The Paw Paw Tree Is Poppin'

Our Paw Paw tree (asimina triloba) on the west end of the pool area has blossomed.  The flowers are an exotic reddy-brown colour and their faces point downwards toward the ground. Erin brought the tree, a gift from professor Kee Dewdney, and planted it here several years ago. Only recently have flowers began to blossom in the spring. CLICK HERE for the Wikipedia info.

As you can see by the map we are located in the absolute northerly limit of their range.

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'Cherokee Brave' Dogwood Splendour

Dogwoods are widely planted horticulturally, and the dense wood of the larger-stemmed species is valued for certain specialized purposes. Cutting boards and other fine turnings can be made from this fine grained and beautiful wood. Over 32 different varieties of game birds, including quail, feed on the red seeds. CLICK HERE to read more about this tree.

I snapped this picture of the dogwood blooms just off our deck by the kitchen window. You can duplicate this dramatic technique shot yourself. Pick a subject in bright sunshine and manually reduce the exposure on your camera by a bit. This causes the background to darken and make the subject starkly stand out.
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The Waubaushene Ferns

These 30 year old ferns continue to beautify our gardens year after year.

To read more about the Waubaushene ferns CLICK HERE. The picture was made more dramatic by shooting in bright sunlight and reducing the exposure to darken the background.
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Hope For The Future.

Each day that comes and goes brings with it hope that this terrible virus will end. We are reminded daily of of the shortness of life and the frailty of mankind.

Looking northwest towards the setting sun over 'Lake Flash'.

The reality is, for me, my life and routine hasn't changed all that much. Sure, I feel sad that I can't visit with my good friends, but I'm home with my family, we're healthy, well fed (so far), and have a beautiful yard to while away our time.
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Time To Cut The Lawn

This bunny can't keep up with the quickly growing lawn...

I guess we'll have to resort to more conventional means. The riding lawnmower is all set to go.
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Tenth Anniversary Of The First Bitcoin Transaction.

Today marks the tenth anniversary of the first Bitcoin transaction. Back in 2010, Laszlo Hanyecz, aka ‘Bitcoin Pizza Guy’, bought two Papa John’s pizzas (worth $30) for 10,000 BTC. At the time, that seemed like a bargain, given Bitcoin’s low value. However, fast forward to the present day and one BTC is worth about $9,000.

Photo from 2019 article by Dmitriy Perelstein www.eoswriter.io

 So, approximately $90 million for some posh cheese on toast. Ouch!

That $90 million represents about 18 times the Papa John's chain annual net income.

To celebrate the day, we decided to revisit our 'Homemade Pizza Day' that was so successful last week.

CLICK HERE to read more about this momentous day.
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And The Winner Is...

The first one in the pool for the 2020 season, today at 2:30.

Drum roll please!

And the winner is...

Yup, it's me. The the outdoor temperature was about 72F or 22 C but the pool water was 82 F or 28 C. It was sunny and almost no wind. A perfect day for a swim!

Second prize goes to my dear wife Wendy, about 15 minutes later.
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Pool Looking Good!

What a difference a few days makes. It always amazes me how fast the pool comes back to life from its long winter sleep. The weather forecast is calling for a hot weekend and I'll be ready.

Who's going to be the first one in? Unfortunately because of COVID-19 the contest is narrowed to immediate family members only.
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Leftover Pizza Dough Makes Burger Buns

I had 2 balls of pizza dough left from last night.

I molded them into bun shapes and we fired up the gas BBQ and had hot dogs and burgers.

One vegetable I have never in all my years ever tried before is Dandelion. Try them, you might like them as much as I did. Wendy harvested them off our very productive lawn this afternoon. We never apply chemicals so I guess they are truly "organic".  They are certainly healthy looking specimens. Quite a nice complement to a burger I must say. Maybe they grow on you? Ha ha!
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Feeling 'Carb Deficient' - Let's Make Pizza!

With my bread-making put on temporary hold lately, the whole family was feeling 'carb deficient' so we decided to use the two bread-making machines to make pizza dough.

Wendy prepared numerous toppings and each one of us made our own custom pizza, baking one or two at a time in a hot oven.

I made  three batches and divided them into 6 pizza-sized balls. We rolled 4 of them out into individual pans.

I had no idea they would turn out so well and I'm sure the rest of the family had their doubts too.

We had our own, private, Saturday night pizza party.

Wow! Erin said it was the best pizza she'd ever eaten. "...And I've eaten a lot of pizzas" she said.
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Let's Open The Pool Shall We?

This week I started the annual ritual of opening the pool. I'm a couple weeks ahead of last years' opening but I think the better weather is coming and with all our isolation the whole family really needs to get outside. Besides, if Erin is leaving, I was hoping she could enjoy a little time in the pool before she goes.

I connected all the pipes, and Tim jr helped me clean out a 'squirrel apartment complex' in the pool house and got the chlorinator and heater started.

A peek under the cover shows the expected green water. My plan is to get the chlorinator going before we open it up.

The temperature at 47 F is too cold to operate the chlorinator so the pool heater brought it up to well over 50 F and the water circulation/filtering/heating began with the cover still on.

Hopefully soon we can remove the cover, vacuum the fallen winter debris and be swimming next week!
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On A Ventilator For A Couple Of Weeks. Are You Up For It?

Here you go folks. For those people who don't understand what it is like to be on a ventilator but want to take the chance of going back to work, or don't want to distance.
 
This information puts this in perspective.  It's for the doubters and the careless. We are at the mercy of hospital care, and it’s not about them ... it’s about us.

The paragraphs below were written by a nurse who works with ventilators:

For starters, it's NOT an oxygen mask put over the mouth while the patient is comfortably lying down and reading magazines.

Ventilation for COVID-19 is a painful incubation that goes down your throat and stays there until you live or you die.

It is done under anesthesia for 2 to 3 weeks without moving, often upside down, with a tube inserted from the mouth up to the trachea and allows you to breathe to the rhythm of the lung machine.

The patient can't talk or eat, or do anything naturally - the machine keeps you alive.

The discomfort and pain they feel from this means medical experts have to administer sedatives and painkillers to ensure tube tolerance for as long as the machine is needed. It's like being in an artificial coma.

After 20 days from this treatment, a young patient loses 40% muscle mass, and gets mouth or vocal cords trauma, as well as possible pulmonary or heart complications.

It is for this reason that old or already weak people can't withstand the treatment and die. Many of us are in this boat so stay safe unless you want to take the chance of ending up here.

This is NOT the flu. Add a tube into your stomach, either through your nose or skin for liquid food, a stinky bag around your butt to collect the diarrhea, a Foley to collect urine, an IV for fluids and meds, an A-line to monitor your BP that is completely dependent upon finely calculated med doses, teams of nurses, CRNA’s and MA’s to reposition your limbs every two hours and lying on a mat that circulates ice cold fluid to help bring down your 104 degree temp.

Anyone want to try all that out?



As of today, May 13, 2020 -  4,282,000 cases and 292,376 dead. Don't be one of them!

Stay home... or keep your distance.
        Stay safe and well!
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Everything Is Fine - Until It's Not...

This is from the US CDC on COVID-19 spread and I thought it was well done:

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If God Is Watching... We need His Help.

In less than 4 weeks the number of COVID-19 cases worldwide has doubled from 2,000,000 to 4,000,000 with USA still in the lead for 1,323,000 cases and 79,124 deaths. This fast paced ascent doesn't seem to have much effect on the 'fear gauge' as Americans and Canadians relax their mitigation lock-downs and pretend that the virus is under control. Canada's figures stand at 69,784 cases with 4,937 dead.

How can anyone think this virus is any more friendly and less dangerous than it was a month ago?  Please - work from home if possible and stay safe. This is not the time to let up our guard!
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Don't Forget Your Car During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Our three cars haven't gone more than a car-length or two for well over a month.

If you don't go for a ride longer than about 30 minutes, you'll need to put a charger on your car battery every week or two.

I check the battery voltage every week and charge if the voltage drops below 12 volts. If you have a small battery maintainer you can leave that connected indefinitely.

While you're at it, move the car a few feet to rotate the tires a bit to prevent flat spots. When you do go out again, you'll probably notice a grinding sound from the brakes. That's rust on the rotors and should wear off after a few stops. Take care and stay safe.
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Look What Wendy Found...

While strolling on the golf course with Erin at her half-hour lunchtime break today Wendy came across this adorable little bird pinfeather with a heart on its tip. How cute is that? In the middle of a pandemic little miracles remain.

As Ontario Premier Ford slackens the lockdown for COVID-19 our days of freely walking on the golf course are numbered as it will soon be opened to golfers.
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Mayday, Mayday, Mayday!

It's the first of May and the world is experiencing the worst disaster in recent times. We've been in isolation for months, ordering everything in and avoiding all physical contact with the outside. So far Canada has been doing a good job of keeping the terrible COVID-19 virus at bay but now people are getting anxious. Isolation fatigue is setting in.

 I knew this would happen. Ultimately the dollar will win this part of the battle as the economy pressures us to save it by going back.  Our boat is leaking. We're taking on water. This is not the time for 'business as usual'.

Hold on for dear life! This is a mayday. There are no lifeboats and the ship is sinking!
How can anyone think that the virus has become any more friendly now than it was two months ago? How can we let down our guard now while we are winning?  I guess, as usual, the almighty buck will pull us deeper into this crisis. The politicians will buckle to the demands for the reckless resumption of business against the advice of the health professionals. The deaths will skyrocket again in the next wave and again we'll have to shut down and isolate as many, many more die. Ultimately the dollar will lose the battle as it becomes diluted and ruined by our greed and our perceived need to support the economy at any cost.

Canada trails the Top Ten countries with 3500 deaths.
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