Too Much Fun!

Just got back home from a three day ride with the wackiest, most fun and most passionate snowmobilers on the planet. I was lucky enough to ride with the contest winners for the Snowmobile Paradise Ontario dream ride. I got a sunburn, but had a wild time. Not only was the ride incredibly fun, I also enjoyed some of the hottest new sleds on the market. I think the best part was meeting all the writers, editors and broadcasters from the snowmobile magazines and TV shows from across Canada and the United States. Wow,… those people know how to ride, and how to enjoy themselves after a hard day of riding. Tough job eh. Oh well, keep watching the newsstands and the snowmobile shows.

Crusading Celebrities ~ Get a life eh!

The nice thing about having a BLOG is being able to say what you really feel some days. I had to shake my head this week at the news that Brigitte Bardot was back in Canada to complain about the seal hunt. What a pain she is. When did she suddenly become an expert on animal welfare? And why is the media hanging on every word? C'mon people... go find something newsworthy. I can't blame the reporters. I blame lazy assignment editors and rookie producers. I have traveled down east. I have traveled the Arctic. In my opinion this is not a big issue. Thank goodness there are people who can think for themselves and don't need celebrities to tell them what's important. Maybe our reporters should have been asking Ms. Bardot her views on the terrible riots in France this past week, where police were clubbing students. That might have been newsworthy. Oh well, I will only say one thing to Brigitte Bardot. Bonjour Bébé.... Kiss My Ass!

Irish Music

I think to be Irish is to be musical. I don't know any Irish who can't sing or play. So Happy St. Patrick’s Day to everyone. My favorite Irish person has to be Van Morrison, the singer. He was raised in East Belfast. His songs and music are hard to describe but loved by many. Depending on who you talk to it’s rock, it’s jazz, it’s folk, it’s new age. To me it’s poetry. I think his most popular tune is Brown Eyed Girl. My favorite is Into the Mystic:
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We were born before the wind
Also younger than the sun
Ere the bonnie boat was won as we sailed into the mystic
Hark, now hear the sailors cry
Smell the sea and feel the sky
Let your soul and spirit fly into the mystic
And when that fog horn blows I will be coming home
And when the fog horn blows I want to hear it
I don't have to fear it
And I want to rock your gypsy soul
Just like way back in the days of old
And magnificently we will flow into the mystic
When that fog horn blows you know I will be coming home
And when that fog horn whistle blows I got to hear it
I don't have to fear it
And I want to rock your gypsy soul
Just like way back in the days of old
And together we will flow into the mystic
Come on girl...
Too late to stop now...

You do NOT wanna run this red light...

You know you're back in Northern Ontario when they stop traffic on the main highway so the mining trucks can cross. This is one of the ore haulers from Pamour's updated open pit project, near Three Nations Lake. With the price of gold at more $550 an ounce, it's one of those things you get used to. This brute hauls about 135 tonnes. It's all part of the Porcupine Joint Venture project where they're moving the lake to get at more gold. That's gonna be interesting to watch...

RÉESSAYEZ S.V.P

Go figure. CBC has learned that Tim Horton’s is favoring Quebec for the Roll Up The Rim contest. The company admits the prize system is skewed toward “creating more excitement” in certain markets ~especially for the larger prizes. Tim Horton’s is battling with Duncan Donuts for market share in Quebec. Hmmm… almost sounds like those Liberal liars and lawyers have found new jobs eh. So I live in Northern Ontario. I buy a couple of Tims a day. Haven’t even won a cookie yet!

Too Funny... but is it good or bad? : )

Okay, I baked these muffins (oatmeal and raisin) more than three weeks ago before I went out of town. I put 'em in the fridge in tupperware. When I got home I went to the fridge. The milk was lumpy. The broccoli was black and yellow... a bit mushy too. The bag of salad was just yukky to look at. I had some bread rolls that got all fuzzy. But the muffins were still good. I took this picture today, after supper and the muffins are STILL good. Okay, they're a bit hard... but if I put 'em in the microwave for about 10 seconds, they're nice and soft again. So i have two left. I am gonna eat one... And maybe i will keep the other one... just as an experiment to see how long it lasts. These muffins have staying power! Of course, you just KNOW what we're gonna call them.... STUD MUFFINS! LOL

Mother Nature teasin' us !

Wow... what a beautiful day it was eh? I got out and shot some pics of the river, now that the ice is breaking up. I couldn't believe how nice and mild it was. Everyone was out jogging, hiking and enjoying the slush!! : ) I got up early today and chopped the ice away from the storm drain near my driveway. Every year we get so much water backing up on the street. But don't let mother nature fool ya. There is a storm warning for the whole northern Cochrane District. I was gonna put the shovels in the shed... but hey you know Timmins, we've had snow on Canada Day!

I'm Amazed!

Just spent the last few hours on the NASA website getting caught up on the news about the latest exploration of the planet Mars. It's too amazing. I remember the Apollo program when I was a kid and I've been a fan of space travel ever since. And they're also probing one of Saturn's moons because it may have the right chemistry to support life. I know NASA spends a lot of money, but we can't just sit here on our planet, look up at the night sky and not do anything. If you ever want to know how important you are in the universe, go outside, look at the night sky, and think about the fact that the universe has no end ... ever. It just keeps going and going and going... hmmmm, something to think about eh.

High Tea at the Ritz!

It's one of those things you gotta try ... at least once, especially when you're travelling with women! After a day of rushing around NY it was agreed we would stop and relax in the most elegant way possible. We dropped in at the Ritz Carlton Hotel on Park Avenue for High Tea.
I figured I would fit right in. I was wearing a snowmobile vest and jeans! I didn't have the black tie and dinner jacket packed for this trip. The ladies all went for the desserts. Pia had the Creme Brulee, Laurie had the freshly baked chocholate cream cake with ice cream, Susan had the sherbet and fruit sorbet, all with cappucino coffee. I enjoyed a double manhattan cocktail and some peanuts. The service was amazing. The staff was nice too. Especially Bernhart ( don't call him Bernie!) It was nice. Relaxing. Definitely NOT Tim Horton's!

Len goes to church.

Yeah I know I should go more often. ~ I was in Manhattan on Ash Wednesday when I noticed everyone was lining up to get into St. Patrick's Cathedral, one of the few great gothic churches in North America. It's quite beautiful. If you've ever read Ken Follett's book Pillars of the Earth, you will love the architecture here. I figure it doesn't hurt to score a few of those holy brownie points, so I dropped in, made an offering, lit a candle, said a prayer for all you sinners and got ashes. For those not familiar, the rite of ashes placed on the forehead in the sign of the cross, symbolizes our mortality. I think the priest got carried away. I think he put more ashes on my forehead than was left over after poor Joan of Arc was burned at the stake!

Visiting Ottawa

This is a catch-up posting because I got back home to Timmins tonight after spending a couple of weeks on the road. I was in Ottawa for a few days, where I visited the Canadian aviation museum. It was indeed cool since I got a nice close up look at a Canadian F86 Sabre ... it brought back one of my earliest childhood memories. I used to live on an RCAF jet fighter base in France. The first airplanes I ever saw were Sabres from 439 Squadron. I was a little kid and it used to scare the sh*t out of me everytime a flight of Sabres thundered overhead. The F86 was invented by the Americans, but perfected by the Canadians, with the introduction of the ORENDA engine, which at the time, made it the fastest fighter in the world. I also got a a chance to see the shell of a Bomarc missile from 446 Squadron. That was the last squadron my Dad was assigned to, in North Bay, ON. The missile is huge -- nearly four storeys tall. Something many Canadians don't know is that the Bomarc was Canada's first nuclear missile. It was designed to intercept Soviet bombers back in the days of the Cold War. ~ Oh by the way, I have learned that I was in Ottawa the day after a couple of my cousins were visiting. Do I feel dumb or what? Oh well, I should try to keep in touch more.

Big Apple Blog!

Well it is about time I dropped a few linesin here eh. I have been on the road for nearly two weeks...and away from my desk and computer... which I miss! I am sitting in my hotel room typing this message through a hotel internet keyboard,, which is littlle moe than a glorified palm pilot. So if my spelling is poor, we can blame it on the hardware. IWe took a day off today and toured New York, New York...the city so nice they named it twice. LOL I will be able to post pictures sometime next week... but our tour was fun... we had lunch at a restaurant on 42nd street, walked along Broadway, dropped into the big cathedral (today is Ash Wednesday), checked out Central Park and then went for High Tea at the Ritz Carleton Hotel. Woohoo...except I didnot have tea. it was afternoon so since I was in Manhattan, i ordered a Manhattan cocktail. Blammo...they gave me a double, so i got buzzed real fast. it was EXPENSIVE but it was fun. Of course, we also found time to do sme shopping...where else but on Fifth Avenue. I coulld not believe the prices people play for stuff. Oh well...that's it for now...this little venture on the hotel room internet is costing me the price of a few beers . So I am gonna drop out for now. If I have not been in touch with anyone lately, you will understand why.