Happy Saturday morning:

“You know you’re getting old when all the names in your black book have M.D. after them” ~ Harrison Ford

Earlier in the week on our morning walk Dia and I had a discussion on changes occurring along with the aging process. It started when she asked whether or not Bob-the-forester and I would take our two-day canoe trip in the Wakami wilderness area near the village of Sultan – something we’ve talked about. That travel requires carrying all supplies and enjoying two decent portages; with no turning back till you’re done. Bob almost guarantees that we’ll see Moose, Deer, Bear, and possibly a Beaver or two so it’s much more than a just a run-of-the-mill ho-hum choice to make.

We ended our discussion by talking about being ready for some steaming coffee after our walk. Just like government, our discussion ended without anything firm being decided, just some more coffee.

Oh that woolen blanket – Tuesday evening. Getting ready for bed the chill in the air caused a flurry of activity. It caused me to start a hunt for our heavy Dutch woolen blanket. I knew that it had to be somewhere in the place. It was July 15 – middle of one of the hottest months of the summer – and I was not about to fire up any one of the heaters. And so the hunt continued.

The closet was studied. Then a chest had all the doo-dads on the lid removed before I ransacked it. Nada! I even made a trip outside, in the rain, to check out the Bunkie. No luck. Nothing in the bins either.

I must have been desperate for eventually I found it. Ultimately success came when I happened to spot a lump in the bottom of a zippered 4-hanger clothing bag hanging towards the back of the rack. There it was, safely sealed in its vacuum bag – moth free. In a chill I love the feel of a heavy blanket (must be a Dutch thing). I slept like a baby!

Missing Hans – Last week I wrote (OK, so maybe it was more like a rant – although absolutely accurate) about the ongoing shrinkage occurring in the town of Thessalon. A year or so ago the last professional haircutter, Hans, left town as his business, Hans-in-Your-Hair, closed. Word has that Hans and his partner left for better climes in Vancouver.

What all that means for the average person is that we’re left with a distinct North Woods look – especially in the early morning. I have officially joined those ranks.

Rules, edicts, and then it rains – From the who cares department comes this; here I am in the North Woods and in need of generating a Power of Attorney document. Our Ontario attorney has no problem generating the document, but “Oh No that will not do”. Document instructions tell me I must head to the nearest US Embassy (8 hours away). Alternatively, a trip back into the US where any ole bank clerk with a notary stamp will suffice. Makes sense doesn’t it?

Then the instructions require the document be printed on Legal paper and signed in blue ink—what’s with this Legal size nonsense; does your little three drawer file cabinet accommodate that size? I thought not.

There was a solution, the text would just be sent to me as a PDF document. That’s when I discovered that Cincinnati Bell which manages my mail account had a major system-wide malfunction; only I did not know of that fact. My first clue was when I called Marcia who also had mail problems. So I called my dear Baby Bell where the robo answering system eventually informed me that I was now in their Service queue and that my wait time would be in; “EXCESS of THREE hours”. Click – as I hung up. Thank you Cincinnati Bell.

The axiom which states that when it rains it pours has worth. Nevertheless, a little doggedness promises a payoff. The doc was sent to Paul. It was transferred onto a Thumb Drive. Then early next week I’ll be crossing back through border security. Yes there is such as system on our northern border. In fact, occasionally one even gets grilled by US security PRIOR to crossing into Canada; figure that! Next it’s a search for a copy joint (no Staples, etc. in these parts) to see if it can be placed onto Legal paper. Then off to the bank and finally for a UPS overnight pick-up place. There, done.

By the way, my Bell account is still out of action. Marcia can now receive but not send her mail. If I told our lawyer of all this nuttiness I think this normally dour person would belly-laugh.

Animal Planet – Sitting on a bench in front of the cabin while taking some notes I spotted a neon-blue damselfly flitting about the waterside greens. It was amazing. Looking down on the creature and the grass beneath I could imagine a sci-fi movie scene with some space ship slowly moving over a far-flung world underneath. Very neat!

Damselflies are listed under a category of “Primitive Winged Insects.” Seeing this little thing and its gorgeous reflective blue color it sure did not look all that primitive.

Last evening Paul and I found ourselves chatting on the deck at Northern Comfort. The whole time Loons down in the cove were calling each other with their loud wails.

At some point one of us made the observation that a city kid hearing these wails nearby in the semi darkness for the first time it would probably frighten and maybe even scare the dickens out of them.

Fini – Absolutely thrilled that Adrianne, Tevita, Vai, and Vili are back home with a truck load of magnificent memories.

Donn and Marlene, safe travel getting little Pim back to his family – he was a delight to have around in the North Woods.

Condolences to all the hundreds of families grieving their loss as a result of the dastardly and evil deed over the Ukraine. Life is fragile, cherish it.

Make it a great week.

Cheers.
Dirk