Going back in time......

Newtonville .... is a tiny little three street town, east of Newcastle.... I've been there a few times lately inspecting......

there are some neat old buildings.... seeing them is like going back in time....

I'm not sure if this was a school house or a fire station... I'm thinking fire station......

The Bell



The Feed Station across from the fire station...

I love this... the scales are still sitting on the front step!
The Sign
Next Door and around the corner from the feed mill is this old service station.... I LOVE IT...

Reminds me of Sawyerville This is blurry... but you can see the diner inside if you look closely....
air... back when it used to be free!!

The Coke Machine... built right into the wall of the Service Station
I love the corner wall....

The Gas Pump.... back when there was no such thing as unleaded fuel!

My son has become quite enthralled with Guitar Hero .... have you heard of it?? it's this computer game ( X Box, Wii , etc ) .... where you play along with music ( of several different genres ) and key in the colour coded notes....

I haven't dared try it.... mostly because I don't think there is a Southern Gospel category!!!



I have, however, been encouraging my son to try different styles of music..... in the hopes of branching out his cultural interests...



with that in mind, I am considering the idea of ordering THIS game for him :

Some fond old memories.....

Site of the first National League Baseball game I ever saw.... Jarry Park.... Home of the Expos til the mid 1970's

Sigh..... I Miss the Expos

Dream World

Well... the last couple or three weeks have been pretty up and down for me... more down than up, physically....

when you combine that, with nearly 3 weeks of unpaid sick time, and medication up to my eyeballs...... sleep has been a hard thing to come by...
and when I AM asleep, it's restless.....

last night was no exception..... in bed before 11, awake til after 1 .... awake again at 3:30 ......

and to top it all off, my dreams are completely frustrating..... take last night's dream, for instance....

Time frame and logistics aside, in my dream, I'd gone on vacation to visit my friends Bruce and Gayle down east..... where down east, I have no idea..... even awake, I'm not sure where they live.... some valley.. near a mountain or the ocean or something.... Gayle is vague.. I think she's hiding something....

anyway...... I GO there in my dream.... to visit the family.....

and GAYLE....... my childhood friend... went to work just before I got there and didn't come home.... not ONCE during my entire visit...

hhhrrrrmmpph ....

That's the last time I dream about visiting THEM!!!

The Big Apple

I stopped at the Big Apple in Colborne a week or so ago.... they bake Apple Pies ( no really!! ) ....

here are some of the photos, of them putting the pastry tops on the pies...

Painful......

so ....Friday, I leaned into my trunk to get something.... and heard a nasty crunch....


and I went to my knees... feeling pain in my lower back like nothing I've ever felt before....


Old age, to quote my father, is not for the squeamish...


so for the last 3 1/2 days, I've been walking around here like a gimp... barely able to get up the stairs.... almost unable to roll over in bed at night..... and finding it hard to find any position that is comfortable for more than 2 minutes....


Every time I tried to do aaaanything all weekend, Abby would walk up to me, tap me on the hand and whisper..... " You shouldn't do that in YOUR CONDITION" and then she'd giggle!!!



brat!


so today I went to the Chiropractor..... he told me it was accumulative strain ..... I THINK it was his way of saying... YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN HERE MORE OFTEN!!!


he told me if it happened again on a weekend, that I should ice it... not ice per se.... but something frozen.....


just open up your freezer, and you'll find something that will work.....


at this very moment, I'm icing my back.....


with Compliments Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream....





I'm not actually putting it on my back..... I figured since the back of my stomach actually was quite CLOSE to the spine, it would likely do the same thing...





so I'm administering it uh..... as fast as I possibly can..... you know... for my back.... to help with the pain immediately!!

its kinda sore tonight!!!















I LOVE modern medicine!!!

A Tight Squeeze

Thursday morning, I was inspecting just outside of Port Hope ..... While inspecting a house, I went to the basement to inspect the oil tank.... It was in the cold room under the verandah ...... those little rooms are pretty tiny.... and ummm... I'm not!!

So in I went... took a photo...

then leaned over to look at the top of the tank to find the ULC label... to get the year it was manufactured....

no label...... but the tank was new, the lady said...

the label must be on the other end over there...

and she pointed..... good grief......

the entire room is 38 inches wide.....the tank is 24"... that leaves a gap on the right side of....of hmmm maybe 12 inches to squeeze in...

Paul Mackay doesn't squeeze THROUGH a 12 inch space.....

oh mannnnnnn..... where is Steve Storey when I need him.........

so as I'm standing there, staring.... with my mouth open in fear....the homeowner left for a couple of minutes to tend to her little child....

As soon as she left, I started peeling off my equipment... my clip board, my laser, my camera... my jacket.....

Stood there for a moment of silence..... and then literally threw myself into the space.....

I got halfway down to the end of the tank and got no further... MAN!!

after a couple of seconds of THAT , I lurched back and forth .... and worked myself down towards the end of the tank, almost unable to breathe!!!

Man if only I had some vaseline... this "TRIP" down oil tank lane, might have been easier!!!

The whole time I'm thinking..... they will need JAWS OF LIFE to get me out of here if I get stuck.....

After those couple of lurches, I got to the far end..... with my flashlight in my mouth.... , gasping for air.... and leaned around the corner and found the label...

SUCCESS!!!

While I'm here, I thought to myself, I need to take a picture of the FILTER....

I reached to my neck area, to get my camera so I could take the picture....ugh... no camera.... I looked back.... it was sitting over on the floor....

I am NOT going back to get it... and I was squeezed in so tight, I was afraid to holler to the customer to come back in and hand me my camera....I didn't want ANYONE to see me like this... wedged in so tight, my face was turning blue...

so .... we'll just SKIP the picture of the filter, I thought.....

and I start lurching backwards, to get OUT....

what I had not realized was... that there was a railing stuck along the wall.... on the right side.....

i got myself back THAT far..... and got stuck on it...

and there I stood... wedged, my heart racing... my breathing fast....

my life flashed before my eyes...

at some point in those fleeting moments.... this thought struck me :

there are two ways I do not want to be found when I die... no, there are three ...

When I die, I don't want to be found :

[1] Under water ( cause I dont' want to drown )

[2] I don't want to be found using ANY bathroom fixture... shower, bath tub.. or ANY item that people sit on... I'm just sayin....

and most recently added is the third:

[3] I dont' want to be found wedged in between an oil tank and a block wall!!!

with a HUGE gust of energy, mixed with 2 parts fear and one part panic...I threw myself against the railing, shoving it flying.... nearly tearing my pants..... and STUMBLED into the wide open 38" section of the room...

gasping....

THANKING GOD for wide open spaces....

sigh......

when I bent down to get my camera... a thought struck me.....

I pointed and clicked... and GOT my picture of the filter....

... success again!!

I think it's time I cut back on the Oreos ...... sigh!

baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

H u m b u g

The Love of God......

This is one of my very favourite old hymns...


The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;

The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.

Refrain

O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure
The saints’ and angels’ song.

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade,

To write the love of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.



Click HERE to hear an incredible version... with unbelievable harmony, particularly in the second verse.....
+++++++++++++++++++++

those are the two most common verses...


here's one that I don't think I have ever heard before...



When years of time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men, who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,

God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—
The saints’ and angels’ song.

Brutus...

I made a new friend yesterday.... You'd like him!

I was inspecting just north of Port Hope when I met him.... He seemed lonely when I stopped to inspect their house.... so I took a couple of minutes to visit.... in that visit and in the hours afterwards, I learned a lot about Brutus and his family....


Originally from Swiss Descent, Brutus was born here..... his ancestors originally served in the Roman Catholic Church, ministering to travellers between Italy and Switzerland....


in Fact, his great great great great great Uncle Bernard worked there, for an Italian monk ..... and Brutus, indirectly was named after him...


it was one of those unique visits, albeit short......... where you come as a stranger... and leave as friends...

in fact, sometimes, it's not just your life that they touch... I've been offered preserves, have had coffee with some..... sometimes I come home with a cookie in hand... or a funny story...

and visiting with Brutus was one such visit... I came away with something ... the aroma of his presence lingered long after the visit.....





I felt bad for Brutus....... to have to be chained to the oil tank like he was........

yup.... Thanks for the take home gift Brutus...

The Gift that keeps on giving!!!!!!!!!

Hey Gayle and Glenda... recognize this gentleman??

For those of you who don't recognize him, this is Glenda and Gayle's older brother Geoff ..... man I love this picture of him!!!









This is Little Lake near Brighton.... the water was almost green today.... was quite beautiful!

I was inspecting today near Colborne..... was finished the inspection and was backing up to take a photo of the rear of the house... and I heard a rustling.......

and turned and this was what I saw.....

kinda made my spine tingle, actually!


ay yi yi!!!


after my last stop tonight, I stopped and visited an old friend..... emphasis on FRIEND, not on old!!

I've been threatening to tell a "septic/sewer" story...and THIS is the friend it is about!!




You will notice in Geoff's hand a rather large electronic device...

I'm not saying we're getting old... but would ya LOOK at the size of this remote???


I have GOT to get me one of these!!!!!! That thar's a jumbo remote!!

Making a bad day better....

Ever have one of those days??? that when you get to the end of it, you're totally spent??...

and you get frustrated and half freaked out cause there's another one of those days coming TOMORROW???

well.....I had one of those last week ........ and how God turned that day around for me, is ....to quote Paul Harvey, the rest of the story!

Though the day in question started out pretty decent, after 5 inspections, and nearly 575 kms.... I was spent..... the trip home from my last inspection took nearly 3 1/2 hours.

I was weary.... the more I drove, the more discouraged I got... mostly because I was thinking ahead to the next day...

If I am this tired NOW, how am I going to manage TOMORROW?????

It's no small wonder that Jesus wrote these words... He knew we'd need to hear them....." do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" ( Matt 6:34 )....

By the time I backed into my driveway, I was a mess.....I was frazzled, stressed, keyed up.... and ready to quit just about everything....

When I get like that, I start cutting things out of my schedule.... cancelling dinner dates, not showing up at concerts, or social events that'd I'd promised to go to.... I just start cutting things out of my life.....

As I walked into my townhouse, I grabbed the mail that had piled up while I was away... and this is what I saw :

A care package.........

do you know how long it has been since I got a care package????

About then, my kids happened along, having been dropped off at the door.... I hardly even noticed them .... I was busy opening the care package....

this is where the story gets interesting....

The blogging community in which we're in.... is like a family..... it's a support group, I suppose... it is for me.... sometimes it's support because I can write my frustrations, and vent...

other times, I can read other people's blogs... or look at their photos....

and sometimes, the support is from the encouraging comments....

either way you look at it, we are community.....you ... and me....

at some point in the last little while, I made some friends ..... within this community....

with a family: a mom and a dad, and five kids....that I don't know.... I can't tell you their names; and other than the city, I don't know where they live...... I don't know their email address....I don't know their phone number.....

but I know them, and we're friends !

I have learned a lot about them from the clues they've given in their comments..... and I've read and re-read the comments..... partly out of curiosity to try and figure out the demographics..... and partly out of pure vanity, cause the comments are encouraging!!!

I've learned things like the fact that they are Habs fans .... stellar people then, obviously!

I've learned that they all, the 5 siblings, live in one little house with their parents....

I've learned that their dad is fighting cancer......

I've learned that they frequent Tim Hortons a lot.... and not necessarily to buy.... but to collect discarded roll up the rim cups.... and I don't mind telling you that while I was frantically buying (and blogging about it ) and winning only 2 out of 27 , they collected discarded cups in Tim Horton's parking lots and on street corners.....

and not only did they clean UP God's green earth, but at last count, according to their comments, they'd won 11 times....

ELEVEN TIMES.............!!!

anyway... back to the care package....

.... in as much as the care package was anonymous, it wasn't...... there were enough clues to let me know it was from them..... my friends.....

That God knew, that I needed this, on the day that I got it.... was only something that God could do!

and what the package contained was the piece de resistance....

A Habs patch..... several encouragement cards, not the least of which was one that read " NEVER NEVER QUIT" ....wow!

Even the stamps echoed sentiment.... hockey players!!!

plus there were 2 roll up the rim cups.... both winners..... my 2 for 27 just went to 4!!!

I won a CAFE and a BEIGNE!!!!!!!!

and as I felt the stress and the "frazzle" fall away like sand through my fingers, I began to read the letter.......

.....

.....

and I cried......

click HERE.... so you can read it......

.....sigh....

To this day, I do not know how they got my address.... I may never know....

but what I DO know is this.....


that this has touched me deeply...... and has encouraged me in ways I have a hard time expressing....

It has taken me several days contemplating, wondering how to even write about it.....

I find it hard to explain the closeness that I feel.... it's hard to imagine being this connected to someone that I have never met....

and yet the closeness exists....

so to you, LPP, and to Prayingsensfaninmontreal..... and to your family....

Thank You..... Eternity will show you how much this has meant to me.


and to the rest of you reading this..... I say two things...

First.... I'd like you to introduce you to some very special people! as you read their comments, you'll realize just how special....

and second.... would you do something for me?? pray for their dad..... That God would heal him.... and take away his pain....



For this reason, I kneel before the Father
from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives it's name.

I pray that out of his glorious riches, he may strengthen you with power through His spirit in your inner being.

so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.

and I pray that you being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide, and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.

and to know this love that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to HIM be glory, in the church and in Christ Jesus,
through all generations, for ever and ever. Amen" Eph 3:14-21

Taylor

my son is 18 today... it is hard for me to imagine that 18 years have passed so fast.....

I printed several of these photos today and gave him a birthday collage of some of the memorable photos over the 18 years..

This is Taylor sitting in his gramma's favourite chair in Belleville This is Taylor, holding Isaac... in 2003.....

This is Taylor with his cousin Isaac... at the Mink's Corn Maze in October of 2006

Taylor with his cousin Jacob at the Jays game last summer

Taylor at another Jays game
Taylor and the 3 amigos at Bass Pro

Taylor impressing Isaac with some magic tricks!! Isaac loved the tricks!
The 3 amigos at the Jays Game


Taylor at 2 months old.... I love this photo....

Taylor in the receiving line at his Grade 8 grad.... The tie wasn't long in being undone after the ceremony was over!!

Taylor and some of his buddies at Grade 8 grad....


Taylor and Jakey shooting toy guns from the loft of the condo in Lindsay, 2003

Taylor's new pellet gun for his 17th birthday!

A Christmas pose in the condo in 2003 ....

Taylor and his new bass.... this is at my folks house in Belleville...

Taylor and his new pellet gun....

Here's Gramma trying it out !!! She nailed the pop can on the fence post, in case you wondered!!!

Taylor and Jakey at the cottage..... either 2001 or 2002 I think....

Taylor as flagman on the line at a CBA soccer tournament.....

Taylor and Jakey again... at the cottage....

Taylor airborne on the tube at the cottage in 2006

the 3 amigos at the Jays game with their "Big Hurt" figurine..... proof positive you have to get to the park EARLY on bobble head day!!!

Taylor taking Gramma for a ride after he got his G1 ....

Taylor in my car... we can't remember where we were going when this was taken.....

Talking to Gramma and Grampa after grade 8 grad.....
Taylor performing in the One Act Play in 2007 at BCI .....






Taylor at age 4, helping out around the farm in Belleville..... with my dad, ALden Learned and Bob Finlayson....

The 3 amigos playing war......
Taylor holding on to Youppi ...... this is my very favourite photo of him as a baby.. Youppi is the mascot in Montreal, was the baseball mascot when there was a team there..... sigh..

Hope you had a GREAT day Bud... I'm very proud of you and love you tons!!!

A chorus from my childhood

He owns the cattle, on a thousand hills,

The wealth in every mine

He owns the rivers, and the rocks and rills

The sun and stars that shine...

Wonderful riches more than tongue can tell

He is my Father, so they're mine as well..

He owns the cattle on a thousand hills

I know that He will care for me!

LPP

LPP......

I have a post nearly read that I'd like your permission to publish...

it involves a care package that I just received.... that touched my heart like you may never know!!
I would like your permission to post it....

In other news.....Go Habs Go... I'm not any where near as nervous today as I was during the Boston series.....

sigh...Go Habs Go..

did I say that already???

Need I say anymore????

Game Update......

four things I've heard so far tonight, while watching the first period with my daughters...

[1] After Carey Price made a spectacular save, Abby said....

" You're tingling aren't you daddy??"

Yes Tigger... Yes I am!

[2] After Montreal Scored and I was standing and screaming.... Anna looked over at me and said..

Dad, you act like you're TWO YEARS OLD.

( I have no retort for that... I DO!! )

[3] Hey Dad, whats up with Don Cherry's collar? It's like SIX INCHES..... did he have a head injury? Is that to keep his head from flopping to one side?

No uh... it's to keep his mouth shut... and it doesn't work!!!



[4] After Carey price made yet ANOTHER spectacular save, Abby said, with tongue in cheek...


" He's not such a good goalie, you know "


It was then that I put her up for adoption!!!

Go Habs Go!!!

My POOR nerves..........

Dear LPP ......

Yes, I'm nervous..... and I've been trying to be positive all day..... The Habs game tonight is likely the most important and stressful hockey game of the year...

I have been thinking about it for two days straight..... partly excited, partly dreading it, knowing two things will happen if they lose....

[1] their season will be over, and the fun in watching the playoffs will be gone... though the CBC Broadcasters have made it difficult to enjoy anyway, because they have seemed to me, to be very biased against Montreal... ( I know, I'm still grumpy!!! )

[2] that my friends that are Toronto Maple Leafs fans, will come unglued; I find it very interesting how many people who cheer for Toronto, who've not called me in ages, all of a sudden find my phone #, after Montreal has lost...

They seem to take great pride in taunting me when Montreal loses..... Normally I love teasing, and I take it well... but when people choose only to bug me about Montreal losing, it gets old REALLY fast..... I guess I'm so passionate about the Canadiens that I take those ribbings personally....

ok, I need to take a PILL!!!!!

sigh..... You're right... lets not bother with watching corny bud light commercials... lets just pray...

if I thought it would work, I'd skip watching all together, and just pray.... not only would help my prayer life, but would certainly help lower my blood pressure..

sigh............... I'd say I'm going to go now and do some paperwork, but I can't concentrate... so I guess I'll go upstairs, eat some junk food to calm my nerves, and pace for a while!!!!!

Go Habs Go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!