Craig and Julia Came for a Visit

This past weekend Sandra and I headed to Regina to do a bit of shopping. Just prior to departing for home we picked up Julia to take her back to Hanley with us. One nice thing about Julia is that you never hear a peep from her in the vehicle, or maybe we have been just lucky in the two times we drove her anywhere.

We no sooner arrived home in Hanley and got into the garage when Craig drove up. Excellent timing for sure. Julia took one look out of the garage window and she was on her way to see her dad who she hadn't seen for quite awhile.



Seeing how Craig was visiting, on Saturday night we decided to bbq a lake trout from East Trout Lake that my dad had given us a while back. With Craig, James and I huddled up we were able to get it dressed up for cooking and then wrapped in tinfoil.

After an hour or so we had a wonderfully looking fish for supper.

Now all who know me are aware that I'm just not a great 'fish bone' type of guy. If I get one bone it just turns my whole meal off. However, when we peeled the tinfoil back, most of the fish skin came off stuck to the foil. I was able to grab the main backbone and lift out the whole skeletal of the fish. We all thought we were good to go as far as bones were concerned.

But according to hoyle, I would be the person to find a bone. Actually I found quite a few of the critters. Funny but hardly anyone else found bones, just me. Now I'm not sure if they just were being polite and didn't want to say anything or they really didn't find any. Let me tell you, I did find a few. Mind you these were floating type bones and did not appear to bones that would have been hooked to the back bone so it is darn hard to remove them all.

I managed to get supper down and it definitely was a nice tasting fish. I just wish there weren't so darn many bones to contend with. It would make it a much better supper in my estimation.

Oh yah, for supper Sunday night we had a nice juicy bbq'd rib eye steak done to perfection. No bones to worry about in there for sure.

Sorry Craig, you left too early :-)

Trucker Gets A Holiday

We had James home for the weekend once again this last weekend. It was even better in that Johanna had made up a large batch of cabbage rolls and brought them over for our Friday supper. They were just delicious. But then I normally like the 'rolls' no matter who makes em.

Today James did head back out to Saskatoon to pick up his truck. He was going to get a load into Alberta (not sure whether it was Edmonton or Calgary) and then return on Tuesday.

The bad news is effective midnight Tuesday, the truck is off the road as it has some repairs that need to be fixed before James can take it out once again. When he brought the truck back at the end of last week, it had to go in for it's safety check. At this point in time there is no estimated time that it will get fixed. I would hope that the boss would like to get the truck fixed up so he can get it back out on the road though. When the truck is sitting idle there is no money coming in. However, I'm thinking James wouldn't mind a week or so off though so he can assist Johanna getting moved into her new quarters.

The downside of course is that no miles, no payment of wages for James. So I don't imagine he'll want to sit idle for too long.

Municipal Elections Are Over

The municipal elections are over for another 3 years. At least the main newspapers in the province (Leader Post/StarPhoenix) will be able to go onto covering something other than who is going to win the mayor's job in Saskatoon or Regina. But then I suppose they'll have to rehash why and how come so and so didn't win or why the incumbents actually came through again for at least another week or so.

Not that there was a terrific amount of campaigning in Hanley. Actually it was almost nil, but then again, maybe because I wasn't around the coffee crowd I didn't hear too much. Suits me fine as I have never been a political person. I do vote in all elections (big or small), but I mainly go my own way.

The folks who voted in the Town of Hanley kept 3 people from the previous council and elected 3 new people. According to the Government Relations site on Municipality Details, the 3 returning to council were Linda De Regt, Dwight Thall and Daryl Grindheim. The 3 new people will be Diane Ballard, Donald Measor and Clint Sira. The mayor, Don Lynn was re-elected by acclamation.

I wish them all the best and hope they all are able to provide the citizens of Hanley excellent service during their tour on the town council.

IE7 Menu

If anyone has downloaded and installed the new IE7, one of the first things you will probably notice is that the menu bar is not at the top of the page where it normally resides. There is a quick and easy method to put it back up on top where it belongs, however, you need to create a 'reg' (registery) file and do some playing in the registry to accomplish it.

If you are using Windows XP, then select all the text between the cut lines below but not the actual cut line by using your mouse to select all the text. Then by either using the keyboard (ie Control Key & letter 'C") or the menu Edit/Copy, you copy place the selected text into your clipboard memory.

- - - - - - - Cut Line - - - - - - -


Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Toolbar\WebBrowser]
"ITBar7Position"=dword:00000001

- - - - - - - Cut Line - - - - - - -

Then open up the program 'Notepad' which for XP systems is normally found in All Programs/Accessories.

Paste the information from your clipboard to the open Notepad screen by using the mouse and Edit/Paste or the keyboard (Control Key & letter 'V'). Save the page where you can find it and name it as:

IE7 Menu Top.reg

or any other name you like as long as the ending is '.reg'.

Now make sure your browser (IE7) is closed down.

For the next bit, you will be in your computer's registry and you do not want to be playing around unless you know what you are doing. However for what you are doing is not really difficult and you are only adding a line to the registry. As long as you are careful, there should be no problem. Of course I play in the registry all the time, so it is easy for me to say :-) However, it is always best to make a copy of your registry.

Click on your 'Start Button' and click on 'Run' and then type in the 'Open' dialogue box the word regedit and click on OK. This then opens up your registry. Click on 'File' and then 'Export' to save a copy of your registry to a location on your computer. Name it with something that you will remember and note where the file is stored (something like Reg Backup 20061025 or similiar). After creating the backup, click on 'File' once again and choose 'Import' this time. A dialogue box will come up allowing you to open the file and it states where the default 'Look In:' location. Use the arrows to find where your file is located on your computer and then click on the reg file to select it and then click on 'open'.

You should get a dialogue box come up stating that the 'Information in the IE7 Menu Top.reg file has been successfully entered in the registry'.

Close out of the registry by either clicking on the red X in the top right corner or by using the menu of 'File/Exit'.

When you reopen up the browser (IE7) you may not have any menu but don't be alarmed. Find an open space to the left of your little house (home page) and right click in the grey area with the mouse and you should get a menu. Left click on the top entry in the menu box (ie Menu Bar) and your menu should miraculously appear at the top of your page. It will remain there for the next time and subsequent times you open up the browser.

Remember, if you are not sure of what you are doing, then don't do it. Ask for help from someone who knows. You are in the heart of your computer and major damage can be done in there if you don't know what you are doing.

You have been warned!

Where's James?

I spoke to James at 1:30 pm today and he was traveling in Iowa. He had made a pickup in Minnesota and was now traveling to Swea City, Iowa to pick up the rest of his load. At the time of his call he was only about 30 minutes out of Swea City. After loading he was going to head for Sioux Falls, South Dakota to spend the nite.

It is interesting to note, that if James does keep on the current highway he is traveling on (Hwy 9), which he should, he'll go right through the Spirit Lake and Okobiji area of Iowa. My old friend Jonnie, that used to live in Norway, is now living right in that area. When she moved out of Norway, she headed back to her home country/state which was Iowa and settled up in the Okobiji area. Jonnie has been restoring a Volkswagen convertible beetle for the last year or so. She took the car totally apart right down to the frame and has been rebuilding it piece by piece. She has sent pics every now and then of her progress and it is just amazing in what she is doing. I'm certain the 'Bug' will be a way better than when it originally came off the assembly line.

James, if you see the best looking restored Volkswagen convertible you have ever seen, toot the horn and say hello to Jonnie.

Jonnie, if you see a red tractor unit with 'Wind River' on the doors pulling an extra wide load, get out of the way as it James the crazy Canuk heading for home in Saskatchewan.




After James overnites in Sioux City, he should be traveling back north and expects to arrive back in Hanley probably on Friday. There is a big wedding in town and he doesn't want to miss the due. A local gal that grew up and joined the RCMP is back home this weekend getting hitched up.

Should be a rockin' town in Hanley this weekend.

Gotta Love This Weather

Sam and I headed off to Saskatoon early this morning with deep frost around on every vehicle window and on the ground. The sun gained strength and dryed everything up and the day turned into just a gorgeous one.

I was doing a bit of work at my mom's house and had to go out to the truck to get some tools. I was able to go out and back 3-4 times and didn't need a jacket. There was no wind to speak of and the sun was shining. I paused and just took a look around and enjoyed the time. Any day in latter October that we can get like today is just a huge plus in my view.

I also had a very nice surprise when I opened my email and found I had received an email from a former co-worker who I had lost touch with the last few years. Definitely brought back memories from the good old days in North Battleford. Mind you a few of the less than good memories so to speak from the move to Regina also surfaced.

Not that everything in Regina was so horrible. There were a lot of good people involved in the amalgamation of the RCMP communication centers who gave (and still are giving) their utmost to the citizens of the Province in a very trying time. However, for a lot of the folks that had to move it was a fairly upsetting transfer that we were not prepared for. In some aspects it is still debatable whether the RCMP made the correct move when they closed all of the Centers down in the Province. Of course if you speak with any of the people that were involved in the decision to amalgamate, they would never recant as that would mean they came to the wrong conclusion 10 years ago.

So be it, nothing I can do about it anyway at this late stage and it really doesn't mean a darn to me now a days. It happened in Saskatchewan and every other Province in Canada. As a matter of fact, I read more and more on the net that many States in the US are also going the route of amalgamation of dispatch centers. The folks involved do have my sympathy as I know they will be going through some trying times.

Life does go on though.

IE7 Problems Already

It would appear that the new verion IE7 already has a security flaw as written up by Infopackets Windows Newsletter.

According to security gurus from Secunia, the final version of Internet Explorer 7 has been released with an information disclosure flaw. Now this is not a major problem as there definitely are some problems if anyone wanted to prey on this flaw. By reading the writeup at Microsoft Watch you will get an idea of how hard it would be to actual take advantage of the flaw.

The site states: quote

"While it is nearly impossible to exploit this flaw to launch a spoofing or phishing attack, as an attacker would first have to lure an IE user to a fake Web site and know for sure which other secure site might be open in an IE tab in the same browser session, it is strange that Redmond allowed this to slip through."

unquote

The flaw can be tested in your copy of the browser at Secunia Test.

It is worth noting that this same flaw was in the IE6 version of the browser and Microsoft didn't fix it for the new version. One method to fix the flax is to turn off 'active scripting' through Internet Options on the Tools menu. However, by doing that you are not able to use a lot of internet sites as scripting is used in many sites nowadays. I would hope that Microsoft brings out a security update for this problem asap. Especially with all the press the flaw has been getting already.

For now, prudent surfing would be in order. If you are using your banking site, ensure you only have 1 tab open in the current browser session.

Where's The Trucker?

I did hear from James today around 3:30 p.m. He had dropped his load off in Iowa and was just approaching Rockford, Illinois to get another load. I guess he did get held up at the border at Pembina yesterday for a couple hours. At the time he had no idea what was happening, but the border even had dogs out snooping around.

Of course today we know 'what' with the news of the idiots and their web site speaking of blowing up NFL stadiums. Gosh you sure hope they find out who these people are and 'throw the book' at them!

James has about 3 pickups to load and then should be heading back north. He is likely going to head back up towards Winnipeg to unload. From there he just isn't sure. Apparently part of the load is for western Canada, so maybe he'll be back through this way on the weekend.

It is interesting that last night when James was parked for the night, he could actually pick up 6-7 TV channels. As he says "None were French either" !! Hey, that is just like cable and sure a lot better than the 'farmer vision' he normal gets.

Keep on truckin' James :-)

Final Lawn Trim

It wasn't the warmest day of the year today, however, at least it hasn't rained or snowed for the last couple of days. I figured I'd better take what I can as there won't be too many more nicer type days. I didn't have to wear a togue, so it wasn't bad.

So out came the lawn mower and I went over the yard a couple times to ensure I got an even cut. Of course I also was able to 'suck' up the leaves that have fallen (blown in), etc. I still can't believe that the grass is so green and lush looking yet. The lawn hasn't gone dormant at all yet even with the cold weather we have had the last couple weeks.

Once I got the lawn cut, I then fertilized with the 'winter' fertilizer. This stuff is for late in the fall and I do believe today would definitely qualify. I then trimmed the rose bushes down, and did a little other cleaning in the garden, etc. The only thing I haven't be able to do is to root-till the garden and the flower beds. This isn't a huge problem as I'll have to do it again in the spring anyhow. The ground is just too wet to be able to till up with any great success at this point in time.

All told, it took me about 3-3 1/2 hours to get it all done. I do have some more work to do outside, but that is for another day. I had enough for today.

IE7 Final

For those of you who have been using the new IE 7 RC1, the final version of Internet Explorer 7 was released late Wednesday night. Just click on the link and it will take you to Microsoft's site for the download. I always like to 'save' the file for later downloading. That way if for some reason I uninstall or whatever, I can just 'run' the file again.

CTV had a fairly decent writeup on the new IE Web Browser. This gives you an idea of what the new browser is all about.

A lot of what is in the new browser is to play catch up with Firefox and others. Of course it has the 'tabbed' browsing that Firefox and Opera are noted for. However, it also has improved security to help users surf safer.

I have been running the IE 7 Release Candidate 1, and prior to the that the Beta, for the last couple months. As the program progressed from the beta stage to the release candidate stage, I noted that the browser got better and better. Now I've only had the final version installed and running since yesterday, but I do see that it is a bit quicker loading then the RC1 version.

Anyone who is running Windows with automatic updates will be receiving notification of a 'security update' in the next month or so. The users will get the opportunity to elect to upgrade or not. Of course you will need to let Microsoft ensure you do not have a pirated version of their operating system before you can get the new version of IE. This new IE7 is the browser that will be part of Microsoft's new Vista operating system scheduled for release this January.

If you choose to go with the new version of the IE 7, then you will first of all need to download the file which can be found at New Internet Explorer 7. I would suggest to 'save' the file to a location that you can find after the download finishes (Desktop, Download folder, etc). Once you have the file downloaded, you then need to double click on the downloaded file to commence the install.

The first thing you will notice is that you need to 'Agree to the Install' and a 'validation' of your computer. Once that is done, you continue through the dialogue boxes which ultimately end in a 'restart' of your system.

Once your computer restarts, you should notice a dialogue box in the top left of your screen. This dialogue box shows that the system is automatically importing your settings from your previous browser (IE6). This would be your 'Favourites', 'Home Page', etc.

You'll notice that the icon for the IE is changed a bit, but it is still evident that it is for IE. The first time you open up your browser, you will be taken to Microsoft 'Run Once' site. The screen should give you an option of your settings. The first setting is for your 'Default Search Engine'. For those of you who use 'Google' or 'Yahoo' or whatever as your search engine, then you want to click in the 'Keep Default Search Engine'. The other option is to choose form a list.

Then going down the page, you have 'Optional Settings'. Place a check mark in the 'Use ClearType' selection.

Next is to 'Customize your Webpages'. You should click the selection to 'Use current settings English (United States). Of course if you wish, you can click on the other selection and choose your own language.

With that all done, you then click on 'Save Settings'.

A new dialogue box should pop up giving you the option to take a 'tour of the new IE7', 'customize with add-ons', or go to your 'Home Page'. If you select to go to your 'Home Page' you will be transferred to your old home page that you had in your previous version on IE. However, just as the page is coming up, you should be shown a dialogue box to 'Turn on Phishing Filter'. I suggest you select this and then continue on with 'OK'. You will then be taken to your normal home page.

Of course if you elect to take a tour of your IE7, you will be able to see some of the new things about the browser.

If you select to 'customize with add-ons', you will be able to choose a variety of add-ons for your browser. Some of these add-ons are probably going to be needed as your surf, whereas, some are just sort of nice to have. If you elect not to view the add-ons at this point in time, you can always go to IE Add-Ons at a later time and choose some of the programs.

Seeing as this is a new program from Microsoft, I'm sure there will be some updates in the immediate future to ensure that the browser should work as it was meant to.

So far, so good though.

The Truck Driver's Schedule

As I said earlier, the roads in Saskatchewan were not really great yesterday. James had to head up to Vonda to pick up a load and then headed to Winnipeg. He took the route of traveling back down Hwy 41 to the edge of Saskatoon and then east on Hwy 5 to Hwy 2 and then south to Hwy 16. That little jaunt took him just over 2 hours. Believe me, he was not looking forward the rest of the trip.

James did call tonite and he made it to Winnipeg with no problems. He is now sitting in Morris, Manitoba for the nite. Tomorrow he'll head down to Crystal City for a load of hay and then he is off to Nashua, Iowa.

After he unloads his hay in Iowa, he has no idea where he'll be going. One of the other drivers that is traveling the same direction as James thought James would likely be heading to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. If not, then James figures he should be back in Canada sometime Friday night.

One good thing is that James does have new rubber on his tractor unit. Interesting though is that the tires are a bit smaller than the previous tires. While driving today, he figures his speedometer is out 5-6 kms. He was going to mention that to the boss in case someone else drives the truck. I advised him that with smaller tires, they would go around quicker, so in essence he would be shown as driving more miles than he actually did.

Miles are dollars :-)

Short A Pint

I was sweating it a bit with the way the roads were yesterday, however, today on the way into the city, the roads were just fine. I made it to my doc's appointment which lasted all of 40 seconds. He just did a quick review of what was happening and retold me that the original orthopedic surgeon he had sent my file to felt I should see Dr. Woo. Apparently Dr. Woo has more expertise in the pelvis area.

My doc said about all he knew was that Dr Woo would likely be seeing me in 2-3 weeks from the day his office called my doctor's office. That was Oct 12th so early November is looking good.

The good doctor handed me a lab slip and said go give a pint or so for some tests. So I headed over to the lab at the Co-op mall and gave a couple vials of the good red stuff. We also did a quick bit of shopping and then headed for home.

Funny though, after supper tonite I was sitting watching TV and zongo I was sleeping in an instant. I didn't get up extra early or anything special, so I put it down to being down a few ounces. After a couple winks I was back to normal.

Now it is just waiting for Dr Woo.

Police Radios In Saskatchewan

I received an email from one of the groups I belong to. This particular email was about the new statewide radio system that Florida was going to install. The fellow that originally sent the email is the founding member of the Yahoo Group 911Lifeline and currently works for New York Police Department.

A litle history is in order. Back in 1996 the RCMP were in the process of installing a new radio system for the Province of Saskatchewan. This system was originally put together by a company called Ericsson from the USA. SaskTel bought the system from Ericcson and installed it into Saskatchewan as FleetNet.

Of course the RCMP communication center in Regina had this new fleetnet system installed and piggy backed it onto their VHF radio system. The new system was going to be the best radio system ever and the best thing since sliced bread. While we in the RCMP were getting used to the system, we had a couple technicians from the head office of Ericsson in our office instructing the dispatchers on how to use the system.

The one fellow I was talking to had just finished up installing the Ericsson system in Dade County, Florida prior to coming to Regina. Now for those that don't know or don't watch CSI Miami, this is the county around the city of Miami, Florida. The technician advised me that the dispatchers in Miami really liked the new system. I enquired as to how many patrol units each Dade County dispatcher would look after at one time. He replied about 20, but it could slip up to about 25 units for a tremendously busy zone.

I showed him one of RCMP zones and advised him that this particular zone had about 150 patrol units to look after. The Province of Saskatchewan at the time was divided into 4 radio zones (5 when there was manpower available to man the position). The technician could not believe that we would handle that many patrol units with one dispatcher. So we counted them up on the screen and we were showing about 145 at the time, but more to come on duty for the evening. This fellow just about fell out of his chair and was just blown away. He just had to get his camera and take a picture of this as the folks back home in the States and the dispatchers in Dade County would never believe him if he had no proof. By the way, this was the Zone 2 area of Saskatchewan which encompasses the Craig through Saskatoon to North Battleford and Lloydminster corridor.

To make a long story short, this SaskTel Fleetnet system just never flew with the RCMP so the RCMP decided to go with another company. This system is currently being installed in Saskatchewan at present by the new company M/A-Comm. I really haven't heard how they are making out, but it does seem to be slow going so far.

Now here is a copy of the email I received (note the company that is supplying the new statewide system): Quote:

--- In 911Lifeline@yahoogroups.com, Michael Wallach
wrote:

Recently, Florida Governor Bush touted the new state-wide
communications system. He was particularly proud of its
interoperability capabilities, saying that it is a "model
system." The governor does have much to be proud of for sure. And
it is true that the interoperability of the system is very
impressive. But apparently Florida intends to secede from the Union.
Why do I say that? Because the state choose to implement a M/A-Com
system.

M/A-Com uses a proprietary protocol that is not compatible with APCO
P-25, or for that matter, any other system or scanner. Therefore,
despite all of their capability, they still have no interoperability
with the Federal government or any other state that they may need to
call upon for mutual aid.

Originally this was supposed to be a Motorola system, and had
actually gone to contract and started development. For many reasons
in a long and sordid story, Motorola was replaced by M/A-Com.

It makes you wonder why it is still so difficult to make
comprehensive decisions that consider all the details. Did I say
details? I meant important considerations. Hans Christian Anderson
would understand.

Unquote:

Gee you wonder if lightening would strike twice for a radio system for the Province of Saskatchewan. It appears that this new M/A-Comm system being installed in Florida is not compatible with anything else in the USA at present.

Any bets it will be any different in Canada?

A Football Day

As we couldn't travel to Regina today to see the Riders play in person, Sam and I had second best. We got to watch the Hanley Sabres trounce Loreburn Aztecs 63 vs 26. Of course this is high school football, but it was interesting. It was a little cool out but definitely not too bad. Of in small town Saskatchewn you get to sit in our truck around the field to watch the game. However, we refused to start the truck up and run the heater :-)

You do have to get into the spirit of the game you know!

With the Hanley win, they now get home field advantage in the first round of the upcoming playoffs which start on Oct 21st. Their oponents for this game will once again be the Loreburn Aztecs.

Go Hanley Go !!

Then this evening we were able to see on TSN the last home game of the regular season of the Riders. As it was getting near the end I was afraid to watch in case I jinxed them and they lost. The Riders tried a couple times to loose it, but to my thoughts, they certainly played a lot better than last Monday.

The Wayward Wanderer

James didn't make a lot of miles this last week. In fact he had more sitting waiting then driving. He was coming back from North Dakota on Wednesday and had made it to almost Portage when he called. The snow was so heavy in that area he just had to call and tell me he saw his first ski-dooer of the year. The ditches had almost 8 inches of snow in them so the sleds were out partaking with the conditions.

The roads certainly weren't the best, however, once he turned off Highway 1 just west of Portage, they improved considerably. James was travelling up Highway 16 enroute to Yorkton.

Around Shoal Lake, Manitoba he almost filled his drawers though. A smaller Cavalier type car was coming at him and the driver lost control in the ice. James is not sure how the guy missed running head on into the semi, but he missed by about a foot. The car rolled a few times into the ditch while James locked the truck up in trying to get stopped.

James ran back to the car thinking that he was about to see a body due to the damage to the vehicle. The windows were all smashed out and the drivers door was open when he got to the vehicle. Of course he felt the driver was thrown out, but to his surprise the driver was at the back of the car trying to stuff his belongings back into the trunk. The fellow appeared to be fine other than maybe a little shookup. The young fellow was enroute to Winnipeg to University and had his car packed with his belongings.

After a short chat, James and the driver got back to James rig and into the warmth where the fellow used James phone to call CAA and a few others. The main thing was that he didn't have any injuries whatsoever. This guy must of had an angel riding co-pilot with him on his drive.

James finally made it to Yorkton and spent the night. He had to drive about 30-40 minutes out of the city up into the Canora area in the morning to offload part of his load. Once he got there, the farmer refused to take delivery of the skidder as he couldn't find a serial number on the equipment. The farmer called the place in Manitoba that had loaded James and the fellow there tried to explain to the farmer where the serial number was without success. One of the manager's then had to head out from Morden, Manitoba and drive to the Canora location. Of course James got to sit and wait his arrival.

Once the manager did arrive he told them where the serial number was and James climbed underneath and got the number for the farmer. Even with that the farmer refused to take delivery. So back to Yorkton with the load and eventually James got it unloaded at a local service center.

He then continued on to Saskatoon and then ended up back in Hanley at about 10:30 p.m. He'll get to spend a couple days here and then he has to head back to Manitoba for another load on Sunday...

Sickie

Poor Sam woke up on Tuesday morning without a voice, just a crackly/raspy sound coming out. She was fine on Monday night, but Tuesday it hit with a vengeance. The sore throat morphed into a full blown cold with all the trimmings. Just great!

Of course with Sandra these times are always worse then most people in that she can't normally take any medications to assist herself because of the meds that she takes everyday. She sucks on Halls and drinks a hot lemon tea every now and then to assist with her sore throat and that is about it.

Yesterday she got up bright and early as she normally does, however, once I got up she headed straight back to bed and stayed there for most of the day. She didn't sleep a lot, but she did get some rest which I think helped. The bad part is that with not being mobile, her leg gets stupid and doesn't want to work as it should.

The cold is progressing and she is getting better everyday, but she still has a bit to go. Hopefully she'll feel better today.

It Figures

I was just thinking today how my leg/hip was starting to feel not too bad once again. This is after the doctors and others twisted my leg around like a pretzel at the nuclear medicine and the Imaging Center last month. Well today my doctor's office called to advise that the specialist (orthopedic surgeon) would be getting to see me shortly (next 2-3 weeks). However, the specialist wanted to get some blood work done prior to my visit with him. My doctor wanted me to come in early next week so that I can get some blood tests done.

I don't have a problem with the blood work, but I know that I'm in for some more twisting and bending and I'll have one sore hip again for awhile.

I guess that is what you call progress. We'll see. . .

Anyone Needing Sleep?

For some folks that work shift work, there is a need to assist themselves with the sleeping during the day. A lot of people use something to create white noise for them. This entails anything that puts out some noise but not enough to keep people awake. I used a fan whereas some people use a radio set off the channel for just static or other means.

I came upon the Sound Sleeping net site. It is interesting in that you can play background noise to assist you in sleeping. When I came upon the link for the site, I just had to visit to see what it was about. You can try it out and see what you think with the various different sounds.

To try out the various sounds, you left click with your mouse once to select the indivdual sound. Then click again and hold down the 'left mouse' button. Your 'mouse pointer' should turn to a hand. Continue to hold down the mouse button and move the 'hand' to the up to increase the volume level. You can then move the indicator left or right to move from your left to right speakers (or in the center for both speakers). You can select more than one different sound and combine them. Just select one sound and choose your level and then select the second (and third, etc). I did find it a bit strange when the first sound was for a drum but some of the others are very pleasing (to my thinking).

These sounds remind me of a course I once took and part of the course was how to relieve stress after a hectic shift. We were given VCR tapes with a movie of the ocean and the waves coming in. The idea was to watch the picture and let your mind float on the waves. Your stress was supposed to float away as well. At the time it was darn interesting and it did work to level your stress levels.

Some of the sounds on the 'Sound Sleeping' site would probably do the trick for a lot of people and allow them to slow down the persons metabolism so they fall asleep. These sounds block out the background noise that are around us all of the time and allow the person to relax. For folks that have never tried to sleep during the day when the normal world is in motion it might seem a little strange. However, for any people that have worked shift work, it is just another tool to assist the individual sleep.

Heck, I still use a fan most of the time to sleep even now. The fan just blocks out the background noise (or as now, the lack thereof) and allows me to get a restful sleep.

Time of the Year

For the last couple of days, it certainly has felt like fall was in the wind. At 10:15 a.m. today we were receiving a light rain in Hanley. I was sitting at the kitchen table reading the Star Phoenix. One minute I looked down and the next I looked up and big white snow flakes were coming down. The snow got heavy enough to impair the view across the street. I thought we were going to have our first blizzard of the year.

Of course not though. After about 10 minutes, the snow changed back to rain and then petered out to nothing. Just prior to the snow, Sam had asked what the outside temperature was so I took a look at our gauge. It showed 2.7 C. As the snow changed to rain and then stopped, I again looked at the gauge. The temperature was now 0.4 C.

About this time James called all excited saying he was in Manitoba and it was snowing there. I advised him that it was also snowing here. He then cursed a little bit stating that he needed new tires for his truck in the near future. I guess he was dropping something off at a farmer in the Saltcoats area and he nearly got stuck. This was on just wet grass so you can imagine what the nice snow and ice would do. Hopefully the boss agrees and puts new mitts on James truck in the near future.

James is enroute to Fargo, North Dakota. From there he is heading back to Manitoba to pick up a load and then on to Moosomin, Sask and ultimately Grande Prairie, Alberta. It would be nice if on his drive through Saskatoon, he can gets some new tires for his truck. Grande Prairie is a lot further north than Hanley, so I'm sure it is getting a lot cooler than we are here.

James was glad he was heading south once again. He hoped it was warmer there than what he had to go through last nite. It got darn cool in the truck overnite. One bright spot was that he actually was able to watch CTV tv (probably out of Yorkton) last night. When he shut the truck down, the wavy lines even departed from the tv screen :)

Oh to be able to watch 'farmer vision' once again!

Thanksgiving

As I am typing this I note that another Thanksgiving Day has passed into history. I caught a quick blurb on the idiot box of why we celebrate Thanksgiving in Canada and it got me to thinking.

Of course there is so much hype of the United States Thankgiving and the pilgrims and the whole nine yards. It appears that some in Canada's are getting confused with the American day as we are ever more flooded with the American media. Even in the news report when the reporter interviewed people on the street a lot mentioned the pilgrims.

I did a little searching around and came up with a net site on Thanksgiving In Canada. The site states that originally the day was started for the English explorer Martin Frobisher who was attempting to find a route to the Far East. He didn't succeed, however he did establish a settlement in Canada. The story continues on to the reason we celebrate Thanksgiving on the second Monday in October and what we celebrate now. That being Canadians giving thanks for a successful conclusion of the harvest that has just transpired.

After entertaining the 3 grandkids since Thursday, I found another reason to 'give thanks'. Giving thanks that the kids went home. Now don't take this the wrong way, we both love having the kids here visiting and welcome them any time. However, we do find that with three active children, they do keep you running and in constant motion. Of course both Sam and I are not used to younguns any longer.

They are continually making noises (talking, tv, computer, slamming doors, etc). Once Sheila and Wendall and the girls departed, the quietness was almost deafening. Both Sam and I let out a large sigh on their departure. Mind you it had been a long day for us in that we were up late last night, up early this morning and then a full day getting the fixings done up for supper. Sandra was just tuckered out and hit the pillow prior to 9 p.m.

Thank goodness Sheila was here to assist with the pies, cooking up the cabbage rolls and the organizing of the other duties. Supper was only a little bit late but who was counting. Everyone went away from the table well stuffed and satisfied with the meal.

I always enjoy the grandkids coming to visit but I also enjoy when they leave....

Where's James?

James did check in today and he wasn't terrifically happy. He has been sitting in Valleyview, Alberta since yesterday waiting for some direction by the boss. Now he is on the move once again. This time he is heading to Grande Prairie, Alberta to pick up a load. As it is late in the day he won't get his load until tomorrow (Thursday).

As far as James knows, the load is destined for West Viginia. However, James is not expecting he will get to take the load all the way. The boss was mentioning that maybe he would have James drop the trailer in Lloydminster and then head to B.C. for another load. Of course one of the other drivers would then pick up the West Virginia load and carry on.

A quick 'Streets and Trips' check by myself shows that the West Virginia trip would be about 4100 kilometers and would likely take about 5 days. That would be nice for James. Especially if the load was not a totally ugly type of load. The other nice part would be that he would be able to come back through Saskatoon (and Hanley) and maybe stop off for a day or so (hopefully).

However, as James said, "He is the junior man on the totem pole". So who knows what will transpire. He is not really desirous of heading to BC until he gets some new mitts for his truck. BC is not his favourite province to travel to at the best of times. His truck does need new rubber and with the winter months coming, it is even a less favourite province. However, if he does do a trip there now, then maybe he can stay away for a couple of months.

My thoughts are that winter usually lasts longer than a couple of months (especially in the mountains). It may be better to get some idea of the geography sooner than later. But of course it is not me doing the driving!

Anyone Have Stress?

I would imagine that every now and then everyone is going to go through some stress in their lives. Mind you mine has dropped drastically since I moved out of the big city and the occupation I had. However, there is still every day stress that we all have.

Through one of my newsgroups that I belong to, I came upon a site that allows you to take an anonymous stress test. Of course it is only as accurate as the input you enter into the test. If you are truthful, you should get a fairly accurate reading. If you are not truthful, then you are just kidding yourself.

Now this site is through the New York Police Department. You can access the site by just clicking on the underlined link. The link at the top of the page on the site takes you through a few questions (30) and gives you a score...

You have to fill out all of the blanks on the test including one for 'rank'. Just put in anything in the field (such as anonymous). Then there are 30 questions to answer. At the end of the test you click on 'submit' and it gives you a score.

I found it interesting that using my thoughts from when I was working I got a score of 45. Then I re-did the test and got a score of 18 for nowadays. There is quite a difference in the scores. Of course my 45 score was my thinking back to when I was working so it may not be totally accurate. If anything, the stress levels would have been higher. Mind you when working I (and all of my co-workers) visited a shrink every year or so. From these visits the professional was able to judge how you were doing in your life.

A score between 16-30 means you may be experiencing moderate stress. With my score of 18 for now, there still is a bit of stress, however, this is probably a much different stress than previous. Just everyday living causes you some stress and of course my 'broken pelvis' is not helping much either :)

So how did you do?

The Rolling Stones Are Coming

I talked to James at noon and he advised that he had just cleared Customs at Portal and is now back in Canada. While he was going through Customs the Rolling Stones stage and trailers were there. The company hauling the equipment is utilizing US trucks to haul the trailers to the border. They then take the trailers across and then Canada trucks take over.

Meanwhile, James says he actually got to touch the stage on his way through. Sadly, he was not one of the folks that were going to take over trucking the trailers to Regina for the concert this weekend.

James is not certain where he is headed, but if no changes are made, he'll be taking his sweepers all the way into Calgary.