Two Rides In A Rinker. (Nice to get back on the water)

A proud Captain George at the helm.

 Today was the second time in one week that we were fortunate enough to be asked to join our good condo neighbours George and Judy for a ride in their new boat. Last Tuesday we met them at Stokes patio for chicken wings and after enjoyed a sunset cruise on the river.

George explains some of the features of his new 265 Rinker

 They called again today and invited us to go with them up on the lake to anchor and watch day-2 of the Watercross races off the shore of Canatara Park.

At anchor we enjoyed hors d'oeuvres and sandwiches on a perfect boating day. The weather was very hot but a fresh offshore breeze kept us cool. Thanks George and Judy. We had a great time.
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It's Been Quite Quiet Here. Is This Saturday Already?

It hit 86F here today.  That's hot for August it these parts. It's been quite a summer.
Here's what we did today:

Endeavor One: Wendy and I headed to US but we got half way across the bridge in the NEXUS lane and realized Wendy had no ID. She was very distraught since she had no idea where her wallet was. "This will be interesting!" I mused, as we zoomed past a few hundred cars to the front of the line.

Turns out there is a "dummies return lane" so no strip searches or rubber hose interrogation. We later found the wallet in the garage. She lost it when we cleaned out the car for the trip abroad. Oh well, next...

Endeavor Two: Take the dinghy over to Sarnia Bay Marina and watch the Sea Do races at Centennial Park. "Hey, nobody here!" Turns out we had the right day, wrong park.

Photo from Canadian Watercraft Association

Am I losing it or what? Wendy and I drove to Canatara Park with our lawn chairs and umbrella and watched the action on the beach in the shade of a cottonwood tree after buying fries under the bridge at Albert's.

It's a good day to enjoy a cool drink or two.

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Float-Down Turns To One-Sided Power Struggle

Erin took this picture of Andrew waving from his floatie under the bridge on the Canadian side. The US float-down in the background.

The annual float-down always attracts attention but this year it attracted more attention than ever due to the childish actions and a bullying, over-extension of authority by the police  on both sides of the river.  Initially the river was to be closed  to boat traffic on the  U.S. side only.  This made  sense since the float down begins and ends in the USA and there was a NW wind which would act to keep the rafters in US territory.

For many years the US Coast Guard has tried  (unsuccessfully) to stop the event since they feel  it is unsafe,  however  so far there is no law against what the participants are doing. A few years ago the Coast Guard attempted to lay charges against the organizer(s) of the event but the charges were dropped because there was no evidence that those charged were in fact the organizers since there is really no organizing body and no one for the authorities to hold accountable. This lack of control is not a situation any government likes.

Internet file photo

One can see from the news coverage  of the event that public sentiment is strongly on the side of the participants and I'm sure the authorities would like that to change. In order to anger and annoy as many people as possible, the Coast Guard solicited the help of every police authority in the area - US and Canada - and in a massive show of authority to shut down the entire Seaway from around noon to eight pm allowing no boat, commercial or recreational to pass. 

Aside from the phenomenal cost to taxpayers of having hundreds of police personnel on duty on a Sunday, and the cost to shipping of delaying huge freighters,  there were countless boaters being denied use of their expensive boats on one of the finest days of the summer. This, on the heels of the same closure last weekend for the boat races, adding to the frustration of this ridiculous barricade.  Even land-based city police were employed to prohibit vehicles from entering the boat-launch and public and private marinas were advised to tell their customers they could not leave their docks.

Armed police to stop me from going on the river.

How could this be a Federal Police issue? Good overtime pay for them!

 I took my little rubber boat to the entrance to the marina and was accosted by no less than 2 boat loads with at least half a dozen officials and these armed Mounties preventing my entrance to the river. Besides the bigger boats, they also turned back kayakers and canoeists as well as fishermen trolling in small boats.

Look really hard and you'll see the US Float-Down over by the US shoreline.

 You can see by the picture above that the participants of the float down were literally miles away on the far side of the river.

Erin and her friend Andrew launched on the Canadian side and although they were told to turn back, they were already in the strong current by then so Erin told them "There's no way to turn back now!" Erin and Andrew were the only two in the Canadian float-down.

Whether you agree with the concept of a drunken Float-Down or not, you have to agree that the draconian, excessive use of authority in closing off the St Lawrence Seaway for such a non-intrusive event is a blatant affront to all our rights and freedoms. Sad times indeed for civil liberty. What will be their next excuse to curtail our rights?
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I Hate Snakes! Sewer Snakes That Is.

I always feel like one of these guys when I get into a project.

 It's probably a good thing this picture is dark and out of focus.

Just as we were about to sit down to dinner last night the sink suddenly clogged. We delayed things as we tried a quick plunge. Oh oh, better deal with this later. The plunger was not working so I scarfed down my lovely meal and headed over to Canadian Tire to buy a snake.

After a few hours of prodding, plunging and cursing I gave up and went to bed. The "home-makers grade" snake didn't reach the clog and the store was closed now so I couldn't buy Drano. To make matters worse, I read on the internet that homeowners are rarely successful in clearing these plugs and usually chemicals just don't work. (as in: make things worse)

The blockage was mostly vegan from the garburator. I figure it was about 15 feet from the sink, near an elbow. I saved some in a cat food can for the picture. Chopped less-than-fresh broccoli and lettuce anyone? I worked 8 hours on this?

The next morning at 8 AM I went to Home Depot and got a larger, longer and more aggressive (read - expensive) "Snake 2".  Finally at 10:40 AM I managed to push the big new snake through the blockage and solve the problem.  I probably pushed most of the clog farther on so I hope all of it went to the main drainpipe. OK, all's well that ends well.

Well, not quite. In order to deploy "Snake 2" I had to take the drain apart to access the pipe. "Snake 1" was thin enough to get through the strainer basket but "Snake 2" was too fat. My projects seldom go like the TV guys and this one was no exception. I removed the pipes from the sink and the disposer and went directly into the pipe sticking out of the wall under the sink. After clearing the blockage I re-assembled the drain and had a bad leak caused by the disturbance of the old fittings which crumbled in my hands. Back to Canadian Tire for a new strainer basket and tailstock and I was finally finished... by noon. Total time approximately 8 hours. I'd never make money as a plumber!

New strainer basket and all is well.

If you need any work done give me a call, but I'll warn you, I'm slow and I charge $200/hr. Who knows it might still be cheaper than a plumber.
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The Boat Races Were Amazing

For the last few of days (since Thursday) it rained and generally screwed-up the huge 200 mile garage sale in Michigan and dampened the spirits of the big car show at WAMBO in Wallaceburg. Even my Thursday "Wing Day" special at Stokes Bay was too cold and rainy to enjoy. We didn't even bother to go over. The patio would surely be closed. Wendy and I were happy to see the sun again today; Sunday, as we headed over to downtown Sarnia on Front Street and set up our lawn chairs on the boardwalk to watch the powerboat race starting at noon.

We weren't disappointed. We had an excellent vantage point from almost the same exact spot as the ferry boat picture in my previous post was that was taken over 100 years before. The roar of the huge, finely tuned engines was deafening as the 40 or so contestants thundered by all afternoon under sunny skies.

Post card shows old post office to right and ferry dock to left. Same vantage point as the picture of Patty below. Near Front St and Davis St.

Patty interrupted her walk to visit with us. Notice new post office to right. Same 100 year old railing. Old ferry dock to the left.

Our condo neighbour Patty ambled by on the boardwalk so we gabbed with her between heats in the shade of a tree at our perfect vantage point on Front Street.There was no admission charge and the cost for the races to the tune of $150,000 was paid for by the cities of Port Huron and Sarnia in a truly international spirit. An estimated 40,000 people showed up on both sides of the St Clair River.

CLICK HERE to read the race schedule of events.
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Chicken In The Rough - Three Years Later.

If you have been following this blog for a long time you may remember my entry about the Palms Krystal Bar and Chicken In The Rough. It was almost exactly 3 years ago in August 2009 that we met my namesake (and my Dad's name), Jack Carroll (no known relation), owner of the "Chicken In The Rough" franchise which started long before McDonald's or Kentucky Fried Chicken. (over 75 years ago) He was visiting his franchisee Russ Schultz, owner of the Palms Krystal in Port Huron. Wendy and I just happened to be there for lunch three years ago and struck up a friendship. We have often spoke about Jack and Russ since. You might find the history further down the page as interesting as I did. Years ago the originators of Chicken In The Rough, the Osbornes, got very wealthy from their chicken.

Today Jack called us in Sarnia from his home base in Chicago. Wendy answered the call and after getting up to date, put the phone over to me. What a pleasant surprise! After all these years I just figured Jack would have forgotten about us. He said he was coming to London soon and was opening a new franchise at The Bungalow Restaurant on Waterloo Street in London. He originally spoke with our son Tim in London, who relayed our Sarnia number. There is also a Chicken In The Rough in Sarnia at McCarthys' Bar and Grill on Cathcart Blvd. so Jack was familiar with Sarnia too.

We talked for quite awhile. Jack had come across an article about Carroll families immigrating to USA in the 1700's and thought about us, his Carroll acquaintances in Canada. The Carrolls he was referring to were among the most famous and cherished first families in America.   (Here's the article if you are interested)  I emailed a reply with this article about James Carroll and the Black Donnellys, who, in the 1800's, were among Canada's most infamous.

We vowed to get together again in Sarnia or London over a beer to exchange stories like good Irishmen when he returns later this month. I'll keep you posted.

Here's the amazing "Chicken In The Rough" History (as posted 2009). It's worth the short read:

History of the "meal that created food service and fried chicken franchising"™

In 1936 Beverly and Rubye Osborne were driving west from Oklahoma to California. They had no reason to be joyful. They were middle aged and the Depression had wiped out their savings. On this particular afternoon it seemed that everyone in the state was attempting to escape the famine of the Oklahoma dust bowl. With not much more than their meager belongings and a basket of fried chicken, Beverly Osborne coaxed his Ford pickup across the barren prairie. Suddenly, a bump in the rutted road scattered the chicken and basket. Picking it up, Rubye complained "this is really Chicken in the Rough®." With that chance remark, a fortune was born. Beverly turned his truck around and headed back home. A man who, on instinct, had made a modest fortune and lost it - Beverly reasoned that "fingers were made before forks" and that chicken could be a cheap source of food at a time when incomes were sparse. Beverly learned from his previous business experience and failures that every business must provide customer satisfaction by identifying customers' needs and how to satisfy those needs better than anyone else. Soon, with the money he had received from the sale of his wife's wedding ring, he had an operation serving fried chicken with shoestring potatoes, hot biscuits and honey. That was the delectable meal that started "Fast Food - Fried Chicken Franchising" - long before McDonald's or Kentucky Fried Chicken .

By 1950, when Time magazine ran a feature article on the Chicken in the Rough® operation, Beverly and Rubye Osborne were grossing almost two million dollars per year, had sold 335 million orders of Chicken in the Rough® and had created 250 franchised outlets including some as far as Johannesburg, South Africa. Throughout his lifetime, Beverly Osborne held onto his strong belief that "in business, the product is the vehicle that is used to implement a strategy for creating a good idea."

Beverly Osborne realized that every entrepreneur needs a product or service that makes his/her business better by being different or unique. Due to his strong ideals, his belief in himself, and a "bump in the road," Beverly reasoned that fried chicken could be a great marketing and merchandising item for all types of food service operations. Thus, he created Chicken in the Rough® and the rest became history.

Beverly Osborne created attractive and colorful point of purchase items that are currently used to develop "Fried Chicken Brand Interest"™ in Chicken in the Rough®. He understood the importance of developing customer interest and recall through the use of colorful logos and trademarks, while creating a unique food product carefully prepared. The primary goal and purpose of Chicken in the Rough® was to increase an independent's business and value through a specialized franchise marketing plan that could be leased to an independent food service operator, while retaining his/her independence. The only agreement is a mutual commitment to market fried chicken the "Chicken in the Rough®" way.

In memory of the role that Raymond Carroll (the first and most successful person to sell and market the franchise) had played in the growth of the fried chicken concept, sons Ray and Jack Carroll, and Jack's wife Marian purchased the Chicken in the Rough® rights from Beverly Osborne, its founder. Beverly was a reluctant seller, but he did desire to see the name "Chicken in the Rough®" continue.

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Click picture to enlarge

Jack Carroll, Russ Schultz (owner of the Palms Krystal), Me and I believe Jack's grandson. Picture taken by Wendy back in 2009 outside the Palms.

Notice the furs on Rubye Osborne.

Additional details:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~okoklaho/bios-history/__beverly_osborne-chicken-rough.htm 

More reading: 
Another 2006 blog about the Palms Krystal http://bloatedbelly.typepad.com/the_bloated_belly/2006/02/palms_krystal_b.html
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A Summer Visit By Friends

 Today we had the unexpected pleasure of a visit by our friends John and Linda from Grand Bend. John has not been well health wise, so he had appointments in London today. There was a delay between doctor sessions so they had some time to stop by.

The weather was warm but very pleasant so we sat out on the back patio deck. The afternoon passed quickly as time always does when you are in the company of your old friends.
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Picture This. My Latest Artistic Attempt...

I'll have it printed at poster size (24 x 36) and it'll look great on the wall at the condo

Maybe it was the arts and crafts fair in Lexington that inspired me or maybe it was simply that I found such an interesting postcard that I couldn't resist coloring it in Photoshop and turning it into an art form of my own.  Anyway here's the before and after pictures Inspired by a postcard from the 1920's. You might notice that I actually 'fabricated' more water and buildings around the scene since I thought the postcard was cropped a little too tightly. I added a little white smoke to liven things up a bit. I wonder what colour all this stuff really was? I made my best guess based on the shading.

Original postcard from around 1927. The ship is "The City of Sarnia" I think.

Before there was a bridge between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario, people had to use the ferry boat shown here docking at the foot of Ferry Dock Hill. Even after the construction of the first span of the Blue Water Bridge in 1938, there continued to be regularly scheduled ferry service right up until the early nineteen sixties.  No ferries now but the street is still called Ferry Dock Hill and all the buildings (and boats) in this picture are long gone. The grain elevators on the distant horizon are in Canada too as the view is across Sarnia Bay with Port Huron and USA out of shot to the left.

Final picture printed and ready to frame up for the condo wall.

Click here to read more about this scene.
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Things To Do In The Next Little While

We always enjoy the Art Show in Lexington MI, so tomorrow we decided to take a drive up there. You can click here to see a bit of last year's show as it appeared on this blog.  Of course we will be getting there by car this year because of the boat fire. Click here or the link below  to read more about the big art show.

Next weekend the huge garage sale is on across the border. Oh oh!

Internet image of woman dressed up as a toilet. What a lucky find!

Wow, barely used. Would make a great party beer cooler.

Next weekend we plan to spend at least one day attending one of Michigan's longest garage sales.  Not that we really need to buy anything to add to our collection of treasure.  I love this sale because it gives you an excuse to drive into some very interesting lane-ways that you wouldn't ordinarily be allowed. Last year we crossed/started at Marine City Friday and worked our way to Port Huron. Then next day Port Huron to Port Sanilac and back. We realized last year a lot of sales "jump the gun" to Thursday, so we might try that this year (to get more stuff we don't need!)

If you click here you'll see last year's 'really big' garage sale adventures.

LINKS:
Here's the link to the Art Fair this weekend:
http://www.lexingtonmichigan.org/craftfair.htm

And starting (unofficially next Thursday)  for the weekend Aug (9) 10 11 and 12 one of Michigan's Biggest Garage Sales:

http://fleamarket.about.com/od/multimileyardsaleevents/p/Antique-Yard-Sale-Trail-In-Eastern-Michigan-Sebewaing-To-Algonac.htm

And

http://fleamarket.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=fleamarket&cdn=homegarden&tm=21&f=10&su=p284.13.342.ip_&tt=11&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//home.tir.com/%257Emteichow/yst/
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http://us12heritagetrail.org/garagesale.asp

Erin Visits With A Kitten - Black As The ACE OF SPADES!

Today we were favoured with a visit to our condo by our daughter Erin who brought with her a baby kitten of about five or six weeks old.

Erin travels around southwestern Ontario in the course of her job with the St Clair Region Conservation Authority, which includes the Sydenham River watershed and thirteen smaller watersheds draining directly into southern Lake Huron, the St. Clair River and northeastern Lake St. Clair. Last week her travels led her to W. Darcy McKeough Floodway Dam which is about 40 km south of Sarnia. There she encountered a baby kitten that was either born in the wild, or more likely, judging by its friendly disposition, abandoned there by its owners. The park workers had been feeding him beef jerky and were relieved that he found a new home before the coyotes got him.

When he's awake he's full of playful energy.

Barely bigger than a hand.

Jake has been away all week on business and doesn't know about this new addition to the family. Time will tell if he can ignore his allergies and accept the little guy. I guess if he doesn't I'll have a new addition to my family!

Since Jake loves to play poker I suggested a name: Ace, as in Ace of Spades for obvious reasons.

He likes to find a sunny spot to lie. He looks brown in the bright sun.

 How could you not love a cute little fellow like this. The little fluff-ball makes no noise and loves to sleep in your lap.

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Hot, Then Windy, Then Cool. Summer By The Lake.

Monday. Outside temperature reads 99F. Another mild day!

With this summer being the hottest and driest on record we have been enjoying the last few weeks at our condo.  Can you believe it? On Sunday I even turned down an invitation to go for a ride in my friend George's new boat .  It was just too hot.
 

 In the early part of the week it was actually too hot to go out in the dinghy until after sunset.

View from our deck at the condo. Shimmering heat.

 By Wednesday the heat had let up and we decided to go to the Farmers' Market. We bought a fresh chicken and some corn. We are planning to have Gary and Ann over on Thursday since they're leaving for Tennessee on Friday.

I never complain about a hot summer but one must always be ready to change one's plans to accommodate the weather. Even if it means just doing nothing! "Summertime, and the livin' is easy".
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