tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39242311763105003562024-03-09T01:48:32.296-07:00Life In A Nutshellkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.comBlogger1944125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-13921720658687160652023-03-20T11:25:00.000-06:002023-03-20T11:25:53.268-06:00FURNACE AND AIR CONDITIONER A while back we decided that we needed a new furnace and central air conditioning. When I say “we” of course I mean that Louise decided we needed a furnace and central air and eventually I embraced the inevitable and agreed that she was right in this and most other things. The summers have been getting much hotter the last few years and the window shaker air conditioner just isn’t kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-3150629993452606512022-09-22T19:26:00.000-06:002022-09-22T19:26:06.796-06:00 Day FourSo, it is the end of day four of our cross the middle of Canada trip and we are spending the night in Sault Ste Marie. The motel tonight looked a little dodgy when we drove up, but after a wonderful supper at Sando’s we are now relaxing in middle class comfort.
The drive was winding all over the place, and up and down hills. I talked to a long time resident of northern Ontario at breakfast and kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-50266603160733707272022-09-21T20:02:00.000-06:002022-09-21T20:02:56.229-06:00King Size Bedbugs
Well, third day of a five day trip and can hardly wait until it is the sixth day of the five day trip.
Don’t get me wrong, northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario is beautiful… northern Ontario iskenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-2028734146206366942022-09-20T21:04:00.000-06:002022-09-20T21:04:09.046-06:00PICTURE THAT Toronto Trip September 2022
We are driving to visit Maegan and Ryan in their new house. It has been quite a while since we have been in Ontario and are looking forward to seeing Maegan in her natural habitat.
I remember when the kids were young and my mom and dad came out west to visit us. They were always welcome of course but there was always some stress. Anytime that more than kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-41681051019097938092021-08-04T00:12:00.003-06:002021-08-04T00:12:24.620-06:00 Bob The Asshole's Daughter and Her Satan’s Spawn This morning my daughter had to get out of her house so that the cleaners could do their job without two active boys and an active ++++ German Shepard year old puppy getting underfoot. Makes sense. Arwen and her hubby had to get out too which meant that we had a wonderful visit. We sat and chatted for a while and enjoyed the overly hot weather. We are having the warmest summer that I can kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-36183843927881652422021-07-13T09:03:00.000-06:002021-07-13T09:03:52.260-06:00 Bring On The Hail Last June in Calgary there was a hailstorm that cost 1.2 billion in insurable damages. That of course doesn’t count the damages incurred that were not insured or just the out of pocket monies spent by the home and business owners. This happened in an area of the city that could least afford out of pocket expenses. A large portion of the people living in this area actually work for a living. kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-21059926108580248452021-07-01T23:33:00.002-06:002021-07-01T23:33:09.500-06:00Heaven’s Cool It’s pretty hot here. Not as hot as it is elsewhere, say in BC, but it is as hot as I can remember it. Yes, my memory is less than perfect and bad things do fade with time, but the fact remains that it is very hot. Well, it is now 8:00PM and there is a mild wind so that sitting outside in the shade is just edging into tolerable from FUCKING HOT! You may have guessed that I am not kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-84243609443187745512021-06-26T00:48:00.000-06:002021-06-26T00:48:12.631-06:00Well Another Sad One It will be a different kind of sad, but sad just the same. When I was small and had to go somewhere special, my mom would dress me in nice pants a shirt (and tie) and slick my hair down to make me presentable. Can you be presentable if you pick your nose and hide it behind your knee? I’m going to say kid presentable. As I aged and selected my own clothes, Jeans with a cool belt and a t-shirtkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-37102298473665654482021-06-21T23:35:00.000-06:002021-06-21T23:35:48.892-06:00 Here’s a Happy One For the past year and a half we have been keeping a running total of the deaths due to Covid. Thankfully, for the most part I have been untouched. Up until a few months ago I didn’t even know anyone that had been sick, other than a few celebrities and the odd politician and frankly I wouldn’t be upset to see some politicians die a horrible death. So far, my hated few politicians are frustratinglykenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-46807695624724021482021-06-16T20:51:00.002-06:002021-06-16T20:51:54.257-06:00 Every Time I Flush I Think of Them I have a friend who gets quite upset that on our water bill we pay a certain amount of money for the water we use and the same amount of money again for sending the waste water into the sewage system. His feeling is that might be the case during the winter months, but during the spring, summer and fall a lot of that water going to water the lawn and garden, wash the cars and by the grand kids kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-8537304237712068702021-06-14T20:51:00.000-06:002021-06-14T20:51:09.164-06:00 I Love Being a Canadian In just six or seven months it will be -30C and there is a very good chance that I will be debating if I should turn the thermostat up one or two degrees and should I wrap another blanket around myself to get to that perfect temperature for not freezing to death. I will spend some of my day in front of the computer watching the waves coming in to some Hawaiian island. https://kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-9504374145370672542021-06-10T09:17:00.000-06:002021-06-10T09:17:00.075-06:00 Nobody Wins!If you are a friend and don’t believe in vaccines, don’t read this as you may get upset. If you aren’t a friend, I don’t care if you get upset. Today, this afternoon I will get my second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. I am pretty excited about it. After today, well in a few weeks I will have as much immunity as it is possible to cram into my blood stream. It doesn’t mean that I will never get kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-8116730258272023282021-06-07T15:15:00.002-06:002021-06-07T15:15:35.373-06:00 Anything to Worry About I can remember the difficulty we had in picking names for our yet to be born children. Out of the millions of names that are available there are only so many that you like the sound of and lets face it, you are going to be yelling that name every day for at least 18 years. You may not know what names you like, but you are very sure about the ones you don’t like. Part of the problem is that kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-69021681431270504272021-06-03T23:47:00.002-06:002021-06-03T23:47:35.358-06:00 Underwear, Escalators and Zombies How long does underwear last? That is a trick question, for some people a year or two is the answer, others figure a decade or two just about covers it and my way of thinking is that when there is no longer elastic on the waistband and holes worn out where the hole goes, then it is time to start thinking about replacements. I have also had to factor in that my ass has been getting larger kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-82036652023618741672021-06-02T23:37:00.002-06:002021-06-02T23:37:29.621-06:00 Ink…Pencil…Contact List…Memory I realized just lately that I only remember three or four phone numbers, my home and cell numbers, my buddies home number and Louise’s cell…on a good day. For all of the other numbers that I use on a regular basis, I rely either on speed dial or my contacts list. I have a digital address book on my computer and on my cell I have all of the numbers that I could possibly need. If there is a number kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-82449455436380989472021-05-31T18:16:00.005-06:002021-05-31T18:17:43.615-06:00 Bleached Asshole There will be no photos in this blog. The reasons will become obvious.I know that I watch far too much television and in the past few years I have taken to talking to the television which I know isn’t completely normal. I pretend that I am talking to Louise, but I would and do say the same things if she is there or not. I question the plot lines and comment that a character would never act kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-44527092509533242982021-05-27T23:59:00.001-06:002021-05-27T23:59:41.426-06:00 Close the Circle When I was seven or eight, I was caught trying to steal something in a Zellers store. I really can’t remember what I was trying to steal, I want to say pens, but I seem to remember that ball point pens were just getting popular and it seems to me that I didn’t get to use one until grade seven or eight. I could be wrong about the pens, but I was caught stealing from Zellers. You would kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-90979892837999669972021-05-26T00:01:00.002-06:002021-05-26T00:01:18.883-06:00 SPACE PEN: Put Down The Probe When you work for a living and it doesn’t matter what you happen to work at, there are specific challenges related to that job. Sometimes the biggest challenge is dealing with your co-workers and the customers. It is those smaller, technical challenges that you can often spend years thinking about and trying to solve. Often there is no easy fix so you just give up and suck it up. Sometimes, therekenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-218364629193291482021-05-25T00:49:00.005-06:002021-05-25T00:49:30.844-06:00 Mmmmmmm I know that I am getting old and that the things I now care about I probably wouldn’t have given a thought about a few decades ago. Obviously, I care about COVID now and just two years ago if someone had told me about a global pandemic I would have said that I saw that BBC TV series from 1975 and I liked it even though it was more than a little dark. “Survivors” ran for two or three years and I kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-75779429646456137352021-05-22T19:57:00.003-06:002021-05-22T20:01:31.626-06:00 The May 24th Long Weekend! This is the official end of winter and the beginning of summer. Really we only have the two seasons in Alberta, as spring and fall are just transition periods that are impossible to predict whether the weather will be warm or cold. You just can’t count on the weather at all. The May long weekend is the weekend that in years before Covid heralded the beginning of camping season. Before we hadkenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-21176765918631079972021-05-20T18:17:00.000-06:002021-05-20T18:17:14.052-06:00 Double Batch We have all been doing things for the past year and a half or so that we never, ever thought that we would be doing. I can remember seeing people wearing masks in stores, on the streets and riding bikes and I thought to myself, “What do these people think they are doing?” How nuts were they? I guess I should have been asking “How healthy are they?” Like a lot of people I have gone thru the kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-61926242415667096532021-05-19T20:03:00.002-06:002021-05-19T20:03:48.351-06:00 I Like The Look of the Dirt A couple of years back Louise and I went to one of the best Garden Centres in the city to find a grassy solution for where the three trees were taken out. The stumps were ground out and that leaves a mix of wood chips and dirt. I figured that since the lawn is pretty crappy anyways and I know almost nothing about maintaining a healthy lawn it would be prudent to consult a Garden Centre kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-35500522972539300142020-12-03T23:05:00.000-07:002020-12-03T23:05:01.332-07:00 Glass in My Eye I have never known a time in my life without a TV. Maybe when I was a baby, but I wasn’t concerned with TV as I spent all of my time eating and filling my diaper. Granted that in the early fifties there wasn’t very much quality programming for anyone, let alone a toddler. Don’t get me wrong, I have never let the quality of a program keep me from watching it. TV was very much a part of my life kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-55179224163012293242020-11-30T23:27:00.004-07:002020-11-30T23:27:55.679-07:00 Porch Pirates I was raised in a kinder, gentler time. We didn’t have any crime, people were nice to one another, parents were thoughtful and caring and politicians had the best interests of the people dictating there decisions. Everyone had jobs they loved, trees grew straight and tall and the birds sang all day long. Well, that was the view of an eight year old Ken and somewhat colours my take on reality.&kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3924231176310500356.post-10271177719696294192020-11-26T17:22:00.004-07:002020-11-26T17:22:38.827-07:00 Take a Drink From The Sprinklers Buster and I were out on our morning walk today when we noticed something new. Well, new to us because I am sure it has been there for the better part of a year. I remember people installing a couple of metal boxes in the field close to the soccer pitch. I have a hazy memory of asking what the boxes were for and I think the reply had something to do with irrigation. I couldn’t understand how kenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02723415400922004818noreply@blogger.com1