My Flashes of Brilliance Are Getting Dimmer

More like fireflies than fireworks.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been trying to figure out a way to maximize my stay at Grundy while also going to the Tavai Family Reunion in Vancouver and taking a 5 day train trip back across Canada.  All of this is compounded by the fact that I also have to stay 5 months in BC for health insurance purposes and I also have to bring the Beast in to a service centre for much needed brake work.

I had a duh moment yesterday.   I had a 3 week block set aside for all this when, in reality, I only need a few days.  So I spent most of yesterday changing flight itineraries, cancelling train trips, and organizing the Beast’s spa day.  I leave Wednesday and will be back at Grundy by Tuesday afternoon.

So, with that all organized, a friend and I went shopping in the metropolis of Britt where you can buy tomatoes with only a few moldy spots on them and cans of Spam….and really, what else do you need at camp?  On the way, we stopped at the dump and found 2 very large black bears, one of whom growled a warning at us to stay away.  No problem!

 

Virgins or Goats....Decisions Decisions

It has become apparent that the time has come to become proactive about this weather situation.  I'm pretty flexible when it comes to amusing myself during inclement weather.  Of course, I do exactly the same thing as I do during clement weather, which is nothing.  Still, I prefer to do my nothing when I'm sitting on a beach, basking in the sun.

Apparently the summer gods have decided to collude with Parks Ontario to install private swimming pools on every lot, in order to keep the lakes more pristine.  This would account for the torrential rains and the cold we've been having since early July.

The other possibility is that I have royally ticked them off by sneaking up through Ontario from the south end.  This caught them by surprise and it was almost 24 hours before they realized I was back at Grundy and they unleashed torrents of water.

Given my track record, I suspect it's the latter and so the time has come to start thinking about sacrificing something that will appease them.  Unfortunately, virgins are kind of thin on the ground.  On the other hand, I like goats and I'd feel really bad about beheading one, although I do have a really nice recipe for goat curry.  Decisions, decisions.

Hail Yeah!

It seems the weather gods are paying attention.  Apart from the fact that they inevitably cause temperatures to drop like a rock and rain clouds to open up as soon as I arrive in Sudbury, they also seem to have a soft spot in their hearts for me.  Or else they also hate the colour of my car.

How else can you explain that in the 14 years that I’ve owned Zippy (the green Echo), I’ve only seen one serious hail storm?  In the past 3 weeks, I’ve been through 3 and there’s another on the way.  The hope is that the car will get all dinged up, and I’ll be able to afford a paint job courtesy of my insurance.  I’m thinking of going green again – at least you can find the car in a parking lot.

And I’ve renamed the new car Ziggy.  It just fits.

A belated apology to Chevy

I wrote recently that the designers of the Sonic were a little short-sighted (I may have used the term moronic) when it came to designing the car.  When I was towing it, I was killing the battery because the car had to be turned on for my auxiliary braking system to work.  After 7 hours on the road, there wasn't much juice left in the battery.

Well, it turns out that there is a second adaptor which bypasses the battery and allows the car to be towed.  It would have been nice if someone had mentioned that to me at the dealership, but it just goes to prove the old adage... when in doubt, RTFM (Read the F***ing Manual).