Up a Tree
Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo

This is Eric. This is Eric up a tree, a 45′ tree, at the top of a 32′ ladder. It’s high, scary high especially when you’re reaching up to trim of those last few branches.

As were doing this, for some strange reason, the Monty Python Lumber jack song pops into my head. Anyway, we keep working and before long the tree is down, and we didn’t hit any wires of the neighbors fence and it’s all good. We even got some applause from a neighbor two houses down. I think he thought there was going to be an impending disaster when we cut off the top 12-15′.

We’re safe and sound back at the hotel packing up for the trip back to Winnipeg but the hike yesterday was an adventure of a life time. While I didn’t make it to the summit by choice, it was still an amazing day as I climbed to about 10,000 vertical feet from a start in about 5,000. We experienced a great climb up the trail, some very scary scrambling up some very steep loose rock, a 20′ vertical climb without ropes, touched snow in August, watched a helicopter rescuce, sat out a rain and hail storm at 10,000, belayed down a 40′ vertical face assisted by Brian, a mountain rescue worker, and the group who made the summit were walking around in an electrically charged cloud getting shocked and dumping all their metal gear like ice axes and trekking poles and everybody hiked out for several hours in a very close thunderstorm getting quite soaked. Other that that it was a rather uneventful day.

It was quite a crazy experience with a lot of exciting memories and lessons learned. More later with photos of the rescue and some great scenic shots of the mountains and our group.

Three days ago the enemy penetrated our perimeter defenses for the second time. He was located hiding in a water reservoir. After a short skirmish, the enemy was extracted and left on the side of the road, presumed dead. After this incursion it was necessary to fortify the perimeter with IEDs (improvised entrapment devices).

Two nights ago there where heavy casualties inflicted on the squirrel army. Two dead, one wounded and one prisoner. The wounded and prisoner were relocated far from enemy lines. Last night it was quiet on the battle front, but this lull in the action will not make us complacent for we must be ever vigilant until victory has been assured. Repairs to the perimeter may take place today to facilitate improved ventilation to the fortress.

Rays
Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo

I’m at the lake this weekend with Eric & Scott for “guys” weekend. While they were sleeping I was up shortly after sunrise. After brewing some coffee to go, I headed out in the kayak for a paddle. How convenient that even the kayak has a cup holder. After a leisurely cruise around the bay I returned to the cottage to find out it was 8am and I’ve been gone for 2hrs. Time flies when you’re having fun. I captured some great pictures down in the small marsh at the end of our bay

Bears like going to church
Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo

This Polar Bear caught my attention on the drive home from the new work site a couple of days ago. Today, when I was out walking at lunch, I snapped this shot. Who knew that Polar Bears had an interest in Church!

This guy is one of the bears form the Bears on Broadway exhibition that has 50-60 bear figures up and down Broadway Avenue for the summer. At the end of the exhibit, the bears were moved to various locations around the city. Do you know where this on is? It’s in front of a travel agency.

I’m a fan of the Blue Man Group, so after viewing this from a Facebook link, I had to give it a post.

Hsve a look at this presentation. Quite well done, funny & scary all at the same time.

The Story of Stuff with Annie Leonard

From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It’ll teach you something, it’ll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.

It’s 6:30am and I’m just about to head down to the dock with a couple of cups of coffee and some reading material, it’s a clear sunny morning.

Yesterday was a bunch of firsts for the year as we wend into Kenora by boat to pick up a few things. First boat trip, first Starbucks in Kenora, first sighting of a water skier without a wet suit, first time we docked at Annishinabie Park and walked up to Wal-Mart. I can’t believe how much shopping we did on such a nice summer weekend. Well, some of it was almost mandatory as we needed eggs and a wireless router. Yeah, the Linksys was acting funny the lat time we were out and this weekend it was dead, no lights, no blinking no nothing.

I thought I’d just get another Linksys, but ended up with a Belkin and saved $25 plus it has a couple of features the Linksys doesn’t and a life time warranty. That could come in handy.

I can hear the eagle out the front windows, so I think I’ll take the camera and my reading material and head off to the dock. There is a light breeze building, who knows, perhaps there will be some sailing. Where is my sailing buddy?

Smells can really trigger strong memories. Occasionally I’ll catch a wiff of something and it will instantly take me back 30 years to a very specific time and place. Sometime, I’ll smell the perfume my mom used to wear and a flood of memories will instantly come back to me. It’s quite an experience.

Wow, that was a little of track from how I thought this would go. A couple of days ago while riding to work in the morning I was really hit by how much closer to life you are on a bike vs. a car when moving around the city and it was the smells on the ride that gave me this thought. As I went up the street there was a freshness in the air, a smell that would be hard to describe, a spring quality. To me it was as if I could smell the “green” of the grass.

Well, at the top of the street the relaxing and refreshing scent of spring was quickly swept away by a VW TDI diesel exhaust stream. We’ve been looking at a new vehicle and the TDI has caught my attention mainly because of it’s incredible mileage, but I’d forgotten about the exhaust and diesel smell and the clanking of the engine. This car was almost out of site and I was still sucking in the fumes.

From there it was back into a brief reprieve of fresh air on a bike path and then into the fragrant mix of heavy rush hour traffic downtown. Actually, this is the most fun part of the ride as I get to pass most of the cars, weave in and out of traffic and try not to get hit or be too obnoxious, but it is a bit of a rush. I’m certainly awake when I roll into the office.

Technorati Tags: smell, cycling, spring

Reflections
Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

We’re at the lake this weekend and the weather is great. We’ve actually been suntanning on the dock! As you can see from the photo, there is no running water yet, just me, running for water.

After fetching some water, it was breakfast and then a couple of cup of coffee while I tried to make a router think it was a wireless router. Then some reading on the deck. I’m reading The DNA of Relationships, which I’d highly recommend for anyone. It’s all about taking responsibility for your self and how you think and feel.

Only a couple of time in the history of the cottage have we conducted a pre-opening before the May long weekend. May long weekend has always been in my family the weekend that we made the first trip of the year to the cottage and “opened up”. This mean things like getting the water running, putting in the boats, and doing a little spring cleaning. This year, while it’s quite warm this weekend, I won’t be turning on the water just yet. There is still lots of ice on the lake

Reflections
Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

and temperatures are still going below zero over night. But, I’ve prepped the boats, re-connected most of the water system components, re-assembled the septic system where possible (the holding tanks are still frozen), and set out the chairs and loungers on the dock. Whew, all that work called for some lazing around on the dock, and lovely snack prepared by Shirley and a small cat nap.

It’s too nice to sleep the day away so I grab the camera and head out to the point to check out my trail and take some photos. As I emerged from the trail back on to the road I was greeted by two guys leaning on an ATV, and it seems like they were waiting to talk to me. It was quite interesting, ask me about it sometime.

Back at the ranch, somebody is sleeping. Zzzzzz,  Zzzzz, Zzzzz. The lake has a tendency to slow you down a little and make it seem quite exceptable to nap the late afternoon away.