Going for 50 F

???? but the sun is beaming , out there

I got a scam email , yesterday , ' sister dying in the Philippines , we need any money that you can send '
I called the sender and he got hacked
He was at a bonspiel and came home to find his wife holding the phone , saying ' here , you deal  w/ this '  She took 25 calls during the day

So far , so good - I didn't send out any scam emails . yet.

The Warm Air

stays to - day but some leaked away in the night. We , actually , got to close to 60 F yesterday but the winds were strong and constant.

The sun decided to do a show and tell , and very successfully , too boot.

This is the blog in review:

Exercise proceeds as per description. We bought a baby treadmill.
The treadmill is foldable into a suitcase shape but taller by 20 in.
The speed variation is the sole option. This treadmill is not for running but we are way past worrying about that. Whats its good for is a leisurely stroll.
Thus , my alternate work out is the treadmill supplemented by stretches using a pilates ball and rubber resistance bands.
The usual elliptical work out is the other day. Both work out regimes are approx 35 min. The change is that alternate day was supposed to shorter w/ less time on the elliptical sort of a rest from the usual. However , I figured the treadmill is so different that longer by a bit is OK
My weight remains steady in the 170 - 173 # range. I would like it to be less but that 170 # mark seems to be the weight that I can maintain given my many sins.

The lack of cottage adjustment is just that ,  an adjustment , to wit I worry about the leaves
Right , real smart , that

We shall see said the Zen Master

The Best of

the week
Sunny and into the 50 s if all goes well , to - day

Get out and do stuff is the watch phrase

We went for lunch , excellent pub nr ' the mattress store '
We were researching adjustable beds. The one that we saw was  a split queen where each side from about the bum up , tilts. Special sheets allow the independent movement of each side.
$ 4 000 all in.
Lunch was cheaper

Charlie Brown Comes to

our backyard.

I cobbled a Xmas tree shape in lights , to - gether for our backyard
A bamboo pole for the upright and a hockey stick for the crosspiece. It has been described , kindly , as stylistic.
You can tell its a Xmas tree and is not perfect.
The temperature is 42 and will not budge a lot from there. The wind is up from yesterday , most of the tree trunks are swaying.

A sunny day w/  a bit of chill. Wear a scarf and you were fine.

Our Toronto Argonauts , the Canadian Football League team , won the Grey Cup for the 17 th time in 105 tries. The most cups by any team. Unfortunately , the Argos have not been drawing crowds for maybe the last four seasons. The team down sized to a smaller venue to cut costs and get a more intimate field ( no dome , tho ' )
The BMO field was primarily laid out for soccer but accomodated soccer . lacrosse and football.

Further on Fuzziness

and why nots..............

This baby laptop runs Google Chrome , mostly , its not exactly Chrome b/c the program is so basic.
But the beauty of Chrome is not getting zapped by Windows updates. The tech at Microsoft Help even acknowledged that my problem was not unusual and he had a ' work around ' patch for graphics problems resultant from the latest update.

Weather is enough to make you wish for Florida and a sugar sand beach.
The temperature is 40 and not budging much. Gray and cool but the trees are mostly still w/ some shaking on branches still leafed.

the Cure

for fuzzy disease

Success !
Then 2 h later , Windows updated ' again ' 
fuzzy is back

I'm going to drink all day , so that I can explain the fuzziness

The weather is rainy and dull

Re : fuzziness or distortion. I went to the Microsoft Helpline
I waited 3 minutes and started the chat.
Tech : we are aware that some graphics cards can't handle the latest update. There is a temporary patch
Tech : can i Remote control your laptop
Me: yes

3 minutes later , the screen is clear and non distorted

Thank you MS

Fuzzy disease

and other dyslexic happenings

Yesterday , the screen shrunk , leaving a black rim around the window display.
No fixes worked.
Then the images got big - real big.

This AM on start up , the window is normal size but the icons and print are fuzzy.
Its like the screen is drunk or we are
just off

I googled the problem and we are not alone
I've tried 2 more fixes and dicovered my laptop ( big boy ) won't allow certain changes

Weather : sunny and warmer than yesterday 

On ' Carnival Eats ' , yessir food served at fairs etc around the country. One event was called the Apache Rattlesnake Round Up and they serve rattlers - deep fried

37 F in the bckyard

overcast and windy

42 F in the Smoke

A pleasant enough looking day. Aha , but the wind is humming out there. I put little caution flags to warn the mailman etc that an electrical cord is running out along the edge of the pavers, Those flags are straight out pointing East.

Yesterday , was a catch all day. I tried to new baby air compressor. As in the stories of the ' little engine that could ' this little sucker thrums away but not much seems to happen. Yes , it raised the pressure 1 # in one tire that needed tending.
On top of that , the readings are in ' bars ' or millibars. As in 1000 Bar is normal atmospheric ( I think ). Any whoo the hype on the air pump pamphlet says ' will inflate anything '. My lord , it will kill itself. And ...and somewhere , I read the warning ' do not run for longer than 2 minutes........
2 minutes !!!! Crikey 
in 2 minutes it would change the pressure in a tire 3 #
What do you want for $ 20 and fits in 2 hands

Weather turned out great. sun and cool wind

Back from the Dr s , a report on my shoulder impingement. Yes , I probably had an impingement w/ a bursa pressing on the tendon. However , the inflammation is probably gone ( no pain ).
Overall , its a don't worry situation , until it hurts.

On the up side , my blood results were back. And Dr G goes ' there's your proof of your exercise program , an excellent HDL to LDL ratio '
Aha , something that shows that I exercise.
Finally !!!!

A Day in the T.O.

Well , we took in the rug for cleaning from the front room or TV room or room where we spend a lot of time.

The front yard is Xmas ready w/ a 5 ft tree in lights and 2 candy canes. Usually , our display is small and dignified and close to last up. We are in second place this year and besides next door will not put up Xmas wildlife , as in bears and reindeer and Santa.
Thus , humble might look , not bad. As well, we have lights in the door.

The day started cold and damp but the sun popped out and the day was reasonable. cool but sunny and slightly windy and the wind was cold.

Day 2 Post Snip

and all is ( mostly ) well.
I exercised last night , the weight / elliptical work out. No problems , I think.

The outside conditions are lousy looking. Bit of sun but gray looking

I got out for bits and bobs. The two catch all stores , the Giant Tiger and Canadian Tire , the Tire has tires and auto parts  , otherwise , not a lot to choose.

Little jobs : the Xmas tree had lights that were pre - wired but died,
I stripped the dead line which was wrapped around each branch and twig. Two hours. But done.
And the Xmas tree is up and bare.
We wanted to get the sucker up early b/c we will have short Xmas and New Year interval. And it turns out that we're probably hosting a casual get to - gether of fishing types ,here.
Thus house needs to be decorated earlier than usual.
I'm making plans for the outdoor decorations - still plans but its coming to - gether.

Snow is forecast for East and North of T.O.

the Day after the Snip ( pings )

Much better to - day, I'm glad that I don't need to operate a truck to - day , still not quite back to normal.
Part of the after effects is that I didn't sleep well the night before the snip.
I drank 2 L of laxative solution form 5 - 7 P and then repeated at 11 P for 2 h. Actually , I cheated and drank the stuff a little earlier. However , I was nauseous toward evening , anyway. And sleeping on  2 L of water is not easy.

OK , nuff said
I survived

A raw , raw day out there
so , snuggle up in front of the fire 
and wait for better days ( or day )

BTW , I bought another air pump. This version will be number 4. Two battery powered jobs . lasted a total of 6 attempts and then ka - blewwy , died.
The best was #3. The AC powered pump is big , bigger than a bread box and is clumsy. Powerful tho'. Thus , I bought a reserve tank that can move around easily. Fill the portable tank and you're good to go.
The air pressure regulator failed a year ago after 10 years but I by - passed the fitting. Still works but its dangerous w/out the regulator.
There is a safety feature and the pump stops when the pressure gets too high ... still , not the safest. Filling the portable thank works well b/c the pressure rating on the portable tank is so high that the pump never reaches the stop level.
However , the other day in the States , Kohls had a small air pump ( DC powered ) for $ 20. I was up at the craps table , so took  a chance. I was supposed to go out and try the pump on the tires
to - morrow will do just fine

View from the Computer Rm

as I sit , typing

I saw that the high will be 30 s give or take. The sun is brightening the scene. Leaves are scattered and swirling into piles.

The day was windy but almost comfortable when the wind died or you got some shelter - well, nice.

I got colonoscopy - ified , by the Digestive Disease unit at the local hospital. The dude found two polyps 1/2 in  each and snipped them off.
I'm good for another 5 yrs
The downside is that I'm a polyp grower , like my dad. Yepper , I'll keep making them.
And no alcohol for the day - bummer
I left the hospital feeling , pretty normal. Had lunch. Took a nap.
And now , I'm real dozy. The experts were right , I need down time
 

Away , Away

we were away , no kidding

Fall weather , all over the Grt Lks. Cool and dampish.

I get scoped to - morrow ( bottom up only ).
Family history dictates that I get checked regularly
Apparently , I'm asymptomatic but just checking to be safe

No solid food for the duration til 1 PM to - morrow
I mixed up the purgative solution ( fruit flavoured , so you know it tastes like crap )  
My back teeth will be floating come 8 PM to - night.

All the grisly details , here as they become available

The long range from Brett Anderson at Accuweather
BA had us at seasonable , for this week

NO 20 -- 26 is shaping up as cold

NO 27 - DE 3  cold and dry

Doom and Gloom

and  I know about this

I was afraid ( not uncommon ) that I wouldn't see my 13 th birthday b/c Russia and the U.S. were going to trade ICBM s during the Cuban missile Crisis
Well , I made 67 y.o
Doom and gloom are fine but so ffff...ing useless

as a friend is fond of singing
" the sun will come out to - morrow "

Dim

not me , the light

We are overcast and dampish looking

Can we make mid to hi 40 s to - day ?

Still Cold and Getting Dark Earlier

NO 6 - 12 wet
NO 13 - 19 normal ?
NO 20 - 26 on the edge of mild

According to Brett Anderson , the prediction was wet this week.
Next week , Mon  --> , I think we should be normal. The lower Grt Lakes were in white on the map.

Then , following , we are just on the edge of mild

Since , our Thanksgiving is over , up here , our thoughts are turned to decorating for Xmas.

We won't get turkey til Dec 26 , unless we do a special meal.
We find the almost 2 month  break between Thanksgiving and Xmas about right for turkey dosings.
And it explains maybe , why when we visit in the U.S. at Thanksgiving  the amount of ham we see on tables.

10 Degrees , better

to - day , than yesterday in the AM

Ooh , warmth or something like it

The wind is down and the sun blazing in a patchy sky.

Mon and Tues offer some hope

I had X rays on Thurs for both shoulders. Fri , the Dr s office calls and he needs to see me , nothing urgent.
Likely , he'll tell me that I have osteo - arthritis or more of it b/c we were pretty sure that I had OA places all over e.g. hip , wrist

Frrrrrr igid

thats cold spelled w/ an F

Big sun and cold. There is a white  coating out there and the leaves went crazy last night.

The day stayed cold and miserable but the sun was cheering

Always Searching for

stuff

The latest lighting feature.... not the last , either

At Canadian Tire or the local everything store - auto / hardware
and who knows.  There was a LED security light w/ motion sensor.
I've noticed that M reaches for her flashlight to find the door in the bedroom , at night.
Well , I put the security light on the floor , thus when someone gets out of bed - Pop ! , light is on.
Except , way too bright
solution : put the unit under the bed
still bright ( I mean , half the room gets lit )
solution : foil over the top of the light dome
much better
totally portable and battery operated

We shall see said the Zen Master

To - day , was physical check up at Dr s
As well , flu shot
X rays for both shoulders
and a referral for colonoscopy , oh ! my favourite

Colon scoping is , now , scheduled for next Fri
Now , you got to understand. They put you out lightly.
Well , I basically , don't wake up for an hour or two.
the last time , the Dr dude is standing there , saying ' sorry , had to make sure that you were all right , I wanted to go home '

Thats me , pharmaceutically naive

Rain and cold wind - a great combo

Surprise ! Sun

a real sun up

and 1:30 P and its still shining

I re - purposed a paint roller handle to accommodate a re - purposed window scraper to clean out the gutters from the ground.
A big fail there.
The leaves are too compacted for a device that can't reach deep down

Back to the drawing board or my life hack gutter blower.

Dull and Gray

starts the morning


But real cold comes in 3 days. The ' high ' for the day will 28 F.
Brrr !

Well ,got out there
blew out the gutters w/ the blower contraption
took in the outside hoses before Fri 's 28 F , high for the day
right , now , draining the hose lines from inside

and the sunn popped out from about 10 AM
and now at 2 P , mostly sunny

A mixed day , ha ha
I'm drinking my fav cocktail , a Salty Dog
salt the rim of a highball glass w/ coarse salt
add grapefruit juice  and vodka
a Salty Dog

And , for dins spaghetti
I bought fresh pasta - angel hair
We loads of little left over containers
labelled pizza sauce , tomato sauce etc

I bought a prok loin chop and sauteed the dickens out of it , along w/ minced onions

the plan is for all afternoon simmering red sauce left overs and the pork onion mixture

Nov Is the Month

of leaves falling
of temperatures falling
hustle and bustle

Our yard is a hot bed of activity. Squirrels are chasing nuts and leaves and each other.
The eavestroughs are filling up w/ leaves , too !
I've taken out the leaf blower attachment to clean the eaves from the ground. The first run through , next door came to help. We did the two storey part.
Three days ago , I did the low eaves by myself.

Cool and damp is the order of the day. Gray and overcast and to - night the temperature in the city goes to 32 F

Okay , lets get those small jobs done

All timers have been adjusted for regular time.

Harvey on fire

for Guy Fawkes Day

In an English village , instead of a Nov 5 bonfire , the citizenry burn a replica of a person in the news. Last year , donald j got the nod. This years effigy was Harvey Weintstein
The two are not related to each other

We have warm and rain and rain and rain for the week

For a guy who specializes in small jobs , to - day was ideal.
I oiled a squeaking massage chair. I bought the chair in 1982 , straight off the boat from the warehouse. The massage chair was $600 ( a veritable fortune ).
however , I had seen the chair in action at a father's friend's house.
And it was unique. At the time massage chairs in North America vibrated and warmed your body part ( s ).
the Koizuma model had hands that did clockwise and anti - clockwise hand motions. As well , the hands slid up and down the chair back.
It always seemed to grind or groan ( not me , the chair ). I finally, figured out how to oil the squeak out.

To - morrow is the 5 th

remember

Guy Fawkes Day 

No rain , yet , but gloomy
Our temperature soars to - morrow , heading to shy of 70 F
w/ rain

a Love Affair

NOT

The social media miasma. Americans are mesmerized by FaceBook to the tune of one hr a day.
An eight year old will now spend 15 yrs of their life on a device.
One quite electronically literate 8 y.o. described his day
< get up , do my Samsung
go to school , do my Samsung
homework , do my Samsung
go to bed >
And the phenomena is insidious. All the likes and chiming sounds are psychological rewards to our brains.
or , dare , I say , followers

FaceBook and me. A love affair
I think not
I'm a FaceBook illiterate. I cannot figure out what its for
Or , maybe , what its for for me

My life is such

Oh , forgot its 6 thirty and I'm almost awake. I sat in front of the fireplace for 30 minutes fiddling w/ my i Phone.
Then said ' lets blog '

Yesterday , we were waiting for a call in the car and didn't hear it ring. More to the point , M was holding the phone while I'll drove.
And the silly thing is set to vibrate , too.

Think that I can't do FaceBook ! I can't get my mobile device to make a sound ( I can hear ). BTW , on the net , a search by Google reveals hundreds of posts and replies on the topic ' My i Phone won't ring '
Is there some solace , in the company of other     ' electronically deaf ' cell phone users.

The rain is rattling on the roof and skylight.
Obviously a day for ducks or those whose surfaces are water repellent

On the exercise theme. I used the baby treadmill. M thought it was cute. i.e. I have a baby laptop and she gets a baby treadmill.

Well , I've been seeking an alternate workout routine. Thus , I substituted the treadmill for the elliptical.
And discovered
that the ceiling in the fireplace room is lower than my normal workout room b/c the barbell bounced off the ceiling
that the low speed treadmill setting produced a sweating workout session ( which surprised me , greatly )

I was pleased , overall w/ the new regimen

The most telling feature will be < does my knee feel better w/ the substitution >

And to my gang of 3 followers
thank you

The " Case of the i Phone That doesn't Ring '. As noted above , I'm not alone.
The best answer or most popular answer is ' make sure that             < do not disturb >  is not active '.
Why would it be , I never touch the icon
Ah, but do you slide the ' control panel ' up as a shortcut
Guilty !
Then , my son , you may hit the ' half moon symbol ' for
you got it
' do not disturb '
Yep , ' do not disturb was checked off

Ah , sweet mysteries of life or i Phone
Who wudda thunk !

Not me

The Rain in Spain

should have stayed there

Nope , its here. The forecast calls for days of rain. From mist to drizzle to steady downpour

We are unlikely to see much above 50 F
Aha ! the temperature made 56 F

As well , the house bought a treadmill. M needs to exercise and she wanted to be safe i.e. hang on to something
The treadmill is a mini , 90 # total weight
only goes to 4 mph
and has minimal settings
you walk , thats it

The sucker folds to a rectangle such as a big suitcase in footprint but about 8 in higher

We shall see said the Zen Master

Remember , Remember

the first of November

WRONG ! , the date is Nov 5 and its Guy Fawkes Day in England
The dude tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament.
And failed

Segue , into the movie ' V for Vendetta ' w/ Natalie Portman. V does blow up the government < on Nov 5 >

We may not make 50 F to - day , it will be close

55 days to Xmas

There were sprinkles over the afternoon
but heavy rain to come , later this evening

I went surfing on ' Blogger ' , that is the system that lets me do the blog.
I hit next and a new blog shows up.
If you reach a dead end , meaning the blog doesn't have a ' next blog '  label , simply return to my blog and hit ' next blog ' again.
Seems the format sends you randomly around the Blogger Sphere.

I discovered that several blogs had 1 follower. Thus , my 3 followers is a gang.
And as always , I find that most blogs stopped 3 - 6 months ago or even three years.
However , one blog had the notation that the writer achieved a blogging marathon of sorts by blogging each day for a month.
I think that I got that one beat.

Just saying , thats all
its not bragging if its true