing client to pay me via PayPal. KA-CHING !

After supper, following a brief, light rain, we were treated to a wonderful rainbow over the mountains surrounding us.

Tuesday ; Mostly cloudy, warm, intermittent rain, occasionally heavy.

This morning I did some minor maintenance on the truck. While I was standing with my right foot on the truck's front bumper, and my left knee on the engine, and twisted around to work on the underside of the hood, repairing the under hood insulation liner ... I began to experience angina pain. I climbed down off the truck and sat at the picnic table while Joanne went indoors to fetch me a Gatorade to drink. I drank some Gatorade, didn't feel any better, so went indoors to lie down on the bed. Then, in addition to the angina pain, I began to experience heartburn. That didn't seem good, so ... I had my first ever dose of Nitroglycerin spray under the tongue, and chewed two Aspirin. The angina stopped, the heartburn stopped, but then I got a headache. < sigh > I decided to take a nap. When I awoke from the nap, I no longer had angina or other "cardiac problem" symptoms, but ... I felt slightly ill, and that slightly ill feeling lasted until supper time.

Consequently I took it easy for most of the day. I puttered around on the computer.
I filleted a salmon. And because of miscommunication between Joanne and me about "who's on first ?", my finger got cut ! Geeeeezzzzz ... my filleting knife is sharp !

So ... I'm typing this at 8:45 PM with a bandaged, throbbing index finger !
Wednesday ; Mostly sunny and warm.

This morning I received an e-mail from a Similkameen Trailer Towing client who had hired me to move a trailer at the end of August. She included some photos of the trailer, inside and out. I was ... stunned and dismayed. This trailer had been set up as a "permanent" camp by her deceased husband, and there is an inordinate amount of work that needs to be done to prepare it for travel. Joanne and I collaborated and composed a "bad news" letter back to her. You know, I hate to be the bearer of bad news , but ... !

This afternoon I made my secret "smoked and candied" marinade for salmon fillets.
I went fishing, but gave up after about forty-five minutes without a bite. The Similkameen River is still flowing much faster ( and colder ) than is usual for this time of year. We took Bo for a long walk around the RV park, and visited with our friend Jeanine as we passed by her home. I prepared invoices / receipts for this weekend's upcoming dual job ; transport a trailer from Osoyoos to Vancouver Island and transport a dog from Penticton to the Lower Mainland.
Thursday ; Started out sunny and very warm until late afternoon, then cloudy and cool with intermittent rain, occasionally heavy. I prepared maple syrup glazed, "smoked", candied salmon in the Sun Oven today. And it turned out great !

After setting up the Sun Oven and getting the marinated salmon into it we headed into town. We had lunch at Samosa Garden, the Indian buffet restaurant attached to Sanderson Farms produce stand. We have lunch there once per year. Today's lunch was not as good as in the past. After lunch while I went to the insurance agency in town to discuss the renewal of our home insurance policy Joanne went to the grocery store. We refilled our five gallon water jug then went back to Sanderson Farms to buy some produce.

This evening we went to The Old Grist Mill, a local tourist attraction to see a concert by Valdy. The Grist Mill is a historical attraction, a restored and functioning 1877 grist mill which was powered by a water wheel turned by adjacent Keremeos Creek. During the summer The Grist Mill hosts a series of intimate music concerts on the lovely manicured grounds. Tonight's performer was Valdy, a folk singer whose popularity peaked in the early 70's. One of "our era" ! His songs tell great stories, somewhat of a Canadian version of another singer / songwriter of the same era, and another one of our favourites, Harry Chapin.

We have attended Valdy concerts in Winnipeg at the Centennial Concert Hall in the 70's, and in Ottawa at the National Arts Centre in the 80's, both venues seating thousands of people. Valdy is now 70 years old, and tonight's concert was the best of his we've seen, in front of an audience of less than a couple of hundred people on folding lawn chairs, underneath a huge, old, horse chestnut tree. And despite his greatest hits being from the late 60's and early 70's, he's still writing great story telling songs. Tonight he performed one of his latest compositions, a tribute to the Fort MacMurray fire "refugees".
Friday ; Mostly cloudy, mild, occasional rain.

This afternoon I installed the fifth wheel hitch into the truck bed, and loaded the rest of the supplies and materials required for our upcoming trailer delivery job to Vancouver Island. And I got soaked in the process. The rain wouldn't let up. Joanne worked on packing clothes and preparing food for our trip. I trimmed my beard. And moustache. Perhaps a bit too much of both. Oh, well ... it's just facial hair. It'll grow back quickly enough.

Just as we were about to sit down to supper, Jeanine showed up with Barb, another neighbour. Barb's dog Cailie ( Jeanine's dog Charlie's "sister" ) has an ear infection, and Jeanine suggested to Barb that I might be able to help. I cleaned Cailie's inflamed ears and administered antibiotic, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, analgesic ear drops. I gave the ear drops to Barb, and she will continue to administer drops daily over the weekend, and take Cailie to the veterinarian early next week. Cailie obviously has a fever, and likely a headache as well. I hope my ear drops help relieve her discomfort until she gets veterinary care next week.
Saturday ; Mix of sun and clouds, very warm, humid, occasional rain.

This morning I did some minor maintenance on the truck, and we prepared to head to Penticton to pick up Noodles the dog, then Osoyoos to pick up the client's trailer that we are towing to Vancouver Island. Just before we left Barb the neighbour came over with Cailie the dog. Cailie's ear infection had improved overnight. YIPPEE ! We cleaned Cailie's ears again. They were drier and much less inflamed, and Cailie did not look as if she had a headache, like she looked yesterday evening. I'm glad I was "on the right track" and able to help.

We left home at noon and arrived in Penticton at 1 PM. We picked up Noodles the dog at the client's friend's home, then stopped at IGA to buy a few grocery items and Real Canadian Fuel Bar to refill Lanoire with diesel. We headed out of Penticton southbound on Hwy. 97. We stopped in Okanagan Falls to have our picnic lunch and walk the dogs in the municipal park. We arrived in Osoyoos at 3 PM as planned. It was raining when we arrived at the ( other ) client's home, so we waited briefly for the rain to end before hitching up their large fifth wheel trailer to Lanoire.

We were hitched up and leaving Osoyoos by 4 PM. We headed west on Hwy. 3 following the Similkameen River to Keremeos and then home to Riverside RV Park Resort. We arrived home around 5 PM. It was raining again. After the rain ended about 6 PM we took both dogs to our RV park's fenced dog run for some play time. Noodles enjoyed playing fetch. A lot of fetch ! I guess that's the Border Collie in her. Despite being billed as a Labrador cross, she appears to me to be about 3/4 Pit Bull and 1/4 Border Collie.

Oh, boy ! Just what I've always wanted ! A Pit Bull bitch in heat ! HA HA HA ! Story of my life ! HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA !  As I'm posting this to my blog about 9 PM Saturday night she is curled up in Bo's bed on the floor beside my desk ... snoring loudly !

DSK

July 3 to 9, 2016

Sunday ; Mostly sunny, mild, windy.

Joanne helped me replace the ( redundant ) truck storage chest and the ( redundant ) truck tailgate, both of which I store behind the back wall of our shed, and which we moved yesterday to allow me to caulk the shed base. I continued to work on cleaning dirt out from behind the gazebo screens using compressed air. Joanne did laundry.
I made fire starters using an old Boy Scout recipe using cardboard egg crates, dryer lint, and paraffin wax. After supper I posted my weekly journal entry to my blog.

Monday ; Mostly cloudy, cool.

Well ! It's about time I catch my first fish of the season, isn't it ? I fished for about an hour this afternoon. Caught and released a Rocky Mountain Whitefish. The river is still running fast and cold. It seems as if I am unable to catch Rainbow Trout in the Similkameen River until it slows and warms.

I did preventive maintenance on the truck and minivan. I watered our composters and plants and gardens. I went bicycling. I read. And napped. And repeated as necessary. HA HA HA !

Tuesday ; Raining all day. Squabbling all day.

The only productive thing I did today was take a propane tank to town and have it refilled.

Wednesday ; Sunny and very warm.

This morning we ended our squabbling, then headed to Penticton for a day of errands. We did some shopping at Home Hardware, and Canadian Tire, then I took Joanne to Penticton Hospital for her annual mammogram, the last of her annual cancer screening procedures. While she was in the hospital I went to buy fuel for the minivan. After she was finished at the hospital we went for a late lunch to Burger King. Our meal was poor, rather unusual for Burger King. Next stop was Wal-Mart, then Dollar Tree, then Superstore for groceries. We left Penticton about 5 PM. We stopped at a produce stand in Keremeos to buy some fresh vegetables and were home about 6 PM.

I grilled sausages, potatoes, onions, mushrooms and Patty Pan Squash for supper while Joanne prepared a watermelon and cucumber salad. We ate supper while watching TV ; Trailer Park Boys ( HA HA HA ), MasterChef, and America's Got Talent.

Thursday ; Mostly cloudy and mild.

Joanne left at 10 AM this morning in our minivan with Gord and Marcie, headed to Penticton Hospital where Gord had some blood tests and a C.A.T. scan done. They were back home at 2:30 PM.

I did some minor maintenance chores around home. I walked Bo and Ozzie, then cleaned and treated Ozzie's ear infections. One ear is 100% healthy and the other is about 90%. I had lunch, then we all napped.

This afternoon Joanne did some gardening and landscaping. I had a lengthy phone conversation with my sister. Haven't chatted with her for five months.

Friday ; Mix of sun and clouds, warm.

This morning our neighbour / friend Jeanine dropped by for a visit. We sat in our gazebo and chatted until mid-afternoon. By e-mail I negotiated a "horse trade" ( yard care services for merchandise ) with our next door neighbour from the Lower Mainland for his barbecue. So ... HA HA HA ... I now have Bupkis Barbecue III. It's a lovely, but neglected, expensive Weber barbecue. I spent a lot of time this afternoon cleaning it. Much more time than I had expected it would take. It was in worse shape than it first appeared. However ... after a few hours of refurbishment work, it's like "brand new".

SO ... < snicker > ... now Bupkis Barbecue I, which I acquired for free about three or four years ago, will be for sale at tomorrow's park wide yard sale. HA HA HA HA HA !
I wonder how much I can sell a barbecue for that I got for free and used for four years. HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA !

While I prepared supper on our new Bupkis Barbecue III Joanne compiled our surplus items to be put for sale tomorrow at the park wide yard sale.

Saturday ; Mix of sun and clouds, warm, brief but heavy rain about supper time.

This morning Joanne set up our surplus items for sale on the road in front of our lot, including two large oak end tables our neighbour / friend Jeanine asked us to try to sell for her. It didn't take long for Joanne to sell two upholstered folding chairs and a matching upholstered folding chaise lounge. But that was the extent of the items sold today. For the latter part of the morning Jeanine came by and kept Joanne company. The park wide yard sale was poorly organized this year. Maybe tomorrow will bring more sales, but that's likely just wishful thinking.

I ( dba Similkameen Trailer Towing ) was hired today to transport a trailer at the end of August. I spent quite awhile on the phone around noon today with the client working out details. I puttered around with minor maintenance chores. We took Bo for a long walk around the RV park. We consoled a neighbour whose eighteen year old cat died yesterday. I did some online research. I was going to barbecue for supper, but it was raining at supper time so plan B was perogies. MMMMM ... good "plan B" ! Late in the evening I placed a bid on transporting a dog that needs to get from Penticton to Maple Ridge ( Lower Mainland / Vancouver area ) while we are transporting a trailer from Osoyoos to Vancouver Island in a week.

DSK

June 26 to July 2, 2016

Sunday ; Sunny and hot. Joanne cooked a chicken, potatoes, and vegetable dish in the Sun Oven today. I had a very close call ( or two ! ) today, a "brush with death", you might say.

Our next door neighbour ( the "weekender" from the lower mainland ) arrived this morning to wrap up some loose ends on their lot which is for sale. I bought their step ladder for myself, and their four Adirondack chairs which I intend to "donate" to the dog park. I also agreed to clean their lot and haul junk to the dump for them. I went down to the park's orchard and picked a couple of Transparent Apples to see if they are ripe enough yet to use for cooking. They aren't !

I decided to go fly fishing this afternoon. I wanted to fish at my fishing "hot spot" upstream on the Similkameen River. I got my fishing gear ready, loaded it all into the minivan and drove down to the park's "burn pile" area, where I usually enter the river to cross to an island and then hike upstream from there. I walked into the river carrying a walking stick, my fishing rod case with my fly fishing rod and reel inside, and a pail with my fishing net and fishing gear tote bag in the pail. Of course, I was wearing my life vest. The water was colder, deeper, and flowing faster than I expected. As I gingerly walked across the river, it got deeper and faster. My foot slipped on the slippery rocks,
I lost my balance, and I "windmilled" my arms to keep myself from falling. Everything went flying. I staggered and stumbled around in the water on the slippery rocks, trying desperately not to fall.

I regained my balance. The walking stick was still attached to my wrist with a small strap. As the pail sunk, my fishing net and gear tote bag began floating down the river.
I lunged for the pail, grabbed the net, and the tote bag. I carefully found my way back to shore and climbed out of the river. I was stressed and short of breath. I climbed up the bank and ... HEY ! WHERE THE HELL IS MY FISHING ROD CASE ? ! ?

F*** ! ! ! My fishing rod case with rod and reel inside were ... who knows where ? Somewhere in the river, I guess ! < sigh > I climbed back down the bank and into the river again. I walked out into the water a bit and looked downstream. Couldn't see it ! DAMN ! Well ... at least I was alive ! A fly fishing rod, reel, and case are replaceable.

I climbed out of the river again, and over to the minivan parked in the burn pile area.
I drove to our clubhouse and parked. I walked behind the clubhouse to take a look at the river, a few hundred feet downstream from where I had slipped. And there in a swirling "eddy" was my fishing rod case, spinning around and around in circles. HMPH !

With a lot of difficulty I made my way back down to the river near where my rod case was floating and spinning. I struggled into the river and gingerly tried to make my way over to the rod case. As I made my final step towards it, and reached as far as
I could ... my right foot sunk into "quicksand" up to my knee !  I grabbed the rod case and tried to step backwards. My leg and foot pulled up out of the quicksand ... without my river sandal on my foot. I stepped to the left to regain my balance again and ... my left foot sunk into the quicksand up to my knee. < sigh > I yanked my left foot up out of the quicksand, trying hard to keep my river sandal on my foot. The sandal stayed on my foot, but broke as I yanked my foot and leg up out of the quicksand.

I staggered backwards a step or two to where the river bottom was rocky. I leaned down, reached into the hole in the quicksand where my right foot had gone in, and
I yanked my river sandal out of the quicksand. Now I had my rod case in one hand, my right foot sandal in my other hand, my right foot bare, and my left foot wearing a broken river sandal. I staggered and struggled back to shore and climbed out.

Twice now I had scared myself with a "close call". I was stressed, out of breath, and beginning to experience angina pain. < sigh > I walked back to the minivan and drove home. I sat down on our steps and tried to explain to Joanne what had just happened. And I guzzled a Gatorade !

I cleaned myself and my shoes and my fishing gear, and laid everything out on our picnic table to dry. I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening SAFELY at my desk. HA HA HA !

Monday ; Sunny and hot until late afternoon, then a violent thunderstorm and heavy rain for an hour or so.

I spent half my day doing "favours" for the next door neighbours on one side, then the other half the day doing "favours" for the next door neighbours on the other side.
< sigh >

This morning Joanne went into town ( Keremeos ) to drop off some forms at the medical clinic, refill our freshwater jug, and buy some fresh produce. At Gord's and Marcie's
I modified the oxygen hose mounting as requested. I repaired a pleated shade ... a rather difficult job !  I cleaned the kitchen sink's two drains, the bathroom sink's drain, and the shower drain with Drano. The bathroom sink drain needed further cleaning with a drain cleaning tool. As did the shower drain which needed a LOT of cleaning with the little drain cleaner tool. I walked their dog, then brought him to our place where I ( once again ) cleaned and treated his ear infection. I relocated a heavy rocker recliner in their living room.

This afternoon at Joe's and Lynn's I cleaned all the junk in their yard, sorting what was junk destined for the dump, and what might have value and should be kept. Much, much more of the former than the latter. After making a huge pile of junk to go to the dump, and piling the rest against their shed, I took photos of their lot to be used in their "lot for sale" advertising.

I did some gardening. I glue repaired my broken river sandals. I did some preventive maintenance on the truck and minivan. I took the Adirondack chairs that I bought from Joe ( next door ) to the dog park. I barbecued a thick steak for supper, along with baked potatoes and grilled Patty Pan Squash. MMMMM ... good ! Joanne got distracted while a pot of beans was boiling on the stove. OOOOO ... didn't know one could burn beans to the bottom of a pot quite that badly ... < snicker >.

Tuesday ; Happy 52nd Birthday to Joanne's sister Lorraine

Sunny and hot. A great day to go flying !

This morning after regular morning chores we headed to Penticton for a day of running errands and a flight for me. We bought some pet supplies at Total Pet, then made a trip to the BC SPCA to drop off some ( expensive Trader Joe's ) dog biscuits that Bo is having problems digesting. We wandered through their dog and cat adoption wings and were stunned at how low their inventory was. Which is a very good thing for an animal shelter. We're used to seeing the overwhelmingly large inventory of animals at the Yuma Humane Society.

We went for lunch to Tim Horton's. And it was terrible ! Not very good food, and atrociously bad service. Quite a change from the past ! After lunch I dropped Joanne off at Dollar Tree then I went shopping to Rona for some garden hose repair parts. On the way back to pick up Joanne at Dollar Tree I refilled the minivan with fuel.

Joanne dropped me off at BP Aviation at the airport and I went flying while she went grocery and thrift store shopping. DanAir flight 427 flew from Penticton to Kaleden to Keremeos to Riverside RV Park to Hedley and return. I descended as low as legally possible over the Similkameen River to view our RV park. In both directions ! And turning around in the narrow Similkameen Valley is impossible to do. From Riverside RV Park westbound I climbed as quickly as possible, and could not turn around until reaching Hedley, and even then I had to execute a steep climbing turn to get turned around and heading back. At Keremeos, where the Similkameen ( River ) Valley and the Keremeos ( Creek ) Valley meet I went to find and view from above the Keremeos Columns, a ( not all that ) interesting geologic formation.

What a great day to fly. Sunny, hot, calm air. Very, very busy airspace around the Penticton Airport with helicopter flight training. When I crossed over the last mountain range on the way back and called Penticton Radio from 7500 feet above Okanagan Falls, Air Traffic Control did not think I could descend quickly enough to land at Penticton without doing some circuits to lose altitude. WRONG ! Pull the power back to idle, drop forty degrees of flaps, point the nose down at Skaha Lake and ... made the runway straight in from Okanagan Falls. BOO-YA !

Joanne picked me up at the airport, her shopping was completed, so we returned home, arriving home about 6 PM.

Wednesday ;   Mostly sunny and hot, about an hour of thunderstorm with lightning and heavy rain late in the afternoon. Joanne cooked a pie crust and a potato dish for supper in the Sun Oven today.

This morning we loaded up the considerable pile of junk we cleaned up in the next door neighbour's yard and hauled it to the dump. On the way back home we refilled our barbecue's propane tank at FasGas.

After lunch I did some yard maintenance work. And I repaired the camper's freshwater refill hose. And trimmed Bo's dew claws. Late in the afternoon we went to cool off in our RV park's indoor / outdoor swimming pool. On the way to the pool we stopped and visited with our neighbour / friend Jeanine. It was while we were in the swimming pool that the thunderstorm happened. I had one of the swimming pool building's large glass overhead doors opened. When the thunderstorm began ... Black Widow Spiders came running onto the swimming pool deck from outside. HEY !  I used a pool skimmer net to "persuade" them back outdoors, then closed the large glass overhead door.

When we returned home after cooling off in the pool, and the thunderstorm and rain had cooled the temperature down a lot ( from 93F / 34C to 75F / 24C ) we took Bo into the gazebo and gave him a short haircut. Good dog, Bo ! His last haircut was four months ago and his hair grows fast ! He was immediately a lot more comfortable after the haircut.

After supper I downloaded and processed the photos I had taken of the next door neighbour's yard, and sent them to him by e-mail. He will use them in advertising his lot for sale.

Thursday ; Sunny and hot.

This morning Joanne left in our minivan with Gord and Marcie for another day of medical procedures for Gord in Kelowna Hospital. They weren't back home until after
6 PM.

I removed a propane tank from the camper. I'll take it into town in a few days to have it refilled. I repaired our ( Bupkis ) barbecue. I split some scrap wood to be used as firewood. I walked the dog, made and had lunch, napped, then went fishing. I fished for about an hour. Had five strikes, caught none of them. I was stubbornly using a fly that
I had tied last winter under Laszlo's tutelage in Yuma. It was much too large for the fish that were biting today.

In the evening, after supper, I downloaded month end bank statements and investment statements. I topped up our Canadian cell phone which had expired a week ago. And
I did some cell phone and SIM card research.

Friday ; CANADA DAY ; Canada's 149th Birthday

Mix of sun and clouds, warm, windy.

We had a bit of a lazy day. This morning I made blueberry and peach pancakes for brunch, at Joanne's request. I finished chopping some scrap lumber into firewood. After a late, light lunch and a nap I went fishing for about forty-five minutes. Caught nothing. The Similkameen River is still flowing a bit too fast for effective fly fishing. And the wind was too strong today for effective fly fishing. I'm just too eager !

I did some more caulking on the base of our shed. I barbecued steak, potatoes, and Patty Pan Squash for supper again tonight. And like last year, we went out onto our deck late at night and lit sparklers to celebrate Canada Day.

Saturday ; Sunny and hot. Joanne cooked a peach cobbler in the Sun Oven today.

Today we did some work around the yard. I continued caulking the shed base. Joanne did some cleaning in the gazebo. She went into town to refill our water jug and buy some fresh produce. I polished shoes. We gave Bo a bath. We went for a long walk with Bo. I went bicycling, which I haven't being doing enough of.

In the evening at my desk, I reconciled monthly bank statements and updated my investment files. We watched the Saturday night movie on AMI, the biography of Ray Charles.

DSK