A Classic Who Done It?

We were at the Woodland Cemetery and I had to get another picture of this rather unique tombstone. The misty, cold, ambiance seemed to add to the eerie  gloominess of the place.

"Who Killed Batman?" Click to enlarge.

To spice it up a bit, I added some familiar personalities Joker, Penguin, Dash the Cat; Robin, and The Riddler. Dash loves the cemetery because there are "No Dogs Allowed".
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Canadian Discovers A Cure For The Common Cold.

I can't believe I caught yet another cold. You don't have to feel sorry for me but I revel in pity so... This time it looks like I also gave it to Tim jr. and I feel bad about that. It started with a stuffy nose and unproductive cough on Wednesday last. I tried taking vitamin C (6 per day) and 1 extra D3 and it might have worked. This is less than a week and the cold has moved from my head to my lungs and only today have I started to feel less achy and tired. Now, with only a slight headache, probably from a ruptured blood vessel caused by coughing, the congestion seems to be breaking up a bit. I really hope this cold is sort-lived.

I conducted a study and found that in my case rum seemed to have a curative effect on my cold. The details of the study are a little foggy now but I think I might have a new use for my "Caribbean Confusion" Dark Rum Drink. I invite you to try it if you get a cold. Participate in My Study: Put on some reggae music, turn up the electric blanket, drink rum and let me know your outcome. Note: I only need to hear from people that found it works for them.


Caribbean Confusion
1 1/2 - 2 oz Captain Morgan DARK Rum (not available in US so try Black spiced rum)
1 packet of sugar substitute (I've been using natural Stevia extract)
1 squirt Real Lemon Juice
Lots of Ice
Soda Water to fill

In a very large glass add rum, sweetener, lemon juice, and stir 'til dissolved.
Add lots of ice and top up with Soda Water. Instead of a cute little umbrella, try garnishing with a small newspaper picture of your favorite elected representative just to carry through on the "Confusion" theme.  Or, as I have in the past, you can also use a tiny, toy wind turbine inspired by the general confusion of our elected leaders. Stir gently and enjoy. Who was it that said: "If you don't know where you're going or what you are doing, hopefully your constituents won't either." Red Green?



Take many doses of Confusion as needed and if you are not leaving the house anyway because of your wretched cold, at least you won't remember how bad you felt.

I have a feeling this "remedy" could work for all kinds of other afflictions. I'm willing to try. Maybe I can get a research grant from the LCBO. Wouldn't it be wonderful if my own "Caribbean Confusion" turned out to be a miracle cure and could help everyone dispel their health worries?

As far as this blog goes, March isn't the most exciting month for me, but throw in a cold and you get negative productivity. I hope to be working on some "artsy" pics as soon as I feel a little better.
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Artoon: There... I Fixed It!

Feel free to copy my idea and forever liberate yourself from the anxiety of deciding which button to push on your TV remote. All those other buttons?... You don't need 'em! They will just cause you grief.
Tim's Artoon.
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A St. Patrick's Day Card For You...

Here's a touching little post card I made especially for you.
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Artoon: This Idea Has Commercial Potential...

"Solar Powered Suntanning Lamps"

While I'm on the subject of alternate power, I thought this latest Artoon was appropriate.
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Artoon: Make 'Em Work.

If a person does art and makes it funny and/or satirical as in a cartoon could it be called an "Artoon"? OK, here's what I'll call an Artoon:

"Your tax dollars at work" Click to enlarge.

This picture of the windmill was taken last year at an old sugar mill in Barbados. I added my government inspired take on a remedy to keep the mill running when the wind stopped. Could this work for our pathetic wind turbines that have driven the price of electricity in Ontario to the highest rates in all of North America. Are you watching Madam Ontario Premiere Kathleen Wynn?
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Bulk Psyllium from Bulk Barn.

I used to buy my psyllium seed husk from a company in Toronto (Grain Process Enterprises) but their price with freight to London crept up. For the past few years I began buying from Supplement Warehouse in USA but now that our dollar has slid, this is no longer attractive. Last week I noticed the local Bulk Barn had psyllium seed husk on sale for $5.79/lb. ($12.77/kg). I called the store and they ordered in for me a bulk bag of 25 kilograms for $319.25. This should easily be enough for a whole year for Tim jr. and I. Wendy can't take psyllium because she claims she is allergic to it.

Several studies point to a cholesterol reduction attributed to a diet that includes dietary fiber such as psyllium. Research published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concludes that the use of soluble-fiber cereals is an effective and well-tolerated part of a prudent diet for the treatment of mild to moderate hypercholesterolemia. The cholesterol-reducing and glycemic-response properties of psyllium-containing foods are fairly well documented.
Choking is a hazard if psyllium is taken without adequate water as it thickens in the throat^[1] (see Psyllium seed husks). Cases of allergic reaction to psyllium-containing cereal have also been documented.
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International Winter Scenes.

We drove down Friday and stayed over night at the condo. It's always fun to look around the area in the Winter.

Click pic to enlarge.

This is a composite view of five ships tied up for the winter in Sarnia, taken from the US side of the river. I placed the old light ship "Huron" in the foreground. To read about the HURON Light Ship CLICK HERE.

Click pic to enlarge.

This old lift bridge has become a landmark at the mouth of the Black River in Port Huron Michigan. Built in 1931, it hasn't been used since 1975, about 40 years. To read a three part story on the efforts to preserve this historical treasure CLICK HERE.

A view of the condos from Port Huron Michigan. The self-unloader Cuyahoha rests in the "Winter Harbour" waiting for the ice to go away.

The marina doesn't look too inviting this time of year.

The ice has damaged a lot of docks in Bridgeview Marina this year.

Click pic to enlarge.

Two, rare, Long-tailed Ducks (Oldsquaw) aren't bothered by the cold March water. They on their way north to the Arctic I guess. I got some good pictures of these ducks" from about 20 feet away off the Sydney E. Smith Dock in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.  Read about these lovely birds CLICK HERE.



Watch the YouTube video above.These two entertained us until my fingers got too cold to snap any more pictures in the frigid -20 C air. Striking looking birds, they would dive down for food and since the water was so clear, if you watched carefully you could see them descending for a few feet.


Jamb-packed with freighters, the Sarnia Harbour is still frozen

Click pic to enlarge.

These working ships always make good photo subjects.
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Yea D.S.T. - But Don't You Dare Touch My Clock!

No one likes to have something taken away from them and yet we freely comply and allow the government  to steal an hour of our time each year.  I guess they get away with it on the thin promise of giving us back an hour in the Fall. I for one would like to protest. Why do we allow a stupid disruption twice a year, year after year?

To find the answer, as usual, you must "follow the money". Businesses that lobbied over the years to have daylight saving time implemented included tourism groups, golf courses and fast food joints. The more hours of daylight in the evening, the better things are for their businesses. An analysis of business advantages related to DST in the 1980s showed that seven weeks of daylight saving time could increase golf revenue between $200 million and $300 million in the U.S., according to the National Golf Foundation. And, that same period of extra daylight hours could bring a convenience store chain such as 7-Eleven an extra $30 million, Fortune magazine reported at the time.

Interestingly, Russia followed daylight saving time for 30 years until 2011. At the time, the government said it was getting rid of DST to reduce illness and stress for its citizens.

I'm not against DST. I'm just against monkeying with the clocks. Why not leave our clocks on DST all year long?  I would gladly take a little more winter morning darkness if the government would only LEAVE MY CLOCK ALONE! 
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STUPID: Stairway to Disaster.

I suppose if I'd had an older brother instead of a younger sister I could've learned a few things without having to try them first hand...  But then again, thinking back as an older brother myself, I might have encouraged the following "experiment" just for my own amusement anyway. Some things that are readily self-apparent now, just had to be learned the hard way. But really, who would have honestly thought you could not successfully ride your tricycle down the basement stairs? At least it was worth a try.

I remember that there used to be an adjustable lattice gate at the top of the steps to prevent a "toddler" (as I was known then) from accessing the stairwell. There were no regulations for such devices back then so these guards were pretty flimsy. At age 3 or 4, I was finally capable of defeating the crude locking arrangement. I recall contemplating the stunt as I sat poised on the trike, like an early version of Evil Kneival, looking down into the dark abyss. Over sixty years later, in retrospect, this trick doesn't look like a good idea. I doubt even Mr. Kneival would have tried it. Of course you see, there were many things I did through life that I would not even consider now if I had them to do over again. To a three or four year old though, anything is possible!

The large front wheel of the tricycle probably made a loud thump on the first step down, but nothing like the calamity of the rest of the very ungraceful, topsy-turvy, seemingly slow-motion descent down the remaining 11 steps, bumpity-bump to the concrete floor in the basement. Predictably (in grown-up hindsight) the tricycle did not remain upright but somersaulted over me several times, arriving at the bottom after I did. Even though I wore my plastic Texaco Fire Chief's helmet, I suffered a gash to my forehead, the scar of which is still evident. The tricycle ended up in better shape, on top of me as I recall. I stayed in this sad position for what seemed like a long time as I regained my composure and my mom raced down the stairs to rescue me.

I should point out that this was a traditional tricycle and not the J.E. Donalson Jockey Cycle "Up and Down" bike I received later and wrote about in my first "Stupid or What" post. Maybe I was a slow learner but there are dozens more stupid things I've done in my life and I'll be posting at least one each month. At that rate I've got enough for quite a few years so check back often.
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Cabin Fever But Warm, Cosy Cabin Fever

We recently started using our family room fireplace again. After many years of sitting idle, the recent cold snap got us thinking of warm things.

Dash soon learned that the best seat in the house was right in front of the fire.

 We gathered some logs from the backyard woodpile.

Dash has been staying inside most of the time. He goes out for about 3 minutes and runs back in to lie by the fire.

To stave off boredom, Dash entertains himself with one of his re-found toys. This entire basketful was found by Wendy under two dressers in the basement. I wondered where they all went. Fifty two toys no less!
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Mary Pickford Drinks Coke 1911

This is my "artsy" pic for today. I fabricated a Coke poster from two old black and white pictures and gave it some colour to brighten it up. Did you know Mary Pickford (Gladys Smith) America's Sweetheart, was born in Toronto where the Hospital For Sick Children stands today? Read her story in Wikipedia here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Pickford
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Happy Valentine's Day

I bit into an apple and I was surprised to see two seeds that formed a heart.

"How Sweet Is That?"

Happy Valentine's Day.

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Googlemeister. A Virtual Visit.

Click the pic to enlarge.

Today's "artsy" pic is actually from Google Map's Street View. I was "virtually touring" around downtown Toronto on Street View when I came across this small crowd.  I embellished it a bit and put some new heads on the people that were blurred out.

The original picture is on 334 George Street, looking east. This area of Toronto was always a little tough, even when I lived there back in the 60's. Now there doesn't appear to be much left of what I remember, except for a few of the original old residences. One has to wonder how these poor souls are getting by in this recent extreme cold weather?

Here's another view from Google Street View. Despair would seem the norm here.

Through the magic of Google you can visit this spot yourself if you type in 334 George Street, Toronto.
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Timmy's New Tooth.

Success!

The implant I had a few months ago was successful and my dentist had a new porcelain crown made to fit. This morning I went in to get it installed. I marked it with an * so you can tell which one it is. It's so nice to be able to chew again on that side and think of all the Airmiles I get!

Beard gone.
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