Good Morning!

It looks like another really nice day is shaping up for us here in Cottage Country. The sun is shinning with hardly a cloud in the sky. You know you’re in the north when the sky is blue as can be and the air is so fresh it feels energizing, with every breath you take. The temperatures also have been nice for sleeping the past few days with the windows open. Nothing is nicer to lay in bed, feeling the gentle breezes flowing through the house. I am sure going to miss it when the real cold arrives. But it makes you appreciate what you have at the moment.

Highway 522 is still very quiet these days. However, we have had a few folks drop by our small gift shop picking up a few items of choice. And in doing so we made some more fine friends. One couple that originated from Italy, just like my wife, and I’s parents, and with roots in Germany too, we chatted to for over an hour or so. It was an incredible experience to exchange stories about our shared cultural backgrounds, reminisce about the customs and traditions of our ancestors’ homelands, and bond over our love for Italian and German cuisine. The conversation felt like reconnecting with long-lost family, and it further strengthened our pride in our heritage. In short, it made our day.

Bug Report: Not much to talk about these days, all is good. Other than a group of busy Bumble Bees gracefully carrying out their daily tasks. Which are sure nice to watch. They have a lot to offer if you take the time to watch them.

On another note, my wife and I have kept busy, her doing up preserves for winter with me getting the outside things done up that I haven’t been able to do for the past few years. It sure is nice to be able to move around. Things if let go sure have a way of getting out of hand. But I pretty well have everything back to normal.

Today I will finish working on a new Bird Feeder I have in mind. I started it yesterday but got side tracked by folks visiting our gift shop and a few other things. Life is a mystery, that’s for sure, I never know what a day might bring. I start off in one direction and end up doing something totally different. But I like it that way, as it keeps life interesting.

With that, I am off for a bagel with some molasses brown sugar, with cinnamon this morning, that my lovely wife is making for me. Which should give me enough energy to get through the day.’

Have a great day. GW

Good Morning!

It’s a nice looking morning here in Cottage Country. The sun is shinning, and the temperature is sitting at 15.5 C | 59.9 F. it will warm up as the day moves forward. Actually, it will be one of the nicest days of the summer. Can’t beat that.

Highway 522 is still quiet these days, and I suspect it will remain that way now for the rest of the summer. There was a lot of building going on earlier, but that has slowed down too. It won’t be long before I start getting things ready for winter. Usually I bring my firewood into the basement nearing the end of September, along with filling our oil tank. Winter oil isn’t available at the moment. And … I am not looking forward to what it will cost to fill it. If they dropped the tax from heating oil, it would make things a lot easier for folks, especially here in the north. Will they do such a thing? Nope, they are making too much money and unfortunately making money is above what is good for the people, or so it seems. It’s one hell of a world we are living in these days. But we have to carry on making the best of things.

On another note, I finished up building a trailer I started awhile back. I have it for sale now, asking$500.00. It’s a nice trailer for an ATV or Riding mower. Or, you could put it on the road, as it does have a spring suspension. At any rate, what will be, will be. If no one wants it, I will use it myself. Today I am going to work on a new bird feeding station as the one we have now is a touch too small. My wife and I enjoy watching them throughout the winter months. That should look after most of the day. My wife has and is doing up preserves for winter as the price of food this winter is going to soar more so than it is now, and I also suspect we will be having a lot of shortages, caused by the hot weather we have been having around the world. So the warnings are there of what’s to come, and it’s up to each individual on how they heed them warnings. Being an old farmer, I have always kept an eye on these things over the years, and took precautions when needed. Animals do it all the time.

With that, I am off for a bite to eat. Not sure what is on the menu yet.

Have a great day! GW

Good Morning!

Actually, not much is happening these days in cottage country. But you never know it could change being the that August is here, along with it closing in on Fall which arrives this year on September 23.

Highway 522, well, it isn’t what it used to be, not by a long shot. Back in the day, it was a quiet little road, not much traffic to speak of. But truth be told, I don’t mind it staying that way. My lovely wife and I came to these parts over 20 years ago ’cause we wanted some space, some elbow room. And this place gave us just that.

Life’s been a simple one for my wife and I, we’ve seen things change, folks come and go, but we have learned to roll with the punches. That’s how it’s always been for us – adaptin’ to whatever comes our way.

Progress, they call it. Can’t stop it, no matter how much I might wish to. The world keeps movin’ forward, and you have to move with it. I might be an old-timer, but I ain’t stuck in the past. Change is a part of life, and I’ve learned to accept it. So, as the world changes around me, I’ll just keep on doin’ what I do best – tendin’ to my land, watchin’ the seasons change, and cherishin’ the memories of quieter times on Highway 522.

Bug Report: All is good these days other than a few pesky mosquitoes. But I can live with them.

On another note, I worked outside most of the day with my wife getting the mowing out of the way for another week. Sure looks nice when all said and done. Better than any park there is out there today, where millions are spent on keeping it that way. For most parts, I like nature the way she is, but I do like unveiling it occasionally so to speak, showing how beautiful it really is/or can be. After we got the mowing done the rain moved in giving everything a much-needed drink. Enough to fill my rain barrel, too, which I will use in the coming days to water the new vegetables I just planted. You can never have enough fresh rain water on hand living in this neck of the woods. It also comes in handy to flush the toilet when the power goes out.

With that, I am off for some home-made waffles my wife is preparing for me with some of Mike Clappertons Maple Syrup. After that, I will see what mischief I can get into. At least that is what my little woman keeps on tellin’ me.

Have a great day, make it a great day! GW

Good Morning!

It’s a cloudy morning, waking up here in Cottage Country. We didn’t have any rain overnight. But in saying that, we could see a bit of rain later on in the day. Maybe even a thunderstorm or two. We should also see some sunshine off and on. Which would be nice. The nice thing is the hot weather is behind us and I suspect that the temperatures will remain quite nice for the remainder of the summer. Nearing the end or the middle of September, though, temperatures will drop a lot. Which is normal for our area. I am thinking we will have to deal with a lot of snow this winter.

Highway 522 was a bit busy yesterday, but it was mostly the locals moving around. The tourists are staying at home this year with the taxes being so high along with the food, gas prices and interest rates causing them some grief. It seems the Powers That Be are corralling everyone into their pen, so to speak. At any rate, from what I make from all this, is that a time is coming when the working man/woman will start to rebel, more so than some are doing now, which is probably what is needed, as much as I hate to say it, to bring things back to normal. But it is going to be hard being a multicultural country with so many different views on things. Kind of a shame it has to be that way, when all it would take is a few good government officials that think like the working man, along with what is good for Canada, to straighten things out. That’s my prognosis for this morning and the coming days.

Bug Report: Other than some mosquitoes, things are pretty good these days.

On another note, I did manage to work up a part of my vegetable garden where I had our garlic planted. Once cleaned up, I got busy and planted some more Lettuce. Spinach, Beans and Onions which will be tasty in a month or so.

This morning, if it doesn’t rain, my lovely wife and I will see if we can get our mowing out of the way for the week. We will have to see how that pans out.

With that, I am off for a bowl of cereal and will then see what the day has in store.

Have a great day. GW

Good Morning!

It’s been a few days since my last post as my lovely wife and I, along with our son Karl, took a drive down to Niagara to see our oldest son Craig. We had a nice time and took in a lot of sights while there. The only issue we had, which could have turned into a disaster, was that the drivers side wheel just about fell off. I guess the nuts holding it on came loose. We heard a noise in Barrie when we stopped for coffee. So hearing that, we decided to take it into the Ford Dealer that was close by. They took a look and after inspecting everything they found the loose wheel and two bad tie rod-ends. They said we were very lucky. At any rate 2 hours later along with a $1000.00 we were on our way. The rest of the trip was good. While there as I said we took in the sights along with picking up some fresh fruit, along with other things, had a good visit with our boy and came on home, stopping here and there along the way. We even had an ice cream in Cooks town, which was pretty tasty, along with some fresh picked corn. Once home, it took us all day yesterday to unwind. Ha ha. Today we have some peaches to do up and get into the freezer for winter. We picked up some at a friend of ours farm near where our farm used to be years ago. They are what you call peaches, not like what is in the stores up here, let me tell you. Nice and sweet and a good size. Like a peach should be.

Highway 522 is still very quiet these days in our area. We did however have a lot of people drop by our gift shop yesterday, which was nice. Half were from the USA. Nice folks too.

Bug Report: All is well these days in that department.

On another note, it is dry out there, so I had to water our vegetable gardens when we got back home. A person has to keep on top of these things if they want some nice vegetables for the table or to do up for winter. Nothing like fresh veggies taken right from your own garden.

With that, I am off for a bowl of cereal this morning and will then see what the day has in store.

Have a great day and stay safe. GW

Good Morning!

Well, things are looking pretty good, weather wise. We did have a nice rain overnight, which is what we needed for our vegetable gardens. They sure spruce up after a rain, let me tell ya. It is a bit hazy out there this morning, as it has been for the past few mornings, but once the sun gets to doing her thing it will clear things up.

Highway 522 was a bit busy yesterday with folks moving around checking what the town has to offer.

Bug Report: Everything is good in that department, other than a few deer flies.

On another note, my wife and I did get the mowing done around our home yesterday, it was getting pretty long with all the rain we have been having lately. It took us most of the morning. In the afternoon, we looked after customers that dropped by our gift shop. Actually, we had a fair amount of folks coming in picking up things. Some has been here before, along with some new faces too.

Today I will clean up my shop a bit, and then take it easy as one of our sons, Karl, is going to come out for a visit.

With that I am off for a piece of toast and will then see what the day has in store other than I have planned.

Have a great day. GW

Good Morning!

It’s another foggy morning here in Cottage Country. The same as yesterday, but in saying that it will clear up as soon as the sun gets to doing her job. It is possible this morning that we could see a shower, but it kind of depends on which way the clouds track. We will have to wait and see.

Bug Report: Nothing to report in that department.

Highway 522 is very quiet these days, hardly any tourists in our area, and for this time of year it is anything but normal. But as I said many times, there are a lot of people out there hurting these days financially.

On another note, I did work on my trailer for most of the day yesterday and finished it up. It turned out real nice and will be a great trailer for towing behind the ATV. I might sell it for $550.00, as I do have another that I have been using for the past fifteen years or so. It’s a nice little trailer with a good frame. I will post a picture or two later on today or tomorrow.

With that, I am off for a bow of cereal that my lovely wife is preparing for me, and will then see about doing some mowing. With all this rain and cooler temperatures, it has been really growing.

Have a great day! GW

Good Morning!

It’s a foggy morning here, waking up in cottage country. Caused by the cool, morning air meeting the warm earth below. Along with some smoke higher up that causes some issues thrown in for good measure. Other than that, it is shaping up to be a good day. We could see a shower or thunderstorm later in the day.

Bug Report: Everything is hunky-dory in that department, other than a few deer flies being a bit annoying.

Highway 522 is very quiet for this time of year. It goes to show you how much people are hurting these days with being over taxed and having to abide by so many rules and regulations. I would bet that we could do without half of them. Along with a lot of other things that are being forced upon us these days. At any rate, things will come to a head one of these days, be it good or bad.

On another note, I started to work on a few things outside yesterday, but just when I got going the skies got dark, and we had a good hour or so down pour, with lots of thunder and lightning. So, with that upon us, I decided to have a nap in my lazy boy chair for an hour or so. Later on, I did get some work done. Today I will see how things goes.

With that, I am off for a bite to eat, not sure what my lovely wife is making for me, and will then head on outdoors. It sure is nice to be able to move around after being laid up for most of the spring.

Have a great day. GW

Good Morning!

It’s a cloudy morning here, waking up in cottage country. Which could lead us into a few showers or a thunderstorm this morning. After lunch though things will start to clear up and we should see some sunshine. Lately our rain has come when needed, which makes me happy as I don’t have to water my vegetable gardens. Not that I mind, really, as doing anything outdoors is better than sitting in the house. There is enough time to do that come winter, which is very long in this country. Unless you head on off to the sunny south. I have to say, it does look enticing, going south, that is, especially when my old body doesn’t like the cold all that much anymore. Something to ponder on. We used to go to Sarasota, Florida every winter when my Dad was alive and for years after, but things change as we did and well … we just didn’t get to going. You know, I am not exactly sure why that was, as there was no reason to stop. Funny how the mind thinks as it gets older.

Highway 522 was very quiet yesterday in our area. We did have a few people drop by our gift shop, some have been here before, and some new faces also dropped by for a visit to see what we have. It’s always nice to see old friends and new faces.

Bug Report: All is well in that department.

On another note, yesterday I worked most of the day in my woodworking shop. I started to work on rebuilding an old trailer I had lying around that I started a few days ago, but when it came time to plane down the side pieces, my planer had some issues. So … that took me most of the day to fix. I kind of thought it would be shot being so old, but … after taking it apart I manged to fix the old girl and when started back up it ran like a top. It’s nice to be able to do these things. You know, if I wasn’t able to repair equipment or fix things, my wife and I wouldn’t be where we are today. Jack of all trades is sure a true statement for us old timers. That’s why we never throw anything away, as we never know when we might need something. Some call it hoarding, I call it common sense. Nowadays, these so-called specialists come up with all kinds of things trying to put us old timers out of commission. Kind of sad in a way. To most of the young today, we old fellers and gals are a burden. Makes me shake my head as some of us have so much to offer the young if they only took the time to talk to us. At any rate, what will be, will be, and it’s their loss.

With that I am off for a couple pieces of toast with brown sugar which is strapped with molasses. It’s a good way occasionally to start your day. Gives the body the energy it needs to do things.

Have a great day. GW