Turning the Page

yes.......... another one bites the dust

Wishing you success and contentment for 2016

The Big ............

............. melt

Glorious sunshine out there
Blue sky and headed for 35 F
water is running everywhere

The ground is white and roads were slushy
now , probably frozen solid
, like stone

From the Tampa Bay Times , DayStarter
The top 10 movies
1. the Revenant
2. Spotlight
3. Inside Out
4. Sicario
5. Anomalisa
6. Room
7. 99 Homes
8. Amy
9. Love and Mercy
10 Ex Machina

A typical year , we never see any of the biggies or nominees -  I saw #10 and was scared
BTW , not both of us , I

Don't get out much , do we ??

As this year , closes out
Please not follower numbers on this blog jumped by 50 %
Thanx ,  cuz , there is hope

Re - packing Xmas

All the little do - dads are back in boxes for another year. The outside lights got un - powered. The living room is bare.
Only the livingware remains - as usual.

We dug out form the first blast of white. Heavy and nasty , approx 2 in after it all packed down and it did

We are into the left - overs form Xmas day. The turkey will live forever but the sides are going fast
TG , there is gravy to cover everything

For a first , the Xmas decor is in the garage. Why ? dunno , giving it a try
The premise is storage bins are stored in the garage - m-t , so why not fill them. See . So , logical.

We are in the midst of a re - warming spell - this time hovering around 32 F , and not + 6
The run - off is voluminous and loud

A Little Sprinkle of

.... stardust
OR / freezing cold
We got winter , official below zero cold ( thats C degrees ) or 24 F
The air is crisp

And , the next social event for us is cancelled
Normally , we do New Years Day , here ( an Asian thing no doubt )
Only 4 could come ( us + 2 ) , so we're dropping it form the calendar
I guess , we de - Xmas early - bonus !

From the TorStar ( # 1259 )

.... the World by the Numbers

Two items , London's Heathrow teething problems
Americans loving the cheap gas crisis

I reported months ago that Gatwick  was the relief airport for London air travel and that it needed relief. But there is a controversy around another runway for Heathrow. Lets be clear ,Heathrow is huge.
Yearly , traffic is 45 million passengers. The numbers are huge as well, $ 1 billion to buy out property rights for 300 homes that will disappear. The economic loss w/out the added runway ,$ 10 billion
The political fallout , well , lets be blunt , no one wants to be the guy that said  " Yes '

Cheap gas , as Will Rogers would've said                                           ' the result of eating at a taco stand '.  
American SUV purchases are up and Americans have taken to the road again in numbers unseen for a decade.

Weather : sGWN is almost balmy. Rain not snow , jackets not coats
green not white
we're waiting for the other shoe to drop

The fab eating and stupidity have caused a blip in the get fit plan
The run is over. 18 days of exercise ended on Xmas day - a day off
Hopefully ,sanity will return.

The movie review for " Mr Sherlock Holmes " w/ Ian McKellen
I am somewhat of a fan of SH. I have read many stories and seen countless enactments of the books. 
This period of his life puts him at 90 y.o.a and fading , SH but fading. Into his life comes regret , in waves , the culmination of putting off feelings for a career. A young lad , son of the housekeeper but an entity around the house in his own right , becomes student and teacher.
How good is this movie - better than anything else this year. Which according to my assessment of the ' Oscar ' process , should mean its a shoo in. 

Stranger than.............

... fiction
Inspiration
I'm watching a Xmas present  ' Mr Sherlock Holmes ' w/ Ian McKellen.
Of course , you might expect a line , such as ' fiction , rubbish , I deal in facts  '

When I was in 3 rd year university , an opportunity arose for me to work the summer for a professor on a research project. My main function was to collect data on Sports fishing on L. Huron. There was a research camp that formed the base for several professors and their crews.
As well , as the creel census and fish research programs , specific tasks would come to the camp as a whole from the Department of Lands and Forest.
One directive brought the whole camp staff into play. The objective was to capture by net and transport approximately 100 carp ( the fish species ). The carp were believed to be a good source of information on the presence of pollutants in the L. Huron watershed.
With much anticipation and enthusiasm the 12 or so young men set out to a neighbouring marsh area.
The high spirits lasted all of 20 minutes. We discovered that carp were fast - fast enough to sprint around the end of the nets as the trap closed. And that the carp could burrow under the net and were able to jump right over the net.
Our little adventure become an all day slog through mucky water with slight successes as 2 or 3 carp would fall prey to our pedestrian effort.
However , job done , an observant fellow noticed that although we drove over 3 1/2 miles to arrive at the marsh that the camp was directly across from the marsh about a 150 yd swim. Gleefully , one after another the guys started swimming home. As I neared the water , one of the older guys tossed me the truck keys and yelled     ' rookie drives , thats the way it is ' and was gone.
I returned to the truck , a 2 1/2 ton flat bed with its tank of fish and climbed into the cab and the manual transmission. You are right.
I'd never driven a standard. I knew the theory but no practice.
The truck lurched forward and seemed to roll backward nicely.
The thought of backing up for 3 miles was not appealing.
Eventually , I was rocking down the dirt road and then onto the well worn lane leading to the camp. As I approached the gate , I noticed a crowd standing and waiting.
A voice called out ' see , I told you not to worry '. A veteran camp
hand stepped up on the side of the cab and poked his head in.
' They said that you didn't drive standards. You did well. How did you shift into 2 nd , 3 rd and 4 th ? '
' Second ? ' I answered
Yes , I'd driven home 3 1/2 miles in first gear !

Weather : we are above normal w/ patchy sky. The week ahead seems a mixed bag of warm / cool , rain / no rain.

And on this day

I'm not sure what you're doing to - day
I hope its w/ family and friends
Encompass them



Good thoughts for you all

" So , This Is Christmas ......

and what have you done
Another year over
And a new one to begin "

Unfortunately , I'm at an age where time is counted in events such as Xmas.
I recall , as a teacher , catching snippets of conversation about the classroom and couldn't help chuckle inside as I heard ' this week end or to - morrow etc '. Their plans were so abrupt and immediate.
Well , there is nothing immediate about my life.
As well ,I've noticed that when things get exciting that its normally not a good thing.
And in this tech - filled world , a whole lot of stuff goes ' whoosh ' right over my head

Yesterday , I was flatteringly called ' the webmaster 'b/c I did sort out that Groupon situation and got a hard copy of the coupon.

And I've yet to figure out the hand held device thingy where you you use your phone for coupons and such. The closest I come is downloading online to my store loyalty card.

The wind is loud and the trees doing a dance out there w/ partly cloudy skies and temperatures racing to 60 F , on DE23

OK knocking off for brekkies , round 2

The Sked

I mapped out the program for chores pre - Xmas.
Yesterday , was the finale 
1) dropped off 2 gifts 
2) thank you basket to the 2nd floor staff at the Nursing Home
3) perishables bought

One last gift xchange but I'm not in charge of that one

Calm is back
As well , a friend from OH wanted me to print a Groupon voucher.
I was given the FB sign in PW and
Nada
Why ?
First error , my computer remembered my acct
OK
Sign in as ' the friend ' 
Yes !!  but nothing was there

This morning , I noticed that there were two Groupons after Google search , one ' .ca ' and the other ' .com '
Duh , if your in Canada , you can't give your location as OH.

Went in through ' .com ' and it was all there

We will be above 50 F , to -day w/ rain and drizzle

#1254

This is the day of winter solstice , Jack Frost comes to stay.
Unoff. we hit 54 F , sometime this aft

Ran errands , all day , dropping off gifts. Two in particular , are long time thank you gifts , dating back to my bachelor days. The two households let me ( or wouldn't kick me out ) stay for dinner , one night a week - home away from home

The Cdn dollar rallied to close at a record low for the loonie
A $ 1 item at the Dollar Tree in St Pete Beach is $1.40 Cdn.

No cheap beer , this year. My $2 U.S. Yeungling is $2.80 Cdn

Tried the H.I.I.T. method again for exercise. The results were not as dramatic but I wasn't interested in pushing the routine , too hard.
however , the HIIT makes the workout go a little quicker.
I'm watching 'A&E - the Planets ' , a documentary on the history of exploring the solar system.
FYI - the largest storm in the solar system is on Jupiter , 3 x the size of earth
the largest geological feature in the solar system is Marinus valley on Mars - the distance from NYC to Los Angeles.
- imagine a mountain 15 miles high ( 3x - Everest )

Oh , Christmas Tree

Yes , the re - jig worked. Pop ! at 4:20P a Xmas tree appeared outlined in the backyard.

The time is 6:06 A and I'm awake and blogging
Stuffy nose. Woke at 5 A , nasal rinsed w/ salt water and can't get back to sleep

Never name your lake ' Poopo ' b/c when it disappears - you got it " Poopo Disappears " , news at 11.
In Bolivia , the country's 2 nd largest lake is gone. Poopo was flighty , coming and going w/ the rain but this year Poopo didn't refill. Climate change ?? The experts blamed a strong El Nino year.

Further , a survey showed that well over 80 % of doctors and pharmacist opt for the generic brand over brand name pharmaceuticals. These two tidbits form CBS ' Sci and Tech '

On PBS , last afternoon , a motivational speaker on ' non aging seniors ' did a demo of ' High Intensity Interval Training ' or H.I.I.T. The concept says , bursts of intense activity followed by a casual walk / rest builds mitochondria which in turn burn calories. She did a on stage version. 20 seconds of arm pumps , jogging and flailing to be followed by 1 1/2 min of a walk.
Now ,of course , I couldn't let this go. I've been trying for alternate work out routines - for interest and as well , I'm into a prolonged sequence of exercise sessions. And besides , I figured that I could flail away in the privacy of the TV room. She did it in front of 400 in the audience and millions ( well ,thousands , after all it was PBS ) on TV
I did , say , push ups for 20 sec and jumped back on the elliptical for 1 1/2 min.
I did the normal time for a work out.

DE 4   normal 5 day cycle                     DE 10 Xtnded              DE20 HIIT

394 cal                                                 435 cal                         555 cal
47:18 min                                             52:15 min                     54:35 min
109 BPM avg                                       109 BPM avg               119 BPM avg
128 BPM High                                      125 BPM High             144 BPM High

The calories burned for DE 20 is higher but the real effect is supposed to be after the work out for HIIT i.e. b/c you create more mitochondria in your cells. And BTW , this HIIT isn't your everyday work out. All the experts suggest at least a day between HIIT jobbies. In fact , some trainers mention 2 days of rest.

Two additional notions ,are :
1) this HIIT started for weight training not flailing away w/ arms and legs on stage. The practioners used heavier than normal weights. This contrasted w/ the old norm of many repetitions for weight training

2) for me the 109 BPM avg has me on the edge of the range for weight control , at 125 BPM , I cross into the range of ' optimal aerobic activity ' . In reality , I'm in the area of BPM which is 82 % of my max Heart Rate

Thus , based on the fact that I'm not using heavy weights or heavier weights and not all the exercises that I do use weights , compared to the lady on stage I'm 1/2 way or less to a real HIIT work out but burning calories like a maniac.

Of course , I woke up hungry at 5 A , go figure !

More to follow on HIIT b/c you know that I can't let this go

And BTW , approx eight to ten years ago , a doctor was pushing HIIT as 20 seconds followed by 1 1/2 min easy walk and repeat / three times a week !
This 3 minute work out was in place of 4 or 5 aerobic work outs of 35 - 40 min per week. Sort of the E - Z P - Z way to exercise.

Five Billion

.......... a big number of hamburgers..... or not
I've always had problems conceptualizing some things , actually , a lot of things
A billion is one of those. OK , what is the 5 billion , well its dollars , that are projected revenues from the Star Wars franchise , in 2016.
Disney , the corp , has leased the imaging rights quite indecently , to anyone w / a buck or mega - bucks in this case.
Another case , of ' whoosh ' right over my head

Weather , felt bitter cold ,  yesterday but it was DE average temperatures w/  wind chill. To - day , has broken sunny w/ blue skies above us. The temp is 30 F , which was the high yesterday but only late afternoon. The week should see us warm.

We are singing the song ' Oh, Christmas pear ' , it is sung to the tune of ' Oh , Xmas tree '. The song celebrates the appearance of our backyard pine which got lights yesterday. I tried to outline the pine and hoped for a ' triangular ' shape. Instead , yes , it looks like a pear or if you're super kind - a snowman. I think this is like the constellations in the sky - a whole lot of thinking outside the box or massive amounts of drugs are needed.
I will go out and re - jig the arrangement. After all , re - jigging is what I do best. And , yes , many ideas are floating around in my head - as in sugar plums , da dum da da !

Reporting : went out and planted a pole to hold the top of the light string , a anchor point. Then tied down the corners of the triangle shape. Now , we wait for 4:40 ? P for the lights to come on

Following a common theme , to keep you appraised of the situation for on going story lines.
 Op Osm , the get fit policy , weight is bang on 166 lb. This is almost 1 year and a bit to the day that I first reported reaching 170 lb from the high of 190 lb ( same weigh scale )

 and to night would be the 12 day in a row for exercise.
Actually , we have a conflict , here. I say that this is the longest continuous run of days that I can remember but M says , her take is that I exercise everyday unless away or ill ------------- ah , 
Knowing M , its me who is wrong

The chow Mein Saga

Run #3 or chow mein , Mark 3

A success. Except in my memories , there are left - overs for chow mein sandwiches. Nope , no left - overs , so far. Kinda sad or good b/c we ate everything

What is chow mein. Purely American or Western influenced
Vegetable base is the Trinity , carrots , onion and celery. I'm using pork sliced thin b/c thats the way , I recall Mom doing it. Next , add bean sprouts (big bunch ) and throw in the mein ( noodles ). Allow bean sprouts to cook and the noodles to soften.
OK childhood returned

The weather has turned to a little above winter temperatures. A chance of flurries , later , cool remains for the week end and then the temperature shoots up around Xmas.

Gaining Confidence

...... and self praise , not so good

To - day , will be run #3 in the quest to make chow mein as remembered from childhood and not so childhood.
The key was sourcing the noodles that Mom and her sisters and relations used. At one time , there were 4 or 5 small specialty stores that retailed Japanese food and goods. As far as I know that number is down to approx 2 in the GTA.
My latest find is an Asian food store but seems to bring in a specialty group of Japanese style food.

And in my attempt to make contact w/ former students. FB has been good and I've re - connected finally w/ another student now residing West of GTA by about an hour.
slow progress but progress

Temperatures are on the way down and will stop , slightly above freezing but then zoom up in the next 6 days
A white Xmas is a close sure thing

the FORCE Awakens

............ but I don't

M asked ' do you want to see the next StarWars episode ? '
Sure when it comes to the used DVD store

We can celebrate the very moderate ' winter 'we have.

Hey , I'm running out of positive news , already

On the exercise front. Presently , I have ellipticked 10 days in a row.
This spell is the longest continuous period. I've changed the routines to be less riding or walking and more weights and calisthenics.
Of course , I'm waiting for my knee to call it quits, The discomfort level is normal or better. I do ice after each work out. As well , I 've started using the ' accupen ' again.
The accupen is exactly what it sounds like. It is an battery powered electrical pulse pen and is applied to ' accupoints ' on your body.
Does it work ? Dunno. It doesn't hurt and makes this humming sound and beeps. 
What more could you want from a device.
You need to research the accupoints but nowadays thats no biggie.
One Google search and you have dozens of sites giving advice.

Reading material. I'm back to my old favourite ' Instrumentalities of the Night ' and my firends Piper , Pinkus and Brother Candle.
Truth be told , I'm skipping over parts , say , 15 pages at a time.
Its not like , I don't know the story. in fact , I kinda feel like , I wrote it .............. sorry , there , Glen.

Another , YouTube surfing find. The song is a James Taylor original , but sung by Jennifer Warnes
' Millworker ' , a must listen choice

Never , Say , Never ..........

the Bond movie ? ................

Well , to - day's theme
Yesterday , a comment after I said that I write  a blog 
" you're one those people " 
Oops ! Done in one
Except her son reads this blog occasionally , not a charter member

My most famous  ' nevers ' 
1. own a credit card ........ guess where that one went
2. belong to an union ............ joined the biggest in the country
3. date a divorced woman .............. yep , you got it !

And , add this , didn't think that I could order on line
This year , it got to the point where , M apologized to the mailman.
He said ' not to worry '

Weather : gray and uncertain but still oodles above normal temperatures

Pre - Xmas

our social calendar starts

We have an annual gift exchange every Xmas w/ M's friend.
The beginning to the social whirl of the season.
Actually , a relatively quiet social scene
Just about our speed

Weather : stayed warm through the night 47 F but will rain and cool down , now , for the week

The Economy of the Oldest......

......   profession

No , not fishing
In the new Greek economy , prostitutes are charging the price of a sandwich for sex. From a high of $ 75 to 4 , the slump in the Greek economy has reached the streets.
This factoid was included in the ' World by  the Numbers ' , the TorStar.
And the numbers game plays out in the U.S.
29           % of young Americans who doubt the American dream
12           % felt that way in 1986

0            % change for Black young Americans
70          % of white workers w/ out a college degree , struggling

$ 58 , 197 is the median income for whites in the 25 - 34 age bracket
43, 957 for 25 - 34 yr old blacks

Criminy , this is , a depressing section of the TorStar.

Good news ??? Alabama plays Michigan for the semi finals of the National Championship. Go Tide.
Arsenal of the EPL, are in second.
Both these teams have been my favourites for decades. Alabama from the mid 60 s and Arsenal from approx 1976.

Weather : gray and very slight wind , temperature holding at 44 F.
Our seasonal average temperature is 33 F. we will cool down this week.
Last year , we had 3 in of snow on the ground ,in this past week.

The cookie company. We are now finished the first batch ( only ? )
of Xmas cookies. Cookies taste like Xmas. Decorations vary from sublime to ............ 
It was our first try. I can't remember rolling out anything for baking
b/c typically I drop batter into cups or onto a tray.
Icing was a new problem. We used pre - made plastic squeeze bottles instead of icing bags. A whole lot of wasted icing occurred.
Of course , not knowing how the icing should turn out was difficult.
Maybe a mite wetter ... but that means longer to set or even not set
We are a cookie work in progress.

Surfing the YouTube

The origin of surfing YouTube , music esp , was to create the personal Top 100 songs.
I actually , started the list way back , say 2005 , while driving home from the U.S.
A character in a detective novel received a gift certificate for i Tunes, he decided to do his Top 100. Lucas had a bunch of Beatles songs and rock groups.
My list started w/
" a Town Called Malice " by JAM , used in the film , ' Billy Elliot '
Since then the list has grown , considerably. The latest entry # ___
is ' the Moon is a Harsh Mistress ' sung by Linda Ronstadt , written by Jimmy Webb. How many ? You see............................
Eventually , you've figured out , I'm supposed to join i Tunes or a similar service and download the songs.
Well ,cheap me , said , ' keep surfing Youtube ' to play your Top 100. 
I think your supposed to have songs on your phone. Then you listen on the subway or at the Drs office or walking on the street.
I think.... No / Yes

Weather : dreary out there and we are above normal , way above but cooling to almost seasonal in 4 days.

The social scene. This week , I met w/ former students , twice at the same restaurant , a sushi place. Their work history includes ' a top bank ' sending this message " we will , of course , pay for your hotel stay or if you prefer your present apartment "
Come on. Never , in my life has that happened. the girl ( lady now, I still think of them as 18 or something ) , shrugs when I ask her to repeat the hotel bit. ???????????????   I'm too old or too ........... 
anyway , she's well paid........... I figured that part out on my own

No News ...........

........... is good news , usually

The weather ala El Nino continues w/ warm and slightly damp over the sGWN. We set a record for daytime high to - day.
warm and windy

CBC , Sci and Tech had an item , announcing the first full moon on Xmas day since 1977

Our holiday schedule is out and it looks pretty light but then it usually is. 
We pre - Xmas on the DE 14 that is an away game
We have 2 home games w/ time off for good behaviour.
We have turkey at home Xmas day - an away game w/ turkey on Boxing Day ( or return day in the U.S. ) and we host New Years Day , a Japanese hold over thingy

Eat Like a Man

or .........................

Men prefer meat and fatty meat at that
         are usually not hungry after exercise
         don't fantasize about food

Women crave sweet
              are starving after exercise
              and often dream about food

OK - Caitlin / Bruce - better move over , I'm a cross - eater

I dream of breakfast
Thinking of Mom's chow mein was obsessive
And I'm not satisfied - its got to be better .... will be better

Oops ! 

Weather : cloudy and damp looking but so unseasonably warm
O/v night the temperature stayed at 4 C

On the social scene : I'm not sure if this is a Xmas burst but I'll meet students on two successive lunches
One is approaching 40 the other is 33 - ish

To -day is the second baking day for cookies AND we ice and decorate as well. OOh !  Talk of fantasies
This is one
Success ??? Dunno
Seemed right

 The news segment :

Study: One in five Americans with debt believe they will die that way There is something terribly wrong about this poll factoid from the TBT DayStarter Maybe, the greatest indictment I've ever seen about quality of life in the        ' land of the brave and home of the free ' There needs to be a warning on Xmas cookie recipes. Do NOT bake these too far ahead , as in DE 9 Cookies may evapourate right from the can

A Case of Ugly

While surfing through the CBC , Sci and Tech section on line , one item caught my eye. Apple has introduced a phone case cum battery for the i Phone 6. The case can boost the battery time by almost 2.  Reaction : its ugly. Yepper , ugly , not useful or great but appearance wise.  You can't win , sometimes

Weather : broke bright and will warm from the 45 F , presently showing.

On the Xmas front , success yesterday , a plan came to gether. We will be able to make Xmas cookies as gifts and the numero uno present was found. 

Round 2 of Xmas cookies. Dough is cooling 
Criminy , all we used was butter / flour and sugar.  These suckers are cardiac terrors , my heart was trembling

 First batch , 3 slightly burned , taste terrif !
mostly , ' men ' shaped / some pine trees

Then we ice and decorate

Stay tuned

As well ,on the cooking adventure front. To night , I tried to duplicate my Mom's ( family ) recipe for chow mein , just like as my Mom and Aunts made
Rating : about 80 % successful
Taste , close to excellent -- I left out the MSG , w/ MSG , I think it was there
Noodles needed a touch more softening

Big Topics

We will tackle some " humungoes " issues. 

On the buds , BBC ran an op - ed piece that ' Humans do Not Learn from their Mistakes '

Global warming and the resultant climate change

and do these 2 go to - gether

#1 Mistakes. the lead in was a story of a bank that decided that errors were human and vilifying employees created a climate of fear.  The presenter Lucy ................ , then went on to point out that she still buys shoes that pinch and probably would go on buying pretty shoes that don't quite fit.
Her second choice was ' men ' marrying the same kind of woman and divorcing
In this comparison , it seems women are coming off rather well.
Further , she used research w/ chimpanzees which showed that the greatest chimpanzee learning came w/ rewards not failures.
In all this ( and its 6:30 A again and I'm up ) , I'm royally screwed.
I've been using the phrase ' a work in progress ' in my head to describe me. Holey kamoley Batman etc ,    etc  , etc ( paraphrasing Yul B in the  ' King and I ' ).
What ?  I'm going to keep making those same mistakes ?

#2 Global warming.  The big muck- e - mucks are deciding if the world's governments can agree to do something. Seems to me that every time humans do something - it turns out bad for the planet.
so , I'm thinking do nothing.
However , I think that means - stop development. No panty waist
 ,a little here , a little there.
Admit we were wrong , so far , and stop. 
Ah , I know ! the term is ' re - trenching '. Normally ,business uses this re - trenching to explain why the company is firing 30 % of the staff.
and truth be told , this ' stop development ' will be worse than 30 %

See , the two topics seem to mesh slightly.

And , I didn't want to start w/ this - has Facebook adversely affected this blog.
Are blog entries shorter or less pithy
Do you fall asleep more quickly now when you read this stuff.
Well , for sure , I'm not falling asleep quickly or at least not staying asleep

Well ,I'm back to making the same mistakes
Which proves , I'm human
Un - vilified
Un - rewarded

Slarty Bartfast in the ' Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe ' says overall I'd rather be happy than right '
Arthur Dent asks " And how's that going ? "
SB : ' ah that's where it all seems to fall apart '

falling apart in Scarberia

yours truly

To - day Monday DE 7

It appears that we start a Xmas prep. On the agenda is cookie baking. We've bought the ingredients and utensils. We'll start w/ sugar cookies and then ........ gingerbread ?. Foolish , dunno .... seemed like a good idea...... or.....

Weather : benign , 38F rising during the day , and much warmer through the week. Apparently , it rained last night , and might again during the day. And two days of rain are due at week's end

#1239

or a Glimpse into the Day , here

Couldn't sleep after 6 A

Thus , 6:43 coffee on
7 A blogging
We've committed to sponsoring a ' Syrian family ' from the camps in Jordan or Lebanon. On FB , a former student is gathering a group to accumulate sufficient funds for a family's support , here , in Canada.
And on CBC , a report said that the UNHC relief agency is getting requests turned down by Syrian families b/c Canada is too far. The refusers want to stay close enough to go home

Morning routine , warm water and a slice a lemon
Coffee diluted to half and evapourated milk. I use no name EM. 
Pumpernickel toast w/ honey.
Then wait to see what happens

Lately , last 10 months or longer , b/c in England  in May . I was having gelatin ( Br. terminology ) I've been having jello and fruit.
My fav is orange jello and its no name too. I use fruit cocktail and add sliced apples.
However , I recently bought Mandarin orange sections in the can.
when we are travelling , I choose orange jelly and Mandarin orange pieces in the jelly. sort of all in one.
I prefer if I make my own jello. Just like growing up.
In fact , I've had more than one person recall - dissolving the jello in hot water. In England , gelatin comes in solid rubbery cubes that get dissolved.

Well , that about describes the morning.
Sunday ( & Fri ) , the paper comes , the TorStar , what else , and I photocopy the Cryptic crossword  by Caroline Andrews. Her name has become synonymous around here w/ everything nasty in the world as I frustratingly suffer through another cryptic.

" Christmas is coming , the goose is getting fat " , borrowed from the Xmas song

Yesterday. The kitchen.
I started w/ the counters. Wiped all the counters down incl the backsplashes. As well , wiped the cupboard doors and drawer edges. The whole kitchen got vacuumed 2 days ago. Incl tops of cupboards , near the ceiling
On to the Fridge , wiped the outside and door edges. The inside was done 3 days ago.
the microwave was wiped down and this included the top of the built in fan.
The gas range was next. All burner girds were cleaned using baking soda and Mr Clean. The flat surface was wiped and degreased
Then I stopped for a beer and thats all she wrote

#1238

No , title !!!!!!!!
What can I say.

Weather  
Cons : gray and dreary looking
Pros: way above normal , say 50 F by day's end

Lazy , morning , here .............. real , lazy

Excitement , we watched " Mighty Ships " , a documentary of famous and big ships. To -day , the " Norwegian Breakaway " , world's biggest cruise liner
OK . OK , thats exciting ?  Yepper

We are Xmas'ed up. Tree *
                                  Living room window *
                                  Santa in front hall *
                                  lawn *
                                                   Xmas day set *

Presents bought ?  Oops ! still a work in progress
many obstacles overcome
but ' miles to go before I sleep ' ( borrowed from Frost )

Hello , Edmonton and Norton
Hey , Northborough , lets hear from you !

R U Interested

....... I guess , it doesn't matter

B/c I'm agoina do it anyway

Feature items that have progressed here
The baby laptop : new battery is a charm ,   the icon still registers a 6 h charge
The OpOsm , get fit jobby. Still in the good zone for weight. B/c of the week off for fishing and the subsequent cold ( 5 days off ) , I'm still not at full bore for work outs , however , calories burned per work out is averaging 450 - 500.
The Timex heart rate monitor is bang on.   BONUS ! is that , the elliptical heart rate monitor is synced to the Timex. The past heart rate monitor , a Polar model , only sometimes was picked up by the elliptical machine. Since , the elliptical was a  $ 1 600 machine and the Timex is $ 60 , its a better way to go , change the heart rate monitor.
The Xmas window is " on ' and currently , flying over Alaska ( I think ).

Weather : scary , global warming has come to the s GWN. We will be close to 50 F to - day , though o/vcast. We should be above freezing but barely.
Xmas lights. I've mentioned in the outside decorating department we finish , last , in our chunk of the neighbourhood. We are surrounded by falling icicle lights , polar bears , reindeers and santas. We put out a lone Xmas tree on the lawn.
Pretty but a lonesome pine.
A quick trip to  ' the Giant Tiger ' , think , dollar store , but nothing costs a dollar. I found ' lollipop ' light sticks. Now, the pine is flanked by 2 stop signs w/ lit poles. A trio on the lawn , representing us.
BTW , my name means  ' leaf of the fir pine ' - kinda fitting , eh ?

Have a good ' un

Working It Out

............ Xmas window
We rev the jet engine up for 1 h and then turn it off.

Adventureland. We went downtown , all of 12 miles.
For $11 and change we got all day travel on the GO line which is the commuter line. Fast and smooth, Clean cars and quiet
We ended up at Union Station.
We hoofed the 1/2 mile something to the Ripleys Aquarium.
Highlights were sharks and school children , each equally as dangerous.
There is a glass tunnel which people walk through and fish swim around.
The coffee was favourably priced and delicious - or we were desperate.
The next leg was a walk along the station front called Front St to the Flat Iron Building and the Flat Iron Pub. We chose the cottage pie and ploughmans lunch.
TG , I like pickles and am not afraid of cheese b/c the cooks were generous. Delicious ploughing.

We are strangers down there b/c we don't go often and the city actually fixed some things e.g. walkways , streets etc.
Its as though someone planned it
???????????? go figure

weather ??? cool , chilly w/ the wind - no rain
cloudy tho'

Xmas Window Dilemma

well , its only a dilemma if you bought one
I did
Recap : we are discussing a Xmas window scene w/ 2 snowmen or persons sitting back to back as the snow falls , yepper , its a snowing scene thingy. The motif is a house section in brick w/ the chimney and the whole frame is covered in snow.
But noisy ! The fan and snow motor ( ? ) is a whir reminiscent of a bathroom fan.
Presently ,the window scene is in the front room where we watch TV. We jack up the sound and pretend a 747 is flying over.

Weather : benign.  41 F , clear and slightly breezy. Our conditions will improve or stay benign til week's end.

Anecdote : One of the Xmas display trees at the Capitol Theatre , see previous posts , was donated by the family of a young boy who died of complications from the treatment of a cancerous condition.
I ' voted ' the bulk of my tix to ' his ' tree. I thought if the family went to all that trouble the least that I could do is ' vote ' lots

A Total Re - do

............  made a mistake and re - hashed the previous blog

Starting again
To - day has nothing to recommend itself - lousy but their is improvement coming by weeks end.

On a slow day , go slow.
We did. Starting at noon , the kitchen was vacuumed up high and lights replaced on the cathedral ceiling light bar. The plate shelf was dusted and vacuumed as well.
The Refrigerator got attention. Shelves are being cleaned of guck and goo. Then I took a break.

Notables. Barrack Obama cups from 7/11 Store were cleaned. These cups were sold pre - inauguration the first go round for BO.
I figured , maybe  ,never again................ then the GOP got serious and screwed themselves royal.
That is til this go round when the party is well on its way to erasing the last debacle w/ a bigger one. That is a Canadian perspective , maybe down south , things are seen as going well. We ( Canadians ) have trouble w/ American politics............

Itinerary , Nov 30

We raked leaves and cut bush
Traveled to Pt Hope and the Capitol Theatre , where each year the lobby is filled w/ Xmas trees. Each tree is donated  and decorated by businesses and individuals. the premise : you buy tickets and place the ticket in the voting box beside each tree.
On a day , the organization draws tix from each box and the winner gets the tree.
We visited Home Hardware and Canadian Tire ( department stores ) searching for a companion to the lone Xmas tree on the lawn. This lawn decoration was in response to the neighbours who have reindeer and Santas galore. We got the lone pine tree.
We purchased a window scene w/ flying snow and music. The window replicates the sound of a 747 taking off. the music is tinny and dis - harmonius. Obviously , the window was on sale - obviously , 55 % off -- and you now , know why !!

The day was cold - ish ( 34 F ) , dry and slightly breezy. Sun , off and on.

Thus , except for the snowy window scene it was a good day

Do You Know what You're Doing

.... hey , is this about me ,  yep.

We live in a house , actually , its a 2 level condo. Way big for us.
Pros: we own it , clear
          the view is very good to fantastic
Cons: the stairs , w/ no shower on the 1 st level , we go downstairs
          pros; the mess , clothes etc stay in the basement ,
                   we change downstairs

We are comfortable , or too lazy to change

And we go condo hunting , all talk no bark

Weather : sunny and 35F

Error !  I reported that between 2009 - 14 more Mexicans left the U.S. than entered. I mentioned that this kind of fact down't make the press. Wrongo. In the TorStar , By the Numbers feature , they analyzed the whole thing.

Timex , heart rate monitor , so far so good. Records , instantly and faithfully. Of course , this is one week and a bit. Still success is success

Toss It

On a home make over show , the host is going through her wardrobe. The rule is ' if you haven't worn the garment in three months - toss it '. In the basement , 3 yrs and toss.
Last year , I re cycled 2 display train sets. A young couple w/ 3 kids got the trains. Good start but........
Only a start. My father's rule was ' hell , you may need it ! ' And his garage , looked just like that.
I'm a little better. when we first moved here , Dad goes ' a double garage !!  , wow , can we sure use  that '. I said ' you get a locker in one corner and thats it '. Father was crestfallen. My rule - cars go in , stuff goes around.
However , my workroom is ' like my dad's rule '. I may need it. Does it work , of course , you keep something for 20 yrs and who knows...... 

For Norton : from the DayStarter , TBT

Where you live can play a role in when you die, study says

By Kathleen McGrory, Times Staff Writer

People in Hernando and Pasco are more likely to die sooner.

BTW - we stay in Pinellas County.

Weather : early fall for us but gloomy , warm - ish and rain threatens. A temperature drop is coming.

Happy Thanksgiving

........ to the southerners that follow , here.

The temperature is not bad , say , 40+ and going up. Grey though and miserable , looking , sun isn't showing yet.

Yesterday , NPR had a ' taste of the turkey ' day. Recipes and ideas from 3 noted chefs were featured. The emphasis quickly shifted to sweet potato , squash and pumpkin. Pies got mention , esp , pecan pies ( from the south ) and potato pie and pumpkin pie from the north.
Kale got mentioned , up and coming , you know. The big debate : salad or not on the TD table. Pros : light and a palate cleanser
Cons: its turkey day !!! salad on Fri , not TD.
I wanted to add rice for the table - w/ rice and gravy , a dream come true. We used to have chow mein for my brother. Yes , turkey and chow mein , what memories.

Methinks a haircut is in order. The cow licks are getting huge and the hat hair problem is back. Always sure signs that my hair is too long - actually what is left is too long.

No haircut.
To - day is the start of cyber Black Fri , thus , I went to amazon to find the bargains
1.   DVDs are big w/ 60 % off   'the Walking Dead ' , see the problem is that I thought they were fellow staff on Fridays at 3.

2.  the prices for stuff - 60 % off and the price was $290 - who pays that much regular for this stuff

3.   60 % off video games - I thought using the laptop was a video game

4.  Blu Tooth headsets - doesn' that mean you need a device that broadcasts blue tooth - see , big problem there

5. 60 % off a pod coffee maker .... all I can think of is a scene from 'the Coca Cola Kid ' starring Eric Roberts. A game warden / private security guy in the Ozzie Outback is making coffee. Hot water and coffee grinds over the campfire then swing the pot on a rope in big circles - pour and drink. And Greta Sacchi is naked in this one - whoa , momma

6.  Activity tracker - counts your steps etc. holey , what if you fail i.e. not enough steps !!!

7. the ' Dummie ' books are on sale. did you know that one of the Paris terrorists had a paperback " Terrorism for Dummies " ???
He got it on sale.

BTW - the highly touted Kaori Muraji may have tongue cancer.
The reports were based on emails sent to fans in general but the English was difficult to translate - you know Japanese into English
- the standard joke for instructions.

The 5 thousand

..... movie thriller.
Nope. Last night , at the craps table, a guy in a hoodie and goatee stands and watches for a few minutes - consults his PDA. He takes out a wad of cash from the bank w/ wrapper ' 5 000 $  ---  50 x 100 ' says the stamping. The pit boss counts the loot in two separate stacks - in front of the cameras so that all the crew can see - 5 000....... and I'm there w/ my $ 160 and happy as a binman w/ new slippers , to make $60 ..... whoopee !
As , Marvin the Robot , says ' life , don't talk to me about Life ! '

KIDS FOREST PINK CAMO RECLINER    WHERE DO YOU NEED PINK CAMOUFLAGE ??????

On sale at the Tractor Store

Yo .....

........  Hi / Lo , Big Red , the Horn ,Hardways , Crap check

Where do you hear these words

At the craps table , natch. My favs , crap check -and maybe , three way craps

Now , mathematically ,craps has the lowest house odds in the casino. If you play it right , the house edge is 1 % 
My way the house edge rises to 6 % but it is all about enjoying the time.
Have I played 1 % craps , yepper , boring as sin. So , a little of the 6 % slips in .... an in ...and in

Weather : overcast and cold - ish , the icy stuff has lingered. Well , a warm up is coming

Winter Came Knocking

.......and we were home
.We don't know the  name of what fell , last night - little round snow pills. The little guys made a racket coming down. The steel roof magnifies the sound.
We warm up all week. Get by , to - night ( snow flurries ) and we'll be reasonable. 

Angst Amidst the Stuffing

Apparently ,' turkey hotlines ' are deluged , this week w/ franatic calls. Turkeys not thawing etc. The problem say the experts is  simple , big occasion, pressure and no practice. Some people cook , one turkey a year.
M was at the hairdresser and the ladies that do her - hair , nails whatever , were fascinated by the fact that she did turkey.
Well ,she gave her advice. Two months later , she got the feedback. One Chinese lady was doing great until , she realized that she couldn't turn on the oven. Her husband spent 20 minutes figuring how to turn the oven on.

Orchestrate a success

Turning out a top-notch Turkey Day dinner can and should be a harmonious affair. Follow these tips.

This item was w/ the DayStrater , TBT , to - day.

For the second time , at Canadian Thanksgiving , we cooked the turkey , the day before. Slice , chill and re - heat the day of.

You pour turkey stock over the meat and re - heat.

This time , I convinced M to let me try the re - heating. The instructions that we got said " lots of stock and triple foil the container and wrap tight " . I said, we'll use a large corningware dutch oven and foil and cover that w/ the lid.

Worked a charm ( TG , or I wouldn't be allowed to live , big pressure ).

Good Luck , you southerners

This Will Never Make Headlines b/c

............. no one profits or can spin it

In 2014 , something happened that is unique in 50 yrs of record keeping. More Mexicans left the U.S. than arrived. A million either way , but 140 000 more left the U.S.

Ebola , not gone , 10 000 cases , 4 000 dead but 3 cases popped up in Liberia ( ? )

Weather : rainy , gray and dim
How are you ???

Is Norton healing up , there ?

Later that day

Forgive me father , for I have sinned

We had country fried steak for dinner
M bought these cute little steaks for grilling. How do you want them , you're in charge !
Sliced them thin like bagels and soaked them in soya sauce , and the other in beer. Let'em sit. Pounded them flat w/ a spike hammer
thingy and egg and bread crumbs
OMG , was that ever good
It is a sin
Fruit salad for dessert to atone

Takes a Licking and

.............. and keeps on ticking

The slogan that made Timex

I used the Timex , personal trainer , last night
The story was don't put your heart rate monitor in the dryer , except that I did get it out pretty quick.
Rather than pay 50 , I paid 60 something for a new monitor.
Its a Timex

Worked like a charm , last night.
4 days of taking it easy and then last night , I went for it.
The WBR or Welcome Back Rouitne
One of two , the other is Burst

WBR
Prelim : work the lacrosse stick for 2 min
              30 push ups on the bar , about a foot off the floor
Elliptical for 2 min
10lb hand weights , alternate hand raises and raise from waist
jump back on the ellip. and finish the minute  ( X4 )

Barbell , chest raise , front and 10 bent chest raise from the ground
jump on ellip and finish the minute ( X 4 )

Barbell , arm curls , jmp ell fin min ( X 4 )

Barbell , back raise , jmp ell fin min ( X4 )

Hand weights , arm swing while walking on ellip , 17 each side
finish the 2 min on the elliptical

Small hand weights , punch / stretch and / punch , while pedalling  finish the 2 min on the elliptical

Wrist grippers , 10 squeezes  , 3X , while peddling
finish the min on the elliptical

Arm / leg extension , on all fours 30 X each side
jump on elliptical and finish the 2 min.

Arm swings , raised on the bar 30 X each side

Elliptical for 6 minutes

Resistance band - rowing for 1 minute
Elliptical

resistance band , leg extensions , 27 X each side
Elliptical

Resistance band arm curls at side , 20 X each side
Elliptical

Leg raises , 30  and repeat 3 X

Over
Total time 46 min and a tad
Avge HR 114
Max HR 136
Cal burned 436
from the Timex personal trainer

Weather : Sunny , and clearing. Temperature approx 15 degrees cooler than yesterday.

A cool , rainy week end is ahead

Prognosticating

the weather.

If you check the entry for yesterday , I included the American Thanksgiving Week forecast. Looks good.
To - day feels good but the temperature will drop some 15 degrees by late afternoon.
Did a check of the gutters. We have a sour cherry tree adjacent that drops all kinds of crap on the roof and it ends up in the gutters.
I cleaned out the dross.

Health wise , XXXXXXX maybe I've beaten the cold.
I was expecting sore throat , fever , body ache - yes , symptoms of the flu but my symptoms when I'm sick.

Hope U R Feeling Better

............ goes out to Norton , OH

Me , here in the s GWN , on the mend. Head is clear , -ish , stuff is still coming out of my nose

Got it ! too much information , there

Day looks bright but windy , the forecast says rain due
mild temperatures

And Amazon came through again.
The story. My heart monitor belt , somehow made it into the dryer and made almost 10 minutes in heat cycle. The readings have been slightly irregular.
Pricing out the battery change and the suggested chest strap replacement ( 2 batteries from Polar , the company itself ) $ 55 incl postage.
instead , I ordered a Timex , heart rate monitor = del to the door 
$ 66. Obviously , maybe not the same standard BUT I don't need much. It is just a rough check to make sure that I don't do stupid things. I do lose the max VO2 test but that was pretty simplistic anyway.
What is bad , is the slide into disposible consumerism - I mean what happens to the watch and chest strap thingy - see !

Oh well. I 'll try to think of something

In ' Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy ' Frogstar World B , falls prey to the ' shoe event horizon ' , when shoes become the bellweather for industrial success  - make shoes , consume shoes leads to more shoes etc

According to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson, "We expect another large storm to roll from the Pacific and expand toward the central Rockies during the week of Thanksgiving

Follow Up to symptoms

Much better , stuffy but re - bounding in health

The weather is less beautiful than yesterday , cooler and breezier
41 F on the back deck

I'm trying to be normal but its hard ... still a little loggy , overall

Riverton the book is getting better ... things are moving along quite
well

I'm watching a re - play of the latest episode of ' Partners in Crime ' an Agatha Christie series featuring Tommy and Tuppence , married couple , playing at being spies.

Always the Way

........ is it a cold , is it the flu
NO
Me being me. I've checked the lists of symptoms   Cold  /  Flu
Me , I get them all

Saturday night , went to sleep w/ Neocitran or the fake kind from Shoppers Drug Mart. For you southerners , Neocitran is Nyquil dressed up w/ lemon flavour and put in hot water.
Knock out drops for a cold.

Did it Sunday night as well and spent the day ( Mon ) in bed , reading. Funny when your captive , I think you'll read anything ... and I did
First , a Rizzoli and Isles thriller about Chinese revenge... not bad
The corker is ' Riverton' ...its a girls book , I think
The recollections of a maid that went from understairs to above stairs ( English class , sort of terminlogy ) and a college education and professorship.  Goodness.
I'm reading the Kindle that M gave up. I've read most of the detective ones and won't start the American ones.

Hopefully , I've beat the illness.
Cross my fingers XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Cuz when I get sick .... the works

The day was pleasant form the window view - sunny and a little breeze.... looked good

Here goes : Ten Things that Canada is good at

1. reputation - according to  an international poll 
2. Donuts - we eat lots
3. personal freedom - we polled highest among G20 countries
4. Kraft dinner - we eat lots 
5. Hockey - M  / W both , by international interest groups
6. OECD - says college education is high here
7. Lakes , we got lots
8. Banks - some of the solidest in the world
9. Maple syrup as of the last ten years
10 Coastline - yep , lots of coastline

Sunday , here

Temperature 48 F , there is a breeze but reportedly the wind is going to ramp up turning quite brisk. The sun is out making things look pretty good.Temperatures will rise to 50 +  ,this mid - week but will come w/ rain.
This time of year , w/ the leaves gone , we can see the back of Cedarbrae Plaza approx 3/4 of a mile away.

Alright , here. Breakfast in front of the TV. One topic , attacks in Paris. We are watching the news feed from the CP 24 , news show.
Coffee and toast , and someone is having cereal. Of course , I'm typing , on the emachine. 
? was it faster this morning. In light of the new protocol for start up. Maybe , the one change that is noticeable is that loading the Google , gmail program ( my main choice for email ) seems to finish faster. I usually would get a window pop up " something's not right " and the program icon spins away. That part seems to be faster.

Paris .........

........... are they going to talk about 11/13 w/ sadness. 
Imagine the relatives dealing w/ this tragedy

Weather : hovering around 48F , wind is still here and its grey outside.

Following up from yesterday , and the reset for start up of the baby laptop. I did the same deleting for start up on the big laptop ( using it now ). Figured that it doesn't hurt esp. since some of those ' apps ' were games or game sites

Re - inventing the Wheel

............I use this expression all the time ( at least in my head )
mostly as a frustration but quite often as an explanation for the state of affairs.
I mean , of course , that it seems that duplication or re - doing of something seems the norm.
Here we go. The baby laptop was xtra slow this morning.
Recall , that this e machine , 10 " screen , small laptop has had a memory upgrade and a solid state drive installed. All this effort to increase the speed of the computer. The initial cost $ 130 after bonus points BUT $100 to get a full Windows program , $40 for a 2 GB memory chip and $110 for a solid state drive. Thus , I have a $380 laptop. 

I've explored the possibility of buying a new laptop or i - Pad , etc. The problem is plug in ports. I still need an USB port for my video glasses and it is handy to have xtra ports for attaching devices.

As mentioned , this AM , really slow.

I went to YouTube ( where else , would I go ) and watched two videos , essentially , titled , " make your computer faster'.
After 18 minutes , I got the feeling that for me and my emachine , only one item really applied.
The suggestion was to go to the ' start - up menu ' and delete any programs not needed at start up b/c you could manually bring those programs into service as you needed them.

BTW , some suggestions involved using CNET a website for computer programs and upgrades. I'm leery of using CNET b/c in the past , along w/ what you want CNET sends a bunch of programs attached for search engines etc.

I trimmed the start - up list and re - started. And , yes , the emachine is slightly faster.
Google is our main program and loading gmail seems to take a long time. After the tweaks to start - up , there was an obvious change in the response time. Now , we'll see if this performance continues over time.

Weather : is all about the wind. The wind has been gusting for at least 36 h and I estimate leaf cover is in the 10 % range. In fact , only 2 trees out of the 40 that we can see have more than a few leaves left.
Temperature is 46 F on the back deck.