#The Lioness

On our last day in Berlin we went to the zoo. It is the second oldest zoo in Germany. Many beautiful animals to see. Unfortunately, we only saw about a third of the zoo and missed many varieties of animals, because it started raining and we didn't have any raincoats. We didn't want to get our clothing wet. They would never have dried out and we left the next day to fly home again. I took many pictures, though. Here is one of my favorites: a beautiful lioness.

Back from our Holiday in Germany

Hello, I'm back.


Some people enjoy traveling, some don’t, and some don’t ever want to travel. We just got back from a three week holiday in Germany. Actually, we came back Tuesday, September 15, but I haven’t had time to do any writing or even just blogging. Too much work to catch up.

The grass in the yard was so high I had to cut it in stages, trimming it a couple of inches with every run. It took three cuttings to bring it back to a normal height. I don’t remember any September when our grass was still so lush and growing so profusely.

Then there was my garden. The peppers, the tomatoes, the beans, and the beets needed to be harvested. Once we had everything out of the garden it needed to be processed. We were busy making Salsa, Peppersauce, canning beets and all the other things one does in the Fall.

We’re almost back to normal. That’s what happens when you’re gone for so long.

I like to travel and experience new things, but I’m always happy to be home again. It makes me realize every time how much I appreciate our way of life and how fortunate we are to be living in a country with wide open spaces, the quiet life, and the opportunity for me to go hunting and fishing.

Traveling in the US is not much different from traveling in Canada. We speak English and we enjoy the same lifestyle. In addition, we can travel by car, allowing us more choices where to go and when.

Traveling to Europe is different. We have to use a plane to get there. I’m not mentioning traveling by ship, because it takes too long to cross the ocean. It used to be easier and more relaxing to fly in a plane, but that has changed after the senseless attack on the trade center on September 11, 2001. Those damned religious fanatics from the Arab countries have made traveling by plane an unpleasant experience.

Going through Security and Customs can take forever resulting in many travelers missing their connecting flights.

Of course, sometimes the inapt personnel working at the airports can also cause a traveler to lose his/her mind.

We flew with Air France. From Winnipeg to Montreal we traveled with WestJet; from Montreal with Air France to Paris, and then to Hamburg, Germany.

Everyone told us that Paris is a huge airport, difficult to maneuver and with great distances between gates, so I had a wonderful an idea. I suffer from back-problems, courtesy of falling off the ladder too many times during my exciting career as an Electrician. Being old enough and having a legitimate reason I decided to fly with assistance, assuming everything would go smoothly.

In Montreal I was picked up by an attendant and loaded into a wheelchair, which I really didn’t need. One of those golf carts would have been fine. We got the VIP treatment and I was wheeled past the controls right into the airplane. That was easy enough. Sitting in a plane for seven hours under those cramped conditions is no picnic and doesn’t do much to help my back, but I passed the time watching the movie ‘Mad Max’; the new version. What a boring, mindless movie. I endured the pain until I was about halfway through the movie and then I couldn’t take anymore. Then I watched another ‘Mall Cop’ movie. It was okay, but I was glad I didn’t have to pay for it.

The food on the Air France plane was surprisingly good. We even got alcohol with it.You get nothing on a WestJet plane except pretzels.

In Paris I was picked up again by an attendant, but this time we were loaded into a minivan and driven across the airport property to another building. It was quite confusing and I was glad we had help. Fortunately, we had nearly three hours stopover and we needed them. It took pretty much that long to get us to our departure gate.

In Hamburg I was wheeled from the plane right to the luggage pickup area. Then we were on our own. I will write about that part of our trip in a future blog.

Going home was a disaster, especially at the Paris airport. They are so disorganized there and the personnel not very concerned about the travelers. We sat in one room along with a score of other travelers who needed assistance waiting for someone to take us to our departure gate. When we had only thirty minutes left until our plane took off, we were understandably getting a little bit anxious. When my wife went to the woman in whose apparent capable hands we had been put and pointed out how little time we had, the woman spoke to her only in French, even though she did speak English. When my wife said she didn’t speak French only English and German, the woman said in a snappish tone, “I speak Arabic,’ and she told my wife to sit down and wait. 'Arabic', that's all I needed to hear to get my hair standing up.

We were not the only ones going crazy. One young woman in a wheelchair lost it and began crying and complaining loudly; she and her male companion took off on their own. I have no idea if they made their plane. Other travelers were also visibly upset.

Finally an attendant came and loaded us and another older couple into a van and drove us to another building and took us up an elevator. We were met by another guy who brought a wheelchair. Then he had to check if our plane had changed gates and walked away with our boarding passes, leaving us frantic. We managed to board our plane ten minutes before it took off. We were the last ones to board.

They were more efficient in Toronto, another huge airport. At least it seemed that way about them being more efficient. They did try hard to get us to our plane. Unfortunately, we had to claim our luggage and then check it again with WestJet. We had help with that and I gave the guy ten bucks for getting our luggage. Then we had to go through Customs and Security. My wife pushed the wheelchair and I didn’t feel right about that, especially since it was not necessary. But there was nobody there to help us. It was a good thing though that she took over, because had we waited for someone to come we would surely have missed our plane.

The other reason we made our plane was the fact that we got special treatment going through Customs; we didn’t have to stand in line but were wheeled right past a VIP Custom’s checkpoint. However, we still had to waste a lot of time going through Security. Once through that, we were loaded onto a golf cart and driven to our gate. We were about halfway there when we heard over the speakers that the plane to Winnipeg has boarded and is ready to take off. Our driver radioed ahead and somebody waited for us with a wheelchair for the last leg of the trip to the plane. My wife ran ahead to let them know we were here. The female attendant pushed me as fast as her feet would move and I have to give her credit for caring so much. She wheeled me past the guy who checked the boarding passes without stopping right to the entrance door of the plane.

We had three minutes left before the plane took off. By this time my wife and I were ready to be institutionalized. There was already a couple sitting in our seats, because they assumed we weren’t coming anymore. Obviously, they had to move.

I will never fly with assistance again! I’d rather walk and endure the physical pain instead of the mental anguish.

#Apples from the Tree

We have an old apple tree. It is the first apple tree we planted in our yard. It is now 21 years old and dying. It is the only survivor from a number of different trees that surrounded it through the years. We’ve had a couple of plum trees. They did produce for a few years and then they died. We’ve had one #Parkland apple tree. It produced nice apples, many of them, but one year it decided to pack it in. We’ve also had a couple of #Goodland apple trees. They lasted only about four years; long enough to give us one small harvest of apples.

I have to mention here that we had two Goodland apple trees when we lived in Winnipeg. They were about thirteen years old and very productive. The year before we move we had 350 pounds of apples. Goodland apples can grow to 3 ½ inches. We’ve had some that were even larger. They taste great but don’t last long, even in the fridge. We gave most of them away. Four years ago I planted two Goodland apple trees on our lot here where we live now and the larger one has over one hundred apples. The branches are bending, because of the many apples so close together. During the last storm we had it dropped more than thirty apples; I hope we don't get another storm like that. The apples won’t be ready to harvest for another three or four weeks. I can’t wait. I planted these two in a more protected part on our property, behind some spruce trees and the seem to like it there.

We live north of Winnipeg and the temperature here is probably a couple of degrees cooler on average. That makes a huge difference. Because of the proximity of buildings and the concrete streets in Winnipeg the heat gets trapped and stays longer. Everything is more protected. Things grow better there. Manitoba is not like BC or Ontario. Fruit trees don’t grow that well here the way they do in the #Okanagan Valley.

The old apple tree goes by the name #‘Battleford’. The apples don’t grow large but they have a nice taste. For the last couple of weeks they’ve been falling off at a rate of three or four each day, but the seeds inside are not quite brown yet. It doesn’t matter. Every day I pick them off the ground, check them for bugs, wash them off and eat them. Nothing better than an apple fresh from the tree. Yesterday I picked the remaining apples. I only got an ice cream pale full of them, but that’s okay. I am surprised this tree is still hanging on and producing. Most of the tree is dead. Every year I’ve cut off a few branches. I use the wood to smoke my fish. Nothing is ever wasted. Even in death this old tree is useful. It’ll be a sad day when I have to cut it down, but my Goodland apple trees will take over by then. There are only so many apples we can eat. By the way, my wife loves them for baking apple cakes.

I love apples, but the store-bought ones just don’t measure up. Most of them are too hard for my taste and they hurt my old jaws.

#Singing like a Canary

We don't have a dog or a cat. They are too much trouble and cost a lot to maintain. We have a canary. His name is Eddie. He's two years old and he entertains us with his beautiful songs. We let him fly around in the sun room and he loves it. When he's ready to go back into his cage, he does without any problems, but before he goes back in he sits on top of his cage for a while. Here is a picture of him on his cage, posing like a proud king. Well--he is the king in our house and we are his servants.

Vegetable/Beef Soup

It is the time of year to enjoy fresh vegetables form the garden and reap the benefits of having a garden in the first place and the hard work I put in. We have an abundance of beans and zucchini right now. We've been eating purple and yellow beans almost every day. Can't get them any fresher than this and they are just so tasty. Beans are so versatile. We boil them, eat them with a cream sauce, make a salad, etc. The zucchini we slice and grill on the BBQ, together with mushrooms and pepper. The peppers are still green, but a few are turning red. Tomatoes are not ready yet, except for the odd one.

Since the temperature has dropped to an acceptable level, my thoughts turned to soup. I love soups. So today I made a Vegetable/Beef soup. Why? Because I had the necessary ingredients at home. My wife doesn't mind if I borrow her kitchen to make soup, as long as I clean up afterward. I love eating soups and I love making them.

I cruised the internet looking for a recipe and found plenty. Not all of them were suitable for me so I sort of put my own recipe together with ideas from what I found. I've made enough soups and do have a certain basic knowledge. When I need more direct information, there is always my wife who I can ask for some advice. But she has to stay out of the kitchen. After all--it is my soup. She has no problem with that. I got all my ingredients together and started chopping and slicing.

Here is the recipe:

Vegetable/Beef Soup

Note: The following recipe is enough for at least 10 people

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 chopped onion

4 cloves of minced garlic

Red pepper flakes (optional)

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. Mrs. Dash

½ tsp. Thyme

1 cubed potato

4 cubed small turnips

3 stalks of celery, thinly sliced

4 chopped carrots

1 small piece of broccoli, diced

2 small yellow zucchini, thinly sliced  (or use green zucchini)

 One handful of yellow beans, sliced into small chunks

2 mushrooms, sliced

1 tomato, chopped

Parsley and celery tops, shredded

2 cups of beef broth

3 ½ cups vegetable broth from vegetable seasoning cubes (Knorr) or powder

Beef bones left over from T-bone steaks  (optional)

*In a large pot sauté onions, garlic, and red pepper flakes (if used)

*Add the hard vegetables: potato, turnips, celery, and carrots and sauté for a couple of minutes

*Add beef stock and vegetable stock

*Add beef bones

*Add spices

*Bring to boil then simmer for 15 minutes until vegetables are almost tender

*Add Mushrooms, zucchini, beans, tomato, parsley and celery tops

*Simmer for 20 minutes (until all vegetables are tender)

Note: I just used whatever vegetables I had on hand. Obviously, they can be substituted with other vegetables or more added. The soup was very tasty but a bit spicy. Go easy on the red pepper flakes.

Is it just me?

Sometimes I wonder if I’m living in a different universe or crossed into another dimension. Why do some people make everything so difficult? I like things to be simple.

I was at Tim Horton for lunch. I’m not a Tim Horton’s fan, but my wife likes the coffee, so I go. I usually just have a soup, but I’m getting a bit tired of eating the same soup all the time. I don’t care for the Classic Chicken Noodle soup, mainly because it has those large butterfly pasta. All you taste is the pasta. I like my chicken noodle soup with regular soup noodles. Don’t like the Harvest Vegetable soup, either, nor the Onion soup. I like the broccoli or cauliflower soup, the Italian Wedding is okay, also. But they don’t always have those.

Anyway, this time I ordered an Italian Sausage sandwich with a soft drink. The girl asked me if I want to make it a meal. It would cost me $6.49 and I would still get a donut with that. It would be cheaper than ordering the sandwich and drink separately. So I said, “Okay.” I don’t mind saving money.

When I looked at the screen that displays what she punches in I noticed that she charged me for each item separately: Sandwich, drink, donut. It came to more than $6.49. When I questioned it, she said that the meal includes a coffee but not a soft drink. Then she said, “I’ll see what I can do.” So she starts explaining what she’s going to do and by this time she lost me. I had no idea what she was actually doing. She started adding and deducting items (My wife also ordered her coffee and bagel). I didn’t look anymore at the screen while listening to the girl. I paid what she told me to pay and went to get my food, feeling like a fool. I didn’t get a donut with my order. They never give you a bill so I couldn’t even check what I paid for. It seemed to me the bill was too high, but I was left with the feeling the whole thing was my fault.

Next time I’ll pay more attention, but mostly I’ll stick to my original order and keep my mouth shut. Why offer something you can’t deliver. All she did was confuse things. Usually, I am always suspicious when somebody tells me they can make it a better deal. Better for whom? Not for me, that’s for sure.

Then we went to Walmart. They were selling peaches by the litre. I remarked to one of the sale’s women that I found it odd to sell peaches by the liter. She gave me this blank look and I said, “You know liquid—liter. Peaches are solid.” Still that blank look. She looked at the peaches and then walked away. My wife said to me, “She had no idea what you were talking about.” I felt like a fool again.

The whole situation is pretty sad. Of course, why am I so surprised? This whole metric system we are supposed to have in Canada is completely screwed up. Everything is a mess. They sell stuff by grams, millimeters, milliliters, liters; kg, by a pound that has only 454 grams instead of 500 g; ounces (how do they fit into a metric system?) meters, inches, etc. There is no rhyme or reason. A wonderful system to confuse buyers. It is difficult to compare, but I carry a metric converter when we go shopping.

We have one of our past Prime Ministers, Pierre Elliot Trudeau, to thank for that mess. He’s the one who introduced the metric system to Canada. It was never implemented the correct way. He also declared Manitoba a Bilingual Province when it definitely isn’t, not with the low percentage of French Speaking citizens living in Manitoba. And now his son Justin is trying to become the next Prime Minister of Canada. I’m afraid what he will screw up should he succeed. He’ll probably sell the country to the minorities. He’s already hugging and kissing them and wants to bring more into Canada so they can change our free country into one similar to the one they are running away from now.

Sorry, now I got carried away again. I’m not really into politics, but at the same time I don’t want my adopted country changed. I like it the way it is. I don’t think that is weird.

Have a good day.

#Surviving the Heat

It is 33 C out there today. 40 C Humidex. That is hot and uncomfortable.

I spent one hour outside today from 11:15 am until 12:20 pm. Not too smart. Midday is the worst time to spend outside doing work when the sun is burning down on you. Not only was it uncomfortably hot, the mosquitoes were also out in full force making my life more miserable.

We have brown spots on our lawn, which means it is infected with a fungus. I sprayed the brown circles with a mixture of skim milk and water. 350 ml of milk to 3 ½ liters of water. It is supposed to kill the fungus. Can’t get any more organic. I’ll have to do it again next week.

What a tedious and demanding job! Especially in this heat. I used a handheld sprayer that holds about 8 liters of water. When full it is quite heavy to carry. And you have to continuously pump it to get pressure. You can’t hurry, because the brown spots need to be soaked with the liquid.

Why did I do that today? Well, it’s been raining a lot and it just so happens I had time today. I should have done it earlier, though. When I came back into the house I felt exhausted with wobbly legs and my face was beet-red from the heat. You don’t realize that while you are doing the job. I took a cold shower immediately and felt better. We didn’t even sit in our sun-room for lunch today because of the heat. The only one enjoying it is our canary.

Thank goodness for air conditioning. I pity the people who don’t have that luxury. They must suffer tremendously. I can still remember when we didn’t have air conditioning. You couldn’t sleep at night because of the stifling heat and the humidity. Never got a good night’s rest. Of course, we were younger then and not as susceptible to the heat they way we are now as we got older. However, we were still working at the time and not being able to sleep affects your performance at work.

Anybody who thinks using milk to spray grass is a waste of good milk I’d like them to know that this milk had gone bad. We’ve been buying #Dairyland milk until now but are finally done with that. We are fed up with it going bad all the time before its expiry date. This is the sixth time in two months that it happened. I wrote the parent company #Saputo a letter of complaint and they sent us a couple of coupons. Well, guess what? The milk we got for the coupons turned bad also. Talk about adding insult to injury! We usually buy our milk at Wal-Mart. Somewhere from the time they bottle the milk until it reaches the shelves of Wal-Mart something goes wrong. We know it isn’t at our end, because we always buy with coolers and ice-packs to bring home perishable goods, and that includes milk. They should not put on their cartons 'Fresh Local Milk' and 'Fresh is never far'. I don't believe this milk is local, anyway.

Tonight we’ll be going to watch ‘Sister Act’ at Rainbow stage in Kildonan Park. Hopefully it isn’t too hot and the mosquitoes aren’t there to watch the play with us. We enjoyed the last two performances ‘Westside Story’ and ‘Les Miserable’. Hopefully, this one is as good. It will be funny.

I went fishing with my friends on Tuesday for Goldeyes. According to the weather people, it was supposed to be 31 C with a mix of sun and cloud. Rain was never mentioned. Well, we had barely begun fishing when it started raining; not just raining but pouring. I pack rain-gear every time I go fishing. As Murphy’s law dictates it, this time I didn’t. It wasn’t supposed to rain.

I remembered that I had a plastic garbage bag in my stuff, so I made a rain cover for myself by cutting a hole into the bottom for my head and two holes for my arms. It did the trick. My arms got wet and my pants were soaked, but my upper body stayed dry. It finally stopped raining and the sun made an appearance. It got hot and our clothes dried again. Another lesson to be learned: Never ever trust the weather people!

Here again is my poem I wrote about the weather people and put on my blog last year:

#The Weather Forecaster's Song

I forecast the weather and I love my job

Because I can’t do no wrong

No matter what I forecast I can’t be blamed

Every day it’s the same sing-song

I will tell you it might rain or it might snow

The sun may even appear

Every night on TV I’ll make a big show

And I do this without fear

I just flip my coin in my secret room

Rain or shine it don’t matter to me

Will I forecast gloom and doom

Heads or tails, what will it be?

Will the sun shine or will there be a storm

To be honest I have no clue

How the weather pattern will perform

Sometimes I truly wish I knew

With weather satellites to track the clouds

And other high-tech gizmos

I still don’t know what it’s all about

None of us weather people really knows

My job is secure, for life you might say

I work for the government you see

With this job I will always stay

For the benefits and the security.

So let me give you some advice

If the weather you want to know

Check in the Farmer’s Almanac

Or just look out of your window

© 2014 Herbert Grosshans

I wish you a cool, pleasant day tomorrow and for the weekend. And don’t put too much faith in the weather forecast.