🎭 Novem 30

 🎭 or the XXX of the XI 

the ' boro cold feeling and sun / cloud mix - right now cloud

ah. yesterday was ' football post Thanksgiving ' or Kentucky Fired Chicken, pizza and dessert. We watch College games.
the tradition is over thirty years and still going.
seven guys has now dwindled to 5. Age range is 84 to 60 something

catching up and catching on

confession time : on the recumbent front. The same nut has fallen off the left pedal three times

balancing, wrenching the thing too tight and then of course, not tight enough

🌍🌎🌏 the world

 🌍🌎🌏 on November 29. yes. closing out the month

the ' boro is gray w/ a patch of light off to the South, stuck back there

yesterday
a report. travelled North past Toronto and into Markham.
Pho is Vietnamese for ' Noodle ' AND A .. and I visited a Pho for a delightful meal.
fresh and tasty and lots. well, felt healthy

I was able to dispose of 3 cu ft of styrofoam and accompanying box leftovers from the recumbent bike

a trip to Costco to buy a 58 " TV. Plus $ 180 in groceries

then. step up the TV nearby at A .. s moms house. Again, we accumulated more styrofoam

back to the office to help a lady get started on applying for Community Care   [ gov't sponsored ]

and in traffic managed to reach home
quite a day. all in. AND I mean "all in "

🦃 Novemborous # 28

 🦃  for American customers only [ we had ours ]

the ' boro today.sullen and cool to cold

a strong possibility that Xmas lawn decorating is over. Chilly Philly w/ his garland of blue kaleidoscope lights.
and a 'Welcome ' reindeer

Thats it. Subtle [ our term for our efforts ]

🚞 no 27

  🚞 This will be a sombre day. a former student and friend made the decision to seek medical aid in passing on 
AT 11 am

she was 67. Stage 4 colon cancer and expecting future pain episodes as has happened already

' boro weather is sunny and chilly to cold 

I comprehend the intellectual sense of this
but I'm still troubled
somehow, at some level in doubt

the day was slow rolling. fiddled w/ some chores. Low key breakfast. Started to prep for my exercise. 

I slept in afternoon. Rather long ish but when you retire - Guess what ?
you are allowed

🕸🧶 on Novemborous 26

 🕸🧶 in the ' boro. rain fell overnight. wind is stirring the lower branches. my phone says today will be 4 degrees warmer than yesterday. yesterday was a mean son of a gun.
biting wind and damp followed by rainy mist

And the sun came out to dominate the day w/ rain in the forecast 

I got out and did the preparatory work for Winter de - icing,  the back roof and gutters. I blew out some stray leaves in the gutter out.

The problem started as water damming and the only solution appeared to be de - icing cables on the cathedral roof. The consequence was water ( and ice buildup in the gutters there 

Lat year, I added de - icing cables in the gutters BUT maybe this year, I can mostly use the existing de - icing cables already available from the extra cable not on the roof

We shall see said the Zen Master 

🍱 November 25

 🍱 sunny in the ' boro but cool ish to cold. " frost on the pumpkins '

and on the roof.
a truly fall type day. BUT a wintry blast is coming. To quote the Accuweather dudes '  a low pressure system is sicking Arctic air toward the Great Lakes basin '

We surround all men and all forms of life with Infinite Love and Compassion. Particularly do we send forth loving thoughts to those in suffering and sorrow, to those in doubt and ignorance, to those who are striving to attain Truth; and to those whose feet are standing close to the great change men call death, We send forth oceans of Wisdom and Compassion. .

these words have been on my mind for days. thinking a friend who will make the Great Change

🧁 NO 24

 🧁OR

20242424 in digital

Well sunny and cold in the borough. Nice day but still sunny and cold.

 this afternoon. D .. , the neighbour came over and helped me blow out the gutters on the back side which is two stories.
Unfortunately D ..  insisted on getting up on the ladder and then on to the roof. I mean really.

 It's a fall, like we're talking 22 ft and I was worried the whole time. But high gutters are swept clean

 Then I went over and helped and we changed the tires on his two vehicles from regular tires to winter tires

We were never in danger of falling 

actually, upon arriving, the wheel wouldn't detach from the hub. Stuck fast.  I suggested and Googled an answer. Ready ? Hit the wheel w/ a rubber mallet. D .. didn't have a mallet. I went and got mine. Finally, I was some help.
Nexr. Use a wire brush and clean the bolts. D .. s steel brush was too big. I went and got my Dremel motor tool [ w/ rotary wire brush ] Yes. Success

I stayed and helped for another 1 1/2  h. Quite satisfying all in all

🚲 the ' SeaBees '

 🚲 the nickname for the Construction Battalion of the Army
motto : Can Do. Will Do. Did

thus. yesterday between 1:30 P and 4:30, nextdoor neighbour and I took 40 pcs of metal and plastic - > and created a recumbent bike.
Ordered from Walmart, shipped From LA [ at least, I suspect the Far East too ] and struggled thru a delay to arrive here .

the 100 # puzzle arrived on Wed and sat for two days - looming in the front hall

one review stated that ' my niece and her husband spent 4 1 / 2 h putting the bike together '

the recumbent bike is advertised as half elliptical / half bike.
since I own an elliptical, I would say not really.
close but no cigar

I am sore in the legs [ and elsewhere ] sitting on the floor became necessary which entailed getting up, too ! 
there were some fiddly bits. and there is a chance some noise could develop b/c a few diagrams were less than illuminating when it came to washers [ and where these washers actually belong ]

We shall see said the Zen Master

well, if you own an elliptical !  ????  M .. used a recumbent bike at Rehab and found it comfortable. Very little balance is needed and back strain is minimal. as well, the recumbent is supposedly much easier on the knees etc
thus, I will consider incorporating the recumby into my workout program
warm up etc

🪆 November in the ' boro

 🪆 we are dreary, wet and cool ish.

looking out - dark and glistening

🌇 sombre notes

 🌇 such is life. 

Buddhistically, Life is Dukha [ suffering ] 

we accept all, respect all

yesterday. a friend and I had a last / farewell virtual chat w/ someone who is MAID
they have decided that next Wed will see a Dr and nurse and family say goodbye to the MAID friend
painlessly [ b/c pain is becoming a serious issue ]

the virtual was 45 min of reminiscing and some laughter
way better than I could have ever imagined

sobering moments, tho '

further. the MAID friend is a former student. in fact my guest was also from the same graduating year

🧿 get me thru November

 🧿 coming out the other side

I cheated. the song is " get me thru December " as sung by Alison Krauss

dreary in the ' boro. however, life seems to be flowing thru the gap

an uneventful day ? a scam call from? the CIBC [ bank ] to question ' where is your Bank card '

I refused to answer. Called the branch, and was told CIBC will not initiate a call

a real ' fishing expedition '

ah, our society in full play AND I reused to play
Still irritating

🍱 Novemborus 19

 🍱 dreary looking out there
but we will take it

The weather is starting to turn.

 it's damper and the winds picked up but I still got out there. I used my apparatus to clear out the  2 and floor gutters. To reach effectively I stood on the ladder. Two steps up and success.

 blew everything out in the eaves trough 

The sense of accomplishment made my day

it's the doing and succeeding

🌌 away in the night sky

 🌌 for all to see

' look up, look way up ' the words of the Friendly Giant [ CBC kids program ]

today s program
1. change the sheets. air the blankets

2. after much delay and procrastination, clean the living room carpet
the system requires vacuuming, sifting the powder on the slightly moistened carpet. scrub w/ a brush. let sit.
vacuum the debris

success

🦃 indeed

 🦃

Saturday was Turkey Day. we cooked a 14 # turkey, stuffed and gravy

we missed Thanksgiving dinner [ turkey, I mean ]. saw a turkey in Walmart. so.

 M .. helped quite a bit. but her fingers and back flare up and hurt

anyway. success. Actually, I envisioned stacked plastic containers w/ bird
not so bad afterall
we have leftover turkey but more in the range of 4 containers

now gravy. M .. is very consistent when cooking. Thus, when she gets it right once
yes. everytime is a winner

she made a quality of gravy. Meaning. I can have rice and gravy for many meals
Rice and gravy is a food genre - all of its own. Some might say the best of West and East

my favourite rice, currently, is Nishiki brand. Japanese short fain rice. Tends to cook softer than long grain and plumps up

 

🕸 its a sign of the times

 🕸  sing it  Petula Clark

A good weather day  in the ' boro. Bit of gustiness, sun and a slight bite in the air

🦃 coming at you, hot

 🦃 and I don't mean the day. not bad 

cool to cold. Wind was up and then died way down

Tranquil is the ' boro

🦀 novemburus 14 in the ' boro

 🦀 sunny, windy and cool [ like November ]

this AM. I contacted Walmart. We had ordered a 🦀 recumbent bike.
Shipping from the Far East. Via LA, CA  onto Richmond, BC. And stuck in BC

Walmart advised that Walmart is not in control of the package. Call Purolator and say ' return to depot / pickup  ' I .....
called Purolator.  " your wait times is 30 minutes. Then,  later ' your wait time is over ten minutes. '
' your wait time is over ten minutes, do require a call back ' Yes

finally, a real person called back. ' What do you need ? ' Cancel the order !  
oh, you mean return to sender '

as in the Elvis song

AND Purolator did ' halt shipment and return to Walmart Depot '

naturally, the wait is 5 - 6 days. maybe, Walmart will refund the money in 10 days [ ? ]

valuable lessons : Walmart is not Amazon
we've grown accustomed to a level of online retail [ five packages in 1 week ] from Amazing Inc

🐮 facing the cow

 🐮 and other short stories

... and don't feel sad
cuz two out of three
ain't bad

the late and sort - of - great, Meatloaf.

in the ' boro dull as ditchwater [ or dishwater ] w/ a slight wind moving the branches

raw is the word. a bite to the wind and damp. 

🌌 return to sun

 🌌 our future forecast is temperate and mixed
last night, the medium showers turned into 15 min of gushing rain

and wind as well

figure many leaves scuttled down into the yard

and those leaves are in the gutter, well, I did a manual clean out - not much fun after the blower job

🍥 11,11,11,11

 🍥 a solemn day.

' boro is dark still. no coffee yet. typing

my drink is ginger and lemon in warm water. beginning hydration

weather here. 45 - 50 for the week w/ bouts of showers

🧁 lunch out

 Nov 9 we travelled to A .. s for a simple and delightful afternoon brunch

the ' boro, today. headed for 50 F and perhaps some rain

debating whether to break out the ' gutter ' assembly and give the old blow out try

The week bodes well, mostly sunny and 50 ish

We can see the wall 🧱 w/ way less leafage

Further to this AM notation 

blew out the gutters w/ the extension tubing

beat the rain 

thank you muchly

💤 better

 Well. Yes. I've set a trend - 2 nights sleeping right thru

Cooler days and nights. We start at 33 F this morning.

💤 all night

 💤 ... sleepy time gal won't you come out tonight .... 

she did. must have been 8 h right thru til 7 AM 
now I was tired. And slept poorly two of three nights

still. not quite w/ it yet

Bargain. at Costco. 2 for $ 29, smoke and CO detector [ 10 year battery ].
Took down the old smoke alarm.

new one is activated and ready. it starts chirping intermittently. OK

tried the next one. Yepper. chirps.  At Shoppers Drug Mart, buy a smoke detector only.

Remeasure the holes in the ceiling. The ' faulty ' smoke / CO is in the kitchen ...
and ' it ' chirps in the hall. M .. was there and says ' its behind me '
OMG. it was the carbon monoxide detector from before w/ the other company

Egad. So. The new smoke / CO detectors work just fine thank you.

Oh. I did not drill the new holes yet for the smoke alarm. 

Sunny in the ' boro. love typing that

🎭 a comedy tonight

🎭  Costco sells booze now. the province loosened up the alcohol sales laws

I would say that I avoid cream ales [ too bland and tending to sweet ]

BUT

Muskoka Cream Ale at sale price in a mixed case

Good

' boro weather. warm ish for November. sun in a jumbled bag of damp, wind and blue skies

🌤🌤 a real anomaly

 🌤🌤 Nov 5 and we will be 67 or so degrees

bonus

and exactly as promised. I managed to pat h the driveway

However. always howevers. I didn't cut back the asphalt [ ideal solution ]
I'm not sure that I want to be pounding or disturbing more of the driveway
The consequences are that although the ' holes ' are filled. There are low places still remaining
The remaining work is to diminish the unevenness and hope that the temporary fill that results will not wash away

we do what we can

🌤 in the 11 the month

 🌤 managed to sleep thru to 6: ish am. Quite the achievement. Dim and cold looking out there on the street.
our temperature will be warm for this time of year.

🐠 our clocks went back

 🐠 yes, we are on ' non ' Daylight Savings Time 

or Eastern Standard Time [ EST ]

still groggy. is this standard ?

bright sun beaming thru '
We are estimating leaf coverage at 70 %. Except. We can see a lot of sky thru the canopy.

And the ground is thick w/ fallen foliage.

Beginning s .. .

and  .... endings

our tree was in fiery glory
a week ago. fading now and diminishing

" I play for Seasons not Eternities
.... says Nature, laughing on her way .... "

Tricky treating last night. Quite subdued

Discovered via Neighbourhood Watch
we missed out on some nifty costumed folks

well ...
we did get many cute ones