Tempus Fugit

Latin (tem-pu̇s-ˈfü-git): Time Flies

Author: garry.c.stewart

  • Family Fun at the Lake


    Len & Eric work on the dock

    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    This past weekend we had Len & Darlene and Eric & Dez at the lake and had a blast.

    On the Saturday after a leisurely morning of puttering around and fixing up a couple of things Len & Darlene arrived and we had some lunch. Then there was no more sitting around. Len was looking for a little exercise so we cut up & split about 15 six foot tree sections that I’d recovered from some downed tress a couple of weeks ago. This was something I would have put off until the fall, but the help was ready, willing and able. So, in 28C+ we spent a couple of hours stocking the wood pile.

    Later in the day I mentioned that there were a couple of sections of floating dock that had washed up on the point after a storm and had not been claimed in over 2 years. I thought that they might be of some use in our dock system. That was all it took, and the adventure was set in motion, Operation Retrieval was on! So, on Sunday Len, Eric & I retrieved the two 6′ x 16′ dock sections and I “retrieved” a sprained ankle.

    Well, I thought that just getting them back to our dock was a good days work, but then Eric wanted to renovate the flotation system which had been damaged. So, after a quick trip to Kenora for materials, and an afternoon of construction, one of the sections is float worthy and will most likely get used as a floating swim platform anchored just off shore. This will allow some sleepy head sun tanners to get that late afternoon sun. 😉

  • Victoria Beach

    Dune Jumper

    Dune Jumping
    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    We spent a day at Victoria Beach with our friends Chris & Elaine and no day at the beach would be complete without a stroll on the beach of course! This guy & his friends were having a great time performing death defying leaps off the top of the sand dune. OK, maybe not death defying a s they all seemed to live to do it again, but there was no mom’s in sight.

    Along with the beach walk was a trip to the bakery for Dream cookies, a bike ride to look at the latest cottages and a stop to visit some friends in a vintage 1910ish log cottage, which was very cool.

    Speaking of bike rides, somebody (Shirley) on their first ride of the year, hooked her handle bars on a chain link fence and went for quite a spill. No permanent damage, but a few scrapes and bruises. The local tennis pro was quick to run over with his new first aid kit the size of a small suitcase, eager to administer something, anything. Good think he didn’t have a portable defibrillator!

    After a wonderful dinner and some relaxing and some good conversation we packed up and headed back into Winnipeg. Good times with good friends. Thanks.

  • Riding at the Lake


    The Ride
    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    Unfortunately the ride at the lake doesn’t look like this. The picture is from last years Maah Daah Hey trip (pictures), but the bike is still the one that gets me around. I figure that this year I’ll have logged over 10,000km on this bike since I purchased it in 2000.

    This morning it’s overcast and a little cool at about 20C, a nice temperature for a ride. I went over to Rushing River Provincial Park which is just under 20km, but this is not the flat road riding of Manitoba. First there is getting out to the highway from our cottage with  lots of hills. On the way out the longest and steepest climb is the one out of the gravel pit. I still remember the first time I tried this when the bike was new and I was still getting used to clipless pedals. About 2/3 of the way up I ran “out of gas” and stalled and didn’t clip out fast enough and just fell over right in the middle of the road. Well, things have improved and while the hill was still a grind, there was no stalling or falling off.

    The highway ride is not too bad, if you ignore the traffic. The shoulders are wide in 17 and most folks move over to give you some extra space, which is always appreciated. After the turn th 71, the shoulder narrows a bit but the traffic is lighter and going a little slower too. After 45min. I’m looping around the park. With the cooler weather there is nobody on the beach or in the lake and several campers are packing up. After a look at the river and an almond snack, it’s back in the saddle. Now there is a head wind and some of the long grades uphill are seeming a little tougher.

    Some of my gear selections are starting to slip and skip. I know there is a little bit of excessive cross chaning in the selection, but this never used to be a problem. Must be time for a bit of a tune-up.

    Pretty uneventful trip, no wildlife sightings, no road kill, no interesting objects on the side of the road, just the steady whir of the knobby tires on the road and some time to think.

  • I feel the need, the need for speed.




    Antenna

    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    I’ve always like that line from Top Gun.

    This weekend we put an new addition on the cottage, a little antenna. The little antenna connects us to a big tower just down the road. Thankfully, we can’t see this big tower as it’s a bit on an eye sore, so out of place at the lake, just like so many other cell phone towers plunked around the world. But, here we are supporting this kind of thing. Anyway, this big tower connects us to somewhere in Kenora which in turn connects us onto the Internet.

    Lets face it, once you become accustomed to high speed Internet access there is no going back to dial-up, well only under extreme duress.

    The verdict is still out as to if this was such a good idea. It has it’s pluses. I uploaded some large photo files to Flickr, checked on the Shuttle launch and plan to watch the Sunday attempt. I can work from the lake. Hmm, is that good or bad? There is the temptation to while away hours online instead of disconnecting and enjoying being un-plugged. Oh well, time will tell.

  • Happy Canada Day




    Canada Day Spirit

    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    We’re enjoying Canada Day on beautiful Lake of the Woods and yesterday, while we were in Kenora, I decided to get more in the spirit of things and do a little flag waving.

    Last night there was quite a strong storm with lots of rain but things settled down over night and we boated into Kenora this morning to catch some of the harbor side festivities that were taking place. Lots of folks out enjoying the day and the weather cooperating. a nice mix of sun & cloud, warm an a light breeze.

    We took an untraveled route back from Kenora, investigating a couple of narrow passages and are going to hang out at the dock for a while with a good book.

    Enjoy the day Canada, eh!

  • Dr. Doom & Friend


    Dr. Doom & Friend

    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    The last night of the Rational Conference in Orlando, Florida and we’re at the Universal Studio’s Islands of Adventure. On the way in a couple of characters are posing for pictures. This one made me laugh.

    Back in Winnipeg a couple of days ago while walking by a store in a mall, I had another good laugh. This just struck me for some odd reason as being very hilarious. The store was selling t-shirts with funny sayings on them and behind that rack, there was a display of door mats, each with a saying written on it. One simply said,

    Hi,
    I’m Mat


  • Rational Rain Storm

    Well the preconfernece day has ended with the traditional poolside reception. I arrived for the opening at 6pm, had something to eat and drink and then is started to rain. and not just a little bit, but a full out thunderstorm with heavy rain. I think the late comers will be out of luck and who knows how they will move the party for a couple of thousand people to another venue. I’d say the food would be soaked before they could put it away.

     Right now I’m hanging around a kiosk waiting for it to let up before I head out to the car. At least I’m not hungry. 🙂

    Speaking of food, bad marks for the fodd so far. Hotdogs & Hamburgers for a fancy party reception really doesn’t cut it. It seems that the conference glory days of the 2000 era are gone and cutbacks are in effect. Funny, they didn’t make the conference any less expensive.

  • Exploring Florida

    After getting settled at the hotel, I decided to do a little exploring, something other that the typical theme park stuff. I picked up a brochure on Kissimmee that made it seem quite interesting, wrong! It was quite a let down. The couple of attractions I went to were quite disappointing. The “historic train station” turned out to be just a run down old train station with nothing of interest for a visitor. Today, it’s just another Amtrak stop. The Bull Creek Wildlife Management Area sounded better with an “interpretive loop” 8.6 mile driving tour. There were 3-4 spots that looked like this, and the rest was just a road through the low level brush. I saw 3 deer and two different kinds of birds and not much else. The brochure for the self-guiding tour was a simple map with all the hunting and camping regulations. No explanation of the area or why it’s a wildlife management area. It seemed to be more about the hunting. Oh yeah, I did see one other van driving slowly with the side door open. I didn’t get a close look, but I’d bet there was some fire power pointing out that door.

  • The Birthday Boy


    The Birthday Boy

    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    Well hardly a boy but a fine young man that we’re very proud of. While 21 is not quite the landmark birthday it once was, it still means something special to us “older” types.

    For Scott, it was a typical work day, up early and out of the house by about 6:30am to head off to work. He did manage to get home at a more reasonable time so we could head out to the lake for the May long weekend. We had an enjoyable discussion on the way down to join Dez and Eric who went out Thursday evening. After a great steak dinner we finally got around to opening presents. Somehow I think I was almost more interested in getting to this part than Scott was! This must be a sign of maturity that I just haven’t reached yet, delaying the receiving of your presents.

    Happy 21st Birthday Scott!

  • Snake in the Grass


    Snake #2
    Originally uploaded by Big Dadoo.

    This was actually from last weekend when we went to Narcisse, Manitoba which is world famous breeding ground for red-sided garter snakes. I’d known about this attraction for some time but we’d never gone until this spring. One of the four dens was very active and it was quite interesting to photograph the snakes and I was amazed by the numbers of snakes in the ajacent fields. I think we’ll go back this fall for the return migration.