winter weather continues

Rain, snow, sleet & hail - all on one day...

sign, sign, everywhere a sign...

In Muskoka they are debating the issue of signage along the highways. There is some debate at the municipal level on the unsightly billboards that dot the highway. Does no one remember the old song?

♪♫ Sign, sign, everywhere a sign...♪♫ I created a YouTube video showing the signs I found in the area. (See it here, or check it out below!)

I find that there is far more than is necessary and destroys the scenic views. Some are necessary, some are temporary, some warn of danger, some help with havigation, some help with safety, but others are just irritating. I'm not sure I'd use a plumber (at $65/hour) whose billboard dotted the highway!

I saw a blog the other day talking about google ads on their blog, Between Friends. I find that these ads are the same as the billboards. Are they necessary? I think some are and some are not. If you are blogging to make money, then that diminishes the importance of this site in my estimation.
Everyone want to make a buck.

With these ads you only make money if someone clicks on said ad. And you need some bizarre number of clicks before you make a dime. Some absolutely refuse to use them, while others seem to make money.

Actually, I made 8 cents when I posted and accepted ads during one month.
When I saw a google ad for '100s of Asian Women' on someone else's blog, I dumped it! It looked cheap and detracted from the site! In my opinion, it demeans a site. I loathe visiting major companies, especially media outlets like CBC or Oprah, for example, and having to send my way through ads. You can see that despite many comments, and 1700 profile views, unless people click on the ads you do not make money.

The worst ads are the ones that take forever to load dynamic content, and slow your page. The google ads, at least, are small and succinct.

The ones on my ontarioseniors.blogspot were quite rational, the ones I noticed, but since you need a million 'clicks' to make a few cents off of it, I decided I'd delete it! The purpose of my site is to educate my readers, not make them buy something they might not need, or send them to an American website with content that is inappropriate for them.

It didn't necessarily lead people to acceptable sites, nor did they lead to reputable or local businesses. They use your blog content to attach appropriate and relevant ad content, but you just never know what they will post. Others have found that the ads don't match well and don't bring in much income. Some have gotten nothing but grief for 'spamming' the ads. Google has particular rules.

I have dumped them. It leaves more space for my own photos and sidebars.

Cornwall drug busts & signs on lawns

There has been much controversy regarding this issue. The Standard-Freeholder article shows a photo, which I will not reproduce as that violates copyright laws. I know that my adult children live on a street with a house that was formerly a Grow Op. If Realtors must disclose, wouldn't it make sense that neighbours would want to know, too?

I think I would like to know if drugs were potentially being dealt on my street. What with Neighbourhood Watch groups, we have to be vigilant. The police cannot be there all the time. These issues affect a neighbourhood, our right to safety and protection. While the potential criminals are not convicted, the fact that there was enough information to warrant a warrant, indicated that people must be vigilant. There is a difference between vigilantism or vengeance and preparation and prevention.

Grow Ops are illegal, and whether you agree or disagree with the marijuana laws, criminals shoot each other and take down innocent bystanders while they fight over drugs and territory.

"The fact that prohibition was or may have been wrong didn't make Al Capone a misunderstood businessman on the wrong side of the tracks.", said a friend of mine.

I heard Wei Chen, on CBC, interview the Police Service Chief. She was quite rude, demanding to know if they were planning to inform citizens about other arrests, or convictions including pedophiles, and then asked if he was planning on putting a scarlet letter on homes. What a shameful, disrespectful question. Her hidden agenda, not so hidden, is an increasingly left wing, highly biased journalism style on the part of CBC. I, for one, wants to know about such issues. It is a threat to my safety and security and supercedes freedom of information and privacy laws (FIPPA), since this is a risk to my health, which falls under the Personal Health Information Protection Act (PHIPA).

Drugs, the abuse of drugs, addictive behaviours wreak such havoc on society, families, and individuals, that we must have all of the information that we can. Drug busts are a common problem. A Google search of drug busts in Canada brought 40,000 hits. Busts occur in homes, schools, parking lots, and at the border, and involve children and people we know. At the bottom of this article, Accidental Find Leads Cops to One of the Biggest Drug Busts in Toronto History, are signs of an Ecstasy lab in a home. Kids are at risk, as are the adults who must protect all of us.

Be vigilant.

photostory Friday

I found a terrific group who publish Photostory Fridays. Being a linguistic as well as digital fanatic, it is the perfect opportunity to play.

It has warmed up some, but we anticipate -27 C. temperatures tonight. I was happy to stroll outdoors the other day. Here are my photos.

I love the trend towards planting ornamental grasses. They look so beautiful in all seasons. I did have to prop some of them up, but they are a poignant reminder of summertime.



This little chickadee appreciates my black sunflower seeds on a cloudy, damp day. Oliver, my black cat, and I went for a walk and he showed me where he likes to sit - directly under the bird feeder.








My 'Hand of God' has a cushion of snow.






The bulrushes look beautiful with a touch of snow as a hat.














Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

falling thermometer

Red sky at night; sailor's delight
Red sky in the morning: sailor's warning.


This above was taken on January 4th, 2009.




Then, Jan. 13, after a few beautiful days of watching folks snowmobiling, it warmed up.




I couldn't believe the cold front that came in!
At 1:00 in the afternoon it was zero degrees.

An hour later(2 p.m.) it was -5 C.




The temperature just kept dropping. By 3 p.m.



Then by 4 p.m.

Approaching dusk and dinnertime, 5 p.m. the cats refused to go out!



Dinnertime and it was frigid.


Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

my refrigerator

Up here in Muskoka things are quiet. Most of the restaurants in the smaller towns have shut down for the month of January. It is so sad!

In a big shopping trip to look for a new purse probably 6 / 9 stores were closed, too. Since it is a 45 km drive to the big town, we consolidate our trips. Hubby took the car in..I went shopping.

I went home and began to reflect. What is open?
Aha! My refrigerator! Waaay too often.

What is on YOUR refrigerator?

I have been sensible, now that I've gone through the grieving process, as well as mourning and bereavement. My parents are buried...well, in their respective urns, on a shelf leading down to the basement, and I have to take care of that... mañana.

The stress of publishing my book is over. I am getting some rave reviews, which makes me feel great.

Then, I began to reflect what was ON my refrige.
My husband keeps track of items in the refrige & freezer. We have a cholesterol guide, since both of us have high cholesterol.

The shopping list, on a nice train-themed paper. (My husband likes trains, former airline government relations guy, who knew?)

My kids' Xmas card. But most prominent is the photo of my two babies: the book and my granddaughter in her Xmas suit.

There is a ticket for a cherry wood wine cellar filled with Niagara wines. No luck, though, that was done in December. I oughta throw it out.

The red & white magnet for South Muskoka Medical Centre is there - we have a great doctor in a great team practice. (I made him buy my book, too! He was the one who figured out I had depression.)

I attended a training workshop and they gave me a frige magnet, "101 Ways to Cope With Stress'. One way is NOT to open the refrige, as relieving stress by eating is so bad! A Google search found 2.29 million hits on this topic: stress...but I digress. I find blogging, reading, writing helps.

Snacks are such a nice ending to the day....and popcorn, but I fear my girth reflects my preponderence for 'treats'. My life is fairly stress-free, and I have to be sensible.

There is a list of our Meals on Wheels clients, plus contact numbers. Hubby, Brian is in charge while Jack is in Gravenhurst. What pressure!

Mostly, in this beautiful, snowy land of Muskoka, I have to not feel guilty being retired. If there is something that calls me, I will answer. Guilt is such a female thing! I continue to volunteer for Victim Services, sit on the Board of the Muskoka Children's Aid (fycsm.ca), serve on the executive (Political Action Committee chair) for Retired Teachers of Ontario (District 46). Life is good!

charges laid in Muskoka

It was a bad year for drownings in 2008, after one horrific accident (the photo of the crushed guard rail is telling-copyrighted to the Toronto Star) and we had more drownings later last summer.

I wrote, back on July 9th, 2008, about death by drowning after a drinking and driving incident that took the lives of 3 young men. The driver had had a number of driving violations, and really should not have been driving. He was charged with public drunkenness on Canada Day, July 1st. His father has been fighting for tougher licensing laws for young drivers. The 20-year old driver, and his two dead passengers, had a total of 15 traffic violations between them.

"The vehicle had hit and peeled back about 30 feet of guardrail, and had launched itself and snapped some pine trees off approximately 25 feet in the air," Jim Sawkins, fire chief for the Township of Muskoka Lakes, told CBC News. The 3 kids drowned. One (female) passenger escaped. She was quite lucky.

Driving habits in Central Ontario, while they cannot be any more outrageous than elsewhere, seem to reflect people who are in a rush to get to their destination, with little concern about the drivers around them. Some of the issues are the fact that enforcement of these laws is difficult, with laws that govern new drivers in a graduated licencing system that prohibits driving in the wee hours, and alcohol.

The big news this month, reported by The Globe, The Toronto Star, and the Bracebridge Examiner, says that 34 charges have been laid against the private, exclusive club, CLubLink Corporation, the board of directors, the manager and the servers that served the 3 young men and woman 31 drinks over the course of two or three hours.

The problem with these charges is that the servers, trained in Smart Serve to withhold alcohol after patrons have had enough, must follow the policies of their managers and club owners. A club manager in Toronto explained that those who are told they are cut off can become violent and he has been assaulted by such patrons. It has to be club policy to support the servers, often young people trying to earn a living, or paying their way through university. The onus must be on a club, with a reported membership fee of $62,500, and annual fees of nearly $5,000, to uphold the law and ensure that our roads are safe.

As long as the bottom line is profit, we will not be protected by those who continue to drink and drive. These charges bring home the idea that we are ALL responsible to ensure that our roads are safe: those who drink, speed, drive recklessly, their parents & friends who condone their behaviour, servers, bar owners, and the MTO that does not suspend those with violations.

MTM - Port Carling

Not to present a history lesson, I want to laud the wee town of 'Port', as she is affectionately called, from a tourist point of view. (History was never my thing!)

I am deliberately showing some summer shots...with a morning temperature of -25 C., it just makes me feel better and to have hope for spring.

Created in 1886, it is a delightful town. You can read about her in many books. My favourite being Raisin Wine, by our former Lt. Gov., James Bartleman. If you look closely at the mural above, you can see that it is made of of various photographs donated by locals. There is more info on the township's site: The Port Carling Wall.

Currently, work is being done on the lift bridge, it slows you down - but this can be a good thing! Traffic is down to one lane. In summer the bridge lifts to allow the steamships to go by. It is an amazing sight.

This small town has an incredible library. It is pictured on the Muskoka Lakes Library site. Built by the township, with a generous donation by a local couple, the Alloways. there are many extras including cedar shakes on the roof. It is light, bright, and a perfect place to sit and read.

There is a canoe in front of the delightful building.
I donated a copy of my book, and I hear that it is in circulation!

Port has many small businesses that thrive in a tourist-season economy.


"Port Carling, one of the earliest settlement on the lakes, is destined to become one of the most important, by reason of its central location, the key of the three lakes; all whose business has to pass its locks and all whose floating population in its excursion pass to and from upon its river-lake."
--Toronto World, July 14, 1887.

Author John Denison thinks Frank Micklethwaites wrote the article.












Of course, the best part of the library is the respect they assign local authors who donate books! You can find my book at the Gravenhurst, Bala, Bracebridge libraries, as well.

Gaza & Israel - post II

I agree about the video images, penlan, but they are carefully chosen images. There was talk, during the Gulf War, that US video was culled to remove images of civilians being wounded and killed.

It is the manipulation of the videos as propaganda that bothers me!

The videos look almost like a movie, rather than a video, in some instances. Israel calls up teens, who are indoctrinated in army propaganda.
In Palestine, news and gossip spreads more falsehoods about what is really going on. Someone has to say stop so that the people, the children, will stop dying and learn to live in peace.

The inhumanity of each side is held up by the other. The cost is a culture of people who believe what they read and hear and are determined for vengance. This mindset is propagated and mined in the children. The UN offers help, yet Israel refuses to stop the carnage.
Those in Gaza fight and lose their children over land, government and territory. Aid workers are dying. Hamas is happy to show horrible images and use this as fodder for continuing this war.

dogs running free

It has been a long time since we had to worry about dogs running on our property. In the city it was terrible as they got into our garbage, harassed our cats, left deposits on our lawn!

Last week, during the school break, we spotted a dog down at our lakefront. I presume it was visiting, as we had not seen it before. I was worried, since we had had open water just a few days ago. We don't like loose dogs around here, despite this city visitors seem to think that now in the country they can let their animals run. Unfortunately, the dogs chase wildlife and scare our pets. They are meant to be under control.

It is illegal under the Fish & Wildlife Conservation Act to let dogs run free in areas in deer, moose, elk and bears habitat. There are reasons for this. If the lighter dogs chase deer onto thin ice the pregnant mothers can go through, at great cost to our wildlfe.

There is much big game in Parry Sound-Muskoka, they need our protection. You'd think it would be dangerous, as well, to the pets. Who knows what could happen to them. If the conservation cannot call the animals off, they have the authorization to destroy the dogs. There are fines of $180 for a first offense. If they are caught again, they can go to court.

You really have to keep your animals under control whether in the city or the country!

If you want to report dogs that are chasing deer, call the local ministry office, or 1-877-TIPS-MNR.