♫ Happy Trails To You ♫

Lets talk trails, walking paths, you find throughout the city. I'm all for walking paths, I use part of one on my daily stroll. When I read this mornings paper and saw they provided $800,00. for upgrades, I thought it could be a bit much. Do these paths, trails have to be paved? Apparently so. I think this would classify it as a road, which allows everything but autos. To me, a trail conjures up visions of roughing it in the bush, at least walking on dirt.

You have to be careful walking on these trails, as you can get run over by just about anything, including bikes, roller blades, skateboards and anything else with wheels.

Another article involved the Cole Hbr. Museum, a place where I pat the goats on the head, after finishing my walk on the trail. They were given $14,400. for upgrades. What did they do with the money? Well you may ask, they gave the money to a consultant, who would tell them what they could use the money for. Isn't it strange the price tag is $14,400.

I wondered if naive and dumb could mean the same thing? I guess not, but they are first cousins. This word came up because of the "Dire Straits" and "faggot" noise. When I was young, a fag was a cigarette. "Gimme a fag". The bottom line is, all dumb and naive chip on the shoulder people, made a lot of money for "Dire Straits." If you read this, you are already smarter, you know another name for a cigarette.

Sunday Morning

♫ Sunday morning coming down ♫ and that's exactly what it is doing. A few inches of snow last night and a few more today.

I saw this cartoon in the paper yesterday and had to add it to my blog. This is the way most of the world picture Americans. Americans probably wouldn't like it, but it does appear to have an element of truth. A popular saying in the U.S. is, three strikes - you're out. When I think of that saying, I think of the U.S. as a whole. First strike - gun crazy, second strike - drug crazy and the third strike - may be the crazy political rhetoric. Those three together seem to be a lethal mix. Put on top of it, the reality show arrived at from a shooting, which stays as the top story for at least a week, going at it from every angle. They come up with a host of solutions which do not address the problem, and then life goes on till the next shooting.

Today's newspaper, maybe in honor of Sunday, but probably because it's a slow news week, is filled with items pertaining to religion. Two articles are about the sale of churches, which appear to be on the rise. Selling churches for a dollar or tearing them down, seems to be the road to go, with the supermarket, to be the new church on Sunday.

Another article showed three Anglican Bishops becoming Catholic priests. I don't know about pay, but it is quite a drop in prestige. In the end, your conscience has to dictate the way and it all comes out in the wash.

What I Saw Today

Most people think everyday has basically the same routine. We think this way because we don’t pay attention to what goes on around us. We concentrate on the things we always do, and the rest slips right on by.

At the supermarket yesterday, I saw a man and a woman. They didn’t strike me as a couple, more like a pair, as brother and sister. He appeared about fifty years of age, and she, slightly older. A man with good stature, a graying beard, and a face showing resignation to his fate, more years of sadness.

The woman, prone to obesity, with the appearance of limited finances, wore an angry face, which seemed a permanent feature.

The man pushed the grocery cart, while the woman barked commands.

“Over here. Don’t go there. Don’t touch that.”

And the most revealing.

“You’re lucky you’re with me.”

He said nothing, slowing pushing the cart from aisle to aisle, perhaps listening with unhearing ears. I wonder, when he awakes in the morning, does he roll over and think, “Yes, it’s still me. It’s not all a dream.

We Have Snow, Again

Another Christmas, come and gone. Another turkey already gone. It was one of those turkey already stuffed. I think there was more stuffing than turkey. It was all gone by yesterday and I only had one sandwich.

On Sunday night it snowed. Along the coast, we only received a little. Nothing like the eastern U.S. Saw an article from Philadelphia (one of my favourite cities) where they had garbage trucks used as snowplows. I think that is a great idea for a city. Instead of buying a horde of snowplows, to be used whenever, when they buy a garbage truck, it should have a blade attachment. Easy enough to store and a lot cheaper. Thumbs up to Philly.

Even thought it was warm yesterday, we still had to shovel a little. Don't want a buildup of ice. Good idea it was because it snowed a little last night and we would have had ice covered snow.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve has finally arrived. I'm sure the mad rush for presents will go full steam till closing at supper time. I don't have the excitement of opening my presents to see what I have. For me the rush is when my wife opens her presents and I see what I bought her. She has a system of buying her own presents, wrapping them and putting my name on them. This works out well for me as I don't have to go shopping. For her, she can buy what she wants and I can't say anything. After all, it's her Christmas presents.

The forecast is for snow on Monday. Since I just came home from the hospital three weeks ago, there won't be any heavy lifting, which means no snow blower for me. Snow flurries outside right now, at least that's what they call it. In Europe they would call it a disaster.

The doctor called yesterday and made an appointment for my daughter for this morning. Has to check out the foot again, so my son gets to do the lifting. He has taken her for more appointments in three weeks than I've done in a year. This included a trip to the supermarket for her and she even got snowed on. Big excitement. Also, no more bandage on the foot.

Went continental this morning and had a cheese croissant for breakfast. During my European and African continent travelling days, I never had a croissant. Bed and breakfast consisted of dinner rolls with cheese and jam.
♫ Tea, a drink with jam and bread.♫  From "The King And I." Had to put it in there.

We Have Snow?

Yes, it snowed yesterday. I wasn't expecting it. Looked like about four inches. My doctor says no shoveling snow or heavy lifting for six weeks. Four weeks to go. After two weeks, I am allowed to drive, so I did that. Wouldn't you know, the roads turned to a sheet of ice. Took a few back roads to get home. Braking at a stop sign was slide time. I heard there were a lot of accidents.

Things are a little more painful with me today. Must have run around a little too much yesterday. Better settle down for a few days.

Pulled back the patio door curtains this morning and there was a fur face staring at me. The neighbours cat. Pretended I didn't see him. He has a very bad habit of climbing on the counter, opening one of the doors and licking the butter/margarine.

Later on as I was having my breakfast, my wife says " I let the cat in, you better put a lid on the margarine on the counter." At the word margarine, he tore off to the kitchen. I had to make a mad dash to get the cover on. Who says cats don't understand, they understand just fine, they just don't listen.

Breakfast

It seems the storm was for everyone else except around here. We had some wind and rain, nothing to get exiceted about. I wrote a story about breakfast and will post it on my other blog. http://originalmagazineads.com/flashfiction/
Since it is so close to the truth, I'll post it here also.

Raisin Bread Toast

Mmm! Morning again. At least I'm on the right side of the grass. With my head still a bit foggy, I hear the sounds of my wife busy making her breakfast. I smell raisin bread toasting. Since we don't climb out of bed at the same time, we have the habit to make our own breakfast. This works out well as no one has to wait for someone and each of us may sleep in if desired.

Today I have been sleeping late. Though I could say, I am not sleeping late; this is just my usual time to get up. Christmas is close so it is probably cold outside. Then I remember, the weatherman calls for a very cold day. My mind toys with the idea I could stay in bed longer. Being retired, I can't exactly say my dance card is full. But no, that's the formula for a bad habit so I best get up.

With this decision the door is opened to my first chore, decide on breakfast. I think breakfast comes off as the worse time in the day. Not breakfast itself, but the chore of having to decide what to eat for breakfast. There are too many choices. I could have a bagel, with many assorted toppings. Maybe cereal, but the choices seem endless. Not bacon and eggs, that's my Sunday treat. Then there's the old standby. Toast, and the jams and jellies for spreading on it.

Obviously my wife has decided on raisin bread toast. I like raisin bread toast, but it doesn't like me. The great taste is replaced with the not so great heartburn and indigestion taste. So, pass on the raisin bread. This disappoints me, as I like raisin bread, especially with coffee. I need another choice and I am starting to lean towards a bagel. At this point I could cheat and have a raisin bagel. But why fool myself; the result would be the same.

I wonder if rich people have this same problem. Do they decide what to have or does someone else make the decision for them? Perhaps all the choices have been prepared and laid out on a table. All they do is pick out what they want. I wonder how many choices they would have. Would they just pick at everything? Would they show concern about all the waste?

What about the predictions I heard when I was growing up? Looking ahead fifty years, they convinced us food would no longer remain as it is now. A roast beef meal they affirmed,would be replaced by a pill. Sure, I take a pill every day, but it's Lipitor, followed by a dessert, like Vitamin C and Omega oil. They were partly right, we do take pills.

Feet planted firmly on the floor, I sit on the mattress edge, pondering my naval and the breakfast menu. My mind is yet to be made up. Still rolling the choices, I walk downstairs and see my wife at the kitchen counter making toast. Easy for her. She doesn't seem to have the same problem as I do.

She greets me with a smile. "Good morning dear. I've made you coffee and raisin bread toast for breakfast."