Month: July 2020

A few months ago the firepit which Steve and Chris had given me one Fathers Day weekend finally rusted right out. I still remember that day when they came through the side gate, grinning from ear to ear!

I ordered a new one from Wayfair, one that was on sale. We liked the style of the original one, so decided to stay with something similar.

I put it together this afternoon and set it up on the bricks there for that purpose.

Good timing because Steve always likes a campfire and so do I!

Today we are doing some last minute dusting and vacuuming in readiness for this weekend.

Sara, Steve and Roxana are coming for a visit and this time we will actually get to hold her! I know how excited I am feeling and Jane is bustling around in great anticipation!

I also installed a length of vinyl cord conduit under the kitchen window to conceal some wiring. We are all set for their visit!!

This morning, while having breakfast, Jane noticed a squirrel in the platform feeder gorging on bird seed.

One of our maple trees has grown so much that he was able to leap from a branch into the feeder.

I trimmed off that branch and while I was at it, I cut down one trunk of our birch tree.

I also trimmed off a low hanging branch of our big maple and thinned out one Rose of Sharon bush.

Last night the local raccoon once again pulled down the bird feeder for the bird seed.

So I relocated it to a higher branch in the hopes that the raccoon is not a high jumper.

First thing this morning we headed out to attend an eye appointment. This time, for Jane. She had a consult at 8 AM which meant an unusual early morning for her!

Dr. Nixon confirmed that she would need surgery for cataracts, both eyes. They will do the worst eye first, which is her turned-in left eye, then her right afterwards.

However, with COVID, the Doctor was unable to give any kind of date.

At least, though, there is a remedy available. It’s definitely an “eyeful” of a year!

I tend to take more photos of the back yard because we spend more time out there.

But today I took a couple of pictures of the front flowers.

And at the side of the garage, the Morning Glory on the trellis which Jane started from seeds are blooming profusely!!

Our back yard has become our Go To spot during this pandemic.

There’s always some kind of wildlife hanging around to keep us entertained.

This morning, a hummingbird flew in and had lunch at the honeysuckle plant on the arbour.

And of course we have our regular squirrel visitors looking for peanuts.

A few months ago I bought some wireless lights for under the kitchen cabinets.

They came with a remote and were easy to install. But the batteries would not last long and they weren’t very bright.

So today I bought some plug in puck lights and installed them. Much better.

In anticipation of Steve, Sara and Roxana visiting over the long weekend in August, Jane has been sanitizing all kinds of kiddy stuff; Max has outgrown them, so they come in very handy for this little Missy!

I took the play yard out of the upstairs spare room and moved it downstairs where they will be sleeping.

Jane has been busy laundering bedding and cleaning the downstairs spare room.

Tomorrow I will begin doing a thorough vacuuming so we’ll be ready.

Jane already has menus figured out.

After breakfast we decided to check out a local park and beach that has been getting some negative publicity because of unwanted visitors.

Because of restrictions elsewhere, many out of towners are coming to Barrie, parking on residential streets and even setting up tents on local beaches.

The ones without washrooms are especially problematic because people just don’t care.

We talked to a few locals who are frustrated with lack of enforcement.

Today, just after sending an email update to all contributors, I receive a “proof” copy of the book from Kindle Direct Publishing.

I wanted to see how the colour photos would turn out because the inside pages will be printed in black and white.

I am pleased with the result and I think it will be well received.

This morning we decided to take a road trip to Penetanguishene to see if we could locate the gravestone for Jane’s great-great grandmother, Elizabeth Ellen Whalen, nee McGruther. In the family she was just “Grandma Whalen”, who built the Whalen Resort.

We found it very quickly and then headed over to the Presbyterian cemetery to check for more relatives.

On another note, the surgery gas bubble is no longer in my eye which means I can now sleep on my back.

Yesterday Jane was up bright and early to head off to Toronto to visit the grandchildren.

First, she went to Sara and Steve’s and had a great visit with Roxy in their back yard.

After that, she headed over to Tonya and Chris’ to see Max.

He had a great time in the little pool that we got him.

Jane was back home early afternoon, smiling from ear to ear.

We planted some tomato plants in the wooden planter in our back yard.

There are six plants so with any luck, we’ll get a few. Maybe enough for a Bacon and Tomato sandwich.

Today I took down a nesting box that I had attached to the underside of the eaves a couple of years ago.

The hope was that robins would lay eggs and hatch their young there, but there was no interest.

And I took down the squirrel picnic table which was covered by the echinacea bush.

It’s been a pretty lazy day.

Just when you think the American response to this deadly COVID-19 virus can’t get any worse, it does!

Today the Governor of Georgia issued an Executive order that prevents municipalities from mandating the use of masks.

Unbelievable!

In the meantime, over 130,000 American citizens have died from this virus.

I am so grateful to live in Canada and that our border is closed to all but essential travel from the USA.

My appointment today with Dr. Leung was a good one.

She has discontinued two of the three eye drops and gave me a prescription for a new one.

In good shape.

Tomorrow I have a follow up eye appointment here in Barrie with Dr. Leung.

So far, everything is going as expected.

The little bubble has been getting smaller and smaller as it is supposed to.

Jane has more ambition than me today, so she went to Bradford Greenhouse to pick up a few plants.

There are a couple of bare spots in the front and back yards that she wants to fill in.

So she took a spin out highway 93 and picked up some annuals which she proceeded to plant.

Looks much better.

I am exploring the idea of flight simulators. I am having a lot of enjoyment on my iPad with an app called Airline Commander, but I think it would be better to set up a more realistic arrangement with a flight sim yoke like the one below.

This attaches to the desk and works in conjunction with software like Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 which will be released this month.

One of the things done as part of the eye surgery I had is the insertion of a gas bubble to help healing.

When I look through that eye, it’s like looking over top of a bubble- like the ones in a carpenter’s level.

This gas eventually dissipates and is absorbed into the body. There is no pain or discomfort.

This is the name of an App that allows for new parents to share photos of their new baby with family and friends in a secure manner.

Sara has been posting photos of Roxana almost daily and it is amazing to see her rapid development.

Just for fun I googled the cost of this surgical procedure in the US.

The cost quoted was $13,700.

Makes me appreciate even more living in Canada.

Ha a good sleep last night.

Feeling better today.

I managed to arrange for the mandatory post op follow up to be done here in Barrie with Dr. Leung, the referring ophthalmologist.

The operation yesterday at Sunnybrook was interesting for me because I could actually see the tiny forceps being used to peel the scar tissue from the retina.

It was totally painless though.

So today, I get the bandage removed for the follow up and hopefully don’t need another.

This afternoon I am scheduled for eye surgery at Sunnybrook with the Chief of opthamology, Dr. Kurtes doing the operation.

The recovery protocol calls for lying face down, even when sleeping. This will be a bit of a challenge.

Even during waking hours it is recommended that the face down position is needed to help the eye heal.

So I have set up a camp cot in front of the family room tv with a couple of dollar store mirrors in a box. That way, when I’m lying face down looking into the box, I will be able to see TV.

Because the image is reversed from one mirror to the other, I can see it the same as if I’m looking directly at the TV.

The eye surgery that I’m having tomorrow calls for the patient (me) to remain face down for at least ten days.

With that restriction, there’s no way I could manage getting up to the cottage.

Very disappointing but the opportunity for the surgery at this time could not be passed up given that I was told it could be 6 to 9 months before another opening comes up.

The cottage rental people are being very decent in refunding the full amount on such short notice.

It’s pretty hot outside with the temperature around 30 degrees Celsius.

Despite the heat, Jane transplanted a few things in the garden which is really looking nice.

In fact, neighbours out walking their dog commented on how nice our property always looks.

Yesterday, after breakfast, I took Jane’s advice and sent an e-mail to Dr. Kertes’ office requesting to be put on a cancellation list for surgery.

A couple of hours later I received a call from his office and the lady started out by saying, “You’re a lucky man.”

There was a cancellation and I could get the surgery done next Tuesday.

So I’m booked for July 7th.

I was instructed to get tested for COVID-19 so we went to a nearby assessment centre and had the test done. Results will be online within 3 days.

Things are “looking” good.

Yesterday I had an appointment with Dr. Peter Kertes, head of ophthalmology at Sunnybrook.

He confirmed that surgery was needed on my left eye but there is a long waiting list so it won’t get done within the next six months or more. I’m disappointed but I have to start somewhere.

Yesterday we took the dinghy up to Whalen’s Island to check on Helen’s cottage; she had decided that it was too dangerous to navigate her dock with the high water levels.

Jane knows the way like the back of her hand. Unfortunately, it involves passing by her beloved cottage, or the remnants of it; it sits, rotting. I see her slow to look, every time we go by and know that years of memories just fill her head.

It was a gorgeous day to be on the water. Cool breeze and warm sunshine.

Arriving at Helen’s we could see that her dock was under about six inches of water, making for a very slippery surface, covered in algae. Fortunately there was a railing to hold on to, but the rocks are pretty unforgiving!

We had a lunch picnic there on the deck and while we were down at the shore talking to cottagers from across the bay who were retrieving their dock, a canine neighbour arrived and helped himself to a big chunk of cheese out of our picnic cooler. Jane figured that it was one of the many dogs who now roam the island and who below to the Gropp’s. In checking in with Helen, that was exactly right.

Other than losing our cheese, it was a great day.

Today the plan is to take a spin up to Georgian Bay and go out in the dinghy tomorrow.

We’ll check out the cottage on Whalen’s Island belonging to Helen, Jane’s 2nd cousin. She has been unable to use it this summer because unusually high water levels have flooded the dock.

Last night I slept in the tent again just for fun. But only after Minnie gave the okay.