Oh Give Me A Home.....

   The buffalo were roaming last night as our Supper in the Field contest took us to the Makowsky farm near Canora. I'd seen bison before, but never this close up. We drove from the farmyard to the pasture in our trusty GX94 RV, and were told not to get out of the vehicle, and keep the windows closed. They are wild animals, after all.
   One of the farm hands brought a couple of buckets of oats, which the bison trotted over to eat. I couldn't get a picture of him, but one of the larger bulls was named "Donald Trump", due to the way the hair on his hump looked.
   Then, it was back to their 2nd yard for the supper. Andrian Makowsky fired up the grill, and tossed on some bison burgers for us, while he and the crew chowed down on our catered supper provided by KFC. I tried a burger, and I'll say it's an acquired taste. A taste I have not acquired.
   Despite how close their farm was to Yorkton, by the time we visited the bison, had dinner, handed out the prizes and got back, it was well after 7:00 when I got home. Which is late for me, since I usually retire about 9:00.
   Still, it was a great evening had by all.

TTFN

Childhood Memories

   They're from my, and apparently a lot of other peoples, childhood as well. A post I made to one of the social media groups I subscribe to has got a lot of attention. A lot more than I ever thought it would get. I simply posted 2 pictures, and asked if anyone remembered these:

   That's the old fashioned cigarette rolling machine dad used back in the '60's. He'd sit at the table with the roller, a tin or 2 of Black Cat tobacco and roll enough smokes for him and mum to last a few days to a week.
   The machine, believe it or not, was actually quite simple to use. There was a slot you'd put the tobacco in, roll it to a certain mark, put the paper in, roll it to another mark, wet the glue and finish rolling. It made 5 cigarettes at a time, which were cut with a razor blade using a guide on the back of the roller.
   Dad would roll enough to fill the can, and a couple of plastic cigarette cases they had. They had no filter, obviously, and packing the tobacco was a bit tricky. Too loose, and it would fall out of the cigarette. Too tight, and you couldn't draw on one.
   I used to use Dad's machine for a while, and more than once I'd roll a full-length one, and smoke the entire thing without cutting it first. It got a little gnarly by the time you'd get near the end.
   As of this entry, I'm still getting comments and reaction to the post. Which shows how powerful images can be to us baby boomers.
   My wife and I finally quit smoking 19 years ago.

TTFN

Back To Work

   It was a nice, if busy, week off. But now, I'm back at it for the next several months. Unlike the past 2 years, I was unable to can a batch of salsa this year. That's due in large part to tomato blight hitting our plants, but also to a very busy week off.
   I won't bore you with the details, other than to say that a good chunk 3 of my days off were spent in various doctor's offices, including an ear specialist in Regina. The upshot of that was I'll likely need a hearing aid. Surprise, surprise.
   Another couple of days were spent overseeing the installation of a storm door on the front of the house. It faces north, so in winter it can get very chilly indeed. It also plays havoc with the locks, to the point where I've needed a professional lock service to fix things. We also had a hall closet in the kitchen turned into a pantry. Nothing fancy, but somewhere other than a few cluttered cupboards we can put food stuffs.
   The only thing I missed about having more time off this morning was the luxury of rolling over and getting an hour or 2 more sleep after waking at my usual time of 03:45. And for the record, yes: It's nice to be back at work.

TTFN

Vacation

   I will be taking my final week of vacation next week. Aside from having some work down on the house, and a trip to Regina for (more) medical tests, I don't have much planned. Thanks to an outbreak of tomato blight, our crop was ruined, so if I make salsa again, it'll have to be with store-bought tomatoes.
   I'll be back on Tuesday, September 4th.
   Meantime, I'm celebrating a bit of a milestone at GX94 Radio. Sunday will mark my 5th anniversary here. Our General Manager took the time to put a little collage together, with the following comment

   Congrats to Morning News Man Craig Wallebeck and his many personas, they are all celebrating 5 years with Harvard Yorkton this Sunday August 26th!
   Next month will also mark my 21st year with parent company Harvard Broadcasting, and next February is my 40th in the industry. Give or take.

TTFN

Another Smoky Day

   Smoke from wildfires in Alberta and British Columbia is again being dragged into our area after a change in weather patterns. The smoke was with us most of last week, but another change in the weather blew it out over the weekend. But a return to a westerly flow means it's back.
   Special air quality statements have been issued for a good portion of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and there could be some areas of reduced visibility. There are also potential health concerns for the elderly and those (like myself) with breathing problems if it gets much thicker. Luckily, I have not been affected so far.
   Getting smoke from distant fires is not unusual for this time of year, we've had it in the past, and a lot denser, than we're getting it now. And the change in the weather pattern also means a return to the heat we had last week, with Friday's high right now forecast for 33 C.
   We've got central air conditioning, so neither the heat or smoke will be an issue in the house.

TTFN

Hot, Hot Heat

   It's going to be blisteringly hot in our region for the next few days, with highs near 35 by the weekend. Not quite as hot as parts of Europe, but hot nonetheless. A trough of high pressure is sweeping hot air from the desert in the U.S southwest is responsible, and Environment Canada is expected to issue heat warnings in the next few days.
   It's not going to get a whole lot cooler at night, with lows in the mid-teens. Normally at this time of year, our high is 24, the low 11. One good thing about the system bringing the heat is the chance of severe weather is very low. Not out of the question, but low.
   Fortunately for us, we have air conditioning at home, in the car, and where we both work. A lot of people don't, so the advice is to stay indoors, stay hydrated, and try and get cool. Same with peoples pets.
   While it's going to be well above my personal "comfort zone" for the next few days, you'll not hear me complain. Especially since in 6 months it'll be -35, and we'll look back on this and wish for the warmth.

TTFN

I'm O-Kay

   Hopefully, this will be the last health-related blog I'll post for quite some time, but it does continue the theme from past posts (see below). After fracturing a bone in my wrist, it was strongly suggested I take on a family doctor. Something I hadn't had in well over 30 years. Why? Basically because I'm lazy, and procrastinate. The other reason is simple. I don't feel all that bad, aside from some aches and pains.
   But find a doctor I did. And I found out (not surprisingly) I have high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which are both now being treated. I have yet to be subjected to a full physical, but my saw-bones did order some blood work and an ECG, which I have never had.
   The results from both gave me some encouragement. Aside from the blood pressure an cholesterol issues, he says everything else is within normal limits for a man my age and fitness. Or lack thereof.
   Now, I've just go to get off my duff, start some kind of fitness program and eat more sensibly. I'll let you know how that works out.

TTFN