A Great Gag

   As regular viewers will know, GX94 morning guru Danny Ismond and myself have a regular daily chat. We generally try and keep it on the lighter side. Today was no exception. I told Danny about a guy who had just bought one of these

   A $450 thousand 2019 McLaren 600 LT Supercar, and was taking it out for an inaugural run to celebrate. The joyride lasted all of 10 minutes. He left the dealership, and got nailed for doing 161 km/h in a 90 zone. The car was towed and impounded for 7 days, and the lead-footed driver was dinged $370.
   I also explained to Danny the time I got pulled over for speeding. I was driving dad's 1963 VW Beetle

   And was pulled over in a 50 km/h residential area. The cop asked if I realized I was doing 70 km/h, to which I replied "Impossible. This car won't run for an hour". Okay, that wasn't really true, but it made for a good gag
   Upcoming is the Canada Day long weekend, meaning I'll be out of the office July 1st. If I don't post anything tomorrow, I'll be back on the 2nd.

TTFN

Here's A Sobering Thought

   As much as we may not want to think about it, Christmas is exactly 6 months away as of today. I know, it doesn't seem "fair", since we just started summer, but it's true.
   And no, I have not started, and will not start X-Mas shopping yet. I think it's safe to leave it for a few months yet. Enjoy the "worm" I just put in your heads. And start thinking "Merry Christmas"!

TTFN

Happy Summer!

   Today is the first day of summer (in the Northern Hemisphere), and the longest day of the year. In my neck of the woods, the summer solstice hit at 9:54 this morning.
   Now begins the inexorable decline in daylight for the next 6 months. The Autumnal equinox this year is September 23rd, and the Winter solstice is December 21st. Then, we start the process again.
   Wherever you may be, enjoy summer. Winter if you're south of the equator.

TTFN

Throwback Thursday

   As regular viewers will know, I've been going through some of my fathers old slides, scanning them into my home system. Some of then go back more than 50 years, as hard as that is to believe. I already posted one a few blogs ago (see I Admit It), with me draped over a Norton 750.
   This time, we take a trip back to about 1974-75 for this one

   Yup! That's me with the shoulder-length hair. It was a thing "back in the day", and I had it long for a couple of years. Needless to say, I got a good 95% chopped off when I started seriously looking for work.
   Flash forward to 2017, when this beauty was taken

   Yup! That's me with the shoulder-length hair. Again. Quite a bit of difference, isn't there! Why did I grow it out again? No real reason, other than the fact that I could. And I have to give kudos to my employer for not lowering the boom, and telling me to get my ears lowered. The long, flowing locks have since been chopped off, and no, I won't be growing it out again.
   And don't worry. I'm not going to make a habit of posting scans of dad's old slides. Nor will I be doing many more T.B.T's.

TTFN

Raptors Win

   The Toronto Raptors are the 2019 NBA Champions. They beat the Golden State Warriors 114-110, taking the series 4-2.
   It's an historic win for 2 reasons. It's the first ever championship for the Raptors, and it's the first time a team outside the U.S has taken the crown. Congratulations Raptors!

TTFN

Hockey Is Finally Over

   I'll say here and now, I'm not a fan of hockey. I can't remember the last time I say down to watch an entire game, or even part of one for that matter. So why am I wasting my time writing this, and your time reading it? Because the St. Louis Blues

   Have won their first ever Stanley Cup championship. The city got the franchise in the first expansion of the NHL, when the league went from 6 teams to 12. That was back in 1967 (ironically, the last time the Toronto Maple Leafs won the Cup). They beat Boston 4-1 in the 7th and deciding game.
   Having trotted out those statistics, why am I not a fan? Because, as I've said in the past, I feel the season is was too long. The first regular season game in 2018-19 was October 3rd. The cup was decided June 12th. That means if a woman got pregnant at the start of the season, she'd be just 2 weeks premature if she'd delivered the baby last night. If you factor in the pre-season, which started September 18th, she definitely would have given birth
   I can think of only one professional sport that drags on longer. English Premier League Football (which, ironically, I am a fan of). Their season starts August 9th, and wraps up next May 17th, meaning a woman's due date is May 1st. For comparison, baseball started March 20th, and could end as late as October 30th, just over 7 months. The NFL regular season starts September 5th, with the Superbowl February 2nd, 6 months.
   Regardless, congratulations to the Blues on their 1st ever NHL crown.

TTFN

I Admit It

   I'll admit I'm a bit of a poser

   That's me lounging on a 1970-something Norton 750 "back in the day". Problem is, the bike was a friends, not mine. Not that I couldn't ride a motorcycle back then, I could, and did quite often, but I was never allowed to have one of my own.
   Not that I didn't ask. But the request was met with a stare from my dad that said "did you really ask me that?" Followed by the answer "NO". Not sensing the dangerous waters I was now sailing in (we usually didn't contradict dad), I asked "why"? A stern stare followed, along with the answer "because I said so, that's why". Then, I crossed the line by saying "that's not a reason", which was met with "it's all the reason YOU need". And an even sterner stare. Not that dad was an ogre, just strict in his up-bringing.
   Which brings me back to the Norton. My friend said "hop on", which I did, and he took this shot, and another of me actually behind the handlebars. If that makes me a poser, so be it. (The picture, by the way, was among the slides I've been going through this past week.)
  Do I still want to get a motorcycle? Not really. We have no garage, meaning no place to keep it off the street. And then there's the cost of buying and insuring one. So no. I'll stay with 4 wheels for now. But if someone was giving one away.....

TTFN

Back

   It was a relaxing 2 weeks off, but I'm now back and rarin' to go! We didn't do much on our vacation this year. Just a couple of trips to Regina to 1): get my wife's flowers and plants for her garden, and 2): to get my hearing aid cleaned and adjusted.
   About the only thing I did manage to get done was to screen and start scanning into my computer several of the literally hundreds of slides my dad took many, many years ago. Me sister had them, and gave them to me 4 years ago, when I had to go to Calgary for an old friends funeral. They'd been sitting in my mess...home office..ever since, and I decided WTH, and started plouging through them.
   At least 3 circular trays (holding 100 each) were from my folks trip to England and France in 1984, 40 years after dad went into France during the war. I have yet to go through those. I did make a dent in 3 other trays, and several other sets, during my time off. And what a treasure trove they turned out to be!
   Dad had stuff going all the way back to 1968. Will I be sharing a few select ones on this forum? Unfortunately for you, yes. But that's for another time and another post. For now, it's good to be back!

TTFN